Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the life of Mr. James ``Jim'' Harold Rabbers of Stevensville, Michigan who passed away on October 11, 2021.

Jim was a true Michigander through and through. He was a loving husband, and caring father and friend to all. Born and raised in Southwest Michigan, he attended Lakeshore High School and went on to attend Western Michigan University. After college, Jim went on to sell insurance and build warm relationships throughout the Stevensville community. He was a fan of all sports and had a special place in his heart for the Wolverines. He could talk sports all day long, but his real gift was forming friendships that stood the test of time.

Jim participated in sports throughout high school and played and officiated intramural sports in college. He even met the love of his life, Mary, playing softball and volleyball at St. Paul Lutheran Church. Mary had just come into town as a new teacher at a local school. The pair quickly bonded over their love of sports and competitive spirits and married in the summer of 1986. They became parents to four wonderful children: Derek Rabbers (Claire), Chelsea Rabbers, Megan Spaude (Jason), and Travis Rabbers. Jim and Mary have been blessed with three grandchildren: Wesley, Jay and Samuel Rabbers.

Jim is survived by his wife, four children, daughter and son-in-law, three grandchildren, his brothers: Thom (Rhonda) Rabbers and Dan (Diana) Rabbers, his sisters: Susan (Robert) Vandervleit and Jodi Rabbers, as well as a number of extended family members.

Madam Speaker, most folks have never heard of PFAS. In Michigan we found out the hard way. Again.

Sadly, we know a little bit about water contamination. Think Flint, think lead. PFAS is bad, too. Really bad.

The EPA has been slow at the switch. Three years ago, I stepped off the plane coming back from D.C. for the August break, and I got a call. It was bad. It was from one of my State senators. One of my towns had been identified just a few hours earlier with having alarming PFAS parts per trillion numbers.

We had to act right away. I drove straight to the sheriff command center, prompted the immediate notification of thousands of residents. It was nearly midnight. Before they could make infant formula or coffee in the morning or even water their vegetable garden, they had to stop. They had to unplug their icemakers in their refrigerators. For months they had to line up at churches and schools to get cases of water for human consumption.

We had a bipartisan bill to require the EPA to set a minimum standard for PFOA and PFAS, which House Republicans agreed to, but we were later denied. It would have started the EPA's clock, which is why we need to act now.

We know this stuff is bad. We know this causes cancer. This bill is not perfect. It needs to see a number of constructive changes before it reaches the President's desk, but I want to thank Dan Kildee and Brian Fitzpatrick, the two co-chairs of the bipartisan Congressional PFAS Task Force.

I want to thank Chairman Pallone. I also want to thank my colleague Debbie Dingell for authoring this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for doing this, and I am sorry to sort of jump people in line, but we are in a committee markup, so I have to get back.

Mr. Speaker, I have to say that my friend, Paul Mitchell, grew up the eldest of seven kids. Literally, a natural born leader of the pack. He was the first of his extended family to graduate from college. He has noted that his mom raised him to believe that those with talents and resources were expected by God to make a difference in the world. And by God, he did.

Tenacious and focused like a laser beam, he set and met goals. A scrappy fighter, he has now met his most formidable foe, that is for sure, and he is all in for that fight.

And in a text that I got from him a little bit earlier today, he said, ``as you know, I am one tough cuss.''

Yes, Paul, you are. And you know what, everybody knows it--not only your Republican and Democratic colleagues, but certainly the former President, and probably all of your constituents back in Michigan as well. You are a tough cuss.

Yesterday, my colleague, Diana DeGette, and I introduced a discussion draft called 21st Century Cures 2.0.

Mr. Speaker, 392 of us in this Chamber, including Paul, voted for the 21st Century Cures enacted in 2016, which expedites the approval of new drugs. This bill that we are working on now, 2.0, could well indeed speed the approval of new drugs even faster. So it indeed could be the very lifeline for Paul and so many like him--thousands of Americans and around the world--that somehow are impacted by this terrible disease that we all want to survive.

Paul's life is characterized by exceeding expectations, defying the odds. And we know that is what he intends to do now, for sure. And if anybody can, it is Paul. So we are with you, Paul--you may be watching--every step of the way. All of us.

