Floor Statements

Mr. President, as if in legislative session, notwithstanding

rule XXII, I also ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 562, S. 3857.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported substitute amendment be withdrawn; that the Padilla substitute amendment at the desk be considered and agreed to; and that the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time.

I know of no further debate on the bill, as amended.

Mr. President, I also ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I want to thank you and our colleagues for your support of these two measures, which will help Tribes in my home State of California regain control of their rightful ancestral lands and help the Federal Government take steps to fulfill our sacred trust responsibility to Tribal nations.

The first of these bills that we just approved, the Jamul Indian Village Land Transfer Act, will establish in trust over 170 acres of land in San Diego County for the Jamul Indian Village of California.

For the Jamul people, what was once over 640 acres of ancestral lands has diminished to just 6 acres--one of the smallest reservations in the country.

In 2005, Tribal members voluntarily moved off the reservation to allow the Tribe to pursue economic development opportunities and become less reliant on the Federal Government. But in order to build a true homeland fitting for their Tribe, the Jamul Indian Village purchased four parcels of land--a combined 172 acres in total--in San Diego County.

By establishing this land in Federal trust, the U.S. Government is now fulfilling our obligation to the Jamul people and returning their Tribal members back to their permanent and proper homeland.

I want to take a moment to thank Representative Darrell Issa for his work in the House of Representatives as well as Senators Schatz and Murkowski here in the Senate.

I also want to thank all the members of the Jamul Indian Village who have been such honorable and relentless advocates for their community.

Thank you, colleagues, for supporting and passing this bill.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Reserving the right to object.

Mr. President, I rise to object to H.R. 8413, the Swanson and Hugh Butler Reservoirs Land Conveyances Act. I want to be clear. I want to assure my colleague from Nebraska that I don't object on the substance of the bill itself.

As she alluded to just a moment ago, there is a larger effort underway to pull together a package of public lands and water bills like this one. We have over a hundred pending land and water bills, in fact, that are awaiting final consideration. And, yes, there is only about a week or so left before the holiday recess. But there are a lot of bills awaiting final consideration, and so we need to make sure that they can pass altogether as a final package, both out of fairness and out of efficiency--the way the process works here.

I understand that this particular bill is a priority for Senator Fischer and the Nebraska delegation and their constituents. I respect that. I appreciate that. I, too, have land and water bills before the Senate that are universally supported by constituents and constituencies in my State that I am working hard to get enacted before the end of the Congress.

And, in fact, as a member of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, I can report to all of you that, just last month, we held one final business meeting in committee, and we reported out nearly 80 bills, most of them with unanimous, bipartisan support. So the holdup here, the objections here, et cetera, continue to not so much be on substance but the process being what it is. There is so much good work that we are trying to finalize for so many States in the final days of this Congress.

So I think, to help get us there, I want to continue to urge Chair Manchin, urge Ranking Member Barrasso and their House counterparts, Chairman Westerman and Ranking Member Grijalva, to continue working and negotiating in good faith to assemble a public lands and water package that will be of tremendous service

to the country. And I urge both the Senate and House leadership to agree to move all lands and water packages that we can send to President Biden as soon as possible.

So for those reasons, I object.

Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate Congressman Tony Cardenas as he prepares to retire after 12 distinguished years of service in the U.S. House of Representatives and 28 years in public service. My fellow San Fernando High School Tiger, my first boss in politics, and more recently my roommate in Washington, Tony has always been a cherished friend and brother. A champion for the San Fernando Valley for nearly three decades, Tony's story and legacy deserve to be celebrated and remembered.

Raised just a few blocks from where I grew up in the proud, working class community of Pacoima, CA, Antonio ``Tony'' Cardenas was born on March 31, 1963--the youngest of Andres and Maria Cardenas' 11 children. And while Tony was a few years ahead of me, our stories followed similar paths.

Tony's parents and my father immigrated to the San Fernando Valley from the Mexican state of Jalisco in search of a better life. We both attended Telfair Elementary School and, later, San Fernando High School. And when it came time for college, we both earned degrees in engineering.

Yet it is in part because of Tony that I left a promising career in engineering behind in order to serve our community. When Tony first set out to make a difference and run for State assembly in 1996, he took a chance on me as his campaign manager. I didn't know the first thing about managing a campaign. But when Tony reached out, I knew his values. I knew who he was as a person. And I knew just how committed he was to our community and to making change.

