Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman for this opportunity for us to pass these amazing bills.

Madam Speaker, I want to take note: The seven bills that we are discussing on the floor over the last hour and a half, which we will soon vote with the entire body of this House, all of those bills passed out of the Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously. That means every Republican and Democrat voted ``yes.'' There were no ``no'' votes.

I feel it is important for us to mention that because when you look at the press, they think that all we are doing here is arguing, fussing, and fighting with each other, but we do work together.

To all of my Republican colleagues on the committee and Democratic colleagues on the committee, thank you so much for doing our job.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill with Congressman Bilirakis, the Oral Health Literacy and Awareness Act of 2021.

Oral health is whole body health. It is often neglected by parents who, unfortunately, lack resources and knowledge.

Oral health accounts for some of the deepest health disparities in all low-income families across America. For many, the cost of dental neglect can be detrimental, especially for children. Arthritis, autoimmune disease, cardiovascular disease, inflammatory skin disorders, gut issues, and more can all be caused or worsened by untreated tooth decay and oral disease.

According to the CDC, children who have poor oral health often miss more school and receive lower grades than children who don't. Even more alarming, Latino kids, like those in my district, experience two times more tooth decay and cavities than their White peers.

We can and must do better for our children and our country. Most of these issues can be prevented with access to the right information and resources. Our legislation will help low-income families and communities of color learn about the benefits of regular dental care and empower them to make better decisions on their overall oral health.

Madam Speaker, this is a picture of a child's mouth. Too many children across America are going through this pain, through this detrimental situation, because their parents don't understand that they can do better for their children with better practices and information. That is what this bill is about.

Once parents have access to information on the importance of healthy habits, they can prevent this kind of result. These tips help families and children maintain long-term oral hygiene at home. Through simple education and awareness campaigns, we will ensure families are better equipped to take control of their family's health.

We can't cut corners here, Madam Speaker. Let's start ensuring oral health is part of the conversation in every home every day as often as possible. It is the only way we will make sure that children across America do not suffer like this child has suffered.

I also want to say, once again, thank you to Chairman Pallone, House subcommittee Chairwoman Anna Eshoo, and all of my colleagues, Republican and Democrat, on the committee for passing this bill.

Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Bowman for reserving the time on the floor of the House of Representatives so that we can speak the truth about what too many families and too many people--mostly poor people--have to endure, not only in America but around the world.

I was born and raised in the northeast San Fernando Valley, and I am very, very proud to say, in the Senate I have a colleague who grew up in Pacoima just like I did. His parents were immigrants of Mexico, and so were mine. We went to the same elementary school and the same high school, but yet at the same time we ended up being on the city council together for some years, he as a council president and I as a new member.

He said to me: Tony, what committee do you want to chair?

I said: I want to chair the committee that oversees the airport, the ports and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

At that time the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power was the largest water and power district in America.

Why did I want to be on those committees?

Because those three entities are spewing more into our atmosphere than any other organizations in Los Angeles. It gave me the opportunity to live my values, to be able to grow up in a poor community, yes, in the hood, in the northeast San Fernando Valley, on that side of town where there are more dumpsites in that part of L.A. County--a county of 10 million people--but they have concentrated more dumpsites in my backyard than any other place in that county.

For Alex Padilla, our families, and me, we had to endure that for generations. But here Alex is, a city council member, the president of the council, choosing to put me as the chairman of that committee. And while I was on that committee, I forced the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to finally clean up their act.

Believe it or not, the progressive Los Angeles Department of Water and Power belongs to the city of Los Angeles, the people of Los Angeles. We were fooled into believing that we are a progressive community and that we would not be spewing out dirty fossil fuels to create the electricity that we depend on every day. But we did, Madam Speaker.

Approximately 60 percent of all of the energy that was being produced for our city and for our community was coming from fossil fuels. Under the presidency of President Alex Padilla,--who is now our United States Senator from California--he gave me the mantle of being the chairman of that committee, we forced the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to cut their emissions in half, to literally divest themselves of dirty coal plants, and to finally clean up our act.

I am very, very proud to say that as the first council member to represent that community to be born and raised in Pacoima, I was the first council member to tell a company that owned a private dumpsite when they wanted to expand it again and again and again, I was the first council member to say: No, you are not.

