Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to express my deep concern and outrage that extreme Republicans are moving to cut education through McCarthy's default on America act at the same time that extreme Republicans are banning books in our libraries and classrooms across our country.

Sadly, last semester alone, there were 1,477 instances of book banning. Sadly, these efforts chill speech. They are part of a national education scare, a campaign to foment anxiety and anger with the goal of suppressing free expression in public education.

America is not Communist China or authoritarian Russia that ban books or Nazi Germany that burns books. Indeed, Anne Frank's ``The Diary of a Young Girl'' is now a banned book.

Over 70 percent of Americans oppose book bans. Americans know education is about learning. It is not about censorship.

A country that does not know its history is bound to repeat it.

Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Burgess for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, today while we stand here debating this rule, the Republicans' default on America's plan is holding Americans hostage.

Across my district and this country, Americans are wondering what will happen to their food security. How about their Medicare? What about veterans' healthcare? Republicans are holding us hostage so they can protect the tax cuts that they gave to the wealthiest corporations and millionaires.

We need to remember that the debt we are looking at today was incurred by Republicans during the Trump administration, $7 trillion of that.

Do you know what? If they crash the economy, it is not the millionaires who would be hurt. It is working families.

The Republican default on America would impact the very bills we will be talking about today. It would cut funding to fight the fentanyl crisis, treat addiction, reduce pollution, and help Americans pay their bills when a pandemic hits.

The rule we are considering today will make in order three bills.

The first bill is H.R. 467, the HALT Fentanyl Act. We all agree that there is a scourge of fentanyl in our communities, and we all agree it needs to be stopped. There is no district in our country, no family, and no community that hasn't seen and experienced the horrors of fentanyl.

The problem is that this bill isn't going to do what needs to be done to address the fentanyl crisis. To fight the fentanyl crisis, we need more law enforcement funding, and we need to treat addiction.

Right now, as noted, fentanyl-related substances are listed on schedule I. That listing goes to the end of 2024. The main thrust of this bill is to make that listing permanent, but our communities are pleading with us to do more than the status quo.

For decades, we tried to incarcerate our way out of addiction, but addiction is a disease, not a crime.

Madam Speaker, I am speaking from the heart. I know most of my colleagues on this floor have heard that I lost two brothers to addiction, two beautiful souls that were taken from this world far too soon. It was partially because there was no treatment available.

This country has failed to treat addiction as the health crisis that it is, so I know personally the pain that fentanyl brings to our families and our communities because I felt that pain when my brothers passed away.

Treatment for addiction can save precious lives, but we lack the capacity to provide those services. Instead, the default on America plan that their crisis is creating would cut funding for mental health and addiction treatment services.

H.R. 467 would also expand mandatory minimums, which takes away discretion from judges to look at each case on its own, which disproportionately harms Black and Brown communities more than others.

Last night in the Rules Committee, Republicans rejected 37 Democratic amendments that would have added more law enforcement funding to interdict fentanyl at border crossings. They would have provided more evidence-based approaches to fentanyl use. They would have made sure that we had the tools we needed to treat addiction.

Instead of creating and finding solutions, Republicans are creating more problems. The Republicans' default on America act will cut funding for Customs and Border Protection, potentially leading to an increase in the amount of fentanyl hitting our streets.

Is this their way of addressing the fentanyl crisis?

We need to do better. We need to make sure we give real solutions to these very serious problems.

Madam Speaker, I am tired of hearing that Democrats are to blame for the fentanyl crisis. We all recognize the need to do more.

Let me remind my colleagues that in the last 2 years, the Biden administration has seized record amounts of illicit fentanyl at the border.

DHS has seized more than 35,000 pounds of fentanyl in fiscal year 2022.

The Department of Justice disrupted or dismantled 130 fentanyl networks.

The administration is expanding access to treatments for those suffering from addictions.

Democrats in Congress filed a funding bill last year that beefed up resources for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Program, the National Guard counter-drug program, and the Drug Communities Program.

Contrast that with the Trump administration. A GAO report blasted the previous administration for failing to come up with a coherent national opioid strategy, and the crisis spiked. In the first 2 years of the Trump administration, we saw significant spikes in the fentanyl crisis, and more people died.

According to the CDC, the annual number of overdose deaths from synthetic opioids increased by 192 percent between 2016 and 2020.

In contrast, since day one of this administration, President Biden has provided solutions to the overdose crisis.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to include in the Record the December 2019 GAO report: ``The Office of National Drug Control Policy Should Develop Key Planning Elements to Meet Statutory Requirements.''

Madam Speaker, this GAO report highlights the failures of the last administration in addressing this crisis we are talking about today.

The rule also makes in order two Congressional Review Act disapproval resolutions.

H.J. Res. 45 would roll back the student loan payment pause to last October. It would create chaos and instability for millions who are living check to check.

Let's remember why student loans were paused in the first place. Let's remember how dark and horrible it was when the pandemic first hit.

Remember how scary it was when COVID-19 started and the economy was in free fall? People lost their jobs. They were struggling to pay rent. We didn't know what the future held.

A pause to student loan payments was the right response to a public health emergency that was also a financial emergency. The payment pause was a lifeline for 37 million borrowers and their families, giving them much-needed breathing room to pay their bills, to pay their rent without worrying about sabotaging their credit.

