Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I regret to inform our Members that our former Member from Illinois, George Sangmeister, has died.

Congressman Sangmeister served the people of Illinois in the 11th and 4th Congressional Districts from 1989 to 1995, when he retired. George was a wonderful person and served with honor and distinction in this body.

Madam Speaker, I yield to my friend from Illinois (Mr. Weller).

Madam Speaker, I ask our colleagues to join us in a moment of silence for our former colleague, George Sangmeister.

Announcement By the Speaker Pro Tempore

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H. Res. 640, a resolution honoring the United States Transportation Command (US TRANSCOM) on its 20th Anniversary at Scott AFB, IL. I would like to thank Chairman Skelton and Ranking Member Hunter for working with me to bring this to the floor expeditiously.

TRANSCOM is responsible for creating and implementing first-class global deployment and distribution solutions to support the President, Secretary of Defense, and our Combatant Commander assigned missions.

Scott AFB, home of US TRANSCOM, Air Mobility Command, the Surface Deployment and Distribution Command, the 375th AW, the

932nd AW, and the 126th ARW, among other units, have made countless contributions to the OEF/OIF.

Since Oct 10, 2001, the US TRANSCOM has moved over 4 million passengers, almost 4.654 billion gallons of fuel, over 9.4 million tons of cargo, over 88,000 airlift missions, over 760 ship loads, more than 164,000 rail car shipments, and approximately 2 million CONUS truck shipments.

They have done all of this with only 2 fatalities in the aeromedical system. Those statistics demonstrate a remarkable commitment to excellence and an indication of true leadership, strong spirit and continued sacrifice.

Each day, the people at TRANSCOM and Scott AFB and their families and friends, are asked to sacrifice for the good of our country. They make that sacrifice without hesitation and should be commended for it.

Mr. Speaker, as we mark TRANSCOM's 20th anniversary at Scott AFB, I would like to commend General Norton Schwartz and the men and women who serve with him. It is truly an honor to have this command at Scott AFB and I look forward to countless more years of this unique partnership. I urge my colleagues to join me in honoring TRANSCOM and supporting this resolution.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

I thank the Rules Committee for making this amendment in order and thank Chairman Frank as well. My amendment is a commonsense, simple amendment that will bring fairness to FEMA's remapping process. If my amendment is adopted, FEMA would not be able to adjust premium rates or require the purchase of flood insurance until all remapping has been completed for an entire district of the Corps of Engineers affected by the remapping.

Under the current system, one geographic area of a floodplain or watershed can be updated, while another geographic area of the same floodplain or watershed may not be remapped for a few years.

If you look at the St. Louis area, preliminary maps will be available for review in December of this year for the Illinois side of the Mississippi River, but will not be available for the Missouri side of the river for two to three years. The remapping process should not be stopped, but remapping should be implemented for the entire floodplain or watershed together, as opposed to the current piecemeal approach.

Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

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

Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to my friend from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus).

(Mr. SHIMKUS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

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

Mr. Chairman, I am offering an amendment with my colleagues that would replace the current note FEMA uses which does not distinguish levees according to their structural integrity or protection value and replaces it with one that is more accurate to clarify the protection level of flood control structures and the legal requirements of flood Insurance coverage.

I strongly believe all property owners should be properly educated about their flood risks and encouraged to assess their need for flood insurance. However, no local governments, lenders, and the general public should have uncertainty with regard to flood risks and whether there is a requirement to participate in the Federal flood insurance program.

Alexander County in my Congressional district and other areas throughout the State of Illinois will be affected by these ``warning labels'' and this amendment ensures that we are being clear in our intent.

This amendment is important to my district and to the Nation and has bipartisan support.

I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3540, the FAA Extension Act of 2007.

I want to thank Chairman Rangel, Ranking Member McCrery, and my friends from Michigan and Missouri on the Ways and Means Committee, as well as the ranking member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Mr. Mica, and Mr. Petri, the ranking member of the subcommittee.

