Establishes a commission to study the history and impact of slavery and discrimination against African Americans from 1619 to the present and to develop proposals for reparations, including recommending appropriate remedies and educating the public on the commission's findings. The commission will submit its findings to Congress within 18 months of its first official meeting.
Ayanna Pressley
Representative
MA-7
The "Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act" establishes a commission to examine the history of slavery and discrimination in the United States from 1619 to the present. The commission will study the lingering negative effects of these injustices on living African Americans and U.S. society, and recommend appropriate remedies, including how to educate the American public on its findings to promote racial healing and understanding. The commission will submit a written report of its findings and recommendations to Congress within 18 months of its first official meeting, and the act authorizes the appropriation of $20,000,000 to implement the provisions of this act.
Slavery Reparations Study Bill Gets Green Light: $20M Commission to Investigate, Recommend Compensation
The "Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act" is officially a go. This bill sets up a 15-member commission to dive deep into the history and ongoing effects of slavery and systemic discrimination against African Americans, and then figure out what actual reparations might look like.
Digging into the Past and Present
The commission's job is huge. They're tasked with documenting the whole ugly history of slavery in the U.S. (from 1619 to 1865) and how the government, at both the federal and state levels, propped it up (SEC. 2 & 3). They'll also look at how discriminatory laws and practices after slavery – things like redlining, unequal education, and predatory lending – have continued to harm African Americans right up to the present day (SEC. 3). Think of it as a massive investigation into centuries of injustice, with the goal of understanding how it all connects to the challenges faced by Black communities today. For example, the commission will examine how policies specifically impacted individuals and communities, such as Black farmers denied loans or Black veterans excluded from GI Bill benefits (SEC. 2). The effects of the exclusion from Social Security Benefits and the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 are to be investigated, too (SEC. 2).
Recommendations and Remedies
But it's not just about history. This commission has to come up with real solutions. They'll be recommending ways to educate the public about their findings, aiming to foster racial healing and understanding (SEC. 3). More controversially, they're charged with recommending "appropriate remedies," including how the U.S. government should formally apologize and what kind of compensation (if any) should be provided (SEC. 3). They'll need to figure out who would be eligible, how compensation would be calculated and distributed, and what other forms of "rehabilitation or restitution" are needed (SEC. 3). It's a complex task with huge implications. They have 18 months from their first meeting to deliver a full report to Congress (SEC. 3).
Power, Funding, and a Few Quirks
This commission has some serious power. They can hold hearings, subpoena witnesses, and access confidential government data (SEC. 5). They're getting $20 million to do their work (SEC. 8). Interestingly, they're exempt from the Federal Advisory Committee Act (SEC. 6), which usually governs how federal commissions operate. This means less red tape, but also potentially less public oversight. The commission is composed of 15 members. Three are appointed by the President, three by the Speaker of the House, three by the Senate President Pro Tempore, and six by the director with approval from the first nine (SEC. 4). The Director is selected within 60 days of all members being appointed, and the initial meeting happens 45 days after all members are appointed (SEC. 4). The commission wraps up 90 days after submitting its report (SEC. 7).