Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1980) to authorize appropriations for the Housing Assistance Council.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.

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

I rise today in strong support of H.R. 1980, the Housing Assistance Council Authorization Act of 2007.

I introduced H.R. 1980 earlier this year. It was referred to the Committee on Financial Services. Chairwoman Waters held a hearing on it in her Housing Subcommittee, and the committee reported it favorably to the floor to the point where we are today.

At this point I will enter into the Record a letter from 266 organizations in support of the Housing Assistance Council, also known as HAC.

April 16, 2007.

Hon. David R. Obey,

Chairman, House Appropriations Committee, Washington, DC.

Hon. John W. Olver,

Chairman, Subcommittee on Transportation, HUD, and Related

Agencies, House Appropriations Committee, Washington, DC.

Hon. Jerry Lewis,

Ranking Member, House Appropriations Committee, Washington,

Madam Speaker, I want to yield 5 minutes to my good friend the gentleman from New Hampshire, Congressman Paul Hodes, who has already made a mark in Congress during his first year in office.

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

This legislation is very important to many parts of Texas. As you know, when they redrew the lines of the Congressmen in Texas, I was given a 375-mile-long geographic area that had 90 communities. The greatest majority, 90 percent, were small rural communities who were asking when is Congress going to recognize the great need that we have for housing assistance?

And I want to give you just one example of the route that I mentioned, Proyecto Azteca, which is one where people build their own homes. They provide the labor to build those homes with the supervision of some professional supervisors in construction of residential homes. The only assistance that we give them is the purchasing of the materials, the building materials, which amounts to about $30,000. And I wish you could see these homes. I wish you could see the fine work that is done in these three-bedroom, one-bath homes that many have been built in our area with this type of assistance.

So I give this example because there are many serving in Congress who have never visited colonias like those that are in some parts of the southwestern part of the United States.

So I say that this type of legislation is something that is going to go a long ways in helping provide many, many more affordable homes.

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1982) to authorize appropriations for the rural housing and economic development program of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation, and to insert extraneous material thereon.

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

I rise today in strong support of H.R. 1982, the Rural Housing and Economic Development Improvement Act of 2007.

I introduced H.R. 1982 earlier this year. It was referred to the Committee on Financial Services. Chairwoman Maxine Waters held a hearing on it in her Housing Subcommittee, and the committee reported it favorably to the floor to the point where we are today.

At this point, I would submit for the Record a statement of the National Association of Realtors in support of the Rural Housing and Economic Development Improvement Act.

Statement of the National Association of Realtors to the House

Financial Services Committee, Subcommittee on Housing and Community

Opportunity Hearing

rural housing programs: review fiscal year 2008 budget and pending

rural housing legislation--may 9, 2007

Nearly 20% of the U.S. population live in non-metropolitan

areas. Housing conditions in rural areas are generally worse

than in urban or suburban neighborhoods. Federal rural

housing programs are instrumental in providing affordable

housing opportunities to low- and moderate income rural

renters and homebuyers. The National Association of

REALTORS' strongly supports federal housing

programs that target rural communities and provide sufficient

federal assistance needed to meet the housing needs of rural

communities.

Many of our rural citizens face a serious housing crisis.

Nearly all of the counties with the highest poverty rates in

America are rural. As a result, access to an adequate supply

of safe, affordable rental units, mortgage financing and

housing assistance is especially important in these areas.

Approximately 1.9 million rural renters have housing

problems; the majority of these renters are spending more

than 30% of their incomes for housing. These areas also

generally have fewer mortgage lenders competing in the

marketplace, a factor that raises the cost of home mortgages.

FY2008 budget proposals

The President's FY2008 budget proposal for the U.S.

Department of Agriculture's Rural Housing Service (RHS)

reflects a preference for loan guarantees and vouchers to

provide low income rental housing. The President's budget

proposal eliminates funding for the Section 502 single family

direct loan program, while increasing funding for the Section

502 single family guaranteed loan program by 32%. Similarly,

the proposal would eliminate funding for the Section 515

multifamily direct loan program (which provides loans to

developers of affordable rental housing), while doubling

funding for the Section 538 multifamily guaranteed program.

Lastly, the budget proposes to increase from 2 to 3 percent,

the guarantee fee on new 502 loans.

