I

107TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2133

To establish a commission for the purpose of encouraging and providing

for the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court

decision in Brown v. Board of Education.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JUNE 12, 2001

Mr. RYUN of Kansas (for himself, Mr. MORAN of Kansas, Mr. TIAHRT, and

Mr. MOORE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Government Reform

A BILL

To establish a commission for the purpose of encouraging

and providing for the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision in Brown v.

Board of Education.

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

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

4 The Congress finds that as the Nation approaches

5 May 17, 2004, marking the 50th anniversary of the Su6 preme Court decision in Oliver L. Brown et al. v. Board

7 of Education of Topeka, Kansas et al., it is appropriate
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1 to establish a national commission to plan and coordinate

2 the commemoration of that anniversary.

3 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT.

4 There is established a commission to be known as the

5 ‘‘Brown v. Board of Education 50th Anniversary Commis6 sion’’ (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Commission’’).

7 SEC. 3. DUTIES.

8 In order to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the

9 Brown decision, the Commission shall—

10 (1) in conjunction with the Department of Edu11 cation, plan and coordinate public education activi12 ties and initiatives, including public lectures, writing

13 contests, and public awareness campaigns, through

14 the Department of Education’s ten regional offices;

15 (2) in cooperation with the Brown Foundation

16 for Educational Equity, Excellence, and Research in

17 Topeka, Kansas (referred to in this Act as the

18 ‘‘Brown Foundation’’), and such other public or pri19 vate entities as the Commission considers appro20 priate, encourage, plan, develop, and coordinate ob21 servances of the anniversary of the Brown decision;

22 and

23 (3) submit recommendations to the Congress

24 relating to a joint session of Congress for the pur25 pose of commemorating the anniversary.
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1 SEC. 4. MEMBERSHIP.

2 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Commission

3 shall be composed as follows:

4 (1) Two representatives of the Department of

5 Education appointed by the Secretary of Education,

6 one of whom shall serve as Chair of the Commission.

7 (2) Eleven individuals appointed by the Presi8 dent after receiving recommendations as follows:

9 (A) Members of the Senate from each of

10 the States in which the lawsuits decided by the

11 Brown decision were originally filed, Delaware,

12 Kansas, South Carolina, and Virginia, and from

13 the State of the first legal challenge, Massachu14 setts, shall jointly recommend to the President

15 one individual from their respective States.

16 (B) Members of the House of Representa17 tives from each of the States referred to in sub18 paragraph (A) shall jointly recommend to the

19 President one individual from their respective

20 States.

21 (C) The Delegate to the House of Rep22 resentatives from the District of Columbia shall

23 recommend to the President one individual

24 from the District of Columbia.
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1 (3) Two representatives of the judicial branch

2 of the Federal Government appointed by the Chief

3 Justice of the United States Supreme Court.

4 (4) Two representatives of the Brown Founda5 tion.

6 (5) Two representatives of the NAACP Legal

7 Defense and Education Fund.

8 (6) One representative of the Brown v. Board

9 of Education National Historic Site.

10 (b) TERMS.—Members of the Commission shall be

11 appointed for the life of the Commission.

12 (c) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Commission shall

13 be filled in the same manner as the original appointment.

14 (d) COMPENSATION.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.— Members of the Commis16 sion shall serve without pay.

17 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member shall

18 receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of

19 subsistence, in accordance with applicable provisions

20 under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United

21 States Code.

22 (e) QUORUM.—A majority of members of the Com23 mission shall constitute a quorum.

24 (f) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall hold its first

25 meeting not later than 6 months after the date of enact-
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1 ment of this Act. The Commission shall subsequently meet

2 at the call of the Chair or a majority of its members.

3 (g) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND STAFF.— The Com4 mission may secure the services of an executive director

5 and staff personnel as it considers appropriate.

6 SEC. 5. POWERS.

7 (a) POWERS OF MEMBERS AND AGENTS.—Any mem8 ber or agent of the Commission may, if so authorized by

9 the Commission, take any action which the Commission

10 is authorized to take under this Act.

11 (b) GIFTS AND DONATIONS.—

12 (1) AUTHORITY TO ACCEPT.—The Commission

13 may accept and use gifts or donations of money,

14 property, or personal services.

15 (2) DISPOSITION OF PROPERTY.—Any books,

16 manuscripts, miscellaneous printed matter, memora17 bilia, relics, or other materials donated to the Com18 mission which relate to the Brown decision, shall,

19 upon termination of the Commission—

20 (A) be deposited for preservation in the

21 Brown Foundation Collection at the Spencer

22 Research Library at the University of Kansas

23 in Lawrence, Kansas; or

24 (B) be disposed of by the Commission in

25 consultation with the Librarian of Congress,
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1 and with the express consent of the Brown

2 Foundation and the Brown v. Board of Edu3 cation National Historic Site.

4 (c) MAILS.—The Commission may use the United

5 States mails in the same manner and under the same con6 ditions as other departments and agencies of the United

7 States.

8 SEC. 6. REPORTS.

9 (a) INTERIM REPORTS.—The Commission shall

10 transmit interim reports to the President and the Con11 gress not later than December 31 of each year. Each such

12 report shall include a description of the activities of the

13 Commission during the year covered by the report, an ac14 counting of any funds received or expended by the Com15 mission during such year, and recommendations for any

16 legislation or administrative action which the Commission

17 considers appropriate.

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

19 a final report to the President and the Congress not later

20 than December 31, 2004. Such report shall include an ac21 counting of any funds received or expended, and the dis22 position of any other properties, not previously reported.
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1 SEC. 7. TERMINATION.

2 (a) DATE.—The Commission shall terminate on such

3 date as the Commission may determine, but not later than

4 February 1, 2005.

5 (b) DISPOSITION OF FUNDS.—Any funds held by the

6 Commission on the date the Commission terminates shall

7 be deposited in the general fund of the Treasury.

8 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

9 There are authorized to be appropriated $250,000 for

10 the period encompassing fiscal years 2003 and 2004 to

11 carry out this Act, to remain available until expended.

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