Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, the President says his policies are working to make the economy strong and that all Americans are benefiting. But evidence of a slowing economy is building, and anxiety over the state of the economy remains high.

The credit crunch, the worsening housing slump, market volatility and weak consumer confidence point to a gathering storm that could drag down the economy, taking thousands of American jobs with it.

Risks in the housing market and weak business investment point to the growing uncertainty of which way the economy is heading. We are facing a tsunami of defaults and foreclosures in the subprime market which could have broader implications for the overall economy.

RealtyTrac reported that foreclosures in August increased 36 percent since July and 115 percent since this time last year. Expectations are that the next 18 months will be even worse as many subprime loans reset to higher rates.

The ability of American consumers to keep spending may be flagging with the cooling housing market. Consumer spending has been propping up the economy, but high energy prices and a worsening housing slump could force consumers to cut back, putting the economy at even greater risk.

American families are understandably worried about the future because the economy is weakening even before many have shared in the gains from the economic growth we have seen so far.

Employee compensation has lagged far behind productivity in this recovery. Some workers are beginning to see some gains in their paychecks after inflation, but they still have a great deal of lost ground to make up. Median family income has actually fallen by nearly $1,000 since President Bush took office.

The divergence between the ``haves'' and the ``have nots'' in the Bush economy stands in marked contrast to the second term of the Clinton administration when real wage gains were strong up and down the wage ladder, to the wealthy, to the poor, to the middle class.

And our economic foundation is simply not on solid ground. The administration is responsible for the three largest budget deficits on record, including a $413 billion deficit in 2004. The gross Federal debt is now almost $9 trillion, or my colleagues listening tonight, each of us owes $29,000 per person. Every citizen in America owes $29,000 to the Federal debt.

Our current account deficit with the rest of the world, the broadest measure of our trade deficit, rose to a record smashing $856 billion in 2006, the largest ever in the history of our country. The amount of Federal debt owned by foreigners has more than doubled under President Bush, with Japan and China alone holding nearly half of our $2.2 trillion debt. We have become a Nation of debtors vulnerable to the economic and political decisions made half a world away.

Despite 4 years of economic expansion, job growth has been modest. Wages are barely keeping pace with inflation. Employer-provided health insurance coverage is declining, and private pensions are in jeopardy. These are the economic barometers that matter most to American families.

Democrats in Congress are taking action to restore a sense of economic security to the middle class and ensure long-term economic growth for our Nation. We started by presenting a realistic budget plan that adheres to PAYGO principles for bringing down the deficit but that does not shortchange our national defense or our citizens. We are not going to spend money we do not have.

Our priorities include providing health care for millions more uninsured children as we did tonight, adding 10 million uninsured children, providing coverage for them, making investments in veterans' benefits, and restoring crucial funding for first responders and local law enforcement.

In order to spur innovation that will keep America number one, Democrats will increase funding for cutting-edge research, invest more in math and science education, and make college more affordable.

We also have a plan to expand renewable energy and energy efficiency to reduce global warming and dependence on foreign oil.

And Democrats want to bring tax relief to those who need it most, by shielding 19 million middle-income American families from the alternative minimum tax.

Mr. Speaker, after 6 years of irresponsible policies, Democrats are working hard to get our economic house back in order.

Mr. Chairman, I thank our chairman for his heroic leadership on this, along with the New York delegation, Gary Ackerman, and many, many others. This is an absolutely necessity for New York City and for our country and for our economy.

After 9/11, I have never seen this body so united and determined, and I thank you for all of your help. But by far, the most important action by this Congress was enacting TRIA. Before TRIA, we could not even build a Popsicle stand in lower Manhattan. No one could build anything. Critical to our economic recovery was the passage of this Federal backstop, and I implore my colleagues to join the leadership, Mr. Frank and others, in passing this.

They say it is not needed, but I hear from businesses in New York they cannot get insurance. Some have gone to Lloyd's of London. They get insurance policies that say you have this policy on the condition that TRIA is reauthorized. This is critically important.