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record Paul's farewell address that he stated back in July of 2019 as part of this tribute.

Representative Paul Mitchell's (MI-10) Floor Remarks on Wednesday July

24, 2019

Madam Speaker, America is an amazing place and we too often

as Americans take that for granted. Opportunities exist in

this country that simply aren't available in much of the

world. And my life is an example of the many possibilities in

the United States of America.

I ask you: Where else can a kid born into poverty,

beginning life in a subsidized housing project, become a

national legislator? Yet--here I stand as a Member of

Congress.

In how many countries can the oldest of seven children with

parents that were an hourly autoworker and a Salvation Army

office manager become the first in their extended family to

graduate from college, build a career and become CEO of a

major workforce development company and, after retiring, be

elected to Congress?

America is truly a unique and special place that we must

love and respect with all our heart and soul.

My mother raised me to believe that those with talents and/

or resources were expected by God to make a difference in the

world. I have tried to do that throughout my life.

My mission for 35 years was to assist people in identifying

and securing career opportunities. My professional career

allowed me to support my family while assisting adults of all

ages and backgrounds develop skills to support their families

and build careers.

I assisted individuals ranging from laid off steel workers

and autoworkers to long term public assistance recipients

develop the skills they needed to secure a job and build a

new career.

I worked with individuals requiring literacy education or

ESL and adults that had worked in the same job for years and

suddenly found their jobs and industries had evaporated, and

their lives turned upside down.

I worked, in some way or another, with tens of thousands of

people searching for assistance in securing a job and a

career path.

I believed then, and I continue to believe, that most

Americans find value and opportunity in working--sometimes

they just need a hand and assistance to overcome adversity.

I brought that passion and commitment to Washington. I was,

and remain, committed to making a difference in the world. I

literally approached being a Member of Congress like my

earlier career--full tilt and leaving no stone unturned to

have a meaningful impact, and to make a difference on issues

where I could.

It is an honor to stand on this floor, debate issues, and

represent the people of Michigan's 10th Congressional

District. I am proud to be among the 12,500 or so Americans

that have had the privilege of serving in Congress.

But I have also begun asking myself about making a

difference for my family. My children of all ages--but the

youngest just nine years old--have accepted their dad

traveling this country extensively, working a demanding

schedule, and frequently interrupting ``family time'' with

calls, emails and text messages. My spouse Sherry has been so

supportive and more patient than probably warranted.

A career in Washington has never been my objective. My

objective has always been simply to work to address

significant challenges this nation faces: health care,

immigration, and infrastructure for example.

However, it appears to me that rhetoric overwhelms policy,

and politics consumes much of the oxygen in this city.

The time has come to make a difference for my family--to

focus my time and energy upon them--their needs and goals.

As George Washington is quoted: ``I would rather be on my

farm than emperor of the world.''

As a result--I have decided I will not seek to continue to

represent Michigan's 10th District next term. After serving

out the remainder of the 116th Congress--I will return to my

family and our small farm..

Mr. Speaker, I thank Elissa, again, for organizing this time for many of his friends that would like to say a few words tonight and push him forward to get to that finish line and come back.

God bless you.

Mr. Speaker, January 6 is going to haunt this institution for a long, long time. No, it was not the joyous day on Capitol Hill with our constituents celebrating the start of a new Congress and a new administration. COVID came first, then this.

So nearly 5 months later, we still don't have the answers to the basic questions: Who knew what? When? What did they do about it?

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues, Katko and Thompson, for the really good job on working together to establish a bipartisan commission seeking to find the answers to the questions that are still out there.

Hundreds of people were arrested. People died. Millions of dollars of damage to this building, feces spread on the walls, and, yes, the very core of democracy, this institution, was threatened.

I wasn't in the Chamber that day when the breach was attempted, but I heard the shouts, saw the flash bangs, smelled the gas on that sorry day. And if it had not been for the brave Capitol and Metropolitan policemen and women that day, who knows how many of our heads would have been swinging on those gallows that were constructed on the east front of the Capitol.

I talked to the exhausted SWAT team members, the police, and watched some of the body cams. I talked to some of our still-shaken colleagues who endured that day.

Mr. Speaker, we need the answers, not political rhetoric. That is what this bipartisan commission can provide for all of us, for our country. Let the truth shine in.

