This week, the president will deliver the State of the Union to a joint session of Congress. The House is also set to consider the following seven pieces of legislation.
Rota Cultural and Natural Resources Study Act (H.R. 1141): directs the Secretary of the Interior to study the suitability and feasibility of designating prehistoric, historic, and limestone forest sites on the island of Rota in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as a unit of the National Park System.
Permanent Electronic Duck Stamp Act of 2011 (H.R. 3117): grants the Secretary of the Interior permanent authority to authorize any state to issue electronic duck stamps. Duck stamps are required by any waterfowl hunter over the age of 16, and also allow free entry into any national wildlife refuge in the country.
H.Res. 516: expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the passage of a fiscal year 2013 Federal budget is of national importance.
H.R. __: extends authorization of the Federal Aviation Administration for one month. This is a “clean” extension preserving the agency’s current funding levels for another month; Congress recently reached a deal to reauthorize the FAA for four years which will be voted on at a later date.
War Memorial Protection Act (H.R. 290): permits religious symbols recognizing the religious background of members of the Armed Forces to be included as part of a military memorial that is established or acquired by the federal government, or a military memorial for which the American Battle Monuments Commission cooperated in establishing.
World War II Memorial Prayer Act of 2011 (H.R. 2070): directs the Secretary of the Interior to install at the World War II memorial in Washington, DC, a suitable plaque or inscription with the words that President Franklin D. Roosevelt prayed with the nation on June 6, 1944, the morning of D-Day.
Buffalo Soldiers in the National Parks Study Act (H.R. 1022): directs the Secretary of the Interior to study alternatives for the commemoration and interpretation of the role of the Buffalo Soldiers in the early years of the National Parks. This includes a historical assessment of the Buffalo Soldiers who served in National Parks, an evaluation of the suitability and feasibility of establishing a national historic trail commemorating their service, and an evaluation of ways of enhancing research, education, and awareness of the story of the Buffalo Soldiers.