Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for up to 15 minutes as in morning business.

Mr. President, I rise today in my final full work week and not yet 150 days into my Senate career, yet at the precipice of the close of that career. On January 30 of this year, Governor Deval Patrick sent me to this Chamber to represent the people of Massachusetts and their interests.

Yesterday, on June 25, those same people took to the voting booth and called me home. In doing so, they called Senator-elect Ed Markey to the high honor of serving this august body. After 37 distinguished years in the House, Senator-elect Markey now has this opportunity to offer his voice, wisdom, accumulated experiences, humor,

esprit de corps, and tireless commitment to justice and equality to the Senate. I, for one, believe that Massachusetts and the country will be better for it. Like a majority of Massachusetts voters who expressed themselves yesterday, I am quite confident Senator-elect Markey will serve with distinction and act in the best interests of the citizens he is now privileged to represent.

The Senator-elect bested a strong candidate who brought a new voice and, yes, a new visage to the Massachusetts political scene. I applaud Gabriel Gomez on a well-run campaign and, most importantly, his willingness to sacrifice so much in an effort to serve the people of the Commonwealth. He started this journey as a relative unknown, but I suspect we have not heard the last of Mr. Gomez. I thank him and his family for their sacrifices and their willingness to engage.

When it comes to farewell speeches, few will top the words offered by John Kerry on this floor a few months ago. After 28 years of distinguished service to the people of Massachusetts, now-Secretary Kerry spent nearly an hour reflecting on his service to this body. By the same measure, as merely an interim Senator serving but a few short months, I probably should have ended my remarks about 45 seconds ago. But before I yield, I will take a few minutes to reflect on my brief time in this body and extend my gratitude to a number of folks.

First, I want to acknowledge and recognize the outstanding staff members in Boston and DC who have helped me serve our constituents to the best of my ability. When Governor Patrick named me as interim Senator, a few people--okay, more than a few--openly questioned whether I would be up to the task and whether I was capable of accomplishing anything other than locating the lavatory during my temporary assignment. But I knew something those doubters did not know. I knew I was going to be able to do my best for the folks back home because I came to the Senate armed with the knowledge of the issues by dint of my time in the Patrick-Murray administration. I planned to make a few key hires and convince the bulk of Secretary Kerry's Senate staff to stay on and help me do the job the Governor sent me to do. In other words, I knew what I did not know, but I knew enough to hire the people who knew the considerable rest. Boy, have they proven me a genius. If you work in the Senate but a day--and I suspect the same is true in the House of Representatives--you will learn quickly that staff make this place hum, and good staff make all the difference in the world. I hope my team will forgive me if I do not list them all by name, thereby avoiding the sin of omission, but, instead, all of the staff will accept my heartfelt appreciation for their willingness to join my team, show me the ropes, teach a new dog some old tricks, educate me on all of the rules that matter, which seem to be written nowhere, and their exhibition of degrees of professionalism and service to our country that the public too often thinks is missing in their Congress.

To my entire staff, I have been in awe at your greatness. I am forever in your debt for your immeasurable contributions to our work in the interests of Massachusetts residents. I look forward to your many successes yet to come.

To two of my team in particular, Val Young, my chief of staff, and Lauren Rich, my scheduler, who have known and worked with me for years, thank you for your continued willingness to partner with and trust in me.

If I am being honest about the people who helped me look as though I belong here, I must spend a moment or two acknowledging the wonderful women and men who comprise the Senate staff. From the Capitol Police, who protect us every day and somehow knew my name on the first day, to the subway operators who always deliver us on time and unfazed, to the elevator operators who excel in the art of cutting off reporters and their annoying questions, to the cloakroom staff who field every cloying call about voting schedules and presiding hours, to the clerks and Parliamentarians who discreetly tell you what to say and do as presiding officer while the public in the gallery silently wonders why everyone addresses you as Mr. or Madam President while sitting in that chair, to the generous food service staff who look the other way when you go back for seconds and sometimes thirds, and to so many others who are the oil that makes this engine hum, each of you has shown me such patience, support, and grace that I know your love for this institution may trump even the Members' affection for this place and will sustain the institution long after any one or all of us leave this Chamber. You are tremendous resources for every new Senator, and I suspect great comfort to even the longest serving among us. The public may not know you by name or know the importance of your work, but now I do. I have been honored to serve you.