Madam Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay'' on rollcall No. 221.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bipartisan legislation.

I just want to remark briefly to my colleague from Florida (Ms. Castor) that the ACE Kids bill was a very important bill that we worked on actually for three Congresses. Joe Barton and the gentlewoman did a marvelous job. We didn't quite get it done. We passed it in this House with more than 400 votes in the last Congress. At the end, the Senate just didn't take it up.

It is very important that it is included as part of this bipartisan package, which we hope is early enough that we can get the Senate to act and pass it, because it really does impact families that are in much need.

I also am happy that we are moving this comprehensive bill today because it does contain a variety of important extensions. All of them had hearings and a lot of bipartisan support from the very first. This includes protections against spousal impoverishment for those seniors who have a spouse who is receiving home-based long-term care under Medicaid.

Back in 2010, we temporarily mandated these protections for home care, but that mandate was set to expire at the end of this very week, so it has to be extended.

Last year, my good friend and colleague, Mrs. Dingell, and I introduced a bill to make the spousal impoverishment protections permanent, and we worked hard to get that done and passed here in this House. But at the end, even though we worked tirelessly on this, we got only a temporary extension. That is why it expires the end of this week.

This bill doesn't permanently extend it like we had hoped last year, but it does give a reprieve by extending the protection until the end of this year, so, in essence, a 9-month extension. It is my hope that we can use the time to actually pass a permanent extension.

I particularly commend the work of my colleague, Mrs. Dingell from the great State of Michigan, for her passion on this, to make sure that we can get it done. I applaud the Speaker for getting it scheduled on the House floor early so that we can get it done, hopefully, this week, and the Senate can concur. Then let's use the time to really make it permanent, to help these families that otherwise will have funds taken out, as this really does rely on Medicaid, to a large degree.

Mr. Chairman, I have long been a supporter of campaign finance reform. I voted for motor voter. I voted for McCain-Feingold the year in the House it was Shays-Meehan. I supported the Help America Vote Act in 2002.

There are plenty of flaws in the current system. That is for sure. And we need to fix it. But you know what? We have a Democratic House, and we have a Republican Senate, and the only way that we are reasonably going to fix this issue is with a bipartisan bill.

I am the only Republican here today who was here in 1993 when we passed the motor voter bill. This was a bill that was patterned after what Michigan has had in place for decades. When you get your driver's license, you are asked to register to vote. It works.

This bill, H.R. 1, is not bipartisan. One of our big objections is truly the taxpayer-financed campaign element of this bill.

If you do a poll today across the country, you are going to find that most voters are going to say that campaigns are too expensive; they are too negative; and, yes, they are too long.

We are going to have thousands--thousands--of candidates running for Congress. They are all going to be eligible for this match from the Treasury for any contribution under $200, with a 6-to-1 ratio, so we are going to have more money in politics, and we are not going to have the transparency that I think all of us want.

If we are going to fix the problem, let's sit down; let's have regular order; let's have all the committees with some jurisdiction sit down and have Republicans and Democrats work together on a committee process that we can pass in a bipartisan vote that will get the attention of the Senate, and maybe we can do something about the problems today.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I want to consume.

Mr. Speaker, this bill, H.R. 762, was introduced by Representative Cartwright on January 24. I would note that it is identical to bills that passed the House in prior Congresses by a voice vote, unanimous and bipartisan.

This legislation would require that the Secretary of Energy establish a clearinghouse to share information regarding available Federal programs to help schools initiate, develop, and finance energy efficiency, distributed generation, and energy retrofitting projects. These types of energy upgrades will help schools stretch their budgets and reduce their impact on the environment at the same time.

This is a good, bipartisan bill. It is going to help schools take advantage of existing programs to cut down on their energy use. As I have said before, we should continue to encourage these innovations in energy efficiencies to help address climate change, and this bill is a good step in the right direction.

Mr. Speaker, when I was a student, I never had a legislator come visit my class. As part of my district operation, I visit a school literally every week.

So we all have districts that look pretty much the same. I have probably 100-some school districts, close to 500, 600 school buildings for sure, and as I have visited these classrooms in the years that I have served, every school is different. Many of these schools are 40, 50, 60 years old.

