Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the historical marker recognition awarded this summer to Derby & Miller by the City of Auburn.

Established in March of 1848 after James C. Derby offered his then clerk Norman C. Miller partnership, the two worked in conjunction to plate, stereotype, bind, and emboss books for public consumption. Responsible for publishing more than a hundred books, Derby & Miller proudly developed their business to become the leading publisher of the 19th century in Cayuga County.

With books on topics ranging from law to culture, Derby & Miller's publishing firm worked tirelessly to bring authors' words to life. Together, they served their community by providing the public with books that taught valuable lessons and inspired great minds.

Notably, on July 15, 1848, Derby & Miller published the critically acclaimed manuscript ``Twelve Years a Slave'' by Solomon Northrup. Recounting Solomon's life experience as a free-citizen of color, kidnapped and sold back into slavery, ``Twelve Years a Slave'' brought awareness to the horrors of slavery and joined other abolitionist texts in provoking readers to demand for the abolition of slavery.

I am proud to stand with the City of Auburn in recognizing the historic contributions of Derby & Miller to our community.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5729) to restrict the department in which the Coast Guard is operating from implementing any rule requiring the use of biometric readers for biometric transportation security cards until after submission to Congress of the results of an assessment of the effectiveness of the transportation security card program, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 5729, as amended.

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

Mr. Speaker, to comply with the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 and the Security and Accountability for Every Port Act of 2006, the Coast Guard is establishing rules requiring electronic readers for use at high-risk vessel facilities.

The intent of the rule is to ensure that, prior to being granted unescorted access to a designated secure area, an individual will have his or her Transportation Worker Identification Credential, or TWIC, authenticated.

The Coast Guard issued a proposed rule to this effect in March 2013. The proposed rule limited the scope of the TWIC authentication requirements at facilities to secure areas that handle certain dangerous cargos in bulk through a vessel-to-facility interface. This was consistent with existing Coast Guard policy.

Industry commented on the proposed rule, and the Coast Guard also held four public meetings across the country and worked with the Transportation Security Administration to conduct a pilot program.

The Coast Guard issued its final rule in August of 2016, with an implementation date of August 23, 2018. The service noted that the final rule made a number of changes from the proposed rule, including flexibility with regard to purchase, installation, and use of electronic readers; clarifying that the rule only affects risk group A vessels and facilities; and eliminating the distinction between risk group B and C for both vessels and facilities.

However, industry was surprised by the expanded scope of the final rule where facility areas subject to the TWIC reader requirement went beyond what was included in the proposed rule and regulatory analysis accompanying that rule.

The Coast Guard has acknowledged the discrepancy between the proposed and final rules. To date, the service has not been able to identify any security benefits to the expanded scope of the final rule or definitively state how it will address industry concerns.

The Office of Management and Budget recently completed its review of a proposed rule to delay the implementation date of the TWIC reader requirements. The text of the proposed rule was released on June 22, 2018, 2 months prior to the implementation date.

Unfortunately, the rule proposed only partially addresses industry concerns. It delays implementation of the requirements until August 23, 2021, for two categories of facilities that handle certain dangerous cargo in bulk but do not transfer it. However, for facilities and vessels that handle certain dangerous cargo in bulk and transfer that cargo to or from a vessel or from facilities that receive large passenger vessels, the final rule requirements go into effect on August 23, 2018.

Industry has been involved and willing to address security concerns, but facilities should not have to bear the burden of implementing a final rule proposal that has not yet been fully vetted to understand the impacts of the requirements.

H.R. 5729 requires the Secretary to submit to Congress the comprehensive security assessment of the transportation security card program, as required in section 1(b) of Public Law 114-278, before implementation of its final rule. Doing so will provide Congress and stakeholders further information on any deficiencies in the effectiveness of the program.

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

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the comments of my colleague from the District of Columbia.

H.R. 5729 is a very straightforward bill. It fixes something that needs to be fixed quickly, and I urge Members to support it.

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

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5081) to amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish within the Transportation Security Administration the Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include any extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5081, the Surface Transportation Security and Technology Accountability Act of 2018.

America's transportation sector has long been, and continues to be, a top target for terrorism. In addition to persistent threats to aviation, terrorists continue to see surface transportation as soft targets that can yield high numbers of casualties.

