Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

The people I know and the people I meet work very hard every day. They want an opportunity for a good job, they want good schools, safe communities, and the promise that when they retire they can live their years in dignity. They want a government that is fair and helps make progress towards the American dream.

But this Republican budget is not for the hardworking people of America. This Republican budget is crafted by the special interests for the special interests. Republicans stack the deck against working families and small businesses. Incomes of CEOs and the top 1 percent are soaring, but everyone else is working harder to get by.

We need an economy that is firing on all cylinders for everybody, creating jobs that pay enough to keep up. Yet the Republican budget raises taxes on middle class families in order to cut taxes for people who earn over $1 million.

Republicans ignore one of the most important ways to cut the debt and the deficit, and that is have more Americans working. If the middle class succeeds, then America succeeds.

Republicans refuse to find one special interest loophole in the Tax Code. If you are incredibly rich, then you are incredibly lucky because this budget is for you. You pay less. But if you are like the vast majority of Americans, hold on, because you are going to pay more.

If you are a student who wants to attend college, Republicans make that harder by cutting Pell grants and student loans.

Mr. Chairman, if you have a job in construction at America's ports or in transportation, this Republican budget could cost you your job and new opportunities.

If you believe America should remain the world leader in medical and scientific research, sorry, the Republican budget slashes research at the National Institutes of Health or in universities and research institutions.

If you are an older American, the Republican budget asks you to pay much more for Medicare, long-term care, and nursing care. It takes away that secure lifeline that has been in place since Democratic Congresses passed Medicare and Medicaid so that you will be able to live your retirement years in dignity without the fear of poverty.

This Republican budget is a cynical, special-interest driven vision of America. I recommend a strong ``no'' vote in opposition.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and accomplishments of Mr. Sydney Potter. As our neighbors in the Tampa Bay area know, you cannot talk about Sydney without also talking about his amazing wife, Thalia. Sydney and Thalia were true partners dedicated to their family and to serving our community. Sydney passed recently, but today I am happy to honor their countless accomplishments and unsurpassed reputation for improving Hillsborough County.

Sydney and Thalia Potter married in 1944 and raised their family along the banks of the Hillsborough River in 1955. Both Sydney and Thalia had distinguished professional careers. Sydney served most of his career as Secretary-Treasurer of I.W. Phillips & Company before managing a distribution office for Ace Hardware. Thalia had an outstanding career as a legislative aide which began with Florida State Representative Ed Blackburn in the early 1970's and continued with State Senator Pat Frank as well as State Representative Jim Davis before her retirement. Throughout her career, Thalia was known for her scrupulous ethics, impeccable attention to detail, and unparalleled skill for serving constituents with kindness and poise.

Sydney and Thalia's love of the Hillsborough River led them to be longtime advocates for environmental stewardship. In the words of close friends, Sydney and Thalia ``were green before green was cool.'' Their activism led to the passage of environmental protection bills for the Hillsborough River as well as led to the completion of projects that successfully reversed erosion along a local riverfront park and pushed local officials to allow more freshwater to flow from the upriver dam to replenish the river's ecosystem. In 1997, they also helped organize Citizens for the Responsible Application of Malathion (CRAM), which successfully stopped the spraying of dangerous pesticides over the citizens of Hillsborough County. Sydney and Thalia's leadership in environmental conservation and preservation has had an immeasurable impact on the community and the future of the Tampa Bay Watershed.

Sydney and Thalia's dedication and community service has led to their recognition by several prestigious organizations. Thalia was awarded the Sierra Club's Pine Tree Award in 1998 for achievement in group activism and, later that year, Sydney was awarded the Club's Gopher Tortoise Award for support of a member in important activist effort. In 2008, The League of Women Voters of Hillsborough County announced the establishment of the

``Sydney and Thalia Potter Civic Leadership Award for their commitment to good government, protection of the environment, and community activism.

