[House Report 116-275]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
116th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session } { 116-275
======================================================================
FIRST INFANTRY RECOGNITION OF SACRIFICE IN THEATER ACT
_______
November 8, 2019.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Grijalva, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1088]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 1088) to authorize the Society of the First
Infantry Division to make modifications to the First Division
Monument located on Federal land in Presidential Park in
District of Columbia, and for other purposes, having considered
the same, report favorably thereon with amendments and
recommend that the bill as amended do pass.
The amendments are as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``First Infantry Recognition of
Sacrifice in Theater Act'' or the ``FIRST Act''.
SEC. 2. MODIFICATION TO FIRST DIVISION MONUMENT.
(a) Authorization.--The Society of the First Infantry Division (an
organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 and exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of that
code), may make modifications (including construction of additional
plaques and stone plinths on which to put the plaques) to the First
Division Monument located on Federal land in President's Park in the
District of Columbia that was set aside for memorial purposes of the
First Infantry Division, in order to honor the members of the First
Infantry Division who paid the ultimate sacrifice during United States
operations, including Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom
and New Dawn, and Operation Enduring Freedom. The First Infantry
Division at the Department of the Army shall collaborate with the
Department of Defense to provide to the Society of the First Infantry
Division the list of names to be added.
(b) Non-Application of Commemorative Works Act.--Subsection (b) of
section 8903 of title 40, United States Code (commonly known as the
``Commemorative Works Act''), shall not apply to actions taken under
subsection (a) of this section.
(c) Funding.--Federal funds may not be used to pay any expense of the
activities of the Society of the First Infantry Division which are
authorized by this section.
Amend the title so as to read:
A bill to authorize the Society of the First Infantry
Division to make modifications to the First Division Monument
located on Federal Land in President's Park in the District of
Columbia, and for other purposes.
PURPOSE OF THE BILL
The purpose of H.R. 1088 is to authorize the Society of the
First Infantry Division to make modifications to the First
Division Monument located on federal land in President's Park
in the District of Columbia, and for other purposes.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
Members of the First Division, also known as ``The Big Red
One'' and ``The Fighting First,''\1\ were the first American
troops to arrive in France, in June 1917,\2\ and the last
American combat troops to leave Europe, in August 1919.\3\
General John Pershing lauded the First Division by writing,
``The Commander-in-Chief has noted in this Division a special
pride of service and a high state of morale, never broken by
hardship nor battle.''\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\At times, the Division has also been called ``Pershing's Own.''
Desirability of Incorporating One or More Indian Divisions in the New
United States Army: Hearing Before the H. Comm. on Military Affairs,
66th Cong. 2163, 2199 (1920) (testimony of Dr. Joseph Kossuth Dixon,
Leader, The Rodman Wanamaker Historical Expeditions to the North
American Indian), in 2 Army Reorganization: Hearings Before the H.
Comm. on Military Affairs, 66th Cong. (1920); H.R. Knickerbocker et
al., Danger Forward: The Story of the First Division in World War II,
at 405 (The Battery Press, Inc. 1980) (1947) (associating the name with
World War I in particular); Historical Notes & Comments, Congressional
Medal of Honor Awarded Six Missourians, 14 Mo. Hist. Rev. 273, 274
(1920); Father O'Reilly Tells of the Work of the Third in France, 62
Literary Dig. No. 11, Sept. 13, 1919, at 93.
\2\See, e.g., Edward M. Coffman, The War to End All Wars 131 (Univ.
of Wis. Press 1986) (1968) (listing the first arrivals as the 16th,
18th, 26th, and 28th Infantry Regiments); see also James Scott Wheeler,
The Big Red One, at 3 (centennial ed., 1917-2017, 2017) (listing the
16th, 18th, 26th, and 28th Infantry Regiments as regiments of the First
Expeditionary Division); History, Soc'y of the 1st Infantry Div.,
https://www.1stid.org/history (last visited Oct. 25, 2019) (stating
that the First Expeditionary Division was redesignated the First
Division on July 6, 1917, and the 1st Infantry Division on August 1,
1942).
\3\Wheeler, supra note 2, at 102.