We denied them their expansion. That was the first time it had ever happened.

Again, Madam Speaker, for far too long we were being represented by people who didn't realize or understand what it is like to grow up in a community where environmental injustice prevails and proliferates. We suffer from asthma rates that other communities don't suffer. Our children do. Our families do. We suffer from groundwater that is more contaminated than any other place in America.

We finally brought the grants from Washington, from city hall, and from Sacramento, our State capital, to clean up our act and to clean up our groundwater.

Those are the kinds of things that we are doing in Congress. Those are the kinds of things that the Green New Deal has brought to light where before only certain people experienced it and only certain people cared.

Now, today, we are talking about something that I am very proud of. I am very proud to be one of the original cosponsors of the Green New Deal in this Congress, but equally proud, with my colleague Congressman Bowman, to be an original cosponsor of the Green New Deal for Public Schools Act. These are the kinds of investments that we need to make as Congress.

Equally important, we need to make sure that we continue to remind every single person that we are in this together. As go our communities, as goes our country, and as goes the environment, so does the planet. Even though some billionaires are flying up into the sky and getting into outer space, this is our planet, Madam Speaker. We cannot escape it.

Why try to escape it?

Why not just look in the mirror and see what we all can do about it?

That is the responsible thing to do. That is something that we can and should be proud of.

So I stand here today to encourage every single one of us to help clean up our act and to, once again, thank my colleague, Congressman Bowman, for inviting me and the rest of us to speak the truth on this floor today about how important it is that we have a Green New Deal for all.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Frank Pallone for this opportunity to bring the culmination of over 2 years of working on both sides of the aisle to bring this bill to fruition.

It is unfortunate that we weren't able to negotiate more into this bill and make it bipartisan, but there will be other opportunities, as we are a two-Chamber legislature, and I am sure that the Senate has some ideas about how to make this bill better, and we are all open to that opportunity.

Mr. Speaker, I would also like to thank Subcommittee Chairwoman Schakowsky for doing an extraordinary job, making sure that we shepherd this bill through the process and making sure that we keep open lines of communication on both sides of the aisle so that we can get to this point.

It is important for us to understand that this bill is about the Federal Trade Commission's ability to protect consumers from fraudsters and scammers. This means that right now scammers remain free to steal money from hardworking Americans, seniors who are falling prey every minute of the day to scams on the Internet, to veterans who people knock on their door and appeal to them and rip them off and give them nothing for their hard-earned money after defending our honor in the military, to single moms who sign up to get a higher education so they can provide for their children, and then end up empty-handed, with nothing to show for their hard-earned money. Those are the people that 13(b), through the FTC, is going to go after and restore those funds.

For example, since 2016, they have restored over $11 billion to American families from fraudsters and scammers. Yes, it is happening every single day. And it is only getting worse. And today the United States people stand naked with the ability to be able to defend themselves.

The average American family cannot afford to hire a lawyer. What the FTC does is they appeal to a Federal court and they say we have found a bad actor. We are ready to take them to task. We are ready to restore the American families that they are trying to destroy and get them their money back. That is what 13(b) is.

We have a balance of power in this country. The FTC is part of the administration. That is one balance of power. The United States Supreme Court said through a technicality, well, 13(b) should not be made available right now for the FTC to protect the American people.

And they pointed to Congress and said, well, as long as Congress will pass the law then they can do their job and protect the American people. That is what this bill is.

This bill is simply an opportunity to restore the faith of the American people in our system that when they get ripped off, whether it is in person, or on the internet or in whatever manner that some scammer is taking advantage of our American people, the FTC is going to be there to speak up for them, to defend them, and take that money back and put it in the pockets of those individuals who have been ripped off. That is what 13(b) is.

Today, I am very proud, as an American-born citizen, the son of immigrants, to be a Member of Congress, to be able to do the work that we are doing today to get this bill out of the House of Representatives. I urge every Member of this House to please help restore the faith of the American people in us and our system and make sure that they understand that we speak for them, we hear them, and we know how they feel when they get ripped off. And the FTC is going to be there through 13(b) to restore the American people and give them the money that was stolen from them.

