Floor Statements

Mr. President, I rise today to speak about the bipartisan Global Learning Loss Assessment Act, S. 552, which I introduced along with Senator Boozman last year. This bill requires the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, to submit a report to Congress that assesses learning loss, identifies gaps in access to education, and outlines the response that is needed to help students recover from COVID-19 and reach their full potential. I applaud the advancement of this bill, which was voted on favorably in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee earlier today and will now move to the Senate floor for consideration. I should note that the House companion bill passed the House in June 2021. So it is time for the Senate to act.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced schools around the world to suspend in-person learning as a measure to contain the spread of the virus and safeguard public health. Even before the pandemic began, UNESCO reported that 258 million children were out of school globally, including 130 million girls. Now, the pandemic has disrupted the education of an estimated 90 percent of the world's student population--over 1.6 billion children and youth--who saw their schools close at some point due to COVID-19.

We already know that school closures lead to interrupted learning, poor nutrition, gaps in childcare, increased dropout rates, exposure to violence, and social isolation. What is more, students already at a disadvantage before COVID-19 will experience greater learning loss, thereby worsening inequity and inequality in education.

School closures are especially burdensome for girls, who are frequently expected to shoulder more household responsibilities and are more vulnerable to gender-based violence--GBV. For example, according to a study by the United Nations Development Program, school closures in Sierra Leone necessitated by the Ebola pandemic led to increased instances of sexual- and gender-based violence, teenage pregnancy, school dropout, and child labor for girls.

Restrictions associated with COVID-19 have also made girls more vulnerable to child and early forced marriage. The United Nations Population Fund--UNFPA--estimates that 13,000,000 more child marriages could take place by 2030 than would have without the pandemic, and when a girl gets married, her education almost always stops.

When school closures occur, a significant percentage of distance learning alternatives rely exclusively on online platforms. However, according to UNICEF, two-thirds of the world's school-aged children do not have an internet connection in their homes, with that number rising to about 90 percent of students in sub-Saharan Africa. Furthermore, schools and local learning centers frequently have inadequate internet connectivity.

The Global Learning Loss Assessment Act will help improve the quality and reach of international education assistance by giving Congress the information we need to assess the status of education worldwide. The critical information included in the report produced by USAID will be used to inform future policy, oversight, and programmatic decisions by Congress and USAID, and will help ensure that our partner countries are better prepared to respond to future crises that could disrupt the education system.

Specifically, the USAID report shall include: an assessment of learning loss globally and of the impact on U.S. basic education programs; an overview of distance learning in low resource contexts; a description of the barriers to education or distance learning for marginalized children; data on USAID programs that have been supporting learning during the pandemic; an overview of how USAID has, independently and in coordination with partners, adapted basic education programming during the COVID-19 pandemic to support continued learning; and a description of the authorities and resources USAID needs to continue to support education programs during and after the pandemic to mitigate learning loss and help students get back on track.

The Global Learning Loss Assessment Act has been endorsed by several important NGOs, including the Basic Education Coalition, Cambridge Education, Catholic Relief Services, Chemonics International, Childhood Education International, Food for the Hungry, Global Campaign for Education-US, Jesuit Refugee Service/USA, Luminos Fund, RESULTS, RISE Institute, RTI International, Save the Children, Unbounded Associates, UNICEF USA, World Education, and World Learning.

I look forward to the opportunity for this important bill supporting education worldwide to be adopted by the Senate.

Mr. President, I rise today to discuss a critical issue that continues to take a heavy toll on the health and financial well- being of Americans: high prescription drug prices.

This uniquely American problem has U.S. families paying the highest price compared to other countries, leading to millions of Americans having to leave their pharmacies with their prescription drugs left on the table. No one should have to go into debt to buy prescription drugs that they need to stay healthy, productive, and to have a healthy life.

Twenty-nine percent of Americans either cannot afford their prescription drugs or are rationing them. And the United States stands alone in this among the developed nations of the world.

The United States spends approximately $575 billion annually on prescription drugs, or about 14 percent of the total healthcare expenditures. In 2019, the United States spent, on average, $1,126 per capita on prescription medicines, twice as high as a comparable amount spent in the industrial world.

Americans and Marylanders are struggling to pay their prescription drug medications, and it is long past time for Congress to remedy this problem. Prescription drugs have been lifesaving for millions, but if they are not affordable, then their benefit is moot. High prescription drug prices drive health inequalities that we are fighting to eradicate since groups in fair or poor health most struggle to afford their medications.

For years, Congress has been working on commonsense solutions to increase access to affordable prescription medications, reducing costs for patients and taxpayers. It is now time to act.

