S 3705
· 119th Congress
· Congress
Semiquincentennial Congressional Time Capsule Act
Sponsor
Latest action
Became Public Law No: 119-79.
Action timeline
Every recorded action on this bill, newest first. Stage badges color-code the legislative path.
Feb 18, 2026
signed
Signed by President.
Feb 18, 2026
signed
Became Public Law No: 119-79.
Feb 12, 2026
sent
Presented to President.
Feb 09, 2026
floor
Mrs. Bice moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
Feb 09, 2026
floor
Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H2046-2048)
Feb 09, 2026
floor
DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 3705.
Feb 09, 2026
passed
Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H2046-2047)
Feb 09, 2026
passed
On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H2046-2047)
Feb 09, 2026
passed
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
Feb 02, 2026
floor
Received in the House.
Feb 02, 2026
floor
Held at the desk.
Jan 27, 2026
introduced
Introduced in Senate
Jan 27, 2026
passed
Passed/agreed to in Senate: Introduced in the Senate, read twice, considered, read the third time, and passed without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
Jan 27, 2026
passed
Introduced in the Senate, read twice, considered, read the third time, and passed without amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S298; text: CR S298)
Text versions
Each stage of the bill — official text published by GPO. Click any format to read on congress.gov / govinfo.
CRS summaries
Plain-English summaries written by the Congressional Research Service — neutral, nonpartisan staff who summarize bills as they advance through stages. The authoritative description of what each version of the bill does.
55
Passed Senate
Jan 27, 2026
Semiquincentennial Congressional Time Capsule Act
This bill requires the Architect of the Capitol to create a congressional time capsule in honor of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence to be buried in the Capitol Visitor Center on or before July 4, 2026. The time capsule shall contain a joint letter from congressional leadership and such other contents as they shall determine. The time capsule shall be sealed until July 4, 2276.
via Congressional Research Service · published through congress.gov
Changelog
ⓘ
How a bill moves through Congress. Each stage produces a new official text. The diff between them shows what changed at that step.
ih / is — Introduced in House / Senate. First filed version.rfh / rfs — Referred to a committee for review.rh / rs — Reported back by the committee to the floor (often with amendments — this is where most language changes happen).pcs / pch — Placed on Calendar for floor consideration.eh / es — Engrossed. Passed by the originating chamber. Text is now what was actually voted on.rdh / rds — Received by the other chamber.eah / eas — Engrossed Amendment. The other chamber passed an amended version.ath / ats — Agreed to. Both chambers settled on the same text.enr — Enrolled. Final reconciled text, sent to the President.pl — Public Law. Signed by the President. It's now law.pp — Public Print. Official printing post-enactment.
Most bills die before eh/es. Going from pcs → enr is the full path through both chambers.
ⓘ
How a bill moves through Congress. Each stage produces a new official text. The diff between them shows what changed at that step.
ih/is— Introduced in House / Senate. First filed version.rfh/rfs— Referred to a committee for review.rh/rs— Reported back by the committee to the floor (often with amendments — this is where most language changes happen).pcs/pch— Placed on Calendar for floor consideration.eh/es— Engrossed. Passed by the originating chamber. Text is now what was actually voted on.rdh/rds— Received by the other chamber.eah/eas— Engrossed Amendment. The other chamber passed an amended version.ath/ats— Agreed to. Both chambers settled on the same text.enr— Enrolled. Final reconciled text, sent to the President.pl— Public Law. Signed by the President. It's now law.pp— Public Print. Official printing post-enactment.
Most bills die before eh/es. Going from pcs → enr is the full path through both chambers.
Line-level diff between text versions of this bill — what actually changed at each legislative stage.
+53
−70
31 unchanged
Generating AI summary
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Reading both versions of the bill and writing a plain-English summary. Typical bills take 5–15 seconds; large reconciliation bills can take a minute. This summary will be cached after generation.
--- Engrossed (Senate)
+++ Enrolled
@@ -1,15 +1,20 @@
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
-[S. 3705 Engrossed in Senate (ES)]
+[S. 3705 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]
-<DOC>
+S.3705
-119th CONGRESS
-2d Session
-S. 3705
+One Hundred Nineteenth Congress
-_______________________________________________________________________
+of the
-AN ACT
+United States of America
+
+AT THE SECOND SESSION
+
+Begun and held at the City of Washington on Saturday,
+the third day of January, two thousand and twenty six
+
+An Act
To provide for the creation of a congressional time capsule in
commemoration of the semiquincentennial of the United States, and for
@@ -17,86 +22,64 @@
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
-
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
-
This Act may be cited as the ``Semiquincentennial Congressional
Time Capsule Act''.
-
SEC. 2. SEMIQUINCENTENNIAL CONGRESSIONAL TIME CAPSULE.
