Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, as Republican leader of the House Committee on Agriculture, I have the opportunity to speak with producers nationwide, and, overwhelmingly, they say the number one issue facing the industry is the lack of a reliable, legal workforce.

When it comes to farm labor, our immigration system is broken and in desperate need of repair.

The Farm Workforce Modernization Act is a step in the right direction. I will vote ``yes'' today, but to be clear, the bill is imperfect and must be improved before becoming law.

It will not fully address the shortage of legal agricultural workers and may leave our farmers, ranchers, and especially our dairies, with critical unmet needs.

I filed an amendment that would have addressed these deficiencies that was endorsed by the American Farm Bureau Federation. Though not made in order, I hope that amendment will serve as a starting point in the Senate for necessary improvements.

Americans are blessed with a safe, abundant, and affordable food supply. But how long will that food supply last if we do not have an adequate agricultural workforce?

This may be a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reform our immigration laws. Therefore, we must get it right.

Madam Speaker, if we fail to address the agricultural workforce, we will have food insecurity, and that will lead to national insecurity.

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleague, Mr. Matt Cartwright, once again as cosponsor on the RECLAIM Act. This bipartisan legislation focuses on reauthorizing the abandoned mine land fund, or the AML fund.

My district, Pennsylvania 15, has the most abandoned coal mines in the country, and reauthorizing the AML fund will provide opportunities and funding to clean up the abandoned land, not just in my district, but across the Nation.

Coal mining built America. It powered us onto the world's stage. It helped us win two world wars and brought our Nation into the modern era.

The AML is set to expire this year. While we continue to make progress on environmental restoration, reauthorizing the fund is crucial to support clean-up efforts and spur economic development.

Madam Speaker, Congress has a great opportunity to do right by Pennsylvania and other great coal mining States by reauthorizing the abandoned mine land fund, which is not funded by tax dollars but by a fee that has been placed on every ton of coal mined since 1977. Those moneys are sitting there in the Federal Treasury, and we need to reauthorize that abandoned mine land fund to further the redevelopment of the scars of the water and the land in those abandoned lands.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize this past Saturday, March 13, as K9 Veterans Day, an opportunity to commemorate the working dogs that support our men and women in uniform.

This year marks the 79th anniversary of the establishment of the K9 Corps. In 1942, following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Army began training for the K9 Corps, originally known as the War Dog Program. In the years that passed, the K9 Corps has become a vital part of our Armed Forces operations.

Perhaps one of the well-known military K9s is Conan, whose efforts led to the success of the 2019 al-Baghdadi raid.

Following their service, these retired dogs often serve as support animals to servicemembers who may be suffering from PTSD and other disabilities, both mental and physical.

Madam Speaker, our veterans can greatly benefit from the assistance and companionship that a dog provides, and our K9 veterans benefit from their newfound forever homes. Our K9 veterans have served our country, and they, too, deserve to be honored for their service.

Mr. Speaker, just over 1 year ago, we entered a COVID crackdown. Businesses and schools shut their doors-- some of them, sadly, for good. Communities across the Nation continue to feel this pain.

For more than 365 days, far too many of our Nation's school children have been confined to virtual learning--forced to sit at home behind a computer instead of a classroom.

The implications of students being left out of the classroom are much bigger than parents being inconvenienced or students missing their friends. Every day that we wait to reopen our schools is another day we look the other way as youth mental health continues to plummet.

Every day we wait to reopen our schools is another day our students fall behind.

Mr. Speaker, allowing American school children to return to the classroom is long overdue.

It is time to listen to the science. It is time to put the students first. And it is time to reopen our schools.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

The University's Safety, Health, and Environmental Applied Sciences program recently received a national recognition. Universities.com ranked the program third in the Nation, giving IUP's program top marks in career preparation, students and culture, facilities, activities, and groups. More than 8,000 colleges and universities were considered in this ranking process.

