Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, it looks like the President's road to ``Regulation Nation'' is truly never ending. Just yesterday, the EPA announced their latest set of regulations which will effectively ban the building of any new coal-fired power plants. This regulation comes on the heels of some of the most costly regulations in the history of the EPA, including the Utility MACT and Boiler MACT rules. He promised that his energy policies would mean ``electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket,'' one promise the President has kept.

Coal is one of our most plentiful resources. Over 50 percent of our energy is provided by coal. We can no longer allow the White House to regulate this country into an energy crisis. It's time we start to take advantage of all the God-given natural resources this country has and have American-made energy power this Nation.

Madam Speaker, I come to the floor this morning with great sadness and also with great honor to honor the service of one of Georgia's own, Captain Nick Whitlock. On February 18, 2012, at Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, Africa, he gave the ultimate sacrifice while returning from a mission in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Captain Whitlock was born to the proud parents of Jimmy and Clare Whitlock on December 10, 1982. Even at a young age, Nick showed his maturity and that he was full of integrity. In one of his high school assignments, Nick was asked to define a leader. He wrote:

A leader is a person that is in charge of a group, someone

that everyone looks up to and wants to be like. A leader is

also someone that is willing to complete their goals and give

100 percent no matter what. A leader is willing to stand up

for what he believes in even if he is alone. I want to be a

leader because I think that is what God has called me to be.

For the young people that might be watching, we're always looking for a hero, and I think that Nick decided in his life that he would be a hero.

Nick lived by his own words, and to say he was a leader was an understatement. He understood that success is achieved through hard work, faith, and dedication, and he lived every day as an opportunity to improve himself and the lives of others.

Nick graduated from Newnan High School in 2001 as an honor graduate and was recognized for his outstanding achievements in both football and baseball. Nick achieved his Eagle Scout rank and strove to use the skills he learned to influence every aspect of his life.

He attended Mercer University, and he caught for the Mercer Bears baseball team. Most notable of Nick's many campus activities were his leadership roles as Mercer ambassador; president of his fraternity, Sigma Alpha Epsilon; and senator-at-large for the student government association. In 2005, Nick graduated with a bachelor of business administration degree; and in 2011, he went on to earn his master's degree in business administration from the University of Florida.

While studying at Mercer, Nick earned his private pilot's license and was accepted into the United States Air Force in 2006. Nick trained with the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training program. In 2008, he received his wings and was assigned to the Air Force Special Operations. He became a member of the 34th Special Operations Squadron, which we have all heard about in the paper and on the news, and was promoted to captain in November of 2010, where he was assigned to the U 28A aircraft.

November proved to be one to celebrate, as Nick married the love of his life, Ashley, the same month as his promotion. Nick spread the happiness he found in both his marriage and life through his involvement with organizations such as Alaska's Healing Hearts, a nonprofit organization enabling disabled military veterans to participate in outdoor activities.

Nick was serving on his fifth deployment in Djibouti, Africa, when an accident occurred while his aircraft was returning from a mission, taking not only his life but three of his fellow comrades. Nick was laid to rest at Forest Lawn Cemetery in his hometown of Newnan, Georgia, following a heartfelt ceremony at First Baptist Church.

Friends of Nick's say he made them proud to be an American and to want to become a better man of God and a better father, better husband, a better son. His wife, Ashley, described Nick as loving, thoughtful, honest, considerate, and generous. He was a true gentleman and a steadfast man of God. They both prayed for God to shape their lives for His purpose so that their blessings would not stop with them but extend to everyone they met.

His parents' love and pride for Nick's unwavering faith, integrity, and intelligence is never ending. They talk often of how, although he was never the smartest, biggest, or fastest, he used every ounce of what he was given to his highest potential. He was physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight. In the eyes of his wife, family, and friends, there was no finer man or leader than Nick Whitlock.

I am both honored and proud that a soldier from my district served with such courage and conviction. Nick embodied all the qualities of an ideal husband, son, brother, and friend. He was an extraordinary captain, and America has truly lost one of its finest. I am proud to stand here and thank him for sacrificing his life so that my family and I, and everyone else across this great Nation, can live free.

Joan and I extend our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Nick Whitlock's, and we will never forget the service and sacrifice that he made for our great country.

Nick, we miss you. And until we meet again in the presence of our Lord, I want to use a nice Southern saying: Nick, you done good. Thank you, sir.

Madam Speaker, I would like to join with my other Georgia colleagues today in congratulating Monica Kaufman Pearson on a distinguished career.

Ms. Pearson, known to most of us that have been watching her for a long time as Monica Kaufman, is retiring after more than 30 years as a ``Nightbeat'' anchor for WSB-TV and Channel 2 News in Atlanta.

I, along with many Georgians, have welcomed Ms. Pearson into my home every night while watching the news. Although her retirement is well deserved, she will be missed by us all.

After graduating from the University of Louisville, Ms. Pearson began her career as a reporter for the Louisville Times. Later she took part in the Summer Program for Minority Groups at the Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University of New York. Before coming to Atlanta, Ms. Pearson worked in the public relations field and as an anchor for WHAS-TV in Louisville.

Even with her retirement, I know she will continue to be a role model for the citizens of Georgia and continue using her helping hands to raise money for charity and local community organizations.

I wish Ms. Pearson the best in her future endeavors.

And, Monica, the nightly news will not be the same without you. Thank you very much.

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 47, I was unavoidably detained.

Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in the Senate amendments to the bill (H.R. 2056) to instruct the Inspector General of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to study the impact of insured depository institution failures, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to add extraneous material.

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

The bill before the House today is one that will provide much needed transparency to the FDIC, the Federal Reserve, and the OCC bank examination and resolution procedures.

First, I'd like to thank Chairman Bachus and Subcommittee Chairwoman Capito, Ranking Member Frank, and Subcommittee Ranking Member Maloney for their support of H.R. 2056.

I'd also like to thank Senator Chambliss and his staff for working to pass this bill on the Senate side. We are pleased to have an agreement with the other Chamber, which is highly unusual, and look forward to the outcome of this study.

As I have said many times before, there is no greater threat to our communities than bank failures, especially in my State of Georgia. Since the House last debated this bill in July, more banks in Georgia have been closed by the regulators. Now 73 banks are no longer serving their communities, and 22 banks alone have failed in 2011. Sadly, there are some communities in my district that are no longer served by a community bank.

I have often referenced the so-called ``ten over ten.'' These are the 10 States that have had more than 10 bank failures since 2008. These 10 unlucky States are Georgia, Florida, Illinois, California, Minnesota, Washington, Michigan, Nevada, Missouri and Arizona. In fact, six of the 10 States have had more than 10 percent of their banks fail in the last 3 years.

Mr. Speaker, the deeper I dig into the actions of the FDIC, the Fed and the OCC, the more concerned I am that our community banks are being regulated like public utilities rather than the job creators they are. H.R. 2056 is designed to cut through all the information to analyze the underlying fundamentals that continue to cause bank failures across this country.

The bill directs the FDIC Inspector General, in consultation with Treasury and the Federal Reserve IGs, to study the bank regulators' policies and practices with regard to loss share agreements, the fair application of regulatory capital standards, appraisals, the FDIC procedures for loan modifications, and the FDIC's handling of consent orders in cease and desist orders.

Further, the GAO also has a study in the bill to pursue those questions that the FDIC IG is unable to fully explore, such as the causes of the high number of bank failures. The impact of fair market value accounting has been a tremendous impact on our banks. Analysis of this impact of the failures on the community banks is especially needed. The overall effectiveness of loss share agreements for resolving banks is another thing that should be looked at very carefully.

The changes made by the Senate now ensure that the House Financial Services Committee and the Senate Banking Committee will have a hearing on this important study once it is issued.

I know this bill can never bring back the banks that have been lost in this crisis, but this bill and the study will provide Congress and the communities in my district and in other districts the information they need to ensure these failures never happen again.

I encourage my colleagues to support this bill.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the chairwoman of the Financial Institutions Subcommittee of Financial Services, the gentlelady from West Virginia (Mrs. Capito).

Mr. Speaker, I want to encourage all of the Members to vote for this. As the chairlady mentioned, we had a field hearing in my district with my colleague Mr. Scott from Georgia, also. I think it was a very good field hearing. We had testimony from bankers and from borrowers about the different regulations that had interfered with their ability to actually do business and the difference in the capital requirements that the FDIC is putting on some of these banks.

We understand that the FDIC has to enforce the rules, but we do think there are some cases, as the ranking member mentioned, that there has been some overbearing on some loans that have been performing and are quality loans. So we think that this study will at least open some people's eyes to this and give us a better idea on maybe some of the things that we need to do to make sure that our community banks stay open.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. Speaker, I could not think of a more appropriate person to be in the Chair this morning than yourself, to me and to others, an American hero because, Mr. Speaker, today I come to the floor with a sadness but yet with a great sense of pride to honor the service of one of Georgia's own, Lance Corporal Scott Harper.

On October 13, in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, he gave the ultimate sacrifice in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and the protection of his homeland and his family and his friends.

Mr. Speaker, he will be greatly missed by all. Lance Corporal Harper was better known to his close friends not as Scott but as Boots. While a student at Alexander High School, he once forgot his tennis shoes for gym class and kept his boots on instead. And on that day, Mr. Speaker, he learned the lasting nickname of Boots. But he also showed how he was prepared to adapt to all scenarios.

When a Marine recruiter showed up at his high school senior year, Boots answered the call and chose a life of service in the United States Marine Corps with a courage and motivation that most young men his age have not yet found in life.

After graduating high school, he went into active duty in the Marine Corps. Boots served one term in Afghanistan and returned safely home. He left on the second tour July 13, with the First Battalion, Sixth Marine Regiment, Second Marine Division.

On October 13, his division was struck by small arms fire while conducting combat operations. A fellow Marine was shot first, and Boots ran into opposing gunfire to save his friend. Though Boots lost his life, he saved the life of his wounded friend in the process. Boots was always loyal as a friend, and there is no more honor that one can give than to lay down his life for another.

Boots was devoted to his family and his community. Even when he only had a few days off, he would make time, that precious time, to come home and visit his family and friends. Though communication was difficult, Boots was always writing his family and called home as much as possible. The Saturday before he was killed, Boots called his father to say that he had decided to enroll at the University of Georgia when he returned home.

Upon coming home for this final time, he arrived at Charlie Brown Airfield. Crowds from the community lined the streets to escort Boots to his final home, to his family and to his friends for the last time. Boots was accompanied by a Marine Corps Honor Guard, the Patriot Guard, the Douglasville Police Department, and the Douglas County Sheriff's Department, among many others.

Norfolk-Southern even stopped its railroad cars in honor of the procession. As they passed everyone stood and saluted to honor the fallen Marine and hometown hero.

Boots embodied the ideals that the Marines strive to achieve. I am both honored and proud that this soldier from the Third District fought so hard for our country and for our freedom. Boots was a model citizen, soldier, and son. He was an extraordinary young man with incredible potential before him, and he will be forever missed.

I am proud to stand here and thank him for sacrificing his life for strangers like me and my family. And Joan and I extend our sympathy to the family of this fallen hero for raising such a brave, courageous, honorable, giving son.

And Boots, we, as a Nation, salute you today. Semper Fi.

Mr. Speaker, I have come to the floor this morning with great sadness to honor the service of one of Georgia's own, Lance Corporal Scott Harper. On October 13 in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, he gave the ultimate sacrifice in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, and he will be greatly missed.

Lance Corporal Harper was known by his close friends not as Scott, but by his nickname, ``Boots.'' While a student at Alexander High School, he once forgot his tennis shoes for gym class and kept his boots on instead. On that day, he earned a lasting nickname and showed how he was prepared to adapt to all scenarios. When a Marine recruiter showed up at his school senior year, Boots answered the call and chose a life of service in the United States Marine Corps with a courage and motivation that most young men his age have not yet found.

