Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, America's seniors are looking for some relief with the high cost of prescription drugs. The vast majority of seniors remain skeptical that the new Republican prescription drug plan will work for them, and therefore, many have not signed up and refuse to.

Congressional Republicans and the Bush administration did not only make this plan confusing to understand, but they also included a provision that will financially penalize seniors if they don't sign up for the plan by May 15. While most Democrats would rather replace the plan for a simpler one within the Medicare system, we do not want to see seniors penalized any further.

Without a deadline extension, seniors will encounter a 1 percent increase on their premiums for every month after they wait to sign up after the May 15 deadline. Since seniors would not be able to begin coverage after the deadline until January of next year, seniors would encounter a 7 percent Bush Medicare tax that would stay with them the rest of their lives.

This is simply not fair. Seniors are already having to pay enough for their prescription drugs. Mr. President, you have 2 months to change your mind. Don't punish our seniors, Mr. President.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate St. Frances of Rome Church located in Azusa, California in honor of their 100th anniversary. I am proud to recognize the important contributions of St. Frances of Rome on this historic occasion.

Before the turn of the century, the Roman Catholics in Azusa would travel to the San Gabriel Valley Mission for mass. Even with the establishment of churches in Pasadena and Monrovia, and occasional masses held in the home of Henry C. Robelts and Susanna Melendez, Catholics in Azusa did not have an official church they could attend within their city.

In May of 1905 preparations were made for the construction of a church for the Catholic community of Azusa. On January 12, 1908 the church became an official parish. On the same day the Church also offered its first baptism and two days later the first recorded marriage took place.

Over the years, the church has expanded and renovated to better serve its members. Throughout the years, St. Frances has thrived and has become a mainstay in the community.

Today, St. Frances also houses a school and the Azusa Food Bank. St. Frances of Rome is not simply a church; it has become a mainstay of the city of Azusa and I wish them luck in the future as they continue to serve the community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today, to pay tribute to Mr. Patricio ``Pat'' S. Miranda, who died unexpectedly on September 29, 2005. Sadly, 3 days after his passing, his wife, Mercy, also passed away.

After graduating from Covina High School in 1945, Pat Miranda was drafted into the United States Army and was a member of the 77th Division. While serving our Nation, he saw action in the U.S. offensive in Okinawa and received an honorable discharge in 1946 as a sergeant.

In 1957, Pat was appointed to the Irwindale Planning Commission, marking the beginning of a 44-year career of service to the city of Irwindale. In 1961, he was elected to the city council and served in various elected capacities, including mayor, for all but 3 years. Pat oversaw the growth of new homes, recreational and educational facilities, a swimming pool, post office, City Hall, police department, senior citizens building, and Las Casitas senior apartments.

During his time in elected office, Pat was a member of the initial Irwindale delegation to visit Mexico to form a sister city relationship with Salvatierra, Mexico, a relationship which was formalized in 1965. He also made it a priority for the city and its residents to have regulatory control of the mining companies to ensure that the Irwindale community was treated fairly and with respect. Additionally, Pat was a charter commander of the Irwindale V.F.W. Post 9895 and a life member of Irwindale AmVets, Irwindale Lions and Rotary Clubs.

Pat and his wife are remembered fondly by the city staff, city council members, and the Irwindale community. They are survived by three children: Sandra Pusey, Patrick J. Miranda II, and Magalee Carlson who all still reside in Irwindale, as well as four brothers, eight grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. I extend my deepest sympathy to them during this difficult time.

The city, community, friends and family will greatly miss Pat and his wife and the many lasting contributions they made to the city of Irwindale.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Dave Perea, a longtime Rosemead resident and Teamsters union member, who passed away on February 14, 2006.

Born and raised in East Los Angeles, Dave was the second oldest of 11 siblings and had 6 older half-siblings. Dave attended East Los Angeles schools including Hammel Elementary School, Belvedere Junior High, and Garfield High School. He also attended East Los Angeles College for a year before putting his studies aside to support his family during his father's illness.

Dave became a Teamster and held various jobs before joining Momentum Textiles, where he worked for 22 years and retired in 1998. He was a surrogate parent for the friends of his children and was affectionately known as the ``Mayor of Charlotte Street.''

In 2003 Dave became deeply involved with the grassroots organization, Save Our Community, which is committed to stopping plans to build a Wal-Mart in a pristine area just two blocks from his house. Dave was a driving force for Save Our Community and was instrumental in many of its efforts. Whenever anyone in the organization needed anything, he was there to lend a helping hand.

