[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 73 (Monday, May 7, 2018)]
[House]
[Page H3757]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          BLOOMINGDALE VETERANS MEMORIAL POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. RUSSELL. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 4574) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 108 West Schick Road in Bloomingdale, Illinois, as 
the ``Bloomingdale Veterans Memorial Post Office Building''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 4574

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. BLOOMINGDALE VETERANS MEMORIAL POST OFFICE 
                   BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 108 West Schick Road in Bloomingdale, 
     Illinois, shall be known and designated as the ``Bloomingdale 
     Veterans Memorial Post Office Building''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Bloomingdale Veterans Memorial Post 
     Office Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Oklahoma (Mr. Russell) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. 
Krishnamoorthi) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oklahoma.


                             General Leave

  Mr. RUSSELL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks, and include 
extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Oklahoma?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. RUSSELL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to stand with my colleague from Illinois in 
support of H.R. 4574, introduced by Congressman Krishnamoorthi. The 
bill names the United States Post Office at 108 West Schick Road in 
Bloomingdale, Illinois, after Bloomingdale veterans.
  The Eighth Congressional District of Illinois is home to more than 
23,000 veterans, including many Active-Duty veterans groups. This bill 
honors Bloomingdale, Illinois, veterans who served this country proudly 
and continue to be a positive force in the community.
  We thank the veterans of Bloomingdale and all veterans for their 
service, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, my legislation would designate the U.S. Postal Service 
facility at 108 West Schick Road in Bloomingdale, Illinois, as the 
Bloomingdale Veterans Memorial Post Office Building in recognition of 
all the men and women who have served our Nation with distinction and 
honor.
  I would like to thank Chairman Gowdy and Ranking Member Cummings for 
their help in moving this bill through the committee, as well as 
Majority Leader McCarthy for helping to secure floor time for 
consideration.
  This is merely a step, one step, to help citizens in Bloomingdale and 
every part of my district recognize the sacrifices and celebrate the 
contributions of our friends, families, and neighbors who chose a life 
of service to the people of the United States.
  Veterans in every community deserve our thanks and gratitude. The 
Bloomingdale Veterans Memorial Post Office will serve as a living 
reminder of the service of every soldier, sailor, coastguardsman, 
airman, and marine, whose sacrifices helped keep Americans safe. It is 
my hope that this small daily reminder will help us all to remember 
that we can and must do more to support our veterans, from those just 
returning home to those who fought long ago and still bear the scars of 
their service.
  Mr. Speaker, we all agree that our Nation's veterans continue to face 
serious challenges. Today, an estimated 39,471 veterans are homeless, 
and the number of young veterans struggling with homelessness is 
increasing. In my home State of Illinois alone, 193 veterans took their 
own life in 1 year, a rate more than twice as high as the nonveteran 
population of Illinois.
  Veterans are more likely to struggle with PTSD as well as substance 
abuse disorders than nonveterans. It is clear that we are failing those 
who never failed us. We have a solemn obligation to eliminate veteran 
homelessness, to improve access to essential health services, and 
ensure veterans are able to transition to the civilian workforce and 
secure family-sustaining jobs.
  We need to prioritize mental health support and substance use 
prevention, and we need to exercise strong oversight over the VA to 
ensure that no veteran is ever denied medical care or support services.
  For the men and women who have protected my own American Dream, I 
hope to make theirs easier to achieve. We must all do more to recognize 
those willing to give what Lincoln called ``the last full measure of 
devotion'' to their country.
  It is my hope that the new Bloomingdale Veterans Memorial Post Office 
Building will foster both gratitude and understanding in our community, 
and I urge every Member to support this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. RUSSELL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to echo the comments of my colleague from 
Illinois and also hope that the name of this post office will recognize 
the millions of veterans throughout our history that have returned 
home, led productive lives, have entered further public service, and 
have done so with gratitude, without issues, and have rendered great 
service to the Nation.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to make the gentleman from Illinois also 
aware that I have no further speakers and am prepared to close. I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Congressman 
Russell for those eloquent words and thank him for his service to our 
country as a veteran, as well, Mr. Speaker.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I urge the passage of H.R. 
4574, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. RUSSELL. Mr. Speaker, I urge the adoption of the bill, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Russell) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 4574.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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