Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, consistent with House Republican Earmark Standards, I am submitting the following earmark disclosure and certification information for one additional project funding request that I made and was included within the text of H.R. 3326, the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2010.

Project: Ground Warfare Acoustical Combat Systems of Netted Sensors

Project Amount: $5,000,000

Account: RDTE--Navy

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: GWACS Defense, Inc.

Address of Requesting Entity: Suite 191, 4500 South, 129th East Ave., Tulsa, OK 74134

Description of Request: Combat systems are required that can detect, locate, discriminate and give precision targeting data of hostile fire to blue forces in a netcentric environment. Additionally, multi sensor systems are required that can help IFF, create total battlespace situational awareness both in open and urban terrain, and provide precision targeting data for combined and integrated fire support. Funds will be used to accelerate the completion of a new technology that is critical and urgently needed for small arms detection and location for future procurement for force protection and situational awareness at all command levels in open and urban terrain operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Madam Speaker, I rise to state for the record that today I introduced H. Res. 1023, challenging the constitutionality of the House and Senate passed health care bills with respect to the individual mandate requiring American citizens to purchase government approved health insurance. My resolution also demands the removal of the individual health insurance mandate from any final healthcare reform bill that Congress considers.

H. Res. 1023 builds off the efforts of at least 36 state legislatures, including Oklahoma, that are looking to limit or oppose health mandates in the House and Senate passed health care reform bills that would require purchase of government approved health insurance. These state actions are in direct opposition to the draconian national health care reform measures that are currently under consideration by the House and Senate.

Throughout the healthcare debate, the Administration and this Congress have largely ignored the most fundamental question of all-- whether or not the Federal Government is overstepping its constitutional bounds by taking over our healthcare system. Even back in 1994, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, CBO, wrote that it would be an unprecedented form of Federal action for Congress to mandate that all individuals are required to purchase health insurance. I introduced this resolution to send a strong message that the personal mandates in both the House and Senate passed healthcare bills are unprecedented and unconstitutional--nowhere in the Constitution is Congress given the power to force Americans to purchase a good or service or enter into a contract--which these bills would do.

By forcing Americans to purchase government approved health insurance, the Administration and the Democrat majority are essentially saying that you don't have a right to choose what health insurance plan is best for you, your family or your business--I strongly disagree.

There are better ways to bring health insurance to the uninsured. There are incentives that Congress could pass right now with bipartisan support--such as allowing individuals to purchase insurance across state lines to reduce cost, and offering tax deductions for individuals and families who are uninsured--that would make purchasing insurance easier and cheaper for all Americans. Unfortunately, the House and Senate passed healthcare bills coerce and compel individuals to purchase insurance with tax penalties and possible prison terms.

Madam Speaker, today, I rise to recognize the City of Owasso, Oklahoma, in the First Congressional District for receiving an A+ rating in government transparency by the online citizen's watchdog group, Sunshine Review. I congratulate the City of Owasso for receiving this prestigious award and becoming the first city in Oklahoma to receive a perfect grade.

The Sunshine Review is an online resource that monitors government transparency at the local, county, and state levels throughout the country. According to the organization, they seek to make government accountability and records accessible for all citizens and taxpayers to read. In order to assess a city's rating, the Sunshine Review compiles a ``transparency checklist'', consisting of ten basic sections of accountability. Each section must

have proper online access for its constituents to review governmental work, including budgets and contractual information for elected and administrative officials.

I am proud that Owasso became the first city in Oklahoma to receive this distinguished honor. As we work towards accountability and transparency in Congress, Owasso remains a shining example to local and state governments and to what our nation must accomplish as a whole. By receiving a perfect grade, the City of Owasso remains a shining example of a local government taking responsibility to its citizens and taxpayers they represent. All citizens deserve an open forum to see how their government spends their hard-earned, taxpayer dollars.

I firmly believe that an open and honest government is the most effective way to give Americans the transparency they deserve. Owasso's focus on this important issue illustrates their steadfast leadership to promote accountable governance at all levels. I am proud of the city for this great accomplishment.

Madam Speaker, I rise to bring to the attention of my colleagues the significant strides that the Principality of Liechtenstein has made through its comprehensive reforms in the regulation of its financial sector over the last nine years. These reforms are impressive. It is clear that Liechtenstein has demonstrated itself to be a trusted and effective partner in combating a wide range of financial crimes, including money laundering, terrorist financing, and tax fraud.

