Floor Statements

Madam Chair, I move to strike the last word.

I rise in opposition to this amendment and want to state that the arts not only contribute to education and enlightenment, they're important job creators. The NEA contributes to the development and economic growth of communities nationwide, and each year, the arts industry generates $166 billion in economic activity and provides 5.7 million full-time jobs. In my district alone, nearly 120,000 people are employed in the museum, theater, art galleries, and other arts organizations that I'm proud to represent.

So this is not the moment for trying to score political points in the name of fiscal responsibility, and we should not be proposing deep cuts that will take effect right away and destroy jobs in the arts and other places at the very time we're trying like mad to create them. This CR threatens our recovery just as the economy is bouncing back from the worst recession in decades, and it proves that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are tone deaf to the American people's number one priority, which is jobs.

Earlier this week, President Obama laid out a budget that makes tough choices, a thoughtful budget that includes a 5-year freeze on non- defense discretionary spending and reduces the deficit by $1.1 trillion. It does all of this while making important investments in education, infrastructure, jobs, and our Nation's competitiveness, investments that will prepare us to compete now and in the future.

As the President said at his press conference on Tuesday, when it comes to this budget, we need to use a scalpel, not a machete. The Republicans, by contrast, are making deep, painful, and seemingly arbitrary cuts, cuts that would result in more than 200,000 children being dropped from Head Start. Thousands of teachers would lose their jobs and be forced to leave the classroom. Some $2.5 billion in NIH cuts would jeopardize critical cancer and other disease research, and 1,300 fewer cops would be on the beat as a result of eliminating the COPS hiring program, which we restored in a vote on this floor earlier tonight, thankfully. There will be 2,400 fewer firefighters through the elimination of SAFER grants, which again we fought to restore. Science and energy research, to help drive our clean energy economy, would be reduced, and the horrible list goes on and on, including this cut that is before us right now.

Let's be clear: Cutting education, the arts, letting our infrastructure deteriorate further, and failing to harness the power of innovation is a recipe for declining competitiveness in an increasingly competitive global economy. It's imperative that we must invest in the future, invest in creating jobs, and this grant to the National Endowment for the Arts is an important investment that will pay dividends years down the road.

I strongly support the program, and I'm opposed to the gentleman's proposal to cut it.

Sure--it's harder to be strategic--but it's required.

It's required that we recognize some investments make sense and some don't.

We need to do more of what's working and eliminate what's not.

The reality is that we have to keep growing the economy to bring down the deficit.

And we have to bring down our long-term deficits to sustain that growth.

But indiscriminate steep cuts--like the ones now being advocated by the Republicans--will jeopardize our recovery and make deficit reduction that much more difficult to achieve.

This CR is bad for the recovery, bad for jobs and will hamper efforts to get out our long-term deficit under control.

Offered By: Mrs. Maloney

Amendment No. 20: Strike lines 11-17 of p. 333 in H.R. 1.

Offered By: Mrs. Maloney

Amendment No. 142: Strike the first and second provisos

under section 2122(e)(1) of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Women's History Month to introduce the Susan Brownell Anthony Birthday Act. This bill will designate the third Monday in February as the day to celebrate the legacy of Susan Brownell Anthony, a pioneer of the women's rights movement, and its leader for more than 50 years.

Born on February 15, 1820, Susan Brownell Anthony met Elizabeth Cady Stanton in 1851 and attended her first women's rights convention in Syracuse in 1852. At that convention she was inspired to join the fight for women's suffrage, asserting that this was `the right women needed above every other.' The first proposal for women's suffrage was presented to Congress in 1868, and the first formal women's suffrage amendment to the Constitution of the United States was introduced in January 1878. For 35 years after that first proposal was made, Susan Brownell Anthony appeared before every Congress to ask for passage of a suffrage amendment, demonstrating her unwavering dedication to the cause. Her last public words before her death on March 13, 1906 were `Failure is impossible.'

Between 1917 and 1919, over a thousand women held a vigil outside the White House, asking, `How long must women wait for liberty?' Unfortunately, Susan Brownell Anthony did not live to see her dream of women's suffrage become a reality, but her heroic efforts were not in vain. The nineteenth amendment, also called the Susan B. Anthony Amendment, was ratified on August 26, 1920 giving the right to vote to American women. The text of the 19th amendment states that ``The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.''

