Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Lindsay Slater, who will be retiring at the end of the month after 23 years as my chief of staff. Lindsay has been a trusted chief of staff and good friend for many years, and while I hate to see him go, I am excited for him as he embarks on a new adventure after 26 years on Capitol Hill.

Lindsay is originally from Wallowa in eastern Oregon, and he began working for Congress for Representative Bob Smith in 1997 after getting his law degree from Southwestern Law School and working for the Oregon Cattlemen's Association. In 1999 he became Legislative Director for my friend Greg Walden after working on his campaign. I watched as Lindsay negotiated a difficult agreement between environmental groups and ranchers that ended in collaborative legislation to conserve, protect, and manage the Steens Mountains in Harney County, Oregon. Lindsay impressed me with his work ethic and his ability to develop creative solutions that took all stakeholder views into account. When I found myself needing a new chief of staff in my second year in Congress, I turned to Lindsay. During the first few months that he worked for me, Lindsay not only took over managing my staff, but he also brought his work in the Steens to completion, helping Congressman Walden pass the Steens Mountain Cooperative Management and Protection Area of 2000.

Lindsay had only been with me a few months when I put his creativity and flexibility to the test. He was spending August break touring the Idaho National Lab and familiarizing himself with the needs and priorities of Idaho's second congressional district when a massive wildfire began to rage in the Salmon National Forest. I called Lindsay up and said, ``Hey, let's go fight a wildfire.'' Lindsay surely thought I was a little crazy, but he was game for the adventure, so he called the Forest Service and asked if they would let the two of us come, no press or fanfare, to see what it takes to fight a major wildfire. They agreed, and within the next day or two we were being registered at the camp and issued our pup tents like rank-and-file firefighters. We helped serve dinner to those who had been doing the grueling work of fighting wildfires all day and saw firsthand that it takes a small city of 5,000 people to make that important work possible. When we were done, Lindsay and I packed up our pup tents and left them to it, taking our firsthand knowledge of what it takes to fight a wildfire into the next two decades of our work together.

Lindsay spent the next fifteen years using his experience and skills to help me develop an integrated community, recreation, and conservation plan for central Idaho to provide a comprehensive solution to the challenges that ranchers, recreationists, conservationists, and local leaders faced for many years. This project was not for the faint of heart, and Lindsay spent a decade and half meeting with all sides, listening to their concerns and ultimately finding common ground. It was long, often thankless work, but in 2015 we passed the Central Idaho Economic Development Act. The Boulder-White Clouds is now protected, in perpetuity, by creating 275,665 acres of wilderness area, and Lindsay was instrumental in making this happen.

Over the past three years, Lindsay has applied his patient problem- solving skills to the Columbia Basin Initiative, working with stakeholders, tribes, elected representatives and others to try and understand the challenges surrounding salmon recovery, dams, and energy and transportation in the Columbia River and Lower Snake River Basin and find real solutions to those challenges. This is the largest river restoration project in the world, and Lindsay's office is the war room, with maps and data and legislative proposals papering the walls. I do not know what the ultimate outcome will be for the management challenges of the Columbia and Lower Snake River, but I truly believe that people will come to view the Columbia Basin Initiative as the most comprehensive, thorough, and fair solution to the challenges we face there. Just as he did with the Boulder-White Clouds and the Steens, Lindsay threw himself into this complicated problem and deftly worked to unravel the knots to produce a comprehensive solution to problems others are unwilling to take on.

In fact, Lindsay's fingerprints are all over all the major legislative victories I have had during my time in Congress. He played a crucial role in crafting the original Land and National Park Deferred Maintenance (LAND) Act, which eventually became the Great American Outdoors Act, a widely supported and bipartisan recreation and public lands bill. Lindsay was also instrumental in crafting and passing legislation to fix the wildfire suppression budget, ending the practice of fire borrowing and restoring the funding intended for those important land management projects that make our forests healthier and more resistant to fire. Of all we have accomplished over the past two decades, I believe this will have the greatest and longest-lasting impact, and in fixing wildfire funding, Lindsay and I came full circle from that weekend at the fire camp all those years ago.

Amid all these major legislative accomplishments, Lindsay has led my staff with compassion, support, and encouragement. He is notorious for calling people into his office just to ``see how things are going,'' because he genuinely cares how people are doing and wants to know that the office is functioning well. I know that there is a generation of staffers who have left my office and gone on to do incredible things who still view Lindsay as one of their greatest mentors and cheerleaders. Lindsay showed up with a steady, calm, and positive attitude every day, and as a result both past and current members of Team Simpson would claim that ours is the happiest office on Capitol Hill.

I have often said that I may get the credit for these things, but it is my staff who does the real work. Lindsay has been an exemplar in this respect, and, as my chief of staff, he has taken it to the next level by taking good care not only of me but of the staff that works for me. He has been loyal and trustworthy, and I would not be where I am today without him diligently paving the way. I will miss him as a chief of staff but am glad to have him as a friend, and I wish him the best of luck as he begins his next adventure.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor John Chatburn. John is retiring after nearly 30 years of public service in Idaho, but his love of our great state didn't start there. He grew up on a family ranch in Albion and was well known on the local rodeo circuit as a young man. He started his political career in 1995 as the Energy and Natural Resource Policy Advisor for Governor Phil Batt. John wore many hats, including Deputy Administrator for the Idaho Department of Agriculture.

A large part of his career was spent working for Governor C.L. `Butch' Otter. He served as his Administrator for the Office of Energy and Mineral Resources. Some of his responsibilities in this capacity included being a member of the U.S. Department of Energy/State Energy Advisory Board, chairman of the Western Interstate Energy Board and co- chairman on the Committee on Regional Electric Power Cooperation. There were many other energy related boards and commissions that he served on and represented Idaho's interests.

He also worked for Governor Brad Little as Administrator of the Office of Energy and Mineral Resources and was appointed by him to serve on the Idaho Public Utilities Commission.

I have known John for a very long time, but I had the opportunity to work closely with him on the Gateway West Project. John represented the state's interests in the plan to create a much-needed power transmission line that spanned a vast section of the state. In the end, we were successful in creating a diverse collaboration between stakeholders that included the World Center for Birds of Prey, Idaho Power Company, the Bureau of Land Management and the citizens of Idaho--something we can all be proud of.

I am not sure what John is going to do next, but it better include pampering his incredible wife Linda who's put up with him for over 40 years. I thank Mr. Chatburn for his service.

Mr. Speaker, we shall never forget Cope. Idaho recently lost a great man with the passing of Dr. Robert Cope. Cope, as he was known, was a cattle veterinarian in Salmon, Idaho, for 44 years. In addition to his work as a vet, Cope was a public servant, serving on the Lemhi County Commission and many advisory committees and task forces focusing on natural resource issues throughout Idaho and the western United States.

Cope helped so many in the Salmon area, and the community loved him. He was genuine and good natured. What you saw was who he was, and you could expect the facts without sugar coating. Cope spent his days researching bovine diseases, educating ranchers on how to keep their herds healthy, and of course doing the hands-on work. On cold nights he could be found in a neighbor's barn helping with a new calf. He was there for everyone who needed him whether they were a rancher with a large operation or a kid in the 4-H program.

Cope was an expert on subjects such as wolf depredation and grazing, with a noted ability to find common ground between different groups. It should be known he had a great impact here in Washington on federal lands policy. My staff and I had numerous meetings with Cope when he travelled to D.C., where he made an indelible mark on all of us. His rural common sense was a breath of fresh

air on Capitol Hill and when he spoke, people listened.

Cope will be greatly missed and never forgotten. My thoughts are with his wife Terrie as well as the people of Lemhi County.

Mr. Chair, I was recorded as ``no,'' but I intended to vote ``aye'' on rollcall No. 113.

Amendment No. 5 Offered by Mrs. Torres of California

Mr. Speaker, I am honored to recognize the retiring director of the Idaho State Department of Agriculture and my close personal friend, Celia Gould. An Idaho native, third-generation cattle rancher, and dedicated public servant, Celia exemplifies Idaho's spirit and respect for agriculture.

Celia was born and raised in an Idaho ranching family, and used the generations of knowledge she gained growing up to run her own cattle operations as an adult. Always interested in public service, Celia served 16 years in the Idaho House of Representatives before becoming the first woman to lead the Idaho State Department of Agriculture, a position she held for another 16 years. She saw the Department through the 2008 recession, during which she kept Idaho agriculture as the state's strongest industry, and is leaving her office with Idaho's agricultural exports worth over a billion dollars more per year than when she entered. As if her ranching and public service didn't keep her busy enough, Celia raised a wonderful family with her husband and former Idaho House Speaker Bruce Newcomb. I know she will do a great job implanting her long-held love for agriculture in her grandchildren.

I first got to know Celia personally while we were both serving in the Idaho House of Representatives, and she quickly became one of my and my wife Kathy's best friends. In my last term as Speaker of the House, Celia served as the chair of the House Judiciary, Rules, and Administration Committee. She was an effective legislator who I was always glad to have in my conference. Of course, in politics it is hard to always keep everyone happy. Bruce and I learned one cardinal rule of working with Celia Gould: never mess with her when she is wearing a red dress.

I join Celia's family and many friends and colleagues in congratulating her on an extraordinary career in public service and wishing her luck in her next chapter.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to call attention to the retirement of Betsy Russell, 1 of the most effective and respected reporters in Idaho, from 37 years of remarkable reporting and editing in Idaho politics.

As reported by Clark Corbin, of the Idaho Capital Sun,

Russell started her reporting career early, joining her

high school paper and covering her own graduation.

She earned a political science degree from the University

of California-Berkeley and a master's degree in journalism

from Columbia University.

Russell moved to Idaho in 1986 to cover Boise City Hall for

the Idaho Statesman. Over the next 36 years she covered the

Idaho Legislature, government and politics for the Statesman,

the Spokesman-Review and Idaho Press newspapers. Along the

way, she was a part of a team of Spokesman-Review journalists

that was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 1993 for their

coverage of Randy Weaver and the Ruby Ridge standoff in

Boundary County, Idaho.

Her coverage exposed false claims made by Republican and

Democratic elected officials from the campaign trail to the

floor of the Idaho House of Representatives. Russell's

stories led to prison reform and changes in state policy,

while her work with the Idaho Press Club and Idahoans for

Openness in Government sought to increase transparency in

halls of power across the state.

When Russell first arrived at the Idaho Statesman, she

covered then-Mayor Dirk Kempthorne and the debate about

downtown Boise's redevelopment and an ill-fated proposal to

build an indoor shopping mall. Gov. John Evans was nearing

the end of his last term in office and Russell got her first

taste of covering the Idaho Legislature and the governor's

office when Kempthorne would testify at the Statehouse.

Russell went on to cover six other Idaho governors closely--

Cecil Andrus, Phil Batt, Kempthorne, Jim Risch, Butch Otter

and Brad Little.

Russell's career included several highlights.

Russell created and wrote the Eye on Boise blog, first for

the Spokesman-Review and later for the Idaho Press. that was

a must-read for anyone interested in the Idaho Legislature

and state government--including many of the most highest

ranking and influential elected leaders in the Gem State.

In 2004, Russell and Dean Miller, a veteran Idaho and

Washington newspaper editor, created Idahoans for Open

Government, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to

openness and compliance with the Idaho Public Records Act and

Idaho Open Meetings Law.

Russell's 1997 series investigating Idaho prisons revealed

the fact that nearly a quarter of Idaho's prison population

was incarcerated for 4 crimes that are not even considered

felonies--simple drug possession, drunk driving, driving

without a license and writing bad checks--in a majority of

states. The series led to a gubernatorial investigation

launched by then-Gov. Phil Batt and led to several reforms.

In a telephone interview, Russell called her prison series

`probably the most significant story I have covered in my

career.'

I thank Betsy for her outstanding service to the citizens of Idaho. All of Idaho is better because of her premier skills and relentless commitment to accuracy. Her remarkable impact in Idaho journalism and politics will never be forgotten. I hope she enjoys her well-deserved retirement.

Madam Speaker, it is my honor to congratulate United States Marine Corps Second Lieutenant John Graham, who recently completed USMC Officer Candidate School at Quantico, Virginia. John was an exceptional member of my staff for the past two years before leaving for Quantico. While we were sad when he departed, we were extremely proud he was going to become a Marine Corps officer. We always want to support our United States Marine Corps and we know that John will be upholding their finest traditions.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to call attention to an Idaho icon and institution, Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company of Idaho, for exceptional service to its customers and the community. Farm Bureau Insurance is celebrating 75 years of providing insurance to the residents and farmers of Idaho.

