Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 716 for their 100 years of dedication to improving the life of not only its members but electricians across the Houston area.

As one of the largest unions in America, IBEW represents approximately 750,000 workers of a variety of occupations including construction, utilities, telecommunications, broadcasting, manufacturing, railroads and government. The hard work of IBEW members does not benefit them alone but also enhances the quality of life for electricians across the United States by securing adequate wages, high- quality health insurance, retirement, pensions and creating safer working conditions.

Since 1912, Local Union 716 has helped raise the standard of living for tens of thousands of electricians and their families. Local Union 716 has assisted its members during this difficult economic time by helping to ensure its members keep the jobs they have and help those without find employment. This union has continuously worked to not only uphold the goals of the national organization but also dedicate its services to improving the moral, intellectual and social conditions of their members and families. Through their apprenticeship program, the IBEW has trained and developed craftsmen into highly skilled professionals who know and understand the many facets of electrical work including the dangers and the safety precautions required to mitigate those dangers. The union has worked with the management staff of several companies to promote safe working conditions and improve company training programs.

Local Union 716 is also known in the community for promoting citizens to get out and vote. They have participated, along with several other organizations, in neighborhood block walking events to hand out door hangers and motivate their neighbors to take part in government by going to the polls and voicing their opinions.

And so it is with great pleasure that I recognize and congratulate the members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 716 for their success and dedication to improving life for its members and their community as a whole for 100 years.

Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 93, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my Colleagues to join me in recognizing the 20th year of diplomatic relations with our friend and key ally, Azerbaijan.

On February 19, 1992, the United States and Azerbaijan initiated formal diplomatic relations and on March 6 of that year Azerbaijan opened their embassy in the United States. The United States opened our embassy in Baku, Azerbaijan on March 16.

After the fall of the former Soviet Union and the independence of the Republic of Azerbaijan, we have seen a growing need for strong allies in the region. Azerbaijan, a predominantly secular Muslim country bordered by Russia to the north and Iran to the south, is a natural partner to promote peace, stability, and economic prosperity in this important part of the world.

Azerbaijan was among the first to join us in the War Against Terror, sending troops to Afghanistan that served alongside our servicemen and women, and later in Iraq. Today, Azerbaijan offers a crucial route to transport supplies to our troops in Afghanistan.

Azerbaijan is also a key contributor in promoting energy security internationally. The opening of the BTC pipeline in 2005 allowed Caspian oil to reach the world market via Georgia and Turkey, bypassing Russia.

With the recent arrival of Ambassador Elin Suleymanov to Washington, DC, I look forward to working with the Embassy to further strengthen this important relationship.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend Immaculate Conception Catholic Church on receiving an official Texas Historical Marker. The current Pastor is Rev. Kevin A. Collins and the church is composed of people from all walks of life. I am proud to honor Immaculate Conception, located in Magnolia Park, for receiving this marker.

On Monday, February 20, 2012, the Texas Historical Commission will dedicate the historical marker with the following text:

In October 1911, the oblates of Mary Immaculate established

their Roman Catholic society's first parish in Harris County

and named it Immaculate Conception. The site was chosen on

Harrisburg Boulevard in the incorporated community of

Magnolia Park, which was annexed by the City of Houston in

1926. For the parish's first anniversary on October 6, 1912,

a three building campus compromising a wood-frame church,

rectory, and school and boarding house was dedicated. The

school and boarding house were administered by the Sisters of

Divine Providence. A consolidated school and auditorium brick

building dedicated in September 1936 replaced these

facilities, with the school auditorium serving as the church.

The 1912 church building was relocated two miles away and

converted into a brick building to serve another parish,

Queen of Peace, which was originally a mission church of

Immaculate Conception. In March 1957, a neo-Romanesque style

church was dedicated to complement the style of the 1936

school and auditorium. The boarding house ceased operating

and in 1969 the school closed permanently.

Adhering to their motto as oblates of Mary Immaculate, the

priests of Immaculate Conception ministered to the needy and

conducted extensive missionary work in southeast and central

Texas. For decades, the priests were assigned the ministry

for the state penitentiary system in Huntsville. Immaculate

Conception was the mother church of the first predominantly

Hispanic Catholic Church in Houston, named Our Lady of

Guadalupe. At least nine parishes in Harris and surrounding

counties can trace their histories to the missionary efforts

of Immaculate Conception. Entering its second century of

existence, Immaculate Conception continues to be an

influential institution in the Magnolia Park community and

beyond.

