Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to posthumously honor and pay tribute to Jim Murakami, a great community leader who dedicated much of his life to advocating for the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, which achieved redress for the 120,000 United States citizens of Japanese descent on the West Coast that were wrongfully incarcerated in internment camps during World War II.

Mr. Murakami was born and raised in Santa Rosa, California. When WWII broke out, Mr. Murakami and his family were first incarcerated in the temporary internment camp in

Merced, California and were later moved to the camp at Amache, Colorado.

After Mr. Murakami graduated from high school, he joined the Army and served two years in Germany. After he was discharged, Mr. Murakami returned to his hometown of Santa Rosa, where he raised a family with his wife of 59 years, Margarette, and where he lived until his death in 2012.

Mr. Murakami joined the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) in the early 1950s and quickly rose through the ranks of the organization. He was the president of the local JACL chapter, the first governor of the Northern California-Western Nevada-Pacific District, as well as the national vice president of the organization from 1972-1975 before becoming the national president from 1976-1978.

During his tenure with the JACL, Mr. Murakami worked tirelessly on the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, finally seeing it passed and signed into law by President Reagan in 1988. The Act required a Presidential apology and a symbolic payment to the surviving internees who were subjected to forced relocation.

In addition to his work with the JACL, Mr. Murakami was also a member of the Santa Rosa East Rotary for more than 50 years as well as a permanent member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

He was a regular financial supporter of the Hannah Boys Center, the Sonoma County Museum, and his local fire department.

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Murakami was forced to endure dreadful circumstances that most of us have never, nor will ever, experience. In the face of this adversity, Mr. Murakami not only served his country in the Armed Forces when called upon but also worked tirelessly to right the injustice he experienced through his advocacy for the Civil Liberties Act of 1988. Mr. Murakami was a valuable, contributing member of his community, both locally and nationally. It is therefore appropriate that, on this 25th anniversary of the enactment of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, we honor and remember him today for his many contributions.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to Senor Mr. CC Yin, who is being honored by the Asian American Bar Association of Solano County for his countless contributions to his community.

Mr. Yin's life exemplifies the ``American Dream'' that many immigrants have when they come to America. Mr. Yin arrived in America 48 years ago with no English language skills and very little money in his pocket. He worked his way through college to earn a degree in Engineering. After a successful career as a civil engineer, his entrepreneurial spirit drove him to seek an opportunity to own a McDonald's franchise. Along with his wife and two daughters, Mr. Yin owns one of the largest McDonald's franchises in the country, with 28 franchises in 11 cities. They have received national and international accolades for their successes.

CC Yin and his family have embraced the McDonald's motto of giving back and investing in the community. The Yin's are active in numerous civic organizations and give generously to many charitable causes throughout their community.

Above all, Mr. Yin has invested his personal energy and resources to build the non-profit organization, Asian Pacific Islander Public Affairs Association (APAPA). The goals of the organization are to promote the importance of political awareness and civic engagement for Asian Americans and new Asian immigrants.

Mr. Speaker, CC Yin has dedicated his life and resources to the betterment of all peoples in Solano County. It is therefore appropriate that we honor Mr. Yin today and wish him well in his future endeavors.

I thank my friend for yielding and also for bringing this issue to the attention of the American people, and, by the way, for the great work that you do as our ranking member on the Natural Resources Committee.

I think Mr. DeFazio made a great explanation, a very instructive explanation about this Whac-A-Mole game that we're playing. The veterans memorial is closed, so we do a bill to open that up, a bill that we know isn't going anywhere. An issue comes about because of the lack of cancer treatment that some of our constituents need and must have, so we do a quick bill, Whac-a-Mole, a quick Band-Aid. The Capitol Police demonstrate that they put their life on the line every day, and it became very apparent this week when we had the very unfortunate situation over in the Senate. What do we do? We come out now and we say we're going to pass a bill to pay for Federal employees after this fabricated government shutdown is finished.

Those are all very serious issues, and there are a lot of other serious issues in front of us. What may pale in comparison is the issue of the wildlife refuges. People may say it's just a sport, it's recreation. To some, that is very important.

