Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, today I rise to congratulate Dr. Stuart Cohen on his term as the 138th President of the San Diego County Medical Society (SDCMS). As America faces the difficult challenges of addressing health care reform, it is reassuring that there are leaders like Dr. Cohen in positions of influence to help our nation craft policies that will bring quality and accessible health care to all Americans.

The San Diego County Medical Society, representing over 8,000 physicians in San Diego County, is a non-profit organization founded in 1870. SDCMS is chartered by the California Medical Association and affiliated with the American Medical Association (AMA). The mission of SDCMS is to promote the science and art of medicine, the quality care and wellbeing of patients, the protection of the public health, the betterment of the medical profession, and the adjudication of ethical relations to its members, as well as the provision of education to its members in scientific, social, legal, and medico-economic aspects of medical practice.

Dr. Cohen received his medical degree in 1981 from the University of Manitoba and served his internship and residency at the Health Sciences Center at Children's Hospital in Winnipeg, Canada. Dr. Cohen is board certified in pediatrics and has been a member of Children's Primary Care Medical Group since 1996.

Dr. Cohen has been an active member of the San Diego County Medical Society and the California Medical Association since 1988 and the American Medical Association since 1994. He has served on numerous committees as a CMA delegate, an AMA delegate, as well as the SDCMS Board of Directors, Executive and Finance Committees and the San Diego Physician magazine Editorial Board. Dr. Cohen is also a member of numerous medical societies including the American Academy of Pediatrics--San Diego Chapter and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Dr. Cohen is well respected by his peers as evidenced by the fact he was selected as a San Diego ``Top Doctor'' for the last four years. On a personal note, I have benefited immensely from Dr. Cohen's wise counsel on how to craft effective health care policy for all San Diegans.

Let history show that this year will be the year Congress makes progress on health reform. Americans are demanding we put partisan differences aside and devise a health care system that covers all Americans, puts patients first and ensures the highest quality.

With influential leaders such as Dr. Stuart Cohen leading the fight, I feel confident Congress will craft sensible health care policy.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor the service of Henry ``Hank'' Nordhoff to both the biotechnology and life sciences communities of San Diego, as well as to Gen-Probe, from which he is retiring after serving fifteen years as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Hank is nearly peerless when it comes to the contributions he has made to the life sciences community of San Diego and I wish him well in his retirement.

The state of California is far and away the leader when it comes to the life sciences industry. With over 2,000 companies employing 271,000 people and generating $20.3 billion in salaries and wages, California is the gold standard for science and biotechnology that the rest of the country tries to emulate. San Diego is the crown jewel in the California crown with 36,600 employees in the life science community in San Diego County at more than 500 companies, including traditional biotech, medical device, diagnostic and technology companies. Atop that mountain stands Gen-Probe, led by Mr. Hank Nordhoff.

Hank joined Gen-Probe Incorporated in July 1994 as president and CEO. Following the spin-off from Chugai Pharmaceuticals in September 2002, he was also appointed chairman of Gen-Probe's board of directors. Hank contributed greatly to the innovation that defines Gen-Probe, and that is embodied in more than 480 patents the company has been issued around the world. Gen-Probe's business is devoted to nucleic acid testing (NAT). NAT is the science of identifying diseases accurately and rapidly by detecting genetic fingerprints that are unique to an infectious microorganism or a cancerous tumor. Gen-Probe's pioneering and innovative role in NAT has been broadly recognized--culminating in the company receiving the 2004 National Medal of Technology, America's highest honor for technological innovation, for developing molecular tests that protect America's supply of donated blood from HIV, hepatitis and West Nile virus.

On a personal note, I have had the privilege of working closely with Hank on a number of life sciences issues since coming back to Congress in June 2006. Hank has been a trusted advisor as part of my science and technology advisory group and I have come to rely on his wise counsel on everything from patent reform to personalized medicine. It is no surprise to me to know that he has been named as one of San Diego's most admired CEOs. Hank is a true visionary and his work will continue to shape the landscape of San Diego's biotechnology community long into the future.