And I would like to stress to my colleagues that a very important part of our homeland security is our economic security. TRIA not only helped the rebuilding of New York City, it created jobs and helped America's economy grow despite the continuing terrorist threats against the United States.

TRIA has no cost to the taxpayer unless there is a terrorist attack. And in that terrible event, if it happens, and I hope it doesn't, TRIA saves the government money by structuring what would otherwise be hastily drafted emergency spending. Of course, setting up a public/ private partnership to provide insurance coverage is more cost- effective than throwing money at the disaster after the fact.

So this is very important. I would like to be associated with the comments of my colleagues Mr. Ackerman and Mr. Frank on the reset and the need for long-term planning, 15 years. I thank my colleagues for your help after 9/11. Give our economy help now. Vote for this.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to this amendment. This amendment effectively guts a provision of this bill which is essential for the recovery of localities that are the subject of terrorist attacks.

As we know in New York, insurance companies are reluctant to write coverage at all for sites of terrorist attacks because they find the risk of another attack too high given the deductible under TRIA. Insurance companies aren't willing to pay the higher deductible more than once, in other words, for any given site. We in New York face this problem today as there is far less coverage available for lower Manhattan than is required, but this problem will confront any locality that is the subject of an attack.

The reset mechanism in the bill solves this problem by lowering the deductible for any locality that has been the subject of a significant attack. It applies nationally and will greatly help with economic recovery by helping to provide adequate terrorism insurance.

We have worked on a bipartisan basis to make sure this reset mechanism works for the whole Nation, for industry, for policy holders and that it is fiscally responsible.

This amendment guts the reset mechanism by mandating large and rapid increases in the deductible once it resets to a lower number after a large terrorist attack.

Under this amendment, the reset deductible could rise in a short time to as high as 19 percent, which is almost the same as the original deductible of 20 percent. This defeats the purpose of the reset mechanism, which we worked so hard to craft as a balanced and effective tool.

A TRIA bill that does not consider the special problems of sites recovering from an attack is not an effective or well designed plan.

I urge my colleagues to reject this misguided amendment.

Madam Chairman, I thank the gentlewoman for her extraordinary leadership, really creative leadership, along with Barney Frank and others.

I rise in support of the bill, which will revitalize the FHA and will ultimately assist low- and modern-income families seeking the American Dream of homeownership and providing much-needed stability and liquidity in the markets with the subprime crisis.

I thank the gentlewoman for accepting an amendment that I authored that would expand affordable and available daycare by giving an incentive to build or include licensed child care facilities in FHA- insured properties.

This bill does many things that are very important. It builds on the President's recent announcement that FHA will work with homeowners who are having a difficult time paying their mortgage due to a reset in this interest rate. This will help with the subprime crisis by, number one, increasing the loan limits in high-cost areas of the country like New York City where FHA has been driven from the market, forcing many borrowers to turn to high-cost financing. It will, secondly, authorize zero down and lower down payment FHA loans for home buyers who could not otherwise make these payments. It directs FHA to underwrite to borrowers with higher credit risks than FHA currently serves. And it permanently eliminates the current statutory volume cap on FHA reverse mortgage loans to permit this program to meet the growing needs of home equity-rich, cash-poor senior citizens and, very importantly, reinvesting the increased profits created into an affordable housing fund.

With all the great things in this bill, I am concerned that we may be loosening the reins a bit too much by allowing mortgage brokers to bypass the current audit and net worth requirements and instead posting a surety bond to participate in FHA. I have been very concerned with the role the largely unregulated mortgage broker industry has played in the current subprime mortgage crisis.

I do support this bill, and I hope we can work to ensure the safety and soundness of FHA and we are expanding affordable and available housing. And congratulations to Chairman Waters.

Madam Speaker, today, with my good friends Representatives Nadler, Fossella and 44 other original cosponsors, I am pleased to introduce the comprehensive, bipartisan 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, to finally provide health care and compensation to the heroes and heroines of 9/11.

The collapse of the World Trade Center towers took nearly three thousand lives in an instant and released a massive cloud of asbestos, pulverized concrete, and other poisons. To those toxins, we now know that thousands more have lost their health.