As the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) removed Liechtenstein from its grey list of non-cooperating states in tax matters on November 11, 2009, I would like to use this benchmark to recognize the Principality for its record of achievements in increasing not only the transparency of its financial center internationally, but its increased partnership with the United States. Recent reforms guarantee that Liechtenstein will provide the United States and others with an increasing range of cooperation on international tax matters. Its initial reforms concentrated on anti-money laundering efforts. More recently, the government of Liechtenstein signed an important Tax Information Exchange Agreement with the United States and has concluded negotiations of an Anti-Fraud Agreement with the European Union.

Liechtenstein's reform efforts began in 2000 when it committed itself to reform the regulation of its financial sector to better ensure that its banks and other service providers could not provide financial services to terrorists, drug lords, or other criminals. In 2001, Liechtenstein was taken off the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF) list of non-cooperating countries. Since that time, Liechtenstein has improved its cooperation with the United States and the rest of the international community in the fight against all forms of crime.

Liechtenstein has worked closely with the U.S. government--including the Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)--to combat terrorist financing networks. In addition, since 2002, Liechtenstein's Financial Intelligence Unit has been engaged in an ongoing multilateral effort to disclose the financial network of Abdul Qadeer Khan, the founder of Pakistan's nuclear weapons program. Liechtenstein also successfully worked to secure the return to the Iraqi government of a Falcon 50 airplane that had belonged to Saddam Hussein and has worked with the Volcker Commission in investigations of the UN's ``Oil for Food'' program.

Another step in Liechtenstein's international cooperation on financial crimes was the conclusion of a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) with the United States in 2002. Additionally, the Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) between Liechtenstein and the United States was signed in 2008. Once fully implemented in 2010, Liechtenstein and the United States will work closely together on the full range of tax issues, including tax fraud and tax evasion.

Liechtenstein's actions are to be commended. The continued productivity of the U.S.-Liechtenstein partnership is essential to fighting financial crimes and terrorist financing and I thank Liechtenstein for their commitment to these reforms.

Madam Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise today to honor Judge H. Dale Cook. Judge Cook was a World War II veteran who spent nearly 50 years in public service and more than 33 years as a United States district judge in Oklahoma. Judge Cook began his career in public service in 1951 when he was elected county attorney for Logan County and Guthrie. He would hold several other positions in public service in Oklahoma, including first assistant U.S. attorney, chief trial attorney and legal counsel and adviser to Governor Henry Bellmon.

In the early 1970s, Judge Cook worked in Washington, D.C., for the Social Security Administration until beginning his career as a Federal judge in 1974 when he was sworn in as U.S. district judge in the Northern, Eastern and Western Districts of Oklahoma.

Five years later in 1979, Judge Cook became chief judge of the Northern District of Oklahoma and served in that capacity for 13 years.

In 1992, Judge Cook took senior status to enable the appointment of an additional judge to the Northern District. As a senior judge, he continued to be active and carried a full court docket for the next 12 years until a few months before his death on September 22, 2008.

Judge Cook was adamantly committed to his belief that politics should play no role in the dispensing of justice and demonstrated that belief in his judicial rulings and the administration of his responsibilities as chief judge. He was a man of fairness and integrity who opened each court session with ``God bless the United States and save this honorable court.''

Judge Cook's greatest legacy may be the restoration and the reopening of the original Federal courthouse in Tulsa, Oklahoma. When the Federal courts were moved to another building about 45 years ago, the old Federal building sat largely unused. Judge Cook saw this building as a solution when there became a need for additional court space. He spearheaded the effort to restore it to its original splendor. Judge Cook used his powers of persuasion and his influence as chief judge of the Northern District to insist on conforming the courthouse to its original design and decorum. Without his involvement, the building would have never been used for its current purpose, and the beauty of a lost era would not be visible as it is today in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

By his direct efforts, the building is now included in the National Register of Historic Places and is currently used for the courtrooms, judicial chambers, the bankruptcy court and affiliated Federal offices of the Northern District of Oklahoma. Due to the vision and hard work of Judge Cook, the building is now being used for its original purpose, as a Federal judicial courthouse.

Preserving the beauty of a lost era as a Federal judge, he conducted his duties in a nonpartisan manner. It is my hope that the naming of this Federal building will be an equally bipartisan effort to honor this exceptional man for his exemplary career in public service and bringing the Federal courthouse back to its original grandeur.

I urge the adoption of H.R. 3305.

Last week, my colleagues on the other side unveiled the latest version of their plan for government-controlled health care that, according to CBO, will cost $1.2 trillion. Simply put, that's $2.2 million of taxpayer money for every single word in this bill.

