Supporting the goals and ideals of "National Correctional Officers and Employees Week" and honoring the service of correctional officers and employees.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 264) supporting the goals and ideals of ``National Correctional Officers and Employees Week'' and honoring the service of correctional officers and employees.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members be given 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker I yield myself such time as I may consume.

H. Res. 264 is a bipartisan resolution designed to honor correctional officers and employees by acknowledging and supporting the goals and ideals of National Correctional Officers and Employees Week. This was introduced by the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Holden), the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. LoBiondo) and the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Ellsworth).

The resolution directly honors correctional workers at all levels, local, State and Federal, including psychologists, chaplains, teachers and even kitchen staff.

Correctional officers and employees play a vital role in protecting and promoting public safety. They work in our county jails, our State prisons and our Federal penitentiaries. They have a tough job in a tough environment and at a time that Congress and State legislatures are actually making the job more difficult because we have been eliminating programs for inmates, such as parole, good conduct credits and Pell Grants for college courses, programs that give incentives to prisoners to behave. Now, with the additional reduction in prison inmate jobs on the Federal level, even more pressure will be put on correctional officers to maintain a safe and productive environment for prisoners.

So it is fitting, Mr. Speaker, that we pause at this time to recognize and commend our correctional officers and employees for the very important job that they do for us every day under these very difficult circumstances, and to them we say, ``Thank you.''

Finally, Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would like to indicate that I have received a note from the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Holden), the lead sponsor of the resolution and chair of the Congressional Correctional Officers Caucus. First, he asked that I share his regrets that he was not able to be with us today to speak on this resolution due to a prior commitment in his home district. He also asked that I convey his strong support for the men and women who work in our prisons and correctional facilities on a daily basis. And he also asked me to personally welcome on his behalf the correctional community to Washington, D.C., for their annual day on Capitol Hill, which is scheduled to occur this coming Wednesday.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to an original cosponsor of this resolution, the former sheriff in Indiana, the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Ellsworth).

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to a strong supporter of programs to give prisoners incentives to better themselves and a strong supporter of correctional officers, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis).

(Mr. DAVIS of Illinois asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of the resolution, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 264, the Congressional Lawmaking Authority Protection Act of 2007 and the National Correctional Officers and Employees Week.

Correctional officers are the largest part of the workforce in jails and prisons, and they enforce the regulations governing the operation of correctional institutions as both supervisors and counselors.

While they have no law enforcement responsibilities outside the institution where they work, each day they put themselves in harm's way, maintaining security and inmate accountability to prevent disturbances, assaults, and escapes.

By definition, working in a correctional institution can be stressful and hazardous. Between 1990 and 1995, the number of attacks on correctional officers in State and Federal prisons jumped by nearly one-third, from 10,731 to 14,165, at a time when the number of correctional officers increased by only 14 percent. Except for police officers, the number of workplace nonfatal violent incidents is higher per 1,000 employees for correctional officers than any other profession. From 1992 to 1996, there were nearly 218 incidents for every 1,000 correctional officers, for a total of 58,300.

Correctional officers' roles in our society are and continue to be critical. We must continue to recognize the sacrifices they and their families make on a daily basis to ensure the safety and well-being of the prison population.

Mr. Speaker, I spend a fair amount of time in and around correctional institutions. As a matter of fact, I serve as a member of the local school council at the Consuelo York Alternative High School in Chicago, which is located in the Cook County Jail. Therefore, whenever I'm there, when we have our regular meetings, I attend.

I also go to jails sometimes to put up bail for individuals that I know, Representative Scott, who have been arrested. Quite frequently, I speak at jails, correctional facilities and prisons.

And so I simply wanted to take this time to thank all of those individuals who not only work in these stressful situations, but the many men and women with whom I come into contact as they facilitate my entree, and as they assist whatever it is that I've been trying to do and that I try to do while I'm there.

So I simply say, thank you to all of those corrections officers with whom I come into contact on an annual basis, and urge passage of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, as a co-chair of the Congressional Correctional Officers Caucus, I rise today to honor correctional officers and employees of correctional facilities across our country.

May 6, 2007 kicked off the National Correctional Officers and Employees Week. Throughout the week, correctional officers will be here in Washington to speak with their elected officials, present awards to officers whose exceptional service merits special recognition, and honor the memory of fallen comrades who had made the ultimate sacrifice while on duty.