Last Thursday, the House passed H.R. 2881, the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2007, a long-term authorization of the FAA programs. However, until H.R. 2881 is signed into law, it is imperative that we not allow the FAA's critical programs to lapse. This legislation before us today would extend the aviation trust fund taxes for an additional 3 months at their current rate.

During our last funding debate 10 years ago, there was a lapse in the aviation taxes. At that time, the uncommitted balance of the trust fund was sufficient to continue funding our aviation program and services without significant disruption to the system. Today we do not have that luxury. The trust fund balances cannot sustain a long-term lapse in taxes, which is why it is critical that we pass this legislation before us today.

In addition to extending the aviation taxes, H.R. 3540 extends the Airport Improvement Program. Because the AIP is funded by contract authority rather than discretionary appropriations, funding for it is not automatically extended by continuing resolutions. H.R. 3540 creates $918.75 million in AIP contract authority to fund the programs for the next 3 months from October 1, 2007 through December 31, 2007. When annualized, this equates to $3.675 billion for the full fiscal year of 2008, which is the current baseline level for this program. This will ensure that airport funding is not interrupted due to a lapse in the AIP authorization.

This is not the first time we have passed a short-term extension. In 1999 and 2000, as Congress was debating what eventually became the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century, or AIR-21, we passed four extensions of the FAA's contract authority.

For FAA's operations, facilities and equipment, and research and development programs, the bill authorizes the appropriation of such sums as may be necessary for a 3-month period of this extension.

Finally, current law allows the Secretary to limit to $100 million the third-party liability exposure of airlines and aircraft manufacturers for any cause resulting from a terrorist event. This authority expires on September 30, 2007. The legislation before us today extends this authority to December 31 of this year.

Aviation is too important to our Nation's economy, contributing $1.2 trillion in output and approximately 11.4 million U.S. jobs. It is too important to allow for any lapse of taxes or funding for critical aviation programs. Until H.R. 2881 is signed into law, we must ensure that the FAA has the funds it needs to continue its vital programs.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3540 provides a short 3-month extension to ensure FAA's programs remain fully funded, and I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

I thank the chairman of the full committee, the gentleman from Minnesota, for recognizing me and yielding this time.

Today is an important day for the future of aviation. We are considering this legislation, which was introduced in a bipartisan manner. I do want to thank the gentleman from Minnesota, the gentleman from Florida and the gentleman from Wisconsin for all of their hard work in bringing the legislation to the floor today.

The issues we address in this legislation are important, and they will determine our ability to continue to maintain the world's safest aviation system. There is a provision in this bill that the gentleman from Florida referred to that addresses FAA's imposed work rules on the air traffic controllers. We spent many hours working together with the FAA and the air traffic controllers trying to bring together an agreement. Unfortunately, an agreement could not be reached and that only left us with one clear choice, and that is binding arbitration.

I strongly believe in collective bargaining and bargaining in good faith with a fair dispute resolution process for both sides. Unfortunately, that did not happen in 2006, but it was corrected with the T&I Committee markup by adopting the Costello amendment with a strong bipartisan vote of 53-16. The approach in H.R. 2881 will ensure fair treatment of FAA employees and restores two fundamental principles: the rights of workers and the right to collectively bargain.

H.R. 2881 also allows us to increase capacity and safety within our aviation system, modernize our air traffic control system, and continue to reduce energy consumption and improve our environment. Our Next Generation system can be absorbed by the existing FAA financing structure, and that is exactly what we did in this bill.

Our bill does not impose user fees as the administration recommended. Instead, our bill uses the current tax structure. This legislation provides a record $68 billion over the next 4 years to improve our Nation's aviation infrastructure, modernize our air traffic control system, and maintain the highest level of safety in this ever-changing aviation environment.

Further, the legislation applies a four-part approach to the FAA Joint Planning and Development Office. We provide more funding, more authority, more accountability and more oversight. These changes will ensure our ability to meet our modernization goals and objectives.

The first half of 2007, as the gentleman from Minnesota pointed out, has been the worst as far as delays in the last 13 years. We have addressed that situation in this legislation and we address the problems with airlines scheduling more flights than the system currently can handle. To help airports increase capital needs and reduce airline delays, like the administration, our legislation would increase the passenger facility charge cap from $4.50 to $7. According to the FAA, if every airport currently collecting a $4 or $4.50 PFC raised its PFC to $7, it would generate $1.1 billion in additional revenue to develop airports each year.

