Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Private Second Class Roger Cordle. This U.S. Army veteran passed away on January 15, 2023, but not without making a strong impact on our community.

Mr. Cordle was awarded numerous medals and ribbons during his military career, including the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for serving during Operation Just Cause.

Mr. Cordle's dedication to service continued as the commander of VFW Post 2535 in Lockport, New York, and as commander of New York State VFW Post in District 7, which oversees Niagara, Orleans, Wyoming, Livingston, and Genesee Counties. During his time as commander of VFW Post 2535, the post was recognized as an all-state post for several years, one of only 24 in the State of New York.

As a leader in our community, Mr. Cordle was active in many of Post 2535's charity events, including providing holiday meals to veterans and families in need and also assisting homeless veterans.

Please join me in celebrating the life of Private Second Class Roger Cordle, who is survived by his beloved wife and five children.

His was a life well lived, and his commitment to this great Nation is an inspiration to us all.

Celebrating the Bicentennial of Hobart College

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the bicentennial of Hobart College.

2022 marked the 200th anniversary of Hobart's founding in Geneva, New York, making it one of America's 50 oldest colleges and universities.

When Hobart College, first named Geneva College, was founded in 1822, the United States was less than 50 years old, Washington, D.C., had been the Nation's capital for only 21 years, and Abraham Lincoln was just 13 years old. The college was located on the land of the Seneca Nation that for generations was the Haudenosaunee Confederacy's westernmost territory.

Hobart College was named after New York's third Episcopal Bishop, John Henry Hobart. Given Geneva's vibrant community, he saw the beautiful city as the perfect place to establish a college with the mission of educating students with a comprehensive liberal arts curriculum.

In 1908, Hobart's sister school, William Smith College for Women, was founded, which eventually merged in 1943 with Hobart to become Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

Both colleges have an impressive legacy of producing men and women of leadership and national impact, including graduates like Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell, who became the first American woman to receive a medical degree in 1849, and Harry W. Coover, Jr., the inventor of Super Glue.

Countless other Hobart and William Smith graduates have made profound contributions to public service, business, education, science, journalism, and spiritual life that endured well beyond their lifetimes. Indeed, my brother John, my cousin Jeff, and many of my friends are graduates of Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

Today, Hobart College educates students from around the world who study on a campus of incomparable beauty. Guided by programs grounded in exploration and intellectual curiosity, both Hobart and William Smith Colleges challenge students to engage in critical and creative thinking. Under the faculty's mentorship, Hobart and William Smith students have won multiple prestigious fellowships like the Rhodes, Gates Cambridge, Fulbright, and Goldwater scholarships.

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate Hobart College on this historic milestone and wish the Hobart and William Smith Colleges community all the best as it continues to produce the next generation of leaders and innovators across the world.

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the underlying bill and my amendment to the Parents Bill of Rights Act. The amendment would require public schools to inform parents on decisions to terminate college-credit courses, including dual-enrollments and advanced placement courses.

As the cost of colleges and universities continues to skyrocket, many students depend on these highly affordable high school college credit courses. It is an essential tool for students to reduce their time and their total cost in attending college.

Case in point, I graduated from college in 1983, and the total tuition to attend Colgate University was $12,000. Today, it is nearly $80,000 for room and board and tuition, so this is a way to try to ameliorate that problem with many students who want to seek college admission and college credit.

However, unfortunately, the woke, radical leftwing school administrators in States such as New York are working to terminate gifted and talented programs, including college credit courses, in their misguided attempt to further their far-left social equity agenda. These administrators don't actually want equal opportunity, they want to tear down our top-performing students to promote their diversity, equity, and inclusion agenda. This is simply wrong.

I have heard from parents across my district who have actually moved out of their own homes to find schools where their children can attend that have these college credit courses offered.

Parents should have the right to know if these important programs are terminated and if they are being eliminated in the name of equity. We should be forming education policy that allows children to flourish and not one that is preoccupied with sabotaging those children who choose to succeed academically.

