Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, sadly we have all become familiar with the media reports of online child predators trolling for kids on the Internet networking sites like MySpace, unsuspecting Americans having their lives hijacked by online identity thieves and scams which swindle millions of Americans of their hard-earned money.

While our families want to access the tremendous resources available on the Internet, they now know that there are significant dangers lurking there. Unfortunately, most Americans do not know where to turn to for help. In fact, a Google search on Internet safety returns over 5 million hits.

To assist our families in their efforts to protect themselves, I have introduced H.R. 4982, The SAFER Net Act. This bipartisan effort would do three things: First, it would streamline existing Federal resources to coordinate and promote best practices for safe surfing.

Second, the SAFER Net Act would launch a national public awareness campaign to alert Americans to online threats and how they can protect their loved ones. Finally, this legislation would authorize Federal grants to support efforts that promote Internet safety, conducted by our schools, businesses, local law enforcement agencies and nonprofit organizations.

Madam Speaker, we have the resources in place. We just need to use them better. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4982.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of Mr. Miller's motion to instruct. I supported H.R. 2830 when it was passed by the House in December, and I fully expected that an improved version would return from conference. One improvement we can make today addresses the concerns our constituents have about the inequitable treatment of retirement compensation for employees and executives.

Sadly, over the last few years, hundreds of thousands of hardworking Americans have had their company pensions severely cut, in some cases after 30 or 40 years of loyal service. Their companies have justified these pension cuts with the argument that cuts are necessary to remain competitive. But, at the same time, these same companies are providing lavish bonuses and compensation to their executives.

Well, I believe it is important for companies to offer competitive compensation packages to recruit the best executives. I do not believe executives should be rewarded because of or in spite of the cuts that they have made to the pensions of their employees and retirees. Instead, executives should be held accountable for the mismanagement and underfunding of their pensions.

When companies underfund or dump employees' pensions while handing out golden parachutes to their top executives, they are not demonstrating the kind of corporate citizenship American workers and taxpayers expect.

Mr. Speaker, that is why I urge you to join me in supporting the Miller motion to instruct. The Miller motion will promote parity between the compensation packages executives receive with the pensions employees have earned. By doing so, perhaps executives will finally be given the incentive needed to fully fund and protect the pensions of their employees. It is about time for pension parity and fairness.

I am honored to join my colleagues in the Blue Dog Coalition and, again, want to commend your leadership, Congressman Ross, of our Blue Dog Coalition, because fiscal responsibility has to be our top priority in this Congress.

So many of us came to this body to address issues of importance and priority to the families in the districts that we represent. And yet, if we don't, first and foremost, act responsibly with the national tax dollars that we have, we can't properly address those regional priorities that we would like to.

I was here on the floor with you just several weeks ago, and I mentioned that I had been with some seventh graders in my district. One of the fun parts of our job is when we can go have civics classes with the kids. And they were pretty mortified just a few weeks ago when I shared with them that their share of our national debt, each individual one of them, was $27,000. And I am sad to see from your last chart, you have now moved it, it is already up to $28,000. So we went from $8.2 trillion to $8.3 trillion in just a couple of weeks. And it is frightening how rampant this irresponsible spending has been and how out of control our Congress has been.

And it is sad that when I spoke to these seventh graders about their family budgets or their parents who worked in the business communities, how did they avoid getting themselves into debt, that those seventh graders could better articulate fiscal common sense by saying, don't spend what you don't have, than this Congress has been able to demonstrate.

And I also serve on a caucus that addresses financial literacy for young people in this country. And it is so hypocritical that we want to talk to these kids about how to better manage their money when we are not doing a good job with our Nation's resources.

To future generations.

Will the gentleman yield?

So much of what we have been talking about, whether it is education, whether it is the environment, it is all about future generations and our commitment to them.

And to go back to the seventh graders that I mentioned that I spoke with, they are all studying the Constitution right now. Some of them probably in your districts as well as mine are taking their Constitution tests. I was so impressed with their knowledge and their youthful idealism as we talked about the Constitution and what it meant to them.

