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[House Report 113-548]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

113th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     113-548

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

 
                       HONORARY CITIZENSHIP FOR 
                      BERNARDO DE GALVEZ Y MADRID

                                _______
                                

   July 22, 2014.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be 
                                printed

                                _______
                                

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

                              R E P O R T

                     [To accompany H. J. Res. 105]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the 
joint resolution (H. J. Res. 105) conferring honorary 
citizenship of the United States on Bernardo de Galvez y 
Madrid, Viscount of Galveston and Count of Galvez, having 
considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment 
and recommend that the joint resolution do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose and Summary..............................................     1
Background and Need for the Legislation..........................     2
Hearings.........................................................     3
Committee Consideration..........................................     3
Committee Votes..................................................     3
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................     3
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................     4
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................     4
Duplication of Federal Programs..................................     5
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings..............................     5
Performance Goals and Objectives.................................     5
Advisory on Earmarks.............................................     5
Section-by-Section Analysis......................................     5

                          Purpose and Summary

    The joint resolution confers honorary citizenship of the 
United States on Bernardo de Galvez y Madrid, Viscount of 
Galveston and Count of Galvez.

                Background and Need for the Legislation

    The purpose of H. J. Res. 105 is to confer honorary United 
States citizenship upon Bernardo de Galvez y Madrid, Viscount 
of Galveston and Count of Galvez, in recognition of his many 
contributions to, and sacrifices for, the cause of American 
independence.
    American citizenship is the highest honor that our country 
can confer upon a person who is a citizen of another land. The 
granting of honorary citizenship is the admission and welcoming 
of that person into our national family. 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.
    Honorary citizenship is and should always be an 
extraordinary honor not lightly conferred and rarely given. 
Congress has granted honorary citizenship on six occasions to 
seven individuals. Of the seven recipients of the honor, five 
received it posthumously (Mother Theresa and Winston Churchill 
received it during their lifetimes). The last two individuals 
were also heroes of the Revolutionary War:

    Casimir Pulaski                            P.L. 111-94     2009
    The Marquis de Lafayette                   P.L. 107-209    2002
    Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu                      P.L. 104-218    1996
      [Mother Teresa]
    William and Hannah Callowhill              P.L. 98-516     1984
      Penn
    Raoul Wallenberg                           P.L. 97-54      1981
    Winston Churchill                          P.L. 86-6       1963

    As they are described in H. J. Res. 105, General Galvez's 
contributions compare very favorably with the previous two 
recipients of honorary citizenship who were heroes of the 
Revolutionary War. In summarizing General Galvez's aid to the 
American colonies, H.J. Res. 105 states that Galvez ``provided 
supplies, intelligence, and strong military support to the war 
effort''. Indeed, the historical record indicates that, due to 
the British blockade of seaports on the Eastern Seaboard, then-
Governor Galvez's secretly-coordinated smuggling operation, and 
efforts to clear the Mississippi River of British influence, 
helped ensure that George Washington's Continental Army 
received necessary weapons and other provisions.
    H. J. Res. 105 states that ``Galvez recruited an army of 
7,500 men made up of Spanish, French, African-American, 
Mexican, Cuban, and Anglo-American forces and led the effort of 
Spain to aid the United States' colonists. . . . [He] and his 
troops seized the Port of New Orleans and successfully defeated 
the British at battles in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Natchez, 
Mississippi, and Mobile, Alabama.'' Commentators and historians 
have uniformly lauded General Galvez's bravery, tenacity, and 
tactical military skill in rapidly assembling and leading a 
diverse, multi-ethnic regiment. Galvez's forces were victorious 
in every battle into which he led them.
    H. J. Res. 105 states that Galvez ``led the successful 2-
month Siege of Pensacola, Florida, where his troops captured 
the capital of British West Florida and left the British with 
no naval bases in the Gulf of Mexico.'' The historical 
narrative surrounding Galvez's actions leading up to and 
throughout the 2-month-long Battle of Pensacola underscores his 
heroism and leadership in pursuit of the objective of pinning 
down the British forces and driving them from the Gulf of 
Mexico. There is no question that keeping the British occupied 
on a second front during the war was critical to the success of 
General Washington's campaign. Some historians have noted that 
the length and timing of the battle of Pensacola, in particular 
(the British surrendered in May 1781), impacted the number of 
forces and ships the British could commit to the battle of 
Yorktown, the final campaign of the Revolutionary War.
    H. J. Res. 105 states that ``Galvez's victories against the 
British were recognized by George Washington as a deciding 
factor in the outcome of the Revolutionary War.'' Despite his 
decisive contributions to the Continental Army's success in the 
American Revolution, General Galvez has not, to date, received 
the same level of recognition as have other figures, such as 
Pulaski and Lafayette. As noted in H. J. Res. 105, the State of 
Florida awarded General Galvez the designation of Great 
Floridian. Also, the city of Galveston, Texas bears his name. 
And in 1976, a statue of Galvez was dedicated along with the 
Statues of the Liberators, located near the Department of State 
in Washington, DC. The inscription on the statue reads, in 
part:

        Bernardo de Galvez the great Spanish soldier carried 
        out a courageous campaign in lands bordering the lower 
        Mississippi. This masterpiece of military strategy 
        heightened the pressure of the English in the war 
        against the American settlers who were fighting for 
        their independence.

                                Hearings

    The Committee on the Judiciary held no hearings on H. J. 
Res. 105.

                        Committee Consideration

    On July 10, 2014, the Committee met in open session and 
ordered the joint resolution H. J. Res. 105 favorably reported 
without amendment, by voice vote, a quorum being present.

                            Committee Votes

    In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that there 
were no recorded votes during the Committee's consideration of 
H. J. Res. 105.

                      Committee Oversight Findings

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee advises 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.

               New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures

    Clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives 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 joint resolution, H. J. Res. 105, 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 11, 2014.
Hon. Bob Goodlatte, Chairman,
Committee on the Judiciary,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H. J. Res. 105, a joint 
resolution conferring honorary citizenship of the United States 
on Bernardo de Galvez y Madrid, Viscount of Galveston and Count 
of Galvez.
    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,
                                      Douglas W. Elmendorf,
                                                  Director.

Enclosure

cc:
        Honorable John Conyers, Jr.
        Ranking Member

 H. J. Res. 105--A joint resolution conferring honorary citizenship of 
the United States on Bernardo de Galvez y Madrid, Viscount of Galveston 
                          and Count of Galvez.

      As ordered reported by the House Committee on the Judiciary 
                           on July 10, 2014.

    The Congressional Budget Office has reviewed H. J. Res. 
105, a joint resolution conferring honorary citizenship of the 
United States posthumously on Bernardo de Galvez y Madrid, 
Viscount of Galveston and Count of Galvez. CBO estimates that 
enacting H. J. Res. 105 would result in no significant cost to 
the Federal Government and would not affect direct spending or 
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
    H. J. Res 105 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. 
The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                    Duplication of Federal Programs

    No provision of H. J. Res. 105 establishes or reauthorizes 
a program of the Federal Government known to be duplicative of 
another Federal program, a program that was included in any 
report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress 
pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program 
related to a program identified in the most recent Catalog of 
Federal Domestic Assistance.

                  Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings

    The Committee estimates that H. J. Res. 105 specifically 
directs to be completed no specific rule makings within the 
meaning of 5 U.S.C. 551.

                    Performance Goals and Objectives

    The Committee states that pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, H. J. 
Res. 105 confers honorary citizenship of the United States on 
Bernardo de Galvez y Madrid, Viscount of Galveston and Count of 
Galvez.

                          Advisory on Earmarks

    In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, H. J. Res. 105 does not contain any 
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 
benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of rule XXI.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

    After describing his exploits on behalf of American 
independence, this joint resolution proclaims Bernardo de 
Galvez y Madrid, Viscount of Galveston and Count of Galvez 
posthumously to be an honorary citizen of the United States.

                                  
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