Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Coalition for Autism Research and Education, I rise today to recognize April as National Autism Awareness Month. Autism is the fastest growing developmental disability in America, with 1 to 1.5 million Americans living with it each day. Every April since the 1970s we celebrate National Autism Awareness Month, which provides an opportunity to educate the public on autism and the issues affecting those people afflicted with the disorder.

This disorder is universal, affecting children from all ethnic, racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. The latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention state that 1 in 88 children born in the United States will develop autism.

Mr. Speaker, this increase is a clear call that more needs to be done in terms of research and education. Congress must call for more resources to be given to early screening and diagnosis programs. This can lead to improved educational and social outcomes and increases the chances of employment and independent living for those suffering from autism.

My own State of California has seen a huge increase in autism diagnoses. In 1990, 6 out of every 10,000 children born in the State were diagnosed with the disease by the age of five. Only 11 years later that number had risen to 42.5 in every 10,000 children. Since then the numbers have only risen.

Children diagnosed with this disorder will struggle with significant social, behavioral and communication challenges. For example, an activity as simple as going to the movies is impossible for many families with autistic children. However, autism is treatable. There is no permanent cure for the disorder, but studies show that early detection and intervention can lead to significantly improved outcomes.

Mr. Speaker, the occurrence of autism is on the rise in our nation. This is why it is more important than ever that we continue to fund programs like the National Database for Autism Research, whose overall goal is accelerating scientific discovery in autism spectrum disorder though data and research sharing among ASD investigators.

That is why it was so important that Congress passed H.R. 2005, the Combating Autism Reauthorization Act of 2011. I am proud to have been an original co-sponsor of this legislation, which authorizes more than $200 million in continued funding for the Centers for Disease Control's surveillance and epidemiological research programs for autism and other developmental disabilities and for the National Institutes of Health's respect to research program on autism spectrum disorders and possible environmental causes of autism. The bill also authorizes a robust autism education, early detection, and intervention program at the Health Resources and Services Administration, HRSA.

Mr. Speaker, nowhere is autism's impact felt more than in underserved communities, where diagnosis is delayed on average two years. Given that early identification and intervention are paramount to the developing brain of children with autism, this two-year delay is especially devastating, as it denies thousands of vulnerable children the benefits of early diagnosis and intervention. This can mean the difference between a child who may someday live independently, and a child destined for a life of institutionalized care.

The alarming delay in diagnosis becomes even more detrimental when compounded by issues of poverty, such as a lack of housing, employment, and transportation. This is the reality faced by families in underserved communities who are affected by autism and other developmental disabilities.

That is why I also want to recognize, commend, and encourage organizations like the Special Needs Network, Inc., which serve the greater Los Angeles community for the great work and service they provide to families and individuals affected by the autism in underserved communities.

This month, let us recommit ourselves to raising awareness about autism. We have a responsibility to continue to broaden our efforts to research this disorder, and increase awareness about the importance of early detection.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognition of National Autism Awareness Month, and ask all Americans to take time this month to find out what you can do to help the growing population of those afflicted with, or affected by, autism.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize April as National Child Abuse Prevention Month. This month is dedicated to raising awareness about the prevalence of child abuse and neglect as well as spreading knowledge on how to recognize and prevent its occurrence.

Every child has the right to live in a safe and healthy home. Together, we can ensure that right by providing support for parents, recognizing the signs of abuse, and educating community members about the issue.

Mr. Speaker, child abuse is defined as an act or failure to act which presents imminent risk of serious harm. It includes physical, emotional and sexual abuse as well as neglect. Child abuse occurs in every community and every district. It is reported at all socioeconomic and education levels and across cultural, ethnic, and religious lines. In 2010, there were 3.3 million referrals to Child Protective Services, involving 5.9 million children. In

Los Angeles County alone, there were over 170,000 reported cases of child abuse or neglect in 2010. With over half of those referrals being made by mandatory reporters, those professionals required by law to report signs of maltreatment, I applaud our school officials and social service providers who are defending children's wellbeing.

It is vital that we are all equally prepared to speak out for victims who are unable to seek help for themselves. The youngest children, in particular, are most vulnerable to abuse with almost 32 percent of reported victims under the age of four years.

The effects of abuse and neglect can last a lifetime and include physical injuries, mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, increased risk for violent behavior, and lower levels of economic well-being. Such long-term effects hinder the ability to form healthy and positive relationships as adults. Abuse can truly become a cycle, harming generation after generation if nothing is done to intervene.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a moment to recognize the extraordinary work of the Miller Children's Hospital in the 37th district and its commitment to promoting positive parenting. The hospital offers training for medical professionals to recognize more subtle signs of abuse as well as early learning opportunities for children and their families to develop healthy family relationships.