H.J. Res. 45 could send surprise bills for interest to tens of millions of Americans. This could lead to unprecedented delinquencies and defaults for the most vulnerable borrowers.

The third bill, S.J. Res. 11, would reverse an EPA rule that reduces air pollution from the trucking industry.

Many parts of America were once cloaked in air pollution that would sit

at street level, sting your eyes, fill your lungs. Choking air, they called it.

In response, we enacted the Clean Air Act and tasked the EPA with cleaning up our air.

Still, one in three Americans live in counties with unhealthy air pollution. Heavy-duty vehicles make up about 6 percent of vehicles on the road but generate 59 percent of these dangerous pollutants that we are talking about. This contributes to respiratory illness, cardiovascular problems, and even death.

The Clean Air Act gives the EPA both the authority and obligation to protect Americans from air pollution that could endanger public health or welfare. That is exactly what EPA's heavy-duty engine and vehicle rule would do.

Republicans want to block the EPA rule from going into effect. Even worse, if this passes, Republicans would block EPA from regulating this pollution in the future.

Why would we want to keep this agency from doing its job of keeping us healthy?

So instead of putting polluters first, Republicans should be spending this week paying America's bills. It is the patriotic thing to do. Clearly, that is not their priority. Remember, a default hurts working- class Americans. It hurts seniors on Medicare, food assistance recipients, and teachers' and students' access to care. If you are still waiting for your tax refund, it might not come.

Democrats have signed a petition to bring to the floor for a vote a bill that would raise the debt ceiling without any harmful cuts to the programs Americans rely on. All we need is five moderate Republicans to join the petition and the default crisis would be over.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I agree that we need to address the fentanyl crisis, but what we are saying is we need to do more. The bill we are looking at today does not increase any funding for law enforcement. It does not address the need that we have to increase our funding to assist law enforcement in interdicting this horrible drug.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett).

Madam Speaker, while my colleague speaks loudly about stopping fentanyl at the border, I will remind him that this bill doesn't do anything about fentanyl at the border. Indeed, the Republicans in the Rules Committee last night rejected amendments which would have placed more money on law enforcement and on the ability to stop fentanyl at the border.

Madam Speaker, I remind them that the Cato report points out that fentanyl is brought in at our ports of entry more than 90 percent of the time.

Madam Speaker, I point out that if we defeat the previous question, I will offer an amendment to the rule to provide for consideration of a resolution, which states that it is the House's responsibility to protect and preserve Social Security and Medicare for future generations and reject any cuts to these essential programs.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the Record, along with any extraneous material, immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Frost), who will discuss the need to reassure the American people.

Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Florida.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to include in the Record an October 2020 NPR article titled: ``Opioid Crisis: Critics Say Trump Fumbled Response To Another Deadly Pandemic.''

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to include in the Record a Newsweek article titled: ``Fentanyl Surge Started and Peaked Under Trump Despite GOP Blaming Biden.''

Mr. Speaker, I think that we need to bring back to focus what we are doing here. This bill does something that we have no objection to, which is to permanently classify fentanyl as schedule

Mr. Speaker, yes, indeed, I agree that we need to make sure that we address fentanyl for every community whether it be New York or New Mexico, because the fentanyl crisis is a public health crisis, and families are losing loved ones every day.

Indeed, in New Mexico in 2020, the New Mexico Department of Health found that 65 percent of people with substance use disorders were not getting the treatment they needed. The same problem we find nationwide. Over 86 percent of people suffering from opioid abuse were not getting the treatment they needed in 2020.

Even once treatment began, people are at their most vulnerable when they suffer from a relapse. Their bodies cannot handle the sudden return of high levels of opioids, and the result is often fatal.

I do hope that we can continue to agree that we must address this and that we must provide an addition to this bill, the kind of funding that is needed and that is urgent to treat addiction.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), my distinguished colleague.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentlewoman from Texas.

Mr. Speaker, I think what we heard on the House floor today was agreement, agreement on the need to address the scourge of fentanyl and what it is doing to our communities. I think we heard individuals talk about the individual pain they feel, whether it be in Texas, in New York, in New Mexico.

I think we want to hold that sense of agreement on this topic together because we don't always agree on things, but I think in this instance, we agree that we need to put our families first. We need to put the people who unwittingly end up dying from fentanyl with no idea that they were even taking that drug, and we need to remember that pain and that fear that those families must have.

As we talk about this issue, we must also remember that we have to do more. Making sure that fentanyl is classified and is not available with the fentanyl substances is important. We don't disagree on that. The issue that we are raising is the need to do more, and especially given the moment we are living in today.

This week, we are days away from a potential default because Republicans have refused to raise the debt limit. We are in a crisis, and it is a crisis that the Republicans have manufactured. We need to remember what that crisis does. That crisis actually hinders our ability to do the work that is so urgent to combat fentanyl.

Fentanyl comes in through our ports of entry. The Cato Institute, which is not a liberal or progressive institute, notes that 90 percent of fentanyl enters into the country through our ports of entry, smuggled in by, what I would call, despicable Americans who profit off addiction and death.

But let's go back and say what would happen if their default that they have engineered would actually come to be. The Department of Homeland Security has said that if the default in America act goes into effect, it would lead to 2,400 fewer frontline CBP law enforcement officers. That is 2,400 fewer Border Patrol officers. That means that there are going to be fewer officers to help prevent illegal drugs from entering into our country. That would lead to over 150,000 pounds of cocaine and over 350,000 grams of fentanyl avoiding seizure.

