Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, it is not often that I can use a passage from the Bible to describe an appropriations bill, but the money- wasting allocation of funds in this bill is perfectly described by the Gospel of Matthew. It observes:

For whoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have

more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be

taken away even that he hath.

A sociologist termed this the ``Matthew Effect,'' a term for why the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

That is pretty much what is going on here. Why on Earth are we handing out money to fossil fuel companies? They don't need more abundance. They are receiving more than enough from the Federal Government as it is, some $4 billion in taxpayer subsidies each year.

My amendment is extremely modest. It retains the $562.1 million for R&D that is in the budget--far more, I might add, than the President had in his budget of $475 million. But do we really need to increase the R&D budget for fossil fuels beyond the $563 million? Let's show the taxpayers we have just a little restraint.

Fossil fuel companies are perfectly capable of funding their own research. In fact, they do. ExxonMobil alone has spent about $5 billion since 2008. If more spending on R&D is, in fact, needed, they are more than capable of funding it on their own. Perhaps they could reallocate some of the $144 million, or

more than $396,000 per day, they spent last year lobbying Members of Congress. Maybe some of their 763 lobbyists--nearly two for each Member of Congress in the House--would be willing to start a new career in research.

Here in the Federal Government where we don't have millions of dollars to throw around willy-nilly, we need to reexamine our investments. Appropriations bills are documents that spell out our priorities. Increasing the fossil fuel R&D budget by $31 million to an already overly generous $562 million while slashing renewable R&D budgets by $80 million states loud and clear that we are more interested in funding rich energy companies of the past rather than energy of the future.

Again, this amendment is simple. It strikes $31 million in R&D from fossil fuels and commits it to deficit reduction and maintains the FY14 level of funding for this research.

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

Mr. Chairman, we have been having a raging debate in this House over the Ex-Im Bank. Many of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are screaming that that is, in fact, corporate welfare.

Well, when the three largest oil companies in this country-- ExxonMobil, BP, and Shell--made over $62.7 billion in the last year, and you are sitting here and telling us that giving them $4 billion and giving them another $563 million is not enough, that we need to augment it by some $31 million, I think that is pretty darn laughable.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize an extraordinary leader in San Mateo County. Sheryl Young, Chief Executive Officer of Community Gatepath, is retiring after 26 year of remarkable service to the special needs community. Sheryl is a leading ambassador for individuals with special needs in San Mateo, San Francisco and Santa Clara counties and one of the most thoughtful, generous and creative women I know. I feel extremely fortunate to count her as one of my closest friends and a member of the yoga girls. Sheryl first joined the organization as a volunteer, then known as Poplar Center, and quickly discovered she found her life's calling.

In 1988, the nonprofit provided direct services to 370 individuals, had a modest budget of $1 million and a workforce of only 20 professionals. Since then, Sheryl has overseen remarkable growth at the agency as it now serves more than 9,000 individuals, has a budget of $12.4 million and employs 175 directors, managers and professionals.

For more than 95 years, Community Gatepath has provided programs, support services, education, and information for the special needs community. Sheryl and her staff are dedicated to making their motto more than just words. These good people have their hearts committed to ``Turning Disabilities into Possibilities.'' Sheryl's significant accomplishments include the launch and completion of a $5 million capital campaign; the development of Learning Links Preschool--San Mateo County's first inclusive preschool; and the creation and launch of AbilityPath.org--a first-of-its-kind online resource and social network for parents, families, and providers that was voted best online special needs community by users of About.com in 2012. Sheryl was the only invited guest focused on children with special needs at the Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention event in 2012 that was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education. Sheryl was also selected to participate in Harvard Business School's Strategic Perspectives in Nonprofit Management program.

As proof of Sheryl's standing in our community, ``The Sheryl Young Community Impact Award'' has been established to pay tribute to persons, businesses and organizations that make an impact in their community by helping people with disabilities.

Sheryl is a graduate of the Stanford University Graduate School of Business Executive Program for Non-Profit Leaders. She also earned a Masters of Public Health from the University of California at Berkeley, a Master's Degree in Special Education from Ball State University and a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science from Purdue University.

