To direct the Administrator of General Services to convey a parcel of real property in Houston, Texas, to the Military Museum of Texas, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 6510. First, I would like to thank Ron Kendell, Elliot Doomes, Ward McCarrington, Johanna Hardy, Major Keithen Washington and Shashrina Thomas for their tireless efforts in moving this bill. I would also like to thank the co-sponsors of this bill and my colleagues: Representatives: Mario Diaz-Balart, Ted Poe, Ileana

Ros-Lehtinen, Charles Gonzalez, Henry ``Hank'' Johnson and Ralph Hall. I introduced this bill requesting that the Administrator of General Services convey land to the Military Museum of Texas.

The Military Museum of Texas was formed to create, maintain and operate an institution to honor and perpetuate the memories of all men and women who have served in the Armed Forces of the United States of America. The President of the Military Museum of Texas, Ed Farris, a former Marine sergeant, and a 22-year veteran of the Houston Police Department's motorcycle patrol and bomb squad, has worked tirelessly to preserve the memories of the men and women of the armed forces. They paid with their lives and their youth to ensure that the United States remains a free and prosperous nation. It is important that we support Mr. Farris and the board members of the Military Museum of Texas to honor and recognize the men and women, living and dead, who have served in the armed forces of the United States. The museum provides a way to hold them up as the heroes they are.

Mr. Speaker, our freedom is intertwined with the sacrifices of our Veterans, whose devotion to our way of life is unparalleled. I am privileged to honor their sacrifices and the role they play in our nation by introducing House Resolution 6510.

Our nation and veterans from the great State of Texas have a proud legacy of appreciation and commitment to the men and women who have worn the uniform in defense of this country. We must be united in seeing that every soldier, sailor, airman, marine, and coast guardsmen has a place of memory, pride and honor, in which the Military Museum of Texas provides.

Today, we continue to be engaged in hostilities in Afghanistan, and young men and women will pay the ultimate price while wearing the uniform of our nation. Let us honor the memory of the 4,400 Americans who have died in Iraq and more than 1,300 who have died in Afghanistan. We also honor the sacrifices of our wounded: nearly 32,000 U.S. troops in Iraq and 9,000 in Afghanistan.

Throughout the Military Museum of Texas, Americans will learn from the surviving World War II veterans to the veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

In the words of President John F. Kennedy, ``As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.'' It is not simply enough to sing the praises of our nation's great veterans; I firmly believe that we must demonstrate by our actions how proud we are of our American heroes. Join me and support H.R. 6510. I firmly believe that we should celebrate our veterans after every conflict, and I remain committed to both meeting the needs of veterans of previous wars, and to provide a fitting welcome home to those who are now serving.

Currently, there are 23 million veterans in the United States. There are more than 1,626,000 veterans living in Texas and more than 32,000 veterans living in my Congressional district alone. H.R. 6510 will allow Congress to express our appreciation to those who have answered the call to duty. As the great British leader Winston Churchill famously stated, ``Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.''

Our nation is founded on the principles, laid out in the Declaration of Independence, that ``all men are created equal,'' ``that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights,'' and ``that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.'' At various points in our history as a nation, we have found need to send our sons and daughters, our most precious resources, overseas to fight in defense of these great principles. At times when the need is greatest, America's soldiers have always stepped up to protect our nation.

And so, today, I hope we will all take time from our daily lives to reflect upon the sacrifices made by those who serve in our armed forces, and to resolve together that we will provide returning veterans with the welcome, services, care, and compassion that they deserve--a Museum of reflection. As we consider H.R. 6510, let us all remember the one thing that makes our nation truly great are the young men and women willing to fight to defend it, to defend us, and to defend our way of life. Join me and support H.R. 6510.

Memories fade all too quickly, and we are losing about 1000 WWII veterans every day. It is important that we record and preserve the memories of these veterans so that future generations can understand the sacrifices of our veterans. The Museum is a place for preservation of military memorabilia, personal stories, artifacts and the history of past wars to remember American veterans and their sacrifices.

It is remarkably easy for succeeding generations to forget why we enjoy the freedoms we do in our country. The Museum seeks to educate the public about the sacrifices of our veterans that gave us those freedoms.