All these years later, that has never changed. From his first election to the California State Assembly, to serving together on the Los Angeles City Council, to the halls of Congress, I have had a front row seat to Tony's career in public service. I have seen him fight for justice for at-risk youth, lead the charge in our Nation's clean energy transition, and advocate for better access to mental health care. Through it all, Tony has never shied away from a righteous fight.

But most of all, when I reflect on his public service I think about the path he has carved out for others to follow. Tony stepped up at a time when Latinos didn't often see ourselves in positions of power. And through the power of his example, he has opened the door for others, including myself, to run for office. Entire generations of young, Latino leaders now see running for office and having a say in the decisions that affect our communities as the norm, not the exception. That is the trailblazing legacy of Tony Cardenas.

I thank his wife Norma, his children Vanessa, Cristian, Andres, and Alina, and the entire Cardenas family for sharing him with us for all these years.

And while next month, Tony will officially step away from his work in the U.S. House of Representatives, I am confident his service is not coming to an end. I look forward to continuing to fight alongside him for years to come.

Madam President, I rise to introduce the Wildfire Intelligence Collaboration and Coordination Act of 2024. This legislation would establish a joint wildfire intelligence center in the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Commerce, and the Department of the Interior to foster collaboration to respond to wildfires. This center would study, plan, coordinate, and implement issues of joint concern among the three Departments. This would include providing comprehensive assessment and modeling of wildfires to inform response, land and fuels management, risk reduction, post-wildfire recovery, and rehabilitation.

Increasingly severe and frequent wildfires pose a significant risk to the health of our environment and communities across our country. In recent years, huge wildfires have struck Alaska, Colorado, my home State of California, Nevada, New Mexico, Hawaii, and beyond. Whether the fire was burning in your State or whether the smoke traveled and covered the skies of your State, the impacts or wildfires cannot be ignored. Currently, the Franklin Fire is raging in Malibu, CA, and has burned more than 4,037 acres and destroyed several homes.

As the West continues to suffer from devastating wildfires year after year, we must be proactive instead of solely reactive to the wildfire crisis, and that includes coordinating across the Federal Government to meet the current challenge.

I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this bill as soon as possible.

Madam President, I rise to introduce the Wildfire Intelligence Collaboration and Coordination Act of 2024. This legislation would establish a joint wildfire intelligence center in the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Commerce, and the Department of the Interior to foster collaboration to respond to wildfires. This center would study, plan, coordinate, and implement issues of joint concern among the three Departments. This would include providing comprehensive assessment and modeling of wildfires to inform response, land and fuels management, risk reduction, post-wildfire recovery, and rehabilitation.

Increasingly severe and frequent wildfires pose a significant risk to the health of our environment and communities across our country. In recent years, huge wildfires have struck Alaska, Colorado, my home State of California, Nevada, New Mexico, Hawaii, and beyond. Whether the fire was burning in your State or whether the smoke traveled and covered the skies of your State, the impacts or wildfires cannot be ignored. Currently, the Franklin Fire is raging in Malibu, CA, and has burned more than 4,037 acres and destroyed several homes.

As the West continues to suffer from devastating wildfires year after year, we must be proactive instead of solely reactive to the wildfire crisis, and that includes coordinating across the Federal Government to meet the current challenge.

I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this bill as soon as possible.

Madam President, as if in legislative session, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Finance be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 5863 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time.

I know of no further debate on the bill.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Madam President, I thank you for that.

For the folks watching at home, we just passed a significant disaster tax bill, which is critical to helping disaster survivors across the country, and it includes bipartisan legislation that I introduced, along with Senator Wyden and Senator Cassidy.

Our Protect Innocent Victims Of Taxation After Fire Act would make sure that individuals, families, and entire communities who have suffered from utility-caused wildfires can receive the full compensation to rebuild their lives without fear that their settlement payments will be subject to taxes.

In my home State of California, over 70,000 people have been impacted by the destruction of the Butte fire, the North Bay fire, and the Camp fire in recent years.

Now, if you can imagine when you are wading through the ashes of your former home and thinking about how you can possibly begin to rebuild, the last thing you should have to worry about is that the government is going to tax the payment from your legal settlement that already fails to cover the full cost of your losses in the first place.