U.S. prescription drug prices are set through an opaque process by manufacturers, pharmaceutical benefit manufacturers, and payers. Prices are often disconnected from the health impacts of the products being purchased.

Opponents of addressing the high drug costs claim that more affordable prices will come at the expense of innovation. I say, and the research agrees, this is a false choice. To ensure access through innovative treatments and prescriptions, the U.S. Government makes significant investments in biomedical research. The Presiding Officer knows that very well from his position on the Appropriations Committee. No greater example of this investment is the National Institutes of Health located in our home State of Maryland, which is the world's largest government funder of biomedical research. Almost all drugs rely on NIH-supported basic research, and the returns on these investments are very high.

Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have found that every $125 million NIH grant leads to $375 million more in private market value, 33 more patents, and one new drug.

Another study estimates that the rate of return on NIH investment is 43 percent and that each dollar in NIH funding leads to an additional $8.40 in private research and development spending. So the government investments are well done--it leverages a lot more--but the government is the key player.

Further, the Small Business Innovation Research and the Small Business Technology Transfer, SBIR/STTR programs, also support innovation. SBIR/STTR currently are the largest U.S. Federal Government programs supporting small businesses to conduct research and investment. SBIR began in 1982 and currently requires that each Federal Agency spending more than $100 million annually on external research set aside 3.2 percent of those funds for awards to small businesses. SBIR is very selective, with only about 22 percent of the applicants receiving funding. For many small firms, the SBIR ``serves as the first place many entrepreneurs involved in technological innovation''--where they get their funding.

Through the SBIR/STTR programs, NIH supports drug innovation by setting aside more than 3.2 percent of its overall Intramural Research and Development budget specifically to support early stage small businesses through the Nation. Many companies leverage this NIH funding to attract the partners and investors needed to take an innovation to the market.

For example, Amgen, which was founded in 1980, received SBIR investment in 1986. Today, it is a multinational biopharmaceutical company with over 20,000 employees. Despite these significant taxpayer investments, prescription drugs are often priced at levels that limit access to lifesaving drugs, particularly among those who are underinsured or uninsured. Even after accounting for the costs and risks

of research and development, evidence shows the returns to new products exceed normal rates of return.

Drug companies continue to raise prices on consumers without justification, and we must crack down on price gouging and enforce transparency and drug pricing. That is why I strongly support the policies the Senate Finance Committee recently released, which comprise of comprehensive reform to lower prescription drug prices for Americans.

One policy included in this package that I have long supported is empowering Medicare to begin negotiating directly for the price of prescription drugs. This is just common sense. This is what businesses do. This is a free market. We negotiate.

In the private sector, no plan sponsor or manager would ever accept responsibility without the ability to decide how to negotiate. No private sector company would parcel themselves out in order to negotiate; they would use their full size as a market force. We don't do that in Medicare. Medicare negotiations will ensure that patients with Medicare get the best deal possible on high-priced drugs.

Another policy I support in prescription drug affordability is capping Medicare patients' out-of-pocket costs at no more than $2,000 per year. Today, there is no cap on spending for prescription drugs for seniors on Medicare. This policy will prevent Medicare beneficiaries from paying tens of thousands of dollars to purchase lifesaving drugs prescribed by their doctors.

The policies I have just outlined, along with additional reforms--and there are several others that are included in this package, including a required rebate if a drug manufacturer increases their price beyond the cost of inflation. There are other issues here to protect the solvency long term of prescription drug benefits and Medicare beneficiaries. This will make prescription drugs affordable for individuals and families who desperately need it.

I urge all my colleagues to come together to address this urgent issue. We have done the work. Now it is time to vote, getting these savings back into our constituents' pockets.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, first of all, while Senator Blunt and Senator Stabenow are still on the floor, I want to thank both of them for their extraordinary leadership on this mental health issue.

I am so pleased that the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act includes robust provisions to deal with community mental health.

I have worked with Senator Stabenow on the Senate Finance Committee. I know her passion on this issue. We have put together bipartisan working groups that are dealing with a lot of different issues in regards to mental health. A lot of that has to do with pediatric mental health, which is very much engaged in the bill that we have before us today. And a lot of those provisions have been incorporated into the legislation before us.

But what you have done on these certified behavioral health centers to be able to have the pilot programs and now to be able to expand them to more communities, to have a 24/7 facility that is available that is included in this legislation, that is going to make a real difference in people's lives.

So I just really want to thank both of you for your tremendous contributions on this issue. Senator Stabenow, I want you to know, through the Chair, I agree with you in regards to Senator Blunt. We are going to miss his personal presence here on the U.S. Senate floor, but we know that we will be able to continue on having his friendship and counsel on so many issues that have affected us.

