Floor Statements

Madam Chair, while in the district, I met with the Puerto Rican Center of Arizona, including Gretchen Patterson, the founder and president, Leticia Jimenez, Jose Moro, Claudio Medina, and Maria Romero. They are advocates for Puerto Rico and have family members still on the island. They work in Arizona communities to share the culture of Puerto Rico and educate people about the island. They described devastation on the island caused by Hurricane Maria. They also talked about the problems with the electrical grid, even before Hurricane Maria.

This legislation, H.R. 4606, will help Puerto Rico and other Caribbean islands by expediting the approval of projects to export small shipments of LNG to Caribbean island nations, which are in desperate need of natural gas to modernize their electric grids and supply more affordable fuel and feedstocks for manufacturing.

H.R. 4606 will also help our U.S. citizens living in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands who are still recovering from Hurricane Maria. While the territories don't need a special permit to receive U.S. natural gas shipments, they would certainly benefit if we allow more U.S. small- scale LNG exports to other destinations in the Caribbean.

H.R. 4606 will jump-start investments and jobs, which will create economies of scale. With more competition, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands will have more supply options and lower costs.

The Caribbean islands have some of the highest fuel and electricity prices. We shouldn't deny them the opportunity to share in some of our surplus natural gas.

H.R. 4606 isn't a silver bullet, but it will help deliver cleaner and more affordable fuel to those remote locations.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6400) to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct a threat and operational analysis of ports of entry, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include any extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

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

Mr. Speaker, the United States has over 300 official ports of entry, ranging from land border ports along our southern and northern borders to international airports in major metropolitan cities, to seaports ranging from the Great Lakes to coastal cities. While each port facilitates trade and travel that keeps our economy humming, each has their own unique security challenges to prevent illicit activity. That is why it is imperative that we know the vulnerabilities and operational needs at each and every port in order to properly protect our homeland from threats and exploitation.

I introduced this bill because our country's ports are long overdue for a comprehensive review. My bill requires the Department of Homeland Security to do a full threat and operational analysis of these vulnerabilities and create a strategy and implementation plan to prevent human trafficking, illicit drugs, illegal contraband, and transnational criminal activity at our air, land, and sea ports of entry.

The bill also works to improve the flow of commerce that is vital to our economy. We need to not only think about the security of our ports, but also the infrastructure and operational needs as well.

Ports of entry continue to be a preferred location for transnational criminal organizations and drug smugglers to transport illicit drugs and contraband into the United States. In fact, between October 1, 2010, and March 31, 2018, Customs and Border Protection conducted more than 84 million nonintrusive inspection examinations, resulting in more than 19,000 narcotics seizures and $79 million in currency seizures.

Many U.S. ports of entry were built 40 to 50 years ago. Therefore, they were never designed for post-9/11 security measures, technology, or increased volume of traffic. These infrastructure constraints magnify the threats at our ports of entry and manifest themselves as long lines and bottlenecks that strain Customs and Border Protection's ability to properly vet all incoming traffic. In addition, long lines and wait times delay trade and cost the U.S. economy millions of dollars every year in lost productivity.

This is why my bill's required analysis will look over current and potential threats, methods, and pathways used to exploit security vulnerabilities and improvements needed to improve illicit drugs and other contraband from crossing our border. Following the analysis, my bill directs the Department of Homeland Security to create a strategy and implementation plan to address the threats and operational inefficiencies identified. We need to fix these problems. We need to take action. Our ports must be brought into the 21st century.

I am pleased by the support I have received on this legislation, and I specifically want to thank Chairman Brady of the House Ways and Means Committee and Chairman McCaul of the House Homeland Security Committee for working with me to bring this bill to the floor. Modernizing our ports of entry is just one step in securing our border.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to join me in supporting H.R. 6400, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Committee on Ways and Means,

House of Representatives,

Washington, DC, August 31, 2018.

Hon. Michael T. McCaul,

Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security,

Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman McCaul: I write to you regarding H.R. 6400,

the ``United States Ports of Entry Threat and Operational

Review Act.'' The Committee on Ways and Means has

jurisdiction over this bill and an additional referral was

granted to the Committee on Homeland Security. The Committee

on Homeland Security ordered this bill favorably reported.

Because of the extensive communication regarding the policies

contained in the bill, the Committee on Ways and Means is

willing to waive formal consideration of the bill so that it

may proceed expeditiously to the House Floor.

Please note that by waiving formal consideration of the

bill, the Committee on Ways and Means is in no way waiving

its jurisdiction over the subject matter contained in those

provisions of the bills that fall within your Rule X

jurisdiction.

I will include a copy of our letters in the Congressional

Record during consideration of this legislation on the House

floor and would support your effort to seek appointment of an

appropriate number of conferees on any House-Senate

conference involving this legislation.

Sincerely,

Kevin Brady,

Chairman.

Mr. Speaker, I once again urge my colleagues to support H.R. 6400, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the gentleman from Virginia. Continuing resolutions are a growing threat to our national security. Yet, for the past 17 years, Congress has forced the Department of Defense to begin the fiscal year under a continuing resolution 13 times.

Continuing resolutions are designed to temporarily fund the Federal Government if more time is needed to debate and finish remaining appropriations bills; however, they inhibit the Defense Department planning for the future. Not only do they harm us and our ability to deter and defend against emerging threats, but they also put our national security in a gridlock.