The cuts that they have proposed would lead to more fentanyl coming in because there would be fewer officers on the ground to combat it. That is shameful that they would raise and talk about this bill in the angry and loud ways that they have done without acknowledging that the work that they did several weeks ago would actually make this crisis worse.

In New Mexico, as I noted, we know the pain of addiction and overdose all too well. We have lost too many beautiful lives to addiction and fentanyl.

We need to think about what those solutions are that we would want to do. We would want to increase the funding for substance abuse prevention and treatment block grants. That was one of the amendments that was suggested to this rule by Representative Balint.

We want to use Representative Blunt Rochester's amendment, which would have increased education, so stakeholders would know about research and treatment and how to make sure that we make the public aware of these issues.

These are things that Republicans have refused to address in the bills we are looking at today.

I urge my colleagues, I urge those on the other side of the aisle, to really look at what we are doing today. We are doing something that we all agree on, which is addressing a teeny-tiny piece of the fentanyl problem, but we aren't doing what needs to be done in terms of increasing law enforcement, in terms of increasing funding at our borders and for those who are actually doing the work of seizing fentanyl as it comes in, of the law enforcement that must be done. We need to increase that funding, not cut it.

With regard to truck emissions, we cannot tie the EPA's hands. We must keep our air clean. The number of deaths from asthma in children who would survive and not be hurt if this rule goes into effect, would be horrible. I need to tell you that each child who would not be able to breathe because of polluted air is the child that I will think about when I vote on this bill later today.

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

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, an 18-year-old carrying an assault-type weapon shattered the peace in a quiet residential neighborhood in Farmington, New Mexico.

Three beautiful souls lost their lives. Many more were wounded and numerous others traumatized.

I praise the heroes who drove to danger to stop the violence. I am ever grateful for the coordination between local, State, county, and Federal law enforcement.

I pray for the quick recovery of the wounded and for the families of those we lost.

I imagine a world where mothers and fathers drop off their children at school without fear, a world where families can gather to worship or simply be at peace in their neighborhood.

Sadly, that peace is shattered by gun violence somewhere in America every single day. Every day, we are reminded that we don't yet live in a peaceful country, and yesterday was no exception.

Many of us standing and listening and praying today are committed to banning assault weapons, especially for an 18-year-old. We are committed to bringing peace to our communities.

Now, I invite all Members of the United States House of Representatives to join me in a moment of silence, a moment of gratitude to our law enforcement, and a moment of prayer to honor the lives of those we tragically lost yesterday.

Mr. Speaker, I have been at the border. I have seen the sadness and faint hope in the faces of the children seeking asylum. Imagine the desperation a mother must feel sending a child across a treacherous path to seek asylum in the United States.

It reminds me of another refugee, a mother who knew that if she did not send her child away, he would surely be killed. She placed her baby in a raft and sent him across the river.

It was the Nile River. The baby was Moses.

Mr. Speaker, the bill we are taking up today would take away important asylum paths for children. I call upon my colleagues to remember the story of Moses, to remember the humanity that must be a guiding principle for the United States in our asylum laws.

Our immigration system is surely broken. H.R. 2, though, does not fix it. Republicans, instead, are creating more chaos. Republicans are creating more chaos at the border. Chaos, not humanity, appears to be their guiding principle.

This bill destroys the asylum seekers, wrecks our agricultural economy, and fails to address the flow of fentanyl into our communities. H.R. 2 even punishes those heroic nonprofits who work to serve the vulnerable asylum seekers.

Mr. Speaker, in the Rules Committee early this morning, I presented amendments from members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus that would increase security, keep fentanyl and other deadly drugs off our streets, and protect military families.

Republicans voted against funding our fight against fentanyl. They refused any amendments to be heard on the floor today that we would have discussed last night.

Mr. Speaker, we do not have enough farmworkers to harvest our crops or in New Mexico to grow our world-renowned green chile. The provisions in this bill are bad for farmers, ranchers, and for our agricultural economy.

Instead of destroying our agricultural economy, let's pass the Farm Workforce Modernization Act. Instead of denying our students what they need, let's pass the American Dream and Promise Act.

These bipartisan bills would grow our economy. Let's work together to fix our immigration system.

Madam Speaker, I left the Capitol at 3 a.m. this morning, after fighting Republicans' plans to default on America unless we impose drastic spending cuts, cuts that are so severe they will hurt farmers and ranchers, kids and families, and this beautiful place we call home. Nobody in any State will be protected from their draconian cuts.

When I asked how to explain the bill's drastic cuts to rural communities in my district, the Republicans' response was, ``You should tell them that we have to prioritize.''

The Rules Committee Republicans then blocked my amendment to protect rural water, housing, and business development programs. In essence, they said to rural America, you are not a priority.

The Republicans blocked my amendment to protect veterans' healthcare, the Indian Health Service, and clean energy investments. Veterans are clearly not their priority. Healthcare is clearly not their priority. Addressing the climate crisis that is fueling disasters across America, across the United States, and across this planet is clearly not their priority.

Do you like knowing your food is safe?