The bill also provides significant increases in the AIP fund. Giving the ability to raise the PFC and the AIP funding will provide the necessary financing of capacity-enhancing airport improvements that will be necessary to reduce delays.

Let me conclude by saying that our legislation also contains passenger and consumer protections, a passenger bill of rights that, in fact, will protect passengers.

I urge passage.

Mr. Chairman, at this time I would yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentlelady from Florida (Ms. Corrine Brown).

I thank Mr. Oberstar for yielding.

I rise in support of the manager's amendment. The amendment includes a variety of provisions important to the future of aviation. And I will quickly just highlight a few provisions in the amendment.

One is, we make a variety of improvements to the Essential Air Service program which supports over 100 communities in 35 States. The amendment includes language to provide that all future integrations of labor seniority lists will be completed in a fair and equitable manner.

As a Member of Congress that represents the St. Louis area, what I went through with the TWA and American Airlines merger was very difficult for many employees, and we want to prevent that hardship from occurring in the future.

We also include an update of our aircraft rescue and firefighting standards. The current FAA standards have not been updated since 1988.

And, finally, I need to highlight the fact that the manager's amendment does strengthen the consumer protection part of the bill and creates a Passenger Bill of Rights. It requires large air carriers, large hubs and medium hubs to follow emergency contingency plans, detailing food, water, restroom facilities, cabin ventilation, and medical treatment for passengers onboard aircraft with the Secretary of Transportation. The plan must also be updated periodically. And fines are imposed by the Department of Transportation for violations.

The manager's amendment strengthens these provisions in many ways. First, it specifies that the water provided must meet the Safe Drinking Water Act standard. Secondly, carriers in airports must detail how they will allow passengers to deplane following excessive delays.

Third, the manager's amendment explicitly states that DOT can assess civil penalties against air carriers or airports that fail to adhere to these approved contingency plans.

Finally, aircraft and airports are required to submit these plans and ensure public access to these documents. And, also, the FAA would be required to install an 800 number for consumers to use as a hotline to report problems that they are encountering.

Also, the provision updates overbooking compensation and requires the formation of an advisory committee for aviation consumer protection to provide recommendations to the Secretary.

And, Mr. Chairman, as you can see, these improvements are all important to our policy that improve the safety of our aviation system and expand the availability of service.

I urge my colleagues to support the Oberstar manager's amendment, and I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Texas, a member of the subcommittee, for offering this amendment. He is correct. It is a safety issue. It is a commonsense amendment that clears up a double standard. The Poe amendment simply requires that as a condition of receiving an FAA certificate to work on U.S. aircraft that workers must meet a basic safety requirement that the FAA imposes on repair stations and workers here in the United States.

Again, I commend the gentleman from Texas for his thoughtful amendment. We support the amendment.

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

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I rise in support of the Shays amendment. Almost 28 percent of flights in the last 7 months in 2007 were late. We have a serious problem with congestion and delays in our aviation system. We must look at all options for reducing these incidents.

Mr. Shays' amendment allows the GAO to review a variety of options so that we, as policy makers, can be informed and make responsible decisions towards improving the congestion and delay problem.

Mr. Chairman, I support the Shays amendment, and I thank him for his amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to go to the next amendment without prejudice.

I ask unanimous consent to move to the next amendment.

I am prepared at this time to offer Mr. Udall's amendment as his designee.

As Mr. Udall's designee.

Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Udall).

Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Udall).

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

Mr. Chairman, I support the Udall amendment. The Udall amendment would ensure that our airline crews are properly trained to handle these difficult situations and that the training is updated regularly. This is a commonsense, thoughtful amendment. I support the Udall amendment and urge my colleagues to do the same.

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

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding and offering his amendment. The Klein amendment, as was just stated, would require the DOT to investigate all consumer complaints regarding flight cancellations, overbookings, baggage problems, and a variety of other consumer issues as long as funding was provided through the appropriations process.