Efforts aimed at prevention and early detection are critical in helping our nation's children grow up with the confidence and skills necessary to achieve the American Dream. These efforts can include programs in parent education and substance abuse treatment. Through these investments, we can target those specific circumstances and stresses that often lead to an increased likelihood of abuse.

Mr. Speaker, as I rise today to observe National Child Abuse Prevention Month, I ask all communities to invest in preventative measures and programs to end the cycle of child abuse once and for all. This month will serve as a reminder of our moral responsibility to ensure a bright future for our children and our nation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my shock and sadness at the untimely passing of Mark Ayers, President of the AFL CIO's Building and Construction Trades Department.

Mark led the BCTD with great skill and amazing grace. He was a champion for worker's rights and worked tirelessly to raise the standard of living and quality of life for all working people and their families.

Mark was an extraordinary leader who possessed an unwavering commitment to improving the lives of working families.

Mark leaves big shoes to fill and will be missed by all who knew and loved him. But his legacy will live on.

My thoughts and prayers are with his family during this difficult time.

Madam Speaker, it's been 910 days and eight extensions since SAFETEA LU expired. Today we find ourselves kicking the can once again as we take up extension number nine because this House Majority has failed to act.

Thankfully the Senate did act. Two weeks ago, Democratic and Republican Senators overwhelmingly voted, by a bipartisan majority of 74 22, to generate jobs, repair our roads and bridges, invest in our infrastructure, and strengthen our economy. Meanwhile, this body under Republican leadership has yet to put forward a credible highway reauthorization that puts Americans back to work.

MAP 21, the surface transportation authorization bill, passed by the Senate is by far the biggest jobs legislation Congress will consider this year.

It is imperative that the House of Representatives join the Senate in passing this bipartisan bill and send it to the President before the March 31st expiration of highway program funding or risk devastating job losses across the nation.

Madam Speaker, H.R. 14 will save 1.8 million jobs and creates up to 1 million more jobs.

The bill also provides consistency for states and maintains current funding levels for highways and public transportation, consolidates and streamlines highway programs, and establishes a national freight program. This national freight program will provide over $2 billion dollars to upgrade our nation's goods movement system. That equates to $336 million to the state of California alone over two years for freight infrastructure upgrades. These funds are critical to areas like my district where over 40 percent of our country's imports arrive each year via the Port of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

In addition, the bill would authorize another $1 billion dollars in fiscal year 2013 for Projects of National and Regional Significance. In previous years, the Projects of National and Regional Significance provided funding to several projects that provide economic benefits by making it easier to move goods.

Madam Speaker, these two programs and this bill are essential for our country to remain competitive globally.

H.R. 14 also improves safety, and institutes performance measures and improves accountability for transportation infrastructure investments.

Now is the time for swift action by the House action on the bipartisan Senate bill that will save or create 132,000 transportation jobs and 45,000 transit jobs in my home state of California.

Transportation has long been a bipartisan issue--and the Senate continued this tradition. The House should follow suit and put America back to work by passing H.R. 14.

I encourage my colleagues to stop kicking the can down the road-- start creating jobs--and defeat this extension.

Mr. Chair, I rise today in strong support of the Congressional Black Caucus Alternative Budget for Fiscal Year 2013. The budget plan outlined by the CBC takes a direct and balanced approach to restoring America's promise, achieves fiscal responsibility and sets a priority to invest in our future.

The CBC Alternative Budget protects Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, SNAP, TANF, Unemployment Insurance and other programs that are vital to the most vulnerable populations, which are in districts throughout this country.

Although our nation's economy is showing positive signs of growth, this Congress must continue to make critical investments in communities to accelerate--not stagger--our recovery.

To that end, the CBC Alternative Budget makes smart investments in education, workforce training, and transportation and infrastructure projects. These investments are necessary to ensure that America has a skilled and educated workforce that is prepared to tackle the challenges of the 2ist Century and compete with attempts to take American jobs overseas.

Specifically, the CBC Budget will:

invest an additional $25 billion above the President's budget in Education and Job Training in FY 2013 alone;

provide an additional $5 billion above the President's Budget request for housing programs, foreclosure assistance, and other important programs for community development;

invest an additional $50 billion in job creating transportation and infrastructure projects in FY 2013 alone and provide $155 billion above the President's budget over the next decade; and

increase the maximum Pell Grant award by nearly $1,000 over the President's Fiscal Year 2013 budget request.

The CBC Budget acknowledges the deficit and pays for domestic priorities by enacting tax reform measures to raise nearly $4 trillion in new revenue over the next decade through the Buffet Rule to ensure that millionaires and billionaires pay their fair share in taxes, and closes corporate tax loopholes and preferences for corporations that ship American jobs overseas.

The $4 trillion in revenue raised from millionaires paying their fair share will allow us to pay for an extension of tax cuts for hard working, middle class Americans--providing them with more money to feed their families, pay their bills, send their kids to school and fill up their gas tanks.

The budget would open an enormous hole in our country's social safety net by largely shifting healthcare costs to seniors on Medicare, while at the same time giving millionaires and billionaires a free pass by giving the rich an average tax cut of $150,000.

In California alone, 5,252,371 seniors would be forced onto vouchers when they retire--a system that has been shown to be a sub-standard version of Medicare.

The GOP budget will force seniors to pay higher premiums in order to access the same benefits they would receive under the current system. For a typical 67 year-old senior, the Ryan budget could increase out- of-pocket health care costs by $5,900.

The GOP budget would decimate our primary assistance to the poor by cutting $3.3 trillion from needed programs like Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

In fact, a report conducted by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found that 62 percent of proposed cuts in the Ryan budget plan come from programs that assist low-income individuals. This is the Republican vision: to balance the budget on the backs of the seniors and the poor.

The Ryan budget once again fails the test of balance, fairness, and shared responsibility. It takes a slash and burn approach to the budget, rather than going line by line to carefully examine where cuts and new sources of revenue should be implemented.

The Ryan budget plan would weaken job growth. The Economic Policy Institute found that if we were to follow Chairman Ryan's proposal, 1.3 million jobs would be lost in 2013 and 2.8 million jobs would be lost in 2014.

Mr. Chair, the CBC Alternative Budget has a better way. We understand that our current economic situation calls for a balanced and responsible approach that protects our fragile recovery and invests in our future.

For these reasons, Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for the CBC Alternative Budget.

Mr. Chair, I rise today in strong support of the Congressional Progressive Caucus Alternative Budget for Fiscal Year 2013. The budget plan outlined by the CPC takes a calculated and balanced approach to restoring America's promise, and investing in our future.

Unlike the House GOP Budget Resolution, the CPC Alternative Budget protects Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, SNAP, TANF, Unemployment Insurance and other programs that are vital to the most vulnerable populations in our society.

In my district, we suffer from rates of unemployment and home foreclosure that are significantly higher than the rest of the country. Although our nation's economy is showing positive signs of growth, we must continue to make critical investments in our communities to accelerate our recovery.

To that end, the CPC Alternative Budget makes smart investments in education, job creation measures, and transportation and infrastructure projects. These investments are necessary to ensure that America has a skilled and educated workforce that is prepared to tackle the challenges of the 21st Century. Without these investments, the United States will lose its competitive edge.

A $556 billion surface transportation bill would help meet the overwhelming need for repair and construction of our roadways and aging infrastructure. Lastly, the Budget for All outlines a plan for nearly $1.7 trillion in widespread domestic investment, getting badly needed funds to valuable programs that are scheduled for starvation under current law.

This budget outlines a plan to put over 2 million individuals back to work over the next 2 years by hiring them for work in areas critical to our quality of life. This would create the School Improvement Corps for public school rehabilitation projects, the Park Improvement Corps made of youth ages 16 to 25 for restoration on public lands, the Student Jobs Corps of college students for part-time work study positions, among others. Priority hiring is given to the unemployed and veterans.

Domestic investments create jobs and lay the foundation for exceptional American industries competing in the global economy. The creation of an infrastructure bank would attract private investment toward critical infrastructure projects and facilitate private-public partnerships with our states and localities. Some projections estimate that the iBank could mobilize up to $625 billion in funding for infrastructure.

The revenue raised from tax reform measures in the CPC budget will allow us to pay for an extension of tax cuts for hard working, middle class Americans--providing them with more money to feed their families, pay their bills, and fill up their gas tanks.

Mr. Chair, the CPC Budget will do all of this while managing to be able to reduce the deficit by $6.8 trillion.

Instead of working to strengthen Medicare, the Ryan budget would end Medicare as we know it, turning the guarantee of retirement security into a voucher that will shift higher and higher costs over time to over 45 million seniors.

In California alone, 5,252,371 seniors would be forced onto vouchers when they retire.

The GOP budget will force seniors to pay higher premiums in order to access the same benefits they would receive under the current system. For a typical 67 year-old senior, the Ryan budget could increase out- of-pocket health care costs by $5,900.