And we had an open discussion, and we took the preamble of the Constitution apart, and we talked about what does it mean in order to form a more perfect union. And they understood that that meant that we have a commitment to make our country better. We talked about providing for the common defense. And they understood that that meant not just national defense but also protecting Americans from natural disaster like we have experienced in the gulf region and then, sadly, just this week from the tornadoes. They talked about establish justice and what did justice mean. And they understood that that meant there should be basic fairness in our laws.

But the part that really resonated with the kids was when we talked about that as we preserve these liberties and these American values, we do them for ourselves and our posterity. And they understood that that meant we as adults should be making decisions not only for them as well as ourselves but for their children. And so they are very concerned that we are not making the right decisions. So they expressed a lot of those issues. And to go back to the fiscal responsibility theme that we have been talking about tonight, they were able to understand the analogy of what we have been doing with this debt, and driving ourselves into debt essentially would be if I got a credit card and went out on a spending spree, but I put the credit card in my daughters' names and said to them, When you are 18 and you get a job, you get to pay it off. And that is what we are doing to these kids, and that is not justice. That is not making good decisions for our posterity. We can do a better job than we have been doing for them.

Mr. Speaker, I am excited to rise today to support National Mom and Pop Business Owners Day. This celebration honors the husband and wife business owner teams whose work helps drive the economy and fuel job growth.

Married couples who work together to build and maintain a business assume broad responsibilities. Not only is their work important to our local and national economies, but their success is central to the well- being of their families.

My Eighth District, like others, counts on these family businesses and their teams working hard to support their families and aid their communities. As retailers, these teams often bring different or unique products to the marketplace. In manufacturing, they create innovative concepts and ideas. They manage to do all of this while at the same time providing stellar and personal customer service.

As a member of the House Committee on Small Business and because of my own experience as a small business owner, I am appreciative of the impact these small businesses have on our local economies. In fact, 80 percent of our domestic job growth comes from the small- and medium- sized business community.

I am proud of the contributions of these mom and pop business owners across America and hope that my colleagues will join with me in celebrating this important day.

Madam Speaker, I yield to Ms. Wasserman Schultz.

Madam Speaker, it is an honor to join the gentlewoman.

I mentioned it on the floor briefly that I had been with some kids several weeks back. More recently I mentioned to my colleague we were talking about Internet safety. I am the parent of teenagers, my daughters are 13 and 15, so the issue of Internet safety has been an important issue. I have been visiting middle schools to talk about some of the challenges that they face.

So we went to talk about Internet safety with the middle schoolers; and whenever I talk with middle schoolers, we also have a little bit of a civics lesson.

Many seventh graders I know in Illinois, as well as around the Nation, are studying the Constitution. I was pretty impressed with the quality of education our children are receiving because they had not expected me to ask them about it. They thought we were just going to talk about Internet safety, and I asked them about the Constitution and the Preamble, and if any of them had the Preamble to the Constitution memorized, and they did.

And they did. And I asked them to come on up. All the hands went up to be part of our little civics class. And they came up, and we took that preamble apart.

We talked about in order to form a more perfect union, you know, what does that really mean and they understood that that meant trying to make our Nation better. We talked about providing for the common defense, and how that meant that we not only needed strong national security, but we also needed to protect our citizens when natural disasters could come as well. And we talked about the general welfare and the economy and how their parents and their neighbors and their community needed a strong economic environment so that they could provide for themselves.

We also talked about domestic tranquility. Some of them admittedly did think that that meant, don't hit your sister, so we went through that.

But we also talked about fiscal responsibility. And one of the things that was alarming to them, and it was intended to be and to create a discussion with them, was to talk about the national debt, which is now over $8 trillion. And I shared with these seventh graders that their share of our national debt is now over $27,000 each. And they were very displeased to hear that that was their share of national debt and said, Well, why aren't you guys spending less?

