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  1. Overview: United States Fourteenth Amendment & The Civil Rights Act of 1866
  2. Full Record: United States Fourteenth Amendment & The Civil Rights Act of 1866
  3. Committee:The House of Representatives
  4. Session: 1867-02-06 12:00:00
  5. Event type: CREATE_FROM

United States Fourteenth Amendment & The Civil Rights Act of 1866

An amendment to the Constitution of the United States that granted citizenship and equal rights, both civil and legal, to Black Americans, including those who had been emancipated by the thirteenth amendment.

The House of Representatives

The House of Representatives of the Thirty-Ninth Session of Congress

The Committee Secretary's View The Committee Secretary's View

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Document introduced in:

Session 8697: 1867-02-06 12:00:00

The Joint Committee on Reconstruction reports H. R. 1143

Document View:

H. R. 1143

Shown with amendment 'H. R. 1143: Mr. Hawkins' Substitute ' (e901802)

There are 15 proposed amendments related to this document on which decisions have not been taken.
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A BILL

To provide for the more efficient government of the insurrectionary States.

Whereas a large numberthe pretended State governments of the people of thlate so-called Confederate States of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Florida, Texas, and Arkansas, did declare their independence of the United States, were set up without the and did form a pretended government, under the titleority of the Confederate Statgres of America; and whereas their senators and representatives did withdraw from their places inout the Congress of the United States, and gave their allegiance to the so-called governmenttion of the Confederate States of Americapeople; and whereas said pretended government did wage a cruel and destructive war on the government and people of the United States, seized the publics afford no adequate protection for life or property and destroyed the commerce of the United States;, but countenance and whereas the said rebellion has been supprencourage lawlessnessed at a great loss of bloodnd crime; and twhereasure of the United States, it bs necomes the duty ofsary the Congress of the United States to provide for theace restoration of said States to their former relations to the federal government, and to secure to all thgood order should be citizens of the same complete protection in the full enjoyment of all their rights and privileges under the Constitution; and whereas the Congress of the United States does declare that saiso-called States, shall not resume their relations to the Federal Guntil loyal and republican State government until a nums can ber of the people of said States, sufficient to control the same, shall maintain true faith and allegiance to tgally establishe United States: Therefore,

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Speaker of the House of Representatives and lathe President of the Senlateso-called Confederate States shall appoint three commissioners for each State, citizens of the State for whbe divided into military districh they shall be appointed, who shall have beennd made subject throughout the rebellion Union men, and who never aided or sympathized with the rebellion, whose duty it shall be to call a convention of the people of said Statesmilitary authority of the United States as hereinafter prescribed, and for theat purpose of reforming theirVirginia shall constitutions to suit the changed condition of the times. Said convention shall consist of as many delegates as the most numerous branch of the legislature one the first district; North Carolina and South Carolina the second district; Georgia, Alabama and Florida the third district; Mississippi and Arkansas the first of January, eighteen hundred and sixty. That no person who voluntarily bore arms against the United States, or gave voluntary aid toourth district; and Louisiana and Texas the rebellion, shall ever be eligible to a seat in said conventionfifth district.

SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That said commissionersfit shall, on or bye the first daduty of May, eighteen hundred and sixty-seven, or as soonmajorthe general of thereafter as practicable, appointmy to assign two the commissioners of registration forand of each of saidcounty, parish, or district is an officeach said States, whose duty it shall be to registeraalr of the army, not below the rank of brigadier gin a apprpriaeook kept for that purpose, enerall oflegal voters of said county, parish, or district, in order to asctin whether any citizen who may apply for registration is entitlesevead to vote; said registers shall have power to administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses.

SEC. 3. And bdetail a sufficient military force to enable it furthsur encted, That evch officerymaleea to person of the age of twenty-one years, who is a citizen of the United States, who has resided one year in the State, and wform his duties and enforce his autho has been a resident of the county six monwiths next preceding the election; who has never borne arms against the United States or given voluntary aid or comfordistrict to the enemy in the late rebellion, shall bwhich he entitled to registration as a voter assigned.

SEC. 43. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the commissioners of registrationeach officer assigned as aforesaid to appoint three judges of elprotection and one clerk, registered votll pers, to hold elections, o in the day ordered by the State commissioners, in the several precincts or places for holding elir rights of person and property, to suppress insurrections in said counties, districts, or parishes, or at any other convenider, and violent place: Provided, however, That in case anyand to punish, other than the causual place for holding elections shall be selectpunished, proper notice shall be given by advertising the same in at leastturbers of three public places. The polls shall be kept open from ten o'clock ante meridian until four o'clock post meridieace and criminals, an of said day. Alter the pollto this have been closed the judges shall proceed to count the same and shall mlocal may allow local civil tribunals to take a fair list of the votes cast, and for whom cast,jurisdiction of and shall at once transmit, by the haoffenders, of the clerk, said lr, when in hist, signed by the judges and certified by the clerk, toment it may be necessary for the commissioners of registration, whotrial of offenders, he shall transmit thave samepower to the Statorganize commissioners. After the Statelitary commissioners shall have ascertained the successful candidates, they shall transmit to each a certificor tribunals for thate purpof his election, which certificate shall entitle him to his seatanything in the convention.

SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That the election for memberstitution and laws of the convention shlate so-called Confederate Stake place ontes to the first Monday of July, eighteen hundred and sixty-seven,contrary notwithstanding; and the convention shall assemble on the first Monday in August eighteen hundred and sixty-seven, at the capital of the legislative or judicial proceedings or processes to prespective States.

SEC. 6. And be it further enacted, That when thent or control the proceedings of said convention shall have formed a constitutionmilitary tribunals, and shall have submitted the same to the people for ratification, and which shall have been declared republican in form binterference by said pretended State governments with the exercise of military authe Congress of the United States, then said Stateority under this act, shall be entitled to representation in the Congress of the United Statesvoid and of no effect.

SEC. 74. And be it further enacted, That the then State commissioners,urts appointed as provided for by this act, as soon asjudicial officers of they shall have been qualified, United States shall proceed to appoint judges, justicenot issue writs of the peace, sheriffs, and constables for said State, conformable to the respective districts as organizedhabeas corpus in behalf of persons in said State in the year eighteen hundred and sixty, and such officers shall have the same jurisdiction and perform the same duties as requirmilitary custody, except in cases in which the person is held to answer only for a crime or crimes exclusively within the jurisdiction of the courts of the United States within said military districts, and indictable therein, or ed of them by the laws of said State unless some commission thed officerst day of January, eighteen hundred and sixty, except where said laws have become contrary to the laws of the United States and n duty in the district wherein conflict with the perovisions of this act.

SEC. 8. And be it further enacted, That the State commissionersd shall he duly qualified, befindorse any judge of a federal court, by takingupon said petition and subscribing to the following oath:

I, A. B., tatement certifying, upon honor, thave never borne arms against the United States, or counselhas knowledge, or given voluntary aid to the rebellinformation, or been engaged in any plot or conspiracy to overthrow the cauthority of the United States in any State or Territoryse and circumstances thereof; that I will faithfue ally and honestly discharge all the duties imposed on me by this act, wid detention, and thout favor or partiality. So help me God.

All officer believes that shall be appointede same to perform any duties und,erbe wrongful; and, further, this act shall take and subscribe the above oath before entering upbelieves that the indorsed petition the duties of their preferrespective offices; and any person who shall swear falsely to anything required to be sworn to under this act shall be deemed guilty of perjuryin good faith, and in furtherance of justice, and upon conviction shall be confined to hard labor innot to hinder or delay the penitunishmentiary of the State for acrime. All period of not less than two nor more than three years.

SEC. 9. And be it further enacted, That the State commissioners are hereby authosons put under military arrest by virtue of this act shall be trised to call upon the President, or any officer in commwithout unnecessary delay, and of the United States forces in said State, for troops to enable them to execute the provisions of this act or the laws of the State, and upon such requisition ino cruel or unusual punishment shall be the duty of the President or any offinflicers so called upon to furnish the troops demanded.

SEC. 105. And be it further enacted, That no person shall be competent to sit as a juror in thentence district or circuit courts of the United States, or the courts organized by the commissioners, who is not a legal voter according to the provisions of this act.

SEC. 11. And be it further enacted, That the Statelitary commissioners shall hold their said position unti or tribunal the respective States shall elect a governor and provide for fillingby authorized, all the official positions inecting the State; and they shall receivlife as a compensation for their services the sumliberty of three thousand dollarsy per annum, whichson, shall be paid out of any money in the treasury of the Uniexecuted States not otherwuntil it ise appropriatved, and the same shall be refunded toy the treasury of the United States by the respective States. Theficer in commissionersand of registration for the counties, parishesdistrict, and districts shall receive laws a compensnd regulations for their services the sum government of —— dollthe ars, which said sumy shall be paid out of any money in the treasury of the Uninot be affected States not oby therwise appropriated, upon the certificate, of the commissioners for the State, certifying thatct, except in so far as they have well and truly performed their duty,conflict which sums shall be refunded to the treasury by the said State where the service was performed its provisions.

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