Just a week ago, ironically, our Nation celebrated National Hunting and Fishing Day, but today sportsmen and sportswomen, who are supposed to be out enjoying the opening day of duck season in many parts of my home State of California, are not because of this reckless, manufactured government shutdown that has shut down hunting opportunities throughout the entire national wildlife refuge system.

This shutdown is having a devastating impact on local economies that depend upon hunters and anglers throughout our entire country. There are 240 congressional districts that are home to national wildlife refuges. That's all the way across the country. This is an issue today and will be until we do away with this shutdown and open the government back up.

Every State has at least one refuge which allows hunting. Today, hunters are supposed to be lined up at places like the Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge, the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge, and the Kern National Wildlife Refuge in my State of California. But because of this shutdown, all have been cancelled.

Some duck hunters will be able to pursue their opening day on nonrefuge land. But without hunting pressure on the refuges, their hunting is going to be shut down, closed, or at least truncated to some extent. In addition--and this is a very important issue that I think everyone needs to pay attention to--most of the access for California's disabled waterfowl hunters is found on our State's national wildlife refuge system. With the refuge closed, that means that disabled hunters, including many wounded warriors, will simply have no option for waterfowling. And in 2 weeks, all of the waterfowl hunting areas in California will be open. If we don't end this shutdown, millions of sportsmen and sportswomen will continue to be shut out from their refuges.

It's not just the hunters and the anglers that are affected by the closure of these wildlife refuges. Hunting in California is big business. In 2012 alone, hunters and anglers generated more than $1 billion in retail sales, and they created and they sustained at least 20,000 jobs in California alone.

I've heard from folks who own businesses around these refuges-- restaurants, gas stations, a family-owned hotel and motel--that rely on the business generated by hunters. Some local lodges and motels have seen every one of their reservations for this weekend and the following week to be canceled. They were supposed to be fully booked. Next week is supposed to be their busiest week of the year. Now, because of this fabricated shutdown, they'll have empty beds.

At Kirbs Outlet, a sporting goods store in Tule Lake, Don Kirby, the owner, told me that he was expecting to have a big season for sales this year. Instead, he anticipates losing about $6,000 every day that the refuges are closed, and he may have to take out a loan just to keep his small business open.

Hunting guides in the Klamath Basin region are losing $800 to $1,000 every day that the refuge remains closed. Just over the Oregon border, the Wild Goose Motel in Merrill could have booked up all of their hotel rooms several times over because the demand is so high for this weekend and next week. According to Fran Lynn, their manager, out of their 13 rooms and 2 cabins, they have one room that will be occupied. These businesses that rely on the next few weeks of hunting season to keep them in business for the rest of the year are in a hurt, and they can't make up for the loss. This first week is

their big week each year, and it will be lost forever.

California hunters want and need access to our national refuges. It's time for the House majority to put the interests of our Nation ahead of the interests of the Tea Party and end this needless and reckless government shutdown, which is having an impact on millions of sportsmen and sportswomen around our country, along with Federal employees who are being furloughed, folks waiting on veterans benefits, folks waiting for cancer research and treatment, and the closure of our national parks.

This manufactured shutdown is costing us $12 million an hour. Please, bring back the clean CR to the floor for a vote so we can open our government. All it takes is one vote. Put it on the floor, and Democrats and Republicans will provide a strong bipartisan vote to pass it, to open our government, to get people back to work.

I thank my friend for yielding.

One of the previous speakers asked a rhetorical question: How stupid is all this. I would like to kind of quantify that because you can actually put numbers on it.

In my home State of California, I'll tell you how stupid it is. Hunters, who aren't going to be able to hunt this week, they're responsible for about $400,000 in revenue. Retail sales from hunting is $1 billion. Salaries and wages, $760 million. Jobs, $21,000. State and local taxes, about $155 million. Federal taxes, about $175 million. That's how stupid this is.

And if you want more proof, look at the impact on the private sector. For those of you who don't like the government, for those of you who believe that we need to close down the government because everything can be done and should be done by the private sector, you're killing private sector businesses right now.