While NAR's members understand and support programs like

loan guarantees that leverage available funds, we also

believe that direct loan programs are also very important. In

many rural communities, the Section 502 direct loan program

is the only housing assistance available. Section 502

homeownership direct loan program loans are used primarily to

help low income households purchase homes. They can be used

to build, repair, renovate, or relocate homes, and to

purchase and prepare sites, including providing water and

sewage facilities. These loans may also be used to refinance

debts when necessary to avoid foreclosure or when required to

make necessary house repairs affordable. We strongly support

the availability of sufficient federal assistance to ensure

the Section 502 direct loan program responsibly addresses the

housing needs of low and moderate income rural families.

Rental housing is also a critical need in rural

communities. Approximately 7.8 million people in non-

metropolitan areas in the U.S. are poor. Section 515 Rural

Rental Housing Loans are direct, competitive mortgage loans

made to finance affordable multifamily rental housing units

for very low-, low-, and moderate-income families, elderly

persons, and persons with disabilities. Since its inception

in 1962, the Section 515 program has provided more than half

a million decent rental homes affordable for the lowest

income rural residents. We urge Congress to restore

construction funding for the Section 515 program eliminated

in the President's FY2008 budget so as to enable low-income

rural families to find decent, safe, and affordable housing.

We also strongly oppose the proposed increase in the

guarantee fee on 502 loans. Increasing the fee will mean that

rural low- and moderate-income families will have to pay more

for the opportunity to become homeowners. This may cause some

families to become ineligible for a mortgage.

Pending rural housing legislation

The National Association of REALTORS' also

supports H.R. 1982, the ``Rural Housing and Economic

Development Improvement Act of 2007'', introduced by Rep.

Hinojosa (D-TX). This bill would authorize the Rural Housing

and Economic Development program at HUD that provides

assistance to states and localities for housing and economic

development activities in rural communities. The program

provides limited funding on a competitive basis to community

groups including local rural non-profits, community

development corporations, housing finance agencies (HFAs),

and economic development agencies. The funding may be used

for capacity building and similar support for housing and

economic development projects in areas with a population of

less than 20,000. This program has been operating

successfully at HUD but has not been authorized. HR 1982

would simply authorize the program and deserves Congressional

support.

Conclusion

In closing, the National Association of

REALTORS' appreciates this opportunity to comment

on the needs for rural housing. We thank the Subcommittee for

its attention to rural housing, and we urge your strong

support of our policy and funding recommendations to improve

rural housing opportunities.

Madam Speaker, 20 percent of our Nation's population lives in rural communities, yet far too many of these families live in conditions that are poor, inadequate or run down. To address these horrendous conditions, I cofounded and currently chair the Congressional Rural Housing Caucus. The goal of the caucus is to improve the availability, affordability and quality of housing in rural America.

H.R. 1982 provides $30 million for the Rural Housing and Economic Development, known as the RHED, program respectively for fiscal year 2008, and $40 million for fiscal years 2008 throughout the year 2013.

I believe this legislation will go a long way towards accomplishing the goals of the Congressional Rural Housing Caucus.

The Rural Housing and Economic Development program provides for capacity building at the State and at the local level for rural housing and economic development, and to support innovative housing and economic development activities in rural areas.

Funds made available under this program are awarded competitively on an annual basis through a selection process conducted by HUD. This program is established to assist nonprofit organizations in rural communities across America. Eligible applicants are local rural nonprofits as well as community development corporations, federally recognized Indian tribes, State housing finance agencies, and State community and/or economic development agencies.

Support for innovative housing and economic development activities is intended for, but not limited to, other costs for innovative housing and economic development activities.

Possible activities include the following: Preparation of plans; architectural drawings; acquisitions of land and buildings; demolition; provision of infrastructure; purchase of materials and construction costs; use of local labor markets; job training and counseling for beneficiaries; and financial services such as revolving loan funds and IDAs, which are the individual development accounts.

Other possible activities include home ownership and financial counseling, the latter of which is important to me in my role as the cofounder and cochair of the Financial and Economic Literacy Caucus with my friend Congresswoman Biggert.

The RHED program also allows for application of innovative construction methods, provision of financial assistance to homeowners, businesses and developers, and the establishment of CDFIs, lines of credit, revolving loan funds, microenterprises, and something that is much needed in my own district, small business incubators.

The Rural Housing and Economic Development Enhancement Act of 2007 will help the RHED program provide additional funding needed to increase and improve capacity, building at the State and local level for rural housing and economic development.

I urge my colleagues to vote for the bill.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, at this time, I wish to yield 5 minutes to my good friend, the gentleman from New Hampshire, Congressman Paul Hodes.

Congressman Hodes has helped focus Congress' attention on rural housing issues and environmentally green, sustainable building practices. And he has earned the respect of those of us on that committee.

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

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the Passport Backlog Reduction Act of 2007, or S. 966.

As I represent a district in south Texas, ensuring a safe and secure border which remains conducive to trade and travel is among my most urgent priorities in Congress. For that reason, I greatly appreciate the work of Senators Schumer and Biden, as well as my colleagues Congressman Capuano and Congresswoman McCarthy, in bringing this legislation forward.

Several months ago, my constituents began reporting to me that they were not receiving the passports they needed for spring and summer travel from the State Department within the Department's own posted timelines. As spring has turned to summer, many Americans have been unable to travel abroad and have missed many business, educational, and vacation opportunities as a result of the State Department's failure to provide them with required travel documents.

This bill will help to ease the backlog of passport applications caused by the State Department's mismanagement by allowing retired workers to voluntarily return to work without jeopardizing their pension eligibility. These volunteers will provide immediate assistance to the thousands of American travelers who have requested their travel documentation in a timely manner and expect the State Department to facilitate their travel plans.

I hope that my colleagues will join me in providing relief to American travelers.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Responsible Redeployment from Iraq Act, H.R. 2956, and for the safe redeployment of our combat troops out of Iraq.

I thank our Chairman Lantos of the Foreign Affairs Committee for yielding time to me and want to reiterate that for 4 years now our administration has sacrificed its many soldiers for an Iraqi Government that has failed to take responsibility for its own security. While many of these soldiers have made great sacrifices on our Nation's behalf, the President has failed to support them with a viable strategy to succeed in Iraq and then to end combat operations.

This bill would force the President to be accountable to this Congress and to the American people. Yes, the American people deserve to know how this war is conducted and how it will end.

This bill would force the Iraqi Government to realize that America's commitment to their nation is not open-ended and that they must be accountable to their people for security and stability.

This bill would allow our military to safely redeploy from combat in Iraq to better confront emerging security threats around the world.

This bill would end the drain upon our Nation's resources that could better be used on our priorities at home such as improving our homeland security, strengthening our economy, and for providing for our citizens.

I strongly support this important legislation and request the President heed the call of this Congress to support our troops by redeploying them out of Iraq.

Madam Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1851, the Section 8 Voucher Reform Act of 2007.

I want to take this opportunity to commend my good friend Congresswoman Maxine Waters, chairwoman of the Housing Subcommittee, for introducing this bill, navigating it through the House Committee on Financial Services and bringing this important and necessary piece of legislation to the floor today for consideration by the full House of Representatives.

I have the utmost respect for Chairwoman Waters--for all that she has done and is doing to improve the housing conditions for Americans, especially the moderate- to low-income, minorities, the disabled and the elderly. She has helped me considerably in my efforts to improve housing conditions in rural America.

Mr. Chairman, while some form of Section 8 rental assistance has been in place since the mid-1970s, the modern program was shaped largely by the 1998 public housing reform act. Nearly 10 years later, the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program came under new scrutiny, with Public Housing Authority industry leaders, low-income housing advocates, and some Members of Congress calling for reforms.

Chairwoman Waters heeded that call and has brought to the floor today a bill that will help not only the poorest of the poor with housing vouchers but also provide the public housing authorities in my district and across the nation with the tools they need to better serve our constituents. The bill includes significant improvements to the voucher program, which provides rental assistance to about 1.8 million families, the majority of whom are extremely poor.

Applaud the provision in the bill that permits public housing authorities to let families use housing vouchers as a down payment on a first-time home purchase, and the section authorizing 20,000 sorely needed incremental vouchers in each of the next 5 years, for a total of 100,000 new vouchers.

For these reasons and more, I encourage my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 1851, the ``Section 8 Voucher Reform Act of 2007.''

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2669, The College Cost Reduction Act. I urge all of my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the largest investment in student aid since the passage of the GI bill.

The College Cost Reduction Act re-affirms the fundamental federal interest in higher education--ensuring that students and families have access to the financial and other supports they need to achieve a college education.

The fundamental guaranty in our student aid programs is not to protect lucrative lines of business in the lending industry; it is a guaranty of college access for students. When we lose sight of this core principle, we lose our way as we have seen with the recent scandals in the student loan industry.

H.R. 2669 is about guaranteeing access. This legislation increases student financial aid on an order of magnitude we have not seen in more than a generation. It invests in our public servants and in our teachers. It brings the private sector and charitable organizations to the table to leverage resources so that more first generation, low- income college students can realize their full potential.