Sydney was a gentleman in the finest sense of the word and was remarkably knowledgeable in his understanding of the key issues affecting our community and country. His poignant, tough questions to public officials at Suncoast Tiger Bay Club meetings led to him winning more Garfield Awards than any other member. Thalia is a woman of true grace and grit from a remarkable family with an unmatched history of commitment to helping children and families. Sydney and Thalia are consummate examples of servant leadership. At every turn, they acted with the best interest of the community and country at heart. Mr. Speaker, please join me in recognizing two irreplaceable and inspirational leaders of the Tampa Bay community for a lifetime of dedicated public service.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor an inspirational leader in the Tampa Bay community, Pastor James Favorite. I am pleased to recognize his remarkable career and years of distinguished public service. Pastor Favorite was born in Vacherie, Louisiana. He obtained a Bachelor's and Master's of Science Degree in Health, Physical Education, and Social Studies from Southern University in Baton Rouge. Pastor Favorite also holds a Doctor of Ministry Degree and an Honorary Doctor of Divinity Degree from the Maryland Theological Seminary College.

Throughout his career, Pastor Favorite has been a prominent spiritual leader in the Tampa Bay community. He became an ordained minister in 1985 at Morning Star Baptist Church in Catonsville, Maryland. He then moved to Tampa where he has been a guiding force in interfaith dialogue. He is President of Pastors on Patrol, a group of ministers in the Tampa Bay area committed to bring revival to the city. He is the Chairman of both the National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS Tampa Affiliate and the Board of Directors of the National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS. He is the former President of the Progressive National Baptist Convention's Southern Region and also served as National Chair of the Progressive National Baptist Convention's HIV/AIDS Initiative.

Pastor Favorite has been a dedicated community volunteer across Tampa Bay. He is a member of the Children's Board committee looking into strategies to increase state and local funding support to vital children and family support programs. He serves as a member of the Hillsborough County Chamber of Commerce Urban Enterprise Initiative Committee for East Tampa. He previously chaired the African-American Family Support Initiative program that studies and develops ways to strengthen families in the African American community.

Since 1995, Pastor Favorite has led Beulah Baptist Institutional Church where he is now celebrating 19 years of dedicated service. Under Pastor Favorite's extraordinary leadership Beulah has received substantial growth in membership and revenue. It has become deeply integrated in the life of the Tampa Bay community. Under his leadership, Hillsborough County funded Beulah as one of only two satellite library sites in the county. He spearheaded an Outreach Ministry to Jamaica with a team of doctors and nurses which delivered more than $100,000 in medical supplies and equipment to more than 5,000 individuals in ten years. He has developed renowned programs ranging from teaching young parents to develop parenting skills to programs on repairing credit and making sound financial investments. He has also ensured that the Beulah summer program for children has received over $2 million dollars in funding from the Children's Board for the past five years.

Pastor Favorite's tireless, selfless service has helped to create a better and spiritually strengthened Tampa Bay community. Mr. Speaker, I join Beulah in congratulating Pastor Favorite for 19 years of outstanding service as a pastor, mentor, and tremendous community leader.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to urge all of my colleagues to pass H.R. 3370, the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act.

If this bill passes we will keep middle class families in their homes, bring relief to our local economy and provide needed reliability to middle class friends and neighbors.

Since November 2013, I have urged action on flood insurance on every bill that moved through the Rules Committee to the floor of the U.S. House.

Families who were facing massive flood insurance premium increases will now be able to breathe easier. The reforms will help ensure that flood insurance will be there in times of disaster.

This legislation allows individuals purchasing covered homes to also assume the predetermined rates and restores grandfathered properties under prior law so that owners would pay rates applicable to the original flood risk.

We have learned that we must keep a close eye on FEMA and flood maps and this legislation gives us more tools to do so. I credit the outcry many of our neighbors, realtors, chambers of commerce and others who helped focus the pressure on the Republican leaders in Congress to act.

This has been an anxious time for homeowners, but the immense pressure by families and the business community on the House GOP was an effort that paid off. This Congress has an unfortunate reputation for not addressing the challenges that middle class families face. Today, we can come together to do just that.

I thank my Florida colleagues who worked in a bipartisan manner to bring relief to more than two million National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in our state and I urge a ``yes'' vote on the bill.

Mr. Speaker, today, I urge the House of Representatives to pass this bipartisan energy efficiency legislation, the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2014, that would take a best practices approach to achieving optimal performance levels in commercial buildings and identify energy efficiency improvements in federal government data centers and leased buildings. This piece of legislation will save energy, save taxpayer dollars, lower consumers' energy bills and reduce harmful pollution.

I want to thank Chairman Upton and Ranking Member Waxman of the Energy and Commerce Committee and Chairman Whitfield and Ranking Member Rush of the Energy and Power Subcommittee for including my bill, H.R. 3820, a bill to encourage benchmarking and disclosure of energy information in commercial buildings, as Title IV of the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act.

Existing federal law requires benchmarking of federally owned buildings. Benchmarking is a practice that allows building owners to assess the energy use of their buildings and compare their performance to similar buildings. My bill builds on existing law by requiring federally leased buildings to benchmark and disclose their energy usage data, where practical.

Benchmarking helps owners identify buildings that can most benefit from energy upgrades. The federal Energy Star Buildings program has encouraged benchmarking for many years and the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that this program has benchmarked more than 185 million square feet of U.S. commercial floor space, resulting in average energy savings of about 5 percent in these buildings.

My bill requires a benchmarking study for commercial and multi-family buildings. A number of U.S. cities encourage or require benchmarking for large commercial or multi-family buildings. This information helps building owners, purchasers and renters make more informed decisions. This piece of legislation requires the Department of Energy, in collaboration with the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, to conduct a study on benchmarking methodologies so that cities and states can avoid pitfalls and implement best practices.

I hope that passage of the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act marks a period of bipartisan cooperation. I look forward to working with my colleagues on the Energy and Commerce Committee on solving the nation's energy issues and other pressing matters.

I thank the gentlewoman from California for her leadership on behalf of families all across the country.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge all of our colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 3370 that will fix this flood insurance debacle.

A year and a half ago, a bill was passed here in the House to address the solvency of the flood insurance trust fund. That was the right thing to do. Unfortunately, it had serious unintended consequences that families and businessowners and Realtors all across this Nation have been dealing with.

But I am heartened here today because, even though this Congress has an unfortunate reputation for not addressing the challenges that face families all across this country, we are going to come together here today to address a very important financial issue for families.

I would like to thank my colleagues from Florida, Congressman Hastings, Congressman Bilirakis, Congressman Nugent, Congressman Buchanan, and all of our delegation for fighting, standing together to work for them. I urge all of our colleagues here today to do the same.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Black History Month and to honor the life of an extraordinary leader of the Tampa Bay community, Dr. David Welch. His remarkable career in public service and his many contributions to our community stand as a testament to his tremendous character.

Dr. Welch was born in St. Petersburg, Florida. As a young man, Dr. Welch served his country in the U.S. Army Airborne during the Korean War. After the war, Dr. Welch graduated from Florida A&M University and later obtained a doctorate in education from Nova University. Teaching was a lifelong passion for Mr. Welch, who inspired countless young minds during his time as a teacher at Gibbs Junior College and later on at St. Petersburg Vocational-Technical Institute.

Once Dr. Welch began his career, he quickly emerged as a business and community leader. He founded Welch Tax Services and Accounting which assisted numerous local entrepreneurs and helped foster a thriving business environment in downtown St. Petersburg. As Director of Fiscal Affairs at St. Petersburg Vocation-Technical Institute, he used his adept diplomatic skills to resolve the 116-day sanitation workers' strike of 1968. He would continue to employ his ability to bring people together as the co-chair of the biracial Community Alliance, an organization dedicated to relieving racial tensions in the area.