Now 6 years later, more than 6,500 responders--truly the heroes and heroines of 9/11--are being treated for 9/11-related health problems through the federally-funded World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment program, and more than 4,500 have been referred for mental health care, often for conditions like post traumatic stress syndrome. Every month, another 500-1000 responders sign up for health monitoring, and those coming in are more sick than ever before.

Separately, more than 70,000 Americans reported to the World Trade Center Health Registry. While most are from New York, New Jersey or Connecticut, more than 10,000 Americans from outside the Tri-State area have also registered. Amazingly, every single state has someone in the World Trade Center registry. This is a health emergency on a national scale and it requires a strong federal response.

Last Saturday, I joined New York AFL-CIO President Dennis Hughes, and Representative Nadler and Fossella at a labor rally at Ground Zero to announce the bill we are introducing today. The 9/11 Health and Compensation Act will ensure that everyone exposed to the Ground Zero toxins has a right to be medically monitored and all who are sick as a result have a right to treatment. It will build on the expertise of the Centers of Excellence, which are currently providing high-quality care to thousands of responders and ensuring on-going data collection and analysis. Expanding care to the entire exposed community, the bill also includes care for area residents, workers, and school children as well as the thousands of people that came from across the country to assist with the recovery and clean-up efforts. Finally, the bill provides compensation for economic damages and loss by reopening the September 11 Victims Compensation Fund.

I thank Chairman Pallone of the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health for holding an important hearing tomorrow on answering the call to provide medical monitoring and treatment to World Trade Center responders. I look forward to working with my colleagues on the Energy and Commerce Committee, the Judiciary Committee and the leadership as we move this important legislation forward. It is critical that we show our first responders that, after rushing in to serve New York and the Nation in a time of great disaster, we will not desert them in their time of need. It is the least we can do, as a grateful Nation.

Madam Speaker, I rise to express my support for the resolution to name the post office at 365 West 125th Street in New York City as the ``Percy Sutton Post Office Building.''

A civil rights leader and businessman, Percy Sutton was a pre-eminent fixture of New York politics, serving as a member of the New York State Assembly and from 1966 through 1977 as Manhattan Borough President. Most of all, Percy Sutton was one of the architects of the effort to revive Upper Manhattan.

Percy Sutton once said, ``If you pray for only one thing, let it be for an idea.'' He was a man of innumerable ideas--many of them profoundly important for New York City and for the community he represented. He lived an astonishingly full life that included stints as a stunt pilot, military intelligence officer, lawyer, civil rights activist, politician, media baron and technology executive.

Most of all, Percy Sutton dared to dream the impossible. At a time when Harlem was crumbling, he believed that it could become a tourist attraction. When the famous Apollo Theatre closed, it threatened to become another vacant shell on a street of shuttered stores. He acquired the theater, in a move that is widely considered the first step to the renewal of 125th Street.

Percy Sutton had an important and lasting impact on the community surrounding the post office, and it is fitting to have a federal building named in his honor. I am proud to support H.R. 954.

Mr. Speaker, 6 years ago the terrorist attacks of 9/11 were an act of war against our entire Nation, not just New York. The whole country was touched; and in the aftermath, people came from every State in the Nation to assist in the massive rescue and recovery efforts. All of these people from all of these States were all exposed to the same deadly toxins.

While press reports may question the size and scope of the problem, there is no doubt that there are thousands who are ill because of their exposure. Whether these brave firefighters and fire officers and EMTs came from California, Michigan or Florida, they all breathed the same toxic air.

This map shows how many people from each State are enrolled in the World Trade Center Health Registry; over 71,000 people from every single State in our Nation. At least 28 even came from Hawaii. The list goes on and on.

But the message of the map is clear: The 9/11 health crisis is a national problem, and it deserves a strong Federal response.

I thank the Speaker from the great State of New York for yielding me this time on this incredibly important issue.

And, Mr. Speaker, as we approach the sixth anniversary of the tragic events of September 11, I appreciate the opportunity to speak today about one of the most important issues facing my district, my hometown of New York City and our Nation.