Dave is survived by his mother, Rosita, and 10 of his siblings; his wife, Mary Ellen; his daughters, Suzanne, Doreen, and Joanne; and his grandchildren, Nicholas, Andrew, Erica, Austin, Matthew, and Amber. He will be dearly missed by his family, friends, and the community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a bill supporting the goals and ideals of a Salvadoran-American Day (EI Dia del Salvadoreno) in recognition of all Salvadoran-Americans for their hard work, dedication and contribution to the stability and well-being of the United States.

Forty years of internal political turmoil forced hundreds of thousands of individuals from the Republic of EI Salvador to flee the country and seek peace and security in the United States. Currently, there are over 900,000 Salvadoran-Americans living in the United States, with the majority of them living in California, the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area and New York. In the Los Angeles metropolitan area alone, there are roughly 400,000 Salvadoran-Americans.

In California, the state with the largest population of Salvadoran Americans, EI Dia del Salvadoreno is widely celebrated among the Latino community. This celebration of Salvadoran traditions dates back to 1525, when on August 6 the city of Villa De San Salvador was founded. August 6 also marks the date when Salvadorans around the United States celebrate the ``Fiestas Agostinas'' (August Holidays.) This celebration pays homage to the cultural festivities of EI Salvador while adapting itself to the lives of Salvadorans in the United States. Celebrated by Salvadoran-Americans in California and throughout our country, Salvadoran-American Day has grown in significance over the years.

Let us not forget that our Nation was built by people from many nations and cultures whose lives and work have contributed to the greatness of our Nation. Likewise, we must recognize the efforts of Salvadoran-Americans for their cultural and economic contributions to the United States and support the ideals of a Salvadoran-American Day.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to commemorate International Women's Day. As cochair of the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, I am proud to be a part of a daylong shadow program working side by side with Iraqi women and members of the Transnational Assembly. In fact, my guest is here in the Chamber, Dr. Faiza Babakhan, who represents the National Assembly.

In just 11 days, we will mark the third anniversary of the United States' invasion of Iraq. While U.S. involvement in Iraq in the past 3 years has caused much controversy in our country, we can all agree that increasing Iraqi women's rights and political representation should be a priority.

Through the continued collaboration of American and Iraqi women in government, we can advance women's rights and women's issues around the world. But today we must also acknowledge the violence and human rights issues that affect women in places like Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, and in Guatemala where murders of women have gone unpunished for many years.

On International Women's Day, we must remember that violence and injustice against women anywhere is violence and injustice against women everywhere.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to one of our Nation's young heroes, Lance Corporal Mario Atrian, Jr.

Lance Corporal Mario Atrian joined the United States Marine Corps at the age of 17 and served two tours of duty in Iraq. On April 9, 2004, during his second tour of duty, LCpl. Atrian was injured while bravely fighting to protect a friendly unit from an enemy ambush. Despite bleeding profusely from both his right and left arms, and his driver being killed, LCpl. Atrian continued to defend his comrades and relinquished his position to receive medical attention only after the enemy ambush had been broken and his fellow wounded Marines were away from enemy fire. Today, LCpl. Atrian will receive one of our Nation's highest awards, the Silver Star for his leadership, his loyalty, and his courage.

Lance Corporal Mario Atrian is from Los Angeles and is a resident of my district. Our community is blessed to have such a distinguished, brave, young man. I encourage him to continue to fight for that which he believes with such courage and dignity throughout the rest of his life.

Mr. Speaker, leave it to Washington Republicans to create a chaotic and confusing system that has left a large majority of seniors just saying no. The Republican prescription drug plan shows the everyday cost congressional corruption has on the American people.

Republicans promised American seniors they would have access to prescription drugs through private plans beginning January 1, but to date it has been an utter failure. In many instances, beneficiaries who tried to have their prescriptions filled under the new system were either told that their enrollment could not be verified or that their drugs were not covered. As a result, many beneficiaries, particularly those that are called dually eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid, were at risk for receiving no coverage at all.

Rather than choosing to work to alleviate drug costs for seniors, Republicans were more interested in coming up with a bill that benefited their friends in the pharmaceutical and insurance industries, friends who have been very loyal to them over the years.

America must do better, we can do better and put special interests aside so that we can help those people who truly need our assistance. Let's start thinking about our senior citizens.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to join our Nation in honoring the many great contributions of the African American Community by celebrating Black History Month.

Overcoming enormous obstacles and racial barriers, the African American community has made vast contributions to all aspects of American society--music, literature, sports, education, science, business, and politics. We must remember not only our outstanding heroes such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Frederick Douglass, former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, Rosa Parks, and Coretta Scott King, this month, but also the extraordinary lives of everyday African Americans who have helped build our great Nation.