As chairman of the Subcommittee on Transportation and Protective Security, I have held numerous hearings, briefings, and roundtables dedicated to providing congressional oversight of the Transportation Security Administration's role in surface transportation security.

The U.S. surface transportation system is a dynamic, interconnected network of passenger and freight railroads, mass transit systems, over- the-road bus operators, motor carrier operators, pipelines, and maritime facilities. These systems are the bedrock of the American economy and way of life, which is precisely why they are such attractive targets for terrorists.

In addition to a number of horrific attacks against surface targets by terrorists overseas, we have recently experienced an attempted suicide bombing in New York City's Port Authority Bus Terminal. This attack was the first attempted suicide bombing on American soil and represented a startling shift in the threat landscape.

Luckily, this incident only yielded injury to the would-be attacker. However, it served as an important reminder that we must be prepared to respond to threats in all modes of transportation.

While TSA is responsible for securing all of America's transportation systems, surface transportation security has been consistently overshadowed by the amount of attention and resources dedicated to aviation security.

This imbalance is aptly illustrated by the glaring absence of surface transportation at TSA's ``Strategic Five-Year Technology Investment Plan'' as well as the ``Biennial Refresh.''

The plan is a key communication tool for TSA to help stakeholders understand the agency's priorities and to enable them to align investments and product investment initiatives accordingly.

I would like to reiterate that TSA is responsible for securing all of America's transportation systems, and that surface transportation is a key and integral element of that mission.

TSA does not procure technology for local surface transportation operators, but it does set the standards for viable security technologies and equipment for that environment. Therefore, investments related to research, development, testing, and evaluation of security technologies for surface transportation systems should be included in TSA's ``Strategic Five-Year Technology Investment Plan.''

My legislation will enhance the visibility of the surface transportation sector and ensure that TSA is positioned to address emerging threats through this critical infrastructure, which serves more than 10 billion riders in the United States annually.

My bill authorizes the establishment of a Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee that will provide stakeholders the opportunity to coordinate with TSA and comment on policy and pending regulations.

The Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee is a necessary and long-overdue complement to the Aviation Security Advisory Committee,

which has been a critical resource for the agency and stakeholders, and has led to a number of improvements in aviation security, as well as TSA processes.

Additionally, this bill explicitly directs TSA to expand the scope of its technology investment plan to incorporate investments related to surface transportation security and air cargo security.

My bill will signal to TSA that this committee takes its oversight of all transportation modes seriously and that the security of surface transportation modes should be a higher priority for the agency.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the ranking member of the Transportation and Protective Security Subcommittee, Mrs. Watson Coleman, for cosponsoring this legislation and for her dedication to securing all modes of transportation.

I also wish to thank Chairman McCaul for his support of this bill and for ensuring its swift markup at committee.

Whether we talk about mass transit, passenger rail, buses, trucking, freight rail, or pipelines, I understand that surface transportation is of critical importance to all our communities, including my home district in central New York. For that reason, I urge all of my colleagues to support the bill.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Rhode Island for his kind words about this bill and for the bipartisanship that pervades our committee. It is a model, I think, that, Congress- wide, we could use more of. The bipartisanship that we have on this committee really is helping to keep America safer.

Mr. Speaker, I have no more speakers. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5730) to require testing and evaluation of advanced transportation security screening technologies related to the mission of the Transportation Security Administration, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include any extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 5730, the Transportation Security Technology Innovation Reform Act of 2018. This legislation represents a culmination of years of bipartisan oversight efforts by the Homeland Security Committee and, more specifically, the Subcommittee on Transportation and Protective Security, which I chair.

My committee colleagues and I have seen, firsthand, the challenges facing TSA in delivering advanced security technologies to the front lines at airports. Technologies such as Computed Tomography and Credential Authentication Technology are years behind where they should be in deployment due to unnecessary delays, opaque testing timelines, and capacity challenges at TSA.

What is even more frustrating is that these technologies, made by American companies, are already deployed at a number of airports overseas in foreign countries, while our own government cannot efficiently test and deploy these already-proven technologies.

For far too long we have seen the traveling public wait for cutting- edge technologies while bureaucratic hindrances and government inefficiencies plague TSA's testing and evaluation process. Today, the House has the opportunity to pass a solution to this problem.

