Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Tri-County Head Start Director Orion Flowers, who is approaching the end of a long and distinguished career of public service. A dedicated and committed individual, Orion has served the communities and children of southwest Michigan for over 30 years. Through his leadership as Director, Orion helped the program grow from serving 100 to 1026 children.

Since becoming Head Start Director in 1970, Orion devotedly and selflessly committed himself to the betterment of countless families. Orion is widely known for his extensive charity and dedication to local individuals and the community as a whole. He spent a career devoted to improving the lives of the citizens of southwest Michigan, and the area is forever in his debt. There is no question that Orion's dedication and contributions to the Tri-County will be missed.

One example of Orion's diligent work occurred in the early 1970's, when he initiated a program whereby children would come to a Mobile Unit for classes. In conjunction with that, a Home Based program began where a Home Visitor would go into a family's home to assist parents in teaching their children an array of subjects and concerns. Remarkably the Mobile Unit and Home Based concepts are still in use today.

Many words come to mind as one reflects upon Orion Flower's public service to our community. He is selfless, generous, giving, caring, humble . . . the list goes on. Our community is in debt to Orion Flowers for his continued public service since 1970. I wish him and his family all the best in retirement. Orion's contributions to our community have been many, and we are all better off because of his service. He will be truly missed by the folks in southwest Michigan.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Ms. Brittany Potts of Portage, Michigan, who won the 2004 National VFW Voice of Democracy broadcast scriptwriting contest. This great educational achievement also serves as a wonderful patriotic statement of Brittany's dedication and responsibility to our country. I am very proud to honor Brittany and her commitment to our nation's future.

Each year the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States and its Ladies Auxiliary conduct a Voice of Democracy audio/essay competition designed to give high school students the opportunity to voice their opinion on their responsibility to our country. Brittany, a sophomore at Portage Central High School, was one of 59 students, out of more than 80,000 participants, who received a national scholarship.

Brittany's insightful response of her commitment to the betterment of our great country serves as a reminder to all, of the immense power and responsibility we all have. I look forward to hearing of the great many achievements that Brittany has before her. It pleases me to honor the magnificent dedication of Brittany and to submit her script into the Record.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Energy and Commerce be discharged from further consideration of the Senate bill (S. 2315) to amend the Communications Satellite Act of 1962 to extend the deadline for the INTELSAT initial public offering, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on S. 2315, the Senate bill just passed.

Mr. Speaker, obesity and poor nutritional habits are growing problems in our Nation, particularly among our children and adolescents. Health costs alone will be stratospheric in the near future due to the poor eating habits of our youth.

The very foods children need for good nutrition are often grown in their own communities. Farm to Cafeteria projects across the country link farmers with local schools to serve students the freshest possible foods as part of the National School Lunch Program. When combined with nutrition education, farm visits, and school gardens, children learn to enjoy and even get excited about eating healthy--and at the same time family farmers strengthen their markets and community ties. While Farm to Cafeteria projects have proven cost-effective over time, schools often need assistance to cover the initial staff resources, training, and equipment required for a successful project.

To respond to this need, our colleague Ron Kind and I have introduced the bipartisan Farm to Cafeteria Projects Act (H.R. 2626) that is now a part of this bill. The Farm-To-Cafeteria provision establishes a $10 million competitive grant program to provide schools with up to $100,000 to cover these costs and garner long-term benefits for children, farmers, and their communities during the term of the reauthorization.

I ask my colleagues to vote for this piece of legislation, to show the country that we care about what our children are eating.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the inspiring achievement of the German-American National Congress, Inc. (D.A.N.K. No. 13) in the Benton Harbor and St. Joseph community. This great nonprofit organization celebrates its 40th anniversary on March 27, 2004. Over the past four decades Americans of German descent, through the work of this organization, have been preserving the traditions and culture of their heritage throughout southwest Michigan.

