Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, in the wake of the Supreme Court's destructive decision overturning Roe v. Wade, women across this country have shared their stories. From Facebook to the dinner table to streets in protest, women have shared the details of the deeply personal and often difficult moments in which they exercised their right to choose.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to share the story of a constituent of mine named Misty.

His name was Miles. I knew something was wrong at 12 to 16 weeks. At 20 weeks, it was too late. I spent a terrible night in the ER hemorrhaging. Miles survived that incident and there was still a heartbeat. The next day was traumatic at an ultrasound.

I had lost so much fluid and Miles was being smashed. They said that he wasn't getting the blood he needed to his kidneys and other places. They literally sent me home to wait for him to die. There was still a heartbeat at 20 weeks, but I was informed that Miles could not live to full term and that I would have to deliver conventionally if I had made it to 24 weeks.

The news continued to get worse, and I waited. That was the longest week of my life. I waited through fear, depression, anxiety, and immense sadness. At the end of that week, I decided, with my fetal medicine specialist, to terminate the pregnancy. It was one of the toughest decisions I have ever faced.

The trauma that I would have experienced by delivering a dead baby, Miles, would have been more than I could handle. Going to the doctor every other day and seeing him dying was enough to make me realize this.

Misty closes by saying: We are not careless, immoral, or monsters.

Madam Speaker, I stand with Misty, and I stand with her right to make her decision. The trauma and pain that women like Misty face in these moments should be met with care, compassion, and the right to privacy.

But instead, my colleagues on the right would rather inflict more trauma during what can be an extremely challenging moment in a woman's life: forcing them to cross State lines to access abortion; forcing them to give birth when it threatens their health, their mental health, and their financial well-being; forcing them to defend miscarriages in front of a court of law; forcing young girls to carry a pregnancy to term that is the result of a sexual assault or rape.

We cannot become complicit in the destructiveness of these extreme policies. Behind each pro-life policy are the very real and very personal stories of women whose lives will be forever turned upside down. I thank Misty for her story, but she shouldn't have to share it.

For 50 years, the law of the land respected individual choice and privacy. In Nevada, our law still reflects that today, but tomorrow may look different.

National Republicans stand ready to ban and restrict abortion nationwide, even in States like Nevada where the right to choose is protected by law. Just last week, on this very same House floor, they lined up in droves to talk about it.

The reality of a nationwide abortion ban is far more likely than you may think. I am not going to stand by and watch, and that is why I was so proud to vote for the Women's Health Protection Act, and, equally, to vote in the next few days on the Right to Contraception Act.

Madam Speaker, I will continue to do everything in my power to protect your right to choose.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today as our Nation begins to grapple with the fall of Roe v. Wade.

Twenty days ago, the Supreme Court erased 50 years of precedent, ending the freedom for women to have the right to choose.

Already, the devastating effects are becoming very clear: State legislatures are criminalizing women and healthcare providers, pregnant cancer patients who cannot get the treatment they need to survive, a 10-year-old rape victim forced to travel across State lines to access the abortion she needs.

It is horrific. But make no mistake, these stories are the result of a radical Republican agenda, and these are the stories that Republicans refuse to acknowledge. We must call them out.

This is an extremely difficult, personal decision, but I trust that women can make that choice, and I will do everything in my power to protect that right to choose.

Madam Speaker, I rise today as we mark the 159th day of this year, and more than 246 mass shootings; Columbine, Sandy Hook, Uvalde, Parkland. We cannot pretend that we have not been here before, and we cannot fail to act yet again.

I have heard from mothers in my district who are frightened for their children's safety. I have heard the horrors of the survivors of the October 1 shooting in Las Vegas, and survivors of domestic violence and other daily gun violence that doesn't always make the headlines.

And I have heard the echoes of decades of disappointment and frustration as Congress has failed over and over again to do something.

This is not about politics. It is about protecting our kids. This is about doing the jobs we were elected to do because I refuse to accept that because we may not be able to prevent all gun violence, we should not prevent any gun violence.

We can act and must act, and that is why I am voting to pass the gun safety laws.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate West Career and Technical Academy's We the People team. They are not only studying history; they are making it.

Mr. Speaker, 1999 was the last time a southern Nevada We the People team qualified for nationals. But now, 14 students from West Tech's We the People team have changed that.

As part of We the People, these students are going that extra mile in their civic education to study our history, our Constitution, and our democracy.

To Mrs. Rozar and all the outstanding We the People teachers, we say thank you.

I have no doubt of West Tech's success later this month when they compete here in Washington, but I am even more excited to watch where this passion takes them as leaders in Nevada's future.

Congratulations to West Tech's We the People team, and good luck in

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize this last week of March as National Area Health Education Centers, or AHEC, week.