H.R. 5730 will reform and galvanize efforts to bring 21st-century solutions to persistent security challenges facing America's transportation systems. Specifically, this legislation will authorize the core functions of the TSA Systems Integration Facility, or TSIF for short.

The TSIF will be charged with conducting efficient and transparent testing of critical security technologies in a manner that is responsive to stakeholders and the needs of the traveling public.

One key problem that I often hear from technology stakeholders is that TSA does not have the bandwidth or resources to efficiently conduct testing and evaluation of new screening technologies in a timely manner.

This legislation will ensure that adequate staffing and resources are allocated to the TSIF, and that TSA is authorized to collaborate with outside laboratories and stakeholders to expedite the much-needed testing of these technologies.

Further, this legislation provides significant accountability by requiring TSA to share test plans with original equipment manufacturers in order to ensure the integrity and consistency of testing and evaluation processes. The bill includes specific metrics for reporting to Congress and stakeholders on delays in testing so that there is greater visibility into potential bureaucratic hiccups.

H.R. 5730 directs the TSA Administrator to conduct a wholesale evaluation of the agency's testing and acquisition processes and identify areas that can be streamlined and improved. This legislation emphasizes the agency's need to engage and leverage other government agencies, transportation stakeholders, and small businesses, to more effectively and expeditiously deploy critical security technologies.

Mr. Speaker, the Transportation Security Technology Innovation Reform Act of 2018 cuts straight to the heart of the problems plaguing TSA, and directly addresses issues identified by stakeholders.

As any of my committee colleagues can tell you, the threats facing transportation security now are more severe and more troubling than ever, and our ability to effectively mitigate these threats with advanced technology is of the utmost importance.

I wish to thank my friend, the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Transportation and Protective Security, Mrs. Watson Coleman, whose partnership and leadership on this issue has been critical to bringing this bill to the floor today.

I also would like to thank the full committee chairman, Mr. McCaul, for his support of the bill and for shepherding it through the committee process.

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

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

First of all, I want to thank my colleague from Rhode Island for his comments in support of this bill as well, and shepherding it through the process here today on the floor.

I will note--and I want to digress for a moment. We went on a congressional delegation. I led that delegation to Europe and the Middle East several months ago, and it was a bipartisan effort to evaluate the technologies in use at other airports in Europe and in the Middle East. And it was stunning for us to go to those airports and see American-made computed tomography, or 3-D scanners, already on the front lines, already doing the job, already making those airports much safer than ours are today, and those products are made here in the United States.

It is maddening that we had this bureaucratic bottleneck of testing procedures and algorithms and everything else, while the front lines are not being addressed. So this bill attempts to address that backlog, and I am very proud to have been a sponsor of it.

Mr. Speaker, I have no more speakers, and I am prepared to close once the gentleman from Rhode Island does. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

To use an old saying that I like to use, TSA seems to be engaged in the practice of polishing the brass while the fire bell is ringing; and the fire bell is, indeed, ringing with the bad guys trying to get scary technology through our security measures in order to do harm to the American people. And the technologies that are already existing out there are not being put on the front line, and that is a shame. This bill attempts to address that.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5766) to improve the security of public areas of transportation facilities, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include any extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5766, the Securing Public Areas of Transportation Facilities Act of 2018. This legislation will improve security coordination among transportation stakeholders by establishing a working group between the Department of Homeland Security and public and private stakeholders to develop recommendations for enhancing public area security of transportation facilities.

H.R. 5766 directs that the working group focus on key areas including information sharing, interoperable communications, incident response, and the prevention of terrorist attacks through strategic planning and security exercises. Taking steps to improve upon these critical components to security preparedness and resiliency is directly correlated to America's ability to mitigate the constantly-evolving threat to our transportation system.

The traveling public must be secure in all modes of transportation security, and the millions of Americans who utilize surface transportation networks every single day to travel to work and school rely upon strong Federal, State, local, and private sector collaboration.

Over the last several years we have seen a marked increase in attacks to public areas of transportation networks. From airports like LAX in Los Angeles, Fort Lauderdale, Istanbul, Brussels, to mass transit hubs in New York City, London, Madrid and Belgium, we have witnessed horrific scenes of attack in crowded public spaces of transportation systems.

