[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 12]
[House]
[Pages 16711-16712]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                  HERB E. HARRIS POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules 
and pass the bill (H.R. 1761) to designate the facility of the United 
States Postal Service located at 8588 Richmond Highway in Alexandria, 
Virginia, as the ``Herb E. Harris Post Office Building'', as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 1761

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

     SECTION 1. HERB HARRIS POST OFFICE BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 8588 Richmond Highway in Alexandria, 
     Virginia, shall be known and designated as the ``Herb Harris 
     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 Herb Harris Post Office Building.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis).


                             General Leave

  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that 
all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and 
extend their remarks on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Virginia?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, it is a great honor to stand before you today to speak 
on behalf of H.R. 1761, designing the United States Post Office located 
at 8588 Richmond Highway in Alexandria, Virginia, as the Herb Harris 
Post Office Building.
  Herb Harris, again, came from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors 
where he cut his teeth politically. He had a very distinguished career 
there. He was elected in 1975 to the 94th Congress and two succeeding 
Congresses representing what was then Virginia's Eighth Congressional 
District. He was the first freshman Congressman in 25 years to serve as 
chairman of the House District of Columbia Subcommittee on the 
Environment Bicentennial Celebration and International Community as 
well.
  Prior to being elected to Congress, Herb served as vice chairman of 
the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Transit Authority from 1970 to 1974 
as a member of the County Board of Supervisors from Fairfax at that 
point representing the Mount Vernon District. He had been vice chairman 
of the County Board of Supervisors in Fairfax County as well, was a 
very distinguished leader there both in Fairfax and regionally. He was 
the instrumental figure in securing the needed funding for construction 
of Metro. We think of Stark-Harris funds and the legislation that came 
out of that landmark legislation. The Metro system as it exists today 
would not be there but for Herb Harris. He was a leader in getting 
money for that area and allocating it, bringing the region together to 
address the problems with building this mighty system.
  After leaving Congress in January 1981, Herb resumed the practice of 
law with the firm of Harris Ellsworth & Levin in Washington, D.C. He 
still resides in Mount Vernon, Virginia, today.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing I would like to thank Herb for his service to 
Fairfax County, the Washington metropolitan region, and to this 
country. I would urge adoption of this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume. I thank again my friend and colleague, the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis), and my friend and colleague, the gentleman 
from Virginia (Mr. Wolf). This is a neat opportunity to recognize two 
very distinguished individuals.
  This bill would name a post office after my good friend, Congressman 
Herb Harris. It will be at 8588 Richmond Highway, which is Route 1. It 
is a brand new post office in an area that desperately needs a post 
office and needs economic redevelopment, and this will provide it to 
that area. It is more than appropriate that we honor Herb Harris, who 
represented the Mount Vernon District on the Fairfax County Board of 
Supervisors, became vice chair, as the gentleman from Virginia has 
said, and he still lives in Mount Vernon. He is still very much 
involved in what goes on in that community.

                              {time}  1515

  He did more things for that community and for Fairfax County, and, in 
many ways, for the Nation, than we will ever know.
  He began his public service in 1968. He was instrumental in getting 
funding

[[Page 16712]]

for a new hospital and expanding the libraries in the Mount Vernon area 
and in Fairfax County. He spent a lot of time on thankless tasks, like 
limiting utility costs and tax rates.
  He was first elected in 1975 to the Congress after serving as vice 
chair of the Metropolitan Washington Transit Authority, and he used 
that experience on the Metro board to continually push for expansion of 
the Metro system. He got the legislation through that approved $1.9 
billion in final construction funds for the full 101-mile Metro design.
  Metro is critical to the entire Metropolitan Washington area. In the 
early days, it was a very controversial, very political issue, to bring 
Metro out to the suburbs and to pay the costs. You had to have a 
vision, and Herb had that vision.
  He also promoted the rights of Federal employees. He was fiscally 
responsible, and he emphasized the need for future planning in terms of 
transportation needs. In so many areas, we find today that he was even 
more correct than we understood at the time in terms of meeting those 
transportation needs.
  It was the first time in 25 years that a freshman Member of Congress 
was selected to serve as chairman of a subcommittee when Herb was 
designated as the chair of the Subcommittee on the Environment, 
Bicentennial Celebration and International Community in Washington.
  It is with great gratitude that I thank Herb on behalf of the Members 
of this body, all the Members of this body, and really of the country, 
for his tireless efforts to improve the lives of Virginia's and 
America's residents. He was a forward-looking individual that was a lot 
of fun to work with, and he was tireless in his devotion to public 
service. That is why it is most appropriate that we designate the Post 
Office at 8588 Richmond Highway as the Herb E. Harris Post Office 
Building.
  We have Congressman Harris with us. Herb, thank you for all you did. 
You are so deserving of this honor.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I just have a question for the gentleman from Virginia 
(Mr. Moran): Does this post office stay in the Eighth Congressional 
District under the new boundaries that the Virginia General Assembly 
has promulgated?
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. I yield to the gentleman from Virginia.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. 
Tom Davis) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf) would know better 
than I, controlling the redistricting; but, you betcha. Absolutely.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, that is 
appropriate.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Virginia (Mr. Wolf).
  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom 
Davis) for this effort in helping with this legislation, and I want to 
commend the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran) for doing this.
  Mr. Speaker, I just have a couple of comments. Herb Harris, as I said 
in a previous debate, was a fighter, was an advocate. I first met Herb 
when I was a young lawyer here in town. He was with the American Farm 
Bureau. Then he went on to do all the amazing things that the gentleman 
from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. 
Moran) said. So it is very fitting.
  Mr. Speaker, it would really be fitting for the Post Office to have 
these dedications of Mr. Parris' Post Office and Mr. Harris' Post 
Office on the same day. I think it would be a great sign, if you will, 
when Stan Parris comes to Herb Harris' dedication and Herb Harris comes 
to Stan Parris' dedication.
  With that, I say congratulations, and I wish Herb the very, very 
best.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield 
further, Congressman Harris has informed me that the actual name of his 
law firm is Harris Ellsworth & Levin.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I also note that Mr. Harris is a former president, as I 
understand it, of the Bren Mar Park Civic Association, which was in the 
Mason District which I once represented.
  Again, let me say to Herb Harris, thank you for Metro, thank you for 
the Mount Vernon Hospital, thank you for your years of service as well. 
We look forward to the dedication.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of this measure.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Isakson). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1761, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and 
nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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