[House Report 110-230]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
110th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session 110-230
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TO DESIGNATE THE FEDERAL BUILDING UNDER CONSTRUCTION AT 799 FIRST
AVENUE IN NEW YORK, NEW YORK, AS THE ``RONALD H. BROWN UNITED STATES
MISSION TO THE UNITED NATIONS BUILDING''
_______
July 11, 2007.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be
printed
_______
Mr. Oberstar, from the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 735]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, to whom
was referred the bill (H.R. 735) to designate the Federal
building under construction at 799 First Avenue in New York,
New York, as the ``Ronald H. Brown United States Mission to the
United Nations Building'', having considered the same, report
favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill
do pass.
PURPOSE OF THE LEGISLATION
H.R. 735 designates the Federal building being constructed
at 799 First Avenue in New York, New York, as the ``Ronald H.
Brown United States Mission to the United Nations Building''.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
Ronald Harmon Brown was born on August 1, 1941. His early
school days were spent at Hunter College Elementary School, a
public school on Manhattan's East Side. He subsequently
attended high school at White Plains High School and the Rhodes
School in Manhattan. In 1962, Brown graduated from Middlebury
College in Vermont. After college, he served in the Army from
1962 to 1967, commanding several units in the United States,
Germany, and South Korea. Brown was discharged from the Army in
1967. After serving in the Army, he attended St. John's Law
School and began working as a job developer and trainee adviser
for the National Urban League. By 1976, Brown served as the
National Urban League's Deputy Executive Director for programs
and governmental affairs.
He left the National Urban League in 1979 to work for
Senator Edward M. Kennedy, who sought the Democratic Party's
presidential nomination. In 1981, Brown began a career as a
lawyer and lobbyist. In 1988, he was elected Chairman of the
Democratic National Committee. From 1989 to 1992, he served as
Chairman used his skills as a negotiator and pragmatic bridge
builder to help reunite the Democratic Party after its defeat
in the 1988 presidential election.
In 1993, President William J. Clinton appointed Ronald H.
Brown as Secretary of Commerce. During his tenure, Secretary
Brown effectively utilized and expanded the role of the U.S.
Department of Commerce. Secretary Brown was known for his
amiable political style and his deft skill in negotiations and,
as Secretary, he used these qualities effectively to promote
U.S. trade, expand foreign markets for American businesses, and
spur domestic job growth and economic development.
Tragically, on April 3, 1996, while on an official
Department of Commerce trade mission, Secretary Brown and 34
others were killed in an airplane crash in Croatia. The
Department of State had requested that Secretary Brown
personally undertake the trade mission to highlight and find
opportunities for U.S. businesses to boost economic
reconstruction of the war torn region of former Yugoslavia. The
trip itinerary included stops in Zagreb, the capital of
Croatia; visiting American troops in Tuzla, Bosnia-Herzegovina;
and Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia. The trade mission was on
its way to Dubrovnik, Croatia, when the plane crashed on the
coast of the Adriatic Sea.
Throughout his life, Secretary Brown broke many barriers.
He was the first African-American to serve as Secretary of
Commerce and the first African-American Chairman of a national
political party.
Congress has previously designated Federal buildings that
serve as Department of State facilities on four separate
occasions. In 2000, Congress designated the Department of State
headquarters as the ``Harry S Truman Federal Building''. P.L.
106-218. In 2004, Congress designated the Foreign Service
Institute as the George P. Schultz National Foreign Affairs
Training Center''. P.L. 108-136. In 2005, Congress designated
the United States Embassy Annex in Rome, Italy, as the ``Mel
Sembler Building''. P.L. 108-447. In 2005, Congress also
designated the Federal building in Kingston, Jamaica, as the
``Colin L. Powell Residential Plaza''. P.L. 109-89.
Secretary Brown died in service to his country on a mission
undertaken at the request of the Department of State. It is
fitting and proper to honor Secretary Brown's extraordinary
service to his country by designating the Federal building
being constructed at 799 First Avenue in New York, New York, as
the ``Ronald H. Brown United States Mission to the United
Nations Building''.
SUMMARY OF THE LEGISLATION
Section 1 Designation.
Section 1 designates that the Federal building under
construction at 799 First Avenue in New York, New York, shall
be known and designated as the ``Ronald H. Brown United States
Mission to the United Nations Building''.
Section 2 References.