I am glad this bill seeks to improve upon the resiliency, preparedness, and overall security infrastructure of these networks, which are absolutely crucial to our economy and the American way of life.

The free movement of people and goods across the United States must never be stymied by violent extremism. That is why it is incumbent upon those of us in Congress to ensure that Homeland Security and TSA are doing all they can to promote effective collaboration among the litany of stakeholders charged with securing the traveling public.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Payne) for his focus on this important issue. I also thank the chairman of the full committee, Mr. McCaul, for seeing this bill through the markup process.

I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Rhode Island for supporting this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, my time on the Homeland Security Committee over the past 3\1/2\ years has been a true testament to bipartisanship: trying to get the right things done, putting aside political differences to keep the country as safe and secure as we possibly can.

Mr. Speaker, I am honored to support the bill of my colleague from New Jersey (Mr. Payne). I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the tremendous victory of the Jamesville-DeWitt Girls' Basketball Team in the New York State Public High School Association Class A Championship on March 17, 2018. The Jamesville-DeWitt Red Rams defeated Elmont Memorial High School by a score of 64-51 to win the state title for the Third year in a row. On March 21st the Red Rams won the Federation Championship for the first time against James Madison High School by the score of 42-41.

The Red Rams were led by Seniors Meg Hair, Kasey Vaughan and Jamie Boeheim. Other team members include: Sydney Baker, Lena Jones, Andrea Sumida, Gabriella Stickle, Paige Keeler, Noura El-Hindi, Momoka LaClair, and Kailey McKenna. The Red Rams are coached by Robert Seichen, Scott Gantos, Caroline Cottet and Bill O'Keefe.

I am honored to recognize the teamwork displayed by the Jamesville- Dewitt Red Rams and to congratulate the members of the team, their families, the coaching staff, and teachers at Jamesville-Dewitt High School. This is a historic win for Central New York and I am confident that the positive experiences from the 2018 season will yield continued success in both athletics and academics.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize the important history of Lyons, New York. Recently, the town's iconic downtown historical district was granted a designation on the National Register of Historic Places. This designation allows for the town to keep and preserve many historical buildings and landmarks.

Located in Wayne County, the Town of Lyons was originally settled in the late 1700's and then, in 1796, renamed after Lyons, France. The construction of the Erie Canal was pivotal to the growth of the town. The town also grew due to an abundant amount of peppermint oil, and a great deal of manufacturing.

I would like to congratulate Joan Delaro, the Executive Director of the Lyons Main Street Program. This program is essential to the Lyons community, as is it assists local businesses, organizes community clean up and beautification program, and leads the effort to designation downtown Lyons as a historical area. I would also like to thank Brian Manktelow, town supervisor, and all of the town board members for their support in designating Lyons a historical place.

This new designation not only allows for the community to preserve and revitalize many buildings and landmarks, but it will also help encourage economic development.

I am proud that Lyons has received this designation, and I will fight to make sure that it has the means it needs to be able to succeed.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding time to speak in favor of legislation I authored, H.R. 2851, the Stop the Importation and Trafficking of Synthetic Analogues Act of 2017.

Synthetic drug abuse has crippled my community and the communities of many other Members in this Chamber. Last year, Syracuse area hospitals saw a record number of overdoses due to synthetic drug abuse. In May of last year, over 15 individuals had overdosed on synthetic drugs and were taken to the ER in a span of 24 hours. All of these synthetic drugs were purchased at bodegas in Syracuse, purchased over the counter, and stamped ``not for human consumption.'' Clearly, that was the intent.

Unfortunately, stories like this have become the new normal. First responders and emergency room physicians across the Nation have seen incredible increases in calls due to synthetic overdoses, which is why I wholeheartedly support this legislation, as do they.

Toxic synthetic drugs are designed to mimic street drugs like marijuana, LSD, cocaine, ecstasy, fentanyl, and other hard drugs. They can be more potent than the real thing and oftentimes are more deadly.

Unfortunately, when law enforcement encounters and begins to combat a specific synthetic drug compound, which they must do under the law, manufacturers of these substances are able to slightly alter the chemical structure of the drug, and this puts law enforcement at a serious disadvantage because that chemical alteration makes that drug technically not legal until it gets on the analogue statute. This leaves them constantly one step behind.

As a former Federal prosecutor for more than 20 years but, more importantly, as a father, getting these drugs off the streets and out of the hands of our loved ones remains a top priority for me.

Right before I introduced this bill, I met with a constituent in my district, Teresa Woolson, whose son was tragically killed by a synthetic drug identified as XLR-11. He went into a store and bought it. It was called K2/spice. He thought that since it was sold over the counter it was okay to use. He used the drug, smoked it--it was synthetic marijuana--had a seizure, and drowned in Lake Ontario.

Unfortunately for Teresa, the drug that killed her son managed to remain legal and on the streets and sold over the counter in stores for 4 years after his death until it was finally added to the controlled substances list. This is unacceptable. These families deserve more than that and they deserve justice.

The potency and dangers of synthetic drugs do not only threaten users. We are now seeing local law enforcement and first responders put in harm's way simply by coming in contact with these highly potent and often lethal substances, oftentimes being mixed with heroin, which is killing people at a record pace in this country.

Numerous cases across the country have resulted in emergency personnel becoming gravely ill and even dying while responding to these synthetic overdoses.

The threat synthetic drugs pose to our communities and law enforcement must be stopped. H.R. 2851 takes a big step toward eradicating these harmful substances and protecting our communities. The bipartisan SITSA Act will give local, State, and Federal law enforcement the necessary tools to target synthetic substances and the criminals who traffic them.

Specifically, this legislation will create a new schedule to the Controlled Substances Act and establish a mechanism by which analogues can be temporarily or permanently added to that schedule in as little as 30 days after the chemical composition is determined by the Attorney General.

With amendments adopted by the Judiciary Committee and on the House floor today, we have struck the right balance between providing law enforcement with the tools they need and facilitating research on these chemical compounds.

I would like to thank Chairman Goodlatte and Chairman Walden and their staffs, specifically Tony Angeli and Adam Buckalew, for their tireless work on this bill. I would also like to thank my legislative director, John Drzewicki, who has done a tremendous job on this bill.

The stories of synthetic drug use are in no way limited to my area of the country. This is a nationwide epidemic. I respectfully ask my colleagues to vote in favor of SITSA because every moment we fail to act, another person is affected by synthetic drugs.

Since I have more time, I want to address a specific issue spoken about by my colleague from Texas. Under this bill, a substance placed in schedule A would be a schedule A controlled substance as defined in 21 U.S.C. 802(6). In a controlled substance analogue case, the criteria of that 21 U.S.C. 802(32) and 813 must be met for each defendant, case by case, in addition to the elements of the underlying crime. It cannot be simply asserted a schedule A controlled substance is substantially similar pursuant to those provisions and the court arrive at a 21 U.S.C. 841(b)(1)(c) penalty.

Mr. Chair, just so I am clear about the gentlewoman's position, the gentlewoman is concerned that a drug trafficker may face a penalty of a harsh sentence when they have caused someone's death, as an example.

Let me give you an example. Deanna Axe was 5 months pregnant. She had been off heroin for 8 months. A drug trafficker pushed her and cajoled her over the course of about 12 hours through texts that we saw trying to get her to try this specific type of heroin. She took one dose. Her mother found her. The heroin that he gave her killed her and her 5- month-old baby in her womb.

That is the reality of what we are facing. He is facing 15 years in prison. He pled guilty to that. She is gone. Her baby is gone. That is the reality.

So we are trying to find a positive balance here. No one is suggesting that mandatory minimums under 841(b)(1)(A) or 841(b)(1)(B) can be applicable. They are not. It is the (b)(1)(C) category for this, except when a death is caused. So please let us try and find a proper balance here.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to briefly respond to some of the comments that were made by my colleagues on the other side of the aisle.

First of all, when my colleague refers to sweeping new authority--I believe that was a quote--that the Attorney General has under this law, it must be made clear that it gives the Attorney General authority to list these substances temporarily on a controlled substance analogue list under schedule A. It also gives Congress 180 days to overrule the Attorney General at any time.

That is a very potent and powerful check. This does not shift significant power to the Attorney General. I think that is important to note.

