Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as a part of H.R. 2892, the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2010.

Title III: Protection, Preparedness, Response, and Recovery

The 11th Congressional District was directly impacted by the events of 9/11 and it is critical to continue to make direct investments to improve first responder and law enforcement communications and for like technology and equipment upgrades.

Bill Number: H.R. 2892

Account: Federal Emergency Management Agency, Emergency Operations Centers

Legal Name of Entity: Morris County, New Jersey Office of Emergency Management

Address of Requesting Entity: P.O. Box 900, Morristown, New Jersey 07960

Funding Level: $1,000,000

Description of Request: It is my understanding that the funding will be used to design and construct a state-of-the-art, environmentally sound, emergency operations center to consolidate the interoperable security across the entire county.

Mr. Chairman, I rise to claim time in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. Chairman, personally, I believe that we do need to rein in excessive government spending and promote fiscal discipline, and I've been heavily involved in that.

With that said, I want to thank you, Representative Flake, for bringing this very important project to everyone's attention. I know we can all agree on the importance of math and science education. Throughout my career in county, in State and now in Washington, I've been a strong proponent of instilling an interest in STEM education in our young people so that they may tackle our country's and our planet's most pressing issues.

The Drew University Environmental Science Initiative--and Drew is located in Madison, New Jersey--fits perfectly in line with this goal of advancing science education. This program benefits Drew's undergraduate students, and it assists Drew in expanding its partnership with local elementary, middle and high schools. Many speakers had come to the floor earlier, saying, you know, How are we going to meet the challenges of China and India?

One of the ways you meet the challenges of China and India with regard to their educational systems is to make sure that there are colleges and universities that are doing what they can to graduate students who are heavily involved in math and science studies.

I strongly share Drew's belief that, in order to confront tomorrow's environmental challenges, we must capture the interest and imagination of our Nation's youth early in education, and Drew does this.

I'd also add that this project, this science initiative, like all others proposed for funding, has been thoroughly vetted and completely transparent.

And may I add, unlike the gentleman's home State of Arizona, which ranks 21st in the Nation in tax dollars returned from Washington, my home State of New Jersey ranks 50 out of 50, dead last. So, quite honestly, I don't apologize for looking after my State, my public and private universities, because we want the best of America to be well educated, and I think the investments we're making in science, math, technology, and engineering in New Jersey and colleges and universities across the country is money well spent.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, if the defense portion of the supplemental were considered as a stand-alone legislation it would receive my support and the majority of those on this side of the aisle. We recognize that we need to provide our deployed men and women, all volunteers, with the funding and resources they need to accomplish their important ongoing missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. But unfortunately, the majority has added items to this measure totally unrelated to these wars.

First, the much-debated IMF provision, which interestingly enough, allows our country drawing rights for the first time in the history of the IMF.

Secondly, the majority stripped language from this bill that would have prevented release of photographs of detainees, thus endangering U.S. citizens and members of our own Armed Forces overseas.

Thirdly, the majority inserted watered-down language on the closing of Guantanamo Bay, allowing for these dangerous prisoners to be brought to the U.S. for trial 45 days after the Obama administration submits certain paperwork to Congress. These all represent reasons to vote ``no,'' to send this legislation back to the drawing board, and to come back with a straightforward bill that supports our troops.

But I want to use this time to talk about the direction of our national security funding, our defense spending. If you believe the administration, this will be the last supplemental appropriations bill to fund our operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, even though our forces will remain in Iraq for a significant number of years and our efforts in Afghanistan are just now ramping up.

The administration says it's putting such costs for future soldier needs into the base appropriations bill. However, it doesn't take a green eyeshade to determine that the administration's request, combined with the rate of inflation, essentially adds up to no growth. We're standing still. We're treading water.

And in a world where the North Koreans threaten conventional nuclear war, Russia is becoming more resurgent and aggressive, and China is rapidly increasing its aggressiveness.

For these reasons, I rise to oppose this conference report.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as a part of H.R. 2847, the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2010.

Title II: Department of Justice

The 11th Congressional District was directly impacted by the events of 9/11 and it is critical to continue to make direct investments to improve first responder and law enforcement communications and for like technology and equipment upgrades.

