Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Rhonda Solis, a distinguished member of the Colorado State Board of Education, who has served her community with passion, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to improving educational opportunities for all students. As she concludes her tenure on the Board, I want to recognize her accomplishments, advocacy, and tireless dedication to our schools, our students, and our educators in Colorado.

Rhonda Solis has been a leader and a visionary on the Colorado State Board of Education. Representing her community with steadfast dedication, she has worked to ensure that every child has access to a quality education. Through her commitment to equity, inclusion, and academic excellence, Ms. Solis has advanced policies that have shaped our educational landscape and improved outcomes for students across the state.

Ms. Solis has been a fierce advocate for underrepresented communities, promoting programs and resources that uplift students of all backgrounds. She has championed initiatives that address the unique challenges faced by English Language Learners and low-income students, striving to create an education system that serves all children fairly. Her voice on the Board has consistently reflected her deep belief that every student deserves a chance to succeed, no matter their zip code or background.

In addition to her role on the Board, Ms. Solis has been active in her local community, inspiring and mentoring countless students, parents, and educators. Her work has extended beyond policy, touching lives and fostering an environment of compassion, respect, and understanding. She has earned the gratitude of those she serves, and her legacy will be felt for years to come.

As we celebrate Ms. Solis' dedication and contributions, I want to express my deepest gratitude for her service to Colorado. She has set a standard of excellence and integrity in public service, and her work has left an indelible mark on our state. On behalf of the people of Colorado's 8th Congressional District, I thank Rhonda Solis for her years of service, her passion for education, and her commitment to a brighter future for all our children.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the remarkable career and contributions of Denver7 Chief Meteorologist Mike Nelson, who will deliver his final weather forecast this week.

With 40 years of forecasting and 25 of those dedicated to Colorado, Mike Nelson has become a familiar face and trusted voice for weather in our State, and his impact goes far beyond the screen. From his early days at Weather Central to pioneering the use of computer weather graphics, Mike has been a trailblazer in his field.

Over his career, Mike has shared his love of weather with more than 750,000 students across the State, inspiring young minds with his trademark tornado dance. Mike's decades of dedication, innovation, and community service have made Colorado a better place.

I congratulate Mike on his well-deserved retirement. Here is to clear skies and sunny days ahead.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Nadler for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 7198, the Prove It Act. I also thank my colleagues, Congressman Finstad and Congressman Moran, for working with me to run this bipartisan legislation.

Colorado has more than 600,000 small businesses owned by men and women who work hard day in and day out to provide for their families and serve our communities. Small business owners already face innumerable hurdles in pursuit of the American Dream, and burdensome regulations only add to their challenges.

The repercussions of overregulation are long lasting, impacting our economy and communities from the moment they are implemented, particularly in the Front Range and northern Colorado.

Unfortunately, the requirement for analyzing both the direct and indirect costs imposed on small businesses has often not been satisfied by various Federal agencies. That is where our bill comes in.

This bill would allow small business owners to be heard when they feel the Federal Government is imposing expensive roadblocks on them. It will shield small businesses from undue regulatory burdens and improve communication between small entities and Federal agencies.

Throughout my time in Congress, I have made it a point to engage with local small businesses directly through a series of roundtables throughout the Front Range and northern Colorado. These discussions highlighted the most pressing issues facing these small businesses, particularly the disproportionate impact excessive regulations have on their operations.

With the already razor-thin margins under which these small businesses operate, they need more of our help to thrive. As their Representative, I believe it is my duty to give a voice in Congress to our small businesses and ensure that they have a seat at the table in the regulatory process. Their views and priorities must be taken into consideration if we hope to foster a dynamic and robust economy.

Passing the Prove It Act means we can continue to support the small businesses that are driving our economy.

Mr. Speaker, again, I thank Representatives Finstad and Moran for their work on this bipartisan legislation and for their diligent efforts to support our small businesses, and I urge my colleagues to support this effort.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Lofgren for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, in Colorado we know how critical pipelines are, whether

they are for carrying different types of energy sources or even delivering water to communities from places that are miles away. In fact, according to the Office of Pipeline Safety, there are more than 45,000 miles of pipeline in Colorado.

As one of the leading energy producers in the country, my district is home to miles of oil and hazardous liquid lines and natural gas transmission lines. However, we are also no stranger to experiencing accidents like a leak or break. We need to be doing what we can to ensure this important piece of our energy infrastructure remains safe and effective for years to come.

That is why I am proud to lead the Next Generation Pipeline Research and Development Act with Representative Weber, which would invest in R&D for our aging pipeline infrastructure while also leveraging public- private partnerships to do so. This bipartisan effort will be a win for keeping our environment clean while maintaining one of the primary conduits for bringing energy to Coloradans.

One of the biggest issues in my district right now is that our pipelines are getting older, particularly those used to transport natural gas, and that makes them more prone to leak. The most prevalent leak we see is methane, which is a more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Just one leak can be damaging to the environment, so we need to be making these investments now to secure our pipeline infrastructure. This will also be important as we begin to use pipelines not just for traditional energy sources like natural gas, but for newer sources like hydrogen. The future of our energy grid will rely on a mix of different fuels, and securing our pipeline infrastructure is vital to that future.

Before I close, I will highlight how this bill will help those of us living in the West. As drought continues to affect places like Colorado, water sources are becoming more important to access, especially to keep up with growth. There are plenty of cities in Colorado, including in my district, that rely on pipelines to bring water to consumers, and there is no sign of this stopping. We need to ensure these pipelines are maintained with up-to-date technology, and this bill will make certain of that.

I again thank Representative Weber for working with me on this bill and for the leadership both Chairman Lucas and Ranking Member Lofgren have shown on the Science Committee. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this effort.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that I may hereafter be considered to be the first sponsor of H.R. 4213, a bill originally introduced by Representative Buck of Colorado, for the purpose of adding cosponsors and requesting reprintings pursuant to clause 7 of rule XII.

Mr. Chair, I thank Mr. McHenry for yielding.

Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of H.R. 4763, the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, because the time has come for us to establish a comprehensive regulatory system for digital assets.

About 70 percent of digital assets are currently unregulated. That leaves a large number of retail investors unprotected in a volatile market where many people have already lost their life savings.

There is clearly a gap in oversight over our digital asset cash markets, and I believe the status quo is unacceptable. Despite previous volatility, a significant number of Americans continue to own and invest in digital assets in an unprotected manner.

As Congress falls behind other nations in the race to establish a clear regulatory framework, we run the risk of industry players taking their services and customers abroad, including to foreign jurisdictions with insufficient regulations.

Since we began this process over a year ago, I made it a point to work across the aisle with Chairs Thompson and Johnson to improve this bill as much as possible. I am happy to report that the bill retains many of the provisions that I fought for, with one of the most important pieces being a funding mechanism for the CFTC. Increased funding will be vital for the CFTC as they take on further oversight activities and engage in a rulemaking process.

I thank my colleagues, both Democrats and Republicans, who have helped strengthen the consumer protections in this bill, including strengthening disclosure requirements, market integrity, and transparency. Further protections include stricter regulatory requirements for emerging financial technologies, prohibiting commingling of customer funds with firm funds, and establishing a process of temporary oversight before rulemaking is complete.

I am excited about the innovation these technologies have to offer, which is why I believe they deserve a comprehensive regulatory environment, but making sure customers and retail investors are protected as they navigate this space remains a top priority. I believe we have made significant improvements in that direction.

I am looking forward to continuing to move this bill forward and taking a first real step toward regulation of a market that more of our constituents are engaging in every day.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 4866, the Fire Weather Development Act. I thank my colleagues, Congressman Mike Garcia and Congresswoman Kim, for working with me to run this bipartisan piece of legislation. Thank you also to Ranking Member Lofgren and Chairman Lucas for their steadfast leadership.

Sadly, Coloradans are no strangers to wildfires, and we know that wildfires are no longer seasonal but can happen year-round. The impacts of these fires are felt long after the flames are extinguished and have lasting effects on our environment, economy, infrastructure, and more. With that, we are also seeing wildfires begin to encroach on communities that are not used to experiencing fires.

The Marshall fire in Colorado was the most expensive wildfire in our State's history and was primarily driven by an extreme windstorm that blew the fire into suburban parts of Colorado right next door to my district. With the total monetary cost of the Marshall fire estimated at $2 billion, it is critical that we continue to invest in new ways to understand fire weather.

