To extend and modify the reduction of duty on Bentazon, sodium salt.

First, let me thank the gentlelady from Florida for yielding and for her leadership on so many issues, especially as it relates to her community, her district, Haitians, Haiti, and the Haitian diaspora.

I rise in support of H.R. 1016, the Assessing Progress in Haiti Act, legislation which I authored to direct the United States Government to report on the status of humanitarian, reconstruction, and development efforts in the aftermath of the tragic earthquake of January 12, 2010.

Let me thank Chairwoman Ros-Lehtinen for her leadership and for her assistance in helping bring this bill to the floor. I also thank Ranking Member Berman, Chairman Mack, Ranking Member Engel, the staffs of the Foreign Affairs Committee, my staff, as well as the Republican and Democratic leaders' offices for bringing this bill to the floor.

I would also like to acknowledge the hard work of my Congressional Black Caucus colleagues. You just heard from Congresswoman Maxine Waters in terms of her leadership and her commitment to the people of Haiti and of so many others who have worked tirelessly in support of the Haitian people in ongoing United States humanitarian and reconstruction efforts in Haiti.

Today, we are provided with an opportunity to not only remember those who have lost their lives but to reaffirm the commitment of the United States to support Haitians as they struggle to combat the ongoing cholera epidemic and to rebuild their neighborhoods, their country, and their lives following the devastation of January 12.

Following the earthquake, many of us came together to pass a bill that I authored, H. Res. 1021. This was passed by an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 411-1. This resolution expressed solidarity with the Haitian people and our support for the long-term reconstruction needs of the country. Through the bill on the floor today, we are provided with the next step--with an opportunity to assess the progress that we have made, the extraordinary challenges that remain, and the areas in which improvement is greatly needed.

As many of us have been many, many times over the years, I traveled to Haiti immediately following the earthquake and again in November during Haiti's recent elections. Once again, let me just say that I saw real progress being made. Of course, the cholera outbreak, an ongoing devastating setback, though, revealed the ramped-up capacity of Haiti's national laboratory. The lab was able to identify the cholera strain very rapidly, improving our ability to respond to the outbreak--a feat that would really have been impossible just a year earlier. However, significant improvements remain desperately needed.

The unprecedented relief effort has given way to a sluggish, at best, reconstruction effort. Part of this pace can be attributed to the sheer magnitude of the problems Haiti faces as well as Haiti's legal and bureaucratic hurdles, including the lack of an adequate land tenure policy. Without a doubt, though, part of the blame rests in the lack of urgency--mind you, the lack of urgency--on the part of the international community.

At the International Donors' Conference in March 2010, 58 donors

pledged over $5.5 billion to support Haiti's Action Plan for Recovery and Development. According to the United Nations, as of March of this year, only 37 percent of these funds have been disbursed. This is unacceptable. If we are to break the cycle of disaster-emergency relief-disaster, in which Haiti has been trapped for many years, we must act with the same sense of urgency in reconstruction as we did immediately following the quake.

In addition to delivering on our promises, we must ensure that those promises are in line with the will of the Haitian people. The international community recognized early on that, if our efforts were to be sustainable, they had to reflect the priorities of the people of Haiti. The establishment of the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission was a very good idea in this regard; and moving forward, we must ensure that it is inclusive, transparent, and adequately resourced.

Additionally, we must substantially improve our communication with and the participation of Haitian civil society. The United States and the United Nations are sponsoring outreach for civil society organizations; however, many Haitians still hold the perception that recovery efforts are dominated by exclusive foreign actors. Unless civil society, which are the people of Haiti, is involved in every major stage of the post-earthquake response, this perception will remain, and it will prove detrimental to the sustainability of our efforts.

In this vein, we must give special priority to programs that protect vulnerable populations, including internally displaced persons--women, children, persons with disabilities, and others. We must ensure that these populations are significantly involved in recovery efforts, which reinforces their protection. The United Nations Secretary General, for example, has specifically stated that women should be involved in security decisions that affect their daily lives as a means of combating the alarming level of gender-based violence since the earthquake.

