Abolish the Last Great Plantation in America Resolution

IV 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 14 Establishing the Commission on Addressing Racism and Ensuring Diversity in the United States Government to study and make recommendations on the elimination of systemic racism and the promotion of diversity in the Federal Government, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 1, 2021 Mr. RUSH submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform CONCURRENT RESOLUTION Establishing the Commission on Addressing Racism and En- suring Diversity in the United States Government to study and make recommendations on the elimination of systemic racism and the promotion of diversity in the Federal Government, and for other purposes. Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 1 concurring), 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This concurrent resolution may be cited as the ‘‘Abol- 4 ish the Last Great Plantation in America Resolution’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 2 •HCON 14 IH SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT. 1 There is established in the legislative branch the 2 Commission on Addressing Racism and Ensuring Diver- 3 sity in the United States Government (hereafter referred 4 to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 5 SEC. 3. MEMBERSHIP. 6 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Commission 7 shall be composed of 20 members appointed as follows not 8 later than 90 days after the date of the adoption of this 9 resolution: 10 (1) Five members appointed by the Speaker of 11 the House of Representatives. 12 (2) Five members appointed by the minority 13 leader of the House of Representatives. 14 (3) Five members appointed by the majority 15 leader of the Senate. 16 (4) Five members appointed by the minority 17 leader of the Senate. 18 (b) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each member of the Commis- 19 sion shall have expertise in the areas of racial justice, 20 equal opportunity, and diversity and employment law. 21 (c) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Commission shall 22 be filled in the manner in which the original appointment 23 was made. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 3 •HCON 14 IH (d) CHAIR; VICE CHAIR.—The members of the Com- 1 mission shall elect a Chair and Vice Chair from the mem- 2 bership. 3 (e) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.— 4 (1) RATE OF PAY.—A member of the Commis- 5 sion shall be compensated at a rate equal to the 6 daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay pre- 7 scribed for level IV of the Executive Schedule under 8 section 5315 of title 5, United States Code, for each 9 day (including travel time) during which the member 10 is engaged in the performance of the duties of the 11 Commission. 12 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the 13 Commission shall be allowed reasonable travel ex- 14 penses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at 15 rates for employees of agencies under subchapter I 16 of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while 17 away from the member’s home or regular place of 18 business in the performance of services for the Com- 19 mission. 20 SEC. 4. PERSONNEL. 21 (a) CHIEF OF STAFF.— 22 (1) APPOINTMENT.—Not later than 45 days 23 after the initial meeting of the Commission, the 24 Commission shall appoint one individual, without re- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 4 •HCON 14 IH gard to political affiliation, as Chief of Staff of the 1 Commission. 2 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The individual appointed 3 as Chief of Staff— 4 (A) shall be a private citizen of the United 5 States of integrity and impartiality who is a 6 distinguished professional; and 7 (B) may not be a present employee of the 8 Federal Government. 9 (3) CANDIDATE TO HAVE CLEARANCES.—A 10 candidate for Chief of Staff shall be granted the nec- 11 essary security clearances in an accelerated manner 12 subject to the standard procedures for granting such 13 clearances. 14 (4) APPROVAL CONTINGENT ON PRIOR CLEAR- 15 ANCE.—A candidate for Chief of Staff shall qualify 16 for the necessary security clearance prior to appoint- 17 ment by the Commission. 18 (5) DUTIES.—The Chief of Staff shall— 19 (A) serve as principal liaison to Govern- 20 ment offices; and 21 (B) be responsible for the administration 22 of all official activities conducted by the Com- 23 mission. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 5 •HCON 14 IH (6) REMOVAL.—The Chief of Staff shall not be 1 removed for reasons other than by a majority vote 2 of the Commission for cause on the grounds of inef- 3 ficiency, neglect of duty, malfeasance in office, phys- 4 ical disability, mental incapacity, or any other condi- 5 tion that substantially impairs the performance of 6 the responsibilities of the Chief of Staff or the staff 7 of the Commission. 8 (b) STAFF.— 9 (1) ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL.—In consultation 10 with the members of the Commission, the Chief of 11 Staff may appoint and fix the pay of such additional 12 personnel as are necessary to enable the Commission 13 to perform its duties. Such personnel may be ap- 14 pointed without regard to the provisions of title 5, 15 United States Code, governing appointments in the 16 competitive service, and (subject to subsection (c)) 17 may be paid without regard to the provisions of 18 chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of that 19 title relating to classification and General Schedule 20 pay rates. 21 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—A person appointed to 22 the staff of the Commission— 23 (A) shall be a private citizen of integrity 24 and impartiality; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 6 •HCON 14 IH (B) may not be an employee of the Federal 1 Government. 