we have not entered an era of post partisan bliss on this, and we will still see advertisements that say so and so has taken a measure that will unleash a violent criminals on the streets. that will continue to happen. but there has been a substantial shift in the political and policy environment on this issue, in the last 25 years. prisons are no longer seen as the sole answer to the crime issue. we will have more support for police and prosecutors to make sure the prosecutions are swift to make sure we catch bad guys, but we don't think that more and more of our state treasury will go into prisons. host: adam gelb is director of the prison report at the center on the states. thank you for your time. thank you for watching did it take you live to the house floor. . host: ca [captioning performed by

national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] ington, d.c., march 24, 2010. i hereby appoint the honorable jackie speier to act as speaker pro tempore on this day. signed, nancy pelosi, speaker of the house of representatives. the speaker pro tempore: the prayer will be offered by our chaplain, father coughlin. chaplain coughlin: take care, my brothers and sisters. unless any of you have an evil and unfaithful spirit and fall away from the living god, encourage one another daily while it is still today so that no one grows hardened by the deceit of sin. all of us have become partners of the lord only if we maintain to the very end that confidence which we brought when we first began.

for scripture tells us, today if you should hear his voice, harden not your hearts. as his faithful ones, look after the father's house and we are that house. through him the whole fabric is bound together and grows into a holy temple in the lord, and we are that house. amen. the speaker pro tempore: the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house her approval thereof. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1 the journal stands approved. the pledge of allegiance will be led by the gentleman from new jersey, congressman sires. mr. sires: could you all join me in the pledge of allegiance? i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america

and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will entertain up to 15 requests for one-minute speeches on each side of the aisle. mr. sires, for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? mr. sires: i ask permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman is recognized. mr. sires: madam speaker, i rise today in support of allowing public transit agencies to flex their federal transit funding for operating expenses. current law forbids transit systems in populations over 200,000 to use funding for operation. it makes them cut service at a time when people are using transit more than ever. in 2008, transit use reached its highest level in five decades. in my home state of new jersey you can take a bus to any part of our state and there are

nearly 1,000 miles of rail line. built in this dynamic transportation system took years to develop. all across our nation, public transportation routes are being closed and it is critical to find a solution for our constituents. congressman carnahan has introduced a bill that will allow public transit agencies to use some of their federal funding for operating expenses. i am proud to co-sponsor this bill and i urge my colleagues to support this legislation that gives transit agencies the flexibility to continue their business. thank you. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina rise? mr. wilson: i ask permission to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized. mr. wilson: madam speaker, 219 liberals on the other side of the aisle may have passed a government health care takeover, but the american people still have a voice to tell their lawmakers to repeal these job-killing mandates and

finally focus on job creation proposals. congress spent the better part of the entire year obsessed with cutting deals for a health care takeover full of tax increases and mandates while unemployment increased by over three million people. let me repeat, 219 lawmakers ignored the clear message that the american people sent about this job-killing takeover, that they didn't want it, and after arm twisting proceeded to ram it through anyway. when is congress going to get it right? the american people wants to know when private sector jobs will be created instead of 16,500 more i.r.s. government jobs that this health care takeover will create. it's high time we give the people some answers for jobs. in conclusion, god bless our troops and we will never forget september 11 and the global war on terrorism. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from pennsylvania seek recognition? mrs. dahlkemper: to address the

house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. dahlkemper: madam speaker, the new health care reform legislation will strengthen medicare for the 118,000 beneficiaries in my district and for 45 million individuals across this country. seniors in medicare will receive free preventative care under this new reform. no co-pays for preventative services. every year almost 13,000 seniors in my district are forced to pay the full cost of their prescription drugs because of the medicare part d doughnut hole. under the new reform, they will receive a $250 rebate to pay for these prescriptions this year and the doughnut hole will completely close by 2020. the new health care reform strengthens medicare and ensures that our seniors get the quality, affordable care they deserve. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona rise? mr. flake: to address the house for one minute.

the speaker pro tempore: please proceed. mr. flake: madam speaker, when the president signed the health care reform bill into law he noted that, of course, the overheated rhetoric of reform will finally confront the reality of reform. he's right. here's the reality. insurance companies will now be required to accept children with pre-existing condition and carry adults up to the age of 26 on their parents' policies. new policies will have to cover preventative care without co-pays. such requirements may or may not be in the public interest, but health insurance can no longer -- that is no longer a hedge against risk cannot be accurately be called health insurance. health insurance companies are more like public utilities. keep in mind that individual mandates requiring the purchase of insurance to broaden the pool will not kick in for four years. new competition is not required, nor is there any serious effort to deal with legal liability. in other words, there's no downward pressure on cost, only upward pressure. madam speaker, in this body we can pass all the laws that we want but we cannot suspend the laws of economics nor can we

suspend them. we can't take them in either. americans should be prepared for higher premiums. that, madam speaker, is the reality of reform. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from california seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. sanchez: thank you, madam speaker. i rise today to commemorate the life of bob rodenberg who passed away on saturday, march 6 of this year. bob had been a dedicated pastor at the unified methodist church and oco board member for many years. he remained passionate about the role of church and the public life until the end and he was particularly passionate about the accessibility for everyone. having witnessed the dysfunction of the medical system through his son's experience as a doctor and, of

course, through his own as a patient. he traveled to washington, d.c., on more than one occasion to share his faith and his vision with our elected officials. bob challenged oco both with his vision and with the death of his reflection. he had a profound role in shaping oco and it was a positive influence on the members of his church and beyond and he will be deeply missed. i send my deepest condolences to his wife, cynthia, his daughter, denise, his son, paul, and his granddaughter. and, madam speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from texas, for what purpose do you rise? mr. poe: i ask permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. poe: madam speaker, the united states government wants to dictate where the people of the sovereign state of israel are allowed to live. now, who do we think we are? israel is our ally, not our

subject. what if prime minister netanyahu said our people weren't allowed to live in certain parts of d.c.? that makes about as much sense. the american people support israel and the u.s. government better get onboard. the people i represent are not embarrassed or humiliated by the actions of israel. israel has the right to determine where their people live, including in jerusalem. also under international law israel is not obligated to give back land won in a defensive war. they tried anyway. but when israel gave back land for peace it didn't work. they still don't have peace and there will be no peace until the terrorists come to the peace table, because the terrorists don't want peace. they want to drive israel into the sea. peace will come in the middle east when the terrorists are defeated, and that's just the way it is. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized.

mr. quigley: madam speaker, president obama made an important request. he called on congress to continue down the path of earmark reform as an important way to spend smarter and rebuild the public's trust. we simply cannot afford to wait any longer for real earmark reform. last year i introduced house resolution 614, which prohibits earmarks for for-profit entities. last week the appropriations committee took up the premise of this resolution by establishing a one-year moratorium on earmarks for for-profits. we must make this ban permanent and act in an open and responsible manner, allowing for public scrutiny of all requests. moving forward each dollar spent must benefit the american people, not some special interests. our work today will help us build a safer and stronger community tomorrow. now is the time to answer the president's call. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized.

>> today i rise to express how disappointed i am in this institution and the presidency with what's happened this last weekend. when we are a nation that's suffering from terrible unemployment and dramatically poor economic position, to have this house and the president sign into law a job-killing piece of legislation that would put this nation on the path to socialized medicine is unconscionable. unfortunately, the country's going to suffer from now to the november elections when the democrat majority will meet the consequences of their votes on sunday. however, in the meantime, i urge the president and speaker pelosi to start working on the economy and jobs and trying to get people back to work. i don't know how they sleep at night knowing they haven't addressed this up until now, but we got to get cash back into the markets for small businesses and put people back to work.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. mrs. maloney: madam speaker, this chart was produced by the joint economic committee, and it shows the constant process of the creation and loss of jobs that occurs in our economy. the solid black line shows the number of private sector jobs created. the dotted line shows the number of private sector jobs lost. when the economy is expanding, as it did under clinton, the job creation line just kept going up. at point a, the beginning of the bush administration, you can see that the number of jobs created is much lower than during the clinton

administration. and in 2008 you can see that it literally fell off the cliff. as nobel prize winning economist, joe sieve stiglis, said job creation during the bush expansion was artificially inflated by the housing bubble and the lost wealth it created. point b represents the beginning of a new administration with new policies -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. mrs. maloney: this is a clear indication and a picture of progress that we are making under the bush administration. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from tennessee seek recognition? mrs. blackburn: to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. mrs. blackburn: thank you, madam speaker. it is so interesting to be a member of the u.s. house of representatives at this time. and one of the things that makes it most interesting is the issues that we have to deal

