To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1210 Highland Avenue in Duarte, California, as the "Francisco A. Martinez Flores Post Office".

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on October 22, 2003, at 10 a.m. to conduct a hearing on ``Counterterror Initiatives in the Terror Finance Program.''

Mr. President: I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation be authorized to meet on Wednesday, October 22, 2003, at 9:30 am on the Federal Involvement in the Regulation of the Insurance Industry.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, October 22, 2003 at 2:30 p.m. to hold a hearing Anti-Semitism In Europe.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Governmental Affairs be authorized to meet on Wednesday, October 22, 2003 at 10:30 a.m. to hold a business meeting to consider pending Committed business.

Agenda

Legislation

1. S. 129, Federal Workforce Flexibility Act of 2003.

2. S. 1741, National Women's History Museum Act of 2003.

3. S. 1267, District of Columbia Budget Autonomy Act of

2003.

4. S. 1522, GAO Human Capital Reform Act of 2003.

5. S. 1561, a bill to preserve existing judgeships on the

Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

6. S. 1567, Department of Homeland Security Financial

Accountability Act.

7. S. 1612, Homeland Security Technology Improvement Act of

2003.

8. S. 1683, Federal Law Enforcement Pay and Benefits Parity

Act of 2003.

9. H.R. 1416, Homeland Security Technical Corrections Act

of 2003.

10. H.R. 3159, Government Network Security Act of 2003.

post office naming bills

1. S. 1405, a bill to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 514 17th Street in Moline,

Illinois, as the ``David Bybee Post Office Building.''

2. S. 1415, a bill to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 141 Weston Street in

Hartford, Connecticut, as the ``Barbara B. Kennelly Post

Office Building.''

3. S. 1590, a bill to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 315 Empire Boulevard in

Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York, as the ``James E. Davis

Post Office Building.''

4. S. 1659, a bill to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 57 Old Tappan Road in

Tappan, New York, as the ``John G. Dow Post Office

Building.''

5. S. 1671, a bill to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 10701 Abercorn Street in

Savannah, Georgia, as the ``J.C. Lewis, Jr., Post Office

Building.''

6. S. 1692, a bill to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 38 Spring Street in Nashua,

New Hampshire, as the ``Hugh Gregg Post Office Building.''

7. S. 1718, a bill to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 3710 West 73rd Terrace in

Prairie Village, Kansas, as the ``Senator James B. Pearson

Post Office Building.''

8. S. 1746, a bill to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 339 Hicksville Road in

Bethpage, New York, as the ``Brian C. Hickey Post Office

Building.''

9. H.R. 1610, to redesignate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 120 East Ritchie Avenue in

Marceline, Missouri, as the ``Walt Disney Office Building.''

10. H.R. 1882, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 440 South Orange Blossom

Trail, in Orlando, Florida, as the ``Arthur `Pappy' Kennedy

Post Office Building.''

11. H.R. 1883, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 1601-1 Main Street in

Jacksonville, Florida, as the ``Eddie Mae Steward Post Office

Building.''

12. H.R. 2075, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 1905 West Blue Heron

Boulevard in West Palm Beach, Florida, as the ``Judge Edward

Rodgers Post Office Building.''

13. H.R. 2254, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 1101 Colorado Street in

Boulder City, Nevada, as the ``Bruce Woodbury Post Office

Building.''

14. H.R. 2309, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 2300 Redondo Avenue in

Signal Hill, California, as the ``J. Stephen Horn Post Office

Building.''

15. H.R. 2328, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 2001 East Willard Street in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as the ``Robert A. Borski Post

Office Building.''

16. H.R. 2396, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 1210 Highland Avenue in

Duarte, California, as the ``Francisco A. Martinez Flores

Post Office Building.''

17. H.R. 2452, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 339 Hicksville Road in

Bethpage, New York, as the ``Brian C. Hickey Post Office

Building.''

18. H.R. 2533, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 10701 Abercorn Street in

Savannah, Georgia, as the ``J.C. Lewis, Jr., Post Office

Building.''

19. H.R. 2746, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 141 Weston Street in

Hartford, Connecticut, as the ``Barbara B. Kennelly Post

Office Building.''

20. H.R. 3011, to designate the facility of the United

States Postal Service, located at 135 East Olive Avenue in

Burbank, California, as the ``Bob Hope Post Office

Building.''

Nominations

1. Jerry S. Byrd to be an Associate Judge of the Superior

Court of the District of Columbia (Family Court).

2. Joseph Michael Ryan to be an Associate Judge of the

Superior Court of the District of Columbia (Family Court).

3. Dale Cabaniss to be Chairman, Federal Labor Relations

Authority.