The next folks I recognize are the youngest and most silent among us. Of course, I speak of the pages, the young women and men who spend part of a high school year dressed and acting in formal traditions of this body. I have yet to speak with an uninteresting page or a page uninterested in the Senate and our government. These are dynamic young people who could be doing so many different things with their time but they give their time and service to the Senate and its Members. They are indispensable to both. I look forward to the day when my young boys will be of age to follow in the footsteps of these outstanding young people.

Last, and by no means least, I want to thank the family and friends who supported my family and me during my short tenure. We often say it takes a village to raise a child, but I can attest it also takes a village to help an interim Senator meet his duties at Congress and at home. Whether offering me a spare bedroom in Silver Spring or agreeing to last minute babysitting duties so my wife and I both could celebrate Black History Month at the White House, our village is vast and generous. Of course, every village needs a queen. The queen of my village is my wife Stacy. I was able to serve because she was willing to be mom and dad and sacrifice in ways known and unknown while I have been in DC. Over the past few months, I have missed many homework assignments, some birthday dinners, pediatric appointments, school performances, and parent-teacher meetings, but our sons never felt their dad was absent and unaccounted for because their mom, a supermom, more than made up for my absence.

Stacy has been my rock and salvation for nearly 20 years now. I am better every day for it. Let the record show for now and all time my love and dedication to Stacy.

In January of this year I planned to leave the Deval Patrick administration and transition back into private life. I was looking forward to more conventional hours, a reprieve from working under the public scrutiny of the press, and spending more time with my wife and our young son. So I came to the Senate. Go figure.

I was surprised, but deeply honored, when Governor Patrick sent me here to represent the folks back home. I am eternally grateful to the government's faith and trust in my ability to serve. This floor on which I stand today and with which I have become so closely acquainted over the last 5 months has been occupied by some of the most dynamic and greatest political figures of our Nation's history.

From my own State of Massachusetts alone: Adams, Webster, Sumner, Saltonstall, Brooke, Kennedy, all who held a seat in the Chamber before me, are enough to make any person feel daunted when assuming a desk on this floor.

I was appointed to the Senate to fill the seat of another great Senator, John Kerry, and work alongside another great Senator, Elizabeth Warren.

Thank you for being here, Elizabeth.

Although my time was short, I only sought to uphold not only Senator Kerry's legacy in this body but the work of all of the esteemed Senators who have dedicated their service to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and I pledged to be the best partner I could to Senator Warren.

I entered the Senate at a vexing time in this body's history. As we all know, congressional approval levels are dismally low. People across the Nation and political pundits everywhere believe partisanship is a divide too wide to bridge and a wall too high to overcome. Yet despite the overwhelming public pessimism, I came to Washington with two achievable objectives:

to serve the people of Massachusetts to the best of my ability and to work with any Senator willing to implement smart, sensible, and productive policy to advance the ideals of our Nation.

From the outside, the prospects for bipartisanship may seem slim. Party-line votes are the norm. The threat of the filibuster demands a supermajority to pass meaningful legislation. The American people have come to believe Congress is more committed to obstruction than compromise.

To the everyday observer we have reached a standstill where partisanship outweighs progress and neither side is willing to reach across the aisle for the good of the American people.

What I have encountered in the Senate is not a body defined by vitriol but one more defined by congeniality and common respect. That began before I even started here.

On the day the Governor announced my appointment, I was pleasantly surprised to receive calls on my personal cell phones--I still don't know how they got those numbers--from Senators King, Hagan, and Cardin. I had the pleasure of receiving warm welcomes from Majority Leader Reid and Republican Leader McConnell, among so many others that first day.

One of the first persons to congratulate me after Senator Warren and Secretary Kerry escorted me for my swearing in was my colleague from across the aisle, Senator Tim Scott. Since then Senator Rand Paul and I have recounted our days at Duke and our affection for college basketball.

On a bipartisan congressional delegation to the Middle East, I traded life stories and perspectives with Senators Klobuchar and Hoeven and discussed the comedic genius of Will Ferrell with Senators Gillibrand and Graham.

Senator Portman stopped by my Commonwealth Coffee last week to wish me well as I leave the Senate. He encouraged me every day during my time here.

Senator Burr, my next-door neighbor in the Russell Building, has always been good to remind me that I came from North Carolina before I had the privilege to serve in Massachusetts.

Senator McCain invited me to cosponsor my first Senate resolution.

Senator Manchin has shown me more kindnesses than I can count.

The freshman Senators on both sides welcomed me to their class and offered never-ending encouragement.

Indeed, one of them, Heidi Heitkamp, has become the North Dakota sister I never knew I had.

