Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment, which would fund new nuclear weapons development by taking $193 million from the National Nuclear Security Administration nonproliferation account.

NNSA plays a very important role in helping us to secure nuclear weapons, ``loose nukes,'' as we call them in committee, around the world. The program helps secure nuclear material in Russia and elsewhere.

This funding includes $412 million for the installation of radiation portal monitors at over 200 border crossings in Russia, the Baltic States and the Caucasus region, $293 million more than the President's budget.

Rather than commit billions of dollars to manufacturing another generation of nuclear weapons, our existing nuclear arsenal can be sustained using the life extension program managed by NNSA. If we cut $193 million from it, there will be no way we can maintain this life extension program.

The JASON Report, a panel of independent nuclear weapons experts, reported last year that the existing plutonium pit will remain reliable for 100 years, far longer than the 45 or 60 years.

We don't need new weapons. Let's put the money where it will do the most good, to secure ``loose nukes'' around the world. Support the chairman in this position, and do not support the Udall amendment.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a family business in my district. For 75 years, Plaunt Transportation has ferried people and goods to Bois Blanc Island in Lake Huron, just a few miles north of Cheboygan, Michigan. For those 75 years, through four generations of Plaunts, the company has remained in one family.

Bois Blanc Island sits about 2\1/2\ miles east of Mackinac Island in Lake Huron. While the island is home to only about 25 to 30 year-round residents, during the summer, the population swells to 1,500.

Plaunt Transportation traces its roots to 1932, when Charles Plaunt began transporting supplies and eight passengers to this remote island on his ferry, the Margaret. It was that same year, 1932, that Charles Plaunt took over the contract to deliver mail from mainland Cheboygan to Bois Blanc Island. In 1934, the Adventure was put into service, carrying up to 20 passengers. In 1937, the Adventure was replaced by the Ada M, which was named for Charles' wife.

From its earliest days, Plaunt Transportation has been a family business in every sense of the word. Charles' son, Ray, began helping his father on the boat in 1937. At that time, there were only two bags of mail to deliver. Charles would deliver one bag of mail to the post office and Ray would drive the Model T to the Coast Guard Station on Bois Blanc and deliver the second bag.

During World War II, Charles' four sons were away defending our Nation in the war. During this 4-year period, Charles' teenage daughter, Ethelyn, helped out on the boat, first as a deckhand and, eventually, steering the boat. Together, Ethelyn and her father braved storms and the freezing lake to ferry passengers and U.S. mail from the mainland to the island.

Ray Plaunt took over the business from his father in 1948, a year before Charles passed away. In 1954, Ray had the Char-Leann II built in Holland, Michigan. The boat, named for his daughters, could carry 28 passengers or 1 vehicle and 6 passengers. To accommodate the changing needs of the island, a barge was used to carry additional vehicles and equipment.

Plaunt Transportation incorporated in 1979, and put into service the Chee-Maun-Nes, which carried 2 vehicles and 49 passengers.

Ray's son, Curt, bought the business from his father in 1987. Curt had a boat designed and built in Warren, Rhode Island in 1987. He named it the Kristen D after his daughter. The Kristen D could carry 8 vehicles and 49 passengers.

In 1998, the Kristen D was lengthened by 30 feet in Escanaba, Michigan, making it easier to carry heavy equipment, as well as semi, cement and garbage trucks. The vessel can accommodate 17 vehicles and 149 passengers. Ray's son, Curt, bought the business from his father in 1987. Ray's grandsons, Ryan McLaren and Jason Plaunt, are both fourth generation licensed boat captains. Another captain, Brente Sharpe, is not a Plaunt, but has worked with the Plaunt family for so long he is considered a member of the family.

While they cannot put an exact figure on it, Curt and Ray estimate that together they have made over 50,000 trips across Lake Huron Bois Blanc Island. Today, customers continue each day to board the Kristen D and take the 40 minute ride from the tip of Michigan's Lower Peninsula to Bois Blanc Island. It appears the Plaunt family legacy will continue: Charles Plaunt's great-great grandson has already decided at the age of 4 that when he grows up he, too, would like to be a boat captain.

Madam Speaker, family businesses are, in many ways, the core of the American system of enterprise. Since our country's inception, in the biggest American cities and the smallest towns, businesses run by families have built and maintained the infrastructure of our economy. No better example can be found of a family driven entrepreneurial spirit than the Plaunts. Their four generations of dedicated service to Cheboygan and to Bois Blanc Island are to be admired. In frozen lakes, through blinding rain, in good weather and in bad, for three-quarters of a century, the Plaunts have kept Bois Blanc Island in touch with the mainland. As Plaunt Transportation celebrates their 75th year of service, I would ask that you, Madam Speaker, and the entire U.S. House of Representatives join me in saluting them.

Madam Speaker, when America's troops volunteer to serve our Nation, they do so believing that the government that sends them into harm's way will live up to its promise to care for them when they return home. However, as we have seen from the debacle at Walter Reed and the current backlog of 400,000 benefits claims pending at the VA, our veterans do not always receive the level of service and care they deserve.

Today, this Democratic Congress is taking a vital step in addressing these issues by bringing up a Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations bill that provides the largest increase in funding for veterans health care in the VA's 77-year history. The funding bill also allocates much-needed funding for mental health and PTSD services; additional funds for construction and modification of extended care facilities; and critical funding for the operation and maintenance of the Armed Forces Retirement Home.

This legislation is critical to providing our Nation's veterans with the benefits their service entitles them to and gives the VA the resources necessary to ensure we meet their growing needs. It deserves strong bipartisan support today; and under Democratic leadership, they will receive it.