The Republicans' bill could cut 1,800 USDA food inspectors and cost our farmers, ranchers, and restaurants $89 billion in lost production and $2.2 billion in lost wages.

The majority blocked my amendment to protect the Food Safety and Inspection Service from cuts.

When Republicans now demand we cut spending on healthcare, safety, and housing, what is it for?

To pay for the tax cuts for the rich that they pushed through in 2017. Protecting the rich and the wealthy tax cheats clearly must be their priority.

Through backroom dealings, the Republican majority has now settled on a bill that backstabs working families. Their bill delivers poison, not prosperity.

Congress must not default on America. America pays its bills. America knows how to prioritize what is essential for our prosperity.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Indiana for yielding me the customary 30 minutes.

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

Mr. Speaker, today we consider a rule for two bills that do not address the most pressing issues in our country. Over the last 2 weeks in New Mexico, I spent my time in my beautiful, large district in classrooms, meeting with healthcare providers, learning from Tribal leaders, and talking to students and their parents.

They shared their worries about poor access to healthcare, about affordable housing, their worries about whether we were going to target Social Security and Medicare in this House.

They talked to me about the epidemic of gun violence. Let's talk about that epidemic. There have been at least 145 mass shootings so far this year. More kids die from gun violence than from any other cause. Americans want Congress to pass meaningful gun safety laws so our kids can be safe and cared for in our schools.

What are we getting out of the Education and the Workforce Committee?

We are getting book banning and now sports banning. You know what? Books and sports don't kill kids, guns do.

I have behind me here just some of the names of the many children who have died in their classrooms and in their schools.

Parents are scared. Students are terrified of being killed at school, a place where they should be safe and ready to learn. Kids should be able to go to a 16th birthday party and come home again.

But the bills this rule makes in order won't fix the scourge of gun violence in this country. While kids are dying from gun violence, the answer from the House Republican majority is to bully trans girls with H.R. 734 and undermine D.C.'s local laws. That is not okay.

Today, I stand in strong solidarity with some of the most vulnerable students in our schools, trans girls. Trans kids deserve to be understood. They deserve to be loved. They deserve an opportunity to play on a team and make friends.

Today, the Republican majority has brought up yet another bill that is meant to divide us and to get people angry and upset over things that are not key to whether they can have what they want their kids to accomplish in school.

H.R. 5, which the Republican majority passed in March, was about banning books. H.R. 734, which we are debating this week, is about bullying kids.

The problem is this: When you bully these kids it can lead to their death. I am worried that this bill will lead to rising suicide rates among the most vulnerable kids in our schools.

Studies have proven that when we welcome trans kids with compassion and kindness they are less likely to attempt suicide.

Studies have shown that the problem isn't whether a kid is trans or not, it is are they accepted? At a time when trans kids face alarming rates of behavioral and mental health issues and 53 percent of trans kids have considered suicide, my colleagues have chosen to use fear to score political points.

Mr. Speaker, 1 in 25 American kindergartners won't live to adulthood. Imagine that. Imagine going into a kindergarten class, like I did several times in my district, looking out at that class and thinking, which one of those precious children will not make it to adulthood?

That is the issue we should be addressing, both gun violence and addressing behavioral and mental health, and providing the resources that they need.

You know what? The rate of children not making it is twice as much for Hispanics and over three times as much for Black students.

Do we go after that in this bill?

No, we don't.

Sports and books are what H.R. 734 goes after, not guns and violence.

There is already a mechanism in place to address the fairness in playing sports that has been raised on the other side of the aisle. There is already a way of addressing those distinctions in playing sports. The NCAA and Olympics put these in place decades ago.

The Olympics already has a manual for what you should do, and it was done in 2003.

Here in the United States we already have something done by the NCAA. The NCAA adopted a student athlete participation policy that will cover the concerns that some people may have.

Women in sports, I will tell you--they say they are doing this for women.

Guess what? Women in sports who compete, they don't want this bill. They understand it is not about sports but about making people angry.

We have the statements of women's rights and gender justice organizations in support of full and equal access to participation in athletics for transgender people, and it is signed by numerous women's sports organizations. One after another they have lined up to say, no, this bill is bad for women in sports.

You know what? I want to make sure here in Congress that we lead with compassion. We are all human. We all have within our families, within our communities, people who are lesbian, who are gay, who are trans, who are many, many different aspects of who they are, who they actually are and authentically are.

Why are you willing to sacrifice those beautiful kids of ours? Why? I just don't understand it.

You know what? Trans kids deserve to live.

The rule also makes in order H.J. Res. 42, which disapproves of the District of Columbia's Comprehensive Police and Justice Reform Amendment Act. The D.C. Council, elected by D.C. residents, passed this bill through democratic process.

D.C., just like those in Kentucky and other local jurisdictions--it is the local jurisdictions which should have the right to enact laws through their democratic process without congressional interference.

We should not be having congressional interference into local matters, like protecting our citizens and like having a police force that is responsible to those citizens.

Just because Congress can intervene in D.C. affairs, doesn't mean that it should.

The D.C. reform bill includes many of the reforms that both Republican and Democratic States and localities have passed, things like banning choke holds, things like using body cameras. That is available in red districts, in red States, in red cities, and in blue cities. In New Mexico we have those things.