Bill Number: H.R. 2847

Account: Community Oriented Policing Services

Legal Name of Entity: Somerset County Office of Emergency Management

Address of Requesting Entity: 20 Grove Street, P.O. Box 3000, Somerville, NJ 08876

Funding Level: $1,000,000

Description of Request: It is my understanding that the funding would be used for police communication equipment upgrades and interoperability technology enhancements.

Bill Number: H.R. 2847

Account: Community Oriented Policing Services

Legal Name of Entity: Sussex County Office of Emergency Management

Address of Requesting Entity: 39 High Street, Newton, New Jersey 07860

Funding Level: $1,000,000

Description of Request: It is my understanding that the funding would be used for police communication equipment upgrades and interoperability technology enhancements.

Bill Number: H.R. 2847

Account: Community Oriented Policing Services

Legal Name of Entity: Essex County Office of Emergency Management

Address of Requesting Entity: 50 Nelson Place--2nd Floor, New Courts Building, Newark, New Jersey 07102.

Funding Level: $1,000,000

Description of Request: It is my understanding that the funding would be used for police communication equipment upgrades and interoperability technology enhancements.

Title IV: Science

Bill Number: H.R. 2847

Account: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Cross-Agency Support Programs

Legal Name of Entity: Drew University

Funding Level: $1,000,000

Address of Requesting Entity: 36 Madison Avenue, Madison, New Jersey 07940

Description of Request: It is my understanding the funding will be used for research and curricula enhancements, including GIS mapping and space imagery of the impact of climate change on forest resources and development of new environmental studies courses and for construction and improvements of science laboratories, for science equipment and technology, and for improvements to associated science classroom space.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the motion to instruct conferees providing for supplemental appropriations for ongoing operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.

I support the portion of these instructions that would require the Secretary of Defense to certify if the release of photographs of detainees would endanger citizens of the U.S. or members of the armed services. We send our soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen abroad to protect our security. We owe it to them to make sure that we do not do anything that puts them in needless jeopardy.

And I also strongly support the notion that we need to endorse the higher House funding levels for defense and military construction. Absolutely needed. If we are going to believe the administration and congressional leadership, this will be the last supplemental bill to fund the needs of our soldiers in Iraq and, may I add, their mission, those soldiers' mission, expanded mission, in Afghanistan. Personally, I find that hard to believe.

This supplemental should not be considered in a vacuum. What should not be lost in all of this is that our President is proposing a defense budget that barely keeps up with inflation and specifically contains a significant cut in our ballistic missile program, at a time when North Korea and Iran are testing their capabilities and, quite honestly, testing our resolve.

And, lastly, Madam Speaker, I have concerns about the expanded spending authority of the International Monetary Fund, who would be eligible to tap that fund in terms of drawing rights. And what's more bizarre is that under the recent agreements that we've been reading about, the United States of America now is eligible, shall we say, like other Third World countries, to have its own drawing rights, which is totally bizarre and inappropriate.

Madam Speaker, our first responsibility as Members is to protect our constituents, including those in the military. This motion to instruct helps achieve that mission and other important missions.

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk that I intend to withdraw at the appropriate time.

Mr. Chairman, I rise to engage in a colloquy with the chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Mr. Oberstar.

Mr. Chairman, as you know, I have long been concerned about aircraft noise over northern New Jersey. However, time and time again the Federal Aviation Administration has turned a deaf ear to the tremendous impact air noise has made on our quality of life.

Lately, there has been considerable discussion about increasing transparency in our government. However, it has been extremely difficult to obtain information from the FAA about proposals that will have significant negative impacts on my constituents.

I offer this amendment because there have been conflicting reports about the proposed changes by the FAA to the Class B airspace in the New York and New Jersey metropolitan area.

Following several inquiries to the FAA, including a letter from the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Garrett) and me to FAA Acting Administrator Lynne Osmus, the FAA has not been forthcoming with its plans about this proposed airspace change.

Together, with many of my colleagues in the region, I feel very strongly that the FAA must make its plans public and be held accountable for the effects. As the FAA continues to redesign the airspace in our region, it cannot push forward another proposal that may lead to even more noise for my constituents on the ground. They have a right to know what changes are being considered and certainly what changes are being implemented, as these changes will affect their lives and livelihoods.

I look forward to working with the chairman and the ranking member in the future to get information on these proposals and to ensure that all of our constituents are fully informed about the FAA's future plans.

I yield to the chairman.

That's a little farther south from where I live.

We've always believed in an ocean route. Whether the people in the Atlantic would want to have what we've been having to bear, I would doubt it.

