Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the Universal Prekindergarten and Early Childhood Education Act of 2022, a version of which I have introduced in seven previous Congresses. My bill would establish and expand prekindergarten programs in public and public charter schools for three- and four-year-old children. The prekindergarten years are critical for children's brain development.

My bill seeks a breakthrough in public education by providing funding for states to add prekindergarten for children at three and four years of age, like kindergarten programs for five-year-old children now routinely available in public schools. This bill would eliminate major shortcomings of unevenly available day care and, importantly, would take advantage of the safe facilities required in public schools.

My bill provides federal funds to states, which must be matched by at least 20 percent of a state's own funds, to establish or expand universal, voluntary prekindergarten in public and public charter schools, regardless of income. The classes, which would be part of a full-day program and run throughout the entire school year, must be taught by teachers who possess equivalent qualifications to those teaching other grades in the school. The funds would supplement, not supplant, other federal funds for early childhood education. The unique moneysaving aspect of my bill is that it uses the existing public- school infrastructure and trained teachers to make early childhood education available to all, saving billions of dollars in implementation costs.

The success of Head Start and other prekindergarten programs, combined with new scientific evidence on the importance of brain development in early childhood, virtually mandates the expansion of early childhood education to all children. Early learning programs mainly have been available only to the affluent, who can afford them, and to some low-income families in programs such as Head Start, which would be unaffected by my bill. My bill provides a practical way to universal, public preschool education for the majority of families. The goal of the bill is to afford the benefits of early childhood education to the working poor, lower middle class and middle class, most of whom have been left out of this essential education for their children.

We cannot afford to allow the most fertile years for childhood development to pass unenriched. My bill responds to the great needs of parents who seek early childhood education, as well as to today's brain science, which shows that a child's brain development begins much earlier than had been previously understood.

Considering the staggering cost of day care, the inaccessibility of early childhood education and the opportunity that early education offers to improve a child's chances of success, schooling for three- and four-year-old children is overdue. The absence of viable options for families demands our immediate attention.

My bill reflects what jurisdictions throughout the nation increasingly are trying to accomplish. The District of Columbia, for example, has achieved an extensive integration of early childhood education as part of a larger effort to improve D.C. public schools.

I strongly urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and for this important resolution. I rise in support of this resolution condemning threats of violence against historically Black colleges and universities.

As the Member from the District of Columbia, I also represent two historically Black colleges and universities, Howard University and the University of the District of Columbia. Last month, several D.C. schools were targeted, including my own alma mater, Dunbar High School.

This resolution is important to not only express our outrage at these threats of violence, but to reaffirm our commitment to the students, faculty, and staff at these universities.

HBCUs are responsible for educating the next generation and preparing them for their careers. The value they have for the District of Columbia and the country cannot be overstated.

Madam Speaker, I rise to ask the House of Representatives to recognize Clifton N. West, Jr., an accomplished business owner who served the residents of the District of Columbia.

Clifton N. West, Jr., ``Skeeter'' was born on December 12, 1933, to Thaddenia West and Clifton N. West, Sr. and was the younger brother of Pat and Beverly. He was raised by his mother and his grandparents in Arlington, Virginia.

In 1952, Skeeter graduated from Dunbar High School in the District of Columbia. During his time at Dunbar, he served in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC). He won many awards with the drill team and the track team.

Skeeter enrolled in Howard University in 1952 as a chemistry major. In 1955, he left college and joined the Air Force. He served for three years at the Chateauroux Air Force base in France. After his discharge, in 1958, he used the GI Bill to continue his education at Howard University and worked part-time at the U.S. Postal Service.

He would go on to work at St. Elizabeths Hospital and later at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center as a medical technologist. In 1963, he started a laboratory in his basement and worked on building his business in the evenings while he worked for Berkley Medical Instruments selling blood analyzers during the day.

In 1971, he founded B & W STAT Laboratory, Inc. on the corner of Georgia Avenue and Irving Street NW in the District of Columbia. His business remains in operation 62 years later. The laboratory was one of the first independent commercial laboratories in the United States and has served as a faithful business anchor for Georgia Avenue ever since, servicing, hiring and training local residents. The company has won numerous specimen-testing contracts and, in 1971, was the first laboratory in the country to install and operate an on-site lab in the D.C. courthouse. The program received network television recognition and served as a model for similar programs throughout the country.