I am so proud to be here today with my colleague and good friend from Manhattan, Jerry Nadler, who has been a tireless advocate for everyone who has become sick from the toxins of 9/11. His district includes Ground Zero, and our work together on this issue can truly move this forward.

I want to note that a number of New Yorkers will be with me today, Congressman Fossella, Yvette Clarke, John Hall, Eliot Engel. And Steve Israel, if he was not in the Chair being the Speaker, he would be down here on the floor talking about the six men and women from 9/11 who need our help, and possibly Chairman Pallone.

Mr. Speaker, the death toll from 9/11 is still growing, and the nightmare of that day has continued for thousands of our fellow Americans who are suffering with illnesses and injuries caused by the attacks, but are not getting the help they need.

When people hear that the men and women who rushed in to save the lives of others on that terrible day, who worked to clean up the site, who worked in construction, I remember that day there were signs everywhere, ``iron workers, report for duty,'' retired workers, all workers to the site. These men and women rushed to the site thinking of others, not of themselves; and many of them are sick and they need our help now.

The collapse of the World Trade Center towers took nearly 3,000 lives in an instant and released a massive cloud of asbestos, pulverized concrete and other poisons. These toxins have sickened thousands and have killed at least eight, but likely dozens more Americans, in the years since 9/11.

On 9/11, 500 of my neighbors and constituents lost their lives. That was more than any other district. We lost up to 3,000 people, but thousands and thousands more lost their health; and we need to be there to help them now.

The gray dust that billowed through Lower Manhattan that day is said to have been as caustic as drain cleaner. It settled in the homes of Lower Manhattan, in downtown schools, playgrounds and parks, and in the lungs of tens of thousands of Americans. These forgotten victims of 9/ 11 either lived or worked downtown, courageously volunteered for rescue and recovery operations at Ground Zero, or merely happened to be in Lower Manhattan, a school child, a worker, on one of the worst mornings our country has ever known. And right now, more than 6,500 responders, truly the heroes and heroines of 9/11, are being treated for 9/11- related health problems through the federally funded World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program. And more than 5,000 have been referred for mental health care, often for conditions like post- traumatic stress syndrome. Every month, another 500 to 1,000 responders sign up for health monitoring, and those coming in are more sick than ever before.

In all, more than 70,000 Americans reported to the World Trade Center Health Registry, and they were near Ground Zero in the days following 9/11 and have serious concerns about their health.

As you would expect, the majority of those registered are from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. But what many people may not know is that more than 10,000 Americans from outside the tri-state area have also signed up for the registry. Amazingly, every single State and 431 of the 435 congressional districts nationwide have someone in the World Trade Center Registry in New York City. This is a health emergency on a national scale, and it requires a strong Federal response.

This Saturday at Ground Zero, many of us on the floor here this afternoon will be joining the working men and women of New York City's labor movement in a rally to send a message loud and clear that the time is now to support our heroes of 9/11. Six years is long enough.

Along with the New York State AFL-CIO, the New York City Central Labor Council and the Building and Construction Trades Council, we will be showing honor, support and respect for the contributions and sacrifices of the heroes and heroines of 9/11. And we will be rallying for action from the government to care for the thousands of people who have become sick because of the toxins of Ground Zero.

With the strong support of the AFL-CIO, Representative Nadler and I are preparing to introduce, along with Congressman Fossella and many others, new comprehensive legislation to do just that. The 9/11 Health and Compensation Act will ensure that everyone exposed to the Ground Zero toxins has a right to be medically monitored, and all who are sick as a result have a right for treatment.

It will build on the expertise of the Centers for Excellence, which are currently providing high-quality care to thousands of responders and ensuring an ongoing data collection and analysis, expanding care to the entire exposed community.

The bill also includes care for area residents, workers, and school children, as well as the thousands of people that came from across the country to assist with recovery and clean-up efforts.

Finally, it provides compensation for economic damages and loss by reopening the September 11, 2001 Victims Compensation Fund. I have been working for years to make this happen, along with all of the members of the New York delegation. And I am very proud to be working with Representative Nadler, with the strong support of the New York AFL-CIO, to move this comprehensive, bipartisan bill through Congress.