So let's stop interfering in D.C.'s affairs. Let's put forward legislation in contrast that addresses the needs of all Americans.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose the rule, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, this legislation would not protect kids. We must remember that this legislation could require female student athletes to be subjected to invasive genital examinations or forced to disclose their menstruation data.

What parent would want their child to go through that?

This is a grotesque violation of privacy and the complete opposite of protecting our children.

If Republicans really want to protect our girls, they should focus on real issues. The sexual abuse of female athletes and students goes unreported too often. The U.S. Center for SafeSport found that 93 percent of athletes experienced sexual harassment or unwanted contact and they were too afraid to report it. We must address the real issues that our children face.

With regards to the D.C. bill, Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton).

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

Mr. Speaker, all opposition to this bill is not radical. Indeed, the Republican Governor of Utah also opposed a similar bill, and in his veto message he talked about the fact that even though he might not understand what it means to be trans, even though he doesn't understand the science which might be conflicting, he said: I choose to err on the side of kindness and compassion.

He wanted to make sure that the children live, the few children in his State who play sports, the few trans children in his State who play sports, he said: Why are we heaping so much hatred on those children?

I want them to live.

The reason why that concern is so profound is because of the fact that transgender kids have an extremely high risk of suicidal behavior. In 2021, suicide was the second leading cause of death for kids ages 10-14 and 20-34. Nearly one in five trans kids attempted suicide that year. I want our trans kids to live.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), the distinguished ranking member of the Committee on Rules.

Mr. Speaker, we can actually point to two accomplishments that we did on this House floor when Democrats were in charge. The Democratic leadership in Congress helped us lead to pass the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. It was bipartisan, but we had very few Republicans. That would have provided the kind of resources we need in our schools to help our children.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Sorensen).

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 15 seconds to the gentleman from Illinois.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Vermont (Ms. Balint).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Gomez).

Mr. Speaker, if we defeat the previous question, which I hope we do, I will offer an amendment to the rule to provide for consideration of a resolution that affirms the House's unwavering commitment to protect and strengthen Social Security and Medicare and states that it is the position of the House to reject any cuts to the program.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment into the Record, along with any extraneous material, immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Mr. Speaker, to discuss our proposal, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Oregon (Ms. Hoyle).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Garcia).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas, Ms. Sheila Jackson Lee.

Mr. Speaker, I close with some powerful words from a Republican, a Republican Governor who vetoed a similar bill in his State.

He said, ``I must admit I am not an expert on transgenderism. I struggle to understand so much of it, and the science is conflicting. But when in doubt, I always try to err on the side of kindness, mercy, and compassion.''

``Here are the numbers that have most impacted my decision: 75,000, 4, 1, 86, and 56--75,000 high school kids participating in high school sports in Utah; four transgender kids playing high school sports in Utah; one transgender student playing girls' sports; 86 percent of trans youth reporting suicidality; 56 percent of trans youth having attempted suicide.

``Four kids, and only one of them playing girls' sports. That is what all of this is about. Four kids who aren't dominating or winning trophies or taking scholarships. Four kids who are just trying to find some friends and feel like they are part of something. Four kids trying to get through each day. Rarely has so much fear and anger been directed at so few. I don't understand what they are going through or why they feel the way they do, but I want them to live.''

I want our transgender children to live. I want them to have the ability to do what they need to do in school, which is to learn, to play, to compete, to learn about what it is like to be on a team.

I want them to live, which is why I oppose this rule, and I am asking all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle: Please err on the side of compassion, kindness. Let them live.

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

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Madam Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Madam Chair, I rise today to oppose the polluters over people act and the mining provisions that will make it easier for foreign-owned companies to pollute our lands and waters and destroy our Tribal cultural resources.

America's 150-year-old mining law already fails to protect our communities from irresponsible mining. We see that in the thousands of abandoned mines that dot New Mexico and the West.

H.R. 1 would only make it worse, threatening our water and, as we know, ``agua es vida,'' ``water is life.''

I am disappointed that the Republicans blocked my amendment to stop mining exploration on public lands if it harms our water, farmers, and Tribal communities. Do they not care about our most essential resource, our water?

Indeed, some proposed mining projects are from subsidiaries of foreign companies like Resolution Copper in Arizona, which has ties to the Chinese Communist Party. Why are they protecting the Chinese Communist Party's subsidiary mining our precious resources?

That mine would devastate Tribal cultural resources and threaten our precious water resources.

I urge my colleagues to oppose this polluter over people act.

Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Madam Chair, I appreciate the opportunity to debate and consider my amendment to encourage local hiring and recruitment, but I also want to note my disappointment that my friends across the aisle rejected any consideration of my other two amendments on this floor.

One of those amendments would allow the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture to prevent exploratory mining from taking place on Federal land if it would negatively impact our water, farmers, Tribes, or local communities.

In New Mexico, ``agua es vida''; ``water is life.'' It shouldn't be controversial to protect our waters from mining contamination for our people, farmers, and environment.

My other amendment would have simply stated that this bill would not go into effect until the Federal Government certified that it would lower costs for American consumers and save taxpayers money. If this bill is really designed to lower energy costs for American consumers and taxpayers, let's verify that before putting polluters over people.

Again, I appreciate the opportunity to consider my amendment, which would require local units of the Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, and National Park Service to conduct an outreach plan to disseminate and advertise local civil service positions with functions relating to permitting and natural resources in their offices. Each plan must include outreach to local high schools, community colleges, institutions of higher education, and other relevant institutions.

