US Federal House Bill HB2335

US Federal 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 3/25/25
• Refer: 3/25/25

Caption

To authorize the President to award the Medal of Honor to Doris Miller posthumously for acts of valor while a member of the Navy during World War II.

Summary

HB2335 would authorize the President to award the Medal of Honor posthumously to Doris Miller for acts of valor during World War II, despite existing statutory time limits that normally govern late awards of military decorations. The bill’s findings recount Miller’s actions during the attack on Pearl Harbor, including assisting wounded personnel, helping move his captain to safety, and manning a machine gun against attacking aircraft. It also notes that Miller, an African-American sailor, served in a Navy that at the time restricted sailors of color to service roles rather than combat roles. The measure is narrowly focused on a single individual and does not create a broader program or change general military awards policy beyond this one exception. It specifically references sections of title 10 of the U.S. Code that impose time limitations on certain awards and overrides those limits for this case, allowing the Medal of Honor to be considered under the normal statutory authority for that decoration. The bill would therefore affect federal military honors law only to the extent needed to permit this posthumous award.

Impact

If enacted, the bill would create a one-time statutory exception to federal time limits on military decorations in title 10 of the U.S. Code, allowing the President to award the Medal of Honor posthumously to Doris Miller. It would not broadly amend eligibility rules for other service members, but it would set a specific precedent for congressional authorization of a late award in an individual case. The affected parties are the President, the Department of Defense/armed services awards process, and Miller’s surviving family and historical legacy.

Sentiment

The available context suggests broadly favorable sentiment toward the bill. The text itself is strongly laudatory, emphasizing Miller’s heroism, his lifesaving actions at Pearl Harbor, and the historical significance of his recognition as an African-American sailor. There are no recorded committee transcripts or votes in the provided material, and the bill was simply referred to the House Committee on Armed Services, so no formal opposition is documented here.

Contention

The main substantive issue embedded in the bill is the use of a special legislative exception to bypass existing time limits for military awards. Any contention would likely center on whether Congress should make an individual exception and whether the Medal of Honor is the appropriate award given that Miller already received the Navy Cross. The findings also highlight racial exclusion in the Navy and the fact that no African American was among the Pearl Harbor Medal of Honor recipients, suggesting the bill is partly responsive to historical inequity; however, no opposing arguments are included in the provided record.