And if my friend from Kentucky would allow me just a few more minutes, I would like to make a couple comments about the underlying bill. I know that he is scheduled to speak.

After the horrific shooting in Uvalde where innocent children were murdered, inaction was not an option. Congress had to do something substantive to help stem the epidemic of gun violence that is scarring our communities daily. For this reason, for all the victims of gun violence who may not make the headlines every day, I was proud to vote today in favor of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.

The Senate is taking an important step forward today to break the decades-long gridlock on gun safety. Legislation will save lives by boosting funding for community violence intervention and prevention initiatives like those underway in Baltimore.

It strengthens protection for victims of domestic violence by adding convicted domestic violence abusers to background checks.

It creates a new source of funding for States to implement red flag laws which help to keep weapons out of the hands of dangerous individuals who should not have access to a firearm.

It cracks down on criminals who tried to evade licensing requirements and makes clear which gun sellers need to register, conduct background checks, and keep appropriate records. It strengthens the background check process for those under 21 seeking to buy firearms, by ensuring that officials have access to juvenile and mental health records.

The bipartisan legislation also provides much needed mental health resources to communities by providing funding to improve and expand access to mental health services. It includes policies from the MENTAL Health for Kids and Underserved Act and the Senate Finance Committee Bipartisan Mental Health Working Group telehealth discussion draft led by Senator Thune and me to improve telehealth services for students with Medicaid and CHIP.

Increasing resources for mental health services are critical, but it is important that we not conflate mental illness and gun violence. And I heard Senator Blunt talk about that. Not every instance of gun violence is connected to mental illness, and not every mental health crisis prompts the use of a weapon.

To that end, the COVID-19 pandemic has made abundantly clear that our children need additional mental health resources offered in schools. We must

also significantly increase the pipeline of individuals willing to serve in those school-based mental health service positions.

This legislation addresses that challenge head on and provides supplemental funding to both train new school-based mental health service providers and provide students with the specific mental health services they require.

While not able to meet the needs of every school currently without counselors or mental health professionals, this bill will make significant strides to ensure that a significantly greater percentage of students have access to mental health services.

The legislation we pass in the Senate soon will save lives and help keep our communities safer, but there are many more reasonable steps we can and should take, consistent with the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.

I will continue to strongly support the establishment of universal background checks for all gun purchases, the banning of assault weapons and high-capacity magazine clips from private ownership, and raising the minimum age to 21 to buy assault weapons, in the absence of a ban.

The Senate should also act quickly to confirm the nomination of Steven Dettelbach to be the director of Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The ATF has not had a permanent Senate- confirmed director since 2015, and the Agency is sorely overdue for permanent leadership who can carry out its critical mission to stem the illegal use and trafficking of firearms, among other important priorities.

To that end, let me point out I am a cosponsor of the Background Check Expansion Act, which would require checks for all gun sales, including those by unlicensed sellers; the Assault Weapons Ban Act, which would generally ban the sale, manufacture, transfer, and importation of assault weapons; the Background Check Completion Act, which would eliminate the Charleston loophole that allows for a sale to go forward if a check is not completed within 3 days; the Keep Americans Safe Act, which prohibits the importation, sale, manufacture, transfer, or possession of magazines that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition.

The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which we can and will pass, will save lives, but there is still more work that we should do to keep our students and our communities safe.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate the University of Maryland's Men's Lacrosse Team for winning the NCAA Division 1 championship. The Terrapins completed an historic undefeated season, winning 18 games--an NCAA record for the most victories in a season without a loss. The perfect season culminated with a 9-7 victory over Cornell University for the national championship.

Lacrosse is the oldest organized team sport in North America, dating back among Indigenous communities to 1100 AD. Jesuit missionaries in Canada documented the Mohawk people playing the game in 1757. Here in the United States, lacrosse is popular nationwide, but New York and Maryland remain the ``hotbeds'' of lacrosse. The game became popular in the Baltimore area in the 1890s. The NCAA began hosting a tournament to determine the national champion in 1971. In the 51 years since then-- there was no tournament in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic--the Terps have won four national championships, Johns Hopkins University-- JHU--has won nine, and Loyola University Maryland has won one. Maryland universities have been national champion or runner-up in 37 of the 51 years the NCAA has hosted the tournament.

The Terps' championship season was particularly sweet, coming on the heels of a one-goal loss to the University of Virginia--UVA--in last year's championship match. That was the team's only loss last season; over the last 2 years, the Terps have gone 33-1. This year' team was the first Division 1 team to go undefeated since 2006 and just the fourth undefeated team over the past 30 years, joining UVA, JHU, and Princeton in that exalted club. The championship is the second for head coach John Tillman, who has guided the Terps to the NCAA tournament all 11 years he has been the head coach.

