Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the life of service of Richard ``RJ'' Krause as well as that of his brother, Russell Krause.

RJ Krause has been a well-known figure in the East St. Louis and surrounding community, particularly for his tremendous work for youth sports.

A product of East St. Louis parochial and public schools, RJ graduated from East St. Louis Senior High School (East Side) and went on to Southwestern Illinois College (then Belleville Area College) and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. RJ's early interest in serving area youth made a career in education a natural fit and he would go on to teach for 38 years before retiring in 2010.

RJ began his coaching career in 1964, the same year he started high school. He has coached most sports, including basketball, baseball, softball, football, tennis and cheerleading. On February 10, 2004, RJ coached in his 6,000th athletic event, a tremendous accomplishment that bears witness to his tireless dedication to youth sports.

In 1979 RJ founded the RJ Krause All-Stars sports club. Through this organization, a generation of mostly at-risk boys and girls has had the opportunity to develop their athletic talents through organized sports as well as going on educational field trips and many other wholesome activities.

While teaching and coaching, RJ has found time to make many other significant contributions to his community. He has served as precinct committeeman, county board member and township clerk.

RJ's list of awards is long, including the Kimmel Community Service Award, the St. Vincent de Paul Society Volunteer of the Year Award, the St. Louis Sports Commission Award and, most recently, the East St. Louis NAACP Stellar Life Achievement Award.

Through most all of RJ's lifetime of service, he has had a constant companion who has worked just as tirelessly for the youth of our area, his brother, Russell Krause. Russell has also received his share of local awards, including being nominated for the Dr. King Award, being named a Hardee's Hometown Hero and recognition from the St. Louis Sports Commission.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring two champions for youth sports and the St. Louis Metro East community, Richard ``RJ'' Krause and his brother, Russell Krause and in wishing both of them and their family the very best in the future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the esteemed career of my friend and colleague Ralph Hall.

Today, Ralph became the oldest known House Member to cast a recorded floor vote. Also the oldest serving member of the U.S. House of Representatives and dean of the Texas delegation, Ralph has charmed friend and foe alike with his good humor and demeanor.

A man of incredible integrity and energy, Ralph has served his district with distinction in Congress for over three decades. A lawyer by trade, Ralph's career in public service began as a County Judge of Rockwall County, Texas, and he went onto serve in the Texas Senate.

I have served with Ralph on the Science, Space, and Technology Committee and have appreciated his careful attention to the priorities of the Committee members and the science community. As an example, Ralph and I have worked closely to educate Committee members on the benefits of clean coal technologies. Like Illinois, Texas relies on coal for energy production, and our districts and the nation will benefit from technologies that can cleanly and efficiently utilize our most abundant source of energy. I am thankful to Ralph for his commitment to ensuring coal remains a part of a diverse energy portfolio.

Further, I was proud to work with Ralph on important Committee measures, such as reauthorization of the America COMPETES Act, which is critical to ensuring America remains a leader in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education.

Finally, proving time and time again that age has no bounds, I believe Ralph's most daring feat was his 10,000 foot drop from an airplane last August, skydiving at the age of 89. I admire Ralph's courage for taking that leap and see regularly how his bravery and nerve benefit those he serves. He fights daily for the interests of his constituents and they have continued to affirm his contributions to their community for the last 16 terms of Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in an expression of appreciation to Congressman Ralph Hall for his years of dedicated service to the U.S. House and Texas, and to wish him and his family the very best in the future.

I thank the ranking member for yielding, and I thank him for his kind words and his friendship, as well.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 1956, a bill that will protect U.S. airlines, their employees, and passengers from an overreaching law of the European Union that unfairly charges U.S. airlines for emissions in U.S. airspace on flights between the United States and Europe. The Obama administration has taken a strong stance against the EU's emission trading scheme on the grounds it is inconsistent with international aviation law and practice. Additionally, airlines and labor groups also oppose it because it will impose an unjustified cost on the industry and destroy American jobs.

I'm pleased to note that just yesterday, as you heard already, the European leaders said that they would suspend application of the ETS to international flights for a year, pending a global agreement on international emissions at the U.N. International

Civil Aviation Organization, but that announcement in no way weakens the case for passing this bill. We must send a strong message to the EU that, regardless of whether ICAO delivers on a deal on the EU's timetable, the U.S. Government opposes the EU's unilateral local solution to a global problem.

This bill is similar to the bill that passed the House last year, a bill that I was pleased to cosponsor, along with Chairman Mica, Ranking Member Rahall, Chairman Petri, and 32 other Democratic and Republican Members. Similar to the House bill, this bill calls upon the Department of Transportation to prohibit U.S. airlines from participating in the emissions trading scheme. This bill further protects our national interest by ensuring that both airlines and U.S. taxpayers are held harmless from the emissions trading scheme.

I congratulate my friends Senator Thune and Senator McCaskill for having championed this legislation in the other body. This bill sends a strong message from Congress that we do not support what the EU is doing for a variety of reasons.

As I noted last year in our Aviation Subcommittee hearing on the emissions trading scheme, and again on the House floor when the House passed its own bill, climate change is a global problem that requires a global solution. Working through ICAO, the United States is committed to finding a global solution to address aviation emissions based on consensus. I'm optimistic that the global agreement can, in fact, be reached.

More than 20 other international partners have joined the United States in producing strong declarations calling on the EU to come back to the table and to work on an international plan.

At the same time, we must recognize that our own government and airlines are doing the right thing to reduce harmful carbon emissions. The FAA and the airline industry are investing billions of dollars in the NextGen air traffic upgrades, and the FAA plans to reduce emissions by 2 percent through these improvements. Further, U.S. airlines improved fuel efficiency by approximately 110 percent since 1978. From 2000 to 2009, U.S. carriers reduced fuel burn and carbon emissions by 15 percent while carrying 7 percent more passengers. NextGen will help aircraft operators save money and, in fact, save more than 1.4 billion gallons of fuel, cutting the carbon emissions by nearly 14 million tons by 2018.

Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to support this legislation. I urge my colleagues to support it.

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

I rise in support of H.R. 6586, to extend the application of certain space launch liability provisions through 2014.

First established by Congress as part of the Commercial Space Launch Act Amendments of 1988, the commercial space transportation risk- sharing liability and insurance regime is a vital program for the commercial space industry and has been extended five times since its original enactment.

The current extension expires on December 31 of this year, so it is important for Congress to act now so that there is sufficient time for this legislation to make its way to the President before the current authority expires.

Under the current three-tier regime, commercial space launch providers are required to purchase third-party liability insurance to compensate for maximum probable losses from third-party claims up to a level of $500 million. For claims above those maximum probable losses, the U.S. Government may pay successful liability claims up to $1.5 billion above that insured level subject to funds being appropriated by Congress for that purpose. Finally, for successful claims above the government indemnification, the launch providers assume responsibility for payment.

This risk-sharing regime has been vitally important for the development of a commercial space launch industry in the United States. Moreover, to date, the regime has not cost the U.S. Government a penny in third-party claims.

However, I would be remiss if I did not note some concerns about the program in its current form. Congress has not updated the program since its inception in 1988. This has resulted in an increased liability exposure for the U.S. taxpayer, and that exposure grows every year. I am concerned that taxpayer liability exposure is growing at the same time the industry and its associated insurance market is maturing. One would tend to think that the opposite should be the case. I hope that we can begin to address these issues before the next extension is necessary in 2014.

I want to thank Chairman Hall and Subcommittee Chairman Palazzo for working with us on this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers on our side.

I'd like to thank Chairman Hall for his services as chairman of the committee. He's a wonderful person. He has done a great job chairing the full committee, and he is one of the people that I'm going to miss the most here in this Congress, and my friend from California as well, and from Texas, and Chairman Palazzo.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the 25th anniversary of the founding of Helitech, and in congratulating Mr. William J. (Bill) Courtney, Founder, President and CEO.

Helitech was founded by Bill Courtney and a partner in 1987 as a concrete leveling company. Bill bought out his partner in 1992 and embarked on the course of building the company in his vision. A critical step was the addition of basement and foundation waterproofing and repair. Helitech began using the A.B. Chance Helical Pier Foundation Systems and has exclusive rights to use the system in its market. Helitech has also expanded with a Civil Construction Division.

From the humble beginnings with an office in the basement of Bill Courtney's home,

Helitech has experienced tremendous growth. They now have over 100 employees, operate in five States and had over $12 million in revenue last year.

Throughout the years, Helitech has won numerous awards, particularly from the Better Business Bureau and the homebuilders associations in the areas where it does business.

In building his business, Bill has always been committed both to his customers and to his employees. He has also been committed to giving back to his community and to many charitable causes. Although Bill does not like to draw attention to his charitable endeavors, there are many organizations that owe a debt of gratitude to Bill Courtney and to Helitech. The Special Olympics, the Poshard Foundation and the Women's Crisis Center in Belleville are benefactors and St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital officially recognized Helitech for 10 years of continuous contributions.

Family is also very important to Bill Courtney and tangible evidence of this is the location of the company headquarters on land where his family owned a farm. Several structures from the farm, though significantly modernized, are still in existence today as a reminder to Bill of his roots.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the 25th anniversary of Helitech, to congratulate Bill Courtney and all the employees and to wish them the very best for a bright and prosperous future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4158, to Confirm Full Ownership Rights for Certain United States Astronauts to Artifacts from the Astronauts' Space Missions Act.

H.R. 4158 preserves the rights of astronauts who served on the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo missions in the 1960s and 1970s, through the time of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Flight, to retain full and complete ownership of certain artifacts such as personal logs and flight manuals that were used in training or during their flights.

For many years, it was an accepted practice for astronauts to keep mementos of their training and flight missions.

However, confusion surrounding NASA's informal policies on artifacts have led to attempts to repossess those artifacts years later.

This has resulted in questions concerning the status of items that astronauts have had in their possession for years, if not decades, or donated to museums, universities, scholarship funds, and so forth.

I support this bill, because it clarifies that the ownership of those artifacts rests with the astronauts who served during those missions, while preserving the current policy that ownership of moon rocks and lunar material will continue to rest with the Federal Government.

Mr. Speaker, a few weeks ago, we lost an American hero, Neil Armstrong. He and his fellow astronauts fulfilled the dreams of a grateful nation by pushing the boundaries of space.

One small way to show our gratitude is by passing this bill. I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, today we mark the llth Anniversary of the September 11

attacks on the United States. While we have moved more than a decade beyond that tragedy, the attacks remain an indelible part of our memory. Truly, no one who lived through that day will ever forget it-- the horrendous loss of life, the bravery of our first responders, the sense of unity that followed--and it falls to us to ensure that future generations understand the magnitude of the event.

This is particularly so as other events impact our view of how we have reacted to 9/11. The capture and killing of Osama Bin Laden and the removal of our troops from Iraq can be seen as turn-the-corner moments in the war on terror, but the daily hard work of our military and intelligence community must continue--we must remain vigilant. I remember feeling that day and the days that followed that we were in uncharted territory as a nation. As a country and a society, we are learning as we go, adjusting and adapting to the new realities that 9/ 11 brought upon us and that have ensued since, such as the Arab Spring.

This process can be bumpy, and is ever changing, as we continue to weigh the appropriate balance in our security and foreign policy decisions. What is clear is that we continue to owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to our troops, who risk all in Afghanistan and elsewhere to protect our freedom, and our intelligence professionals, who are also on the front lines of our defense, making critical decisions that keep us safe every day.

More than anything, 11 years later, 9/11 underscores what it means to be an American, where we come together during even the toughest times, weather the storm and move forward. That is what 9/11 means to me, and that is the lesson that will endure for the ages, for all to see.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Garret Parker, a member of the Boys & Girls Club of Alton, Illinois, who was recently selected as the Boys & Girls Club Youth of the Year for the State of Illinois.

Garret Parker has been a member of the Boys & Girls Club of Alton for six years. While he has credited the Boys & Girls Club with providing him support and numerous opportunities, Garret has reciprocated by volunteering, coaching and mentoring younger members.

Garret has had to overcome several obstacles in his young life. Born with sickle cell anemia and chronic asthma, he has endured extensive medical treatment, including multiple blood transfusions. Garret's mother has battled cancer and is now doing well. Garret's positive resolve in meeting these life challenges is one of his noteworthy personal qualities that have earned this recognition.

Among Garret's volunteer activities are ringing bells for the Salvation Army fund drives, participating in Mississippi River and city-wide cleanup projects and helping out with activities at the Boys & Girls Club. He combines this with extracurricular activities in high school while maintaining a solid grade point average.

Garret looks forward to graduating from high school next year and hopes to go to college. He is currently looking at the University of Central Florida. Given his remarkable performance so far, it is apparent this young man has a bright future ahead of him.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Garret Parker, the Boys & Girls Club Youth of the Year for the State of Illinois, and in wishing him and his family the very best in the future.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and I rise in support of S. 1335, the Pilot's Bill of Rights.

I want to commend Senator Inhofe from Oklahoma for his leadership on this issue, as well as Chairman Petri and Congressman Bucshon, for bringing the bill to the floor in an expedited manner.

S. 1335 revises the process for the Federal Aviation Administration enforcement action against pilots, mechanics, and other airmen. The bill also directs the FAA to streamline important safety-related information provided to pilots before flight.

As I have said many times, the FAA must have the authority and resources necessary to keep the skies safe. To keep the skies safe, the FAA must use its enforcement power to take action, when appropriate, against pilots and other airmen who act in an unsafe manner. This bill does not weaken that authority; rather, it requires the FAA to hand over, at the earliest appropriate time, the evidence that could be used against pilots involved in enforcement actions, and it provides pilots with a new opportunity to test the FAA's enforcement orders in court. Additionally, the bill directs the FAA to streamline its publication of notices to pilots to ensure that they receive high priority and relevant safety information before flight.

This legislation is strongly supported by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and the general aviation community.

Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to support this bill authored by my friend, Senator Inhofe, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I support H.R. 3742. It was introduced by the gentleman from New Mexico, and it would designate the United States courthouse located at 100 North Church Street in Las Cruces, New Mexico, as the Edwin L. Mechem United States Courthouse.

Judge Edwin L. Mechem spent a lifetime in public service. Early in his career, he was a special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation during World War II and, later, a land surveyor for the U.S. Reclamation Service.

In 1947, Judge Mechem was elected to the New Mexico House of Representatives and went on to become a four-term Republican Governor of the State of New Mexico. Later, he was appointed to the United States Senate to represent the State of New Mexico.

In 1970, President Nixon appointed Judge Mechem as a Federal judge on the U.S. district court for the district of New Mexico, where he served for 32 years before he passed away in 2002.

Judge Mechem will be remembered for his commitment to public service and his distinguished service as a Federal judge.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support H.R. 3742, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I would ask my friend from Indiana if he has additional requests for time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge support of this legislation and yield back the balance of my time.

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

I rise in support of H.R. 3556, introduced by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Higgins).

The bill would designate the new United States courthouse in Buffalo, New York, as the ``Robert H. Jackson United States Courthouse''.

Associate Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson is considered one of the finest legal experts in American history.

He served in the U.S. Treasury Department and in several roles within the U.S. Department of Justice, including Attorney General. In 1938, Justice Jackson was appointed as the U.S. Solicitor General where he argued more than 30 cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 1941, Justice Jackson was appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court by President Franklin

D. Roosevelt. Justice Jackson served for 13 terms on the U.S. Supreme Court and in 1945, at the request of President Harry S. Truman, Justice Jackson took a leave of absence from the Supreme Court to serve as the United States Chief Prosecutor in the ``Nuremberg Trials'' where Nazi war criminals were tried.

He was admired for his work in addressing how these trials were organized, the standards of evidence, and the rights of all defendants, setting the stage for the development of modern international law.

Justice Jackson will be remembered for his outstanding work in the legal system and for his strong commitment to public service. Therefore, it is appropriate that the new United States courthouse in Buffalo, New York, be named in his honor.

I support this bill and encourage my colleagues to support H.R. 3556.

At this time, Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to my good friend, Congressman Higgins from New York.

Mr. Speaker, I urge support of this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4347 designates the United States courthouse located at 709 West Ninth Street in Juneau, Alaska, as the Robert Boochever United States Courthouse.

Mr. Speaker, Judge Boochever will always be remembered for his outstanding legal expertise and his extraordinary role in the Juneau community, making it appropriate for the new United States courthouse in Juneau, Alaska, to be designated as the Robert Boochever United States Courthouse.

Mr. Speaker, I support this legislation and encourage my colleagues to support the legislation and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the 175th Anniversary of the City of Alton, Illinois.

Among the first Europeans to explore the area later settled as Alton, Illinois were Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet in 1673. The Illiniwek tribes had lived in the area for many years and a Native American drawing, the Piasa, a fierce-looking bird that was painted on the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River was first documented by Fr. Marquette. The drawing has been reproduced many times and the Piasa can still be seen on the bluffs today.

Situated on the banks of the Mississippi, between its confluences with the Missouri and Illinois Rivers, Alton was a natural location for development as a river town in the early 19th Century. Rufus Easton, a St. Louis businessman who ran a ferry operation at Alton named the town after his eldest son in 1818. Because of its excellent location, the community experienced tremendous growth and was incorporated as a city in 1837.

1837 was the year of another important event in Alton's history, although hardly a highlight. Abolitionist printer, Elijah Lovejoy, who had moved from St. Louis to Alton because of increasing tensions in the slave state of Missouri, was killed by a mob in Alton as he attempted to protect his printing press. Other significant historical notes of Alton in the mid-19th Century included being a major stop on the Underground Railroad and the site of a Union prison for Confederate soldiers, many of whom died there due to rampant disease. Alton was also the location for the final Lincoln-Douglas debate, in 1858.

Famous people from Alton include renowned jazz musician Miles Davis and Robert Wadlow, known as the ``Alton Giant,'' and still the tallest human in recorded history at 8 ft. 11 inches tall.

The 20th Century saw an increase in manufacturing in the Alton area, with steel, glass and cardboard boxes among the leading industries that provided employment for Alton residents. As Alton has expanded and diversified, it has always remained tied to the river. The area is referred to as Riverbend because of the arc of the Mississippi at Alton. The National Great Rivers Museum and the National Great Rivers Research and Education Center, both near the Melvin Price Lock and Dam at Alton, are two recent additions that promote the study and appreciation of the rivers that gave rise to many cities like Alton.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the 175th Anniversary of the City of Alton, Illinois and to wish them the very best for a bright and prosperous future.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in opposition to yet another effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Passed by the House and the Senate, signed by the president and confirmed by the Supreme Court, I do not support repeal of this law.

While the Affordable Care Act is not perfect, it has had tremendous positive impacts already, eliminating pre-existing condition restrictions, allowing young adults to remain on their parents' insurance until age 26, and making prescription drugs more affordable for our seniors. For too long our system has needed to be reworked to achieve greater savings and improved patient outcomes. Now that the Supreme Court has found this law constitutional, we need to concentrate on implementing it as efficiently as possible. The statistics speak for themselves:

105 million Americans no longer have a lifetime limit on their coverage.

As many as 17 million children with pre-existing conditions are no longer threatened by denial of coverage.

6.6 million young adults up to age 26 are covered under their parents' policies. Without that coverage nearly half of them would be uninsured.

5.1 million seniors in the ``donut hole'' have already saved over $3.2 billion on prescription drugs.

Madam Speaker, rather than practicing partisan politics, we owe it to our constituents to work together to ensure the Affordable Care Act continues to make health care more affordable and accessible for millions of Americans. Today's vote is another effort to take us in the wrong direction, and I urge my colleagues to oppose it.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the conference agreement on H.R. 4348, the Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2012.

As a conferee on the surface transportation bill, I am glad an agreement was reached and the bill is before us today.

I am pleased that Illinois' share of federal highway formula funding increased to 3.67%, the highest level that our state has received in over 15 years.

In addition, the conference report does not include language that would allow bigger and heavier trucks on our roads and bridges, but instead requires the U.S. DOT to conduct a comprehensive, national study.

While the surface transportation conference report is not perfect, it does provide certainty to State DOTs, transit agencies, and contractors that will help create and sustain jobs for out-of-work Americans and keeps construction workers on the job for the rest of the season.

I commend Chairman Mica, Ranking Member Rahall, Subcommittee Chairman Duncan and Ranking Member DeFazio for their leadership in helping to bring this conferenc report before us today.

Finally, this legislation does not include residual risk provisions in the National Flood Insurance program that would have required the purchase of flood insurance for communities behind certified levees. A strong bi-partisan effort prevailed to remove these provisions from this legislation, and I commend Congressman Shimkus, Senator Durbin, and Senator Kirk for working with me on this matter.

I urge my colleagues to support the conference report and yield back the balance of my time.