In 1981, Dr. Welch became the second African American to serve on the St. Petersburg City Council. As a three-term council member, Dr. Welch championed development projects, and was one of the driving forces behind what are today some of St. Petersburg's most prominent landmarks. His efforts were instrumental in the development of Tropicana Field, the Pier, and the Bayfront Center. Dr. Welch was also a strong supporter of municipal interest-free loans for housing which led to major renovations in St. Petersburg. His outgoing nature and diplomatic manner earned him respect and results throughout his tenure as a council member.

While working diligently as a public servant, Dr. Welch continued to remain active in education and supporting local businesses through his office. Dr. Welch was always eager to mentor aspiring leaders and took an active interest in the youth of the community.

On September 16, 2013, Dr. Welch passed away at the age of 85. His legacy of service and leadership are an inspiration for all people throughout this great nation. His commitment to education, economic development, and equality will be forever remembered and appreciated. Mr. Speaker, I join the Tampa Bay community in thanking Dr. David Welch for his lifelong service to the State of Florida.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Black History Month and to recognize a remarkable leader of the Tampa Bay community, Dr. Carolyn Collins. Her work as a public healthcare advocate, champion of education, and a broadcaster stand as a powerful testament to a lifetime of public service.

After graduating from Howard W. Blake High School in the Tampa Bay area in 1965, Dr. Collins earned a degree in Foods, Nutrition, and Institutional Management from Florida A&M University in 1973. She also earned a Masters of Public Administration degree in Health Services Management and Administration from Golden Gate University in San Francisco, California. Having attained these considerable academic qualifications, Dr. Collins launched a long and successful career.

Dr. Collins has been extremely active in advocacy efforts on behalf of the African American community in the Tampa Bay area. Her involvement in the Hillsborough County chapter of the NAACP stretches back to 1973. She currently serves as the Chapter President. As a Registered and Licensed Clinical Nutrition Specialist, Dr. Collins was a strong advocate for improving public health in the Tampa community. She served as a Clinical Nutrition Specialist for over 34 years at Tampa General

Hospital. In addition to her professional work, she served as chair of the Employment Advisory Committee, serving the interests of over 4,000 employees at Tampa General Hospital.

Dr. Collins has also been an active voice in our community. From 1986 to 1992, she hosted her own television show, ``Black Contact,'' broadcast on the CBS-affiliated WTVT Channel 13. She received the prestigious Creative Excellence in Business Advertising Award for her show.

Dr. Collins has been a strong supporter of improving public education. Since the 1970s, she has been actively involved in the Hillsborough County Head Start Program in a variety of different capacities. She has served as the Parent President in the past and also represented the program as the chair of the Hillsborough County Community Action Agency Board of Directors. Inspired by the powerful effect of her own academic career, Dr. Collins has been active in all levels of the Florida A&M University alumni association for over 35 years. For 7 of those years, she served as Vice President of the National Alumni Association, and afterwards became the president of the association.

Dr. Collins has many honors to her credit, not only in her professional career but also for her outstanding community involvement. Her example is truly an inspiration to all Americans. Mr. Speaker, I join the Tampa Bay community in thanking Dr. Carolyn Collins for her many years of selfless public service.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Black History Month and to honor the life of an extraordinary leader of the Tampa Bay community, Dr. David Welch. His remarkable career in public service and his many contributions to our community stand as a testament to his tremendous character.

Dr. Welch was born in St. Petersburg, Florida. As a young man, Dr. Welch served his country in the U.S. Army Airborne during the Korean War. After the war, Dr. Welch graduated from Florida A&M University and later obtained a doctorate in education from Nova University. Teaching was a lifelong passion for Mr. Welch, who inspired countless young minds during his time as a teacher at Gibbs Junior College and later on at St. Petersburg Vocational-Technical Institute.

Once Dr. Welch began his career, he quickly emerged as a business and community leader. He founded Welch Tax Services and Accounting which assisted numerous local entrepreneurs and helped foster a thriving business environment in downtown St. Petersburg. As Director of Fiscal Affairs at St. Petersburg Vocational-Technical Institute, he used his adept diplomatic skills to resolve the 116-day sanitation workers' strike of 1968. He would continue to employ his ability to bring people together as the co-chair of the biracial Community Alliance, an organization dedicated to relieving racial tensions in the area.