Disaster settlement funds aren't income. It is not an asset. It is compensation for what a family has lost. It is meant to be an opportunity to begin to rebuild your life--an opportunity that should not be diminished because our Tax Code is outdated.

And it is not just for my constituents--my constituents looking to rebuild--utility-caused fires are becoming increasingly common across the Western United States. This bill we just passed would make sure that all recent and future wildfire victims throughout the country have access to their full settlements. That includes those in Oregon and Hawaii who have either reached settlements or are still working through the process with the utilities that caused devastating wildfires.

This measure is a commonsense, bipartisan solution to protect Americans at the most difficult time in their lives.

I want to take a moment to thank Senator Cassidy and Senator Wyden for their partnership, as well as my California colleagues in the House, Representatives Mike Thompson and Doug LaMalfa, for their leadership on the issue in that Chamber. I look forward to seeing the President sign this bill into law as soon as possible.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, I also rise today with the bittersweet task of saying farewell to my trusted partner for the State of California, Senator Laphonza Butler, as her tenure here in the Senate with us comes to end in the coming days.

You may recall that just over a year ago, Senator Butler was appointed to serve alongside me here in the U.S. Senate. I remember it vividly. In just a matter of days, she received a call from Governor Newsom, accepted the appointment, traveled to Washington to take the oath of office, and introduced herself to the Nation.

That alone is a tall task for anyone--imagine--to be called upon on such short notice to serve a State of nearly 40 million people--but it is another thing entirely to be asked to also, in the process, fill the shoes of the legendary Senator Dianne Feinstein, a titan of California politics and the U.S. Senate, who served with such honor and dignity and grace for over three decades, not to mention that she carried on her shoulders the fate of a narrow Senate Democratic majority. It literally rested on her appointment and willingness to serve. But as I think back and reflect on that moment in her decision to say yes, it takes a trailblazer to fill the seat of a trailblazer.

And Laphonza Butler was certainly no stranger to high stakes. She knew it and proved it as a union organizer, fighting for workers all across the Nation; she knew it as the onetime president of California's SEIU Local 2015, representing members of California's largest home care and nursing home workers union; and she knew it as president of EMILY's List--all leadership positions that she held prior to joining us here in the Senate. So once she did join us here in the Senate, it was no surprise to me that she hit the ground running. She immediately set up an office and built a team of more than capable and passionate public servants who would help her and my office, frankly--we are a tag team, after all--serve the people of California.

Imagine, as she began to navigate the complex Senate procedures to effectively represent Californians, she was also learning, in the early days, how to simply navigate the halls of the U.S. Capitol--with the help of the legendary Alex Baldonado, I might add.

I was honored to serve alongside her here in the Senate, to offer her advice when I could and even lend staff assistance. In the year that has followed, I have been proud to work with her, nominating and confirming historic judicial nominees to the Federal bench, fighting for critical disaster funding for Californians in the relief we just passed a few minutes ago, working to protect and conserve our cherished public lands, and so much more.

Through it all, Senator Butler worked to also lift up the voices of all Californians, including through her Youth Advisory Council, empowering young Californians to get involved in the civic process.

So, Senator Butler, let the Record reflect that it has been an honor to serve alongside you these past 14 months. While we will miss you here in the U.S. Senate, I know that your work is far from over and that our partnership will continue. I have no doubt that I will see you in the trenches.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to legislative session and be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Madam President, I have one request for committee to meet during today's session of the Senate. It has the approval of the Majority and Minority Leaders.

Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committee is authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate:

subcommittee on investigations

The Subcommittee on Investigations of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, December 4, 2024, at 10 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 366, S. 3738.

I ask unanimous consent that the Stabenow substitute amendment at the desk be considered and agreed to and that the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time.

I know of no further debate on the bill, as amended.

I ask that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from further consideration of S. 4477 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions be discharged from and the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 3821.

I further ask that the bill be considered read a third time.

The bill was ordered to a third reading and was read the third time.

I know of no further debate on the bill.

I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee be discharged from and the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 3242.

Madam President, I further ask that the Baldwin substitute amendment, which is at the desk, be considered and agreed to; that the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 1432, which was received from the House.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time.

I know of no further debate on the bill.

I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from further consideration and the Senate now proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 910.

I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.