H. R. 5683
One Hundred Ninth Congress
of the
United States of America 
AT THE SECOND SESSION 
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday, 
the third day of January, two thousand and six 
An Act 
To preserve the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial in San Diego, California, by pro-
viding for the immediate acquisition of the memorial by the United States.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) The Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial has proudly stood 
overlooking San Diego, California, for over 52 years as a tribute 
to the members of the United States Armed Forces who sac-
rificed their lives in the defense of the United States. 
(2) The Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial was dedicated on 
April 18, 1954, as ‘‘a lasting memorial to the dead of the 
First and Second World Wars and the Korean conflict’’ and 
now serves as a memorial to American veterans of all wars, 
including the War on Terrorism. 
(3) The United States has a long history and tradition 
of memorializing members of the Armed Forces who die in 
battle with a cross or other religious emblem of their faith, 
and a memorial cross is fully integrated as the centerpiece 
of the multi-faceted Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial that is 
replete with secular symbols. 
(4) The patriotic and inspirational symbolism of the Mt. 
Soledad Veterans Memorial provides solace to the families and 
comrades of the veterans it memorializes. 
(5) The Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial has been recognized 
by Congress as a National Veterans Memorial and is considered 
a historically significant national memorial. 
(6) 76 percent of the voters of San Diego supported donating 
the Mt. Soledad Memorial to the Federal Government only 
to have a superior court judge of the State of California invali-
date that election. 
(7) The City of San Diego has diligently pursued every 
possible legal recourse in order to preserve the Mt. Soledad 
Veterans Memorial in its entirety for persons who have served 
in the Armed Forces and those persons who will serve and 
sacrifice in the future. 
SEC. 2. ACQUISITION OF MT. SOLEDAD VETERANS MEMORIAL, SAN 
DIEGO, CALIFORNIA. 
(a) ACQUISITION.—To effectuate the purpose of section 116 of 
division E of Public Law 108–447 (118 Stat. 3346; 16 U.S.C. 431 
note), which, in order to preserve a historically significant war 
memorial, designated the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial in San
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Diego, California, as a national memorial honoring veterans of 
the United States Armed Forces, there is hereby vested in the 
United States all right, title, and interest in and to, and the right 
to immediate possession of, the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial 
in San Diego, California, as more fully described in subsection 
(d). 
(b) COMPENSATION.—The United States shall pay just com-
pensation to any owner of the property for the property taken 
pursuant to this section, and the full faith and credit of the United 
States is hereby pledged to the payment of any judgment entered 
against the United States with respect to the taking of the property. 
Payment shall be in the amount of the agreed negotiated value 
of the property or the valuation of the property awarded by judg-
ment and shall be made from the permanent judgment appropria-
tion established pursuant to section 1304 of title 31, United States 
Code. If the parties do not reach a negotiated settlement within 
one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of Defense may initiate a proceeding in a court of competent jurisdic-
tion to determine the just compensation with respect to the taking 
of such property. 
(c) MAINTENANCE.—Upon acquisition of the Mt. Soledad Vet-
erans Memorial by the United States, the Secretary of Defense 
shall manage the property and shall enter into a memorandum 
of understanding with the Mt. Soledad Memorial Association for 
the continued maintenance of the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial 
by the Association. 
(d) LEGAL DESCRIPTION.—The Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial 
referred to in this section is all that portion of Pueblo lot 1265 
of the Pueblo Lands of San Diego in the City and County of 
San Diego, California, according to the map thereof prepared by 
James Pascoe in 1879, a copy of which was filed in the office 
of the County Recorder of San Diego County on November 14, 
1921, and is known as miscellaneous map No. 36, more particularly 
described as follows: The area bounded by the back of the existing 
inner sidewalk on top of Mt. Soledad, being also a circle with 
radius of 84 feet, the center of which circle is located as follows: 
Beginning at the Southwesterly corner of such Pueblo Lot 1265, 
such corner being South 17 degrees 14′33″ East (Record South 
17 degrees 14′09″ East) 607.21 feet distant along the westerly 
line of such Pueblo lot 1265 from the intersection with the North 
line of La Jolla Scenic Drive South as described and dedicated 
as parcel 2 of City Council Resolution No. 216644 adopted August 
25, 1976; thence North 39 degrees 59′24″ East 1147.62 feet to 
the center of such circle. The exact boundaries and legal description 
of the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial shall be determined by 
survey prepared by the Secretary of Defense. Upon acquisition
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of the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial by the United States, the 
boundaries of the Memorial may not be expanded.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.