119-hr4730

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4730 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 4730

To codify Executive Order 14253 relating to restoring truth and sanity 
 to American history, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 July 23, 2025

 Mr. Self introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committee on 
House Administration, 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

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

To codify Executive Order 14253 relating to restoring truth and sanity 
 to American history, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Restoring Truth and Sanity to 
American History Act''.

SEC. 2. CODIFICATION OF EXECUTIVE ORDER 14253.

    (a) 

=== Findings ===
-Congress finds the following:

    (1) Over the past decade, Americans have witnessed a 
 concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our Nation's 
 history, replacing objective facts with a distorted narrative 
 driven by ideology rather than truth. This revisionist movement 
 seeks to undermine the remarkable achievements of the United 
 States by casting its founding principles and historical 
 milestones in a negative light. Under this historical revision, 
 our Nation's unparalleled legacy of advancing liberty, 
 individual rights, and human happiness is reconstructed as 
 inherently racist, sexist, oppressive, or otherwise 
 irredeemably flawed. Rather than fostering unity and a deeper 
 understanding of our shared past, the widespread effort to 
 rewrite history deepens societal divides and fosters a sense of 
 national shame, disregarding the progress America has made and 
 the ideals that continue to inspire millions around the globe.

    (2) The prior administration advanced this corrosive 
 ideology. At Independence National Historical Park in 
 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania--where our Nation declared that all 
 men are created equal--the prior administration sponsored 
 training by an organization that advocates dismantling 
 ``Western foundations'' and ``interrogating institutional 
 racism'' and pressured National Historical Park rangers that 
 their racial identity should dictate how they convey history to 
 visiting Americans because America is purportedly racist.

    (3) Once widely respected as a symbol of American 
 excellence and a global icon of cultural achievement, the 
 Smithsonian Institution has, in recent years, come under the 
 influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology. This shift has 
 promoted narratives that portray American and Western values as 
 inherently harmful and oppressive. For example, the Smithsonian 
 American Art Museum today features ``The Shape of Power: 
 Stories of Race and American Sculpture'', an exhibit 
 representing that ``[s]ocieties including the United States 
 have used race to establish and maintain systems of power, 
 privilege, and disenfranchisement.'' The exhibit further claims 
 that ``sculpture has been a powerful tool in promoting 
 scientific racism'' and promotes the view that race is not a 
 biological reality but a social construct, stating ``Race is a 
 human invention''.

    (4) The National Museum of African American History and 
 Culture has proclaimed that ``hard work'', ``individualism'', 
 and ``the nuclear family'' are aspects of ``White culture''. 
 The forthcoming Smithsonian American Women's History Museum 
 plans on celebrating the exploits of male athletes 
 participating in women's sports. These are just a few examples.

    (b) Policy Statement.--It is the policy of this Act--

    (1) to restore Federal sites dedicated to history, 
 including parks and museums, to solemn and uplifting public 
 monuments that remind Americans of our extraordinary heritage, 
 consistent progress toward becoming a more perfect Union, and 
 unmatched record of advancing liberty, prosperity, and human 
 flourishing;

    (2) that Museums in our Nation's capital should be places 
 where individuals go to learn--not to be subjected to 
 ideological indoctrination or divisive narratives that distort 
 our shared history; and

    (3) to restore the Smithsonian Institution to its rightful 
 place as a symbol of inspiration and American greatness--
 igniting the imagination of young minds, honoring the richness 
 of American history and innovation, and instilling pride in the 
 hearts of all Americans.
            (c) Saving Our Smithsonian.--

    (1) In general.--The Vice President, in consultation with 
 the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy and the 
 Special Assistant to the President and Senior Associate Staff 
 Secretary, shall--
        (A) work to effectuate the policies of this Act 
 through the Vice President's role on the Board of 
 Regents of the Smithsonian Institution with respect to 
 the Smithsonian Institution and its museums, education 
 and research centers, and the National Zoo, including 
 by seeking to remove from such properties anything 
 that--
            (i) violates the policy of this Act as 
 articulated in subsection

    (b) or Federal civil 
 rights laws; or
            (ii) divides Americans based on race; and
        (B) recommend to the President any additional 
 actions necessary to fully effectuate such policies.

    (2) Future appropriations.--The Vice President and the 
 Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall work with 
 Congress to ensure that future appropriations to the 
 Smithsonian Institution--
        (A) prohibit expenditure on exhibits or programs 
 that--
            (i) degrade shared American values;
            (ii) divide Americans based on race; or
            (iii) promote programs or ideologies 
 inconsistent with Federal law, the policy of 
 this Act as articulated in subsection

    (b) , or 
 Federal civil rights laws; and
        (B) celebrate the achievements of women in the 
 American Women's History Museum and do not recognize 
 men as women in any respect, including by--
            (i) promoting, celebrating, or favorably 
 depicting biological males competing in women's 
 sports, winning awards designated for women, 
 dressing as women, or entering private 
 facilities designated for women;
            (ii) promoting, celebrating, or favorably 
 depicting gender-affirming medicine, especially 
 for minors; or
            (iii) including any other material that 
 degrades the biological nature of sex or 
 violates Federal civil rights laws.

    (3) Other measures to promote 

=== policy ===
-The Director of the 
 Office of Management and Budget and the Secretary of the 
 Interior shall take any other measures within their authority 
 to promote the policy of this Act.

    (4) Board of regents of the smithsonian institution.--As 
 appropriate, the Vice President shall, in consultation with the 
 Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy and Special 
 Assistant to the President and Senior Associate Staff 
 Secretary, work with the Speaker of the House of 
 Representatives and the Majority Leader of the Senate to seek 
 the appointment of citizen members to the Board of Regents of 
 the Smithsonian Institution committed to advancing the policy 
 of this Act.
            (d) Restoring Independence Hall.--The Secretary of the Interior 
shall provide sufficient funding, as available, to improve the 
infrastructure of Independence National Historical Park, which shall be 
complete by July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary of the signing of the 
Declaration of Independence.

    (e) Restoring Truth in American History.--The Secretary of the 
Interior shall--

    (1) determine whether, since January 1, 2020, public 
 monuments, memorials, statues, markers, or similar properties 
 within the Department of the Interior's jurisdiction have been 
 removed or changed to perpetuate a false reconstruction of 
 American history, inappropriately minimize the value of certain 
 historical events or figures, divide Americans based on race, 
 recognize men as women, or include any other improper partisan 
 ideology;

    (2) take action to reinstate the pre-existing monuments, 
 memorials, statues, markers, or similar properties, as 
 appropriate and consistent with 

section 437 of the Revised 
 Statutes (43 U.S.C. 1451), division A of subtitle I of title 
 54, United States Code, and other applicable law; and

    (3) take action, as appropriate and consistent with 
 applicable law, to ensure that all public monuments, memorials, 
 statues, markers, or similar properties within the Department 
 of the Interior's jurisdiction--
        (A) do not contain descriptions, depictions, or 
 other content that inappropriately disparage Americans 
 past or living (including persons living in colonial 
 times), divide Americans based on race, or recognize 
 men as women; and
        (B) instead focus on the greatness of the 
 achievements and progress of the American people or, 
 with respect to natural features, the beauty, 
 abundance, and grandeur of the American landscape.

    (f) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed 
to--

    (1) impair or otherwise affect--
        (A) the authority granted by law to an executive 
 department or agency, or the head thereof; or
        (B) the functions of the Director of the Office of 
 Management and Budget relating to budgetary, 
 administrative, or legislative proposals; or

    (2) create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, 
 enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United 
 States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, 
 employees, or agents, or any other person.
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