This 2,000-page bill creates 111 new government programs and is full of tax increases and government mandates.

This bill is bad for patients, bad for doctors, bad for seniors, bad for small businesses, and terrible for our economy.

This bill will raise taxes on the American people, cut Medicare for seniors by half a trillion dollars, add to the already out-of-control Federal deficit, and will leave personal medical decisions to bureaucrats in Washington instead of families.

Mr. Speaker, there's another way. We believe health care reform begins by bringing all stakeholders--patients, doctors, citizens and hospitals--to the table where everyone has equal input. Our plan will lower cost, increase access, and improve the quality of care your family will receive.

Mr. Speaker, a $1.5 trillion government takeover of our health care system is not the answer. People were not even consulted about this. When I was home in August, physicians, patients, doctors, providers were not informed. The stakeholders were not even told about the Obama health care plan before it came out. This is not the answer.

And people are suffering right now. Our economy is not doing too well. People are losing jobs. And an $818 billion tax increase on small business is not the way to reform our health care system. It is the wrong approach.

Republicans have a better way. We want people to have choice. One thing the Republicans want, we want people with preexisting conditions to get coverage and we want health insurance to go down, but we want to make sure that the bureaucrats don't get in the way of the doctor- patient relationship. That is what this plan does. There are 31 bureaucracies in place, bureaucracies and czars between you, the patient, and the doctor. That is the wrong approach.

We don't need an Obama health care plan. We need one that gives choice. We need one where people have an option to have a relationship with their doctor, and we need one that doesn't tax small business, especially right now when people are suffering and the economy is not doing that well.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor an extraordinary individual from my district, Mr. Brian Grimm.

On Thursday, September 17, Brian Grimm was named Oklahoma's Teacher of the Year. After 13 years in education and with 6 years teaching at Will Rogers High School in my hometown of Tulsa, he was selected for this highly respected, much-deserved honor by a collection of education, business, and civic leaders.

Following his graduation from Sapulpa High School in a suburb of Tulsa, he went on to the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a teacher. Brian currently teaches English and advanced placement English while pursuing his master's degree from the University of Oklahoma.

Mr. Grimm is the first teacher from Tulsa Public Schools to win this honor in over 45 years and is a true hero for the work he does for Tulsa's youth. The role teachers play in preparing our children for a successful future cannot be understated, and thanks to the highly dedicated educators like Brian Grimm, that future has never looked brighter.

I'm proud to honor him today and congratulate him on his achievement.

Madam Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise today to honor my

friend and former colleague, Wesley ``Wes'' Watkins. H.R. 1713 would name the United States Department of Agriculture's South Central Research Laboratory in Lane, Oklahoma, and the facility of the U.S. Postal Service in Bennington, Oklahoma, in honor of the former Congressman Wes Watkins, who represented Oklahoma for 20 years.

Throughout Congressman Watkins's career, he devoted his life to the people of Oklahoma. He began his career of public service in 1974 when he was elected to serve in the Oklahoma State Senate. After U.S. House Speaker Carl Albert announced his retirement after 30 years in office, Congressman Watkins was elected to Congress in 1976. During his time in office, Wes would become the only Oklahoma Congressman to serve on all three major House financial committees, including Appropriations, Budget, and Ways and Means, where he used his influence to increase funding for rural economic development and education programs in the Third District of Oklahoma.

Wes is a man of principal. I am honored to know him and to have worked with him in Congress. He served the great state of Oklahoma and America proudly. I ask that you all join me in supporting H.R. 1713 which recognizes and honors a great public servant to Oklahoma and our Nation.

Madam Speaker, consistent with House Republican Earmark Standards, I am submitting the following earmark disclosure and certification information for three project funding requests that I made and were included within the text of H.R. 3326, the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2010.

Project: Fire Suppression System

Project Amount: $1,425,000

Account: RDT&E Army

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Global Safety Labs

Address of Requesting Entity: 4129 South 72nd E. Ave., Tulsa, OK 74146

Description of Request: This initiative will provide financial resources for testing and evaluating military applications of Arctic Fire Freeze. Arctic Fire Freeze is a fire suppressant product that has been used by the steel

industry for approximately 10 years. Funding provided by this request will be used to conduct rigorous military testing and evaluation. The use of Arctic Fire Freeze in military vehicles and equipment and by ground troops could significantly reduce burn-related injuries and fatalities.

