Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Tate Rigby. Tate is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 404, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Tate has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Tate has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, Tate has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project. Tate partnered with the Missouri Department of Conservation for a trail project.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Tate for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Samuel Thomas. Samuel is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 404, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Samuel has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Samuel has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, Samuel has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project. Samuel completed a natural area for the Missouri Department of Conservation outdoor classroom.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Samuel for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Justin McHenry. Justin is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 404, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Justin has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Justin has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, Justin has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project. Justin painted hand rails around the First United Methodist Church in Kirksville, MO.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Justin for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, as one of the only professional pilots in Congress, I rise today in strong support of the long-awaited FAA reauthorization bill. I was happy to work closely with the chairman, ranking member, and all of our Senate counterparts to reach the compromise legislation that we have today.

We are finally providing our aviation programs the much-needed, long- term certainty that they desire, and I am excited about a number of policies included in the bill that I advocated for.

Just quickly, I secured language to prevent new taxes targeting consumers who rent cars at the airport. My aviation workforce development bill to encourage people to pursue careers in aviation as technicians and mechanics is included. I secured fixes on how the FAA regulates Living History Flight Experience flights. We finally ended the egregious FAA fees on large aviation events, such as Sun 'n Fun and Oshkosh air shows. We extended aircraft registration from 3 to 7 years. We directed the FAA to restore the ``all makes and models'' certificate for experimental aircraft. Building an aircraft in your hangar now will be considered an aeronautical use of that hangar.

There are many other things I can't include in my limited amount of time.

As we approach key milestones in the program in 2020 and beyond, my colleagues and I on the committee will remain committed to holding the FAA accountable and ensuring the goals of NextGen are achieved.

Mr. Speaker, I could go on, but, obviously, time does not allow.

Mr. Speaker, as one of the only professional pilots in Congress, I rise today in strong support of the long awaited FAA Reauthorization bill.

I was happy to work closely with the Chairman and Ranking Member, and our Senate counterparts to reach the compromise legislation before us today.

We will finally be providing our aviation programs some much needed long term certainty.

I am very excited about a number of policies included in the bill that I advocated for.

Just to go over them quickly:

I secured language to prevent new taxes targeting consumers who rent cars at the airport;

My aviation workforce development bill to encourage people to pursue careers as aviation technicians and mechanics;

I secured fixes to how FAA regulates living history flight experience flights;

We are finally ending the egregious FAA fees on large aviation events;

We extended aircraft registration from 3 years to 7 years;

Directed the FAA to restore the `all makes and models' certificate for experimental aircraft;

Building an aircraft in your hangar will now be considered `aeronautical use' of that hangar;

And many others that I can't cover in my limited time.

As we approach key milestones in the program in 2020 and beyond, my colleagues and I on the committee remain committed to holding FAA accountable and ensuring the goals of NextGen are achieved.

Mr. Speaker, I could go on and on when it comes to all the aviation policy in this bill that excites me.

But I'll save some time for my other colleagues.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Cooper Shaw. Cooper is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 1264, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Cooper has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Cooper has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, Cooper has become a member of the tribe Mic-O-Say. Cooper has also contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project. Cooper planned and led a team of Scouts and Scouters stenciling over 100 storm drains for the City of Lee's Summit to reduce flooding and pollution in their local lakes and streams.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Cooper Shaw for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of America's Water Infrastructure Act, which includes the House-passed WRDA.

The chairman's commitment to passing bipartisan WRDA bills every 2 years has been an impactful item at better managing the bureaucracy at the Army Corps and more regularly approving vital water projects. This is good government and a policy that I would like to see the committee remain committed to in the future.

In my district, Mr. Speaker, this bill is extremely important to the agriculture economy and to everyone who relies on the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. I am glad the final bill included my amendment to stop the Army Corps from building any new, unproven structures for endangered species along the Missouri, and, instead, they now are required to prove that it will actually work before spending millions of taxpayer dollars.

The Corps has to prove that these structures do not negatively impact the other management priorities on the Missouri River.

In closing, this is a good bill, and it is necessary to advance the important flood control projects and ensure our inland waterways remain reliable and efficient options for transporting goods.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for S. 3021.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Tyler Mann, Jr. Tyler is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 215, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Tyler has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Tyler has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, Tyler has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project. Tyler completed landscaping around the new electronic sign at his church.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Tyler Mann, Jr. for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Ryne Lammers. Ryne is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 714, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Ryne has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Ryne has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, Ryne has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project. Ryne installed a concrete pad and a bench for a church in his community.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Ryne Lammers for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Isaiah Freestone. Isaiah is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 135, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Isaiah has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Isaiah has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, Isaiah has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project. Isaiah planted trees at Lyons Park in Kearney, Missouri.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Isaiah Freestone for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Thomas Stump. Thomas is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 247, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Thomas has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Thomas has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, Thomas has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Thomas Stump for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Michael Guerra-York. Michael is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 247, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

Michael has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Michael has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, Michael has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Michael Guerra-York for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, on July 23, 2018 I missed a series of Roll Call votes. Had I been present, I would have voted ``YEA'' on No. 366 and 367.

On July 24, 2018 I missed a series of Roll Call votes. Had I been present, I would have voted ``YEA'' on No. 368, 369, 370, 371, and 372.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize James Drumright. James is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 1096, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

James has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years James has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, James has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending James for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize James Moloney, VI. James is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 1096, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout.

James has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years James has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Most notably, James has contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending James for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. Speaker, on June 19, 2018, I missed a series of Roll Call votes. Had I been present, I would have voted ``YEA'' on No. 269 and 270 and I would have voted ``NAY'' on No. 271.