[House Report 107-595]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



107th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     107-595

======================================================================







 
CONFERRING HONORARY CITIZENSHIP OF THE UNITED STATES POSTHUMOUSLY ON 
  MARIE JOSEPH PAUL YVES ROCHE GILBERT DU MOTIER, THE MARQUIS DE 
  LAFAYETTE

                                _______
                                

 July 19, 2002.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Sensenbrenner, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                      [To accompany S.J. Res. 13]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the 
joint resolution (S.J. Res. 13) conferring honorary citizenship 
of the United States on Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, also 
known as the Marquis de Lafayette, having considered the same, 
reports favorably thereon with amendments and recommends that 
the joint resolution as amended do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
The Amendment....................................................     1
Purpose and Summary..............................................     2
Background and Need for the Legislation..........................     3
Hearings.........................................................     4
Committee Consideration..........................................     4
Vote of the Committee............................................     4
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................     4
Performance Goals and Objectives.................................     4
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................     4
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................     4
Constitutional Authority Statement...............................     5
Preamble and Resolved Clause Analysis and Discussion.............     5
Markup Transcript................................................     6

    The amendments are as follows:

    Strike all after the resolving clause and insert the 
following:

``That Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roche Gilbert du Motier, the 
Marquis de Lafayette, is proclaimed posthumously to be an 
honorary citizen of the United States of America.''.

    Strike the preamble and insert the following:

Whereas the United States has conferred honorary citizenship on 
        four other occasions in more than 200 years of its 
        independence, and honorary citizenship is and should 
        remain an extraordinary honor not lightly conferred nor 
        frequently granted;
Whereas Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roche Gilbert du Motier, the 
        Marquis de Lafayette or General Lafayette, voluntarily 
        put forth his own money and risked his life for the 
        freedom of Americans;
Whereas the Marquis de Lafayette, by an Act of Congress, was 
        voted to the rank of Major General;
Whereas, during the Revolutionary War, General Lafayette was 
        wounded at the Battle of Brandywine, demonstrating 
        bravery that forever endeared him to the American 
        soldiers;
Whereas the Marquis de Lafayette secured the help of France to 
        aid the United States' colonists against Great Britain;
Whereas the Marquis de Lafayette was conferred the honor of 
        honorary citizenship by the Commonwealth of Virginia 
        and the State of Maryland;
Whereas the Marquis de Lafayette was the first foreign 
        dignitary to address Congress, an honor which was 
        accorded to him upon his return to the United States in 
        1824;
Whereas, upon his death, both the House of Representatives and 
        the Senate draped their chambers in black as a 
        demonstration of respect and gratitude for his 
        contribution to the independence of the United States;
Whereas an American flag has flown over his grave in France 
        since his death and has not been removed, even while 
        France was occupied by Nazi Germany during World War 
        II; and
Whereas the Marquis de Lafayette gave aid to the United States 
        in her time of need and is forever a symbol of freedom: 
        Now, therefore, be it

    Amend the title so as to read:

      Joint Resolution conferring honorary citizenship of the 
United States posthumously on Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roche 
Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette.

                          Purpose and Summary

    The purpose of Senate Joint Resolution 13 is to confer 
honorary United States citizenship upon Marie Joseph Paul Yves 
Roche Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette, in 
recognition of his many contributions to, and sacrifices for, 
the cause of American independence and his support of the 
principles of representative government.