And so it is with great pleasure that I recognize and congratulate Immaculate Conception Catholic Church on receiving an official Texas Historical Marker.

Mr. Speaker, on rollcall Nos. 53 and 54, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

personal explanation

Mr. Chairman, I support the Keystone pipeline, but I found out this last Monday, and I've asked, and I know the chair of our Energy Committee has heard me ask about a project labor agreement that's for the whole pipeline but it doesn't cover Texas. The largest State along the route does not have a project labor agreement with TransCanada. TransCanada maybe didn't deceive me, but they sure didn't answer the questions when I asked them in our committee. I've talked to them about that. I know our labor support nationwide, they have a project labor agreement from the Canadian border to the Oklahoma border, but not for the biggest part of it, in the State of Texas, and I'm going to work with them because it's important to see that the job be done safely.

Madam Speaker, Members, when the U.S. economy is showing signs of progress, our House majority's threatening to take 2 percent of the gross national product out of our economy, killing the gains we've made, and doing it on the backs of the people who need help the most, the middle class and the unemployed.

Even though we were able to extend the payroll tax cut, unemployment insurance, and also the Medicare physician payments for just 2 months, millions of Americans dodged an average of $1,500 from a GOP tax hike. Now it's time to get to work and pass a year-long extension of these three important programs.

We cannot afford to take more risks with the incomes of 160 million Americans the way the House majority did at the end of 2011.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the American Bureau of Shipping for their 150 years at the forefront of setting the standard of excellence in marine and offshore classification in the United States and around the world.

From its world headquarters in Houston, Texas, the American Bureau of Shipping, or ABS, manages the third largest class society on the globe, with a classed fleet of over 10,000 commercial vessels, in more than 150 offices in 70 countries.

From the time it was first chartered in the State of New York in 1862 as the American Shipmasters' Association, ABS has been committed to the maritime industry and deeply involved in its technical development and the improvement of its safety standards.

Born out of a need for industry self-regulation, ABS published its first technical standards, Rules for Survey and Classing Wooden Vessels, in 1870. When the era of wooden ships gave way to iron, ABS established standards for these structures, and later for steel vessels.

ABS was officially recognized by the U.S. Government in the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, requiring that in work involving a classification organization, every governmental agency in the United States would turn to ABS.

ABS has continued its tradition of leading the classification and maritime safety industry through the 20th and 21st centuries by being the first society to publish rules for the construction and classing of offshore drilling units, submersibles, and aluminum vessels, as well as the first society to classify small-waterplane-area twin hull (or SWATH) vessels, floating production storage and offloading (or FPSOs) vessels.

I congratulate ABS, its Board of Directors, and its hard-working employees for their commitment to the Houston community and for 150 more years of success as the world leader in maritime classification and safety.

Mr. Speaker. I support the Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Creation Act. This bill has been improved since it was marked up by the Energy and Commerce and Transportation and Infrastructure Committees. I know that there are residual issues that some in the industry and some in the environmental community still have. No legislation will make everyone happy all the time, but I think my colleagues Representatives Upton and Dingell, have worked hard to come as close as possible with the legislation before us today. I thank them for their leadership and I am pleased that they have set an example of bipartisan legislating that we should all follow.

Pipeline safety is one that is particularly important to me. I represent parts of Houston and East Harris County, where virtually everyone either lives on, or in close proximity to, a

natural gas or oil pipeline. I also have thousands of constituents who rely on this industry for employment and their livelihood. I understand the need to pass a bill that addresses the dual priorities of ensuring safety along these pipelines and providing regulatory certainty for the operators in the years ahead.

There are problems with the bill, for instance, this bill may lead to an attempt by this Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, PHMSA, or future PHMSAs to regulate offshore gathering lines in the same way that onshore lines are regulated. While not prescribed by this legislation, the door is left open. It is important that PHMSA carefully consider how to regulate these lines and not take a one-size fits all approach. There are other tweaks that would have been nice, but this is a good bill and represents a bipartisan compromise.