The United States has previously recognized Susan Brownell Anthony's tremendous contributions to our Nation. To commemorate her legacy, a marble statue of her and her women's rights colleagues, Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, was dedicated in the United States Capitol in 1921. Susan Brownell Anthony's picture appeared on postage stamps in 1936 and 1955. Her home in Rochester, New York, has been a National Historic Landmark since 1966, and in 1979, her image was placed on a dollar coin.

I am proud that the work of Susan Brownell Anthony and her fellow suffragists has been acknowledged and honored in these ways. However, as the founder and leader of the women's movement in the United States, Susan Brownell Anthony deserves a permanent place in our history. The journey to equality is long and difficult, but it well worth the fight. Passage of the Susan Brownell Anthony Birthday Act would make February 21st the first Federal holiday that celebrates the birthday of a woman, and would allow all women and men in the United States to celebrate and honor the legacy of a true American heroine.

Madam Speaker, the new Republican proposal to eliminate all funding for the many services provided by organizations such as Planned Parenthood are not merely anti-choice, they are also anti- health, anti-woman, and anti-poor.

The Republican proposal would eliminate the title X family planning which gives millions of American women access to primary and preventive health care. These budget cuts would deny crucial health services and cancer screening just to women. Their proposal would set up insurmountable cost barriers to family planning, just for the poor.

Their vision of smaller government would expand the government's power

over a women's choices. It is wrong, it is shortsighted, and it is unjust.

Let's turn to the business of creating jobs and economic opportunity and away from the business of ruling other people's lives.

Mr. Speaker, when the national economy suffers, families face significant financial challenges and pressures--making measures that protect their health and prevent unnecessary job loss more important than ever. Helping families stay afloat in these economic times is critical--even for families of federal employees. That is why I am introducing the Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act, which would provide 4 weeks of paid parental leave to federal workers following the birth, adoption, or fostering of a child. Paid leave ensures that a new child does not further destabilize families who are struggling to make ends meet.

The federal government should be a leader in family-friendly workplace policy. As the nation's largest employer, with over 1.8 million employees across the nation--including 85% of those outside the Washington, DC area--the federal government can serve as a role model for other employers.

Nearly ten percent of the workforce is unemployed, and many more are underemployed. Millions of families that once relied on two incomes are forced to survive on one--or none at all. A sharp rise in male unemployment has increased the number of families entirely dependent on a woman's earnings. Without paid leave, the birth or placement of a child means that many working families are left with no income at all coupled with rising expenses associated with a new child.

This bill is a straightforward, cost-effective way to help families while rebuilding a strong national economy. As of January 2011, the United States is the only industrialized nation with no paid parental leave. We are in the company of Lesotho, Swaziland and Papua New Guinea by not offering paid parental leave.

In the 111th and 110th Congresses, this bill passed the House with bipartisan support. I hope that my colleagues in the 112th will support this measure. In a tough economy, parents should not have to choose between a paycheck and caring for a new child.

I thank the gentlelady for yielding and for her leadership, and I join her and my other colleagues in speaking out in strong protest to the projected cuts that they are pushing through the Securities Exchange Commission, the watchdog agency that is looking to find corruption, abuse and to protect the investors and to protect our financial community.

Our Republican colleagues have proposed that the SEC's budget should be cut back to 2008 levels. But I can hardly imagine that they can be pleased at the level of oversight that was performed by the SEC in 2008, the year the economy cratered, the year that massive abuses such as the Madoff scandal came to light, and other abuses.

We should not be scaling back the staff and oversight capability of the SEC. We should be adding to it so that they can do a better job in protecting investors and the American taxpayer.

According to the SEC inspector general, the Republican proposal would force the agency to cut over 600 staff members--over 600.

Now, we know that the SEC has 60 studies that they have to come out with, hundreds of rules, and they are clamoring for more staff to meet the mandates of this Congress and of the regulatory reform bill that has been written to save taxpayers from having to bail out too big to fail and excesses and mismanagement in the financial industry.