Madam Speaker, I rise to honor faithful people and an important historic landmark in my district, the First Presbyterian Church of Marquette, Michigan. For a century and a half, the First Presbyterian Church of Marquette has served as a place of worship for the residents of Marquette and surrounding communities in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (U.P.). Throughout its rich history, the church and its congregation have served as an anchor to the community and offered important social services to those in the area.

In October of 1855, a small group of people met and considered putting together an organization for a Presbyterian Society in Marquette. A month after this initial meeting, this small group purchased a piece of land on which to erect a church. Called the ``Session House,'' the building originally stood on the corner of Baraga Avenue and Fourth Street in Marquette. In June of 1857, the original 18 members of the Presbyterian Society called a meeting and elected its first elders. The Reverend Jonathan A. Woodruff was named the first temporary pastor. During these early years of the church, a Sunday School was started and common functions such as baptisms and marriages were performed.

By 1865, the size of the First Presbyterian Church's congregation had increased dramatically and the congregation determined that a larger church was necessary. In 1867, a large brick and stone structure was erected on the corner of Front and Bluff Streets in Marquette, Michigan. In the summer of 1868, a horrific fire swept through the downtown area of Marquette, destroying practically every building in the area. Nonetheless, the structure of the First Presbyterian Church survived and the church was finished and dedicated in November of 1868.

Sadly, this structure was destroyed in a second fire that occurred in 1931. Nonetheless, the congregation of the First Presbyterian Church remained united in their faith and continued to hold services in various locations. Two faithful church members left a bequest, allowing the church to be rebuilt in 1935. The 1935 structure exhibits the architecture of the English Gothic period and stained glass windows inspired by 13th century churches. The 1935 building still stands today.

Throughout its history, the church has provided not only a place to worship, but a valuable center of social services to the entire Marquette community. In the late 1970s, an adult day care center was started at the church for elderly community members in rooms furnished to meet a variety of needs. The program remains active today and serves approximately thirty people a week, providing vital services to some of the most vulnerable members of the Marquette community.

The genesis of the adult day care center stemmed from another valuable program at the church, the ``Lunch Bunch,'' a social event at the church targeting elderly residents. Members of the congregation cook lunch and make it available to anyone who wishes to attend, primarily elderly members of the community.

One of the church's newer programs, ``Stephen Ministry,'' was brought to the church in 1984. The program trains congregation members in pastoral counseling. Individuals undergoing emotional stress due to bereavement or divorce can seek a Stephen Ministry counselor and receive confidential one-on-one advice. In short, the program has enlisted members of the First Presbyterian Church of Marquette to counsel friends and neighbors during difficult times in their lives.

By organizing and hosting panel discussions, the church has also served as a forum where social problems in the community can be debated and discussed. In some cases, these discussions have yielded important innovative solutions. For example, one panel discussion resulted in the founding of the Medical Care Access Coalition, a collaboration of physicians and pharmacists throughout the area willing to offer free services to uninsured residents in Marquette County.

Madam Speaker, on Saturday, the First Presbyterian Church of Marquette will celebrate 150 years of dedicated service to the Marquette community. The church and its congregation have been blessed with dedicated pastors who have demonstrated great vision in building upon the teachings of Jesus Christ and the principles found in the Bible to offer a place of worship as well as critical social services to their brothers and sisters of Marquette County. I would ask that you, Madam Speaker, and the entire U.S. House of Representatives join me in saluting the First Presbyterian Church and its faithful congregation upon its sesquicentennial celebration.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor 100 years of history in a small town in my congressional district. This weekend, the city of Whittemore celebrates its 100th anniversary, an all the residents of Whittemore should be proud of their contributions to the growth of this community.

While Whittemore was officially incorporated as a city in 1907, the community's history dates back to an earlier time. Before its official incorporation, the city was part of Burleigh Township and was a timber town. The area was well known for its white pine timber. In the late 1800s, lumbering moved west from neighboring Tawas City, and a rail line was constructed to transport timber from the small logging community that would become Whittemore to Tawas City. Because of this early economic development, Whittemore was officially incorporated in 1907, the community was already booming.

During the early 1900s, the area underwent a significant economic shift. As lumber supplies in the area were depleted, the town evolved into a farming community, and families from around the region flocked to the Whittemore area to purchase affordable farmland. It was during this early period that the historic Bullock's and Horr Hall was constructed. The Hall, which is recognized as a local landmark, still stands today and houses the Masonic Temple. In the early 1900s, the building served as a gathering place for residents. In 1907, the Whittemore High School was erected.

The area continued to thrive throughout the early twentieth century and, by the 1940s, the town was thriving with a local bank, a hotel and bar, three grocery stores, and two car dealerships. Whittemore also boasted Joe Collins' Five and Dime store, a gathering place for local children who would visit the store daily to purchase candy.

The 1940s also brought about the creation of the Whittemore Speedway; which still exists today and is considered Michigan's oldest speedway. In 1948, Whittemore Speedway started as a half-mile dirt track. Area residents would gather there every Saturday night with friends, family and neighbors to watch the races. Throughout the 1940s, the race track served as the entertainment focal point for this small community.

The Whittemore Speedway has been continually updated and improved throughout the years. It continues to thrive today, hosting some of the best local family entertainment and races, while contributing many of its proceeds to area charity organizations and communities.

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Whittemore continued to boom, but, like in many small towns across our nation, things began to change. One of the major employers, National Gypsum, began making employee cutbacks as it modernized its facility. Gradually, over time, businesses began moving out of Whittemore.

Yet, while change had come to Whittemore, the citizens of the town and its surrounding

community have kept many of the characteristics that have guided its growth over the past century. The entrepreneurial spirit that resulted in the early settlement of the area as a logging community remains intact today. Local businesses continue to proudly exhibit that same entrepreneurial spirit. For instance, Sherni's Candies in Whittemore continues to ship candy all over the country. Dixon and Ryan, the inventor of a unique tool used in NASCAR to measure wear on tires, continues to thrive. Turner Cheese Company continues to specialize in the creation of amazingly creamy and flavorful cheese.

The young people of Whittemore-Prescott High School have also achieved a number of notable successes that exemplify Whittemore's spirit. In 2000, the school won the state football championship. A number of students from Whittemore-Prescott High School have been appointed to the military academies that produce our nation's military leaders.

In addition to the local entrepreneurial spirit that it has preserved, Whittemore has also maintained its small town values. Community is important to the citizens of Whittemore and neighbors make a point of knowing each other there. For these reasons, while some businesses have left the town, the residents have stayed. The city's population in 1907 was about 500. Today, the population remains at a respectable 480. Moreover, many of the same families have remained in Whittemore. Some families have inhabited this small town for as many as six or seven generations.

Madam Speaker, while many people in Michigan, and most people throughout our country, have not have heard of the city of Whittemore, I believe there is much to be admired in the city's history and character. As this small town and its citizens celebrate Whittemore's centennial, I would ask that the entire U.S. House of Representatives join me in congratulating this town and its past, present and future citizens on reaching this milestone and in acknowledging the city's place in Michigan's history.

Mr. Speaker, parliamentary inquiry.

Mr. Speaker, if the other side has no more Members available to speak on this legislation, are they not then required under House rules to yield back the balance of their time?

Mr. Speaker, what I asked was if the other side has no more speakers available, can they continue to reserve time, or do they have to yield back the balance of their time?

I thank Mr. Rush for yielding me time. I'd like to respond to the gentleman from Texas and some of the claims he made.

First of all, Democrats have only been in the majority for 4 months, and we are looking for ways to end this pain that motorists are feeling every day when they fill up their car at the gas pump, and that is, to bring forth the price-gouging legislation you see before us.

Now, Mr. Barton says we should not pass this for this reason or that reason. These are just excuses. He complains about the process. With all due respect, we learned the process from Mr. Barton.

Last year, they brought forth a gas price bill, was introduced on Tuesday, May 2, 2006. Wednesday, May 3, 2006, we voted on it. We never saw it. This bill has been around for over a year. So let's stop the excuses. American people don't want arguments about what process. They want relief at the pump, and that's what we're doing.

Lookit, today Members of the House have a very simple choice. Vote to stand up with consumers, your constituents, who are paying record gasoline prices, nationwide average, record prices, or vote to protect big oil companies' enormous profits.

My bill, H.R. 1252, which has over 120 bipartisan cosponsors, would give the Federal Trade Commission the explicit authority to investigate and punish those who artificially inflate the price of energy. The bill would provide a clear, enforceable definition of price gouging; focus enforcement on the worst offenders, especially companies that sell more than a half billion dollars a year of gasoline. We strengthen penalties, both criminal and civil, with up to triple damage for those who would price-gouge us; and direct the penalties collected to go into the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.

Congress must pass without any more excuses this legislation. Today's legislation is truly a first step in addressing the outrageous prices we're seeing at the gas pump.

We'll be working to protect consumers from high natural gas prices. We've introduced the Prevent Unfair Manipulation of Prices legislation to improve the oversight of energy trading in this country, and I hope we can move this legislation later this year.

Last year, the House of Representatives actually voted on a weaker bill, on May 3 as I indicated, brought forth by Republicans on price gouging. We passed that bill under suspension, like we are today, 389- 34. The Senate didn't do anything with it.

I'm proud to announce that since the Democrats are in charge, the Senate bill, very similar to my bill, has already made it out of committee, and we expect a vote on it next month. So we can actually bring relief to consumers now that the Democrats are in charge.

Today, every Member has a choice. Side with big oil or side with the consumers who are being ripped off at the gas pump.

I'd like to thank Speaker Pelosi for her work and leadership in bringing this legislation to the floor, also Chairman Dingell of the full Energy and Commerce Committee, and his staff for their help in putting forth a very fine piece of legislation that is much broader in scope than what we voted on last year, has stronger penalties and will truly give the American people relief at the pump.

Before Members leave for the Memorial Day recess, vote to provide your constituents with some relief at the gas pump. Vote for H.R. 1252.

In response to the last speaker, this bill does not target mom-and-pop grocery stores. You have to sell half a billion dollars of gasoline products.

Secondly, the record high prices of oil that we are seeing was not under Jimmy Carter. It was under Ronald Reagan in 1981.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday we had a hearing on gas price gouging, and the Commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission actually came and testified. On page 12 of his testimony, footnote number 24, I would like to quote the following: The statute mandating post-Katrina price investigation effectively defined price gouging as an average price of gasoline available for sale to the public that exceeded its average price in the area for the month before the event, unless the increase was substantially attributable to additional costs in connection with production, transportation, delivery and sale of gasoline in that area, or to national or international markets.

When questioned yesterday, Commissioner Kovacic said, We've used it. We have the definition.

My legislation makes it clear to take these factors into consideration when you determine whether price gouging is going on: How much did it cost delivered at transportation? What was the bill of sale from the supplier. These are factors in the legislation.

The FTC clearly understands it. Members of the House should be able to understand it. Vote ``yes'' on H.R. 1252.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, May 21, 2007, I was not present for two votes in order to attend a ceremony awarding the BJ Stupak Memorial Fund scholarships.

Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes'' on H.R. 698, the Industrial Bank Holding Company Act (House rollcall vote 384).

Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes'' on H.R. 1425, the Staff Sergeant Marvin ``Rex'' Young Post Office Building (House rollcall vote 385).

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a constituent who has led a remarkable life. On Sunday, Mrs. Revord's family and friends will come together to celebrate and observe her 100th birthday, celebrating the rich life of Mrs. Lillian Bijou (Thorton) Revord.

Over the course of her life, Mrs. Revord has truly seen the history of northern Michigan unfold before her, while she herself led a life rich in experience. As a child, Mrs. Revord attended the Methodist Church in Morristown, Michigan. The church has now been removed as an historical site to Grayling, Michigan, but the church gave her a strong anchor of faith to guide her.

In the spring of 1918, Mrs. Revord first moved north to Michigan's Upper Peninsula, U.P., specifically, Grand Island in Alger County. While young Lillian was just 12 years old on Grand Island, her father worked as a teamster for a logging company and her mother did the camp's laundry and cooking. In the fall of 1918, Lillian and her family moved to the mainland so that she and her sisters could attend school.

On the mainland, in Munising, Michigan, a few years later, Lillian met Orville Revord. As she tells it, Lillian and her best friend, Leta, were walking down the Munising City Dock. Some young men were nearby and one of them took note of Lillian's pigtails by commenting, ``Well, if this one isn't a cute bunch of `Onion Tops!' '' This teasing remark was the first interaction between the two, who started dating when Lillian was 15.

In 1924, Orville and Lillian eloped and were married in Rapid River, Michigan. Lillian was 17 and Orville was 20. Lillian's friend, Leta and Lillian's cousin James served as witnesses. There were no wedding showers or receptions, Lillian did not have a special wedding dress (just a satin dress she had made for herself for the 4th of July) and the couple's wedding gifts were a pair of pillow cases from Leta and a week's board and room from Lillian's sister, Zeph. As Lillian recalls, the Reverend Kitchen performed the ceremony. Before the ceremony, the Reverend looked up over his spectacles to say to the young couple, ``Do you two kids know what you are doing?'' Nonetheless, Orville and Lillian were married. Apparently the two did ``know what they were doing,'' as their marriage would ultimately produce five children and last 66 years. As Lillian says, ``We had nothing to start a long married career with, but we had our love and commitment and our marriage endured for better or for worse and both categories got a good workout!''

One of the challenges Orville and Lillian would face during the course of their marriage was the Great Depression, which hit five years after they were married. Orville's job on the railroad was whittled down to two days a week and the young couple, already working to raise two children, was surviving on $11.52 every two weeks. Their two sons, Orville Jr. and Billy, would sit on the sidewalk waiting for their father to come home from work swinging his lunch bucket, which held a piece of a sandwich that Orville Sr. had saved from lunchtime for the two brothers to share. Despite these challenges, the Revord family would persevere and persist during these dark times, a testament to the love and commitment between Orville and Lillian and of their faith.

Throughout her entire life, Lillian has remained a passionate lover of art and an active painter. She was the first Munising artist to be hired by the Munising Woodenware and was the last to be laid off, following the financial demise of her employer. Lillian's artwork has been cherished by locals and visitors to Munising, alike. Today, one can occasionally stumble upon one of her painted antique woodenwares on the Internet, for a considerable price. Lillian also worked for some time as a telephone operator for the Munising Telephone Company, until electronic switching was innovated.

While Lillian has remained active throughout her life pursuing a range of pursuits and challenges, early in life, she did not have the benefit of much formal education. Nonetheless, at the age of fifty, she returned to High School to take courses in typing and drivers' education, another testament to her strength.

Madam Speaker, on Sunday, the Munising community, Mrs. Revord's friends and her family will gather in the basement of the local Methodist Church, a fitting location for a woman who has made faith such a cornerstone of her life. Together, they will congratulate her on her many accomplishments over her many years. As Mrs. Revord's 100th birthday is celebrated, I would ask that you join me in congratulating her and in wishing Mrs. Lillian Revord, her children, Orville, Jr., Raoul, and Joanne and her many grandchildren all the best.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor two of my constituents who together have dedicated nearly 40 years of service to one of the great educational institutions in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (U.P.): Finlandia University. This week, Finlandia University President Dr. Robert (Bob) Ubbelohde and Mrs. Susan Ubbelohde, the manager of ``North Wind Bookstore'' at Finlandia University, will both retire.

Dr. and Mrs. Ubbelohde first came to the U.P. in 1988 when Dr. Ubbelohde was named Dean of Faculty at Suomi College (later to become Finlandia University) in Hancock, Michigan. In 1991, Dr. Ubbelohde was named the 15th president of Suomi College.

When they came to the U.P., the Ubbelohdes did not expect to remain at Finlandia University for 20 years. In fact, as a self-described ``city person,'' Dr. Ubbelohde has been known to say that he expected to stay in the U.P. only three to five years. However, the Ubbelohdes fell in love with Hancock, Michigan, with the local area, which is commonly referred to as the Copper Country, and with Finlandia University itself.

Dr. Ubbelohde's contributions to Finlandia University cannot be overstated. In fact, as much if not more than any other single person, he can be credited with saving and revitalizing the school. When Dr. Ubbelohde came to what was then Suomi College, he inherited an institution that, while enjoying a rich history, faced an uncertain future. Enrollment was declining by 8 percent a year. By Dr. Ubbelohde's own admission, the administration of the school at the time even contemplated whether to close the school altogether. Thankfully, under Dr. Ubbelohde's guidance, the decision was made to keep the school open and to move the institution forward.

