Robert W. Ney

I want to thank the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros- Lehtinen) for bringing this bill forth and my colleague, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis), for supporting this important bill, important not only to the memory of Officer Larry Cox, but important to the memory of law enforcement also.

Yesterday was, of course, the anniversary of 9/11, and so many people, Mr. Speaker, tragically lost their lives, but it was evident and mentioned yesterday so many times over and over about law enforcement and the firefighters that went in to try to save others and put themselves right into harm's way.

We can only remember a few years ago here in the U.S. Capitol when 9/ 11 happened, and at that time the officers were telling people to clear the buildings as thousands of people left this Capitol, yet the officers stayed here to put themselves again in harm's way. So over and over again we have seen it on Capitol Hill with law enforcement, and we have to be so respectful of law enforcement and firefighters.

In today's case, talking about a wonderful individual, I rise today to support H.R. 5434, a bill to name the post office in Chillicothe, Ohio, in the 18th District I represent, in honor of Police Officer Larry Cox. I also want to thank Rob Cogan of our staff and Denise Wilson of Government Reform for making this bill possible today.

Officer Cox was a man of dignity and compassion, a 19-year veteran of the Chillicothe police force in Chillicothe, Ohio. Officer Cox was a devoted law enforcement official who had dedicated his life to one of our Nation's noblest fights, keeping our children away from drugs.

As a DARE officer, Officer Cox was able to provide impressionable elementary school students with the guidance and support that many could not find anywhere else. Having been a star athlete growing up, Officer Cox knew the pressures these young students face, and he was always quick to offer a kind word and listening ear to any student who needed a little extra attention.

On the evening of Thursday, April 21, 2005, as Officer Cox walked home from visiting his parents, he surprised a fleeing robbery suspect, who then shot him in an utterly senseless act of violence. He was 44 years old. Officer Larry Cox is survived by his wife, Teresa, and his son, Evan, as well as his parents and sister.

It is times like these that we can question sometimes the world we live in, but we must not let the senseless act blind us from the good that is around, the compassion of our teachers, the innocence of our children, and the ultimate bravery of our law enforcement officials. For it is these things that Officer Cox was born of and ultimately died for.

So I stand here today to honor the life of Officer Larry Cox, to honor each and every law enforcement official that risks his or her life to protect the most treasured pieces of our community. Officer Cox understood these treasures. Officer Cox years ago, I believe, looked

in the mirror and saw himself as the person who would accept responsibility to make this a safer and better world. That is the type of individual that Officer Larry Cox was. He understood the importance of the treasures and the paramount importance of caring for others.

With that, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation naming the Larry Cox Post Office in Chillicothe, Ohio.

Mr. Speaker,

Whereas, J.R. and Allison Cash were united in marriage June 3, 2006 in Cadiz, Ohio; and

Whereas, J.R. and Allison Cash have dedicated their lives to each other; and

Whereas, J.R. and Allison Cash shared their wedding day with family and friends; and

Whereas, J.R. and Allison Cash have illustrated the love and commitment necessary to live a long and beautiful life together.

Therefore, I join with their family, friends, and the entire 18th Congressional District of Ohio in congratulating J.R. and Allison Cash on the occasion of their marriage.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4804, the FHA Manufactured Housing Loan Modernization Act of 2006. Right off the bat, I want to congratulate Representative Pat Tiberi from Ohio on his effort to modernize the Federal Housing Administration, known as FHA, title I program for manufactured homes and increase the availability of FHA-insured manufactured housing loans to low and moderate income consumers who wish to purchase a manufactured home.

Increasing loan limits for manufactured housing will assist many people, particularly first-time home buyers who are looking for less expensive options for achieving the dream of homeownership.

Reforms to the title I manufactured housing program in this legislation would remove the current cap limiting FHA's ability to insure manufactured home loans to 10 percent of the FHA portfolio; require FHA to insure title I manufactured housing loans on a loan-by- loan basis; raise the maximum loan limits for manufactured homes and lots, with annual indexing using U.S. Census data. It also would allow risk-based premium pricing and tighten underwriting standards for the title I loans.

I want to thank our ranking member, Maxine Waters from California, obviously also our chairman, Mike Oxley and Barney Frank, our ranking member for the full committee. Their perseverance on these issues is going to help a lot of people in this country.

I want to thank again the gentlelady from California, Mr. Frank and also Mr. Oxley, and, above all, Mr. Tiberi, for pursuing this piece of legislation, which is going to help so many people.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, the gentleman from Massachusetts makes a good point. We have struggled for quite a few years to get manufactured housing into the sites through HUD for its utilization for people across this country. So I think this bill and all of the steps we have taken to understand both the urban and the rural settings, I think this bill comes a long way to push it to the forefront.

I want to thank Mr. Tiberi and also to yield to the gentleman such time as he may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I just want to again thank the gentlewoman from California, Maxine Waters; Mr. Barney Frank of Massachusetts; Mike Oxley, the Chair; and Pat Tiberi, of course, the author of the bill.

I yield to the gentleman from Massachusetts.

Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, this is a good day for all people throughout the United States that want to achieve homeownership.

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

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.