Every American's share of the deficit is over $27,000 of our over-$8 trillion of national debt; and as you now know, we are raising the debt ceiling so we can bring that up to $9 trillion. And it was really frightening to these kids.

It is a big number when you are talking to 12-year-olds.

Well it is interesting how these seventh graders demonstrated greater fiscal sense than this Congress has been able to demonstrate, because we talked to them about debt and how essentially what we have been doing, to your point, to put it in their terms, would be like me, as a mom, getting a credit card in my daughters' names, okay, and going out and buying things for myself and then saying to them as soon as they are old enough to work, now you get to pay for all the things I bought myself.

That is essentially what we are doing to future generations. And they said, Well, that is just not right. And they were right in understanding that.

I also asked them, What would you do to not have debt; and they said, Well, spend less than you have. Pretty simple answer, but one that without PAYGO budget rules, which we once on a bipartisan basis adhered to in this body and were able to get ourselves to the largest surplus in the history of this Congress, we have now gone, since we have thrown out PAYGO rules and we are not requiring ourselves as a body of Congress to be more fiscally responsible, we now have the largest deficit in the history of the Nation, and that is pretty unconscionable.

Very much so. I mean, what PAYGO really did is, it forced tougher decisions. It forced a greater degree of transparency and honesty with the public because it forced us to say, if we are going to spend more on a particular program, where was that money going to come from. And that has really gone away. And with the lack of that, there are a lot of false promises to the public about the reality of our false accounting.

Exactly. It is so fun to be here with you because this is my first time joining you in your 30-something colloquy, because at 44 I am a little outside of the age span, so I appreciate you inviting me today. But it is fun for us to be able to talk about our children on the House floor where we haven't done that before.

But I think there are some very strong parallels in what you are saying, in that oftentimes I think in our roles in Congress with the public, with our constituents, we have to bring a little bit of tough love to the equation the way we do with our children. We can't just tell people what they want to hear, but what they need to hear, which is the reality of our fiscal challenges.

At the tough love.

Well, that is why PAYGO is an important thing, because it creates an environment that forces those kind of tough decisions and forces a more honest dialogue with the public about what is affordable and what is not. Absolutely.

I think you have another chart, if I am correct, that talks about what that means in terms of our spending priorities and that while we are spending so much on interest--you do have it--it essentially shows that we are spending more on interest on the debt that we have created than we are on education, on homeland security and on veterans' benefits. And I don't think the American public fully appreciate what those opportunity costs are, that that lack of fiscal discipline has consequences.

And, sadly, we are not moving in the right direction as we look at the 2006 budget, which only projects a $423 billion spending deficit, but it is considerably more than that when we factor in AMT fixes, and when we factor in the cost of the war, which we stopped counting in October, even though that is running at $6 billion a week, that we are not even projecting the real deficits, that this chart is going to look worse if we continue down this path.

I think you make a valid point. Americans are very uncomfortable with that foreign debt, particularly that ratio, because it minimizes our leverage in other areas and I think even has national security implications over the long term that make us all uncomfortable.

More than we are bringing in, absolutely.

I have some of those figures in the meantime, while you get the chart. It is actually, four lenders currently hold a total of $2.174 trillion of our public debt. Compare this to only 23 billion in foreign holdings in 1993. The top 10 current lenders are Japan at $682 billion; China at $249 billion; the UK at $223 billion; Caribbean banking centers, $115 billion; Taiwan, 71 billion; and it goes on and on.

That is absolutely true. When I talk to the seventh graders and the middle schoolers and I say to them, Well, what would happen if your parents spend more money than they have? And they said, We will get debt. And I said, Then what would happen? And they said, Well, then people would start taking our stuff and then we might even go bankrupt.

And, again, they understand that we have not demonstrated more responsibility as a Congress, which, as I know, is frustrating for the American people.

