Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce represents more than 3 million businesses that employ millions and millions of Americans. The overwhelming majority of these businesses are small business, the engine of our economy.

So it is more than a little surprising that the administration will be attacking this pro-job, pro-growth organization at a time when our economy is in the worst recession in 80 years. Shouldn't we be working together to create jobs and pull our country out of this economic mess? Shouldn't the Congress and the administration and the private sector all have a singular purpose of restoring America's economy and leading the worldwide economic resurgence?

Yet reports that I have read in recent weeks indicate a constant attacking of the Chamber and discrediting the Chamber of Commerce.

As a former chairman of the Florida Chamber of Commerce, we represented 139,000 small businesses in my home State of Florida. I urge the administration to drop its attack mentality and work together with the very groups responsible for creating jobs and growth in the United States of America.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Thanks for your leadership. I'd also like to thank my colleague, Mr. Nye, for working with me in a bipartisan manner to address this issue that I believe is long overdue.

Our amendment will extend SBA loans to homeowners who have residences that are suffering from toxic Chinese drywall. An estimated 36,000 residents in my home State of Florida are believed to have this hazardous material.

For most families, their house is their biggest investment. I have met with homeowners across my district who have seen their property values plummet and their health care concerns grow. The American Dream of home ownership has become a nightmare for these families.

The real life story of one of my constituents, Jim Silverblatt, comes to mind. Jim bought a house in beautiful Venice, Florida, for $680,000 in 2006. He retired from UPS as a supervisor and invested another $125,000 in his residence. He has over $800,000 in that house. However, due to the damage caused by the toxic drywall, Jim's home is now appraised at just $155,000, and is uninhabitable in the warm weather.

Jim's story is all too common in Florida in general. Many of my constituents in our area that I have talked to, they have had to move out of their homes and they're renting another place. They're paying two mortgages at the same time. While this amendment doesn't fix everything, it represents much-needed progress for all these families. I urge passage.

Mr. Speaker, the State of Florida leads the Nation with one of the toughest right-to-know laws in the country. Florida's strong Sunshine Law guards against back-room deals and secret negotiation by government officials. Democracy thrives best when the people are fully involved and engaged.

Along these lines, I've introduced a resolution demanding that the critical decisions made on the sweeping health care reform bill now before Congress be conducted under the watchful eye of the American people. My resolution puts the House on record against secret, closed- door deals on a health care bill that seeks to overhaul one-sixth of our country's entire economy. In the past, massive legislative measures have been written in the middle of the night by a handful of Members and staff and then quickly passed into law before the American people have had a chance to even see what the final version looks like, let alone determine how they feel about it.

It's time for Congress to follow Florida's lead and ensure that any conference committee meeting on health care reform be conducted in the light of day and under full public view. I hope Members on both sides of the aisle will cosponsor this important right-to-know measure and join me in this effort.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 25th anniversary of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in women between age 40 and 59. We have all been touched by it with family or friends.

In my home State of Florida, an estimated 12,000 new cases of breast cancer in women will be diagnosed this year. However, if detected early enough, it can be successful in treating the disease.

To this end, I am proud to be a cosponsor of the EARLY Act, a bill introduced by my fellow Florida colleague, Debbie Wasserman Schultz. She has been a leader. She has got a courageous story that she shares with many. This act, her bill, is an education campaign, it is a public awareness campaign, and it will have a huge difference on women in the future. So I really respect her leadership on this.

In my congressional district, I am proud to say, I thank the leadership. We have been active, our employees and our businesses, over the last 10 years. Working together, it makes a big difference. I would like to just say, we need to continue to educate our families and friends on this bill.

Mr. Speaker, creating jobs and getting America back to work should be Congress' top priority. Unemployment nears 10 percent nationally and even higher in my district. We need to keep our efforts focused on the economy.

Today, there's a report the White House is looking for tax credits for companies that create new jobs. I fully support the incentive and think the American people would as well. According to The New York Times, the Federal Government tried this approach in 1977, 1978. During that period, employment climbed at a record pace. An economic review study suggested in 1970 that the policy was responsible for creating 700,000 jobs of the 2.1 million jobs created during that period.

I look forward to working with my colleagues on this important issue.

Madam Speaker, affordable health care is critical to our country, but let's not forget small business. They create 70 percent of the jobs in Florida. Ninety-nine percent of all businesses in Florida are small businesses, but yet in this debate we're looking at charging small businesses an 8 percent tax on payroll. That's like a fixed expense.

They're also looking to raise taxes up to 45 percent, with a 5.4 in sunsetting President Bush's tax. So, again, 45 percent. A lot of that's pass-through income for many of our small companies.

These taxes will kill jobs. The 8 percent alone, they're talking, will put 20 percent of our businesses out of business in Florida. I know. I've been in business for 30 years.

