Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Genevieve Shiroma as she retires from her post as Board Member of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD). I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring Ms. Shiroma for her leadership and commitment to the residents of Ward 4 and all of California.

Elected to the SMUD Board in November 1998, Ms. Shiroma has served the many residents in her region, Ward 4. During her tenure, she has been elected as president of the Board four times, indicating the impressive work she has accomplished since her first election.

Since graduating from University of California, Davis with a bachelor's degree in Material Science and Engineering, Ms. Shiroma has achieved an illustrious career in local and state government and has long been an advocate for policies benefiting all Californians. With over two decades of experience at the California Air Resources Board, Ms. Shiroma has excelled in her field and has been an important leader in improving air quality programs and regulations, which has undoubtedly improved the health and well being of Californians. In addition to her work with the State and the SMUD Board, Ms. Shiroma has also been serving on the Agricultural Labor Relations Board for the State of California since 1999.

Ms. Shiroma is also a civic leader in our region, lending her time to numerous non-profit organizations. She has served on the Boards of the Sierra-Curtis Neighborhood Association, United Way California Capital Region, B Street Theatre, Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, and the Friends Committee for My Sister's House. Ms. Shiroma is also a Senior Fellow with the American Leadership Forum Mountain Valley Chapter.

Mr. Speaker, as family, friends and fellow SMUD Board Members join to celebrate Ms. Shiroma's successful and impactful career, I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring her exemplary leadership and contribution to our community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Bill Slaton as he retires from his post as Board Member of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD). I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring Mr. Slaton for his leadership and commitment to the residents of Ward 7 and all of California.

Mr. Slaton was elected to the SMUD Board in November 2002 and has been a diligent leader and representative for the many residents in Ward 7. As a testament to his dedication, Mr. Slaton has served as the Board president three times.

Mr. Slaton's career began after he graduated from the University of Texas with a bachelor's degree in Business Administration. His career in the Sacramento region has been a testament to public service. For years, he served on the Policy Makers Council (PMC) of the American Public Power Association and acted as a strong advocate for customers of more than the 2,000 public power agencies. Additionally, he has sat on the board of directors for two community banks where he was instrumental in structuring financing for information technology projects utilized by public agencies. In 2012, Mr. Slaton continued his work in advocation for Californians when he was appointed by Governor Brown to the California Public Employees Retirement System Board of Administration.

Since he has lived in the Greater Sacramento Region, Mr. Slaton has been an inspiring leader for our faith-based community and all who live in the greater region. He served as the chairman of the board of KVIE- Channel 6 and has been a beloved member of Point West Rotary. As a leader in our robust faith community, Mr. Slaton acted as the president of the Jewish Federation of the Sacramento Region and is a co-founder of the Jewish Community Foundation of the West.

Mr. Speaker, as family, friends and fellow SMUD Board Members gather to celebrate Mr. Slaton's inspiring career, I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring his dedication to the Board and to our community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the life of civil rights attorney Michael B. Trister, who passed away on October 20, 2018. As family, friends and colleagues mourn the loss of a loving family man, a steward of justice, and a voice for the underrepresented, I ask my fellow members of Congress to join me in honoring Mike for his unwavering commitment to defending civil rights and his rich legacy as a lawyer, advocate, teacher, husband, father and grandfather.

Mike's legal career was marked by profound dedication to serving those in need. His first job out of law school was teaching and developing a legal services program at the University of Mississippi School of Law in the 1960's. There, his work serving the poor and marginalized drew the ire of the state's political hierarchy. When the University terminated its relationship with the program and told Mike he could not both continue to teach and work in the program, he sued in federal court--in Trister v. University of Mississippi--and won the right to do so.

Upon his reinstatement, and as part of his groundbreaking legal practice as the first Executive Director of North Mississippi Rural Legal Services (NMRLS), he focused on advancing the civil and economic rights of African Americans--in the process, contributing greatly to the transformation of poverty law practice in the state. In addition to overseeing school desegregation cases, Mike represented NMRLS lawyers targeted by local law enforcement and defended African American student protesters at the University who were facing both criminal prosecution and calls for expulsion.