We talked about the impact on folks who are going to have to take out a loan to keep their sporting goods store open during the busiest time of the year. We talked about folks who have motels and lodges who can't rent a room at a time that would otherwise be the most productive time in their business cycle. Those are private sector business owners, and they employ private sector employees who are going to be sent home.

Unlike the bill that you just brought to the floor that was passed, those private sector employees who were sent home will not be sent home with full pay and benefits; they get paid when they work. The idea, and Mr. DeFazio mentioned it a couple of times, that we furlough Federal workers and then pay them for not doing a job, while at the same time we're closing down the facilities that they are employed to keep open and to manage, it is just baffling to me.

And look at the store owners, look at the private sector businesses that are being hammered by this manufactured closure of the Federal Government. Gas station owners, all of the people we have talked about, if they are bird watchers, fishers, hunters, they are driving to refuges, and they put gas in their gas tank. Those gas sales are gone. They buy groceries. They buy groceries to eat in the cabins they would otherwise rent and at the camp sites that they would otherwise inhabit. Those sales are gone.

Sporting goods. They buy all of the stuff that they use to hunt, fish, or bird watch. Not only are those sales gone, but for all of us who depend upon the money that's raised by the Dingell-Johnson provision, the money, the assessment that sportsmen and -women put on their own purchases that go into funding all of the wildlife refuges and all of the places that are near and dear to sportsmen and -women, that money goes away. All of the motels that would otherwise be full, that money goes away. The sales taxes go away. These are, in most parts, rural businesses that run in rural areas. So that's different than the businesses in the city. They don't have other folks coming in and spending in their area.

This is, as the ranking member stated, their Christmas holiday. This is when folks come to their area to spend their money to recreate, to hunt, and to fish. They depend upon this. So we have created a system, it's set up, manufactured, fabricated, it doesn't have to be this way, to penalize these folks who do nothing but work hard and provide opportunities for folks to recreate. In addition to that, you've heard the impact it is having on the fisheries, the commercial fisheries and the sports fisheries.

It is just absolutely outrageous that we are allowing this to happen when with one vote on the compromise bill from the Senate--and I say compromise because not only is it a clean CR that we have been hearing about, but, remember, the compromise was to bring that down to the lower funding level, a funding level that a lot of our folks on our side of the aisle have a real hard time with, and it has been dropped down to that rate. It could be brought to the floor and voted out. These businesses will be able to do business. Employees will be able to come back to work, both the Federal employees as well as the State employees. And let me remind you of the wounded warriors who aren't going to be able to recreate this weekend and this week because of this manufactured close-down of the Federal Government. Let's bring people back to work. Let's get going on this.

I thank the gentleman for yielding. And I thank my friend from Texas for the compliment. You're always welcome in my home. I would suggest if we did more of that, we might get a little bit more cooperation on things that are important to the country.

Mr. DeFazio, I just wanted to comment on the issue you raised in regard to the World War II Memorial and the veterans who come out to get a glimpse of that, many of whom have never seen it before, some of whom have never been to Washington before, but they did in fact serve our country admirably, bravely, and heroically. They won World War II. As a combat veteran myself, I can tell you that I still get goose bumps when I hear about, and sometimes even talk about, what has become the Greatest Generation.

I think it's important for all of us to note that they're referred to as the Greatest Generation for a couple of reasons. One, and most obviously, they did a heroic job when they won World War II. There's no question about that. It was just an unbelievable feat. And the sacrifices they made were horrendous and something that we will all appreciate forever. And they won that war.

But they're also referred to as the Greatest Generation because, after winning that war, they came home to the greatest Nation in the world. They built this great Nation. And they built this great Nation for everyone, not for just the ones that they liked or just the programs that they liked.

We can stipulate that there are programs in the Federal Government that all of us may not think are the number one programs. There are programs in the Federal Government we all would like to see changes to. But the fact of the matter is, as our colleague from California pointed out, if you start passing them program by program, we've seen what's happened. Day five of the shut down and we've passed four programs--and only partially. It is absolutely ludicrous to think that we can do this.