In short, Hank is a successful business executive, employer, statesman and philanthropist, and I wish him well in his future retirement endeavors.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to commend my constituent Adam Lambert for his amazing journey on Season 8 of Fox's American Idol. Every week Adam has entertained the American public with his artistic renditions of American classics, from Johnny Cash's ``Ring of Fire'' to Led Zepplin's ``Whole Lotta Love.'' His performances are inspiring young people everywhere to work hard, aim high and follow their dreams.

With still two more weeks of the competition to go, I join with the people of San Diego, California to wish Adam the best of luck. As one of Adam's favorite artists, Lenny Kravitz once said: ``I just need to know that I did the very best I could and that I was true to myself.'' Adam, we will be rooting for you and looking forward to your next unique and creative performance.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to mourn the passing of one of San Diego Counties most beloved citizens, Mayor Mickey Cafagna. Mayor Cafagna lost his battle to cancer on Saturday, April 11, 2009, and I urge my colleagues to join me in commemorating the life of this devoted public servant.

Mayor Cafagna has had a long history of serving San Diego County. In addition to being a successful businessman, he was elected mayor of Poway, served on the Poway City Council, was chairman of the Regional Solid Waste Association, and represented the city of Poway on the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) since 1998, serving two years as Chairman of the Board, where I had the privilege to serve with him.

A consummate family man, Mayor Cafagna is survived by his wife Sharon of 43 years, his two children and five grandchildren, who were the light of his life. Mayor Cafagna was widely known and respected for his goodwill to all, his ability to bring people together with warmth, humility, and good sense of humor. His accomplishments both personal and public are to be commended and I can say that he will be sincerely missed by the people of San Diego County, especially in the beautiful city of Poway.

It is with immense gratitude that I commend Mayor Cafagna for his long and distinguished service on behalf of his constituents and county. His humor and easygoing personality will be greatly missed by all who worked with him. However the stories and warm memories of this larger than life man will be shared by many. I urge my colleagues to join me in commemorating the life of Mayor Mickey Cafagna.

Mr. Speaker, this bill is one that is balanced in time and in effort. At a time when snow packs on Sierra Nevada are very low, at a time when the fact that the water supplies for Southern California have been cut off dramatically through a court order restriction or outright abolition on pumping in the Delta area of the San Joaquin Valley because of the endangered delta smelt, and especially due to the fact that this problem has run into Hodges, those of us in the Federal Government can take a little bit of responsibility here, seeing the fact that a major contributing factor to the pollution problem in this lake was our procedure in the Endangered Species Act, though meaning well to preserve the species, took time that created the problem.

And let me explain to you what happened here. The lake lowered to a level where habitat for the least Bell's vireo was able to grow on the dry land during that time.

When authorities realized that this was going to become a problem, they were not allowed, because of the permitting process for what had been designated a habitat that was great for the least Bell's vireo, an endangered species at that time, now threatened, but basically to explain it is the process took so long that the lake raised back up, flooded out this habitat, and now that habitat is decomposing and polluting the waters of Lake Hodges.

No one meant this to happen. There was no intention by either the environmental agencies involved or by the local community to address this issue. It was just as our regulations go, we create these less- than-appropriate situations.

This bill is one that not only recognizes the responsibility of the Federal Government to the problem, but really is one where the local community is saying we will take on the great majority of the responsibility of addressing this issue. For every dollar of Federal funds that is committed under this bill, there will be $3 of local funds to address this.

And this is not an issue that only affects the 50th District, my district, and

a small section around Lake Hodges. The entirety of Southern California is desperate for the massive amounts of water--not massive--but large amounts of water that is not safe to drink at this time.

I think this is a good cooperative effort. The local community has said we will match you 3 to 1. We will hold harmless the fact that the procedures didn't work out like we would all like it to do, but we will be able to make available very safe drinking water in a very environmentally, friendly way.

And that's basically one of those things that I think we can look to as Federal representatives of cooperating, not doing something for the local community but helping the local community do itself and addressing concerns and problems that we might have been part and parcel involved, sticking to our responsibility as long as the local community is willing to stand up and take care of theirs.

