H.R. 40: Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act
Sponsor
Ayanna Pressley
Democrat · MA-7
Bill Progress
Latest Action · Jan 3, 2025
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
H.R. 40 puts reparations on the federal agenda
Why it matters
$20,000,000 would fund a 15-member commission to examine harms tied to slavery and later discrimination, then tell Congress who could qualify for reparations and what remedies to consider.
H.R. 40 creates a 15-member federal commission focused on one question Congress has debated for decades: whether and how the United States should develop reparations proposals for African Americans. The bill's findings cite approximately 4,000,000 Africans and their descendants enslaved from 1619 to 1865, and point to later government-backed discrimination in housing, Social Security, veterans' benefits, labor policy, education, and criminal justice.
This bill does not award money to individuals. Instead, it orders the commission to build the factual record, study the lasting effects on living African Americans, and deliver recommendations to Congress within 18 months of its first full meeting.
Those recommendations must go beyond a historical report. The commission would be required to address public education, a possible formal apology, methods for calculating compensation, standards for determining eligibility, and other forms of restitution or rehabilitation.
The commission would also have real investigative power. It could subpoena witnesses and records, ask federal agencies for confidential information, and go to federal court to enforce subpoenas if needed.
The structure is designed to move quickly. Nine political appointees must be named within 60 days of enactment, six expert members are added after that, and the first full meeting must happen within 45 days of the full panel being assembled.
H.R. 40 Bill Summary
What H.R. 40 actually does.
Creates a national reparations commission
H.R. 40 sets up a 15-member commission in the legislative branch to study slavery, later discrimination, and possible reparations proposals for African Americans.
Looks at harms from slavery through today
The commission must examine slavery from 1619 to 1865, the role of federal and state governments in supporting it, and discriminatory laws and practices from 1868 to the present. The bill's findings also point to redlining, unequal education, and disparities in incarceration, employment, and wealth.
Requires recommendations on apology and compensation
The final report must recommend ways to educate the public, consider a formal U.S. apology, outline how compensation could be calculated, and propose standards for determining eligibility.
Gives investigators subpoena power
The commission could compel testimony and documents, seek confidential information from federal agencies, and ask federal courts to enforce subpoenas.
Runs on an 18-month reporting deadline
Once the full commission holds its first meeting, the clock starts. The report to Congress is due within 18 months, and the commission ends 90 days later.
Funds the work with $20 million
The bill authorizes $20,000,000 for staff, research, hearings, and operations. It also caps pay for staff, consultants, and commission members.
Who benefits from H.R. 40?
Living African Americans whose families trace harm to slavery and later discrimination
They would get something Congress has never fully created before: an official federal process to study harms, define possible eligibility, and recommend remedies instead of leaving the issue as a purely rhetorical debate.
Families looking for answers on who could qualify
The commission must recommend standards for eligibility and methods for calculating compensation, which could turn a broad national argument into specific criteria Congress can debate.
Researchers, historians, and community experts
Six of the 15 seats are reserved for subject-matter experts, and the commission can gather records from across the federal government to build a more complete public record.
The public trying to understand the scope of the issue
The bill requires recommendations on public education, not just compensation. That means the final product is supposed to explain both the history and the policy choices in plain view.
Who is affected by H.R. 40?
Federal agencies holding records
Departments and agencies could be required to turn over confidential information and respond to document requests tied to the commission's investigation.
Witnesses, institutions, and record holders
If the commission needs testimony or documents, it can issue subpoenas and seek court enforcement when people or organizations refuse to cooperate.
Congress
Lawmakers would not be voting on direct reparations payments in this bill. They would be voting on whether to create the process that could later recommend them.
Current government officials
Members of Congress and federal, state, or local government employees cannot serve on the commission, so the panel would be made up of outside appointees and experts.
Cost & Funding
Authorization
$20,000,000
- H.R. 40 authorizes $20,000,000 for the commission's work.
- That is funding for the study process itself, not direct reparations payments.