Failure to pass a bill, or one side or another pursuing a partisan agenda over good policy, would have been far worse than the small problems I have with this bill. I commend Representatives Upton and Dingell for this bill and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, during this Season of Giving, when our nation should be reflecting on the need of friends and neighbors who are out of work and struggling to provide for their loved ones, this chamber will vote today to cut unemployment benefits for one million of our fellow Americans.

The House Majority's bill, H.R. 3630, would eliminate several tiers of benefits, created under the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, which has provided up to 99 weeks of support for those who lost their jobs through no fault of their own.

If this legislation becomes law, the maximum potential unemployment benefit will fall to 59 weeks.

This legislation would also allow states, many of which are struggling to balance their budgets, to reduce the average weekly amount available to beneficiaries.

I am strongly opposed to any reduction in emergency unemployment insurance.

This Congress cannot and must not adjourn for the holidays and go home to tell our unemployed neighbors that the richest country on earth cannot find a place in their heart to help them in their time of need.

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately I am not able to support H.R. 3630 even though I am a strong supporter of moving the Keystone XL Project along and would support the language included in this bill if considered separately.

The Keystone XL project makes both energy and economic sense for our country, and I hope that the Administration could find a way to allow for construction to commence in some of the states while simultaneously revisiting the route in Nebraska.

I urge my colleagues to stand in support of the millions of our fellow Americans struggling to find work and to oppose this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, during this season of giving, when our Nation should be reflecting on the needs of our friends and neighbors who are out of work struggling to provide for their loved ones, this Chamber yesterday voted to cut unemployment benefits for 1 million of our fellow Americans.

The House majority's bill would eliminate several tiers of benefits created under the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, which has provided up to 99 weeks of support for those who lost their jobs through no fault of their own.

If this legislation becomes law, the maximum potential unemployment benefit will fall by 40 weeks. This legislation would also allow States, many of which are struggling to balance their budgets, to reduce the average weekly amount available to beneficiaries. With over 8 percent unemployment, I'm strongly opposed to any reduction in emergency unemployment insurance.

I am a proud supporter, though, of moving the XL pipeline project forward and supported it in separate legislation. The XL pipeline makes both energy and economic sense for our country, and I hope the administration will find a way to allow the construction to commence in some States while still revisiting the route in Nebraska.

I urge my colleagues to stand in support of the over 13 million Americans looking for work this holiday season and pass a clean extension of the unemployment insurance program.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to state that I meant to vote ``nay'' on H.R. 1633, the Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act, when it was considered on the House Floor on December 9, 2011.

I am strongly opposed to this unnecessary bill and voted ``aye'' by accident.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the tenth anniversary of the East Aldine Management District for their commitment to improving the safety and development in East Aldine.

The District was created in June of 2001 with the purpose to improve the physical, social, and economic well-being of the community. Their goal is to attract public and private investments and promote the area as a leading place to not only invest but also to work and live. Since then the District has gained the power to finance public safety and transportation projects as well as assist with environmental and economic development.

District funding has improved the community's street conditions by adding pedestrian crosswalks, signage to the streets and landscaping, making the area more attractive to families and businesses. In the year 2010 alone, the District funded over $240,000 in community projects.

The District's economic development program provides across the board marketing and public relations activities for the District to support business retention and encourage new business within the District as well as expansion of small businesses. The development program is successful due to the advanced media outreach which includes traditional methods such as print and mailings but also utilizes the District's alliance with community partners.

Over the past ten years this community has witnessed significant advancements but the next ten years will bring even more economic growth to the area. The District is located just four miles away from Houston Intercontinental Airport and the Port of Houston is a mere twelve miles away, making the District a great expansion location for manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution companies.

I congratulate the President and CEO David Hawes, Board Chairman Gerald Overturff, the entire East Aldine District staff, and the many other volunteers that have dedicated their time to improving their community.

I rise in opposition to H.R. 1633, the Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act of 2011.

I just heard it referred to as ``Tinker Bell,'' but I think this is more like Alice in Wonderland legislation. It seeks to solve a problem that's not there while dancing around a lot of our real problems that we have to deal with in our country and particularly in this Congress.

This bill would prohibit the EPA from proposing, finalizing, implementing, or enforcing any regulation revising the National Ambient Air Quality Standards applicable to coarse particulate matter for 1 year from the date of enactment.

