Expressing the gratitude of the House of Representatives for the service to our Nation of the Coast Guard and Marine Corps aircraft pilots and crewmembers lost off the coast of California on October 29, 2009, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 891) expressing the gratitude of the House of Representatives for the service to our Nation of the Coast Guard and Marine Corps aircraft pilots and crewmembers lost off the coast of California on October 29, 2009, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H. Res. 891.

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

Mr. Speaker, today I rise in strong support of H. Res. 891, as amended, a resolution expressing the gratitude of the House of Representatives for the service of the air crewmembers of Coast Guard aircraft 1705 and a Marine Corps AH-1 Super Cobra helicopter who were lost when these aircraft collided near San Clemente Island, California, on October 29 of this year.

On board the Coast Guard C-130 were seven Coast Guard members who were conducting a search-and-rescue mission at the time of the terrible accident. These crewmembers were Lieutenant Commander Che J. Barnes, a 17-year Coast Guard veteran who commanded Coast Guard 1705 and is survived by his father and three brothers, including a twin brother; Lieutenant Adam W. Bryant, the copilot of CG-1705 and a 2003 graduate of the Coast Guard Academy who is survived by his parents and brother; Chief Petty Officer John F. Seidman, the flight engineer who had served more than 20 years in the Coast Guard and is survived by his wife, parents and brother; Petty Officer 2nd Class Carl P. Grigonis, the CG- 1705 navigator who was the father of a young son and whose wife is expecting a daughter; Petty Officer 2nd Class Monica L. Beacham, the flight's radio operator, who leaves a husband and a young daughter to mourn; Petty Officer 2nd Class Jason S. Moletzsky, an air crewmember survived by his fiance, parents and two sisters; and Petty Officer 3rd Class Danny R. Kreder, II, drop master, survived by his wife, parents and two brothers.

On board the Marine Corps AH-1 Super Cobra were two pilots: Major Samuel Leigh, who had served two tours in Iraq and whose service in the Marine Corps maintained his family's long tradition of military service; and First Lieutenant Thomas Claiborne, a magna cum laude graduate of the University of Colorado.

These individuals dedicated their lives to serving the United States of America. They protected our Nation from the many threats we face, and they selflessly placed their lives in harm's way to aid those in distress. Their terrible loss is a reminder of the risks that the members of our Armed Forces face while conducting their many missions.

Our thoughts and our prayers are with the families of each of these servicemembers and with all the colleagues they have left behind in the United States Coast Guard and the Marine Corps. Our thoughts and prayers are also with all of the members of our Armed Forces who are serving our Nation now on the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan and with the families of the thousands who have given their lives in defense of our great Nation's freedom on those two battlefields in each of our Nation's conflicts.

I commend Congresswoman Sanchez, the Chair of the Committee on Homeland Security's Subcommittee on Border, Maritime, and Global Counterterrorism, for her work on H. Res. 891. I urge its adoption by the House today, and I express my gratitude for the service of the members of the Coast Guard and Marine Corps recognized by this resolution.

Committee on Armed Services,

House of Representatives,

Washington, DC, November 13, 2009.

Hon. James L. Oberstar,

Chairman, House Committee on Transportation and

Infrastructure, Rayburn House Office Building,

Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: On November 5, 2009, the House

Resolution 891, ``Expressing the gratitude of the House of

Representatives for the service to our Nation of the Coast

Guard and Marine Corps aircraft pilots and crewmembers lost

off the coast of California on October 29, 2009, and for

other purposes,'' was introduced in the House. As you know,

this measure was referred to the Committee on Transportation

and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Armed

Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the

Speaker.

Our Committee recognizes the importance of H. Res. 891 and

the need for the legislation to move expeditiously.

Therefore, while we have a valid claim to jurisdiction over

this legislation, the Committee on Armed Services will waive

further consideration of H. Res. 891. I do so with the

understanding that by waiving further consideration of the

resolution, the Committee does not waive any future

jurisdictional claims over similar measures.

I would appreciate the inclusion of this letter and a copy

of your response in the Congressional Record during

consideration of the measure on the House floor.

Very truly yours,

Ike Skelton,

Chairman.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished sponsor of this legislation, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Loretta Sanchez).

I yield 5 minutes to the chairman of the committee, the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar).

Madam Speaker, we have no other speakers, so I will continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

Once again, I urge all of our Members to vote in favor of this very, very important resolution. And I will say to the families of these service persons that they are in our prayers. We thank all of our personnel for what they do every day, so often putting their lives on the line so that we might enjoy the freedoms that we do enjoy.

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

Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Madam Speaker, due to an illness, I was absent for votes on November 16, 17, 18 and 19. Please see a list of votes I missed.

