[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3278 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3278

 To authorize the Fair Housing Commemorative Foundation to establish a 
   commemorative work on Federal land in the District of Columbia to 
 commemorate the national significance of the fair housing movement in 
                                America.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 27, 2011

Ms. Norton (for herself and Mr. Calvert) introduced the following bill; 
        which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To authorize the Fair Housing Commemorative Foundation to establish a 
   commemorative work on Federal land in the District of Columbia to 
 commemorate the national significance of the fair housing movement in 
                                America.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Fair Housing Memorial Authorization 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) Although the Declaration of Independence declared that 
        ``all men are created equal,'' it took a Civil War, 
        constitutional amendments, and generations of the civil rights 
        movements, as well as the work of many other Americans, to 
        pursue the dream of equality for all Americans.
            (2) In order to address the prevalent discrimination in the 
        housing market, it required a national fair housing movement 
        and bipartisan political leadership to secure a national 
        commitment to equality for all to live the American Dream and 
        purchase, rent, or finance a home. The national movement for 
        fair housing rights spanned several decades in the twentieth 
        century and was led by many prominent civil rights, community, 
        legal, and political leaders in our country, among them 
        Thurgood Marshall, Martin Luther King, Jr., President Lyndon 
        Johnson, Senator Edward Brooke, and Senator Everett Dirksen.
            (3) The national movement for fair housing gained 
        prominence with the Supreme Court decision of Shelley v. 
        Kraemer, 334 U.S. 1 (1948), which prohibited the enforcement of 
        restrictive covenants on real estate based on race. The 
        movement culminated with the enactment of the Fair Housing Act 
        on April 11, 1968, one week after the assassination of Martin 
        Luther King. The Fair Housing Act formally prohibited 
        discrimination concerning the sale, rental, and financing of 
        housing based on race, color, religion, and national origin. 
        The Fair Housing Act was later amended to add prohibitions 
        against discrimination in housing based on sex, handicap, and 
        family status. April is celebrated around the country as Fair 
        Housing Month in commemoration of the fair housing movement.
            (4) The national significance of the Americans movement for 
        fair housing for people of every race, color, religion, sex, 
        handicap, familial status, and national origin should be 
        perpetuated permanently with a commemorative work in 
        Washington, DC.

SEC. 3. COMMEMORATIVE WORK TO HONOR THE NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE OF THE 
              FAIR HOUSING MOVEMENT.

    (a) Authority To Establish Commemorative Work.--The Fair Housing 
Commemorative Foundation may establish a commemorative work on Federal 
land in the District of Columbia and its environs to commemorate the 
national significance of the movement for fair housing for people of 
every race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, and 
national origin.
    (b) Compliance With Standards for Commemorative Works.--The 
commemorative work authorized by subsection (a) shall be established in 
accordance with chapter 89 of title 40, United States Code (commonly 
known as the ``Commemorative Works Act'').
    (c) Use of Federal Funds Prohibited.--Federal funds may not be used 
to pay any expense of the establishment of the commemorative work 
authorized by subsection (a). The Fair Housing Commemorative Foundation 
shall be solely responsible for acceptance of contributions for, and 
payment of the expenses of, the establishment of the commemorative 
work.
    (d) Deposit of Excess Funds.--If, upon payment of all expenses of 
the establishment of the commemorative work authorized by subsection 
(a) (including the maintenance and preservation amount provided for in 
section 8906(b), of title 40, United States Code), or upon expiration 
of the authority for the commemorative work under chapter 89 of title 
40, United States Code, there remains a balance of funds received for 
the establishment of that commemorative work, the Fair Housing 
Commemorative Foundation shall transmit the amount of the balance to 
the Secretary of the Treasury for deposit in the account provided for 
in section 8906(b)(1) of such title.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    For the purposes of this Act, the terms ``commemorative work'' and 
``the District of Columbia and its environs'' have the meanings given 
to such terms in section 8902(a) of title 40, United States Code.
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