On the topic of vulnerable populations, we must take a critical look at the resumption of deportations to Haiti. Given the fragile state in which Haiti remains, I call on the Department of Homeland Security to halt deportations until it proves that its policy does not violate international human rights laws and until it demonstrates that Haiti is able to support the influx of deportees. If we are truly committed to helping our neighbors, we must ensure that we are not assisting Haiti with one hand while undermining its stability with the other.

Finally, we must continue to support the Haitian Public Health Ministry to prevent the spread of cholera, treat those affected with the disease, and build up health systems. The international community must plan for the long-term presence of this disease, unfortunately, which is now endemic, and provide the necessary resources to ensure that this planning is thorough and complete.

Throughout this unceasing series of tragedies and crises, Haitians have continued to demonstrate unwavering resilience, dignity, and courage.

So I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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

I rise in support of this bill, the Assessing Progress in Haiti Act. A year and a half ago, on January 12, 2011, the world for the Caribbean island of Haiti and for too many of my constituents changed forever. An earthquake measuring an incredible 7.0 on the Richter scale shook the Earth in Haiti. It killed elected officials, toppled the President's palace, the Senate, and all of the Cabinet buildings. People are still missing. The effect of this earthquake is still being felt today. Basic needs such as food, water, clothing, shelter, and health services are lacking.

Thanks to our military--the U.S. Coast Guard, which performed thousands of hours of rescue in the first 24 hours of the earthquake; the U.S. Marine Corps, which provided stability and protection; the U.S. Army, which helped to establish logistics and additional protection; the U.S. Navy, with floating hospitals and surgeons; and the U.S. Agency for International Development--this disaster was not the total disaster it could have been. USAID worked then and continues to work coordinating and implementing programs with other international organizations.

Adding further hurdles to the recovery operation has been the widespread outbreak of cholera last October. Cholera, a disease caused due to the lack of access to clean, clear water, has killed hundreds of Haitians and has further set back progress in one of our closest Caribbean neighbors. The people of Haiti deserve the opportunity to live in a clean, safe, and economically thriving country. The people of America deserve and want to know how their tax dollars are being spent, and need to know that the $1.8 billion invested in Haiti will speedily facilitate Haiti's transition to a bastion of comfort and economic stability. That is why I support House bill 1016, the Assessing Progress in Haiti Act.

This bill provides for one of the first times a strong, fair, and objective accountability of how the people's money is being spent in Haiti. This report will also analyze how well the United Nations and other organizations and groups are coordinating their efforts to reduce duplication. Finally, this bill thanks the heroic efforts of Miami-Dade County's urban search and rescue teams, which hail from the 17th Congressional District of Florida, who volunteered their time, effort, and energy to save lives. These people saved lives and helped find loved ones for those trapped in the rubble of the earthquake and for those who were worried about the safety and well-being of their loved ones.

I also would like to thank respectively the chairman and ranking minority members of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, Connie Mack and Eliot Engel, and their staff for making this happen. Representative Engel was kind enough to carry the language of my amendment during subcommittee consideration, and Chairman Mack and both the Democratic and Republican staff worked tirelessly toward a compromise that worked for both sides. I also want to thank our full committee chairman, and one who I am so proud of, my Florida colleague, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, for managing this language in her amendment during full committee consideration of this bill.

Perhaps a bright spot in this ongoing calamity is that Haitians recently elected a new President, Michel Martelly, with whom we expect to work arm-in-arm with to help rebuild Haiti. His inauguration is next weekend. On Saturday, I traveled to Haiti. I

met with Mr. Martelly. I met with the senators as they debated their new constitution. I'm hoping that that constitution will help guide them towards the next centuries in Haiti.