The BLM, the Forest Service, and the National Park Service field offices, and

ranger districts and sites are stewards of our lands and waters, but they also operate within communities within which they are located, whether it is Cuba or Farmington or Roswell, New Mexico.

Adequate staffing at these offices and their headquarters, and our Federal agencies more broadly, is critical to our ability to effectively steward our natural resources and environment and move projects through the permitting process efficiently, responsibly, and with an ear tuned in to what the local communities need.

Unfortunately, we are seeing many of our agencies struggle to fill vacancies and staff up. For example, an E&E News article from last year said there are vacancy counts for all BLM State offices; the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho; the Bureau's National Operations Center in Denver; and the other directorates.

To be clear, I know BLM and other Federal agencies are working hard to address these challenges. My amendment would take another step to help address the staffing challenges by making sure local offices are communicating with the local communities about open positions.

Whether it is New Mexico Highlands University, Eastern New Mexico University, or Navajo Tech, I believe we should be taking advantage of talent in the communities where these offices are located.

To be clear, once again, we must also provide our Federal agencies with the resources and tools they need and support our Federal workforce along the way.

The investments made last Congress to increase capacity at our Federal permitting offices were a downpayment, but we need to continue to invest in agency capability.

Again, this amendment simply makes sure that our local agencies are thinking about communicating with our local talent when trying to fill those hiring challenges.

Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to support the amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Chair, I thank the gentleman from Arkansas for his visit to my district. I also invite the gentleman to the northern part because, at New Mexico Highlands University, we have an excellent forestry department where we are looking at the center of excellence. I know the gentleman's interest in forestry.

Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to vote for this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Command Sergeant Major Christopher Poccia for his service to the people of San Miguel and Mora counties during the Hermit's Peak/Calf Canyon Fire.

The Hermit's Peak/Calf Canyon Fire started on April 6, 2022, when a U.S. Forest Service prescribed burn got out of control. The fire burned 341,735 acres between April and late August in the southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It was the largest wildfire in New Mexico history. In northern New Mexico many residents were displaced.

Command Sergeant Major Christopher Poccia was deployed to San Miguel and Mora counties with his National Guard unit for Task Force Wildfire. He distinguished himself as a trusted helper to community members who told me how grateful they were for his service during a time devastation and uncertainty. His kindness, positive attitude, and willingness to serve will have a lasting impact for generations to come.

Every day, Christopher and his team worked at the improvised shelter. They delivered supplies, helped people to find assistance, and ventured to evacuated areas to assist those afraid to leave. He is an example of service, and service is an act of love. During his more than 90-day deployment, Christopher was away from his family. Today we also honor his wife Allison, his children Alec, Bella, and Jack, for the sacrifice they endured in his absence.

Christopher has returned to his work serving his community as a sergeant with the Albuquerque Police Department, where he is an exemplary model of leadership. At every turn he is at service to others and an example of how we can always look for the gaps where help is needed--and fill those spaces. We honor him and the other guardsmen and women of the National Guard who gave the most precious gift they had-- their time--to help their neighbors during this crisis. They are heroes.

In line with the acts of service originating with the local community, President Biden signed my bill, the Hermit's Peak/Calf Canyon Fire Assistance Act. This law provides $3.95 billion in relief to victims of the Hermit's Peak/Calf Canyon Fire.

Sacrifice and heroism are cornerstones of America's history. Thanks to Command Sergeant Major Poccia, his team, and others like him, New Mexicans received the help they needed to survive and begin their journey to recovery. I thank and honor him for his selflessness dedication to service.

Mr. Speaker, Democrats believe in putting people over politics. Last Congress, Democrats tackled climate change and brought down energy costs for the American people. Those investments in the Inflation Reduction Act have already spurred investments in clean energy projects and created good-paying jobs. At a time when we see rising costs, the Inflation Reduction Act will save the average American family $1,800 a year.

The Biden administration is also moving forward with an important rule to limit methane emissions nationwide. New Mexico led the way on this. We strengthened our methane emissions rules in 2021.

The Energy Information Administration data shows that even though we strengthened our methane emissions, we grew year after year for 5 years in natural gas and energy production. The Land of Enchantment shows us that we don't have to sacrifice the environment for energy production.

H.R. 1 would sacrifice the environment and put polluters over people. Members of the majority are pursuing this at a time when CEOs for large corporations have made record profits. While the industry made $451 billion in profits just last year, New Mexicans and people throughout rural America were taking groceries out of their carts to pay for gas.

H.R. 1 will not make it cheaper for the ranchers I know in Colfax County to fill up their trucks. Republicans dispute this and say the bill will lower costs. Let's see.

I offered an amendment to see if that is true. My amendment simply states that H.R. 1 does not take effect until the Secretaries of Energy and of the Interior certify that it will lower costs for American taxpayers and consumers.

What did the Republicans do with this commonsense amendment? They voted it down unanimously.

What are they afraid of seeing?

What are they afraid of debating?

The reality is H.R. 1 guts our longstanding environmental safeguards. It makes it easier to dump toxic and hazardous wastes. It threatens clean drinking water and lines the pockets of the wealthiest CEOs.

