Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, this week the House pauses to remember those who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks on our nation some nine years ago. My district suffered casualties that day, including Cranbury, New Jersey businessman Todd Beamer. Todd's words, ``Let's Roll'', were the prelude to the first act in striking back against the terrorist who had hijacked Flight 93. His sacrifice and that of the other passengers and crew aboard Flight 93 undoubtedly save many lives that terrible day. My thoughts and prayers go out to his wife, Lisa, and his children, David, Drew, and Morgan Kay, and to all the other families who lost loved ones on that day.

Nine years later, the memory of that terrible day remains fresh for those who lost someone dear to them. At the memorial service in Middletown in my district, we recalled the names of the fallen, including Stephen Cangialosi, Kathleen Hunt, Robert Parks, Edward Desimone, and Brendan and Roseanne Lang--just some of those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. My thoughts also turned to Richard Guadagno, formerly of Trenton and the manager of the Humbolt Bay National Wildlife Refuge, who perished on Flight 93. We owe debt of gratitude to the families of the victims for pressing for an investigation into how the attacks happened and how to prevent future tragedies. Kristin Breitweiser, Nikki Stern, Ginny Bauer, and other affected families from across the country demonstrated the power of citizen action. We will never forget these people, nor the courage and dedication of those they left behind and who continue to remind of us of the need to honor their memory and their sacrifice.

I've spent many of my years in Congress since the 9/11 attacks working to prevent a repeat of that tragedy. We are safer today in many ways than before 9/11, but there is still much for us to do. The best way we can honor those Americans who lost their lives on that day is to continue working to make our country safer still. Osama bin Laden and his band of murderers inflicted great physical harm on our country and our citizens, but neither he nor terrorists like him will never be able to break our spirit or cause us to walk away from our friends around the world.

Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of H.R. 4785, the Rural Energy Savings Program Act, which also authorizes the Home Star Energy Efficiency Loan Program. Residential housing accounts for one-third of the Nation's total electricity demand and about 22 percent of all energy use in the United States. Moreover, it is estimated that existing technologies and practices could reduce energy use--and therefore home energy costs for American families--by up to 40 percent per home. This legislation will allow electric utilities and co-ops to make low-interest loans of a few thousand dollars to consumers who wish to make energy efficient upgrades to their homes. The loans can then be repaid on the consumers' electric bill, with most of the loan costs covered by their savings in electricity.

The Rural Energy Savings and Home Star Energy Efficiency programs will help homeowners with the upfront costs of installing energy efficiency retrofits while boosting markets for U.S. manufacturers of energy efficiency products and creating new jobs for our construction workers and contractors. It is estimated that the two programs will create nearly 200,000 jobs in the construction, manufacturing, and retail sectors that have been devastated by the recent recession. At the same time, these programs will help curb our Nation's carbon emissions and reduce our unsustainable dependence on fossil fuels. This legislation is good for our economy, good for American worker and consumers, good for the environment, and good for our Nation's energy security.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to express my deepest sympathy and condolences to the victims of the floods that began on July 29, 2010 in northwestern Pakistan. Twelve million people have already been affected, and the Pakistani government estimates that millions more could be affected as the floods spread to the lower half of Punjab and the Sindh region. Already, there are counted more than 1600 dead, and the flooded regions have become plagued by water-borne diseases such as cholera and dysentery. The death toll could escalate tragically if major dams, such as the Guddu and Sukkur, fail as a result of the flood waters.

The United States has taken an active role in responding to this disaster in Pakistan. The U.S. military has rescued hundreds of people and delivered tens of thousands of pounds of relief supplies. Hundreds of thousands of halal meals have been provided to victims and relief workers. The U.S. Agency for International Development is coordinating the $35 million in U.S. assistance funds that will help provide food, health care, water, sanitation, and shelter for those displaced by the floods. I commend the humanitarian efforts of our troops and civilian personnel in the region. We must continue to do all we can to assist the Pakistani people at this terrible time.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the commencement of Ramadan, which begins tonight at dusk.