Lacrosse is truly a team sport. There are a few players, however, whose contributions deserve special recognition. Logan Wisnauskas-- attack--became the first Terp to record 100 points in a single season and then went on to win the Tewaaraton Award as the Nation's top collegiate player after a 61 goal, 42 assist, 103 point season. Anthony DeMaio--midfield--scored the 100th goal of his career during the national championship game and scored 17 goals in the postseason. He scored three straight goals during a span of 2:09--and four overall for his fifth hat trick in his last six games--as Maryland ended the first quarter on a 4-0 run to take a lead the team would not relinquish. Goalie Logan McNaney was the 2022 NCAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player, making 17 saves against Cornell and 61 saves in the tournament. Wisnauskas, DeMaio, McNaney, Luke Wierman--faceoff--and Ajax Zappitello--defense--were named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team.

I congratulate all the players, coaches, and staff for guiding the Terps through a season for the record books and making all Marylanders proud. The players are: Noah Beacham, Colin Burlace, Jack Brennan, B.J. Burlace, Chace Cope, Joshua Coffman, Jonathan Donville, Anthony DeMaio, Bubba Fairman, Gabe Goforth, John Geppert, Garrett Gibbons, Jake Higgins, Geordy Holmes, Matthew Kopp, Charlie Koras, Keegan Khan, Jack Koras, Shea Keethler, Daniel Kelly, Kyle Long, Eric Malever, Drew Morris, Logan McNaney, Jackson Marshall, Daniel Maltz, Brett Makar, Jack McDonald, Owen Murphy, Roman Puglise, Owen Prybylski, Matt Rahill, Michael Roche, Nick Redd, King Ripley, Eric Spanos, Ryan Siracusa, Alex Smith, Westin Schmidt, Justin Sherrer, Gavin Tygh, Kevin Tucker, Logan Wisnauskas, Zach Whittier, Alex Wicks, Dawson Wynne, Luke Wierman, and Ajax Zappitello.

The coaches are: John Tillman, head coach; Bobby Benson, assistant coach; Jesse Bernhardt, assistant coach; and Carroll Kennedy, volunteer assistant coach. The staff includes: Tim Ahner, equipment manager; Heather Arianna, academic adviser; Anthony Benyarko, MS, ATC, CES-- athletic trainer; Colleen Carrion, MS, RD, CDN, CSSD--sports nutrition; Ben Hoffman, strength and conditioning; Clara Hollander, director of operations; Sharle Kekuewa, marketing strategy and fan experience; Eric Mantz, facilities, operations and events; Josh Schmidt, media relations; Sydnee Strong, student-athlete development; and Brian Thornburg, development.

Madam President, I take this time to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the enactment of title IX. It was passed and enacted on June 23, 50 years ago, when President Nixon signed title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 into law, which explicitly added the following sex discrimination provision into the law:

No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex,

be excluded from participating in, be denied the benefits of,

or be subjected to discrimination under any education program

or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.

Broadly speaking, title IX prohibits any institution that receives Federal education funding from discriminating against students or employees on the basis of sex.

Today, I would like to reflect on how far we have come in terms of combating sex discrimination in the United States, how far we still need to go, and what steps we can take as we strive to guarantee equal rights and equal justice under the law for all Americans, regardless of their gender identification or sexual orientation.

Sex discrimination comes in many forms and historically has included discrimination based on pregnancy or sex stereotypes. We have seen sex discrimination that includes sexual harassment in our schools and in the workplace, dating violence, and sex-based stalking. Such sexual harassment and discrimination often leads to higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide attempts for the women affected and can lead to higher rates of dropping out of school.

Congress responded, in part, by passing the Violence Against Women Act in 1994 and recently reauthorizing it and strengthening it in 2022.

Title IX is certainly responsible for much of the progress women have made in the last half a century. Today, women earn nearly 60 percent of the doctoral, master's, bachelor's, and associate degrees conferred in this Nation. A stubborn disparity still exists, however, with respect to women--and, in particular, women of color--earning science, technology, engineering, and math--STEM--degrees.

In terms of sports, we have seen an enormous increase in women and girls participating in athletic activities, with more than a 1,000- percent increase in high school-level sports and a 600-percent increase in collegiate-level sports--an increase that helps them develop leadership and teamwork skills and, in some cases, earn athletic scholarships and become professional athletes.

In professions where women represent a majority of employees, women are still held back from obtaining leadership positions. For example, women represent more than three-quarters of the entire healthcare workforce, yet just 27 percent of chief executive officer positions in our hospital systems.