I thank the chairman very much for his time, as well as Mr. Costello's interest. I was involved in helping fund through the appropriations process this air design. So when we're shut out of the process when they're making plans, I think we have a right to be concerned.

If I may, I would like to yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin, the ranking member.

I ask unanimous consent to withdraw my amendment.

Madam Speaker, once again, I come to the floor to recognize the great success of strong local schools working with dedicated parents and teachers. I rise today to congratulate and honor a number of outstanding high school artists from the 11th Congressional District of New Jersey. Each of these talented students participated in the 2009 Congressional Art Competition, ``An Artistic Discovery,'' held at the Morris Museum, in Morris Township, New Jersey. Their works of art are exceptional!

We had fifty-four students participating. That was a wonderful response, and I would very much like to build on that participation for future competitions.

Madam Speaker, I would like to congratulate the three winners of our art competition. First Place was awarded to Caitlin Reid of Ridge High School for her work, ``I Don't Have Much of Anything, Except These Things I Hardly Deserve.'' Second Place was awarded to Genevieve Asselin from West Morris Mendham High School for her work, ``Mindset.'' Third Place was awarded to Allison O'Keeffe from Madison High School for her untitled work.

I would like to recognize each artist for their participation by indicating their high school, their name, and the title of their contest entry for the official Congressional Record.

Boonton High School: Saif Haobash's ``My Hand''; Claire Liu's ``Claire Liu''; Steven McKeown's ``Self Portrait''; Andrew Torpey's ``Stairway to the Sky''.

Chatham High School: Molly Higgins' ``In My Shoes''; Michelle Mruk's ``The Baron Meets His People''; Kim Stachenfeld's ``The World is Burning''; Lindsey VanderVleit's ``Anticipation''.

Livingston High School: Tamar Ariel's ``Concentration #7''; Kelly Keltos' ``Trevi Fountain''; Esther Kim's ``Street Grunge''; Sal Spaltro's ``Girl in the City''.

Madison High School: Hyebin Chung's ``My Collections''; Anne Groves' ``Sitting on the Upper Rideau''; Allison O'Keeffe's untitled work (Third Place); Emily Rutland's ``Wild Flower''.

Millburn High School: Henry Ehrenfried's ``Multi-faceted Self Portrait''; Jawon Kim's ``Self-Portrait Still Life in Pen'' (Honorable Mention); Chanthia Chanjuan Ma's ``Laughing Under the Sun''.

Montville High School: Keith Agnello's ``Aaron on West Delaran''; Joon An's ``Basic Household''; Jennifer Dinsfriend's ``Indonesian Still Life'' (Honorable Mention); Michael Johnston's ``Debris''.

Morris Catholic High School: Rebecca Fitzpatrick's untitled work; Kristin King's ``Standing Out in the Crowd''; Sery Kwon's untitled work; Christine Pierson's untitled work.

Morris Knolls High School: Lindsay Hescock's ``Suzanne''; Madeleine Provost's ``Papaya''; Victoria Reed's ``Geraldo''; Anita Sukha's ``Color the Mind''.

Morristown High School: Katrina Cervante's ``The Dining Room''; Michelle Kim's ``Sunflower''; Jack Taylor's ``Guantanamo''; Chelsea Tomblin's ``M.O.S.''.

Mount Olive High School: Heather Dalton's ``City Streets''; Brian Hays' ``Reflection of Ages Past''; Chantal McStay's ``Shadow Crane''; Jonathan Weiss' ``Childhood Energy''.

Ridge High School: Samantha Bard's ``As If''; Gabriella DeMarco's ``Going Green''; Caitlin Reid's ``I Don't Have Much of Anything Except These Things I Hardly Deserve'' (First Place); Kristen Spratford's ``The Unveiling''.

Roxbury High School: Natalie Florio's ``Look to the Light'' (Honorable Mention); Vicki Kienzlen's ``Man of the Sea''; Lauren Poggi's ``Breaking News''; Ephrath Tesfaye's untitled work.

Watchung Hills High School: Kristen Givens' ``Red Flower'' (Honorable Mention); Lisa Monetti's ``Photo 2 Surrealism''; Robert Verdino's ``Re- birth''.

West Morris Mendham High School: Genevieve Asselin's ``Mindset'' (Second Place); Blair Christen Hartman's ``Flight''; Nathan Krump's ``Ceramic Serenade''; Jillian Marinaro's ``Twisted''.