I am particularly proud of our work to strengthen the institutions that are the gateways of access to higher education for minority students. Through this amendment we will commit to investing one-half billion dollars over 5 years in hispanic-serving institutions, historically black colleges and universities, predominantly black institutions, tribally-controlled Colleges and Universities, Native Alaskan and Native Hawaiian serving Institutions, and institutions that serve Asian and Pacific Islanders. This represents a doubling of the current investment in the strengthening and developing institutions programs in Titles III and V of the Higher Education Act.

Many on the other side will say that we are investing in institutions and not students. They will rail against new entitlement spending. These arguments reflect a fundamental lack of understanding of the communities that will fuel the growth in our workforce. Worse, they indicate an unwillingness to invest in those communities.

HSls, HBCUs, and other minority-serving institutions are only going to grow in their importance for ensuring that our Nation continues to have enough college graduates to fill the jobs in our knowledge-based economy. The 2007 Condition of Education reports that 42 percent of our public school children are racial or ethnic minorities--one in five is Hispanic.

These students face many challenges.

Seventy percent of black 4th graders, 73 percent of Hispanic 4th graders, and 65 percent of Native American 4th graders are eligible for free and reduced priced lunches. These students are also concentrated in our highest poverty public schools where over 75 percent of the students are from low-income families.

These schools are the focus of the No Child Left Behind Act. They are the feeder schools to our Title III and Title V institutions. It is in our national interest to strengthen the capacity of these institutions to serve their communities. It is a worthy investment.

I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 2669.

Madam Chairman, I rise today in support of the amendment offered by my friend, Chairman Norman Dicks. I want to commend him for the wonderful job he did in putting this bill together. I also want to thank him for his willingness to work with me and the other members of the House Border Caucus to address a serious need in the border region.

This amendment would increase funding for the U.S.-Mexico Border program to $25 million. This program was created under the NAFTA treaty to

help border communities cope with the environmental effects of the treaty. Since its inception, the fund has been used to improve wastewater and drinking water infrastructure. It has provided technical assistance to 130 communities. It has eliminated 300 million gallons per day of untreated or inadequately treated discharges, equivalent to that of 6.8 million persons. A recent audit found that for every dollar placed into the BEIF fund, $1.85 has been leveraged from other sources. Every dollar used under the fund by the U.S. is matched dollar for dollar by Mexico.

This funding is desperately needed to begin the planning for new water and wastewater projects along the U.S.-Mexico border. Most of the communities in my district are very small with the majority of residents living below the poverty level. They don't have the financial means to build water and wastewater infrastructure on their own. The U.S.-Mexico Border program is their only avenue to protect the health of their citizens and bring economic development projects to their community.

While the U.S.-Mexico Border program has had some institutional problems, which have hindered its ability to release funds to these communities, Congress has made reforms to the program and funds are finally flowing to communities. All of the funds currently in the program are allocated to projects and by the end of 2008 all of the money will have been disbursed. Without the funds in this amendment, new communities would not be able to begin the 5-year process.

In my district, several communities like Mercedes, Donna, Weslaco, Pharr, and others have received help from the U.S.-Mexico program to build and modernize their wastewater systems. As a result, large economic development projects are underway because the communities finally have the infrastructure to provide services to new employers.

Again, I want to thank Chairman Dicks for offering this amendment and urge all of my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to thank the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Donnelly) for yielding time to me. I also want to commend him for his leadership.

I rise in strong support of H. Res. 477, a resolution recognizing the goals and ideals of National Homeownership Month, which falls in June of each year. I also want to commend my colleague on the other side of the aisle, the gentleman from California (Mr. Gary G. Miller), for introducing the resolution and for working with me on its language.

Owning a home is a fundamental part of the American Dream and is the largest personal investment many families will ever make. Homeownership provides economic security by increasing the stake residents have in their communities, including local schools, civic organizations, community-based organizations, and churches.

Improving homeownership opportunities requires the commitment and cooperation of the private and public sectors, including the Federal Government and State and local governments. Our current laws encourage homeownership to a significant degree, but need to be updated and augmented so that they will continue to promote homeownership in the future.

We need to do everything in our power to ensure that potential home buyers and current homeowners do not become victims of predatory lenders, as has been the case in recent times.

To improve the affordability, availability and quality of housing in America, I co-founded and I am currently the chairman of the Congressional Rural Housing Caucus. The caucus continues to increase in number as more and more Members of Congress realize not only the importance of homeownership in urban dwellings, but those in rural America.