2 (3) SECURITY CLEARANCES.—A candidate for a 3 position on the staff of the Commission shall qualify 4 for the necessary security clearance prior to appoint- 5 ment. 6 (c) COMPENSATION.—The Commission shall fix the 7 compensation of the Chief of Staff and other personnel 8 in accordance with title 5, United States Code, except that 9 the rate of pay for the Chief of Staff and other personnel 10 may not exceed the rate payable for level V of the Execu- 11 tive Schedule under section 5316 of that title. 12 (d) ADVISORY COMMITTEES.—The Commission shall 13 have the authority to create advisory committees to assist 14 in fulfilling the responsibilities of the Commission under 15 this Act. 16 (e) APPLICATION OF CONGRESSIONAL ACCOUNT- 17 ABILITY ACT OF 1995.—For purposes of the Congres- 18 sional Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301 et 19 seq.)— 20 (1) the Commission shall be considered an em- 21 ploying office; and 22 (2) the employees of the Commission shall be 23 considered covered employees. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 7 •HCON 14 IH SEC. 5. DUTIES. 1 (a) STUDY.—The Commission shall conduct a study 2 on the presence of system racism and the lack of diversity 3 in the Federal Government, and on steps the Federal Gov- 4 ernment may take to eliminate racism and promote diver- 5 sity in the government. 6 (b) REPORTS.— 7 (1) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 1 year 8 after the appointment of all of its members, the 9 Commission shall submit to Congress a final report 10 on the study conducted under subsection (a), and 11 shall include in the report such recommendations as 12 the Commission considers appropriate. 13 (2) INTERIM REPORTS.—In addition to the final 14 report under paragraph (1), the Commission may 15 submit to Congress such interim reports as it con- 16 siders appropriate. 17 (3) MINORITY REPORTS.—The Commission may 18 include in any report submitted under this sub- 19 section a report containing minority views. 20 SEC. 6. POWERS. 21 (a) HEARINGS AND SESSIONS.—The Commission 22 may, for the purpose of carrying out this Act, hold hear- 23 ings, sit and act at times and places, take testimony, and 24 receive evidence as the Commission considers appropriate. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 8 •HCON 14 IH The Commission may administer oaths or affirmations to 1 witnesses appearing before it. 2 (b) POWERS OF MEMBERS AND AGENTS.—Any mem- 3 ber or agent of the Commission may, if authorized by the 4 Commission, take any action which the Commission is au- 5 thorized to take by this section. 6 (c) OBTAINING OFFICIAL DATA.—The Commission 7 may secure directly from any department or agency of the 8 United States information necessary to enable it to carry 9 out this Act. Upon request of the Chairperson of the Com- 10 mission, the head of that department or agency shall fur- 11 nish that information to the Commission. 12 (d) MAILS.—The Commission may use the United 13 States mails in the same manner and under the same con- 14 ditions as other departments and agencies of the United 15 States. 16 (e) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES.—Upon 17 the request of the Commission, the Architect of the Cap- 18 itol shall provide to the Commission, on a reimbursable 19 basis, the administrative support services necessary for the 20 Commission to carry out its responsibilities under this Act. 21 (f) SUBPOENA POWER.— 22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may issue 23 subpoenas requiring the attendance and testimony of 24 witnesses and the production of any evidence relat- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 9 •HCON 14 IH ing to any matter under investigation by the Com- 1 mission. The attendance of witnesses and the pro- 2 duction of evidence may be required from any place 3 within the United States at any designated place of 4 hearing within the United States. 5 (2) FAILURE TO OBEY A SUBPOENA.—If a per- 6 son refuses to obey a subpoena issued under para- 7 graph (1), the Commission may apply to a United 8 States district court for an order requiring that per- 9 son to appear before the Commission to give testi- 10 mony, produce evidence, or both, relating to the 11 matter under investigation. The application may be 12 made within the judicial district where the hearing 13 is conducted or where that person is found, resides, 14 or transacts business. Any failure to obey the order 15 of the court may be punished by the court as civil 16 contempt. 17 (3) SERVICE OF SUBPOENAS.—The subpoenas 18 of the Commission shall be served in the manner 19 provided for subpoenas issued by a United States 20 district court under the Federal Rules of Civil Pro- 21 cedure for the United States district courts. 22 (4) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—All process of any 23 court to which application is made under paragraph 24 (2) may be served in the judicial district in which 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 10 •HCON 14 IH the person required to be served resides or may be 1 found. 2 SEC. 7. TERMINATION. 3 The Commission shall terminate 90 days after sub- 4 mitting its final report under section 5(b)(1). 5 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 6 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 7 this Act such sums as are necessary for fiscal year 2021, 8 of which— 9 (1) 50 percent shall be derived from the appli- 10 cable accounts of the House of Representatives; and 11 (2) 50 percent shall be derived from the contin- 12 gent fund of the Senate. 13 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:40 Feb 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HC14.IH HC14 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS