S. 475 · 117th Congress

Juneteenth National Independence Day Act

Introduced on Feb 25, 2021 by Edward J. Markey (D-MA). 60 cosponsors, 18 of them from another party. Became Public Law 117-17.

Stage
Became law
Public Law 117-17
Introduced
Feb 25, 2021
Cosponsors
60
18 from the other party
Policy area
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
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Progress

The furthest stage the measure reached. Simple and concurrent resolutions do not go to the President.

  1. Introduced
  2. Reported by committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. Passed both chambers
  5. Sent to the President
  6. Became law

Official title

A bill to amend title 5, United States Code, to designate Juneteenth National Independence Day as a legal public holiday.

Subjects

  • Commemorative events and holidays
  • Racial and ethnic relations
  • U.S. history

Summary

By the Congressional Research Service (Public Law, Jun 17, 2021). Public domain.

Juneteenth National Independence Day Act

This bill establishes Juneteenth National Independence Day, June 19, as a legal public holiday.

Sponsor and cosponsors

Cosponsors by party as of the day they signed on. Original cosponsors signed on the day of introduction.

Edward J. MarkeyD-MASponsor

Democrats · 39

Independents · 3

Republicans · 18

Roll calls

Recorded votes on the measure. Most measures move by voice vote or unanimous consent, which record no individual positions.

  1. On Passage
    Jun 16, 2021· House· Passage· Passed 415–14

History

Every action as published, oldest first. Roll calls link to how each member voted.

  1. Feb 25, 2021Introduced in Senate
  2. Feb 25, 2021 · SenateRead twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
  3. Jun 15, 2021Senate Committee on the Judiciary discharged by Unanimous Consent.(consideration: CR S4538-4539)
  4. Jun 15, 2021 · SenateSenate Committee on the Judiciary discharged by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S4538-4539)
  5. Jun 15, 2021Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.(text: CR S4538-4539)
  6. Jun 15, 2021 · SenatePassed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent. (text: CR S4538-4539)
  7. Jun 16, 2021 · SenateMessage on Senate action sent to the House.
  8. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseReceived in the House.
  9. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseHeld at the desk.
  10. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseRules Committee Resolution H. Res. 479 Reported to House. Rule provides for consideration of S. 475 with 1 hour of general debate. The resolution provides for one motion to commit.
  11. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseRule H. Res. 479 passed House.
  12. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseConsidered under the provisions of rule H. Res. 479. (consideration: CR H2863-2872)
  13. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseRule provides for consideration of S. 475 with 1 hour of general debate. The resolution provides for one motion to commit.
  14. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseDEBATE - The House proceeded with one hour of debate on S. 475.
  15. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseThe previous question was ordered pursuant to the rule.
  16. Jun 16, 2021Passed/agreed to in House: On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 415 - 14 (Roll no. 170).(text: CR H2864)House · Roll call 170
  17. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseOn passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 415 - 14 (Roll no. 170). (text: CR H2864)House · Roll call 170
  18. Jun 16, 2021 · HouseMotion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  19. Jun 17, 2021Presented to President.
  20. Jun 17, 2021 · HousePresented to President.
  21. Jun 17, 2021Signed by President.
  22. Jun 17, 2021Signed by President.
  23. Jun 17, 2021Became Public Law No: 117-17.
  24. Jun 17, 2021Became Public Law No: 117-17.

Committees

Committees and subcommittees the measure was referred to.

Agencies in its committees' jurisdiction

Analisa's mapping of committee jurisdiction to federal agencies; the bill may touch others, or none of these.

Sources and method

Every figure on this page traces to these records.

  • Bill status: bills and resolutions, sponsors, actions, subjects and CRS summaries (U.S. Government Publishing Office (GovInfo), from Congress.gov (Library of Congress))GovInfo Bill Status bulk data (Congress.gov; summaries by the Congressional Research Service) · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Members of Congress, their terms, committees and identifiers (The @unitedstates project (from the Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, the House and the Senate))unitedstates/congress-legislators: legislators, committees and current committee membership · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: CC0 1.0 (public domain dedication)
  • House roll-call votes (Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives)Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, roll-call vote records · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Senate roll-call votes and DW-NOMINATE scores (Voteview (UCLA Department of Political Science))Lewis, Jeffrey B., Keith Poole, Howard Rosenthal, Adam Boche, Aaron Rudkin, and Luke Sonnet (2026). Voteview: Congressional Roll-Call Votes Database. https://voteview.com/ · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Free to use with the required citation
  • Lobbying disclosures (LD-1 registrations, LD-2 quarterly reports, LD-203 contribution reports) (Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives)Clerk of the House, Lobbying Disclosure Act filings (organizations only; lobbyists' names are not loaded) · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Positions are shown only where a roll call recorded them; voice votes and unanimous consent record none.