Project: High Density Power Conversion and Distribution Equipment

Project Amount: $1,500,000

Account: RDT&E Navy

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Westwood Corporation, L-3 Communications

Address of Requesting Entity: 12402 East 60th Street, Tulsa, OK 74146

Description of Request: Navy power switchboard technology has remained essentially the same for nearly 50 years. This technology is passed largely on past Navy applications (with lower power needs) and commercial practices (which are less volume and weight sensitive). The Navy's power needs (e.g., sensors, weapons, house loads) have escalated and the newest power architecture designs have added additional concerns (e.g., higher frequencies), but the size and weight of the power distribution equipment are still limited. The inline switchboard technology simplifies the switchboard arrangement to greatly decrease size, weight, and lifecycle cost. In summary, this will provide the Navy with technology that will result in $0.25 M/per year per destroyer/cruiser in maintenance savings plus an additional $1 million per ship in overhaul savings. Additional savings are estimated in size and weight at 50 tons per ship and a space savings of 1000 sq.ft . Fuel savings due to the decreased weight are anticipated to be significant given the cost of fuel.

Project: Lightweight Composite Structure Development for Aerospace Vehicles

Project Amount: $3,000,000

Account: RDT&E Navy

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Advanced Composites Group

Address of Requesting Entity: 5350 South 129th Street, Tulsa, OK 74134.

Description of Request: Funding would improve, qualify, and test advanced composite materials. The military has a demonstrated need for a domestic source of new advanced carbon fibers and testing protocols. Second-source qualification of composite materials only currently available from foreign suppliers will allow military suppliers to have access to lower cost domestic sources of composite materials.

Madam Speaker, consistent with House Republican Earmark Standards, I am submitting the following earmark disclosure and certification information for three project funding requests that I made and were included within the text of H.R. 3288--the FY 2010 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act.

Project 1

Project: Tulsa International Airport, Memorial Drive and Waterline Project

Project Amount: $500,000

Account: Federal Aviation Administration Airport Improvement Program

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Tulsa Airport and Improvement Trust/ City of Tulsa

Address of Requesting Entity: P.O. Box 581838, Tulsa, OK 74103

Description of Request: Funding will upgrade approximately 1,000 feet of 8" waterline to 12" and extend the line an additional 1,800 feet. It will also reconstruct and re-align Memorial Drive south of Port Road, including repairs to about 1,000 feet of existing road and re-alignment of approximately 1,000 feet of road. This work is needed to support re- development of this area from its old, original residential use into an area being prepared for construction of large aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities planned for the North Development Area at Tulsa International Airport.

Project 2

Project: US 60, widen between Bartlesville and Pawhuska, Osage County, OK

Project Amount: $400,000

Account: Federal Highway Administration Transportation & Community & System Preservation

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Oklahoma Department of Transportation

Address of Requesting Entity: 200 NE 21st Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73105

Description of Request: Funding will be used to provide needed transportation improvements to a heavily traveled narrow two lane highway containing both poor vertical and horizontal curves resulting in a high rate of accidents. This road is a key National Highway System route in northeastern Oklahoma, more specifically connecting Bartlesville and Vinita. This critical project is important for widening US 60 from approximately 2 miles east of the US 60/US 75 interchange east approximately 5.5 miles.

Project 3

Project: Metropolitan Tulsa Transit Authority, bus purchase, Tulsa,

Madam Speaker, consistent with House Republican Earmark Standards, I am submitting the following earmark disclosure and certification information for three project funding requests that I made and were included within the text of H.R. 3298--Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010.

Project 1

Project: Tulsa Academic Center

Project Amount: $350,000

Account: Elementary & Secondary Education

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Tulsa Public Schools

Address of Requesting Entity: 3027 South New Haven Ave., Tulsa, OK 74114.

Description of Request: Tulsa Public Schools are twelfth in the nation in the highest percentage of students dropping out of high school. The Tulsa Public Schools Academic Center, an alternative education school for secondary students, serves students' academic needs in an environment stressing self discipline and respect. The Tulsa Learning Academy serves as a drop-out recovery program for students who need a minimum number of credits to obtain their diploma and who may need to work while they attend school.

Project 2

Project: University of Oklahoma--College of Medicine, Tulsa, OK, for Facilities and Equipment

Project Amount: $300,000

Account: Health Resources and Services Administration--Health Facilities and Services

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: University of Oklahoma College of Medicine

Address of Requesting Entity: 4502 E 41st Street, Tulsa, OK 74135

Description of Request: Funding this project will help deliver healthcare services to a woefully underserved area. The lack of access to healthcare has resulted in significantly higher rates of chronic illness and disease and drastically lower life expectancy ranges. Investing in this clinic will help improve the lives and livelihoods of the residents and in turn promote a healthier workforce and economy in the region.