The GOP budget would decimate our primary assistance to the poor by cutting $3.3 trillion from essential programs like Medicaid and SNAP.

In fact, a report conducted by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found that 62 percent of proposed cuts in the Ryan budget plan come from programs that assist low-income individuals. This is the Republican vision: to balance the budget on the backs of the seniors and the poor.

The Ryan budget plan would weaken job growth. The Economic Policy Institute found that if we were to follow Chairman Ryan's proposal, 1.3 million jobs would be lost in 2013 and 2.8 million jobs would be lost in 2014.

Mr. Chair, the CPC has a better way. We understand that our current economic situation calls for a balanced approach that protects our fragile recovery and invests in our future.

For these reasons, Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for the CPC Alternative Budget.

Mr. Chair, I rise today in strong support of the Congressional Black Caucus' alternative budget for fiscal year 2013. This budget should be considered and made in order by all of our colleagues.

Minority communities took the hardest hit during the economic recession. In my district, we suffer rates of unemployment ranging as high as 25 percent and home foreclosures that are significantly higher than the rest of the country.

The CBC alternative budget deals with these issues, helping us to have a skilled, educated workforce that can tackle the 21st century. It increases the maximum Pell Grant award, which we desperately need; invests an additional $25 billion of the President's budget in education and job training; invests an additional $50 billion in job- creating transportation infrastructure projects; and provides an additional $5 billion for the President's budget to help people in our communities with foreclosures.

Mr. Chair, I stand in support of the CBC budget and urge my colleagues to support it as well.

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong support of the Progressive Caucus alternative budget.

This budget, as a member on the Transportation Committee, would help us to be able to create, once and for all, the infrastructure bank that we desperately needed that would allow us to attract private and public partnership. The Progressive budget would also outline a plan to put over 2 million individuals back to work. And my colleague just before me highlighted what some of those would be. Some of them would include the Improvement Corps for public school rehabilitation projects, Park Improvement Corps for young adults, and Student Job Corps, one of which I was able to take advantage of as a young individual.

Mr. Chairman, the CPC budget will assist us to be able to responsibly act to reduce our budget deficit, but to also maintain our domestic priorities.

This budget is the right budget. It will protect our fragile recovery, and it will invest in our future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the second anniversary of the enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. In the two years since its enactment, the Affordable Care Act has been good for seniors, good for women, good for small businesses, and good for all Americans.

As the Affordable Care Act is implemented, it will continue to expand access to affordable, quality health care for over 30 million Americans and will work to reign in the ever-escalating costs of health care. Passage of the Affordable Care Act was a major step toward fulfilling the promise all Americans were pledged: the promise of unalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness which quality healthcare embodies.

For the people I represent in the 37th District of California, the Affordable Care Act will improve coverage for 299,000 residents who already have insurance. It will give tax credits and other assistance to up to 146,000 families and 15,100 small businesses to help them afford coverage. Health care reform will also improve Medicare for 63,000 beneficiaries in my district, including closing the prescription drug ``donut hole'' once and for all.

In 2010, the Affordable Care Act made it possible for 354,592 Medicare beneficiaries in California to receive a $250 rebate to help cover the cost of their prescription drugs when they hit the donut hole. In 2011, 319,429 Medicare beneficiaries received a 50 percent discount--an average savings of $538 per person--on brand-name prescription drugs when they hit the coverage gap. That's a total savings of over $171 million for seniors in California alone! In my district, 3,200 seniors received prescription drug discounts worth $1.5 million, an average discount of $460 per senior.

The Affordable Care Act extends coverage to 92,500 uninsured residents of the 37th District and will guarantee that 17,500 residents with pre-existing conditions can obtain the health insurance they need. Since enactment, health care reform has extended insurance coverage to 5,599 Californians through the new Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan.

The Affordable Care Act protects 1,100 families from bankruptcy due to unaffordable health care costs and currently allows 59,000 young adults to obtain coverage on their parents' insurance plans. The new law provides millions of dollars in new funding for 11 community health centers in my district. And finally, it will reduce the cost of uncompensated care for hospitals and other health care providers by $125 million annually.

Mr. Speaker, as we approach the two year anniversary of the enactment of the Affordable Care Act, an attack on women's access to affordable, quality, and necessary healthcare services is underway. From the comments made by Rush Limbaugh about Georgetown Law Student Sandra Fluke, to Republican attempts to roll back coverage and restrict access to birth control, the GOP's war on women stands in stark contrast to the Administration's goal of ensuring that women have access to the healthcare services they need to remain healthy.