We are united as a delegation; we are united with labor; we are united at the various levels of government, and we are truly committed. We will not stop, and we will continue to work every single day and hour to make sure that this happens. Six years, six long years is long enough for the men and women who are sick because they rushed into burning buildings to save the lives of others, to work on a deadly pile where the toxins infected their lungs.

Once again, the 9/11 health crisis is a national emergency that was caused by an attack on our country. Only the Federal Government has the resources and the reach to properly address the health and compensation needs of thousands of Americans from across this Nation whose health was compromised by the World Trade Center attacks.

I must say that we would not have moved forward as we have with some funding and some help without the complete support of the Democratic

leadership. Chairman Obey, who has put money in the appropriations bill, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has met with the sick and injured workers many, many times here in the Capitol, along with Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and others. This is a united Democratic and Republican effort to help the sick people that are sick because of the attack on America.

The solutions I have outlined this afternoon are neither easy nor inexpensive, but they are part of our country's moral obligation. As the wealthiest country in the world, it is our duty to care for those who responded to an act of war. These were the first veterans of the act of war. They are veterans; they should be treated with health care. We must take care of the people who took care of us following 9/11. Many risked their lives, and many, many more risked their health. It is the least we can do as a grateful Nation. The time to act is now. Six years is long enough.

I would now like to recognize my colleague and dear friend from the Lower East Side who has been a tireless advocate for everyone who has become sick from the toxins. His district includes Ground Zero. And our work together on this issue can truly move this issue forward.

Congressman Nadler is recognized for 5 minutes.

We are all in it together, East Side, West Side, all around the town. All around the Nation, really.

I thank the gentleman for his leadership and for his moving statement.

Mr. Speaker, the New York Daily News editorial board won the Pulitzer Prize for its groundbreaking series of editorials entitled ``9/11, The Forgotten Victims'' which documented the growing medical fallout from the World Trade Center attacks. Since this is really about the sick heroes and heroines of 9/11, not about legislation or legislators, I would like to share an excerpt from this award-winning series. This is from part 1 of the series entitled, ``Abandoned Heroes,'' which was originally published in 2006.

I quote, ``They cough, they wheeze, their heads and faces pound with the pressure of swollen sinuses. They lose their breath with minor exertion. They suffer the suffocation of asthma and diseases that attack the very tissues of their lungs. They endure acid reflux, a painful indigestion that never goes away. They are haunted by the mental and emotional traumas of having witnessed horror. Many are too disabled to work. And some have died.''

Mr. Speaker, I now yield 5 minutes to my colleague and friend from the other side of the aisle, the gentleman from New York, Vito Fossella, who has worked very hard to get funding for the heroes of 9/ 11, including $25 million in the President's budget.

I thank the gentleman.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to say that we are now approaching the sixth anniversary and there are a number of committees here in the House that will be looking closely at this issue.

I want to thank Chairman Pallone of the Health Subcommittee on Energy and Commerce for holding a very important hearing on the health effects on the day of the anniversary. Many of his constituents rushed down to Ground Zero in the aftermath of 9/11, and they are now very sick. In fact, one of the Centers of Excellence providing monitoring and treatment to sick workers is located in Congressman Pallone's district.

There will be no greater champion, no one more important for the sick workers of 9/11 than Frank Pallone and Chairman Dingell. I thank them for their hard work.

Also, Chairman Towns, my dear friend from Brooklyn, will be holding a field hearing in New York City on Monday in his Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Government Management. This is the third hearing this year that the chairman has held on making sure that everyone exposed to the deadly toxins is monitored and everyone who is sick is treated. His dedication to helping the residents, area workers and schoolchildren and those who came from across the country to help is tremendous.

Last, our friend and true leader in the Congress, Chairman Miller of the Education and Labor Committee, is delving into why workers were not protected while working at and around Ground Zero. On Wednesday of next week his full committee will hold an important hearing, the first in a series, with the second focusing on why workers were not protected after Hurricane Katrina. I thank my dear friend for his ongoing focus and support for this issue.

