[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 112 (Friday, August 3, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Page S8963]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. LANDRIEU:
  S. 1388. A bill to make election day a Federal holiday; to the 
Committee on the Judiciary
  Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1388

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

     SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) democracy is an invaluable birthright of American 
     citizens and each generation must sustain and improve the 
     democratic process for its successors;
       (2) the Federal Government must actively create and enforce 
     laws that protect the voting rights of all Americans, and 
     further create an equal opportunity for all Americans to 
     participate in the voting process;
       (3) the Federal Government should encourage the value of 
     the right to vote;
       (4) 22.6 percent of Americans who do not vote in elections 
     give the reasoning that they are too busy and have a 
     conflicting work or school schedule;
       (5) the creation of a legal public holiday on election day 
     will increase the availability of poll workers and suitable 
     polling places; and
       (6) the creation of a legal public holiday on election day 
     might make voting easier for some workers and increase voter 
     participation by the American public.

     SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF ELECTION DAY IN FEDERAL ELECTION 
                   YEARS AS A LEGAL PUBLIC HOLIDAY.

       Section 6103(a) of title 5, United States Code, is amended 
     by inserting immediately below the item relating to Veterans 
     Day the following:
       ``Election Day, the Tuesday next after the first Monday in 
     November in each even-numbered year.''.
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