With that, I would ask passage of this bill, Mr. Speaker. I think it's one of those, as the chairwoman for the committee pointed out, it's a reasonable, balanced approach. And when we talk about a 3 to 1 match, a local, I think we have got a very strong statement here that the Federal Government is willing to participate, especially when a community is willing to match us 3 to 1 for a situation that everyone agrees no one was without fault on this.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Colonel Christopher O'Connor, Commanding Officer of Marine Corps Air Station, Miramar (MCAS, Miramar) which I have the pleasure of representing. Colonel O'Connor has served his country with distinction for over twenty years and I wish him nothing but the best as a new chapter in his life begins.

Colonel O'Connor was born and raised in New York where he received his commission through the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) at the University of Rochester in May of 1979. Since then, he has participated in humanitarian relief operations while deployed to the Republic of the Philippines, served as the Aviation Department's action officer for Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) issues and aviation training range systems and reported to the Office of Asian and Pacific Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense where he served as the Country Director for Australia and New Zealand.

In August 2006, Colonel O'Connor took over as Commanding Officer of MCAS, Miramar where he has excelled in working with local leaders while representing the Marine Corp with professionalism and distinction to communities surrounding the base and San Diego County as a whole. Colonel O'Connor's decorations include the Legion of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with gold star, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Navy Commendation Medal, and Navy Achievement Medal.

I applaud the good service that Colonel O'Connor has provided this country. He has been an absolute pleasure to work with throughout his tenure and I urge my colleagues to join me in celebrating this great American.

Madam Speaker, I submit the following:

Requesting Member: Congressman Brian Bilbray

Bill Number: H.R. 1105, the FY2009 Omnibus Appropriations bill

Account: Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Interstate Maintenance

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: City of Encinitas, CA

Address of Requesting Entity: 505 S. Vulcan Avenue, Encinitas, CA 92034

Description of Request: I secured $285,000 in the FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations bill for the Encinitas Boulevard/Interstate 5 Interchange Project Study Report, Project Report, and Environmental Review. The City of Encinitas is contracting with an engineering consultant to prepare a Project Study Report, Project Report and Environmental Document for the Encinitas Blvd/I-5 Interchange. The consulting firm (Dokken Engineering) is working with CALTRANS and the City of Encinitas staff to study and develop viable alternatives for four Interstate 5 interchanges, including the Encinitas Boulevard interchange. Unless the City can fund this study, Caltrans will move ahead with an environmental review and design on their ``minimum build'' alternative for this interchange, which assumes no under crossing widening and some roadway improvements, while maintaining the existing diamond interchange configuration. Encinitas Boulevard must be widened as part of the North Coast Interstate 5 Corridor (widening) Project or the City will suffer significant traffic congestion at this location by 2030 and probably much sooner. If the City is to have any hope of later integrating its alternative, we need to keep pace with the Interstate 5 widening project.

Requesting Member: Congressman Brian Bilbray

Bill Number: H.R. 1105, the FY2009 Omnibus Appropriations bill

Account: Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Interstate Maintenance

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: City of San Diego, CA

Address of Requesting Entity: 202 C Street, San Diego, CA 92101

Description of Request: I secured $475,000 to fund relocation of fiber optic cable that is obstructing a major interstate highway interchange improvement project to connect I-5 with S.R. 56 in San Diego. The I-5 corridor is the primary link between Southern California--San Diego, Los Angeles, Orange County--and Mexico. The route experiences extensive traffic congestion, with average daily counts at the interchange site of 261,000 vehicles, including 10,000 trucks, projected to reach 430,000 daily vehicles within 20 years. The project is consistent with the authorized purpose of the Department of Transportation Interstate Maintenance account, which includes funding for the addition of new interchanges. Local and State matching funds will provide at least 20% cost share.

Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the bill here today, and I would just like to highlight the issue that, as we commit taxpayers' funds to addressing the environmental issues that face this country, that we recognize that outcome is what really matters when we talk about spending money to clean up the environment.