Let's help our small businesses. Small businesses create the jobs. We can cannot afford to tax them to death. It needs to be about the economy and jobs.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3293, the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Act, 2010:

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3293

Account: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Child Protection Center

Address of Requesting Entity: 1750 17th Street, Bldg. L, Sarasota (FL) 34234

Description of Request: I secured $150,000 for the ``Pillar of Hope'' Campaign, which seeks a Child Advocacy Center in Sarasota, Florida. Along with the expansion of the counseling program, the center will have two new state-of-the-art medical exams rooms at their location. By having the ability to provide more medical services to abused children the burden on local emergency rooms will be lessened. Currently, the center is unable to offer certain services as they are limited in space in their current location.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3293

Account: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Sarasota County

Address of Requesting Entity: 1660 Ringling Blvd., Sarasota (FL) 34236.

Description of Request: I secured $350,000 for Sarasota County, which is seeking to construct a new health facility in the community of Englewood. The facility will be located in the southern most portion of Sarasota County and will serve the residents of both Sarasota and Charlotte counties. The facility will improve access to health care and a variety of human and social services programs for residents.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3293

Account: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: University of South Florida (USF) Sarasota-Manatee

Address of Requesting Entity: 8350 North Tamiami Trail, Sarasota (FL) 34243

Description of Request: I secured $250,000 to address nursing shortages by supporting educational development at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee Campus.

The university is in the initial stages of preparing for separate academic accreditation. Once this is achieved, their highest priority will be to establish a College of Nursing on the campus. With a nursing program in place we will be able to reach and educate the southern-most portions of Florida. The funds from this proposal will be spent to support the development of a teaching simulation laboratory (equipment and simulation models) on our campus, for equipping a videoconference classroom, and the development of web, on-site, and blended courses.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3293

Account: Higher Education

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: New College

Address of Requesting Entity: 5800 Bay Shore Road, Sarasota (FL) 34243

Description of Request: I secured $100,000 to establish a joint-use library facility that will serve local higher education entities and the general public in the areas of community research and civic engagement.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3288, the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2010.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3288

Account: Transportation & Community & System Preservation

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Manatee County and Sarasota County

Address of Requesting Entity: 1112 Avenue West, Bradenton (FL) 34205, 1660 Ringling Blvd., Sarasota (FL) 34236.

Description of Request: I secured $500,000 for the Intelligent Transportation (ITS), also known as Advanced Traffic Management System, project in Manatee and Sarasota Counties.

The counties are upgrading their signal system in order to deploy a more advanced traffic management system. This project also complements a programmed State of Florida project to deploy ITS for the purpose of incident management on 1-75. It is expected to reduce vehicular delay by 9.5 million hours per year and reduce fuel consumption by 3.8 million gallons per year.

Pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3288, the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2010.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3288

Account: Economic Development Initiatives

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: City of Sarasota

Address of Requesting Entity: 1565 First Street, Sarasota (FL) 34236.

Description of Request: I secured $150,000 for the revitalization of the Robert L. Taylor Community Center as part of the Newtown Redevelopment Comprehensive Plan. The Robert L. Taylor Community Center is the only government sponsored/owned recreation center in Newtown and is the most heavily used recreation center in the City. Its renovation will provide modern recreation facilities for the youth of Newtown.

Pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3288, the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2010.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3288

Account: Economic Development Initiatives

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: City of North Port

Address of Requesting Entity: 4970 City Hall Blvd., North Port (FL) 34286.

Description of Request: I secured $100,000 for a new Family Services Center in the City of North Port.

This facility will house the city's Social Services Division as well as 12 other community agencies. This Center will bring a variety of health and human services to the citizens of North Port.

Mr. Speaker, at the start of this year, the focus has been on economy and jobs, number one.

I was chairman of the Florida Chamber 4 years ago. We represented 137,000 businesses, and 99 percent of those businesses were small business. They create 75 percent of the jobs. Yet, today, we are going to tax health care. It's not a tax on profit. It's a tax on payroll. If you've got a $1 million payroll making no money, and if you're paying another $80,000 a year you don't have, you're going to put people out of business.

The other thing they want to put together is a surtax of 5.4 percent on businesses. They want to get to the millionaires. Do you know who those folks are? They're small business people. You wouldn't know that if you've never been in business. That's the majority of them. So you're going to tax the 8 percent. You're going to add another 5.4 percent. You're going to kill millions of businesses, and you're going to kill millions and millions of more jobs. We need to get focused back on the economy and on jobs in America today, right now.

Mr. Chair, on rollcall No. 584, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''

Madam Speaker, this past week I held a town hall meeting in North Port, Florida. More than 300 people showed up.

A common theme at the forum was that the government should not nationalize health care. My constituents don't want a one-size-fits-all system where bureaucrats choose your treatments and doctors. My constituents want to make their own medical choices.

Some in Congress are rushing to bring a complex and far-reaching health care bill to the House floor within the next 2 weeks. This plan has numerous challenges in it.

First, it imposes an 8 percent tax on small businesses who don't offer health insurance to their employees. Most of these family-run businesses want to offer health care insurance but can't afford it. It's an 8 percent tax not on profit but on overhead. It becomes overhead. It's an 8 percent expense.