It has been a big issue for constituents of all ages. We initially focused pretty much on seniors in the suburban districts that I represent because they have very much been a target; so what was done was we tried to introduce the legislation that is now moving through from our Financial Services Committee that we both serve on which will require, in addition to financial institutions, those database brokers that hold that personal financial data to have to let consumers know if there is a breach of that security information. But what we have found is there are other Internet challenges beyond data security in that regard. And I mentioned the Internet safety issue, and that has been a big issue that I have also been focusing on with both parents with some evening forums that we have done in our district and also with students themselves.

As I mentioned, when I was with those middle schoolers and I asked them, How many of you communicate on the Internet, not only with friends but with strangers on sites like the myspace.com and others out there, 75 percent of the hands go up, and we are talking 12-year-olds. And then you ask them, Do you appreciate the dangers? Only half of those hands went back up. So we were there to remind them of the things they have to be careful about.

That we inform families how to protect themselves and their communities. So I know we are not the only ones doing forums. I know many communities and schools on their own are beginning to roll out those kinds of educational awareness programs, and we want to continue to support that, absolutely.

We should talk briefly about, since it is the end of Women's History Month, whom we just had dinner with.

It was such an honor.

It was so inspiring to hear you talk about how it affected you and how it affected all of us, regardless of all our ages, all these women Members of Congress who were so inspired by Sandra Day O'Connor and her leadership, her professionalism, and her dignity with which she served on the Supreme Court and what an inspiration to women she was. I was excited too that my daughters, who you know are here, not in the House Chamber at the moment, but who are here during their spring break vacation to join Mom out here in Washington and get a chance to meet her as well. I know for them that is going to be something they will remember for the rest of their lives. It was so exciting.

It was a number that reached out and grabbed you. Out of 12,000 total, only 200-plus were women.

Even with all that progress, I know it sometimes is shocking to some of those high school and middle school students that we do civics classes with. I know you do as I do, and I will say to them just out of curiosity, What percentage of the Congress do you think are women? And usually they will say 40 percent or 35 percent, and they are shocked to find it is still only 14 percent.

You remind me again of being back in the classroom with these kids and talking about that Preamble to the Constitution which talks also about the decisions we make for ourselves and our posterity and how they even understood that the decisions we make as Americans, whether in Congress or at home in our communities, affect generations of future Americans.

Absolutely.

Across the country, not just in Florida, but I think homeland security is a big issue across the board. I hear it in my town hall meetings and in the forums I had in my district as well.

Absolutely.

I think I am going to yield back the balance of my time, if that is okay. But I want to thank you, my colleagues, for letting me join you during this 30-something hour, my first time joining you even though you let an older Member join you.

That is exactly right. That is why I am yielding back my time. I appreciate you letting me join you today, in the interest of not only my kids, but the seventh graders we talked about today. It has been very important.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend our Armed Forces medical personnel who provide outstanding care to our servicemembers wounded in battle. During a trip to Iraq last fall, I visited our theater hospital at Balad Air Force Base and witnessed these skilled medical professionals in action and met the brave soldiers whose lives they saved.

Newsweek's current cover story recounts in harrowing detail Lieutenant Colonel Richard Jadick's heroic performance during the 2004 assault on Fallujah. The 38-year-old Navy doctor and former marine volunteered to serve alongside the First Battalion, Eighth Marines in what would be his first combat experience.

During 11 days of battle, Dr. Jadick and his team of 54 Navy corpsmen treated hundreds of men and saved the lives of at least 30 seriously wounded marines.

Mr. Speaker, the survivability rate for wounded personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan is the best of any conflict in our Nation's history, due, in no small part, to the skill and courage of personnel like Dr. Jadick.

This morning I urge my colleagues to cosponsor H. Con. Res. 309 and join me in saluting these outstanding servicemembers for their hard work and fearless dedication.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to speak about the Energy Star Homes Act. Across my district my constituents have told me about the challenges they face in paying for the rising cost of heating their homes. In response to those concerns, I have introduced this legislation to provide an incentive to help Americans deal with this increasing burden.

Under the Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star Program, homes are independently verified to be measurably more energy efficient than average houses. Americans who meet the guidelines of this program should have access to a tax credit to make the process of building an energy-efficient home more affordable.