4. Brian F. Holeman to be an Associate Judge of the

Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

5. Craig S. Iscoe to be an Associate Judge of the Superior

Court of the District of Columbia.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be authorized to meet to conduct a hearing on Wednesday, October 22, 2003, at 10 a.m., on ``Judicial Nominations,'' in the Hart Senate Office Building room 216.

Witness List:

Panel I: Senators.

Panel II: Janice R. Brown to be United States Circuit Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Select Committee on Intelligence be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, October 22, 2003 at 2:30 p.m. to hold a closed hearing.

Mr. President: I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Oceans, Fisheries, and Coast Guard be authorized to meet on Wednesday, October 22, 2003, at 9:30 a.m., on Fisheries Oversight to be held in SR-428A.

Mr. Speaker, I thank our ranking member and also the chairman of the Committee on Government Reform. We just came back from celebrating July 4, and on that occasion I had the opportunity of attending one of the local parades in one of my cities, Rosemead, California. I met four soldiers that had just returned from Iraq, about the same age as Francisco Martinez Flores, and their stories were also heartening and compelling. They came back to their families, and I had a chance to meet them.

Lance Corporal Francisco Martinez Flores, a young man of 21 years of age, did not come back. And people ask me, Congresswoman, why is it that you want to name a post office after this young man? He was not an elected official. He was very young in life and was just barely starting out in his own career and finding his way. One of the things I have to tell the Members is that what when I read the tragic story of his death, one of the first soldiers to die among those in California, I was very moved, very moved to see his family and the community of Duarte that I now represent in the 32nd Congressional District come together. I attended his funeral where there were 1,200 people from outside of that city who came to gather to pay witness to this young man who had served and given his life.

As was stated earlier by my colleagues, this young man was not originally from the United States. At 3 years of age, he came to this country with his parents from Guadalajara, Mexico, but he attended our local high school in Duarte, participated in many activities, extracurricular, football team and the jazz band. He even wanted to be a member of our government, serving as a police officer. He will never get to realize that dream, and I saw that this was an opportunity for us to pay tribute to someone like him, like many other soldiers who are now serving and some that have not returned that we should pay tribute to, for they made and they make the ultimate sacrifice without a doubt and without question. In fact, his mother was quoted, and I recall at the church the mass that I attended at that funeral, her name is Martha Martinez, and she said of him, ``He loved the United States so much. He was from Mexico, but he was fighting for America and its ideals.'' Everyone was touched and moved by that statement.

Lance Corporal Martinez Flores was not just a brave and self- sacrificing marine, but he was a loving son, a brother and a friend to many who live in the 32nd Congressional District. He was the eldest of four siblings that emigrated to the country, and as I said, he served a short time there at high school in various extracurricular activities.

And on that day January 23, 2003, he was sent abroad to fight in Operation Iraqi Freedom, probably not knowing that he would never come home. He

was just 2 weeks shy from gaining his United States citizenship. Lance Corporal Martinez Flores was killed in the line of duty near Nasiriyah, Iraq, on March 25, 2003, and after his death, Lance Corporal Martinez's family proudly accepted a certificate of naturalization granting to Francisco posthumous U.S. citizenship on April 6, 2003. He was one of thousands of lawful permanent residents who have volunteered their service to protect the United States by joining the U.S. military.

Lance Corporal Martinez Flores was a courageous and dedicated marine who grew up in our local community of Duarte, and I am privileged that we will be naming a Federal building after him in his hometown.

Local residents in the city there have also shown their support to honor him. They have come together to put together their own funds to develop a scholarship in his name. And all 52 Members on a bipartisan effort from California support this initiative. The mayor and the city council of the city of Duarte are also bipartisan and support this piece of legislation. These efforts now will lead to the post office at 1210 Highland Avenue in Duarte, California, to be named Francisco A. Martinez Flores.

I want to thank all of them for their support for the bill, all those that had the ability to be a part of this to help us move this along in an expeditious manner, and I want to especially thank the family members and those people that represent that community that came together to fully unify themselves behind this young man. It is devastating for us to know that someone has to lose their life under such turbulent time and hardship to have a community come together like that. This was one of those moments in our history. The bill is a tribute to all those who have died to our country, and it is a tribute to all the families who have lost a loved one. The bill symbolizes the gratitude and admiration we have for our Nation's soldiers who risk their life to uphold their way of life and the American ideals of liberty, justice, and equality. And I urge all my colleagues to join me in recognizing this American hero, Lance Corporal Francisco A. Martinez Flores, who fought and died for our country, by supporting this bill today, H.R. 2396.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2396) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1210 Highland Avenue in Duarte, California, as the ``Francisco A. Martinez Flores Post Office''.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 2396.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, this legislation, introduced by the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Solis), designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1210 Highland Avenue in Duarte, California, as the Francisco A. Martinez Flores Post Office. All 53 members of the California delegation have signed on to this bill as cosponsors.