The German American National Congress (Deutsch Amerikanischer National Kongress), seeks to bring together Americans of German descent in the pursuit of cultivating and presenting their heritage and interests on local, regional, and national levels. These were the primary reasons why this organization was founded in 1959, and they are still among the organization's primary objectives today. The German- American National Congress is the largest organization of Americans of German ancestry. It has some 30 chapters and over 100 associated member societies from coast to coast. I am very proud to have Chapter 13 in the Sixth District of Michigan, and I greatly appreciate all the benefits that the members have provided this community.

It truly pleases me to honor the achievement of Chapter 13, and I hold the members in the highest of esteem. I would like to wish this organization all the best for the future and thank its members for promoting goodwill through southwest Michigan. I'm a frequent visitor to the chapter and there's not been a time that I haven't felt welcome like so many others in southwest Michigan.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3926, the Organ Donation and Recovery Improvement Act, of which I am a cosponsor. Let me just mention several numbers, that for me, say it all about why we need incentives to increase organ donations across the nation. In Michigan, as of the first of this month, 2544 individuals are on the waiting list for an organ donation. Since the first of the year, 108 individuals received a donated organ and, sadly, 19 people have already died because there was no organ available to save them. These are our constituents, our families, our friends. I know the Transplant Society of Michigan, our state's organ procurement organization, is working hard to increase donations. But they could use a helping hand, as could OPOs across the nation. The Organ Donation and Recovery Improvement Act we will vote on today is a very good start.

The key to donation is public education and awareness. This legislation gives the Secretary of Health and Human Services the ability to award grants to States for the purpose of assisting States in carrying out organ donor awareness, public education and outreach activities designed to increase the number of organ donors. While there is a desperate need for vital human organs, the American public should know that there is also a continuing need for donated human eyes and tissue. Donation is the term used to describe the humanitarian act of giving to help another. Anatomical gifts include vital, life-saving human organs, sight restoring eyes, and repair and reconstruction human tissue such as bone, cartilage, tendons, skin, and heart valves.

At national, state, and local levels, a partnership exists between the organ, eye and tissue bank communities. While all three communities are considered separate, given differences in medical criteria, training needs and distribution pathways, they are united in their message to encourage the act of donation. Organ donation saves lives, eye donation restores sight, and tissue donation provides skin grafts for critically injured burn patients and benefits thousands of patients in need of bone, cartilage, tendons, and heart valves. Without a donor, transplant surgeons cannot save or improve the health of even one individual.

The intent of H.R. 3926 is primarily to address the shortage of solid human organs. It must be noted, however, that the eye and tissue banking communities are also partners in donation and that their participation and contribution in the donation process is critical to the continued health and well being of many Americans who have either been injured or are suffering from a disease. It is my understanding that it was our intent in crafting H.R. 3926 that specialists in the eye and tissue fields, as well as the organ field, should be consulted and included in the development and dissemination of educational materials on donation. It is my further understanding that it is our intent in this legislation that eye banks and tissue banks be participants in the development of hospital-based donations and protocols that have an impact on eye and tissue banking--as is currently the case under the Medicare and Medicaid programs.

Every individual can sign-up to be a donor, regardless of health or medical condition. It is imperative, however, that individuals openly discuss their decision to donate with family and friends so that they may help honor their loved one's wishes and are knowledgeable about their options. Just one individual can save and improve as many as 50 lives. Representatives of hospitals, organ banks, eye banks, and tissue banks work hand in hand to see that loved ones' wishes are respected and that gifts are properly handled for the benefit of others. I commend these organizations for working tirelessly toward this end and for their efforts to educate the public on the benefits of donation.

In closing, I fully encourage all Americans to consider the altruistic act of donation and to make others aware of your decision.

Mr. Speaker, I want to compliment the Committee on Rules and the leadership for getting this bill on a fast track, and I want to compliment my colleagues on the Committee on Energy and Commerce. We acted very swiftly to get this bill to the floor. In fact, we passed the bill out 49 to 1 just last week.

I would like to say as well that I think this rule is a fair rule. I think the amendments will be debated fairly. I think that the membership of the House will respond to those amendments; and obviously my hope is to adopt the bill, the legislation, overwhelmingly at the end of the day.