In 1970, Mike moved to Washington, D.C., to work at the Children's Defense Fund, eventually serving as Vice President and General Counsel. He later co-founded the firm currently known as Trister, Ross, Schadler & Gold, PLLC. Over thirty years, he worked with a multitude of clients, providing counsel to progressive labor, advocacy, charitable, and political organizations. Mike's practice, at its core, focused on supporting social, economic, and political movements. Beyond his law practice, he also sought to improve the legal profession through teaching and community engagement. Among other things, Mike served as the Chair of the DC Bar Legal Ethics Committee and the DC Bar Rules of Professional Conduct Review Committee. He has been honored for his lifetime of advocacy, and for his many contributions to the profession.

Mr. Speaker, as Mike's wife Nancy Duff Campbell, son Noah Trister, daughter Karen Trister Grace, son-in-law Peter Grace, and grandchildren Jeremy and Mara Grace celebrate his lifetime of achievements and his devotion to his family, I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring Mike's dedication to advancing civil rights and progressive causes, which began during an era that sorely needed courageous voices.

Mr. Speaker, it is with profound sadness that I rise to honor the life of my good friend, the Honorable R. Burnett Miller, who passed away on October 14, 2018. Burnett was not just my dear and close friend, but a larger than life figure and leader in Sacramento. As his wife, Mimi, and his children Jim, Fitzgerald, Powell, Simone, Mary and Margot gather to remember his life and legacy, I ask my colleagues to stand with me in his memory.

Burnett was born on September 2, 1923 to Delma Burnett and Leroy Miller, a respected family with deep roots in Sacramento. As a young adult, his education at Santa Clara University was cut short when he enlisted into the army during World War II. Burnett was a brave man and his efforts in the war and in the Battle of the Bulge earned him a Purple Heart and a Silver Star. During his harrowing service, he was injured, but returned to his battalion and helped liberate Mauthausen concentration camp in 1945. He served our country with immense honor and remained a true patriot all his life. After his service, Burnett traveled in Europe and graduated from Georgetown University, but he could not leave Sacramento behind for too long.

Burnett returned to Sacramento and joined the family business, now Burnett & Sons Lumber and Millwork, a century old institution of Sacramento. From then on, he dedicated much of his life and work to Sacramento. For years, Burnett was a treasured city councilman. In 1982 he was chosen, with great pride, to serve as interim mayor.

Burnett and his wife, Mimi, supported Sacramento in a way that went beyond local politics and they had a knack for tapping into our sense of community. As advocates for local arts and culture, they were dedicated patrons of the Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento History Center, and Sacramento Poetry Center, among others. As was Burnett's style, he brought the community together and opened his home to friends and strangers alike in support of local artists, organizations and causes. The soul of Sacramento would not exist as I know it if it were not for Burnett Miller.

Mr. Speaker, today we honor the marvelous life of R. Burnett Miller; a husband, father, adventurer, intellectual and beloved public servant. Burnett Miller is a true Sacramento treasure and a giant in our community. I will remember him for his spirit, kindness, and wisdom.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 20th Anniversary of the UC Davis MIND Institute. As faculty members and families gather here today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring the MIND Institute for their clinical expertise and collaborative efforts to better understand neurodevelopmental disorders.

Since its founding by an influential parent group in 1998, the UC Davis MIND Institute has grown a multidisciplinary team of experts, achieving international recognition as an innovative leader in research and approaches to treating a broad range of disorders, including autism spectrum disorder, fragile X syndrome, ADHD22q11.2 deletion syndrome and Down syndrome. With more than 50 faculty from five UC Davis schools and colleges, the MIND Institute studies everything from environmental factors and cellular processes to community programs, all with the goal of improving the lives of people with neurodevelopmental disorders and their families.

Over the past 20 years, faculty members at the MIND Institute have made significant research discoveries advancing the scientific knowledge and etiology of neurodevelopmental disorders. They have found biomarkers and identified genetic and environmental factors that increase the risk of autism and other disorders. They have also developed interventions and technologies to improve outcomes for children. Through the collaboration of families, educators, researchers, and the community, the MIND Institute has become a research powerhouse that has generated exceptional results with international implications.