My legislation will help to encourage Americans to save money and to save energy. By lowering demand for fossil fuels, we can also decrease pollution and our dependency on foreign sources of energy. I encourage my colleagues in the House to cosponsor this important legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Ross) so much for recognizing me and letting me join my colleagues on the important issue of the rampant fiscal irresponsibility in this Congress.

When I came to Congress, I came to bring what I thought was a real- world business perspective to government because, in the business world, I spent over 20 years in the high-tech industry, but it certainly was not unique. In that industry, accountability is more than just a word. Business leaders expect to be held accountable to their shareholders, their customers, their employees and to their communities. But in this Congress, accountability is just a catch phrase, usually directed elsewhere. Demands to personal responsibility or corporate accountability abound, but rarely congressional accountability or fiscal responsibility.

Instead of sticking to the motto, ``If it is worth doing, it is worth paying for,'' this administration and this Congress has turned the largest budget surplus in history into the largest deficit in history, with a reckless borrow-and-spend profligacy.

For the last 4 years, our Federal Government has produced the four biggest deficits in history, and the estimated 2006 deficit of $423 billion is projected

to be the largest of all. As our colleague, Dennis Cardoza, just mentioned, we are even leaving out some of the facts.

It would be a considerably bigger deficit if we considered an AMT fix, which is one that is important and will affect the constituents in my district who do not want to pay the higher taxes without that fix. It is also not including the realistic costs for ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The American people expect more from Congress. They expect fiscal responsibility and common sense. They expect us to return to the pay- as-you-go budget rules that we had enacted in the past that helped us establish a surplus, however briefly. It is a simple concept with a proven track record.

The budget enforcement rules of the 1990s were an important part of getting the budget back into balance. It was done on a bipartisan basis. Those pay-as-you-go rules were tested and they worked. We are now in a one-party system, and we have thrown them out.

Accountability in government should be more than a catch phrase, particularly when the national debt is now at $8.2 trillion, which, by the way, computes to roughly $27,000 of national debt per American.

I spoke to some seventh graders in my district the other day, and they were astounded to find that each of them, their personal share of our national debt is $27,000. They were ready for us to do something about it. We need to do something about it and let them know that the buck stops here.

I thank my colleague, Mr. Speaker. It is interesting, I mentioned earlier that I spent some time with some seventh graders in my district; and when we are with these young students, as my colleague mentioned, they are looking to us to demonstrate leadership and to also act like the adults they would expect us to act like and demonstrate some fiscal sense.

When I talked to them about the $27,674 of the national debt that they each share, they were saying, well, then, how come you guys keep spending more than you have? And I said, because we are not adhering to the rules we once did before that forced us to do that, that forced us to make tough decisions. And we talked about how in their family budgets they have to make those decisions. Sometimes going to the movies fits in the budget and sometimes it doesn't. But Mom and Dad try to make sure that they are not spending more than they have personally so as to avoid getting into debt. They understood what that meant in their families, and they were, frankly, pretty shocked.

But it is not just the kids that are worried. I talk to businesses in my district, and they are very concerned. They understand that deficits matter. Not everybody understands it, but business people understand that access to capital fuels their growth; and that while at this moment interest rates have been kept down, that can't last forever while we become even more dependent on foreign capital to float our spending habits. So business people have concerns.

My colleague also mentioned the debt tax, and I think that is an important issue that most people don't appreciate. I have one chart here, and I don't know if my colleague has this up there, but I don't think people realize that net interest is projected to be at such a higher rate than education spending, than homeland security spending, and than veterans benefits in the President's 2007 budget. And when they realize those are the priorities that we are making and those are the decisions we are making, and as more people understand this, they are going to become even more frustrated.

It is so true. And essentially what they were saying and what we talked about is much like if I were to go get a credit card in my children's name and go out and spend money on things for myself and my husband but say to my kids, my daughters, when you are 18 and you get a job, you get to pay for what I have spent on the credit card. That is what we are doing with these future generations.