                Background and Need for the Legislation

    American citizenship is the highest honor that our country 
can confer upon a person who is a citizen of another land. The 
granting of an honorary citizenship is the admission and 
welcoming of that person into our national family. Honorary 
United States citizenship has only been bestowed on individuals 
four times in our history. As stated by this Committee in the 
past, any decision to grant honorary citizenship is unique and 
cannot be treated as a precedent.
    It should also be noted that ``honorary citizenship'' is a 
symbolic gesture. It does not grant any additional legal rights 
in the United States or in international law. It also does not 
impose additional duties or responsibilities, in the United 
States or internationally, on the honoree.
    This resolution contains statements defining the 
extraordinary act of conferring honorary citizenship and 
acknowledging the many efforts made by the Marquis de Lafayette 
which are the basis for granting him honorary United States 
citizenship.
    In line with the above statements, the resolution notes 
that the United States has conferred honorary citizenship on 
only four occasions in the last two hundred years, and that 
honorary citizenship is and should always be an extraordinary 
honor not lightly conferred and rarely given.
    The resolution acknowledges the Marquis de Lafayette put 
forth his own money and risked his life for the freedom of 
Americans; that he was voted to the rank of Major General by 
the Congress; that General Lafayette was wounded at the Battle 
of Brandywine during the Revolutionary War, demonstrating 
bravery that forever endeared him to the American soldiers; 
that the Marquis de Lafayette secured the help of France to aid 
the United States' colonists against Great Britain; that the 
Marquis de Lafayette was conferred the honor of honorary 
citizenship by the Commonwealth of Virginia and the State of 
Maryland; that in 1824, the Marquis de Lafayette was the first 
foreign dignitary to address Congress; that upon his death, 
both the House of Representatives and the Senate draped their 
chambers in black as a demonstration of respect and gratitude 
for his contribution to the independence of the United States; 
that an American flag has flown over his grave in France since 
his death and has not been removed, even while France was 
occupied by Nazi Germany during World War II; and that the 
Marquis de Lafayette gave aid to the United States in her time 
of need and is forever a symbol of freedom.
    The Marquis de Lafayette was granted citizenship by the 
States of Maryland and Virginia before the Constitution was 
adopted. In 1935, a State Department letter addressed the 
question of whether the citizenship conferred by these States 
could be interpreted to have ultimately resulted in the Marquis 
de Lafayette being a United States citizen. Their determination 
was that it did not. The State Department provided an excerpt 
from the Journals of the Continental Congress in 1784 which 
stated in the Congress' farewell to the Marquis that ``as his 
uniform and unceasing attachment to this country has resembled 
that of a patriotic citizen of the United States . . . 
[emphasis added]'' as proof that the citizenship was no 
considered to have translated to a Federal level.
    It came to the attention of the Committee that the Marquis 
de Lafayette's name, as stated in S.J. Res. 13 and as passed by 
the Senate, was not correct. An amendment was adopted by the 
Committee to place the Marquis' correct name in the bill.
    The amendment also added the word ``posthumously'' to the 
language concerning the granting of honorary citizenship. This 
is in line with previous legislation granting honorary 
citizenship to a deceased individual.

                                Hearings

    No hearings were held on S.J. Res. 13.

                        Committee Consideration

    On April 17, 2002, the Subcommittee on Immigration and 
Claims met in open session and ordered favorably reported the 
resolution S.J. Res. 13, by a voice vote, a quorum being 
present. On July 17, 2002, the Committee met in open session 
and ordered favorably reported the resolution with amendment by 
voice vote, a quorum being present.

                         Vote of the Committee

    There were no recorded votes taken on S.J. Res. 13.

                      Committee Oversight Findings

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee reports that the 
findings and recommendations of the Committee, based on 
oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the 
descriptive portions of this report.

                    Performance Goals and Objectives

    S.J.Res. 13 does not authorize funding. Therefore, clause 
3(c) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives 
is inapplicable.

               New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures

    Clause 3(c)(2) of House rule XIII is inapplicable because 
this legislation does not provide new budgetary authority or 
increased tax expenditures.

               Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee sets forth, with 
respect to the resolution, S.J.Res. 13, the following estimate 
and comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional 
Budget Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act 
of 1974:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                     Washington, DC, July 19, 2002.
Hon. F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr., Chairman,
Committee on the Judiciary,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S.J. Res. 13, a joint 
resolution conferring honorary citizenship of the United States 
posthumously on Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roche Gilbert du Motier, 
also known as the Marquis de Lafayette.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark 
Grabowicz, who can be reached at 226-2860.
            Sincerely,
                                  Dan L. Crippen, Director.

