Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, California's the fifth largest economy in the world. One would think that the Republican administration would be paying attention to the economic indicators in California and realize that all is not well in the economy.

Since President Bush took office, 1.9 million jobs have been lost. Californian unemployment remains above the national average, and one in 10 persons in my District is unemployed. Jobs that have been created are low-paying and do not provide benefits such as health care and other important benefits.

There is a direct link between getting a good education and getting a good job, but the ability to get that good education has been undermined by the inability to adequately fund the best higher education system in the United States, the California higher education system, because students are now being turned away. Eligible to get in, all the tests, all the ability to get in, but no room in the inn. Why? Because this administration has failed to adequately fund the Pell grants and Perkins loans for students to make education accessible.

During the 1980s, we learned that voodoo economics did not stimulate the economy. Neither is hoodoo economics stimulating the economy today.

Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of words.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the Holt amendment, and let me tell you why. I know a lot of these things have been said.

But, after all, this is a national park, and I think if you read Megatrends and what is happening in America, that the most increasing sport in America is watchable wildlife. More people watch wildlife than all of the national football games, baseball games, basketball games, golf, everything you see on television. More people are looking at wild animals.

Where do you go to look at wild animals and have the serenity of the wilderness? It is in the wilderness areas. It seems to me that that is the inspiration for thought, the inspiration for connection with nature. And if there is anything that is so obtrusive after you have gone into a park, it is to be interrupted by things that are not natural.

If there is something that is not natural in a national park, it is snowmobiles. It is like having chain saws while we are trying to have this debate here in this Chamber. We could not stand the noise. We would ask that it be stopped.

I represent the United States' largest marine sanctuary. We have outlawed jet skis in the sanctuary. Why? People do not want to go down to the ocean and just hear a bunch of noise from jet skis. They want to see otters, they want to be able to see sea lions, they want to be able to hear them, they want to be able to watch whales, they want to see the coastline in its natural state. That is why we have national parks. That is why it is the highest act of Congress to do it.

It seems to me if a park is a park is a park, then we have to do everything possible to make sure that park is the experience that people want to have in the wilderness. If you want to go out and have sports in the wilderness, fine, go to someplace in a national forest. But do not go to a national park to do it. It is just not right.

You do not allow hunting in the national park, and people could give you all reasons why perhaps you ought to have hunting, limited hunting; but we do not do it, and we ought not to have snowmobiles in any national park.

I yield to the gentleman from Washington.

Mr. Chairman, reclaiming my time, I would like to also associate myself with the gentleman's remarks, and remind this body that only last week with all the construction that is going on, and we are trying to get that construction over with because it is so bothersome, but when we were having the service for former President Reagan in the rotunda, we stopped all the noise outside in the construction area.

It seems to me that we ought to allow the national parks to be places where people do not have to experience unnatural noises, and the noises from snowmobiles are very, very loud.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of my dear friend Edie Karas, one of the most dedicated and energetic community members in my Central California district, and indeed the nation and the world. A life-long resident of the Monterey Peninsula, Edie has played an active and vital role in countless civic organizations. Along with her late husband of more than 50 years, the former Monterey County Supervisor Sam Karas, Edie made up half a dynamic duo of public service. Since Sam passed away in 2003, Edie has carried on with that tradition of service to both her neighbors next door and her neighbors around the world.

A short account of Edie's service would include the time that Edie has donated to the Monterey Civic Club, Monterey Recreation Committee, Robinson Jeffers' Tor House, Alliance on Aging, Monterey Bay Symphony, State Theatre Preservation Society, and the list goes on. In addition, several years ago, Edie and her late husband, the former County Supervisor Sam Karas, traveled to Bosnia where they served as international election observers.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to celebrate Edie's work on behalf of the Big Sur Health Center, which will recognize her service in a tribute on June 18, 2004. I became involved with the clinic in the late '70's as a member of the Monterey County Board of Supervisors. At that time the Big Sur Clinic had more certified EMTs per capita than any place in the U.S. and provided free emergency services and an ambulance maintained by the Red Cross. Today the Health Center serves many of the outpatient health needs of the rural Big Sur community in a modest facility made up of two 35 year old portable trailers and a treasury of heart, soul, and dedication supplied by its volunteers. For much of the last decade, Team Karas has been instrumental in its growth and success.