At the end of the day, sunlight is often the best disinfectant, and I hope the transparency offered by this amendment ends this harmful attempt at the far left's social engineering.

I am grateful to the chair, Dr. Foxx, for her support of my amendment, and I encourage all of my colleagues to support this commonsense amendment that is much needed today for our parents to have equal rights.

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

Mr. Chair, I ask unanimous consent to reclaim my time.

Mr. Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Scalise).

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and celebrate the bicentennial of Yates County, New York, named after New York State Governor Joseph Yates, the seventh Governor of New York who commissioned the county in 1823.

Yates County is home to rolling hills and spectacular lakeside views of three of the Finger Lakes: Keuka, Seneca, and Canandaigua.

Comprised of nine townships, Yates County is home to just over 24,000 New Yorkers, only a small increase from the 20,000 people that called Yates County home at the time of its founding in 1823.

Yates County has preserved its pristine beauty over these years and played an important role in our State's history, including being home to some of the State's oldest stone mills and the lovely town of Branchport, which served as an important trade hub for steamboats along the Finger Lakes.

It was my distinct honor to have as my guest at the State of the Union, Yates County Sheriff Ron Spike, the longest serving sheriff in the history of the State of New York.

It is an honor to represent Yates County in Congress, and I am proud to celebrate Yates County on its bicentennial.

Mr. Speaker, sports and athletic competitions provide essential opportunities for women to thrive at every stage of their life, as children in youth sports and as teens in high school and in college, in order to live a healthy and productive life.

As a former competitive athlete, an equestrian, a basketball player, a golfer, and, yes, the teenage curling champion of 1975 in my hometown, I know the unparalleled opportunities that sports offer to women and girls.

Competitive sports give women a chance to learn new skills, to develop lifelong friendships, and to challenge themselves to compete at the highest levels. Title IX and the banning of discrimination against women in sports made so much of this possible for me and countless other women.

Today, these opportunities are under threat. Joe Biden's Department of Education and State agencies across the Nation are allowing, even encouraging, biological men to participate in women's sports. This is fundamentally unfair. It deprives women and girls of what so many of us fought for decades to achieve: equal opportunity to train, to compete, and to excel in athletics.

We witnessed this past year, during the NCAA women's swimming championship, a phenomenal female athlete robbed of her title by a biological male. This is not an isolated incident. The tragedy is playing out in countless other sports and athletic leagues across our Nation.

Today, we take a stand, with compassion for all, in defense of women's sports to stop this dangerous precedent.

I am honored to be joined by an amazing group of outstanding women athletes who are in our Chamber today and are courageously standing up for women in all sports across our Nation and all women athletes.

This is why I am so honored to cosponsor Representative Greg Steube's Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act and to announce its introduction today in honor of National Women and Girls in Sports Day.

Mr. Speaker, I have here the legislation. This bill will make it a violation of Title IX for biological men to compete in sports designated for women or girls. Further, it sensibly defines sex based on one's biological designation at birth.

This bill isn't just anti-woke. It is actually pro-science. This bill will protect opportunities for women and girls to compete fairly on the athletic field and in life without interference from woke agencies or politicians who are making up definitions of sex and gender as they go, all to fit toxic political agendas and ideologies.

Women have fought hard over the years for equality of opportunity, and it is essential that we protect these opportunities we cherish today for generations of women and girls to come.

The Republican majority has pledged to protect women's sports, and today, we are delivering on that promise with Congressman Steube's bill.

Mr. Speaker, I shall introduce Mr. Steube's bill today.

Mr. Speaker, I thank all my colleagues, but unfortunately, this isn't a bipartisan group.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with deep concern about the state of free and diverse speech in American public life.

DIRECTV, as part of the extreme negotiation tactic, deplatformed Newsmax and silenced their unique perspective for over 13 million DIRECTV subscribers.

