Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, last week in Minnesota, I conducted a tax reform listening tour, visiting small businesses in our community about why tax reform is so important. Throughout the tour, it was evident that these small businesses were enthusiastic that tax reform means more jobs, higher wages, and a stronger economy.

Diversified Plastics in Brooklyn Park, an employee-owned company that manufactures and assembles plastic injection products, said that being able to immediately expense new equipment will allow them to invest more in their company and hire more people.

Northstar Balloons in Plymouth, which manufactures and distributes foil party balloons, said that a Tax Code that provides stability and predictability will allow them to invest in their company with confidence.

Mr. Speaker, the message was clear: fixing a broken Tax Code will help small businesses hire more people, give their employees a raise, and create a growing and a more competitive economy.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Good Karma Animal Rescue of Minnesota in Maple Grove and their animal efforts in southern Texas after Hurricane Harvey.

After Harvey made landfall at the end of August, Good Karma Animal Rescue made two separate rescue attempts within a 2-week period south of Houston to the communities of Victoria and Rockport, Texas.

Good Karma Animal Rescue, led by Lisa Booth, rescued over 50 animals--ranging in all shapes, sizes, and ages--and brought them back to Minnesota to be treated for various ailments and prepare them for adoption by Minnesota families.

Mr. Speaker, the Twin Cities community loves rescue animals, and I want to thank Good Karma Animal Rescue for their work to find homes for these pets that were left behind in the recent tragic storms.

Mr. Chairman, the budget that is being considered here today sets in motion the process of the first major tax reform that we will have been able to see in 3 decades. We are on the cusp of a really exciting opportunity to give Americans what they deserve: a Tax Code that works for them, not against them.

Now, on the House Ways and Means Committee, we spent many months meeting, holding hearings, discussing, working on almost a daily basis ways to craft a tax plan that is simpler and fairer for all Americans. The framework that was just rolled out last week takes that into account and lays out a plan that will lead to more jobs and, most importantly, bigger paychecks.

You know, the economic ``recovery'' since the Great Recession hasn't worked for a lot of Americans. It certainly hasn't worked for a lot of Minnesotans that I represent. Economic growth has been anemic, and we remain uncompetitive in far too many areas. Many are living paycheck to paycheck, and either have or now are at risk of having a lower standard of living than their parents.

Young people, like my daughter's generation, will go backwards if this country is not fundamentally more competitive economically. They feel like they just can't get ahead.

Meanwhile, seniors, and baby boomers who will soon become seniors, are also at great risk. Their savings, as well as the government's ability to fulfill its commitment to Social Security and Medicare, could be undermined if we don't grow our economy at a higher rate.

So both Republicans and Democrats agree that it is time to fix our broken Tax Code. No one is defending the status quo, Mr. Chair. Our current Tax Code punishes American workers and manufacturers. It is a maze of special-interest loopholes that are unfair to hardworking Americans. It burdens families and small businesses with excessive paperwork and compliance costs, creating unnecessary frustration each and every tax season throughout the year. That is why 9 out of 10 Americans either pay someone to do their taxes or have to buy the financial software to do their taxes.

Mr. Chair, our Tax Code is holding our country back. It is holding our economy back. So we have a stark choice. We can either truly grow the economy and put ourselves back on a path to real prosperity, or we can continue with weak economic growth, which only benefits ``the few'' and will do nothing for the rest of us when the next economic downturn happens.

Tax reform, for me, is about one thing and one thing only. It is about restoring the hope for a prosperous future for ourselves, for our parents, and, most importantly, for our children.

It is about Paula in my district, in Plymouth, Minnesota, who said that the Tax Code is hurting her small business and preventing her from hiring more employees and giving them a raise.

It is about an owner of an extrusion company in Chaska, Minnesota, that I just spoke to. He said he would invest in new equipment and machines if this tax plan passes.

And it is about lowering rates across the board for all Americans, as well as small businesses, so that they can keep more of their first dollars earned.

Tax reform means increasing the personal income for average Americans and reducing the cost of living so that day-to-day expenses are more affordable. This will lead to families being able to save for their future and their retirement. It will allow people to take more control of their lives and their finances so that they can save and spend and invest their hard-earned money as they see fit.

Mr. Chairman, this is a really important opportunity we cannot let slip away to help middle-income families and small businesses. Passing this budget puts us on a path for tax reform that has so much potential to unleash and grow our economy to the benefit of middle-income families in Minnesota and across the country.

Mr. Speaker, it is time we go after the perpetrators of online sex trafficking. A recent investigation revealed what I have been saying for years, that websites like backpage.com knowingly facilitate human trafficking due to existing law which has been wrongly interpreted and allows these sites to get away without criminal liability.

That is why I am cosponsoring legislation to specifically allow States to investigate and prosecute websites that facilitate sex trafficking. H.R. 1855 is bipartisan legislation that will empower law enforcement to combat online sex trafficking more effectively.

This is an important step forward in the fight to end the suffering of 12-, 13-, and 14-year-old girls and boys--children--who are the victims of sex trafficking.

So, Mr. Speaker, law enforcement needs more tools to put an end to the heinous practice of exploitation and modern-day slavery, and clamping down on backpage.com's ability to advertise young girls for sex is crucial and critical to holding them accountable.

Madam Speaker, September is Peripheral Artery Disease-- or PAD--Awareness Month. PAD is a vascular disease that impacts as many as 18 million Americans.

Narrowed arteries reduce blood flow to your limbs, like your legs, and in very serious cases leads to amputation, which dramatically alters a patient's life and significantly increases healthcare costs.

There are 180,000 amputations performed in the United States every year, and too many of them are unnecessary. More than 30 percent of patients who experienced an amputation had no arterial testing before their limb was removed. Studies have shown that diagnosing and treating patients with PAD with early intervention is directly associated with lower rates of amputation.

By supporting screening for at-risk populations and promoting multidisciplinary care with arterial testing, we can prevent amputation. It will improve lives, reduce patient mortality, and save billions of dollars in healthcare spending.

Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to learn more about the impact of PAD and recognize the need for a comprehensive strategy to eliminate nontraumatic amputations.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call attention to September being National Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month and the bipartisan resolution that I and the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Cohen) have introduced.

Pulmonary fibrosis is an incurable lung disease that impacts 200,000 Americans, and for whose who aren't familiar with it, you may be surprised to learn that the mortality rate for those with pulmonary fibrosis is as high as those with breast cancer. It kills one American every 13 minutes--40,000 Americans die each and every year. There is no known cure, and there is no known reliable treatment to relieve its symptoms nor prolong the life of its victims.

Eighty percent of those who contract pulmonary fibrosis do not live more than 5 years after receiving that diagnosis, and the median survival rate is just half that time.

Mr. Speaker, I will continue my efforts in working with the National Institutes of Health as well as patient advocacy groups to find a cure for this deadly disease.

Mr. Speaker, Minnesota and the entire Wayzata community are grieving after the death of Police Officer William Mathews this past Friday. He was responding to a 911 call to collect hazardous debris along the highway when he was tragically struck by a car and killed.

Officer Mathews was well-known for his service in the Wayzata and the Long Lake community where children often would come out to greet him as he drove through their neighborhood to say hello while he was on patrol. He served on police forces throughout the State of Minnesota for two decades in various capacities and was a 9-year veteran of the Wayzata police force. He had been a firearms instructor, a field training officer, and a reserve coordinator, and was in every way a true public servant.

But as dedicated a police officer as Officer Mathews was, he was an even more devoted husband and father. We mourn with his wife, Shawn, and 7-year-old son, Wyatt.

Mr. Speaker, our law enforcement officers put their lives on the line every single day in more ways than we can imagine to keep us safe. Officer Mathews lost his life in service to his community, and he will not be forgotten.

Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk as the designee of the gentleman from New York (Mr. Donovan).

Mr. Chairman, first I would just like to thank Subcommittee Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Lowey, along with the full committee and Chairman Frelinghuysen and their staff for their willingness to help with this amendment, as well as for all the hard work that they have done in putting together this important funding bill.

I also want to recognize Congressman Donovan, who is not able to be here today, but I offer this amendment along with him because it does seek to increase funding for the U.S. African Development Foundation by $15 million, bringing it up to the $30 million that it was awarded back in fiscal year `17.

The U.S. African Development Foundation is an independent U.S. government agency that excels at doing development differently. It uses small grants to focus on ventures in the fields of food security, healthcare, education, and technology. Our taxpayer money is maximized to its full potential, as host African governments invest a share of their own money in this grant program. These grant programs are leading to self-sufficiency and entrepreneurship in countries that are plagued by conflict across the world.

In fact, the Center for Global Development has ranked the USADF second only to the Millennium Challenge Corporation on the maximizing foreign efficiency scale.

Mr. Chairman, the U.S. African Development Foundation represents the very best of modernized foreign assistance because they are so innovative, and I am honored to support it. I hope the rest of my colleagues will join me in supporting this amendment as well.

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

Mr. Chair, let me start by acknowledging my colleagues, Representatives Emmer and Nolan. I'm proud to call both of you my friends, but I'm speaking tonight because I disagree with this amendment.

We can be open to new types of mining in Minnesota when the necessary environmental reviews are met, like in the case of Polymet, which I support.

Taconite mining is part of Minnesota's DNA. However, the copper- nickel mining being proposed on the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area is not taconite mining, and has never been done before in Minnesota. Earlier this year, the Trump administration said it would allow the current environmental review process to proceed to completion. I support that decision, and I oppose this amendment's effort to defund an ongoing environmental review to protect one of Minnesota's natural treasures. Indeed, it's one of our country's most spectacular wilderness areas.

The Boundary Waters is Minnesota's Yellowstone. Hundreds of thousands of Americans visit on fishing and canoe trips annually. Some of the best memories of my life have taken place in the Boundary Waters, both as a child and now as a parent with my daughters.

The public process that is underway after hundreds of thousands of people weighed in with their comments, should not be ignored and tossed aside. And, a science-based assessment of the best management practices of this sensitive ecosystem should be adhered to. We owe it to future generations to understand the impact copper-nickel mining poses to Minnesota's most precious water and land before we put it at risk.

Mr. Speaker, the fourth line in the Warrior Ethos reads: ``I will never leave a fallen comrade.'' Every soldier who passes through Army basic training knows this motto, and truly it is the spirit of our entire military.

Currently, more than 75,000 Americans are unaccounted for from conflicts ranging from World War II to the war on terror. We must continue to vindicate the spirit of the Warrior Ethos and aid our military to make sure that we never leave any servicemembers behind, which is why I am cosponsoring a resolution for the creation of a Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs in the House.

This select committee will be responsible for investigating these unaccounted for servicemembers and finally bring peace of mind and closure to their families.

So, Mr. Speaker, it is appropriate that we not abandon this obligation and that we help our brave servicemembers never leave behind a fallen comrade.

Ending Unnecessary Shark Finning

Mr. Speaker, sharks are being killed 30 percent faster than they are able to reproduce, which is having a serious impact on our ocean's ecosytem. One contributor to this decline is an inhumane practice that is known as ``finning.''

Finning is the removal of the fins from a shark and, often times, is done while the shark is still alive. These fins are mostly used for shark fin soup, which is a traditional soup seen in many Asian countries. After harvesting the fins, these sharks are thrown back into the ocean, where they are left to die from suffocation, blood loss, or be killed by other predators, since they have no way of having an opportunity to defend themselves.

That is why I am cosponsoring the Shark Fins Elimination Act, which will make it illegal to possess, buy, or sell shark fins, unless the shark was lawfully taken with a license or permit. This bipartisan effort will protect the fragility of our ocean wildlife and prevent these cruel practices.

Mr. Speaker, we continue to hear about the challenges for college students who borrow more and more to pay higher tuition rates and then are saddled with huge debt loads that they will have great difficulty paying back.

The average debt for a 4-year college student today is nearly $37,000. We need to explore new ways to ensure that every student has the opportunity to go to school, to develop their skills, and then pursue their dreams without feeling deterred by the price tag.

I think we need to look at a new approach, an approach that would help students pay for college. It is a concept known as an income-share agreement. It is a concept that would provide students the funding that they agree to pay back as small, affordable portions of their income over the years following graduation.

Income-share agreements are interest free, and students only will make those payments if they are employed and if they receive an income that meets a certain threshold. This method of financing puts less pressure on students to keep up with fixed high-interest payments while they are faced with job uncertainty.

Rather than accruing debt under the traditional student loan structure, this makes the investment in these students' future more equity-based. Their payments are guaranteed to be affordable, rather than fixed, and a certain price.

This is a much more manageable plan for students, Mr. Speaker, who are eager to get a career underway after graduation and want to make sure that they are putting their degrees into practice in a field that they have studied and have a passion for, rather than feel constrained by the impending weight of paying back loans right away.

That is why I am co-authoring the Investing in Student Success Act. It is modeled after a program at Purdue University. At Purdue, an average student received a little over $13,000 in funding for tuition, paired with a student promise to pay back that money in 6 to 10 years after graduation in small percentages of their income.

The bill provides a legal framework for private organizations to invest in individual students through implementing similar income-share agreements. Doing so creates more options for payment and increases accessibility for higher education.

Today, the cost of tuition at a public 4-year university is nearly quadruple what it was back in 1974. Due to rising tuition costs and the increased need for a college degree in the workforce, it is more important now, more than ever before, to address the student loan debt crisis and provide students with the resources they need to graduate with minimal loans.

Income-share agreements also provide the flexibility that students need when faced with an uncertain job market and provide an alternative to the traditional student loan repayment structure.

Mr. Speaker, as we look for ways to make higher education more affordable and more accessible, we should be advancing new innovative solutions to help students go to college without that burden of high debt after graduation, and income-share agreements are another way of accomplishing this.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to remember Kate Fronek, an extraordinary 13-year-old from Eden Prairie who just passed away this last week.

Kate was an active girl who played hockey, lacrosse, and soccer throughout our Eden Prairie community. She attended Central Middle School, and people often noted her love for music.

This past February, Kate was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. In the following months, she underwent multiple rounds of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. Amid these challenges, Kate was brave and spirited, and friends and family remember her positively and, above all, her warm smile.

But over the weekend, in memory of Kate, neighbors and friends began putting orange balloons outside their homes, on the streets, and the bridges as a part of a tribute. Driving around Eden Prairie and seeing the streets lined with these balloons to honor her memory shows that she clearly touched very many lives.

Mr. Speaker, I wanted to extend my thoughts and prayers to the Fronek family. She will be missed, but her spirit will not be forgotten.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate James Hautman of Chaska, Minnesota, who recently won the Federal Duck Stamp Contest for the fifth time. This year, James' design depicts three geese flying at sunset.

Since 1934, sales of the Federal Duck Stamp have raised more than $950 million for the conservation of wetlands and national wildlife refuges all over our country. The money raised helps to preserve the habitat of hundreds of species, as well as provide clean water for many communities throughout the Nation.

Last fall, a panel of five judges selected James' submission out of 152 total entries, marking the fifth time that he has won the competition. Only two other artists, Mr. Speaker, have ever won the Federal Duck Stamp Contest five times, including James' own brother Joseph.

Mr. Speaker, I once again extend my sincere congratulations to James Hautman. Minnesotans are proud to see such a gifted artist from our home State get recognized and use his talents for such a great cause. We wish him the best in his future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate the Minnetonka High School boys tennis team on their recent extraordinary State tournament victory. The Skippers won their second consecutive State title, led by Senior Adam Thompson and Junior Ben Wheaton.

The team worked hard to win, with a final score of 4-3. This close victory displayed their competitive skill, and the way the Skippers carried themselves after the victory epitomizes the virtue of sportsmanship and humility.

Mr. Speaker, with their strong determination and commitment to excellence, these student athletes exemplify the very best of their school and of our community. They excel both on the court and in the classroom.

I offer my congratulations to the players, the coaches, and the parents. Congratulations to the Minnetonka boys tennis team on their victory and becoming State champs.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate the Eden Prairie Boys Baseball team on becoming high school State champs recently. They secured a 5-1 win over Forest Lake.

After a challenging first four innings, the Eagles, led by senior pitcher Jack Zigan, came back to win their very first State Championship since 2010. Jack threw a complete game, surrendering only three hits and one unearned run, with an impressive 11 strikeouts.

This marked the end of a fantastic season for the Eagles, who finished the year 18-9 after entering the State tournament without a seed. They were never expected to get this far. They

were never expected to win, but they defeated the number 1, the number 2, and the number 4 seed teams by a combined score of 25-2.

So, Mr. Speaker, once again, I would just like to congratulate this hardworking team of student athletes, their coaches, and their parents for their State Championship win. This really does go to show that perseverance and hard work pay off.