Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, today is a big day in the Fifth Congressional District of Pennsylvania, specifically, in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, as our most famous resident had his day in the sun, literally.

Early this morning, Punxsutawney Phil, our weather-expert groundhog saw his shadow. For those of you who know the old German legend, this means that we are in for six more weeks of winter.

Punxsy Phil has been forecasting the weather since the 1800s. He drinks a magical punch annually on February 2, which is an elixir of life that extends his life by 7 years.

Crowds gathered on Gobbler's Knob before sunrise today for the 131st celebration. While there are many wannabes, accept no substitution for the original prognosticator.

The crowd chanted Phil's name repeatedly to awaken him, and then Phil, known in his hometown as the Seer of Seers, came to deliver the news. Records going back to 1887 show that Phil has forecasted a longer winter 103 times and an early spring just 18 times.

Today in Punxsutawney it was a balmy 30 degrees, so don't pack up your winter gear just yet. Phil says we have six more weeks.

Happy Groundhog Day.

Mr. Speaker, I just came back from the organizing committee meeting with my good friend from California for the House Agriculture Committee. I appreciate the opportunity to work with this gentleman and all of the folks who serve on that committee that really provides policy to our Nation's agriculture industry.

It is about making sure that Americans have access to affordable, high quality, and safe food. I actually look at the Agriculture Committee as well as having a dual mission of making sure that the rural economies of our Nation are robust or successful.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to say thank you and farewell to Scott Graves, staff director of the House Agriculture Committee, an individual who served well for many years.

Mr. Speaker, as you know, there is a right way to do business here in the House, and Scott Graves has understood what it takes to manage the Agriculture Committee, the chairman's personal affairs and agenda. But he also has found time to help out members of this committee from both sides of the aisle.

Knowing is one thing; execution is everything.

I have always been impressed with the way we have been able to work on the committee in a bipartisan manner for the good of agriculture, and 320 million Americans have benefited from safety, innovation, and forward thinking of the agriculture industry.

Under Scott's leadership, he made this look easy. Now, as he embarks upon the next step in his career, I wish Scott Graves all the best, his wife, his little boy, and his little one to be born later this year.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has a slogan on every road sign entering the State, and the sign reads, ``You've got a friend in Pennsylvania.'' Well, Scott, you don't have to drive far, but realize this holds true for me and all of my staff, you've got a friend in Pennsylvania.

SNAP Helps Lift People Out of Poverty

Mr. Speaker, as chairman of the Agriculture Subcommittee on Nutrition for the 115th Congress, I am confident that we must work to ensure that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program known as SNAP is meeting the needs of those that it is intended to serve.

The House Agriculture Committee hearings have highlighted how nutrition matters and the specific ways that vulnerable populations are well served by a strong, sound, and reliable food program.

SNAP serves a diverse population who share a common need for nutritional support beyond what is available based on personal means, family support, and community resources.

Now, according to a 2015 USDA report, 42.7 percent of SNAP recipients are children, while single parent households are more susceptible to food insecurity, especially those who are single mothers. Two-parent families also struggle, at times, to put food on the table.

Children whose households face food insecurity, face both negative developmental and health consequences.

A child's future success goes beyond what any single government program can or should achieve. SNAP is not the only means of breaking the cycle of poverty, but it certainly plays a key role in increasing food security for children.

Mr. Speaker, for me, SNAP is not merely a food program but a pathway that works to lift people out of poverty. It is a tool for the better health and development of our children who deserve no less.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about the unsung heroes in many rural communities throughout America: our volunteer firefighters.

These dedicated volunteers answer the call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. They spend time away from their families and homes. The training that is required can be costly and very time consuming.

Our volunteer firefighters make these sacrifices because they care deeply about their friends and neighbors. They care about their communities.

But rural America is facing a real problem with dwindling numbers of those who are willing to volunteer. A National Fire Protection Association report published last year shows the number of volunteer firefighters per 1,000 people has been decreasing since 1986.

Gone are the days when those seeking to volunteer had to add their names to a waiting list to join their local fire department. Sometimes volunteers could wait for years to be added to the roster, but that is not how it is anymore as fewer individuals are interested in signing up.

This is not unique to Pennsylvania, but it is happening in communities across the country. Small communities reap the benefits of having volunteer forces. According to a 2016 National Fire Prevention Association study, the time donated by volunteer firefighters saves localities across the country an estimated $139.8 billion a year.