The Clean Water Act has long been key to protecting America's water. As

we say, ``agua es vida'', ``water is life.'' This bill guts our Clean Water Act in favor of polluters.

The Republicans also rejected my amendment to protect our water from mining for our farmers, ranchers, and Tribes. We have to remember that the mining that is proposed that would decimate our waters is often proposed by Chinese-owned subsidiaries or foreign-owned subsidiaries.

The Republicans also blocked an amendment that would have required that Chinese subsidiaries not own our minerals.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to celebrate Mary Gatton for her selfless commitment to the care of cancer victims, the terminally ill, and their families. Ms. Gatton recently received Business First's `Lifetime Achievement Award' as a part of the Health Care Heroes program.

At age 79, Ms. Gatton has spent much of her adult life supporting sick patients, the dying, and their families, through her work at Hospice/Hosparus Health, Inc. and Gilda's Club.

Many struggle to find words of comfort for those experiencing grief and loss, but not Ms. Gatton; she is truly `there' for those in need, whether sitting at hospital bedsides with dying patients, in the waiting rooms with family members helping provide peace and understanding, facilitating a support group, comforting a newly diagnosed or newly bereaved person, leading a memorial service, or simply assisting at an event to support patients and caregivers.

As a single mother of four children, Ms. Gatton pursued a bachelor's degree in social work in 1977, in the hopes that hospice care would one day make its way to the U.S. The National Hospice Organization wasn't even created until 1978, when it then began to promote the concept of hospice care. Congress passed a provision to create a Medicare hospice benefit in the 1980s, by which time Gatton had earned a master's degree in social work.

Karen Morrison, CEO of Gilda's Club explains, ``The number of lives Mary has touched in her career is immeasurable. Everywhere I go in the community, people remember the impact she made for them . . .''

Ms. Gatton is a shining example of the dedication that defines end- of-life care. I offer my congratulations to Ms. Gatton for her well- deserved award and thank her from the bottom of my heart for her loving care of our families and departed loved ones. She is an Angel.

Mr. Speaker, 50 years ago today, New Mexico was the first State to adopt a law that recognizes language and culture are inseparable, that students learn better if they take the language from their kitchen into their classroom.

Fifty years ago, my parents helped write and pass the Bilingual Multicultural Education Act so Keres, Tiwa, Tewa, Towa, Dine, Apache, Zuni, Spanish, and ASL would be taught in our schools.

Like many New Mexicans, they understood the importance of culturally relevant content. Today, 70 percent of New Mexico school districts have bilingual multicultural instruction.

Bilingualism is a treasure. Nearly 22 percent of the U.S. speaks a language other than English at home, and roughly 245 indigenous languages are spoken across the country.

Studies have shown that having a second language helps students be better problem solvers, more creative, able to concentrate, and communicate better.

``Que viva nuestra herencia y cultura.'' ``Long live our heritage and culture.''

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Janna Lopez from Las Vegas, New Mexico. The Hermit's Peak/Calf Canyon Fire started on April 6, 2022, when a U.S. Forest Service prescribed burn got out of control. It burned 341,735 acres between April and late August in the southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains in San Miguel, Mora, and Taos counties. It was the largest wildfire in New Mexico history.

Janna immediately stepped up to help the residents of Mora and San Miguel Counties. In collaboration with the community, she rapidly set up a shelter where her team, Neighbors Helping Neighbors, provided food and shelter to hundreds of displaced residents for over 10 months.

Janna's commitment to serving others is inspiring. Her work to bring people and organizations together is the embodiment of community. Neighbors Helping Neighbors serves San Miguel, Mora, and Colfax counties and beyond. The team has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars directly and in kind to their neighbors. During the initial phases of the wildfire response, Janna also coordinated donations from local businesses, national relief organizations, and established a co- located Disaster Relief Center with FEMA. Her passion for serving others has also led to her service as a Committee Chair for the Mora San Miguel Hermit's Peak Calf Canyon Long Term Recovery Group.

Janna is an exemplary model of how we can help one another as fellow citizens of this great Nation. We honor her and the countless New Mexicans, businesses, non-profits, and organizations who also donated their time, effort, and money to help New Mexico recover during this extremely difficult time. When President Biden visited New Mexico on June 11, 2022, he said, ``We have a responsibility to help this state recover, to help the families who have been here for centuries in beautiful northern New Mexico villages who can't go home and whose livelihoods have been fundamentally changed.''

Empowered by the work and stories of Janna and so many Nuevo Mexicanos, I introduced the Hermit's Peak/Calf Canyon Fire Assistance Act. Congress passed and President Biden signed into law this legislation and $3.95 billion in relief to rightfully compensate the fire's survivors and help them recover. Uniting to work toward a common goal is what America represents. Help is finally here. The hardworking people in New Mexico and across the country have shown us what true community looks like. Janna is one of those community heroes. I thank her for her selflessness and dedication to service.

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

Madam Speaker, I would first like to start by thanking the chairman of the Committee on Natural Resources as well as the sponsor of the bill for bringing this bill to the floor of the House today. These bipartisan bills affecting Native American Tribes and Nations in our country are very important and very significant for the Tribes that are seeking land into trust recognition.

This bill itself is an example of how the various agencies and local entities within Tennessee worked together to come up with a compromise bill that can be supported by all. I look forward to having these bills actually get signed into law as they have passed in Congresses past.