After graduating, Boots served one tour in Afghanistan before returning home. He left on July 13 to begin his second tour of duty with the First Battalion, Sixth Marine Regiment, Second Marine Division. On October 13, his division was struck by small arms fire while conducting combat operations. A fellow Marine was shot first, and Boots ran into opposing gunfire to save his friend. Though Boots lost his life, he saved the life of his wounded friend in the process. Boots was as loyal a friend as there is, and there is no more honor than that.

Boots was devoted to his family and his community. Even when he only had a few days off, he would make the most of his time to come home and visit. Though communication was difficult, Boots wrote his family several times and called home as much as possible. The Saturday before he was killed, Boots called his father to say that he had decided to enroll at the University of Georgia when he returned home.

From Charlie Brown Airfield, crowds lined the streets to escort Boots home one last time, as a testament to the community's support of him and his family. Boots was accompanied by a Marine Corps Honor Guard, the Patriot Guard, the Douglasville Police Department, and the Douglas County Sheriff's Department, among others. Norfolk-Southern even stopped its railroad cars in honor of the procession. As they passed, everyone stood at salute to honor the fallen Marine.

Boots embodied the ideals that the Marines strive to achieve. I am both honored and proud that this soldier from the Third District fought so hard for our country and our freedom. Boots was a model citizen, soldier, and son. He was an extraordinary young man with incredible potential before him, and he will be forever missed. I am proud to stand here and thank him for sacrificing his life for strangers like me and my family.

Joan and I extend our sympathy to the family and friends of Scott ``Boots'' Harper, and we will never forget the service and sacrifice that he made for our great country.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Being from Georgia's Third Congressional District, we have been blessed to have a robust manufacturing industry. We have both Kia Motors and a large textile presence in my district.

I would like to ask the chairman if he would enter into a colloquy.

Mr. Chairman, what will the Ways and Means Committee do to ensure no textile jobs in the U.S. are lost due to the Korea free trade agreement?

Further, Mr. Chairman, what has the Ways and Means Committee done to ensure textiles from China do not illegally enter the U.S. through Korea?

I thank the gentleman, and I appreciate his commitment to bolster the customs enforcement and close the loopholes in the customs process that have negatively impacted U.S. textiles, including taking up the Textile Enforcement and Security Act, which I'm sure the chairman would do.

It is my understanding that Korea's tariffs on U.S. textiles are subject to a 5-year phaseout, but the U.S. tariffs would go to zero immediately, allowing for free entry for Korean textiles. What is your committee doing and will it do to ensure an equal playing field for U.S. textiles in Korea and there's not a flood of Korean textiles into the U.S. market?

I'd like to ask the chairman, will you promise to work with the Textile Caucus to ensure that the textile provisions of the Korean free trade agreement are not used as a model of future free trade agreements, especially the Trans-Pacific Partnership?

I thank the chairman for the colloquy.

I would like to submit two articles about the impact of the Korea free trade agreement on the textile industry.

[From Bloomberg Businessweek, Sept. 15, 2011]

Kolon Loses $920 Million Verdict to DuPont in Trial Over Kevlar

(By Jef Feeley, Gary Roberts and Jack Kaskey)

Kolon Industries Inc. lost a $919.9 million jury verdict to

DuPont Co. over the theft of trade secrets about the

manufacture of Kevlar, an anti-ballistic fiber used in police

and military gear.

Jurors in federal court in Richmond, Virginia, deliberated

about 10 hours over two days before finding Gyeonggi, South

Korea-based Kolon and its U.S. unit wrongfully obtained

DuPont's proprietary information about Kevlar by hiring some

of the company's former engineers and marketers. The award

yesterday is the third-largest jury verdict this year,

according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

DuPont, based in Wilmington, Delaware, is spending more

than $500 million to boost Kevlar production and meet rising

demand for armor and lightweight materials that reduce energy

use. Kevlar and Nomex, a related fiber used in firefighting

gear, accounted for about $1.4 billion of DuPont's $31.5

billion in sales last year.