The savings are clear, and the service could not be more important. That is why last year I hosted two fire summits in my district to speak directly with local firefighters and try to identify not only the challenges that they face, but also some solutions to those problems.

Funding is always a problem that plagues volunteer departments and can truly decline quickly when we think of what it costs to purchase new equipment and be compliant with the latest regulations. Small communities are often already stressed economically and do not have a tax base that can assume another increase; but equipment replacement is paramount, and it can sometimes mean the life or death of a firefighter.

Volunteer fire departments also face training challenges. Firefighters in rural communities regularly need to travel long distances for instructional courses, and paying for the necessary training can be difficult. Training sessions might not focus enough on firefighting in rural communities, which is different from that in urban communities in a number of ways.

Personnel challenges remain a constant issue with declining populations, aging firefighters who are not being replaced with those of a younger generation, and a lack of tangible retention incentives.

Yet, with all of these challenges, fire departments are faced with higher call volumes than ever before, according to a study from the National Volunteer Fire Council. Most fire departments across the country have experienced a steady increase in calls over the past two decades. This is a major source of the increased time demands on volunteer firefighters.

The number of calls, coupled with the decline in the number of volunteer firefighters, means that fire departments are continuously spread too thin. Most of the increase is attributed to a sharp rise in the number of emergency medical calls, false alarms, and the use of mutual aid as the number of firefighters has decreased.

Mr. Speaker, the dangerous work that these men and women do in order to protect the homes and livelihoods of Americans is not something that should be taken for granted. These first responders put their lives on the line and make great sacrifices in order to protect their neighbors and communities from harm. As a volunteer firefighter and EMT rescue technician myself and as a member of the Congressional Fire Caucus, I am grateful for the services that our first responders--brothers and sisters who serve the communities--provide and the constant state of readiness that they operate under.

While we must not forget those who have made the ultimate sacrifice through their service, we must also ensure that their colleagues and all of

our Nation's first responders are respected and have the resources they need to safely perform their jobs.

That is why I am working with the volunteer fire departments in Pennsylvania's Fifth Congressional District to develop solutions-- ideas--to not only recruit more firefighters but to retain them. It is my hope that, by increasing awareness and examining incentives, we might be able to strengthen and grow the rosters of our volunteer fire departments. We know that this service is critical, and we must respect those who are willing to show up, day or night, to protect their neighbors.

Thank you to all of our volunteers who answer when the alarm sounds. We value you; we respect you; and I hope we can find more of you to serve.

Madam Speaker, on Thursday, Members of Congress and leaders from across the globe will gather in Washington, D.C., to mark one of our finest traditions: the National Prayer Breakfast.

This event is hosted annually on the first Thursday in February. More than 3,000 people typically gather for this international forum that allows individuals from various sectors--including political, business, and social--to build relationships and come together in faith, fellowship, and prayer.

Personally, I look forward to the National Prayer Breakfast each year as a time when thousands around the world and right here at home can reflect on their faith, focus on the year ahead, and walk away from this remarkable

event with a renewed sense of hope and faith.

This nonpartisan event brings together so many unique individuals who will hear the stories of inspiration from faith-filled speakers.

From the Book of First Chronicles, Scripture tells us to, ``Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.'' This is what we will be seeking at the National Prayer Breakfast.

It is my hope that I will see many of my colleagues there this Thursday.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Washington State, whom I have been proud to serve with. I had an opportunity to visit his district, and I know natural resources are extremely important to him. I appreciate his yielding on what is germane to this discussion, which is basically trying to claw back regulations that had no basis in science that essentially were causing harm and taking away good-paying jobs for Americans.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the underlying legislation, which disapproves of a midnight regulation that the Obama administration made with just 1 month left in his Presidency.

The stream protection rule negatively targets coal country and will devastate communities that have already been hit hard by job losses and reduced mining activity making sure that America has affordable and reliable energy and electricity.

Pennsylvania is the fifth largest coal producing State and generates roughly 25 percent of its electricity from coal-fired power plants. Coal-fired electricity provides roughly 30,000 jobs in my State, equaling nearly $8 billion in economic impact.

Although coal continues to be an essential component of our energy mix, this rule duplicates many existing laws while providing very little environmental gain. What the rule does is expands the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement's regulatory authority. In effect, this Federal agency would overtake the regulatory authorities of individual States.