Under Dr. Ubbelohde's leadership, new programs were adopted at Suomi College and the school was largely re-vamped. In 1996, after being in existence for 100 years, the school was transformed from a two-year college offering, to a baccalaureate degree-granting university and was re-named Finlandia University. In 1998, athletics were re-introduced to the school, further strengthening the school's reputation. Over the past 10 years, thanks to Dr. Ubbelohde's vision, the school has enjoyed a 65 percent increase in student enrollment, major upgrades to campus technology and capital improvements.

Although Finlandia University has thrived under Dr. Ubbelohde's leadership, this humble man is perhaps best known for his passion for seeing students grow, learn and succeed. When asked what his greatest accomplishment is, he tellingly replies, ``I don't even think that way. What I think about are students crossing the stage at Commencement to receive their diplomas. I can't claim to know the life story of each student, but I've learned enough about our students to know when a graduate has overcome or accomplished something extraordinary to earn that degree.''

Just as Dr. Ubbelohde has done great things as the President of Finlandia University, Mrs. Ubbelohde has also contributed significantly to the university and to the surrounding community. While Dr. Ubbelohde served as the University President, Mrs. Ubbelohde has earned a well deserved reputation as the ``ideal first lady'' for the university. Well regarded for her warmth, kindness, grace and hospitality, Mrs. Ubbelohde has made friends throughout the community and acted as an ambassador for the school.

Mrs. Ubbelohde managed North Wind Books, the university bookstore that was founded under Dr. Ubbelohde's administration. North Wind Books not only supplies Finlandia University students their books, but is in many ways a cultural center for Finlandia University, offering Finnish rugs, tablecloths, Finnish books and other items that celebrate the Finnish traditions that the university honors. Under Mrs. Ubbelohde's management, North Wind Books has grown. Today, the thriving store continues to serve as a resource for students, teachers, Finlandia University alumni and visitors. Just as Dr. Ubbelohde has left his mark on Finlandia University in many ways, Mrs. Ubbelohde leaves a legacy in North Wind Books, which will be enjoyed by many future generations of Finlandia University Lions.

Madam Speaker, Finlandia University is in many ways a special place. It is a place that cultivates character among young people, provides them a first-rate education, while embracing traditional Finnish values and teaching in the tradition of the Lutheran faith. Because of Dr. Robert Ubbelohde's and Mrs. Susan Ubbelohde's leadership, Finlandia University will continue to grow and prosper for years to come. While they will be missed at Finlandia University by the students and staff, this retirement is well deserved. Madam Speaker, I would ask that you and the entire U.S. House of Representatives join me in congratulating Dr. Robert and Mrs. Susan Ubbelohde on their well deserved retirement and in thanking them for their decades of service to higher education.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. Chairman, first I ask unanimous consent to modify my amendment by striking the sections entitled ``short title'' and ``findings.''

Mr. Chairman, communities across our Nation have felt the effects of the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but rural communities have been hit especially hard. A recent Associated Press story reported that nearly half the casualties in Iraq have come from towns of fewer than 25,000 people, and one in five come from towns of 5,000 or less. Rural States have had some of the highest per capita loss rates.

I have certainly seen this in my own district. Each loss from a small town affects not only the family but the entire community. In light of these facts, we need to make sure that we are taking care of all the families who have lost loved ones in military service, whether those families live in cities or in small rural communities.

In the past year, I have encountered several disturbing cases in my own district in which families had to fight to have the remains of their loved one flown to an airport near the intended place of burial. The military advised the families that the bodies of their loved one would be flown to the nearest major urban airport, which in some cases, as in my district, are hundreds of miles away.

In order to meet the remains at the airport, one of the families would have been required to drive over 4 hours each way through a snowstorm. There is no reason to impose these kinds of burdens on a family that has already made the ultimate sacrifice. This kind of treatment is disrespectful and unfair. Families should not have to bargain with the military in order to have the remains of their loved ones flown to a location where they can meet their fallen hero.

In many cases, veterans organizations and other community groups want to show their respect when a fallen soldier arrives at an airport. We

should encourage these demonstrations of respect, instead of discouraging them by forcing community members to drive to urban airports hours away from home.

Last year, as part of the fiscal year 2007 Defense authorization, the House passed a similar provision that would have required the military to fly the remains of a fallen soldier to the military airfield nearest the place of burial. Unfortunately, this provision was not included in the final conference version of the bill; however, I think it was a good provision, and Members of the House were right to support it.

My amendment would provide greater flexibility. It would require that, whenever possible, the Department of Defense fly the remains to the nearest military or civilian airport. The amendment would allow the military to use any of the numerous small airports that exist in rural districts, so long as the remains are delivered to a place that is acceptable to the family of the fallen soldier.

Mr. Chairman, the problems I speak of are not only in my district, but we have seen reports from New York to California where this has occurred in the smaller rural districts.

As Americans, we owe a tremendous debt to those families who have given up a loved one in war to protect our freedom. This amendment will eliminate an unfair situation that those families have faced and will help to show our respect and gratitude for the sacrifice they have made.

I ask Members to support my amendment.

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

Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the words of the ranking member, Mr. Hunter. The difference between what I'm doing here tonight and an amendment we did last year, last year was the closest military airfield. There are no military airfields in my district. My district is 600 miles from one end to the other, and when they want to bring the remains of our soldiers to Detroit or Milwaukee, it is 4, 5, 6 hours for people, for my constituents to go to greet this fallen hero back on U.S. soil. And you have your local groups, your American Legions, your veterans who'd like to welcome that fallen soldier back home, but to drive 4, 5, 6 hours, and one we had last winter was through a terrible snowstorm.