with. and it boils down to making choices. what are you going to support and what are you going to oppose? the republicans have supported health reform that would be patient centered. what we saw transpire in this house last weekend was a bill that is government centered and government first. there was a choice of how to move forward with health care, and decisions were made. and the democrat majority chose to put government at the top of health care decisions, government in charge of deciding what kind of health care you can access, what kind of insurance product you can buy, what will be available to buy by the time we get to the year 2013. those are not decisions that government should make. those are decisions that should be made by individuals, by small businesses, by employers, and entire funds continuing to wring as more and more find out

about the reconciliation bill. they say reconsider, pull the bill back, focus on the economy, focus on jobs, get this nation back on track. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from kentucky rise? mr. yarmuth: i ask permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. yarmuth: madam speaker, in the week of the accomplishment that we made this weekend, my constituent and my senator, mitch mcconnell, said we have a new slogan for the fall, repeal and replace. well, that doesn't really surprise me because while we've been legislating for the american people, our opponents on the republican side have done little more than sloganeering. i hope he tells my niece, whose 1-year-old son was rejected by insurance because of an ear infection, that we repeal it. kids are disqualified for pre-existing condition. i hope he says that 15,000

small businesses in my district alone and his district, his hometown, will be denied that tax credit for providing insurance for their employees. and i hope he says we'll repeal that provision now about the doughnut hole. i have a slogan. just wait and see. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> thank you, madam speaker. i'm so proud to have been here this week when we finally answered the call of the american people to reform the health care system. this is not a government takeover. people woke up on monday to find they still have their doctors if they have one. they still have an insurance policy if they have one. in fact, the medical stocks went up on the stock market. because of our actions here people with pre-existing condition will be protected from their insurance companies. seniors will see the cost of their prescription drugs dropped. all plans for all americans

will offer free preventative care. small businesses will now get tax credits to provide health care to their employees. and 32 million americans currently uninsured will have access to high-quality affordable health care. i have heard the horror stories from my constituents, many of them have told me that insurance companies refuse to pay for treatment that their doctor ordered or dropped them once they got sick and needed that coverage the most. their stories inspired me to keep fighting for health reform, and i'm proud to say that this body delivered. i yield back. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yield back. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from arizona seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute. revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. mrs. kirkpatrick: good morning, madam speaker. today i rise to recognize the accomplishments of justice sandra day o'connor, the first woman to serve on the united states supreme court. just last week the house unanimously passed a resolution in recognition of her distinguished career. and in recognition of woman's history month as well.

justice o'connor truly embodies the arizona spirit of hard work and rugged individualism. after growing up on her family's ranch, located in the high deserts of arizona, she quickly achieved success. justice o'connor graduated couple laddy from stanford university in 1950 and in the top three of her class at stanford university law school. justice o'connor began her career in public service as the arizona assistant attorney general in 1965 and went on to the state legislature. she became the first woman in the country to serve as a senate majority leader. she was catapulted into our nation's limelight when president ronald reagan nominated her to the united states supreme court in 1981. she served 24 terms on the supreme court, in a centrist role, with her commitment to uphold law and the constitution. just last year she was awarded the presidential medal of freedom by president barack obama, the highest recognition for any civilian. today we honor justice sandra day o'connor because it is her 80th birthday. this resolution is a small

birthday gift to a daughter of arizona to a grateful nation she so proudly served. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from arkansas seek recognition? >> permission to address the house for one minute. revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. boozman: thank you, madam speaker. america is a democracy. not a monarchy. but you wouldn't know it by the way the american people's voices have been ignored by president obama, speaker pelosi, and senator reid. the american people are angry, they are not adequately represented in washington, as representatives of the people, it is necessary we fix this bill and give americans what they want. quality and affordable health care reform, not increased taxes and swee heart deals. we must fight to repeal and replace this bill, we must fight to uphold the constitution of the united states. i am here today to speak for the people of arkansas and the people of america who are

overwhelmingly in opposition to the flawed health care bill. we see how the government is infringing on our rights. the american people have had enough and want to see legal action. i, too, am concerned that this bill is unconstitutional and am supportive of states challenging this flawed health care bill. we must abide by state's rights, but this bill is just another violation of those rights and it's something we must undo. with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition? >> permission to address the house for one minute. revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. polis: i rise today, madam speaker, in celebration of the historic passage of health care reform for our country. i'm going to quote from our d.c. la racial of independence which is in this booklet along with our constitution, all men are created equal. they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights. that the to secure these rights governments are instituted

among men. yes, it is the purpose of our government, that we the people have set up, to secure the rights, to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. the pursuit of life, the right of living to be able to live and get the right medical care you need shouldn't depend on whether you had cancer as a 25-year-old. shouldn't depend on whether you had a stroke when you were a kid. these are not somebody's fault. it could happen to anybody. just because of a pre-existing condition, you should not be denied coverage. that's what this bill means for america. our founding fathers would be proud today that we stood up for the principle to protect the lives of all americans by ensuring that all americans can access affordable, quality health care. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> madam speaker, our middle class families and small business owners need fast

action if they are to pull themselves out of the recession. the health care legislation that passed the house floor sunday evening does just that. beginning this week health care reform will begin to impact my district in upstate new york. my constituents number one concern is to create jobs. for our small business owners, tax credits of up to 35% of insurance costs are available, allowing them to free up funds to hire new employees. the bill will help our seniors pay for their medication, closing the medicare part d doughnut hole within a decade and improve the system for over 100,000 medicare beneficiaries in our communities. no longer will our neighbors have to worry about losing or being denied quality insurance because they get sick. the bill will end rescissions and denials based on pre-existing conditions. this will make our health care more efficient, providing new investment in training programs for primary care professionals and fund 12 new health care facilities in upstate new york. health care reform will set our college graduates off on the right foot, allowing 65,000

young adults in my district to obtain coverage through their parents' plan until they are -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from nevada seek recognition? ms. titus: to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. titus: thank you, madam speaker. yesterday marked an historic day as president obama signed the reform legislation that will give families more control over their health care and the same kind of choices that members of congress have. yet before the ink was even dry on the president's signature, republicans pledged that they would repeal health care reform if given the opportunity. reform that will end discrimination from pre-existing conditions republicans would repeal it. reform that will close the prescription drug doughnut hole that so many seniors fall into, republicans would repeal it. reform that will give the largest health care tax cut in history to families and small businesses to purchase

insurance, republicans would repeal it. yesterday we took an important step forward with commonsense reform that will improve coverage for over 1.1 million people in southern nevada. nevada's families cannot afford a return to the status quo of skyrocketing costs or living every day with the fear they are just one illness or one injury away from losing it all. we cannot repeal that. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. cohen: thank you, madam speaker. it's been interesting listening to the other side of the aisle talk today. one gentleman got up and talked about the health care bill in a cold and calculating fashion that made me think he wanted the trains to run on time. never did he consider the fact that the office of -- congressional budget office said this is the largest deficit reducing bill in the history of the united states, over $1 trillion in the second 10 years, and $123 billion in the first 10 years.

another said it's centered. sound nice, madam speaker, what that means is the patient has money now they can get health care. if the patient doesn't, they don't get health care. and if you don't get health care, you don't get wellness programs, you don't get prevention programs, you die. you don't get mammograms, you don't get colonoscopies, you don't find out if you have cancer and you die. patient centered. very cold and calculating. they say we need to fix this bill. they never explained what part of the bills they like. they were against it all. daniel webster says, do something worthy to be remembered. what the other side did was say, you lie. they encourage outsiders that almost brought about civil unrest. thank you, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the chair will remind the members not to traffic the well when other members are speaking.

for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> thank you, madam speaker. i rise today as someone who has been building and starting small businesses for my entire adult life. the small businesses in my district have been asking me for a long time what will this health insurance reform do for them. i think it's very important we make it clear to them. for our small business that is are less than 50 people, it will not require that they provide insurance but rather it will help if they are trying to provide insurance. for our small businesses, they will be able to get tax incentives to help them pay for that insurance they are trying to buy for their employees. it will allow them to band together and purchase as a group in a block on an exchange, much like they do with their local chambers of congress today, to get purchasing power against those big insurance companies so they can hold their costs down. it will also help solve one of the biggest costs they face, today my small business owners know that they pay the cost of all the people who use the

emergency room for care and can't pay the bills. that's all shifted to our small businesses. with this legislation, that will go away. providing a big help in terms of keeping their costs down and helping our small businesses provide insurance to their employees. this bill is going to help our small businesses and help all americans. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from north carolina seek recognition? >> permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. our colleagues across the aisle have voted for a bill that is a government takeover of health care system of this country. they talk about all of the good things that they see in the bill that republicans want to repeal. republicans want to replace the bad parts of this bill with good things. the main message of this bill is that it is going to tax us for 10 years for benefits for

six years. the tax increases begin immediately, the benefits in most cases don't begin for four more years. and that is not good news for the american people. we need to put the people in charge of their own health care. we do not need government bureaucrats making decisions for us. this is a bad bill. it's bad medicine for the united states, it's bad medicine for our people. and we are going to do everything we can to replace the bad aspects of the bill with good things. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yield back. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. filner: well, i guess my republican friends ought to chill out. the previous speaker said, this is a government takeover of the health care system. come on. let it go. we got a private system here.