This makes no sense. States should be able to continue their own regulation of coal production. This is the epitome of a midnight rule that has more to do with empowering the Federal Government at the expense of coal miners' jobs than it has to do with protecting streams.

The Office of Surface Mining's own reports show that virtually all coal mines have no offsite impacts. The reports year over year show that coal mines are being safely operated and the lands are being successfully restored thanks to the watchful eyes of the States that regulate 97 percent of the mines in the United States.

This rule does nothing to protect our streams that State and Federal regulators are not already doing. We do not need a one-size-fits-all approach from Washington, which rarely works.

In order to bring real-world thinking back into the regulatory process, we must act quickly to stop this rule. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the joint resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act.

Mr. Speaker, before coming to Congress, I worked as a certified therapeutic recreation specialist and rehab services manager. There is no greater joy in the health profession than to see your patient make progress after a debilitating disease or disability.

I rise today to speak about how we can allow more patients the ability to live full and healthy lives through therapy. Last week, with Congressman G.K. Butterfield of North Carolina, I reintroduced the Access to Inpatient Rehabilitation Therapy Act. This bill would allow physicians to prescribe what they consider to be most medically necessary treatments for Medicare beneficiaries within the comprehensive inpatient rehab setting.

In 2010, Medicare narrowed its coverage options and limited therapeutic services to just physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and orthotics and prosthetics. Meaning that if a doctor thought that a patient would be served by recreational therapy, it is currently not an option covered by Medicare. Well, that is wrong. Medicare coverage should support a patient's recovery plan as directed by their physician. Such therapies are intended to help those who have suffered a life-altering injury recover their functions and transition back to living a full life.

I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan commonsense bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about the importance of nutrition as it relates to agriculture policy in America. Proudly, I am the vice chairman of the House Agriculture Committee for the 115th Congress and chairman of the Nutrition Subcommittee.

Agriculture policy is near and dear to my heart, as it is the number one industry in Pennsylvania. It brings nearly $6.9 billion annually in cash receipts to the Commonwealth. Almost half a million jobs are tied to the industry, which positively impacts all Pennsylvanians.

Our farmers feed America. Farmers play a pivotal role in the nutrition of families in this country. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, food insecurity has decreased across the Nation in recent years. However, USDA found that 12.7 percent of all households in the United States faced hunger in 2015. Mr. Speaker, no one in America should go hungry.

The Nutrition Subcommittee oversees the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, which used to be referred to as food stamps. Over the past 2 years, under the leadership of Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway, this subcommittee examined what is working with SNAP and what could be improved. More than 43 million Americans rely on SNAP to put food on the table for themselves and their families.

SNAP has grown from a pilot program that served just 500,000 people in 1964 to a program that served more than 47 million Americans at the height of the recession. SNAP is now the largest program under the Agriculture Committee's jurisdiction, accounting for almost 80 percent of farm bill spending, and is the largest Federal food program serving low-income families in the United States. SNAP is literally a lifeline for many of the least fortunate among us.

During the subcommittee's examination of SNAP, it hosted more than 16 hearings and had 60 witnesses testify. The goals of these hearings were to better understand SNAP and the population it serves, to review how SNAP utilizes cash and noncash benefits to serve that population, and to examine ways the program could be improved.

Four themes emerged from the hearings:

First, serving SNAP recipients through innovation and flexibility in

program delivery. The need for nutrition assistance cannot be addressed by just one program or just one group. It requires more collaboration between governments, charities, businesses, health systems, communities, individuals, and many others.

Second, climbing the economic ladder through work. Mr. Speaker, the number one leading causes of poverty are unemployment and underemployment. We must promote pathways to employment as the best way to help individuals climb the economic ladder out of poverty and into self-sufficiency.

Third, maintaining program integrity. SNAP needs clear program goals and must be evaluated according to metrics aligned with those goals to generate program improvement. While we want to give States flexibility in administering SNAP, it should not jeopardize the overall integrity of the program.

Fourth, improving food access and promoting healthy food. This theme really gets at the heart of the issue: Americans in both urban and rural communities cannot improve their diets without adequate access to healthy food. Offering nutrition education is essential to help SNAP recipients develop healthy lifestyles and healthy eating habits. There is so much at stake when it comes to SNAP. Most SNAP recipients face more challenges than food insecurity. They also face housing, utility, transportation, and child care costs, among others.