Farm Bureau started offering insurance to Idahoans in 1947. They are now the second largest insurance writer in the state and the number one farms and ranch insurer in Idaho. They are working to provide peace of mind to Idaho families, farms, and businesses of Idaho by protecting what matters most.

Over the last 75 years, Farm Bureau has been actively contributing to the health and prosperity of Idaho's communities. As an active corporate citizen, Farm Bureau has been a positive force in Idaho by sponsoring Christmas in the Night Skies, Relay for Life, Salute to Idaho Veterans, Elevate Leadership Summit, and the Gold Star Families Memorial Monument among other causes and events over the last 75 years.

Farm Bureau has been awarded an AM Best financial strength rating of excellent or higher since 1959. In 1996, they earned the Better Business Bureau's Torch award for ethics. In 2021, they were awarded the best insurance company in Idaho by Forbes. In both 2020 and 2021, Farm Bureau earned Demotech's Star Award for superior business practices and customer satisfaction.

Madam Speaker, I would like to join their customers, clients, and our community, in honoring Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company of Idaho for 75 years of exceptional service to our great state.

Madam Chair, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding time.

Madam Chair, I rise today in opposition to H.R. 8294, the six-bill fiscal year 2023 appropriations package that includes the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill.

Unfortunately, these bills are based on funding levels that passed the House without any Republican support--zero Republican support. Like the President's budget request, the majority's Energy and Water bill overfunds certain nondefense programs and shortchanges our national security needs.

For example, the bill before us is below the budget request for weapons activities and naval reactors--a budget request that many of us considered insufficient to address the current global threats.

We must uphold our Nation's strong nuclear deterrence posture, and to do that, we must adequately fund the activities necessary to maintain a safe, reliable, and effective stockpile. Yet, the bill before us cuts some of these programs below last year, below the budget request, and leaves other items completely out.

On the other hand, the bill increases energy efficiency and renewable energy activities by more than 25 percent over last year's--and that is on top of the tens of billions--I repeat--tens of billions of dollars in the infrastructure bill programs that are in the early stages of implementation.

The bill includes funding for the President's proposal to use the Defense Production Act for nonemergency issues. For instance, even the Department of Energy has indicated that there is no supply shortage of insulation. Yet, the administration is claiming it is such an emergency that it justifies use of the Defense Production Act.

With inflation at the highest levels in 40 years, we need to be more judicious about how much and where we allocate our discretionary appropriations.

While Republicans have concerns with the overall direction of this bill, I would note there are also programs that, if considered individually, House Republicans could support. For example, strong support for the Army Corps of Engineers including specific Community Project Funding and additional programmatic funding that has long been a bipartisan priority.

Of great importance to me, of course, is the Department of Energy's Nuclear Energy program. I appreciate that the bill continues support for:

Work on microreactors, including the MARVEL program.

Work to ensure a supply of high-assay low-enriched uranium, which will be necessary for many of the next generation of reactors.

The Advanced Reactors Demonstration Program; and

The national laboratories infrastructure necessary to enable these other activities to succeed.

I would like to work with my colleagues as we move the bill forward to better support the Advanced Small Modular Reactors demonstration program.

The NuScale SMR is the first ever NRC-approved SMR design, and we need to ensure this demonstration succeeds.

Madam Chair, before I yield back, I would acknowledge Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Chairwoman Kaptur's continued commitment to addressing individual Member priorities on both sides of the aisle. I thank the chair for that consideration, and she has been a pleasure to work with across the aisle.

I also thank the staff for their hard work over the past several months, particularly Scott, Brian, Will, Daniela, and Jaime of the majority staff; Angie and Austin of the minority staff; and Sarah in my personal staff.

Finally, I thank Chairwoman DeLauro and Ranking Member Granger of the full committee for their leadership and support of the important programs in this bill and doing the appropriations process in regular order.