Mr. Speaker, as faculty members and families of the UC Davis MIND Institute celebrate their twenty years of milestones, I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring their dedication to the awareness, support, and research for neurodevelopmental disorders.

Mr. Speaker, ``How is Your Day?'' For all of us, this is an ordinary question we ask others--and are asked by others--every day. But for so many people

around the world living with rare diseases and who rely on the availability of plasma protein therapies, no day is ordinary.

On October 8 to 12, 2018, across the United States and throughout the world, patients, plasma donors and plasma collection centers will join together to observe International Plasma Awareness Week (IPAW). There will be events to raise global awareness of the crucial need for plasma to create lifesaving therapies, recognize that plasma donors contribute greatly in saving and improving lives, and increase understanding of the many rare diseases and plasma protein therapies that help to treat them.

Plasma-derived therapies and recombinant blood clotting factors, collectively known as plasma protein therapies, are unique, biologic medicines that are either infused or injected to treat a variety of rare, life-threatening, chronic, and genetic diseases including bleeding disorders, hereditary angioedema, immune deficiencies, pulmonary disorders, neurological disorders, shock and trauma, liver cirrhosis, and infectious diseases such as tetanus, hepatitis, and rabies.

Plasma-derived therapies save and improve lives of individuals throughout the world, including in emergency and surgical medicine. Plasma protein therapies have significantly improved the quality of life, markedly improved patient outcomes, and extended the life expectancy of individuals with rare, chronic diseases and conditions.

Healthy, committed donors provide the plasma essential to manufacture these lifesaving therapies; and there are now approximately 700 plasma collection centers in the U.S. that have demonstrated their commitment to plasma donor and patient safety and quality by earning International Quality Plasma Program (IQPP) certification.

I ask that my colleagues in the House of Representatives join me and rise in commemoration of International Plasma Awareness Week, honoring those committed donors and collection centers who make and collect needed and lifesaving contributions.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Mercy Pedalers and its volunteers and supporters as they celebrate their 1st Anniversary. As the community gathers today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring them and their successful first year of service to the Sacramento region and beyond.

On September 1st Sister Libby Fernandez founded Mercy Pedalers after serving as the Executive Director of Sacramento Loaves & Fishes for eleven years. During her many years of service for the people in our community experiencing homelessness, she realized that compassion and personal connections were what made a difference in people's daily lives. Through her small but meaningful, individual actions, the inspiration for the organization was fostered.

Mercy Pedalers is comprised of local, kindhearted individuals, who cycle through the streets of Sacramento, reaching out to men and women who are in crisis and living on the streets. They emphasize their outreach and actions based on the ``Works of Mercy'' and ``Welcoming the Stranger.'' The work and care that the volunteers bring into the streets of our city cannot be overstated. As we struggle to address the causes and symptoms of homelessness, Mercy Pedalers bring a ministry approach to day to day outreach. The dignity and respect that Sister Libby and the Mercy Pedalers show homeless men and women is one that should be present in all of us.

Mr. Speaker, as the members and volunteers of Mercy Pedalers celebrate their first year of service to the Sacramento community, I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring them for their dedication to our neighbors through their charitable work.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the UC Davis School of Medicine as they celebrate their 50th Anniversary. As the members of this university gather here today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring their service to the Sacramento region and its surrounding areas.

Since the first inaugural class in 1968, the UC Davis School of Medicine has put an emphasis on community engagement and understanding, which has laid the foundation for its success. As one of the leading medical and research schools in the nation, the university offers fully accredited master's degree programs and a combined M.D.-Ph.D. program, which recruit and inspire the next generation of physician-scientists who are dedicated to advancing the delivery of care in our region. With classrooms found only a block away from the UC Davis Medical Center, students have convenient access to one of the nation's premiere teaching hospitals, along with their various research laboratories.