Through the subcommittee's thorough investigation, we were able to fully review how to deliver SNAP to those who need it most. We also examined ways to keep the program viable for years to come. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office currently projects that SNAP will cost an average of $69.75 billion per year over the next 10 years, making it the largest Federal food program serving low-income families in the United States.

Mr. Speaker, I recently volunteered at the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank to help area veterans and their families to ensure they do not go hungry. When we help meet the nutritional needs of military families, it allows them to focus on other pressing issues. The same goes for all families in America.

I am committed to ensuring that SNAP continues to work for those who need it most, and to make certain that the program remains viable for decades to come. I look forward to getting to work on this in the 115th Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to highlight the good work of the Congressional German-American Caucus and to urge new Members of the House to consider joining.

I am cochairman of the caucus with Representative Bill Keating from Massachusetts. The caucus seeks to highlight the friendship and the alliance between the United States and Germany. We do so through an Oktoberfest networking event and through our support of programs like the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange internship program. The caucus also discusses timely topics, such as trade, security, and foreign affairs, and how they relate to our German counterparts.

Mr. Speaker, German heritage has become widespread in America. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Germans are the largest single ethnic group in the United States. Frederick Muhlenberg, a German immigrant and Lutheran pastor from Pennsylvania, whose family also founded Muhlenberg College, was the first Speaker of this House following the signing of the new Constitution.

Our caucus has nearly 100 members in the House, and I urge all of those who are interested in joining to do so today.

Mr. Speaker, on Monday, I will honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s, legacy by volunteering my time to help veterans in my community. Congressman Scott Perry of Pennsylvania's Fourth District and I will be at the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank in Harrisburg to pack boxes for the MilitaryShare program.

MilitaryShare is a program that serves fresh, nutritious meals to families with at least one member who has served in the military. This program assists area veterans and their families to ensure they do not go hungry.

Our veterans have numerous needs when they leave the military, and many of them are life-threatening challenges as a result of combat such as post-traumatic stress injury. When we help meet the nutritional needs of military families, it allows them to focus on other pressing issues such as joblessness or treatment for combat-related health issues.

MilitaryShare serves more than 4,000 households in central Pennsylvania, which translates to about 10,000 people a month.

Mr. Speaker, to serve one's country is a noble and selfless act. The very least we can do is to help our veterans transition to civilian life when they return home.

Mr. Speaker, before I was elected to serve in the House of Representatives, I spent nearly 30 years in the nonprofit healthcare field assisting those individuals who were facing life-changing diseases and disability. Additionally, as a member of my home community, I have volunteered for decades as an emergency medical technician, serving my neighbors in their time of trauma or medical emergency needs.

I am acutely aware of the challenges many face when it comes to obtaining reasonably priced health care. It is especially critical for rural America, like much of the Fifth Congressional District of Pennsylvania.

We are facing a healthcare crisis in our Nation's rural areas. These often disadvantaged populations are still struggling to access affordable, quality care. Many remain uninsured. Many find themselves newly uninsured as a result of the pressures and the demands and the mandates of the Affordable Care Act. Most are underinsured; however, access to quality care really does remain the largest challenge.

Even when people gain access to health insurance or coverage, it does not equal access to care. Rural hospitals across the country are closing, leaving patients without access to their emergency rooms and long-term care facilities. When you close a hospital in a rural area, the result is a commute that means the difference, frequently, between life and death.

Eighty rural hospitals have closed since 2010. One in three rural hospitals are financially vulnerable. At the current closure rate, more than 25 percent of rural hospitals will close in less than a decade.

As this Congress examines ways to improve our Nation's healthcare system, we must not forget that rural health care is unique and requires different programs to succeed.

In addition to hospital closures, a workforce shortage plagues rural America; 77 percent of more than 2,000 rural counties in the United States are designated as having a shortage of healthcare professionals. Recruitment and retention of experienced professionals, including primary care physicians, is an ongoing challenge.

Mr. Speaker, no matter how you pay for health care, if there are not qualified and trained professionals in those communities, healthcare access does not exist. Congress must act to stop cuts to rural hospitals and strengthen the healthcare workforce in underserved areas.

Furthermore, the opioid epidemic that is sweeping the Nation has ravaged our rural communities, leaving

even more of the population in need of crucial health services. Adolescents and young adults living in rural areas are more vulnerable to opioid abuse than their urban counterparts. The prevalence of fatal drug overdoses has skyrocketed in rural areas. High unemployment and a greater rate of the types of injuries that result in prescriptions for opioid medications have contributed to this.

