Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, as a member of the Armed Services Committee and also as co-Chair of the Women's Congressional Caucus, I am very proud to support H. Res. 868, honoring the service and achievements of women in the Armed Forces and our female veterans.

With Veterans Day just around the corner, I know that many Americans will stop this week and will thank veterans in their families or in their communities. They may meet a young soldier back from a tour of duty in Iraq and will quietly thank God that they were born in a Nation where freedom is valued and where our ideals that we have fought for are still alive and well, or they may pause to remember a loved one who is no longer with us who proudly wore the uniform.

Today, it is becoming likely that a veteran may be a woman. While men still outnumber women in the Armed Forces, military service is no longer a career choice for men only. There are many to whom we must offer thanks who are women. We have had over 200,000 women in the military, serving in all five branches, in the National Guard and in the Reserves. These women are heroes and are role models for their willingness to step in harm's way. When women choose to serve their country, they prove that there is no profession and no honor out of the reach for women of America today.

As we have since the Revolution, women are playing a vital role in the defense of our Nation. Today, deployed in two different theaters and in every corner of the world, women have played a significant role in our victory and success; but as we remember their accomplishments, we must remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Since the United States went to war in Iraq and Afghanistan, over 122 women in uniform have lost their lives in support of our ongoing operations. Their sacrifice and the sacrifice of their families is very painful, but it is a sacrifice of freedom.

When faced with such sadness, it is easy to feel only the loss. While it is our duty to mourn the fallen, it is also our duty to honor those who have served with dignity and who have returned to take their places back among society. Those women today have answered that call. They chose to serve in the military. They did so because they believed in America--in freedom and in the power of our American ideals--and they believed in the need to protect those ideals here and abroad.

Today, there are more women than ever choosing to serve our country. They are pilots; they are engineers; they are commanders of ships; they are military police; they are nurses. These transitions, by the way, have not come without controversy. We have, or are working through, many of them and are finding that women are bringing new and vital skill sets to today's modern military with courage and, certainly, with honor.

By supporting House Resolution 868, we can send a clear message to our women in the military and to our women veterans in all areas that your service is not forgotten, that we honor and respect you and that we appreciate your courage, your patriotism, and your sacrifice. Today, we recognize that service.

Mr. Speaker, for many women and their families, higher health care costs means the difference between receiving care or going without it. Unfortunately, the Pelosi health care bill raises taxes on health care and empowers the Federal Government and bureaucrats to decide what kind of health care families and women will have versus empowering people to make their own personal decisions. It also undermines a woman's ability to make the best decisions for her family.

According to a report, studies have shown that more than 52 percent of women have foregone necessary care because of the cost. They have foregone care from filling prescription drugs, skipping a medical test, or even failing to see a doctor when they needed medical help.

We know when the Federal Government takes over care, whether it is a bureaucratic system or a socialized system, that it also leads to rationing of care. This bill increases taxes while also causing higher insurance premiums and will hurt women and children and their families. But House Republicans support reasonable health care reform that lowers costs and will ensure access to care for all Americans.

I thank the gentlelady from Tennessee.

You are exactly right. I have heard from a lot of my State senators, representatives, and agencies in Oklahoma that if we pass a massive new Federal Government bureaucrat health care bill that has unfunded mandates, which this bill does, that those costs will be passed on down to the States, and there is only one way that you pay for those extra services and costs, and that would have to be through tax increases or cutting spending.

A lot of States are experiencing budget shortfalls. In my State of Oklahoma, we have cut back services in our State. So, if we have more unfunded mandates upon our State government, whether it is through the expansion of Medicaid or whether it is through the $500 billion that is being proposed to cut seniors' and Medicare services or the taxes on medical devices or some of the services that will be eliminated, those costs get passed on down, and, ultimately, it will be the States that will be picking up those costs.

I appreciate what Congresswoman Foxx said about taking away the freedom of choice and liberties and our Nation. Many people I have talked to are concerned about where is our Nation going. We seem to be looking more like a European nation where we have huge democracies and so much debt being piled on our children and grandchildren. Frankly, people are worried about the future and about our security, our economic security and national security, especially at a time when we are experiencing a recession and people are concerned about keeping their jobs, supporting their families, and making house payments. They are very concerned.