There are 1,400 tent cities--not tents; tent cities--that house 850,000 residents in the streets of Haiti. No running water and one porta-toilet for every 80 residents. Families are huddled under the tents--mostly women and children. And because the national prison was destroyed during the earthquake, armed bandits roam the tent cities and sexual abuse against women and girls is rampant. The police force is extremely compromised and not trained. The army is nonexistent. And many bodies have not been found from this earthquake. It is inhumane to send anybody back to such conditions. We must help rebuild Haiti. We must support Haiti. We must support the new President from this moment on. We must include the peasants and the agricultural community at the table of negotiation.

Mr. Speaker, this legislation is an affirmation of the generosity and will of the American people to come to the aid of a country in our neighborhood that desperately needs our help. The report required by this bill should help us channel our assistance efforts to make them as effective and efficient as possible. The Haitian people deserve nothing less.

I strongly urge passage of this legislation.

I reserve the balance of my time.

General Leave

Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege to yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters).

Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege to yield 5 minutes to the distinguished gentlelady from California, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, who is the author of this legislation.

I yield the gentlewoman an additional 30 seconds.

Mr. Speaker, I had the opportunity this past Saturday to go to Haiti and take a helicopter ride to survey all of the damage on Haiti and all of the hope for Haiti, all of the islands and the connecting islands of Haiti to see what was happening.

The African diaspora, which is mostly members of District 17, they all want to help rebuild Haiti. They will apply for contracts; and if dual nationality is granted, they will also run for office and lend their expertise to the recovery of Haiti.

We all know that TPS expires in June. TPS, temporary protected status, was extended to the Haitian nationals. We, along with the Congressional Black Caucus, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, and Congressman Payne, were working on trying to extend that deadline for at least another year. Haiti is in no disposition to accept any further deportations.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in full support of H.R. 1016, a bill to measure the progress of relief, recovery, reconstruction, and development efforts in Haiti following the earthquake of January 12, 2010, introduced by Representative Barbara Lee of California.

Immediately following the earthquake, Congress passed a bipartisan resolution expressing our determination to aid Haiti through this tragedy. I strongly believe that our nation needs to once again pledge unwavering support to continue to lead an aggressive, coordinated effort to aid Haiti's ongoing recovery and reconstruction.

In the wake of the disaster, the American people and the global community rallied in solidarity with the Haitian people to provide one of the largest relief efforts in history. And today, nearly one and a half years after this tragedy, we must renew our support for the people of Haiti as they struggle to combat an ongoing cholera epidemic, curb post-election violence, and rebuild their neighborhoods, livelihoods, and their country.

As this legislation stipulates, President Obama, ``in consultation with the heads of all relevant agencies . . . shall transmit to Congress a report on the status of post-earthquake humanitarian, reconstruction, and development efforts in Haiti . . .'' and analyze the recovery efforts being made in Haiti to date, and ensure that ``our government is in line with the priorities of the Government of Haiti and actively engaging and working through Haitian ministries and local authorities'' to assist the island nation in their attempt to recover.

As the representative of Florida's Third Congressional District, I have been a staunch advocate for the Haitian people throughout my congressional career of nearly 20 years, and have led numerous Codels to the island nation of Haiti. Moreover, as a Member from Florida with a large Haitian community in my district, and considering the island nation is located less than 700 miles from the Florida Keys, I feel it is my duty to do everything I can to provide assistance and improve the lives of the Haitian people.

Certainly, even before the January 12th earthquake, Haiti was the least-developed country in our Hemisphere and one of the poorest in the world. The island nation had a per capita income around $400, horribly acute economic inequality, and over 80 percent of its 9 million inhabitants surviving below the poverty level. To me, this is entirely unacceptable, particularly given the island's proximity to the state of Florida.

In October 2009, just two months before the earthquake, I led a Congressional delegation to Haiti to meet with President Rene Preval to discuss issues ranging from improving the nation's infrastructure, the high unemployment rate and poor standard of living. Yet the horrific earthquake that struck last January 12th made a dire situation for the majority of the people of Haiti unimaginably worse.

Today, the nation remains devastated. A million displaced Haitians remain in tent camps. Mountains of rubble are piled in the streets, and billions in assistance pledged by the international community has yet to be delivered. Meanwhile, there have been many quests regarding the recent elections and incoming government's ability to capably lead in recovery and development efforts.

