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106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1451

To establish the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

APRIL 15, 1999

Mr. LAHOOD (for himself, Mr. SHIMKUS, Mr. EVANS, Mr. BLAGOJEVICH, Mr.

PHELPS, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. PORTER, Mr. RUSH, Mr. MANZULLO,

Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. COSTELLO, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. HYDE, Mr. WELLER,

Mr. EWING, Mr. CRANE, Mrs. BIGGERT, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, and

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois) introduced the following bill; which was referred

to the Committee on Government Reform

A BILL

To establish the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission.

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.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Abraham Lincoln Bi5 centennial Commission Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress makes the following findings:

8 (1) Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President, was

9 one of the Nation’s most prominent leaders, dem-
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1 onstrating true courage during the Civil War, one of

2 the greatest crises in the Nation’s history.

3 (2) Born of humble roots in Hardin County,

4 Kentucky, on February 12, 1809, Abraham Lincoln

5 rose to the Presidency through a legacy of honesty,

6 integrity, intelligence, and commitment to the

7 United States.

8 (3) With the belief that all men were created

9 equal, Abraham Lincoln led the effort to free all

10 slaves in the United States.

11 (4) Abraham Lincoln had a generous heart,

12 with malice toward none and with charity for all.

13 (5) Abraham Lincoln gave the ultimate sacrifice

14 for the country he loved, dying from an assassin’s

15 bullet on April 15, 1865.

16 (6) All Americans could benefit from studying

17 the life of Abraham Lincoln, for his life is a model

18 for accomplishing the ‘‘American Dream’’ through

19 honesty, integrity, loyalty, and a lifetime of edu20 cation.

21 (7) The Year 2009 will be the bicentennial an22 niversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, and a

23 commission should be established to study and rec24 ommend to the Congress activities that are fitting
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1 and proper to celebrate that anniversary in a man2 ner that appropriately honors Abraham Lincoln.

3 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT.

4 There is established a commission to be known as the

5 Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission (in this Act

6 referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’).

7 SEC. 4. DUTIES.

8 The Commission shall have the following duties:

9 (1) To study activities that may be carried out

10 by the Federal Government to determine whether

11 they are fitting and proper to honor Abraham Lin12 coln on the occasion of the bicentennial anniversary

13 of his birth, including—

14 (A) the minting of an Abraham Lincoln bi15 centennial penny;

16 (B) the issuance of an Abraham Lincoln

17 bicentennial postage stamp;

18 (C) the convening of a joint meeting or

19 joint session of the Congress for ceremonies and

20 activities relating to Abraham Lincoln;

21 (D) a redesignation of the Lincoln Memo22 rial, or other activity with respect to the Memo23 rial; and

24 (E) the acquisition and preservation of ar25 tifacts associated with Abraham Lincoln.
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1 (2) To recommend to the Congress the activi2 ties that the Commission considers most fitting and

3 proper to honor Abraham Lincoln on such occasion,

4 and the entity or entities in the Federal Government

5 that the Commission considers most appropriate to

6 carry out such activities.

7 SEC. 5. MEMBERSHIP.

8 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Commission

9 shall be composed of 9 members appointed as follows:

10 (1) 3 members, each of whom shall be a quali11 fied citizen described in subsection (b), appointed by

12 the President.

13 (2) 2 members, each of whom shall be a quali14 fied citizen described in subsection (b), appointed by

15 the President on the recommendation of the Gov16 ernor of Illinois.

17 (3) 2 members, each of whom shall be Members

18 of the House of Representatives from the State of

19 Illinois, appointed by the Speaker of the House of

20 Representatives.

21 (4) 1 member, who shall be a Senator from the

22 State of Illinois, appointed by the Majority Leader

23 of the Senate.

24 (5) 1 member, who shall be a Senator, ap25 pointed by the Majority Leader of the Senate.
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1 (b) QUALIFIED CITIZEN.—A qualified citizen de2 scribed in this subsection is a private citizen of the United

3 States with—

4 (1) a demonstrated dedication to educating oth5 ers about the importance of historical figures and

6 events; and

7 (2) substantial knowledge and appreciation of

8 Abraham Lincoln.

9 (c) TIME OF APPOINTMENT.—Each initial appoint10 ment of a member of the Commission shall be made before

11 the expiration of the 120-day period beginning on the date

12 of the enactment of this Act.