Chairman Oberstar has worked with me for years on a problem that we have got to address, and I am not saying we as my district, I am saying nationally; that we have sent funds all over the country and looked at process, rather than how a city or a community may impact the environment.

A good example is the fact that you may have a city of Chicago that was outrageous in saying they were worried about polluting Lake Michigan, because they were polluting their own water. But they built a canal so they can dump the water into the Illinois River and pollute all the waters of the Mississippi.

I think one of the things that we have got to recognize is being smart with our money and addressing the fact that these funds should go to where is the best environmental benefit. And a good example would be the fact that there are certain areas where the treatment of the sewage at its existing level has no net negative impact, but there are other areas which have highly sensitive environments that are being polluted, even though the Federal law technically is being protected, things like the secondary mandate, where we should be putting our resources into tertiary and reclamation, where you end up having areas like deep-water discharge places, where right now scientists will tell you there is no net degradation.

So I would just ask the majority to take a look at when we focus these funds, that we focus it where the most benefit to the environment can be given, much like we have done in California. We have gone beyond the process issue and gone to the outcome-

based environmental review, the Clean Oceans Project, so that we spend every cent in a manner that protects the environment and not just fulfill a regulatory problem. And so I think it is absolutely essential that we avoid situations like we have run into in southern California, where the environmental impact report says that----

The example is, Mr. Chairman, where you have got an environmental impact report that says that if you execute the letter of the law, you would be hurting the environment. And no one ever meant that to happen. I want to make sure that as we move forward that the letter of the law reflects protection for the environment first, not just following a regulation blindly. The law should always be reminded that it is here to protect the environment first, not just blindly move forward in spending taxpayers' funds.

And that is where I would ask that the committee take a look at these situations. I think Hawaii is in a situation where we may be sending funds to Hawaii to build facilities that do not have a net positive impact on the environment. I don't think any of us ever meant for clean water funds to be diverted into an area that is not helping the environment when you have areas that desperately need these funds.

And that is one of those things I think we have to recognize, the environmental community, the days of just caring being enough, are over. It is essential that those of us who want to protect the environment need to be smart and make sure that every cent spent, both local and Federal, go toward helping the environment, not just fulfilling a regulatory guideline and not just providing a threshold that somehow looks good on paper but doesn't protect the environment.

And I look forward to working with the chairman and making sure that every dollar spent in this program helps the environment, cleans up the environment, and does it in a manner that we maximize the benefit, because there are not enough funds to go around to waste it. And that is why I look forward to working with the chairman in making sure that every dollar does the best it can for the American people and the environment we live in.

Mr. Chairman, I am not in opposition to the amendment. I think the amendment is actually appropriate. My concern about it is, and I will say this to the chairman of the committee, I totally, coming from local government, totally support the openness here. I think at a time when we still have storm water diversion going over and polluting our rivers, it is crazy that we don't do more.

But I would ask the chairman to be aware of the fact that although we will

be able to tell the public, and the public will be able to know, where their money is going and how it is being spent, there is still that issue the American people are very upset about, what the Senate did to the stimulus package, and that is the issue that the public will not know: Are the people who are getting the jobs legally in the country? Do their Social Security names and numbers match? And will the public be able to know how many legal residents and Americans got this job as opposed to somebody who is in violation of our immigration status? The E-Verify was a great bipartisan effort here in the House. For us to abandon that as a minimum standard to allow the public to know, I disagree with that.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the North County Transit District and the successful completion of the first year of service by the Sprinter. The Sprinter is a light commuter rail line operating between Oceanside and Escondido, California, United States.

The Sprinter is operated by the North County Transit District of Oceanside, the area's public transit agency and is the first passenger train service of any kind along the Escondido Branch since the Santa Fe Railroad discontinued passenger service in 1946. The Sprinter service has helped the San Diego region battle traffic congestion and pollution while providing a critical 22-mile route from Oceanside to Escondido, with 15 stops along the way.