Project 3

Project: Oklahoma State University--Center for Health Systems, Tulsa, OK, for purchase of equipment, including a mobile clinic

Project Amount: $300,000

Account: Health Resources and Services Administration--Health Facilities and Services

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences

Address of Requesting Entity: 1111 West 17th Street, Tulsa, OK 74107.

Description of Request: This project will achieve two goals: (1) expand and enhance the OSU Center for Health Science's health information technology system, including its telemedicine and distance learning as well as electronic medical records network, and (2) bring diagnostic and medical services to geographic regions in Oklahoma where even telemedicine is not yet feasible or reasonably located by use of a mobile clinic. The mobile clinics will be available to provide medical services in response to natural or manmade disasters.

Mr. President and the Democrat majority, where in the heck are the jobs? With this stimulus bill and more than $1 trillion spent and zero job growth, where are the jobs?

With the national energy tax passed by this House, it levies billions of new energy taxes on the American people, costing the average American family $3,100 more a year to heat and cool their home and put gas in the tank of their car. Where are the jobs?

On health care, our Democrat majority's $1.2 trillion government takeover of our health care system mandates a one-size-fits-all, government-run health care plan on most Americans. Their plan is to nationalize our health care system and create new mandates, government bureaucracy and inefficiency that will only serve to drive up costs of our health care system even more.

Wasteful government spending is having devastating consequences on this country. It also could cost 4.7 million more jobs and hurt small business.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1622, my legislation to reauthorize the natural gas vehicles research, development, demonstration and deployment program within the Department of Energy for 5 years.

I would like to thank Ranking Member Hall and Chairman Gordon and also my colleague from Oklahoma, Dan Boren, for bringing this important legislation to the floor today.

Natural gas is the bridge fuel for decreasing our dependence on foreign sources of oil and putting our Nation on a path to energy security. It is critical that we make a strong effort to incorporate more natural gas vehicles into our transportation fleet. There are more than 150,000 natural gas vehicles on the U.S. roads today and over 10 million world wide. Increased U.S. natural gas vehicle research, development, demonstration and deployment will only increase these numbers if we make the proper investments as my bill does.

Natural gas vehicles are an important part of our national transportation infrastructure. In 2008 alone, natural gas vehicles displaced almost 300 million gallons of petroleum in the United States. In fact, nearly one in five new transit buses on order today is specified to be natural gas powered, proof that we are moving in the right direction.

We also have a proven reserve of natural gas right here in the United States. We have enough known natural gas reserves to last more than a century. As a matter of fact, 98 percent of the natural gas we consume is produced right here in North America. Natural gas is American-made energy.

In addition to our vast supply, we already have a way to get natural gas to the consumer with over 1.5 million miles of natural gas pipeline distribution across the United States. Natural gas vehicles are also better for the environment. Greenhouse gas emissions from natural gas are 23 percent lower than diesel and 30 percent lower than gasoline. Natural gas vehicles also produce virtually no particulate matter or emissions.

To meet our Nation's energy needs, we must continue to develop alternative and renewable sources of energy. However, we can't shoot the horse we are on until we find a new horse. Natural gas is the bridge fuel for decreasing our dependence on foreign sources of oil and putting our Nation on a path to energy security.

I encourage passage of H.R. 1622 today.

Madam Speaker, consistent with House Republican Earmark Standards, I am submitting the following earmark disclosure and certification information for three project funding requests that I made and were included within the text of H.R. 3183--The FY 2010 Energy and Water Appropriations Act.

Project 1

Project: Arkansas River Corridor Project

Project Amount: $100,000

Account: Corp of Engineers Investigations

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: (INCOG) Tulsa County/Program Management Group

Address of Requesting Entity: 601 S Boulder, Suite 1200, Tulsa, OK 74119

Description of Request: Funding will be used for an authorized project (WRDA) within the Tulsa Region that has great environmental benefits and future economic benefits to the region. The projects risks a stall/fail in the engineering design process if the Corps of Engineers is not provided with this funding needed to continue their portion of the project. The Water Resources Development Act of 2007 authorizes the Corps of Engineers to participate in the ecosystem restoration, recreation and flood damage reduction components of the Arkansas River Corridor Master Plan.

Project 2

Project: Green TU Algae to Green Fuels Energy Project

Project Amount: $750,000

Account: Department of Energy EERE

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: The University of Tulsa

Address of Requesting Entity: 600 S College Ave, McClure Hall, Tulsa,