My colleagues also noted several times that it would limit the research ability of individuals under this statute to research synthetic drugs. The Griffith amendment addresses this issue in a powerful and potent manner. It ensures and protects that individuals doing research can continue to do the research and will not be sanctioned or in trouble for doing that research.

We have worked closely with the industry to get their input. More importantly, we worked very, very closely with Health and Human Services and the Drug Enforcement Administration to provide substantial input. Based on that input, we have made the adjustments that are now memorialized in the Griffith amendment.

While we are talking here, let's keep something in perspective. Every hour in this country, at least five people die from heroin- and opioid- related overdoses. That is five an hour. By the time we are done, five more people will have died. Of those individuals dying, the vast majority are dying because of the synthetic drug components that are being found in all the heroin overdoses, such as synthetic fentanyl.

Synthetic fentanyl and other synthetic drugs are generally made outside this country. The bad guys know that when we find a chemical compound and get it listed on the drug analogue statute, they simply tweak the compound, and then it takes another 3 or 4 years for that drug to get back on the statute and to again make the compound illegal. It is a cat-and-mouse game that they are winning and we are losing, because we are losing our children.

In closing, I would look to just note this and ask people to consider this. Let's put a face on this stuff.

John Socci had a daughter. She was murdered in front of her 18-month- old child by her boyfriend, who was addicted to opioids. Two years later, they lost their son to a heroin overdose.

Breanna Axe, as I mentioned earlier, died 5 months pregnant when a drug dealer repeatedly pushed her to try heroin, even though she hadn't been using for 7 or 8 months. One dose and she was gone. That dose had synthetic drugs in it as well.

There are so many other stories out there. Law enforcement is in trouble because of these synthetic drugs. They are afraid to even touch them because simple contact is going to kill them.

While we are complaining about jurisdiction and who was able to review this bill or whether researchers are properly protected, which I submit they are, people are dying in this country at a rapid rate. We must do something.

Victor Woolsen, who I talked about earlier who bought a synthetic drug over the counter, had a seizure, and died, that synthetic drug was on the streets for 4 years after he died. It took us 4 years to get that drug off the shelves and off the streets of our country.

I don't think it is a tall stretch to ask the Attorney General to have authority, when I believe this is not just an epidemic, it is a pandemic in this

country, to get these drugs off the streets quickly, 30 days. If the Attorney General messes up, we will be right back here to fix it within 180 days. That is the backstop. We also have backstops for the researchers as well.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that when the House adjourns today, it adjourn to meet on Tuesday, June 19, 2018, when it shall convene at noon for morning-hour debate and 2 p.m. for legislative business.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today, as the House considers legislation to address a heroin and synthetic drug epidemic plaguing our country, to honor the memories of two young people from my district: Morgan Brittany Axe, who died from a heroin overdose more than 2\1/2\ years ago, and Victor Orlando Woolson, who drowned after using synthetic drugs that he bought over the counter almost 6 years ago.

Morgan and Victor and so many others were touched by this terrible epidemic. Morgan and Victor were both active members of our community and touched the lives of every person they interacted with.

Before she passed away, Morgan worked at the Dewitt Animal Hospital and treated sick and injured animals on a daily basis. Victor was a high-achieving graduate of Mexico High School and was enrolled in Cayuga Community College, where he studied criminal justice and psychology.

Drug addiction is a terrible disease. Morgan became addicted to Xanax after the suicide of her boyfriend. She was just 17 years old at the time. Morgan became dependent on Xanax and needed it to function on a daily basis. She then progressed to other pills in order to numb her pain.

After a long battle with heroin and prescription painkillers, Morgan found the strength of sobriety for 8 months and was on the drug Vivitrol. Vivitrol magically makes it impossible for addicts to get high on heroin or painkillers.

After she found out that she was pregnant, Morgan went off Vivitrol because she did not want it to harm her child. Unfortunately, post- acute withdrawal set in, and Morgan relapsed.

Morgan did not have to drive to a drug house on Syracuse's west side to buy the bag of heroin that killed her. Instead, a career drug dealer delivered it to her house in Fairmount after cajoling her to use it.

After doing one bag of heroin, Deanna Axe found her daughter lifeless in her bedroom. Morgan overdosed and died, and her unborn child, Isaiah Douglas Lee Mathis, died with her. Morgan's drug dealer, Anthony Vita, was federally prosecuted and is now in prison for the next 15 years. However, Vita being in prison where he belongs, will never bring Morgan back.