Just as our colleagues on the other side of the aisle are calling for more accountability, they would cripple one of the key agencies that holds people in a key sector accountable. The SEC's budget for all of 2010 is equal to just a small fraction of the bonus pool for just one major firm in the financial sector.

So let's look at the facts here. The total loss of household wealth as a result of the Great Recession has been estimated to be approximately $14 trillion. $14 trillion. It was a financial disaster that did not have to happen.

There was a movement on the Republican aisle to roll back regulation. There was a lack of adequate oversight, and the lack of oversight and regulation were major contributing factors to this financial disaster.

So the Republicans' new proposal to cut the badly needed oversight of our financial system brings to mind the old American saying, ``They are being penny wise and pound foolish'' with the economy of our great country.

I thank the gentleman for yielding to me and for leading on so many important issues for the safety of our country and world peace.

I rise in strong opposition to this legislation which would, I believe, make New York City more vulnerable to terrorist attacks; and this includes people that I represent who are visiting or live around the U.N. compound.

The bill would divert funds that the U.N. has that the State Department, United Nations, and the New York City Police Department have planned to use for much-needed security enhancements to the U.N. compound and surrounding perimeter in Manhattan.

I just spoke earlier today with Police Commissioner Kelly, who says these funds are absolutely critical to maintain homeland security. Homeland security should be the number one priority for this country, and not having these funds would put at risk the lives of people who work there, people who visit, and people who live in the area.

We know that threats of terrorist attacks are real. New York City has been attacked twice. And the police commissioner told me today that there have been 11 attempted attacks since 9/11, which they have stopped. So it is a real threat. And as a host country, we have a responsibility to protect the diplomats and those who work in and visit the United Nations. And we know that the U.N. is a terrorist attack target across the world, most notably in 2003 the attack in Iraq and in 2007 the attack in Algeria. So this is important. This vote, if you support the funding and the continued homeland security, will save lives.

I would like to point out very importantly and place in the Record a statement from the nonpartisan CBO. They have said that this ``will not provide any savings to taxpayers.'' So if we are not providing savings to taxpayers, why are we not willing to speak out and vote for saving lives and security? I urge a strong ``no'' vote on this legislation.

Congressional Budget Office,

U.S. Congress,

Washington, DC, February 9, 2011.

Hon. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen,

Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of

Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Madam Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has

prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 519, the United

Nations Tax Equalization Refund Act of 2011.

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be

pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Sunita

D'Monte, who can be reached at 226-2840.

Sincerely,

Douglas W. Elmendorf.

Enclosure.

H.R. 519--United Nations Tax Equalization Refund Act of 2011

CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 519 would have no

effect on the federal budget. Enacting H.R. 519 would not

affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go

procedures do not apply. The bill would establish a new

policy to direct the United Nations (U.N.) to return $179

million that the United States overpaid to the U.N. as well

as any similar over-payments in future years. Under the bill,

if the Secretary of State is unable to certify that the U.N.

has returned $179 million, the State Department would be

required to withhold the same amount from its assessed

contributions to the U.N. Those contributions are funded

through annual appropriations acts.

Based on information from the Administration, CBO expects

that the State Department would not seek the return of those

funds and that the Secretary would thus be unable to make the

necessary certification. CBO estimates that amounts

appropriated in 2011 for assessed contributions to the U.N.

will be obligated and expended before this bill would be

enacted; therefore, there would be no funds available this

year to withhold pursuant to the bill's requirement. Under

current law, there are no appropriations authorized or

provided for 2012 or future years for assessed contributions

to the U.N.; therefore, CBO also would not attribute savings

to H.R. 519 in future years. Thus, CBO estimates that

implementing the bill would have no effect on the federal

budget. If future appropriations are reduced by $179 million,

CBO estimates that discretionary outlays would be reduced by

a corresponding amount.

H.R. 519 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector

mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and

would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sunita D'Monte.

The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant

Director for Budget Analysis.

Mr. Speaker, today I am proud to reintroduce the International Women's Freedom Act with my colleagues, Representatives Chaka Fattah, Jim Moran, Jerry McNerney, Lynn Woolsey, and Tim Ryan. This bill is a comprehensive piece of legislation which will increase awareness of human rights violations against women, as well as provide a set of mechanisms for the U.S. to address the violations of women's human rights abroad.