Looking at title IX progress and the road ahead, the National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education, the National Women's Law Center, and others recently released a report, ``Title IX at 50.'' The report takes a look at title IX's impact over the last half a century, celebrating the significant progress to end sex discrimination in education while recognizing the work that remains to be done.

Let me quote from that report:

Despite the tremendous progress towards gender equity in

the last 50 years, students today continue to be deprived of

their education because of sex discrimination. . . . Schools

are not adequately protecting students from sexual

harassment, sex- and race-based discipline, and

discrimination based on their sexual orientation, gender

identity, or pregnancy or parenting status. Twenty percent of

girls have been victims of sexual assault or attempted sexual

assault while in high school, and 1 in 5 women and 1 in 4

transgender or gender nonconforming students are sexually

assaulted on college campuses.

Women and girls and LGBTQI+ students continue to face sex

discrimination in athletics, in STEM and [career and

technical education] programs, and in sex-segregated

classrooms and schools.

We still have progress that we need to achieve.

I support the U.S. Department of Education's effort to undo the Trump administration's weakening of civil rights protections for student survivors and to ensure the protection of the LGBTQ community and students in the face of mounting violent threats, hateful rhetoric, and cruel attacks from State officials.

As the Women's Law Center commented recently on the enhanced title IX protections:

We urge the swift release of a robust proposed rule by the

Department of Education by the 50th anniversary of Title IX

on June 23, 2022. . . . Students are protesting across the

country, demanding that their schools meaningfully address

sex-based harassment; they are in desperate need of Title

IX's full protections. The proposed rule is critical to begin

the regulatory process for undoing the harmful changes made

to the Title IX rule in 2020 [by the Trump administration] .

. . and to address mounting threats to LGBTQI+ students and

school communities. While sex-based harassment in schools

remains pervasive, the 2020 Rule pushes schools to ignore

many instances of sex-based harassment, leaving scores of

survivors without recourse . . . [which] are harmful to

student survivors, [and] deter reporting. These harms

especially fall on women and girls of color, disabled

survivors, LGBTQI+ survivors, and pregnant and parenting

survivors, all who face stereotypes casting them as less

credible when they report sexual misconduct.

As I said, we still have a road ahead of us.

Let me close by saying that when it comes to equality for women in our laws and Constitution, there should be no deadline on equality. Most Americans already think the Equal Rights Amendment is part of our Constitution. The needed 38 States have completed their legal ratification. We now need to remove any ambiguity and finally complete the ratification of the 28th amendment to our Constitution.

I have introduced bipartisan legislation with Senator Murkowski, S.J. Res. 1, which would rescind the ERA arbitrary ratification deadline. The House has passed this legislation, and it has 51 cosponsors in the Senate.

After the Equal Rights Amendment itself was first passed by the Senate in 1972, Congress changed the 7-year deadline to 10 years, setting a precedent for such activity and authority. There is no deadline in the ERA itself. Legal enactment of the Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution should take place 2 years after two- thirds of the House and Senate and three-fourths of the States ratify. Nevada ratified the ERA in March of 2017; Illinois, in May of 2018; and Virginia, the 38th State, in January of 2020.

Article V of the Constitution contains no time limits for the ratification of amendments. The States finally ratified the 27th Amendment in 1992 regarding congressional pay raises more than 200 years after Congress proposed it in 1789 as part of the original Bill of Rights. That amendment is now part of our Constitution. The ERA time limit was contained in a joint resolution, not the actual text of the amendment.

The ERA would simply provide that ``equality of rights under law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of sex.'' The amendment also provides that ``Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.''

Just like with title IX, women are not asking for privileges; they are simply asking to be treated equally under the law and to be afforded the same legal rights as men under the law.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate vote at 6 p.m. on the motion to discharge the nomination of Hernan D.

Vera to be United States District Judge for the Central District of California.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, this Sunday, we commemorate the 157th Juneteenth, a portmanteau of June and the nineteenth, which celebrates the liberation of the last remaining enslaved Black Americans at the end of the Civil War. This is our newest Federal holiday, which we will observe on Monday, but African-American communities have celebrated Juneteenth as Emancipation Day, Jubilee Day, or Black Independence Day as far back as 1886 in Texas.

On this date in 1865, U.S. Army Major General Gordon Granger arrived at a Confederate outpost in Galveston, TX, where he delivered the news of Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation to 250,000 still- enslaved Texans. Many United States Colored Troops--USCT--who fought for freedom and to preserve the Union, accompanied Granger. Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which granted Black Americans their freedom, 2 years earlier. Robert E. Lee had surrendered to U.S. Army Lt. General Ulysses Grant 2 months earlier at Appomattox.