This legislation is needed. We want to make sure that the money for education not only goes to help our students move forward, but, in fact, that they are in a safe environment. Energy conservation is something that is needed at almost every one of our schools.

This is a good piece of legislation. I hope that we can pass it again today by a strong, bipartisan--perhaps, unanimous--vote, and I urge that the Senate take it up as quickly as they can.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers on our side that I am aware of, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my fellow dean, my bipartisan dean on the

other side. I have so many stories to tell, so I am going to watch the clock here a little bit. I am going to ramble. I don't have a prepared speech.

I am delighted to be here. I am delighted that you were able to get this time for some of us to speak and honor a legend. And when you think about this last year, man, we have lost some really terrific ones: President Bush, John McCain, others. Certainly, John Dingell joins those ranks as a distinguished American who really made a mark on everyone's life in this country.

Mr. Speaker, I include into the Record an article written by editor Nolan Finley of The Detroit News.

[From the Detroit News, Feb. 9, 2019]

John Dingell Knew How to Live, How To Love

(By Nolan Finley)

I was up to my waist and cork tight in what I can only

describe as quicksand when I looked up and saw John Dingell

squinting down at me with that familiar, satisfied grin.

``How in bloody hell did you get in there? And more

important, how in blue blazes are you going to get out?''

We were hunting ducks on Maryland's Eastern Shore. I'd

winged a goose that came down running, and was in hot pursuit

when I stepped into the hole of muck and quickly sank.

John pulled me out, and then finished off the goose.

I never know how to answer when someone asks how a

conservative, Republican-leaning newspaperman could become

such fast friends with a New Deal Democrat who shaped the

liberal politics and policies of the second half of the 20th

century.

I never occurred to either of us that we could be anything

else.

John didn't choose the people he loved based on political

compatibility. Certainly, he had strong opinions, and so do

I, and we engaged often in intense discussions. Not once in

25 years did we exchange angry words, nor ever part with hard

feelings.

We were more than our politics. When together, our

conversation quickly moved to our common loves--guns and

hunting. It was what drew us together in the first place.

John was a great hunter, a dead-eye with a shotgun. I was

with him when he shot the last duck he ever killed. Four of

us were settled into a blind on a brisk but sunny January

morning, and the ducks were coming in fast and furious. Three

of us were blasting away like a trio of Elmer Fudds, shooting

a lot of birds, but burning up a case of shells in doing so.

Not John.

Barely able to stand, he shouldered his shotgun just three

times that day. And all three times a duck fell from the sky.

Not a shell wasted.

John's great passion was his wife, Debbie. After that, it

was a toss-up between a duck blind and the House chamber for

his next greatest love. I recall an afternoon when we were

returning to Washington, and as we crested a hill the

gleaming white Capitol dome came into view. ``I never get

tired of seeing that,'' he said softly.

And obviously he never did. John spent nearly 60 years in

Congress, serving longer than anyone else. And better. John

was a parliamentarian; he cherished the traditions and

processes of the House.

And while he was a bare-knuckled negotiator who relished a

fight, he was ultimately a pragmatist. When the time came to

compromise, John set down his club and made the deal.

His decision to retire was based mostly on his waning

physical condition. But he was also disgusted with the

poisonous partisanship and gridlock ruining Congress. He

couldn't stand to watch what was becoming of the institution

he joined as a teen-aged page during World War II.

Still, he hated to leave. The night before he announced his

retirement, he called me to have dinner with him and Debbie.

John had made his decision but hadn't accepted it. He was

looking for assurance that he wasn't letting down the people

of his district by leaving, that he'd done his best for them,

that they'd understand his reasons.

At the same time, he was offering counsel to Debbie, who

had a quick decision of her own to make. He wanted her to

succeed him, as he had his father, to continue a Dingell

legacy in Congress stretching back to 1935. It was a poignant

moment between the past and future.

When I'd visit him after retirement, the questions were

always the same. Did I make a difference? Do my people

remember me? Would Pop be proud?

I was always stunned that he could harbor such doubts,

given his enormous accomplishments. But John Dingell never

took the obligations of public service lightly. He always

felt there was more he could do for the people who placed

their trust in him.

