Bill > HR4608

This bill directs the Secretary of the Interior to remove or permanently conceal all references to Francis G. Newlands from the memorial fountain located at Chevy Chase Circle in Washington, D.C. Specifically, the bill requires the removal of a brass plaque bearing Newlands' name, the removal of a stone tablet with his name and inscription, and the removal or permanent concealment of the "Newlands" name carved into the fountain's coping stones. The bill provides that these removed items will first be offered to Newlands' descendants for 60 days, and if unclaimed, will be maintained by the National Park Service as federal property and added to the Rock Creek Park museum collection. The bill appears to be part of a broader effort to remove public commemorations of historical figures associated with racist or discriminatory views, as Francis G. Newlands was a prominent late 19th/early 20th-century politician known for his white supremacist political positions. By removing his name from this public memorial, the bill seeks to address the problematic legacy of such historical figures in public spaces.

Agriculture and Natural Resources

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/4608/all-info