In the Senate of the United States,

November 19, 1999.

Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 1451) entitled ‘‘An Act to establish the Abraham

Lincoln Bicentennial Commission.’’, do pass with the following

AMENDMENT:

Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Abraham Lincoln Bicen3 tennial Commission Act’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

5 Congress makes the following findings:

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

7 one of the Nation’s most prominent leaders, dem8 onstrating true courage during the Civil War, one of

9 the greatest crises in the Nation’s history.

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

11 Kentucky, on February 12, 1809, Abraham Lincoln
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1 rose to the Presidency through a legacy of honesty, in2 tegrity, intelligence, and commitment to the United

3 States.

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

5 equal, Abraham Lincoln led the effort to free all slaves

6 in the United States.

7 (4) Abraham Lincoln had a generous heart, with

8 malice toward none and with charity for all.

9 (5) Abraham Lincoln gave the ultimate sacrifice

10 for the country Lincoln loved, dying from an assas11 sin’s bullet on April 15, 1865.

12 (6) All Americans could benefit from studying

13 the life of Abraham Lincoln, for Lincoln’s life is a

14 model for accomplishing the ‘‘American Dream’’

15 through honesty, integrity, loyalty, and a lifetime of

16 education.

17 (7) The year 2009 will be the bicentennial anni18 versary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, and a com19 mission should be established to study and recommend

20 to Congress activities that are fitting and proper to

21 celebrate that anniversary in a manner that appro22 priately honors Abraham Lincoln.
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1 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT.

2 There is established a commission to be known as the

3 Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission (referred to in

4 this Act as the ‘‘Commission’’).

5 SEC. 4. DUTIES.

6 The Commission shall have the following duties:

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

8 by the Federal Government to determine whether the

9 activities are fitting and proper to honor Abraham

10 Lincoln on the occasion of the bicentennial anniver11 sary of Lincoln’s birth, including—

12 (A) the minting of an Abraham Lincoln bi13 centennial penny;

14 (B) the issuance of an Abraham Lincoln bi15 centennial postage stamp;

16 (C) the convening of a joint meeting or joint

17 session of Congress for ceremonies and activities

18 relating to Abraham Lincoln;

19 (D) a redesignation of the Lincoln Memo20 rial, or other activity with respect to the Memo21 rial; and

22 (E) the acquisition and preservation of arti23 facts associated with Abraham Lincoln.

24 (2) To recommend to Congress the activities that

25 the Commission considers most fitting and proper to

26 honor Abraham Lincoln on such occasion, and the en-
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1 tity or entities in the Federal Government that the

2 Commission considers most appropriate to carry out

3 such activities.

4 SEC. 5. MEMBERSHIP.

5 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Commission

6 shall be composed of 15 members appointed as follows:

7 (1) Two members, each of whom shall be a quali8 fied citizen described in subsection (b), appointed by

9 the President.

10 (2) One member, who shall be a qualified citizen

11 described in subsection (b), appointed by the Presi12 dent on the recommendation of the Governor of Illi13 nois.

14 (3) One member, who shall be a qualified citizen

15 described in subsection (b), appointed by the Presi16 dent on the recommendation of the Governor of Indi17 ana.

18 (4) One member, who shall be a qualified citizen

19 described in subsection (b), appointed by the Presi20 dent on the recommendation of the Governor of Ken21 tucky.

22 (5) Three members, at least one of whom shall be

23 a Member of the House of Representatives, appointed

24 by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
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1 (6) Three members, at least one of whom shall be

2 a Senator, appointed by the majority leader of the

3 Senate.

4 (7) Two members, at least one of whom shall be

5 a Member of the House of Representatives, appointed

6 by the minority leader of the House of Representa7 tives.

8 (8) Two members, at least one of whom shall be

9 a Senator, appointed by the minority leader of the

10 Senate.

11 (b) QUALIFIED CITIZEN.—A qualified citizen described

12 in this subsection is a private citizen of the United States

13 with—

14 (1) a demonstrated dedication to educating oth15 ers about the importance of historical figures and

16 events; and

17 (2) substantial knowledge and appreciation of

18 Abraham Lincoln.

19 (c) TIME OF APPOINTMENT.—Each initial appoint20 ment of a member of the Commission shall be made before

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

22 of enactment of this Act.