The bill is modeled after the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, IRFA. IRFA created the U.S. Commission on Religious Freedom which has been successful in identifying violations of religious freedom abroad and recommending actions to Congress, the Secretary of State, and the President.

It has been clear for many years that expanding opportunities for women not only improves their position in society, but also has a positive impact on economic growth and burgeoning democracies. As Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton has stated publicly regarding American foreign policy, ``there has to be special attention paid to the needs of women and girls. It's in America's national security interests to do so.'' And yet around the world, many countries relegate women to second-class status, denying them the right to vote, restricting their travel, and limiting their access to education and health care.

The International Women's Freedom Act would ensure we have the tools to empower women on a global level. Modeled after the successful International Religious Freedom Act, the bill would establish a Commission on International Women's Rights and would expand the duties of the existing Office of International Women's issues in the State Department and rename it, the Office on International Women's Rights. Both the Commission and the Office on International Women's Rights would be granted the responsibilities of issuing a report on the status of women's rights abroad and advising the President and Secretary of State regarding matters affecting these issues.

We need to work harder to ensure women's full participation in society. This legislation would move us closer to achieving this foreign policy imperative.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to the Republican bill which would take health care away from millions of Americans, children, families, and individuals.

I have heard my Republican colleagues mention cost throughout this day. Well, make no mistake, there would also be a cost in leaving tens of millions of Americans uninsured.

According to a recent study published by the American Journal of Public Health, uninsured working age Americans have a 40 percent higher risk of death than their privately insured counterparts. The study estimates that lack of health insurance causes over 44,000 excess deaths annually. That works out to about one death every 12 minutes from lack of health insurance. My colleagues, let us not forget to count those lives as a very real and continuing cost: over 44,000 deaths a year, one every 12 minutes.

I urge my colleagues to support the Democratic plan, lifesaving legislation, and vote against the Republican repeal of health care. It is wrong for America. I urge a ``no'' vote.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this harmful, ill- conceived bill.

When the Republican Majority said it was going to make the deficit their defining issue this Congress, most of us did not realize it was to make the deficit bigger. But according to the Congressional Budget Office, their first act to repeal health care would do just that--add $230 billion to the deficit while making Americans pay more for health care.

Instead of focusing on job creation, Republicans are running up our deficit, jeopardizing the health of millions of Americans, and threatening the creation of new jobs.

Under the Republican repeal effort:

Insurance companies will once again be able to drop people when they get sick--exactly when coverage is needed most;

Children with pre-existing conditions will be denied coverage, while insurance companies would again impose devastating annual and lifetime caps;

Young people will not be able to stay on their parents' plans until age 26;

Pregnant women and breast cancer survivors can be denied coverage;

Seniors will face an increase in their prescription drug costs-- millions thrown back into the Medicare Part D Donut Hole. Repeal would deny seniors a 50 percent discount on prescription drugs, re-creating the devastating coverage gap.

Each of these things will disappear if Republicans are able to repeal the historic health reform law.

In my home state of New York, repealing the Affordable Care Act would be devastating. New York residents, providers, small businesses and other employers would be denied critical new benefits of the law, from protections against insurance industry abuses to new coverage options and millions of dollars in support so states like New York can deliver quality, affordable health care options to all of its residents.

Without the Affordable Care Act, New York will suffer:

77,800 young adults would lose their insurance coverage through their parents' health plans, sometimes just after they finish school and as they are looking for a job. Families across New York would lose the peace of mind the Affordable Care Act provides by making sure that young adults can stay on their parents plan to age 26 if they do not have coverage of their own.

More than 10 million residents of New York with private insurance coverage would suddenly find themselves vulnerable again to having lifetime limits placed on how much insurance companies will spend on their health care.

Insurance companies would once again be allowed to cut off someone's coverage unexpectedly when they are in an accident or become sick, because of a simple mistake on an application. This would leave 734,000 people in New York at risk of losing their insurance at the moment they need it most, as one of the worst abuses of the insurance industry would become legal again.