I first met Sheryl when she worked for the County of San Mateo. A friend of mine gave birth to a child with Down syndrome and was told by her doctors that she would be unable to raise the girl and was urged to turn her over to a residential treatment center. Sheryl advocated on behalf of the infant and found a suitable program at Poplar Center to assist the family. Sheryl was so impressed with the program at Poplar Center that she stayed involved. Shortly thereafter, Sheryl's heart and head convinced her to leave county government and accept an offer to lead Poplar Center.

Little did I know that this first encounter with Sheryl would lead to a lifetime friendship. I find inspiration in her leadership style and her entrepreneurial spirit within the non-profit community. In her retirement, Sheryl is primed to continue her world travels, read and hike more and is delightfully planning her daughter's wedding, with dreams of becoming a grandma. Her co-workers will miss her energy, warmth and ability to think outside the box. They will miss her daily example of unconditional love toward her clients and friends.

Mr. Speaker, please join me in thanking Sheryl Young for being a public servant extraordinaire. Sheryl has changed lives for the better, including my own.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Dan Banks on the occasion of his 80th birthday. No matter what Dan takes on--professional or personal--he always gives it 110 percent. Take for example his third century bike ride he completed in May to celebrate his birthday: 100 miles through Napa County. He also continues his quest to become a Life Master at bridge. Dan's endurance and determination are awe-inspiring.

I've had the great honor and pleasure to call Dan and his wife Cynthia Schuman my treasured friends for more than a dozen years. Their wit, warmth and generosity enrich my life every day.

Dan was born in Sri Lanka and when he was seven years old his family moved to Madras, India, where his father worked for Standard Oil. They returned to Nashville, Tennessee, his mother's home, in 1941 during World War II.

Dan graduated from Sewanee Military Academy, earned his BA in History and English from Yale, became a member of the coveted and secretive Skull & Bones Society, completed his training with the United States Marine Corps, and finally earned his MBA at Stanford University in 1961. He spent two years in the Marine Corps as a First Lieutenant and was stationed in Japan. While going back and forth to Asia his eyes were opened to San Francisco where he landed his first real job as an assistant buyer for Macy's. He met his first wife Sandra at Macy's and she helped him make it through business school at Stanford.

Dan is a thoughtful and ethical man. He pursued a successful career as an investment banker in San Francisco and hasn't left the city since. Dan fondly remembers raising money for corporate clients through public offerings, private placements, mergers and acquisitions. The act of raising money to fund an expanding business is a key step in creating jobs. Dan understood his role in creating opportunities for all. He points out that investment banking then was not what it became in the 90s. The deals and fees were much smaller, he says. ``My favorite client, Nordstrom's, initial public offering was $21 million, not the hundreds of millions one might expect today. After a long and productive career, he retired in 1993.

The 1980s were a difficult time for Dan and his family. Sandra was diagnosed with breast cancer and died in 1989. He calls that period a bookend to that phase of his life, but it also brought new beginnings.

In 1991, Dan met his wonderful wife Cynthia and they married the following year. Dan has always valued the arts and developed a deep appreciation for opera while he was stationed in Okinawa. He invested a tremendous amount of energy and passion into his role as a Trustee of the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco for eight years.

For the last two decades Cynthia and he have focused on their beautiful family of their four children--Pamela Banks Joyce, Tom Banks, Darrell Benatar and Denise Benatar--and eight grandchildren--Colin, Sandra, Michael, Taylor, Isabel, Maya, Trevor and Parker. It is best to cite Dan's own words to illustrate his optimism and outlook on life. ``We live in one of the most beautiful places on earth,'' he says, ``surrounded by those who love us and thank our lucky stars for each successive day.''

Mr. Speaker, I ask the House of Representatives to rise with me to honor Dan Banks, an extraordinary man. I thank my lucky stars for his wisdom and friendship each successive day.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the 10th annual San Mateo County Disaster Preparedness Day on this day, Saturday, June 7, 2014.

This event grew out of the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, which devastated southeast Louisiana on August 29, 2005. The Nation watched in horror as Americans were waving for help from the roofs of their homes surrounded by water. Hurricane Katrina became the costliest natural disaster and one of the five deadliest hurricanes in U.S. history. I couldn't help but wonder what would happen here in the Bay Area if a major earthquake hit. As all of us know, it's not a question of if, but when.

We convened a small group of leaders on September 11, 2004 to discuss disaster preparedness in our county. From this meeting arose the first countywide disaster preparedness event to educate residents. San Mateo County Supervisor Adrienne Tissier and Supervisor Don Horsley created such a stir in the community that when event day dawned, about 5,000 individuals attended. They learned directly from first responders giving emergency demonstrations, and that first year there were 40 exhibitor booths and numerous emergency vehicles. Through sponsorships by local businesses and community partners, we were able to hand out 1,000 emergency preparedness backpacks to the first attendees and feed all attendees complimentary lunches. It was a true community event.

Every year since then, the San Mateo County Disaster Preparedness Day has taken place at locations throughout the county, including South San Francisco High School, the USGS campus in Menlo Park and at the Event Center. Tens of thousands have been trained. Many of those who attend are young people and students. Disaster Preparedness Day offers families a teaching moment--a time to reflect upon what will happen to each family member if communication is cut off or mobility restricted. As mothers and fathers instruct their young children in how to be safe but not frightened, and as emergency responders offer teens their first exposure to adult-like duties, such as first aid and CPR, you can almost watch the fabric of the community being woven right before your eyes.

On the 10th anniversary of this important day, we continue our tradition of presenting, during the opening ceremony, flags by the San Mateo County Sheriff Department Honor Guard and a wreath dedicated to the lives that

have been lost due to disasters. We also continue to offer a free CPR course for attendees plus explanations of hospital care during an emergency, and instructions on how to store food, currency and water in safe places. Experts on earthquakes, fires and floods explain likely scenarios and often the local fire departments give detailed, localized explanations to their own residents.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the House of Representatives to rise with me to honor the 10th annual Disaster Preparedness Day in San Mateo County. No one wants to experience a disaster, but everyone must be prepared for one. It has been said that practice makes perfect. In San Mateo County, we can never hope to be perfect in our response to disaster, but everyone knows that we practice because we love our families, our community and our neighborhoods, and we are determined to be prepared.

I have an amendment at the desk, Madam Chair.

Madam Chair, last Friday, the President signed Executive Order 13669, which amended the Manual for Courts-Martial. This order delivers a significant blow to an already broken military justice system that will further revictimize servicemembers brave enough to come forward and report that they have been sexually assaulted.

Specifically contained in this executive order is a provision that makes Military Rules of Evidence 412 admissible in article 32 preliminary proceedings. This particular rule of evidence outlines when previous sexual history is admissible in court-martial proceedings and is currently applied to make all sorts of demeaning and irrelevant innuendos about a victim's previous sexual history admissible in courts-martial. Now, mind you, rape shield laws have been passed by virtually every State in the Union, and the question I have is why should servicemembers be considered second-class citizens in this country?

Shockingly, this order doubles down on this harmful rule and allows the sexual history to be admissible in preliminary hearings. What is even worse, under the order, the convening authority will be able to read and consider evidence deemed inadmissible by the article 32 hearing. The military has clearly learned nothing from the Wilkerson case in Aviano, Italy.

You maybe remember that General Franklin, the convening authority, justified overturning a court-martial jury that convicted Wilkerson of having sexually assaulted a woman, and even though he was convicted by five colonels, peers of his, the general was able to look at inadmissible evidence that the judge had ruled out of order and consider that in overturning the decision.

This amendment will prohibit funds to implement the component of Executive Order 13669 to prevent this harmful and wrongheaded provision to go into effect. This order usurps and reverses the progress that, in fact, this Congress has been making in reforming article 32 proceedings, and I hope my colleagues will support the amendment.

I yield to the gentleman from Indiana.

I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey.

That is correct.

I thank the gentleman.

I thank the gentleman.

Well, Madam Chair, with that, I thank my colleagues for recognizing the importance of this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the world's longest running musical revue that is politically incorrect, brilliant and hilarious. Beach Blanket Babylon has drawn sold-out audiences in its hometown San Francisco for 40 years and isn't showing any signs of slowing down or getting old. The New York Times is right to call Beach Blanket Babylon ``no less a part of San Francisco than the Golden Gate Bridge or Coit Tower.''

Every performance of Beach Blanket Babylon takes the audience on a fast-paced journey around the world with Snow White on her search for Prince Charming. She encounters an always-changing cast of characters from politics and pop culture. Everybody who is anybody has been on stage: President Barack Obama, the Queen of England, Lady Gaga, Tina Turner, Prince, Hillary Clinton, Justin Bieber, Elvis and da Mayor Willie Brown have all endured sarcastic interpretations of current events.

I fell in love with the show the first time I saw it, in part, of course, because of the outrageous hats. These creations range from a giant heart made of red curls to the Skyline of San Francisco with a growing Transamerica Pyramid to a five tier wedding cake. Balancing those heavy and top-heavy sculptures is no easy task for the performers. They wear braces on their hips and shoulders to distribute the weight. The mechanical hats are so heavy that they are attached to stands that roll on the stage and are hidden in the costumes of the performers.

I was told by a secret source that auditions for Beach Blanket Babylon are ``the craziest thing ever.'' They start out innocent enough: sing a song, say for example Stand by Your Man. Next thing you know, you'll be asked to sing it with a French bulldog accent or the personality of the Wicked Witch from the Wizard of Oz.

The late Steve Silver, with his sense for the absurd and whimsical imagination, was the genius who gave birth to Beach Blanket Babylon in 1974. The show grew out of street performances in North Beach, the famous Italian neighborhood of San Francisco. Since Silver's passing in 1995, his widow Jo Schuman Silver has produced the show and continued his vision and legacy.

In 1983, Beach Blanket Babylon did a command performance for the Queen of England and Prince Phillip at Davies Symphony Hall. In 1988, the de Young Museum presented an exhibition of 15 years of Beach Blanket Babylon hats and costumes. On the 20th anniversary, BBB performed at the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House and today, on the 40th anniversary, BBB is giving a special performance at San Francisco City Hall featuring current Mayor Ed Lee, former Mayor Willie Brown, former Secretary of State George Schultz and his wife Charlotte Schultz as Wonder Woman.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the House of Representatives to rise with me to honor the 40th anniversary of Beach Blanket Babylon, a San Francisco institution that has sharpened the minds and provided hearty belly laughs for over 6 million fans during 15,000 performances. I have enjoyed the show more than a dozen times and will continue to be a regular at this unique San Francisco theater experience. May it last for at least another 40 years!

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, I am joined in making this amendment by my colleague from Michigan (Mr. Benishek).

This particular amendment addresses the issue of veterans in this country who are living on the edge, the 1.4 million veterans who are living in poverty, the 900,000 who are on food stamps.

We do know there is a backlog that exists, even now, with veterans' disability claims from 572,000 currently around the country, some waiting as long as 200 days. This amendment is going to make them eligible for SNAP benefits under the disabled category, which will, for all intents and purposes, allow them to access food that is prepared and also deduct medical expenses for their status.

Filing for SNAP under the disabled status can provide much-needed assistance with minimal cost. For a veteran with war-related mental or physical injuries, this small amount of help can make an enormous difference.

Again, I want to thank Congressman Benishek for his cosponsorship of this amendment.

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

Mr. Chairman, as my colleague said, this is truly a simple amendment that holds our poor veterans harmless while we deal with the dysfunction in the VA. It is a compassionate and appropriate action by this House. I urge its passage.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

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

I rise in support of H. Res. 608, introduced by Congresswoman Lois Capps, which is a bipartisan resolution to offer condolences to the Isla Vista and University of California, Santa Barbara communities, to mourn the victims and offer support to their families.

It condemns the senseless rampage and urges a dialogue on ``the Nation's mental health care system, anger, firearms laws, harmful attitudes towards women.''

The resolution honors law enforcement and emergency personnel for their response to the attack and continues the commitment of ``working to help prevent tragedies like this from happening again.''

The rampage and mass shooting that left six UC Santa Barbara students dead and 13 others injured in Isla Vista on May 23 was perpetrated by a deeply troubled man, with violent tendencies, who planned for months to kill as many as he could before the tragic day unfolded.

Despite warnings from his parents to police and a subsequent law enforcement check a few weeks before the murders, Elliot Rodger was able to cleverly ward off police by passing off the warnings as a ``misunderstanding.''

Police said, later, that Rodger did not meet the criteria for an involuntary hold. He legally purchased more than 400 rounds of ammunition and three semiautomatic pistols over the course of months before his rampage.

In the months leading up to the shooting, Elliot Rodger posted numerous videos and comments on social media sites detailing his frustrations with women and his hatred of them.

He made such comments as:

My orchestration of the day of retribution is my attempt to

do everything in my power to destroy everything I cannot

have. All of those beautiful girls I've desired so much in my

life, but can never have because they despise and loathe me,

I will destroy.

He said he would also eliminate the men who had better luck with women than he did.

Rodger, distressingly, joins a long list of mass killers that have haunted this country in recent years at grim scenes, including Sandy Hook, Virginia Tech, Aurora, Tucson, a Walmart in Las Vegas, and now in Oregon, just minutes ago.

Rodger shares three common denominators with these other mass murderers: easy access to guns, a history of mental illness, and clear warning signs that he wanted to carry out violent acts. Together, the five lone killers left a staggering 82 people dead and 114 others injured and scarred.

The Sandy Hook killer had serious mental health issues. The man who shot Representative Gabby Giffords had dropped out of school after his college required a mental health evaluation.

The Virginia Tech killer had been investigated by the university for stalking and had been declared mentally ill by a Virginia special justice. The Isla Vista shooter also had a long history of mental illness.

What it is going to take, colleagues?

Like many other mass shooters, he showed clear signs that he was extremely dangerous and planned to kill, but these five massacres are only a fraction of the mass shootings Americans have endured in a short span.

Between January 2009 and September 2013, there were 93 mass shootings--almost two per month--that occurred in 35 States, in a nearly 5-year period.

Is the problem too many guns? Is it mental health? Is it guns in the wrong hands?

The answer to all these questions is yes. We know what needs to be done. We may not agree on every solution to reduce gun violence, but Americans, outraged by our inability to get anything done on this issue, are waiting for us to come to our senses and to act.

The threshold for taking someone against their will for psychiatric evaluation needs to be reviewed. Police need better mental health training. It must become easier to intervene when there are risks.

The prevailing majority of individuals with a mental health problem aren't violent, but we should have the tools to respond to the smaller number who show clear violent tendencies and evidence that they are preparing to act on it.

Richard Martinez, the father of slain 20-year-old Christopher Michaels-Martinez, tearfully pleaded for people to

stop feeling sorry for him after the massacre. His words ring in my ear all the time:

I don't care about your sympathy. I'm going to ask every

person I can find to send a postcard to every politician they

think of with 3 words on it: not one more.

People are looking for something to do. I'm asking people

to stand up for something. Enough is enough.

One more mass killing is too many, and Congress is culpable for not taking action. We say never again, but it sounds like an empty promise because we do nothing.

I thank Congresswoman Capps for offering this thoughtful and important resolution. We need to do so much more, and her bringing this resolution to our attention gives us the opportunity to draw together and, hopefully, to come up with something to do.

With that, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague and friend, Mrs. Capps, for her strong message.

I yield 5 minutes to my good friend and colleague from California (Mr. Honda).

Mr. Speaker, I, too, have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close.

I would hate to think that we will have one of these resolutions on the House floor week after week because we choose to do nothing. There are 32 people who will die today due to gunshot wounds, and there are 32 who will die tomorrow and 32 the next day. We seem to somehow be inured to what is going on around us. Let us respect those who have died and those who have been injured, and let us take steps to do something this year.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this rule.

Here are the facts, Members: We have a crisis in the military when it comes to sexual assault cases. We have a 50 percent increase in the number of persons filing claims for sexual assault in the military as a result of the most recent study.

Here are the facts, Members: There are more than 200 Members in this House right now who support taking sexual assault cases out of the chain of command, and yet we do not have the ability to have a vote on the floor of this House on whether or not Members of this House support taking sexual assault cases out of the chain of command and putting them in the hands of a chief prosecutor, who has legal training.

Members, the elephant is in this room. It is time for us to have the guts to stand up and be counted on whether or not we want all members of the military to be safe or only those who do not file claims for sexual assault.

Thank you to the ranking member and to Chairman McKeon for this opportunity.

Mr. Chairman, I just want to highlight three amendments that have been accepted en bloc. One is the public release of substantiated reports of misconduct. These reports that show substantiated misconduct by the highest-ranking officials in the Department of Defense are only released when there is a leak or there are tips to reporters. It is incumbent upon us to make sure that the public knows when the Department's highest level officials commit misconduct and shouldn't depend on leaks for accountability.

The second amendment is a significant amendment for women-owned businesses in this country. For 20 years now, we have set a governmentwide goal of 5 percent. For 20 years, we have not met that 5 percent. This particular amendment takes away the extra obstacle that is imposed on women-owned businesses and not on others when sole-source contracting is provided.

The third amendment provides for breast cancer research. The Interagency Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Coordinating Committee has recommended prioritizing prevention and intensifying the study of chemical and physical factors. This amendment urges that implementation.

A 2009 study at Walter Reed Medical Center found that breast cancer rates among military women are significantly higher--in fact, 20 to 40 percent higher--than they are in women in similar age groups. This is also a problem at Camp Lejeune, where we found that 85 men also were impacted by breast cancer because of contaminated drinking water.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the 22nd anniversary of the Taiwanese American Cultural Festival that will be held on May 10, 2014 in San Francisco. The festival brings together an estimated 8,000 people from all over the world to enjoy delicious Taiwanese food, be entertained by world-renowned Taiwanese American performers and to experience the vibrancy of Taiwanese culture.

The festival highlights the national celebration of Taiwanese American Heritage Week during the month of May, as proclaimed by former President Bill Clinton in 1993. Since its inception, it has grown into a landmark event for the Bay Area recognizing the contributions of Taiwanese Americans.

Taiwanese Americans are firmly woven into the fabric of our community and serve our country on all levels of government, from being members of the President's Cabinet, to highly respected business leaders and locally-elected officials. Scholars and leaders such as former U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of California Goodwin Liu, Academy-Award winning director Ang Lee, co- founder of Yahoo Jerry Yang, and Jeremy Lin who became the first Taiwanese-American in the NBA, have all made lasting contributions to our society and share the spirit of the Asian American Pacific Islander culture.

The Taiwanese American population has grown significantly since the 1970s and brought large numbers of physicians, health professionals, scientists and professors to the United States. In the late 80s and 90s, the Silicon Valley tech boom drew even more Taiwanese immigrants. Of the between 500,000 to one million Taiwanese Americans living in the United States, 49% live in California, according to the 2010 U.S. Census.

As the representative of one of the largest Asian American populations in the country, I've experienced first-hand the warmth, generosity and inclusiveness of the AAPI community. Every year, the Taiwanese American Cultural Festival enhances social interactions and cultural exchanges and strengthens the partnership between the United States and Taiwan.

The festival is entirely organized, run, and funded by volunteers and non-profit organizations, in particular the Taiwanese American Professionals--San Francisco (TAP-SF) and the Taiwanese American Federation of Northern California (TAFNC).

Mr. Speaker, I ask the House of Representatives to rise with me in honor of the 2014 Taiwanese American Cultural Festival. May it continue to bring joy and cultural enrichment to our community for decades to come.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the staff and volunteers of Samaritan House in San Mateo, California, who for 40 years have given shelter and dignity to individuals and families in need.

Samaritan House is a haven and lifeline for more than 12,000 members of our community, providing shelter, food, clothing, health care, worker resources and counseling services for low income families. Today, the dedicated staff of 77 and over 2,000 volunteers serve 145,000 meals a year, serve 10,000 people a year at two clinics, counsel 500 people a month and have 90 shelter beds to house the homeless.

In 1974, Samaritan House was created by Cora Clemons, a public health nurse, in partnership with the city of San Mateo. It was a referral agency for people with basic social services. In 1985 John Kelly, a Catholic priest for 25 years, became the executive director and earned the nickname ``Father of Samaritan House.'' Under his leadership for 14 years, the agency was transformed and vastly expanded. It merged with the Hospitality Family Kitchen, which had been established by concerned citizens a year before, and started providing direct services, including food, clothing and a new Thanksgiving program. Shortly after that, the food pantry opened and then Samaritan House moved into two mobile units on Humboldt Street in San Mateo. With the expansion, Samaritan House was able to help more people and also grew its number of volunteers. In 1989, it hosted its first Volunteer Community Recognition event.

In 1990, San Mateo High School students helped propel the food program to its next level by launching the annual food drive. With the food program well established, Samaritan House focused on expanding its services to include medical care. The Free Medical Clinic opened in a few rooms at Samaritan House in 1992. In 1998, the Breast Care program was created and in 2001, the second Free Medical Clinic opened on 5th Avenue in Redwood City. In 2004, the first Free Medical Clinic moved to a new facility on West 39th Avenue in San Mateo.

Samaritan House started offering services to the homeless in 1987. In 2000 it opened Safe Harbor Shelter on property next to San Francisco International Airport. The facility was renovated six years later and now offers 90 emergency shelter beds.

In 2009, Samaritan House moved into its current home on Pacific Boulevard. The facility has a state-of-the-art industrial kitchen and food pantry, clothing distribution center, case management and counseling services and administrative services. It's a magnificent home for an organization doing magnificent work.

All of the services at Samaritan House are free, but clients are held accountable and

have to demonstrate that they are making progress in finding jobs, housing and becoming self-sufficient. While there are emergency assistance programs to help families in crises, the ultimate goal is to help them to help themselves by empowering them with financial education, asset building, income tax assistance, enrollment in benefit programs, and counseling.

From 2001 to 2013 Kitty Lopez led Samaritan House as its executive director. Always with a smile on her face, she placed Samaritan House on a solid footing, expanded its efforts to help those in need and kept operations orderly and safe. In June, Bart Charlow will take the reins as the new CEO and will continue the legacy of this outstanding non- profit organization. The success of Samaritan House is also due to the superb guidance of the board of directors: Board President Patricia Hsiu, Jay Strauss, Mollie Marshall, Timothy K. Roake, Ralph Armeio, Todd Barrett, Maude N. Brezinski, Lucretia-del J. Broussard, Joan Cassman, Nisha Chaudry, Richard L. Davis, William S. Freeman, Robert Grassilli, Natashia Lopez-Gomez, J. Frank McCabe, Alex Moldanado, Allison Nuschy-Lenat, Judi Powell, Carl A. Serrato, Jason Ting, Trisha Vicario and James Whitehead.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the House of Representatives to rise with me to honor the 40th anniversary of Samaritan House in San Mateo, California, an institution that has lifted up thousands of residents and put them on a path to hope, independence and productivity.

I thank the ranking member for his leadership and for the opportunity to say a few words here on the floor.

Mr. Speaker, I am not here to defend Lois Lerner today, but I am here to defend the Constitution and every American's right to assert the Fifth Amendment so as not to incriminate themselves, and every single Member of this body should be as committed to doing the same thing. I am also here to defend the integrity of the committee and the rules of that committee.

Lois Lerner pled the Fifth Amendment before our committee, and she has professed her innocence, pure and simple. Thirty independent legal experts have said that the proceedings were constitutionally deficient to bring a contempt proceeding. They were constitutionally deficient because the chair did not overrule Ms. Lerner's Fifth Amendment assertion and order her to answer the questions. And as long as that deficiency is there, there is no reason to move forward with that effort today.

But let's move on to the bigger picture: Every single 501(c)(4) that was in the queue before the IRS could have self-certified; they didn't even need to be in that queue. So whether or not there was a list of progressive organizations and conservative organizations that they were using to somehow get to the thousands of applications that they had, they could have moved aside and self-certified.

There have been 39 witnesses before this committee. There have been 530 pages of documents. There is no smoking gun. But the other side is locked and loaded. They are just shooting blanks.

Madam Chairwoman, I have an amendment desk.

Madam Chair, I rise today because many Americans think Congress has unchecked power. They think we know how to make laws but don't know how to follow them. They think of us not as the House of Representatives but as the House of Hypocrites. I have spent a lot of time here on the floor speaking about sexual harassment and the epidemic of rape in the military and on college campuses. It is just as important that we bring the same scrutiny to our own House.

The American people expect us to conduct ourselves in a manner befitting the responsibilities and duties that we hold as Members of Congress--not as if we are freshmen in a frat house. While they are the exception, not the rule, it is an embarrassment to this institution that some Members have ``sexted'' teenage pages on the floor. It is unacceptable that others have groped and inappropriately touched their staff members. This behavior is illegal and unacceptable in the private sector, and it is illegal and unacceptable here.

This is not a Democratic issue, and this is not a Republican issue. This is a House issue. Just recall former Congressman Bob Filner. He pled guilty to charges of felony false imprisonment for sexually harassing a former aide in the San Diego's mayor's office. When Mr. Filner was ranking member on the Veterans' Affairs Committee in the House, he allegedly sexually harassed several female members of the Armed Forces who were rape survivors. But none of the women ever said a word while Mr. Filner was still here--not one.

If you work for a private company in my home State in California, it is likely you have had several hours of sexual harassment training to identify and prevent sexual harassment in the workplace because it is the law. It is also the law in California that State legislators and their staff participate in a mandatory sexual harassment training every year. But that is not the case here in the House.

In fact, congressional Office of Compliance staff say that when new Members go through their 3-day training, they are mostly counseling empty seats by the end of day 3.

Sexual harassment training is already mandatory for the executive branch agencies, and it has proven to result in a significant reduction in the number of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims. But this training for Congress is only voluntary. The congressional Office of Compliance provides sexual harassment training to offices, but it is not typically requested until after an office reports an incident.

It is time we take advantage of the valuable training the office provides. My staff and I actually have taken this 1\1/2\ hour training, and as much as I know about sexual harassment, I learned additional things during that training.

Madam Chairwoman, my amendment is simple. It appropriates $500,000 in additional funds to the Office of Compliance to be used to enhance sexual harassment training programs by implementing a Web-based platform. These funds will also be used for outreach to inform House office employees what their rights are, the various forms sexual harassment takes, and where to go if they experience sexual harassment. It is time to send a new message: that we are here to serve and that we are not above the law.

I reserve the balance of my time.

I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlelady from New York (Mrs. Lowey).

I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Li Moon, an outstanding educator with the Hillsborough City School District for 22 years, who has changed the lives of hundreds of children, including my own daughter. Mrs. Moon is being honored with the Community Care Award from the Associated Parents Group.

Mrs. Moon is a Resource Specialist and the Data Advisor at North Elementary School. She served as Teacher-in-Charge for twelve years. I can say without fear of contradiction that she is one of the most effective, empathetic and innovative educators I have known. She believes that all children can succeed and will not stop until she finds what will make a student succeed. Her patience and compassion are inexhaustible.

Li Moon, a native of New York City, was a University Scholar at New York University. She received her BA in English in 1971, graduating cum laude and earning a membership in the Phi Beta Kappa Society. While teaching at Rivendell School, a small alternative school in San Francisco, she attended San Francisco State University, graduating in 1991 with her Multiple Subject Teaching Credential, MA in Special Education and Educational Therapist Certificate. The following year she started her teaching career at North School as a Resource Specialist, simultaneously continuing her private practice as an Educational Therapist for several years. She has also taught several courses and led numerous workshops in the Special Education Department at San Francisco State University and has been a Guest Lecturer at UC Berkeley Extension.

Mrs. Moon has a long and impressive list of training and credentials, including a Behavior Intervention Case Manager Certificate (BICM), Autism Authorization Training and English Language Development (ELD) and Specially Designed Academic Instruction in English (SDAIE) Certification. Her professional development includes training through Intel Math, the Columbia Math Camp, summer institutes at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (including Data Wise), IEP Skills Facilitation, TEACCH, Schools Attuned Profile Advisor training, Lindamood-Bell Phonological Sequencing Training, Project Read Phonology and Junior Great Books Discussion Leader Training. She received her Board Certification in Educational Therapy in 2001, is a former editor of The Educational Therapist and is currently the Chair of the San Francisco Association of Educational Therapists Study Group.

As you can surmise from this list, Mrs. Moon is always working on improving and expanding her skills so that she can use them to make her students thrive and succeed.

Her talents have not gone unnoticed in our community. Mrs. Moon deservedly received the school district's TONY and Teacher Leadership awards in 2001.

Mrs. Moon and her husband of 40 years, Jason Stillwater, live in San Francisco. They

have four children--Zachary Howard, Randall Conner, Moonwater and Tai Stillwater--and six grandchildren. In her spare time, Mrs. Moon enjoys reading, yoga, traveling and playing the flute.

Mr. Speaker, I ask the House of Representatives to rise with me to honor Li Moon, who has dedicated her life and career to make Hillsborough's school the best they can be for our children. Plato once said, ``The direction in which education starts a man will determine his future life.'' Mrs. Moon has put hundreds of men and women on the path to success. My daughter today is a vibrant and successful sophomore, thanks in part to Mrs. Moon, an exceptional teacher and human being.