When they joined the Center's board in the late 1990s, the Center faced deep financial hardship. Sam took immediate action and began to contact the Pebble Beach Foundation and other funding sources outside the immediate Big Sur community. His efforts put the Center on the map for charitable foundations and government agencies. The Center soon regained its financial footing and was back on the path to fiscal health.

However, while Sam was out front making the initial calls and receiving the credit, I have always suspected that it was Edie who did the work. I see evidence of that in the fact that the Center will soon replace its venerable trailers with a new building, a development in which Edie has played no small part in seeing to fruition. Edie continues to be the spark of energy that animates the Center's fundraising efforts and every other cause that she embraces. So it is with true pleasure that I join with the Big Sur community and the people of Monterey County in recognizing Edie Karas for her service to the Big Sur Health Center. I wish Edie and the Center the best of health.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise in full support of my friend and colleague, Mr. Gilchrest, in his efforts to protect sea turtles. Mr. Gilchrest has a long history of working diligently to protect marine wildlife and this bill, H.R. 3378, the Marine Turtle Conservation Act, demonstrates his ongoing interest in this area.

Mr. Speaker, both the Pew and U.S. Ocean Commission Reports have documented the many crises facing our oceans. These are crises that require real leadership by this body. Today, we have the opportunity to demonstrate our leadership by passing Mr. Gilchrest's bill.

With 6 of 7 marine turtles listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act, H.R. 3378 is a wake-up call. Like the sea otter--an animal especially important to my district--sea turtles play vital roles in the ecosystems in which they occur. This means that our efforts to restore sea turtle populations will likely have the indirect effect of benefiting many other marine species. More bang for the buck. I think we all like it when that happens.

Sea turtles straddle numerous political borders--they are highly migratory species whose conservation depends on cooperative efforts by humans across the globe. These cooperative efforts require political and financial commitments by many groups, from individual countries to non-governmental organizations to local communities. When all of these levels of leadership come together in a cohesive manner, our protection of sea turtles is dramatically increased. H.R. 3378 coordinates all of these levels by authorizing funds for on-the-ground efforts to protect sea turtles in countries where a lack of funds, not a lack of will, is the problem.

Mr. Speaker, it is only through international efforts that sea turtle populations will begin to rebound. I know that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Fish and Wildlife Service work hard to oversee our country's efforts to protect sea turtles and to collaborate with other countries at every opportunity. With passage of H.R. 3378, we can take our leadership to the next level by providing grants to international groups with demonstrated experience in conserving sea turtles. By doing this, the United States can demonstrate its leadership in coastal and ocean conservation--something near and dear to my heart.

Mr. Gilchrest has addressed one piece of the puzzle and I commend him for his efforts. The next step--and I think that Mr. Gilchrest would agree--is to provide a long-term vision about our relationship with the sea by passing a national ocean policy act. I am working on BOB, the Big Ocean Bill, with the cochairs of the bipartisan House Oceans Caucus. I know we would all welcome Mr. Gilchrest's leadership and expertise on marine wildlife and fisheries conservation as we move forward with BOB.

In closing, Mr. Speaker, I strongly support H.R. 3378 and hope that it represents the beginning of a new era in U.S. ocean policy.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Thomas Q. Reefe, whose lifelong dedication to the Santa Cruz community consists of over 35 years of volunteerism and leadership with local organizations. Tom will be retiring from his current position as Executive Director of Leadership Santa Cruz County where he has diligently worked to advance the interests of the organization for the betterment of the community for over 13 years.

Tom first became involved in local politics while attending UC Berkeley in the 1960's. He was soon recognized by many as a community organizer and anti-war activist. His education was interrupted by military service while he served in the U.S. Army in Vietnam. After a distinguished tour, Tom returned to receive his PhD in African History in 1974. Following the receipt of his degree, Torn taught History at the University of North Carolina. After a fruitful career as a professor, Tom accepted a position at the University of California Santa Cruz as Director of Career Services where he worked until 1993.

