Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, unfortunately, I was unable to get to the House floor in time on Wednesday, May 6, 2009, and therefore unable to cast a vote on the House floor that afternoon.

However, had I been present I would have voted ``aye'' on H. Res. 348, congratulating the University of North Carolina men's basketball team for winning the 2009 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship.

Mr. Chair, I offer my strong support for the Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act.

Abusive and predatory lending practices have wreaked havoc upon the American economy, bringing it to its worst state since the Great Depression. What started as a subprime mortgage crisis has ballooned to affect everyone. Millions of families have lost their homes or face the prospect of foreclosure, and businesses large and small are laying-off employees in record numbers. Unemployment figures have risen to numbers unseen in decades.

Although Congress has made great strides to stabilize and rejuvenate the economy, we must regulate lenders so that a crisis like this will never happen again. We must protect innocent home buyers from unscrupulous mortgage lenders eager to make a quick buck. Mortgage lenders should not steer borrowers into higher cost loans just to increase their commissions. Mortgage institutions should ensure that borrowers can repay the loans they are sold. Creditors should retain an economic interest in a portion of the loans they sell, which would help them to be more responsible about initiating loans.

Passing the Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act is the right thing to do. The Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act will outlaw many of the egregious lending practices that have multiplied in recent years and spark a return to more responsible lending methods.

These much-needed changes are long overdue and will protect vulnerable home buyers. That is why I urge my colleagues to support this critical legislation.

Madam Speaker, unfortunately, I was unable to be present in the Capitol on Monday, May 4, 2009 and therefore unable to cast votes on the House Floor that evening.

However, had I been present I would have voted ``yea'' on H. Res. 230, recognizing the historical significance of the Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo; and ``yea'' on H. Con. Res. 111, recognizing the 61st anniversary of the independence of the State of Israel.

Madam Speaker, today I am introducing the Safe Schools Improvement Act. My lead co-sponsors Rep. McCarthy, Rep. Ros-Lehtinen and I strongly believe this bill provides crucial support to our efforts to reduce the national drop-out rate and make schools safer for all students.

An unsafe school environment interferes with students' ability to learn. Children who are bullied miss more school, have lower self- esteem, and are more likely to drop-out or commit suicide than those who are not. Nearly 40 percent of middle-school and high-school students report that they do not feel safe at school and one in 10 high school drop-outs report that frequent bullying was a major reason they dropped out. As we move to reauthorize the landmark No Child Left Behind law, we must examine and address how improvements in school safety can positively affect student attendance and academic achievement.

The Safe Schools Improvement Act would require schools that receive funding from the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act to implement an anti-bullying policy that protects students from bullying and harassment. It also requires these schools to collect data regarding bullying and harassment incidents and would allow them teach students about the consequences of bullying and harassment.

Today's children are the economic engine of our future, and we are relying on schools to provide the education they need. Congress must therefore help schools provide safe places for students to learn. If we do not, we risk losing more children to the streets, to depression, or even to suicide. America's children deserve our support. They deserve the Safe Schools Improvement Act.

Mr. Chair, I rise in strong support of H.R. 627, the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights Act.

I'd like to thank Congresswoman Maloney for her work on this issue. She has been a longtime champion of credit card reform and I wholeheartedly support her efforts.

The Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights Act could not be more timely. The constant stress of mounting bills in the face of skyrocketing unemployment and a foreclosure epidemic has American families caught between a rock and a bigger rock.

More and more working families have been forced to rely on credit cards to cover basic living expenses. The least we can do is make sure the credit card issuers are fair, open, and honest about rates and terms.

For decades, credit card companies have been allowed to operate under special rules that, under any other circumstances, would be considered outlandish.

Take for instance the credit card industry's ability to raise an unsuspecting cardholder's interest rate because he was one day late paying a different card belonging to a different company. Where else can creditors suddenly change the rules in the middle of a game?

It's like an umpire deciding that a batter hit by a pitch can take two bases instead of one in the middle of a baseball game. Consumers are playing an unfair ball game and there's no way to win.

Cardholders continue to pay millions of dollars in hidden charges, outrageous late fees, and unpredictable interest rates.

Despite the fact that most consumers make monthly payments that are more than the minimum required, cardholders cannot seem to make a dent on the average credit card debt of $8,600.

There's a term for such one-sided contracts: UNCONSCIONABLE. And that's exactly what these credit card agreements are.