This negotiation tactic is a clear example of political bias against conservative news outlets like Newsmax, and it is having a chilling effect on free speech and freedom of the press.

Media outlets enjoy certain privileges as members of the fourth estate. Limiting free speech based on political views is against the spirit of the First Amendment and contrary to a country that celebrates and encourages the marketplace of ideas.

As a former newspaper owner and publisher, I know what it means to represent all viewpoints in the media and to revere that marketplace of ideas. DIRECTV has a responsibility to reassure its customers and the American people that it is not silencing Newsmax for political reasons.

I ask, and all of us are asking, that DIRECTV immediately come to the negotiation table with Newsmax and end this disruption of access rooted in political bias.

Mr. Speaker, I thank, again, my colleagues and everyone standing up for this. I just hope that everyone on both sides of the aisle, with all viewpoints, would stand up and fight on behalf of all of us who are now not getting a robust debate as promised by the spirit of our Founders.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 7) commending the bravery, courage, and resolve of the women and men of Iran demonstrating in more than 133 cities and risking their safety to speak out against the Iranian regime's human rights abuses, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on this measure.

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

Mr. Speaker, today, we consider an urgent bipartisan concurrent resolution condemning the Iranian regime for its gross human rights abuses against protesters in Iran, who are bravely speaking out and standing up to this terrorist regime after being brutally silenced for two generations.

I thank my Democratic co-lead, Mr. Gottheimer, and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair McCaul for their support of this resolution.

While I was disappointed we were not able to get this resolution to the floor last Congress when I partnered with former Congressman Malinowski, I am grateful that this resolution is now

being brought up for a vote so quickly in our new Congress and with such broad bipartisan support.

Whether it be China, Iran, or Russia, this new House Republican majority is ready and willing to stand up to our adversaries and protect America's vitally important national security interests.

Since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in the custody of Iran's religious police in September of last year, the Iranian people have boldly taken to the streets to demand justice. Now, almost 4\1/2\ months later, Iranian men, women, and children continue to protest the regime and its cruelty, despite the immense risk to themselves and their families. They are literally risking their lives for a just cause greater than themselves.

These demonstrations are the most significant popular protests against the brutal regime's authoritarian rule since it came to power in 1979. The response from the regime has been vicious, violent, and vindictive, not surprisingly.

Hundreds of protesters have been murdered by regime security forces. Thousands more have been detained on trumped-up charges. Many of those in custody, especially women, have been subject to cruel and inhumane torture.

The regime has unjustly executed Iranian protesters in sham trials that lack any modicum of due process. Many dozens more face the imminent possibility of execution.

The brave Iranian people are not backing down. In fact, they are more resolved than ever. They are demanding a government that respects their rights at home, stops funding terrorism abroad, and makes peace with its neighbors. They are demanding a future built on freedom, justice, the rule of law, and a chance at prosperity.

It is vital that we, the U.S. Representatives, a body that is among the greatest symbols of freedom and democracy around the world, stand with one voice to affirm our support for the brave Iranian people.

The resolution we are considering today does just this. It reaffirms our resounding support for the brave Iranians who continue to put their lives on the line to secure their fundamental rights and freedoms.

The resolution is a call to action. It urges the Biden administration to do more. Instead of negotiating with this brutal regime at a moment of weakness and true vulnerability, the Biden administration must meet the moment and do everything in its power to stand with the Iranian people. It must sanction those responsible for these brutal killings. It must do everything it can to counter the Iranian regime's cowardly attempts to restrict internet access that prevents its citizens from sharing images and videos and communicating with the outside world.

We have the power to give the Iranian people the voice they need to tell the truth about their oppression at the hands of the Ayatollah, and we must exercise it.

Finally, the Biden administration must lead the effort to press our allies and partners around the world to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps uses terror to silence Iranian citizens at home and targets innocent citizens abroad.