It is difficult for those who have not served in combat to understand the horrors our veterans endured and the trauma that still affects their lives. Veterans themselves conduct tours and convey their personal experiences to visitors.

The Museum provides a place where veterans can congregate and discuss their experiences, and in the process, heal. It also permits them to talk about their experiences with museum visitors.

Soldiers currently serving in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan need to know that the people back home in the great state of Texas support them. Volunteers at the Military Museum of Texas prepare and send care packages to troops who are serving overseas and are patients in military hospitals recovering from wounds. The Military Museum of Texas also hosts reunions, participate in parades and other events in the Houston, Texas area.

The Military Museum is a pillar in the community, and a benefit to schools, veterans and military related groups. It provides educational programs, live reenactments from military personnel as well as interactive exhibits. Furthermore, the Military Museum provides internships in military history and preservation, and a research database available for education and historical institutions and the public.

Let us continue to preserve and honor the memory of those who defend our freedom and liberty.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly support H.R. 6510, and ask for its immediate adoption.

Mr. Speaker, let me thank the chairwoman of the subcommittee, first of all, for her kind generosity and the excellent staff of the chairperson, and as well my friend and my good friend from Florida, Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, who is the ranking member of this committee, for the wisdom and for their staff's excellent work that has generated relief for hardworking veterans.

In one sense, the Texas Military Museum, it speaks to individuals who have found themselves now living in the State of Texas. But these are heroes that served the Nation, proudly so, and they welcome the Nation to come and to celebrate the idea of a military museum. I don't think we can have enough of these facilities. And so I am very grateful that this nonprofit institution, in the wisdom of my bipartisan cosponsors, of which I want to express deep and abiding appreciation as I indicated to the ranking member for his sponsorship and to the chairwoman for her leadership, because it is preserving the honor and the memory of citizens who served defending the United States' freedom and liberty, and, as well, we emphasize, serving the entire country.

This will include all branches of the Armed Forces, including the Reserves and the National Guard. This will allow these individuals who have nurtured and cared for military vehicles and other equipment for display since the beginning of their operations, critical components of the military history. These individuals, these soldiers have restored and preserved this military equipment and memorabilia with enduring kindness, volunteerism; and they have stood fast just like they stood fast on the battlefield on behalf of the Nation.

The museum has had to turn down historic military equipment for display and restoration given their space limitations, so this museum will in essence be an asset for the American people.

What will it do? In addition to saying thank you to veterans, to those who have served, it will be a benefit to the community, schools, as well as veterans and military-related groups. It will teach the children to value a soldier, both old and young, both active and nonactive. It will teach them to understand what sacrifice is all about. It will explain to them, these tough vehicles that children rarely see, what they mean to their freedom. The Military Museum provides educational programs. You can't imagine the different schools that are eager to see them. Live reenactments from military personnel, interactive exhibits, provide internships to military history and preservation, as well as research databases available for educational and historical institutions and the public.

I might deviate just for a moment. A fallen hero that all of us admired, Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, took his arms of peace. He was of course the envoy to Pakistan and Afghanistan, where a war is raging in Afghanistan. What I would say to you is that he understood the partnership and the work that has to be done with the military.

That is why this museum is so important. They work together for peace, diplomacy and peace. It is enormously important that we provide an opportunity for these to be recognized.

Now, we are grateful that the General Services Administration has a light bulb on, and we thank those who have recognized the fact, how important it is to be able to fix this, if you will. That is what we are doing.

But we are fixing it for the right reasons. This will be conveyed for market value, the title and interest to the benefit of the United States of America. Therefore, this particular land will not go unused or misused. It, in actuality, will be for the Military Museum of Texas that can really be called the Military Museum--one of them--of the United States of America. We support honoring our soldiers.

So let me thank Ron Kendall, Elliot Doomes, Ward McCarragher, Johanna Hardy, Major Keithen Washington of my office, who was a Department of Defense detailee. We thank him for his fine work, and my deputy chief of staff for her untiring efforts to keep moving this bill.

Certainly we want to acknowledge all of the original cosponsors: Mario Diaz-Balart, Ted Poe, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Charlie Gonzalez, Henry ``Hank'' Johnson, and Ralph Hall, and the many others who have rallied around to be supportive.