As noted, H.R. 548 is the Eastern Band of Cherokee Historic Lands Reacquisition Act introduced by Representative Fleischmann of Tennessee. We noted that it is intended to take lands and easements into trust for the use and benefit of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Nation.

As we pointed out, these include the Sequoyah Birthplace Museum, the Chota Memorial, the Tanasi Memorial, and land to support these properties and cultural programs.

We remember that the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is one of three federally recognized Cherokee Tribes and is the only federally recognized Tribe in North Carolina.

The ability of the Tribe to take these lands into trust and then to be able to use them to preserve their cultural ties to the land is really significant.

The two bills that we are considering on the floor have significance beyond the acres themselves because they are an outgrowth of an evolving United States policy to Native American governments. The United States has moved from an era where it systematically pushed Native Americans off their ancestral lands into ever smaller territories of reservation land. We are seeing now the reverse of that as we move to take land into trust for the Eastern Band of Cherokees.

Madam Speaker, I support the bill, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for closing.

I would just like to compliment the sponsor's explanation of the benefits that this bill will bring. We have heard a little bit of the great history that lies within Tennessee and of the resilience of the Eastern Band of Cherokee as they have maintained their identity to the land and that their use of the land will further assist the members of this wonderful country of ours to learn a bit more about that history, to learn a bit more about the life that is breathed into the statues that we surround ourselves with here in the people's House.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Madam Speaker, it is an honor to be on the floor of the people's House once again in support of this bill, as we hope to pass it out of the House. It passed in the 117th Congress, and I have great expectations that it will do so again.

H.R. 423, the Pala Band of Mission Indians Land Transfer Act, introduced by Representative Issa from California, will direct, as noted, the transfer of approximately 721 acres of land into trust for the Pala Band of Mission Indians.

The Pala Band is located in northern San Diego County with 918 enrolled Tribal members. Members of the Pala Band belong to the Cupeno and Luiseno Tribes, who were forced together by Spanish Franciscan missionaries during the 1800s.

The Pala Band recently purchased the property that includes the remaining portion of Gregory Mountain that is not on the existing Pala Band Reservation and other sacred and culturally significant sites in Gregory Canyon.

The land was purchased to protect and preserve Gregory Mountain, Medicine Rock, and other sites considered sacred by Luiseno Tribes.

Taking land into trust is an integral part of the government-to- government relationship between the United States and Tribal governments. By maintaining Tribal lands, Tribal governments can protect and preserve their ancestral homelands or sacred sites considered culturally significant.

This bill takes those 721 acres into trust for the benefit of the Pala Band to ensure that the sacred sites and cultural history located on those lands will be honored and appropriately safeguarded. As noted, it also stipulates that current land and water rights are not affected by its enactment, nor is there any effect on any rights-of-way or rights-of-use as currently permitted.

Madam Speaker, I would point out that the two bills we are considering on the floor today have significance beyond the acreage that is being transferred. As noted earlier, the United States has moved from an era when it systematically pushed Native Americans off their ancestral lands through treaties that were broken, as we heard about in the bill we considered earlier, into ever-smaller territories of reservation land.

There was an effort to try to destroy Tribal culture and ``kill the Indian to save the man.'' It has taken far too long, but Congress has finally recognized that Tribal nations will not and cannot be vanquished out of existence and that previous policies were pushing our indigenous nations and Tribes into extreme poverty.

The 1934 Indian Reorganization Act recognized that allowing Tribes to reacquire land and place it into trust was key to the future prosperity of Tribes and essential for them to maintain the culturally significant areas that are central to their identity, religion, and beliefs.

It has not been an easy path forward since then, but Congress has repeatedly adopted laws that also recognize and strengthen Tribal self- governance and sovereignty. Today's bills are continuity of this recognition.

Madam Speaker, I take this moment to thank Chairman Westerman for bringing these two bipartisan bills to the House floor for passage in the first few weeks of our legislative business in the people's House.

I often note that the Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs, previously known as the Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States, is some of the most bipartisan work in the House. It is extremely important work that we do for millions of Native Americans, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians, who rely on Congress to act consistent with the trust responsibility we owe Tribal nations and peoples.

Congress must legislate on issues regarding criminal jurisdiction, health, and education funding, and so much more. Each Member of this body represents Native Americans, and many of us represent one or more of the 574 federally recognized Tribes. In some districts, like mine, they represent a significant portion of the population. In many districts, Tribes are major drivers of the economy.

Approximately 56 million acres of land are held in trust for Tribes and individuals, and they are proud stewards of the natural resources on those lands.

Last week, one of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle belittled this important congressional work by calling it similar to naming post offices. Such a statement does not recognize the importance of our work in Congress on Tribal issues.

In contrast, Chairman Westerman's presentation of these bills today demonstrates his commitment and leadership on Tribal issues. Once again, I thank Chairman Westerman for recognizing how important our work is for Tribal nations and peoples.

Madam Speaker, I support this bill. I thank Representative Issa for bringing it once again to Congress and the floor of the House, and I urge my colleagues to vote in favor.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Issa for that great summary of the importance of this land to the Pala Band, and the fact that we will actually probably see some economic benefit because they know how to be good stewards of the land. They know what they are going to be doing with the land, rather than letting it sit in the condition it does now.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.