I wish I had time to recount every kindness each of the other 99, including the late Senator Lautenberg, gifted me while here, but I don't. Each has been recorded indelibly in my memory and is returned with gratitude.

In April I experienced the very best of this body's character in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings when Members from every corner of this Nation extended their sympathies, their prayers, and pledged their assistance and support for the city of Boston and to all those affected by that tragedy. In the aftermath we all came together as Americans to honor those killed and to support the wounded during their time of recovery.

We saw the same in the wake of terrible tornadoes that swept through Oklahoma.

Upon closer inspection, it is clear all of us here have common bonds and share similar goals. If only we are willing to seek out those bonds and focus on the goals that are in the best interests of our Nation.

While we may not agree on every policy, every line item, or every vote, we have each embraced the role of public servant, committed to improving the country we have pledged to support and defend. As I have discovered in my time here, there is more opportunity for cooperation than the American public might believe. This cooperation has led to some noted successes.

Thanks to the bipartisan work in the Agriculture Committee and on the Senate floor, we were able to send a farm bill to the House. Through the joint leadership of the so-called Gang of 8, we are debating right now a workable approach to comprehensive immigration reform. We have confirmed five Cabinet Secretaries.

In what will remain the most memorable all-nighter of my Senate career, through a marathon session and more votes in one night than most interim Senators have in a career, the Senate passed a budget. Now we anxiously await the urgent opportunity to conference with the House.

I have seen progress, and I remain a true believer in the democratic process, the core functionality of our government endowed to us by our Founding Fathers so many decades ago. I remain a true believer in the Senate's system of government and the Senate's role in that system.

If I have been asked a question any more frequently than: What are you going to do next, Mo, it has been: Is our system of government broken? Is Congress broken?

I have answered truthfully each time: No, our system of government is the greatest ever known and the best example of democracy in human history.

The genius of our Founding Fathers is on display every day on Capitol Hill, in every State capitol, and every city or townhall across this Nation. Part of the Founders' genius was the birth of the government designed to function as the people needed it to but function only as effectively as the privileged few empowered within it want it to work, or as Secretary Kerry himself said best a few months ago in his final floor remarks:

I do not believe the Senate is broken. . . . There is

nothing wrong with the Senate that can't be fixed by what's

right about the Senate--the predominant and weighty notion

that 100 American citizens, chosen by their neighbors [or

Governor, in my case] to serve from States as different from

Massachusetts and Montana, can always choose to put parochial

or personal interests aside and find the national interest.

What an awesome responsibility and privilege.

In my scant 5 months I have seen the promise of those words realized in more ways and in more interactions than the public, unfortunately, has had occasion to witness. I believe in that unlimited promise still.

I also have been part of history while I was here. With my appointment, in coincidence with the appointment of Senator Scott, two African Americans are serving in this body concurrently for the first time in our Nation's history.

Senator Scott and I are, respectively, the seventh and eighth Black Senators to serve in this body. While I believe this number to be far too few, I am also hopeful that it is a sign that these United States will soon be represented by a more diverse population that more closely reflects the diverse country that we are and the diversity of opinions that exist across and within our diverse Nation.

With different perspectives, different backgrounds, different races, religions, and creeds, we are better equipped to confront the issues that face our vast and changing Nation. America has always been and always will be a nation of immigrants, where religious freedom is in our DNA, where more and more we are chipping away at the barriers preventing us from achieving true marriage equality, and where people worldwide still yearn to reach our shores to enjoy our freedoms.

A Congress that is more reflective of this America, as this Congress is becoming, will be good for America.

Finally, I offer my heartfelt gratitude to the people of Massachusetts. Not one person was given a chance to vote for or against me, but I have gone about my work every day as if they had. I came to this body beholden to Massachusetts, her residents, and the country only, and leave confident that I have stayed true to that honor.

Ladies and gentlemen of the Commonwealth, it has been a true honor and privilege to represent you as your junior Senator in the Senate.

With that, this will likely be the final time I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I would like to take the opportunity to discuss a rare birth defect of the brain, known as holoprosencephaly or

Mr. President, I rise to speak in support of the nomination of Dr. Ernest Moniz--a native son of Massachusetts--to be Secretary of Energy. In voting yes on his nomination, the Senate will confirm someone who is extremely well qualified for the role of Secretary of Energy and someone who is proof positive that the American dream is alive and well.

Dr. Moniz is a son to first-generation immigrants to America, to Fall River, MA, a historic city on the south coast of Massachusetts rich with a history in the textile and garment mills and now with a bright future in the innovation economy.