He was a man in the best sense of the word. A man of the

Greatest Generation. A man of courage, confidence,

compassion. A man who did his duty. A man who took care of

his own business, and of the people he loved.

And he sure did know how to love. He and Debbie shared an

epic love affair that never waned. You couldn't be around

them more than five minutes without hearing him say, ``I love

you, Fox.'' The fire in his eyes when he looked at her burned

until his last breath.

She was fiercely protective of him, and kept him alive

years longer than he should have expected by the sheer force

of her will.

Our friendship may have been unlikely, but it was one I

cherished. I loved him, and hate to see him go.

But if life's a game, John Dingell won it. Nearly 93 years,

and every minute of it lived honorably and with passion and

purpose.

Goodbye, good friend. I hope wherever you are this morning,

the ducks are coming in fast and low.

I am going to also read to you an email that I got just an hour or two ago from his wife, Debbie, our colleague, who received this from the Ford family.

This is from Mike Ford. Of course, his father was Gerry Ford, a great man, President, Michigander. And he wrote this, it is very brief:

Debbie,

Since learning of John's recent passing, my thoughts and

prayers have been constant with you and your extended family.

Through my reading of the many wonderful remembrances of

and tributes to John, I have been deeply moved and blessed to

revisit his remarkable legacy of leadership and service to

the people of Michigan and to all of our Nation.

John and my father, though identified from competing

political parties, held so much in common as men of wisdom,

integrity, compassion, and selfless service for all of

humanity, and their friendship was true and enduring through

a shared lifetime calling of public service. John Dingell and

Gerry Ford represent what is good, honorable, and decent in

our country.

Please know of our Ford family's grace giving wishes and

prayers for you and all the Dingell family at this time of

loss and grief.

May you know of God's abiding comfort, love, and hope this

day and always.

Mike Ford.

Good guy that, again, some of us know, particularly those of us on the west side of our State. You know, he was our dean. And when I became the dean of the Michigan Republican delegation--that was in the early nineties. I have got to say--I was just adding it up here sitting with Tim--I was probably in thousands of meetings with John.

Our delegation is close. We stand together on a host of issues, from the Great Lakes to the autos. We often had an agenda we worked together. Our offices were across the hall from each other for a lot of years. Of course, we have known Deborah forever and a day as well.

I had the chance to talk to John Dingell the day before he died, and I talked to him a number of times over the last number of weeks. I read his book, which I would recommend to folks. Might put the R rating next to it, in terms of his language. You can hear him speak, and he had a genuine sense of humor. He had so many stories.

I was asked a little bit earlier today: What about his tweeting?

He tweeted until, literally, the last day or two. For those of you watching tonight, get on Google. Google MLive. That is sort of the Michigan news network. Google: MLive Dingell tweet. This weekend, they ran the top 20 tweets that he did, and they will make you laugh. They really will, especially the one with the bulldog. All of the animal lovers out there, make sure you find this one. He had a sense of humor.

People say: How could a 92-year-old do all this?

Well, let me tell you how. It is because of our committee. The committee has so much jurisdiction, part of which is telecommunications. We were the first ones. We forced the broadcasters. It was actually the Tauzin-Dingell bill, I want to say a lot of years ago, and I had an amendment that was critical there. We passed the Tauzin-Dingell bill. He cared so much about bipartisanship.

We forced the broadcasters to go from analog to digital. That then allowed us all to have devices like this: iPhones and the internet. Instead of using a shoe for your phone, you got something like this that is like the world.

We forced them to go digital, and that allowed this to happen. So guess what? John Dingell, in Congress, we would often sit down. We all meet in Detroit, let's face it. All of us, our delegation, we come from someplace. Mr. Kildee comes from Flint. Tim Walberg is actually lucky and gets on in Detroit. I come from South Bend or Kalamazoo or Grand Rapids. We all come from someplace, but generally, we fly Delta from Detroit back to D.C.

We are all sitting at that A-75 gate. There is John Dingell, a colleague, and

he is on his BlackBerry, zipping away, typing just as fast as you could imagine, communicating with people around the world. It is because of the work he did in our committee. That made our lives what they are today.