This is where our bill, the Fire Weather Development Act, comes in. This bill will give NOAA the tools it needs to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to fire weather technology by allowing the agency to do things like access airborne and space-based data to enhance fire weather and fire environment monitoring. The bill also gives NOAA the ability to determine drone usage to improve data collection and even conduct drone pilot programs. Finally, the bill helps our local and State responders even more through several provisions focused on improving communications, especially around forecasting.

The Front Range and northern Colorado know how important it is that we do what we can to better predict fire weather, especially when it means protecting our homes and economic well-being.

In Colorado's Eighth District, we have a burgeoning energy sector and the largest agriculture economy in the State, but as we saw in Texas earlier this year, one wildfire can pose serious damage to that. By passing the Fire Weather Development Act, we are ensuring that we keep bolstering the tools we have to respond to fire weather. I look forward to continuing to work with Representatives Mike Garcia and Kim to get this commonsense solution in this bill across the finish line as soon as possible.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1734, the TRANQ Research Act. I also thank my colleagues, Congressman Mike Collins, Chairman Frank Lucas, and Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren for working with me to run this bipartisan legislation. I also thank Senators Peter Welch and Ted Cruz for moving this bill through the Senate.

As a doctor, I have seen firsthand the horrific impact the drug crisis has had on families in my community and across the country. Last year alone, more than 107,000 Americans lost their lives to drug overdoses, due in large part to the crisis.

Fentanyl is a drug with very high potency that is relatively easy to manufacture, and criminals making fentanyl can add different chemicals to change its molecular structure, creating a variant that is novel and difficult to detect.

Just in the past year, we have seen a dramatic increase in criminals mixing a common animal tranquilizer called xylazine with fentanyl. If injected, this combination can have horrible side effects, including large wounds at the injection site that have led to limb amputations.

Horrifyingly, tranq is already spreading across the country. Having seen the disastrous effect fentanyl has had on Colorado, I am proud to lead the charge to act against xylazine now to protect our families.

One of the major challenges we face to combat drugs like fentanyl and xylazine is detecting them. These drug mixtures usually contain a very small amount of the drug, and traditional laboratory methods are not designed to detect or identify new drug variants.

The TRANQ Research Act addresses this challenge by leveraging our Nation's scientific capabilities to allow our first responders to be able to detect, identify, and better understand novel opioids and other substances. Additionally, thanks to our partners in the Senate, the bill will also help Congress conduct oversight over Federal programs to respond to threats from new psychoactive substances like xylazine.

We know combating the drug crisis will take bipartisan action. I look forward to continuing to work with Congressman Collins and my colleagues to get this bill signed by the President and to keep pushing for commonsense solutions that both parties can agree on to keep American families safe. I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Dr. Bart Schmitt on his well-deserved retirement from Children's Hospital Colorado.

During his more than 50-year long career, he provided a significant contribution to our state and to our pediatrics community, and I am deeply thankful for all that he has achieved.

His accomplishments, dedication, and tireless labors in pursuit of child health care, will be remembered fondly for years to come. Throughout his tenure, Dr. Schmitt has committed himself to healing and nurturing the children of our community and for that he has my eternal gratitude. From his programming on ambulatory pediatrics to his authorship of telephone triage guidelines, he has made monumental contributions to the field of pediatric medicine and I'm forever grateful for his efforts. Dr. Schmitt's achievements are numerous, and he is an inspiration to those who wish to follow in his footsteps.

As he enters a new phase of his life, I wish him the best in all his future endeavors.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of rural families, families who work hard every day, play by the rules, and deserve the very same access to opportunity as every other American.

Despite advancements in many other areas, our rural communities lag behind, underserved with bad cell service and internet service, fewer options for healthcare and schools, and insufficient investment for small businesses.

No one should have fewer opportunities just because of where they live. I am working from all angles to beef up support for rural communities: from mental health support with Representative Finstad's and my Rural Wellness Act to improving childcare access with my and Representative Gluesenkamp Perez's bipartisan rural childcare bill; to helping farmers with disabilities with my and Representative Molinaro's agriculture accessibility bill; to connecting communities with investments they need with my and Representative Fischbach's Investing in Rural America Act.

I am proud to work on a bipartisan basis with so many of our colleagues who share the understanding of how vital our rural communities are to all of our lives and look forward to collaborating on this year's farm bill.

Madam Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Lofgren for yielding time.

Today, I am proud to stand in strong support of the Testing, Rapid Analysis, and Narcotic Quality Research Act that I introduced with my colleague from Georgia, Representative Mike Collins.

