Legislation (H.R. 2133) to set up a commission to plan activities for the May 17, 2001, 50th anniversary celebration of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education is on its way to the President for his signature. The House, on September 10, passed the bill by voice vote, agreeing to a Senate amendment that made technical changes to the legislation.
The House originally passed the bill on June 26. The Senate passed the measure on August 3 (see The Source, 9/7/01, p. 3) with an amendment that made changes to the way in which the commission will be appointed and required a representative from the Justice Department to be a commission co-chair.
The bill authorizes $250,000 over FY2003 and FY2004 for the 22-member commission to plan, coordinate, and promote educational activities to recognize the historical significance of the 1954 decision that banned racial segregation in the public schools.