I want to say to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Stupak) on media ownership, there will be a time and place for that debate. We had a little debate on this last year. There was a compromise that was made as part of the appropriations process. This issue is not going to go away, but I think it is imperative that we get this bill to the President's desk as fast we can.

The President did send a veto signal as a statement of administration policy last year on this very issue. If for some reason that amendment was attached to this bill, there is no question it would delay enactment of this bill. It is not in place to add that amendment to this bill. I accept what the Committee on Rules did yesterday. We had a good debate on it yesterday afternoon. I think they made a wise decision not to make that amendment in order, knowing there is another day and time when we can debate that issue.

Mr. Speaker, I compliment the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Stupak) for offering virtually the same amendment in full committee last week and then withdrawing that amendment even though a point of order had been raised.

I urge Members to support this fair rule so we can get this bill to the President's desk as fast as we can.

Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 5 minutes.

Mr. Chairman, I ask my colleagues to support this legislation this morning. This legislation actually appeared on my radar screen last year as we began to set our agenda for 2004. I introduced the legislation in early January, held our first hearing on the legislation before the Super Bowl, and the administration supports our bill. They sent us a statement that they supported our bill in committee, and I will include that Statement of Administration Policy as part of the Record in support of this legislation today.

Statement of Administration Policy

The Administration strongly supports House passage of H.R.

3717. This legislation will make broadcast television and

radio more suitable for family viewing by giving the Federal

Communications Commission (FCC) the authority to impose

meaningful penalties on broadcasters that air obscene or

indecent material over the public airwaves. In particular,

the Administration applauds the inclusion in the bill of its

proposal to require that the FCC consider whether

inappropriate material has been aired during children's

television programming in determining the fine to be imposed

for violations of the law. The Administration looks forward

to continuing to work with the Congress to make appropriate

adjustments to the language of the bill as it moves through

the legislative process.

I remember a speech well by Michael Powell, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, where he said the fines under current law are peanuts. It is a cost of doing business. They are not high enough.

In fact, in the hearings that we held, we discovered that by the time you saddle up some of those attorneys at the Department of Justice and send them out to file a claim in Federal Court to go after the dollars that the FCC might have fined, they are not going to recoup their costs.

The Upton-Markey-Tauzin-Dingell-Barton bill has been cosponsored by more than 140 Members of Congress, Republicans and Democrats. Chairman Powell and his four other commissioners, two Republicans and two Democrats, when you look at their statements in support of this legislation, when you look at their statements as they imposed fines on broadcasters who cross that line, every one of them, Republican or Democrat, has lamented the fact that they cannot raise the fines higher than they are under current law, a maximum of only $27,500.

Because of the legislation we pursued on a strong bipartisan basis, and again, I commend my colleagues on the other side, the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) and the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), we were able to pass this legislation out of the Committee on Energy and Commerce last week on a recorded vote of 49 to 1. The other body is beginning to move as well. They passed their legislation out 34 to 0.

Our bill was strengthened in the full committee markup. We added a provision on three-strikes-and-you-are-out. That is, if you are a repeat offender, a broadcaster, and you go through three series of fines violating the current standard, there is set up an automatic revocation hearing to take away that license.

We established a ``shot clock'' so that the FCC has to act on complaints within a certain number of days. We protected affiliated broadcasters. They do not always know what is coming down the pike in terms of what they are broadcasting. We raised the fine from the initial bill as I introduced it of $275,000 for the maximum fine to $500,000. We added a provision asking for the National Association of Broadcasters to make part of their code a Broadcast Decency Code, something they had years ago and was struck under antitrust violations.

We also added a provision making the performers, the talent, liable for their own words. You cannot tell me that they do not know what the standards are. I have heard them whine, I have heard them take out that violin and whine about what this bill will do. Well, guess what, Mr. Chairman? It is time to take away that violin and give them the fork. They are done. This ought to stop.

Guess what? Our bill does nothing to change existing standards. Zero. Nada. Not a thing. I would note that the 1927 Radio Act has held up in the courts for more than 75 years. The FCC has the authority to punish those who air obscene, indecent or profane language. It has been upheld by the Supreme Court, who ruled in 1978 that the government does have the right to regulate indecent broadcasts and to, in fact, establish a definition of indecency that remains the FCC's guiding principle.

