IV 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 439 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that a Global Marshall 

Plan holds the potential to demonstrate the commitment of the United 

States to peace and prosperity through poverty reduction in the United 

States and abroad. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 11, 2013 

Mr. ELLISON submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

a Global Marshall Plan holds the potential to demonstrate the commitment of the United States to peace 

and prosperity through poverty reduction in the United 

States and abroad. 

Whereas after World War II, the United States established 

a program to provide for the reconstruction of Europe, 

named after General George C. Marshall and commonly 

referred to as the ‘‘Marshall Plan’’; 

Whereas by providing assistance to Europe through the Marshall Plan, the United States recognized the direct link 

between economic growth and political stability; 


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•HRES 439 IH 

Whereas in 1948, United States financial support of the Marshall Plan represented a generous 13 percent of the Federal budget; 

Whereas the Marshall Plan made possible new measures of 

international cooperation by promoting European economic integration which has enhanced the security, freedom, and prosperity of the United States and the world; 

Whereas the United States established foreign assistance programs, as prescribed by the Foreign Assistance Act of 

1961, with a goal of the ‘‘encouragement and sustained 

support of the people of developing countries in their efforts to acquire the knowledge and resources essential to 

development and to build the economic, political, and social institutions which will improve the quality of their 

lives’’; 

Whereas in announcing the Millennium Challenge Account on 

March 15, 2002, President George W. Bush stated ‘‘The 

advance of development is a central commitment of 

American foreign policy. As a nation founded on the dignity and value of every life, America’s heart breaks because of the suffering and senseless death we see in our 

world. We work for prosperity and opportunity because 

they’re right. It’s the right thing to do.’’; 

Whereas the World Bank reports that 2,400,000,000 people 

worldwide live on less than $2 per day; 

Whereas the United States has one of the highest levels of 

poverty among industrialized countries; 

Whereas the United States should also work toward improving the life of its own poorest population, as 15 percent 

live below the Federal poverty level; 


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•HRES 439 IH 

Whereas 1,650,000 households in the United States are in 

extreme poverty, as defined by each person living on less 

than $2 per day; 

Whereas there are more than 47,000,000 persons living on 

incomes less than the Federal Poverty Level, including 

nearly 11,000,000 African-American persons, nearly 

2,000,000 Asian persons, and more than 13,000,000 Hispanic persons; 

Whereas at the United Nations Millennium Summit in 2000, 

the United States joined more than 180 countries in 

committing to work toward the United Nations Millennium Development Goals to improve life for the world’s 

poorest people by 2015; 

Whereas more than halfway to the 2015 deadline to achieve 

the Millennium Development Goals, major advances in 

the fight against poverty and hunger have begun to slow 

or even reverse as a result of the global economic and 

food crises, a progress report by the United Nations has 

found; 

Whereas empowering people in the United States and abroad 

to support themselves will provide a solid foundation for 

global economic recovery; 

Whereas the economic gap between the rich and the poor is 

even greater today than it was following World War II, 

when the United States Congress deemed the Marshall 

Plan essential to the security of the United States; 

Whereas reducing poverty may assist in warding off harsh 

conditions that extremists may exploit to rally support 

for political violence; 


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•HRES 439 IH 

Whereas United States citizens and nongovernmental organizations have proposed a new Global Marshall Plan, including— 

(1) providing increased funding to eliminate poverty, 

homelessness, hunger, inadequate education, and health 

care domestically and globally in addition to restoring the 

global environment; 

(2) revising existing trade and other agreements in 

which the United States is currently involved so that 

such agreements favor improving the lives of the poor 

around the world, and approaching future agreements 

with like intent; and 

(3) providing training to children and adults worldwide in techniques of nonviolent communication, diversity, environmental sustainability, family and parental 

support, stress reduction, emergency health techniques, 

diet and exercise, and caring for others who are in need 

of help; and 

Whereas a Global Marshall Plan, embracing a strategy of 

generosity, would reaffirm the United States commitment 

to ending global and United States poverty: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that— 

3 (1) the elimination of poverty and hunger 

4 should remain key foreign and domestic policy goals 

5 for the United States; 

6 (2) a Global Marshall Plan holds the potential 

7 to transform development assistance in a manner 

8 that would significantly reduce poverty; and 


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•HRES 439 IH 

1 (3) the President should implement a Global 

2 Marshall Plan to increase United States assistance 

3 towards the elimination of poverty. 

Æ 


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