The ``jury decision is an enormous victory for global

intellectual property protection,'' Thomas L. Sager, DuPont's

general counsel, said in a statement. ``It also sends a

message to potential thieves of intellectual property that

DuPont will pursue all legal remedies to protect our

significant investment in research and development.''

DuPont rose 86 cents, or 1.9 percent, to $45.52 in New York

Stock Exchange composite trading yesterday. The shares have

declined 8.7 percent this year.

Kolon said it disagrees with the verdict and will appeal.

Multiyear Campaign

The ``verdict is the result of a multiyear campaign by

DuPont aimed at forcing Kolon out of the aramid fiber

market,'' Kolon said in a statement e-mailed by Dan Tudesco

of Brodeur Partners, a public relations agency. ``Kolon had

no need for and did not solicit any trade secrets or

proprietary information of DuPont, and had no reason to

believe that

the consultants it engaged were providing such information.

Indeed, many of the `secrets' alleged in this case are public

knowledge.''

Kolon said it will continue to pursue an antitrust case

against DuPont, which is scheduled for a March trial. DuPont

will file motions later this year to have the case dismissed,

Sager said in a telephone interview.

DuPont will pursue recovery of the award ``wherever we can

find Kolon assets,'' Sager said. The company also will seek

punitive damages for each of the 149 stolen secrets,

reimbursement of more than $30 million in attorney's fees and

an order barring Kolon from making products with DuPont's

information, Sager said.

Body Armor

DuPont, the largest U.S. chemical company by market value,

sued Kolon in February 2009 alleging it stole confidential

data about Kevlar. DuPont began selling the bullet-resistant

fiber in 1965 and it's used in body armor, military helmets,

ropes, cables and tires. Kolon began making its own version

of the para-aramid fiber in 2005.

DuPont argued in court filings that Kolon executives

conspired with five former employees of the U.S. chemical

maker or its Japanese joint venture, DuPont-Toray Co., to

gain access to Kevlar information.

To spur sales of its Heracron aramid fiber, Kolon hired

Michael Mitchell, a former DuPont engineer who also had

served as a Kevlar marketing executive, DuPont said in court

papers. DuPont contended that Mitchell, hired as a

consultant, provided Kolon with proprietary information about

Kevlar.

Home Computer

Mitchell ``retained certain highly confidential information

on his home computer'' and passed the information to Kolon,

DuPont alleged in court filings.

After learning about Mitchell's activities, DuPont

executives alerted the Federal Bureau of Investigation,

according to U.S. Justice Department officials.

During a search of Mitchell's Virginia home, FBI agents

uncovered DuPont documents and computers containing

confidential information belonging to his former employer,

federal prosecutors said last year.

Mitchell pleaded guilty to theft of trade secrets and

obstruction of justice and was sentenced in March 2010 to 18

months in prison.

Kolon recruited other former DuPont workers, including

engineers and researchers, as part of a ``concerted effort''

to obtain information about Kevlar, according to court

filings.

``DuPont's investment in developing this information,

amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars over many years,

was thereby essentially lost,'' the company said in a filing

in October. ``Kolon is now able to compete against DuPont in

the aramid marketing using DuPont's own information against

it.''

Mr. Speaker, as the Republic of China on Taiwan celebrates the 100th anniversary of their founding, I rise to celebrate their National Day and to commend them for 100 years of progress. As a friend and ally of the United States, the Republic of China on Taiwan is a model for nations around the world: a peaceful and prosperous democracy.

I would like to take a moment and commend the 23 million citizens of Taiwan for their commitment to peace. As a symbol of this commitment, the Republic of China on Taiwan recently melted down artillery shells and used the metal to construct a ``peace bell.'' Given the many struggles and hardships the people of the Republic of China on Taiwan have faced--and the threats they continue to face--they deserve enormous credit for their sustained desire for peace. We celebrate these efforts to maintain good relations with other countries, and the United States is proud to call the Republic of China on Taiwan a partner in peace.