we got a private system of insurance. we got private hospitals. we got private doctors. this system is a private system. what government takeover is there? she keeps talking about a bureaucrat gets between you and your -- government bureaucrat getting between you and your doctor. what we have now is an insurance bureaucrat between us and our health providers. what we do is remove that. and if you want to repeal this bill, make my day. repeal it. repeal the fact that small business the are -- businesses are going to get tax credits right away. repeal the fact that our children can -- who have pre-existing conditions will be on -- be able to be cured right away. repeal the fact that we won't have anymore pre-existing conditions to prevent health insurance. make my day. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. .

pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the chair will postpone further proceedings today on motions to suspend the rules on which a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered or on which the vote incurs objection under clause 6 of rule 20. recorded votes on postponed requests will be taken later. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? mr. filner: madam speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 4360. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 4360, a bill to designate the department of veterans' affairs blind rehabilitation center in long beach, california, as the major charles r. soltes jr., o.d. department of veterans' affairs blind rehabilitation center. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from california, mr. filner, and the gentleman from arkansas, mr. boozman, each will control 20 minutes.

the chair recognizes the gentleman from california. mr. filner: thank you, madam speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. filner: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h.r. 4360. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. filner: i rise today to offer my support for h.r. 4360, a bill to name the v.a. blind rehabilitation center in long beach, california, after the distinguished iraq veteran charles r. soltes. mr. soltes' valiantly served his country in the united states army as a major in the 426th civil affairs battalion in mosul, iraq. he died on october 14, 2004, from wounds sustained in a blast conducting a patrol in mosul. he want only 36 years old. he was a graduate of the new england college of optometry and later completed his residency and focused on acute

lens disease and glaucoma care. he served as the optometry residency program. in 1998, major soltes became clinical director of the urban vision institute, a refracter surgery center, where he served until his voluntary deployment in iraq. he was the first military optometrist to be killed in action while serving as a public health officer in iraq. he leaves behind a wife and three young children. also an optometrist, major soltes' wife, dr. sally wond dond, treats blind veterans in honor of her husband. naming this facility after this hero is proper for an honorable soldier who sacrificed his life for this nation. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from arkansas is recognized. mr. boozman: thank you, madam speaker. i rise in support of h.r. 4360,

a bill to designate the department of veterans' affairs blind rehabilitation center in long beach, california, as the major charles r. soltes jr., o.d. department of veterans' affairs blind rehabilitation center. naming the future blind rehabilitation center currently in its final stages of construction in long beach, california, after major charles r. soltes jr. is an appropriate expression of our support for our blinded veterans. in 2004 while deployed in iraq major soltes was serving in the 426th civil air battalion in the u.s. army when the vehicle he was traveling in was struck by an improvised explosive device, costing him his life. he was the first army optometrist to be killed in

action while on active duty. but the legacy of major soltes leaves behind -- the legacy major soltes leaves behind remains strong with the veteran community. particularly amongst our blinded veterans. the v.a. estimates that approximately 157,000 veterans in the united states are legally blind, and over one million additional veterans are suffering from debilitating low vision. approximately 60% of veterans with known combat-related traumatic brain injury and 30% with noncombat-related t.b.i. report visual symptoms. as eye >> continue to plague our service members overseas, these -- as eye injuries continue to plague our service members overseas, optometrists remain

important. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. filner: i'm prepared to close if the gentleman will yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arkansas is recognized. mr. boozman: thank you, madam speaker. in closing i'd like to express my deepest condolences and heart felt appreciation to major soltes' family for their sacrifice. it's my sincerest wish that through the facility -- the service and sacrifice of major soltes will not be forgotten and his dedication to country and man kinde will live on in the -- mankind will live on in the increased health and well-being of our nation's blind veterans. i do have one additional speaker, and i yield him as much time as he may consume, the gentleman from california. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. >> thank you very much, madam speaker. today i rise in honor of an american patriot for his service and his sacrifice to

our country. major robert soltes of irvine, california. the son of colonel soltes, who is now retired, major soltes had a distinguished career in the united states army as well as in the city of irvine, i might add, where he practiced medicine. it was there where he entered into the private practice as an optometrist and set down his roots to raise a family. dr. soltes subsequently joined the army reserve and was deployed to iraq in 2004. he worked tirelessly as a public health officer in the 426th civil affairs battalion, building and upgrading hospitals for the iraqi people. on his way back from a hospital visit, his convoy was attacked by an improvised explosive device, and major solingts was

killed on october -- soltes was killed on october 14, 2004. he was the first army optometrist to be killed in action while on active duty. as such, it seems fitting that we honor him and his family by naming a soon to be complete veterans' affairs blind rehabilitation center in long beach, california, at the veterans hospital there, which is in my congressional district. once this facility is completed, the blind rehabilitation center, it will work to deliver the same compassion and care that dr. soltes dedicated his entire career and gave his life for. this new 24-bed inpatient-outpatient facility is exexpected to be completed this year, will be the first purpose built blind rehabilitation center in the national veterans administration medical center. and as i said, it's located in

my district, which i have great pride. he was the graduate of new england college of optometry. he entered the service corps in 1994 and treated members of the military here in the united states as well as abroad. he was well liked and respected by his colleagues. one of his superiors, colonel adams, whom he met while going through basic training at fort sam houston, said of him, quote, he was a tremendous young man. he volunteered to go into civil affairs and every email he sent was upbeat and positive and he felt he was making a real difference in the lives of the iraqi people. today, by naming this new facility after him, we are ensuring that major soltes' spirits lives on every time a patient's quality of life is improved, major soltes, his dedication will continue. to his family, we salute you. and with this act of congress, we forever remember the sacrifice major soltes gave.

whether giving their most vibrant and youthful years of service to their country or laying down their lives so that we and our children can sleep safely at night, we must remember all who gave some and some like major soltes who gave all. thank you very much, and i appreciate my colleagues understanding this issue and bringing it up today. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california yields to the gentleman from arkansas. mr. boozman: again, madam chair, in closing, this is a special honor, special pleasure for me as an optometrist who practiced for many, many years to be celebrating a colleague who paid so dearly. he and his family. we are so proud of him. myself as a member of the veterans' affairs committee, but also as an optometrist. i know the profession is very proud of his efforts. we will be thinking of his family, but i urge all of my

colleagues to support this bill, and with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arkansas yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. filner: thank you, madam speaker. i again think it was most appropriate that the manager on the republican side was our house optometrist, mr. boozman. so thank you for your expertise that you always give us on the committee. i urge my colleagues to unanimously support h.r. 43 0 and yield back the balance of my time -- 4360 and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 4360. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative -- mr. filner: madam speaker.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. filner: on that i'd demand the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 and the chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be postponed. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> madam speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 4915, the federal aviation administration extension act of 2010. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will read the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 4915, a bill to

amend the internal revenue code of 1986 to extend the funding and expenditure authority of the airport and airway trust fund, to amend title 49, united states code, to extend authorizations for the airport improvement program, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from illinois, mr. costello, and the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. petri, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. mr. costello: madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on h.r. 4915. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman is recognized. mr. costello: madam speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. madam speaker, i rise in support of h.r. 4915, the federal aviation administration extension act of 2010. last week the house passed h.r. 4853, also entitled the federal

aviation administration extension act of 2010, to extend aviation programs, taxes and the airport and airways trust fund expenditure authority through july 30, 2010. earlier this week, the federal aviation administration requested a technical correction to h.r. 4853, as passed by the house. the f.a.a. needs this technical correction to ensure sufficient airport improvement program funds are allocated to a.i.p. formula grants rather than a.i.p. discretionary grants. madam speaker, the house has previously passed two f.a.a. re-authorization bills in 2007 and again in 2009. we have been waiting on the other body to act. finally on monday, the senate passed its f.a.a. bill, h.r. 1586, using an unrelated house passed tax bill.