\4\The United States in the First World War 619 (Anne Cipriano
Venzon ed., 1999).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The First Division Monument was dedicated on October 4,
1924, in President's Park, southwest of the White House, to
honor the 5,516 soldiers of the First Division who lost their
lives during World War I.\5\ On August 24, 1957, an addition to
the monument was dedicated in honor of the 4,325 soldiers of
the First Infantry Division who died in World War II.\6\ The
monument also received additions for the First Infantry
Division soldiers who died in the Vietnam War and in Operation
Desert Storm.\7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\First Division Monument, Nat'l Park Serv., https://www.nps.gov/
places/first-division-
monument.htm (last updated Oct. 25, 2018).
\6\First Division Monument History, Nat'l Park Serv., https://
www.nps.gov/whho/learn/historyculture/first-division-monument.htm (last
updated Nov. 16, 2018).
\7\Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
H.R. 1088 authorizes further additions to the monument to
include the names of the more than 13,000 soldiers of the First
Infantry Division who paid the ultimate sacrifice during U.S.
military operations, including Operation Desert Storm,
Operation Iraqi Freedom and New Dawn, and Operation Enduring
Freedom. The legislation prohibits the use of federal funds to
alter the monument and stipulates that the Commemorative Works
Act, which prohibits monuments to military units, does not
apply to this authorization.
COMMITTEE ACTION
H.R. 1088, the ``First Infantry Recognition of Sacrifice in
Theater Act'' or the ``FIRST Act,'' was introduced on February
7, 2019, by Representative Roger W. Marshall (R-KS). The bill
was referred solely to the Committee on Natural Resources, and
within the Committee to the Subcommittee on National Parks,
Forests, and Public Lands. On May 22, 2019, the Subcommittee
held a hearing on the bill. On June 19, 2019, the Natural
Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee
was discharged by unanimous consent. Chair Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)
offered an amendment designated Grijalva #1 that was agreed to
by voice vote. No additional amendments were offered, and the
bill, as amended, was ordered favorably reported to the House
of Representatives by voice vote.
HEARINGS
For the purposes of section 103(i) of H.Res. 6 of the 116th
Congress--the following hearing was used to develop or consider
H.R. 1088: legislative hearing by the Subcommittee on National
Parks, Forests, and Public Lands held on May 22, 2019.
COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
Committee on Natural Resources' oversight findings and
recommendations are reflected in the body of this report.
COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII AND CONGRESSIONAL
BUDGET ACT
1. Cost of Legislation and the Congressional Budget Act.
With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) and (3) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and
sections 308(a) and 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974, the Committee has received the following estimate for the
bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, June 28, 2019.
Hon. Raul M. Grijalva,
Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1088, the First
Infantry Recognition of Sacrifice in Theater Act.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is David Hughes.
Sincerely,
Mark P. Hadley
(For Phillip L. Swagel, Director).
Enclosure.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
H.R. 1088 would authorize the Society of the First Infantry
Division, a nonprofit organization, to modify the First
Division Monument located on federal land in President's Park
in Washington, D.C. Under the bill the Department of the Army
would provide a list of names of the soldiers killed in recent
military operations that the Society of the First Infantry
Division would add to commemorative plaques and stone plinths
at the monument.
CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 1088 would have an
insignificant cost over the 2019-2024 period; any spending
would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
Costs would be incurred by the Department of the Army to gather
and provide the list of soldiers' names to the Society of the
First Infantry Division; under the bill, no federal funding
would be provided to the society to carry out the modifications
to the monument.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is David Hughes.
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
2. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goals and
objectives of this bill are to authorize the Society of the
First Infantry Division to make modifications to the First
Division Monument located on federal land in President's Park
in the District of Columbia.
EARMARK STATEMENT
This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks,
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined
under clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of
the House of Representatives.
UNFUNDED MANDATES REFORM ACT STATEMENT
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
EXISTING PROGRAMS
This bill does not establish or reauthorize a program of
the federal government known to be duplicative of another
program.
APPLICABILITY TO LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public
services or accommodations within the meaning of section
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.
PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL, OR TRIBAL LAW
Any preemptive effect of this bill over state, local, or
tribal law is intended to be consistent with the bill's
purposes and text and the Supremacy Clause of Article VI of the
U.S. Constitution.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
If enacted, this bill would make no changes to existing
law.
SUPPLEMENTAL, MINORITY, ADDITIONAL, OR DISSENTING VIEWS
None.
[all]