In my home State of Maryland, abolitionists Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman paved the way for future civil rights activists by risking their lives to help bring enslaved people to freedom. Their work has had a profound impact on our community and on Maryland's rich cultural history.

African-American history is American history. We all must learn the lessons of Juneteenth and understand how our lives have been changed because of it. We cannot celebrate the freedoms brought forth on Juneteenth without acknowledging there was slavery in the United States of America. Slavery is a part of American history. The Constitution originally protected slavery through the fugitive slave clause and three-fifths clause.

We cannot and should not hide from these facts or try to erase them from our history books or suppress them in our classrooms.

In Maryland, we often look to the work of Justice Thurgood Marshall, who spent his life fighting for the rights of Black Americans and trying to reverse systemic discrimination. Marshall, arguing before the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education and later serving as the first African-American Associate Justice on the Court, set a precedent for future generations of Black men and women that even the highest honors are within their reach. The Senate recently confirmed Ketanji Brown Jackson to be the first Black woman on the Supreme Court.

While Thurgood Marshall was an inspiration, his work of reversing systemic racism is far from complete. It is our responsibility as a Nation to continue the work Justice Marshall and activists like him started. Though we have made progress, the fight for racial justice will never be complete until we have achieved equitable treatment for people of all races and can truly guarantee equality of opportunity. The pursuit of racial justice will ensure that we live up to our Nation's promise of equality for all people, regardless of the color of their skin.

Countering systemic racism and advancing racial justice should be a daily occurrence. We must learn from our past, actively challenge our own prejudices, and take conscious steps to dismantle the racist structures embedded in our society.

On President Biden's first day in office, he signed an Executive order entitled ``Advancing Racial Equity and Support from Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government.'' The President directed Federal Agencies to assess how their programs and policies might be perpetuating systemic barriers to opportunity and to propose Equity Action Plans that contain specific Agency commitments to redress inequities and promote equitable outcomes in communities.

The Biden-Harris administration has already taken numerous steps to expand opportunities for African-Americans. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law permanently reauthorizes the Minority Business Development Agency for the first time and enhances its authority. The administration has stepped up its efforts to combat racial discrimination in the housing market and to help African-Americans get fair treatment when it comes to staying in their homes and on their farms and receiving disaster assistance after tragedy strikes.

In particular, as the pandemic exacerbated preexisting racial disparities, the administration took strong steps to improve outcomes for African-Americans with respect to education, healthcare, and transportation.

As we commemorate this historic holiday, I encourage all Americans to reflect on the many lessons of the story of Juneteenth and commit ourselves to the pursuit of racial justice and reconciliation. If we do that, individually and collectively, Juneteenth truly will become a Jubilee.

I ask unanimous consent that all time be yielded back.

Mr. President, next Tuesday, June 21, there will be a memorial service to honor Stephen H. Sachs, who died on January 12 at his home in Baltimore at the age of 87. Steve Sachs was U.S. Attorney for Maryland for 3 years and Maryland's Attorney General for two terms. He was one of the finest lawyers in the Nation--a proud son of Maryland, a proud son of Baltimore. He was an indefatigable, ever optimistic Orioles fan. He had a brilliant intellect and a sparkling sense of humor.

Steve was born in Baltimore on January 31, 1934. His father was director of the Baltimore Jewish Council and a labor arbitrator, and his mother was a homemaker. Steve received a bachelor's degree in 1954 from Haverford College and then served in the Army from 1955 to 1957. He received a Fulbright scholarship to study at the University of Oxford in England. He received his law degree from Yale Law School in 1960. He worked as a prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland. In 1967, then-President Lyndon Johnson appointed Steve as the U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, a position he held until 1970.

Steve prosecuted cases involving white-collar crime and public corruption. In 1968, he prosecuted Vietnam war protesters known as the Catonsville Nine, Roman Catholic anti-war activists who broke into the Selective Service office in Catonsville, MD, in an attempt to destroy draft records. It was a high-profile case. The Rev. Daniel Berrigan and his brother, the Rev. Philip Berrigan, led activists on a raid at Draft Board 33 in Catonsville. Steve secured a guilty verdict in Federal court for destroying government property.

Fifty years later, in a retrospective article in the ``Baltimore Sun'', Steve wrote with a searing honesty, ``I believed then, and believe now, that the nine were brave men and women who acted out of a conviction that the war in Vietnam was profoundly evil. But I believed then, and I believe now, that the conduct of the nine--particularly their insistence that their action at Catonsville should have been condoned because they were `right'--offends both the rule of law and a fundamental tenet of the American democracy.'' I think that statement captures Steve's character perfectly.