We have had to intervene. We have worked with DOD and others, and they've been pretty good about trying to accommodate everyone. We realize it's hard and it's difficult.

So the only difference is this amendment goes a little farther, not just military airfield but civilian airfields. We have plenty of civilian airfields throughout my district and rural America that can accommodate the planes necessary to bring home our fallen soldiers.

So I would like to thank Mr. Skelton, Mrs. Tauscher, Mr. Hunter and Mr. Saxton for their help and support. This is an amendment that we're glad we can do to honor those service men and women and also their families and the local communities when they've fallen in service in honor to their country.

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

Madam Speaker, in 1994 President Clinton, with the help of congressional Democrats, established the COPS program. The COPS program changed the way we fight crime in this country by giving local jurisdictions the support they needed to put over 100,000 new police officers on the street. The results were clear: a nationwide drop in crime and safer streets in our communities.

Having been a police officer for 12 years, I proudly support the continuation of the COPS program. Unfortunately, the President and the Republicans have cut and gut the COPS program.

The COPS program is needed now more than ever. The threat of terrorism has put new burdens on our first responders, and recent news reports show violent crime in our cities is again on the rise. As a result, the Democrats will seek to put $1.5 billion forth in the budget to hire more police officers where they can do the most good, on the streets in our communities.

The COPS program is a proven concept that has the full support of the law enforcement community. The Democrats will make the program even better.

Let us work together to put cops back on the streets and give them the tools they need to keep us and America safe.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Madam Speaker, let me compliment the sponsors of this bill, Mr. Moore from Kansas and Mr. Kirk from Illinois. I am down here on another bill, but I felt compelled to say a few words, if I may, on this piece of legislation, which really honors American disabled veterans with this commemorative coin. This will help us raise the money to build this monument, which is long overdue.

Whether you are talking about my father-in-law, Ken Olsen, up in Escanaba, who was disabled in World War II, or the recent disabled members of our Armed Forces coming back from Afghanistan and Iraq, I think we can all personally relate to different stories.

Today, Derek Gagne, who spent quite a bit of time at Walter Reed Army Hospital, is coming back to the upper peninsula of Michigan, where family and friends will be waiting to greet him home. Unfortunately, as Derek has left his bed at Walter Reed for an amputation he had to have because of injuries sustained in Iraq, unfortunately, that bed is being taken by another member from my district who also was wounded in Iraq.

We talk about our disabled veterans and we honor them throughout our time, especially in the summer months through the Memorial Day and 4th of July and all the holidays we celebrate in parades and ceremonies like that, but it is time that we have the memorial here in Washington, so those of us who make decisions on war understand that it is more than just sending an army here or there, but that there is consequences of it.

Whether the injury is an amputation or a closed-head injury, which we are seeing so much of in the war in Iraq, each and every injury serves to remind us of the horrors of war but also that these men and women and their families and their spouses deserve our utmost respect.

So I am very pleased to see this memorial start to take on more and more life, to become a reality. And the work of Mr. Moore and Mr. Kirk will certainly help bring forth this memorial. I am very honored to not only cosponsor H.R. 634, but also to support the American Veterans Disabled for Life Commemorative Coin Act.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 692) to amend title 4, United States Code, to authorize the Governor of a State, territory, or possession of the United States to order that the National flag be flown at half-staff in that State, territory, or possession in the event of the death of a member of the Armed Forces from that State, territory, or possession who dies while serving on active duty, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials in the Record.

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

As author of H.R. 692, the Army Specialist Joseph P. Micks Federal Flag Code Amendment Act of 2007, I urge my colleagues to support its passage.

Madam Speaker, those who make the ultimate sacrifice for our country deserve our country's utmost respect. H.R. 692 will ensure that our fallen troops and their families are provided the appropriate respect due.

The Army Specialist Joseph P. Micks Federal Flag Code Amendment Act of 2007 would require all Federal Government agencies in a State to comply with a Governor's proclamation to fly the national flag at half- staff in honor of those who lose their lives serving our country.

H.R. 692 is named after Joseph P. Micks, a soldier from Rapid River, Michigan, who was killed in Iraq last July at the age of 22. Specialist Micks was an all-American soldier and citizen. He was an altar server at church, an Eagle Scout from Troop 466 in Gladstone, Michigan, loved to collect sports memorabilia, and fixed the computers of his neighbors. He joined the Army to help others, to make a difference.

His death was not only mourned by his family and friends, but also by the citizens of the rural communities which make up and comprise Delta County, Michigan. As his funeral procession progressed through several rural communities in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, citizens were upset to note that some Federal agencies had not lowered their flags based on the Governor's proclamation in honor of Specialist Micks.

There have been several other instances in my district, unfortunately, when a Federal agency has not lowered its flag in accordance with Governor Granholm's proclamation.

When I have learned of Federal agencies, offices and buildings that have not lowered their American flags, I have contacted the agencies. I have been told that the directive to lower the flag has not come from the district office or the regional office or from Washington headquarters. It is regrettable that this legislation is even necessary. Last year I wrote the President asking him to issue an executive order to have the flags lowered. He has not responded. However, as there have been not one but multiple instances where Federal agencies have ignored the Governor's request to lower flags, it is important that Congress address this issue.

In a recent example, when Navy SEAL Joe Schwedler was killed recently in Iraq, it was the Veterans Affairs hospital that refused to lower its flag. Veterans presented officials with the article from the local newspaper, the Daily News from Iron Mountain. It says: ``Flags Lowered for Crystal Falls Hero,'' and still the Veterans Administration refused to lower the flag.