To increase homeownership, I introduced H.R. 1980, the Housing Assistance Counsel Authorization Act. It authorizes $10 million for housing assistance counsel in fiscal year 2008 and $15 million in fiscal year 2009-2014.

HAC, a nonprofit corporation, is the only national housing assistance group that specializes in rural areas and small towns. The House Committee on Financial Services has also held hearings on the bill and reported it favorably to the floor of the House of Representatives. A companion measure has been introduced in the Senate.

Mr. Speaker, I also introduced H.R. 1982, the Rural Housing and Economic Development Improvement Act. The bill authorizes $30 million for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's RHED program in fiscal year 2008 and $40 million for fiscal years 2009-2013. This bill has also been reported favorably on the floor of the House of Representatives.

I want to take this opportunity to thank Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank, the ranking member; Spencer Bachus; Chairwoman Maxine Waters; and the ranking member, Judy Biggert; and all their staffs for guiding the HAC and RHED legislation through our committee.

I have also authored a letter to the Housing Appropriations Committee requesting the funding for several programs that the administration's budget

would either eliminate or reduce their funding. I include for today's Congressional Record a copy of that letter.

Again, June is National Homeownership Month. I strongly support the goals and ideals of National Homeownership Month and recognize the importance of homeownership in building strong communities and families.

Congress of the United States,

Washington, DC, March 16, 2007.

Hon. Rosa DeLauro,

Chairwoman, Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development,

Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies

Appropriations, Washington, DC.

Dear Chairwoman DeLauro: There is a housing crisis in rural

America. We are requesting that you restore funding for the

following USDA rural housing programs in fiscal year 2008:

Section 502 direct homeownership loans, $1.25 billion;

Section 515 rental housing loans, $100 million; Section 523

self-help housing, $60 million; and Section 514/516 farm

labor housing, $50 million each.

The Administration's Fiscal 2008 budget takes square aim at

these programs. The budget cuts spending for rural housing by

some 71 percent and eliminates over $1.3 billion in rural

housing lending assistance targeted to low income families.

If the Administration's budget is approved, it will be the

first time in 40 years that the Agriculture Department has

not offered direct lending assistance to help low income

rural families improve their housing conditions.

According to the Economic Research Service of the US

Department of Agriculture some four million rural families

live in ``housing poverty'', a multidimensional indicator

that combines measures of economic need, housing quality and

neighborhood quality. What is more, the 2000 Census revealed

that 5.5 million people, one-quarter of the non-metro

population, face cost overburden and 1.6 million non-metro

housing units are either moderately or severely substandard.

As you know, the President's budget calls for the

elimination of the Section 502 Direct Loan Program, which is

one of the nation's most responsible loan programs for rural

communities. Under the present Section 502 program, borrowers

may obtain loans for, the purchase or repair of new or

existing single-family housing in rural areas. Borrowers with

income of 80 percent or less of the area median may be

eligible for the direct loans, and may receive interest

credit to reduce the interest rate to as low as 1 percent.

The loans are repayable over a 33-year period. In a given

fiscal year, at least 40 percent of the units financed under

this section must be made available only to very low-

income individuals or families. The Section 502 direct

loan program is an extremely efficient program which

results in a total cost to the Federal government of only

$10,000 per loan. There currently is a backlog of more

than $3.4 billion in loan applications for this program.

We encourage you to provide $1.25 billion in funding for

Section 502 in fiscal year 2008.

The President's budget also proposes to eliminate funding

for the Rural Housing Service Section 515 program. The

Section 515 program plays a critical role in facilitating

affordable rental housing in rural areas, by providing funds

both for new construction and for the repair and preservation

of RHS Section 515 affordable rental housing units. The

Section 515 program is the only authorized Federal program

that provides direct loans for multi-family housing in rural

areas. Units built under the 515 program provide affordable

rental housing for persons of low, very low, and moderate

incomes living in rural areas, many of whom are elderly and

disabled. The 515 program also provides funding for the

repair and rehabilitation of existing 515 affordable rental

housing units, in order to encourage owners to remain in the

program and serve lower income families in rural areas. We

encourage you to provide $100 million in funding for Section

515 in fiscal year 2008.

The President's budget proposes $9.75 million in funding

for Section 523 Self Help Housing which is a reduction of

over 70%. Self-Help Housing makes homes affordable by

enabling future homeowners to build their homes themselves.

Section 523 Self Help Technical Assistance Grants provided to

qualified nonprofit and local government organizations to

provide technical assistance to low and very low-income

families who are building homes in rural areas in conjunction

with the Section 502 Mutual Self-Help Housing Loan Program.

The grant funds are used to assist eligible families in

applying for Section 502 loans, provide pre-purchase

homebuyer education, and supervise construction of the

housing by the family.

Due to the tremendous success in serving minority

households, doubling self help housing is one of the

element's of USDA's `Five Star Commitment to Increasing

Minority Homeownership'. But despite the proven success of

the self-help model and the momentum that it has built over

recent years, budgetary restrictions have made it difficult

for RHS to keep pace with demand for Section 523. In fiscal

year 2007, a total of $3 million was made available for self-

help housing grants. However, the total necessary for

extending grants for performing programs that expire in 2008

is $60 million. We encourage you to provide $60 million in

funding for Section 523 in fiscal year 2008.

The President's budget reduces farm labor housing funding

in Section 514 Farm Labor Housing Loans and in Section 516

Farm Labor Housing Grants by two thirds. As you know, there

is a tremendous need for assistance for farm worker housing.

Migrant and seasonal farm workers are some of the nation's

most poorly housed populations. Farm workers and their

families are some of the poorest yet least assisted people in

the nation. Approximately 61 percent of farm workers earn

incomes below the poverty level. 60 percent of their

households are the ones who are also more susceptible to

live below the poverty threshold which is six times the

national rate. However, less than 20 percent of farm

worker households receive public assistance in any form.

We encourage you to provide $50 million in funding for

Section 514 and 516 in fiscal year 2008.

For these reasons, we urge you to reject the

Administration's Rural Development budget. The Administration

has already made substantial cuts in federal rural

development spending. Over the past 6 years, federal spending

on rural housing and community development programs have been

reduced by more than 20 percent. We strongly urge you to

reject the reductions proposed in the Fiscal 2008 budget and

provide adequate funding for federal rural housing and

community development programs.

Sincerely,

Ruben Hinojosa, Barney Frank, Rick Renzi, Paul W. Hodes,

Charles A. Wilson, Ron Paul, Emanuel Cleaver, Bennie G.

Thompson, Nancy Boyda, Michael E. Capuano, Maxine

Waters, Tim Holden, Corrine Brown, Carolyn B. Maloney,

Luis V. Gutierrez, Peter DeFazio, Darlene Hooley, Earl

Blumenauer, Julia Carson, Geoff Davis, Lois Capps, Tom

Allen, Mazie K. Hirono, Steve Kagen, John T. Salazar,

Neil Abercrombie, Michael H. Michaud, Phil Hare, Rick

Larsen, Doris O. Matsui, Dan Boren, Lincoln Davis.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the Congressman from Kansas for yielding time to me. I rise in strong support of H.R. 1065, the Nonadmitted and Reinsurance Reform Act of 2007. Congressman Moore from Kansas has been a very effective member of the Financial Services Committee and I commend him for his leadership on reinsurance legislation. I thank the gentleman for sponsoring this much-needed legislation and I am proud to be a cosponsor of this bill.

This important bill will harmonize and in some cases reduce regulation and taxation of this insurance by vesting the home State where it is headquartered with the sole authority to regulate and collect the taxes on a surplus lines transaction. Those taxes that will be collected may be distributed according to a future interstate compact. Absent such a compact, their distribution would be up to the home State.

Mr. Speaker, this legislation will implement streamlined Federal standards allowing a sophisticated commercial purchaser to access surplus lines insurance. It will reduce uncertainty in this marketplace. It will also help protect contractual agreements between sophisticated parties entering into a reinsurance contract. For these reasons and more, I encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this important bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 406, in celebration of the accomplishments of title IX, the Patsy Takemoto Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act. I would like to thank my friend and colleague from Hawaii, Ms. Mazie Hirono, for bringing this to the House floor this week as we commemorate the 35th anniversary of this landmark legislation.

Title IX has forever changed the landscape of opportunity for women and girls. Since the enactment of title IX, the number of women participating in intercollegiate athletics has increased fivefold. The number of female high school athletes has grown by almost 900 percent. In 1972, just as title

IX was enacted, women earned merely 28 percent of the bachelor's degrees in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, better known as the STEM fields.

Today, women earn 49 percent of the bachelor's degrees in these fields.

On a personal point of privilege, I am proud to say that my four daughters, who are considering STEM fields as their professional careers, are proud to see that we remember Patsy Mink.