- With 15 members and an 18-month reporting window, the money would cover staffing, research, hearings, document collection, and administration.
- The commission ends 90 days after submitting its report, so the bill does not create a permanent office.
HR40 Legislative Journey
House: Committee Action
Jan 3, 2025
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
About the Sponsor
Ayanna Pressley
Democrat, Massachusetts's 7th congressional district · 7 years in Congress
Committees: Financial Services, Oversight and Government Reform
View full profile →
Cosponsors (113)
All 113 cosponsors are Democrats. Cosponsors represent 35 states: Alabama, California, Colorado, and 32 more.
Alma Adams
Democrat · NC
Becca Balint
Democrat · VT
Nanette Barragán
Democrat · CA
Joyce Beatty
Democrat · OH
Donald Beyer
Democrat · VA
Sanford Bishop
Democrat · GA
Suzanne Bonamici
Democrat · OR
Shontel Brown
Democrat · OH
Julia Brownley
Democrat · CA
André Carson
Democrat · IN
Troy Carter
Democrat · LA
Ed Case
Democrat · HI
Cosponsor Coverage Map
Committee Sponsors
Judiciary Committee
13 of 44 committee members cosponsored
6 Democrats across this committee haven't cosponsored yet. Mobilize their constituents
H.R. 40 Quick Facts
- Committee
- Judiciary
- Chamber
- House
- Policy
- Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
- Introduced
- Jan 3, 2025
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Jan 3, 2025
Official Sources
The official Congress.gov page is the primary source for the bill text, status, sponsor, and actions.
H.R. 40 was referred to the House Judiciary Committee, making the committee site relevant for hearings and committee activity.
The bill creates a federal commission to study civil-rights-related harms and remedies, so the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights is a closely relevant official reference point.
The bill studies slavery through 1865, and the National Archives page provides official historical documentation tied to emancipation and the end of slavery.
The bill’s findings discuss slavery, emancipation, and the constitutional transition after the Civil War, making the 13th Amendment an important official reference.
The bill specifically references post-1868 citizenship and later discrimination, and the 14th Amendment is central to that legal history.
H.R. 40 Common Questions
Does H.R. 40 actually pay reparations?
No. H.R. 40 does not send payments. It creates a federal commission to study reparations proposals and recommend eligibility rules, compensation methods, and other remedies.
Did H.R. 40 pass?
No. H.R. 40 has not passed. It was introduced by Rep. Ayanna Pressley and referred to the House Judiciary Committee.
How much money does H.R. 40 authorize?
H.R. 40 authorizes $20,000,000 for the commission's work. That money funds the study, staffing, hearings, and report — not reparations payments.
What would the H.R. 40 commission study?
It would study slavery from 1619 to 1865, later discrimination from 1868 to today, and the lasting effects on living African Americans, according to the bill's text.
Who would be on the H.R. 40 commission?
H.R. 40 creates a 15-member commission: 3 appointed by the President, 3 by the House Speaker, 3 by the Senate's president pro tempore, and 6 expert members approved by the first 9.
Can the H.R. 40 commission subpoena records and witnesses?
Yes. The commission could subpoena testimony and documents, request confidential federal information, and ask federal courts to enforce subpoenas.
How long would the H.R. 40 commission have to finish its work?
The commission's report would be due within 18 months after its first full meeting. The bill says the commission ends 90 days after submitting that report.
Would H.R. 40 decide who qualifies for reparations?
Not directly. The bill says the commission must recommend standards for determining eligibility and methods for calculating compensation, but Congress would still decide whether to act.
Based on H.R. 40 bill text
H.R. 40 Bill Text
“To address the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of slavery in the United States and the 13 American colonies between 1619 and 1865 and to establish a commission to study and consider a national apology and proposal for reparations for the institution of slavery, its subsequent de jure and de facto racial and economic discrimination against African Americans, and the impact of these forces on living African Americans, to make recommendations to the Congress on appropriate remedies, and for other purposes.”
Source: U.S. Government Publishing Office
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