Whether it is that or the environment or healthcare or pipeline safety, you name the issue--we are sorry Mr. Kildee went to the Ways and Means Committee. Deborah chose right; she went to the Energy and Commerce Committee. Mr. Kildee went to the dark side. Our committee has jurisdiction over so much.

John Dingell was such a leader. He didn't care about who got the credit. He just wanted to get the job done. He sat right over here. When you would come over and ask his advice, you would make sure that you were on his good ear, and he would talk, and he would remember things.

I can remember taking the Congressional Record from some big debates, the Voting Rights Act and others, and I would sit with him here, and we would go through the names, particularly the Michigan delegation, and why they voted this way or that way. He would tell the history. He was here for our lifetime.

He was a gentleman to the very end. He knew the rules. He had respect from both sides of the aisle. He was a guy who we will never see replaced here in this House.

In closing, let me say, even at the end, he was wondering: Did I make a difference?

Of course he did. But here was a guy who made such a difference and a guy who really never thought he would be in this institution. When his dad died, a week before his dad died, he didn't think he was going to run for that seat. It was the people at home who encouraged him to run. When he chose to retire, he didn't push Deborah, nudge Deborah, to run for that seat.

It is hard to imagine, 86 years of a Dingell representing southeast Michigan. What a tribute to a family that has made such a difference in this body, folks who love not only our State, but certainly their constituents.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Kildee for doing this Special Order.

Will the gentleman yield?

We really ribbed Dave Camp about this, and the good Sandy, too.

Madam Speaker, I was unavoidably detained due to collarbone surgery. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA

on Roll Call No. 483; YEA on Roll Call No. 484; YEA on Roll Call No. 485; YEA on Roll Call No. 486; YEA on Roll Call No. 487; YEA on Roll Call No. 488; YEA on Roll Call No. 489; YEA on Roll Call No. 490; YEA on Roll Call No. 491; YEA on Roll Call No. 492; YEA on Roll Call No. 493; YEA on Roll Call No. 494; YEA on Roll Call No. 495; YEA on Roll Call No. 496; YEA on Roll Call No. 497; and NAY on Roll Call No. 498.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise on behalf of the Michigan Congressional Delegation--Reps. Debbie Dingell, Tim Walberg, Dan Kildee, Bill Huizenga, Brenda Lawrence, Justin Amash, Mike Bishop, Dave Trott, Paul Mitchell, and Jack Bergman--to acknowledge and commend one of the finest public servants the Great State of Michigan has been blessed to have: Mr. William ``Bill'' McBride.

There has never been a better friend and advocate for Michiganders than Bill McBride.

Over the past 44 years of Bill's service he has earned immense respect for his integrity, sincerity, and civility. No matter which political party was in power, in any of the branches of government, our constant source of information and enlightenment was--and is still-- Bill.

Bill's distinguished career includes serving as chief of staff to Michigan Delegation Members Carl Pursell and Vern Ehlers. He also served as deputy chief of staff for Governor John Engler and most recently director of Governor Snyder's federal office.

Bill is not just a beloved colleague and friend, he is a Michigan institution. ``Ask McBride'' has become a fond and common phrase for all of us. As loyal as the day is long, Bill has set the gold standard for public service.

Bill exudes kindness, a sense of humor, and a sense of fair play. Always.

They say home is where the heart is and Bill's has certainly always been Michigan. When any issue has arisen affecting our state, Bill has been in the thick of it. His hard work has had a positive impact that will ripple far beyond when he leaves public service. We are sure to confront many situations and challenges where we will dearly miss his sage counsel, wit, and wisdom. He will stay on speed dial for several of us on both sides of the aisle for years to come.

The Michigan Congressional Delegation stands today to wish Bill the very best of luck as he turns the page and moves on to write many more, which we are sure will be just as storied and successful.

God speed Bill, and I thank him from the bottom of our hearts.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 6140, the ``Advanced Nuclear Fuel Availability Act,'' is a bipartisan bill sponsored by my Energy and Commerce colleagues, Bill Flores of Texas, along with Jerry McNerney of California.

We considered this bill through regular order in Committee and the Full Committee reported the bill favorably, as amended, by a voice vote.

Imagine designing a new car that is safer, less expensive, and gets triple the mileage than anything we see on the road today. But when the vehicle is ready to hit the road, there is no gas to fill up the tank.