It is clear that this Congress will not allow the heroes of 9/11 to go longer without the care they need and deserve. Six years is long enough.

We now have one of our other distinguished colleagues from New York, Steve Israel. He serves on the Appropriations Committee. Along with Chairman Obey, he worked to secure $100 million in this year's budget for the sick workers. We thank him for his commitment and support.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to my dear friend and colleague from the State of New York, Congressman Israel.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for raising the issue of his two constituents with whom he has worked. It brings a personal face on the tragic horror that many people confront.

I also want to particularly commend him for his work on the Appropriations Committee. In addition to the comprehensive legislation that we are jointly putting in as a delegation, Mr. Israel and others on the Appropriations Committee have taken a lead in providing funding. In recent months, because of his efforts and those of others, we have passed appropriations bills to make sure that federally financed 9/11 health clinics, including those run by Mount Sinai and the New York City Fire Department, do not have to shut their doors because of lack of funding.

We included $50 million for 9/11 health clinics in the recent war supplemental spending measure and the House-passed Labor-HHS appropriations bill. This was done by Mr. Israel's committee. I mentioned a moment ago that this included another $50 million for 9/11 health needs. In the Senate version of the Labor-HHS bill, Senators Clinton, Schumer and others have gotten $55 million into the Senate bill. So when this appropriations bill gets signed into law, we in Congress will have provided at least $100 million for 9/11 health needs this year alone.

This is a very good start. Thank you so much, Steve. It is a testimony to the leadership not only of Steve, but of the two Senators, our entire New York delegation, our Democratic leadership, and I would say very importantly, I would say Congressman Obey, for his leadership in this battle for funding. We will continue the fight to ensure that the heroes of 9/11 have access to the health care that they deserve.

Mr. Speaker, I now yield to my distinguished colleague and friend, John Hall, of New York's Nineteenth District. He represents the Hudson Valley. He has just been elected to Congress, but he is fighting just as hard as all of us who have suffered from 9/11 to make sure that the health care needs of the wounded are taken care of. I thank him for joining me in this Special Order and for his hard work.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his statement and for his cosponsorship and his leadership on this very important issue. I know that your district also includes men and women who rushed to the site to help others. Thank you so much.

I am now proud to yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Weiner) who has been a tireless advocate, along with Jerry Nadler and others, for everyone who has become sick from the toxins of 9/11.

I thank the gentleman very much for his leadership not only on this bill but on many others that help the 9/11 survivors. He has been a leader on the Judiciary Committee on the 9/11 immigration bill which will be on the floor on 9/11 and hopefully will pass.

It is now my pleasure to yield to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Clarke). Yvette Clarke was elected to the New York City Council the year of 9/11 where she served as the Chair of the Women's Committee and held many important positions. She now represents the 11th Congressional District representing central Brooklyn. Thank you for being here today and for your statement.

I thank the gentlewoman for her really very eloquent and moving statement, and in closing, we must not forget the firefighters, police officers, EMTs and other first responders who bravely rushed down to the save the lives even as everyone else was running in the other direction, as my colleague so eloquently stated.

We must not forget the rescue, recovery and cleanup workers who stayed on for months at Ground Zero in service to our country.

And we must not forget the residents, area workers and school children who lived, worked and studied through deadly toxins and have now become sick.

Once again, I stand on the floor of Congress to pledge that I will not stop fighting until everyone exposed to the deadly toxins is monitored and everyone who is sick gets the treatment they deserve.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that my colleagues have 5 days to revise and extend their remarks on the subject of my Special Order.

Madam Speaker, as cochair and cofounder of the Hellenic Caucus, I rise today in strong support of the Sarbanes resolution, H. Res. 629, expressing the condolences and sympathy of the House of Representatives to the Government and the people of Greece for the loss of 65 lives and destruction caused by the devastating fires raging through Greece, and which pledges our full support and solidarity to Greece.

This disaster has affected all parts of Greece. Thousands of people are homeless, many of whom have lost all of their possessions. Hundreds of thousands of acres of land have been ravaged. Our government has pledged $1.3 million to aid Greece during this difficult time. We have sent professional help and fire equipment.