How does taxing small business help us get out of the worst economic recession in more than a century? This is a job killer, not a job creator.

Let's work together and make it better for small business and stop the taxing on small business.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Mount Tabor Missionary Baptist Church in Tallevast, Florida, on its 100th Anniversary and recognize Pastor Ezell Patterson who has served as the congregation's spiritual leader for the past 33 years.

The 150-member church was founded in 1909 by the children of former slaves and has since provided a spiritual home to generations of Tallevast residents who have been able to count on the enduring spiritual support and presence of Mount Tabor.

Though its challenges have changed over the years, Mount Tabor Missionary Baptist has remained strongly committed to its core mission: provide spiritual guidance to all of its members and their families.

For the past few years, the church has provided comfort and a meeting place for area residents impacted by the recent discovery that some residents of the polluted community were drinking contaminated water for possibly up to 40 years.

For more than a century now, Mount Tabor has been the spiritual heart of the Tallevast community.

Resident Ms. Virginia Massie told The Bradenton Herald the church is ``the most important thing in my life.'' And Associate Pastor Willie C. Shaw told the paper, it ``has always been an extension of my immediate family.''

I have had the pleasure of visiting with local residents in the church hall and attending Sunday service there.

I congratulate Mount Tabor Missionary Baptist Church and its members for reaching this important milestone. I recognize its many accomplishments, and I appreciate their successful efforts to provide a spiritual home to the Tallevast community.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 3183, the Energy & Water Appropriations Act, 2010:

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3183

Account: Corps of Engineers--Construction

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Manatee County

Address of Requesting Entity: 1112 Manatee Avenue West, Bradenton, FL 34205

Description of Request: I secured $5,565,000 for an important dredging project for flood control purposes.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3183

Account: Corps of Engineers--Investigations

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: City of Sarasota

Address of Requesting Entity:

Description of Request: I secured $500,000 to replenish the beach to deal with ongoing erosion.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3183

Account: Corps of Engineers--O&M

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: West Coast Inland Navigation District

Address of Requesting Entity: 200 E. Miami Avenue, Venice, FL 34285

Description of Request: I secured $780,000 for maintenance dredging of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3183

Account: Corps of Engineers--Construction

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Manatee County

Address of Requesting Entity: 1112 Manatee Avenue West, Bradenton, FL 34205

Description of Request: I secured $200,000 to complete the necessary study to enroll certain portions of Anna Maria Island beached into the federal program.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3183

Account: Corps of Engineers--Construction

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Port Manatee

Address of Requesting Entity: 300 Tampa Bay Way, Palmetto, FL 34221

Description of Request: I secured $200,000 for or maintenance of the Manatee Harbor Basin, if the Secretary determines that such maintenance is economically justified and environmentally acceptable and that the channel or breakwater was constructed in accordance with the applicable permits and appropriate engineering and design standards.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan Bill Number: H.R. 3183

Account: Corps of Engineers--Construction

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Port Manatee

Address of Requesting Entity: 300 Tampa Bay Way, Palmetto, FL 34221

Description of Request: I secured $500,000 on-going U.S Army Corps of Engineers' General Re-evaluation Report.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 3183

Account: Corps of Engineers--Section 1135

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Sarasota County

Address of Requesting Entity: 1600 Ringling Blvd. Sarasota, FL 34236

Description of Request: I secured language to allow it to be used for construction of a central sewer system and other needed infrastructure to replace approximately 14,000 individual septic systems.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 2892, the Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2010:

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 2892

Account: FEMA--State and Local Programs

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Sarasota County

Address of Requesting Entity: 1660 Ringling Blvd., Sarasota (FL) 34236

Description of Request: I secured $300,000 for the Emergency Operations Center in Sarasota County.

The funding would be used to help relocate and construct a new Sarasota County Emergency Operation Center.

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 2892

Account: FEMA--Pre-disaster Mitigation

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: City of Venice

Address of Requesting Entity: 401 West Venice Avenue, Venice (FL) 34285

Description of Request: I secured $200,000 for improvements to the Emergency Shelter in the City of Venice.

The funding would be used for the installation of a modernized energy generation system that would provide power during storm events that would allow this facility to appropriately serve as a hurricane shelter, and also be designated as a special needs shelter.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information regarding earmarks I received as part of H.R. 2847, the Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Act, 2010:

Requesting Member: Congressman Vern Buchanan

Bill Number: H.R. 2847

Account: NOAA--Operations, Research, and Facilities

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Mote Marine Laboratory

Address of Requesting Entity: 1600 Ken Thompson Parkway, Sarasota, Fl. 34236

Description of Request: I secured $1,500,000 for Science Consortium for Ocean Replenishment (SCORE) at Mote Marine Laboratory.

SCORE is a multi-state initiative for the recovery of the nation's ocean fisheries. Its approach is to replenish diminishing marine fisheries stocks based on scientific protocols developed through a highly coordinated national effort focused on demonstration of successful stock enhancement. This fast-track strategy has the potential to be more cost-effective and timely than policy measures traditionally used to conserve and sustain ocean resources.