Despite these successes, we still have work to do to achieve the promises of full equality and freedom from discrimination that is at the heart of title IX. There are still gaps in support for women's athletics, gaps in participation in various disciplines in the STEM fields, and disparities in career and technical education programs. More critically, there is still much to be done to ensure that our educational institutions are free from sexual harassment.

It was a privilege to have served on the Education Committee with Congresswoman Patsy Mink of Hawaii, the original author of title IX. I joined her on the Committee of Education and also on the House floor to defend title IX and its reauthorization, and I am pleased to say we won.

It is up to us to honor her legacy and maintain the integrity of title IX, which simply states: ``No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.''

As the father of four daughters, I reaffirm my commitment to title IX and the legacy of Patsy Mink today with this vote. I urge all my colleagues to support this resolution, H. Res. 406.

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 2642, and I also rise on behalf of myself, the Honorable Congressman Ortiz and the Honorable Congressman Cuellar and the more than 75 veterans who in the fall of 2005 walked in the hot sun a long, long 250 miles from Edinburg, Texas, to San Antonio to raise the level of awareness of a badly needed veterans hospital in south Texas.

I want to sincerely thank Chairman Edwards for your outstanding leadership and for the past support for veterans affairs. I look forward to working with you to accomplish what naysayers have said, that it will never get done.

And finally, I want to emphasize that our south Texas veterans and the south Texas congressional delegation have been fighting for a veterans hospital for more than 20 years. While the VA has a contract for a few hospital beds, those 10 beds are not enough to take care of the more than 75,000 veterans living in the eight county region. Once the VA releases their report next month, will the chairman work with us to address any shortfalls that are identified for inpatient care in south Texas?

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong opposition to the amendment being offered by my colleague, Ms. Brown-Waite.

I want to prevent criminals and terrorists from coming into this county. I believe we should enforce our immigration laws. As a lifelong resident of the border region, I also know how interdependent border communities are on movement back and forth. Families live on both sides of the border. People cross back and forth to shop, go to school, and attend church. Endangered and unique species of birds and wildlife need access to habitat found on both sides of the border to survive.

A physical fence along the portion of the U.S.-Mexico border that I represent would be devastating. It would cut off livestock from access to our scarce water resources and hinder the ability of our irrigation districts to get water to our farmers. It would require the condemnation of private property.

It would undo everything that has been done and the millions that have been spent over the last few decades to create Federal wildlife refuges and parks to protect unique habitat. It will destroy our new multi-million dollar ecotourism industry. I ask unanimous consent to include in the Record an article from the Houston Press on the environmental and economic impact of the fence in the Rio Grande Valley.

We just learned this week that the proposed fence would divide the University of Texas Brownsville in half leaving part of the campus on the wrong side.

Our residents are protected from flooding by a levee system that is in disrepair and would become even less effective by the addition of fencing. Fences would inhibit the ability of our first responders and emergency coordinators to evacuate people during natural disasters.

A physical fence tells the people of Mexico: We don't want you. Keep the billions of dollars you would have spent in our stores and restaurants. Don't come here and help create the jobs that have finally brought my district's unemployment rate down from 23 percent to 7 percent.

If all of these arguments don't sway you, then maybe fiscal reality will. A physical fence is three times more expensive than a virtual fence. We will spend billions upon billions of dollars building this physical fence. My constituents don't understand why this Congress can find such huge sums to build a fence that could destroy the border economy and take away their jobs, yet we can't find $100 million to fix their levees and save millions of lives or a few million dollars to build them the veteran's hospital for which they have been begging for years. Frankly, I don't have a good answer for them.

We have the technology to create a virtual fence. The money saved by not constructing a physical fence could be used to hire more Border Patrol agents and law enforcement personnel who are still going to be needed even if we build a physical fence.

At the very least, my communities, who are going to have to live with the consequences of this fence, should be able to have their concerns heard and taken seriously before a fence is constructed.

I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the mighty Harlingen South High School Hawks, who last Saturday represented the City of Harlingen and the entire Rio Grande Valley of South Texas in the 2007 State Class 5A High School Baseball Championship. Harlingen South was first victorious over Midland Lee, 4-2, in its state semifinal game. The Hawks (38-6) then advanced to the state championship where they were defeated 6-1 by Houston Cypress Fairbanks (32-7). However, their performance in 2007 was nothing less than spectacular.