madam speaker, tomorrow the house intends to take up the senate bill, h.r. 1586, and amend it. we will insert the text of the house f.a.a. re-authorization bill, h.r. 915, in the bipartisan house safety bill, which is one of the strongest aviation safety bills in decades. the purpose of the house taking action to amend h.r. 1586 is to ensure that important provisions were included in h.r. 915 and h.r. 1371, to provide consistency in collective bargaining rights throughout the expressed carrier industry, to increase the passenger facility charge to assist airports in meeting their capital needs, to create jobs and to modernize our air traffic control system as maintained throughout the conference with the senate. the aviation subcommittee held

over 20 hearings on the re-authorization bill and the safety issues. in addition, we had five roundtables to discuss aviation safety and the re-authorization bill with everyone from the f.a.a. to everyone in the aviation community. . h.r. 915 is a comprehensive bill. it will provide approximately 53.5 billion to modernize our air traffic control system, fund the airport development, research programs, small community service, and federal aviation operating expenses. our bill reflects the continued effort towards ensuring our aviation system remains the safest in the world. the f.a.a. forecast the airlines are expected to carry more than one billion passengers in the year 2021, up from almost 760 million in 2008. to deal with this growth, strengthening our economy and create jobs, h.r. 915 provides

historic funding levels for f.a.a.'s capital programs. this includes $12.3 billion for the airport improvement program, nearly $10.1 billion for the f.a.a. facility and equipment fund, and $865.4 million for research engineering and development. the bill also provides $30.3 billion for f.a.a. operations over the next three years. these funding levels will accelerate the implementation of nasgen, enable the f.a.a. to replace and repair existing facilities and equipment, improve airplane development, and provide implementation of high priority safety systems. let me mention the importance of the program. the full committee and the aviation subcommittee has spent a great deal of time trying to move the next generation air traffic control system forward. next gen is critical to the future of aviation not only for

safety reasons but also to reduce congestion, delays, and save time, as well as fuel. we have operated now under a ground base radar system for far too many years. we need to more forward with the next gen system so we can implement a satellite basis tell in order to make the improvements that are necessary. in h.r. 915, we also change the organizational structure of the f.a.a.'s joint planning and development office. the body charged with planning next gen to increase the authority and visibility, h.r. 915 elevates the director to the status of associate administrator for next gen within the f.a.a., to be appointed by and reporting directly to the f.a.a. administrator. to increase accountability and coordination of next gen planning and implementation, the bill requires the j.p.d.o. to develop a work plan that details on a year-to-year basis

specific next gen related deliverables and milestones required by the f.a.a. and its partner agencies. like the 2007 bill, we increase the passenger facility charge cap from $4.50 to $7 to those airports who choose to implement the increase to help airports choose and those who participate in the program to meet their capital needs. according to the f.a.a., every airport currently collecting $4 to $4.50 under the p.f.c. raised -- they raise it to $7 it will generate $1.3 billion in additional revenue every year for airport development, which strengthens our economy and creates additional jobs at a time that both are critically needed. the legislation provides significant increases in a.i.p. funding for smaller airports that rely on a.i.p. for capital financing. the ability to raise the p.f.c.

and increase in the funding provides financing for airport development that will help reduce delays. the bill also dramatically increases funding far and improves the esection air service -- essential air service program and re-thofferses the small air service program through 2012. more is being done to reduce energy consumption and emissions. the f.a.a. and the aviation community continues to be a leader in greening its operations. we further those efforts by establishing the clean engine and air frame technology partnership and the green towers program, which was modeled after what is currently being done at o'hare international airport in chicago. the united states has the safest air transportation system in the world, however we must not become complacent about our past success. to keep proper oversight on -- over the f.a.a. and safety, the f.a.a. under the h.r. 915 legislation directs the f.a.a.

to increase the number of aviation safety inspectors, initiate study on fatigue, and requires the f.a.a. to inspect part 145 certified foreign repair stations at least twice a year. the legislation does not increase or place new user fees on users of airspace. we believe that the airport and air way trust fund revenues coupled with the additional revenue from the recommended general aviation fuel tax rate increase and a reasonable general fund contribution will be sufficient to provide for the historic capital funding levels required to modernize the air traffic control system. madam speaker, this legislation before us today is critically important to the f.a.a.. with that i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from illinois reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from wisconsin is recognized. >> madam speaker, in may of last year the house passed h.r. 915, the f.a.a.

re-authorization act of 2009. earlier this week the senate passed its own f.a.a. re-authorization bill and therefore the two chambers will soon begin negotiations to reconcile the bills. however that process will take some time. given that the current f.a.a. extension expires at the end of this month, we need to again extend the f.a.a.'s taxes and authorities to allow time to get a final conference f.a.a. bill. the house considered and passed an f.a.a. extension bill just last week, we are again considering an f.a.a. extension in order to address a minor technical matter in the earlier bill that would have impacted the f.a.a.'s ability to fund airport projects during the next three months. therefore this bill, h.r. 4915, makes the technical correction and also extends the taxes programs and funding of the f.a.a. to july 3 of this year. this bill will ensure that our national airspace system continues to operate and that

the f.a.a. continues funding important airport projects while the congress reconciles the two re-authorization bills. like the bill considered last week, the bill before us also includes a provision that will change the way funding is distributed for the projects of national and regional significance program, and the national corridor infrastructure program and the surface transportation extension that was signed into law last week. currently, 56% of the funds for those two programs are directed to just four states, and 22 states will receive no funding at all. this fix ensures that the funding for those two programs is distributed to all states through the existing federal-aid highway formula. so with that i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 4915 and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from wisconsin reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois is recognized. miss costello: madam speaker --

mr. costello: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the -- a valued member of the subcommittee, congressman capuano. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized. mr. cap pano: i thank the gentleman -- mr. capuano: i thank the gentleman for calling me valued. he didn't say how much but we'll leave it alone. madam speaker, i rise today to express my support for this legislation and look forward to it. this legislation is long overdue. it's something that we have been working on now for as long as i can recall. it has lots of important issues in the f.a.a. and also an additional fix, as i see it, it's not even about the amount of money for the commonwealth of massachusetts. it's about an equitable issue. it's a matter of equity. we were put in a position to pass a bill that had other good job provisions in it that did not have equitable provisions in it, but we did it because this economy needs the boost. like every bill we ever vote on

in anything, there's good and bad. so that particular bill in my opinion had some bad things in it. this bill has good things for the f.a.a. has good things for the country. has good things for all of us who fly. but it also has some provisions in there that will level the playing field for the people of this country. and that's why i wanted to go over this morning. there are times when -- i usually get called on to ask when there is a fight going on. in this particular instance there is no fight here. i'm not sure exactly who the fight is with. i'm uncomfortable speaking when we are all on the same side, but it's nice for a change. and i won't get used to it too off. i do enjoy it on occasion when it happens. i want to come over and express my support and to yield back the remainder of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from illinois reserves. the gentleman from wisconsin is recognized. mr. petri: thank you. i want our colleague from massachusetts to know he's valued on both sides of the aisle. with that i yield such time as he may consume to the eseemed

ranking member of our committee, mr. mica, from florida. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. mica: thank you for yielding, madam speaker and my colleagues. if everyone isn't totally confused by what's going on with the f.a.a. legislation, it will be a miracle. let me just try to take for a moment, madam speaker, and my colleagues, little time to explain to members and staff and you, madam speaker, of where we are and how we got here. what we are considering now is not a new f.a.a. bill, but the extension of the old f.a.a. bill. in fact, the f.a.a. bill when i was chairman of the aviation subcommittee in 2003, in may of that year, we introduced a bill that became law six months later and was signed by the

president, the end of 2003. that bill has been in effect, that authorization which authorizes all the policy, all the projects for f.a.a., has been in effect and it expired in -- it expired in september of 2007. since september of 2007, we have not had a new f.a.a. bill. what we have done is a series of extensions of the 2003 passed bill. now, last week we were here doing the 12th extension of the f.a.a. bill, and we sent that -- we passed that measure and sent it over to the other body. the other body took that legislation and they passed it, but a little mistake was made, i understand, in the formula for a.i.p. funding. so that's why we are back here the 13th time passing an

extension of the bill that expired in 2007. i would be glad to yield. >> the author of the longest surviving authorization of f.a.a. programs. mr. mica: yes. i wish i didn't have that honor, but as the gentleman who just spoke who is now our chairman was the chairman of aviation when i came to congress and met -- met him first in 1993, he knows the importance of getting this authorization done. now, meanwhile back at the ranch, madam speaker, and members of congress, the f.a.a. bill that the house passed last may has been over in the other