Nuclear innovators face a similar--and very critical--challenge as they work to bring several promising advanced nuclear technologies to the market. These new designs require fuels that have different attributes than what is used in today's fleet of nuclear reactors, but the fuels are not commercially available.

H.R. 6140 addresses this challenge by ensuring nuclear innovators will have the advanced fuels needed to develop and demonstrate their products commercially.

The bill provides a direct path to align advanced nuclear fuel supply with initial demand for the deployment of next generation nuclear technologies. It provides for the development of the technical information necessary to assist the creation of the regulatory and licensing framework for these fuels.

The bill directs the Secretary of Energy to establish a temporary program, operating to support a public-private partnership, that will make what is known as high-assay low-enriched uranium available for use in the first-of-a-kind advanced nuclear reactor designs. It provides for the surveys and information necessary to inform the new market development and cost recovery for initial federal investments.

In short, the Advanced Nuclear Fuel Availability Act takes practical, targeted steps to ensure the infrastructure will be in place in time to enable the development and deployment of a new generation of nuclear technologies in the United States.

This is an important bill for ensuring the nation's international leadership on nuclear technology, for ensuring our energy security, and achieving our clean energy goals.

I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 6140.

Mr. Speaker, I stand in support of this legislation today.

I thank my colleague Debbie Dingell. The two of us helped cosponsor the spousal impoverishment bill, which is part of this bill. There was no objection to that, and I am delighted that we are getting it done.

But I want to particularly take this time and just thank Joe Barton for his leadership on the ACE Kids Act.

All of us come here to this House for particular causes that really grab our interest and attention. Joe Barton has been so good--some would say like a dog to a Frisbee--in getting the ACE Kids Act to the House floor. This bill is going to save lives.

It was bipartisan. Frankly, I wanted to move it as part of the 21st Century Cures Act, but we didn't have a CBO score. We couldn't get it done.

We had plenty of meetings over the last couple of years on this, and here it is. We are going to get it done. Hopefully, the Senate is going to get it done, and we are going to get it to the President's desk.

This is probably the last time that Joe Barton is actually managing a bill on the House floor, and it is appropriate that this is his bill, that it is his engine that is moving this train that really is going to make a difference for families across the country. So I say thank you, Joe Barton.

Mr. Speaker, safe drinking water for our families is something that we all should agree on, and this bill delivers on that promise. It makes certain that communities like Parchment, in my district, are able to deal with the PFAS contamination issue.

In Parchment, thanks to the proactive efforts of the State of Michigan, we discovered PFAS in the water, and we immediately sprang into action to solve the problem in the short term--local, State, and Federal folks all working in tandem to fix the problem. Specifically, the bill does that by increasing authorization for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. It critically works to modernize our aging water infrastructure by providing more resources.

Drinking water quality remains high across the country, but improvements can and must be made now. This bipartisan bill is yet a very important step forward. I look forward to supporting it and would urge all of my colleagues on both sides to do the same.

I want to thank Chairman Shuster for getting this bill to the floor, and I look forward to ultimately getting it to the President for his signature.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 490) to reinstate and extend the deadline for commencement of construction of a hydroelectric project involving the Gibson Dam.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material in the Record on the bill.

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

Mr. Speaker, this bill, S. 490, authorizes the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, FERC, upon request, to extend by 6 years the time period during which construction must commence on a hydroelectric project involving the Gibson Dam, which is located on the Sun River in Montana. Additionally, FERC may reinstate the construction license if it is expired.

This bill passed the Senate by unanimous consent back on June 28, and I would urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation so that we can send it to the President's desk.

I would also note that when the Senate passed this bill, they also passed five other House bills extending construction licenses for hydro projects in North Carolina, New York, Virginia, and West Virginia. These now have become law. So this is the last one.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Montana (Mr. Gianforte). I would note that he was the sponsor of the House companion bill. This is a Senate bill that we are taking up, but, obviously, he has great interest in it.

I would note that we passed it with strong bipartisan support through the Energy Subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to correct the record. We were going to take this up and pass it like that, but the Senate acted first, which is why we are taking up the Senate bill. It does have bipartisan support.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for it, and I yield back the balance of my time.