The United States rightly designated the group a Foreign Terrorist Organization in 2019. Now, the rest of the world must join in this noble cause. The IRGC's reign of terror must come to an end.

Mr. Speaker, this resolution says loudly, clearly, and with a strong bipartisan voice that the American people are on the side of the courageous Iranian people. The U.S. House of Representatives condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the regime's horrific violence.

Finally, as we recognize the bravery of the protesters in Iran, I also want to take a moment to remember that we have American citizens being held hostage in Iran today. These innocent American citizens have endured years of false allegations, wretched conditions, and separation from their loved ones simply because they are Americans. They must all be released. No American can be left behind.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the 60 Members who have cosponsored this resolution, and I urge the entire House to support its passage.

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Meeks for his support, which I greatly appreciate.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Miller).

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

Mr. Speaker, while I am pleased at the bipartisan support of this resolution, I think it is important to reinforce that there can be no legitimacy or lifeline for this inhumane regime; that means no sanctions relief or nuclear negotiations.

Just a few months ago, the Biden administration was actively negotiating sanctions relief as part of a new nuclear deal with a regime that is detaining, torturing, and killing its own citizens.

Let me be clear, Iran did not comply with the last nuclear deal. Why would they comply with a new deal?

The only thing a new nuclear deal could accomplish is giving the autocratic regime more resources to attack its own people.

Mr. Speaker, I implore the Biden administration to not resume these foolhardy efforts. We do not negotiate with terrorists, and the Ayatollah and his regime are terrorists. They use fear, violence, and intimidation to achieve political goals.

We must return to a position of firm pressure and strong resolve while enhancing our deterrence in the region. Until this regime changes its behavior, it must remain under pressure.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Texas for her strong compassion for these horrific situations in Iran and for the women of Iran.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York also for his compassionate remarks in support of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to close.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Speaker McCarthy, Majority Leader Scalise, Whip Emmer, and the new chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Mr. McCaul, for prioritizing this important resolution and bringing it to the floor.

The fact is that this resolution was brought to the floor so quickly this week because the House majority demonstrates the importance of this issue.

I want to thank Mr. Meeks for his continued support and help in ushering through unanimous support for this resolution in the last Congress. We are finally here getting it through, and I am grateful to the gentleman for his leadership and also for being so supportive.

Again, I thank Mr. Gottheimer, especially, and Mr. McCaul for cosponsoring this resolution with me and all the speakers and everyone who have spoken in support of this resolution. It is important that we stand as a united voice against the Iranian regime and in support of the people of Iran.

I say to the people of Iran: We commend your bravery, we mourn your losses, and the American people are with you as you stand up for freedom.

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

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

Offered by: Ms. Tenney

Amendment No. 42: Page 2, line 15, strike ``Secretary'' and

insert ``Secretary--''.

Page 2, line 15, strike ``has developed'' and insert the

following:

``(A) has developed

Page 2, line 25, strike ``(2).'' and insert ``(2); and''.

Page 2, after line 25, insert the following:

``(B) has submitted to Congress a list of existing

regulatory and tax policies that hold back adequate domestic

oil and gas production.

Page 3, line 4, strike ``(1)'' and insert ``(1)(A)''.

Page 3, line 7, strike ``(1)'' and insert ``(1)(A)''.

Page 3, line 9, strike the closing quotation mark and the

final period.

Page 3, after line 9, insert the following:

``(4) Consultation regarding list.--The Secretary shall

prepare the list required by paragraph (1)(B) in consultation

with the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of the

Interior, and the Secretary of Defense.''.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 3, condemning the recent attacks on pro-life facilities, groups, and churches.

New York is home to so many compassionate and committed pro-life pregnancy centers, such as CompassCare in Amherst, New York, and CareNet Centers dotted around New York State.