The Rio Grande Valley is a Texas region with a long tradition of great high school sports successes, with state titles in football and soccer. The Hawks were one win away from adding a baseball state title to our impressive history of victories.

When any high school team approaches the pinnacle of high school sports--state championship glory--the entire region comes together to cheer on that team. That was the case this year as the Hawks advanced one win at a time. This past Saturday, all of Harlingen and every city in South Texas watched on the edge of their chairs and on their feet. All high school rivalries in the Valley ceased and were united behind the Hawks as they faced their formidable opponent.

The Hawks have reminded all of us that with outstanding players, solid coaches, hard work, disciplined training, and supportive parents and school districts, more state titles are in our future. Thank you, Mighty Hawks, for representing your school and the Rio Grande Valley so admirably for all the State of Texas to see.

As their Congressman, I am so proud of the Harlingen South High School Hawks from Harlingen, Texas for their outstanding wins on the baseball field and for playing their heart out throughout the season and in their fight for the state crown. Please join me in applauding the coaches and each and every one of the Hawks:

Coach, Tony Leal; Assistant Coaches, Jesse Landeros, Rolando Ruiz, and Ignacio Medina; Joey Reyna, Junior, Outfield/Pitcher; Randy Cavazos, Senior, Outfield; Peter Maldonado, Junior, Outfield; Logan Brown, Senior, Shortstop/Pitcher; Michael Johnson, Senior, Third Base; Javier Torres, Senior, Outfield/Pitcher; Sean Messick, Junior, Outfield/Pitcher; Joey Garcia, Senior, Third Base/Outfield; Danny Gidora, Senior, Pitcher/First Base/Catcher; Andrew Huerta, Senior, Shortstop; Kaleb Bryan, Senior, Second Base; Adrian Ramon, Senior, Catcher/pitcher; Josh Martinez, Senior, Outfield; Jonathan Salas, Junior, Second Base; Steven Mata, Sophomore, Shortstop; Jonathan Lopez, Senior, Outfield; Daniel Cardenas, Junior, First Base; and Cody Thompson, Senior, First Base.

Again, congratulations to the Hawks and their families, Harlingen South High School, the City of Harlingen, and the Rio Grande Valley.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1051, the National STEM Scholarship Database

Act. I would like to commend the work of my good friend and colleague from New Jersey, Congressman Rush Holt, for bringing this bill forward and for all of his efforts to ensure that our Nation stays at the forefront of the STEM fields. I share his commitment to mobilizing our resources at all levels to expand the pool of opportunities in these career fields that are critical to our future security and prosperity.

It is no secret that we are losing our competitive edge in producing experts in science, technology, math and engineering. Of the 42 countries that granted more than 20,000 university degrees in 2002, the United States is in the bottom quartile in the ratio of STEM college degrees awarded.

Our pool of future STEM professionals can be found in our public schools in America. The 2007 ``Condition of Education'' reminds us that a growing percentage of these students are minorities, with a growing percentage from low-income families. These are the students that will rely on college scholarships and college financial aid to achieve the dream of a college education.

The National STEM Scholarship Database will be an invaluable tool to help our young people to find the resources they need to finance college education in the STEM fields.

As the chairman of the Subcommittee on Higher Education, I believe this legislation will also underscore that a STEM career is possible, an essential message for our young people to hear.

This is a real service to our young people and to our Nation. I thank the gentleman from New Jersey for his efforts, and urge all my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2559) to temporarily extend the programs under the Higher Education Act of 1965, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent for 5 legislative days during which Members may insert material relevant to H.R. 2559 into the Record.

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

(Mr. HINOJOSA asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong report of H.R. 2559, a bill to extend the Higher Education Act through October 31, 2007.

This bill is very straightforward. It simply extends the current programs authorized under the Higher Education Act until October 31, 2007, giving us the time to fully consider and complete the reauthorization act.

I would like to thank Congressman McKeon, the ranking member of the full committee, and Congressman Ric Keller, the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning and Competitiveness, for joining Chairman George Miller and me in bringing this noncontroversial extension to the floor in a bipartisan manner.

I urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation.

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

Mr. Speaker, I want to express my strong commitment, as chairman of the Higher Education Subcommittee, that I will work very closely with Congressman Price from Georgia and all of the members of our committee to be able to finish the work necessary to reauthorize the Higher Education Act sometime before the end of this year, hopefully in October.

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

I thank Congressman Price for those closing remarks. And with that, Mr. Speaker, I ask the House to pass H.R. 2559.

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