As I'm sure everyone here knows, the massive earthquake that struck Haiti killed 230,000 people, displaced an estimated 2 million people from their homes, and affected one third of the country's population. The main port, the presidential palace, the parliament, the majority of ministry buildings, more than 50 hospitals and health centers, 1300 educational institutions, and more than 100,000 homes were left in ruins. The earthquake, which came less than 2 years after a series of devastating hurricanes, left millions of people in the Western Hemisphere's poorest country living in absolutely horrific conditions.

Immediately following the earthquake, there was an outpouring of sympathy from people in the United States and around the world. American families opened their hearts and contributed millions to non- profit organizations that were working around the clock to save lives. The United States Government provided emergency medical care and distributed food, water, and tents to the displaced, and world governments committed more than $9 billion in aid for reconstruction at a donors' conference in March, including more than $1 billion pledged by the United States.

For my part, immediately following the earthquake, along with the local community and tremendous assistance from church leaders, we organized food and clothing drives, and encouraged people to make donations to

non-profits on the ground in Haiti. With assistance of area churches, businesses, local community leaders and nonprofit organizations, we transported seven 53-foot tractor-trailers filled with supplies with nearly $50,000 it food, water and other items from the Jacksonville and Orlando areas to Haiti's shores, and had the Coast Guard's assistance in their delivery to Food for the Poor, a non-profit group operating in Port-au-Pays, on the north side of the island.

As a key Member of the House Transportation Committee and Chair of the Railroad subcommittee, I will continue to work hard on Capitol Hill to find ways in which the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure can provide technical assistance to the nation; in particular, in the area of rebuilding the ports, roads and general infrastructure system throughout the island. Indeed, getting the ports up and running, including improving customs procedures, is an essential element in the nation's struggle to turn the corner and prosper economically. If successfully carried out, this advancement would be a key component in the nation's efforts to successfully recover and prosper in the future, and improve the standard of living for the proud, hardworking people of the island nation Haiti.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1016) to measure the progress of relief, recovery, reconstruction, and

development efforts in Haiti following the earthquake of January 12, 2010, and for other purposes, as amended.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1016, a bill introduced by my

friend Congresswoman Barbara Lee of California which requires a report to Congress regarding the status of post-earthquake humanitarian reconstruction and development efforts in Haiti.

This bill supplements my efforts under the Haiti Act, which I introduced last Congress, to exercise greater oversight over the disbursement of U.S. assistance to Haiti to ensure that it is meeting the intended recipients and purposes, that it is advancing U.S. priorities, that it is promoting Haiti's recovery, and that it is not being derailed by waste, duplication or corruption.

This past January, Mr. Speaker, I traveled to Haiti with Secretary Clinton's Chief of Staff and point person on Haiti to observe some of the tremendous work the United States is doing and to learn about U.S. plans for the future as well.

Much progress has been seen in Haiti over the past 16 months. More than 2 million cubic meters of rubble have been cleared, there is now a better medical system and increased access to more clean water than before the earthquake, and the interim Haiti Reconstruction Commission has approved 86 reconstruction projects, accounting for about one-third of the total pledges made by international donors last year.

However, Mr. Speaker, with each stated achievement, we are reminded of how much further Haiti has to go. Hundreds of thousands of Haitians are reportedly still without safe and secure sustainable shelter. A recent U.N. report found that peacekeepers in Haiti may have contributed to the environmental contamination which could have led to the cholera outbreak, crime is reportedly on the upswing, rising food and gasoline prices will make day-to-day survival even more difficult for many of the people of Haiti, and Haiti is still dealing with lingering questions regarding the recently announced parliamentary election results.

In order for progress in Haiti to continue, it is important that allegations of election corruption are resolved quickly, that the concerns of the Haitian people are put to rest, and that the duly- elected parliamentarians are seated as soon as possible.