Beyond his extensive professional experience, Tom has been an integral part of the local Santa Cruz community as well. A member of the first graduating class of Leadership Santa Cruz in 1986, Tom has remained loyal to the organization since its inception. Due to his innovative and sustainable proposals, Leadership Santa Cruz has blossomed into a much relied upon organization within our community. Under his tutelage, over 600 members of our community, including members of my district staff, have been guided through an extensive course intended to outline the various facets that make up Santa Cruz County.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to congratulate Tom on his much deserved retirement and thank him for his contribution to our society. Tom has continuously gone above and beyond the roles bestowed upon him and has left in his wake a legacy of community leadership. I wish him all the best in his retirement.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Alan Brenner who passed away May 16th 2004 after a prolonged battle with cancer. He has been an active member of our community and will be missed by all who knew him. He is survived by his wife, Jeannie, son, Michael, stepchildren Alex, Scott, and Diane Wilsdon, and ten grandchildren.

Born and raised in Palo Alto, California, Alan was no stranger to the nearby Monterey Bay, as he completed his basic training at the former Fort Ord. After serving for two years in the United States Army, Alan began his lifelong career in the hospitality industry. He returned to the Monterey Peninsula in 1971 to become the General Manager of the La Playa Hotel in Carmel. In 1978 he began managing the new Monterey Conference Center, where his accomplishments led his colleagues to name him ``World's Best Convention Services Manager'' in 1979.

Alan's famous generosity led to his involvement in several local organizations such as the Pacific Repertory Theater, Forest Theater Guild in Carmel, the Carmel Rotary Club, Pacheco Club, and All Saints Episcopal Church. He often took on leadership roles, and was an active supporter of local artists and musicians. The Carmel Bach Festival board benefited from his eleven years of service, and he put in countless volunteer hours helping to renovate the Sunset Theater while on, the Building Committee for the Sunset Theater Project.

Even with his busy schedule at home, Alan never missed a chance to travel with his wife, Jeannie. They visited such diverse places as Bhutan, Niger, and India, always eager to meet new people. Alan and Jeannie made first contact with the Kumbi people in Irian Jaya, and during a trip last fall to China met the Miao people. Alan's travels and interactions with other cultures truly made him feel connected to the global community in a way that few people have the chance to experience.

Mr. Speaker, I applaud Alan's many accomplishments, and I commend him for his lifelong dedication to his community and friends. He was a remarkable figure, and his memory will live on in the many people whose lives he has touched. I join the Monterey Bay community, and friends and family in honoring this truly admirable man and friend for all of his lifelong achievements.

Mr. Speaker, it is with great honor and pleasure that I am able to rise today to recognize Tom Reefe, the Executive Director of Leadership Santa Cruz County. Tom has held the position of Executive Director for twelve years, and will retire this coming June.

Leadership Santa Cruz County, an organization that promotes civic participation of emerging community, political and business leaders, has grown tremendously under the tutelage of Tom. He has, for the past twelve years, dedicated a tremendous amount of strength and energy into this noble endeavor.

More than 500 people, including some of my staff, have graduated from Tom's program during his tenure as Executive Director. These graduates come from all walks of life, yet they came to Tom for a common reason: they had a desire to approach the problems, issues, and needs facing our community in a matter of fact and head-on manner.

Indeed, Santa Cruz has benefited greatly from Tom's contributions. His dedication, dynamism and spiritedness have rubbed off onto everyone who has the opportunity to work with him. Our central coast community is truly indebted to Tom Reefe.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Richard W. Bedal, a dedicated member of the Santa Cruz community, upon his retirement. Beginning his commitment to public service in 1970 as a Legal Clerk in the Superior Court Clerk's Office, Mr. Bedal has continued to serve the county of Santa Cruz for over 30 years. Mr. Bedal will be enjoying his retirement in the company of his family and wife, Martha.