In closing, I hope my colleagues will join me in thanking President Ma, Vice President Siew, and the people of the Republic of China on Taiwan for their continued commitment to peace on this anniversary of their National Day.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I would just like to say on the previous speaker that we have a czar to control these executive pays, and so if that czar is not doing his job, that's another problem we need to address.

I rise today in support of H.R. 2587, the Protecting Jobs From Government Interference Act. After the unprecedented actions by the National Labor Relations Board early this year, I was proud to join the gentleman from South Carolina and support this legislation.

Right now, our economy is suffering, and that suffering is felt even more in the South where States like Georgia and South Carolina have unemployment rates higher than the national average. We need to encourage companies to invest in those States most hard-hit. The Boeing plant in South Carolina directly created thousands of jobs in South Carolina, and indirectly through suppliers and construction created hundreds more.

Instead, the President has once again overstepped his executive authority and allowed the union attack dog to threaten to shut down the plant in South Carolina, jeopardizing thousands of jobs.

I strongly encourage my colleagues to support H.R. 2587 and stop the National Labor Relations Board from killing jobs.

Mr. Speaker, there are men who watch life go by as a spectator, and then there are the Ted Mallorys of the world. In one of life's greatest mysteries, Ted Mallory's time on Earth came to an end June 26 after a late diagnosis of stomach cancer.

Major General Theodore ``Ted'' Mallory III had embraced his many gifts and lived one of the fullest lives I have ever been privileged enough to encounter. The Bible says: As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. Ted made it his personal mission to sharpen the lives of those men and women around him, and he pushed people to their highest potential.

After attending Auburn University, Ted entered into the U.S. Air Force Officer Training School in 1965 and graduated with the U.S. Air Force Outstanding Graduate Officer Award, among many other awards that he obtained while in training. These were the first of many commendations Ted would receive throughout his 36-year military career. A recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal with one bronze service star, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm, and Global War on Terrorism Service Medal. Ted truly embodied the ideal airman. He was also awarded the Daughters of the American Revolution Medal of Honor. I would need an hour on this floor, Mr. Speaker, of time just to list all the rest of Ted's accomplishments.

His education did not stop at Auburn University. In addition to the military professional education programs offered through the Air Force, Ted is also an alumnus of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

After he left active duty service, Ted entered into the Air National Guard, where he served for 30 years and held the roles of group commander, wing commander, and chief of staff. He was promoted to major general in 1997 and retired in 2001 as commander of the Air National Guard/Air Education and Training Command.

While serving in the Air National Guard, he remained active in his community, serving on the Fayette County school board for 10 years as chairman, and on the Georgia School Board Association as president in 1986. Ted served on several additional boards, including my academy nomination board, and was president of the Joseph Sams School board of directors, a school serving the needs of children with mental and physical disabilities, and Ted took me on a tour of that facility about 2 months before he passed away.

His accomplishments reach far beyond military service, though. Ted was also a very successful businessman in the aviation industry. His focus was always on safety and flying, where he was training new pilots, or as a senior vice president of Flight Operations and chief safety and security officer for ASTAR Air Cargo.

General Mallory is now flying sorties far above us all, watching down on his loved ones left behind. My wife, Joan, and I will continue to pray for Alice, his wife of 44 years, his soul mate; his children, Teddi and T.J. and their families; his grandchildren, Mallory and Thomas; and his sister and brother-in-law, Molly and Tom. May all those who have been touched by Ted's life find comfort knowing that his legacy will live on in both our lives and our memories.

So Ted, until we meet again one day, I want to thank you for everything you did to better our lives and our country. I miss you, Teddy. We all miss you.

Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 704, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''

Mr. Speaker, I come to the House floor to remember a great friend of mine who passed away last Tuesday. Thomaston City Councilman Ed Bell was a huge presence in Georgia and a devoted cheerleader for both Upson County, the city of Thomaston, and me.

Ed's life of tireless service started when he entered the U.S. Navy as an aviation ordnance man for 4 years during the Korean conflict. He continued with a sense of duty as an agent with State Farm Insurance, where he worked for 33 years and became a mentor for every State Farm agent under his direction. He was an agent's agent. The people that he insured knew that Ed was their agent and that he was there to protect their interest.