And kids understand the injustice of that. They expect better from us, absolutely. And they were wishing they were old enough to vote so they could do something about it.

Mr. Speaker, more than 5 months after Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans and the gulf coast, many small business owners are still struggling with no relief in sight. Businesses are strained from a lack of customers, employees, infrastructure, electricity, and most particularly the access to capital that they need to get back to business. With no other funds available, many small business owners turn to the SBA for assistance. The Small Business Administration is prepared to help entrepreneurs through its disaster loan programs.

Yet today, real criticisms continue to surround the SBA over the agency's failure to provide adequate assistance to the gulf coast's businesses. Since the devastation from Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma, the SBA has declined approximately 80 percent of all disaster loans, with a backlog of over 200,000 pending applications. On January 30, the SBA released a statement that approximately 51,000 applicants have been approved for financial assistance from the agency; but with over 312,000 total applicants, this is a dismal ratio between those businesses and individuals who are getting loans and those who are left waiting.

As a member of the House Committee on Small Business and because of my own experience as a small business owner, I am well aware of the stimulative effect that small to medium-size firms can have on our regional economies. In the gulf region it couldn't be more critical to ensure small business owners reopen their doors to provide essential services and jobs that allow families to get back on their feet.

We can do better. I ask my colleagues to help me in this effort.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to the rule. One of the reasons I came to Congress was to bring a real-world business perspective to government. In the business world, accountability is survival. In this Congress, it is a catch phrase usually directed elsewhere.

Demands for personal responsibility or corporate accountability abound, but rarely congressional accountability or fiscal restraint. Instead of sticking to the motto, If it is worth doing, it is worth paying for, this administration and this Congress have turned the largest budget surplus in history into the largest deficit in history with a reckless borrow-and-spend profligacy. It should be no surprise then that today's so-called Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 actually increases the budget deficit, fails to fix the broken budget process, and does nothing to reduce America's dependence on foreign capital.

I will oppose this irresponsible budget package which does not include pay go spending controls. We must pay as we go. It is a simple concept with a proven track record. The budget enforcement rules of the 1990s were an important part of getting the budget back into balance. The pay-as-you-go rules were tested and they worked. Accountability in government should be more than a catch phrase. It is time for us to say the buck stops here.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the 2005 World Champion Chicago White Sox. Chicagoans--particularly those on the South Side--have been waiting 88 years for this historic win. Today, I am proud to join my colleagues in the Illinois delegation, our constituents across the State and White Sox fans across the country to celebrate the team's long-awaited victory.

Led by manager Ozzie Guillen, the 2005 White Sox finished the regular season with 99 wins and 63 losses--the best record in the American League. After the regular season, the White Sox went on to sweep last year's champions the Boston Red Sox and then marched past the Los Angeles Angels.

Facing off against the Houston Astros in the World Series, it was immediately evident that this could be our year. Throughout the series, we all sat on the edge of our seats witnessing great baseball between two formidable opponents, ultimately resulting in the White Sox sweeping the series and finishing the playoffs 11 and 1.

This year's team proved that hard work, dedication, and the desire to win can prevail against all odds. I want to again congratulate the players and management as well as the fans of the Chicago White Sox. The 2005 World Championship may have been long in the waiting, but don't expect us to wait another 88 years for the next one.

Mr. Speaker, due to circumstances beyond my control, I was unable to vote on final passage of H.R. 250. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on final passage of H.R. 250, The Manufacturing Technology Competitiveness Act of 2005 (Rollcall Vote 485).

Mr. Speaker, I am here to urge my colleagues to act now to protect America's flying public from the threat of shoulder-fired missiles.

Unfortunately, today, thousands of portable, easy-to-use antiaircraft missiles are in the hands of terrorist groups around the world, including al Qaeda. The FBI, CIA, State Department, and White House recognize this serious threat. Now is the time for Congress to act.

Mr. Speaker, the Department of Homeland Security has been diligently working to apply successful military technology to our commercial aircraft, and now, for the same cost as in-flight entertainment systems, we can install proven portable defense systems on passenger jets.