Enclosure

cc:
        Honorable John Conyers, Jr.
        Ranking Member
S.J. Res. 13--A joint resolution conferring honorary citizenship of the 
        United States posthumously on Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roche 
        Gilbert du Motier, also known as the Marquis de Lafayette.
    The Congressional Budget Office has reviewed S.J. Res. 13, 
a joint resolution conferring honorary citizenship of the 
United States posthumously on Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roche 
Gilbert du Motier, also known as the Marquis de Lafayette. CBO 
estimates that enacting S.J. Res. 13 would result in no 
significant cost to the Federal Government and would not affect 
direct spending or receipts; therefore, pay-as-you-go 
procedures would not apply.
    S.J. Res. 13 contains no intergovernmental or private-
sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 
and would not affect the budgets of State, local, or tribal 
governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Mark Grabowicz, 
who can be reached at 226-2860. This estimate was approved by 
Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget 
Analysis.

                   Constitutional Authority Statement

    Pursuant to clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee finds the authority for 
this legislation in article 1, section 8, clause 4 of the 
Constitution.

          Preamble and Resolved Clause Analysis and Discussion

    The Preamble states that the United States has granted 
honorary citizenship only four times in its history and that 
the granting on honorary citizenship is extraordinary and not 
lightly given. It states that the Marquis gave monetary support 
and risked his life for a free America. It declares that he was 
voted the rank of Major General by an Act of Congress and was 
wounded at the Battle of Brandywine during an act of bravery. 
Additionally, the Marquis convinced France to side with the 
United States against Great Britain. The Preamble acknowledges 
that the Marquis was granted honorary citizenship by Virginia 
and Maryland, and was the first foreign dignity to address 
Congress and addressed Congress again in 1824. The Preamble 
states that upon his death, both Houses of Congress draped 
their chambers in black to express their respect for his 
contribution to the United States and that an American flag has 
continually flown over his grave in France since his death. 
Finally, the Preamble recognizes the Marquis de Lafayette's aid 
to the United States and the fact that he is a symbol of 
freedom.
    The Resolved clause proclaims the Marquis de Lafayette to 
be an honorary citizen of the United States.

                           Markup Transcript



                            BUSINESS MEETING

                        WEDNESDAY, JULY 17, 2002

                  House of Representatives,
                                Committee on the Judiciary,
                                                    Washington, DC.
    The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:05 a.m., in 
Room 2141, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. F. James 
Sensenbrenner, Jr. [Chairman of the Committee] presiding.
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. The Committee will be in order.
    The first item on the agenda is the adoption of Senate 
Joint Resolution 13, conferring honorary citizenship of the 
United States on Paul Yves Roche Gilbert du Motier, also known 
as the Marquis de Lafayette. The Chair recognizes the gentleman 
from Pennsylvania, Mr. Gekas, for a motion.
    Mr. Gekas. I thank the Chair.
    Mr. Chairman, the Subcommittee on Immigration, Border 
Security, and Claims reports favorably the bill S.J. Res. 13 
and moves its favorable recommendation to the full House.
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. Without objection, S.J. Res. 13 
will be considered as read and open for amendment at any point.
    [The resolution, S.J. Res. 13, follows:]
    