Victor Woolson was your average happy-go-lucky teenager who had many friends. He was not only a loyal friend but a loving brother, uncle, and grandson. Victor graduated Mexico High School with an advanced regents diploma and had 4 years in the Marine Corps Junior ROTC program. In college, Victor was contemplating a career in law enforcement while attending Cayuga Community College.

While attending community college, Victor began experimenting with synthetic drugs that he was able to purchase legally over the counter. Because he could buy these substances over the counter, Victor assumed these illicit substances were safe. They were not.

At the young age of 19, Victor went into a shop, bought a packet of K2/Spice over the counter at a head shop in Oswego, New York, suffered a fatal reaction from smoking that synthetic marijuana, and drowned in Lake Ontario.

After Victor's tragic death, his mother, Teresa channeled her sadness and anger into advocacy and founded the Victor Orlando Woolson Foundation, or the VOW Foundation for short, which advocates for stronger legislation against synthetic drugs and assists individuals and organizations in providing services for mentally ill, homeless, and low-income youth in Oswego County.

It has been my honor to fight alongside Teresa, and this year I invited her to be my guest at the State of the Union in order to highlight the need to address and combat the use of synthetic drugs.

I am proud to fight in memory of Morgan and Victor and so many others, and in this Congress I introduced the Stop the Importation and Trafficking of Synthetic Analogues Act, or SITSA for short.

The SITSA Act modernizes the Controlled Substances Act by speeding up the process of placing synthetic drugs on the controlled substances list. Under current law, drug producers often make minor tweaks to legal substances that mimic the effects of

banned drugs and use this loophole to prevent law enforcement from removing these drugs from circulation.

In addition, the SITSA Act outlaws 13 synthetic fentynals that have been identified by the Drug Enforcement Administration as an immediate threat to public health.

Together, by passing this legislation, we can prevent synthetic drugs from, one, being imported into this country; two, being routinely mixed with heroin in fatal doses; and, three, being sold over the counter in head shops and bodegas throughout this country.

These efforts can't bring Victor Orlando Woolson back. They can't bring Morgan Brittany Axe back and so many others from our district and our country, but this is a start in the right direction to stop this terrible epidemic.

Every hour in this country, five people die from heroin overdose-- every hour, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. We have got to stop it. We have got to keep pushing.

I am proud to be part of the legislation, and I am proud that the Congress is acting in such a meaningful manner.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Sergeant Joseph Ayotte, a dedicated member of the Wayne County Sheriff's Office whose quick response and expert training saved the life of a fellow officer, Rochester Police Sergeant Ralph J. Gagliano.

On November 26, 2013, Sergeant Gagliano was driving home when he suffered a severe headache and subsequently lost control of his vehicle, veering off the road. Arriving on scene, Sergeant Ayotte quickly assessed Sergeant Gagliano, determining the occurrence of a medical emergency. Following transportation to the hospital, the sergeant underwent emergency surgery for a brain aneurysm and awoke 21 days later with no memory of the incident.

Following his retirement on March 2, 2018, a date Sergeant Gagliano may have never seen had it not been for Sergeant Ayotte's imperative and professional conduct, Sergeant Gagliano presented Sergeant Ayotte with the Life Saving Award. Sergeant Ayotte and his actions that day emblemize why we have such tremendous love and respect for our officers and first responders. Perhaps the message on the Life Saving Award says it best, ``Your Actions on that day will always be remembered.''

Prior to representing Central New York in Congress, I spent nearly my entire professional career serving as a federal prosecutor, working alongside our local law enforcement and first responders to improve the safety and stability of our communities. I have always held the utmost of respect for the difficult jobs of our first responders, and I recognize the challenges they face, which grow greater every day. Yet, they never shirk their duty and always rise to the occasion. I greatly commend them for their dedication to serving our community--a community that includes fellow police officer Ralph J. Gagliano--and I thank them wholeheartedly for their service each and every day.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 10th anniversary of the Bhutanese refugee community's arrival in Onondaga County.

The first members of our vibrant Bhutanese community arrived in Central New York in 2008, in the wake of intolerance and violence in Bhutan. Today, almost 3,000 Bhutanese people live in Central New York, where they serve as good neighbors, excellent students, and leaders of our community.