There is language, material, that describes sexual or excretory material or organs, and it is deemed patently offensive as measured by contemporary community standards. In the mid 1990s, the court limited the ban on indecent airing between the hours of 6:00 in the morning and 10:00 at night, when kids are most likely to be watching or listening.

This legislation pertains only to broadcast radio or TV. Why is that? Because it is the public airwaves, that is why. And for those that challenge the standards that are out there and do not realize what some of these broadcasters have said, I would ask them to come see me during the next couple of hours of debate on the floor, because with me I have a notebook, and in that notebook we have the specific language that broadcasters have used in defiance of the law.

You cannot tell me that this stuff should be on the air. It should not be. We need to make sure we stop it, and we do, in its tracks.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from the good State of Indiana (Mr. Buyer), a member of the subcommittee, a cosponsor of the bill, and a very helpful force in getting this bill to the floor.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from the State of Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts), a very active member on this issue, an original cosponsor, one that has helped in many ways to get this bill to the floor.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Barton), the distinguished chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, my friend and colleague.

(Mr. BARTON of Texas asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Chairman, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden), who offered a very constructive bipartisan amendment that is part of the package of this bill.

Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?

Yes, I do. The testimony was provided by Brent Bozell, President of the Parents Television Council. The FCC claims, however, that they no longer adhere to that policy.

I agree with the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rush), consumers should not be forced to record every program that they watch or listen to in order to submit a complaint to the FCC alleging indecent content. It is an outrage that the FCC continues its practice of dismissing consumer complaints for lack of a tape or transcript.

I agree with the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rush).

The committee will closely monitor the FCC's action to ensure that the FCC actually changes their policy in that regard, and I thank the gentleman for bringing this to our attention; and I look forward to working with him on this issue to make sure that that change, in fact, is made in order.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Gingrey).

(Mr. GINGREY asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Forbes), a cosponsor of the legislation.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from the good State of California (Mr. Ose).

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith), an original cosponsor of the legislation.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne), not only an original cosponsor of this legislation, but also one that came, before the Super Bowl, who sat through our first hearing, way back in January, to sit with the audience.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Mrs. Wilson), another original cosponsor of the legislation.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Pickering), an original cosponsor of the bill and, more importantly, a fellow dad.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte).

(Mr. GOODLATTE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Pence), a cosponsor of the legislation.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Cox), an original cosponsor of the legislation.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Gillmor), again, an original cosponsor of the legislation.

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

Mr. Chairman, I spoke last night with our former chairman, the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin). He wishes that he was going to be here today, but he is preparing himself for cancer surgery next week. But I know that he would very much like to cast votes on every one of the recorded votes that we have the balance of the afternoon.

I want to remind my colleagues that we do not change the standards. That is not what this bill does. It strictly enforces the standards that are already on the books.

I told this story in my first hearing back in January before the Super Bowl. My staff prepared this broadcast indecency briefing materials book for me. Inside this book are the transcripts of broadcasters that have been fined for broadcasting indecent material. The material that is in this book was all on radio, it was not on TV. But what alarmed me more than anything else was the series of repeat offenders, whether they be in Detroit, Chicago, Washington or Los Angeles, and all broadcast on the public airwaves.

When I read through this book, I was embarrassed. I was embarrassed for the fellow that was sitting next to me on the airplane, because I had to read it like this. I had to shield the material in this book, the transcripts, that were fined thousands of dollars.

I made a mistake that day, Mr. Chairman. I read through the book, it was a long flight, we had terrible weather. In fact, frankly that day when we landed back at DCA, I thought we had gone back to Detroit, there was such bad weather here.

I looked through a lot of material, and I left it by mistake in the pocket in the seat that was in front of me. I walked off the plane, went back through the security, and got all the way to my car when I realized this book was still on the plane. Now, with the new security arrangements, I could not go back to the plane to get this book.