Believed to be one of the first programs of its kind in the Nation, IUP's Safety, Health, and Environmental Applied Sciences program trains safety professionals in industry, government, and institutional settings. According to the department's chairwoman, Tracy Cekada, the program prepares students for work in a wide range of areas, including manufacturing, oil and gas, insurance, healthcare, construction, distribution, government, transportation, and the service industry.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to have such a stellar academic institution in my district like Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and this top- notch program comes as no surprise.

Congratulations, IUP, for this well-deserved recognition.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of my dear friend and fellow Eagle Scout, Jim Kennedy. I got to know him well over the years through the Juniata Valley Council where he was the Council Scout Executive.

Jim embodied the Scouting oath and law. He was trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, and courteous, to name just a few. Jim dedicated himself to service and worked diligently to better his community, making significant improvements to the Seven Mountains Scout Camp and earning national recognition for the Council.

Jim is survived by his wife of nearly 40 years, Andrea, and their three sons: Matthew, Phillip, and Lincoln. Jim, his family, and the Juniata Valley Scouting community are all in our prayers as we grieve this loss together.

Trail signs taught in Scouting, Mr. Speaker, show a circle of stones with one stone in the center as the sign for gone home. Jim Kennedy reached the end of his trail in life and returned home living Scouting values.

Rest in peace, Scouter.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Venango Museum of Art, Science and Industry in Oil City, Pennsylvania.

The museum plays a big role in maintaining the culture and history of the region with educational programming and rotating exhibits.

Recently, the executive director of the museum, Betsy Kellner, reached out to my office to let us know of an exciting project the museum was able to complete thanks to funding provided by the Pennsylvania Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities through the CARES Act.

The museum is the proud owner of a 1928 Wurlitzer pipe organ, which was previously held in the historic Latonia Theater in Oil City. The museum was able to refurbish the organ, a feat that took thousands of volunteer hours and more than 600 different pipes.

After the organ was successfully refurbished, the Venango Museum of Art, Science and Industry hosted a virtual concert for residents to enjoy. The concert can also be viewed online at venangomuseum.org.

I would like to thank Betsy and the museum team for providing this enriching cultural experience for the residents of Venango County during the pandemic.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and congratulate Carter Smith of Cresson, Pennsylvania. Carter has accepted a fully qualified appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point. Carter is the son of Gary and Holly Lynne Smith.

As a student at Penn Cambria High School, Carter was heavily involved in the speech club, theater, and the National Honor Society, as well as both the football and basketball teams.

In addition to having a long resume of extracurricular activities, Carter has excelled in the classroom as well, maintaining a 4.0 GPA.

April Gergely, Carter's English teacher, had nothing but positive things to say about him in her letter of recommendation.

She said: ``Carter stood out as an extremely hardworking, intelligent, perceptive, detail-oriented, honest, reliable, and mature student.''

I am confident Carter's experience in and out of the classroom will serve him well as he looks forward to this exciting new phase of life.

I thank Carter for his commitment to our Nation, and I wish him the best of luck at West Point.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Miss Justice Giordano from Cambria County, Pennsylvania.

Justice, a 17-year-old junior at Portage Area High School, has been selected by the Pennsylvania Chapter of Students Against Destructive Decisions to serve as an ambassador for the upcoming year.

Students Against Destructive Decisions, often referred to as SADD, is the Nation's premier youth health and safety organization. The organization's mission is to empower young people to successfully confront the risks and pressures that challenge them throughout their daily lives. Justice will play an integral role in achieving that mission and raising awareness across the Commonwealth. Most recently, Justice has shifted her focus to the dangers of vaping and electronic cigarettes.

Justice's school principal had nothing but great things to say about her. He said, ``Justice is a leader among her peers, and she strives to make positive decisions while making those around her better. We are very proud of Justice here at Portage Area.''

Madam Speaker, I am confident Justice's positive attitude and dedication to helping fellow students will help her excel in this exciting new role.

