Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 36, the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act.

It is a long title for a bill; however, we are talking about protecting unborn children. As it has been obvious here today, it is always difficult to talk about this issue, but when we talk about pain- capable unborn children, we are referring to, in particular, children who are still in the womb at 20 weeks.

As it has been pointed out by my colleagues time and time again, scientists have proven that unborn children, even at 20 weeks old, are capable of feeling pain. The goal of this legislation is to protect these children by ensuring that they cannot be aborted.

Today, if a physician performs an in utero surgery on a 20-week-old unborn child, the standard protocol for the child is to be treated as a patient, not just a blob of tissue. That child would be given an injection of pain medication before the surgery, and this is above and beyond the anesthesia given to the mother before the surgery.

These babies have demonstrated to medical experts that they respond to painful stimuli because they flinch and they recoil from sharp objects.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this legislation when it comes to the floor. Let's do the right thing and protect unborn children.

Mr. Chairman, it is my distinct honor to bring the fiscal year 2018 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies bill before you today as part of the Make America Secure and Prosperous Appropriations Act.

I do want to thank Chairman Frelinghuysen for his commitment to the annual appropriations process. Under his steadfast leadership, the House is scheduled to vote on all 12 appropriations bills, which is an extraordinary achievement.

I would also like to thank Ranking Member Lowey and Ranking Member Bishop for their cooperative spirit. Mr. Bishop is the new ranking member for the Agriculture Subcommittee, and I have enjoyed working with him over the past several months as we have moved forward to try to help rural America and rural communities.

The Agriculture Appropriations bill responsibly targets funds to national programs that provide the most benefit to the American people and to the United States economy. The bill received bipartisan support throughout the process, even though much of the funding and policies reflect a conservative policy.

The overall total for both discretionary and mandatory spending in the bill equals $144.9 billion. That is $4.1 billion above the President's request and $8.6 billion below the FY17 enacted level. The bill includes $20 billion in discretionary budget authority, which is $1.1 billion below the FY17 enacted level when adjusting for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The mandatory funds in this bill support USDA's farm production, conservation, crop insurance, and nutrition programs.

I would like to thank all the Members who have submitted requests and gave input as we have moved forward and crafted this legislation. Knowing what programs Members are interested in has helped us direct funding to support rural communities across the country and also combat animal and plant pests and disease threats, promote U.S. agricultural exports, support food safety and medical product safety, provide U.S. commodities to those in need overseas, and address the critical needs of research.

We protected our most vulnerable populations in this bill by providing funding for all of USDA's nutrition programs at levels that ensure all eligible participants will receive the nutrition assistance that they need. We made sure that the farm loan programs will meet current estimates of demand during the current economic downturn in several areas of the farm economy.

Furthermore, the bill provides $5.2 billion to the Food and Drug Administration, including the preservation of nearly $2.8 billion in discretionary resources to assist the FDA in protecting and promoting public health. The bill continues to support the food safety activities associated with the Food Safety Modernization Act and provides $60 million in new funds to the 21st Century Cures Act.

In closing, I would like to especially thank the staff on the Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, my personal staff, the minority staff, and Mr. Bishop's staff.

Mr. Chair, I appreciate, again, the bipartisan cooperation that went into crafting this bill. It is very important.

Mr. Chair, I would ask my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. Chairman, I yield to the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Young) for the purpose of a colloquy.

Mr. Chairman, I am very sympathetic to the gentleman from Iowa's concerns regarding the reduction in the bill's mandatory energy programs in the farm bill, in particular, the Rural Energy for America Program.

The gentleman from Iowa is indeed a valued member of our subcommittee, and he was very instrumental in developing many parts of the overall bill, and I appreciate his input greatly.

A number of factors went into our decision for which programs to reduce in order to achieve the $1.1 billion reduction in the bill's funding level over this last year.

As I did mention, as he noted, in our full committee markup, I committed to working with the gentleman from Iowa to see where we could find alternative offsets, and we will continue to do that as we move forward. So I thank the gentleman for bringing this to our attention again here on the floor of the House.

Mr. Chairman, pursuant to House Resolution 500, as the designee of Chairman Frelinghuysen, I offer amendments en bloc.

Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Graves).

Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. Chair, the executive order on National Ocean Policy is an Obama administration policy. It lacks clear statutory authority. Instead of streamlining Federal management, it potentially adds layers of additional bureaucracy and Federal overreach.

