[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 56 (Wednesday, March 30, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H3988-H3989]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      WILLIAM T. COLEMAN, JR. AND NORMAN Y. MINETA DEPARTMENT OF 
                    TRANSPORTATION HEADQUARTERS ACT

  Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (S. 400) to designate the headquarters building of the Department 
of Transportation located at 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, in Washington, 
DC, as the ``William T. Coleman, Jr. and Norman Y. Mineta Federal 
Building'', as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                 S. 400

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``William T. Coleman, Jr. and 
     Norman Y. Mineta Department of Transportation Headquarters 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. DESIGNATION.

       The headquarters building of the Department of 
     Transportation located at 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, in 
     Washington, DC, shall be known and designated as the 
     ``William T. Coleman, Jr. and Norman Y. Mineta Federal 
     Building''.

     SEC. 3. REFERENCES.

       Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, paper, 
     or other record of the United States to the building referred 
     to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be a reference to the 
     ``William T. Coleman, Jr. and Norman Y. Mineta Federal 
     Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. DeFazio) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Webster) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oregon.


                             General Leave

  Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on S. 400, as amended.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Oregon?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of S. 400, as amended, a bill to 
name the headquarters building of the Department of Transportation 
located at 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, in Washington, D.C. as the 
William T. Coleman, Jr. and Norman Y. Mineta Federal Building.
  The text we are considering today represents an agreement reached 
with the Senate and reconciles the differences between S. 400 and my 
bill, H.R. 4679, which passed the House last November. This compromise 
language pays tribute to two American patriots, William T. Coleman, Jr. 
and Norman Yishio Mineta.
  William T. Coleman, Jr. led a life of extraordinary achievement. He 
attended a segregated elementary school, graduated summa cum laude from 
the University of Pennsylvania, and was accepted into Harvard School of 
Law. He left in 1943 to enlist in the Army Air Forces, trained with the 
Tuskegee Airmen, after which he returned to Harvard Law School and 
graduated first in his class.
  He was the first African-American clerk on the Supreme Court. He also 
worked with Thurgood Marshall on the legal team preparing the briefs in 
Brown v. Board of Education, served as president and chairman of the 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and argued 19 cases before 
the Supreme Court. Mr. Coleman was the second African American to serve 
in a White House Cabinet, after being appointed Transportation 
Secretary by President Gerald R. Ford in March 1975.
  Norman Y. Mineta also has an extraordinary life story. He, along with 
his family, suffered the grave injustice of being forcibly relocated 
and interned during World War II, but he was not bitter toward his 
government. Instead, he spent his career serving his country by 
participating in and improving government.
  For almost 30 years, Norm represented San Jose, California, on the 
city council, then as mayor, and from 1975 to 1995 as a Member of 
Congress. He served on the Committee on Public Works and Transportation 
during his entire time in Congress. He chaired the Subcommittee on 
Aviation, the Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, and he chaired 
the full committee for one full term.
  Norm's skills and accomplishments were widely recognized. He was 
President Bill Clinton's Secretary of Commerce and President George W. 
Bush's Secretary of Transportation, where he was the longest-serving 
Secretary of Transportation in U.S. history.
  Following the terrorist acts of September 11, 2001, Secretary Mineta 
guided the creation of the Transportation Security Administration, an 
agency with more than 65,000 employees, the largest mobilization of a 
new Federal agency since World War II.
  For their contributions to this institution, to our government, and 
to the field of transportation, Secretary William T. Coleman, Jr. and 
Secretary Mineta deserve this recognition. I strongly support this 
legislation and urge my colleagues to join me.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

[[Page H3989]]

  

  Mr. WEBSTER of Florida. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, S. 400, as amended, designates the United States 
Department of Transportation headquarters as the William T. Coleman, 
Jr. and Norman Y. Mineta Federal Building.
  William Coleman had a long history of public service, including 
serving as the fourth Secretary of Transportation, as a civil rights 
leader and, early in his career, by serving the Nation during World War 
II.
  Norman Mineta served as chair and ranking member of the Committee on 
Public Works and Transportation. He was later appointed as the 14th 
Secretary of Transportation under President George W. Bush and is the 
longest-serving Secretary of Transportation to date.
  I think it is fitting to recognize the work and commitment of both 
Secretaries by naming the DOT headquarters after them. I urge support 
of the bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. WEBSTER of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  In closing, I am proud to be a cosponsor of S. 400. This bill 
appropriately recognizes both Norm Mineta and William Coleman for their 
service to our country and the United States Department of 
Transportation.
  I urge Members to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of 
my time.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume 
to close.
  I have already spoken strongly for this bill, for the Department of 
Transportation building to be named in honor of William T. Coleman and 
Norm Mineta.
  I just want to add a personal note. I served with Norm Mineta for 8 
years, and he was a great chairman and mentor. Between him and Jim 
Oberstar, I owe them a lot for my success in Congress and for the 
leadership in this committee, so I am really pleased that we can do 
this today. I would expect it will pass the House unanimously, but 
there are inane people on the other side of the aisle who insist on 
voting on everything for no apparent reason, so I expect we will end up 
with a recorded vote, but I expect that will be unanimous.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, S. 400, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. ROSENDALE. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3(s) of House Resolution 
8, the yeas and nays are ordered.
  Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this motion 
are postponed.

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