I include this article for the Record.

[From the Daily News, April 12, 2007]

Flags Lowered for Crystal Falls Hero

Half-staff on Friday

Lansing.--Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm has ordered United

States flags throughout Michigan and on Michigan waters

lowered for one day on Friday, April 13, in honor of Navy

Petty Officer 2nd Class Joseph C. Schwedler of Crystal Falls

who died April 6 while on active duty in Iraq.

Flags should return to full staff on Saturday, April 14.

Schwedler, 27, died from enemy action while conducting

combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq. He was assigned

to the East Coast Navy SEAL Team.

When flown at half-staff or half-mast, the United States

flag should be hoisted first to the peak for an instant and

then lowered to the half-staff or half-mast position. The

flag should again be raised to the peak before it is lowered

for the day.

A military funeral will be conducted at 1 p.m. Saturday,

April 14, at the Forest Park High School gymnasium in Crystal

Falls.

A scholarship fund will be established with the Crystal

Falls Area Community Fund, Post Office Box 269, Crystal

Falls, Michigan 49920.

The Jacobs-Plowe Funeral Home, Crystal Falls is in charge

of arrangements.

The inconsistent patchwork display of respect is particularly hurtful to rural communities where the funeral processions of fallen troops often travel by several Federal facilities, some with flags lowered, others without.

Rural Americans disproportionately fill the ranks of our armed services and have disproportionately paid the ultimate sacrifice. Almost half of U.S. military casualties have hailed from towns fewer than 25,000 people; one in five from towns smaller than 5,000 people. It is important that when one of our own perishes serving our Nation they receive the proper respect.

I am joined today in support of this legislation by the Military Order of the Purple Heart and Society of Military Widows. In endorsing the legislation, the Society of Military Widows stated: ``We strongly feel that Federal agencies within the State should comply with this order to honor fallen native sons and daughters. As military widows, we can especially appreciate this visible show of respect.''

I would like to thank my colleagues who have cosponsored this legislation and those who have helped champion its passage, including Chairman Conyers, Chairman Nadler, Ranking Member Franks, as well as Congressman Pastor, Congressman Visclosky, and Congressman Lamborn.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Conyers).

Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers, so I would like to close.

I close by saying there is no more powerful way to honor the death of an American than flying our Nation's flag at half-staff. Recognizing this, Governors across this great country have issued proclamations to honor servicemembers from their States who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan.

This quiet sign of respect is a powerful message to the family that a grateful Nation and a grateful community mourns and honors the sacrifice made by their fallen hero. It is also representative of the shared loss felt by our communities who mourn a family member, a friend, a neighbor and a colleague.

The Army Specialist Joseph P. Micks Flag Code Amendment Act will ensure that each of our fallen heroes receives the ultimate honor due to Joe and his family; his wife, Romona; and parents, Ken and Amy Micks. To them we owe a great debt of gratitude. I hope this legislation passes the House today and moves to the Senate, and we can get it completed by Flag Day on June 14.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, today, the House of Representatives is doing the right thing for our Nation's police and first responders by passing the COPS Improvements Act. This bill will improve the safety of communities across our Nation, and will help to reverse the damaging budget cuts that our first responders have suffered in the past 7 years.

In 1994, President Clinton's COPS program changed the way law enforcement in this country operates, by giving local departments the resources to fight crime and put 100,000 new law enforcement officers on the streets. The COPS program helped transform our major cities, and gave rural police and sheriffs the resources needed to fight the growing problems of drugs and violence.

As a former law enforcement officer, I know how important the COPS program has been to local communities. Its federal-to-local structure puts resources where they are needed: cops on the front lines.

As co-chair of the Congressional Law Enforcement Caucus, I work with law enforcement professionals from around the country, and they are unanimous in their verdict: COPS is a program that works.

Unfortunately, the current administration disagrees with the approach that was so successful in reducing crime during the Clinton years. The administration has repeatedly attempted to cut and gut the program, in spite of repeated endorsements from every major law enforcement organization and the proven success of COPS in reducing crime. Under the Republican Congress, COPS funding was reduced from its Clinton-era high of $1.42 billion to less than $500 million in 2006, a cut of two- thirds.

These cuts had a severe impact on local departments in my district and in districts around the country. Attempts to keep officers on the street, protect our schools, fight drugs and improve our homeland security were all undermined. Republicans in Congress and the Bush administration have been full of rhetoric about the heroism of local first responders and the importance of fighting terrorism, but the budget numbers tell a different story: for the Republican Congress, local cops simply were not a priority.

Now we have a chance to set things right. The law enforcement community has a tremendous need for this legislation to be enacted and fully funded. Experts have said that it may cost as much as $18 billion to fully upgrade our first responders to interoperable

communications; this bill will provide money for technology grants to help close that gap. News reports show that the violent crime rate has begun to rise again in our cities; this bill will help local departments deploy more officers to fight violence and make our streets safe.

The COPS Improvements Act represents our commitment to listen to our local police departments and give them the resources they need to do their job. I am proud to support this bill, and I urge the President to sign it into law, so that our law enforcement officers can again receive the support and assistance they deserve to keep us and America safe.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

I want to thank Chairman Thompson and the Homeland Security Committee for their work on this bill. I think it's an excellent piece of legislation and will go a long way towards making the Department of Homeland Security more accountable and effective.

Mr. Chairman, I rise to ask my colleagues to support my amendment to H.R. 1684, which would require the Secretary to conduct a study on ways to improve the effectiveness of the Integrated Border Enforcement Team, or IBET program. IBETs are already one of the border's great security success stories of the post-9/11 era. The program grew out of a history of informal cooperation between American and Canadian border protection officers.

