[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 15]
[House]
[Page 21320]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         BUCK OWENS POST OFFICE

  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform be discharged from further 
consideration of the bill (H.R. 1384) to designate the facility of the 
United States Postal Service located at 118 Minner Street in 
Bakersfield, California, as the ``Buck Owens Post Office,'' and ask for 
its immediate consideration in the House.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Illinois?
  There was no objection.
  The Clerk read the bill, as follows

                               H.R. 1384

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

     SECTION 1. BUCK OWENS POST OFFICE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 118 Minner Street in Bakersfield, 
     California, shall be known and designated as the ``Buck Owens 
     Post Office''.
       (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 ``Buck Owens Post Office''.

               Amendment Offered by Mr. Davis of Illinois

  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I offer an amendment.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Amendment offered by Mr. Davis of Illinois:
       Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
     following:

     SECTION 1. BUCK OWENS POST OFFICE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 118 Minner Avenue in Bakersfield, 
     California, shall be known and designated as the ``Buck Owens 
     Post Office''.
       (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 ``Buck Owens Post Office''.

  The amendment was agreed to.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Buck Owens was among the most 
prolific country hit-makers of the past 40 years and enjoyed a string 
of chart-toppers, including ``Act Naturally'', ``Together Again'', and 
``I've Got a Tiger by the Tail''. He was a major influence on 
successive generations of musicians.
  He was born as Alvis Edgar Owens in Sherman, Texas on August 12, 
1929. He died on March 25, 2006 in Bakersfield, California.
  Mr. Speaker, I commend my colleague Representative Kevin McCarthy for 
introducing this legislation and urge the swift passage of this bill.
  Mr. McCARTHY of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong 
support of H.R. 1384, a bill I introduced to designate the United 
States Postal Service facility located at 118 Minner Avenue in 
Bakersfield, California as the ``Buck Owens Post Office.''
  An accomplished, self-taught musician, Alvis Edgar ``Buck'' Owens, 
Jr. amassed twenty-one country music hits throughout his career, of 
which ten were consecutive #1 hits, including ``Act Naturally,'' ``My 
Heart Skips a Beat,'' and ``Streets of Bakersfield.'' Over his more 
than 50 years in the music industry, Buck worked with other legendary 
country musicians including Merle Haggard, who dubbed Buck's band ``the 
Buckaroos,'' Wanda Jackson, and Dwight Yoakam.
  Buck was best known for his signature ``freight train'' musical sound 
that combined classic country music with electric guitar, a unique 
rhythm, and rock and roll and honky-tonk influences, and always played 
his trademark red, white, and blue guitar. Buck was inducted into the 
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Country Music Hall of Fame, 
both in 1996, for his musical talent and accomplishments. In 1999, Buck 
received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award for one of his #1 hits, ``I've Got 
a Tiger by the Tail.''
  In addition to recording hit country music songs, for almost twenty 
years, Buck could be seen on Hee Haw, an immensely popular country 
music comedy show. Following Hee Haw and returning to his country music 
roots, Buck opened Buck Owens' Crystal Palace in 1996, a concert hall 
in Bakersfield, California, where Buck hosted other bands and performed 
live for fans up until the night he passed away, on March 25, 2006.
  An astute businessman, Buck owned several radio stations, including 
KKXX-FM, which was under Buck's tenure for more than a decade the #1 
rock-and-roll station in Bakersfield. In addition, Buck also owned 
KUZZ-AM, which he expanded to FM radio, and, up until his death, was 
and remains the #1 country music station in Bakersfield. Finally, Buck 
established his own music production company, Buck Owens Enterprises, 
which produced records by country music artists.
  Buck moved to Bakersfield in 1951, and contributed greatly to the 
country music industry in Bakersfield and around the Nation and amassed 
a legion of fans, like myself, across the country. H.R. 1384 is a 
fitting honor and tribute to this influential and charismatic 
Californian by designating the post office in his hometown of more than 
55 years in his memory.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, was read 
the third time, and passed.
  The title was amended so as to read: ``A bill to designate the 
facility of the United States Postal Service located at 118 Minner 
Avenue in Bakersfield, California, as the `Buck Owens Post Office'.''
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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