The medical school's commitment to inclusive ideology, coupled with the diversity of the Sacramento region and surrounding areas, is truly reflected in its rigorous coursework and academic program offerings. Through the integration of programs such as the Community Health Scholars Program into the curriculum, students learn to tackle prevalent societal issues, and are well equipped with the ability to take complex issues and translate them into real-world applications that benefit our region's diverse patient population.

Mr. Speaker, as the members of the UC Davis School of Medicine celebrate their momentous years of service, I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring them for their dedication to educating the next generation of physician-scientists, and for their charitable work for the citizens in the Sacramento region and beyond.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this rule. Throughout the Energy and Commerce Committee's process writing opioid legislation, I have raised the issue that we need to be making investments in the full spectrum of our behavioral health system

in order to truly address the root causes and the results of the opioid epidemic.

While crisis and high-level inpatient care will always be necessary for a subset of the population, and we must ensure it is adequately funded, we cannot do so in a vacuum. We need to ensure that people also have access to adequate outpatient treatment and prevention services.

And while the opioid epidemic is front and center in all our minds, we cannot forget patients suffering from other substance use disorders. It is important that we do not unintentionally set up a discriminatory system that will be useless during the next epidemic, whatever that might be. We want our legislative efforts to both save lives today and to prevent epidemics like this one in the future.

States already have the option to work around outdated exclusions in IMD facilities. States like California are already doing so in a comprehensive way, taking into account the continuum of care for opioid and other substance use disorders.

If we are going to be spending an additional nearly $1 billion in the Medicaid program, we need to spend it wisely on expanding access to services, and not narrowly duplicating something that is already available.

Ever since the Excellence in Mental Health demonstration project passed into law in 2014, I have been fiercely advocating to expand the program.

The demonstration project, which I coauthored with my Republican colleague, Congressman Lance, and my Senate colleagues, Senators Stabenow and Blunt, certifies community behavioral health clinics, known as CCBHCs. The demonstration is currently about halfway through its 2-year period in eight States and already showing great success.

The National Council for Behavioral Health recently issued a report entitled, ``Bridging the Addiction Treatment Gap.'' It surveys CCBHCs operating in the Excellence Act demonstration States, and the results offer great hope.

First, the demonstration has enabled near-universal adoption of Medication Assisted Treatment, or MAT, for opioid use disorder. Ninety- two percent of certified clinics in the program are offering at least one type of FDA-approved MAT.

Second, 100 percent of CCBHCs have expanded the scope of addiction treatment services under the demonstration. For many clinics, this is the first time such services have been available in their communities, very often in medically-underserved areas.

Third, even while seeing more patients, two-thirds of surveyed CCBHCs have seen a decrease in patient wait times. After an initial call or referral, half of the clinics now offer same-day access to care, and four out of five can offer an appointment within a week or less.

Mr. Speaker, the Excellence Act is showing concrete results in terms of patient outcomes. In western New York State, more than 1,000 people in Erie County died of opioid overdoses over the last 5 years; 142 people lost their lives in 2016 alone.

At the same time, according to media reports, local police chiefs are reporting a 60 percent reduction in overdose calls in 2018. Authorities specifically credit a certified behavioral health clinic in the city of Buffalo that is providing medication assisted treatment for people battling opioid addiction within 24 to 48 hours after initial assessment.

We want to expand upon this success for certified community behavioral health clinics across the country by allowing Medicaid reimbursement on a larger scale. These clinics are the ones in people's neighborhoods and communities, the ones on the front lines of treating behavioral health and substance use disorder. If we do not build them up and integrate them with our health system, we will never achieve the full continuum of care that we are looking for.

Every time I have pushed for an expansion of the Excellence program in the Energy and Commerce Committee on funding legislation on the floor, I have been told that we don't have the dollars available.

However, today, we are talking about spending nearly $1 billion on something that is both redundant and, I believe, does not fully address the entire spectrum of care like the Excellence program has. That is why I offered an amendment to H.R. 5797, based on my bipartisan bill, H.R. 3931, and why I am here discussing this on the floor today.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to consider funding community behavioral health clinics and outpatient treatment to help address the opioid epidemic. When you look back on what we have done to address this crisis, this will have more of a positive impact today and in the long term in comparison with the other proposals we are considering.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that I may hereafter be considered to be the first sponsor of H.R. 3828, the Patsy T. Mink Gender Equity in Education Act of 2017, a bill originally introduced by Representative Louise Slaughter of New York, for the purposes of adding cosponsors and requesting reprintings pursuant to clause 7 of rule XII.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Pallone for yielding to me and for his leadership.