In December 2001, the IBET concept was made official as part of the Smart Border Declaration signed by the United States and Canada. As a former law enforcement officer, I know that access to timely, reliable information is one of the most effective, important tools an officer can have. IBETs allow law enforcement officers from along our northern border to collaborate in real time and share information and expertise with their Canadian counterparts.

This strategy has paid off along our northern border. In the past year alone, IBETs helped to break up several organized criminal operations that were smuggling drugs and people into the United States, leading to dozens of arrests and confiscation of millions of dollars in drug and cash.

I have seen firsthand how important this program is to local border protection officers. One of the 15 current IBET sites is in my district in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

The IBET consists of area law enforcement officers from the United States and Canada, including cooperation with county and local police officers, Customs and Border Protection agents, the Coast Guard and Canadian border officers and police officers. The officers involved in this IBET have been unanimous in telling me how much IBET has improved their ability to police the border and make our homeland more safe and secure.

I am concerned, however, that the potential of the IBET has not been fully realized at Sault Ste. Marie and other sites. The Department of Homeland Security has not assigned a full-time officer to monitor and lead the IBET, instead defining IBET as ``collateral duty'' for an officer who already has a full-time job. The previous IBET chairperson was transferred to a post in Miami, leading to a loss of valuable institutional knowledge.

Finally, there is no specific funding line for IBET activities; and direct funding has been minimal, in fact, only $5,000 for 15 IBETs for 2006.

My amendment would require the Secretary to report to Congress on the resources currently being devoted to the IBET program. In addition, the amendment asks the Secretary to make recommendations to Congress on how to make the IBET program even more effective in the future. It is clear that when the IBET program is fully funded and staffed it can be a powerful tool for law enforcement. My amendment is intended to improve accountability and oversight for the IBET program and ensure that all IBETs, not just some, receive the resources they need to be truly effective.

Once again, I would like to thank the chairman and the ranking member for their outstanding work on this bill and for their willingness to support this amendment. I urge support of the Stupak amendment.

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

I appreciate the comments from Mr. King, and I yield the remaining time to Mr. Green, my friend from Texas.

Mr. Chairman, the key words to this whole amendment are ``in the near term.'' Unfortunately, it's been 25 years since the Air Florida accident. We've been talking about interoperability, and nothing ever gets done.

The time for studies and promises are over. If you listen to the program that DHS has, according to them, it will take us 20 years and $100 billion to achieve interoperability. That is not the case at all. We don't need 20 years. We don't have 20 years to wait in this country to have interoperability.

Last Congress, we passed the National Telecommunications Information Agency, which is advancing technologies that are available today to solve the interoperability problem, technologies that don't cost $100 billion and 20 years.

And what has happened, though, the $1 billion we put in the NTIA grant program, the administration used it to make further cuts in the Department of Homeland Security. So $1 billion that should have gone to interoperability has cut off other DHS programs.

This administration has ignored congressional intent on interoperability. It's time for the excuses to stop. The administration has to put forth a reasonable plan to achieve interoperability in this country, and that's what the Cardoza amendment does, and I fully support it.

Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that I am able to revise and extend my remarks.

I rise today in support of the Cardoza Amendment, which expresses the Sense of the Congress that efforts to achieve interoperable emergency communications in the near term should be supported and are critical in assisting communities properly execute their interoperability plans.

The key words in this amendment are ``in the near term.'' It's been 25 years since the Air Florida crash on the Potomac. It's been over 5 years since September 11th, when over 120 firefighters and hundreds of civilians lost their lives due to a lack of interoperability.

Terrorist attacks, man made disasters, and natural disasters are a certainty. Yet, we still do not have nationwide interoperability in this country.

This problem has been studied and studied.

In its final report, the 9/11 Commission concluded:

The inability to communicate was a critical element of the

World Trade Center, Pentagon, Somerset County, Pennsylvania,

crash sites . . . The occurrence of this problem at three

very different sites is strong evidence that compatible and

adequate communications among public safety organizations at

the local, state and federal levels remains an important

problem . . . Federal funding of such (interagency

communication) units should be given high priority . . .

After September 11th, President Bush said, ``we want to spend money to make sure equipment is there, strategies are there, communications are there to make sure that you have whatever it takes to respond.''

Yet, under the President and the Republican-led Congress, the money was not allocated, the equipment was not there, strategies were incomplete, and first responders still cannot communicate across agencies and jurisdictions.

DHS has testified it will take an $18 billion to $100 billion investment to make our first responder communications fully interoperable.

DHS's plan to achieve full interoperability is 20 years. We do not have another 20 years.

The time for study and excuses is over. This bill and this amendment represent action by the Democratic Congress.

This bill reverses the draconian cuts to first responder grant programs made by this administration. And this amendment tells DHS to advance solutions that help first responders in the near term.

The Energy and Commerce Committee created, and Congress enacted, a $1 billion interoperability grant program at the National Telecommunications Information Agency (NTIA), in 2006.

Our intent was to advance new approaches to solve the interoperability problem; approaches that don't cost $100 billion and take 20 years to implement.

Yet, the administration seems to be missing the point. The administration's budget proposal justified the DHS grant cuts by ``offsetting'' those cuts with the $1 billion NTIA grant program.

Our committee has heard testimony from experts, industry, and first responders that there are new technologies today that can help our first responders at a fraction of the cost.

Again, this amendment tells DHS that Congress has lost its patience with excuses. It says invest in near term solutions that are available today. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.