Steve was in private practice from 1970 to 1978 when he ran an outsider campaign to become Maryland's Attorney General. He didn't align himself with any gubernatorial candidate, which had been the practice. He stated, ``The attorney general should be independent. The attorney general should be the people's lawyer.'' After several public corruption scandals, Marylanders appreciated Steve's unquestioned integrity and were receptive to his activist, reform-oriented campaign. He served two terms as Attorney General and practically reinvented the position. He established a strong Consumer Protection Division within the Office of Attorney General that assisted Marylanders against corporate abuse. As the State's Attorney General, he argued three cases before the U.S. Supreme Court--and won all three. Steve's 8 years as Attorney General overlapped with my service as speaker of the house of delegates, where I had the benefit of Steven's excellent counsel.

In 1986, Steve decided to run for Governor, but he lost the Democratic primary to then-Baltimore mayor William Donald Schaefer. After that defeat, Steve returned to private practice as a partner in the Washington, DC, office of Wilmer-Hale, then known as Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering. He retired from the firm in 1999.

Steve's political career may have officially ``ended'' when he was just 52, but over the years, he became an elder statesman of Maryland politics. As his former colleagues at Wilmer-Hale said, ``Steve was an elegant writer, a powerful advocate and an extremely accomplished trial lawyer. He was a generous partner, colleague and mentor. He taught a generation of lawyers how to write a brief, take a deposition and try a case . . . He was a mensch.''

Steve's passion for justice never waned. After he retired from Wilmer-Hale, he joined the Public Justice Center, where he had a significant impact on the development of the center's Appellate Advocacy Project. Steve was a passionate advocate of the civil right to counsel movement, helping to establish the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel. In 2008, then-Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley appointed Steve to head an independent

review of the Maryland State Police, which had infiltrated activist groups that were lawfully protesting against the death penalty and the war in Iraq.

Steve may be gone, but his legacy is firmly established. Last Friday, I had the honor of attending the investiture of Erek Baron as the first Black U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland. Erek is just one of Steve's countless proteges carrying on his mission. Erek said, ``Steve Sachs was one of the most respected public servants in Maryland's history and a personal mentor to me and many others.''

Deuteronomy 16:20 implores us, ``Justice, justice you shall pursue . . .''. That was Steve Sachs' guiding principle. He did all he could to make the world a better place. It wasn't always easy or comfortable, but he understood the importance of justice under the law. I respected his legal passion, and I am grateful that he shared it with generations of Maryland attorneys as a mentor and a friend. On behalf of the Senate, I send my condolences to his daughter Elisabeth Sachs, his son Leon Sachs, his three grandchildren, and other family members and all those who were fortunate to have him as a friend, colleague, or mentor and mourn his passing.

Mr. President, this June marks 53 years since the attack on the Stonewall Inn and 52 years since the first pride parade was held in New York City. The Stonewall riots are widely recognized as the catalyst for the resurgence of the fight for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex--LGBTQI+--rights, and they were the first in a series of landmark events that would define the LGBTQ experience of the late 20th century.

From the UpStairs Lounge arson attack to the devastating AIDS crisis, the community persevered through many harrowing ordeals. During this month, we recognize not only the struggles of the LGBTQ community but the triumphs, both big and small.

Not nearly as well known, the UpStairs Lounge arson attack took place nearly 4 years after the Stonewall riots, on June 24, 1973. Patrons of the New Orleans bar, which primarily served as a safe meeting space for blue-collar gay men, noticed a fire in the front stairwell just before 8 p.m. The fire spread rapidly, forcing patrons to flee to the rooftop and out the barred windows to escape. Unfortunately, this was not enough. Twenty-eight people lost their lives in the blaze, and four more succumbed to their injuries in the following days. This horrendous act would go on to become the deadliest attack on the LGBTQ community until the Pulse nightclub shooting in 2016, which claimed the lives of 49 individuals. Both of these attacks took place during Pride Month, a month that celebrates love, acceptance, and community.

The celebration of Pride Month also allows members of the LGBTQ community to reassert their rights to openly be their true selves and say: ``We are here. We are not going away.'' This message is especially important now, as the Supreme Court prepares to vote on potentially overriding Roe v. Wade, the decision that protects an individual's right to privacy and control over their own bodies. Justice Samuel Alito's reasoning in this argument, though not final, threatens an entire line of rights that the Court has inferred from the text of the Constitution over decades, including foundational protections for the LGBTQ people such as marriage equality, established in the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges decision.

I am an original cosponsor of the Equality Act, S. 393, which would safeguard and protect equal rights for the LGBTQ individuals in areas including public accommodations and facilities, education, Federal funding, employment, housing, credit, and the jury system. I am also the lead sponsor of the resolution to eliminate the deadline for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, which would strengthen the constitutional foundation for pro-LGBTQ legislation like the Equality Act.