It has got my name on it, ``Chairman Upton, broadcast indecency briefing materials.'' Man, was I embarrassed, to go back into the Northwest Airline ticket line and ask someone to go retrieve that book. And, yes, they had found it. They saw my name, and they were very chagrined to get it back to me. But, thank goodness, I did get it back, and I do not think anybody read some of the material. But it is public record, and this stuff, this XXX smut stuff, should never be broadcast on the public airwaves.

I was asked the question by the press when we introduced our bill several weeks ago, ``Do you think, Mr. Upton, that your legislation is going to take this stuff down, that it will increase somehow the FCC's enforcement division?''

I thought about it, and I said, ``You know, I hope not. I hope that this legislation will send a message to the broadcasters and to the talent that is making these indecent remarks,'' and more than just a word, if you come over here and read these transcripts, it is more than a word, it is page, after page, after page, ``that we can get this stuff stopped with this legislation.''

I welcome the opportunity to work with my friend, the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey). Together, we fashioned a very bipartisan bill every step of the way, from the calling of the witnesses to the questioning to the amendments, every step of the way, and I am pleased that the other body is working on that same procedure, where, again, they voted 34 to 0 earlier this week to pass similar legislation.

Our bill that passed 49 to 1 is a credit to this institution and to the Members on both sides who care about the public airwaves, to make sure that this stuff is not broadcast, and we send a message, whether it be to the shock jock or the DJ or the person with the finger on the pause button at one of those awards, whether it be the Academy Awards, Golden Globes or whatever else, we are going to make an impact,

and we are going to let our families know that this stuff has got to stop.

This bill does it. It is not an infringement of first amendment rights. It has all been certified, made legitimate from the courts of the land, from the highest court of the land down to the lowest court, and needs a positive vote here this afternoon.

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

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Blunt), the distinguished whip of the House, an original cosponsor of our legislation, and once a proud member of our proud subcommittee.

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

Mr. Chairman, obviously I rise in strong support of the Upton amendment. This amendment ensures that

those who are the subject of indecency complaints are provided with a constitutional right to due process. For instance, until a forfeiture penalty has been paid or a court has finally determined that a forfeiture penalty is justified, a complaint should not be held against the broadcast station license.

Just like someone who is presumed innocent until proven guilty, this amendment guarantees that a broadcast license cannot be revoked or license renewal rejected until all of the appeals have been heard. This is a good amendment, it was pointed out in our hearing at the very end, and I would hope has bipartisan support. It tightens the loophole.

I just want to say in closing in support of this amendment, I want to thank in particular, I think, the many Members who have been so engaged in this legislation, and I want to thank the staff as well. On our side of the aisle, we have had terrific staff that have worked with the very good staff, terrific staff on the other side as well; but I want to particularly cite a number of individuals: Will Nordwind, Howard Waltzman, Neil Fried, Kelly Zerzan, Joan Hillebrands, Sean Bonyur, Jim Barnette, Jaylyn Connaughton, and Andy Black for their hard work in making sure that this bill got to the floor quickly and swiftly, and that, in fact, it was in a very strong bipartisan fashion.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 3717.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the Curious Kids' Museum of St. Joseph, Michigan, which will celebrate its 1,000,000th visitor this year, as well as its 15th anniversary. This great educational museum is a treasure for the children of southwest Michigan, and I am very proud of the wonderful work it has accomplished over the years.

The Curious Kids' Museum began in 1987 as an idea shared by several local residents interested in alternative approaches to science education. Today it has over 100 hands-on educational exhibits and programs dedicated to stimulating the curiosity of children. The great many visitors of all ages that have had the fortunate opportunity to visit this museum have explored and gained awareness in the areas of science and technology, history, culture, and human perception.

The goal of the Museum's founders' was to establish a place where ``children and families pursue their natural curiosity about the world through exploration and hands-on interactive exhibits, making learning fun and increasing self-esteem.'' I for one would like to say, and I know I am not alone, mission accomplished and surpassed. It pleases me to honor this great museum, and I know the next million visitors will be just as moved and inspired as the first.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the girls of Brownie Troop 139 of South Haven, Michigan, who have over the last few months sent numerous care packages to our troops serving in Iraq. These young ladies have shown remarkable dedication and devotion to our troops, and I am confident that this great project has been received with gratitude and appreciation from those overseas.

