Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, earlier today, I was unavoidably absent when recorded votes were taken on three matters. Had I been present, I would have voted as follows: House Res. 239, Rule for consideration of H.R. 1904, Healthy Forest Restoration Act, ``nay''; S. 330, Veterans' Memorial Preservation and Recognition Act of 2003, ``yea''; H.R. 1925, Runaway, Homeless and Missing Children's Protection Act, ``yea.''

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that this House is marking Asian Pacific American Heritage month. For those of us from the State of Hawaii, there is something missing in this year's Heritage Month celebration--the dynamic presence of our colleague, Patsy Takemoto Mink. I would like to take this opportunity, therefore, to reprise the tribute to her that I delivered on this floor last October.

We were devastated by the sudden loss of this irreplaceable woman.

Patsy Mink was the first Asian American woman to serve in Congress. But she was much more than that. She was our friend and colleague. She was a true daughter of Hawaii. She was a person of enormous spirit and tenacity and inner strength. This House is much the poorer for her loss. We especially miss her wisdom, her energy, her readiness to fight for principle.

As evidence of the high esteem in which she was held in Hawaii, she was elected over and over by the voters of Hawaii, and she was re- elected posthumously after she passed away just before the 2002 election.

Patsy fought all her life for social and economic justice. Throughout nearly 50 years of public service, she championed America's most deeply held values: equality, fairness, and above all . . . honesty.

Her courage, her willingness to speak out and champion causes that others might shun resulted in tremendous contributions in the fields of civil rights and education.

She has earned an honored place in the history of the United States House of Representatives as the co-author of title IX, which guarantees equality for women in education programs.

Every single woman in this Nation who today access to equal opportunity in education, and by extension in virtually every other field of endeavor, owes a debt to Patsy Mink.

She was one of the pioneers who transformed Hawaii and transformed this Nation. Her legacy lives on in every campus in America and in the heart of every American woman who aspires to greatness. Most profoundly, it lives on in the spirit of hope, hope for the millions of lives that she touched. Patsy Mink knew first hand the power of hope, the power of perseverence, the power of dreams.

She was turned down for medical school, discriminated against because she was female, because she was Japanese American, because she came from an unknown territory out in the Pacific.

That is why she went to law school, fought her way into law school so that she could achieve a degree that would enable her to fight against the discrimination she had suffered. She was a champion then. We all recognized it. She was smart and she was tough and she was articulate and she would not quit. She was an inspiration then and now. Whenever any of us felt some sense of discouragement, whenever any of us felt some sense of despair or feeling that we could not succeed, it was only required for Patsy to come in the room to change the atmosphere.

Patsy Mink had the capacity to make dead air move. Patsy Mink, this little lady from Hawaii, was a giant in her heart and in her commitment.

With every breath that she took, she championed those who had no one to stand up and speak out for them. A little lady with a big heart, a lioness.

We will not see her like again.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to address the House for 5 minutes.

Madam Speaker, I would like to join my colleagues in urging the House to increase the amounts we will include in the supplemental appropriations bill later this week for homeland security. Last Friday I held a meeting in Honolulu of first responders to discuss preparedness, planning and coordination among agencies and funding needs. It became very apparent during the meeting that funding being received is clearly inadequate to undertake the job we are asking of our emergency law enforcement agencies and personnel.

For example, the Honolulu Police Department has apprised me of the need for some $65.5 million for several projects that are necessary if the Island of Oahu is to be protected to the extent necessary. There are several important military installations for which Honolulu police have major responsibilities, such as Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hickam Air Force Base, and Schofield Barracks. The Department has the responsibility for the safety of military personnel and their family who live off base, and to some extent on base. Specifically, communication and operability between civilian law enforcement and the military is essential. Additional personnel protective equipment has been identified as a need as well as emergency vehicles in a centralized equipment and maintenance facility.

The cost for effective homeland security management is a huge, unfunded mandate the Federal Government has imposed on State and local governments. The Honolulu Police Department is establishing an Emergency Management Command and an antiterrorism unit. It is undertaking extensive specialized training in areas such as chemical, biological, and explosive handling. Joint exercises with the military have been conducted so that in the event of an emergency, roles are recognized and responsibilities are familiar.

Our state of affairs and level of protection afforded to our citizens changed greatly after September 11, and has been heightened by our military engagement in Iraq. Our citizens expect and deserve such elevated security. But it also serves to remind us that protection is not cheap, and we in Congress should stand up to our responsibilities to properly fund the protections our citizens need.

I would like to join my colleagues in urging the House to increase the amounts we will include in the supplemental appropriation bill later in this week for homeland security.

Last Friday, I held a meeting in Honolulu of first responders, to discuss preparedness, planning and coordination among agencies, and funding needs. It became very apparent during the meeting that funding being received is clearly inadequate to undertake the job we are asking of our emergency and law enforcement agencies and personnel.

For example, the Honolulu Police Department has apprised me of the need for $65.5 million for several projects that are necessary if the island of Oahu is to be protected to the extent necessary. There are several important military installations for which the Honolulu police have major responsibilities, such as Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hickam Air Force Base and Schofield Barracks. The Department has responsibility for the safety of military personnel and their families who live off base, and to some extent, on base. Specifically, communication interoperability between civilian law enforcement and the military is essential. Additional personal protective equipment has been identified as a need as well as emergency vehicles and a centralized vehicle and equipment maintenance facility.