23 (d) CONTINUATION OF MEMBERSHIP.—If a member of

24 the Commission was appointed to the Commission as a

25 Member of Congress, and ceases to be a Member of Congress,
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1 that member may continue to serve on the Commission for

2 not longer than the 30-day period beginning on the date

3 that member ceases to be a Member of Congress.

4 (e) TERMS.—Each member shall be appointed for the

5 life of the Commission.

6 (f) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Commission shall

7 not affect the powers of the Commission but shall be filled

8 in the manner in which the original appointment was

9 made.

10 (g) BASIC PAY.—Members shall serve on the Commis11 sion without pay.

12 (h) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member shall receive

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

14 in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title 5, United

15 States Code.

16 (i) QUORUM.—Five members of the Commission shall

17 constitute a quorum but a lesser number may hold hearings.

18 (j) CHAIR.—The Commission shall select a Chair from

19 among the members of the Commission.

20 (k) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at the call

21 of the Chair. Periodically, the Commission shall hold a

22 meeting in Springfield, Illinois.
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1 SEC. 6. DIRECTOR AND STAFF.

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

3 fix the pay of a Director and such additional personnel as

4 the Commission considers to be appropriate.

5 (b) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN CIVIL SERVICE

6 LAWS.—

7 (1) DIRECTOR.—The Director of the Commission

8 may be appointed without regard to the provisions of

9 title 5, United States Code, governing appointments

10 in the competitive service, and may be paid without

11 regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter

12 III of chapter 53 of that title relating to classification

13 and General Schedule pay rates.

14 (2) STAFF.—The staff of the Commission shall be

15 appointed subject to the provisions of title 5, United

16 States Code, governing appointments in the competi17 tive service, and shall be paid in accordance with the

18 provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chap19 ter 53 of that title relating to classification and Gen20 eral Schedule pay rates.

21 SEC. 7. POWERS.

22 (a) HEARINGS AND SESSIONS.—The Commission may,

23 for the purpose of carrying out this Act, hold such hearings,

24 sit and act at such times and places, take such testimony,

25 and receive such evidence as the Commission considers to

26 be appropriate.
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1 (b) POWERS OF MEMBERS AND AGENTS.—Any mem2 ber or agent of the Commission may, if authorized by the

3 Commission, take any action that the Commission is au4 thorized to take by this Act.

5 (c) OBTAINING OFFICIAL DATA.—The Commission

6 may secure directly from any department or agency of the

7 United States information necessary to enable the Commis8 sion to carry out this Act. Upon request of the Chair of

9 the Commission, the head of that department or agency

10 shall furnish that information to the Commission.

11 (d) MAILS.—The Commission may use the United

12 States mails in the same manner and under the same condi13 tions as other departments and agencies of the United

14 States.

15 (e) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES.—Upon the

16 request of the Commission, the Administrator of General

17 Services shall provide to the Commission, on a reimbursable

18 basis, the administrative support services necessary for the

19 Commission to carry out its responsibilities under this Act.

20 SEC. 8. REPORTS.

21 (a) INTERIM REPORTS.—The Commission may submit

22 to Congress such interim reports as the Commission con23 siders to be appropriate.

24 (b) FINAL REPORT.—The Commission shall submit a

25 final report to Congress not later than the expiration of the
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1 4-year period beginning on the date of the formation of the

2 Commission. The final report shall contain—

3 (1) a detailed statement of the findings and con4 clusions of the Commission;

5 (2) the recommendations of the Commission; and

6 (3) any other information that the Commission

7 considers to be appropriate.

8 SEC. 9. BUDGET ACT COMPLIANCE.

9 Any spending authority provided under this Act shall

10 be effective only to such extent and in such amounts as are

11 provided in appropriation Acts.

12 SEC. 10. TERMINATION.

13 The Commission shall terminate 120 days after sub14 mitting the final report of the Commission pursuant to sec15 tion 8.

16 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as

18 may be necessary to carry out this Act.

Attest:

Secretary.
106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1451

AMENDMENT