New insurance plans would no longer be required to cover recommended preventive services, like mammograms and flu shots, without cost sharing, nor would they have to guarantee enrollees the right to choose any available primary care provider in the network or see an OB-GYN without a referral.

Nearly 2.9 million seniors in New York who have Medicare coverage would be forced to pay a co-pay to receive important preventive services, like mammograms and colonoscopies.

Medicare would no longer pay for an annual check-up visit, so nearly 2.9 million seniors in New York who have Medicare coverage would have to pay extra if they want to stay healthy by getting check-ups regularly.

192,596 on Medicare would see significantly higher prescription drug costs: In New York, 192,596 Medicare beneficiaries received a one-time, tax-free $250 rebate to help pay for prescription drugs in the ``donut hole'' coverage gap in 2010. Medicare beneficiaries who fall into the ``donut hole'' in 2011 will be eligible for 50 percent discounts on covered brand name prescription drugs. Without the law, the burden of high prescription drug costs would hurt millions of Medicare beneficiaries across the country.

For the sake of argument, if we remove the moral obligation of providing health care to 32 million Americans who would lose coverage with this repeal, we are still left with a compelling fiscal reason for opposing the repeal of this law:

Repeal adds $230 billion to the deficit over the first 10 years and more than $1.2 trillion in the second decade (around one-half percent of GDP).

Americans purchasing health insurance on their own will see their costs rise.

Americans will get fewer health benefits for their money.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill that will balloon the deficit, burden our children and grandchildren, halt the creation of jobs, and compromise the health of millions of Americans.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Madam Speaker, like so many of my colleagues, I knew Gabby Giffords to be a warm and caring friend, a rising star in the House with a moral compass as sure as it is true. That is why she recently spoke out against the rising tide of hate speech in our country and the lack of civility in our political process.

While it may be too early to come to any conclusions about the consequences of the recent and tragic events, it is never too late to reflect on lessons we have learned from earlier such tragedies and take them to heart.

Guns kill. And those who glamorize gunplay do no service to humanity.

Words matter. And those who use inflammatory rhetoric to achieve cheap political gain wound our country and weaken the ties that bind us.

Democracy triumphs. The fundamental wisdom that has distinguished our Nation and led her to greatness resides in our unwavering commitment to settle our disputes with ballots, not bullets.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Congresswoman Giffords--I hope for her swift and complete recovery--and to her family and to all the friends and family members of the victims of that tragic event.

As we approach the observance of Martin Luther King Day, let us recall the words of Robert Kennedy that were said on that tragic day so many years ago, and I quote: ``Let us dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: `to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world.' ''

Get well soon, Gabby. We need your leadership, your strength, your courage. You are in our thoughts; you are in our prayers.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the Reverend Norman Eddy and his late wife, the Reverend Margaret Eddy. Norman and Margaret Eddy devoted themselves to the Manhattan community of East Harlem, one of the most underserved and impoverished communities in our Nation. Graduates of the Union Theological Seminary, they went on to minister to congregations at the East Harlem Protestant Parish and The Church of the Resurrection, helping countless individuals and families better their lives.

At the end of February, the decades of service to others by Norman and Margaret Eddy were recognized at twin celebrations held at the New York Theological Seminary and at The Church of the Resurrection. Celebrants learned about the effort to launch a Program Center for Spiritual Coordination and Community Well-Being at the New York Theological Seminary, viewed the premiere showing of a film about their East Harlem ministries directed by the award-winning producer/director Jan Albert, shared heart-warming and sometime light-hearted reminiscences about Norman and Margaret, and celebrated Norm's 90th Birthday over a communal meal at the Church.