The National Ocean Policy has the potential to harm both terrestrial and marine economic values by affecting sectors such as agriculture, fishing, construction, manufacturing, oil, gas, and renewable energy, among others.

This body has taken the position in the past to pause the implementation of the executive order on the National Ocean Policy as this uncertainty continues around the meaning of the policy, how will we implement it, and the unintended consequences.

The policy was developed unilaterally by the prior administration without involving or consulting with Congress.

Additionally, the Natural Resources Committee has expressed concern about the policy, as did a letter signed by over 80 groups supporting the provision in the underlying bill. We are not saying that ocean policy in general does not make sense or is something that we could not support.

My home State of Alabama is a coastal State. All I am saying is that I think we need to revisit this policy, take a bottom-up approach by working with stakeholders, and have something work its way through Congress.

Working to resolve ocean management challenges should be nonpartisan and something that this Congress could achieve; therefore, I oppose the amendment and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chair, I rise in support of this amendment. I agree, it appears that the Grain Inspection, Packers & Stockyards Administration, known as GIPSA, is not currently implementing a provision from the 2015 Grain Standards Act Reauthorization.

Despite the efforts of my colleagues to try and work with the USDA to correct this interpretation, the agency continues down a path of unravelling a longstanding agreement that has allowed a designated official grain inspector to carry out inspections in another geographic area.

I hope this amendment sends a clear message to the Department that they are not following congressional intent, and they should reverse course.

Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman for his continuous work on this issue, and I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

Mr. Chair, I rise to support the gentleman's amendment. Each year, the Federal Government requires Davis-Bacon provisions on all sorts of constructions--as has already been mentioned, roads, bridges, dams, buildings, and the taxpayers pay more. You do the math. According to a recent study, Davis-Bacon inflates costs by 22 percent for construction costs. These added expenses come at a time when our Nation is nearly broke.

Therefore, I think it is time to put the taxpayers first, and I encourage my fellow Members to support this amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of this amendment. I believe that schools should have more

local control in operating their meal programs, including the establishment of the price a family must pay for the meal. School meal prices differ from one community to the next, and they take into account local food and local labor costs and what families are willing and able to pay. I think it is always best to let the local schools make those decisions.

Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support the gentlewoman's amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the gentleman's amendment, which has gained bipartisan support in our full committee. I am very sympathetic to the gentleman's concerns, and I trust his judgment an his experience as, currently, the only pharmacist that is serving in the House of Representatives.

This bill language is similar to the language in our House report. While the underlying bill did not go as far as limiting funds to be spent on the finalization, implementation, or enforcement of the proposed memorandum of

understanding between the FDA and the States, our committee report language is conditional in that the FDA should not finalize the proposed rule if it fails to distinguish between distribution and dispensing a compounded product to a specific patient.

Dispensing is not defined in the Drug Quality and Security Act, and the FDA should not unilaterally take it upon themselves to start regulating the practice of pharmacy since this function is regulated by the State Boards of Pharmacy under the laws of the State legislatures. Therefore, I support the intent of this amendment until FDA clarifies its policy, and I recommend the amendment's approval.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the gentleman's amendment here. I support what the gentleman is doing with this amendment. I also appreciate his willingness to make a slight change to the amendment in order to maintain support from staff in embassies across the world that help USDA staff open markets to U.S. goods.

With that being said, I would like to urge my colleagues to support his amendment.

Mr. Speaker, this morning, I would like to recognize Marine Private First Class James T. Stanford for his duty, his selfless service, and his sacrifice to our great Nation.

Stanford was a native of Gadsden, Alabama, and he lost his life back in 1954 after a devastating explosion on board the aircraft carrier USS Bennington. I am honored to recognize Private First Class Stanford this morning, who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our great Nation.

Stanford attended Gadsden High School in Gadsden, Alabama, before enlisting in the United States Marine Corps on February 21, 1953. After completing basic training at Parris Island, South Carolina, he was assigned to the USS Bennington in June 1953.

On May 26, 1954, the USS Bennington was sailing off the coast of Rhode Island for aircraft carrier qualification when hydraulic fluid from a forward catapult caught fire. The resulting explosion caused massive damage to the forward portion of the ship. It resulted in over 200 casualties, including 103 sailors and marines who lost their lives that day.

On May 28, 1954, Private First Class James Stanford, at just 20 years old, succumbed to his critical burn wounds and passed away at Newport Naval Hospital in Rhode Island. By his side were his wife, the former Lou Moore; and his father, Mr. J.C. Stanford. James and his wife, Lou, had recently celebrated their first wedding anniversary.