Under the leadership of Jay Subedi, who serves as the President of the Bhutanese Community in Syracuse, the Bhutanese Community runs educational programs such as English as a Second Language and citizenship classes. The Bhutanese Community in Syracuse also offers Problem Solving programming in which volunteers assist members of the community in basic daily tasks such as applying for government assistance, making and changing doctor's appointments, and filling out different types of applications.

On March 24th, the Bhutanese community organized a 10th anniversary celebration at Franklin Elementary School. As a testament to the organization's dedication to our community, it has also announced the creation of a blessing box, which will be filled with food every Saturday and used to provide for people of lower incomes.

It is my honor to recognize the contributions of the Bhutanese community to Central New York over the past 10 years. The United States is a country that was founded by immigrants. Our success as a nation is directly tied to our acceptance of all nationalities, ethnicities, and cultures. I join our community in wishing all members of the Bhutanese community ``congratulations'' on 10 years of improving and enriching our community.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor the career of Stephen Cvengros. Mr. Cvengros recently retired as the Vice President of Content for Advance Media New York, the accredited publisher of The Post-Standard, Syracuse.com, and NYup.com. Mr. Cvengros retired with numerous accolades in the news business and leaves behind a lasting legacy.

Mr. Cvengros has worked for several news and media outlets throughout his career, which he began in print media. He was an editor for the Chicago Tribune, The Detroit News, and Newsday. Later, he became an executive producer for MSN News before starting his tenure at Advance Media New York.

In Mr. Cvengros' time at Advance Media New York, he has helped The Post-Standard develop its website and build a strong online following. As a result, Syracuse.com has frequently ranked in the top of local news sites in the country. Additionally, The Post-Standard has cemented its position as one of the nation's top five best read newspapers.

Throughout his career, Mr. Cvengros has accumulated numerous awards, including Gold Awards from the National Press Photographers Association and glowing recognition from the Michigan Press Association. His decorated career reflects his hard work and passion for journalism.

I commend Stephen Cvengros for his dedication to journalistic integrity and for efforts to

modernize print journalism and make news more accessible. His professionalism has provided great levels of success and stability and he will surely be missed.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the victory of the Liverpool Warriors Boys basketball team in the New York State Public High School Association Class AA Championship on March 17, 2018. The Liverpool Warriors defeated the Half Hollow Hills East team by a score of 71-64 to win the state title for the first time in program history.

The Warriors' victory marked the end of a perfect season for the team. Despite this dominant record the game was close, with the Warriors trailing by seven at halftime. They rallied in the second half won the game. Tournament MVP, Senior Charles Pride, who scored 18 points along with seven rebounds and six assists, and senior Noah Issakainen who added another 17 points in the win. Members of the championship team included Pride, Issakainen, as well as seniors Peter Cerrone, Alan Willmes, Joe Desocio, Nas Johnson, Connor Jones, juniors Kyle Butler, Alex Ruston, Jake Piseno, Nick Klein, Joe Valerino, Ryan Valentine, Ian Conroy, Matt Senecal, and sophomores Freshaun Dreher, Kyle Caves, and Lateef Edwards. The team was led to victory by their coach Ryan Blackwell.

I am honored to recognize the teamwork displayed by the Liverpool Warriors and to congratulate the members of the team, their families, the coaching staff, and teachers at Liverpool High School. This is a historic win for Central New York, the first Section III Class AA title since 2002, and I am confident that the positive experiences from the 2018 season will yield the Warriors continued success in both athletics and academics.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 100th anniversary of Simplex Manufacturing Company in my district in Auburn, New York.

Founded in 1918 by William J. Merritt, Simplex Manufacturing Company began as a leather goods manufacturer. Over the years, however, Simplex has evolved with market trends, and now provides a variety of essential, modern products that are often custom-made for a variety of machines and devices. Today, the parts crafted by Simplex are used in all manner of devices from motors and hand tools, to security systems which keep families and businesses safe from harm.

Throughout the years, Simplex has become a staple of the Central New York business community. In this day and age, while many companies have chosen quantity over quality, Simplex has remained dedicated to producing an excellent product. I am proud to congratulate the owners and employees of Simplex 100 successful years in business.