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H.R. 808: To establish a Department of Peace and Nonviolence
HR 808 IH


110th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 808
To establish a Department of Peace and Nonviolence.


IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES


February 5, 2007

Mr. KUCINICH (for himself, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. ANDREWS, Ms. BALDWIN, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Ms. CARSON, Mr. CLAY, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. FARR, Mr. FILNER, Mr. AL GREEN of Texas, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. HOLT, Mr. HONDA, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Mrs. JONES of Ohio, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. KILPATRICK of Michigan, Ms. LEE, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mrs. MALONEY of New York, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. MEEKS of New York, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mr. NADLER, Ms. NORTON, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. RANGEL, Mr. ROTHMAN, Mr. RYAN of Ohio, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. SHERMAN, Mrs. TAUSCHER, Mr. TOWNS, Ms. WATERS, Ms. WATSON, Ms. WOOLSEY, Mr. WU, and Mr. WYNN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on Foreign Affairs, Judiciary, and Education and Labor, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned


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A BILL
To establish a Department of Peace and Nonviolence.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,


SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

(a) Short Title- This Act may be cited as the `Department of Peace and Nonviolence Act'.

(b) Table of Contents- The table of contents for this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Findings.


TITLE I--ESTABLISHMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE

Sec. 101. Establishment of Department of Peace and Nonviolence.

Sec. 102. Responsibilities and powers.

Sec. 103. Principal officers.

Sec. 104. Office of Peace Education and Training.

Sec. 105. Office of Domestic Peace Activities.

Sec. 106. Office of International Peace Activities.

Sec. 107. Office of Technology for Peace.

Sec. 108. Office of Arms Control and Disarmament.

Sec. 109. Office of Peaceful Coexistence and Nonviolent Conflict Resolution.

Sec. 110. Office of Human Rights and Economic Rights.

Sec. 111. Intergovernmental Advisory Council on Peace and Nonviolence.

Sec. 112. Consultation required.

Sec. 113. Authorization of appropriations.


TITLE II--ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS AND TRANSFERS OF AGENCY FUNCTIONS

Sec. 201. Staff.

Sec. 202. Transfers.

Sec. 203. Conforming amendments.


TITLE III--FEDERAL INTERAGENCY COMMITTEE ON PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE

Sec. 301. Federal Interagency Committee on Peace and Nonviolence.


TITLE IV--ESTABLISHMENT OF PEACE DAY

Sec. 401. Peace Day.


SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:

(1) On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously declared the independence of the 13 colonies, and the achievement of peace was recognized as one of the highest duties of the new organization of free and independent States.

(2) In declaring, `We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness', the drafters of the Declaration of Independence, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the World, derived the creative cause of nationhood from `the Laws of Nature' and the entitlements of `Nature's God', such literal referrals in the Declaration of Independence thereby serving to celebrate the unity of human thought, natural law, and spiritual causation.

(3) The architects of the Declaration of Independence `with a firm reliance on the protection of divine providence' spoke to the connection between the original work infusing principle into the structure of a democratic government seeking to elevate the condition of humanity, and the activity of a higher power which moves to guide the Nation's fortune.

(4) The Constitution of the United States of America, in its Preamble, further sets forth the insurance of the cause of peace in stating: `We the People of the United States, in Order to Form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.'

(5) The Founders of this country gave America a vision of freedom for the ages and provided people with a document which gave this Nation the ability to adapt to an undreamed of future.

(6) It is the sacred duty of the people of the United States to receive the living truths of our founding documents and to think anew to develop institutions that permit the unfolding of the highest moral principles in this Nation and around the world.

(7) During the course of the 20th century, more than 100,000,000 people perished in wars, and now, at the dawn of the 21st century, violence seems to be an overarching theme in the world, encompassing personal, group, national, and international conflict, extending to the production of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons of mass destruction which have been developed for use on land, air, sea, and in space.

(8) Such conflict is often taken as a reflection of the human condition without questioning whether the structures of thought, word, and deed which the people of the United States have inherited are any longer sufficient for the maintenance, growth, and survival of the United States and the world.

(9) Promoting a culture of peace has been recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) through passage of a resolution declaring an International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children 2001-2010. The objective is to further strengthen the global movement for a culture of peace following the observance of the International Year for the Culture of Peace in 2000.

(10) We are in a new millennium, and the time has come to review age-old challenges with new thinking wherein we can conceive of peace as not simply being the absence of violence, but the active presence of the capacity for a higher evolution of the human awareness, of respect, trust, and integrity; wherein we all may tap the infinite capabilities of humanity to transform consciousness and conditions which impel or compel violence at a personal, group, or national level toward developing a new understanding of, and a commitment to, compassion and love, in order to create a `shining city on a hill', the light of which is the light of nations.


TITLE I--ESTABLISHMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE

SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE.

(a) Establishment- There is hereby established a Department of Peace and Nonviolence (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the `Department'), which shall--

(1) be a cabinet-level department in the executive branch of the Federal Government; and

(2) be dedicated to peacemaking and the study of conditions that are conducive to both domestic and international peace.

(b) Secretary of Peace and Nonviolence- There shall be at the head of the Department a Secretary of Peace and Nonviolence (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the `Secretary'), who shall be appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate.

(c) Mission- The Department shall--

(1) hold peace as an organizing principle, coordinating service to every level of American society;

(2) endeavor to promote justice and democratic principles to expand human rights;

(3) strengthen nonmilitary means of peacemaking;

(4) promote the development of human potential;

(5) work to create peace, prevent violence, divert from armed conflict, use field-tested programs, and develop new structures in nonviolent dispute resolution;

(6) take a proactive, strategic approach in the development of policies that promote national and international conflict prevention, nonviolent intervention, mediation, peaceful resolution of conflict, and structured mediation of conflict;

(7) address matters both domestic and international in scope; and

(8) encourage the development of initiatives from local communities, religious groups, and nongovernmental organizations.