Along with my colleagues in the Hellenic Caucus, we will be urging the State Department to remain in close contact with Greek authorities so that the United States can continue to assist in every way with this effort.

Greece has been a strong ally to our Nation, assisting us in times of need, including the terrible terrorist attacks on September 11 and Hurricane Katrina. We must now help Greece in its time of need. Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Greece.

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding, and I rise to express my deep sadness to learn of the passing of one of my good friends and colleagues, Paul Gillmor.

Paul was the ranking member of the Financial Institutions Subcommittee that I chair, and I had the great privilege of working with him on so many important issues throughout the years. In fact, this morning at the hearing we were holding on the subprime mortgage crisis, I had reserved 4 minutes for Paul to speak and he didn't come to the meeting. He was always punctual, and so we sent a staff member out to find him and found out the very, very sad news.

Paul was a distinguished Representative representing Ohio for many years. He held some partisan positions as the minority deputy whip; but on Financial Services, he was always ready to reach across the aisle and to work in a bipartisan way for the safety and soundness of our financial institutions and protections of consumer concerns.

He had a great deal of experience in banking, and in fact had run banks back in his home State of Ohio, so he brought the practical common sense of having known the business firsthand, and he always had valuable insights.

Just before we broke for our August work period, we had introduced a bill together on file freeze and negotiated various aspects that he thought was important for the bill. He was an outstanding person.

He served in Vietnam and he was a distinguished veteran. He served in the Air Force and achieved the status of captain. My brother served in Vietnam, and we shared conversations about that experience.

He was an extremely outstanding leader in his home State of Ohio, and actually served in the State senate and headed the State senate for five terms before becoming elected to Congress.

My heart goes out to his wife and children. I know I speak for many of my colleagues when I say that Paul's presence in this Chamber will be deeply, deeply missed. He was an outstanding patriot and outstanding Congressman and an outstanding spouse, husband and father. We are all deeply, deeply saddened.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3221, the New Direction for Energy Independence, National Security, and Consumer Protection Act. This bill will truly lead us in a new direction. By investing in renewable energy technologies and landmark energy efficiency efforts, we'll be creating millions of green jobs in our economy. With the government taking the lead in reducing greenhouse gases, we'll be setting the right example and setting the bar high. By encouraging high-payoff energy technology R&D, we'll be spurring innovation in solar, geothermal, and marine renewable energy. And by taking steps to increase accountability in the payment of federal oil and gas royalties, we'll be doing more to ensure the American taxpayers are being paid their fair share in royalties from oil and gas companies.

One important addition that I believe must be included in the bill is a 15 percent Renewable Electricity Standard. I hope my colleagues will support the Udall amendment to put our Nation on a path toward a clean energy future.

Another important improvement to the bill would be the addition of a study of ways to improve the accuracy of collection of federal oil and natural gas royalties. The American taxpayers are possibly being cheated out of billions of dollars in royalties owed to them by energy companies, and an amendment I offered to the Rules committee to ensure such a study would help get taxpayers the royalties they are due.

Lawsuits have been filed alleging that energy companies are underpaying billions of dollars in royalties because of these inaccuracies--or possibly because of outright manipulation-- in the process for determining royalty payments. Many of these lawsuits have been settled; and we're talking about a lot of money here: In 2000 and 2001, major oil companies settled with the Justice Department for over half a billion dollars in two False Claims Act lawsuits over oil and royalty underpayments. In 2004, Chevron paid out $111 million to the State of Louisiana for underpayments. In 2005, BP owned up to the tune of $233 in a Colorado case. And, in a case still pending, Exxon Mobil may owe up to $3.6 billion or much more to the State of Alabama for underpayments in royalties there. Certainly, for this kind of money, we can afford to ask the experts who understand the technical issues here to study the major underlying problems.

I am disappointed that my amendment was not ruled in order, but I am pleased to have support from Chairman Rahall, in addition to support from the Project on Government Oversight, Taxpayers for Common Sense Action and Friends of the Earth. I thank Chairman Rahall for agreeing to hold a hearing on this issue, and I look forward to working with him toward enacting this provision.