    
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. The Chair recognizes the gentleman 
from Pennsylvania, Mr. Gekas, to strike the last word.
    Mr. Gekas. I thank the Chair.
    As the Chairman indicated, this has to do with Paul Yves 
Roch Gilbert du Motier--I think I pronounced it better than the 
Chairman did because I left off the ``s'' on the ``Yves,'' 
which I was taught in my early French you must do--who is known 
as the Marquis de Lafayette, the great friend of the United 
States, the emerging United States, during the Revolution.
    This would confer honorary U.S. citizenship to him in 
recognition of his many contributions and sacrifices for the 
cause of American independence and his support of the 
principles of representative government.
    He was granted citizenship by the States of Maryland and 
Virginia before the Constitution was adopted. It has been 
determined that the citizenship conferred by these States could 
not be interpreted to have resulted in the Marquis being a U.S. 
citizen.
    The full name of the Marquis was not correctly stated in 
the resolution as passed by the Senate, and I will, therefore, 
be offering an amendment to correct that error. The amendment 
will also clarify that the honorary citizenship being granted 
to the Marquis is posthumous, as has been done in previous 
legislation to grant honorary citizenship in the case of a 
deceased individual.
    I yield back the balance of my time, and I have an 
amendment at the desk at the appropriate time.
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. Okay. Without objection, Members 
may insert opening statements in the record at this point.
    Are there amendments?
    Mr. Gekas. I have an amendment at the desk.
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. The clerk will report the 
amendment.
    The Clerk. Amendment to S.J. Res. 13, offered by Mr. Gekas. 
In the matter following the resolved clause----
    Mr. Gekas. I ask unanimous consent that the amendment be 
considered as read.
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. Without objection, so ordered.
    [The amendment follows:]
    
    
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. The gentleman from Pennsylvania is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Gekas. As I indicated in the opening statement and it 
was alluded to by the Chair in his opening statement, this 
amendment merely brings into full play the entire name of the 
Marquis de Lafayette, and I want to pronounce it again, if the 
Chair will allow me.
    Mr. Conyers. I object.
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. Objection is heard. The question is 
on the amendment. [Laughter.]
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. Those in favor will say aye. Those 
opposed, no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes have it and 
the amendment is agreed to.
    Are there further amendments? If not, without objection, 
the previous question is ordered on reporting the bill 
favorably in the absence of a reporting quorum.
    [Intervening business.]
    The Committee now returns to the pending unfinished 
business upon which the previous question----
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Chairman, I'd like to strike the last 
word.
    Chairman Sensenbrenner.--was ordered. The previous question 
has been ordered. It is not in order to further debate the 
resolution.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Chairman? Mr. Chairman, I'd like----
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. The Chair notes the presence of----
    Ms. Jackson Lee.--a motion.
    Chairman Sensenbrenner.--a reporting quorum. The question 
is on the motion to report the----
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Chairman, I'd like to make a motion?
    Chairman Sensenbrenner.--resolution S.J. Res. 13 
favorably----
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Point of order, Mr. Chairman?
    Chairman Sensenbrenner.--as amended.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Point of order, Mr. Chairman?
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. The gentlewoman will state her 
point of order.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Chairman, noting the delay of Members 
in a caucus meeting of their caucus on issues dealing with 
their constituents, I'd like to move for reconsideration of two 
bills, the previous question on H.R. 4558 and----
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. That is not in order at this time. 
The question is on reporting Senate Joint Resolution 
favorably----
    Ms. Jackson Lee. The bills under consideration----
    Chairman Sensenbrenner.--as amended.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. The bills under consideration, I'd like to 
move for reconsideration.
    Chairman Sensenbrenner. Well, we'll have the bill under--
the bills that the previous question has been ordered will be 
called up in the order in which the previous question was 
ordered.
    The question is on reporting favorably Senate Joint 
Resolution 13 as amended. Those in favor will say aye. Opposed, 
no.
    The ayes appear to have it. The ayes have it. The motion to 
report favorably is agreed to.
    Without objection, the bill will be reported favorably to 
the House in the form of a single amendment in the nature of a 
substitute, incorporating the amendments adopted here today. 
Without objection, the Chairman is authorized to move to go to 
conference pursuant to House rules. Without objection, the 
staff is directed to make any technical and conforming changes, 
and all Members will be given 2 days, as provided by the rules, 
in which to submit additional dissenting, supplemental, or 
minority views.

                                  
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