[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 155 (Wednesday, December 5, 2012)]
[House]
[Page H6656]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   21ST CENTURY LANGUAGE ACT OF 2012

  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass 
the bill (S. 2367) to strike the word ``lunatic'' from Federal law, and 
for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                S. 2367

       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 ``21st Century Language Act of 
     2012''.

     SEC. 2. MODERNIZATION OF LANGUAGE REFERRING TO PERSONS WHO 
                   ARE MENTALLY ILL.

       (a) Words Denoting Number, Gender, and So Forth.--Section 1 
     of title 1, United States Code, is amended--
       (1) by striking ``and `lunatic' ''; and
       (2) by striking ``lunatic,''.
       (b) Banking Law Provisions.--
       (1) Trust powers.--The first section of the Act entitled 
     ``An Act to place authority over the trust powers of national 
     banks in the Comptroller of the Currency'', approved 
     September 28, 1962 (12 U.S.C. 92a), is amended--
       (A) in subsection (a), by striking ``committee of estates 
     of lunatics,''; and
       (B) in subsection (b), by striking ``committee of estates 
     of lunatics''.
       (2) Consolidation and mergers of banks.--The National Bank 
     Consolidation and Merger Act (12 U.S.C. 215 et seq.) is 
     amended--
       (A) in section 2 (12 U.S.C. 215)--
       (i) in subsection (e), by striking ``receiver, and 
     committee of estates of lunatics'' and inserting ``and 
     receiver''; and
       (ii) in subsection (f), by striking ``receiver, or 
     committee of estates of lunatics'' and inserting ``or 
     receiver''; and
       (B) in section 3 (12 U.S.C. 215a)--
       (i) in subsection (e), by striking ``receiver, and 
     committee of estates of lunatics'' and inserting ``and 
     receiver''; and
       (ii) in subsection (f), by striking ``receiver, or 
     committee of estates of lunatics'' and inserting ``or 
     receiver''.

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


                             General Leave

  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous materials on S. 2367, currently under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the 21st Century Language Act is a relatively simple 
bill. It strikes the word ``lunatic'' from the United States Code.
  The term ``lunatic'' derives from the Latin word for ``moon.'' Before 
the modern era, it was used to describe a person who suffers from 
mental disease because of the belief that lunar cycles had an impact on 
brain function. But as science and medicine have progressed, society 
has come to understand mental illness with more clarity.
  Senator Conrad and Senator Crapo introduced the legislation under 
consideration to strike the word ``lunatic'' from the United States 
Code. I thank them for their effort, and I encourage my colleagues to 
join me in support of this bill to modernize our codified law to 
reflect a 21st-century understanding of mental illness.
  With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill eliminates outdated references in the U.S. 
Code that stigmatize individuals with mental illness issues. This 
legislation easily passed the Senate with strong bipartisan support.
  The bill eliminates the word ``lunatic'' from several sections of the 
United States Code in order for our Code to reflect meanings which are 
much more appropriate and up to date in the 21st century.
  In the past, Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle have 
worked together to address similar terms in the Code which negatively 
describe individuals with mental health issues. For example, in 2010, 
Rosa's Law passed in Congress with bipartisan support and was later 
signed into law. The law replaced parts of the Code containing the 
phrase ``having mental retardation'' with the phrase ``having 
intellectual disabilities.''
  The term ``lunatic'' holds a place in antiquity and should no longer 
have a prominent place in our U.S. Code. Although the bill does not 
replace the word with another term, it follows the precedence of 
Congress to study semantics and continuously improves the status and 
appropriateness of our Nation's laws by addressing pejorative terms.
  I applaud the bipartisan group of Senators--Senators Conrad, Crapo, 
and Johanns--for their work on this legislation. In addition, the bill 
shares strong support among our Nation's leading mental health 
advocates.
  I urge my colleagues to support the legislation, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, 
as well.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, S. 2367.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. 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, further 
proceedings on this question will be postponed.

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