For these reasons, I again look forward to cosponsoring the Save Rural Hospitals Act in the 115th Congress. We must ensure access to health care for Americans living in rural areas.

On average, trauma victims in rural areas must travel twice as far as victims in urban areas to the closest hospital. As a result, 60 percent of trauma deaths occur in rural areas, even though only 20 percent of Americans live in rural areas.

The Affordable Care Act was supposed to help cut costs for health care, but that did not happen for everyone. American families have found out the hard way, with increased taxes, looming regulations, and a slew of broken promises, from untrue cost controls to limitations on consumer choice. We were told that, ``if you like your coverage, you can keep it.'' Well, that was not even close to being true.

I look forward to working with my colleagues to fix our flawed healthcare system. Currently, healthcare costs have gone up, premiums have increased by double digits, but choices have decreased. Deductibles are so high that many Americans, despite having ``coverage,'' cannot afford to seek care under that coverage. Well, that is not right. It is not fair, and it is not feasible. There must be a better way, and I know together we can work to find a stable transition to a 21st century healthcare system that works for everyone in America, particularly for those in rural regions where the need is great and the services are scarce.

Mr. Speaker, as the mercury dropped to record lows this week in Pennsylvania, I rise to highlight an upcoming cold-weather event in State College, Pennsylvania.

The Light Up State College will attempt to break a Guinness World Record next month by lighting more than 3,000 ice luminaries on Allen Street between College Avenue and Beaver Avenue at 6 p.m. the first Saturday in February.

Now, you may ask: What is an ice luminary? According to Guinness, ice luminaries are cup-shaped structures made purely out of ice that hold a light inside. Those interested in helping break this record can pick up a do-it-yourself ice luminary kit in downtown State College.

The current world record contains 2,561 separate lanterns and was set in 2013 by the residents of a small town in Sweden. They have been making ice luminary lanterns to coincide with a nearby winter market for the past 10 years.

Light Up State College is a partnership of three groups: Centre Foundation, Make Space, and the Knight Foundation. Organizers have asked individuals in State College to commit to making ice luminaries, as more than 2,000 are still needed to help put State College over the line and on the map in the Guinness Book of World Records. This record- breaking event will take place in State College on Saturday, February 4.

I wish them the best of luck.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to celebrate an industry that allows Americans to have access to affordable, high- quality, and safe food--the agriculture industry: our farmers, our ranchers, farm families. Without food security, we do not have national security; so I am here today to recognize all of those who work so hard in that industry.

Over the weekend, some members of the House Agriculture Committee were able to join me in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, our State capital, to attend the 101st annual Pennsylvania Farm Show. This event has been widely attended for generations, and it is the largest indoor agriculture expo in the country. It showcases 300 commercial exhibits, 6,000 heads of animal, 10,000 competitive exhibits, and more than a half a million visitors.

On Saturday, Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway and I hosted a public listening session. We wanted Members of Congress to hear directly from farmers and ranchers, from FFA members, from kids in 4- H--the future of agriculture--on how agriculture policy impacts them.

I thank the following Members who were able to join us at the farm show: Congressman Mark Amodei, Congressman Lou Barletta, Congressman Tom Marino, Congressman Dan Newhouse, and Congressman Ted Yoho.

We covered a range of topics, Mr. Speaker, during our public forum, from raising awareness about agriculture education, to hearing very real concerns from our dairy farmers, to receiving an update from our forest industry about the best ways to strengthen forest management. As chairman of the Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry, this was of particular interest to me.

The Pennsylvania Farm Show, which continues throughout this week, brings together so many different farmers and growers and ranchers, all with unique issues. This, truly, is an event like no other. The Farm Show Complex and Expo Center houses 24 acres under one roof, spread throughout 11 buildings, including three arenas. There is no admission fee. It is a great event for the entire family, and there are numerous educational shows that are, obviously, all free of charge.

This year's theme is ``Our Commonwealth's Blue Ribbon Experience.'' It reminds us that there really is something for everyone, farmers and nonfarmers alike. The Pennsylvania Farm Show provides an atmosphere for everyone to walk through, observe, and educate themselves about different areas of agriculture and to be able to reconnect with the farm--the Commonwealth's largest industry, which brings in nearly $6.9 billion annually in agricultural cash receipts. Almost a half million jobs are tied to the industry, which positively impacts all Pennsylvanians.