I want to particularly honor the lives of two exceptional women who we lost recently: Rosa Parks and Mrs. Coretta Scott King. Their lives and their work for civil rights reflect the struggle and contributions that African Americans have made to our society. Their actions set America on a course of inclusion and tolerance, which continues to benefit us everyday. We must follow their steps and build upon their great accomplishments for equality and justice.

During this month and throughout the year, I encourage those living in California's 32nd Congressional District and around the country to take the time to honor the African American community by learning about its vast accomplishments and rich culture.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise because I am deeply concerned with respect to the President's budget, his proposed cuts to women and children. In particular, the budget of fiscal year 2007 fails on all accounts and provides insufficient funding for our Nation's greatest investment, its children.

Domestic programs, as we know, are vital to women and children, particularly the WIC program, which will see its funding decline by almost $5 billion over the next 5 years. For low-income families who rely solely on WIC to feed their children and keep them healthy, these cuts are simply unacceptable.

We will see a continued rise in poverty and food shortage among these families. The President's budget is also hurting women who work to provide for their families by cutting back on their health care.

Despite the huge budget cuts made already to the Medicaid program in the budget reconciliation bill, the President proposes to slash another $17 billion over the next 5 years. Medicaid, as many of you know, helps women and children, the most vulnerable in our population. I urge the Congress to reject this morally irresponsible budget.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise because I believe working-class Americans deserve a Federal budget which is compassionate, decent, and provides hope to the American public.

President Bush's budget for fiscal year 2007 fails on all counts and provides insufficient funding for one of our Nation's greatest investments: its health.

Despite the confusing and poorly implemented new Medicare prescription drug benefit program, President Bush's budget cuts Medicare by $35 billion in the next 5 years, it cuts funding for public health programs by $126 million, and puts more families at risk of food and security by cutting more than $706 million in assistance.

Even with the growing problem of health care disparities and lack of insurance for communities of color, the budget slashes the Office of Minority Health Programs by 20 percent.

To our children, to those battling high health care costs, and to the uninsured, this budget, in my opinion, is not compassionate and it doesn't provide the American public with hope.

Americans deserve better. We must not inflict this pain on the most vulnerable populations in our country.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise because I believe that working Americans deserve a Federal budget which is compassionate, decent, hopeful, and accountable to their needs. Yet the budget shortchanges many environmental programs designed to protect public health and improve our communities' quality of life. It cuts funding for environmental justice programs by 28 percent and cuts funding for clean water infrastructure by $199 million. It also fails to address the more than $300 billion gap in drinking water infrastructure, funds for brownfields cleanup and redevelopment at less than 20 percent of what Congress has authorized, and zeroes out funding to bring more green space to our communities.

These cuts, Mr. Speaker, have very real implications on the quality of our health and our communities. Let us first consider the 28 percent cut in funding for environmental justice. For decades minority and low- income communities have lived in close proximity to industrial zones, power plants, toxic waste sites. These are the communities

nationwide whose health and quality of life are negatively impacted most by environmental injustices. For example, 5.5 million Latinos live within a 10-mile radius of a power plant, and 68 percent of all African Americans live within 30 miles, the range where health impacts are most severe. Over 70 percent of all African Americans and Latinos live in counties that violate the Federal air pollution standards, compared to 58 percent for nonminorities.

The administration is allegedly committed to protecting low-income and minority communities; yet the budget is just one of several actions taken recently which puts this commitment in doubt. Last year the Bush administration proposed removing race and income as considerations of environmental justice. Removing these considerations, in my opinion, would significantly disadvantage those communities which are already disproportionately affected by environmental toxins and the least able to defend and empower themselves.

Most recently the Bush administration proposed changing toxic reporting requirements to benefit polluting industries at the expense of the health of this Nation's communities. In California, the State I represent, this would include nearly 60 ZIP codes, over half of which have at least 45 percent minority residents and large proportions of people living well below the poverty line.

This budget also shortchanges our water infrastructure and water providers. It cuts funding for the Clean Water Revolving Fund by $199 million and funds safe drinking water infrastructure at 10 percent below last year's level. Yet our water infrastructure needs at least $300 billion invested just to maintain current services.

President Bush's budget fails to adequately address the more than 119,000 confirmed releases at underground storage tanks, like the more than 1,000 in my congressional district alone, and that is in Los Angeles. In the interim the onerous burden of shoring up our water infrastructure and protecting supplies falls on our cities, our States, and ultimately the water providers.