In 1981, Dr. Welch became the second African American to serve on the St. Petersburg City Council. As a three-term council member, Dr. Welch championed development projects, and was one of the driving forces behind what are today some of St. Petersburg's most prominent landmarks. His efforts were instrumental in the development of Tropicana Field, the Pier, and the Bayfront Center. Dr. Welch was also a strong supporter of municipal interest-free loans for housing which led to major renovations in St. Petersburg. His outgoing nature and diplomatic manner earned him respect and results throughout his tenure as a council member.

While working diligently as a public servant, Dr. Welch continued to remain active in education and supporting local businesses through his office. Dr. Welch was always eager to mentor aspiring leaders and took an active interest in the youth of the community.

On September 16, 2013, Dr. Welch passed away at the age of 85. His legacy of service and leadership are an inspiration for all people throughout this great nation. His commitment to education, economic development, and equality will be forever remembered and appreciated. Mr. Speaker, I join the Tampa Bay community in thanking Dr. David Welch for his lifelong service to the State of Florida.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 143 inventors who will soon be recognized at the United States Patent and Trademark Office and inducted as the 2013 Fellows of the National Academy of Inventors by the United States Deputy Commissioner of Patent Operations, Andrew Faile. In order to be named as a Fellow, these men and women were nominated by their peers and have undergone the scrutiny of the NAI Selection Committee, having had their innovations deemed as making significant impact on quality of life, economic development and welfare of society. Collectively, this elite group holds more than 5,600 patents.

The individuals making up this year's class of Fellows include individuals from 94 research universities and non-profit research institutes spanning not just the United States but also the world. This group of inductees touts 26 presidents and senior leadership of research universities and non-profit research institutes, 69 members of the National Academies, five inductees of the National Inventors Hall of Fame, six recipients of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, two recipients of the National Medal of Science, nine Nobel Laureates, and 23 AAAS Fellows, among other major awards and distinctions.

The contributions made to society through innovation are immeasurable. I commend these individuals, and the organizations that support them, for the work that they do to revolutionize the world we live in. As the following inventors are inducted, may it encourage future innovators to strive to meet this high honor and continue the spirit of innovation.

The 2013 NAI Fellows include:

Patrick Aebischer, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne; Rakesh Agrawal, Purdue University; Dimitris Anastassiou, Columbia University; David E. Aspnes, North Carolina State University; Michael Bass, University of Central Florida; David J. Bayless, Ohio University; Kurt H. Becker, New York University; Carolyn R. Bertozzi, University of California, Berkeley; Rathindra N. Bose, University of Houston; David E. Briles, The University of Alabama at Birmingham; Richard D. Bucholz, Saint Louis University; Mark A. Burns, University of Michigan; Anne K. Camper, Montana State University; Lisa A. Cannon-Albright, The University of Utah; Charles R. Cantor, Boston University; Dennis A. Carson, University of California, San Diego; Carolyn L. Cason, The University of Texas at Arlington; David M. Center, Boston University; Vinton G. Cerf, National Science Foundation; Stephen Y. Chou, Princeton University.

Christos Christodoulatos, Stevens Institute of Technology; Benjamin Chu, Stony Brook University; Aaron J. Ciechanover, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology; Graeme M. Clark, The University of Melbourne; Leon N. Cooper, Brown University; Carlo M. Croce, The Ohio State University; William W. Cruikshank, Boston University; Brian T. Cunningham, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Jerome J. Cuomo, North Carolina State University; Narendra Dahotre, University of North Texas; William S. Dalton, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center; Rathindra DasGupta, National Science Foundation; Paul L. DeAngelis, The University of Oklahoma; William F. DeGrado, University of California, San Francisco; Peter J. Delfyett, University of Central Florida; Lawrence J. DeLucas, The University of Alabama at Birmingham; Steven P. DenBaars, University of California, Santa Barbara; Joseph M. DeSimone, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Spiros S. Dimolitsas, Georgetown University; Michael P. Doyle, The University of Georgia.