It was in Fall River that Dr. Moniz first developed his love of science, both at home and in the Massachusetts public schools. With the help of scholarships from his father's labor union, Dr. Moniz was able to attend and receive his bachelor of science degree, summa cum laude in physics, from Boston College. From there, Dr. Moniz went on to do even greater work.

In Massachusetts, we are grateful for the decades of service he has given to one of the finest institutions not just in the Commonwealth but in the world, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology--otherwise known as MIT--where he has been a faculty member since 1973. Dr. Moniz has led many groundbreaking initiatives at MIT, including most recently serving as the funding director of the MIT Energy Initiative and leading the MIT Laboratory for Energy and the Environment. Through the MIT Energy Initiative, he has been at the forefront of multidisciplinary technology and policy studies on the future of nuclear power, coal, nuclear fuel cycles, natural gas, and solar energy. The initiative has spun out numerous startup companies from the campus lab into the emerging and important clean energy economy.

In addition to his many years of service to the Commonwealth, Dr. Moniz also knows his way around this town, which I am sure will serve him well in his new position. He served previously as Under Secretary of the Department of Energy and before that as Associate Director for Science in the Office of Science and Technology Policy for President Clinton.

One of the biggest challenges he will undoubtedly face as Secretary is how to continue critical U.S. investments in emerging energy technologies, including fusion, in the face of a difficult budget climate. While I recognize that, as Secretary, Dr. Moniz will need to recuse himself from this particular issue, I strongly support continued DOE funding of the domestic fusion energy research program at MIT, the C-Mod Program, which has for years led in fusion science and is an incubator for the next generation of fusion scientists. Unless additional action is taken by DOE, the C-Mod research facility at MIT will be abruptly terminated, 130 fusion scientists, engineers, graduate students, and support personnel at MIT would also be terminated, and hundreds of millions of dollars invested in this program over the past generation will be lost.

Our Nation's domestic fusion program simply cannot withstand the proposed reductions without a severe negative impact to our fusion research and our scientific contributions to the international fusion research community. This shortsighted approach could eliminate the ability of the United States to take a lead role in the development of the next generation of energy research.

The Department of Energy has significant responsibilities that impact America's economic energy, environmental, and security future. It is my strong belief that Dr. Moniz has the ability, knowledge, experience, and vision to be an excellent Secretary of Energy for the people of the United States. I look forward to casting my vote to confirm this brilliant scientist, dedicated public servant, and, yes, native son of Massachusetts.

I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Without objection, it is so ordered.

Mr. President, today I am delighted to recognize the Boston Children's Museum for receiving the National Medal for Museum and Library Service. I had the pleasure of congratulating the staff of the Boston Children's Museum earlier today before they headed to the White House to have the medal presented in a ceremony by the First Lady.

This medal is the Nation's highest honor conferred on museums and libraries. The award is given to institutions which demonstrate extraordinary and innovative approaches to public service, exceeding the expected levels of community outreach. Out of 33 well-deserved finalists, only 10 were selected to receive the medal.

The Boston Children's Museum is a center of family in Massachusetts and it comes as no surprise to me that this revered institution would receive the Nation's highest honor.

Children spend their whole day learning, and Boston Children's Museum provides resources for families and educators to help support that continuous discovery. It provides a welcoming, imaginative, child centered learning environment that supports families and promotes the healthy development of all children.

Boston Children's Museum is one of the oldest and largest children's museums in the world. It was founded in 1913 by a group of visionary educators as a center for the exchange of materials and ideas to advance the teaching of

science. For the past century, the museum has provided children with opportunities to engage in joyful discovery experiences that instill an appreciation of our world, develop foundational skills, and spark a lifelong love of learning.

The Museum has prided itself on developing exhibits and programs that emphasize hands on engagement and learning through experience. Children use play-based learning activities to spark their natural creativity and curiosity. The exhibits focus on science, culture, environmental awareness, health and fitness, and the arts. Museum educators also develop programs and activities that address literacy, performing arts, science and math, visual arts, cultures, and health and wellness.

Boston Children's Museum is a pioneer in early childhood education and development and works with research partners to gain a deeper understanding of how children learn, and how they develop physically, intellectually, and socio-emotionally. The museum has teamed up with researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to create Play Lab--an exhibit featuring active research in cognitive development. They have also worked with Harvard University on research involving developmental studies and social cognition. Additionally, they have worked with researchers from Boston College to explore the psychology of the arts and children's understanding of emotional development.

I would like to congratulate Carole Charnow, president and chief executive officer, and all the employees at the Boston Children's Museum on receiving the National Medal for Museum and Library Service.