Mr. Chairman, the American people are ready to tackle the challenges of global climate change, to get on a path to energy independence, and to be a leader in the world in protecting our planet. They're ready for a New Direction, and I am proud that this Democratic Congress has undertaken the challenge. No one doubts that bringing this important bill to the floor today has been a long and hard fight. I applaud the hard work of all the leaders on this issue and urge all my colleagues to support the bill.

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Joe Donnelly was mistakenly listed as a cosponsor of H.J. Res. 40, and I would like to remove him as a cosponsor of H.J. Res. 40.

Madam Speaker, today I am reintroducing, along with Representative Deborah Pryce (R-OH) and Representative Robert Brady (D-PA), the Cancer Screening Coverage Act, a bill that will ensure that a greater number of Americans are covered for breast, cervical, prostate, and colorectal cancer screening. This legislation will increase the access to cancer screening exams for patients of private insurance and the Federal Employees Health Benefits plan.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death among Americans. According to the American Cancer Society, more than 1,500 Americans die of cancer every day. Cancer screening allows for the detection of cancer in its earliest form, when the cost of treatment is the least.

Many advances have been made, but the key to survival is early detection. It is estimated that the rate of survival would increase from 80 percent to 95 percent if all Americans participated in regular cancer screening. By providing increased access to screening procedures, the Cancer Screening Coverage Act would help save the lives of many Americans from this deadly disease.

Madam Speaker, today, along with Representatives Deborah Pryce and Lynn Woolsey, I am reintroducing legislation that would combat human sex trafficking by using the Tax Code to put traffickers in prison. Approximately 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders each year. Instead of dreams of better jobs and better lives, they are trapped into a nightmare of coercion, violence, and disease. However, trafficking is not just a problem in other countries. In addition to the men, women, and children from around the world who are brought into the United States for the sole purpose of being bought and sold by American citizens for commercial sex, in many communities, the victims themselves are Americans.

The legislation would authorize $4 million toward the establishment of an office within the IRS Criminal Investigation Division to prosecute sex traffickers for violations of tax laws. This office would coordinate closely with the existing task forces in the Department of Justice that are focused on sex trafficking offenders. The IRS would be directed to focus on the willful failure of traffickers to file returns, supply information, or pay taxes where the taxpayer is an ``aggravated'' non-filer. Additionally, the provision establishes a new felony offense for an aggravated failure to file, to include failure to file with respect to income or payments derived from activity which is criminal under Federal or State law. The aggravated failure shall carry a maximum sentence of 10 years per failure and shall increase the penalty from $25,000 under current law to $50,000. The legislation also increases other penalties for underpayment or overpayment of tax due to fraud.

The bill works to the benefit of the women and girls that are victimized by the traffickers not only by removing the traffickers from the streets but also by revising the IRS Whistleblower provisions that are currently in place so that the women and girls who choose to participate in the investigation of the trafficker will be eligible to participate in the whistleblower program and may ultimately receive some payment for their participation.

This bill will provide the IRS with the necessary resources to prosecute traffickers, pimps, and sex tour operators and recover their illicit profits. It is important that we protect the victims of the sex trade industry and punish the predators who exploit them.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support, of H. Con: Res. 188, which condemns the attack on the AMIA Jewish Community Center in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This attack reduced the 7-story headquarters of the Argentinean Jewish community to rubble and resulted in 85 deaths and 300 wounded. Everyday, Jews around the world face the injustice of anti-Semitism, and many have lost their lives because of bigotry.

This resolution condemns the attacks but also applauds the government of Argentina for increasing the pace of the continuing investigation of this attack. It is important that we support this resolution to encourage Argentina to continue to provide the resources necessary for its judicial system and intelligence agencies to fully investigate the AMIA case and bring those responsible to justice.

When we as individuals or as a government allow intolerance and hatred to fester and flourish, we are faced with terrible consequences. Put simply, intolerance must not be tolerated.

I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.