Just this week, the Chicago Tribune editorialized that the financial costs of safeguarding our airlines are well worth it. However, while we have spent billions of dollars on transportation security since 9/11, Congress has not yet committed to providing such protection.

Last week, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Israel) and I introduced the Commercial Airline Missile Defense Act, authorizing the TSA to provide missile defense systems to our commercial passenger jets. Today I urge my colleagues to cosponsor H.R. 2780 and join us in protecting America's business and family travelers.

Mr. Chairman, as a small business owner and a member of the Small Business Committee, I appreciate the need for entrepreneurs and small business owners to have access to affordable capital. That is why I speak today in support of the Velazquez amendment to restore funding for the SBA 7(a) small business loan program.

Small businesses are the growth engine for our Nation's economy, and it is important for the Federal Government to encourage domestic hiring and expansion. This amendment will help achieve that goal by returning 7(a) loan fees to their previous affordable level.

Access to affordable capital is an important alternative to higher- interest personal credit cards, which, while helpful, have become the number one source of financing for U.S. entrepreneurs for lack of options.

Since October 2004, loan costs have increased by up to $3,000, and program utilization and loan capital have dropped drastically by almost half a million dollars. We have been told today that the SBA is processing more loans than ever before, that is true, but the loans being processed are significantly smaller. After the new fees were put in place, the average amount received by individual small businesses has dropped by approximately $75,000.

The small business community creates up to 80 percent of the new jobs in this country. The SBA estimates that a new job is created for every $33,000 in small business loans. Thus, $79 million in Federal investment has the potential to create 500,000 jobs in this country.

First, let us correct the rhetoric. These are not subsidies or handouts that we are talking about. These are loans at affordable interest rates, and if one is for deficit reduction, then they should support this amendment, which reduces the overall cost to the bill by $32 million per the Congressional Budget Office.

It is time that Congress steps forward to support the small business community through access to affordable capital. The Velazquez amendment will reduce fees to small business owners and lenders and create an environment which will foster critical domestic job growth and the local economic expansion so vital to the Eighth District of Illinois and to communities across the Nation.

I urge my colleagues' support of this amendment.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the military family organizations and veterans service organizations that do so much to support and serve the brave men and women of our Armed Forces.

This Memorial Day, Americans gather to remember the fallen, and acknowledge the contributions of our service personnel. Because of the contributions and sacrifices of our fellow Americans, we are able to enjoy the freedoms and security of this great country that we do today. We are so fortunate to live in America, and to be able to call these people our own.

On this day, our thoughts also turn to those who contribute to the needs of our men and women who wear the uniform of the United States Military.

Mr. Speaker, the family members of America's men and women in uniform have always been one of our nation's greatest assets, and often our unsung heroes. Perhaps now as much as ever, the support of our military families on the Homefront is crucial to maintaining the spirit of our warfighters.

Now, all across the country, groups of military families and their neighbors are continuing to work to support their loved ones stationed overseas. As more National Guard and Reserve units are deployed abroad, far from their homes, many of their families have organized to send much needed gifts, messages from schools, basic supplies difficult to come by in Iraq or Afghanistan, or elsewhere. These families do so generously, in addition to the extra burdens of taking care of a family while a parent is away, either out of love of their family or on the part of a serviceperson they have never met.

Mr. Speaker, I also want to recognize the work of our veterans service organizations. These patriots and committed veterans who continue to serve long after their orders have expired are the living embodiment--and the conscience--of the American spirit. And their service extends beyond the military. These groups with household names like the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars are friendly faces in our communities. Across Illinois' Eighth District, like countless other communities, these organizations provide leadership and guidance, they are a role model for our children, and they are a constant reminder of the call to--and value of--public service

Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the contributions--and sacrifices--of our military spouses and families, and the continuing service of members of America's veterans service organizations. They provide so much, so selflessly, to strengthen our military and the values we all hold so dear. America absolutely is stronger--and richer--because of their service.