II

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 429

To redesignate the legal public holiday of ‘‘Washington’s Birthday’’ as ‘‘Presidents’ Day’’ in honor of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and

Franklin Roosevelt and in recognition of the importance of the institution

of the Presidency and the contributions that Presidents have made to

the development of our Nation and the principles of freedom and democracy.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

FEBRUARY 12, 1999

Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. CLELAND, Mr. GRAMS, Mr.

DASCHLE, Mr. DEWINE, Mr. LAUTENBERG, and Mr. LEVIN) introduced

the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee

on the Judiciary

A BILL

To redesignate the legal public holiday of ‘‘Washington’s

Birthday’’ as ‘‘Presidents’ Day’’ in honor of George

Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin Roosevelt

and in recognition of the importance of the institution

of the Presidency and the contributions that Presidents

have made to the development of our Nation and the

principles of freedom and democracy.

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

2 The Senate finds that—

3 (1) great American Presidents have led our

4 country through its greatest challenges and crises,

5 and advanced the principles of freedom and democ6 racy upon which our country was founded;

7 (2) President George Washington, father of our

8 country, provided critical leadership to launch our

9 Nation’s experiment in democracy and set high

10 standards for the Office of President of the United

11 States;

12 (3) President Abraham Lincoln, whose strength

13 and wisdom guided the Nation through its gravest

14 domestic crisis, overcame the forces of division to

15 preserve our democratic system, ended the blight of

16 slavery, and inspired a new commitment to the prin17 ciples of freedom, justice, and equality;

18 (4) President Franklin Roosevelt led our Nation

19 through the tragedy of the Great Depression and the

20 fight against tyranny in World War II;

21 (5) the leadership and dedication of great Presi22 dents have brought peace, prosperity, freedom, and

23 greater equality to the American people;

24 (6) the Office of the President of the United

25 States is an important symbol of liberty and freedom

26 to nations throughout the world; and
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1 (7) an occasion should be established on which

2 our Nation can acknowledge the important contribu3 tions that great Presidents have made to the devel4 opment of our Nation and the advancement of the

5 principles of freedom and democracy upon which it

6 is founded.

7 SEC. 2. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

8 It is the sense of the Senate that in order to enhance

9 the understanding and study of the institution of the Pres10 idency and the important contributions of the persons who

11 have occupied the Office of the President of the United

12 States, the President should issue a proclamation declar13 ing the week that begins on the Sunday before ‘‘Presi14 dents’ Day’’, of each year, as ‘‘United States Presidential

15 History Week’’.

16 SEC. 3. REDESIGNATION.

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 6103(a) of title 5, United

18 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Washington’s Birth19 day’’ and inserting ‘‘Presidents’ Day, in honor of George

20 Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin Roosevelt

21 and in recognition of the importance of the institution of

22 the Presidency and the contributions that Presidents have

23 made to our Nation’s development and the principles of

24 freedom and democracy (also referred to as ‘Presidents’

25 Day’)’’.
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1 (b) REFERENCES.—Except where inappropriate, any

2 reference to ‘‘Washington’s Birthday’’ in any law, Execu3 tive order, rule, or other document shall include a ref4 erence to ‘‘Presidents’ Day’’.

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