Each year the winner of the competition has their art work displayed with other winners from across the country in a special corridor here at the U.S. Capitol. Thousands of fellow Americans walk through that corridor and are reminded of the vast talents of our young men and women. Indeed, all of these young artists are winners, and we should be proud of their achievements so early in life.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in congratulating these talented young people from New Jersey's 11th Congressional District.

Offered By: Mr. Frelinghuysen

Amendment No. 5: In title I, strike section 10012 (relating

to rescissions of Department of Defense funds).

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Police Unity Tour,'' which on May 9th will kick-off its 13th Anniversary bicycle tour to our nation's capitol.

The Police Unity Tour honors the memory and courage of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty and raises money for the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C. Over one thousand police officers from around the country will complete the tour, hundreds of whom will leave from northern New Jersey municipalities that I am proud to represent.

In May 1997, the first Police Unity Tour was organized by Officer Patrick P. Montuore of the Florham Park Police Department, with the hope of raising public awareness about police officers who have died in the line of duty and to honor their sacrifices. The tour started with 18 riders on a four day fund-raising bicycle ride and has grown to over 1,100 riders nationwide.

The Police Unity Tour honors the heroes who have lost their lives and reminds us that everyday our police officers, firefighters, and emergency service personnel, all brave men and women, devote their lives to protecting and serving our communities. Too many of these officers make the ultimate sacrifice and to them we are eternally grateful. We must never take their actions for granted and always remember the families and friends they leave behind.

Madam Speaker, I urge you and my colleagues to join me in congratulating the Police Unity Tour on their 13th Anniversary of honoring fallen law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize County College of Morris (CCM) in Randolph Township, Morris County, New Jersey, a distinguished institution of higher education I am proud to represent! On April 24, 2009, the college will celebrate its Fortieth Anniversary.

CCM was founded in 1968 to provide challenging, yet affordable, education opportunities for local students. This ideal is still upheld today, as CCM continues to maintain high academic standards, as well as low tuition costs.

At the time of its inception, CCM had only one building and less than 1,300 students. Under the direction of Dr. Sherman H. Masten, the college's first president, CCM expanded to include an additional five buildings and an enrollment that peaked at 12,012 students in 1982. President Dr. Edward Yaw has continued the expansion and renovation of the campus, and under his guidance, CCM has become the state-of-the-art educational facility it is today.

The college currently offers 87 degree and certificate programs and has over 8,500 students enrolled in undergraduate studies. CCM has a true tradition of excellence which, thanks to its outstanding leadership, superior faculty and staff and motivated students. CCM is one of the foremost community colleges in New Jersey and the nation.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in congratulating the County College of Morris on the celebration of 40 years of service to the State of New Jersey and Morris County.

Madam Speaker, one of the primary responsibilities of each Member of Congress is to protect our nation and our citizens. Representing New Jersey, a ``9-11 State,'' it is an important duty, whether the issue concerns funding for programs designed to protect areas which are prime terrorist targets, or ensuring that our military forces and intelligence agencies are fully supported, or securing our borders and reforming our broken immigration system.

In addition to restoring our economy with an effective stimulus that is targeted, timely and temporary, these are among the most important issues facing the nation today.

But on occasion, serious events develop in a Member's Congressional District that must be brought to the attention of this House and the nation. My District in northern New Jersey is witnessing developments that cry out for correction.

In April 2008, a 20-year old foreign national was arrested and charged with endangering the welfare of a child and aggravated sexual assault following an alleged attack on a 12-year-old girl. He was remanded to the Morris County, New Jersey jail where he remained until August when he was able to secure his release from Morris County custody by posting $50,000 bail. Aware that the Department of Homeland Security's Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had a ``detainer'' on the suspect, the Morris County Sheriffs Department transferred custody of the suspect to ICE.

In September of 2008, the suspect was transferred to an ICE detention center in Louisiana where he appeared before an immigration judge and was ordered deported. Appropriate officials in New Jersey were never informed that this potentially dangerous suspect was about to be or was subsequently deported.

Of course, the suspect failed to appear for his preliminary hearing in November 2008 in New Jersey, prompting a warrant to be issued for his arrest. He has subsequently been indicted on charges related to aggravated sexual assault on a minor.

Of course, the deportation of this suspect will delay, if not prevent, the suspect from ever answering these serious charges in an appropriate U.S. court. As a result, a young New Jersey victim and her family have been denied justice.

Clearly, the interaction between the state criminal code and federal immigration law is multi-layered and complex. In this incident, and another similar case where another foreign national charged with assaulting a nine-year-old girl is facing deportation,

Madam Speaker, today I introduce two measures designed to bring the glare of public attention onto these outrageous situations.

I am introducing legislation that provides an important new tool to states and local judicial officials as they work to bring to trial illegal immigrants charged with a serious crime. Our legislation would allow a state's chief executive or chief law enforcement officer, or that of a political subdivision, to request that the Department of Homeland Security stay the removal of an alien charged with an aggravated felony.

This solution is by no means perfect but it attempts to strike a balance between our national desire to deport as many illegal aliens as possible as quickly as possible and the ability of victims of serious crimes to have their rights protected. Simply put, the federal government needs to think twice before handing the alien suspect in an aggravated felony a ``get out of jail free'' card. These matters are too important to be put on auto-pilot!

I am also introducing a Sense of Congress resolution which directs DHS and ICE to develop an effective and efficient system of communication that allows state and local law enforcement and prosecutors to know, in a timely manner, when suspects charged in their jurisdictions with aggravated felonies are in the final stages of the deportation process.

My colleagues, these measures are not parochial in their nature. These are not issues confined to one county in one state. I suspect that if Morris County, New Jersey is grappling with the dueling conflict between state criminal law and federal immigration process, then so are counties in your Congressional District. I urge you to check with your law enforcement and prosecutors back home and then co- sponsor these two measures.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in commemoration of the Twenty Fifth Anniversary of Morris Tomorrow of Morris County, New Jersey, a vibrant organization that I am proud to represent.

Morris Tomorrow's primary mission includes focusing attention on issues of regional significance, promoting public discussion, facilitating consensus towards viable solutions, and serving as a catalyst for implementation. Founded

as Morris 2000 in 1984, the organization has managed to successfully bridge environment and business interests, working to further both causes to the mutual benefit of both.

Morris Tomorrow has established several high-profile programs that have helped define issues facing Morris County and the surrounding area. Among the programs is Midday Morris, a quarterly lecture series targeted toward business, government, civic and education leaders; Building Cross-Cultural Communities, works to address issues faced by our immigrant communities; Morris Summit, brings together local leaders from our business, government, education and nonprofit communities to explore quality of life issues. Additionally, three organizations that have proved essential to the watershed management issues that are vital to the area are off-shoots of Morris Tomorrow--the Ten Towns Great Swamp Watershed Management Committee, the Rockaway River Watershed Cabinet, and the Raritan Highlands Compact.

We are privileged to have such a dynamic and dedicated non-profit organization in Morris County.

Madam Speaker, I urge you and my colleagues to join me in congratulating Morris tomorrow on the celebration of its 25 years serving Morris County.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the Market Street Mission in Morristown, Morris County, New Jersey, a vibrant community I am proud to represent. On March 18, 2009, the good citizens of New Jersey will celebrate the Market Street Mission's 120th Anniversary.

The aim of the Market Street Mission is to assist those who are ``homeless, helpless and hopeless'' in northern New Jersey, through physical, emotional, and spiritual support that will guide them toward responsible and productive lives. The Market Street Mission is an experienced organization with a proven method of helping to fight alcoholism, drug abuse, and homelessness in the Northern New Jersey Area. We need the Market Street Mission and more places like it.

The Market Street Mission was established in 1889 by the Reverend Dr. F.W. Owen and his wife, Mrs. Louisa Graves Owen, as a residential program for alcoholic husbands in the Morristown area. With support from the South Street Presbyterian Church, the Mission provided meals, lodging, clothing, and temporary employment for homeless men. Over the years, the Market Street Mission has grown in scope and size.

During the Great Depression, the Market Street Mission ended its affiliation with the Presbyterian Church and added the ``Industrial Department,'' a self-supporting thrift store that provided jobs during difficult economic times. Today, residents of the Mission work at the Industrial Department as part of the successful ``New Reality of Recovery'' program. The Market Street Mission also has an Emergency Assistance program that provides meals and lodging for disadvantaged men, women, and children.

Led by Executive Director G. David Scott, the Market Street Mission continues to offer indispensable support and rehabilitation to those in need.