In recent months, criminals have turned to xylazine, a common animal tranquilizer, to make fentanyl. If injected, this drug can have horrible side effects, including large wounds at the injection site.

As a doctor, I have seen firsthand the horrific impact of the drug crisis on our families and communities.

Addictive, dangerous substances like opioids have wreaked havoc in Colorado, where we are now losing approximately 2,000 Coloradans a year to fentanyl and meth overdoses. These numbers are likely to worsen with the emergence of xylazine.

Our bipartisan legislation directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology to make it easier and faster to detect drugs containing xylazine and novel synthetic opioids. It also supports the development of safe handling processes to protect law enforcement officers and forensic chemists from this dangerous substance.

This effort will ensure our first responders have the support that they need to detect, identify, and better understand synthetic opioids and ultimately help save American lives.

At a time of deep division in our country, I am encouraged by the bipartisan support to address this next wave of the drug crisis.

I thank Representative Collins for working with me to introduce this bill and Chairman Lucas and Ranking Member Lofgren for their help in bringing it to the House floor. I also thank Senators Welch and Cruz for spearheading this effort in the Senate.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Chief Gordon Olson on his well-deserved retirement from the City of Thornton's Fire Department.

Chief Olson dedicated 40 years to protecting our community. I know I join every resident of Thornton in deep gratitude for his service and sacrifice on our behalf.

His accomplishments, dedication, and tireless labors in pursuit of protecting lives, will be remembered fondly for years to come. Our first responders put their lives on the line each day and for that we are all grateful.

From COVID-19 to wildfires, emergency workers have continued to answer the call to service and their efforts should never go unnoticed. Chief Olson's achievements are numerous, and he is an inspiration to those who may wish to follow in his footsteps.

As he enters a new phase of his life, I wish him the best in all his future endeavors.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate all who were involved in this tremendous year for the National Western Stock Show. Not only was it a successful year for the world-class Stock Show, held right here in our backyard, but it was a special year for our community in the 8th Congressional District.

I would like to recognize 2 young Weld County residents who made a big impression this year.

Eighteen-year-old Justin Pfannebecker from LaSalle was the first teen from Colorado to win the title of the Grand Champion steer in more than a quarter-century. He auctioned his grand champion steer, Stan the Man, for a record $200,000.

Sixteen-year-old Karsyn Fetzer from Kersey also excelled in the show ring and auctioned her Reserve Grand Champion Hog, Lil G for a record $75,000.

These accomplishments speak to the hard work and perseverance these young Coloradans embody. They are tremendous representatives of our community, and I have no doubt this year's success is a harbinger for what is to come for these exemplary young people.

In large part because of these accolades, the National Western Stock Show raised a record $585,000 that will go to scholarships for agriculture studies, rural medicine, and students' agricultural endeavors across Colorado.

I'm proud of the immense amount of time, work, and talent that ensures the success of this event every year--and the important economic impact it has on the Denver Metro Area.

Thanks to all who contribute to the success of the Stock Show. I look forward to more sweet victories for CO-08 residents in the years to come.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate all who were involved in this tremendous year for the National Western Stock Show. Not only was it a successful year for the world-class Stock Show, held right here in our backyard, but it was a special year for our community in the 8th Congressional District.

I would like to recognize two young Weld County residents who made a big impression this year.

Eighteen-year-old Justin Pfannebecker from LaSalle was the first teen from Colorado to win the title of the Grand Champion steer in more than a quarter-century. He auctioned his grand champion steer, Stan the Man, for a record $200,000.

Sixteen-year-old Karsyn Fetzer from Kersey also excelled in the show ring and auctioned her Reserve Grand Champion Hog, Lil G for a record $75,000.

These accomplishments speak to the hard work and perseverance these young Coloradans embody. They are tremendous representatives of our community, and I have no doubt this year's success is a harbinger for what is to come for these exemplary young people.

In large part because of these accolades, the National Western Stock Show raised a record $585,000 that will go to scholarships for agriculture studies, rural medicine, and students' agricultural endeavors across Colorado.

I'm proud of the immense amount of time, work, and talent that ensures the success of this event every year--and the important economic impact it has on the Denver Metro Area.

Thanks to all who contribute to the success of the Stock Show. I look forward to more sweet victories for CO-08 residents in the years to come.