Let me commend the gentleman for his amendment. There is no question that, as we have heard today, complaints are on the rise. There are a number of problems. This amendment ensures that consumers are getting their concerns addressed through the official process, and we will work to ensure that the proper funding to undertake these responsibilities by the FAA is forthcoming. I support the amendment, and urge my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the 100th anniversary of the incorporation of the Village of Dupo, Illinois.

In the late 17th century, the French settled the area known as the American Bottom, along the eastern banks of the Mississippi River, between the Illinois and Kaskaskia Rivers. One of the early French settlements was Prairie du Pont which was established around 1750, about a mile south of the village of Cahokia. ``Pont'' is French for ``bridge'' and the name was derived from the prairie that was near an old log bridge that crossed a creek at this location. Although a Prairie du Pont school district was officially formed, the community was never incorporated as a village.

One of the geographic advantages of the Prairie du Pont area is that it is about 10 to 12 feet higher than much of the surrounding area. Being in the Mississippi River flood plain, this was probably responsible for early residents of Cahokia settling in the area to escape the frequent floods. This was also an important consideration in the decision of the Missouri Pacific Railroad locating their switching yards there. With the yards came the homes and shops for the railroad workers and soon a new town was born. In 1907, the name Prairie du Pont was shortened and the Village of Dupo was incorporated.

Oil was discovered near Dupo in 1928 and, for a brief period, there was considerable drilling and expectation of a new source of revenue. Within a couple of years, however, it became apparent that the oil field could not sustain further drilling and Dupo remained principally a railroad town. Today, most north-south traffic through this area goes through the Dupo yards.

Just as the railroads were influential in Dupo's formation, another transportation link holds promise for the future. I-255, part of the beltway that encircles the St. Louis metropolitan area, runs right by Dupo and offers exciting opportunities for development. As Dupo celebrates its centennial, it can enjoy its rich history while looking forward to a bright future.

Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Village of Dupo, Illinois and to wish them the best as they move forward in the years to come.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2272, the America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education and Science (COMPETES) Act. We have recently learned that in the coming years, children in India and China may be better prepared for the jobs of the future than our own children here in the United States: Further, the 2005 National Academies report, ``Rising Above the Gathering Storm'', emphasized the United States could lose its competitive edge without immediate action being taken. In response to these alarming reports, Congress has shifted focus to strengthening our science technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.

Today, H.R. 2272, legislation to ensure that the students, teachers, and workers will not be left behind as the world moves forward in new technology development and innovation, is being considered. The bill authorizes funding for programs to create more qualified teachers in science and math fields and to support scientific research and innovation through the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

I believe our teachers are the cornerstone to leading future generations in STEM fields and I believe we must give them the proper resources to meet this goal. This legislation stands to create and equip thousands of new teachers and give current teachers the content and instructional skills they need in order to teach science and mathematics.

The legislation authorizes a total of $22 billion over fiscal years 2008-2010 for research, education, and other programs at the National Science Foundation; $2.65 billion for the research labs, the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, and other activities at the National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST); and $17 billion for programs at the Department of Energy.

Mr. Speaker, we must set policies that ensure the United States will remain competitive in the future. I support this legislation and urge my colleagues to do the same.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the 109th birthday of Cecelia M. Ruppert of Pinckneyvie, Illinois.

Cecelia Ruppert was born on August 17, 1898 to George and Louisa (Schneider) Ruppert in their home at 602 W. Mulberry Street in Pinckneyville, Illinois. The house, which is still standing, was built by Matthew Schneider for his daughter, Louisa and her husband.

Cecelia was the second oldest of George and Louisa's 8 children. She attended St. Bruno School. While in grammar school, Cecelia took piano lessons and she and her older sister, Magdalen, would entertain neighbors by playing duets on the piano. Cecelia had many chores at home, such as rocking the babies, washing clothes on a washboard, ironing, and peeling potatoes each day.