Mr. Speaker, may the sacrifice of Private First Class James T. Stanford and the other 102 sailors and marines who lost their lives as a result of that explosion onboard the USS Bennington on May 26, 1954, never be forgotten, and may those individuals be remembered as they gave their all.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the men and women who proudly make up the Alabama Army National Guard's 115th Expeditionary Signal Battalion as they deploy to the Middle East in defense of our nation.

The 115th has a rich history of service to America. The unit was organized in December 1940 as the 2nd Battalion, 151st Engineers, a little less than a year before our nation would enter World War Two.

In early 1941, the unit was called into federal service to participate in maneuvers in Louisiana as the War Department geared up for the threat of war.

In January of 1942, just after America entered the war, the unit moved to Alaska to help protect American territory from the Japanese. Service during World War Two also included deployments to England and France. The unit would be called into federal service once more in 1963.

The men and women of the 115th would again answer our nation's call to service after the attacks of September 11, 2001 amidst our efforts to neutralize terrorist threats around the world.

The first call to support the War on Terrorism would be in 2003 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, returning home in 2005. Then, in 2011, the unit would be sent to Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Now, in 2017, like so many Alabama Guard Units, the 115th which has companies in Florence, Haleyville and Huntsville, is once again standing up to serve our nation. The unit will be sent to the Middle East to support and defend our nation's vital interests abroad.

Mr. Speaker, Congress' appreciation along with our continued admiration for these men and women and the service they provide to the United States of America are reflected here today.

Mr. Speaker, today I recognize the Quality of Life Health Services (QOLHS) on the occasion of its 40th anniversary. This Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), was founded by Dr. Roberta O. Watts to provide health care to the most vulnerable populations.

QOLHS, based m Gadsden, Alabama, is the state's largest community health program. The organization's network extends from the northern area of Alabama in Geraldine to Phenix City in the southeastern corner of Alabama. QOLHS's network consists of 24 health centers. Fifteen of those locations are in Alabama's Fourth Congressional District--which I am honored to represent.

I am proud to be a long-time supporter of QOLHS, helping to support numourous federal grants, attending the groundbreaking and grand opening of a school-based program in Gadsden, and joining in other events over the years.

Quality of Life serves over 55,000 patients each year and shows a profound commitment to the communities it serves. Let me end by congratulating Dr. Watts for her years of dedication, and a very special congratulations to Wayne Rowe--who has served as CEO for the past 35 years. I look forward to continuing to work with QOLHS in the future.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Northwest Alabama Council of Local Governments (NACOLG) which was created in 1967.

Then Alabama Governor Lurleen Wallace signed legislation in June of 1967 to establish NACOLG. Over the past five decades the organization has played a pivotal role in the economic opportunities of Northwest Alabama and has improved the daily lives of its citizens.

NACOLG is an association of 37 governmental units in the five county region of Colbert, Franklin, Lauderdale, Marion, and Winston Counties, along with the municipalities inside those counties. It is an association

where local leaders can address issues of region-wide importance.

50 years after its creation, NACOLG continues to fulfill its original mission, which was to serve senior citizens in its five county region. NACOLG helps seniors in numerous ways, from getting medical care, to ensuring fair treatment, to finding jobs for area seniors.

In addition to serving senior citizens, NACOLG's role has expanded into economic and community development. NACOLG serves as a conduit for federal dollars to projects as diverse as water and sewer infrastructure to community tornado shelters.

Growing up in this area, I appreciate the significant role that NACOLG has also played in providing economic opportunities to people of Northwest Alabama. The Council's revolving loan program gives smaller municipalities access to capital to purchase land, and construct or renovate buildings to lure new business and jobs to the area,

Currently, NACOLG is led by Keith Jones, and has an excellent staff that makes sure the five county region is well served. On this 50th anniversary of NACOLG, I send my best wishes to all those who work directly and indirectly with NACOLG. I know NACOLG and its member partners will continue to use its strength to work for the people of Colbert, Franklin, Lauderdale, Marion, and Winston Counties.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize a gentleman from my home state whose work in the area of respiratory care has undoubtedly saved countless lives.

Mr. Ed Waits spent four decades working many long hours every day to serve patients in North Central, Alabama.

Mr. Waits began his career in 1954 working in inhalation therapy at the Walker Oxygen Company. Waits would deliver oxygen tanks to local hospitals.

