IV
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. CON. RES. 316
To express the sense of Congress that State and local governments and
local educational agencies are encouraged to dedicate a day of learning
to the study and understanding of the Declaration of Independence,
the United States Constitution, and the Federalist Papers.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
AUGUST 4, 1998
Mr. GINGRICH (for himself, Mr. ARMEY, Mr. BARR of Georgia, Mr. BARRETT
of Nebraska, Mr. BASS, Mr. BATEMAN, Mr. BLILEY, Mr. BOEHLERT, Mr.
BRYANT, Mr. CALVERT, Mr. COX of California, Mr. DEAL of Georgia,
Mr. DELAY, Ms. DUNN, Mr. ENGLISH of Pennsylvania, Mr. GIBBONS,
Mr. GREENWOOD, Mr. HASTERT, Mr. HAYWORTH, Mr. HOBSON, Mr. KA-
SICH, Mrs. KELLY, Mr. LINDER, Mr. MCINTOSH, Mr. METCALF, Mrs.
MYRICK, Mrs. NORTHUP, Mr. NORWOOD, Mr. PETERSON of Pennsyl-
vania, Mr. PITTS, Ms. PRYCE of Ohio, Mr. REDMOND, Mr. SCAR-
BOROUGH, Mr. SENSENBRENNER, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. SMITH of Texas,
Mr. SMITH of Michigan, Mr. SOLOMON, Mr. SPENCE, Mr. STEARNS, Mr.
STUMP, Mr. TALENT, Mr. WATTS of Oklahoma, Mr. WELDON of Florida,
and Mr. WOLF) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was
referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
To express the sense of Congress that State and local govern-
ments and local educational agencies are encouraged to
dedicate a day of learning to the study and understand-
ing of the Declaration of Independence, the United
States Constitution, and the Federalist Papers.
Whereas the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in
1776, the signing of the United States Constitution in
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1787, and the ratification of the Bill of Rights in 1789
were principal events in the history of the United States;
Whereas these documents stand as the foundation of our
form of democracy, providing at the same time the touch-
stone of our national identity and the vehicle for orderly
growth and change;
Whereas the Federalist Papers embody an eloquent and
forceful argument made in support of the adoption of our
republican form of government;
Whereas the success of the American experiment requires
that our Nation’s children—the future of its heritage and
participants in its governance—have a firm knowledge of
its principles and history; and
Whereas the limited nature of government is the fundamental
American concept of governance, because our system is
based on the belief that power is granted by our Creator
to the citizen who then voluntarily loans power to the
state and because, as the Declaration of Independence
states, ‘‘all men . . . are endowed by their Creator with
certain unalienable Rights’’: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that—
(1) State and local governments and local edu-
cational agencies are encouraged to dedicate at least
one day of learning to the study and understanding
of the significance of the Declaration of Independ-
ence, the United States Constitution, and the Fed-
eralist Papers; and
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(2) State and local governments and local edu-
cational agencies are encouraged to include a re-
quirement that, before receiving a certificate or di-
ploma of graduation from high school, students be
tested on their competency in understanding the
Declaration of Independence, the United States Con-
stitution, and the Federalist Papers.
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