I know some of the people I have been talking to, a lot of small business owners are very concerned about the proposed taxes that will be put onto the small businesses. We have actually had some congressional hearings with small business owners, and they have talked about how tough it is to get access to capital, to get loans, and how they have had to cut back employees and how revenues have dropped off. They tell us in congressional hearings if we pass another tax, as is being proposed, and it would affect small businesses, they will have to lay people off. And then if we have some type of government mandate to provide health insurance because that small business owner can't afford to provide that insurance to their small business employees, then they say they might just have to lay off people to provide for that insurance. Or if they had to pay that new tax, they will have to cut off some products or future plans to expand their businesses or drop the coverage they have and move toward the government plan, because they will pay the 8 percent tax. Getting back to your point as to eliminating some of our options in the private sector, if people start dropping the private sector insurance plans because they are seeing a shift to the government plans, then we will have less options.

As I have visited people in Oklahoma, they have asked me several questions. They want to know is this health care reform bill that Speaker Pelosi and Harry Reid in the Senate are proposing, is it going to lower costs. I can't say that it is going to lower cost. We are talking about almost a trillion dollars, debt and deficit. They were asking if their children will have more costs, more debt, more deficit piled on them, and I have to say I think the answer is yes.

They are asking will this health care reform proposal offer them more choices or will it take away some of their say and being able to choose what kind of health insurance they want for their family. My analysis is that it is going to take away choices for those families.

They are asking if it will make health insurance more affordable. Well, a lot of the estimates we are seeing, when you pile on over $800 billion in new taxes, when you have mandates, when you have unfunded mandates, when you are rationing some of the care, it is not going to make health care more affordable.

And then they are asking if the Federal Government is going to be more involved in decisionmaking for their health care choices. And according to this bill, it looks like there will be a Federal bureaucrat basically between the patient and the doctor.

They want to know if this bill will lead to rationing of care. We have seen what has happened when other nations have implemented some type of government-run health care. It does lead to rationing of care. There are people who have died waiting to receive treatment. In Canada and Europe, it is well documented.

So all of those questions that are being asked of me by my constituents, I can't prove to them that it will lower cost, that it will not increase the deficit, and that it will give us more choices. It appears to me that this is going exactly the opposite.

I think what we have to tell the American people, there are lots of other health care pieces of legislation that we have been working on that would provide choice, that would lower costs, that would work on issues like portability, where you could keep your health insurance if you changed jobs, that would eliminate preexisting conditions so you don't lose coverage, which would have medical malpractice reform which is estimated to save health insurance costs, which would allow us to be able to pool together and lower our costs for small businesses. There is some great language that would allow work on preventive care and more education, those types of things.

There are just all kinds of problems in this legislation that I think the American people are very concerned about, especially since we have been debating behind closed doors on this.

Mr. Speaker, one of the groups which is suffering under the tough economic times is seniors.

Some are still working to earn enough money just to make ends meet. Some are on fixed incomes, and every slight increase in expenses can cause them to experience difficult times.

That's why I'm very concerned about the Democrats' health care proposal to make massive cuts to Medicare Advantage plans, which would take benefits away from our senior citizens, even though President Obama has promised Americans that, if they like their health care plans, they can keep them.

The Democrats' plan to cut Medicare Advantage will limit choices; it will cause seniors to lose their coverage; it will increase prescription drug premiums by as much as 20 percent. It will even have an exceptionally harmful impact on seniors in rural areas when we try to force them into a one-size-fits-all government plan.

I will not support a health care plan that cuts benefits for millions of our seniors, who have worked their entire lives paying into this system. We can't ask our seniors on fixed incomes to pay higher costs, and we can't force seniors off of their health care plans they choose.

As a Republican, I am for health care reform, but it's wrong to finance health care reform on the backs of our seniors.

Madam Speaker, Wesley Watkins spent a lifetime in service to Oklahoma and the United States. From his time serving in the Oklahoma Air National Guard to his 20 years in the United States House of Representatives, Wes continually displayed his love for his state and country. He proved to be a great asset to our state during his time as an administrator at Oklahoma State University along with his years as a member of the Oklahoma state senate.

Naming the Agricultural Research Laboratory and the Postal Service facility in honor of Wesley Watkins is the sign of the gratitude the state of Oklahoma and our nation owe the former Congressman from Oklahoma's 3rd Congressional District. Due to his dedication to public service no Oklahoman has proven more deserving of such an honor than Congressman Wesley Watkins.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to remove my name as a cosponsor for H.R. 3251.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3288, the FY 2010 THUD Appropriations bill:

I, Congresswoman Mary Fallin, requested and received $1,000,000 for Bus Facility Renovation to The Central Oklahoma Transportation and Parking Authority located at 300 SW 7th Street, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73109. This funding will be used for to repair and replace water cooling tower and correct drainage problems at historic Union Station. Improve the lighting and exhaust systems at the maintenance garage and upgrade the oil and lube room facilities.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3170--Financial Services Appropriations Act and Amendments I submitted and received the following funding.