Mr. Speaker, today is a very emotional day for me. I am so proud to be a Member of the House of Representatives, equally proud to be an American-born citizen, and equally proud to be raised by my two immigrant parents, who always believed that in this country, the United States of America, you can be the best that you can be, and you can do the kinds of things that in many parts of the world a child of parents with a first- and second-grade education doesn't have the opportunity to do.

Today we passed a bill, with the support of our staff and colleagues in the House of Representatives, to help protect consumers, to put billions of dollars back in the pockets of individuals who have been and unfortunately will be ripped off by bad actors across this country, but they will be protected.

The faith of our government to work for our people is being restored by restoring section 13(b) to the Federal Trade Commission.

Again, this is a very emotional day for me because my parents came to this country, working in the fields, harvesting fruits and vegetables to help Americans eat, and I get to be a Member of this House, harvesting votes to help restore the confidence and faith of the American people in our system.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and celebrate the retirement of Dr. Monte E. Perez as President from Los Angeles Mission College, located in Sylmar, California.

Dr. Perez graduated from James A. Garfield High School in East Los Angeles, obtained his bachelor's degree in Social Science Government at California State University, Los Angeles, and his master's and PhD in Public Policy and Administration from the University of Southern California.

His career in higher education began as the assistant director of Admissions at Stanford University. Subsequently, he served as the director of the Educational Opportunity Program and Student Support Services at California State University, Los Angeles while also teaching Political Science and Chicano Studies. He implemented numerous outreach and retention programs at Stanford and California State University, Los Angeles.

Selected as a policy fellow for the U.S. Department of Education, he became the Secretary's senior policy analyst with expertise in financial aid, career education, TRIO, and youth employment.

Upon returning to California, he was appointed to be the Director of Community and Organizational Relations for the Educational Testing Service's Western Regional Office and later promoted to Regional Office Director.

In 1997, Dr. Perez joined the National Hispanic University (NHU) in San Jose, California as the director of Institutional Research and was promoted to provost and vice president of Academic Affairs. He engineered the successful WASC accreditation for NHU as the first Latino non-profit independent senior college on the West Coast. In 2004, Dr. Perez was selected as the vice president of Student Services at Golden West Community College in Huntington Beach, California where he was a senior administrator engaged in construction, enrollment management, accreditation, and fiscal management.

On July 1, 2008, Dr. Perez became the President of the Moreno Valley Campus which prepares students for vocational careers in various sectors.

In May of 2011, Dr. Perez assumed the presidency of Los Angeles Mission College (LAMC), which serves the San Fernando Valley and is one of the nine colleges of the Los Angeles Community College District. LAMC provides accessible, affordable, high-quality learning opportunities that result in a high transfer rate to four-year universities and colleges.

Dr. Perez has contributed to numerous academic presentations including his papers on the integration of academic affairs and student services at Oxford University, revising the California Master Plan in Higher Education at the University of Vienna, and Exemplary Enrollment and Retention Strategies in Community Colleges at the Education Testing Service's National Community College symposium.

Dr. Perez also serves as the President of the national Board of Governors for the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities representing 550 two-year and four-year colleges. In 2017, he was appointed as a Trustee to the Los Angeles County Board of Education by Supervisor Sheila Kuehl of the 3rd District.

I applaud the record of unparalleled accomplishments in the field of education and decades of community service and leadership.

Madam Speaker, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, I am using a proxy to vote on my behalf (pursuant to House Resolution 8 and in accordance with regulation C.6.). Regretfully, my proxy was unable to arrive at the House floor within the allotted time to cast my vote for H.R. 1620, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2021. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 86 (H.R. 1620--the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2021).

Stated against:

Madam Speaker, I have the honor and privilege to be born as an American citizen. There are billions of people around the world who don't have that privilege, that honor, and that blessing.

Today, I get to exercise my privilege as a Member of Congress to bring my two grandchildren, ages 1 and 3, to the floor of the House of Representatives. It is a very emotional moment for me because when I see their beautiful brown eyes, I see their grandparents who were born in another country, and I see their great-grandparents born in another country, just like many people on this House floor whose grandparents and great-grandparents came from Germany, Guatemala, Mexico, or any other place on the planet.