Mr. Speaker, while I believe that we need to do a lot more to combat the opioid and addiction epidemic, I am pleased with some of the specific steps being taken today to help communities. I specifically rise in support of legislation I coauthored with Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins on H.R. 3331.

In order to solve the root cause of addiction, we need more access to behavioral health in our communities, and we need to treat mental health and substance use disorder like diseases. That means integrating care and services for those conditions into the healthcare system. It means treating a person as a whole person.

Physical and mental health conditions interplay and should be treated as such. We cannot have a truly integrated system with the care coordination we envision if behavioral health providers don't have electronic health records. We must work to harness the power of technology to improve the accessibility of behavioral health treatment, particularly in underserved communities.

This bipartisan bill will incentivize behavioral health providers to adopt electronic health record technology. The Senate version of the bill, led by Senators Whitehouse and Portman, passed by unanimous consent last month, so I hope that we can continue the momentum around this legislation with the passage of H.R. 3331 today.

Before I close, I want to reiterate how important it is for my Republican colleagues to join us in doing more. We need to protect and expand Medicaid, build on ACA successes in terms of access to behavioral healthcare, and fund treatment and prevention efforts in our local communities. We have a long way to go. This is a really good start, and I implore my colleagues to work with us as we move forward.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Eskaton, the largest nonprofit community organization serving senior citizens in the greater Sacrament area. As team members, clients, and families celebrate Eskaton's 50th anniversary, I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring Eskaton and its team members for their tireless commitment to ensuring that the needs of our Seniors are met.

For the past five decades, Eskaton has been defined by the compassion their staff shows towards their community members and the partnerships they have developed. Eskaton has been part of the growth of our region, enhancing the lives of our Seniors by providing innovative health, housing, and social services to nearly 14,000 people that live in their communities. Eskaton not only serves those living in their facilities, they also provide compassionate support options to those who choose to remain in their own homes. The Center offers important programs that assist Seniors in their daily lives, such as Telephone Reassurance, the Adult Day Health Center, and Eskaton Kids Connection.

Eskaton serves the greater Sacramento community and our residents proudly. I extend my appreciation for the efforts of this outstanding organization and the individuals who work tirelessly to provide valuable health initiatives and benefits to the region's Seniors.

Mr. Speaker, I stand to pay tribute to Eskaton and its staff for fifty years of serving Seniors in the greater Sacramento region. I ask all my colleagues to join me in honoring their exemplary work on behalf of Seniors, as well as their ongoing dedication to their mission of serving the community.

Mr. Speaker, this proposed ``Right to Try'' legislation will make it possible for bad actors to take advantage of desperate families.

The pill would allow companies to completely circumvent the FDA if they claim to have a new drug or cure for a patient. And it dogs not require the doctor or the company to even report to FDA, so we will have no way of knowing who is trying which experimental drug. This legislation really does encourage snake oil salesmen.

Currently, legitimate companies may have new experimental drugs that have not yet been approved, but that could be helpful for patients who have no other options . . . but this bill is not limited to that situation. And, FDA does have an existing process to allow for patients with life-threatening conditions to try experimental drugs before they are approved.

And, this bill is not limited only to patients with a life- threatening condition. FDA has testified that the process under this bill would be available much more broadly to patients with chronic conditions such as diabetes.

That is a large population with a condition that is managed with currently available treatments. Under this bill, bad actors could see the dollar signs to market ineffective drugs to these patients.

The bill before us today does not require FDA or Institutional Review Boards (or IRB's) to review any request for experimental therapy, and rescinds any requirement to report adverse effects of a drug immediately.

This means that if someone loses their eyesight or dies from taking an unproven experimental treatment, then no one is required to report it immediately. This puts other patients taking the same drug in danger.