I, Congresswoman Mary Fallin, requested and received $1,000,000 for The Oklahoma City National Memorial Foundation located at 620 N. Harvey Avenue, Oklahoma City, OK 73102. This is the installment of a congressional authorization of which $3 million was

appropriated in Pub. L. 108-447 enacted 12/8/04 (H.R. 4818) for FY 2005. The authorization for the present request was passed by Congress in H.R. 2673 and signed into law January 23, 2004, which amended Pub. L. 105-58 to match non-federal funds raised/received by the Foundation for a permanent endowment. The purpose of the endowment is to ensure the financial stability of the Foundation for future operation and maintenance of the Memorial and Museum and to execute outreach and educational programs.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3133, the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. I requested $2,300,000.00 and received $250,000.00 for the Statewide Comprehensive Water Plan at the Oklahoma Water Resources Board located at 3800 North Classen Boulevard, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73118, which is a multi-year study to provide technical assistance to the state of Oklahoma in updating the Oklahoma Comprehensive Water Plan. The OWRB envisions that, combined with federal cost-shared funds, the OWRB could work with local water suppliers in evaluating their system conditions, long-term needs, and develop a strategy to meet their needs over a 50-year time horizon. The plan would also address the long-term needs of other water use sectors.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3293, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010. I requested and received $200,000.00 for Operation Servicemen Success at the Oklahoma City Community College located at 7777 South May Avenue, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73150. This program will provide additional personnel to support Veterans and service members attending OCCC, through a full time Coordinator of Veterans Services, a special population licensed counselor, career advisors, clerical support and tutoring services. Expansion of services for service members enrolled in classes at OCCC should be promoted to these students by the Veterans Services Office functioning as a centralized source of information and referral. To succeed in college, it is critical that veterans have a successful transition from the military into campus life. The aim of this program is to provide intensive transitional and support services for military veterans as many veterans have a difficult time readjusting to civilian life and translating their military service into applicable college and career goals. This service provides enhanced and specialized support services to military veteran students from the time they commit to attending the OCCC through the end of their education and beyond.

I requested and received $350,000.00 for the Proton Cancer Therapy Research and Education Center at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma 74078. Oklahoma State University and ProCure Treatment Centers Inc. have formed a public-private partnership for training, education and research in proton therapy for the treatment of cancer. In many situations cancer treatment by means of precisely directed beams of energetic protons is the most effective therapeutic alternative to more traditional surgical and radiation cancer treatment procedures. ProCure is currently completing construction of a multi- million dollar, proton treatment facility in Oklahoma City, dedicated to the treatment of cancer. It will allow access to world-leading technology for patients in the central region of the United States and is the first of several such centers planned by ProCure throughout the country in the coming years. We propose to place Oklahoma at the forefront of proton cancer treatment by establishing a world-class, research and education center at OSU, in partnership with ProCure, in order to train accredited personnel in this next-generation cancer treatment modality. Scientists at the world-renowned Radiation Physics Laboratory at OSU have been conducting research in the characterization and monitoring of proton beams used in cancer therapy for over fifteen years. The OSU group has recently teamed with ProCure to establish a research and training program at OSU. The requested federal funding will build from the existing private funding to establish a leading national center of excellence. Establishing a proton therapy center in

the middle of Oklahoma will be of tremendous benefit to the citizens of this state and surrounding states. There are estimated to be over 250,000 cancer patients nationwide, and over 3,000 each year in a 250 mile radius of Oklahoma City, many of whom can benefit from proton radiation therapy.

I requested and received $300,000.00 for Oklahoma State Health Mobile Clinic and Medical Response at Oklahoma State University, Center for Health Systems at 1111 West 17th Street, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74107. This project seeks to do two things: (1) expand and enhance the OSU Center for Health Science's health information technology system, including its telemedicine and distance learning as well as electronic medical records network, and (2) bring diagnostic and medical services to geographic regions in Oklahoma where even telemedicine is not yet feasible or reasonably located by use of a mobile clinic. The mobile clinics will be available to provide medical services in response to natural or manmade disasters.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3326, ``The Department of Defense Appropriations Act of 2010.''