The light rail on average services 7,300 weekday riders and ridership is increasing steadily. The Sprinter had over 2.3 million passengers in its very first year and has maintained a 99 percent on time performance. I am especially proud of the Sprinter's success during these difficult economic times. My congratulations go out to the entire Sprinter family and the North County Transit District team!

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the House Republican standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information for publication in the Congressional Record regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 1105.

Requesting Member: Congressman Brian Bilbray

Bill Number: H.R. 1105 FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act

Account: CDC, Public Health Improvement and Leadership

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: County of San Diego, Public Health Services

Address of Requesting Entity: 1700 Pacific Highway, San Diego, CA 92101

Description of Request: I received an earmark of $476,000 to implement a management system to allow the County of San Diego to track medications, vaccines, supplies, equipment and people used during a health emergency response. The County is vulnerable and at high risk for such incidents due to its status as a border community and military town. The Emergency Preparedness and Public Health Management System (EPPHMS) will provide real-time visibility in the day-to-day and emergency management of pharmaceuticals, vaccines, consumable and capital assets, materiel and human resources, program management and patient tracking. Many County and local programs and agencies will use this management system concurrently for daily and emergency management in single-site, multi-site or mobile facilities, while integrating with the County's main Emergency Operations Center. This HIPAA- and PHIN- compliant system will mitigate a gap in County readiness and infrastructure, as identified by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in 2007.

Requesting Member: Congressman Brian Bilbray

Bill Number: H.R. 1105 FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act

Account: Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Transportation, Community, and System Preservation Program

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: City of Carlsbad, California

Address of Requesting Entity: 1200 Carlsbad Village Drive, Carlsbad, California 92008

Description of Request: I received an earmark of $237,500 to proceed with the design work to construct a replacement for the Encinas Creek Bridge. This is a critical section of the historic route Coast Highway 101 and it is the regional road alternative to Interstate 5. CALTRANS has indicated in two major reviews that this bridge must be replaced as soon as possible to meet seismic standards and repair the failing support structure. Bridge lanes have already been rerouted temporarily for public safety. This stretch of Coast Highway provides direct access to public beach parking, pedestrian access, coastal bicycle trails, state campgrounds, and several tourist serving commercial facilities. Public funding to support this very heavily utilized public road is vital to ensure traffic flow, safety, and the economic development of the region. 20% of funding will come from local or state sources, and this project is part of the State of California's transportation improvement plan and has been identified as an eligible project critical to the region.

Requesting Member: Congressman Brian Bilbray

Bill Number: H.R. 1105 FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act

Account: COPS Technology

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: County of San Diego, Sheriff's Department

Address of Requesting Entity: 9621 Ridgehaven Court, San Diego, CA 92123

Description of Request: Per my request, San Diego County has received $1.35 million for the ongoing upgrade of the San Diego County Sheriff's Department's Regional Communications System (RCS). This funding will be used for Phase 1 of migration to P25 capacity, which will move the County and its cities forward in the implementation of an effective, efficient regional interoperable communications system. This system will be critical both in terms of daily, routine communications and during disaster emergencies and other events that demand that all public safety agencies be able to communicate effectively. It will benefit California and other States and Federal agencies by providing voice radio interoperability with those entering into the region providing mutual aid. Ultimately, it will enable San Diego County public safety agencies to seamlessly integrate with surrounding Counties as it is built out to a ``network of networks.''

Requesting Member: Congressman Brian Bilbray

Bill Number: H.R. 1105 FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act

Account: Army Corps of Engineers, General Investigations, Miscellaneous

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego

Address of Requesting Entity: 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093

Description of Request: I received $500,000 for the Coastal Data Information Program/Southern California Beach Processes Study within the Army Corps of Engineers. Through this program, high-resolution wave data and forecasts are disseminated in real time via the internet to the National Weather Service and to tens of thousands of diverse users each day. Sea state and surf warnings are issued based on this information for the protection of life and property. In addition, beach elevations are monitored and analyzed, and this information is provided to coastal communities online where local governments and engineers use it for making educated policy decisions for protecting and enhancing local beaches. This request is consistent with the intended and authorized purpose of the Army Corps of Engineers, which has the federal responsibility for shoreline protection and uses this data for coastal dredging and construction projects. This program is critical to marine safety and operations for the coastal United States and there are no competitive funding sources available.