James A. Dumesic, University of Wisconsin-Madison; David A. Edwards, Harvard University; T. Taylor Eighmy, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; John G. Elias, University of

Delaware; Ronald L. Elsenbaumer, The University of Texas at Arlington; Todd S. Emrick, University of Massachusetts Amherst; Liang-Shih Fan, The Ohio State University; Nariman Farvardin, Stevens Institute of Technology; Henry C. Foley, University of Missouri System; Ophir Frieder, Georgetown University; Fred H. Gage, Salk Institute for Biological Studies; Tillman U. Gerngross, Dartmouth College; George W. Gokel, University of Missouri-St. Louis; Clifford M. Gross, University of South Florida; Robert H. Grubbs, California Institute of Technology; Theodor W. Hansch, Max-Planck-Institut fur Quantenoptik Germany; Jeffrey H. Harwell, The University of Oklahoma; Jason C. Heikenfeld, University of Cincinnati; Benjamin S. Hsiao, Stony Brook University; Stephen D. H. Hsu, Michigan State University.

Lonnie O. Ingram, University of Florida; Tatsuo Itoh, University of California, Los Angeles; S. Sitharama Iyengar, Florida International University; Richard Jove, Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute of Florida; Biing-Hwang Juang, Georgia Institute of Technology; Vistasp M. Karbhari, The University of Texas at Arlington; Joachim B. Kohn, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey; George P. Korfiatis, Stevens Institute of Technology; Michael R. Ladisch, Purdue University; David C. Larbalestier, Florida State University; Cato T. Laurencin, University of Connecticut; Kam W. Leong, Duke University; Frank L. Lewis, The University of Texas at Arlington; Ping Liang, University of California, Riverside; Charles M. Lieber, Harvard University; Stephen B. Liggett, University of South Florida; Dennis C. Liotta, Emory University; Dmitri Litvinov, University of Houston; Michael R. Lovell, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Richard J. Mammone, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

Michael A. Marletta, The Scripps Research Institute; Edith Mathiowitz, Brown University; Krzysztof Matyjaszewski, Carnegie Mellon University; Constantinos Mavroidis, Northeastern University; Robert M. Metcalfe, The University of Texas at Austin; Gary K. Michelson, Twenty Million Minds Foundation; Robert H. Miller, Case Western Reserve University; Chad A. Mirkin, Northwestern University; Samir Mitragotri, University of California, Santa Barbara; Shanta M. Modak, Columbia University; Marsha A. Moses, Harvard University; Ferid Murad, The George Washington University; Hameed Naseem, University of Arkansas; Laura E. Niklason, Yale University; Santa J. Ono, University of Cincinnati; Sethuraman Panchanathan, Arizona State University; P. Hunter Peckham, Case Western Reserve University; Gholam A. Peyman, Tulane University; Glenn D. Prestwich, The University of Utah; Stephen R. Quake, Stanford University.

Dabbala R. Reddy, Carnegie Mellon University; Zhifeng Ren, University of Houston; Darrell H. Reneker, The University of Akron; John A. Rogers, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Bernard Roizman, The University of Chicago; Arye Rosen, Drexel University; Joseph C. Salamone, University of Massachusetts Lowell; W. Mark Saltzman, Yale University; Yoshiaki Sato, Kaatsu International University; Martin Schadt, Nanjing University; Vern L. Schramm, Yeshiva University; Sudipta Seal, University of Central Florida; Venkat Selvamanickam, University of Houston; Wei-Heng Shih, Drexel University; Mary Shire, University of Limerick, Ireland; Henry I. Smith, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; George F. Smoot III, University of California, Berkeley; Thomas C. Sudhof, Stanford University; Subra Suresh, Carnegie Mellon University; Theodore F. Taraschi, Thomas Jefferson University.