Title of Project: Advanced Autonomous Robotic Inspections for Aging Aircraft

Amount of Project: $2,000,000

Account: Air Force, Operations & Maintenance

Project Recipient: Veracity Technology Solutions, LLC, 2701 Liberty Parkway, Suite 311, Midwest City, OK 73001

At my request, $2,000,000 was included in H.R. 3326, for Veracity Solutions in Midwest City, OK, to implement a fully automated autonomous robotic vehicle that has the capability to inspect for corrosion, as well as crack detection around fasteners for the KC-135 aircraft. Current inspection methods are both antiquated and time consuming, which has increased maintenance downtime and unnecessary refurbishment. A state-of-the-art nondestructive inspection system and training, which decreases maintenance costs and improves safety, will have the ability to detect corrosion and cracking on the KC-135 wing skins (and other aging aircraft). This system will allow for condition assessment of aircraft structures, as well as continuous assessment through the historical comparison of previous and present inspection results.

Specifically, the funding will be used for the technical personnel, facilities, and equipment required to develop an integrated system that includes a medical grade ultrasonic inspection system, an advanced impedance plane analysis eddy current unit, and an autonomous inspection vehicle that will allow engineers and depot crews to accurately and instantly identify defects and that are currently undetectable with traditional nondestructive inspection methods. The end product will provide a permanent record of the structural member which can be stored on the network for future comparison.

Title of Project: Joint Fires and Effects Trainer System Enhancements

Amount of Project: $2,500,000

Account: Army, Research, Development, Test & Evaluation

Project Recipient: Creative Technologies, 6255 West Sunset Boulevard, Suite 716, Los Angeles, CA

At my request, $2,500,000 was included in H.R. 3326 to provide upgrades to the Joint Fires and Effects Trainer System (JFETS) located at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. The current immersive simulation training capability suffers from one significant drawback--the one-to-one instructor/student requirement. The funding provided for this project would increase the ability for this program to upgrade the voice recognition technology of JFETS and allow a single instructor to manage nine concurrent calls for fire training sessions in the Open Terrain module simultaneously and improve efficiency by 800 percent. Additionally, the project will develop an interactive application to drill soldiers in the five essential elements of accurate predictive fires to prepare them before they train in the immersive environment and reinforce the training before they deploy.

Title of Project: Weapons of Mass Destruction Multi-Sensor Response and Infrastructure Project System

Amount of Project: $2,000,000

Account:

Project Recipient: Triarii Scientific, LLC, 7118 South Colombia Place, Tulsa, OK 74136

At my request, $2,000,000 was included in H.R. 3326 for Triarii Scientific of Tulsa, Oklahoma to provide funding to enhance and improve the Oklahoma National Guard's (OKNG) 63rd Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Civil Support Team's (CST) ability to prevent and respond to terrorist attacks. The OKNG-CST requires next generation capability that improves their ability to respond to WMD-related threats while systematically identifying truly critical vulnerabilities; thus, render state and national infrastructures less exposed.

This funding will be used to upgrade existing CST equipment to a fully integrated and mobile system that combines communications, sensors, vulnerability and engineering assessments of critical infrastructure facilities via the Homeland Defense Operational Planning System (HOPS), and a command and control suite.

The upgraded mobile system will provide complete command and control abilities, interoperable wireless communications, a suite of Acoustic, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (ACBRN-E) and Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Cyber for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C5ISR) sensors. All system integration, test, certification, infrastructure and vulnerability assessments will be executed in conjunction with the Oklahoma State University Multispectral Laboratories (OSU-UML) and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories (LLNL) with operational testing overseen by the Joint Interoperability Test Command (ETC).

Mr. Speaker, this debate on health care reform is probably one of the most important debates this U.S. Congress has had, because this debate on health care could move us towards socializing our health care system and turning over our personal health to the Federal Government to make decisions about our health, and also turning over a large portion of our national economy to the Federal Government.

This debate on health care reform should only be about doing what is right for America. And limiting choices on the kind of health care plan a citizen of this Nation can have is not right for America. Putting a Federal bureaucrat between the patient and the doctor is not right for America. Moving 114 million Americans off private insurance on to a government socialized plan is not right for America. Exploding our deficit with huge, massive new tax increases for a government-run health care plan is not right for America.