In 1975, Mr. Bedal became a Judge Pro Tem in the Small Claims and Traffic Court before accepting the position of Assistant County Clerk in 1976. After spending 6 years supervising the Superior Court Clerk's Office, Mr. Bedal was elected in 1982 and then re-elected in 1986 and 1990 to the position of County Clerk-Recorder for the County of Santa Cruz. His public service took a new turn in 1994 when he was elected to the consolidated office of County Clerk-Recorder and Treasurer-Tax Collector, continuing to serve in this office until his retirement this year. Though a well deserved retirement, Mr. Bedal's long dedication to the county of Santa Cruz will be missed.

In addition to serving the county of Santa Cruz, Mr. Bedal also has been the President of the California Association of County-Treasurers- Tax Collectors, President of the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Cruz, President of the County Recorders' Association of California, and President of the Santa Cruz County Employee's Credit Union throughout his many years of service to his community. An avid biker, Mr. Bedal has also completed the California AIDS ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles and once even biked from Santa Cruz to Santa Barbara to visit his daughter.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to recognize Mr. Richard W. Bedal's accomplishments and contributions to our community. I am immensely grateful for his dedication and I wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of both Members representing Santa Cruz County, California, myself and Representative Anna G.

Eshoo, I rise today to honor M.R.C. Greenwood, former Chancellor of the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a dedicated member of the Santa Cruz community. Ms. Greenwood has recently left her position at UCSC to become Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs for the University of California. I rise today to honor her contributions both to UCSC and to the community of Santa Cruz County.

As soon as she stepped foot on the UCSC campus in June of 1996, Ms. Greenwood began revolutionizing the institution. During her tenure, she was instrumental in the creation of the Baskin School of Engineering, as well as two new colleges on campus. As an accomplished scientist herself, Ms Greenwood was responsible for the development of many fine research institutions including the Institute for Advanced Feminist Research, the STEPS Institute for Innovation in Environmental Research, the Center for Justice Tolerance, and Community, and the Center for Ocean Health. By the end of her tenure, academic programs had been enhanced and enlarged and graduate and undergraduate enrollment increased to more than 14,000 students. With the campus now reaching a regional annual economic impact of almost $1 billion, her leadership has proven advantageous not only to the students at the university, but to the local community as well.

In addition to her dedication to the campus and academic life, Ms. Greenwood has also made important contributions to our local community. As member of the Board of Directors of Sutter Hospital, the Second Harvest Food Bank, and the United Way of Santa Cruz County, Ms. Greenwood has earned the title of ``Woman of the Year'' from the Santa Cruz Chamber of Commerce.

Mr. Speaker, Representative Eshoo and I would like to extend our gratitude to Ms. Greenwood for her friendship and dedicated service to the UC-Santa Cruz community. Her leadership has benefited the lives of countless students and has improved our community beyond our greatest expectations. We wish her the best of luck in her new role with the University and have no doubt that the entire University of California system will continue to flourish under her guidance.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee) for yielding me time and for allowing me to join her on the floor today. I want to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde) and members of the committee for allowing me to attend the hearing that led to the markup of this bill.

I served in the Peace Corps, and it holds a really special place in my heart, as it does for four other Members of Congress who are also return Peace Corps volunteers. Our colleagues, the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Shays), the gentleman from New York (Mr. Walsh), the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Petri), the gentleman from California (Mr. Honda) and myself all are return Peace Corps volunteers.

In the 1960s I spent 2 years serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Colombia, South America. My experience as a Peace Corps volunteer helped me to motivate my life to public service and I think helped shape me into the person I am today. And there are tens and tens of thousands of Americans who have served in the Peace Corps in over 130 countries throughout the world and who have had similar experiences.

The vast majority of the return Peace Corps volunteers agree with the sentiment that the Peace Corps experience was the toughest job they ever loved. Peace Corps not only benefits individual Americans, but it also helps the developing world and makes the world a bit safer one volunteer at a time. The important community-based jobs the Peace Corps volunteers perform are instrumental in helping to bring about greater peace and security in the world. Not only are PCVs helping people in developing countries overcome poverty, one of the root causes of terrorism, they are also showing the world a different, friendlier face of what Americans are really like.