In the midst of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, I am certain that the passage of the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights Act is simply the ``right thing to do.''

Provisions in the bill will level the playing field for consumers by barring credit card companies from raising interest rates without proper and timely notification.

These much-needed changes are long overdue and will help struggling debtors from sinking deeper in a financial hole.

I urge my colleagues, on both sides of the aisle, to join in fixing the inequities in the credit card industry by supporting this vital legislation.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of Workers' Memorial Day. Every day, working people across our Nation are putting their lives on the line, just by getting up and going to work. In a perennially underreported tragedy, more than 5,000 Americans die each year on the job, and millions more experience occupational injuries and illnesses.

That means about 16 workers in the U.S. die each day at work. And those who die are not only those in professions seen as dangerous, like law enforcement or firefighting--they are also mechanics, store clerks, bus drivers, and landscapers. And the deaths are often close to home. Earlier this month, a 38-year-old construction worker was killed back home in the southern Los Angeles area when a garage collapsed on him while he worked on a remodeling project.

To honor those who have died, and to draw attention about the need for better enforcement of our workplace health and safety laws, I join with Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson and Rep. Bruce Braley today to introduce a resolution recognizing the importance of Workers' Memorial Day.

Workers' Memorial Day is a reminder that each death is a life cut short--a worker who left behind a family and friends.

I encourage everyone to take a moment today to recognize the needless sacrifice that these workers' and their families made this year and in years past.

Going to work should not be a life and death proposition. Workers' Memorial Day is a reminder that we can do better.

Madam Chair, I rise this morning to state my strong support for the budget resolution.

I'm excited to see that American working families will once again be prioritized.

It is a sight for sore eyes to see the President present an honest budget, putting an end to years of masking the costs of things we have to pay for, like the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

This is good news for working and middle-class families who have been struggling to keep their heads above water. For far too long, these families have been bearing the brunt of misplaced priorities, above all, the ever-rising cost of healthcare.

Too many never see a doctor until they visit an emergency room. The cost to employers, local, state and the federal government is unsustainable.

It is shameful that while the United States spends more than every other nation in the world on health care, we fail to care for everyone.

This budget makes a down payment on health care reform, invests in working families, and sets America on a fundamentally new course. I urge my colleagues to support this critical investment.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of House Resolution 234, expressing support for Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day.

I want to thank Chairman Bob Filner and Ranking Member Steve Buyer for their strong commitment to all of America's veterans. Their leadership has been instrumental in bringing this important resolution to the floor today.

As a Nation, we honor those who defend us with statues, memorials, holidays, and praise. But as a people, we have not always fulfilled our duty to properly recognize those fellow citizens who put themselves in harm's way to keep us safe and protect our freedom, and no fellow citizens did we let down more than those who served bravely in Vietnam. They came home to a time of civil unrest and social turmoil, a time when opposition to the war too easily turned into opposition to those young men and women who served in it.

Unlike the GIs who served in previous conflicts, many Vietnam servicemembers came home not to a welcome back parade, but to hostility, ridicule, and bitter criticism. This cold reception, in addition to the brutal realities of serving in Vietnam, interfered with some veterans' efforts to transition back into their communities and establish a sense of normalcy. Just when they needed someone to lend an ear or a helping hand, too many found a cold shoulder.

By encouraging Americans to observe Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day, my resolution seeks to provide these heroes the welcome home that they always deserved but that too many never received.

Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day is the culmination of years of effort on the part of my constituent, Jose Ramos, himself a Vietnam veteran. As an Army combat medic in Vietnam, Jose Ramos was victim to the indifferent and often hostile public reaction upon returning home. It was his personal experiences and those of his fellow GIs that motivated him to work toward establishing a national day of recognition. His work inspired many, including me, to help give Vietnam veterans their long overdue welcome home.

While today's resolution may seem like a small gesture when compared to what our soldiers and their families sacrificed, it certainly is, it

will serve to remind us of their service to our country.

I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join in honoring Vietnam veterans by participating in Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day events in their communities next year. Today, I ask for their vote.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge Nowruz which marks the traditional Iranian New Year and dates back more than 3,000 years. Nowruz, literally meaning ``new day,'' celebrates the arrival of spring and occurs on the vernal equinox, which this year will happen exactly on Friday, March 20th at 7:44 a.m. eastern daylight time. It symbolizes a time of renewal, harkening the departure from the trials and tribulations of the previous year and bringing hope for the New Year. It is celebrated by more than three hundred million Iranians and other peoples all over the world.

