[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 73 (Tuesday, June 9, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H4266-H4267]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              ESTABLISHING MEMORIAL TO HONOR GEORGE MASON

  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
Senate bill (S. 423) to extend the legislative authority for the Board 
of Regents of Gunston Hall to establish a memorial to honor George 
Mason.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                 S. 423

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

     SECTION 1. EXTENSION OF LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY FOR MEMORIAL 
                   ESTABLISHMENT.

       The legislative authority for the Board of Regents of 
     Gunston Hall to establish a commemorative work (as defined by 
     section 2 of the Commemorative Works Act (40 U.S.C. 1002)) 
     shall expire August 10, 2000, notwithstanding the time period 
     limitation specified in section 10(b) of the Commemorative 
     Works Act (40 U.S.C. 1010(b)).

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Utah (Mr. Hansen) and the gentleman from American Samoa (Mr. 
Faleomavaega) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen).
  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 423 and urge its adoption. The 
bill grants a 3-year extension for the Board of Regents of Gunston Hall 
to construct a memorial to honor George Mason on Federal land within 
the District of Columbia.
  In 1990, Congress passed public law 101-358 authorizing the Board of 
Regents of Gunston Hall to construct a memorial to George Mason, the 
American patriot who was the author of the Virginia Declaration of 
Rights that later served as the model for the Bill of Rights in the 
U.S. Constitution.
  George Mason was a contemporary of George Washington, Thomas 
Jefferson, and James Madison. However, he died in 1792, years before 
his colleagues; and his contributions to the drafting of the U.S. 
Constitution are sometimes overlooked.
  Mr. Speaker, section 10(b) of the Commemorative Works Act of 1986 
provides that the legislative authorization to construct a memorial 
expires 7 years after the date the memorial was authorized by Congress. 
The date for the George Mason Memorial expired on August 10, 1997. This 
bill extends the legislative authority for the George Mason Memorial 
until August 10, 2000.
  The Board of Regents of Gunston Hall, George Mason's historic 
ancestral home, have committed to raising the estimated $1 million 
necessary to construct this memorial and endow a maintenance fund.
  The National Park Service has approved a site for this memorial 
garden on Federal land within the District of Columbia, adjacent to the 
span on the 14th Street Bridge, which has been named in George Mason's 
honor, and within site of the memorial dedicated to his renowned 
colleague, Thomas Jefferson.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support passage of S. 423.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  (Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, Senate bill 423 is a noncontroversial

[[Page H4267]]

measure, passed by the Senate last year, that would extend for 3 years 
the legislative authority for the Board of Regents of Gunston Hall to 
establish a memorial to George Mason.
  Public law 101-358 authorized the Board of Regents of Gunston Hall to 
establish a memorial to George Mason, who is widely recognized for his 
role in events surrounding the drafting of the U.S. Constitution and 
its first 10 amendments known as the Bill of Rights.
  Plans for the memorial provide for its location on Federal land in 
the district of Columbia, near the 14th Street Bridge, which was 
previously named in his honor.
  A 3-year extension of the memorial authorization is necessary in 
order to allow planning and fund-raising to be brought to a successful 
conclusion. Senate bill 423 was favorably reported from the committee 
on Resources last October, without amendment. The bill does have the 
support of the administration. I ask my colleagues to support this 
legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 
423, legislation to extend the legislative authority for the Board of 
Regents of Gunston Hall to establish a memorial to honor a 
distinguished Virginian, George Mason.
  In 1776, George Mason wrote the Virginia Declaration of Rights, the 
first document in America calling for freedom of the press, freedom of 
religion, proscription of unreasonable searches, and the right to a 
speedy trial. The Virginia Declaration of Rights not only served as a 
model for our national Bill or Rights; but historians believe that 
Mason's refusal to sign the Constitution for its failure, initially, to 
include a declaration of rights was a major impetus for eventual 
adoption of the first ten amendments of the Constitution.
  George Mason sacrificed friendships by insisting that a strong 
national government could not be secured without also firmly 
establishing individual rights, and Mason inevitably chose his family 
over politics. He retired from public office following the 
Constitutional Convention and died just a few years later in 1792. His 
contemporaries, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, lived decades 
longer and were elected presidents of the United States, and thus 
Mason's contributions were soon overshadowed.
  During the 101st Congress legislation authorizing a private, 
nonprofit organization to establish a memorial to George Mason on 
federal land in the District of Columbia passed and was signed by then-
President George Bush. In the 102nd Congress, a resolution passed 
concurring that George Mason was an individual ``of preeminent 
historical significance to the nation,'' and authorized the placement 
of the memorial within select Area I lands, in sight of the memorials 
of two of Mason's closest friends: George Washington and Thomas 
Jefferson. The legislation was signed into law on April 28, 1992 and 
approved by the National Capital Memorial Committee in December 1993.

  To pay homage to a man whose ideas played a prominent role in the 
founding of the American republic, a fitting memorial has been designed 
for this site, located between Ohio Drive and the 14th Street Bridge, 
overlooking the Tidal Basin. The memorial designs have been completed 
and submitted for review to all necessary advisory and review boards 
and by agreement, the United States Park Service is to maintain the 
memorial once completed. In accordance with the Commemorative Works Act 
of 1986, one million dollars must be raised in non-federal funds to 
construct this historic monument and ground breaking must occur no 
later than August 1998. The Board of Regents of Gunston Hall 
Plantation, a historical organization that oversees Mason's family home 
in Fairfax County, is dedicated to raising the necessary funds for the 
monument and seeing this important project through to its completion, 
however, the August 1998 deadline is rapidly approaching. At this 
time, fundraising efforts, while successful, will not be completed by 
the August 1998 deadline. That's why I support this necessary 
legislation granting an extension until August 2000.

  The Commemorative Works Act requires two separate acts of Congress 
before a memorial may be placed in Area I lands. This monument has met 
both requirements. The final battle is a fundraising one and the Board 
of Regents of Gunston Hall has a plan of attack. Last year, they 
launched Liberty 20000, a campaign to share George Mason's legacy of 
liberty. The Board of Regents hope to build an endowment fund to ensure 
a secure future for Gunston Hall and attain the necessary non-federal 
funds to break ground and complete their efforts to bring George 
Mason's legacy to the Mall.
  This is non-controversial legislation that passed the Senate and the 
House Resources Committee unanimously. I ask my colleagues to join me 
in supporting this three-year extension so we may properly commemorate 
this great statesman and Virginian, George Mason. Mr. HANSEN. Mr. 
Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.

  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers. I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the Senate bill, S. 423.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the Senate bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid upon the table.

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