In 1958, one of the hospitals Waits delivered oxygen to, West End Baptist Hospital, offered him a fulltime position as an inhalation therapist. As part of this position, he also provided the same service for Highland Baptist Hospital.

Mr. Wait's workday began at 6:30 a.m. when most of us are just waking up. He would perform his duties at West End Hospital and then ride in a laundry truck to complete his days' work at Highland Baptist.

The job performed by Mr. Waits could at times be very grueling. If the elevator did not work, he would have to carry oxygen tanks, weighing between 75 and 100 pounds, up five flights of stairs slung over his shoulder. Mr. Waits also had to be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, as he was the only inhalation therapy employee. He performed this non-stop service for four years before additional employees were hired.

In 1963, Mr. Waits became the first president of the Alabama Society of Inhalation Therapists. He has also received honorary doctorate degrees from Miles College and the American Pulmonary Medical Institute. He retired from Princeton Baptist Hospital in 1994.

Mr. Waits is also a veteran of our military. He served in the United States Navy from 1951 to 1955.

He is a true servant to his community, his state and to our country. This is why, for posterity's sake, his accomplishments should forever be enshrined.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Ed Waits for his sacrifice and hard work on behalf of so many Alabamians over the years and for being an example for younger generations to look up to.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the chairman and the ranking member and all of my colleagues who have worked so hard on this bill over the last several months. These appropriations bills are taking a long time to get through the process. A lot of times, we don't realize all the hard work. So I want to thank all of my colleagues for their work and all the staff that have had great input into it.

I want to echo what a lot of my other colleagues have said about this bill. As chairman of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, I understand that, while the bill is not perfect--and, as has just been mentioned, no bill that we vote on is perfect--there are significant wins for agriculture, the food sector, and for rural America.

I wish that we had been able to include relief for the cotton growers. Also, regulatory relief for harm reduction products related to tobacco.

Members from rural districts with agriculture constituents like I have in Alabama can be very proud of the bill's accomplishments for rural America. It provides necessary relief for American farmers and ranchers who are experiencing a 50 percent reduction in income from 4 years ago.

We have been able to provide targeted increases for a few high- priority programs. The bill directs funding for rural communities, bolsters U.S. agriculture, maintains food and drug safety, ensures sound markets, and provides nutrition for children, families, and seniors at home and abroad.

There is increased oversight of nutrition programs, and there are provisions to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse, including closing a loophole to prevent fraudulent SNAP participation in multiple States.

The bill also includes a prohibition on gene editing of human embryos. This is a tremendous victory for those who are concerned about life.

In this bill, we stop additional Obama administration school meal regulations from being implemented by keeping the school meal sodium standards at the current target 1 level, we continue to have the whole grain waiver for schools that are having difficulty meeting that standard, and we allow flexibility in schools in serving low-fat flavored milk to students.

Furthermore, this is exactly what the new Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue, announced USDA will be implementing for the 2017-2018 school year.

The agriculture portion of this bill also contains important provisions that further the President's Buy American, Hire American initiatives. If we are to build infrastructure in America, then we need to spend dollars that support jobs right here in America instead of utilizing iron and steel made in Russia and China.

I am happy to support this bill, understanding that we have an opportunity in FY 2018 to craft bills that will be more fiscally and socially conservative. I look forward to working with the chairman and my colleagues as we go forward.

Madam Speaker, I know our time is short. I just want to say that this bill signifies our staunch support for life, and in spite of what has all been said, it just simply prevents taxpayer funds from being used to pay for abortions.

For years our government has had a patchwork approach to this issue. However, this bill, H.R. 7, would create a clear and unified policy across all Federal agencies.

Our Founding Fathers set forth in the Declaration of Independence ``that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.'' One of those unalienable rights is life. Therefore, it follows that the right to life of each human being should be preserved and protected.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Chairman, I present to you an amendment, as the chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee for Agriculture, that provides funding oversight for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, known as the

Mr. Chairman, this amendment has been vetted by the House Legislative Counsel and the staff at the CFTC.

Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to reclaim my time.

The amendment has been vetted by the House Legislative Counsel and the staff at the CFTC. I understand and I can appreciate any concerns that the ranking member would have.

Let me say, as we move forward, we will take any of this into account as we move forward on this process, any technical changes that are necessary before this bill becomes law, and we will be happy to work with the ranking member as we move forward with this amendment.

I yield to the gentleman from Minnesota.

Reclaiming my time, I would just add that, for this amendment, we will work with any concerns that they may have and try to fix anything that may be, but this is something that needs to be addressed, as there are real problems at the CFTC regarding the leasing issue.