Closer to home, more than one million Iranian Americans of all backgrounds, including those of Baha'i, Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Zoroastrian faiths, will be celebrating Nowruz. Recognizing the cultural and historical significance of this day and in its honor, I express my appreciation for the contributions of Iranian-Americans to American society and wish all those who observe this holiday a happy and prosperous new year.

Madam Speaker, unfortunately, I was unable to be present in the Capitol on Monday, March 16, 2009 and therefore unable to cast votes on the House Floor that evening.

However, had I been present I would have voted yea on H.R. 1284, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 103 West Main Street in McLain, Mississippi, as the ``Major Ed W. Freeman Post Office''; yea on H.R. 1217, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 15455 Manchester Road in Ballwin, Missouri, as the ``Specialist Peter J. Navarro Post Office Building''; and yea on H.R. 987, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 601 8th Street in Freedom, Pennsylvania, as the ``John Scott Challis, Jr. Post Office.''

In addition, on Wednesday, March 18, 2009, I was attending a meeting with President Obama at the White House with many of my colleagues in the Congressional Hispanic Caucus when votes were called. Unable to return to the Capitol in a timely fashion, I missed two votes. However, had I been present, I would have voted yea on ordering the previous question on H. Res. 250, to provide for the consideration of the bill (H.R. 1388), to reauthorize and reform the national service laws; and I would have voted aye on H. Res. 250, to provide for the consideration of the bill (H.R. 1388), to reauthorize and reform the national service laws.

Madam Speaker, today, Mr. Ehlers and I are introducing the Bullying and Gang Reduction for Improved Education Act. It is time that we recognize bullying and gangs as serious problems that impede student achievement.

Bullying, harassment, and gang-related activity have serious consequences for schools and students. Nearly 40% of middle-school and high-school students report that they do not feel safe at school. Children who are bullied miss more school, have lower self-esteem, and are more likely to commit suicide than those who are not.

According to young people themselves, one reason they get involved in gang activity is to seek protection from bullying. We cannot address one without addressing the other.

Contrary to popular belief, bullying is neither a minor nuisance, something to be laughed at or ignored. It is not a rite of passage, but instead interferes with a child's right to attend school and learn. Although any child may be bullied, some children face much greater risks than others. Children who are obese and those whom others perceive to be gay or lesbian are especially at risk.

Violence in our schools caused by gang activity and bullying can cause childhood trauma, depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder. These conditions are not conducive to learning. Youth involved in gang activity also have lower expectations about their educational attainment.

The Bullying and Gang Reduction for Improved Education Act would take important steps to address these issues by allowing states and localities to use Safe Schools funds for comprehensive bullying and gang prevention programs.

I urge my colleagues to take a stand. All children, especially societies most vulnerable, deserve their support of the Bullying and Gang Prevention for Improved Education Act.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Increased Student Achievement Through Increased Student Support Act.

With the No Child Left Behind Act dramatically increasing the pressure on teachers and administrators to improve test scores, too often we forget that students' academic success is also dependent on a number of other factors. For example, as students transition into adulthood, they experience social, emotional and behavioral needs that if unmet, impede academic success.

These diverse needs often cannot be met by already over-burdened teachers. Students need school counselors, school social workers and school psychologists. Yet, in low income neighborhoods, students lack these essential resources. Nationwide, the average student to counselor ratio is 475 to 1, nearly double the suggested 250 to 1 ratio. In California, the ratio is a dismal 920 to 1, the worst in the nation.

To help improve student performance and increase graduation rates, this bill would authorize funding to form partnerships between under- served school districts and higher education institutions that train school counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists. By increasing school support staff, we can address children's out-of-the- classroom needs so that when they're in the classroom, they can be safe, engaged, and achieving their full potential. The students of low- income neighborhoods deserve the same opportunities as others for a productive learning environment.

Today's children are the economic engine of our future. We must make certain all children have the opportunity to develop academically and socially, and all schools have the resources to achieve this goal. Academic success does not come when children are hungry, bullied, traumatized, or depressed. We need more personnel to help address and alleviate these issues so that all children, no matter what their economic situation is, can focus on math, reading, and science. This is why I urge my colleagues to invest in our children and our future by supporting the Increased Student Achievement Through Increased Student Support Act.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act.