The AHEC program is vital to this country and for Nevadans because we are facing an unprecedented shortage of healthcare providers. The doctor shortage in southern Nevada is nearing crisis levels, which means longer wait times, fewer choices, and less access to quality healthcare.

The size of Nevada's physician workforce ranks near last in this country. As our community continues to expand, the challenges continue to grow.

To solve this crisis, underserved communities like Las Vegas need to expand the resources we offer so that medical providers can learn and grow their careers right here.

That is exactly what AHECs do. They are part of the solution. The Nation's 300 federally funded AHECs are in nearly every State and in multiple U.S. territories. In the past 5 years, they have trained 2 million healthcare professionals.

Please join me in saluting AHECs as they continue to be committed to prepare, plan, and train for a better healthcare future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Liz Bolhouse, a pediatric ICU nurse back home in Las Vegas. Tonight, President Biden will address this Congress and the Nation in the State of the Union address, and Liz is my guest.

While we continue to recover from this pandemic, let's reflect on what we have done. We have put over 500 million shots in arms of Americans, our kids are back in school, our economy is getting back on track, and a record-breaking 6.7 million jobs were created in the President's first year.

It is hardworking Americans in southern Nevada, and all across this Nation, who are the true heroes in this recovery. Liz is one of those heroes. Liz has lived and worked in Nevada for 22 years as a nurse. It goes without saying that these have been two of the hardest years in all of our lives, but these 2 years have brought out the best in our dedicated and selfless healthcare heroes, including Liz, and the hundreds of Nevada nurses she represents as the SEIU Local 1107 chief nursing steward.

I thank Liz and I thank every nurse back home and across this great Nation for your hard work and dedication in keeping our communities healthy and safe.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to speak about news that many people don't hear too much about coming out of Washington.

Too often they only hear one side of the story about divisiveness, gridlock, and a general unwillingness to put results over politics.

And don't get me wrong, it is a problem, but there are a whole lot of us in this body that are fighting every day to put an end to that and break the cycle in Washington, especially when it comes to our veterans.

In the past 2 months alone we have seen legislative breakthroughs that had the support of both Democrats and Republicans to help make sure that our country continues to serve our Nation's veterans.

I introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation with Representatives Anthony Gonzalez, Tony Gonzales, and Colin Allred to invest in the Zero Suicide initiative and bring accountability into the VA.

Last week, this House passed legislation that will end a GI Bill disparity between the National Guard and Reserve members so that every single servicemember can access the benefits their sacrifices have earned.

And last month, President Biden signed the REMOTE Act into law to extend legislation to protect student benefits for veterans.

In southern Nevada alone, 200 veterans were facing cuts in their benefits, but with our votes in the House and Senate and President Biden's signature, those benefits were extended, and it was just that easy.

These are just a few examples of the bipartisan wins this Congress has been able to accomplish for veterans.

You see, a lot of legislation before us, especially bills that serve our veterans, are common sense. And I encourage Washington to not lose sight of those two words: Common sense.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Nevada's longest-serving Senator, Harry Reid, who passed away on December 28, with his beloved children: Lana, Key, Josh, Leif, and Rory; and his devoted wife of 62 years, Landra, by his side. My condolences and prayers are with them all and with the countless people whose lives he has changed, his friends, staff, and all of those in the great State of Nevada.

This tribute could be about Senator Reid being the most consequential Senate majority leader in modern history. It could also be about how Senator Reid was the true embodiment of what it meant to be battle born, a boxer as a young man who never backed down from a good fight for the least among us.

It could be about the story of his American Dream, rising out of severe poverty in Searchlight, Nevada; hitchhiking 40 miles to school; working as a Capitol Police Officer to put himself through law school, to becoming one of the most powerful political leaders of our time.

It could also be about his legislative accomplishments, such as the Affordable Care Act, which gave millions of

Americans access to affordable healthcare, saving our economy during the Great Recession, taking on Wall Street, or making sure that Nevada would not become the Nation's nuclear waste dumping ground.

However, I want to focus on Senator Reid's role in advancing women in politics.

In Nevada, Senator Reid is known for his quiet yet sometimes curt demeanor; his incredible, strategic mind; and his work ethic beyond compare.

He built a team, known as Team Reid, that has roots throughout this Capitol, throughout Nevada, and throughout this country, which will have an impact long beyond his life.

There is no doubt that Senator Reid was a visionary when it came to politics. His vision in making sure that women had a runway into politics has left an indelible mark.

Within his own legendary team, women occupied the most senior posts. At the same time, Senator Reid recruited and mentored women up and down the ballot. It is no surprise, therefore, that Nevada became the first State to have a woman-majority State legislature. We have a woman- majority supreme court, as well as a woman-majority congressional delegation, with two female Senators, Cortez Masto and Rosen.