As a female Member of Congress, I understand that women have unique health care needs, and are often the ones who make health care decisions for their families. I voted for and strongly support the Affordable Care Act because it provides important benefits for women and their families. The Affordable Care Act helps women by eliminating the discriminatory gender rating system, making sure that insurance companies do not consider pregnancy grounds for denying coverage, and doing away with all pre-existing conditions.

Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, all Americans joining new insurance plans have the freedom to choose from any primary care provider, OB-GYN, or pediatrician in their health plan's network, or emergency care outside of the plan's network, without a referral. Under the Affordable Care Act, women joining a new health care plan can receive recommended preventive services, like mammograms, new baby care and well-child visits, and an annual wellness visit with no out-of- pocket costs. In 2011, over 6 million people with private insurance coverage in California gained preventative service coverage with no cost sharing as a result of the Affordable Care Act.

Before enactment of the Affordable Care Act, women could be charged more for individual insurance policies simply because of their gender. A 22-year-old woman could be charged 150 percent the premium that a 22- year-old man paid. In 2014, insurers will not be able to charge women higher premiums than they charge men. The law takes strong action to control health care costs, including helping states crack down on excessive premium increases and making sure most of your premium dollars go toward your health care.

The Affordable Care Act also allows young adults under the age of 26 to stay on their parents' health insurance plan. This provision has expanded access to health insurance coverage for 2.5 million young people nationwide. In my district, 7,000 young adults have taken advantage of this provision and are now covered under their parents' plan.

This week, the House will consider a bill to repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board established under the Affordable Care Act. Having previously garnered bipartisan support, the majority's decision to attach a medical liability provision to the underlying piece of legislation amounts to nothing short of a partisan ploy to score points with their base.

The language attached to the bill would place caps on medical malpractice awards for pain and suffering at $250,000 and would override most state tort laws. Unfortunately, the majority's decision to include tort reform language on a completely unrelated measure demonstrates their refusal to work with Members across the aisle in order to further strengthen the Affordable Care Act.

Mr. Speaker, the Affordable Care Act provides American families with stability and peace of mind. Never again will they have to choose between their health and their livelihood. As a result of the Affordable Care Act, 23,000 children and 90,000 adults in my district now have health insurance that covers preventive services without paying any co-pays, coinsurance, or deductibles.

I am proud to be a part of this historic health care policy change, and to be part of the days ahead in which we will work to further strengthen it.

I thank the gentleman for yielding so that I might speak to the House companion bill to MAP 21, or H.R. 14, of which I'm a cosponsor.

MAP 21, which we call H.R. 14 going forward, will generate jobs, repair roads and bridges, and invest in our infrastructure. This surface transportation authorization bill passed by the

Senate with a majority and with bipartisan support.

I come before you today to urge my colleagues to bring this bill forward, H.R. 14, so that we might establish some consistency, unlike what we saw with the FAA reauthorization, consistency for States, for companies, for workers, for projects that need to get done. This bill will maintain current funding levels for highways and public transportation; it will consolidate and streamline highway programs; and will establish a much-needed national freight program, which is something I've been advocating for my entire time in Congress.

This bill will authorize $1 billion for projects of national significance, which many of us feel in our own particular districts.

H.R. 14 also improves safety, institutes performance measures, and improves accountability for transportation infrastructure investments.

Now is the time for swift action by this House on a bipartisan Senate bill that will create and save at least 132,000 jobs in my area alone.

Transportation has always been bipartisan. Let's keep it that way in this House. I urge the support of H.R. 14.

Madam Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today to remember the life and mourn the loss of our beloved colleague, the distinguished gentleman from New Jersey, Congressman Donald M. Payne.

For twelve terms, Congressman was an effective advocate for the interests of constituents, a trusted expert on international affairs and Africa policy to his colleagues, and a tireless champion for poor, vulnerable, oppressed, and marginalized people everywhere on earth. But above all, Donald Payne was a good and kind man, who with unfailing good cheer enriched the lives of all he met and served.

Born in Newark, New Jersey, on July 16, 1934, to William Evander Payne and the former Norma Garrett, this son of a chauffeur and a dockworker went on to graduate from Seton Hall University, teach English and social studies and coach high school football, and serve as the first black president of the National Council of YMCAs before his election to Congress in 1988 to succeed Peter W. Rodino, another legendary figure in New Jersey politics and the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee during Watergate. Donald Payne holds the distinction of being the first and only African American elected to represent New Jersey in the Congress of the United States.

Throughout his congressional career, Donald Payne championed educational and economic opportunity and human and civil rights, both here and abroad. From his work in furtherance of the Northern Ireland peace process, to his efforts to bring attention and an end to the genocide in Darfur, as well as his indispensable work to secure full funding for PEPFAR to combat the HIV/AIDS and malaria in Africa, Donald Payne made a difference and his impact has been felt around the world.