For 100 years, their outstanding efforts have inspired lifelong learning for generations of children and have served as a model for the Nation in early childhood education and development. I believe that the Boston Children's Museum will continue to be the best children's museum in the world and I look forward to the innovation and leadership they will deliver over the next 100 years.

Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I am pleased to rise this morning to join Senator Warren in honoring our guest Chaplain from Boston, Rev. John Edgerton, and I thank him for his words this morning.

In the wake of the recent tragedies in Massachusetts, I am glad to welcome a representative of Boston's spiritual community to deliver our invocation today. Reverend Edgerton's church, the Old South Church, is located on Boylston Street, not more than 100 yards past the finish line of the great Boston Marathon.

Since the first marathon 117 years ago, the Old South Church has been known as the Church of the Finish Line. Every year, the Sunday before Patriots' Day, the Old South Church holds a service to bless those running the marathon the very next morning. The service this year included the theme music from ``Chariots of Fire'' and the Olympics as well as a prayer for the athletes. Marathoners from around the Commonwealth, Nation, and world congregate at the Old South Church seeking community, faith, and strength for the upcoming race.

Last Monday explosions rocked the finish line at Boylston Street and brought chaos to the front door of the Old South Church. For over a week the church's doors remained closed, as did much of the neighborhood, as investigators scoured the block for evidence. But today, as we pray here for those lives lost and those still recovering, Old South Church will open its doors once again and pray for our city, our Commonwealth, and our citizens.

As we do in times of hardship and heartbreak, we rely on the guidance of community leaders such as Reverend Edgerton and take comfort in their words. It is through their guidance and wisdom that we find the strength to rebound from tragedy and to find hope to move forward.

In churches all across Massachusetts this week, from the Back Bay to Dorchester and from Medford to Stoneham, bells will toll in their steeples and worshippers of all faiths will gather to remember the lives of Officer Sean Collier, Lingzi Lu, Krystle Campbell, and Martin Richard, and to pray for the scores who were injured.

Again next year, we look forward to the Sunday before Marathon Monday when runners will again gather at the Old South Church to receive their blessings before the running of the 118th Boston Marathon. We will always remember, and we will recover. We are thankful to have leaders such as Reverend Edgerton to guide us as we do.

I yield the floor.

I am honored to join the senior Senator from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in this resolution to honor those who were injured or who lost their lives last week as a result of the attack on the Boston Marathon and during the manhunt to apprehend the suspects.

In this resolution the Senate commends the heroism, courage, and sacrifices of Sean Collier, an officer in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology police force, and Richard Donohue, Jr., an officer in the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority police force.

Officer Collier was a 26-year-old native of Wilmington, MA, and was on the force for just over a year in his dream job, a police officer. Before joining the ranks at MIT, Officer Collier served as a civilian employee with the Somerville Police Department, and likely because of his outstanding service at MIT he was going to be invited to return to Somerville in June of this year, this time as an officer.

On Thursday evening last, Officer Collier was murdered in the line of duty, allegedly by the men suspected in the Boston Marathon bombings of last week. MIT Police Chief John DiFave said the following about Officer Collier:

Sean was one of these guys who really looked at police work

as a calling. He was born to be a police officer.

Officer Collier was compassionate and stood out for his ability to connect personally with the students and community he served. We will never forget his devotion to protecting the community of MIT and serving as a police officer. He will be sincerely missed. I honor the exemplary service of Officer Collier and I extend my deepest sympathies to his family.

Last week MBTA police officer Richard Donohue, Jr. was working to protect the public at the Boston Marathon, and early Friday morning he raced to assist Cambridge police as they pursued the suspect who shot an MIT officer in Watertown, MA. What Officer Donohue may not have known was that officer down at MIT was his friend and fellow police academy classmate Sean Collier.

In the ensuing gun battle, showing remarkable courage and disregard for his own safety, Officer Donohue endured a barrage of gunfire and explosives unleashed by these suspects, and he himself was seriously wounded. Officer Donohue is recovering from his wounds and remains in critical but stable condition. I wish to thank Officer Donohue for his service, and I wish him a speedy recovery. As he heals, our thoughts are with the entire Donohue family, especially his wife Kim and their young son, who are a constant presence at his hospital bedside.

Madam President, I rise both early and late in my Senate career in strong support of the Marketplace Fairness Act, legislation that Massachusetts-based merchants and Massachusetts municipalities tell me is long overdue.