Most Americans are not familiar with Ramadan. In New Jersey, with our diverse, cosmopolitan population, we understand well the significance this month has for America's millions of Muslims and for Muslims around the globe. Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, a time of fasting, prayer, spiritual renewal, and contemplation. The observance of Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam, and it is a time when adherents to the faith give generously to charities both locally and around the world. Ramadan is a time to strengthen ties to family and community in the form of meals shared among friends and neighbors at sunset, when the fast is broken. During Ramadan, our American-Muslim neighbors in the 12th District volunteer their time at area soup kitchens in places like Trenton and New Brunswick.

It has been my privilege to represent the American-Muslim population in Central Jersey, a vibrant, thriving community of doctors, engineers, lawyers, teachers, small business owners, entrepreneurs, U.S. servicemen and women, and working class Americans. Their concerns are the same as those of many Americans--maintaining high standards of education to ensure that their children can compete globally, sustaining their small businesses, rebuilding our economy, and seeking new energy sources to reduce waste.

There is no greater testament to the American way of life than the fact that Muslims, Christians, Jews, Hindus--people of all faiths--live and work side-by-side in our local communities across the nation. The vast majority of our Muslim neighbors reject the extremist ideologies that have taken root on the fringes of Islam, tarnishing the name of that religion. As I visit with my friends in the American-Muslim community of Central New Jersey, I see clearly that the relationship between American democratic values and a moderate Islam has been, and will continue to be, mutually beneficial.

I look forward to participating in Ramadan iftaars in the 12th District and to continuing to serve American-Muslims and members of all the faith communities in Central New Jersey.

Madam Speaker, last month we marked the 20th anniversary of the passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). Prior to this law's enactment, disabled Americans experienced discrimination in almost all aspects of society. They were denied educational opportunities and employment, denied access to buildings and transportation, and denied basic civil rights.

In passing the ADA in 1990, Congress strove to provide to people with disabilities full participation in society, defeating the false stereotype that they would not be able to live and work independently and self-sufficiently. Today, more than 50 million Americans with physical or mental impairments legally are protected from discrimination in the areas of employment, public accommodation, public services, transportation, and telecommunications. Two years ago, we strengthened the ADA by passing legislation broadening coverage to individuals with disabilities who had been excluded from protection as a result of several Supreme Court decisions.

Our Nation has come a long way since the passage of the ADA. Prior to the law's enactment, even the halls of Congress were not accessible to disabled Americans. On the 20th anniversary of the passage of the ADA, Congressman Langevin (RI-02), the first quadriplegic to serve in Congress, presided over the House, marking the first time a Member in a wheelchair ever has presided over the House of Representatives.

I have heard some comment that the Speaker's platform was specially modified to accommodate Representative Langevin. When we made it possible for Representative Langevin to preside over the House, we were not accommodating an individual--we were realizing the dream that any American, regardless of their circumstances, can preside over ``the people's House.'' The same point can be made with regard to construction and modifications in some schools to comply with the ADA. I have heard school officials comment that an expensive change was made for a particular student. I react strongly against that way of thinking. We should all remember that the changes should not rest on a single student; rather, they are part of our ongoing attempt to provide full equality of opportunity in our great country.

Madam Speaker, I have taken some time to review some of the previously classified documents on the war in Afghanistan that were published by the WikiLeaks.org website. Before rushing to judgment about this very large, unauthorized disclosure of information, I wanted to review some of the documents myself to determine if indeed potential human sources of information had been compromised. After reviewing some of these documents, I have concluded that their release could indeed cause real harm to real people.

I have frequently taken the executive branch to task for over- classifying documents. There have been many episodes in our nation's history where the classification system has been used to hide improper acts or to shield policy-makers and bureaucrats from scrutiny or embarrassment. The Pentagon Papers episode is perhaps the most well publicized example of the executive branch seeking to keep information classified because it is embarrassing. That is not the case with the so-called ``Afghan War Diary'' of WikiLeaks.org.

Some of the documents I reviewed contained the names of real Afghan insurgents who turned themselves in to U.S. or Afghan government forces. Those same reports say these defectors were interrogated, and we may presume that after they are released from custody they and their families could be in danger of assassination by other insurgents. The government has a legitimate need to keep secret any sources and methods that are truly important for our nation's security. The individual or individuals responsible for the release of these unredacted documents should be prosecuted. A criminal investigation into this matter is underway.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5900, the Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act.

Today we have the opportunity to make good on the promise we made to the Families of Flight 3407 when we passed the Airline Safety and Pilot Training Improvement Act in October of last year. Our promise that Congress would act to correct the lack of oversight and safety standards that contributed to the crash of Continental Flight 3407 in Buffalo, NY in February of 2009, taking the lives of 50 people.

Three residents of New Jersey's 12th Congressional district were on this flight; Lorin Maurer, Ron Gonzales and Coleman Mellett. I have spoken with and heard from their families and friends, and my thoughts and prayers go out to them as they cope with the loss of these outstanding individuals. Lorin was a rising star at Princeton University whose positive attitude and volunteerism served as a shining example for the community. Ron was a tireless advocate for his community and he worked hard to save children who were in crisis due to domestic violence, drugs, gangs, and other social ills. And Coleman was a talented musician. Their passing was a huge loss to our community. I have been vigilant in working to ensure that we address the serious safety concerns that led to the crash.

A series of National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) hearings exposed the disturbing fact that the crash of Flight 3407 was preventable. The pilots had received inadequate training on how to recover from a stall and how to proceed in icing conditions. Severe pilot fatigue also was identified as the cause of the crash. The NTSB found that regional carriers are held to lower safety standards than national carriers despite regional airlines' accounting for one-half of all scheduled flights in the United States. As a result, five of the last seven fatal commercial plane crashes involved regional carriers.

As more Americans rely on commuter airlines for air service, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) must take aggressive action to ensure that there is no difference in the level of safety provided by different air carriers. The NTSB hearings also made clear that the FAA has failed to issue regulations based on previous NTSB recommendations to establish uniform standards for training and performance. We owe it to the families and friends of the victims of the Flight 3407 to take action to prevent such tragedies in the future.

Last year I joined my colleagues from Upstate New York, Christopher Lee and Brian Higgins in introducing the One Level of Safety Act. Our legislation would require regional carriers to meet the same training and safety standards of national carriers.

Additionally, it would require the FAA to implement the unfulfilled NTSB recommendations that were found to be responsible for this crash. I would like to thank Chairman Costello for including these important provisions in the Airline Safety & Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act, and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6080, which will provide $600 million to bolster ongoing security efforts and to reduce violence along our nation's southern border.

Like many of my constituents, I am concerned about the influx of illegal immigrants into America. The level of violence stemming from the drug trade in Mexico, which has spilled over into the Southwest, is unacceptable. The Obama administration has committed more than 17,000 border patrol agents to the southern border, a historic high, yet we must do more.

The bill will provide $176 million for 1,000 additional Border Patrol agents to be deployed along the southwest border and $68 million to hire 250 new Customs and Border Protection officers at ports of entry along the border. It also will fund two new unmanned aerial vehicles for Customs and Border Protection to monitor the border.

The bill will provide $80 million for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to hire more than 250 special agents, investigators, intelligence analysts, and mission support staff to investigate and reduce narcotics smuggling and associated violence.

Additional funding will go to the U.S. Marshals Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms' Project Gunrunner, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and to the Federal government's efforts to incarcerate criminal illegal immigrants and to reduce the backlog in the nation's immigration courts.

Importantly, this bill is fully paid for by increasing fees for visas that permit foreign workers to work in the United States and by reallocating $100 million of unspent funds at the Department of Homeland Security. These fee increases would apply only to companies with more than 50 employees with a workforce predominantly comprised of visa-holding foreign workers.

The history of America is a history of immigration and of immigrants. From the first settlers in Jamestown and Plymouth to the masses greeted by the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island fleeing poverty and persecution in the old world, millions have sought a new life in America. Immigrants continue to this day to be a vital part of our social fabric and a key contributor to economic growth. While Congress needs to address immigration reform in a comprehensive manner, our first priority must be securing our borders by providing additional tools and resources to those who patrol the border.

I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill.

Madam Speaker, the bill before us makes critical investments in education which are fully paid for by closing tax loopholes that reward corporations who ship jobs overseas and by finding savings in other programs.

Just this week, the New Jersey School Boards Association released a survey that found that 80 percent of school districts expect to have larger class sizes and fewer teachers when school starts this fall.

Our children do not get a second chance to succeed in school, and our future economic growth depends on a well educated and innovative workforce. We cannot afford to shortchange our children or risk laying off our teachers.