The story of Lance Corporal Flores is one of remarkable courage. Born in Guadalajara, Mexico, Francisco came to the United States with his family at the age of 3. His family settled in the community of Duarte, California, east of Los Angeles. He grew up in Duarte, attended Duarte High School where he was a standout in the jazz band and on the football team. When Francisco graduated from high school in the spring of 2000, he bravely enlisted in the Marine Corps despite not yet being an American citizen. He was assigned to the First Marine Division and sent north to Twenty-nine Palms, California, the home of the Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center. After 2\1/2\ years of active duty in California, Lance Corporal Flores courageously journeyed with many of his fellow Marines across the globe to Iraq in January of this year for the military buildup to Operation Iraqi Freedom.

On March 25, 6 days into the war of liberation of Iraq, Lance Corporal Flores was killed in action outside of Nasiriyah in southeastern Iraq.

Sadly, he was less than 2 weeks from earning his United States citizenship, something that was his lifelong dream.

Mr. Speaker, Lance Corporal Francisco A. Martinez Flores lived an extraordinary life, albeit a tragically short one. He represents the best of what American immigrants bring to this country. I commend the gentlewoman from California for introducing this bill, that it will appropriately honor his sacrifices to our Nation.

I want to let all Members know that Lance Corporal Flores was deservingly granted his U.S. citizenship posthumously on April 6, right on schedule. Therefore, I urge all Members to support the passage of this bill that will name this post office after Lance Corporal Flores in his hometown.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Let me say I commend my colleague for bringing this legislation to the floor. In our usual order of things, it is individuals with power, prestige, and notoriety that get postal namings, but it is the Francisco Floreses of this world, many of them immigrants, who built this country, who make it run every day, and who fight to keep it free. He is in a larger sense, as the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Solis) says, an American hero, and I urge adoption of this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2396, which designates the facility of United States Postal Service located at 1210 Highland Avenue in Duarte, California, as the ``Francisco A. Martinez Flores Post Office'' was introduced by the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Solis) on June 9, 2003. The bill has been cosponsored by the entire California delegation.

Mr. Speaker, Francisco A. Martinez Flores was 3 years old when his family moved from Mexico to California. He joined the Marines so that he could go to college. Unfortunately, at the early age of 21, Lance Corporal Francisco Martinez Flores, who was assigned to the 1st Tank Battalion, 1st Marine Division in Twentynine Palms, California, was killed in Iraq on March 25, 2003. He died when his tank went over a collapsing bridge and tumbled into the Euphrates River.

The oldest of four children, Corporal Martinez was to have become a citizen of the U.S. in April of this year. Unfortunately, he died before he could take the oath of allegiance. He was buried as an American after being granted his citizenship posthumously.

Mr. Speaker, my heart goes out to Lance Corporal Francisco Martinez Flores, with commendations, who gave his life before being granted or having the opportunity to have been granted his citizenship. I express condolences to his mother and to his siblings, and I commend the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Solis) for seeking to honor the memory of a fallen hero, a soldier who gave his life so that others may experience the freedom, the liberty, and the opportunities that he never got an opportunity to fully enjoy. One cannot give much more than that, and I would urge swift passage of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the author of this resolution, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Solis).

(Ms. SOLIS asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Linda T. Sanchez).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

With the understanding and recognition that I agree with the gentlewoman from California that if one has the right to fight and die, one certainly has the right to citizenship, I would urge swift passage of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am honored to stand before the Members today in support of H.R. 2396. This legislation designates the post office located at 1210 Highland Avenue in Duarte, California, after a courageous young marine, Lance Corporal Francisco Martinez Flores.

Lance Corporal Flores was killed in the line of duty near Nasiriyah, Iraq, on March 25, 2003, protecting the rights, beliefs, and values of a Nation that he could not yet call his own. He was just 2 weeks away from gaining his U.S. citizenship, which was granted posthumously on April 6, 2003.

According to the Department of Defense, an estimated 37,000 legal permanent residents are currently serving on Active Duty in our Armed Forces. These young men and women have willingly volunteered to carry out one of the most solemn duties any nation can ask of its people, and they have more than earned the right to become citizens of the Nation they have sworn to uphold and protect. Their contributions should always be remembered.

Naming the post office after Lance Corporal Flores is not just a way to honor his memory, but also a small way to show appreciation and respect to the other 200 soldiers who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Each day when a person walks through the Highland Avenue Post Office located in Duarte, California, they will be able to read about this hero and remember that it is the people in their community who contribute to the freedoms that we all enjoy as Americans.

I would like to thank every man and woman currently serving in the U.S. military. I hope they stay safe, and I wish them a speedy return, and I sleep better at night knowing that they are doing such a tremendous job, and I sleep better at night knowing that people like Francisco Martinez Flores are there serving our country. I urge all my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 2396.