I would ask my colleagues to support this amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to recognize and congratulate the success of the Fort Payne High School Real World Design Team, known as the ``Fort Payne 7.''

The ``Fort Payne 7'' team, with assistance from sponsor Hannah Turner, competed in the Real World Design team state challenge in 2013 and the national challenge in 2014.

The 2013 Real World Design Challenge was to design an unmanned aerial vehicle that detects agricultural pests in a one-mile by one-mile cornfield in Fort Dodge, Iowa. After winning the state challenge, the team utilized the summer and fall months to complete the national challenge.

The national challenge was held in Washington, D.C., on November 15, 2014. The national challenge team was made up of members Hunter Vezertzis, Noah Wofford, Matthew Wilding, Joshua Johnston, Hunter Terry, and Regan Anderson with Hannah Turner as the team coach and sponsor. Since then, the team has expanded with the addition of Jayden Parris, Ansley Grider, Harley Tate, and Emma Simpson.

We are very proud of the ``Fort Payne 7'' and I want to congratulate them on their success, hard work and dedication. Competitions like these and the lessons learned will serve these young people for many years to come. I look forward to forwarding the students and their continued success.

I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the chairman of the Appropriations Committee (Mr. Carter) for his leadership in putting a great bill and a comprehensive bill before us this morning that deals with protecting the homeland.

I am presenting today, along with my distinguished colleagues--in particular, from South Carolina (Mr. Mulvaney), and also Mr. Barletta from Pennsylvania--an amendment that defunds the President's unconstitutional executive actions on illegal immigration.

As it has been noted here last night and this morning, back in December, the House voted to fund the Federal Government for this fiscal year, FY15, but we kept funding for the Department of Homeland Security on a continuing resolution. By doing so, we were making a promise to the American people. It was a promise that once we had a Republican Senate, we would work together as a Congress to ensure the President's unconstitutional and unilateral actions would not go unchecked. Today, this promise has been kept with this amendment before us today.

At this time, I would like to yield 1 minute to the distinguished gentleman from Texas (Mr. Carter), the chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Appropriations.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. McCarthy), the majority leader of the House of Representatives to speak, and thank him for his leadership.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte), the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Barletta), the cosponsor of this amendment, who has been very helpful in crafting this amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Mulvaney), who is not only a cosponsor of this amendment but who, again, was very instrumental in this amendment taking place.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. LaMalfa).

Mr. Chairman, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Palmer), who is joining us from the Birmingham area and is a new Member of the House of Representatives.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner).

Mr. Chairman, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Westerman), a new Member to this body.

Mr. Chairman, again let me just say before the gentleman closes, the amendment here before us today prevents any funds appropriated, or user fees collected by any Federal agency, to be used to carry out the executive actions that were announced on November 20, 2014, which would grant deferred action to an estimated 4 million people in the country illegally and unlawfully.

Again, this goes back to a promise that was made by the Republican House of Representatives at the end of last year, and we addressed this issue saying that we would work on this issue, make a commitment to address this issue of the President's action when this bill came to the floor, and this is fulfilling that promise today.

Again, I would ask my colleagues to support this amendment.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate the Fyffe High School Football Team on winning the Alabama High School Class 2-A Championship on December 5, 2014.

Coach Paul Benefield, his players, and staff achieved the very difficult task of a 15-0 record during the 2014 season. I would officially like to congratulate them on their victory.

Coach Benefield has spent 34 years in the coaching and teaching profession, winning many games and awards. In 18 years as the head coach at Fyffe, Benefield has won more than 200 games and 13 region and area

championships. Now he can add to that list a state championship.

I want to commend the fine young men who make up this championship team at Fyffe. They set a goal at the beginning of the season to take the Red Devils to the state championship, and that's exactly what they did. These players worked in the scorching heat of late summer and on many cold nights in the late fall, but they never lost sight of their goal.

By beating Elba High School 28-17 in the championship game, the Fyffe Red Devils saw their goal realized and did much more. The win, and the hard work it took to get there, taught life-lessons these young men will carry with them for the rest of their lives. While the winning is certainly an important accomplishment, the struggle to get there will prove to be just as valuable.

Again, I want to congratulate the Fyffe Red Devils on this great achievement. They have brought pride to their school, community, DeKalb County and to the Fourth Congressional District. I wish them continued success in the seasons to come.