The current economic downturn has hit the tax base hard, schools have suffered and many are being forced to cut services. Previously, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act made several sound investments in public education to keep teachers in the classroom and help school districts avoid painful cuts.

Most, if not all, of this emergency funding has been spent. Further, at this most critical time, Governor Christie made the wrong call in cutting state aid to our local schools. Already he has cut $1.2 billion from education programs statewide.

The $10 billion included for the Education Jobs Fund will help keep teachers in the classroom and make sure that class sizes do not balloon next fall. This funding will help keep 161,000 teachers in the classroom and at work, 3,900 in New Jersey and 160 in Central New Jersey.

I am deeply concerned that Governor Christie is considering not applying for the funds our state is slated to receive. If he fails to do so, the legislation allows the U.S. Secretary of Education to make awards to other entities in New Jersey so our students do not suffer.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the week of August 9, 2010, as Kidney Disease Awareness and Education Week. This important event is sponsored by the American Nephrology Nurses' Association, ANNA. The week helps remind us and all Americans of the needs of patients suffering from or at risk of End Stage Renal Disease, ESRD.

I have met with nephrology nurses from my district to discuss ESRD and hear from them firsthand about their work. According to national reports, over 400,000 Americans have irreversible kidney failure. The only treatment for ESRD is dialysis or kidney transplantation; however, transplantation is limited due to the shortage of donors. The majority of patients undergo regular dialysis treatments to sustain life.

In my home state of New Jersey there are 10,882 people who suffer from ESRD and require regular dialysis. Nephrology nurses play a critical role in providing kidney disease patients with dialysis and related care and treatment to patients with ESRD across the entire country.

ANNA's Kidney Disease Awareness and Education Week provides a great opportunity for everyone to learn about the excellent work being done by nephrology nurses across the country. Finally, I want to commend the nephrology nurses in New Jersey for the great work they do every day.

Madam Speaker, this bill has not improved since the House voted on it earlier this year. This bill spends money on training police in Afghanistan as communities in New Jersey lay off police officers because of budget shortfalls. Our first responsibility to our citizens is to help keep them safe in their homes and their communities. This bill does the opposite: It allocates billions more for a war that cannot be won militarily while allowing our own communities to become much easier targets of crime and violence. Moreover, this bill is paid for by borrowing more money from countries like China, and it violates President

Obama's pledge that the funding for our actions in Iraq and Afghanistan would be done through the usual appropriations process. By passing this unfunded bill, we will be adding tens of billions of dollars in new debt. I cannot support such reckless policy.

Further, the bill does not include funding that is essential to stop massive layoffs among teachers and other public servants we count on. The recession that began in 2008--the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression--has hit our communities hard, forcing school districts to layoff teachers and cut services. Previously, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act made several sound investments in public education to keep teachers in the classroom and help school districts avoid painful cuts.

Most, if not all, of this emergency funding has been spent.

I cannot in good conscience vote for a bill that is so at odds with the most basic of our values, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting against it.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the rule for the CLEAR Act which would, among other provisions, provide full and dedicated funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

Congress created LWCF in 1965 on the principle that some funds from the sale and extraction of oil and gas from federal lands be used for the protection of important lands and waters; so they remain available for the enjoyment of all Americans. Only once in 45 years has LWCF received its full funding.

My colleagues on the other side of the aisle say that the $2.00 per barrel conservation fee will be an undue burden on consumers. One fourth of a cent per gallon at the pump, 2 cents per tank, is well worth it for preserving Yellowstone, the Everglades, a battlefield, or building a local park in Shrewsbury or a playground in Lawrence Township.

This bill ensures that $900 million will be provided annually for LWCF without appropriation and achieve a long-awaited, much-needed balance between resource extraction and resource conservation. I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Chair, the huge human and environmental catastrophe has brought to light glaring deficiencies in the way we oversee, regulate, and hold accountable those who produce oil and gas on our public lands.

This bill will accomplish several good things such as imposing safety standards on drilling and strengthening the Land and Water Conservation Fund thanks to Chairman Rahall. It is important that it will also clarify and improve liability laws thanks to Mr. Oberstar.