13 (d) WAIVER OF LIMITATION ON EXECUTIVE SCHED14 ULE POSITIONS.—Appointments may be made under this

15 section without regard to section 5311(b) of title 5, United

16 States Code.

17 (e) CONTINUATION OF MEMBERSHIP.—If a member

18 was appointed to the Commission as a Member of Con19 gress and the member ceases to be a Member of Congress,

20 that member may continue as a member for not longer

21 than the 30-day period beginning on the date that member

22 ceases to be a Member of Congress.

23 (f) TERMS.—Each member shall be appointed for the

24 life of the Commission.
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1 (g) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Commission shall

2 be filled in the manner in which the original appointment

3 was made.

4 (h) BASIC PAY.—Members shall serve without pay.

5 (i) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member shall receive

6 travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence,

7 in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title 5,

8 United States Code.

9 (j) QUORUM.—5 members of the Commission shall

10 constitute a quorum but a lesser number may hold hear11 ings.

12 (k) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson shall be des13 ignated by the President from among the members of the

14 Commission appointed under section 5(a)(1). The term of

15 office of the Chairperson shall be for the life of the Com16 mission.

17 (l) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at the

18 call of the Chairperson. Periodically, the Commission shall

19 hold its meeting in Springfield, Illinois.

20 SEC. 6. DIRECTOR AND STAFF.

21 (a) DIRECTOR.—The Commission may appoint and

22 fix the pay of a Director and any additional personnel as

23 the Commission considers appropriate.

24 (b) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN CIVIL SERVICE

25 LAWS.—The Director and staff of the Commission may
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1 be appointed without regard to the provisions of title 5,

2 United States Code, governing appointments in the com3 petitive service, and may be paid without regard to the

4 provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53

5 of that title relating to classification and General Schedule

6 pay rates.

7 SEC. 7. POWERS.

8 (a) HEARINGS AND SESSIONS.—The Commission

9 may, for the purpose of carrying out this Act, hold hear10 ings, sit and act at times and places, take testimony, and

11 receive evidence as the Commission considers appropriate.

12 (b) POWERS OF MEMBERS AND AGENTS.—Any mem13 ber or agent of the Commission may, if authorized by the

14 Commission, take any action which the Commission is au15 thorized to take by this section.

16 (c) OBTAINING OFFICIAL DATA.—The Commission

17 may secure directly from any department or agency of the

18 United States information necessary to enable it to carry

19 out this Act. Upon request of the Chairperson of the Com20 mission, the head of that department or agency shall fur21 nish that information to the Commission.

22 (d) GIFTS, BEQUESTS, AND DEVISES.—The Commis23 sion may accept, use, and dispose of gifts, bequests, or

24 devises of services or property, both real and personal, for

25 the purpose of aiding or facilitating the work of the Com-
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1 mission. Gifts, bequests, or devises of money and proceeds

2 from sales of other property received as gifts, bequests,

3 or devises shall be deposited in the Treasury and shall be

4 available for disbursement upon order of the Commission.

5 For purposes of Federal income, estate, and gift taxes,

6 property accepted under this subsection shall be consid7 ered as a gift, bequest, or devise to the United States.

8 (e) MAILS.—The Commission may use the United

9 States mails in the same manner and under the same con10 ditions as other departments and agencies of the United

11 States.

12 (f) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES.—Upon the

13 request of the Commission, the Administrator of General

14 Services shall provide to the Commission, on a reimburs15 able basis, the administrative support services necessary

16 for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities under

17 this Act.

18 SEC. 8. REPORTS.

19 (a) INTERIM REPORTS.—The Commission may sub20 mit to the Congress interim reports as the Commission

21 considers appropriate.

22 (b) FINAL REPORT.—The Commission shall transmit

23 a final report to the Congress not later than the expiration

24 of the 4-year period beginning on the date of the formation

25 of the Commission. The final report shall contain—
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1 (1) a detailed statement of the findings and

2 conclusions of the Commission;

3 (2) the recommendations of the Commission;

4 and

5 (3) any other information the Commission con6 siders appropriate.

7 SEC. 9. TERMINATION.

8 The Commission shall terminate 120 days after sub9 mitting its final report pursuant to section 8.

10 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

11 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

12 as may be necessary to carry out this Act.

13 SEC. 11. BUDGET ACT COMPLIANCE.

14 Any spending authority (as defined in subparagraphs

15 (A) and (C) of section 401(c)(2) of the Congressional

16 Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 651(c)(2)(A) and (C)))

17 under this Act shall be effective only to such extent and

18 in such amounts as are provided in appropriation Acts.

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