As a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Donald Payne mentored and provided wise counsel to many of his colleagues, including me. I valued his counsel and his friendship and I will miss him very much and I extend my deepest sympathies to his family and loved ones.

In this month of March, as we celebrate Women's History Month, I would like to take a moment to recognize some of our great female leaders who, throughout history, have persevered in the face of monumental opposition and successfully have accomplished great things on behalf of the American people.

From the words of the great poet, Maya Angelou, from the beautiful singing voice of Marian Anderson, from the tireless activism of Dolores Huerta, to the groundbreaking leadership of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins, and, of course, our own Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, these women and many more have played an integral role in the history in this Nation.

Madam Speaker, every day, women take great strides to help others and to improve the quality of life for everyone. Unfortunately, in matters involving health care, women are still facing these challenges. Whether it's on the Senate floor last week during a debate on the Blunt amendment or whether it's during a House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing, women continue to face unwarranted attacks on their reproductive health rights and their access to contraceptives.

More disconcerting, these debates and veiled attacks have escalated beyond misguided attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Now they've taken aim at restricting women's choices in the area of reproductive health altogether. This is wrong. Medical decisions about a woman's health must leave the political arena and be left to the discretion of the patient and their doctor, not employers, and certainly not the government.

It is astonishing and disappointing that more than 50 years after the landmark Supreme Court decision in Griswold v. Connecticut, a decision which found that women have a constitutional right to use contraceptives, continued attacks on women's rights of privacy and health care still persist, and at an alarming rate.

The American people want us to work towards addressing their top priority: creating jobs, not their reproductive rights. However, this Congress seems to be more focused on bringing forward legislation that targets women's access to basic health care. In this Congress alone, we've taken eight votes on antiwomen health legislation.

A 2011 Guttmacher Institute study found that over 90 percent of women, and over 90 percent of Catholic women, between the ages of 15 and 44 have used some sort of birth control at some point during their lives. Birth control can cost up to $600 a year. So for a college student, a woman who's had multiple children and is still in childbearing years, low-income women or those who are underinsured, insurance coverage means the difference between accessing contraceptive services or not.

Quite simply, Madam Speaker, all women should have the choice and access to contraception and have the resources no matter where they work, where they live, or where they go to college. This is why I'm proud to support President Obama's Affordable Care Act, which I voted on, which will make a positive impact on women and children in their access to health care and greatly decrease the number of women and their families who are uninsured or underinsured.

Studies have shown that women who have health insurance don't always receive the medical care they need because their policies don't cover certain services or the women simply can't afford the high deductibles and copayments. The Affordable Care Act changes this unfortunate reality by assisting women in gaining access to basic preventive health care in order to prevent life-threatening diseases in the future.

Our country is facing great challenges. People need jobs. Students need affordable education. Seniors and working families need affordable health care. But one thing we don't need is to continue to waste time debating extreme legislation that is dangerous to women's health, disrespects the judgment of American women, and is nothing less than the most comprehensive and radical assault on women's health in our lifetime.

Madam Speaker, as people all over America pay tribute during the month of March to the generations of women who have committed to progress and have proved invaluable assets to our society, let us in Congress renew our commitment to support women--not with certificates at banquets, but by working to ensure equal treatment of all women in society, providing women with equal access to health care, and protecting women's rights, and their families, to choose once and for all their own health care.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask the House to join me in extending warm wishes to Mr. Harry Belafonte, a great American who celebrates his 85th birthday today.

Harry Belafonte is not only the consummate entertainer, but he is a tireless civil rights advocate. He has used the fame and wealth that he earned early on in his career as a musician and actor to support and advance the cause of civil and human rights.

Harry Belafonte was born Harold George Belafonte, Jr., at Lying-in Hospital, New York City, New York. He was the son of Melvine, a housekeeper, and Harold George Belafonte, Sr., a Jamaican who worked as chef in the Royal Navy. From 1932 to 1940, he lived with his grandmother in the village of Aboukir in her native country of Jamaica. When he returned to New York City he attended George Washington High School after which he joined the Navy and served during World War II.

At the end of the 1940s, he took classes in acting at the Dramatic Workshop of The New School in New York with the influential German director Erwin Piscator alongside Marlon Brando, Tony Curtis, Walter Matthau, Bea Arthur, and Sidney Poitier, while performing with the American Negro Theatre.