Madam Speaker, I urge you and my colleagues to join me in congratulating the Market Street Mission, as well as G. David Scott, on the celebration of 120 years serving the people of Northern New Jersey.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding an earmark I received as part of the FY2009 Omnibus.

Division I: Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2009

Account: Department of Transportation, Technical Corrections

Legal Name of Entity: County of Morris

Address of Requesting Entity: 30 Schuyler Place, Morristown, New Jersey 07940

Description of Request: $800,000 was authorized under section 1702 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (P.L. 109-59), to divert traffic from the steep grade at Schooley's Mountain Road and add roadway, construct a bridge over the Raritan River, and replace existing culverts. The technical correction will modify the current language of ``Construct Long Valley Bypass,'' with ``Planning, design, engineering, environmental analysis, acquisition of rights-of-way, and construction for the Long Valley Bypass.'' This is a technical correction to an existing authorization and has no budgetary impact.

Madam Speaker, every year more high school seniors from the 11th Congressional District trade in varsity jackets for Navy pea coats, Air Force flight suits, and Army brass buckles than most other districts in the country. But this is nothing new. Our area has repeatedly sent an above average contingent of its sons and daughters to the nation's military academies for decades.

This should not come as a surprise. The educational excellence of our area's schools is well known and has long been a magnet for families looking for the best environment in which to raise their children. Our graduates are skilled not only in mathematics, science, and social studies, but also have solid backgrounds in sports, debate teams, and other

extracurricular activities. This diverse upbringing has caught the eye of military academy leaders, as many of them now know our towns and schools by name.

Since the 1830s, Members of Congress have enjoyed meeting, talking with, and nominating those superb young people to our military academies. But how did this process evolve? In 1843, when West Point was the sole academy, Congress ratified the nominating process and became directly involved in the makeup of our military's leadership. The procedure, still used today, is a further check and balance in our democracy. It was originally designed to weaken and divide political coloration in the officer corps, provide geographical balance to our armed services, and to make the officer corps more resilient to the unfettered nepotism that had handicapped European armies.

In 1854, Representative Gerritt Smith of New York added a new component to the academy nomination process, the academy review board. This was the first time a Member of Congress appointed prominent citizens from his district to screen applicants and assist with the serious duty of nominating candidates for academy admission. Today, I am honored to continue this wise tradition in my service to the 11th Congressional District.

The Academy Review Board is composed of six local citizens, several of whom are distinguished veterans, who have shown exemplary service to New Jersey, their communities, and to the continued excellence of education in our area. Members of the board come from diverse backgrounds and professions, but they all share a common dedication that the best qualified and motivated graduates attend our academies. And, as true for most volunteer groups, their service goes largely unnoticed.

I would like to recognize these men and women and thank them publicly for participating in this important panel. Serving as board member requires hard work and an objective mind. They have the responsibility of interviewing over 50 outstanding high school seniors every year in the academy review process.

The nomination process follows a general timetable. Interested high school seniors mail personal information directly to the Military Academy, the Naval Academy, the Air Force Academy, and the Merchant Marine Academy. Information includes academic achievement, college entry test scores, and other relevant activities. At this time, they also inform my office of their desire to be nominated.

The academies then assess the applicants, rank them based on the data supplied, and return the files to my office with their notations. In late November, our Academy Review Board interviews all of the applicants over the course of 2 days. They assess a student's qualifications and analyze character, desire to serve, and other talents that may be hidden on paper.

This year the board interviewed 38 applicants. Nominations included ten to the Naval Academy, eight to the Military Academy, five to the Merchant Marine Academy, and five to the Air Force Academy; the Coast Guard Academy does not use the Congressional nomination process. The recommendations are then forwarded to the academies by January 31, where admissions staff reviewed files and notified applicants and my office of their final decision on admittance.

As these highly motivated and talented young men and women go through the academy nominating process, never let us forget the sacrifice they are preparing to make. This holds especially true at a time when our nation is fighting the war against terrorism. The current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan serve as constant reminder that wars are fought by the young. And, while our military missions are both important and sometimes dangerous, it is reassuring to know that we continue to put America's best and brightest in command.

Academy Nominees for 2009--11th Congressional District New Jersey

Air Force Academy

Nicholas A. Davis, Sparta, Sparta H.S.

Joseph W. Geib, Oak Ridge, Jefferson H.S.

Richard B. T. Margerison, Long Valley, West Morris Central