The budget fails the one in four Americans that live within 4 miles of a Superfund site, including 10 million children under the age of 12. There are three such sites in my own community. In fact, EPA itself admitted publicly the serious problems facing Superfund site cleanup. On December 2, 2004, then Assistant Administrator Thomas Dunne noted: ``For the last 3 years, we haven't started cleanup at some new sites. If we assume that EPA's budget will remain flat for the foreseeable future, construction funding could be delayed at more and more sites. Within a few years, unfunded cleanup work could total several hundred million dollars.''

Yet President Bush's budget is $100 million less than the request which was made in 2004 and $20 million less than the fiscal year 2005 request.

Ultimately, the budget forces our country to continue to fall behind in its commitment to clean water, further disadvantages environmental justice communities like the one I live in, and passes the buck to our States. The Bush administration is putting its own policies above science, above the needs of public health, the environment, and our communities, and yet this administration is not being held accountable. Not once in the last 6 years has the Bush administration defended its budget in front of the Energy and Commerce Committee. Not once. It is well past time for this administration to defend its policies on environmental justice, water infrastructure, brownfields, and Superfund sites, where failures such as these will be even more costly for our country.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and celebrate the life of Mr. Marvin Braude. Marvin Braude was a long-time Los Angeles City Council Member, an outdoor enthusiast, and a pioneering environmentalist.

Braude served on the L.A. City Council from 1965 until 1997. His achievements on behalf of the people of Los Angeles significantly improved their day-to-day quality of life. Braude's work included building a coalition to stop an oil-drilling project off the coast of Pacific Palisades and fighting for the ban on smoking in restaurants, elevators, city offices, and markets. Perhaps Braude's most notable accomplishment was the creation of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. Braude's vision for the area, stretching from North Santa Monica to Venice Beach, provides residents and visitors alike the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors by foot, bike, and even rollerblade.

Marvin's late wife, Majorie, was a psychiatrist, a leader among women doctors, and a leader in the fight against domestic violence. Braude is survived by his two daughters, Ann and Liza Braude, and two grandchildren, Emma Braude Adler and Benjamin Braude Adler.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise in strong opposition to this misguided and irresponsible bill.

Just last night President Bush spoke about working together to build prosperity for our country, but this legislation pays for the prosperity of the richest, the wealthiest in our society while cutting vital services to very needy individuals.

Since President Bush has been in office, the number of Americans in this country living in poverty has grown by 6 million people. In total, 13 million children, including 4.7 million children under the age of six, now live in poverty because of this administration.

Health care costs have risen by 60 percent, and the number of uninsured keeps skyrocketing. More than 13 million Latinos alone continue to be uninsured.

The cost of college education increased by 40 percent because of this administration's misguided approach, forcing typical students to borrow $17,000 in Federal loans and leaving almost 40 percent of student borrowers in unmanageable debt.

Yet this bill cuts another $40 billion in vital programs, Medicaid, Medicare, student loans, and protects more than $70 billion in tax breaks for the wealthy. These programs are critical, not just to low- income people but to the working class Americans of this country.

The reality is that this legislation will do very little to reduce the budget. It will do nothing to help the most vulnerable in our society, and it will do nothing but continue on the wrong path, down the wrong road. Working men and women and children will continue to fall, and our senior citizens will also be caught up in that net.

The bill is not compassionate, it is not decent, and I do not support this legislation. I urge my colleagues to please protect the health and well-being of our citizens and to oppose this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, today I join the Chinese community in ushering in the Lunar New Year and celebrating the Year of the Dog.

Since the earliest days of this country, people from all cultures have journeyed to our Nation seeking the promise of freedom, opportunity, and the American dream. As an integral part of our society, Chinese Americans are leaders in public service, government, science, law, education, athletics, and the arts. As business entrepreneurs, Chinese Americans are helping to strengthen our economy and our communities through their hard work and ingenuity. As patriots, Chinese Americans continue to risk their lives defending liberty.

I am pleased to help celebrate the Year of the Dog and commend those organizing events in its honor. These events promote greater understanding of the Chinese culture and society and honor not only the historical contributions of Chinese traditions, but also encourage greater awareness of the modern contributions of Chinese Americans.

As a member of the Congressional Asian Pacific Islander American Caucus, I am proud to pay tribute to the 120,000 individuals of Asian descent I represent in California's 32nd Congressional District. Residents of Rosemead, Monterey Park, Covina, West Covina, and other cities throughout my district know first hand the economic and cultural contributions of the Asian and Pacific Islander communities.

Gung Hay Fat Choy. Xin Nien Kuai Le.