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson committed in an October 14, 2011, letter that the EPA plans to propose keeping the PM10 National Ambient Air Quality Standards as they are, with no change. These standards have been in place since 1987.

When Gina McCarthy, the Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation at the EPA, testified before our Energy and Power Subcommittee of the full committee, she also confirmed that this bill is not necessary since the administrator plans to propose retaining the current standards that have been in place since 1987.

For this reason, I did not support H.R. 1633 when it came up for a vote in our Energy and Commerce Committee, and I encourage my colleagues to oppose it today. I've had very public disagreements with the EPA on other regulations they are revising, but this bill is a solution in search of a problem, and it is not a good use of our congressional time. Taking up a bill that's not necessary hurts our efforts to work with the EPA and to revise some of the standards the EPA is setting that are real problems. That's why, Mr. Chairman, I urge a ``no'' vote on this bill.

United States

Environmental Protection Agency,

Washington, DC, Oct. 14, 2011.

Hon. Debbie Stabenow,

U.S. Senate,

Washington, DC.

Dear Senator Stabenow: Thank you for your inquiry on the

status of EPA's Review of the National Ambient Air Quality

Standards (NAAQS) for particulate matter. Particulate matter

includes fine particles (known as PM2.5) and coarse particles

(known as PM10). PM2.5 can come from fossil-fuel combustion,

including power plants and motor vehicles, and wildfires and

PM10 can come from construction and demolition activities,

industrial operations, wildfires, and dust from unpaved

roads. It is well established that particulate matter

emissions are linked to premature death and numerous adverse

health impacts.

We have been making steady progress in reducing emissions

of particulate matter--both fine and coarse--in this country

for more than two decades, improving the public health of

Americans while the economy has continued to grow.

It is important that a standard for particulate matter be

protective of the health of the public. Based on my

consideration of the scientific record, analysis provided by

EPA scientists, and advice from the Clean Air Science

Advisory Council, I am prepared to propose the retention--

with no revision--of the current PM10 standard and form when

it is sent to OMB for interagency review.

This rulemaking package will also consider the latest

scientific evidence and assessments for PM2.5. Again, thank

you for the inquiry. It is EPA's responsibility to protect

the health of all Americans--rural and urban--from known

pollutants, including particulate matter. Please feel free to

contact me if you have any questions, or your staff can

contact Arvin Ganesan, Associate Administrator for the Office

of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations at (202)

564-4741.

Sincerely,

Lisa P. Jackson.

Mr. Speaker, as a personal aside, this probably won't be the headline on the 6 o'clock news tonight around the country because we're actually agreeing on something, and I think I can associate myself with the remarks of my colleague, the primary sponsor of this bill, as well as he could associate with mine, Mr. Pallone, and Mr. Pitts.

But I rise today in strong support of H.R. 2405, the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act of 2011, which will reauthorize certain provisions of the Project BioShield Act of 2004 and the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act of 2006, and I'm proud to be an original cosponsor of this legislation.

This legislation was initially passed by Congress to help the U.S. develop medical countermeasures against chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear terrorism agents to provide a mechanism for Federal acquisition of these newly developed countermeasures.

Our Nation remains vulnerable to these threats because many of the vaccines and medicines that are needed to protect our citizens do not exist. Developing and stockpiling these medical countermeasures require time, resources and research, all of which will be provided under this legislation before us today.

As my colleague from Michigan said, it may not be the bestseller on the market, like so many other pharmaceuticals, but this is something that our country needs.

H.R. 2405 is important to me because the University of Texas Medical Branch-Galveston National Laboratory is literally in the backyard of our congressional district. The Galveston National Lab is the only BSL- 4 lab located on a university campus.

At the lab, the scientists conduct research and develop therapies, vaccines, and diagnostic tests for naturally-occurring emerging diseases such as SARS and avian influenza, as well as for microbes that may be employed by terrorists.

This is exactly the type of research we hope to encourage under the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act. As an original cosponsor of H.R. 2405 with Mr. Rogers, I'm really pleased with how quickly we moved this rare bipartisan piece of legislation. I want to thank Mr. Rogers, Chairman Upton, Ranking Member Waxman and Ranking Member Pallone, along with the chair of our Health Subcommittee, Mr. Pitts, Mrs. Myrick, Ms. Eshoo, and Mr. Markey for their work on H.R. 2405.

I strongly urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.''