The cost for effective homeland security management is a huge, unfunded mandate the Federal government has imposed on state and local governments. The Honolulu Police Department is establishing an Emergency Management Command and an anti-terrorism unit. It is undertaking extensive specialized training in areas such as chemical, biological and explosives handling. Joint exercises with the military have been conducted so that in the event of an emergency, roles are recognized and responsibilities are familiar.

There are other imbedded homeland security costs with which state and local officials are struggling. When the Nation moves to a Code Red Alert posture, the Honolulu police incur costs of over $1.5 million a day, about two-thirds of it for the protection of critical infrastructure for military installations.

The Oahu Civil Defense Agency has identified numerous critical projects which total $18.1 million. Essential projects include warning siren upgrades, security cameras, computer software, as well as equipment and personnel training.

These statistics are for but two of numerous first responder agencies. This does not include the fire department, nor the burdens placed on hospitals and emergency rooms. And the Hawaii State Government has separate and additional mandates and responsibilities.

I'm not speaking today to point fingers of blame at anyone for the situation we face, but to articulate the need to provide adequate funding in the supplemental appropriations bill.

Our state of affairs and level of protection afforded to our citizens changed greatly after September 11 and has been heightened by our military engagement in Iraq. Our citizens expect and deserve such elevated security. But it also serves to remind us that protection is not cheap, and we in Congress should stand up to our responsibility to properly fund the protection our citizens need.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Loretta Sanchez).

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a bill to clarify the political relationship between Native Hawaiians and the United States. This bill is identical to a bill being simultaneously introduced in the Senate by Senator Daniel Akaka and Senator Daniel Inouye. Representative Ed Case, from the Second District of Hawaii, is joining me as an original cosponsor on the introduction of this measure.

For years, Congress has legislated on behalf of Native Hawaiians as the aboriginal, indigenous, native peoples of Hawaii. This measure clarifies that political relationship and provides a process for Native Hawaiians to form a governing body to engage in a government-to- government relationship with the United States.

The United States has declared a special responsibility for the welfare of the Native peoples of the United States, including Native Hawaiians. This relationship has been acknowledged by the United States since the inception of Hawaii's status as a territory. This relationship was most explicitly affirmed by the enactment of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act of 1920, which set aside 200,000 acres of land in Hawaii for homesteading by Native Hawaiians. Legislative history clearly shows that in addressing this situation, Congress based this action and subsequent legislation on the constitutional precedent in programs enacted for the benefit of American Indians.

Since Hawaii's admission into the Union, Congress has continued to legislate on behalf of Native Hawaiians as indigenous peoples. Native Hawaiians have been included as Native Americans in a number of federal statutes which have addressed the conditions of Native Hawaiians. Public Law 103-150, the Apology Resolution, extended an apology on behalf of the United States to the Native people of Hawaii for the United States' role in the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii. The Apology Resolution also expressed the commitment of Congress and the President to acknowledge the ramifications of the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii and to support reconciliation efforts between the United States and Native Hawaiians.

It is important to note that this measure has strong support from indigenous peoples within the United States. The National Congress of American Indians and Alaska Federation of Natives have both passed resolutions in support of a government-to-government relationship between Native Hawaiians and the United States. Similar resolutions have been passed by the Japanese American Citizens League and the National Education Association. The measure is also supported by the Hawaii State Legislature, which passed a number of resolutions supporting a federally recognized government-to-govenunent relationship.

The legislation being introduced today is important not only to Native Hawaiians, but to all the people of Hawaii. This measure provides the process to begin resolving many longstanding issues facing Hawaii's indigenous peoples and the State of Hawaii. In addressing these issues, we have begun a process of healing, a process of reconciliation not only with the United States but within the State of Hawaii. The essence of Hawaii is characterized not only by the beauty of its islands, but by the beauty of its people. The State of Hawaii has recognized, acknowledged and acted upon the need to preserve the culture, tradition, language and heritage of Hawaii's indigenous peoples. This measure furthers these actions.

Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to extend my heartfelt aloha and congratulations to Colonel Frank Steer, United States Army, retired.

Colonel Steer, 102 years young, is a member of the United States Military Academy Class of 1925 and holds the distinction of being the oldest living graduate of West Point.

Frank Steer has a long record of outstanding service to the United States. He enlisted in the Army in World War 1, attained a commission after the war, and served as Provost Marshal of the Army's Hawaiian Department during World War II. Having responsibility for enforcing martial law in Hawaii, he is widely credited with a human touch and sense of fairness during that difficult time.

Having been commissioned an honorary major general in the Association of Washington Generals, Frank Steer is eminently qualified for honorary promotion to provost marshal of the United States Army and United States Air Force, and I am delighted to extend such recognition to him.

Frank Steer is one of Hawaii's living treasures. He is part of our island history and played a major role in making our state a unique and special place. I join Frank Steer's legion of friends and admirers in congratulating him on a life well lived and for his unparalleled service to our nation.