This weekend, President-elect Martelly is scheduled to be inaugurated; and as the new government takes office, it has its work cut out for it. The new leadership must make a commitment to root out corruption at all levels in order to build trust within Haiti and with all of Haiti's partners.

The President-elect's recent statements regarding his intent to pursue allegations of electoral fraud in the parliamentary election results are a step in the right direction. The government must also make certain that the Haitian people are fully consulted on the direction in which their country is heading and that they will have opportunities to create a better future for themselves and their families. Civil society and local governments must increasingly become a partner at the table of Haiti's future.

With the security situation reportedly deteriorating, it will be important for Haiti's new leaders to commit to the necessary resources to support the expansion of the Haitian National Police as well as implement updates to the criminal code and other reforms to strengthen its judicial system. I understand the United States intends to work with the new Haitian government to help Haiti become a more business- friendly environment.

As a proud representative of Florida's 18th Congressional District, I can tell you firsthand the interest of U.S. businesses, organizations, and private citizens, including the Haitian diaspora, to participate in the recovery and the development efforts in Haiti--and that only continues to grow stronger. More importantly, it is imperative that the United States take every appropriate measure to ensure that our funding and our efforts in Haiti and around the world are not squandered. This includes accountability for U.N. contractors who owe a duty of care for the civilians whom they are there to protect.

The report called for in this bill, H.R. 1016, will provide Members of Congress and the public an opportunity to see what is working and, yes, to see what is not working. I would also note that the funding that will be needed to develop this report is directed to be pulled from already appropriated funding. Further, CBO found that the cost of this report in this bill is so minimal that it did not meet the threshold of an estimate.

I would like to thank Ranking Member Berman and his staff for working with us on this measure. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues in support of our oversight efforts, and I'm so pleased to join Congresswoman Wilson's efforts in making sure that we can provide our great partner, Haiti, with the resources it needs to build itself up.

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

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 1016, as amended.

I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I also have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

I would like to thank the gentlelady from Florida for extending time to me to rise in support of this bill.

I am now--and have been for many years--a big supporter of the people of Haiti. I am the proud author of H.R. 4573, the Haiti Debt Relief and Earthquake Recovery Act. It was that bill that freed up $828 million that they would have had to have paid out for their debts, money that can now go toward helping with the earthquake response.

Immediately following the earthquake, there was an outpouring of sympathy from people in the United States and around the world; and I am very appreciative for what our government did and for what the people of this country did--individuals, churches. We've not always had our politics right in Haiti, but we sure rose to the occasion with regard to this devastating earthquake that hit Haiti.

The international community pledged a total of $9.9 billion in reconstruction funds, including $5.3 billion for the first 2 years. Yet, more than 1 year later, little, if any, of the money has reached the people of Haiti. According to the U.S. Agency for International Development, USAID, 680,000 displaced people are still living in tent camps, and the conditions in many of these camps are appalling. There is a critical need for food, clean water, and sanitation facilities. A deadly outbreak of cholera has already killed more than 4,800 people and has infected more than 280,000 people. The effects of the epidemic were exacerbated by the lack of clean water and sanitation infrastructure. Foreign aid without transparency will accomplish nothing.

We owe it to the Haitian people and the American people to find out how much of this money has actually been delivered to Haiti and where that money went. That is why I strongly support this bill, which requires the President to report on the status of post-earthquake relief, recovery, reconstruction, and development efforts in Haiti. The report must evaluate coordination among various international agencies and donors, the extent to which U.S. and international efforts are in line with the priorities of the Government of Haiti, and mechanisms for Haitian civil society to participate in recovery efforts.

I am in awe of the strength and resiliency of the Haitian people. We owe it to them to assist them in their time of need. We also owe it to them to make certain our assistance reaches the people who need it the most.

As I said, we've not always had our act together in Haiti. Well, there has been a new election, and they've elected a President. There was a lot of turmoil and disorder around this election, but it's over now; it has been done, and we want to work with the new government to make sure that there is transparency and that we do know what happened to this money. So I urge my colleagues to support this bill.