I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1440 

To provide for the issuance of a Great Lakes Restoration Semipostal Stamp. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 28, 2019 

Mr. WALBERG (for himself, Mr. RYAN, Mr. MOOLENAAR, Mr. HUIZENGA, Ms. 

SLOTKIN, Mr. MITCHELL, Mr. KILDEE, Mrs. DINGELL, and Mr. LATTA) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

Oversight and Reform, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of 

such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for the issuance of a Great Lakes Restoration 

Semipostal Stamp. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Great Lakes Restoration Semipostal Stamp Act of 

6 2019’’. 

7 (b) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 


pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 1440 IH

1 (1) The Great Lakes consist of Lake Michigan, 

2 Lake Huron, Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, and Lake 

3 Superior, and border the States of Michigan, Wis4 consin, Minnesota, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Pennsyl5 vania, and New York. 

6 (2) The Great Lakes watershed provides habi7 tats for numerous fascinating species of wildlife. 

8 (3) The Great Lakes have exceptional sur9 rounding parks, forests, shorelines, and islands, 

10 which are a source of recreation through swimming, 

11 hiking, picnics, boating, fishing, hunting, and wild12 life watching. 

13 (4) The Great Lakes region is currently home 

14 to 27 million people. 

15 (5) The Great Lakes are the largest surface 

16 freshwater system on Earth, with over 20 percent of 

17 the world’s fresh water supply. 

18 (6) The Great Lakes are the source of drinking 

19 water for over 40 million people and 56 billion gal20 lons of water a day for municipal, industrial, and ag21 ricultural use. 

22 (7) The Great Lakes are vital for the region’s 

23 economy, attracting tourism and providing transpor24 tation for goods. 


pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 1440 IH

1 (8) The Great Lakes region’s environment and 

2 economy depend on the health and well-being of the 

3 Great Lakes. 

4 (9) The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has 

5 played a critical role in restoring the Great Lakes. 

6 (10) The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is 

7 vital in combating the introduction of invasive spe8 cies into the Great Lakes. 

9 (11) The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is 

10 pivotal in mitigating harmful algal blooms. 

11 (12) The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative 

12 has restored over 250,000 acres of habitat. 

13 SEC. 2. GREAT LAKES RESTORATION STAMP. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—In order to afford a convenient 

15 way for members of the public to contribute to funding 

16 for the operations supported by the Great Lakes Restora17 tion Initiative, as described under the fourth undesignated 

18 paragraph under the heading ‘‘Administrative Provisions, 

19 Environmental Protection Agency’’ in Public Law 111–88 

20 (123 Stat. 2938; commonly known as the ‘‘Interior De21 partment and Further Continuing Appropriations Act for 

22 Fiscal Year 2010’’), the United States Postal Service shall 

23 issue a semipostal stamp (referred to in this Act as the 

24 ‘‘Great Lakes Restoration Semipostal Stamp’’) in accord25 ance with the provisions of this section. 


pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 1440 IH

1 (b) COST.—The Great Lakes Restoration Semipostal 

2 Stamp shall be offered at a cost equal to the cost of mail3 ing a letter weighing 1 ounce or less at the nonautomation 

4 single-piece first-ounce letter rate, in effect at the time 

5 of purchase, plus a differential of not less than 25 percent. 

6 (c) OTHER TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—The issuance 

7 and sale of the Great Lakes Restoration Semipostal 

8 Stamp shall be governed by the provisions of section 416 

9 of title 39, United States Code, and regulations issued 

10 under such section, subject to subsection (b) and the fol11 lowing: 

12 (1) DISPOSITION OF PROCEEDS.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—All amounts becoming 

14 available from the sale of the Great Lakes Res15 toration Semipostal Stamp shall be transferred 

16 to the Environmental Protection Agency for the 

17 purpose of funding the operations of the Initia18 tive described in subsection (a), through pay19 ments which shall be made at least twice a 

20 year. 

21 (B) PROCEEDS NOT TO BE OFFSET.—In 

22 accordance with section 416(d)(4) of such title 

23 39, amounts becoming available from the sale 

24 of the Great Lakes Restoration Semipostal 

25 Stamp (as so determined) shall not be taken 


pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 1440 IH

1 into account in any decision relating to the level 

2 of appropriations or other Federal funding to 

3 be furnished in any year to the Initiative identi4 fied in subsection (a). 

5 (2) DURATION.—The Great Lakes Restoration 

6 Semipostal Stamp shall be made available to the 

7 public for a period of at least 5 years, beginning no 

8 later than 12 months after the date of the enact9 ment of this Act. 

10 (3) STAMP DEPICTIONS.—Stamps issued under 

11 this Act shall depict images of each of the five Great 

12 Lakes. 

13 (4) LIMITATION.—The Great Lakes Restoration 

14 Semipostal Stamp shall not be subject to, or taken 

15 into account for purposes of applying, any limitation 

16 under section 416(e)(1)(C) of such title 39. 

17 (d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this Act, the term 

18 ‘‘semipostal stamp’’ refers to a stamp described in section 

19 416(a)(1) of title 39, United States Code. 

Æ 


pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS