Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, let me start out by thanking my colleagues for bringing together an incredibly complicated, difficult issue that probably as recently as a couple of months ago no one thought possible. Tremendous, tremendous accolades to Chairman Rogers, to Mr. Ruppersberger, to Mr. Sensenbrenner, to Mr. Conyers on a whole host of issues that, again, are critically important to our Nation.

You have heard the chairman and Mr. Ruppersberger outline some of the key portions of this, but I think it is critically important to stress that the protection of Americans civil liberties must always be a top priority and always will be a top priority. This bipartisan bill underscores the importance of that while keeping our Nation safe.

The USA FREEDOM Act increases transparency. That is something that people have demanded: increased transparency to the American people, and it allows for greater oversight, something else that we listened to that people wanted to see.

It firmly, as Mr. Ruppersberger and Mr. Rogers have stated, ends bulk collection of records. This is critically important.

It reforms the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, or FISC, to ensure greater checks and balances are placed in such sensitive national security programs.

But as we discuss this, let's not miss the bigger picture. I have had the opportunity to see firsthand in some pretty dark and remote places on the Earth how our enemies are plotting not just on a daily basis, but on a minute-by-minute basis of how to find a chink in our armor, how can they find some gap which will allow them to attack our homeland, to attack our citizens. This is a constant and ongoing threat.

This bill strikes a balance to allow that transparency for civil liberties while it underscores the ability of our intelligence community to be able to do their job. And having been, as Mr. Rogers indicated, firsthand in some very remote places on the Earth, we have got some incredibly dedicated people who are putting their lives at risk every day to protect this country.

This is a good bill. Let's pass it.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4005, the ``Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act.'' I want to commend Chairman Hunter, Ranking Member Garamendi, and their staffs for the amount of work they put in to have this bipartisan measure brought to the floor.

This important legislation contains a provision based on the ``Commercial Vessel Discharges Reform Act of 2013'' introduced by myself and Mr. Larsen. This provision puts in place a permanent moratorium from Environmental Protection Agency, state regulations and fines governing incidental discharges from commercial fishing vessels and all other commercial vessels less than 79 feet. With our stagnant economy, the government must not enact federal penalties which could discourage economic growth and job creation. The fines that are scheduled to be levied against our commercial fishermen for incidental charges will be devastating to our national and local South Jersey businesses.

In conclusion, I'd also like to praise the tireless efforts on behalf of all Coasties that our colleague Mr. Coble has worked on during his entire career in the House. A Coasty himself, he has always fought for the men and women serving in this distinguished uniform and we will surely miss him.

I urge all my colleagues to support H.R. 4005.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in very strong support of this legislation, and we are about to do something tonight that doesn't happen around here very often. We are going to do a bipartisan effort that has common sense and fiscal responsibility, something that we ought to be doing more often.

This is an issue maybe that doesn't affect everyone, but if you are from a district where your constituents have had their lives and their dreams ripped apart--first by Superstorm Sandy and then by the miserable implementation of a flood insurance policy that was well- intended, but not put together--how do you go back and say you are not going to fix it?

This gives us an opportunity to give them hope for the future, to give them a chance to rebuild. 16 months later, I have still got constituents who aren't able to get back into their homes. How do you tell them they are going to have such an outrageous increase on their flood insurance, which will force them to throw their hands up and give it up?

Congress is doing the right thing tonight. We need to follow through on this, have it changed, and understand that this is the approach for the future.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3578) to ensure that any new or revised requirement providing for the screening, testing, or treatment of an airman or an air traffic controller for a sleep disorder is adopted pursuant to a rulemaking proceeding, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials for the Record on H.R. 3578.

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

I rise today in support of H.R. 3578.

Let me begin by thanking some of my colleagues--first and foremost, Congressman Larsen, also Congressmen Bucshon, Lipinski, and Graves--for their help and support in introducing this very important bill.

Before I explain the bill, I would like to enter into the Record letters of support for H.R. 3578.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3578 addresses the medical certification process for pilots and air traffic controllers as it relates only to sleep disorders.

Currently, pilots and controllers are required to be medically certificated by the FAA at varying intervals. The duration, as well as the type of medical certification, depends on the type of activity they are seeking to perform--airline pilot, private pilot, et cetera--and all other factors, such as age. Regardless, pilots and controllers undergo a thorough medical review process, and the FAA ultimately decides whether or not to issue them a medical certification. Further, there are no certain medical conditions that the FAA automatically deems as disqualifying. Currently, pilots with one or more of those conditions, including sleep apnea, are required to seek a special certificate, which is issued at the sole discretion of the FAA and only if the applicants can prove they will not endanger public safety. Neither process is perfect, but it is a process that works.

In November of 2013, the FAA announced a proposal to significantly and arbitrarily modify the medical requirements for airmen who might be at risk of having a sleep disorder, such as sleep apnea, even in the absence of any clinical evidence. The FAA's proposal would effectively assume overweight pilots have a sleep disorder based solely on their body mass index and would require them to prove otherwise at their own expense. It is a scenario of being guilty before proven innocent. The potential cost to these pilots could be thousands of dollars.

The FAA proposal, announced without any input from the stakeholders, is neither reasonable nor effective. However, health issues can arise unexpectedly, which is why I have always supported reasonable, effective, and proactive efforts to improve aviation safety; but the FAA's action related to sleep disorders was carried out behind closed doors, with no input from stakeholders, and based upon controversial assumptions. While I applaud the FAA for seeking stakeholder input recently, it is too little, too late.

Safety is my top priority as chairman of the Aviation Subcommittee. That is why the legislation we are considering today, H.R. 3578, does not prohibit the FAA from implementing new medical certification requirements for sleep disorders, but it does require the FAA, in the case of pilots, to conduct an open rulemaking process and, in the case of air traffic controllers, to use a process established under current Federal employment law.

Finally, it is important to note that H.R. 3578 does not change the FAA's medical certification process or otherwise prevent the agency from responding to new medical issues in a timely manner. This legislation applies only to proposed changes to the medical certification process for sleep disorders. In addition, the rulemaking process required by this legislation does not apply to the enforcement of requirements providing for the screening, testing, or treatment of pilots and controllers for sleep disorders in force prior to November 1, 2013.

H.R. 3578 is a bipartisan bill that is supported by a wide range of stakeholders, and I urge my colleagues to support it.

With that, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Graves), who has been a big help on this issue.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Hanna).

Mr. Speaker, how much time remains?

Mr. Speaker, I now yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Bucshon). I thank him for his help on this issue.

Mr. Speaker, I do not have any more speakers, and I am prepared to close when Mr. Larsen is finished.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I again thank my colleague Mr. Larsen and colleagues who were interested in this issue.

I would like to reiterate that this bill is about transparency and about working with stakeholders, two areas in which the Federal Government desperately needs to improve. I strongly urge all of my colleagues to support the bill.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. Speaker, today I extend my personal congratulations and the recognition of the U.S. House of Representatives to Louis Herman ``Red'' Klotz, a basketball legend and long-time resident of Margate City, New Jersey. At age 93, Red remains active in the sport for which he has long loved, making him the sport's oldest professional and one of its most-loved.

Playing well into his 60s and serving as a U.S. International Ambassador of Goodwill, Red has helped introduce basketball to more than 100 countries and countless youth around the globe. As the owner and former player & coach of the Washington Generals, he and his team have challenged the dominance of their greatest competitor--the Harlem Globetrotters--for sixty-two consecutive years. And, as if playing over 13,000 exhibition games wasn't a full-time career, Red and his wife Gloria operated successful businesses in Margate and Atlantic City for many years.

I join with the greater Margate community and basketball fans worldwide in honoring Red Klotz for his countless contributions to the game. While your impressive decades-long past on and off the court is well-documented, it is your dedication today to the sport and fifty years in the South Jersey community that define your legacy.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to indicate, as many of my colleagues have, that beyond the so-called glitches and hiccups of the Web site, that the President's health care bill simply is not working. In fact, it is hurting.

Since the President's health care bill was signed into law, I have seen the anxiety, the confusion, and the genuine fear of south Jersey families, employers, employees, and of health care professionals; and for 4 years the conversations around the kitchen table and the water coolers have been about this anxiety and uncertainty. That has turned to real fear--fear and anger.

Terry from Millville told me that both her mother and her mother-in- law had current plans, and they were very happy with them. They were canceled under the President's health care bill, only to be replaced by plans with higher copays and premiums.

Randy from Scullville wrote on my Facebook that his monthly premiums are now $2,500, a full $700 more than before.

Lou, who opened a small business less than 2 years ago, hired more than 50 people and is going to have to make them part-time. This simply is not working, and it is wrong.

Mr. Speaker, Larry Williams, the former Director of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center, passed away on Friday, August 9, after suffering a heart attack.

Larry Williams served as the director of the Technical Center from 1982 to 1987. After leaving the Center, he went on to work with aviation-related companies in the private sector. He was a consultant for aviation giants such as Booz Allen Hamilton, CSSI, and others. He was part of a small joint team sponsored in part by the FAA and NASA that developed NextGen architecture and related projects. In January 2012, Larry was appointed to the NextGen aviation park board of directors.

The Virginia resident spent many years working for the FAA, between New Jersey and Washington, DC, including 10 years as the automation and surveillance engineering chief. Larry was recognized as an expert in the aviation industry throughout the country.

He came in contact with and touched many people throughout his career in aviation. His dedication and loyalty to the aviation industry and to the ideals of ensuring safer skies for those who fly will be missed. He exemplified the positive human values of kindness, dedication, and dignity, and was an outstanding example to all who knew him. Larry Williams was truly a remarkable gentleman; a loving husband, father, and grandfather; and a great friend to all of us.

Mr. Speaker, today I extend my personal congratulations and the recognition of the U.S. House of Representatives to Troop One of Bridgeton, NJ, which is celebrating its centennial anniversary as a chartered member of the Boy Scouts of America. Organized by Percy W. Owen in February 1913, Troop One has been honored by the national headquarters as one of the country's oldest troops with continuous service. It is the oldest charter in South Jersey with a roster of former scout masters and scouts exceeding one thousand.

Individual skills and societal benefits of scouting are well-known, with countless youth across the country becoming better citizens due to their experience. Leadership, ingenuity, integrity, compassion and cooperation are invaluable life skills that each scout is encouraged to learn and bring forward into their lives. Troop One, however, has always gone above and beyond those standard goals.

In addition to traditional activities, Troop One has long instilled a dedication to public service in their ranks. Throughout the past century, that dedication has been exemplified in Troop One's commitment to the greater Bridgeton community and the success of past scouts in their adult lives. From military officers and educators to medical professionals and business leaders, the critical life skills of such distinguished members in our nation can be traced back to their time at Troop One.

I join with the greater Bridgeton community and Boy Scouts across the country in congratulating Troop One for an outstanding one hundred years. As your impressive past is well-documented, it is your contributions today and to the youth of the future that reinforce your legacy.

Mr. Cummings, thank you very much.

We all talk about our heroes in this country, and there are some real ones. There are 103 names at the CIA--we don't talk much about CIA officers, FBI officers, State Department officers--who gave their lives. Benghazi, still fresh in our minds, brought the country to its knees in horror, in agony, in mourning. There are State Department officers who lost their lives, and we have the audacity to tell them that we're going to deny them--I don't care if it's $1. At Camp Chapman, Afghanistan, six CIA officers and the chief of station were brutally murdered, and six were seriously injured.

I have the honor of being on the House Intelligence Committee. I've been to Camp Chapman. I've been to these forward operating bases. I've been to Africa. I've talked to these CIA officers who are putting their lives on the line every single minute of every day. They don't know when an attack is coming on them, and they don't know from which direction. Yet we're going to tell them that they should not get even a single dollar?

Shame. That's not what we should be about. That's never what we should be about.

If we can't put those who are protecting this country at the top of the list and understand, then shame on us. If we didn't understand this was in the bill, shame on us. If we did understand it was in the bill and if we did it anyhow, then even more shame on us. This is wrong and we should not do it.

Congressman Frelinghuysen, thank you. Chairman Rogers, thank you for getting us to this point. It is deeply appreciated. To my colleagues from disaster-prone States, States that have had disasters in the past who are supporting us in this, thank you very much.

To my colleagues who are from States that have had disasters, some rather recently, who have decided that we need to change the rules of the game, shame on you. What does the misery index have to get to for our constituents? A new caucus should be formed--we have a lot of caucuses here--it should be the hypocritical caucus because when you wanted the money 5 minutes before the storm was over, you didn't have any hesitation coming to us and asking us. And, yes, I'm angry. You're changing the rules for hundreds of thousands of people in the middle of the game.

Florida, good luck with no more hurricanes. California, congratulations. Did you get rid of the San Andreas Fault? The Mississippi is in a drought. Do you think you're not going to have a flood again? Who are you going to come to when you have these things?

We need this. We need it now. Do the right thing as we have always done for you.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in very strong support of the rule and the underlying legislation. But I'd ask my colleagues, because we seem to be very mixed and divided on some of this, think of the human face.

My constituents, the constituents of the Northeast, they're not just whining. They're not just uncomfortable. They are devastated. They've had everything ripped from them.

Imagine getting up in the morning, hearing there's a storm coming, not knowing what to expect, and realizing, within 24 hours, you have lost everything. That's not something any of us wants to imagine for ourselves or for our constituents, but that's the place we find ourselves in.

These are senior citizens, sometimes with no family. They've been displaced from their homes, living in a rented room on a rented cot for months.

These are families with young children who are trying to get their lives back together.

These are businesses, small businesses, the backbone of the country, who don't know how to get back up and running.

Disaster means disaster and emergency means emergency.

Sure, we can say, let's wait, let's do something differently. But we were there for you. We were there, Florida, when you had your hurricane, and God bless you if you think you're not going to have another hurricane. We need this and we need it now.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to be here today. I did not think it was going to be necessary. But the Superstorm Sandy relief bill, I've heard a lot of people talking about it. This isn't about us as Members of Congress. This is about our constituents. Do you have any idea what it's like when someone else's life is ripped from their hands, lives are lost, all personal property is lost, businesses are lost, and the hope of the Federal Government coming in is what is keeping them alive and motivated, and now with no explanation, the rug is pulled out from all of us, but most of all our constituents?

This is a disaster on top of a disaster. We, all of us, I think I speak for all of us, when Katrina hit, 10 days later, $60 billion, $100 billion altogether. Now we have to hear from people in Florida, Louisiana, Texas, and Alabama, and, yes, some people from California and the Midwest when they have a disaster and we were there for them that the rules are going to change for us and it is now not an emergency and the Federal Government doesn't have a role in this?

It's absurd, absolutely absurd. We demand nothing less than we have given the rest of the country. An emergency and disaster means emergency and disaster, and that's what we had. Go back and look at the videos. Go back and see how people were devastated. The people of the Northeast had something we have never seen before, and we're expecting the Federal Government to play their role and be there. That's the minimum that's expected.

We worked hard to put together a package in a bipartisan way. People are crying out for bipartisan action. We had this, Republicans and Democrats, shoulder to shoulder, working together, forming a package, giving a little bit here, giving a little bit there, working our other Members, building the votes, promising, anticipating that we would have today the finishing part of this.

I'm convinced we had the votes. I'm convinced we would have moved this forward. And for us in New Jersey, every day that is lost is a bigger disaster. This isn't about people getting a sun tan. This is about jobs and the economy, a $40 billion tourism business that relies on the summer season. Who is going to come and vacation in a community that doesn't have a beach and whose town is devastated that normally comes there? The answer is nobody. So the bigger disaster is going to come in a couple of months from now, and the money into the pipeline is what we needed now. We needed it 5 minutes ago. We needed it 2 weeks ago. We don't need it a month from now. We need the Federal Government to step up so people's lives can be put back together.

We're all hit hard enough with the recession. On top of that, now we have to deal with the anxiety and the failure of Congress to act, to provide what is normally provided. Why all of the sudden are New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania, why are we the first States that have to answer to some new rules or some new formula that is going to come out about how we do these things? I don't ever remember a question with Katrina, that that $60 billion was too big a number. I remember that they were showing how people's lives were devastated. Why are our constituents any less important than the constituents of the past who had devastation? All of this is real, and we need to find a way to move forward.

So, yes, there is anger and frustration. That is all rolled into this. We're going to stay united. We're going to work together. We're going to find a way to move this forward. But we need to make this absolutely crystal clear

that this is not about people in Congress; this is about constituents whose lives were ruined. We need to do the right thing, and we need to do it now.

Mr. Speaker, I understand a concern has been raised by the gentleman from Alaska, Mr. Young and others that wording in Section 307 of the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2012 relating to a vessel's ``eligibility'' to participate in the non-AFA trawl catcher/processor sector could potentially be read to result in the loss of fishery endorsements for AFA catcher/processors. I can affirm that it is not the intent of the legislation that either existing AFA vessels or rebuilt or replacement AFA vessels suffer a loss of fishery endorsements merely for being considered eligible to participate in a fishery in which they are not participating.

As my colleagues know, this provision came as the result of a request from the other body during negotiations with them on a final text of the legislation. I can assure my colleagues that it was never contemplated that either existing AFA catcher/processors or rebuilt or replacement AFA vessels would lose, or be precluded from acquiring, fishery endorsements just because a federal agency might find such vessels eligible to participate in certain fisheries. The wording of Section 307, that amends 46 U.S.C. section 12113(d)(2)(C), relates to a section in statute pertaining to rebuilt or replacement AFA vessels. It creates restrictions on those vessels from entering the non-AFA pollock catcher/processor sector as replacement vessels, but it is not intended to affect the fishery endorsements for existing AFA catcher/processors or rebuilt or replacement AFA vessels that are not participating in the non-AFA trawl catcher/processor sector.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 825) providing for the concurrence by the House in the Senate amendments to H.R. 2838, with an amendment.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on House Resolution 825.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the chairman of the full committee, Mr. Mica, such time as he may consume.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of House Resolution 825.

H.R. 2838 reauthorizes the activities of the Coast Guard through the fiscal year 2014 at levels that will allow for the administration's requested 1.7 percent military pay increase for fiscal year 2013 and provide for a military pay increase for fiscal year 2014 at a level consistent with CBO's estimate on the rate of inflation. The bill provides funding for the Coast Guard at levels that will reverse the irresponsible cuts proposed by the Obama administration and will ensure the service has what it needs to successfully conduct its missions.

The legislation includes critical provisions that will give the Coast Guard, its servicemembers, and its dependents great parity with their counterparts in the Department of Defense, something that we've worked very hard to achieve. H.R. 2838 also contains reforms and improvements to the Coast Guard's acquisition program and activities. The bill encourages job growth in the maritime sector by cutting EPA, TSA, and Coast Guard regulatory burdens on small businesses. Finally, the bill enhances the security of U.S. vessels and crews transiting high-risk waters, reauthorizes the national security aspects of the Maritime Administration for fiscal year 2013, and makes several important improvements to NOAA's marine debris program, as noted by Mr. Larsen.

H.R. 2838 was put together in cooperation with the minority and with our counterparts in the Senate. I'd like to thank Mr. Mica, chairman of the full committee; I'd like to thank Mr. Rahall, the ranking member of the full committee; I especially want to thank Mr. Larsen. We've had, I think, a model for how a committee or a subcommittee should operate. We've been focused on results. We've been focused on incorporating good ideas. Rick, I very much appreciated your cooperation in moving forward on these very important issues for the Nation.

Finally, I would like to thank the staff on both sides for their work and their help in this legislation. We rely on them a great deal. They've worked in an extraordinary manner, and it's very much appreciated, and hopefully we get the results we need.

I also want to take a moment to underscore the very dangerous work that the Coast Guard does to keep our Nation and our shores safe. We were all shocked and very saddened to hear the news this weekend that a Coastie lost his life in the line of duty. This underscores how our Coast Guard men and women put their life at risk each and every day. They're really underrecognized and underappreciated for the work they do. And with drugs being such a great scourge in our country, it sounds like this Coastie was just brutally murdered. So our heart goes out to the men and women of the Coast Guard, his colleagues, his family, and his friends. Chief Petty Officer Terrell Horne was serving his country and gave his life for his country. Again, our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends. We're tremendously thankful for all the brave men and women of the Coast Guard and the work that they do each and every day.

I urge all Members to support H.R. 2838, and I reserve the balance of my time.

I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would like to thank everyone who has been involved in this process. Again, I especially thank Mr. Larsen for the cooperative initiatives and efforts that we've been able to undertake. I hope that all the Members of the House of Representatives will think about the sacrifices that the men and women of the Coast Guard make and will vote affirmatively for this bill.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I extend my deepest appreciation to Dominic Romeo for the more than 50 years of service to the state of New Jersey as a law enforcement officer and advocate for the Fraternal Order of Police. The true embodiment of a public servant, Dom began his career in 1959 as a seasonal police officer in his hometown of Wildwood and rose through the ranks, including two stints as President of the Cape May County FOP Lodge 7. His leadership and commitment to the oath `to serve and protect' are a model for current and aspiring officers. His advice and insight have helped me on Congressional issues related to law enforcement. On behalf of South Jersey residents and all those kept safe by his selfless actions, I wish Dom Romeo a very relaxing, rewarding retirement and thank him both for his steadfast friendship and service to South Jersey.