Arthur J. Tipton, Southern Research Institute; Satish S. Udpa, Michigan State University; Kathryn E. Uhrich, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey; Akos Vertes, The George Washington University; Vitaly J. Vodyanoy, Auburn University; John N. Vournakis, Medical University of South Carolina; Jay S. Walker, Cornell University; David R. Walt, Tufts University; Donald P. Weeks, University of Nebraska-Lincoln; Sherman M. Weissman, Yale University; James E. West, The Johns Hopkins University; Wayne C. Westerman, University of Delaware; George M. Whitesides, Harvard University; H. Kumar Wickramasinghe, University of California, Irvine; David J. Wineland, National Institute of Standards and Technology; Carl T. Wittwer, The University of Utah; Jerry M. Woodall, University of California, Davis; Mark S. Wrighton, Washington University in St. Louis; James J. Wynne, University of South Florida; Ralph T. Yang, University of Michigan; Frederic Zenhausern, The University of Arizona; Shuguang Zhang, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Harald zur Hausen, German Cancer Research Center.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to urge the House Speaker and the Republican leadership to take up the bipartisan flood insurance bill as soon as possible.

Hardworking families all cross America, and plenty of small businesses as well, are facing exorbitant increases in their flood insurance rates. This is very harmful to their economic security and is really putting a damper on the economic recovery in communities all across the country. We need the Congress to fix this.

After the reform bill was passed last session, no one imagined these exorbitant increases in flood insurance rates. The best course of action right now is to take up the bipartisan Senate-passed flood insurance bill that passed on January 30.

We can work on this together, but we need action now.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Colorado for yielding me the time. I rise to encourage all of our colleagues to vote ``no'' on the rule, ``no'' on the previous question, and ``no'' on the underlying bill.

It has been 2 weeks since the Senate passed a bipartisan fix to the exorbitant rise in flood insurance rates across the country, but it has been particularly dismaying that in the past 2 weeks the GOP-controlled House has not taken up the Senate-passed bill or the House version to provide some relief for hardworking families across the country. Because there has been no action, we are asking today that all Members come together to vote ``no'' on the previous question so we can take up the flood insurance fix bill.

Many of us have been working in a bipartisan way for much longer than 2 weeks. For many months, we have had bipartisan proposals here in the House, but for some reason the GOP leadership has been resistant to bringing up this bipartisan solution.

I have offered an amendment on every piece of legislation passing through the Rules Committee since November for a flood insurance fix, but, again, the Republicans refused to make it in order. So, without any scheduling of a bill yet, we have to resort to going to the previous question.

If you take a step back, flood insurance reform was very well- intentioned. The reform bill was passed in 2012, intended to make the flood insurance trust fund solvent. Especially after Superstorm Sandy, the flood insurance trust fund that is the backstop to economic security for many families was insolvent, so we came together and passed a reform bill. The problem is it hasn't been implemented in the right way.

FEMA has actually implemented it in an irrational way. It is not affordable, and they have problems with mapping. What this does is it creates a very troublesome path to eventual solvency of the trust fund. People are not going to be able to pay into the trust fund like they should.

So what is happening? Families are facing exorbitant, unconscionable increases, depressed home values, an inability to buy or sell a home.

Here is another concern. You remember how difficult it was for the GOP House to actually provide emergency aid when Superstorm Sandy hit? 179 Republicans voted against the emergency aid. So that makes it even more important that we fix the flood insurance trust fund so that it is there for families who need it.

Last week, I pointed out that many are very skeptical that the Republicans in Congress will act in support of the middle class, in support of small businesses across America. Well, I ask my friends on the other side of the aisle to prove them wrong. Let's come together. Vote ``no'' on the previous question, and let's move the flood insurance fix.

Madam Speaker, I rise to urge the Republican leadership here in the House to immediately take up the bill to provide flood insurance relief to millions of Americans across the country and develop a long-term solution for the flood insurance trust fund. Last week, the Senate passed, by a broad bipartisan vote, a bill to provide just such relief by a vote of 67 bipartisan Members in the affirmative.