Harry Reid's devotion to Landra is legendary. Perhaps it was her enormous role in his life and his utter respect for her as a partner that seeded his unspoken yet strong commitment to women's leadership. Maybe it was the role that his mother played, raising him out of extreme poverty in Searchlight, Nevada. Whatever the motivation, the results speak for themselves.

Growing up in Searchlight, Harry Reid was given a nickname, Pinky. I am not sure what it referred to, and I actually don't think he particularly liked it. But as Senator Reid lies in state in our Nation's Capitol this week, this woman, who benefited from his mentorship and guidance, will believe that perhaps that nickname was a premonition of his role in changing the face of leadership in Nevada and this country.

We all know that Senator Reid was infamous for not saying goodbye. I myself was the recipient of that dial tone on many occasions. But those occasions were because he never failed to pick up the phone when I called for advice. I will miss those phone calls, but I will take this opportunity to say goodbye to a man who showed how to fight for the little guy; a man who could take a punch and outwork anyone; a man who led through example of compassion and strength.

I say goodbye to Senator Reid and thank him.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about the tremendous impact that the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will have on my home State of Nevada.

Nevada was ground zero for the pandemic, and its effects were especially felt by the travel and tourism industry, which employs tens of thousands of Nevadans and brings in the bulk of the State's revenue each year.

Now that President Biden has signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law, our leading industries in Nevada and Nevada families can take part in the economic opportunities and the thousands of jobs that this bill promises.

Nevada is slated to receive $2.5 billion for highway investments like the I-15 corridor between Las Vegas and LA, the I-11 corridor between Las Vegas and Phoenix, and $459 million for public transportation.

This means that not only can Nevada families get to work and school safely and more efficiently but that millions of our visitors each year can more easily experience everything that our State has to offer.

Nevada will also get a minimum of $100 million to expand access to broadband across the State, meaning that no Nevadan will be left behind.

Nevada also has been ground zero for the effects of the climate crisis as we continue to face the effects of severe drought.

With the passage of my water recycling infrastructure bill, included in this, Nevada will now be more equipped to mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure that our communities have continuous access to safe, clean drinking water for years to come.

Nevada is only able to reap all of these benefits because Congress was able to put politics aside and work together to come up with sensible solutions to create a better future for our Nation. We cannot stop there.

It is critical that we continue to work side by side to pass the Build Back Better agenda and make sure that American families don't just recover from this pandemic but that they prosper moving forward.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about evapotranspiration.

Perhaps you are not used to getting a mini Earth science lesson on the floor of the House, but hear me out for a minute.

Nevada boasts 300 sunny days a year. It is great for hiking and biking, not so great when it comes to precipitation and our growing severe drought. But we can't just rely on precipitation data in understanding our drought because we are losing water with all of our sunny days.

Evapotranspiration, or ET, is the combination of water lost through evaporation from the land and transpiration from plants. It is a critical measurement that we need to plan for the future of western water.

Until recently, and frankly, to my surprise, water managers could not access this data. But a group of scientists, academics, advocacy organizations, and even corporations are working to change that.

OpenET is filling the biggest data gap in water management by giving everyone access to ET data, and I mean everyone. You can Google it and pull it right up on your computer.

From water managers, to utility providers, to farmers and ranchers, to conservationists, this data will help folks across the West make better water decisions to protect our most vital resource for decades to come.

That is exactly why I have introduced the bipartisan, bicameral Open Access Evapotranspiration Act with Senator Cortez Masto to fill these critical data gaps and inform drought solutions across the West.

I am all in when it comes to finding solutions for Nevada's drought. We must explore every option and make these investments before it is too late.

The Time Is Now to Lower Drug Prices

Mr. Speaker, I rise today as we continue to negotiate the Build Back Better Act.

When I ran for Congress, I promised my constituents that I would do everything to fight for lower drug prices.

Over and over again in townhalls, I hear from my constituents that they are so extremely worried about how they are going to pay for prescription drugs. In fact, one in five seniors reports not taking their medicines as prescribed because of the cost. I have even heard from constituents who say they skip meals so they can afford the prescriptions they need to stay healthy.

This is outrageous. I urge my colleagues to address this problem with the urgency it deserves.

With the Build Back Better agenda, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to change the status quo and make good on our promise that no one should have to choose between affording their prescription drugs, or putting food on the table, or paying rent.

We must enact legislation to lower the cost of prescription drugs. The time is now. Our constituents all over this country are counting on us.

Madam Speaker, I rise today, not alone, but on the shoulders of hundreds of advocates and activists leading the charge to fight this climate crisis with the urgency it demands.