The celebrations are richly deserved, because the devotion of Norman and Margaret Eddy to the well-being of East Harlem residents is truly remarkable. I came to know them during the nine years I served as the New York City Council Member representing a district that included all of East Harlem. As ministers of the East Harlem Protestant Parish on East 100th Street and later of The Church of the Resurrection on East 1051st Street, they were involved in a myriad of community organizations that formed a vital network in ``El Barrio.'' These included but were not limited to the East Harlem School of Faith, East Harlem Healing Community, the East Harlem Churches, the Community Urban Center, and East Harlem School of Faith, and East Harlem Interfaith. They also led a local neighborhood committee to help those who became addicted to narcotics. Each was an open, friendly, and vital presence who readily warmed to others and infected others with their laughter and positive spirits. When Norman and Peg Eddy ministered to others in need, no matter how dire their circumstances, they always maintained a sense of joy and optimism that proved infectious. With courage and compassion, they reached out to those suffering from HIV and AIDS at a time when misinformation and a lack of public awareness created an impenetrable stigma around those infected with the virus.

In recognition of their outstanding contributions to the well-being of the people they served and their extraordinary the civic life of our Nation's greatest city, I ask that my distinguished colleagues join me in honoring the Reverends Norman and Margaret Eddy.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the PanPaphian Association of America for its tremendous contributions to our cultural and civic life. Founded more than two decades ago by Hellenic Cypriot Americans of Paphian ancestry, the Association has carried out its vital educational, cultural, charitable, and humanitarian mission while helping promote peace, unity, and understanding on the occupied island of Cyprus.

The PanPaphian Association of America held the Ninth Evagoras Pallikarides Award of Merit dinner-dance last month. The Evagoras Pallikarides Award of Merit was bestowed upon Mr. Alkinoos Ioannidis for his dedication to promoting Hellenic culture through music and song. Born and raised in Nicosia, Cyprus, Mr. Ioannidis studied classical guitar at the European Conservatory, moved to Athens, and was signed by Universal Music at age 23. He went on to pursue a successful career in acting and music, eventually focusing his efforts as a thriving musical performer and composer with many successful recordings. Influenced by traditional Cypriot music, the Greek composers of the last decades, and classical, jazz and rock genres. He often performs with orchestras and ensembles. Above all, he remains devoted to the Cypriot people, their culture, and their struggle for justice, donating his time and talent to numerous concerts and performances benefitting various Hellenic organizations and causes associated with justice for Cyprus.

The PanPaphian Association awarded the Distinguished Fellow Cypriot Award to Mr. Polys Kyriacou, a distinguished poet and lyricist who has distinguished himself in his passionate commitment to justice for Cyprus and his love for Hellenic culture. Born in Nicosia, he served in the Cyprus National Guard before his studies at Pantios University in Athens. He came to New York City in 1982 to earn a Master's Degree in Communication and Graphic Design at the Pratt Institute and then worked as an Art Director at the Proini daily newspaper. He served for many years on the board of the Cyprus Federation of America and the Justice for Cyprus Committee, published two volumes of poetry, including Sximata, which won First Prize for a Young Poet from the Cyprus Ministry of Education. A Member of the Board of Directors of Cosmos FM Radio, he hosts his own program every Sunday morning and remains deeply involved in New York City's vibrant Hellenic community.

The Member of the Year Award was given to Mr. George Kouspos. Born and raised in Paphos on Cyprus, he came to the United States in 1984 after serving as an officer in the Cyprus National Guard. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the City College of New York and an M.B.A. degree from Adelphi University while working his way through school. He became a principal at CY Electric Corp. Throughout his studies and his subsequent professional success, he has remained extraordinarily devoted to the cause of justice for Cyprus; to the PanPaphian Association, which he has served as Vice President, Cultural Officer, and Treasurer; and above all to his beloved family, Nancy (Nafsika), who was born in Asgata, Cyprus, and his beautiful daughters, Demetra and Maria.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that my distinguished colleagues rise to join me in paying tribute to the PanPaphian Association of America, the recipients of its awards, and all its many contributions to the civic life of our Nation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to my good friend, Mr. Panayiotis (Peter) Papanicolaou, the distinguished President of the Cyprus Federation of America. Last month, Mr. Papanicolaou was being honored by the Asgata Association at its annual Dinner at Towers on the Green in Floral Park, New York.

Peter Papanicolaou was born and raised in Nicosia, Cyprus, where he received his primary and secondary education. Following two years of service with the National Guard of Cyprus, he came to the United States to pursue a higher education. He attended the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), enrolling in a special program for honors students. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering and a Master of Science degree in Construction Engineering and Construction Management.