body being considered. of course other things have gotten in the way. finally i believe last night they passed the f.a.a. bill. but they -- the other body didn't use our legislation that we had passed in may. they took a ways and means bill and they tacked on the provision that is they want and it's coming back to the house of representatives and scheduled tentatively scheduled before the rules committee is that full bill. what we are debating here now is just an extension to get us to july 3 because they are sending back, they are playing a little bit of games with the entire bill. they took our bill out. they put other provisions in on a ways and means bill, which really raises questions as to our jurisdiction because we are the transportation committee,

although i know the chairman is planning to tack our bill, our full bill, back on hopefully in the rules committee and then bring that back to the floor. so this little ping-pong game of the f.a.a. re-authorization is not over by any means. i'm hoping and praying that this authorization that gets authorization extension, that gets us to july 3 is accepted without change over in the other body. because as we know there was a highway bill extension to december 31, put on a jobs bill last week. but when we passed that in the house and the president signed it into law, it's my understanding it contains a provision that the other body put in and four people -- four individuals -- individual states benefit by the provisions of that, taking the highway trust fund money for

special protects of national significance in four states get 58% of the money. we didn't want that in the bill. when it passed. mr. oberstar obtained an agreement from the -- mr. reid and ms. pelosi that we would change that. and we actually had a provision to change that in this bill, this extension. now i'm getting confused. but in fact that provision is in this bill that would give every state equitable distribution of those highway funds. so that's why we supported on the republican side mr. oberstar's been working to get this done. we don't want four states to benefit. we don't want all the money to be put in the discretionary fund and then contributed at the will of a few bureaucrats, we want everyone to be treated equitably. so there's -- both the

extension of the f.a.a. authorization until july 3. there is the reformization of the highway money that goes through december 31 in this measure. that's why we must pass this. but this is not, i repeat, this is not the f.a.a. bill that we do need to pass that mr. costello, mr. petri spoke about. . now, madam speaker, if that hasn't confused every single member outside the committee and members of the public and everyone else who may be interested in this, i don't know what will confuse them. but that, folks, is basically where we are and that's why we need to pass this extension. hopefully we won't see this for the 14th time, hoping and praying, but it may be possible because they like to play

games. and as this process moves forward, to the benefit of some, not everyone, we don't want that to happen. so i urge your passage of this extension. don't confuse it with the f.a.a. bill, which still will be around the corner, and i thank our ranking member. i thank mr. costello for their continued work and my counterpart, the chairman, mr. oberstar, their work for bringing this forward. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from wisconsin reserves. the gentleman from illinois is recognized. mr. costello: madam speaker, how much time do we have remaining on our side? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from illinois has 10 1/2 minutes. the gentleman from wisconsin has 10 1/2 minutes. mr. costello: madam speaker, at this time i'd yield to my friend from maryland three minutes to mr. cummings. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. cummings: thank you very much, madam speaker. i thank the gentleman for yielding.

madam speaker, i rise today in strong support of the f.a.a. extension act of 2010, h.r. 4915, which would provide a short-term extension of existing f.a.a. authorization legislation. i want to thank the subcommittee chairman, mr. costello, for his outstanding leadership constantly on this legislation. this legislation, and just picking up with -- where mr. mica left off, includes provisiones that will ensure that an equitable distribution is made during the safetea-lu authorization, money designated for the projects of national and regional significance and the national corps and infrastructure programs. this will will provide discretionary funds to major projects. however, the safetea-lu conference committee designated to receive money under the programs. as we have worked to develop a longer term extension for the

safetea-lu, the issue of how to apportion the approximately $932 million provided for these programs during the extension period has been of critical concern to our committee. under provisions developed by the senate included in the hire act, this funding will continue to be provided for those few states in which projects were designated by safetea-lu. under this allocation, four states, four states will receive 58% of the available funding, 22 states would receive no funding, and the remaining states would receive varying levels of funding. such a distribution is not equitable, particularly given that the designated projects were time limited. chairman oberstar has worked with the senate majority leader and speaker pelosi to devise a more equitable funding distribution and the legislation before us today includes the agreement they have resolved. under this agreement, the funding would be distributed to

all states pursuant to existing formulas for major highway programs and at a time when state transportation budgets are experiencing significant cuts, an equitable distribution available, federal funding is appropriate to ensure that each state can continue to address its most pressing mobility needs. i applaud chairman oberstar, speaker reid and leader -- speaker pelosi and leader reid for their work on this measure, and i urge adoption. and with that, madam speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from illinois reserves. the gentleman from wisconsin is recognized. mr. petri: madam speaker, i have no further requests for time and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois is recognized. mr. costello: madam speaker, at this time i would yield two minutes to a member of the subcommittee, the gentleman from missouri, mr. carnahan. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. carnahan: thank you, madam

speaker. as a member of the transportation and infrastructure committee and the aviation subcommittee and representing the singlest region where aviation has been vital in our history, in our economy, i rise today in strong support of the passage of h.r. 4915, the federal aviation administration extension act of 2010. although, i believe a long-term re-authorization of the f.a.a. is long overdue, i'm happy to see the senate finally pass an f.a.a. re-authorization bill earlier so we are one step closer of passage of a much-needed long-term re-authorization. i'm also happy to see this legislation includes a provision to amend the hire act so that all states, including my home state of missouri, can receive funding under the projects of national and regional significance and the national corridors program rather than just 29 states. both of these programs are designed -- designed to be

competitive and discretionary programs under the safetea-lu where all states can compete for funding. i'd like to thank chairman oberstar, chairman costello, ranking member mica and petri so states can receive funding under these programs. not only states that had designated appropriations in safetea-lu. it is critical for all states to be treated the same, to have these opportunities. this is an important compromise as we continue to work toward a long-term surface transportation bill that is so vital to our economy and growing out of this recession our country has been working through, this is important for jobs. i congratulate our leadership and our members and recommend this bill to all of our members. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri yields back. the gentleman from illinois reserves. the gentleman from wisconsin is

recognized. mr. petri: i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman continues to reserve. the gentleman from illinois. mr. costello: madam speaker, at this time i yield three minutes to the distinguished chairman of the full committee, chairman oberstar. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. oberstar: i thank the gentleman for yielding and compliment mr. costello and the splendid job he's done in crafting the f.a.a. authorization bill and the partnership with mr. petri and also with mr. mica, the republican leader on the committee, who once chaired the aviation subcommittee and together we have fashioned a really solid bill for the future. we passed it in two congresses. it's well path time for the senate to act on this -- past time for the senate to act on this bill and they did 93-0. however, the bill -- the current program, the current

law, as i expressed in my colloquy with mr. mica, is the longest standing f.a.a. authorization bill simply because we haven't passed the next authorization. the house has done its job as it always does in two congresses. we first passed this bill in 2007. and we're blockaded by the white house that threatens veto over certain provisions of the bill but the senate never took it up. never got close to conference. we passed it again last year and now we need an extension. and we passed the extension but the f.a.a. came back to us and said, well, before -- before this extension is enacted, we

request a technical correction to a provision of the bill relating to formula grants. within the airport improvement program, this technical correction ensures that sufficient funds will be allocated to formula grants rather than discretionary grants. without the correction f.a.a. said they discovered there could be insufficient funds to cover formula apportionments after july 4 of this year. so we're taking up this technical correction, sending it over to the other body in addition to the bill we passed last week. now, there is another matter of importance that we've attached to this bill and that is the correction to the hire act. the house passed, senate passed and we found when the senate

moved their bill there was a disruption -- i'll be kind about this -- to the formula which has already been discussed by other speakers. mr. mica, mr. cummings spoke about it. 22 states get nothing. the other 28 states gets -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. oberstar: and we need to -- we're correcting that in this bill. will the gentleman yield an additional snin minute? -- minute? mr. costello: i yield one minute to mr. oberstar. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. oberstar: so we're sending it over to the other body. majority leader reid sent it back with the appropriate members of the senate, to committee leadership and the senate floor leadership, but somehow it -- this correction

has gotten bogged down. i also urge the other body to act on h.r. 476, which we passed march 10, to correct an additional problem created by the filibuster in the senate that caused highway authorization to lapse and 1,922 federal highway administration career employees to lose their salaries. they through no fault of their own get a 20% cut in their biweekly paycheck. that's unreasonable. now, we sent over a bill to the other body with the very clear payment restructuring. may i have another minute? mr. costello: i yield an additional minute to chairman oberstar. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman may proceed. mr. oberstar: and the secretary of transportation said that he has made the shift within the

administrative account but cannot make the payment because he needs authority from congress to do so. so we quickly drafted the bill with their technical input, moved the bill with great bipartisan support, great enthusiasm over here, but then there's a member of the other body who's holding it up saying he wants it paid for. well, the congressional budget office has certified to us in writing that there is no cost, there is no need for a pay-for, there is no need for an offset. we said that at the time we moved this bill. we had received informally from c.b.o. we now have it in writing from c.b.o. so there's no need to hold up justice for these 1,922 employees who through no fault of their own, just standing there doing their jobs, was cut their pay because of the filibuster in the other body. don't hold them up for a month if this goes on longer. this is just patently unjust.