I strongly oppose action by the Supreme Court to take away the rights of Americans by overturning Roe or Obergefell or other cases like Griswold v. Connecticut, which guarantees the rights of families to have access to contraception and family planning.

While I am proud that Maryland has, at the State level, protections in place to preserve the sanctity of same-sex marriage should these rights come under threat at a Federal level, such fundamental rights must be respected at the national level. As many have pointed out, Supreme Court decisions to overturn precedent have historically expanded individual rights, not taken them away.

LGBTQ Pride Month is an integral part of our community here in Maryland. Parades and celebrations are taking place all across the State, from Salisbury to Cumberland. As an ally, I am committed to uplifting and supporting the LGBTQ voices. In particular, we must make a special effort to protect transgender children and their parents and safeguard their access to healthcare and social services during these challenging times.

As extremism grows louder in many States, we must stand united and firm in the face of injustice and continue to proclaim that love has been and always will be love.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, I rise today to speak about S. Res. 124 that Senator Wicker and I introduced last year celebrating the heritage of Romani Americans. I applaud the passage of this resolution which was voted on favorably in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today and will now be moved to the Senate floor for consideration.

This resolution is significant as it expresses remembrance for the genocide of the Roma by the Nazis, commends the work of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in promoting this remembrance and awareness, and further expresses support for the annual International Roma Day to honor the history, culture, and heritage of the Romani people in the United States. Roma have been part of every single wave of European migration to the United States from the Colonial period to today, and there are now an estimated 1 million Americans who have some Romani ancestry. S. Res. 124 is the first resolution considered in Congress to acknowledge Romani Americans and to celebrate their heritage and history. Its passage will be a milestone for this community.

When Senator Wicker and I introduced S. Res. 124, we observed that Romani people enrich the fabric of our Nation and strengthen the transatlantic bond. The resolution mentions two dates of particular importance on both sides of the Atlantic. First, April 8 was the date of the first World Romani Congress, held near London. That date is therefore celebrated as the moment when transatlantic efforts to improve the situation of the Roma entered a new, more visible and more productive stage.

But more than that, it has become time for policymakers to focus on continued efforts to improve the situation of Roma. Ugly discrimination against the Roma persists and needs to be addressed. The European Parliament, for example, dedicates a week in April to review and advance Romani inclusion initiatives. Governments across Europe and the OSCE also use this as a time to focus on policy and the future. This resolution welcomes and encourages the Department of State's participation in such events and activities.

The second date specifically mentioned in the resolution is the night of August 2-3, 1944, when the Romani camp at Auschwitz was liquidated and more than 4,200 Romani men, women, and children were killed in a single night.

This day has been formally recognized as a day of commemoration by

the European Union, Poland, and other countries. Based on my work over many years in the Helsinki Commission, I know that the current situation of Roma in Europe today simply cannot be understood without learning about the genocide of Roma during World War II and the enduring legacy of that tragedy.

I believe more should be done to teach about Romani experiences during the Holocaust, and we welcome the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum's support for scholarship in this area. This resolution commends the Museum for its work in promoting remembrance of the Holocaust and educating successor generations about the genocide of Roma.

The museum welcomed the introduction of this resolution last year, observing, ``House and Senate passage will help raise awareness about the history of the Romani people, the richness of Romani culture, and to unequivocally reject the dehumanization of Roma and any violence directed against their communities.'' I look forward to the opportunity for this resolution to be adopted by the Senate. I ask unanimous consent that the text of S. Res. 124 be printed in the Record.

Madam President, another mass shooting, another elementary school; 19 children, ages 7 through 10, gunned down; two adults killed. They were in our schools--an elementary school, a place that parents send their children expecting it to be a safe zone where they can learn and interact with other children and be safe from things like being attacked and shot. An elementary school we are talking about, the anguish of the families who have lost their children or lost their loved ones.

Children who witnessed this will be traumatized for life, scarred by what happened in Texas.

And then last week, we saw in Buffalo 10 people gunned down while shopping in a grocery store, very much racially motivated by a White supremacist. This is happening throughout our country.

We have had gun violence in Baltimore. A few years ago, we had gun violence at Great Mills High School in Maryland. We are seeing this happen over and over and over again.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the upcoming adjournment of the Senate, the President of the Senate, the President pro tempore, and the majority and minority leaders be authorized to make appointments to commissions, committees, boards, conferences or interparliamentary conferences authorized by law, by concurrent action of the two Houses, or by order of the Senate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 347, S. 629.

I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported substitute amendment be 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.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 349, S. 1941.

I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported substitute amendment be 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.