Requesting Member: Congressman Brian Bilbray

Bill Number: H.R. 1105 FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act

Account: Army Corps of Engineers, General Investigations

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: The City of Solana Beach

Address of Requesting Entity: 635 South Highway 101, Solana Beach,

Madam Speaker, I offer a resolution and ask unanimous consent for its immediate consideration.

Madam Speaker, I submit the following:

Requesting Member: Congressman Brian Bilbray.

Bill Number:H.R. 2638, Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and continuing Appropriations Act, 2009.

Account: RDT&E, Army.

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Burnham Institute for Medical Research.

Address of Requesting Entity: 10901 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA 92037.

Description of Request: Recent world events have made abundantly clear the need for a deeper understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms employed by bacterial and viral pathogens that would facilitate the design of countermeasures to weaponized biological agents such as anthrax, ricin, smallpox virus, botulinum toxin or plague bacteria. Additionally, as evidenced by the ever-present threat of viral pandemics and the relentless rise of antibiotic-resistance, there is a clear and urgent need for the development of new families of therapeutic agents--antibiotics, vaccines, antitoxins and antivirals. Given the large and growing number of recalcitrant pathogens, the most useful new therapeutics are likely to have broad-spectrum efficacy; to target immutable elements of the pathogen or host; to be rapidly adaptable in the face of natural or engineered variants; and to be physically robust.

To assist the United States Army in protecting our soldiers against these growing threats, I secured $2.4 million for the Infectious & Inflammatory Disease Center (IIDC) at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research, which will build on its studies of diseases that result from a broad range of human pathogens. The work will define and characterize host responses to infection, including innate and adaptive immunity and inflammation, providing a molecular understanding of host-pathogen interactions. Over the next ten years, many antibiotics currently prescribed to treat bacterial infections will no longer be effective owing to microbial resistance. Drug-resistant strains of some pathogens, such as the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, and MRSA, have already appeared. Several deadly viral agents have also emerged, threatening both our soldiers in the battlefield as well as large civilian populations; and, except for some vaccines, few treatments for viral infections exist to date.

With regard to infectious diseases, a major goal of the IIDC is to discover, characterize and validate novel virulence factors and toxins from infectious agents, working closely with our bioinformatics group who annotate (attempt to assign function based on the DNA sequence) the rapidly expanding number of pathogen genome sequences. These combined studies facilitate the discovery of novel but conserved pathways that may be validated as targets for broad-spectrum antibiotics. Complementary strategies will be developed to produce drug-like compounds for further development, including High-Throughput Screening (HTS), `in silico' screening, and the development and application of NMR-based fragment approaches (the Institute hosts ``The San Diego Chemical Library Screening Center'', one of 5 such centers nationwide). The IIDC will continue its well-funded studies of the most likely agents of bioterrorism, including anthrax (Bacillus anthracis), smallpox (Variola virus), and plague (Yersinia pestis); but it will also expand its focus to the study of emerging diseases such as SARS, West Nile and Dengue Viruses, as well as preparing countermeasures to treat a possible influenza pandemic--should avian flu strain H5Nl gain the ability to transmit directly from person to person.

A major new focus of the IIDC will be to understand and exploit host responses to infection. Human cells provide the never-ending

backdrop in a contest between host-defense molecules and pathogen virulence factors that seek to subvert the host's innate and adaptive immune responses. Identifying the players and mechanisms of the natural host responses, many of which are common to a broad range of infections, may provide novel (host-targeted) leads for broad-spectrum therapeutics, the exciting possibility of naturally boosting innate immunity, as well as the discovery of novel adjuvants for vaccine design. Vaccine technology has developed little in the past 50 years. A high priority will therefore be the development of novel vaccine methodologies which employ robust single-chain antigen-adjuvant combinations that facilitate rapid production and modification in the face of engineered or mutant pathogens.