Pro-life pregnancy centers across our State and our country provide women with critical care, such as free pregnancy tests, pre-natal care, referrals, education, mentoring, and material support, including diapers, car seats, and clothing. They also provide love and support to these women in a time of need. From 2016 to 2020, these pregnancy centers saved over 800,000 lives by providing a compassionate alternative to abortion.

Tragically, on June 7, 2022, a CompassCare facility in western New York was maliciously firebombed by a violent anti-abortion group called Jane's Revenge. The perpetrators left graffiti: ``Jane was here.'' Those responsible have still not been held accountable.

Unfortunately, this was not an isolated incident. Over 100 pro-life facilities and churches were attacked in 2022 alone.

I was honored to join CompassCare's CEO, Reverend Jim Harden, and the CompassCare team at its reopening just a few months after the violent attack. As Reverend Harden said best, CompassCare now has 21st century telehealth tools to compete head-on with the billion-dollar abortion empire by reaching and serving every woman in America.

Pro-life pregnancy centers play a key role in helping pregnant women all across the country, but Democrat leadership has been silent on the unprecedented amount of violence leveled against these compassionate advocates for life. House Republicans are united in our condemnation of the political violence these wonderful caregivers and those who choose life have always faced.

I am proud to support H. Con. Res. 3, condemning the recent attacks on pro-life facilities, groups, and churches; and I will not back down to violent extremists.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and thank Buffalo Bills assistant athletic trainer Denny Kellington for his heroic actions saving the life of Bills safety Damar Hamlin during the Bills' January 2 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Kellington graduated from Oklahoma State in 2000 and spent time working for the Denver Broncos, Ohio State, and even working for upstate New York's very own Syracuse University.

After Hamlin collapsed, Kellington jumped into action and began performing CPR, continuing this lifesaving treatment for 9 minutes, saving Hamlin's life and opening the door for his speedy recovery.

Mr. Speaker, Denny Kellington is a hero. All of New York's 24th District, the Bills Mafia, and America are forever grateful for his heroism and leadership during a truly terrifying moment.

Due to his valiant actions, I support the calls for the National Football League to make Denny Kellington the first athletic trainer to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

There is power in prayer, and we are so grateful for Damar's promising recovery.

Go Bills.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act.

I am a small manufacturing businessowner, and I have also worked as a tax attorney, so I know firsthand the kind of power that the IRS has over our small businessowners and lower- and middle-income taxpayers.

Last year, to fund their leftwing agenda, the Democrats in Congress decided to spend your hard-earned tax dollars on 87,000 new IRS agents, making the IRS nearly the size of the U.S. Marine Corps.

The Biden administration claims these agents will not set their sights on hardworking Americans. The facts reveal the opposite. The Democrats claim these new audits will only affect Americans making over $400,000. The facts prove otherwise.

However, the investment of $80 billion with over $40 billion being spent for enforcement will exact just a fraction of the revenue they hope to get to fund their spending sprees. The American taxpayers deserve better.

The truth is their plan will target middle- and lower-income taxpayers. The CBO agrees, and it released a finding that said additional agents will lead to as many as 700,000 more audits on Americans making less than $75,000 a year.

The core principle of our system of government is innocent until proven guilty, not guilty until proven innocent as the IRS attempts to do.

I encourage my colleagues to support H.R. 23.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor my dear friend, Staff Sergeant Lewis Smith, affectionately known as Slugger and also very affectionately known as the Mayor of Washington Mills, who recently passed away at the age of 99.

Lew was born in Washington Mills, New York, in 1922 and graduated from Sauquoit Valley Central School in 1940.

After the terrible attacks on Pearl Harbor, Lew immediately signed up to fight for our country in the United States Air Force, with what at the time was known as the 13th Army Air Corps 307th Bombardment Group in the South Pacific.

A member of the Greatest Generation, Lew honorably served our country in World War II, completing 50 combat missions in the South Pacific with, as I said, the 13th Army Air Corps 307th Bombardment Group.

