Diwali Commemorative Stamp resolution earns 36 co-sponsors one week before Stamp Advisory Commission meeting

Jul 12, 2013
Press Release

WASHINGTON, DC – Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) today announced she had obtained 36 co-sponsors for H. Res. 47, her resolution requesting that the U.S. Postal Service issue a commemorative U.S. stamp in honor of the Indian holiday Diwali, the five-day “festival of lights,” celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains around the world.

“The Citizens Stamp Advisory Commission in its meeting next week can settle this issue once and for all by recommend to the Postmaster General issuance of a stamp honoring this holiday celebrated by billions of people around the world,” Maloney said.  

Maloney had previously urged supporters of a Diwali commemorative stamp to write the Citizens Stamp Advisory Commission (CSAC). “For those who care about a Diwali stamp, now is the time to write the Citizens Advisory Stamp Commission,” Maloney said earlier.  The Citizens Stamp Advisory Commission is scheduled to meet July 18 & 19, 2013, in Washington, DC. The address to write the CSAC is c/o Stamp Development, U.S. Postal Service, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Room 3300, Washington, DC 20260-3501

The cosponsor list is as follows:
Bera, Ami
Castor, Kathy
Chu, Judy
Conolly, Gerry
Crowley, Joeseph
Duckworth, Tammy
Gabbard, Tulsi
Holt, Rush
Honda, Michael
Israel, Steve
King, Peter
Maffei, Daniel
McNerney, Jerry
Meeks, Gregory
Meng, Grace
Payne, Donald
Ruiz, Raul
Rush, Bobby
Sherman, Brad
Sinema, Kyrsten
Slaughter, Louise
Swalwell, Eric
Dingell, John
Green, Al
Heck, Denny
Nadler, Jerry
Speier, Jackie
Tonko, Paul
Nolan, Richard
Peters, Gary
Rangel, Charles
Takano, Mark
Waxman, Henry
Swalwell, Eric
Walz, Tim
Kildee, Dan

 

 


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Background.
Diwali, also known as the Holiday of Lights, marks the triumph of good over evil, light over darkness and the beginning of the Hindu New Year. It is one of the oldest and most storied religious holidays in the world, and is celebrated by people of several faiths. There are commemorative stamps for Christmas, Chanukah, Kwaanza, Eid, and more. A Diwali stamp would officially recognize the size and significance of the country’s Indian American population, which comprises over three million people, and would provide the USPS with sorely needed revenue,

Maloney has led recent efforts in Congress to push the CSAC to consider issuing a commemorative Diwali stamp. Maloney introduced H.Res. 47 in January, 2013, expressing the sense of the U.S. House of Representatives that the CSAC should issue a Diwali stamp. She wrote letters to the CSAC in 2010 and 2012 requesting the same action.
 

Issues: 
Postal Issues