Peace Corps volunteers live, eat and work amongst the people in countries from Albania to Zambia. In this type of environment, where a Peace Corps volunteer is teaching hand washing to a child or computer literacy to a brother, the realization quickly dawns on the people, regardless of their nationality, that we have more similarities than differences. This people-to-people interaction is the real recipe for creating more peace and stability in the world.

Today we are discussing the Health, Safety and Security of Peace Corps Volunteers Act of 2004, which tries to improve the safety of volunteers who can sometime serve in isolated areas of the world. H.R. 4060 addresses some important issues and tries to increase the safety and oversight of the Peace Corps.

I am very pleased that this bill does not mandate that volunteers must be paired together in communities. The best security measure for Peace Corps volunteers is for them to integrate quickly into their communities. Pairing volunteers would impede I think in this integration into the host country.

My major concern with H.R. 4060, though, is that the safety and security measures should not take away from the important existing budgetary requirements of the Peace Corps. Let me end by reminding this body that in the currently constricted budget environment we need to carefully allocate our resources. Just recently, General Abizaid, who is head of the Middle East, let our Committee on Appropriations know that he thought America would never be able to have world peace until we were able to cross the cultural divides.

I cannot think of any better investment that the United States Congress can make than to fully fund the Peace Corps as the President has requested in his State of the Union Address. What he asked was to double the size of the Peace Corps, which we have, but now we have failed to meet the President's demands on what it will take to do that. That is a very bad mistake at this time in the history of the United States.

I am glad the Congress is concerned with the safety of volunteers, but I urge each of our Members, when it comes to the appropriations process, let us meet the President's request. Let us fully fund the Peace Corps. Let us indeed teach America how to cross the cultural divide and create world peace forever.

Mr. Speaker, May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, and I would like to commemorate the substantial achievements of Asian Pacific Americans to our nation's history. My district, comprised of Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Benito Counties in California owes a particularly large debt to the Asian Pacific community. California has benefited greatly from the contributions of Asian Pacific immigrants throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Chinese immigrants were instrumental in building the transcontinental railroad which helped open California to settlement and brought rapid economic growth to the West and along with immigrants from Japan, helped start Monterey's commercial fishing industry.

The Central Coast of California was and still is, highly dependent on agriculture. Starting in the late 1890s, Chinese, Japanese and Filipino farm laborers were the engine behind the growth and development of the agricultural industry. Farm labor work on strawberry and peach farms was often back-breaking work; laborers rose at dawn and worked until dusk, and were generally paid very poorly. Additionally, Asian Pacific immigrants were often treated horribly and harshly discriminated against. Filipino farm workers formed the first organized group in the early history of the United Farm Workers Union. Despite these conditions and obstacles, over the last hundred years, the Asian Pacific American community has grown into a vibrant community that has made substantial contributions to California and our nation as a whole. I am proud to represent a large Filipino population in my district who are active citizens of the community.

This year's theme of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is ``Freedom for All--A Nation We Call Our Own,'' and exemplifies one of the best aspects of the America; that all citizens can take ownership in our society and country and work towards building a better nation. Mabuhay.

Mr. Chairman, I rise today to support the Davis Amendment and our servicewomen stationed around the world. These brave soldiers, sailors, and air women have dedicated themselves to serving our country, and the least we should do is give them access to the highest quality healthcare available. Currently, servicewomen and female military dependents are prohibited from using their own funds for abortions at overseas military hospitals. Military women should be able to depend on their base hospitals for all their health-care services, but instead they are forced to compromise their medical privacy and wait for space on a military transport, or to seek an abortion in a foreign hospital. It is unacceptable to endanger the health of our servicewomen by denying them safe and timely medical care.

The Davis amendment would allow military women and military dependents stationed overseas to exercise the reproductive rights they are entitled to as Americans. This amendment would not require the government to pay for abortions, and it would not force medical providers to perform abortions. All branches of the military have provisions that permit medical personnel who have moral, religious, or ethical objections to abortion not to participate in the procedure; this amendment would not change this.