Congratulations, Justice.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, 2 weeks ago, the majority frog-marched the Agriculture Committee through a Potemkin markup. It was a legislative charade designed to give this process a veneer of regular order.

The truth is that this bill was drafted behind closed doors by the Democratic leadership, without input from the many rural stakeholders who have been begging this Congress for help. The result is a bill that spends too much on flawed priorities and fails to meet the needs of rural communities.

Agriculture Committee Republicans offered amendments to provide much- needed funding for rural hospitals, schools, and businesses; telemedicine services; broadband connectivity; and critical disaster relief.

Surprising no one, these were defeated on a partisan basis. For the one that did pass in our committee, it was stripped from the bill before reaching the floor.

It is astonishing, Mr. Speaker. Despite the wish list of political giveaways and excessive spending in this bill, the majority somehow managed to forget rural America.

Mr. Speaker, I oppose this bill. I believe that we can do better than this. In fact, we must do better than this.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize two students in my district, Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District, who have gone out of their way to better their communities recently. After reading about their work, I felt that they deserved this recognition.

Richard Clark is a student at Mount Aloysius College in Cresson, Pennsylvania. Richard is an MBA student and decided to use a class project opportunity, assignment, as an opportunity to help the Keystone Regional Fire and Rescue Department. He helped the president of the fire department write an application, a grant application, that resulted in a $10,000 grant to benefit that organization and, certainly, the citizens, families, and communities that that emergency service organization serves.

Before serving in Congress, I spent nearly 30 years as a State- certified volunteer firefighter. It was an honor to serve my community, and I know firsthand how big of a deal, how big of a difference those funds can make in a small-town company in a rural area. Dave Fulton, president of the fire company, said that the funds would be combined with support from the county to purchase a new radio system.

Richard's professor, Dr. Leah Spangler offered high praise, saying: ``I'm just so happy to have a student who is so invested in an organization to really do this kind of work for them. It's so much more than a grade for a class that you can do something so positive for the community.''

I would like to thank Richard for his hard work, his dedication, and his commitment to serving his community.

In Indiana, Pennsylvania, a 17-year-old named Lily Palfrey recently reached the highest service level possible in 4-H by completing her Diamond Clover project.

Lily's father, Sergeant Frank Palfrey, has spent more than 30 years with the Army National Guard, serving as the inspiration for her service project. She collected more than $9,000 in donations and sent more than 150 boxes filled with personal care items to our National Guard troops, our citizen warriors who are deployed overseas.

Accompanying her service project is a video called ``We Serve Too,'' a presentation that Lily developed through her church to share the stories of military families.

Though she has fulfilled her service project obligation, Lily continues to collect morale-boosting donations like board games, snacks, and coffee.

I am encouraged by the kindness and the generosity of both Richard and Lily. Thank you to these two for their spirit of service.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate National FFA Week.

FFA is a national leader in agricultural education, inspiring our Nation's young people to pursue careers that help support a robust rural economy.

Agriculture is rooted in American heritage, and our Nation's producers provide the food, the fiber, and the energy that we all depend on.

Agriculture is science. It is technology. It is innovation. And the young men and women of the FFA are helping to shape the industry's future.

Every time I see a distinctive blue FFA jacket, I am reminded of the strong character and impressive leadership abilities that come along with it. FFA leaders have gone on to become Ivy League graduates, Federal court judges, innovative farmers, famous performance artists, and even U.S. Presidents.

This week, we celebrate the important success of FFA, and we look forward to what FFA leaders have in store for the future of rural America.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize February as Career and Technical Education Month. Each year, this month highlights the benefits of a skills-based education and the valuable contributions that CTE students make to the American workforce.

A one-size-fits-all approach to education is not an effective way to prepare students for the workforce. We are

doing students a great disservice when we only promote what is considered a traditional college experience.