i urge the senate to act on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from illinois reserves. the gentleman from wisconsin is recognized. mr. petri: i yield one minute the representative from nevada, a member of the subcommittee, ms. titus. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. titus: thank you, madam speaker. and thank you for the courtesy of yielding. i rise today in support of this legislation and in support of the provision that includes to distribute funds for the projects of national significance and national corridor grant programs through existing formulas. under the hire act, funds for these programs went to only 29 states based on whether they had earmarked projects under safetea-lu. some states were big winners and others were big losers. 22 states would receive no funding at all, including my state of nevada. california, illinois, louisiana and washington, however, would get $543 million of the $932

million allocated. the legislation we're considering today would correct this inequity. in nevada it would mean an additional $7.7 million for transportation programs. it's an important piece of legislation and i urge its passage. thank you. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields. the gentleman from illinois reserves. the -- excuse me, the gentleman from illinois is recognized. mr. costello: madam speaker, i would ask how much time we have remaining? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from illinois has one minute. the gentleman from wisconsin has 9 1/2 minutes. mr. costello: madam speaker, let me say with the action taken by the senate on monday of this week we are one step closer to having an f.a.a. re-authorization bill. it's an important piece of legislation. as i stated earlier the industry generates nearly $900 billion in economic activity

annually. it represents 9% of our g.d.p. and employs millions of american people. as our nation struggles with high unemployment, it's necessary that we pass this legislation and move forward so that we can improve safety, improve congestion, reduce delays. with that, madam speaker, i would ask my friend, mr. petri, if he has further speakers or intends to yield back his time. mr. petrie: madam speaker -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from wisconsin is recognized. mr. petri: we have no further speakers. i join my colleagues in urging a speedy passage of the measure before us and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois is recognized for 15 seconds. mr. costello: madam speaker, i want to thank both chairman oberstar, mr. mica, mr. petri and i would urge passage of h.r. 4915, the federal aviation

administration extension act of 2010. and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 4915. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid upon the reconsider is laid upon the table.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition? mr. perlmutter: thank you, madam speaker. by direction of the committee on rules i call up house resolution 1204 and ask for its immediate consideration. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the resolution. the clerk: house calendar number 179, house resolution 1204, resolved that upon the adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the house the bill h.r. 4899, making emergency supplemental appropriations for disaster relief and summer jobs

for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2010, and for other purposes. all points of order against consideration of the bill are waived except those arising under clause 9 or 10 of rule 21. the bill shall be considered as read. all points of order against provisions in the bill are waived. the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill to final passage without intervening motion except. one, one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on appropriations. and two, one motion to recommit. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from colorado is recognized for one hour. mr. perlmutter: thank you. for purposes of debate only, i yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from north carolina, ms. foxx. all time yielded during consideration of the rule is for debate only. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. perlmutter: i also ask

unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on house resolution 1204. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. perlmutter: madam speaker, house resolution 1204 provides for consideration of the disaster relief and summer jobs act of 2010. under a closed rule. the rule provides for one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the appropriations committee. the rule waives all points of order against consideration of the bill except those arising under clause 9 or 10 of rule 21. the rule provides that the bill shall be read -- shall be considered as read. and finally, the rule provides one motion to recommit the bill with or without inspruckses. madam speaker, we are quickly approaching the beginning of disaster season in the united states. while many natural disasters occur without warning, we can say with certainty that tornadoes, hurricanes,

wildfires, and flooding will damage communities across our nation in the coming six months. just this week the residents of north dakota and minnesota are breathing a sigh of relief as the red river flood crested. my own state of colorado throughout our history we have suffered our fair share of destruction by wildfire, tornadoes, hailstorms, and flooding. in the gentlewoman's, ms. foxx's district, for instance, a major disaster was declared just this year due to severe winter storms and flooding. we don't know where, we don't know when natural disasters will occur, but our federal response and relief officials must prepare nonetheless. and when they do, and when those disasters do happen, members of congress will tour the devastation in their district and tell their constituents hurt by the disaster, i will do everything i can to help you recover from this event. today's bill is the most important thing they can do to help in the recovery and relief

efforts. there will be emergency response professionals who worked overtime and need to be reimbursed. there are federal search and rescue teams which will have to be mobilized. fema will have to rebuild public infrastructure and remove degree. fema will have to provide temporary shelter to families displaced by the disaster, and under the stafford act, these are all responsibilities of fema. there's just no getting around it. already this year there have been 18 disasters and three emergency funds in seven states, and the disaster relief fund is about to be exhausted. given the domestic and international efforts fema has undertaken this year, the disaster relief fund will be exhausted within the next month. so this bill replenishes the disaster relief fund with $5 billion. this funding can only be used for disaster relief. it cannot be shifted into other accounts. if it is not spent this year, will be retained for the fund next year.

because relief also requires the federal government to assist affected small businesses to resume operations, the bill also provides for $60 million to be funded to the small business administration and finally the bill invests $600 million into job training and employment services. this is a vital investment to build upon the progress we have made in the past year to put america back to work. because this investment is not an emergency, it is paid for with unobligated recovery act dollars. but make no mistake, this bill is about robust emergency response capabilities. natural disasters don't care about congressional district boundaries, they can happen anywhere in our country. i hope members see the importance of this bill and make the right vote to ensure fema and our federal disaster relief and recovery officials have the resources they need to help your states save lives and rebuild. with that i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves.

the gentlewoman from north carolina is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. i thank my colleague for yielding. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. despite what the democrats may say about this bill, my colleagues could be well served to recognize how this bill represents little more than a continuation of the arrogant approach to governing that has pervaded this body since they took control three years ago. let's start by considering the process for which this rule and bill are coming before us today. this legislation which spends $5.7 billion to replenish a fema disaster relief account and fund a department of labor summer jobs program, jobs in quotes, was introduced last sn, march 21, and -- sunday, march 21, and before the rules committee the following day. in february of 2009, shortly after president obama assumed office, the hill newspaper quoted a group of democrats as

saying that, quote, committees must function thoroughly and inclusively and cooperation must ensue between the parties and the houses to ensure that our legislative tactics enable rather than impede progress. in general we must engender a atmosphere that allows partisan gains to cease and collaboration to succeed. we are looking forward to working with you to restore this institution. so much for good intentions. despite their best attempts to divert attention from the simple truth, it's worth remembering the pledge made in 2006 by the then minority democrats to ensure regular order for legislation, promising that, quote, bills should be developed following full hearings and open subcommittee and committee markups with appropriate referrals to other committees. members should have at least 24 hours to examine a bill prior to consideration at the subcommittee level. bills should generally come to

the floor under a procedure that allows open, full, and fair debate, consisting of a full amendment process that grants the minority the right to offer its alternatives, including a substitute. oh, how quickly we forget. you know, $5.7 billion used to be a lot of money. but the ruling democrats which have apparently no concept of the value of money have completely thrown that idea right out of the window. in fairness to my liberal colleagues, working with such large numbers starts to get confusing after all. who pays attention to all those zeros? we hardly ever hear the word, million anymore, and it hasn't been that long ago that everett dirksen said a million year an million there and pretty soon you are talking about real money. i saw an article today in one of the newspapers from my district where they talked

about the fact that they thought they weren't going to have money for summers job program, now it looks like they are going to have it. the article talked -- said, last year 129 business that is use this program benefited from free labor provided by uncle sam. we have established in the minds of many americans that federal dollars are somehow or another manna from heaven. they are not manna from heaven. somebody has to pay this bill. it's not free. there is no free lunch. every dime we are spending has to be borrowed. the american people understand that and they are sick and tired of it. many of our colleagues support pay-go, which they argue forces congress to, quote, pay for,

end quote, certain spending increases with tax increasings. this bill is a perfect example of the sham that is pay-go. first off, pay-go applies only to certain kinds of nondiscretionary spending. so they exhaust themselves spending on social welfare programs without so much as a pay-go speed bump. when looking for another reason to increase taxes, they simply look for an excuse to increase automatic spending. that way they tell their tax conscious constituents that their hands were tied as the rules forced them to support the tax increases, never take responsibility for your actions. what happens when the spending proposals are so much that even liberals can't tax their way out of them? a few of their tricks include budgetary gimmicks like inserting an exception into the rules or my favorite, simply declare the spending to be an emergency. the bill we have before us