Madam Speaker, the Cold War began in 1947 with the Truman Doctrine and ended in 1991 with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Who can forget the momentous sights and sounds of East Germans defiantly climbing the Berlin Wall in 1989 and then knocking down sections of that very wall as a statement that they would no longer be held captive by their Communist leaders?

Through the leadership of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Herbert Walker Bush, the United States won the Cold War. Our great nation did so through our military strength and by showing the world what is possible in a free nation of free people.

Although not officially part of the weapons complex, the Idaho National Laboratory in my district in eastern Idaho, reprocessed spent nuclear fuel to recover unused uranium. That uranium was then refabricated into nuclear fuel rods and used in production reactors near the east coast.

Also during the Cold War, the INL became the Nation's repository for nuclear weapons waste. Thousands of truckloads of plutonium- contaminated wastes were sent to the INL from the Rocky Flats Plant near Denver, the Mound Site in Ohio, and other waste generators throughout the country. During the 1950s and 1960s, the waste was disposed of in an unlined landfill in the southcentral portion of the INL. That landfill also sits 585 feet above the Snake River Plain Aquifer, the second-largest continuous aquifer in the U.S. that is relied upon by farmers and municipalities throughout eastern Idaho. More than 130,000 people in my district get their water exclusively from that aquifer.

Over the years, barrels and boxes of waste deteriorated, leaching their contents into the surrounding soil. Rain and snowmelt then moved those contaminants toward the underlying aquifer.

Former Idaho Governor Cecil Andrus recognized this impending environmental threat and put pressure on the Atomic Energy Commission to remove the buried waste from the landfill and ultimately the state of Idaho. Up until 1979, thousands of drums and boxes of material were removed. Then, as priorities changed, waste removal stopped. Subsequent Idaho governors kept pressure on the AEC and then its predecessor agency the Department of Energy.

Several agreements were signed by the state of Idaho and the DOE, but a lawsuit over the word ``all'' stalled further progress.

Luckily, science won out over politics. An environmental investigation that lasted more than a decade determined it was safer and more cost effective to remove only the worst of the radioactive and hazardous wastes rather than all. The DOE, state of Idaho, and Environmental Protection Agency all agreed. This proposed cleanup approach was demonstrated and proven by the Accelerated Retrieval Project, which used highly specialized backhoes to dig through and visually remove the so-called bad actor wastes. After removing more than 10,000 cubic meters of waste material from a combined area of 5.69 acres, the first phase of the project is complete.

Madam Speaker, I want to personally thank the cleanup contractors and most importantly the dedicated employees who made this happen. They achieved this milestone more than 18 months ahead of schedule. On behalf of myself, my constituents, and the citizens of Idaho, I applaud their hard work and thank

them for protecting one of Idaho's most important natural resources-- the Snake River Plain Aquifer.

Now, current cleanup contractor Idaho Environmental Coalition led by a qualified management team and the same hard-working employees is setting its sights on the second phase of this project. A cover will be constructed over the entire 97-acre landfill to further protect the aquifer. This will be a massive undertaking that will require the Congress and the DOE to be in lockstep in terms of continuing to fund this critically important conclusion to the buried waste project.

The Cold War is part of this Nation's history. Idaho played its part in this country winning the Cold War. Employees of the Idaho Cleanup Project are helping to clean up the legacy of the Cold War. Again, please join me in thanking them for their dedication, professionalism, and commitment to protecting the environment in Idaho.

Mr. Speaker, today, I rise in support of the fiscal year 2022 omnibus appropriations bill and particularly the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act.

As ranking member of the subcommittee, I say to my colleagues: It is a strong bill and deserves bipartisan support.

There are, of course, things I would have done differently had I been the only one writing the bill. I am sure my chairwoman would be able to say the same thing. But that is the nature of bipartisan negotiations. Everyone has to give a little in order to get what each needs most.

First and foremost, this bill strongly supports our national nuclear security programs, providing $20.7 billion, which is an increase of almost $1 billion above fiscal year 2021 and above the Biden administration's budget request. This funding supports the maintenance and modernization of our nuclear weapons complex and supports the Navy's nuclear propulsion program.

Harbor maintenance trust fund activities at the Corps of Engineers are funded at more than $2 billion, in accordance with the Water Resources Development Act of 2020.