Under the current law, BP is responsible for the removal costs of the spill. They are liable only for $75 million, however, for economic and natural resource damages. For a spill of this magnitude, a limit as low as $75 million is laughable.

After the spill began, I led 85 of my colleagues in introducing the Big Oil Bailout Prevention Act, which would raise the liability cap now and retroactively. Of course the polluters should pay. The escrow account created by the administration and BP will have a short-term fix, but the CLEAR Act will ensure that BP is legally liable for all economic and natural resource damages it has caused. The public will know the buck stops with the oil companies, that the costs will not spill over to taxpayers.

I urge my colleagues to support this.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Virginia and join with him in our concern for the workers, the restaurateurs, the small business owners, all those who depend on the Gulf of Mexico for their livelihoods. This gives us ample motivation to close this loophole which allows oil companies to shift the cost for cleanup from the oil company to the taxpayers. Current law would allow an oil company subsidiary that is responsible for an oil spill to declare bankruptcy.

We must not depend just on the good word of the oil companies. We have been given ample reason to question that good word. Even today, the new CEO of BP says he's entertaining the idea of scaling back the cleanup in the gulf. We must close every loophole. This amendment of Mr. Connolly, Mr. Welch and I, and others, would ensure that companies like BP pay every last cent that they are liable for, that the spill not spill over to the taxpayer.

Madam Chair, I have amendment No. 1 at the desk.

Madam Chair, I want to thank the Rules Committee for making this amendment in order and for the strong support and encouragement I have received in this effort from the chairman of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs subcommittee. The gentleman from Texas' leadership of the subcommittee and his concern and compassion and advocacy for the needs of veterans is truly an inspiration.

Madam Chair, we have few responsibilities as solemn and as important as ensuring that our veterans receive the care that we have promised them as a Nation. To that end, my amendment directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to allocate $20 million for direct advertising, the use of online social media and other media for suicide prevention outreach. Let me take a moment to tell you why this issue means so much to me, and I would like to tell you about one very remarkable family from my central New Jersey congressional district.

A little over a week ago, on July 14, I had the privilege of introducing Mrs. Linda Bean of East Brunswick, New Jersey, to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Linda was appearing before the Oversight and Investigations subcommittee to tell the story of how her son, Coleman, came to take his own life in September 2008. Linda made it clear why she had traveled to Washington to, I would say, courageously share her family's painful story: ``I owe a duty to my son and our debt to the men with whom Coleman served.''

You see, Coleman was a two-tour veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Like so many of our troops who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, Coleman developed post-traumatic stress disorder. In between and after those tours, he sought treatment for his PTSD. Because Sergeant Bean was a member of the Individual Ready Reserve, the so-called IRR--a pool of reserve soldiers not assigned to any unit but available for mobilization if needed--he could not get treatment for his condition because the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs refused to take ownership of Sergeant Bean and the thousands like him. A few weeks after Coleman took his life, the VA called to confirm his next appointment.

As Linda closed her testimony before the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, she relayed how one VA official had told her, ``If they won't walk through the door, we can't help them.'' Linda's response must be our response: ``Of course we can help them. It is our duty to figure out how, not theirs.''

Earlier this year, I secured the inclusion of a suicide prevention provision in the annual defense authorization bill that would require the Secretary of Defense to conduct periodic telephone or in-person outreach and counseling calls to reservists like Coleman. The idea is to check on the IRR member's mental, emotional and professional well- being and to identify and treat any IRR

members who are deemed to be at risk of harming themselves.

Because the other body has thus far failed to act on the fiscal year 2011 authorization, I have sent a letter to Secretaries Gates and Shinseki asking that they take whatever administrative action is necessary to reach out and monitor this very large pool of at-risk reservists. I have also asked that they meet with Greg and Linda Bean and explain in detail what those departments intend to do to prevent other Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans from suffering Coleman's fate.

Our commitment to reducing suicides among our veterans must be comprehensive and unwavering. This amendment today is designed to give the VA the resources and the direction to get appropriate and broad- based outreach under way as soon as President Obama signs this bill. I hope this amendment will be supported on a bipartisan basis, because, as Linda Bean says, ``It's not their job to figure out how, it's ours.''

I yield to the gentleman from Texas.

I thank the gentleman.

In closing, I would say there are tens of thousands of people who will be helped.