Ed was serving his fourth term on the Thomaston City Council and was truly dedicated to improving the lives of those in his community. If I ever found myself within 25 miles of Thomaston and made the mistake of not calling Ed, you can bet that he would somehow find out, and I would get an earful over the phone for not coming by to see him. And when you came to visit, you had to be sure to set enough time for Ed to introduce you to everyone in town, even though he had already done it many times before.

Even in the years later, Ed could wear a much younger man out with his enthusiasm for showing visitors around his beloved city, taking them through

the courthouse and around the city square. Ed really was ``Mr. Thomaston.'' He was serving on my district's Small Business Committee as well as serving on the Thomaston-Upson Arts Council, the Upson County School Board, the Lions Club, and as a deacon at First Baptist Church of Thomaston. In recognition of all of Ed's work, he was rewarded the well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 from the Thomaston Chamber of Commerce. There is a laundry list of groups impacted by Ed's energy, and his involvement could never be replaced or forgotten by anyone.

The dedication Ed showed to his community pales in comparison to his dedication to family. My thoughts and prayers continue to be with Patricia, Ed's wife of 55 years; his three children, Dick, Debbie, and Nancy; and his six grandchildren, one of whom, William, is currently serving as an intern in my Newnan office. I cannot adequately express, Mr. Speaker, how grateful I am to Ed and his family for all that he has done for Georgia and for me.

So, Ed, until we meet again, we all miss you.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2056) to instruct the Inspector General of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to study the impact of insured depository institution failures, and for other purposes, as amended.

I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and to add extraneous material on this bill.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, the bill before the House today is one that will provide much needed transparency to the FDIC process of examining and resolving banks.

First, I would like to thank Chairman Bachus and Subcommittee Chairman Capito, Ranking Member Frank and Subcommittee Ranking Member Maloney for their support of H.R. 2056.

I'd also like to thank my lead cosponsor, the gentleman from Georgia, my friend, Representative Scott, for his tireless support on this issue.

As I have said many times before, there is no greater threat to our communities than bank failures, especially in my State of Georgia.

Mr. Speaker, I want to take a minute to highlight bank failures by the numbers in my State of Georgia: 319 is the total number of failures in the U.S. since 2008; 67 of those, that's the total number of Georgia bank failures since 2008; 16, this is the number of banks in Georgia that failed in 2011; 11 banks have failed in my congressional district.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to get you to look at this chart, and you can see by this chart that these communities, these 10 States, have had the largest closing number. Their unemployment rate is some of the highest, the deficiency rates. And if you look at the percentages, if you look at Arizona, 30 percent of their banks have closed; Nevada, 41 percent of their banks have closed; and in my State of Georgia, 26 percent have closed. Sadly, there are some communities in my district that no longer are even served by a community bank.

And I have often referenced these, the 10 over 10, and these are the 10 States that have had more than 10 bank failures since 2008. As you can see these unlucky States are Georgia, Florida, Illinois, California, Minnesota, Washington, Michigan, Nevada, Missouri, and Arizona. In fact, six of these 10 States have had more than 10 percent of their banks fail in the past 3 years.

These States also share other commonalities. As I mentioned, each have a higher than average unemployment rate and serious delinquency rates as well as a high number of bank failures.

While I hope no more States are added to this list, many States are not far off. Colorado has had nine failures, including one on Friday. Kansas and Oregon have had seven failures.

Without a doubt, the FDIC is a wealth of information about the health of banks, if you have the time and resources to go through it. However, too much information without proper context can be detrimental. H.R. 2056 is designed to cut through all the information to analyze the underlying fundamentals that continue to cause bank failures across this country.

The bill directs the FDIC Inspector General, in consultation with the Treasury and Federal Reserve IGs, to study FDIC policies and practices with regard to loss share agreements, the fair application of regulatory capital standards, appraisals, FDIC procedures for loan modifications, and the FDIC's handling of consent orders and cease and desist orders.