Skeeter founded the Georgia Avenue Business Association, was co- founder of the DC Drug Prevention Partnership, and his business has participated in the Mayor's Summer Youth Employment Program. The DC Drug Prevention Partnership was established to address and curb drug use in D.C.'s Ward 1. Skeeter served as the President of the Lower Georgia Avenue Business and Professional Association. During his tenure as President of B & W STAT, Skeeter and his business received many community service awards, including Outstanding Businessman from the People's Involvement Corporation: recognition from the Department of Employment Services--Outstanding Service; and Commanders of the Rite, Mason of the District of Columbia--Excellence in Science Services--Long Years of Leadership in the Field of Laboratory Testing. B & W STAT has been and continues to be a committed community partner.

Throughout the years, B & W STAT had offices on Independence Avenue, Georgia Avenue and Rhode Island Avenue, had multiple contracts with the military, local hospitals and doctor offices and at one time employed over 100 people. B & W STAT was a well-known laboratory, and if you got married in D.C., the required serology premarital blood test to receive a blue card was performed at B & W STAT from the 1970s to the early 2000s. Skeeter was sure to greet everyone who got married in D.C.

He trained local residents through internships and the summer program and helped rehabilitate many D.C. residents. He streamlined toxicology testing and was featured both on the television news and in the paper. He trained hundreds of military personnel on testing and did not request payment for such training.

Skeeter faced many small business issues, including dealing with banks and lines of credit, but more importantly, dealt with prejudice while performing very technical work. B & W STAT always helped the D.C. government with issues around drug testing and helped when they got behind on testing by turning work around in 24 hours. He worked long hours, starting at 6:00 a.m. and ending after 6:00 p.m.

B & W STAT was a member of the Howard University Bison Express, which provides financial assistance to Howard University student-athletes and supported Howard University athletics initiatives, for many years. The company also raised money to replace equipment stolen from Howard University.

Skeeter loved to travel and take family vacations. He encouraged both of his children to attend Howard University and continue the tradition of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Both attended and graduated from Howard University.

He is survived by his loving and devoted wife of 62 years, Carole Smith West; his son, Clifton N. West, III, ``Skip''; his daughter, Alison West Hughes; his son-in-law, Michael Anthony Hughes; three grandchildren and his sisters, Raquel ``Pat'' Hall and Beverly W. Goode.

He was loved by many and will surely be missed. His spirit and personality touched everyone he met. His love and spirit will be remembered by all.

Madam Speaker, today, I rise to introduce the District of Columbia Code Returning Citizens Coordination Act. This bill would require the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to provide information to the District of Columbia government on individuals convicted of D.C. Code felonies under BOP jurisdiction to help ensure the District has services ready when such individuals return home.

Individuals convicted of D.C. Code felonies face significant hurdles in preparing to return to society because most are in BOP facilities hundreds or even thousands of miles from the District, their families and their loved ones. Because they are frequently housed so far away from the District, coordinating returning citizens' reentry into society is difficult.

Under this bill, the District government would know the health and other needs of individuals convicted of D.C. Code felonies before they are released from BOP custody. Individuals convicted of D.C. Code felonies are the only individuals required to be housed by BOP for violations of non-federal laws.

Currently, under federal privacy laws, BOP is allowed to share information on individuals convicted of D.C. Code felonies with the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency for the District of Columbia (CSOSA), since CSOSA is also a federal agency, but not with the D.C. government. This bill would require BOP to treat the D.C. government as they do other federal agencies for the purposes of--but only for the purposes of--federal privacy laws, such as the Privacy Act, so that the District government can obtain the necessary information to provide appropriate services to returning citizens.

Specifically, the bill would require BOP, on an annual basis, to provide the District government the following information on individuals convicted of D.C. Code felonies under BOP jurisdiction: the name, date of birth and Federal Register number, the facility where housed and the scheduled release date. In addition, upon the request of the D.C. government, BOP would have to provide the D.C. government with the same information it provides CSOSA on such individuals.

I strongly urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the Federal Employee Short-Term Disability Insurance Act of 2022, which would help provide financial relief for federal employees who have a short-term injury or disability, become pregnant or develop a pregnancy-related illness. This bill would offer federal employees short-term disability insurance at no cost to the federal government. Employees would be responsible for 100 percent of the premiums and be able to receive disability insurance benefits for up to one year, which would replace a portion of their lost income due to a non-work-related injury or illness or pregnancy. This bill is more important now than ever with the prevalence of so-called ``Long COVID.''