Supporting defense programs through prior year funding levels is wasteful and inefficient. Think about it. Are our family's or business' needs the exact same as they were last year? the year before that? Of course not, because as we grow and develop, our needs change.

The short-term fixes of continuing resolutions ultimately obstruct and hinder the military and its responsibility to secure our Nation. The consequences of shutdown politics will ultimately compromise the Department of Defense by inhibiting our military's ability to pursue long-term projects and reforms.

The Department of Defense relies upon multiyear contracts for fighter jets like the F-35, missile defense systems, and other advanced weapons. This is because contracts are usually the most cost-effective means to pay for military equipment.

At Luke Air Force Base, which is in my district, I have heard repeatedly how uncertainty in the defense budget and the restrictions that come from continuing resolutions have stalled the Air Force's F-35 fighter jet program. This is not acceptable. We must change how we do business and fund our single most important responsibility in Congress: our national defense.

We all agree that we must provide a common defense for our country, and we need to stop letting political grandstanding get in the way of that. We have worked too hard to begin rebuilding our military in a meaningful way to let shutdown politics put our Nation at risk.

While I am pleased and proud at what the House has done, that we have done our job and voted to approve both the National Defense Authorization Act and the Department of Defense Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2019, our work is not done. We must work with our counterparts in the Senate to ensure these bills are signed into law.

We cannot stop falling back on continuing resolutions to determine our military's defense budget. We must keep working for the men and women who put their lives at risk every day to defend our freedom.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Virginia, Representative Wittman, for his commitment to our military.

Mr. Speaker, yes, we have Luke Air Force Base in my district in Arizona. And it is not only a powerful base for the defense of our Nation; it is the largest training base for our fighter jets in the entire Nation. We have F-35s. Prior to that, we had F-16s.

Just like everything else, just like a family, we need to know what our budget is long term, because we need to train our fighter pilots. We need to know how many hours of funding we have to do that. We need to have a reliable amount of money that we can depend on in order to enter contracts.

So this whole continuing resolution thing, we really need to get past that.

I was the senate appropriations chairman in Arizona, and I heard over and over and over again from businesses that: We just need something to rely on. We need something that is steady.

And that is what we need. We need to pass a budget that really puts the defense of our country front and center because, after all, that is Congress' number one job.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4760, the Securing America's Future Act, vital legislation to the State of Arizona. My constituents back home know all too well how desperately we need our borders secured. I signed on as a cosponsor of this bill because it will fund a wall and other protective infrastructure, close the gaping loopholes in our immigration laws, and finally secure our southern border, ending this problem once and for all.

It is disappointing that with all of the rhetoric coming from my colleagues across the aisle, they still refuse to come to the negotiating table and work toward a legislative solution.

Our broken immigration system cannot continue to be ignored. I want to thank Chairman McCaul and Chairman Goodlatte for their work on this much-needed legislation, and I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill.

Madam Speaker, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has ignited a fire that the American economy hasn't seen in decades. The tax cuts and reforms passed by Congress have made a real impact on the lives of Americans across the country and to the people in Arizona's Eighth Congressional District.

The tax cuts have allowed small business owners like Mike and Colleen Sutter to reinvest in their employees. They have owned a small business for the last 27 years in El Mirage in my district. Due to the tax cuts package, Mike and Colleen were able to give across-the-board pay increases and bonuses to their employees, including a $3 an hour increase for hourly workers.

This historic tax reform legislation has also had a huge impact on those living on fixed incomes. Arizona Public Service Electric Company cut its power rates by $119 million because of the tax cuts. These lower costs help seniors all over America and in my district.

With a simpler and fairer Tax Code, businesses are finally able to hire again, more than 1 million new jobs have been created, and there are more jobs available than there are unemployed Americans. Our Nation is in business again.

Americans are seeing more money in their paychecks, a reduced tax burden, and a roaring economy. The tax cuts have meant real dollars going back into the pockets of small businesses and families.

I thank my colleague from Arizona (Mr. Schweikert) for his commitment to commonsense tax reform.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank you and the Members of this distinguished body for welcoming me. Representing the people of Arizona's Eighth Congressional District is truly an honor, and I am eager to work with you all to ensure that we accomplish what my constituents sent me here to do: secure our borders, strengthen our military, and create a strong economy.

Earlier today, I met with Mike and Colleen Sutter from my district. Mike and Colleen have been small-business owners for over 27 years in Arizona.

Due to the recent tax cut package, Mike and Colleen were able to give across-the-board pay increases and bonuses to their employees, including a $3 an hour increase for hourly employees. The tax cuts have meant real dollars getting into the pockets of Americans and small businesses.

Mr. Speaker, I have lost my voice from the allergies here in Washington, D.C., but I am truly honored to be here.

Before I comment, I just wanted to introduce my family that is up in the gallery: my husband, Joe Lesko--thank you, Joe--my son, Jared Lesko; my daughter, Samantha Lesko; her fiance, Brandon Stealth; and my brother, Roger Lorenz.

I am truly honored to be here to join you, and I look forward to working with you.

I want to say to my constituents at home: Thank you so much for the privilege of your vote and for sending me here to Congress. I am thankful, and God bless you.