He wrote a wonderful book chronicling his experience in the war, which I highly recommend to everyone who is interested in finding out what it was really like to just be an average member of the Air Force, enlisting and learning and growing and sacrificing.

After the war, Lew came home to Washington Mills and married the love of his life, Jane, on May 5, 1945, after moving to Denver to complete Lew's military service.

The couple moved back to Washington Mills, where they would live together for 76 years until Jane's passing in 2021.

Upon moving back to Washington Mills, Lew worked as a welder for Utica Structural Steel before taking over his father-in-law's service stations with his two sons. Later, Lew would take on positions as a maintenance man for the town of New Hartford highway and police departments.

On top of his service as a mechanic, Lew also served our community as one of the founding members of the Willowvale Fire Company Inc., serving since 1950, and as the leader of the Clonan Post 1000 American Legion.

Lew was a wonderful person, a dear friend, and a tremendous community servant. I thank him and his family for their friendship and for the lifetime of service and commitment to our community by the entire family.

He was truly a special gem in our community like no other person. Probably my greatest inspiration, other than my own father, Lew was a person of great integrity, great honesty, who gave wonderful, sage advice to everyone he met. He was also one of the kindest people and one of the most caring, giving people I have met in my life.

I thank him and his family and his wonderful wife, Jane, for all the wonderful times and, actually, great experiences I had and their support of our community and all those people who serve in the fire service and police service and serve our Nation in uniform.

He truly embodied our Greatest Generation, and he is sorely missed by our community.

Honoring Edward Bradley

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Edward Bradley of Chadwicks, New York, who passed away earlier this week.

Edward was a lifelong resident of the Utica area and dedicated his life to serving our community and his family. He worked for several companies in the area, including James Donovan Roofing and Mohawk Containers, where he worked for 40 years. Incidentally, James Donovan was one of our New York State senators from our region.

On top of his work, Edward was also a 50-year member of the Willowvale Fire Company, where he served previously as president and vice president. He also served as a member of the Oneida County Fire Police and the State director of the New York State Fire Police Association, and he was honored by the Willowvale Fire Company with the very prestigious Ironman Award.

Edward was also a member of the Utica Elks Lodge and was nominated by the United Way of the Mohawk Valley for the 100 Heroes of the Mohawk Valley, recognizing his tremendous and honorable, dedicated service to our community.

Edward, thank you for your lifetime of service, and may your memory continue to be a blessing to all of us and the new generations of people that come after us.

We will never forget your commitment to our region, and your family remains in our thoughts and prayers. Your department is in great hands. They learned from truly the best.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Chief Master Sergeant John Jones of Utica, New York, who retired in October of this year after nearly 30 years of full-time service in the Air National Guard.

Chief Master Sergeant John A. Jones entered the Air Force in August of 1993, serving in ever-increasing positions of responsibility over the next 29 years, culminating in his most recent position as superintendent of the 174th Maintenance Operations Flight at Hancock Field Air National Guard Base in Syracuse, New York.

Chief Jones started his career at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware as an airlift aircraft maintenance specialist, where he maintained the C-5 Galaxy. He accumulated hundreds of flying hours in both peacetime and combat missions.

He transitioned to the 174th Fighter Wing of the New York Air National Guard in 1997, serving 9 years as an attack controls systems specialist and electronic integrated systems specialist. In those roles, he maintained critical electronic systems of the F-16 Fighting Falcon.

In 2006, Chief Jones moved to the Maintenance Group Quality Assurance office as the avionics inspector, eventually serving as the chief inspector and superintendent.

Chief Jones deployed multiple times to the European and Middle Eastern theaters of operation in service of our country to support Operations Deliberate Force, Southern Watch, Noble Eagle, and Enduring Freedom.

Chief Jones was also instrumental in the modernization of New York's Air National Guard fleet, including playing a pivotal role overseeing the aircraft conversion from the F-16 Fighting Falcon to the MQ-9 Reaper.