We are fighting to do what is right, to do what is right for the gold standard that the world has seen in the United States of America, a place of hope and a place of future for people who are fleeing persecution for religious reasons or otherwise to be able to come to this country, kiss the ground that they walk on, and start anew.

My beautiful grandkids get to be American citizens because somebody made the journey sometime before them.

Madam Speaker, I will close by saying this: The United States of America has always been the gold standard, and that is the argument that we are making here today.

This is not a game. We are fighting for the lives of human beings who should have the opportunity to be just like every person on this floor: to be allowed the freedom to be who they choose to be, who God made them to be, by being in the greatest place on the planet. That is why we are fighting today.

Madam Speaker, once again, I say I am blessed to be an American citizen and honored to be a Member of the United States Congress.

Today is a bittersweet day for me as, today, I was able to bring my two grandchildren on the floor of this House, a courtesy that we afford each other as Members of this luscious body: my 1-year-old granddaughter, Jimena Luna De La Rosa, and my grandson, Joaquin Cruz De La Rosa.

But, at the same time, we voted for less than what we should have for the lives of so many men, women, and children who seek to come to the greatest land on Earth, the United States of America.

We must do better. We must do more. And it is time that we push back on a President who considers the gold standard to be the gold on a toilet instead of the gold standard that we have come to be known for around the world when it comes to having open arms of welcoming good human beings to this great country, to be part of this great land.

Mr. Chair, clearly, my colleague from Arizona was not paying attention. The last oil spill was in 2014.

Again, I will state that what we need to be doing is weaning ourselves off fossil fuels and investing in renewable energy like most progressive countries are doing.

The West Coast, California, and the coast of the 24th Congressional District cannot tolerate another oil spill. The benefits of oil exploration and development off our coasts do not outweigh the risks. We need to keep that in mind. For a Representative from the State of Arizona, which is landlocked, which hasn't experienced the perils of such oil spills to their economy, their workers, or their jobs, keep that in mind.

Mr. Speaker, Jakelin Caal Maquin, 7-year-old girl. Felipe Gomez Alonzo, 8 years old. Juan de Leon Gutierrez, 16 years old. Carlos Hernandez Vasquez, 16 years old. All of these children died under our custody in the United States of America.

In the last 8 months, six children have died in the United States of America under the custody of the Department of Homeland Security. It pains me to say this because I am not talking about some war-torn country halfway around the world. This is happening right here in the United States of America.

Over the past 2 years, under this President, President Donald Trump, 24 men, women, and children who came looking for a better life in the United States of America died.

This administration's treatment is inhumane. What President Trump and this administration are doing is shameful.

Mr. Speaker, let's be very clear: the crisis at the border is a humanitarian crisis that is the product of the President's deadly policies. We need accountability and this President will need to answer for his role in the loss of life, on our soil, at the United States border.

Madam Speaker, I am proud to express my support for H.R. 986, the Protecting Americans with Preexisting Conditions Act. For too long this Administration has undermined and attacked the care of our most vulnerable Americans and perpetuated unjust barriers to treatment. By passing this bill my colleagues are fulfilling the will of the American people, who used their voice to tell Washington that these partisan attacks on the Affordable Care Act were unacceptable.

The American people also care about protecting the only planet we have. Climate change continues to threaten the safety of Americans every year by fueling the frequency and severity of natural disasters. In my state of California, the fire season has turned into a year-long ordeal. People in California have lost so much as these fires get worse and worse. We've lost lives, homes, communities, and livelihoods. H.R. 2157 is another step towards recovery. Among other things, it provides funds for emergency forest restoration, to farmers struggling with crop and livestock losses due to wildfires and other disasters, and for legal services for people who need legal help during the recovery period. H.R. 2157 provides needed relief for Californians and all Americans, including those living in Puerto Rico and other territories devastated by hurricanes.

Importantly, this bill also prevents Defense funds from being used to construct an unnecessary and ineffective wall along the southern border. When we have real problems to fix, we cannot waste a penny on an unnecessary slogan. Instead, we need to be addressing the healthcare needs of Americans and ensure they can get back on their feet in the wake of natural disasters, as we have done today.