First, let me congratulate Senators Durbin, Enzi, Alexander, and Heitkamp for their tireless efforts over many years on this issue. I strongly encourage my colleagues to vote for this measure and to continue working with the House so we can finally see it enacted into law.

As I see it, in a sense, this legislation finishes the job that was started in the House by former Congressman, now Senator, Wyden and former Congressman Christopher Cox, when they first introduced the Internet Tax Freedom Act. That law, which Congress first enacted in 1998, officially declared that the Internet and electronic commerce should not bear a higher tax burden than traditional commerce.

Standing here in 2013, knowing how commerce has evolved, how consumer behavior and expectations have evolved, and how technology itself has evolved, I am happy to report Congress largely has been successful. State tax laws do not discriminate against electronic commerce. These transactions do not need any special protection from State tax collectors. Quite the contrary. On the contrary. Now so much commerce routinely is conducted on line, the pendulum has swung in the other direction. It is time to ensure our State tax laws are uniformly applied no matter how a transaction is consummated.

For more than 300 years, New England Main Streets have been anchored by local merchants who not only offer consumers important goods and services but are key employers for our communities. Those Main Street establishments have always been and will always remain an important part of the fabric of our communities.

Today in Massachusetts, the retail sector employs 550,000 people in 60,000 locations across our 351 cities and towns. They represent 17 percent of all the jobs in the Commonwealth--an important percentage, yet one which has declined from a decade ago.

Consumers today are fortunate to have unlimited choices, meaning extremely competitive pricing from retailers and great service in order to obtain and retain customers. That is good for both the consumer and the economy, but it also means retailers necessarily must have very tight margins in order to stay competitive on price. Those tight margins mean many small businesses thrive or die on a daily basis based upon consumer trends and purchasing decisionmaking.

Those of us in government should foster consumer choice and competition but, equally important, we must also take care to prevent unfair market incentives that drive consumers to spend or not spend at certain establishments based upon government policy and decisions.

I find it interesting that many news reports about the bill we are debating now seemed to lead with the headline ``tax-free shopping on the Internet is about to come to a halt.'' Let's be clear about one thing. There was never such a thing as tax-free shopping over the Internet in States such as mine and so many other States that have a sales or use tax. Under the Commonwealth's sales and use tax law--and the laws that exist in 44 other States in this Nation--if you owe a tax when you walk into a store to buy an item, then you owe a tax when you go online, buy it, and have it shipped to your house. You heard me correctly. If you live in Massachusetts or one of the other 44 States that collect sales tax, you owe taxes today on those Internet purchases already.

For 45 years, Massachusetts merchants have competed against sellers in our neighbor State, New Hampshire, which has no sales tax. Some Massachusetts consumers choose to hop in their cars and drive up Route 93 to make purchases. I understand the frustration of Massachusetts merchants, particularly since the tax is still actually due to the Commonwealth in the form of a consumer-remitted use tax.

For the past decade, the growth in competition based upon sales tax collection avoidance hasn't been from north of the Massachusetts border but, rather, from desktop and laptop computers and today from smart phones and tablets. Consumers who are reeled in by the tax avoidance marketing messages of certain sellers don't have to drive to New Hampshire. Avoiding the State sales tax takes only a few keystrokes on their phones.

Billions of sales that otherwise would go to Massachusetts employers are annually sent elsewhere. Those losses are real for our Main Streets, for our retailers, our retail employers, for all our cities and towns, and the losses are growing every year. The annual sales tax loss in Massachusetts is currently estimated to be $335 million. That number grows to $400 million when you include lost income and property taxes from declining employment and darkened storefronts. If we don't act, if we don't pass this bill, that number will grow to over $1 billion by the year 2020. Allow me to repeat that. That is $1 billion in losses to my State.

A sale is a sale is a sale. With today's technology, it shouldn't matter how it is transacted or where it is transacted. Government must be blind and be a nonfactor in our competitive consumer marketplace and in our application of taxation to that market. We understand this fact in Massachusetts. Increasingly, many online sellers recognize this reality too.

Last year I worked with Gov. Deval Patrick to negotiate with amazon.com

to begin collecting and remitting the Massachusetts sales tax. Amazon did the right thing for Massachusetts employers, workers, our schools, services, and for our cities and towns. Amazon recognized that they use our infrastructure, the airports, the highways, and streets to deliver goods to consumers. Furthermore, they understood that their customers who purchase from them use those very same services in Massachusetts and enjoy our vibrant downtown. Amazon and many of the other businesses that support this legislation have stores in multiple States. They have made their online presence and their brick-and-mortar presence seamless to consumers. They already collect and remit applicable sales tax and follow all the other business rules in the States where they do business. If other States want to compete for their customers in the great Commonwealth of Massachusetts, they also should play by all of our rules, including the obligation to collect and remit our sales tax.