We need to remember and honor that Greatest Generation, and we need to bring this budget that funds all of government--a government for all Americans, not just the Americans who are affected by the headlines today, not just the Americans who want to visit a memorial that's closed and we hear about it in the paper, not just an America who needs a medical procedure but that entity is closed so we're going to fund that one in the eleventh hour.

We need to fund government. We need to open government and get it back to work so we can be the greatest Nation. And we should do that. We should do it quickly.

I've said this a couple of times. This is a manufactured crisis. And nobody we represent at home or in anybody's district believes that we should operate in chaos, and that's exactly what we're doing right now. Talk to any of your business owners back home. They don't want to operate in chaos. Go to your universities, go to your small businesses, big businesses, schools. Nobody wants to operate in chaos.

We want to minimize chaos. The trains need to leave the station on time, as they say. The way to do that is to bring this continuing resolution to the floor for one vote, we open up government, and then we can get down to negotiating any changes that we might have.

You were successful in your plan. Eighty Members on the other side of the aisle signed a letter to my friend, Speaker John Boehner, to shut down the government. You were successful. Now let's open it back up. Let's bring these Federal employees back to work. And I'll repeat what the ranking member said. Federal employees that have been furloughed, they're home. They're not working. They're not keeping the World War II Memorial open. They're not keeping the wildlife refuges open. They're not at their job, yet we are paying them, according to the bill that the majority just brought to the floor and that was passed.

It's silly. It's ridiculous. This whole thing has gone on too long. Bring the CR to the floor. Let's get it voted on. It'll get strong bipartisan support. And let's open the government and then get down to the work that we were sent here to do.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mr. Randy Snowden, who is retiring as the Director of the Napa County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA).

Mr. Snowden is a true public servant in the Napa Valley, and a leader in community public health programs and health care reform. As the director of the largest agency in Napa County, Mr. Snowden has consistently held himself to the highest levels of integrity, principle, and ethical business practice. In the recent recession, Mr. Snowden led efforts to stabilize Napa County HHSA's budget while maintaining critical services that other counties dramatically cut.

Mr. Snowden guided the agency and the county in integrating services and increasing accessibility. During his tenure, Napa County HHSA opened a satellite office in American Canyon, and an embedded Clinic Ole was established on HHSA's campus.

As the agency's leader, Mr. Snowden displayed a dedication to the pursuit of diversity, collaborative management, and program-based budgeting. He has overseen the transformation of HHSA's culture from one of compliance to one focused on quality management.

Above all, Mr. Snowden held fast to HHSA's mission to help those in need. For him, it is always all about the clients. He has remained true to his and the agency's guiding principles and has served as a professional and personal role model for all who know him.

Mr. Speaker, Randy Snowden has a long and distinguished career of service to Napa County, most notably to the Napa Valley Health and Human Services Agency. It is therefore appropriate that we honor Mr. Snowden today and wish him well in his future endeavors.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Kimberly Douma, who has been chosen as Napa County Teacher of the Year for 2014.

Since 1991, Ms. Douma has taught kindergarten, first, and second grades at West Park Elementary School in Napa, California. Throughout her teaching career, Ms. Douma has worked hard to serve her school community in the Napa Valley. She has been a member of the Napa Valley Unified School District Professional Standards Committee since 2010, served eight years as the West Park Leadership Teacher Representative, six years as the West Park Family Club Teacher Representative, and six years as the West Park School Site Council Teacher Representative. Further, Ms. Douma has offered free tutoring to at-risk children for the past three years and taught Before School Language Arts Intervention. Ms. Douma has co-chaired the West Park Elementary Carnival for the last 22 years, initiating various activities including the Visual and Performing Arts program, and the Food Booths and the Book Booth. She has been a member of the California Teachers Association and Napa Valley Educators Association for 22 years.

As a member of Covenant Presbyterian Church Ms. Douma has participated on the Long Life Learning Committee for five years, served as a Sunday School Teacher, a Vacation Bible School Chair, and hosted five years of Christmas and Easter Pageants.