Additionally, if a patient does have a success with a drug, but it is not reported or considered in a clinical trial, that success will not translate to other patients that could be saved by the treatment.

I am also incredibly concerned that in 19 states, taking experimental treatment will result in the loss of people's hospice care, and in 4 states it will result in the loss of their insurance, completely.

To rake matters worse, this legislation does not stipulate that patients must be informed of this loss of coverage or hospice coverage in advance.

This legislation, therefore, puts patients' care network, financial stability, and safety at risk--without any legal recourse.

If we open this loophole, a surge of bad actors who may claim to have experimental drug therapies could make money peddling dangerous therapies to unsuspecting patients with no system of oversight, safety, and accountability.

The unfortunate victims will be families and their loved ones. I strongly urge my colleagues to vote no on this bill.

Mr. Chairman, I thank Mr. Tonko for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act.

In Sacramento, our publicly owned utility stores spent nuclear fuel at the Rancho Seco Nuclear Generating Station, despite the fact that the plant has been decommissioned for many, many years, and that the Federal Government has a responsibility to take the fuel.

The continued presence of the spent fuel at Rancho Seco has a direct impact on electricity rates in my district, and prevents the site from being redeveloped. That is why I have continuously been supportive of an interim storage facility for spent fuel.

Today, it is the most viable path to consolidate the fuel housed in over 120 communities across the country. For the last two Congresses, I have cosponsored a bipartisan bill to explicitly authorize the Department of Energy to enter into agreements for consolidated interim storage.

I believe that a stand-alone piece of legislation that creates a pathway for interim storage is the commonsense next step in our national nuclear waste management strategy.

I was opposed to the initial version of H.R. 3053 that came before the Energy and Commerce Committee last year. It tied Yucca Mountain, which I have major concerns with, to interim storage.

Linking these two policies together would effectively maintain the status quo for decommissioned sites across the country, which is unacceptable. That is why I have worked on a bipartisan basis to ensure that the interim storage policy in this bill is decoupled from a permanent repository.

After negotiations in committee, the bill we are considering now authorizes the use of one consolidated interim storage site and creates a path to move spent fuel to that site before a final decision is made on a permanent geologic repository.

It is critically important that we have further clarified the regulatory pathway for interim storage. For that reason, I will be supporting this bill today, despite some of its provisions that I believe are less than ideal.

Mr. Chairman, I thank my colleagues for working with me in a collaborative and bipartisan manner to ensure the Federal Government finally takes the spent fuel stranded in so many of our communities nationwide.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Hastings for yielding me time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3053, the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act.

We worked in a bipartisan manner in the Energy and Commerce Committee to ensure there is language in this bill that provides a responsible path forward for consolidated interim storage.

When this bill was first presented in committee, the licensing of an interim storage facility was linked to a final decision on Yucca Mountain.

As someone who is critical of Yucca Mountain and its chances of ever being completed, I found that to be unacceptable. It meant that our Nation's nuclear waste could continue to be stranded at decommissioned plants in California and across the country. That is not sustainable.

However, through bipartisan negotiations, we were able to successfully agree on language that creates a separate path to interim storage, decoupling it from a permanent repository.

That is the primary reason why I am supporting the bill today.

This is an issue that directly impacts my constituents and many others across the country. My local utility, the Sacramento Municipal Utility District or, as we call it, SMUD, currently maintains the decommissioned Rancho Seco nuclear power plant. SMUD has reiterated how important it is for the redevelopment of the site, that we have a plan for consolidating spent fuel at a safe, licensed facility.

Moving spent fuel will enable SMUD to expand their adjacent solar development or environmental mitigation area.

Consolidated interim storage is currently the most viable solution to our Nation's spent fuel challenge. And there are private applicants that want to take this fuel. Today's bill strengthens the regulatory pathway that allows them to do so.

This bill also funds transportation safety, ensuring that we build on our country's decades-long history of safely moving spent fuel.

While I don't believe every provision of H.R. 3053 is ideal, it is a balanced step in the right direction, and that is why I will vote ``yes'' for this legislation.