Further, the GAO also has a study in the bill to pursue those questions the FDIC Inspector General is unable to fully explore, such as the causes of the high number of bank failures, procyclical impact of fair value accounting, analysis of the impact of failures on the community, and the overall effectiveness of loss share agreements for resolving banks.

I have welcomed the input from the FDIC IG as well as witnesses from the FDIC, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Independent Community Bankers Association, and the witnesses at the hearing 3 weeks ago. Overwhelmingly, these witnesses supported H.R. 2056. Likewise, the Financial Services Committee passed H.R. 2056 out of committee last week by voice vote.

Mr. Speaker, it is clear that Congress needs more information about the underlying causes of these bank failures.

I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, our hope is that this will shed some light on these bank failures. We hope it will also shed light on why so many business people have come to all of us in this body to find out why they cannot get loans to promote job growth, to help expand their businesses. We need those answers.

We also need to make sure that this study will shed some light on what effects TARP and Loss-Share Agreements have had on our community banks. We also hope that it will shed light on why immediate write- downs are being demanded on our community banks when the loans are performing. People are paying their interest. They're meeting their renewal requirements, yet regulators are insisting that these loans be marked down. This has caused what I call a paper loss for a lot of these bankers that are then being made to ask to raise capital when they're under cease and desist orders.

So all of this does not work together. And, in fact, a lot of things that we have done in this previous Congress has caused the snowball to roll faster downhill.

I hope they'll look at the market to see what has happened and what is the effect of banks that have gotten TARP money and have come in and ``fire sold'' properties that have caused real property values to go down, not just for the banks, but for the people that have bought in there.

We need to find out why Loss-Share Agreements promote not modifying loans, why they promote getting rid of some of these bad loans, why they promote a bank to be able to get rid of property when the government guarantees them 95 percent of their loss. What effect has that had on our community banks that didn't get the TARP, that have not been allowed to be in any of these Loss-Share Agreements?

These are answers that we're looking for.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. Speaker, as an elected Member of Congress, I have the honor to serve and represent the people of the Third District of Georgia through my voting record and through participation in the lawmaking process.

Georgia's Spalding County sheriff, James ``Dee'' Stewart, represented his community through selfless service to his county, his deputies, and the thousands of citizens who elected him to four terms to be their protector.

I come before the House today with a heavy heart to honor the nearly 40 years of law enforcement service that was brought to a premature end on July 3, when Sheriff Stewart was killed in an automobile accident while on his daily patrol.

I hope that one day my staff and my friends will talk about me the same way Dee Stewart's coworkers and friends did at his funeral. He was the kind of man who always led from the front. Even though he was the head of the department, it would often be his voice that came across the radio responding to calls no matter what time of day or night. He would rather put his life on the line than let anyone else cover for him.

A man who valued his duty more than his sleep, Sheriff Stewart readily gave his personal cell number to anyone and made sure that everyone knew that he was available to them 24/7. That set him apart and contributed to his reputation as a man who really cared about the people of Spalding County.

Chief Deputy Major Teresa Bishop called Sheriff Stewart the ``greatest boss ever'' after 29 years of working together. He trusted his deputies to do their job and expected them to hold him accountable too. His humor made his employees look forward to each work day, but he took his responsibility very seriously, especially when it came to the safety of children and the elderly.

Sheriff Stewart is remembered as having a huge heart, a heart as big as Spalding County. In a testament to the number of lives touched by Sheriff Stewart's service, his funeral procession took nearly 20 minutes to pass by.

I stand here on behalf of his wife, Janice; his children, Jay, Hope, Joey and Darren; his 11 grandchildren; and everyone who knew James ``Dee'' Stewart as more than just a sheriff, but as a preacher, a marriage counselor, a friend, a father, and a husband.

The Bible says: ``Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.'' Sheriff Stewart embodied that verse.

Thank you for your service, Sheriff. The people of Spalding County lost a great man on July 3, but your memory will live on. Many others will be inspired by your example to live justly and with kindness. You will be missed. See you later, Dee.