We should not be taking away the freedom to control something as important as our own personal health care and our outcomes of our health care, to the Federal Government. We should not be taking that away. Health care reform is about doing the right thing, and it is going to be right for Democrats and Republicans to come together to reform health care.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3288--Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010.

I, Congresswoman Mary Fallin, requested and received $1,000,000 for the Central Oklahoma Transportation and Parking Authority located at 300 SW 7th Street Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73109.

This funding will be used to repair and replace a water cooling tower and correct drainage problems at historic Union Station. It will also be used to improve the lighting and exhaust systems at the maintenance garage and upgrade the oil and lube room facilities.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3293--Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010.

I requested and received on behalf of Oklahoma State University-- Center for Health Systems located at 1111 West 17th Street, Tulsa, OK 74107 the amount of $300,000.

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

I requested and received on behalf of Oklahoma State University located at Oklahoma State University--Stillwater, Oklahoma 74078 the amount of $350,000.

Oklahoma State University and ProCure Treatment Centers Inc. have formed a public-private partnership for training, education and research in proton therapy for the treatment of cancer. In many situations cancer treatment by means of precisely directed beams of energetic protons is the most effective therapeutic alternative to more traditional surgical and radiation cancer treatment procedures. ProCure is currently completing construction of a multi-million dollar, proton treatment facility in Oklahoma City, dedicated to the treatment of cancer. It will allow access to world-leading technology for patients in the central region of the United States and is the first of several such centers planned by ProCure throughout the country in the coming years. We propose to place Oklahoma at the forefront of proton cancer treatment by establishing a world-class, research and education center at OSU, in partnership with ProCure, in order to train accredited personnel in this next-generation cancer treatment modality. Scientists at the world-renowned Radiation Physics Laboratory at OSU have been conducting research in the characterization and monitoring of proton beams used in cancer therapy for over fifteen years. The OSU group has recently teamed with ProCure to establish a research and training program at OSU. The requested federal funding will build from the existing private funding to establish a leading national center of excellence. Establishing a proton therapy center in the middle of Oklahoma will be of tremendous benefit to the citizens of this state and surrounding states. There are estimated to be over 250,000 cancer patients nationwide, and over 3,000 each year in a 250 mile radius of Oklahoma City, many of whom can benefit from proton radiation therapy.

I requested and received on behalf of Oklahoma City Community College located at 7777 South May Ave., OKC, OK 73150 the amount of $200,000.

In anticipation of the need to provide enhanced services for the predicted increase in service members attending OCCC, a full time Coordinator of Veterans Services position was established this year. Additional personnel to support this special population includes licensed professional counselor, career advisors, clerical support, and tutoring services.

Expansion of services for service members enrolled in classes at OCCC should be promoted to these students by the Veterans Services Office functioning as a centralized source of information and referral. Information, services, and referral should include but is not limited to: readjustment counseling; academic assessment and remediation (if needed); academic advising and development of an individualized education plan; review of veteran benefits; career counseling; workshops; networking; and an opportunity to have the same level of camaraderie that is experienced in the military.

To succeed in college, it is critical that veterans have a successful transition from the military into campus life. The aim of this program is to provide intensive transitional and support services for military veterans as many veterans have a difficult time readjusting to civilian life and translating their military service into applicable college and career goals. We would provide enhanced and specialized support services to military veteran students from the time they commit to attending the OCCC through the end of their education with us and beyond.

American families have taken a hit time and time again, and they are hurting. The stock market has tanked, gas prices spiked, hundreds of thousands of jobs have been lost, and unemployment has soared.

It is no secret that we need to reform our Nation's health care system and provide relief to American families throughout this country by helping them with access to affordable health care and quality coverage for healthy living. But we can't do this unless we rein in the excessive costs and prevent an explosive deficit in spending.

In just 7 months, this House passed an energy bill that will cost American families $846 billion in new taxes and a $1 trillion economic stimulus bill that is yet to create the jobs it was predicted to do. Our national debt now stands at $11.5 trillion.

House leaders now have been on a spending spree and are about to raise taxes even higher for this health care reform bill. This approach is wrong, and the American people know it.

Mr. Speaker, with all this spending in this bill, I cannot find a sincere attempt to rein in the cost and increase access to quality care. I only see more regulation, less choice, and major tax increases on families and businesses. There are market-based solutions to provide affordable health care and to make it more portable and to have quality access to quality care.

Unless we are able to reform this health care system, it is going to be another spending spree here in Congress.