We can't violate the rights and liberties of our troops who are fighting to protect our rights and liberties. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

Mr. Speaker, today the House considered H.R. 3722, the Undocumented Alien Emergency Medical Assistance Amendments. As you know, I voted against this bill.

Frankly, at a time when tuberculosis is on the rise in America, when STDs and AIDS continue to plague our population, and when biological health threats are no longer strictly the realm of science fiction. I am embarrassed that we had to debate legislation to erect barriers to health care rather than debating ways to encourage early intervention whenever someone falls ill.

Communicable diseases still do exist, even in a techno-world like ours. And they are very real threats to public health and safety. Just one ``Typhoid Mary'' can cause health emergencies of epidemic proportions.

Intrusive identification programs like the one proposed in H.R. 3722 create a near police-state environment in the emergency room. Suddenly the fear of not having one's proper documentation becomes more important than the prospect of getting treatment. Not getting treatment leads to risks for all of us and believe me, disease does not respect green cards. This bill is mean-spirited in its targeting of hard- working, albeit undocumented persons, but it is reckless in its exposing the greater community to potential health threats.

The better answer to this problem is to enforce the current immigration laws, which do not allow for the hiring of undocumented workers, to provide the necessary resources to protect the border from illegal crossings, and above all, to work with our international neighbors to build a world economy that encourages citizens to remain in their homeland and build their lives there.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a public servant, Mark Tognazzni, of the highest caliber on his retirement from the posts of Agricultural Commissioner and Sealer of Weights and Measures for San Benito County, California. I wish to express my gratitude for his good work, and wish him well for the future.

Mark is a native of San Benito County, born and raised in Hollister. After attending local schools, he started working with the Agricultural Commissioner's office in 1963, and over time worked his way up through the ranks to become Commissioner in 1984. While in that position, Mark has worked on a local and regional level to promote good dialogue and relationships with the agricultural industry. His work continued State- wide as well and he was active in the California Agricultural Commissioners and Sealers Association, serving as both the Vice President and President of that group. His local work includes eight years as the Chairperson of the Agriculture/Horticulture Division of the San Benito County Fair and work with other county fairs in the area.

Mr. Speaker, Mark Tognazzini's career has spanned four decades and huge changes in the way California farmers operate and the government regulates. Throughout this time he has maintained good relationships with growers and residents, and has served the people of San Benito County and the State of California well. I am sure I join many others in wishing him all of the best for the future in his retirement.

Mr. Speaker, it was 228 years ago that the Second Continental Congress affirmed that all men are created equal, as they declared their independence from England. Despite the grand idea of creating a better government that cherished equality and unalienable rights, the United States of America endorsed overt racial discrimination and exploitation for over 178 years.

It was only 50 years ago, in the Supreme Court ruling on Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education that our government took a big step towards correcting these wrongs and recognizing the full spirit of equality. This ruling reversed the Plessy vs. Ferguson case and established that, ``separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.'' The Supreme Court's acknowledgment in Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education was a pivotal point in the rising civil rights movement that led to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968.

Today, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education. We also honor all the people, young and old, who bravely challenged the status quo and risked their own personal safety to fight for equality. It was their courage that spurred our country to become a better place and we will continue to recognize their important role in our history.

As we commemorate the achievement of the Brown decision, we must also recognize that this fight is not over. Across the country children of all races are being deprived of their fundamental right to an education. In California we see painful overcrowding in schools, creating conditions that are not conducive to learning. Without the critical skills provided by a good education, our children's futures are restricted. In the last several years we have seen a symbol of commitment to improving education in the enactment of the No Child Left Behind Law. This legislation sets high standards for the kind of achievement we would like to see from all of our children. However, this law fails to provide the resources and tools for states and localities to achieve these goals. Underperforming schools are punished instead of helped, and our children are once again denied their right to a good education.

The significance of Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education is too important for us to let it slip away. We must continue to dedicate ourselves to achieving equal rights and equal opportunity for all Americans.