Ms. Douma has received accolades for her outstanding contributions as an educator in Napa from various community organizations, including Teacher of the Year from the Napa Rotary Club, and the Young Church Woman Award from the Women United of the Napa Valley.

Mr. Speaker, Kimberly Douma grew up believing that teachers could be tour guides to adventure. Inspired by her late father who was also a teacher, Kimberly is beginning to teach the children of students she had early in her career, and continues to inspire and engage every child that has the privilege to call her ``Teacher''. It is fitting that today we honor her ongoing commitment to excellence in education.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this misnamed piece of legislation. It actually should be called The 40th Time We've Wasted the Taxpayers' Time and Money Act.

This is a bill that's not new to us. We've seen it before. We've seen this movie before, 39 times as a matter of fact, and we know how it ends.

This is just another attempt to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, and we've wasted too much time and too much money on this already. What we should be doing is working to make the ACA better, or spending our time trying to help pass some jobs legislation.

This bill is particularly cruel because it hits the poorest among us the hardest, and we've seen that movie before also. And we saw it play out--that's why we have this piece of legislation.

This is in response to a national crisis. This just didn't come about by itself. Hospitals and doctors and clinics in all of our districts, they provided $100 billion a year in uncompensated care. Families were one layoff away from not having access to health care. People with preexisting conditions that occurred through no fault of their own, maybe they had bad luck with having cancer, or gave birth through a C- section, a preexisting condition, and they could not get coverage. People in all of our districts were hitting the lifetime cap on their health care.

This was no accident. It was in response to a crisis.

Let's get to work. Let's get this thing improved. Let's put people back to work and stop messing around with this foolishness.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the Napa County Farm Bureau on the occasion of its centennial anniversary.

The Napa County Farm Bureau was initiated in 1913 when at a meeting of the Napa Grange, H. J. Baade stated that the University of California at Berkeley would hire a scientifically trained man with at least four years of practical farming experience and place him in any county that would agree to organize a Farm Bureau. The Napa Grangers instructed the District Attorney to assist the Secretary of the Napa Chamber of Commerce to organize a Bureau of at least one-fifth of all the farmers in the county.

Today, the mission of the Napa County Farm Bureau is to ensure the proper political, social, and economic climate for the continuation of a strong, vibrant and sustainable agricultural economy. The Farm Bureau is one of the county's major voices for land stewardship, agricultural sustainability, and open space preservation and conservation. Over the last four decades, the Napa County Farm Bureau has led the resistance to the trend toward paving over farmland across the state and nation, and worked with County government leaders to designate agriculture as its most precious resource--the highest and best use of the land.

Countless members of the community have given much of their time and talent to help improve the agricultural conditions of Napa County. The organization is guided by a Board of Directors and supported by a multitude of dedicated volunteers. The Napa County Farm Bureau will honor 52 Centennial Napa County farm families who have been farming in the county for 100 or more years on August 3rd.

Mr. Speaker, throughout its 100 year history, the Napa County Farm Bureau has worked to protect family farms and ranches, maintain and enhance Napa's rich agricultural heritage, and promote good stewardship of Napa's soils, watersheds, wildlife habitat and open space. It is therefore appropriate that we acknowledge the Napa County Farm Bureau today and wish it great success in future years.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Max Doria of Vallejo, California.

Mr. Doria has been a dedicated community volunteer for two decades. For the last 16 years, he has served as the Vice President of the Filipino Community of Solano County, Inc. (FCSC). The FCSC is one of the oldest Filipino organizations in Vallejo, and provides numerous services to its members and the community-at-large. He was also the past president of Sekder Day Pangasinan, another important local Filipino organization serving former residents of that Philippine Province.

Mr. Doria is a veteran who faithfully served our country in the United States Navy. After his retirement, he continued to work with other Navy and military retirees as a board member of the Filipino American Retired U.S. Armed Forces Association (FARASUFU).

Together with his son Mel, Mr. Doria operated Doria Protective Services. He often donated his time and resources to provide security for community events. Doria Protective Services is the official security company for the very popular Pista sa Nayon Filipino Festival on the Vallejo Waterfront each June. He and his staff were responsible for the safety of over 30,000 festival attendees.