Mr. Speaker, today marks the 70th anniversary of a very important occasion. On December 16, 1944, two special people, Atley A. Kitchings and Betty Jane Langley, were married in Miami, Florida. So, today I would like to congratulate, pay tribute to, and honor these two great Alabamians.

I first had the occasion to meet Atley Kitchings when I was a student at the Cumberland School of Law at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama in the late 1980's. Atley was an adjunct professor teaching communications law. We became friends while I was a student of his. In 1995, I was working as Assistant Legal Advisor to then-Governor Fob James, and Atley was doing some legal work in Montgomery when our paths crossed again. It was at that time that our friendship began to bloom. It wasn't long before my wife, Caroline, and I met his lovely wife Betty Jane.

Atley A. Kitchings, Jr. was born in Louisville, KY on June 10, 1925. Betty Jane Langley was born on February 13, 1925 in Jackson, MS. Atley moved with his parents to Clinton, MS when he was 3 years old. He met Betty Jane in high school in Clinton, MS, and they began dating at Mississippi College, in Clinton, MS where they were both college students. World War II was ongoing, and Atley joined the Navy, participating first in the V-12 program at Mississippi College, and then earning a commission as an Ensign in the Navy after completing midshipman's school at Northwestern University in Chicago on November 22, 1944.

Atley was assigned to Miami for further training, and on December 16, 1944 (the day the Battle of the Bulge began in Europe), he and Betty Jane were married at a Baptist Church in downtown Miami, FL. Atley shipped out a week later to lead the crew of a sub-chaser out of San Juan, Puerto Rico to hunt Nazi U-Boats, although they never found any. Atley left active duty in 1946, but he remained in the Navy reserves until 1978, when he retired with the rank of Captain.

Atley graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law and has had a distinguished legal career, including: a time in the US Attorney's office in Birmingham, AL, a 25

year career with AT&T, and time with several law firms in Birmingham, including his current firm of Wallace, Jordan, Ratliffe and Brandt. He still practices law at the age of 89!

Betty Jane was an elementary school teacher in the early years of their marriage. Wanting to spend more time as a homemaker, she stopped teaching to raise the couple's two children, Jane Marlea and Atley Langley Kitchings.

Both Atley and Betty Jane are individuals who have touched thousands of lives over the years and have been an inspiration to all those who have known them and that continues even today. So today, December 16, 2014, I would like to wish Atley and Betty Jane a sincere congratulations on 70 years of marriage. On Sunday afternoon, December 21, they plan to celebrate this momentous occasion with their family and friends in Birmingham, Alabama.

May God grant them many more years together.

Mr. Speaker, I want to recognize the work of ALARM (the African Leadership and Reconciliation Ministries) on their 20th anniversary, and especially, the President and Founder of the organization, Dr. Celestin Musekura, an ordained Baptist minister who was born and raised in Rwanda.

It is important to note that ALARM works to strengthen the church in Africa to be an instrument of change in the community by focusing on three areas: developing servant leaders, reconciling relationships, and transforming communities. ALARM is made up of three charitable organizations: 1) ALARM-Africa, which has offices in eight countries; 2) ALARM-UK; and 3) ALARM-USA.

ALARM-Africa was founded after civil wars and political violence in Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, northern Uganda, and southern Sudan left a vacuum of leadership in Christian churches. These churches, once led primarily by western missionaries who were forced to flee due to the violence, needed leadership from within their own countries. These leaders needed to be trained in guiding, teaching, forgiving and reconciling, to bring healing and transformation to their communities.

In the aftermath of these crises, Dr. Musekura and his wife, Bernadette, felt called to help fill this void and to help train others in the ministry. They founded ALARM and continue to dedicate their lives to it.

Dr. Musekura received a Bachelor of Theology at Kenya Highlands Evangelical University in Kenya, a Master of Divinity at the Africa International University (AIU) in Kenya, a Master of Sacred Theology at Dallas Theological Seminary, a Master of Science in Justice Administration and Leadership at the University of Texas at Dallas, and a Ph.D. in theological studies at Dallas Theological Seminary in Dallas, Texas.

ALARM-Africa uses curriculum, most of which is internally developed, to equip untrained church and community leaders and reconcile hurting communities.

Since its founding in 1994, ALARM-Africa has expanded into eight countries across east and central Africa (Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda) with its head office in Nairobi, Kenya. All offices are staffed by well- trained, professional African men and women who act as local missionaries to their people.

I would like to congratulate ALARM and Dr. Celestin Musekura on the occasion of this anniversary and for their dedication to this important work.