Efforts to guard our energy sector against cyberattacks are increased above last year and even above both House and Senate bills.

The bill continues investments in a wide array of energy sources, including fossil energy, hydropower, energy storage, and--one of my highest priorities--nuclear energy. The bill provides $1.65 billion for nuclear energy, including increased funding for the advanced small modular reactors program; continued support for the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program; and initiation of a new program to ensure a domestic supply of high-assay, low-enriched uranium that will be necessary for many of the advanced reactor designs currently under development.

Before I yield back, I would like to note the hard work of our full committee leadership, my ranking member, Kay Granger, as well as Chair DeLauro.

Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee Chairwoman Kaptur and I again worked well together with our Senate partners, Senator Feinstein and Senator Kennedy.

Finally, I would like to thank the staff on both sides of the aisle for their hard work to help bring this bill to completion: on the majority staff, Jaime Shimek, Scott McKee, Brian Smith, Michael Brain, Will Ostertag, and Lauren Leuck; on the Republican side, Angie Giancarlo; and for my personal office, Sarah Cannon.

Mr. Speaker, the fiscal year 2022 energy and water bill is a good bill, and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Madam Speaker, I rise today on behalf of myself and Congressman Russ Fulcher to express grave concern with the vulnerability of supply chains and the long-term implications if we do not act now to develop a secure supply chain of critical minerals. In light of the aggression shown by our adversaries, supply chain security is more important than ever.

Our Nation is at a crossroads--Russia has invaded Ukraine. At the same time, China continues to use economic coercion to control global markets and shape countries' political decisions. With Congress' support, this Administration must take drastic and targeted measures to ensure our nation takes the right path to advance U.S. competitiveness and maintain a strong position in domestic and foreign markets, including critical minerals production.

Critical minerals are vital to the emerging technologies that will underpin the future economic well-being and prosperity of this Nation. In recognition of these important minerals, under President Trump, the Department of Interior developed a list of 35 critical minerals, a process that Congress later codified. That list, just last week, expanded to 50. Our home state of Idaho is rich in many of these minerals--some of which are fundamental to energy and national security applications--such as antimony and cobalt.

Antimony and cobalt serve as critical components in grid storage batteries, and other electrification implements essential to providing reliable energy sources to American homes and businesses. In addition to its energy contribution, antimony serves as a critical component of ammunition, armaments, and other national security platforms. Although these minerals serve as essential components in highly utilized U.S. products, 53 percent of antimony comes from China, and another 23 percent comes from Russia. Most cobalt is sourced from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where the Chinese government has subsidized companies that engage in non-transparent practices, dominate the industry, and undermine the prosperity and rights of the Congolese.

Aside from mineral production, Idaho is responsible for cutting-edge mineral research. We are proud to be the home of the Idaho National Lab, the nation's premier nuclear energy laboratory, whose research is paramount to any future clean energy strategy. Unfortunately, the Biden Administration chose to remove uranium from the critical minerals list, which leaves the nation's nuclear fleet even more reliant on Russian fuel.

As tensions rise with Russia and the potential of additional sanctions loom, China will look to take advantage of the void left by Russia's isolation in the market. While we need to take strong actions on Russia, the reality is that we source many of our raw minerals from them. As we tighten our grip on their financial system and exports, we must prioritize domestic sourcing and reduce our reliance on countries like Russia and China.

The time is now for this Administration to take real action to prioritize a strong domestic supply chain for these essential minerals. We do not want to compromise any of our environmental or other standards. We are simply calling on the Administration to prioritize the timely completion of the permits of currently proposed projects so we may take back control of a fundamental piece of many of our essential industries: critical minerals production.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to National Children's Dental Health Month. Each February, the American Dental Association sponsors National Children's Dental Health Month to raise awareness about the importance of oral health. As a part of their awareness efforts, dentists and dental team members from across the country and in my home State of Idaho join together and volunteer their time to provide free care to children. As co-chair of the Congressional Oral Health Caucus, I am pleased to support National Children's Dental Health Month and any related activities taking place throughout the month of February that promote good oral health for children.