The IIDC is well positioned in that it already has much of the infrastructure in place to generate novel therapeutic leads; shortly, with the opening of our new facility in Orlando, FL we will have the additional capability of developing these leads through medicinal chemistry and pharmacology to phase I trials, the latter in collaboration with our clinical partners in Florida.

Additional funding made possible through this process to the IIDC will enable the expansion of our Center into a number of critical areas. Priorities include recruitment of new faculty members and their programs working in the fields of innate immunity, microbiology, and medicinal chemistry. Recruitment into these currently underrepresented areas within our Center will complement our existing expertise and further expedite the development of novel therapeutics.

Leveraged Funds--Based on the Burnham Institute for Medical Research's past successful record of leveraging seed funds, we estimate that $3 million for additional scientists through this request will result in $30 million in additional grant funding for the next 10 years at the BIMR.

Current/Future/Matching Funding--Private philanthropy for the San Diego, CA area has contributed to the current research work ongoing at Burnham's IIDC. Since BIMR scientists started focusing on the important area of research, the IIDC has secured nearly $40,000,000 in competitive federal grants from a number of sources including the DoD and the NIAID. BIMR researchers and their research are very well respected throughout these federal agencies. Researchers in the IIDC will continue to seek federal grants through the traditional competitive process. this year through funding opportunities available from the DoD and the NIAID.

Madam Speaker, I submit the following:

Requesting Member: Congressman Brian Bilbray.

Bill Number: H.R. 2638 (The Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act).

Account: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Predisaster Mitigation.

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: The City of San Diego, CA.

Address of Requesting Entity: 202 C Street, San Diego, CA 92101, USA.

Description of Request: As you may know, San Diego County suffered through one of the worst fire storms in our nation's history last October destroying more than 1,500 homes at a cost of more than $1 billion. This funding would implement wildfire fuels reduction and brush management to create 100 feet of defensible space on 1,180 acres of open space property owned by the City, prioritized based on fire threat mapping by the Fire Chief.

Recent history has proven that major wildland fire events have exceptional costs to all involved, including private property owners, local, state and federal governments. Major disasters such as the ones experienced in San Diego last fall cost the federal government significant amounts in response and recovery. While final expenditures are not known, FEMA received applications from thousands in the San Diego region. By thinning the brush in the wildland urban area interface, structures stand a better chance of being defended. By saving these structures, fewer FEMA and SBA dollars will need to be extended to property owners for recovery purposes.

I secured a member's request of $1,000,000 to expedite City of San Diego completion of wildfire fuels reduction and vegetation management strategies in order to prevent future wildfires like those experienced in October 2003 and 2007. The project meets the intended and authorized purpose of the FEMA Predisaster Mitigation account, and FEMA program guidelines (June 28, 2008) explicitly cite vegetation management as an eligible mitigation project activity. The City of San Diego has approved $2 million from its general fund for this project during

Mr. Speaker, 99 percent plus efficiency. Where else in the Federal Government can we claim that we have a program that is over 99 percent effective, efficient, and gets the job done?

I am here to support this bill; and, sadly, I am here to support it at a 5-year extension rather than the 10-year originally proposed. And my big question is, those that did not want to extend it to 10 years, what don't you understand about 99.6 percent efficiency for the American citizens in the United States? Is it too efficient and that is why we are not today extending it 10 years? That is a question I think that every Member of Congress is going to have to answer to their constituency in the very near future.

Mr. Speaker, the employee verification system is not a pilot program anymore. For over 5 years, it has been a national program not restricted to the five original States but universal throughout the United States. It has been so effective that judiciaries across this country, judges, have required that anyone caught hiring illegal has been required to use this system to make sure it doesn't happen again.

The system is so effective that the executive branch and the legislative branch has made this the gold standard for hiring employees. Congress today does and has been required to make sure that Social Security numbers and names match before we hire them. The executive branch had asked for Congress themselves to do that. You haven't heard the horror stories and the end of the world because 99.6 percent is a number hard to argue with. The executive branch was confronted by this number, and now has mandated that any contractor and every government operation will use this system from now on. The question, Mr. Speaker, is why are we just maintaining the status quo for 5 more years?