Since the troop began their project, they have collected more than $1,200 worth of items totaling 345 pounds. Some of the items these generous girls have sent include granola bars, playing cards, batteries, hand lotion, boot laces, and of course Girl Scout cookies. Over the holidays, the girls put together special packages to give our troops a sense of home.

Brownie Troop 139 is comprised of Jeanne Lyon, leader of Troop 139; Marilyn Shaefer, co-leader; Stephanie Balke; Maggie Filbrandt; Jessica Overholser; Hannah Lyon; Shelby Murphy; Erin Cooper; and Lauren Montgomery. The magnificent work this troop has done to encourage morale and give support to our troops has been inspiring. It greatly pleases me to honor the great charity these girls have done, and I find their patriotism and selflessness to be deeply moving.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Kalamazoo County Sheriff, Tom Edmonds, who is closing a chapter in a long and distinguished career of public service. A dedicated and selfless individual, Tom has served five terms as Sheriff after being appointed to the Office in 1984. Over his tenure as Sheriff, Tom served the citizens of Kalamazoo in a number of capacities, all with great distinction.

Since 1975, Sheriff Edmonds' contributions to our community have been tremendous. From post to post, he consistently received accolades and recognition. In addition to his remarkable service as Sheriff, highlights of his storied career include being Adjunct Professor of criminal law and procedure at Western Michigan University, Chair of the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards, Brigadier General for the Michigan Air National Guard, and recipient of Citation and Medal for Professional Service from the Michigan's Sheriffs' Association.

Many words come to mind as one reflects upon Tom's public service to our community. He is selfless, brave, generous, giving, caring, humble . . . the list goes on. Tom is widely known for his extensive charity and dedication to local individuals, businesses, universities, and the community as a whole. He spent a career devoted to the protection and safety of the citizens of Kalamazoo, and for this the county is forever in his debt. There is no question that Tom's dedication and contributions to the county will be missed.

Our community is in debt to Sheriff Edmonds for his continued public service since 1975. I wish him and his family all the best in retirement. Tom's contributions to our community have been many, and we are all better off from his service. He will be truly missed by the folks in southwest Michigan. I'm certainly glad he's remaining in our corner of Michigan.

Mr. Speaker, today on the heels of our recent efforts to ensure that the do-not-call list was implemented, we are taking yet another major step forward in our efforts to protect consumers from unwanted commercial solicitations. With passage of this bill tonight, we are one more step closer to giving American consumers a Federal law which will for the first time allow them to just say no to unwanted commercial e-mails, otherwise known as spam. And we back it up with strong enforcement by the FTC, State attorneys general, and Internet service providers as well.

As the father of two young kids, I am particularly pleased that this bill requires warning labels on commercial e-mails which contain sexually oriented material, and it protects our kids from being unwittingly exposed to such garbage that might pop up in the family's inbox. As chairman of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, I am particularly pleased to have worked with my colleagues on this, particularly the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey); the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell); certainly the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Burr); and my chairman, the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin), on provisions which direct the Federal Communications Commission to implement added protections against spam for cell phones and other wireless devices. What a nightmare ready to happen. On our staff I want to particularly thank Will Nordwind, who spent countless hours as we negotiated this the last number of months.

Mr. Speaker, I want to relate a small family story. When my dad came back from World War II, my mom fixed his first dinner. It was Spam. Dad said, no way. Battle of the Bulge, we had enough of that. No more are we going to have that junk. My family thankfully was spared that for 50 years. Sadly, American consumers have not been spared from that awful stuff called spam because this is spam on the Internet.

I can remember when e-mails came first off, everyone loved to get an e-mail. I thought we were finally making some headway. But lo and behold, my wife was out of town, and I did not realize she was deleting it. Every morning she would get up at 5:30 or 6 in the morning. She has been gone all week. Today just from last night, I had 150 spams.