My appreciation for CTE came at an early age. My father, after leaving the Navy, went through a CTE program, which led him to a job as a tool and die maker. Eventually, he decided to start his own business, which became quite successful.

As co-chair of the Career and Technical Education Caucus, and a senior member of the Committee on Education and Labor, I have also supported, and will continue to support, CTE programs that provide learners of all ages with career-ready skills.

From agriculture to the arts, from marketing to manufacturing, CTE programs work to develop America's most valuable resource, its people.

CTE has established itself as a path that many high-achieving students choose in pursuit of industry certification and hands-on skills that they can use right out of school, in skill-based education programs, or in college.

Congress recognized the importance of CTE when we passed the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act, which helps close the skills gap by modernizing the Federal investment in CTE programs and connecting educators with industry stakeholders. This bill was later signed into law by President Trump in 2018.

While this is a major milestone, there is still more work to be done. That is why I am supporting additional pieces of legislation on the horizon to keep updating and promoting workforce development throughout our Nation. These include:

The Skills Renewals Act, which creates a flexible skills training credit in the amount of $4,000 per person that may be applied to cover the cost of a wide range of training programs that build skills expected to be in high demand by employers in the coming months.

There is also the Skills Investment Act, which enhances the Coverdell education savings accounts--tax-advantaged savings accounts for educational expenses--so American workers can use the accounts to pay for their skills-based learning, career training, and workforce development.

And lastly, the Cybersecurity Skills Integration Act, which creates a $10 million pilot program within the Department of Education to award competitive grants to education-employer partnerships for the development and implementation, and/or expansion of postsecondary CTE programs that integrate cybersecurity education into curricula preparing students for careers in critical infrastructure sectors.

COVID-19 has demonstrated the need for CTE. Many of those who have been deemed as life-essential employees are those who have made their way to those jobs through the Career and Technical Education pathway. It gives people from all walks of life an opportunity to succeed and restores rungs on the ladder of opportunity.

In closing, Mr. Speaker, I would like to encourage my colleagues to join my co-chair and I, Mr. Langevin, on the bipartisan Career and Technical Education Caucus, to help us equip individuals of all ages with the skills necessary to fill jobs now and in the future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and thank Robby Sneltzer of Venango County, Pennsylvania.

Robby is a 9-year-old Oil City resident with a kind heart. This holiday season, Robby decided to help his neighbors in need by starting a donation drive.

With the help of his stepmother, Angel, Robby began to collect donations of toiletries, snacks, ponchos, hats, and hand sanitizer, stuffing backpacks full of these much-needed items for those in need.

Robby's relatives pitched in with donations, as well as Hasson Heights Elementary School and Hope Pediatrics. The backpacks were donated to The Pointe. The Pointe is a drop-in center promoting recovery and community awareness for individuals who struggle with mental health difficulties.

Angela Proper, executive director of The Pointe, said: ``When Robby brought them in and we piled them up, it was pretty amazing.''

I would like to personally thank Robby for his support of his community. Acts of kindness like these make our world a better place.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to give a big thank-you to Penn State students for their commitment to an incredible cause.

Each year, students spend countless hours raising awareness and money in the fight against pediatric cancer. Every February, these efforts culminate in a 46-hour dance marathon known as THON.

THON provides financial and emotional support to thousands of families across the Commonwealth who have a child battling pediatric cancer.

THON is normally a celebration of thousands in the Bryce Jordan Center on campus--an opportunity for children with cancer to focus on simply being a kid even just for the weekend.

Sadly, the pandemic forced this proud tradition online this year. However, despite a global pandemic, students still managed to raise $10.6 million this year.

Since 1973, Penn State students have raised more than $180 million. Those figures, combined with nearly 17,000 student volunteers, makes Penn State THON the largest student-run philanthropic effort in the world.

I am proud of the Penn State students who are so committed to this cause, and I am even more proud of the children and families who keep fighting.