It used to be the case that if you wanted to reach a broader marketplace, you opened a location there. You complied with all the State laws that applied in those jurisdictions because it was worth it to expand your reach and build a broader customer base. Why isn't it the same thing now? Why have we been so unwilling to apply the same rules to online businesses that we do to businesses in our States?

This is not an unreasonable proposal. Every time a business opens a physical space in my State, they set down roots there. They create jobs there. They support our communities, and they contribute to the cost of local services. That means they collect and remit sales taxes on the purchases made by the customers who enter their front door. Every open business in the Commonwealth and every consumer in the Commonwealth understands this relationship. Why should we allow an online business transaction better treatment than we provide to our own folks? Outsiders should not be treated better than insiders. Everybody should be treated equitably.

That is all this bill will do. It will allow a State government to require the same sales tax collection obligations of businesses that sell to State residents online that it does to businesses that sell to State residents on Main Street--nothing different, nothing more burdensome.

There has been a lot of misunderstanding about what this bill does, so let me try to clear it up. This bill will not create a new tax obligation for anyone who doesn't already have one. If you live in a State that already imposes sales and use taxes, online merchants will add the sales tax to your purchase in the same way the neighborhood retailer does. If you live in a State without a sales tax, nothing changes for you--nothing. If you don't pay a tax at a store on Main Street, you won't pay one on the Web. It is that simple.

This bill will not crush small businesses. When I served in State government, small business owners and their associations repeatedly called on us to beg Congress to level the playing field. Those same small business owners are the people who sent us here to represent their interests. When our bosses--the people--tell us they want us to act, they should not have to beg. We should act on the will of the people.

Let me be clear about how this bill will work. Businesses that have less than $1 million in remote sales will be exempt from compliance. States that want businesses to collect and remit the sales tax already due will be required to provide those businesses with the software to do it free of charge. The State will set up a simplified process so that businesses only have one point of contact with the State on collections and audits. No business will have to navigate the thousands of taxing jurisdictions opponents of this bill are so fond of asserting.

If a business really does not want to comply, it is easy: they can forgo the customers in that State. If they do, I assure you, those consumers--a very resourceful group--will quickly fill that void with another business that is willing to follow a State's business rules.

This bill will not impose a tax on financial transactions. I admit that when I heard this assertion, it worried me and many of my constituents, so I went back and I read the bill again. This charge is fiction.

The bill is crystal clear. I quote:

Nothing in this Act shall be construed as encouraging a

State to impose sales and use taxes on any goods or services

not subject to taxation prior to the date of the enactment of

this Act.

I come from State government, as do several of my colleagues in this body. Trust me, budgeting on the State level is a little different from the process that plays out here in Congress. In Massachusetts we rely on a combination of income taxes and sales taxes to cover the costs of the services our citizens tell us they want and need and provide the appropriate measure of investments--in education, infrastructure, and innovation--we know is necessary for a growing and prosperous State economy. Sales tax revenues represent almost one-quarter of our total tax collections.

Sales taxes are a difficult revenue source, I understand, because they are so dependent upon broader economic conditions. As we saw during the recent recession, when people are out of work or believe their jobs are threatened, they pull back on spending. In fact, many small businesses in my State and in others, I am sure, were told by banks that lines of credit needed to be tightened because consumers were pulling back. It was an unfortunate domino effect that our Main Street businesses are still struggling to overcome. Yet, as they were trying to hang on, they also watched the customers walk into their stores, browse the merchandise, take out a cell phone, and walk out, opting to buy a product from an online retailer that could ignore the State sales tax collection. Guess what. Now there is an app for that.

Our States have limited sources of revenue and significant obligations and investments to fund. We know the reality of this situation--that no matter how much our consumers prefer to shop online rather than on the street, they do not and cannot call a virtual ambulance or an online firetruck. We need to do all we can to keep our businesses in business. We need to ensure them a level playing field in which to compete. We need to protect the integrity of our tax laws that ensure we can provide essential services to our residents.

I have listened carefully to the objections to the bill that have been raised by others here on the floor, in the correspondence sent to my office, and the many tweets on my Twitter feed. While I am sympathetic to some of the assertions made against this bill, respectfully, I am not persuaded by them. There are just too many consumers, small businesses, and struggling communities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that are shouldering an ever-growing burden because Congress has yet to join forces with the States to help us efficiently enforce our tax laws in a 21st-century marketplace.