-
(a) Creation by Architect of the Capitol.--The Architect of the
Capitol shall create a congressional time capsule, to be known as the
``Semiquincentennial Congressional Time Capsule'' (in this Act referred
to as the ``Time Capsule'').
(b) Contents.--
-(1) Determination by congressional leadership.--The Office
-of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Office of the
-Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Office of the
-Majority Leader of the Senate, and Office of the Minority
-Leader of the Senate shall jointly determine the contents of
-the Time Capsule, taking into account the requirements of
-paragraph (2).
+(1) Determination by congressional leadership.--The Office of
+the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Office of the Minority
+Leader of the House of Representatives, Office of the Majority
+Leader of the Senate, and Office of the Minority Leader of the
+Senate shall jointly determine the contents of the Time Capsule,
+taking into account the requirements of paragraph (2).
(2) Contents.--
-(A) In general.--The contents of the Time Capsule
-shall include--
-(i) a single, joint letter from the offices
-described in paragraph (1); and
-(ii) any other item that the offices
-described in paragraph (1) jointly determine
+(A) In general.--The contents of the Time Capsule shall
+include--
+(i) a single, joint letter from the offices described
+in paragraph (1); and
+(ii) any other item that the offices described in
+paragraph (1) jointly determine appropriate.
+(B) Limitations.--Any item included in the Time Capsule
+under subparagraph (A)--
+(i) shall be made of materials that pose a low risk of
+degrading, such as metal or archival paper; and
+(ii) shall not be made of any organic or inorganic
+material that poses a high risk of degrading.
+(3) Size.--The Time Capsule shall be not more than 50 inches
+wide, 32 inches deep, and 48 inches high.
+(4) Consultation.--In carrying out this subsection, the offices
+described in paragraph (1) may consult with the Architect of the
+Capitol, the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, and such
+other entities of the Federal Government as the offices consider
appropriate.
-(B) Limitations.--Any item included in the Time
-Capsule under subparagraph (A)--
-(i) shall be made of materials that pose a
-low risk of degrading, such as metal or
-archival paper; and
-(ii) shall not be made of any organic or
-inorganic material that poses a high risk of
-degrading.
-(3) Size.--The Time Capsule shall be not more than 50
-inches wide, 32 inches deep, and 48 inches high.
-(4) Consultation.--In carrying out this subsection, the
-offices described in paragraph (1) may consult with the
-Architect of the Capitol, the Secretary of the Smithsonian
-Institution, and such other entities of the Federal Government
-as the offices consider appropriate.
(c) Duties of Architect.--The Architect of the Capitol shall--
(1) prepare the Time Capsule to be sealed and buried in the
-Capitol Visitor Center, at a location specified by the
-Architect, with the approval of the Committee on Rules and
-Administration of the Senate and the Committee on House
-Administration of the House of Representatives, on or before
-July 4th, 2026, at a time which would permit individuals
-attending this event to also attend the burial of a time
-capsule in Independence Mall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
-under section 7(f)(1) of the United States Semiquincentennial
-Commission Act of 2016 (36 U.S.C. 101 note prec.); and
-(2) install a plaque to provide such information about the
-Time Capsule as the Architect, with the approval of the
-Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate and the
-Committee on House Administration of the House of
-Representatives, considers appropriate.
+Capitol Visitor Center, at a location specified by the Architect,
+with the approval of the Committee on Rules and Administration of
+the Senate and the Committee on House Administration of the House
+of Representatives, on or before July 4th, 2026, at a time which
+would permit individuals attending this event to also attend the
+burial of a time capsule in Independence Mall in Philadelphia,
+Pennsylvania, under section 7(f)(1) of the United States
+Semiquincentennial Commission Act of 2016 (36 U.S.C. 101 note
+prec.); and
+(2) install a plaque to provide such information about the Time
+Capsule as the Architect, with the approval of the Committee on
+Rules and Administration of the Senate and the Committee on House
+Administration of the House of Representatives, considers
+appropriate.
(d) Unsealing.--The Time Capsule shall be sealed until July 4th,
2276, on which date the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the
Majority Leader of the Senate shall present the Time Capsule to the
244th Congress, and such Congress shall determine how the contents
within should be preserved or used.
-Passed the Senate January 27, 2026.
+Speaker of the House of Representatives.
-Attest:
-
-Secretary.
-119th CONGRESS
-
-2d Session
-
-S. 3705
-
-_______________________________________________________________________
-
-AN ACT
-
-To provide for the creation of a congressional time capsule in
-commemoration of the semiquincentennial of the United States, and for
-other purposes.
+Vice President of the United States and
+President of the Senate.
Cosponsors (3)
Members who signed on to support this bill.