I have come to personally know Chief Jones through his dedicated work as the New York Wing commander of the Civil Air Patrol, a program I care deeply about and have consistently supported as a Member of Congress and also as a member of the New York State Assembly. My son, Trey, who is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and a Marine officer, was once a young man in the Civil Air Patrol's cadet program.

I saw firsthand how Civil Air Patrol's educational program and leadership training lit a spark within him that played a role in propelling him to serve our Nation. CAP continues to do the same for young men and women across our country.

I had the opportunity recently to explore just how the Civil Air Patrol's New York Wing conducts disaster relief missions when I joined Chief Jones and his cadets for a training session in Rome, New York. I saw young cadets experience their first flights and was able to ride in a Civil Air Patrol plane myself.

Thank you to Chief Jones for his experience as well as decades of service to our community and our Nation. I wish him the very best in retirement, and I am confident he will continue to find ways to give back to our region and continue to empower and inspire leaders of the next generation.

Supporting Delphi Salaried Retirees

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call upon the Senate to quickly pass the Susan Muffley Act, which you may remember passed this body earlier this year with strong bipartisan support.

Under the Obama administration, the Delphi salaried retirees had their pension benefits slashed, while unionized hourly workers received their full benefits. This was an injustice to the Delphi salaried retirees that must be remedied, and it was the fault of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, a Federal program.

The Susan Muffley Act, led by Congressman Dan Kildee and Congressman Mike Turner, would fully restore the Delphi salaried retirees' full pension benefits with backpay.

I was honored to support this legislation when it passed the House of Representatives in July. Thank you to all of my colleagues across the aisle and everyone who recognized this grave injustice and supported these hardworking people who deserve these benefits restored.

Now, the Senate must pass this legislation before it expires at the end of this year. The Delphi group has been fighting for almost 15 years to correct this wrong, and it would be a travesty if they lost this battle.

That is why I am calling on Senate leadership and all the Senators to bring the Susan Muffley Act to the floor, to support it, and to include it in their end-of-year work this legislative session. Together, we can make the Delphi employees whole and can right this wrong and this terrible injustice to these hardworking Americans who just did their job and paid into their own pension system and were not able to receive the benefits that were the fruits of their labor.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the Joseph family from Utica, New York, and their dedicated and honorable service in defense of our great Nation.

During World War II, five of the Joseph brothers served in our Armed Forces, rising to the challenge to democracy and freedom and defending all free people's rights across the globe.

The Joseph brothers served in all branches of the military across multiple fronts, in harm's way constantly. Sadly, none of the brothers could return home for their mother's funeral, as she died when they were deployed across multiple fronts and theaters of combat.

While it is impossible to comprehend and appreciate what they all went through, all just young men coming of age literally under enemy fire, I want to provide this body and this country with a small snapshot of what each Joseph brother endured and did for their community, State, and our country.

Seaman Second Class Edward Michael ``Chick'' Joseph, having served in the United States Navy during World War II, receiving an honorable discharge from the Navy on November 28, 1944. Ed, otherwise known as ``Chick,'' earned the Combat Action Ribbon, Navy Good Conduct Medal, American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with three bronze battle stars, World War II Victory Medal, and foreign awards of the Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon with one bronze battle star.

Torpedoman's Mate Second Class Joseph Edward Joseph, honorably discharged from the United States Navy on January 4, 1946, serving in World War II aboard the USS Aulick. On November 29, 1945, six Japanese planes attacked the Aulick in the Leyte Gulf while on antisubmarine patrol, with 31 men giving their lives in defense of their ship, comrades, and country, 64 being wounded, and 1 sailor missing in action.

Anthony Joseph, United States Marine Corps, World War II, died in 1945, sadly, due to cancer.

Louis Joseph, United States Merchant Marines, World War II, serving in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Mediterranean theaters, visiting 31 countries, islands, and territories. Two of the ships Louis served on were sunk, with one sinking causing Louis to spend 17 days adrift in a raft. Louis' unit earned the Presidential Unit Citation with two battle stars. Louis used his brother Joseph's identification to enlist initially in the Coast Guard, as he was underage to serve his country.