Give Kids A Smile, a program sponsored by the ADA Foundation which this year celebrates 20 years of helping children, is at the center of National Children's Dental Health Month. Give Kids a Smile Day is an important event for all children and dentists throughout the country. Because of this program, the ADA Foundation is able to provide assistance to more than 6,500 dentists and 25,000 dental team member volunteers who proudly give their time and expertise to make a difference in the health of children. Since this program started, volunteers have graciously provided services to over 7 million kids across the country, and in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. They have truly made a huge impact in their communities and improved the oral health of so many children.

Throughout National Children's Dental Health Month, dentists and dental team members across the country will be providing oral health services for children in need, and this will continue throughout the year. These services will include oral health education, screenings, preventive care and restorative services. Some will provide this in their own dental practice, others will go right into schools and the community to reach the kids that need it most. There are also many major events at dental hygiene schools where hundreds of kids may receive oral health services.

Continued public awareness on this issue is critical. On behalf of the Congressional Oral Health Caucus, I would once again like to state our full endorsement for National Children's Dental Health Month, and push for continued care for the excellent oral health of children.

Madam Speaker, along with my colleagues Senator Mike Crapo, Senator Jim Risch, and Congressman Russ Fulcher, I rise to call attention to the outstanding career of Sharon Hawkins, who worked for over 30 years on public policy to better the lives of Idahoans. Sharon, served the last fifteen years of her career as the Director of Operations for Idaho's largest business association, the Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry, IACI. Sharon not only made sure every detail of the office ran smoothly, but she was an extremely vital resource to the 300 plus business members who make up that important organization.

Before joining IACI, she was the administrative coordinator for the Idaho Consumer-Owned Utilities Association, executive assistant to the Chairman and CEO of MGM and United Artists Communications, and the office administrator for the investment banking firm, Merrill Lynch.

For many, Sharon is an encyclopedia of historical and policy knowledge in the Gem State. She knows every player in the business world, not only because she worked with them, but because she became a caring friend to those who crossed her path.

Sharon is the person you go to when you need things done right. She never left a detail on the table, or a task undone during her time of service. From orchestrating some of the most important business events in modern Idaho history--to making sure Vice President Dick Cheney had a Diet Coke, Sharon never missed a beat.

Her ability to spark conversations, tireless work ethic, and thorough knowledge of Idaho policy history and business acumen will be missed among all who've worked with her over her three decades of service. We all wish her the best in her retirement and to get some much-needed rest and relaxation with her husband Cory and her three sons. I thank Sharon for her service to Idaho.

Madam Speaker, along with my colleagues, Senator Mike Crapo and Senator James E. Risch, I rise to call attention to retirement of Julie Thomas from the U.S. Forest Service.

Like many Forest Service employees, Julie started her career in 1980 as a seasonal employee. She was hired as a Seasonal Recreation Technician/Fire Technician on the Twin Falls Ranger District in Sawtooth Forest. Julie worked in a seasonal capacity on the District until August 1990, when she was offered the Resource Assistant position on the Twin Falls District.

In October of 1994, while still a Forest Service employee, Julie became the Mid-Snake Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) Coordinator. She was one of only two Forest Service employees shared with the Natural Resource Conservation Service in the position of RC&D Coordinator. As coordinator, she worked and developed relationships with many local community leaders and initiated projects to help south central Idaho. During her tenure as coordinator, she accomplished many worthwhile projects, including spearheading a $2.5 million request for a congressional funding through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, which helped producers in Minidoka County address closing antiquated drain wells and partnering with the Shoshone District Bureau of Land Management, Idaho Power, South Central Idaho Tourism and Recreation Development Association, and the College of Southern Idaho to update the Mid-Snake Recreation Study.

Julie worked as the RC&D Coordinator until November of 2009, when she accepted the position as Public Affairs Officer on the Sawtooth National Forest. In this role, she worked with Incident Management Teams throughout the country, grew and maintained the South-Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee, built relationships between the Forest Service and the Idaho Congressional Delegation, was a leader in Forest Civil Rights, and was recognized in the Forest Service Intermountain Region as leader in employee deployment and engagement. Above all, Julie was a friend to all in the Forest Service. On December 31, 2021, Julie retired from the Forest Service after a 41-year career.

We thank Julie for her loyal service to the Forest Service and south- central Idaho. We have enjoyed working with her. We hope she enjoys her well-deserved retirement.