Belafonte started his career in music as a club singer in New York, a job he took to help pay for his acting classes. The first time he appeared in front of an audience he was backed by the Charlie Parker band, which included the great Charlie Parker himself, Max Roach, and Miles Davis among others. At first he was a pop singer, launching his recording career on the Roost label in 1949, but later he developed a keen interest in folk music, learning material through the Library of Congress' American folk songs archives. With guitarist and friend Millard Thomas, Belafonte soon made his debut at the legendary jazz club The Village Vanguard. In 1952 he received a contract with RCA Victor.

His first wide-release single, which went on to become his ``signature'' song with audience participation in virtually all his live performances, was ``Matilda,'' recorded April 27, 1953. His breakthrough album Calypso (1956) became the first LP to sell over 1 million copies. The album introduced American audiences to Calypso music and Belafonte was dubbed the ``King of Calypso.'' Belafonte was also the first African American man to win an Emmy, with his first solo TV special Tonight with Belafonte (1959).

More than a musician and entertainer, Belafonte was a civil rights activist and tireless leader. Belafonte's political beliefs are greatly inspired by the man that he still views to this day as his mentor: singer and activist Paul Robeson. He strongly opposed racial prejudice, segregation, and discrimination in the United States. Like Robeson and other black entertainers, Belafonte's success in the arts did not protect him from racial discrimination, particularly in the American South. As a result, Belafonte refused to perform in the South from 1954 until 1961.

Also in the 1950s, Belafonte met a young Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the latter's historic visit to New York. From that eventful first meeting until the day Dr. King was assassinated, Belafonte and Dr. King maintained a deep and abiding friendship.

Dr. King, Jr., said of Belafonte, ``[his] global popularity and his commitment to our cause is a key ingredient to the global struggle for freedom and a powerful tactical weapon in the Civil Rights movement here in America. We are blessed by his courage and moral integrity.''

Mr. Belafonte could always be counted on to be there when the need was greatest. He was there to provide the money to secure Dr. King's release from Birmingham City Jail. He raised thousands of dollars to post the bail needed to release other jailed civil rights protesters. He financed the Freedom Rides, supported voter registration drives, and helped to organize the March on Washington in 1963.

During ``Freedom Summer'' in 1964, Belafonte financed the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, SNCC, flying to Mississippi that August with $60,000 in cash and entertaining crowds in Greenwood with his ``Banana Boat Song.'' In 1968, Belafonte appeared on a Petula Clark primetime television special on NBC. In the middle of a song, Clark smiled and briefly touched Belafonte's arm, which made the show's sponsor, Plymouth Motors, nervous. Plymouth wanted to cut out the segment, but Clark, who had ownership of the special, told NBC that the performance would be shown intact or she would not allow the special to be aired at all. American newspapers published articles reporting the controversy and, when the special aired, it earned high ratings.

Belafonte has continued his involvement in the civil rights struggle to this very day. Recently, Belafonte spoke at the 50th SNCC Anniversary Conference.

Belafonte did not limit his fight for justice to the United States. He has spent his life and career advocating for human rights around the entire world. For example, disturbed by cruel events unfolding in Africa as a result of war, famine and drought, Belafonte set in motion the wheels that led to ``We Are the World,'' the iconic song and music video organized by Michael Jackson and Lionel Ritchie, that raised millions in support of famine relief efforts in Africa. In 1987, Belafonte accepted the appointment as UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador--the second American to hold this position--the first was Danny Kaye.

Belafonte has continued to devote himself globally to civil and human rights issues, focusing in particular on the United States and Africa. ``My social and political interests are part of my career. I can't separate them,'' said Belafonte. ``My songs reflect the human condition. The role of art isn't just to show life as it is, but to show life as it should be.''

Belafonte's international civil rights accomplishments also include his contribution to ending the oppressive apartheid in South Africa and securing the release of his friend, Nelson Mandela, imprisoned for twenty seven and a half years.

Belafonte was appointed by President John F. Kennedy Cultural Advisor for the Peace

Corps, a position he held for five years. He has been honored many times by such diverse groups as the American Jewish Congress, the NAACP, the City of Hope, Fight for Sight, The Urban League, The National Conference of Black Mayors, the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, the ACLU, the State Department, the Boy Scouts of America, Hadassah International and the Peace Corps.

He has received awards from the Bronx Community College for his work with children, the Albert Einstein Award from Yeshiva University, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Peace Prize and the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors for excellence in the performing arts. He was the first recipient of the Nelson Mandela Courage Award and was honored at the White House with the 1994 National Medal of Arts from President Clinton for his contributions to our nation's cultural life. He has received honorary degrees from City University of New York, Spellman College in Atlanta, Tufts University, Brandeis University, Long Island University, Bard College and most recently Doctor of Humane Letters from Columbia University. In 2010, the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation honored Mr. Belafonte with its prestigious Phoenix Award.

