Congress directs Benjamin Franklin statue for Capitol display
S. 44 — A bill to direct the Joint Committee of Congress on the Library to procure a statue of Benjamin Franklin for placement in the United States Capitol. · Filed by Christopher Coons (D-DE) · 6 cosponsors · Introduced Jan 9, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill directs Congress's Joint Committee on the Library to commission and install a statue of Benjamin Franklin in the U.S. Capitol by the end of 2026. The statue must be placed in a public-accessible location where Capitol visitors can see it during guided tours. No appropriation amount is specified in the bill text.
Why we flagged it
The bill's sole function is to direct a government committee to commission and place a historical statue. It contains no regulatory, appropriations, or policy mechanism — purely a procedural instruction for a public artwork.
What the text implies
- Appropriations for procurement and installation are not specified in this bill; funding will require separate appropriation or reallocation from existing Capitol maintenance budgets.
- The bill does not specify the artist, design, or cost ceiling, leaving those decisions to the Joint Committee — potential for cost overruns or disputes over artistic merit.
- Placement 'in a suitable permanent location' is undefined; if Capitol space is limited, this may displace or compete with other commemorative or functional uses.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
This is a routine commemorative directive with no cost to citizens (appropriations are handled separately) and no restrictions on rights or protections. It adds a historical figure to public Capitol space, which is a modest public good.
Named in the bill
Joint Committee of Congress on the Library, U.S. Capitol, Office of the Capitol Visitor Center, Benjamin Franklin
Where it stands
6 cosponsors: 3 Democrats, 3 Republicans.
- Jan 9, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
- Jan 9, 2025 — Referred to Senate Committee on Rules and Administration · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,488 characters) on Jun 11, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-10-20.
“Congress directs Benjamin Franklin statue for Capitol display” QuorumCivic. https://share.quorumcivic.app/bill/119/s44 Report an error
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