I am proud to sponsor House Resolution 264, along with my colleagues, the gentleman from New Jersey, Mr. LoBiondo, the gentleman from Indiana, Mr. Ellsworth, and the gentleman from Virginia, Mr. Davis. H. Res. 264 is a bipartisan resolution designed to honor correctional officers and employees by acknowledging and supporting the goals and ideals of National Correctional Officers and Employees Week. The resolution directly honors correctional workers at all levels, local, State and Federal, including psychologists, chaplains, teachers, and kitchen staff.

Correctional facilities are a critical component of our public safety and criminal justice systems. We rely on correctional facilities to mend the behavior of certain members of our society. To do that, these facilities must rely on correctional officers and other personnel who are highly trained to work in a challenging and often dangerous environment. Before coming to Congress I had the honor of working alongside these men and women when I served as a probation officer and then Sheriff of Schuylkill County, which houses a Federal and state prison. The respect I gained for these public servants is indescribable and I thank them for the countless ways they benefit our communities.

Correctional officers and staff work each day to protect society from the threat of criminal activity. They risk their lives ensuring that we are safe. They maintain order in a dangerous place and ensure the basic needs of one of the most difficult groups in society are addressed. Mr. Speaker, it is not often that we get the opportunity to thank them for the good work they do and I commend my colleagues in the House or Representatives for passing House Resolution 264.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the correctional officers and employees from around the country, and to voice my strong support for this bill.

I spent almost 25 years in law enforcement, much of that working in a jail myself. And from my experience, correction officers are some of the hardest-working law enforcement professionals that are working today. House Resolution 264 recognizes them for their important contributions to the safety of our communities.

This week is National Correctional Officers and Employees Week. The bill we are considering today supports the goals and ideas of this important week, and honors all corrections officers and employees for their service to their communities, their States, and also to this Nation. It also recognizes the critical role that the correctional facilities play in the U.S. criminal justice system.

I am proud to be a cosponsor to this legislation with Congressman Holden and Congressman LoBiondo. I echo Mr. Scott's words. Mr. Holden felt strongly enough about this legislation to call me and ask me to make a few comments on his support for this bill. He was unable to attend this meeting as he had prior commitments in his district, but he asked me to express his strong support for the men and women who work in the correctional system on all the levels, who work tirelessly to protect their communities from those incarcerated and breaking the law.

The men and women who work in our prisons and correctional facilities face danger in their everyday lives. I have seen this firsthand. They are outnumbered. They work long hours. They often go without their lunches or eat their lunches while performing their duties. We owe them a lot. And although you are not going to see a lot of documentaries about the correctional officer in the TV shows, they work just as hard as any patrolman on the street. And they are outnumbered and surrounded by their adversaries every day. Their role is critical and yet goes unrecognized often. We can do our part to recognize them this week. Hopefully, this bill will bring some much deserved appreciation for their work, and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 264, which recognizes National Correctional Officers and Employees Week, and honors the service of correctional officers and employees.

Few jobs are more dangerous and difficult than serving as a correctional officer. There are over 200,000 correctional officers in the United States who guard us from nearly 2 million criminals and maintain the safety of the Nation's correctional facilities. It is a job with high risk and often little recognition or reward. This resolution recognizes the important role that correctional officers play in maintaining public safety.

Correctional officers carry a heavy burden each day. They are surrounded by dangerous criminals and work in a stressful environment. We hear about but don't often stop to recognize the hundreds of correctional officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Last year in Maryland, two correctional officers were killed. On January 27, 2006, Correctional Officer Jeffrey Alan Wroten II was brutally shot and killed; and on July 25, 2006, Officer David Warren McGuinn was killed. What happened to these two Maryland officers unfortunately has happened to hundreds of other correctional officers in past years. Correctional Officer Jeffrey Alan Wroten left behind a wife and five children, the oldest, age 15, and the youngest, 5 years of age. This makes his loss and the loss of others like him even more heartbreaking.

So, it is appropriate that we take a moment this week to honor the contribution of all correctional officers, pray for their continued safety and dedicate ourselves to helping them carry out their mission.

We thank each and every correctional officer, their families and loved ones, and honor them for their valuable role in protecting the public.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.