He launched his business career with a research position at NJIT, where he developed new technology for industrial sites and military bases for the cleanup of soils contaminated by toxins. He is now a principal of J.F. Contracting, a Brooklyn-based construction and engineering firm. He is professionally affiliated with the American Society of Civil Engineers, the National Society of Professional Engineers, and he is a member of the Civil Engineering Honor Society.

Peter Papanicolaou is the Supreme President of the Cyprus Federation of America, an umbrella organization for all Cypriot Americans. He is also president of the Archdiocesan Metropolitan Youth Choir, a member of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Council, and a member of the Advisory Board of Queens College, the Saint Basil's Academy, the Albert Dorman Honors College at NJIT, and the Harvard School of Public Health. He is a member of the board of the Cyprus--U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and Vice President of the Cyprus Children's Fund.

Peter is widely recognized as a leader with significant civic and humanitarian achievements. In 1995 he was named Businessman of the Year, Borough of Bronx and in 1996 he was presented with the Ellis Island Medal of Honor for his contributions to our national identity while preserving the distinct values and heritage of our ancestors. In 1998 he became an Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, an honor conferred upon individuals for their services and dedication to the Greek Orthodox Church. He is a member of Leadership 100 and a founding member of the Faith Endowment of Orthodoxy. Peter was honored by various Greek American organizations, churches and professional associations.

Peter continues to serve tirelessly various causes of the Greek American community. He resides in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife Nasia. They have two daughters, Elizabeth and Elena.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that my distinguished colleagues rise and join me in honoring Mr. Panayiotis ``Peter'' Papanicolaou, a great New Yorker and a great American who has made outstanding contributions to the civic life of our Nation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the Park Avenue Christian Church in New York City. The Church began commemorating its 200th anniversary year last year at its 2010 Homecoming Celebration.

The Park Avenue Christian Church began as a group of nine members of the Ebenezer Baptist Church who branched off to form the Disciples of Christ on October 10, 1810. This makes them one of the oldest Disciples of Christ Churches in America. They were able to establish themselves as a permanent fixture on Manhattan's Upper East Side as the Park Avenue Christian Church in 1945, at a site that formerly housed the South Dutch Reformed Church and later the Park Avenue Presbyterian Church. The Park Avenue Christian Church has since become a blessed sanctuary for Disciples of Christ and a familiar and beloved institution in the community.

The Church's design by Ralph Adams Cram, Bertram Goodhue & Frank Ferguson provided a church of the purest gothic revival style, inspired by the famous Sainte Chapelle in Paris. It is constructed of local New York stone, salvaged from the construction of Central Park, with its spire surmounting the edifice, arches and fluted pilasters supporting the rounded ceiling that covered three naves, a wide cornice extending around the nave and at the middle height of the apse, soaring stained glass windows designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany, a majestic 52-rank William Jackson Jarman Memorial Organ, and an impressive approach of church-wide steps. The building's cornerstone at 1010 Park Avenue at the corner of East 85th Street was laid in 1909, and the new Church was completed two years later.

The Park Avenue Christian Church remains a thriving, vibrant institution to this day, offering spiritual sanctuary, education, social services, and a wide range of other programs to the people of our Nation's greatest city. In 1963, the church opened a day school, which has since become a top private nursery school in the area. Its ``Camp Ten Ten'' has provided children from diverse backgrounds with a safe and educational summer programming experience. The Church's lively musical programming, including several choirs, concert series, and other musical ensemble performances provide a wonderful outlet for community members. Its Saturday Community Lunch Program provides hot meals and warm companionship to some of the most vulnerable New Yorkers. Park Avenue Christian Church's interfaith program with the Temple of Universal Judaism has provided an invaluable forum for interfaith discussion and relationships. Under the able stewardship of the Reverend Dr. Alvin O'Neal Jackson, the Park Avenue Christian Church continues to uphold its proud and historic tradition of seeking justice, embracing diversity, and inspiring the imagination.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that my distinguished colleagues rise to join me in recognizing the extraordinary contributions to the civic and spiritual life of New York City made by the historic Park Avenue Christian Church and its parishioners, past, present and future.