Cecelia's first job was in Pinckneyville at McCant's General Store, where she sold ladies' dresses and would sometimes go to the basement to fill coal oil cans for sale. At age 21, she moved to St. Louis where she attended Brown's Business College, and took business courses at Washington University. While pursuing her studies in St. Louis, Cecelia also volunteered as a teacher.

After completing school, Cecelia went to work for the Claridge Hotel in St. Louis, starting as a stenographer, and advancing to the bookkeeping department where she learned auditing. She was transferred to the LeClaire Hotel in Moline, Illinois and then was promoted to the Claridge Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee where she served as auditor until her retirement at age 65. After retirement from the Claridge Hotel, Cecelia remained in Memphis, serving as auditor at the Chisca Plaza Hotel until her final retirement at the age of 75.

After retirement, Cecelia returned to the family home in Pinckneyville where she enjoyed the company of her sister, Magdalen Ruppert Mann and the Mann family. Cecelia's sister, Cdr. Margaret Ruppert, NC, USN, Ret., of Pensacola, Florida, would visit frequently.

During her years in business, Cecelia saw many changes and technological advancements. While she used adding machines and calculators in her job, she remarks that now computers have become the primary business tool. Other changes that Cecelia has witnessed involve the expanded opportunities for women in the business world. In 2000, when she was interviewed for The Southern Illinoisan and was asked to name the biggest improvement she had seen in 102 years, Cecelia responded, ``That women can go forward in the business world. That's wonderful. Now they can have a job with a man's rank. They can have any occupation.''

Cecelia came from a hard working family. Her father was employed at the mill and in the mines and her mother worked diligently to raise and educate their large family. Even though Cecelia was well ahead of her time by pursuing a successful career in the business world, she always remembered the lessons learned during her childhood, respect all people and go to church on Sunday.

Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating Cecelia M. Ruppert on reaching this milestone birthday and wishing her all the best for the future.

Mr. Speaker, today we are considering the conference report for the Water Resources Development Act of 2007. This has been 7 years in the making to enact a WRDA bill that addresses the critical infrastructure needs of our country.

I would like to thank Chairman Oberstar, Chairwoman Johnson, Mr. Mica, and Mr. Baker for a job well done in bringing this conference report to the floor today.

Without their strong leadership, dedication, and persistence we would not have a final conference report on the floor today.

I am pleased that projects for major flood control, navigation, environmental restoration, and other water resource projects, including projects in my congressional district, are being authorized.

I am also pleased we are finally authorizing the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Waterway system project. This project is extremely vital to the State of Illinois and the Nation because we are going to be able to move commerce more efficiently and effectively.

Modernizing that infrastructure is the right thing to do--it is a necessity--and I am glad to see this bill is moving forward on such a significant project to our economy and commerce.

Mr. Speaker, I again salute and thank Chairman Oberstar, Chairwoman Johnson, Mr. Mica, and Mr. Baker for their leadership and hard work. I strongly support this conference report and urge my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, I reluctantly rise in opposition to the Hastings amendment, joining the chairman of the full committee, Chairman Oberstar; the ranking member Mr. Mica; and Mr. Petri.

Mr. Hastings is exactly right. The FAA has done a very poor job of communicating with Members of Congress and stakeholders on its plans to consolidate and relocate facilities, but halting the process at this stage is not the answer.

Instead, what we need is an open, continuous, and defined process, and that is exactly what we have in the reauthorization bill that the Transportation Committee passed just a few weeks ago. It allows affected stakeholders to work together with the FAA to develop criteria and make recommendations that will be submitted to the Congress and published in the Federal Register for proper review and oversight. Any objections or changes made to the recommendations must again be submitted to the Congress. Congress does not relinquish its role, but, instead, can provide thorough review, oversight, and input.

Let me say that preventing consolidation and relocation is not the answer. We just held a hearing this morning, the Aviation Subcommittee, in which we discussed the FAA's aging traffic control facilities. Many of these facilities are 40 years old or older, and they are exceeding their useful life expectancy in not meeting current operational requirements. This has resulted in the GAO's giving many of the facilities a score of fair to poor.

We must ensure that the FAA make the investments needed to maintain the current existing infrastructure, including in some cases consolidation and relocation, to ensure that the current system can continue to operate in a safe and reliable way. I believe the best course of action is to address this issue through the reauthorization bill, and that is exactly what we have done in passing the bill out of committee.

As a result, I oppose this amendment and urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the Hastings amendment.

I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I rise today in opposition to the amendment.

As Mr. Mica said, the last comprehensive change to the air space Northeast corridor occurred in 1987 and 1988. Since that time, the traffic has grown significantly. Delays and inefficiencies in the New York-New Jersey-Philadelphia metropolitan area must be addressed as they have reached an all-time high.

Eighty-six percent of the delays caused by the New York center were due to the air space volume. Let me repeat that. Eighty-six percent of the delays caused by the New York center were due to air space volume.

In the first quarter of 2007, the five airports with the worst on- time performance were Newark, LaGuardia, O'Hare, JFK and Philadelphia. Four of the five airports are part of the air space redesign. The New York-New Jersey-Philadelphia air space will handle 15 to 20 percent of all of the air traffic in the Nation by 2011.

The FAA has a specific process in place that it must follow in implementing the air space redesign. Over the course of the project, the FAA has held over 120 meetings to allow stakeholder input, many of which were not required by law. My colleagues, Mr. Andrews, Mr. Sestak and I have asked the GAO to look into the air space redesign to make sure that the FAA has followed the law in implementing this redesign. However, I do not believe that we should be halting the project at this time. It is too critical to our system not to go forward.

Congress should not pick winners and losers in the air space redesign debate. This amendment is asking us to do just that. And for that reason, I ask my colleagues to oppose the amendment.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2956, and I appreciate the fact that we are again addressing this important issue today. I want to start by recognizing the ongoing sacrifices and tremendous bravery of the men and women of our armed forces. Their dedication inspires us all and we owe them a debt of gratitude.

Very simply put, it is time to bring our troops home. The effort they are making has not been met by the Iraqi government, and there is no reason to believe that the situation is going to improve there in the foreseeable future. The various reports we have received just this week underscore this point. As I have said for some time, we are beyond the point of being able to impact events in a meaningful way militarily. The political decisions that the Iraqis need to make will not be made as long as our soldiers are there, and I seriously doubt they will be made when we are gone. All we are doing is letting an untenable situation drag on, with our soldiers caught in the crossfire. We are spending over $329 million every day in Iraq. That is a staggering sum of money. We can redirect that money to better fighting the war on terror and also addressing important domestic initiatives.

Mr. Speaker, I did not vote to authorize this war, I did not vote for the troop surge and I have voted for a time line to bring our troops home. The vast majority of the American people see that the President's dream for Iraq is not going to happen. They want him to wake up and face reality. This bill provides a plan on how to do that. I support the approach in this bill, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for it.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join me in honoring the 75th anniversary of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Pvt. Henry Ostendorf Post 1300 in Granite City, IL.

In 1932, our Nation's veterans faced the same problems as the rest of their fellow citizens as the Nation was in the grips of the Great Depression. Many veterans, due to injuries received while on active duty, were at a greater disadvantage as medical bills continued and their ability to find work was compromised.

On May 24, 1932, VFW Post 1300 was instituted by Post 805 in East St. Louis to serve the veterans of Granite City. There were 58 charter members of the initial organization and 21 charter members of the Auxiliary that was formed on August 12 of the same year. Post

1300 was named in honor of Pvt. Henry Ostendorf, the first service member from Madison County, IL, to be killed in action during World War

Madam Speaker, I rise today to clarify my position on two votes taken during consideration of the State and Foreign Operations Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2008 and to reiterate my strong support of pro-life issues.

During consideration of the bill, I inadvertently opposed the Pitts amendment, which would have restored equal funding and a balanced approach in the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), and voted yes on final passage. While voting via electronic device during two minute votes, I thought I had voted correctly but was recorded otherwise. By the time I had realized what had happened, the votes had been closed.

Madam Speaker, since coming to Congress, I have been a strong supporter of pro-life policies. For these reasons, I want to reiterate my support for the Pitts amendment and my opposition to final passage of the bill.