[DOCID: f:hr070.110]
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110th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session 110-70
======================================================================
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''
_______
March 26, 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. 1019]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, to whom
was referred the bill (H.R. 1019) 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'', having considered the
same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend
that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE OF THE LEGISLATION
H.R. 1019 designates the United States Customhouse Building
located at 31 Gonzalez Clemente Avenue in Mayaguez, Puerto
Rico, as the ``Rafael Martinez Nadal United States Customhouse
Building''.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
Although Don Rafael Martinez Nadal was born in the city of
Mayaguez on April 22, 1877, he resided and passed away in
Guaynabo. After his parents passed away when he was a child,
Martinez Nadal went to live with relatives in the mountainous
town of Maricao, where he began his early school work. He
received his college degree in Philosophy and Letters in the
Provincial Institute of Secondary Education in San Juan. At the
age of 16, he went to Barcelona, Spain, to study law. A short
time after beginning his legal coursework, he moved to Paris in
search of additional coursework. He returned to Barcelona and
opened several businesses, which were not successful.
On August 13, 1904, he returned to Mayaguez and began
studying agriculture, particularly coffee growing.
Simultaneously, he began his first successful attempts in the
media and politics with the Puerto Rican Republican Party. In
1908, he founded the political newspaper El Combate. In 1912,
he obtained his law degree, and became one of the most
prominent men of the Puerto Rican political arena. He was
considered one of the most famous criminal lawyers of the time.
The song ``The Court Shook, the public prosecutor shook; the
judges shook when Martinez Nadal rose'' is still sung in Puerto
Rico when evoking his illustrious name.
In 1914, he was elected as a member of the Chamber of
Delegates for the city of Ponce by the Puerto Rican Republican
Party. In 1920 he was chosen by the same party to serve in the
Senate and was reelected in the next five general elections.
When the alliance of the Union of Puerto Rico Party and the
Puerto Rican Republican Party formed in 1924, Martinez Nadal
left the Republican Party and initiated a political movement
called the Pure Republican Party, which registered officially
as the Historical Constitutional Party. Later he founded the
Republican Union, working to advance the ideal of statehood for
Puerto Rico. In coalition with the Socialist Party, the
Republican Union triumphed in the general elections of 1932 and
1936. In both terms, Martinez Nadal presided over the Senate.
He died on July 6, 1941.
His literary and journalistic papers are compiled in the
book Tempraneras. He also published the novels La hoguera and
Cuando el amor muere.
In honor of Rafael Martinez Nadal's outstanding
contributions to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and his
exemplary professional writing career, it is both fitting and
proper to designate the U.S. customhouse building located at 31
Gonzalez Clemente Avenue in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, as the
``Rafael Martinez Nadal United States Customhouse Building''.
SUMMARY OF THE LEGISLATION
Section 1. Designation
Section 1 designates the U.S. customhouse building located
at 31 Gonzalez Clemente Avenue in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, as the
``Rafael Martinez Nadal United States Customhouse Building''.
Section 2. References
Section 2 declares that any reference in law, map,
regulation, document, paper, or other record of the United
States to the United States customhouse building referred to in
section 1 shall be deemed to be a reference to the ``Rafael
Martinez Nadal United States Customhouse Building''.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY AND COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION
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.
1019 reported. A motion to order H.R. 1019 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 United States customhouse building located at 31
Gonzalez Clemente Avenue in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, as the
``Rafael Martinez Nadal United States Customhouse 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. 1019
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:
<bullet> 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'';
<bullet> H.R. 1045, a bill to designate the federal
building located at 210 Walnut Street in Des Moines,
Iowa, as the ``Neal Smith Federal Building'';
<bullet> 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'';
<bullet> 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
<bullet> 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. 1019 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. 1019 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. 1019 makes no changes in existing law.
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