Let me close at this time and indicate that we often speak of making sure that our veterans have all their benefits. We want to help the wounded warriors. Many of us visit the front lines from Iraq to Afghanistan to Bosnia to Albania and places beyond, but we want them to know that we cherish what they have done, and a military museum is a way of doing that. It gives them great joy to teach and educate adults and children, alike, what it is to serve. Our freedom is intertwined with the sacrifices of our servicemen and -women whose devotion to freedom is unparalleled. I am privileged to honor their sacrifices and the role each plays in our freedom by championing and supporting this legislation.

This bill is yet another reminder to all Americans of the risk that our servicemembers take on our behalf daily. Moreover, H.R. 6510 is an expression of gratitude for their service.

The Military Museum of Texas houses wonderful memorabilia and artifacts, and I can say that the relics remind us to be grateful and thankful for the reasons owed to military servicemen and -women for the sacrifices they made for our enjoyment of freedom. So I ask my colleagues to help us make it right, and I ask my colleagues to support H.R. 6510, a bipartisan bill recognizing the history of our great military men and women.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6510) to direct the Administrator of General Services to convey a parcel of real property in Houston, Texas, to the Military Museum of Texas, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 6510.

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

H.R. 6510 directs the Administrator of General Services to convey a parcel of real property in Houston, Texas, to the Military Museum of Texas. The Military Museum of Texas is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) based in Harris County, Texas, that was created to honor the contributions of the citizens of Texas to the armed services of the United States.

The museum was founded in 1992 as a charitable organization and has an all-volunteer staff with an annual operating budget. The Military Museum of Texas' main activities include educating citizens on Texas' military history and preserving military memorabilia. The memorabilia include artillery field pieces, field equipment, et cetera, but primarily military vehicles for display that are shared with the public. Its income is derived directly from the sale of items to the general public, membership dues, event fees, and contributions of private individuals and corporations.

The museum devotes a significant portion of its funds to its military vehicle restoration program, and these vehicles are often shared with the public on site and at local parades. The Military Museum of Texas estimates the value of its military vehicles and military memorabilia collection in its inventory at $10 million.

The museum is currently housed in approximately 20,000 square feet owned by the General Services Administration. Originally, GSA leased the facility to the State of Texas starting in the early 1970s, before the museum took control of the facility in late 2004 under lease with the State of Texas for nominal rent plus utilities and minor repairs.

Since its initial occupancy, the Military Museum has worked with a private consultant to put together a 5-year capital improvement plan for fiscal years 2010 through 2015, to improve the facility and address storm damage to make the museum more of a world-class museum.

The General Services Administration declared the property excess on December 16, 2009, and the Military Museum of Texas has expressed an interest in purchasing the property at its full market value with a museum use restriction. The government interest in this property is protected because if the site is used for anything except for a museum during the next 30 years, the owners will be required to pay the market value of the parcel at the highest and best use.

Given that the GSA has declared this property excess and the Military Museum of Texas is willing to purchase at market value, we find this transfer to be in the best interest of the government, and I urge my colleagues to support the bill.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), the sponsor of this bill, such time as she may consume.

(Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

First, I want to thank the ranking member, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mario Diaz-Balart), with whom I have worked so well and so closely, to thank him for the collegiality he and I have had on the subcommittee. It is a model, it seems to me, that the Congress might want to follow.

I must say, when my good friend tells me that he probably will be leaving the committee altogether, it is a sad note for me, given the way we have tried to reach agreement whenever there has been disagreement. And, frankly, on most matters he and I have found little upon which to disagree.

I can only wish him well on the Appropriations Committee. That must be his preference. Therefore, I wish the best for him, and I certainly hope to have the opportunity to work with him again in connection with that committee or otherwise on this floor or in this Congress.

I want to congratulate my good friend from Texas for her strong leadership on this bill and in wanting to make sure that this bill got on the floor before the end of the session and for her devotion to a bill that should be received, I'm sure, by all because of the recognition she so wisely understands all members of the Armed Forces are due.

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

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

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

Let me add my words to the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia. This bill would direct the GSA to transfer property in Houston to the Military Museum, as the gentlewoman just said.