Undoubtedly, one of the most popular attractions at the Pennsylvania Farm Show is the food court, which is located in the complex. The food court offers visitors a variety of Pennsylvania preferred products, and it generates income to support the nonprofit Pennsylvania Agricultural Commodity Organizations. There is where you will find the famous Farm Show baked potatoes.

The Pennsylvania Cooperative Potato Growers, Inc., is the oldest in the United States, chartered in 1922. The money raised during the week helps to support the marketing and the promotion of Pennsylvania potatoes. Money is also used to pay the dues for Pennsylvania growers to belong to national potato organizations, fund research projects, and promotional opportunities for Pennsylvania's growers. Our delegation was able to stop by and sample some of the well-known potato doughnuts.

The Pennsylvania Dairymen's Association is also on hand at the expo. This service organization provides scholarships, youth programs, and agricultural education programs across the Commonwealth. It also maintains the milk house facilities that are located in the farm show complex. The Dairymen rely on the revenues that are generated during the farm show to fund their activities, including a statewide fresh milk program, called Fill a Glass with Hope. All of their activities are bolstered with the sales of milkshakes, milk and chocolate milk, ice cream sundaes, grilled cheese sandwiches, ice cream cones, and my favorite--fried cheese cubes.

Over a century ago, the first Pennsylvania Farm Show was a 3-day exhibit. Today, the event is a weeklong celebration of how the agriculture industry touches our lives every day. If you pick up a fork, a spoon, or a knife, you are touched by agriculture. Proudly, this event draws visitors from across the country to highlight everything our State has to offer when it comes to agriculture.

As the 115th Congress begins to address the next farm bill, listening sessions like the one that we hosted Saturday will continue to be critically important. Policy that is based on discussion within the vacuum--the beltway--of Washington usually fails and falters. When we open it up to the people who are impacted, we get the best policy. If you are looking for the best agriculture expo in the country, head to Harrisburg this week.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend the efforts of People for Life, a nonprofit in Erie County, Pennsylvania, that is dedicated to educating and promoting right-to- life causes in northwestern Pennsylvania.

This organization hosts several events throughout the year to bring together people of the pro-life community. People for Life organizes an annual bus trip to participate in the national March for Life in Washington, D.C., and it also hosts its own March for Life in Erie.

For nearly four decades, People for Life has hosted a Pro-Life Breakfast that highlights the sanctity of human life in all phases and conditions. Attendees can hear stories of love, courage, and victory through God's mercy and grace.

I thank People for Life for all the work it has done in Erie and northwestern Pennsylvania on this topic of such great importance. They work to save lives through education and love. They recognize how sacred each human life is and fully understand the need to protect the most vulnerable. They are a voice for the voiceless. I am deeply grateful for their work.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize seven Elk County Catholic High School band students who performed on December 7 at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, for the 75th anniversary of the tragic attacks that brought the United States into World War II. This anniversary marks one of the major milestones, which may be one of the few opportunities for survivors of the attacks to participate.

Elk County Catholic represented the Commonwealth, alongside the survivors of the USS Pennsylvania, one of the eight battleships in Pearl Harbor on that fateful day in 1941.

I am so proud of how the students paid tribute to World War II veterans who served at Pearl Harbor and all of the military men and women that fought for our Nation.

This event was especially close to the heart of baritone saxophone player, Luke Ferragine, whose grandfather is a World War II veteran. Also performing in the honor band was Emily Miller, Kendra Smithbauer, Holly Kim, Andrew Wingard, Simon Glatt, and Nathan Schlosser. Congratulations to each of them.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today on Law Enforcement Appreciation Day to commend the law enforcement officers throughout our Nation who answer the call to serve their communities. Law enforcement officers face increasingly difficult circumstances while working to serve and protect the public. It is a dangerous job, and often it is a thankless job.

Just last week, Pennsylvania mourned the loss of a 23-year-old Pennsylvania State Police trooper who was shot and killed while investigating a domestic incident.

Our officers put on their uniforms each day knowing that they can be in harm's way at any moment. They answer the calls in times of distress, they follow the rules, and they wear the badge proudly.

We must remember that our officers are mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, and husbands and wives. They are human, and they arguably have one of the most difficult jobs in America. So today, and each day, let's honor our brothers and sisters in blue. Let's thank them for the important work they do to keep us all safe.