As always, I want to take the time to thank those who have worked tirelessly to improve our nation's healthcare, environment, and response to natural disasters.

Mr. Speaker, I want to start off by thanking two individuals who came to this country for a better life: Luis Sanchez and Elvira Sanchez.

They were married, and they had their first daughter, Norma, and some years later, I was fortunate to fall in love with her.

Now, some years later, we have been married, raised four beautiful children. They look like their mother. We now have two grandchildren.

Tomorrow is the day that I get to celebrate that the love of my life was born. No, I am not going to say how many years ago. Tomorrow is her birthday, and here I am in Washington.

I have been doing this job, this career, for 22 years, and I must say, sometimes I am lucky enough to be there to celebrate anniversaries and birthdays and sometimes I am not, but I just wanted to take this opportunity to say happy birthday to the love of my life and my number one constituent. And, yes, my grandchildren live in my district, so they are my constituents, too.

It is a tough call, but, Norma, you are my number one constituent. Happy birthday.

Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize a San Fernando Valley native and constituent of mine, Evan Press.

Mr. Press has worked tirelessly to improve the Greater San Fernando Valley and give back to his community. Earning a degree in Political Science from our state schools at UC Berkeley and San Francisco State University as well as a Certificate in Financial Planning from UCLA, Mr. Press briefly worked in San Francisco for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Thereafter he brought his wealth of knowledge to our community's Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Press began his work in the Chamber of Commerce in 2015 where he worked his way up from serving as the Chairman on the Chamber's Government Affairs Committee to leading the Chamber as Chairman of the Board.

Mr. Press helped establish the San Fernando Valley Regional Foundation, which advances economic, community, and educational development in the area. Further, while Board Chair, the Chamber's Job Training Program expanded with over 800 workers learning management and leadership skills. Mr. Press has shown his clear commitment to the financial success of his community by working to promote San Fernando's small businesses. As Chairman, Mr. Press advocated to decrease costs and streamline the process for the Valley's emerging independent brewing industry. He worked with Valley entrepreneurs to help them navigate the difficulties of opening new stores and setting up new businesses. Even in retirement, Mr. Press continues to serve the San Fernando Valley as an Independent Financial Consultant.

I applaud Mr. Press and his commitment to our community. Such a prominent business leader and respected community member deserves recognition. I hope Mr. Press' efforts inspire other Angelenos to dedicate themselves to the economic success of their neighbors and the Greater San Fernando Valley.

Madam Speaker, I have the honor of helping an American citizen familiarize herself with our United States Capitol--with her United States Capitol. Sophia is here with her eighth grade class from St. Philip The Apostle Catholic School in Pasadena, California.

I felt it important for her to understand that we do listen, so I asked her before I gave this speech: What comes to mind? What issue would you like me to mention?

She thought, and she thought, and she said: Teenage suicide rates are way too high.

You had better believe it, America. They are. And there are many things we can do, both locally and here in Washington, to make sure that we curtail that and make sure that young people don't find themselves in the position to do such a thing to themselves, their family, and their community.

I pledged to Sophia that many of us here in Washington are committed to doing what we can to make sure that suicide rates in general, but specifically suicide rates amongst young people, are curtailed and they hopefully stop and come down to zero soon.

I thank Sophia for visiting us, and I thank her teachers and all of those who brought her here today.

Madam Speaker, I have the honor and the privilege of being a Member of the House of Representatives.

I also am speaking without notes because, over 40 years ago, I lost a teenage friend of mine just a few yards from my front door in what was perhaps one of the first drive-bys in the history of Los Angeles, a senseless killing where a young man on drugs decided to shoot through a wall of someone's home--my friend's home. With one shot, Rudy died at the age of 16.

Today, I had the honor and the privilege of voting on a bill that would make our streets safer--not solve every problem, but reduce the amount of crying and dying that goes on in too many communities around America.

I must say this--and it is unfortunate to have to clarify--because I am Latino, people are assuming that the person who shot Rudy was a Latino or a Black male or what have you. He was not. He was a young man--a victim, himself, of drug abuse--a White young man.

It should never happen to anyone, and people should never assume that it only happens to certain people in certain communities. Tens of thousands of human lives are lost every year in the greatest country, America, and we need to make it better.