Section 2 declares any reference in law, map, regulation,
document, paper, or other record of the United States to the
Federal building referred to in Section 1 shall be deemed to be
a reference to the ``Ronald H. Brown United States Mission to
the United Nations Building''.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY AND COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION
Representative Rangel first introduced this bill (H.R.
1702) in the 108th Congress. On October 1, 2003, the Committee
on Transportation and Infrastructure ordered the bill reported
favorably to the House by voice vote (H. Rpt. 108-315). No
further action was taken. In the 109th Congress, Representative
Rangel reintroduced the bill (H.R. 1434). No further action was
taken.
In the 110th Congress, Representative Rangel introduced
H.R. 735 on January 30, 2007. On March 1, 2007, the Committee
on Transportation and Infrastructure met in open session, and
ordered the bill reported favorably to the House by voice vote.
RECORD VOTES
Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the House of Representatives
requires each committee report to include the total number of
votes cast for and against on each record vote on a motion to
report and on any amendment offered to the measure or matter,
and the names of those members voting for and against. There
were no recorded votes taken in connection with ordering H.R.
735 reported. A motion to order H.R. 735 reported favorably to
the House was agreed to by voice vote with a quorum present.
COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS
With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(I) of rule
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
Committee's oversight findings and recommendations are
reflected in this report.
COST OF LEGISLATION
Clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives does not apply where a cost estimate and
comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974 has been timely submitted prior to the filing of the
report and is included in the report. Such a cost estimate is
included in this report.
COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII
1. With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(2) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, and
308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee
references the report of the Congressional Budget Office
included in the report.
2. With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(4) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
performance goals and objective of this legislation are to
designate the Federal building being constructed at 799 First
Avenue in New York, New York, as the ``Ronald H. Brown United
States Mission to the United Nations Building''.
3. With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(3) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and
section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the
Committee has received the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 735
from the Director of the Congressional Budget Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, March 5, 2007.
Hon. James L. Oberstar, Chairman,
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
reviewed the following bills as ordered reported by the House
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on March 1,
2007:
H.R. 753, a bill to redesignate the federal
building located at 167 North Main Street in Memphis,
Tennessee, as the ``Clifford Davis and Odell Horton Federal
Building'';
H.R. 1045, a bill to designate the federal
building located at 21 0 Walnut Street in Des Moines, Iowa, as
the ``Neal Smith Federal Building'';
H.R. 1019, a bill to designate the United States
customhouse building located at 31 Gonzalez Clemente Avenue in
Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, as the ``Rafael Martinez Nadal United
States Customhouse Building'';
H.R. 735, a bill to designate the federal building
under construction at 799 First Avenue in New York, New York,
as the ``Ronald H. Brown United States Mission to the United
Nations Building''; and .
H.R. 1138, a bill to designate the federal
building and United States courthouse located at 306 East Main
Street in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, as the ``J. Herbert
W. Small Federal Building and United States Courthouse.''
CBO estimates that enactment of these bills would have no
significant impact on the federal budget and would not affect
direct spending or revenues. These bills contain no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs on
state, local, or tribal governments. If you wish further
details on this estimate, we will be pleased to provide them.
The CBO staff contact is Matthew Pickford.
Sincerely,
Peter R. Orszag,
Director.
COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XXI
Pursuant to clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House
of Representatives, H.R. 735 does not contain any congressional
earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as
defined in clause 9(d), 9(e), or 9(f) of rule XXI of the Rules
of the House of Representatives.
CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT
Pursuant to clause (3)(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, committee reports on a bill or
joint resolution of a public character shall include a
statement citing the specific powers granted to the Congress in
the Constitution to enact the measure. The Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure finds that Congress has the
authority to enact this measure pursuant to its powers granted
under article I, section 8 of the Constitution.
FEDERAL MANDATES STATEMENT
The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of Federal
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform
Act (Public Law 104-4).
PREEMPTION CLARIFICATION
Section 423 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974
requires the report of any Committee on a bill or joint
resolution to include a statement on the extent to which the
bill or joint resolution is intended to preempt state, local,
or tribal law. The Committee states that H.R. 735 does not
preempt any state, local, or tribal law.
ADVISORY COMMITTEE STATEMENT
No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b)
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act are created by this
legislation.
APPLICABILITY TO THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public
services or accommodations within the meaning of section
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act (Public Law
104-1).
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED
H.R. 735 makes no changes in existing law.