Rollcall vote No. 889: S. 1314: To Designate the Facility of the United States Postal Service Located at 630 Northeast Killingsworth Avenue in Portland, Oregon, As the ``Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Post Office.''

Rollcall vote No. 890: H.R. 3539: To Designate the Facility of the United States Postal Service Located at 427 Harrison Avenue in Harrison, New Jersey, As the ``Patricia D. Mcginty-Juhl Post Office Building.''

Rollcall vote No. 891: H.R. 3767: To Designate the Facility of the United States Postal Service Located at 170 North Main Street in Smithfield, Utah, As the ``W. Hazen Hillyard Post Office Building.''

Rollcall vote No. 892: H.R. 3360: Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act: H.R. 3360.

Rollcall vote No. 893: H. Res. 841: Expressing Support for Designation of November 29, 2009, As ``Drive Safer Sunday.''

Rollcall vote No. 894: On Approving the Journal.

Rollcall vote No. 895: H. Res. 891: Expressing the Gratitude of the House of Representatives for the Service to Our Nation of the Coast Guard and Marine Corps Aircraft Pilots and Crewmembers Lost Off the Coast of California on October 29, 2009.

Rollcall vote No. 896: H. Con. Res. 214: Providing for a Conditional Adjournment of the Two Houses.

Rollcall vote No. 897: Previous Question on H.R. 3791, Fire Grants Reauthorization Act of 2009.

Rollcall vote No. 898: Rule for H.R. 3791, Fire Grants Reauthorization Act of 2009.

Rollcall vote No. 899: Perlmutter of Colorado Amendment to H.R. 3791.

Rollcall vote No. 900: Flake of Arizona Amendment to H.R. 3791.

Rollcall vote No. 901: H.R. 3791: Fire Grants Reauthorization Act of 2009.

Rollcall vote No. 902: Previous Question on H.R. 2781 to Amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to Designate Segments of the Molalla River in Oregon, As Components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, and for Other Purposes.

Rollcall vote No. 903: Rule for H.R. 2781 to Amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to Designate Segments of the Molalla River in Oregon, As Components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, and for Other Purposes.

Rollcall vote No. 904: S. 1599; Reserve Officers Association Modernization Act of 2009.

Rollcall vote No. 905: H.R. 2781: To Amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to Designate Segments of the Molalla River in Oregon, As Components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, and for Other Purposes.

Rollcall vote No. 906: H. Con Res. 212: Expressing the Sense of Congress on the Occasion of the 20th Anniversary of Historic Events in Central and Eastern Europe, Particularly the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia, and Reaffirming the Bonds of Friendship and Cooperation Between the United States and the Slovak and Czech Republics.

Rollcall vote No. 907: Table the Appeal of the Ruling of the Chair on the Motion to Recommit H.R. 3961: Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009.

Rollcall vote No. 908: Motion to Recommit H.R. 3961: Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009.

Rollcall vote No. 909: H.R. 3961: Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009.

Rollcall vote No. 910: H.R. 1834: Native American Business Development Enhancement Act of 2009.

I thank the gentleman from Maryland again, the Chair of the Coast Guard Subcommittee, for his diligent work on this very tragic resolution. It is very important to pay recognition to those who lost their lives. I was very deeply touched by the remarks of the gentlewoman from California, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. LoBiondo) and Chairman Cummings.

These are courageous servicemen and -women, those in the U.S. Coast Guard, those in the U.S. Marine Corps, our oldest service unit, which predates the establishment of our own Nation. The Coast Guard itself was the third act of the first session of the first Congress by this committee, the Committee on Rivers and Harbors, that established the Revenue Cutter Service to collect duties on inbound cargoes and repay the debts of the Revolutionary War.

The Revenue Cutter Service later became the U.S. Coast Guard. That Coast Guard every year responds to over 60,000 calls for help, every year saves over 5,000 lives. It is tragic that in the course of their search and rescue service that Coast Guard men and women should have lost their lives.

Now there is an investigation underway by the Navy and the Coast Guard jointly inquiring into the causes of this tragedy, hopefully for the purpose of unraveling that collision, but also to learn lessons to avoid such incidents in the future. This incident occurred in military- controlled airspace, airspace controlled by the U.S. Navy from an onshore facility at San Diego.

The Coast Guard's C-130 had a data recorder on board. Search is underway to hopefully locate that data recorder and gain useful information about the circumstances under which the collision occurred. It was at twilight, it was at dusk. Very hard to distinguish and effectively operate under the rules of see and avoid. But there must be more at stake here. That C-130 was loaded with electronic equipment for detection of vessels or persons in the water, and one has to assume it had equipment to detect proximity of another aircraft.

We have to unravel those facts and understand what occurred in order to avoid such circumstances in the future and engage the necessary training for personnel or install on board both helicopters and C-130- type aircraft traffic collision avoidance systems, which the Navy initiated 40 years ago and which is now aboard all commercial airliners.