Pass this bill. End this stuff. I cannot call it what I really think. God bless America.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to focus on one misconception about this plan that we are debating today and set the record straight. I have heard from a lot of retirees who have been led to believe that enacting the conference agreement will cause them to lose their employer-provided prescription drug and health care coverage. That is not true.

First, it is important to note that under current law, employers who provide solid retiree health care benefits receive no assistance at all from the Federal Government. And even in the absence of a Medicare prescription drug plan, many of these same employers under increasing pressure from rising prescription drug and other related health care costs are already cutting back or entirely dropping their coverage that they provide to their retirees today. Under this plan if we pass it today, the Federal Government will partner with employers who maintain or improve their current health care retiree health plans. They will receive a subsidy of up to 28 percent of their retiree drug costs between $250 and $5,000 and the subsidy will not be subject to taxation. So the reality is if we do not enact this plan, there will be no incentives for those employers to maintain or improve their current retiree coverage. Thousands of retirees will wind up with no help with their prescription drug costs, and we most likely will continue to see those retiree benefits continue to be slashed. With this plan, they will have an incentive to keep it.

I also remember back to the days when we passed a catastrophic health care plan, back in the early nineties. It was mandatory. Guess what? We repealed it because it was mandatory. This is voluntary. You can participate if you want; and if you do not want, you do not have to participate. I also remember a woman that came up to me at my son's little league game. Her mom had just had a stroke, $600 in additional costs that she was going to face every month. She said, Mr. Upton, will this plan help my mom? Yes, it will help her a lot. It will in fact save her family thousands of dollars, provide her with some quality of life that her family expects and the plan will help.

I urge my colleagues to vote for this plan this morning.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my good chairman who has been instrumental in getting this important piece of legislation to the floor. Again, he has done yeoman's work with so many others here in this body.

Mr. Speaker, as the lead sponsor of the bipartisan House version of the Poison Control Center Enhancement and Awareness Act Amendments of 2003, it is my pleasure to help manage this bill, S. 686, the Senate version of the legislation on the floor today.

What we are doing today is taking up the Senate-passed bill and inserting updated language from our bill. We are doing so because we determined that it was the best way to expedite the final passage of this much-needed legislation reauthorizing and strengthening our Federal commitment to ensuring that our Nation's poison control centers can continue to provide life-saving services to all of our constituents, particularly in these last throes of this session of the Congress.

I want to take this opportunity to particularly acknowledge Senator DeWine's tremendous leadership on this legislation in the other body and to thank our original cosponsor and colleague, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Towns), who is on the floor; the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin), committee chairman; and the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), the ranking member; the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis), the House subcommittee chairman; the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown), the ranking member; and also for the many staff who have helped. I am grateful for their hard work, particularly Cheryl Jaeger and John Ford, and for the assistance that we have received from the American Association of Poison Control Centers and Jane Williams on my staff who helped shepherd this through so many juggernauts; and if we had a parking place for the staff member of the month in front of the Capitol, her name would be the first inscribed on that plate.

Mr. Speaker, poison control centers provide vital, very cost- effective services to the American public. Each year, more than 2 million poisonings are reported to poison control centers throughout this country. More than 90 percent of these poisonings occur in the home, and 50 percent of poisoning victims are children under the age of 6. For every dollar spent on poison control services, we save $7 in medical costs. We prevent a nightmare from happening in virtually any house that uses the phone number and uses these particular facilities.

The horrific events of 9/11 and the anthrax cases the next month brought home the vital role that our Nation's poison control centers must be prepared to play in the event of further terrorist attacks. The 2001 Presidential Task Force on Citizen Preparedness in the War on Terrorism recommended that poison control centers be used as a source of public information and public education regarding potential biological, chemical, and nuclear domestic terrorism.

Mr. Speaker, the passage and enactment of this bill will ensure that our Nation's poison control centers have the resources that they need to fulfill their vital mission as the first line of defense against accidental poisonings and the response to biological, chemical, and nuclear terrorism. I ask that all of the Members join us in voting for this legislation. It will indeed save lives for many Americans.