I want to thank the gentlewoman from Texas, Sheila Jackson Lee, for bringing up this bill. This would, as well as what the chairwoman just talked about, also solve an issue that is really an unfortunate symptom of poor management of real Federal property.

In 2004, the museum leased this property, as we just heard, in good faith from the State of Texas, which had

used the property since 1972; and the State had actually even made improvements on it. Now, at the time GSA didn't even know that it owned this property. So it was only after due diligence from the folks at the museum when they started researching the property and the tax records, that is when it was discovered that GSA actually owned or, let me say, likely owned the property. GSA didn't even have a record of its ownership interest, but subsequently confirmed its interest in the property.

Now, the chairwoman and Ranking Member John Mica of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and I have been working to cut wasteful management of Federal real estate property and to save taxpayers money. Unfortunately, this is yet another example, Mr. Speaker, of the type of poor management that has plagued Federal real property. This case raises serious questions as to whether Federal agencies frankly even have accurate data about which properties they even own, the taxpayer even owns, let alone how to manage those properties. But now we are where we are. That is why I thank the gentlewoman from Texas.

The Military Museum of Texas, which is a nonprofit organization founded in 1992 by military veterans, operates with a voluntary staff and displays military vehicles, as we have heard; and they draw a significant amount of visitors each year.

So the GSA, after finally realizing that they did own the property, that the taxpayers own the property, has determined that there is no Federal use for this property. So this bill would provide an opportunity, I think a very good opportunity, for the Military Museum of Texas to continue using the property as a museum; and it will ensure that the taxpayers will be compensated appropriately.

I am pleased to be a cosponsor with the gentlewoman from Texas. I want to thank her again for her leadership on this issue. I clearly support the bill. I just wanted to make sure that everybody understood the issue that we are dealing with here at the Federal level. When you have an agency that doesn't even know that it owns a piece of property, it tells you that we have issues up here that we need to deal with.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, let me once again thank the gentlelady from Texas for bringing up this bill. As I mentioned before, not only is it going to help solve a problem where you have a Federal agency that didn't even know it had a piece of property that it owned,

but as she eloquently stated, it is solving that problem and replacing it with a very meritorious thing, which is a museum for our fighting men and women who have kept us free for over 200 years.

She very generously mentioned lots of names that she thanked, but I would be remiss if I didn't thank the gentlewoman from Texas for her leadership on this issue. It may have been a frustrating issue at times, but she has brought it to the finish line here in the House.

Also, I want to thank the chairwoman of the subcommittee I have had the privilege of being the ranking member of for 2 years; first for working so closely with me and for, once again, bringing this bill, and also just for being a great partner for the last 2 years, working together on a number of issues, always with great generosity and a spirit of cooperation with me. And that is something I will never forget.

This may or may not be the last time I am on the floor as a member of this committee because I am moving on to the Appropriations Committee, but I wanted to thank the chairwoman for her many courtesies to me. I have really enjoyed, and it has been a privilege, working with you, Madam Chairwoman.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6510, to direct the Administrator of General Services to convey a property in Houston, Texas, to the Military Museum of Texas.

The Military Museum of Texas is a non-profit organization with an all-volunteer staff that operates a small museum in Houston, Texas, on land owned by the United States Government. The Museum has been operating on this property since 2004, paying a very nominal rent under an agreement with the State of Texas, which in turn had a use agreement with the General Services Administration, GSA.

In 2009, GSA determined that it did not have a need for the property, and, following normal federal procedures, reported the property as excess to its needs. The GSA Office of Property Utilization and Disposal then screened the property with other federal agencies for possible use, and determined in January 2010, that the property was surplus to federal needs. In June 2010, the State of Texas formally notified GSA that it, too, had no need for the property.

H.R. 6510 directs the GSA Administrator to convey this property to the tenant who has been in occupancy for the last 6 years, the Military Museum of Texas, for the fair market value of the property in its current use as a museum. The conveyance, by a provision in this bill, will include a covenant restricting the use of the property to its current use as a museum. If the Museum wants to abrogate the restrictive covenant, the Museum must pay GSA the fair market value of the property in its highest and best use.

The provisions of the bill are fair and reasonable, and protect the interests of the U.S. Government, while affording the Military Museum of Texas the opportunity to end its tenant status and take ownership of this property.

I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 6510.