Over the past couple months, I have stood here almost every week calling for bold investments in clean energy infrastructure and climate solutions in the Build Back Better Act.

But I know when we pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill and the Build Back Better Act, it will be because of the efforts of so many advocates.

For years, Nevadans from the Nevada Conservation League, the League of Conservation Voters, the Sierra Club, Chispa, the Environmental Defense Fund, and Battle Born Progress and so many other hardworking organizations have come together to demand climate action.

Now, thanks to your hard work, I am confident that we will pass historic investment in clean energy infrastructure and build back better for our future.

The time to act on climate is now.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today as the water in Lake Mead has fallen to record-breaking lows not seen since the Hoover Dam was constructed.

Already, Lake Mead has fallen to just 35 percent of its capacity. And as you can see behind me, a bathtub ring taller than the Statue of Liberty surrounds the lake as a reminder of the water that was once there.

This is a crisis that we can fix only with new investment and innovative solutions, and that is why I am supporting the bipartisan infrastructure package and the climate and water investment provisions of the Build Back Better Act. It could not be more clear. Nevada is ground zero for the effects of climate change, but we also are ground zero for the benefits of this historic legislation.

The bipartisan infrastructure package includes more than $8 billion for water infrastructure. This also includes my water recycling legislation that will invest in large-scale water recycling projects to help keep more water in Lake Mead for Nevadans.

There is not a moment to lose.

The opportunity is here and the time to act on climate and act for Nevada's water and future is now.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the tremendous students, staff, and teachers at Nevada's 2021 Blue Ribbon Schools.

Not one, not two, but three Clark County schools, all in Nevada's Third Congressional District, were just named National Blue Ribbon Schools by the U.S. Department of Education: Charlotte Hill Elementary, Frank Lamping Elementary, and Pinecrest Academy of Nevada Inspirada.

These schools were recognized for their exemplary work to close the achievement gap, expand educational opportunities, and excel academically.

I always say education is the key to opportunity, and I cannot wait to see where all of these incredible young Nevadans will go.

Congratulations, Clark County schools.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today because, believe it or not, yet again, it is infrastructure week here.

For decades, our country has been calling for investment to bring our infrastructure into, not just the future, but at this point, the present.

For months, we have been meeting, both Democrats and Republicans, to get this bill to work for all of us. Now, it is time to take action and pass it for the American people. The stakes could not be higher.

Nevada, where I am from, has been ground zero for this pandemic. We are ground zero for the effects of climate change. But, more importantly, we are ground zero for the promise and the economic opportunities in this bill.

Roads, bridges, access to broadband, electric vehicles, electric buses, clean energy, water solutions for the West, all of this is needed and all of it will benefit my State and every corner in this country. That is why we have to put politics aside, come together, and pass this legislation now.

I came to Congress because I was tired of the bickering and the dysfunction and the gridlock. I was tired of politics as usual.

Safer roads and bridges, these are not partisan political issues. We have the opportunity to pass these investments for every single American and create millions of good-paying jobs and strengthen our recovery and get our economy back on track. The time to deliver solutions is now.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of the 25th anniversary of Lutheran Social Services of Nevada (LSSN), who serves our southern Nevada community.

Throughout their 25 years of service, LSSN has provided help to more than 383,231 Las Vegans in need.

What began as humble means of helping the community in 1985, in the form of a food pantry and clothing closet, LSSN has grown to an immense operation serving a multitude of southern Nevadans over the last 25 years that are low-income, at-risk of homelessness, homeless, families with or without children, youth, veterans, people with disabilities, and senior citizens.

Despite the uncertainty and unprecedented challenges of the last 18 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, LSSN found further ways to redouble their efforts to the community by distributing more than 770,596 pounds of food through their DigiMart Food Pantry to more than 62,840 people. This is nearly three times as many of Las Vegans they have served through the pantry prior to the pandemic. Additionally, LSSN provided rental assistance and rapid rehousing resources to 167 households in need. This allowed those families to remain or become sheltered in the midst of a pandemic ravaging our Las Vegas community and economy. Finally, LSSN served more than 7,960 hot and well-balanced meals to seniors, while also teaching nutrition education and physical activity through Zoom and other remote means.

It was my honor to visit and tour the LSSN DigiMart Food Pantry in May 2021, as they unveiled an expansion of the facility from 750 square feet to 3,058 square feet. LSSN projects that this will allow them to serve an additional 5,000 families annually.

I am in awe of the way our Nevada entities and community have continually stepped up to serve through numerous crises, and that gratitude extends to LSSN. I look forward to witnessing their continued growth and success in the years to come, and I encourage everyone to join me in celebrating and honoring their 25th anniversary.