Mr. Doria is the building manager for the new Filipino Community Center in Vallejo, which just celebrated its grand opening last May. He is married to Dolly Doria. They have one son Mel, and three grandchildren, Andy, Alexis and Alex.

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor to rise and celebrate the accomplishments of Max Doria and to offer him and his family our appreciation for his many years of community service.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the Domaine Chandon Winery on the occasion of their 40th year in production in the Napa Valley. Founded in 1973, it was the first winery in America established by a French wine and spirits producer.

The Moet & Chandon partnership sought prime growing locations in the Napa Valley, and selected vineyards in Mt. Veeder, Carnero, and Yountville to carry on their tradition of excellence. Today, Domaine Chandon continues as a leader in the winemaking field, using sustainable farming practices to maintain their 1,000 acres in the Napa Valley.

The Domaine Chandon Winery has served as a training ground for many industry leaders in the areas of winery management, winemaking, grapegrowing, the culinary arts, restaurant management and farming. The company released their first sparkling wine in 1976, and today their innovative practices in sparkling wine production are followed by sparkling wine producers throughout the world.

Domaine Chandon's history of excellence does not stop at sparkling wine. More than a quarter of its employees have been with the winery for more than 20 years, and the company hired the first sparkling wine maker in the United States. The winery's culture maintains high standards of excellence and innovation.

Mr. Speaker, it is appropriate at this time that we acknowledge Domaine Chandon for their immense contribution to the Napa Valley.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mrs. Shannon Gunier, who is retiring after 20 years of service to the Lake County Winegrape Commission.

Shannon Grunier and her husband, Rick Gunier, moved from Southern California to Lake County in 1991, where she began as the Executive Director of the Lake County Winegrape Commission. Without any prior experience in grapegrowing or winemaking, her strong marketing background and her resolve to learn about wine helped her become one of the most successful promoters of the Lake County Winegrape region. Mrs. Gunier has cultivated the image of Lake County as a producer of premium quality wines.

In the time since Mrs. Gunier began as Executive Director, the Lake County Winegrape Commission has spent over three million dollars in marketing Lake County wines. In her role with the Commission, Mrs. Gunier helped Lake County's wineries expand from three in her first year to 40 and growing today. Today the wine industry employs over 900 people in Lake County and pays over $26 million dollars in annual wages.

Though Mrs. Gunier moved on from the Commission in February 2013, she is still active in promoting the Lake County winegrape growing region. She and her husband co-own North Coast Winegrape Brokers, a winegrape broker sales and marketing firm which services Lake County's independent growers. Additionally, in 2000, Mr. and Mrs. Gunier worked on the first Lake County Revitalization Grant.

Mrs. Gunier has received several awards for her leadership and service in the region, including an award of merit from the U.S. Forest Service, a certificate of appreciation from the Lake County Board of Supervisors, a Stars of Lake County award, a Kelseyville Business Association certificate of appreciation, and a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition. In addition to her work with winegrapes, Mrs. Gunier has also served as a teacher at Yuba Community College, a consultant for the Small Business Center, and an author of a forthcoming book: You're Fired, I Quit--The Art of Being Married and Working Together.

Mr. Speaker, Mrs. Gunier has a long and distinguished career of service to Lake County, most notably to the Lake County Winegrape Commission. It is therefore appropriate that we acknowledge Mrs. Gunier today and wish her well in her future endeavors.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Aurelio Hurtado of St. Helena, California, on the occasion of his retirement as the Director of the Farmworker Services Program for California Human Development, after 45 years of advocacy work.

Mr. Hurtado left his small town of Jerez, Mexico in 1955 to work in the agricultural fields of Texas and New Mexico. When he moved to Northern California to work in the vineyards of St. Helena, Mr. Hurtado fell in love with the region and decided to make it his home. It was a conference with farmworker advocate Cesar Chavez that pushed Mr. Hurtado to dedicate his life to improving educational, social, and economic aspects of the Napa Valley community.