John G. Joseph, United States Coast Guard during World War II, also served as a corporal and auto equipment operator in the United States Army during the period immediately after World War II, serving from December 1945 through December 1948, having been separated from Fort Slocum in New York.

I have been fortunate enough to know many World War II veterans and to hear firsthand their actions and experiences. Sadly, members of our Greatest Generation are dwindling in numbers, and our current generation may not know of their sacrifice and service other than what is portrayed in Hollywood or in history books.

The Joseph family should be an example to all Americans of what answering the call to service means, especially when our ideals and our values are directly threatened by tyrants and oppressors.

Their family stateside supported them while under great stress, knowing these sons of Utica, New York, were direct players in one of the greatest military struggles in our Nation's history.

I am honored to represent subsequent generations of the Joseph family, who all continued the tradition of the six Joseph brothers in public service and community service.

I thank the Joseph family for their service and all of our veterans in the 22nd Congressional District and across the United States of America for their sacrifice and their inspiring service to all of us, to our country, our States, our communities.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. God bless these wonderful people who answer the call to serve.

Mr. Speaker, on Rollcall No. 460, I mistakenly voted ``nay'' when I intended to vote ``yea''.

Stated against:

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight a looming catastrophe for New York farmers, farmworkers, and consumers across New York State and the country.

On September 6, the New York State Farm Laborers Wage Board voted to advance a proposal to lower the State's overtime wage threshold for farm laborers from 60 to 40 hours per week, despite overwhelming opposition to the recommendation.

During the public comment period, farmers, farmworkers, and consumers all turned out in droves to oppose the recommendation. Farmers, who are struggling with inflation already, are now very worried about keeping up with yet another price hike. Farmworkers are gravely concerned about the possible lost hours on the job, cutting their wages. Consumers should fear even higher increases to food costs, which have already increased 11.4 percent over the last year, the biggest increase since 1979, with prices continuing to go up.

Their fears are real. Cornell University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences projected that the overtime rule's implementation could force two-thirds of dairy farmers to make significant changes to their operations, including, and dramatically bad, leaving the industry or investing in other States.

New York State already leads the Nation in the highest out-migration of people and jobs. This would be a disaster for our agricultural community.

Cornell University Ag Sciences also found that half of New York's fruit and vegetable farmers likely would have to reduce operations or leave the industry altogether. The second largest apple-producing county in the entire Nation is Wayne County, located in upstate New York.

Despite all this, the board still voted to advance the recommendation anyway. We are incredibly disappointed that the board ignored such compelling input from important stakeholders, worsening the already difficult headwinds for New York's agriculture industry. The board ultimately decided to undermine the very industry and workers they are supposed to be serving.

This week, I joined upstate farmers for a roundtable discussion hosted by Dale Hemminger and his son, Clay, at Hemdale Farms in Seneca Castle, New York. The feedback from the farmers was unanimous: Lowering the overtime threshold will devastate New York's agricultural industry and have a critically difficult impact on the future of family farms in New York and could leave New York as one of the few States in the country with such an onerous and unreasonable restriction on family farms.

Family farms, large and small, are the lifeblood of New York's economy. Everyone thinks it is New York City. It is actually agriculture.

Now, the recommendation is with the State labor commissioner, Roberta Reardon. I have and continue to urge her to reject this change and maintain the current 60-hour threshold. New York family farms and consumers simply cannot bear any further price increases.

I have also joined my other New York colleagues, Representatives Elise

Stefanik and Chris Jacobs, in introducing legislation in Congress known as the Protect Local Farms Act to stop this misguided policy from taking effect.

If there are no farms, there will be no nutritious food to feed our State, our Nation, and, yes, the world, as we face a potential food shortage worldwide.