[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 75 (Tuesday, May 20, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H4263-H4265]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      VETERANS' MEMORIAL PRESERVATION AND RECOGNITION ACT OF 2003

  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass 
the Senate bill (S. 330) to further the protection and recognition of 
veterans' memorials, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                 S. 330

       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 ``Veterans' Memorial 
     Preservation and Recognition Act of 2003''.

     SEC. 2. CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR DESTRUCTION OF VETERANS' 
                   MEMORIALS.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 65 of title 18, United States 
     Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

     ``Sec. 1369. Destruction of veterans' memorials

       ``(a) Whoever, in a circumstance described in subsection 
     (b), willfully injures or destroys, or attempts to injure or 
     destroy, any structure, plaque, statue, or other monument on 
     public property commemorating the service of any person or 
     persons in the armed forces of the United States shall be 
     fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 10 years, or 
     both.
       ``(b) A circumstance described in this subsection is that--
       ``(1) in committing the offense described in subsection 
     (a), the defendant travels or causes another to travel in 
     interstate or foreign commerce, or uses the mail or an 
     instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce; or
       ``(2) the structure, plaque, statue, or other monument 
     described in subsection (a) is located on property owned by, 
     or under the jurisdiction of, the Federal Government.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of chapter 65 of title 18, United States Code, is 
     amended by adding at the end the following:

``1369. Destruction of veterans' memorials.''.

     SEC. 3. HIGHWAY SIGNS RELATING TO VETERANS CEMETERIES.

       (a) In General.--Notwithstanding the terms of any agreement 
     entered into by the Secretary of Transportation and a State 
     under section 109(d) or 402(a) of title 23, United States 
     Code, a veterans cemetery shall be treated as a site for 
     which a supplemental guide sign may be placed on any Federal-
     aid highway.
       (b) Applicability.--Subsection (a) shall apply to an 
     agreement entered into before, on, or after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. 
Scott) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. 
Sensenbrenner).


                             General Leave

  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend 
their remarks on S. 330, the Senate bill currently under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Wisconsin?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 330, the Veterans' Memorial 
Preservation and Recognition Act of 2003. Attacks against Federal 
cemeteries and veterans' memorials uniquely affront the memory of those 
who have sacrificed for our freedom and undermine

[[Page H4264]]

our collective commitment to honor their service. The egregious nature 
of these crimes necessitates a swift and decisive Federal response.
  S. 330 establishes a specific criminal penalty for the willful 
destruction of property commemorating service in America's Armed 
Forces. It provides that anyone who willfully injures or destroys or 
attempts to injure or destroy property that commemorates service in our 
Armed Forces shall be imprisoned for up to 10 years and fined for these 
acts of vandalism.
  In 1997, Congress passed legislation that directed the United States 
Sentencing Commission to enhance penalties for the destruction of 
property on Federal cemeteries. However, unlike the earlier 
legislation, S. 330 specifically recognizes the abhorrent nature of 
these offenses by establishing a new Federal crime for injuring or 
destroying veterans' memorials. Its purpose is to stem the disturbing 
prevalence of vandalism at some of America's most sacred memorials.
  In considering this legislation, I urge my colleagues to heed the 
admonitions of General John A. Logan's Memorial Day Order of May 5, 
1868. Speaking to those who had fallen in America's defense, General 
Logan stated: ``We should guard their graves with sacred vigilance. All 
the consecrated wealth and taste of the Nation can add to their 
adornment and security is but a fitting tribute to the memory of her 
slain defenders. Let no wanton foot tread rudely on such hallowed 
grounds. Let no vandalism or avarice or neglect, no ravages of time, 
testify to the present or to the coming generations that we have 
forgotten, as a people, the cost of a free and undivided Republic.''

                              {time}  1015

  S. 330 was reported by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary without 
amendment and passed the full Senate under unanimous consent.
  As our Nation prepares to honor its veterans this Memorial Day, I can 
think of few times in recent memory when this legislation would be more 
timely and appropriate.
  Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record an exchange of letters between 
the chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, the 
gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young), and myself.