The mortgage meltdown affects everyone. No one is immune from the widespread effects of home foreclosures. It hurts the families who are forced out of their homes, of course, but it also hurts their neighbors, who see a drastic drop in property values and communities that have to cut back services due to losses in property values. For too many, the American dream of owning a home has quickly eroded into a nightmare. The bill's mortgage bankruptcy and loan modification provisions will provide direct help to real American families.

As the former chairwoman of the Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee, I held many hearings on the mortgage foreclosure crisis and its impact on families. I know that this bill fixes an inequity in the bankruptcy code by ensuring that, under limited conditions, homeowners and bankruptcy proceedings will have access to the full range of financial support and options available.

I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support homeowners and neighborhoods by supporting this vital piece of legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate and honor the 100th anniversary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, NAACP. Today, February 12, 2009, marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the NAACP and the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. For a Nation that is less than 250 years old, the centennial of the NAACP is a major milestone.

I shudder to imagine what this country would look like if our history did not include the stories and struggles of people like Frederick Douglass, Rosa Parks, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., our own Representative John Lewis, and many countless others who have fought and continue to fight for equal rights and equal opportunity.

The NAACP's roots date back to the ``Niagra Movement'' of 1905 when thirty-two prominent African Americans met to organize and call for the end of racial inequality. A forceful agent for change, the NAACP was the leading party behind many accomplishments of the Civil Rights Movement, including the landmark case Brown v. the Board of Education which ended racial segregation in our schools.

The Niagra and Civil Rights Movements were not the first calls for freedom and equality in our nation's history and will not be the last. But their success provided a blueprint for future generations to follow, an example of hope to all those who seek to secure the basic freedoms guaranteed by our Constitution.

Today, the NAACP continues to cement its reputation as a trailblazer for basic civil and human rights. Led by its young new president, Benjamin Jealous, the NAACP has refocused its objectives on resolving wide disparities in access to jobs and healthcare among Americans. During the next 100 years, I have no doubt that the NAACP will lead many more breakthroughs in civil and human rights.

This anniversary gives all Americans an opportunity to recognize and learn about African-American history, which is also the history of the United States. I am proud to do my part to promote and honor the contributions made by the NAACP and the African American community to our great Nation.

Madam Speaker, I strongly support H.R. 2, the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009. I want to thank Representative Pallone for introducing the bill, and Chairmen Rangel, Miller, and Waxman for moving it quickly to the floor.

Investing in children's health care is an investment in our future, which will help strengthen our next generation and save health care costs in the long run. With this legislation, we are saying that the phrase ``children are our most precious resource,'' is no longer just a cliche. We are putting our money where our mouths are. And we are doing it in a fiscally responsible way.

While we all want to balance budgets and control spending, skimping on children's health care simply makes no sense. That's why this small increase in the tobacco tax, about 62 cents a pack, is a smart thing to do. It will deter non-smokers from trying smoking, and it will ensure that we are not adding to our budget deficit.

The CHIP Reauthorization Act preserves the coverage for all 7.1 million children currently covered by CHIP and provides coverage for an additional 4.1 million uninsured children who are currently eligible for, but not enrolled in, CHIP and Medicaid.

Far too often, constituents contact me seeking help with their medical expenses because they have no health insurance. And the lack of health insurance is not for lack of trying. Sadly, even millions who have jobs in this troubled economy lack health insurance. This bill will help those families who should never have had to decide between putting food on the table and taking a sick child to the doctor.

While this bill will not ensure coverage for every single child in the nation, it is a great first start. This bill gives states the option of covering legal immigrant children during their first five years in the United States. Without this provision, parents of children with conditions from diabetes to scleroderma to scoliosis would have to continue to wait up to five years from the time they discovered the condition until they can afford treatment for their child.

Now, states like California can choose to prevent such heartbreaking situations. And I hope they do.

I am committed to working toward quality, affordable, and universal coverage for all in America. While that might seem an unattainable goal to some, the CHIP Reauthorization Act gives me hope that we are on our way.

As an expectant mother who is fortunate enough to have good healthcare coverage, I owe it to my constituents and to all in America to provide them with the same ability to care for themselves and their families. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this important bill.