I urge the House Republican leadership right away to take up the Senate-passed bill in the House for a vote. We already have over 182 bipartisan cosponsors that are ready to act.

Madam Speaker, there is great skepticism that this Republican- controlled House of Representatives will act to protect the middle class and to boost our economy across this country. Well, let's prove them wrong, and let's work together to pass a flood insurance relief bill as soon as possible. We can work together to solve this problem.

I would like to thank my colleague from Massachusetts for yielding the time.

I also urge all of my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the rule and on the previous question so that we can take up and vote on the Senate- passed bill from last week, which would provide some relief to families and businesses across America from these unconscionable increases in flood insurance rates. It

would also give us time to work on a bipartisan solution.

Madam Speaker, for the past few months, I have offered on every single piece of legislation moving through the Rules Committee to this floor an amendment that would provide some relief to families and businesses across America on the flood insurance relief.

Here is why it is important.

We are dealing with the unintended consequences of a bill that Congress passed in 2012, which people were not aware of, that was going to really suck our neighbors with these high flood insurance increases, and FEMA did not follow through on their responsibilities. So the best course of action now is to pause. Kudos to the Senate. Last week, by a broad bipartisan vote, 67 members in the Senate passed a flood bill with the input of Realtors, families, businesses, and chambers of commerce from all across the country. It is vital that the House take up this bill right away.

Let me give you a few examples from back home in the Tampa Bay Area.

Paul Page lives in Ruskin, Florida. He says:

My name is Paul Page. I am a retired, 30-percent disabled

veteran living in Ruskin, Florida. I need your help now. I

purchased my home in December of 2012. My flood insurance was

$1,400 per year, but thanks to the Biggert-Waters Act of

2012, my flood insurance is rising to $5,400 a year. Please

help me now.

James Smith in south Tampa owns property. His premium will go from $2,000 per year to $9,000 per year.

Frank and Shirley Davis in Shore Acres in St. Petersburg just listed their home for $175,000, but they are going to have a new annual premium of $4,000 that has now negated any chance they have of selling their home.

This is happening all across the country.

Madam Speaker, with this Republican majority, people have called it the ``do-nothing Congress.'' They are very skeptical that the Republican-controlled Congress can respond to middle class families and provide economic relief where it is needed. Here is a chance for the Republican majority to step up and address a very severe economic issue for families and businesses all across this country. The longer the Republican leadership puts this off, the greater economic harm it will cause to families and businesses across America.

Vote ``no'' on the previous question and the rule.

I thank my colleague for yielding time.

Madam Speaker, here at the start of the new year, when Americans are facing so many challenges in their lives, the Republicans are taking us off on this cruel tangent. We should be debating how to boost wages across this country, how to better educate our children, and how to ensure that everyone has a chance and an opportunity to be successful in their lives and secure in their futures, but yet again, a handful of mostly older, mostly male politicians here in Washington, D.C., believe that the priority for us is to interfere in the personal lives of women. They want to intrude in the personal, private health care decisions of women and their families. They think they know best. But how can they?

I trust women and their families to make their own decisions, not the politicians here in Washington, D.C. Republicans in Congress should respect our right to privacy. Politicians shouldn't be allowed to direct treatments and oversee diagnoses from Washington, and they shouldn't unnecessarily restrict a woman's health insurance coverage and the comprehensive policy that she has paid for.

This Republican bill is an unprecedented, radical assault on a woman's right to make her own health and health insurance decisions. It interferes with the relationship between a patient and doctor.

Thankfully, this bill is not going anywhere after the vote today, but it does provide evidence of what Republicans in the House believe is the top priority for America.

Is it jobs? No. Is it boosting wages? No. Is it improving our schools and higher ed? No.

The Republicans' top priority today is to interfere in the personal lives and health decisions of women across our country.

I urge a ``no'' vote.