Two years ago, the American voters were very upset with the fact that the then Republican majority refused to confront the issue that the number one source of illegal immigration was illegal employment, and that there was a simple, easy way to stop the problem if there was a will in Washington to get it done, and that system was E-Verification.

Today, we are confronted with a 5-year extension of what we have had for over 5 years rather than moving forward with a system that can address the number one source of illegal immigration, a simple system that can not only stop illegal immigration but stop a lot of problems related to that.

The SAVE Act was introduced by a Democrat named Heath Shuler from the great State of North Carolina. It was supported by over 156 Members of the House of Representatives. It has actually received a discharge petition that is within less than 30 people to sign it to be able to bring it to a vote. That would make it a universal phase-in system to allow every employer and require every employer to not only use E- Verification before hiring somebody, but using E-Verification before-- are you ready for this?--claiming a tax deduction for employing somebody who may be illegal.

I wish that Democrats and Republicans could have got together on that bill the way we did with this one. But sadly, the leadership of the Democratic Party in this House and Speaker Pelosi has blocked any legislation of substantive numbers that does not include an amnesty for the 20 million people illegally present.

Mr. Speaker, there are those who talk about compassion about those who are illegally here. Well, let me give you another number. Three hundred-plus illegals are sitting in prison today because an employer in Iowa did not use the E-Verification system before hiring them. And if you don't care about illegal immigration, and you say you care about immigrants coming to this country illegally, and you want to be humanitarian, then require the people that are exploiting them to check through E-Verification as a mandate, not a voluntary, so that future illegals that come into this country are not put in prison because their employer didn't check that the name and the Social Security Number matched.

I wish this town would act on its verbiage and its promises half as much as they expect the American people to respond to the responsibilities of citizenship.

As Members of Congress, we are now placed at having to vote for a 5- year extension rather than a 10, and we are denied the ability by the Speaker of the House to vote on a bill that is bipartisan, and able to address this issue. And I would ask that the SAVE Act be brought forward as soon as possible so we can back up this voluntary program with a mandatory one that will take care of the problem.

Mr. Speaker, FDR made a statement about why he was giving aid to England to fight Nazi Germany, and that statement was, when your neighbor's home is burning, only a fool would not let them borrow your hose to put out the fire.

Well, Mr. Speaker, our border is burning. Mexico is in flames with violence. We are not taking on a war on drugs down at the border; we are taking on the battle against narco-terrorism.

Mr. Speaker, I have taken a lot of positions about the fact that the boarders are out of control, but now is the time the American people have to wake up and this Congress has to wake up and realize that the people in Mexico are fighting desperately for their republic. They are being murdered in the streets. Police chiefs on the day they do a press conference stating that they caught a cartel smuggling drugs into San Diego County through a tunnel, the day that they do that press conference, that night that police chief is murdered by the cartel. The head of their law enforcement, who is comparable to our FBI, was murdered in their capital.

You may say, but is Mexico doing enough? I have a lot of disagreements with Mr. Calderon. The justification for ignoring the cartel when they smuggle aliens is one of them. But the same cartel that is smuggling aliens and drugs into the United States are killing law enforcement and judges and politicians in Mexico.

And do not think that this is a problem far away from us. This problem is in our front yard, in our backyard, in our lap right now. Washington can ignore it, but they are already starting to kidnap and kill people in San Diego County in the south. We have an obligation to make sure that we fight this battle on Mexican soil before it becomes a battle in the main streets of the United States.

I ask us to join now. The fact is if there is anything that we can do, we need to defend our American freedom and our security when and where we find the threat, and the threat today is in Mexico. Calderon has been brave enough to export criminals to the United States. He has judges being killed right and left down there. Mexico is willing to work with us on this and desperately asking for our help, and only a fool would not give them the help to fight the battle on Mexican soil before we are fighting it on U.S. soil.