In 1967, Mr. Hurtado was one of the founders of the North Bay Human Development Corporation, currently known as California Human Development Corporation, whose core services include job training, affordable housing, criminal justice services, community services and training, and community integration for individuals with disabilities. In 1968, he became the Director of the On the Job Training and Adult Work Experience Programs where he served migrant and seasonal farmworker families in Napa, Sonoma, and Solano Counties. In 1982, he joined the Farmworker Services Division as a Deputy Director, advocating on behalf of Northern California farmworkers' rights.

Mr. Hurtado is an integral member of our community and has worked diligently toward its improvement. He formed and was involved in several community organizations including Organizacion Latinoamericana de Liberacion Economica of Napa County, Credit Union ``El Porvenir'' of Napa County, Community Health Clinic Ole and Bronce Development Corporation. He has also worked with the Comite Mexicano de Beneficencia, Legal Aid of Napa Valley, the Napa Valley Migrant Farmworker Housing Committee, and the Instituto de los Mexicanos en el Exterior, among others.

Mr. Hurtado received his degrees in Accounting and Business Administration in Mexico. He has shared the majority of his life with his wife, Mrs. Rogelia M. Hurtado.

Mr. Speaker, it is appropriate at this time that we acknowledge Mr. Hurtado for his extraordinary work as a lifelong community organizer who works to bring equity to the lives of Latinos throughout the Napa Valley.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of the life and accomplishments of Colonel Robert L. Howard and the dedication of the Headquarters Building of the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Campbell, Kentucky in his honor.

Colonel Howard retired in 1992 after serving 36 years in the United States Army, with more than 33 years on airborne status, and is considered one of our Nation's most highly decorated veterans. While serving in Vietnam, Colonel Howard received the Medal of Honor on March 2, 1971 for ``conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action'' while on a mission to rescue a missing American soldier in enemy controlled territory. He passed away on December 23, 2009 in Waco, Texas.

Colonel Howard is one of the most impressive people I have met during my life. I am proud to have had the honor of working with him. Then- Captain Howard was my company commander when I was an instructor at the Army Airborne School at Fort Benning, Georgia.

Even if you did not know that he had been recommended for the Medal of Honor three times, receiving one, he was also a recipient of our Nation's second highest decoration, the Distinguished Service Cross, and was awarded a Silver Star. And even if you did not know he had been wounded fourteen times during 54 months of combat duty and received eight Purple Hearts, you would still know he was a real leader.

Colonel Howard embodied everything there is in a good leader, a fine soldier, and a great American. He was someone you would be happy to follow at the Airborne School or into combat. He had the upmost respect from everyone around him, from junior enlisted personnel, to noncommissioned officers, and senior officers.

In my conversations with him after his retirement from military service, he was even more impressive, working for the Department of Veterans Affairs as a liaison to other veterans. Combined, he spent 52 years in government service.

It was a high honor to have known him and to have served under him. I have had the unbelievably good fortune to be part of this memorization process, and to know that his legacy will live on in this building.

Therefore, Mr. Speaker, I believe it is appropriate at this time that we honor Colonel Howard's service to our Nation with the dedication of this building. His commitment to duty and professionalism is an inspiration to all of us.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Vallejo Juneteenth Celebration.

On Saturday, June 15, 2013, the Solano County African Family Celebration Committee marks the City of Vallejo's 25th anniversary of the Juneteenth Celebration. Juneteenth is the national observance of African American freedom from slavery in June of 1865. Juneteenth is also a time to also celebrate the positive contributions of African Americans nationally and locally, and to promote a cultural connection of the observance as an opportunity to build strong communities through access to health services and education resources.

For over two decades the Solano County African Family Reunion Celebration Committee has served the community with its network of volunteers serving as the African American Family Reunion Committee,

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Terry Longoria of Napa County, California on the occasion of her retirement.

In 2002, Ms. Longoria concluded twenty-seven years of hard work and service to her community as Director of Napa County's Department of Health and Human Services. In that capacity she led 350 and employees managed a $45 million annual budget, ensuring smooth operations within the agency.