I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Madam President, I yield the floor.

Madam President, I was necessarily absent from votes during today's session. Had I been present for the votes, I would have supported the nominations of Jane Kelly, of Iowa, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Eighth Circuit and Sylvia Mathews Burwell, of West Virginia, to be Director of the Office of Management and Budget. I would have also supported the motion to proceed to S. 743, the Marketplace Fairness Act.

Madam President, I was necessarily absent from votes during today's session. Had I been present for the votes on amendments relating to S. 649, the Safe Communities, Safe Schools Act of 2013 I would have opposed the Barrasso amendment, S. Amdt. 717, and I would have supported the Harkin-Alexander amendment, S. Amdt. 730. Also, I would have supported the nomination of Analisa Torres to be United States District Judge for the Southern District of New York.

Mr. President, on Monday a great Boston tradition and a historic holiday in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts were marred by a cowardly and detestable act of violence. Dozens of innocent civilians, gathered to watch an iconic, peaceful athletic event, were injured by explosions and three lives were lost. I am honored today to join the senior Senator from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Ms. Warren, in offering a resolution honoring the heroes and remembering the victims of that horrible day.

We continue to pray for the injured and hope they begin to heal, and we mourn those who were killed and the families who survive them.

As a community, our hearts ached on hearing about the youngest victim, Martin Richard, a vibrant 8-year-old boy from Dorchester--the same age as my son--who came to watch his father finish the marathon, who lost his life. We share in his family's grief and continue to send our prayers to his mother and sister, who are still in the hospital with very serious injuries.

Yesterday we struggled to watch Patty Campbell fight back tears as she talked about her beautiful and always smiling daughter Krystle. This 29-year-old woman from Arlington and Lingzi Lu, a Boston University graduate student who was from China's northeastern city of Shenyang, were also tragically taken from us by this heinous act.

Events such as those of Monday remind us that, yes, evil still exists in the world, but these events also remind us how unified and resilient the American people are. While the city of Boston witnessed terror, we also witnessed remarkable displays of bravery, support, kindness, and compassion.

The Nation and the world saw the best of the people in the Commonwealth during Monday's tragic events. Countless residents showed such strength and grace in the face of this terrible tragedy.

I am in awe of the bravery shown by our police, fire, and emergency personnel. I am so proud of the medical providers, volunteers, and spectators who rushed toward the noise and smoke to help the injured even as they themselves remained in imminent danger. They helped to evacuate the victims and worked into the night and following days to offer care and protection.

Doctors, nurses, residents, and volunteers worked and continue to work in some of the best hospitals in the Nation right there in Boston to save lives and help victims recover.

I am also grateful for the support the Commonwealth has received from the President, national law enforcement, and my colleagues here in the Congress. The people of the Commonwealth are comforted that the Federal resources needed to help care for the victims and bring to justice those responsible for this assault will be provided. We appreciate that these tangible actions by the Federal Government represent the intangible support given to us by citizens in every State across this Nation.

As we remember those lost and injured, we know that what is good about the human spirit will triumph over the cowards who attacked us. Make no mistake, we will find them and justice will be done. The city of Boston, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and the American people will come together and overcome this senseless tragedy. You may visit terror upon us, but we will never be terrorized.

Mr. President, Senator Elizabeth Warren, the distinguished Senior Senator from Massachusetts and I are cosponsors of the Murkowski amendment to the Continuing Appropriations bill. This amendment would provide $150 million in disaster assistance for the fishermen and the fishing communities which received a Department of Commerce disaster declaration last year. This amendment is offset by an across-the-board cut to the Department of Commerce budget in Fiscal Year 2013.

While Senator Warren and I are cosponsors of this bipartisan amendment, we would strongly prefer that this amendment use an emergency funding designation instead of the offset included in this amendment.

In recent years, Massachusetts fishermen and fishing communities have been struggling to survive amid Federal regulations and environmental changes that have limited fishing opportunities. Last year, the Department of Commerce declared a fishery failure for the Northeast multispecies fishery for the 2013 season.

Last year, the Senate included a $150 million fund in the Senate Hurricane Sandy Supplemental Appropriations bill to assist fisheries disasters, like those in the Northeast using an emergency designation. Unfortunately, this provision was not included in the final Hurricane Sandy Supplemental Appropriations bill due to opposition from Republicans in the House of Representatives.

Senator Warren and I will continue to do all that we can to provide disaster assistance funding for Massachusetts fishermen and fishing communities.