Mr. Speaker, Harry Belafonte has devoted his life to the cause of freedom, justice, equality, and human dignity. His has been an important and consequential life. And he is still going strong.

So on the occasion of his 85th birthday, I rise to say Mr. Belafonte: Happy birthday and thank you for your active faith, your lifetime of service, your tireless devotion to human rights and freedom.

Mr. Speaker, this March as we celebrate Women's History Month, I would like to take a moment to recognize all the great female leaders of our past and present. Throughout history women have persevered in the face of great opposition and successfully broken barriers in the arts, education, government and corporate America.

This year's theme focuses on women's education and empowerment. It is important to note that the equal opportunity for women to learn alongside men is owed much to Title IX of the Education Codes of the Higher Education Act Amendments which passed in 1972 and was enacted in 1977. This legislation prohibited gender discrimination by federally funded institutions, and allowed women to fully

participate in all aspects of education effectively transforming the educational landscape of the United States.

Mr. Speaker, women have taken great strides throughout the years to gain equal treatment. Unfortunately, in matters involving healthcare, women still face challenges. Very recently, women faced attacks by the House Republican majority regarding access to birth control. More disconcerting, these attacks escalated beyond misguided attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act and deny women access to contraceptives, to restricting women's choices in the area of reproductive health altogether. Medical decisions about a woman's health must be left to the discretion of the patient and her doctor, not employers or the government.

This is why I am proud to support President Obama's Affordable Care Act which will make a positive impact on women's access to health care and greatly decrease the number of women who are uninsured or ``underinsured.'' Studies have shown that women who have health insurance don't necessarily receive certain types of medical care because either the services they need are not covered by their policies, or they cannot afford the high deductibles or co-payments. The Affordable Care Act changes this unfortunate reality by assisting women in gaining access to basic preventive health care in order to prevent life-threatening diseases in the future.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to stand here in celebration of women and their immeasurable contributions to this great Nation. As we pay tribute to the generations of women whose commitment to progress have proved invaluable to society, let us also renew our commitment to support women and the equal treatment of all in society, regardless of gender, race, or religion.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of the Carson Women's Club, based in my congressional district, for the wonderful work it has accomplished over the years and their unwavering commitment to our local community.

The Carson Women's Club was founded in 1968 as a non-profit, non- political organization with a mission to serve as the official hostess of the City of Carson by supporting and promoting scholarships, and by engaging in community service activities focused on making Carson stronger.

The Carson Women's Club plays an active part in local charity work. For example, each year on the 4th of July, Club members bring food to the on-duty firefighters at all stations in Carson. The Club also sends Thanksgiving baskets to 15 adopted Carson elementary schools and organizes a Christmas toy drive for the children at the El Nido Center.

Mr. Speaker, the Carson Women's Club is a shining example of civic commitment, mutual trust, respect, and equal treatment without regard to race, sex, or ethnicity. The Club promotes mutual cooperation between individuals of different backgrounds through its diverse membership and informative community engagement events.

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to attend a Carson Women's Club event in my district honoring members of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. The Tuskegee Airmen were the first black military airmen in the United States. This heroic group of 13,000 young African American men overcame institutionalized racism to become one of the most distinguished fighter units in World War II.

At the meeting, we were fortunate enough to be graced with the presence of Mr. Edward Tillmon, a surviving Tuskegee Airman who reminded us of the remarkable accomplishments of the Tuskegee Airmen-- both in and out of combat.

Through his experience growing up in a segregated America, Mr. Tillmon learned that hard work and perseverance are the key to overcoming obstacles that seem impenetrable. Mr. Tillmon expressed his appreciation for the challenges and opportunities that accompanied his time at war, and his firm beliefs that the successes of the Tuskegee Airmen would not have been possible if it were not for the strong sense of camaraderie between the members. They were truly a band of brothers.

Edward Tillmon continues to serve his nation by preserving the Tuskegee Airmen legacy through his association with the Los Angeles based ``Tuskegee Airmen Scholarship Foundation'', which was established in 1979 to provide annual scholarships to exceptional young students in their quest for academic excellence.

Mr. Speaker, Edward Tillmon served his nation with pride, even at a time when African Americans were treated like second-class citizens. The legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen is one of courage and heroism in the face of adversity and their story has provided many with the inspiration necessary to achieve their goals.

Mr. Speaker, it is my honor to recognize the contributions of the Carson Women's Club and Edward Tillmon and to thank them for their service to our community and our nation.