Ms. Longoria also served as a founding Board Member of Napa Valley Coalition of Private Non-Profit Agencies, the founding Commissioner from Napa in the Partnership Health Plan of California, and the founding Commissioner from Napa in the Children and Families First Commission, working hard to promote wellness in the Napa Valley and deliver important services to our community.

Since her departure from Health and Human Services, Terry has worked with the Napa County Office of Education, NCOE, as the Director of Safe Schools Healthy Students where she oversaw comprehensive projects aimed at addressing the needs of Napa students and their families.

Ms. Longoria has served on the Board of Directors for Child Start Incorporated, and as Chair of the Parents Council for the Boys and Girls Club. She is a member of the Bay Area Social Services Consortium, and the Board of Directors for Napa County Council for Economic Opportunity.

Terry has dedicated her life to providing services and support to her Napa community, especially to children and the disadvantaged. Terry has always looked for ways to help others and even her retirement party, which should be her moment in the sun, is at VOICES, so she can use her event as a fundraiser for this great organization.

Mr. Speaker, Terry Longoria has a long and distinguished career of service to others. It is therefore appropriate that we acknowledge her today and wish her well in her retirement.

Mr. Speaker, 6 months ago, our Nation witnessed a horrible massacre of innocence in Newtown, Connecticut. In the 6 months since, there are two important facts that we should note: first, nearly 5,000 more Americans have been killed by people using guns.

Second, Congress has done absolutely nothing to reduce and prevent these deaths.

The Senate took one vote to expand background checks. Sadly, it failed when a minority of Senators voted against the wishes of 90 percent of Americans. The only thing more disappointing than the Senate voting down this pro-gun owner, anti-criminal legislation is that the House has refused to vote at all.

My Republican colleague, Peter King, and I have introduced H.R. 1565, legislation that's identical to the Senate background check effort. We have 3 Republicans, we have 179 Democrats--a total of 182 coauthors. Surely, we need more support from the Republican side of the aisle.

But the truth is this shouldn't be a controversial bill, and it shouldn't be partisan. Background checks are something everyone in both parties should be able to agree on. Everyone says they're against criminals, terrorists, and the dangerously mentally ill getting guns. But you can't be against that and be against background checks. Background checks are the first line of defense. Our bipartisan bill strengthens that first line of defense.

It's anti-criminal. Right now a criminal can buy a firearm at a gun show, over the Internet, or through a newspaper ad because those sales don't require a background check. Last year, the background check system identified and denied 88,000 gun sales to

criminals, domestic abusers, those with dangerous mental illness, and other prohibited purchasers. However, those same criminals could buy those same guns at a gun show or over the Internet without any questions asked because those sales don't require a background check.

Our bill closes this huge loophole, greatly reducing the number of places a criminal can buy a gun, because our bill would require background checks at all gun shows and for Internet or newspaper sales.

Our bill is pro-gun owner and pro-Second Amendment. It provides reasonable exceptions for firearm transfers between families and friends. You won't have to get a background check when you inherit the family rifle or borrow a shotgun for a hunting trip, or purchase a gun from a friend, hunting buddy, or neighbor.

It bans the creation of a Federal registry and makes the misuse of records a felony, punishable up to 15 years in prison. It allows Active Duty military to buy firearms in their home States or the State in which they're stationed. It authorizes the use of State concealed carry permits in lieu of a background check to purchase a firearm. And, it allows interstate handgun sales from licensed dealers.

We have a bill that's ready for the floor. It's bipartisan. It will help keep guns from criminals, terrorists, and the dangerously mentally ill, and it supports the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans. If the bill didn't support the Second Amendment, my name wouldn't be on it. I'm a gun owner, and I believe that law-abiding Americans have a constitutional right to own a firearm. But I'm also a father and a grandfather, and I know that we have a responsibility to do everything we can to reduce gun violence.

This bill deserves a vote. The people of Newtown deserve a vote. The families of the nearly 5,000 people who have been killed since Newtown deserve a vote. Our kids and our grandkids deserve a vote. Mr. Speaker, please give us a vote.