                                         House of Representatives,


               Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure,

                                     Washington, DC, May 19, 2003.
     Hon. F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr.,
     Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, House of 
         Representatives, Rayburn House Office Building, 
         Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Sensenbrenner: I am writing with regard to S. 
     330, the Veteran's Memorial Preservation and Recognition Act 
     of 2003. As you know, the Committee on Transportation and 
     Infrastructure was named as an additional Committee of 
     jurisdiction.
       I recognize your desire to bring this important bill before 
     the House in an expeditious manner. Accordingly, I will not 
     exercise my Committee's right to mark up the legislation. By 
     agreeing to waive its consideration of the bill, however, the 
     Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure does not waive 
     its jurisdiction over S. 330. In addition, the Transportation 
     and Infrastructure Committee reserves its right to seek 
     conferees on provisions of the bill that are within its 
     jurisdiction during any House-Senate conference that may be 
     convened on this legislation. I ask for your commitment to 
     support any request by the Transportation and Infrastructure 
     Committee for conferees on S. 330.
       I request that you include a copy of our exchange of 
     letters in your Committee's Report on S. 330 and in the 
     Congressional Record during consideration on the House Floor. 
     Thank you.
           Sincerely,
                                                        Don Young,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                         House of Representatives,


                                   Committee on the Judiciary,

                                     Washington, DC, May 19, 2003.
     Hon. Don Young,
     Chairman, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 
         House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Young: This letter responds to your letter 
     dated May 19, 2003 concerning S. 330, the ``Veterans' 
     Memorial Preservation and Recognition Act of 2003.''
       I agree that the bill contains matters within the 
     Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's jurisdiction 
     and appreciate your willingness to be discharged from further 
     consideration of S. 330 so we may proceed to the floor. I 
     acknowledge that by being discharged, your committee in no 
     way waives its jurisdiction over these matters.
       Pursuant to your request, a copy of your letter and this 
     letter will be included in the Committee on the Judiciary's 
     report on S. 330 and in the Congressional Record during House 
     floor consideration of the bill. I appreciate your attention 
     to this matter.
           Sincerely,
                                      F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr.,
                                                         Chairman.

  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in support of S. 330, the Veterans' 
Memorial Preservation and Recognition Act of 2003, and recommend its 
passage to my colleagues. This bipartisan legislation is designed to 
add increased protection to veterans memorials and enhance the 
recognition of veterans cemeteries. This bill is particularly timely 
shortly before Memorial Day and at a time when our military troops 
risked their lives on our behalf in Iraq.
  Specifically, the legislation establishes criminal penalties for 
willfully injuring or destroying or attempting to injure or destroy any 
structure, plaque, statue, or other monument on public property 
commemorating the service of any person in the United States Armed 
Forces. The bill further requires the veterans cemeteries to be treated 
as sites permitting supplemental guide signs on Federal-aid highways.
  The bill was introduced by the Senator from Colorado, Mr. Campbell, 
on February 6, 2003, and passed the Senate by unanimous consent on 
March 27, 2003. I urge Members to support the bill.
  Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 330, a bill 
to protect and recognize veterans' memorials. These memorials honor 
those brave men and women who have served in the military. They can be 
found in nearly every city and town across the country and it is 
important that Congress ensures that they are properly recognized and 
protected.
  I'd like to direct my comments to one particular section of the bill. 
Section 3 of S. 330 allows a veterans' cemetery to be identified by a 
supplemental guide sign on any Federal-aid highway. It is my 
understanding that this section is not intended to circumvent the 
safety regulations governing the design and placement of highway signs 
as set forth in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (the 
Manual).
  Sections 109(d) and 402(a) of title 23 of the United States Code 
provide authority for the Manual, which serves as the national standard 
for all signs, signals, pavement markings, and other traffic control 
devices used on all streets and highways in the United States. The 
Manual provides regulatory, warning, and guidance information to 
motorists and is vitally important to the promotion of safety on our 
Nation's highways. Among the provisions in the Manual are standards for 
sign design, sign size, letter size, letter style, retroreflectivity, 
sign location, and other characteristics that are crucial to ensuring 
highway safety.
  It is my understanding that the wording in Section 3--
``Notwithstanding the terms of any agreement entered into by the 
Secretary of Transportation and a State under section 109(d) or 402(a) 
of title 23, United States Code''--is not intended to remove the 
Manual's requirements regarding sign design, sign size, letter size, 
letter style, retroreflectivity, sign location and other 
characteristics that are important to promote the safety of motorists. 
Rather, S. 330 merely provides for the identification of a veterans' 
cemetery by a supplemental guide sign, one that complies with the 
Manual's requirements, on a Federal-aid highway.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support S. 330.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Terry). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner) that the 
House suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill, S. 330.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

[[Page H4265]]



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