Unfortunately, the National Transportation Safety Board, at least at the outset, will not be engaged in the investigation. I'm of the view that the NTSB should be a partner in any such investigations of military aircraft in U.S. territorial airspace. That is a matter for another time, but as we pay tribute to and acknowledge those who gave their lives in service of this country in pursuance of their mission, I think it's important to recall that there is more we can and must do to improve safety in the domestic airspace, including safety under the control of our military units.

There will be further attention paid to this issue. We will pursue the safety issues engaged in this tragedy. But for the moment, we must mourn the loss of those crew members whom Mr. Cummings already noted in his remarks.

I thank both chairmen. Thank you so much for allowing me to put forward this resolution and to pass it today on the House floor.

Mr. Chairman, as a member of both the Homeland Security Committee and the Armed Forces Committee here in the House of Representatives, I introduced this resolution on the 1-week anniversary of the tragic events that occurred off our coast of California. Let me remind you where this occurred was maybe, at the most, an hour's drive from where I live.

On Thursday, October 29, the Federal Aviation Administration reported that a Coast Guard C-130 plane and a Marine Corps AH-1W Cobra helicopter crashed off the coast while they were both conducting separate missions. We honor the nine men and women who lost their lives in that crash and we send our condolences to their families and their friends and their loved ones.

As the motto states, ``Always Ready,'' the Coast Guard defends the shores of this great country daily, and we sometimes forget our unsung heroes. Tasked with multiple missions every day, the Coast Guard relies on its skills and the expertise of the personnel to stop drug runners, to perform search and rescue operations, and to secure our ports and our waterways.

It saddens me that we lost seven of these brave men and women last week while on duty as they were conducting a search and rescue effort. In addition, the two Marine Corps pilots that lost their lives fully lived their Corps motto of ``Always Faithful.'' Their sacrifice while on a military training exercise off the coast of California echoes the sacrifice and the risk that all our men and women in uniform face in the armed services.

Both the Coast Guard and the Marine Corps serve globally and, let us not forget, locally to protect our communities and to provide humanitarian aid when it's necessary. We must not forget those sacrifices, their missions, and that at any time anything can go wrong. And we must always remember those that we have lost during their time of service.

I know the Coast Guard had a memorial service Friday in Sacramento which, unfortunately, I was unable to go to, but I felt that it was important to introduce this resolution at this time to honor those that died. These brave individuals fulfilled their commitment to serve and to defend the United States at any cost. Of course, they sacrificed and gave the biggest cost, so our eternal gratitude and respect go to them.

I urge my colleagues to join me in honoring these brave individuals by supporting this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 891, ``Expressing the gratitude of the House of Representatives for the service to our Nation of the Coast Guard and Marine Corps aircraft pilots and crewmembers lost off the coast of California on October 29, 2009, and for other purposes.'' The safety of American citizens lies in the hands of our service men and women on a daily basis. With honor and respect our service men and women devote their lives to their duty and time and time again they prove to be faithful servants. We in the Gulf Coast region will never forget their bravery in saving 22,000+ lives during Hurricane Katrina.

On the evening of October 29, 2009, a Coast Guard C-130 aircraft with two pilots and five crewmembers on board was involved in a search and rescue mission off the coast of California. Unfortunately at the same time, a Marine Corps AH-1W Super Cobra carrying two pilots was involved in a military escort mission nearby. The two aircraft are suspected to have collided while traveling east of San Clemente Island, California. The following crew members of the Coast Guard C-130 are

missing and presumed to have lost their lives in the line of duty: Lt. Cmdr. Che J. Barnes of Capay, California; Lt. Adam W. Bryant, of Crewe, Virginia; Chief Petty Officer John F. Seidman of Stockton, California; Petty Officer 2nd Class Carl P. Grigonis of Mayfield Heights, Ohio; Petty Officer 2nd Class Monica L. Beacham of Decaturville, Tennessee; Petty Officer 2nd Class Jason S. Moletzsky of Norristown, Pennsylvania; and Petty Officer 3rd Class Danny R. Kreder II, of Elm Mott, Texas. The following crew members of the Marine Corps helicopter are missing and presumed to have lost their lives in the line of duty: Maj. Samuel Leigh of Kennebec, Maine, and 1st Lt. Thomas Claiborne of Douglas, Colorado.

The men and women of the Coast Guard are ``Always Ready'' to safeguard the United States against all hazards and threats at our ports, at sea, and around the world. As the men and women of the Marine Corps are ``Always Faithful'' to their mission of defending the United States on the ground, in the air, and by sea, in every corner of the globe. These individuals lost their lives in service to their country and I, as well as every other Member of Congress, should support this resolution in their honor.