I decided to investigate how we could provide short-term disability insurance for federal employees after learning that many of them already buy short-term disability insurance as individuals in the private market at high individual rates. Although federal employees have good health insurance, federal health benefits do not replace lost income if employees are unable to work. Moreover, while federal employees may have available sick or annual leave days, they may not have enough such days to pay the bills if they have to be out of work for an extended period, such as following surgery. Although there are long-term disability options for federal employees who become permanently disabled, federal employees do not qualify for such benefits until they have worked for the federal government for at least 18 months. My bill does no more than put federal employees in the same position as many of their private-sector counterparts, who often have access to disability insurance through an employer at group rates, an option unavailable to federal employees. This bill would not allow participating insurance companies to exclude persons based on preexisting conditions. Because of the federal government's purchasing power, this bill would provide these benefits at a more competitive rate than is available for employees purchasing as individuals, as many

do. Under this bill, the Director of the Office of Personnel Management would contract with private carriers to provide this coverage, essentially providing the equivalent of group coverage available to workers in the private sector.

According to the Social Security Administration, a 20-year-old worker has a one-in-four chance of becoming disabled by retirement age. The majority of disabilities are not caused by major accidents, but by injuries or illnesses, such as back injuries or cancer, according to the Council for Disability Awareness. There is every reason to allow our federal employees to take advantage of the federal government's purchasing power to obtain the most reasonable price if they choose to purchase short-term disability coverage on their own, at no cost to the federal government.

I strongly urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Madam Speaker, at last night's State of the Union, President Biden had every reason to cite his extraordinary job creation record, the fastest job growth in U.S. history. After only one year in office, the President's American Rescue Plan was at the center of this achievement. Our economic growth was the fastest in nearly 40 years. As a result, the United States had a faster recovery than every other advanced economy in the G7.

This progress has been made even while the United States is trying to defeat COVID-19. As chair of the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, I was particularly pleased to hear the President emphasize infrastructure, making goods move faster and cheaper, because this can only add to the historic job creation record he has achieved.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2142) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 170 Manhattan Avenue in Buffalo, New York, as the ``Indiana Hunt-Martin Post Office Building''.

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

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

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2142, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 170 Manhattan Avenue in Buffalo, New York, as the Indiana Hunt-Martin Post Office Building.

Mrs. Indiana Hunt-Martin was born on May 30, 1922, in Georgia. Her family moved to western New York when she was in elementary school, and she was one of only two Black students in her high school class.

She aspired to a business career but faced limited opportunities and had to take jobs picking peaches and cleaning restrooms at a TNT factory.

In 1944, Mrs. Hunt-Martin joined the newly formed Women's Army Corps. The Women's Army Corps had more than 800 Black female soldiers serving in the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, known as the Six Triple Eight. The Six Triple Eight was the only all-African-American Women's Army Corps.

Mrs. Hunt-Martin was one of the original 500 African-American female soldiers who were chosen to sail across the Atlantic. The soldiers feared they would not make it alive because they were being chased by a German U-boat. Fortunately, they arrived safely in Liverpool, England.

In England, the soldiers were assigned to horrific conditions, staying in dilapidated schools infested with rats and parasites. Regardless of the conditions, the Six Triple Eight cleared a backlog of more than 17 million pieces of mail and packages in only 3 months.

They were then relocated to Rouen and Paris, France, where they continued adhering to their motto, ``No mail, low morale.''

In February 1946, the Six Triple Eight returned to a segregated United States. The unit received honorable discharges when they were disbanded but no recognition of their accomplishments.

Mrs. Hunt-Martin went on to have a distinguished career at the New York Department of Labor, working there for 41 years and retiring in 1987.

She met her husband at the New York Department of Labor, with whom she had a loving daughter, Janice Martin.

Throughout the years, Mrs. Hunt-Martin was an active life member of several veterans organizations and mentored young African-American women who chose to serve in the military.

She was inducted into the New York State Veterans Hall of Fame and received several service medals.

Mrs. Hunt-Martin passed away peacefully on September 21, 2020, at the age of 98.

I encourage all of my colleagues to join me in honoring this American hero by naming the post office at 170 Manhattan Avenue as the Indiana Hunt-Martin Post Office Building.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Higgins), the author of this important bill.

Madam Speaker, with no further speakers, I urge passage of H.R. 2142, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise to introduce the Salary Transparency Act, which would require employers to provide the salary range for jobs in advertisements and interviews and to existing employees.

Several states have enacted laws relating to salary range disclosure, and the federal government should follow their lead and make this a nationwide requirement. Salary transparency is an important tool to combat the gender and race wage gap. Salary secrecy facilitates both intentional and unintentional pay discrimination and perpetuates the wage gap.

Studies have consistently shown that when women negotiate for their salaries, they negotiate for less than similarly situated men. Frequently, this is because the salary they request is a certain percentage higher than their current salary. Because women on average make less than men, this practice perpetuates the wage gap. The same is true for people of color, who earn less on average than their White counterparts. Requiring employers to disclose the salary range for a position will help eliminate this harmful portion of the negotiation and lead to a reduction in the wage gap for women and minorities.

This is the third pay equity bill I have introduced this Congress. My Pay Equity for All Act, which passed the House last year as part of the Paycheck Fairness Act, would prohibit employers from asking job applicants about their salary history, and my Fair Pay Act would require that men and women doing comparable work be paid comparable wages.

I urge my colleagues to support this important bill.

Madam Speaker, I rise to ask the House of Representatives to join me in recognizing the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, which held a virtual festival on February 19, 2022, in celebration of Black History Month.

The Association for the Study of African American Life and History was established on September 9, 1915, by Dr. Carter G. Woodson, a historian and journalist who is regarded as the father of Black History Month. The Association's mission is to promote, research, preserve, interpret and disseminate information about Black life, history and culture to the global community.

The Association hosts events every February honoring the lives and accomplishments of great Black men and women throughout history. It also publishes journals and magazines, including the Journal of African American History, which showcases original scholarly articles on all aspects of the African American experience.

The theme for the Association's festival celebrating Black History Month this year is Black Health and Wellness. This theme acknowledges not only the legacy of Black scholars and medical practitioners in Western medicine, but also other ways of healing used throughout the African Diaspora. This year's theme considers activities, rituals and initiatives that Black communities have carried out to be healthy.

Madam Speaker, again, I ask the House of Representatives to join me in recognizing the Association for the Study of African American Life and History and its vital role in establishing Black History Month.

Madam Speaker, I rise to introduce the United States Colored Troops Congressional Gold Medal Act, which would award the Congressional Gold Medal to the African Americans who served with Union forces during the Civil War. Approximately 200,000 African American men served in the Union Army and 19,000 African American men served in the Union Navy. I am proud to present this overdue expression of our national appreciation for these remarkable individuals. Senator Cory Booker has introduced the companion bill.

Since the colonial era, African Americans have served the United States in times of war.

While African American men served in the Navy since its establishment, there was resistance to enlisting them to take up arms for the Union Army at the start of the Civil War. It was not until January 1, 1863, when President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, that the Union Army was ordered to receive African American men. On May 22, 1863, the United States War Department issued General Order Number 143, which established the Bureau of Colored Troops for the recruitment and organization of regiments of the Union Army composed of African American men, called the United States Colored Troops (USCT). Leaders such as Frederick Douglass encouraged African Americans to enlist to advance the cause of citizenship: ``Once let the [B]lack man get upon his person the brass letter, `U.S.', let him get an eagle on his button, and a musket on his shoulder and bullets in his pocket, there is no power on [E]arth that can deny that he has earned the right to citizenship,'' wrote Douglass.

African American sailors constituted a significant segment of the Union Navy, making up 20 percent of the Navy's total enlisted force. Although there were rank restrictions on African Americans in the Navy before the Civil War, this policy changed after the establishment of the USCT, when the Union Navy started to compete with the Union Army for enlistment of African Americans. Yet, in practice, most African Americans could not advance beyond the lowest ranks of ``boy'' and ``landsman.'' In the Union Army, USCT fought at Milliken's Bend, Louisiana; in Petersburg, Virginia; and in Nashville, Tennessee, among other sites. The USCT at first were paid less, were given used uniforms and poor equipment and could never become officers. Many USCT were assigned as guards on fortifications throughout the Union, including the Defenses of Washington, which, by 1865, was one of the most heavily fortified cities in the world. During the Civil War, African American women were not allowed to formally enlist as soldiers or sailors, though they served as nurses, cooks, spies and scouts for the Union Army and the Union Navy.

For generations after the Civil War, the contributions of the African Americans who served with Union forces were excluded from historical memory. Not until Public Law No. 102-412, which I sponsored and which authorized the establishment of a memorial on federal land to honor African Americans who served with Union forces during the Civil War, were they officially commemorated. This memorial, located in the District of Columbia, features a bronze statue of soldiers, an African American sailor and family, and is surrounded by The Wall of Freedom, which lists the names of the members of the USCT.

Patriots and heroes who rose in service to a nation that would not fully recognize them, the African Americans who served the Union during the Civil War deserve our recognition for their contributions to the grant of emancipation and citizenship for nearly four million enslaved people and to the preservation of the Union.

Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the Fairness in Federal Bureau of Prisons Medical Care Act of 2022. This bill would eliminate the copay the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) imposes on inmates when they visit a BOP-provided health care provider.

Under current BOP rules, inmates are required to pay a fee for health services of $2.00 per health care visit. While $2.00 may seem insignificant, when inmates earn only 12 to 40 cents per hour on their work assignments, $2 is substantial. That money could better be used to pay for the cost of necessities. Moreover, while copays can reduce unnecessary appointments, we should be encouraging inmates to seek medical care before conditions become worse and more expensive for taxpayers. Early care is much less expensive for the federal government than costly treatment that could have been avoided by a simple health care visit earlier in the process.

Under current BOP rules, if an inmate is found responsible through the Disciplinary Hearing Process of having caused another inmate's injury that required a visit to a health care provider, the offending inmate is required to pay the $2 copay for the injured inmate's visit. That rule would not change under my bill.

Removing this unnecessary copay would encourage inmates to see a health care provider and receive the treatment they need, and would likely save the federal government money in the long run.

Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the District of Columbia Courts Improvement Act of 2022. This bill would make several important improvements to the operations of the local District of Columbia courts.

Under the D.C. Home Rule Act, D.C. has no authority to amend title 11 of the D.C. Code (relating to organization and jurisdiction of the local D.C. courts). This bill only amends provisions in title 11.

First, this bill makes several changes to jury service in the D.C. Superior Court. It ties Superior Court juror pay to the pay jurors receive in federal court. Superior Court jurors are currently paid less than federal jurors. The bill also modernizes juror summonses by giving prospective jurors the option to receive a summons electronically, which will save the court money on postage and staff time. The bill further allows jurors who are 70 years old or older to be excused from jury service if the individual so requests.

Next, this bill allows the local D.C. courts to pay attorneys appointed to represent indigent defendants in criminal proceedings and indigent children in delinquency and need of supervision proceedings up to the amount currently allowed in federal court. The local D.C. courts' current rate is $42 per hour less than the federal rate. Similarly, the bill eliminates the $25 hourly rate fixed rate for D.C. Criminal Justice Act investigators and caps the rate at the rate of pay for investigators in the U.S. District Court for D.C. Investigators in federal court in D.C. are currently paid $65 an hour, and up to $75 an hour in death penalty and other complex cases.

This bill also would move the appointment and removal of the Register of Wills (ROW) and supervisory responsibilities from the Chief Judge of the Superior Court to the Executive Officer of the D.C. courts. This change would provide the Executive Officer oversight of the personnel for the entire Probate Division, including the ROW, which will improve efficiency in making personnel decisions and in the overall administration of the Probate Division.

While both the federal government and the District of Columbia government have statutory authority to give retroactive pay increase to employees, the local D.C. courts do not have this authority. This bill corrects this deficiency.

The bill also changes references to the Domestic Violence Unit to the Domestic Violence Division, and updates references to individuals with intellectual disabilities. It would also increase the jurisdictional limit of the Small Claims Branch to $12,000, indexed for inflation.

The bill further provides permanent authority to the local D.C. courts to retain bar examination and admission fees, independent gift authority, permanent procurement authority for motor vehicles and express authority to permit other entities to use their facilities.

Legislation to improve the operations of the local D.C. Courts has been enacted into law several times over the last decade on a bipartisan basis. I hope this bill will likewise be passed in a bipartisan manner.

I urge my colleagues to support this important bill.

Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the critically important and remarkable work of Walter Smith, who, after over 20 years, is stepping down as the executive director of the DC Appleseed Center for Law and Justice. At DC Appleseed, Walter has made significant contributions to the District of Columbia on issues ranging from democracy to public health to the environment to education.

I have worked closely with Walter in the fight for statehood, congressional voting representation and home rule for D.C. Walter has been one of the intellectual architects of these efforts, leading litigation, testifying before Congress and authoring legal opinions.

Walter has led DC Appleseed's important work on HIV/AIDS, early childhood programs, special education, drinking water, the Anacostia River and end-of-life care. Last year, Walter's work led to a settlement with a health insurer that resulted in the creation of a $95 million fund to address public health needs in D.C.

Walter has litigated numerous cases before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and the D.C. Court of Appeals. Prior to joining DC Appleseed, Walter served as Special Deputy Corporation Counsel at the D.C. Office of the Corporation Counsel, which is now D.C.'s Office of the Attorney General, where he oversaw major litigation. Prior to his D.C. service, Walter practiced appellate litigation at Hogan Lovells for 16 years, where he served as a partner and was the full-time director of the firm's pro bono practice. Walter also served as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy JAG Corps.

Walter is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma and Harvard Law School. After law school, Walter clerked for a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Walter has been recognized for his outstanding legal work. For example, Walter received the President's Award from the Washington Council of Lawyers in 2011, was named one of the ``90 Greatest Washington Lawyers of the last 30 years'' in 2007 by the Legal Times and received the D.C. Bar's highest award for public service, the Brennan Award, in 2014. He has also enjoyed an active role in local musical theater, staring in several major productions.

I ask the House of Representatives to join me in recognizing the important contributions of Walter Smith, and to congratulate him as he steps down as the executive director of the DC Appleseed Center for Law and Justice.

Madam Speaker, today I introduce the Combating Implicit Bias in Education Act. This bill would create a $30 million grant program for schools to train teachers, principals and other personnel on implicit bias with respect to actual or perceived race, religion, sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity), disability, ethnicity and socioeconomic status.

In 2019, a report by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights found that students of color with disabilities received far more severe and frequent punishment than their white counterparts.

In 2017, the Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality released a report finding that people think of Black girls as more adult-like and less innocent compared to their white peers. This bias has been linked to harsher treatment of Black girls in schools. Students experiencing implicit bias and even outright discrimination face far greater expulsion and suspension rates, fueling the school-to-prison pipeline and widening the student achievement gap.

This bill aims to reduce the impact of implicit bias on school discipline and academic

achievement through research-based training for education personnel.

Under this bill, the Institute of Education Sciences under the Department of Education would be tasked with evaluating and reporting on the effectiveness of the training.

I strongly urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to ask the House of Representatives to join me in celebrating the life of Dr. Edgar Stuart Cahn, who passed away at 86 years of age on January 23, 2022, in Bethesda, Maryland.

Edgar Stuart Cahn was born on March 23, 1935, and was raised in an activist household in New York. While earning his undergraduate degree at Swarthmore College, Edgar met and fell in love with fellow student Jean Camper, forming a partnership that would eventually spur substantial social, political and legal change for the benefit of our country's most vulnerable. They married in New York, because, at the time, interracial marriage was illegal in Jean's home state of Maryland.

Edgar and Jean both attended Yale Law School, where I met them as a fellow student. Following graduation, they moved to the District of Columbia in 1963, with Jean working as a legal advisor at the Department of State and Edgar as Special Assistant to and speechwriter for Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. They would later work together in the Office of Economic Opportunity, where they, along with Sargent Shriver, established a first-of-its-kind federally funded program that provided legal aid to low-income Americans. This groundbreaking initiative, the predecessor to the Legal Services Corporation, is widely acknowledged as setting a blueprint for legal services and catalyzing what was then the burgeoning field of public interest law.

Edgar next undertook a two-year campaign organizing Native American leaders in an effort that led to the end of the official federal policy of terminating Native American tribes, and, with his book Our Brother's Keeper: The Indian in White America, a classic indictment of America's treatment of Native Americans, to enactment of Public Law 93-638, the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act.

Edgar and Jean founded the Antioch School of Law, the predecessor to the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law. He served as a member of the UDC law faculty until near the end of his life.

Edgar was a visionary in strategies to alleviate poverty, a pioneer in clinical legal education and a dear friend. He led with an unwavering focus to help the most vulnerable among us. He was equally beloved for his kindness, and he will be greatly missed.

Madam Speaker, again, I ask the House of Representatives to join me in honoring the incredible life and legacy of Dr. Edgar Stuart Cahn.