today designates as an emergency $5.1 billion in spending for a fema account that could and should be funded through the regular appropriations process. as i raised in the rules committee the other day, we recommend to people that they have three months of income in an account in case they have an emergency, but this is funding in anticipation and it means we are borrowing money and we are paying interest on that borrowed money. the excuses from my colleagues just are endless. spending increases are so common that they have become all too predictable. observers of this debate are likely to hear one of the most tired excuses intended to dodge responsibility for their unconscionable spending binge. when all else fails, they always fall back on the reliable excuses george bush

did it or you did it before. as a teacher i never let my students get away with childish excuses like this. this is congress. people elected us to be responsible for the decisions we make. it is true that republicans spent far too much while in the majority, but the democrat response is simply the triple down on the mistakes of the past and return to the same old blame game that's led this government into the budgetary malaise that we are facing today. while they say they are simply responding to the mess made by the previous administration, the democrats would have you believe that this mess was created because george bush didn't spend enough. the american people need strong loweredship. they need effective leadership. they need leadership that ends the petty partisan blame game and accepts responsibility for governance. this bill exemplifies how the ruling democrats fail to offer any of these fundamental leadership traits. that's why this country

desperately needs a change in congressional leadership. we need to vote no on the rule and no on the underlying bill. with that, madam speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from north carolina reserves the balance of her time. the gentleman from colorado is recognized. mr. perlmutter: thank you, madam speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. i've listened to the gentlelady . i guess i'm very surprised by her argument that with fema's funding running out within the next two weeks that the republican side of the aisle would argue against any funding for future disasters that we know are going to come. for instance, in representative foxx's district just this past month a disaster was declared because of flooding and severe winter weather. and these are the counties that were declared a disaster. allegeny, ash, avery, caldwell,

hayward, on and on and on and on. i looked through the list. we've had 16 or 17 disasters declared already this year across the country. luckily none of them from in colorado. i looked at last year. we had several -- well, we had dozens and dozens all across the country, including others in north carolina. none were in colorado, but i can tell you coloradans understand that this is a national issue. this is something that we take care as citizens, as americans across the country because we're in this together. it isn't, let's just wait until the whole thing runs out and then scurry around and try to figure out what to do. we are dealing with disasters. when i'm listening to my friend from north carolina, it's like she wants to have katrina happen all over again. where we're not prepared, the country is not prepared to deal with a massive emergency. that's what this is all about. it's about funding fema so that it can respond to the

emergencies that we know are going to arise. and so all of this conversation about procedural tricks and you aren't getting this stuff done, this about funding the emergency management of this country. and i'm surprised especially when north carolina just enjoyed the ability to take advantage of this -- well, nobody would enjoy having to draw on the disaster relief. i take that back. that was an improper statement. what they did is they had the disaster relief fund available to them to deal with the troubles they suffered during this past winter. so i can't see any merit to the argument that's being made that the issues not before us is properly. it's a five-page bill. the other side of the aisle, republicans, have been complaining about big bills, too hard to read, take too long. this is five pages that says we're going to fund our

emergency management administration so that we can deal with the disasters that we know are going to come. with that i would reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from colorado reserves. the gentlewoman from north carolina is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. i appreciate my colleague pointing out the fact that we did have some areas in north carolina. indeed, two of the counties that he mentioned were in my district because of the rain that we had recently. but you know, declaring a disaster and allocating money to those counties are two different things. i would bet, and i'll ask -- i'm sorry i don't have to do it while we're here on the floor, but i bet it will be 18 months before any of those people see a dime of money because the bureaucracy is so incompetent in terms of responding to people. so the money won't be given out for a long, long time from

those disasters. unfortunately. because when those things happen people need help right a. now, we could have gone through regular -- need help right away. now, we could have gone through regular order. but my guess is you could declare jobs being created through more government funding. you know, madam speaker, i was in the congress when katrina hit, and here's what happened. we were on the august break, katrina hits on saturday, sunday, monday. the speaker of the house, mr. hastert, had a conference call on wednesday of that week and he said, i either can call everybody back into session and we will allocate the $10 billion that needs to be allocated for katrina right now in an emergency or we can have

unanimous consent, no one will come forward and object, i'll bring a few people back in, we'll take care of this need immediately and that's exactly what happened. everybody knew there was an emergency, and we reacted to it. i don't understand my colleagues saying we are not prepared for a massive disaster. if we aren't with all the money that we spend on things then we have a major problem. i think we are prepared for major disasters. we showed that on 9/11. we showed it with katrina. so this is a strong dog, that's all it is. now, given the best efforts of the democrats to create jobs starting with the stimulus last year, perhaps this bill would be better title the disaster relief and summer government jobs act of 2010. as has been so well articulated in a march 3 "washington times" editorial, from immigration to clean energy, to expanding the social safety net, there's no

better way to grease the skids for government in washington than watch supporters line up in potential opposition crumble, end quote. the piece goes on to cite multiple examples of how democrats claim their proposals will create jobs, but what they never seem to mention is where these jobs are coming from. ends up many of the democrat policies actually do create jobs after all, government jobs. and they do so by stealing jobs from the private sector. and don't just take my word for it. let's look at the evidence. as you can see this chart shows the net job gains or loss by major sector from february of 2009 to february, 2010. it illustrates how the private sector lost 3.9 million jobs over the past year while government grew by a total 293,000 jobs.

again, the american people are understanding this and they're getting sick and tired of it. they don't want to be paying high taxes, to be put in debt for -- until infinity in order to create more jobs generally paying twice as much as the private sector jobs do. the senate health care overhaul replete with its back room deals mandates a dubious constitutional standing and a dozen tax increases that break the president's tax pledge is now law. it remains to be seen how this health care overhaul will be implemented, but one white house advisor said it must be implemented, quote, effectively, efficiently and with great accountability, end quote. if that sounds familiar, it's because last year the white house was saying the same thing about the stimulus bill. turns out the $1 trillion

boondoggle wasn't nearly as stimulative as advertised. job creation not so much. this is the proof. you know, our colleagues continually say that we don't represent things accurately. i know we can argue about numbers, but these are not republican numbers. these are numbers that are true and, madam speaker, this bill is not going to do anything to create more jobs. it's going to continue to hurt the economy. and with that i'll reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from north carolina reserves the balance of her time. the gentleman from colorado is recognized. mr. perlmutter: i yield myself such time as i may consume. couple things. i'm very surprised that my friend from north carolina would hold up the response to katrina as the model for how we respond to emergencies. there couldn't be anything farther from the truth in that respect. it was a terrible mess, a

terrible response. i don't think anybody in this country would say otherwise. so the country was not prepared under the republican -- under the bush administration. this congress was not prepared. this is about preparing for emergencies, and right now even though the flood has crested in north dakota and minnesota, it still is a state of emergency. those states near the river are under water. and so there is an emergency occurring even as we speak. now, my good friend from north carolina has her posters. of course, we have ours. now, let's take a look at what really is going on in the economy. under the bush administration we had tremendous job loss in -- beginning in 2007 but certainly in the fall of 2008. ms. foxx: will the gentleman yield? mr. perlmutter: let me explain my poster and then you and i

can debate our posters. ms. foxx: thank you. mr. perlmutter: so this is private payroll. drops like a rock until january, 2009, which is the greatest loss of jobs during that month. some 780,000. 780,000 jobs lost in january, 2009. 20,000 jobs lost one year into the obama administration in january -- obama administration. in january, 2010, it's not better but it's better than 780,000 jobs in the last month of the bush administration. so my friends complains about the status of jobs, but we, this country was in freefall when it came to the economy, the financial system and jobs.

that has turned around. we have so much farther to go, and that's part of what this bill does. it provides for summer jobs and training for many of those people who've been out of work. we got to get those people back to work, but we turned around. you see a sea of red, jobs being lost month after month. still it has improved dramatically in the last year. so i would entertain my friend's question. ms. foxx: well, my question is -- who was in charge of the congress beginning in january of 2007 when the economy started going south? mr. perlmutter: the democrats. you say when the economy started going south. the economy started going south, i would say to my friend, in september of 2008 when because of very laxed regulations on wall street the bottom fell out of the financial system and jobs were

lost at an ever increasing number. and so the bush administration by its lax regulation cost thousands and millions of jobs across this country. and that's what we're trying to stop. we've been able to slow it down, madam speaker. now it's time to start adding jobs and part of this bill provides for job training, it provides for summer jobs as well as dealing with the disaster relief that has to be managed for the rest of this season of tornadoes and fires and floods. and we're in a flood right now in north dakota and minnesota. we have to address that and we have to fill that emergency fund so we can atres these things promptly and without any delay as i believe occurred with katrina down in louisiana. with that i'd reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from colorado reserves. the gentlewoman from north carolina is recognized.

ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. and i thank my colleague very much for yielding and answering my questions. you know, i didn't say anything about fema and its response to hurricane katrina. i think if you will look back at my comments it was that congress was able to respond immediately when there was a need, which is what i -- what we believe should happen -- mr. perlmutter: will the gentlewoman yield? ms. foxx: yes. mr. perlmutter: yielding after the hurricane hits isn't fast enough. this is about knowing these things are coming and dealing with them in advance. and with that i yield back to my friend. ms. foxx: well, i thank my colleague, and what i don't understand, if this is what the democrats do, why don't we have an emergency reserve fund? again, we know that we advise families to prepare for emergencies. that's what we should do in the government. we should go through regular order, we should have debate,

we should have some idea of where money is going to need to be spent in advance in terms of how we respond at the federal level. this is more government knowing the answer to everything and government control from the federal level. that's exactly what this is. . is it going to create jobs? yes, it's going to create some summer jobs for young people, but it's not going affect that job picture that my colleague talked about. neither did the stimulus. the stimulus was passed. we were told by the white house, by the congress pass this unemployment will not exceed 8%. unemployment has been right at 10% for months and months and months. in fact again the only thing that's been stimulated has been the government. and that's not where we need to be become. -- to be going. the american people don't want more government, they want more

jobs. the recent health care overhaul and last year's stimulus bill illustrate that congress is very good at growing government. not so good at spurring job growth. the simple truth is that if the democrats really wanted to stimulate youth employment, there's one sensible effective policy change that could do so without spending a dime. as articulated in a march 10 "wall street journal" editorial, quote, the recent act of congress that's caused the most economic hardship goes to the may, 2007 law raising the minimum wage in three stages to $7.25 an hour from $5.15. rarely has a law hurt more vulnerable people more quickly. a higher minimum wage has the biggest impact on those with the least experience or the fewees skills. that means in particular those looking for entry-level jobs, especially teenagers. and sure enough as nearly all economic moms predict, the higher minimum has wreaked havoc with teenage job seekers.

well beyond what you would expect even in a recession. the editorial continues by comparing, quote, the three-stage increase in the minimum wage with the jobless rate for teens age 16 to 19 since 2007. the first increase, so 585 there 515 came after a decade of no increases. and when the overall jobless rate was below 5% and the teen rate was 14.9%. the demand for labor was sufficiently strong in many areas that most employers were probably willing to absorb the higher wage. but as the minimum wage increased, even as the overall job market began to worsen, the damage to teen job seekers became more severe. by the time the third increase to $7.25 from $6.55 took effect in july 2009, the teen jobless rate was 24.3% and by october it peaked at 27.6% before

dropping to 26.4% in january. the story's even worse for black teens who often have lower than average education levels or live in areas with fewer job prospects. their jobless rate climbed from 38.5% before the third wage hike to 49.8% in november, 2009, before falling back to 43.8% in january. for black male teens, the rate climbed to 52.2% in december from 39.2% in july. the difference between the jobless rate for black teens and the entire population widened by six percentage points from june, 2007, to january, 2010. even assuming those rates fall as the job market improves this year, they'll remain destructively high. the third increase was especially ill-timed because it hit while the recession was ending but before employers

felt confident to rehire to raise the cause of unskilled labor precisely when the jobless rate is heading toward 10% is an act of almost willful economic stupidity. madam speaker, i want to remind the speaker that i'm quoting. a congress that has spent $862 billion to create jobs does manage with its wage increase to harm tens of thousands of entry-level job seekers and it did so in the name of compassion and a living wage. in many cases that wage has since become zero. the evidence is clear that increasing the minimum wage is an expensive and misguided way to move working families out of poverty. according to the employment policies institute, 85% of people who earn the minimum wage aren't the primary breadwinner in a family. most readers remember the work habits they learned from their first job, showing up on time, being courteous to customers, learning how to use technology. such habits are often more valuable than the actual paycheck.

studies have confirmed when teens work during the summer months or after school, they have higher lifetime earnings than those who don't work. raising the minimum wage may inadvertently reduce lifetime earnings. most democrats won't bend on the minimum wage because it's poor in demand. but free thinkers ought to krt teenage job problem. the long-term dangers we are building in a higher level of structural unemployment as our least skilled workers find it harder to climb on to the first rung of the job market. this will not solve problems. it weights more. -- creates more. with that, madam speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from north carolina reserves. the gentleman from colorado is recognized. mr. perlmutter: thank you, madam speaker. first i'd ask how much time remains on both sides. and i ask my friend how many speakers she may have because i don't have any other speakers. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman has requested

information on time. you have 19 1/2 faff minutes -- 1/2 minutes. the gentlewoman from north carolina has 11 1/2 minutes. mr. perfect mutter: i see mr. flake. i would -- mr. perlmutter: i see mr. flake. i reserve the balance of my time and allow them to proceed. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from colorado reserves. the gentlewoman from north carolina is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. i thank my friend from colorado. i would now like to yield such time as he may consume to our colleague from arizona, mr. flake. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. flake: i thank the gentlelady for yielding. listening to this debate in my office i had to come down here. if it looks like -- it sounds like this is -- debate is taking place in a vacuum here. taking place in a vacuum here. like we didn't do anything here

we are good at that. but we aren't very good at suspending the laws of economics. we can't do that. we can pretend we can, but we

can't do it. we can't suspend the laws of economics and we can't phase them in, either. when you announce you are going to tax in-- investment capital, that means there's less to invest in job creating activities. so the job creating sector is smaller than it was before. whatever you take money into government, from the job creating sector, when you tax investment capital, like the health care reform that we did, you are going to mean there's going to be less jobs for job creation. i'm sorry less capital for job creation. also when you look at the health care bill itself, the president said when he signed the bill into law that the time for overheated rhetoric is over, and that the rhetoric will now be confronted with reality. let me tell you what the reality is. right now. the reality is higher insurance

premiums. so if it's not bad enough out there with a lack of jobs, americans all over are going to face much higher insurance premiums by virtue of the legislation we just passed. you have to understand that all of the pressures right now are to drive costs upward. there's no downward pressure economically on insurance premiums at the moment. because any cost controls either don't exist at all, there's no medical liability reform, broadening the pool of people who will come into any insurance pool doesn't happen on the mandatory side. several years from now. so all you have are requirements that pre-existing conditions for children now be covered. that individuals, adults up to age 26 can stay on their parents' policy. preventive care now has to be covered with no deductibles or

co-pays. now, those may or may not be good policy. that's not what i'm arguing here. but those things when you do that insurance is no longer a hedge against risk. we have just obliterated what insurance is supposed to be. and insurance companies will now be treated like public utilities where government simply regulates them. and all the pressure is upward. there's no downward economic pressure on price. so what we'll see in the next several months is insurance premiums jumping up. i just want to say right now we shouldn't be surprised when that happens. because we can't suspend the laws of economics. we can pass laws, but there are certain laws that are there that we can't change. and those will be slapping us in the face here soon. when we come to the floor, it's all well good to talk about

fema funding, but i wish we talk a little about $600 million also that's going to be spent, borrowed whether you take it from another program or not, we are borrowing that money as well. we are borrowing more money, adding to the deficit and debt. i thank the gentlelady for yielding. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona yields back. the gentlewoman from north carolina reserves. the gentleman from colorado is recognized. mr. perlmutter: i yield myself so much time as i might consume. i'm so glad that my friend from arizona was aroused from his office because of our conversation about fema to come down and talk about health insurance. so i appreciate his statement that higher insurance premiums will be the reality. that's the reality today. that was the reality yesterday. that was the reality the day before that. that was the reality in california when they wanted to take the rates up 40%, i would say to my friend. that was the reality last year. that was the reality the year

before if we keep doing the same thing we are going to get the same answers. you got to change things at some point. i would say to my friend from arizona. i would also say to my friend from arizona, to argue against eliminating discrimination against pre-existing conditions, which is what i thought i heard you say, which touched pretty much everybody's life in america, somebody either a close friend, a family member, a neighbor of everybody in this chamber today, whether on the floor or in the gallery, has somebody who they know closely has a pre-existing condition. and that is something that has to be addressed. mr. flake: will the gentleman yield? mr. perlmutter: not yet. i appreciate him coming up here to talk to us about health insurance premiums which are constantly on the rise. we got to deal with folks who suffer pre-existing conditions and can't find assistance otherwise when it comes to

their health insurance. personally, and i have said many times, that i think it's a violation of the 14th amendment, the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment, by not allowing people to have equal access to insurance. and part of what was addressed by the bill that was signed, the historic bill that was signed yesterday by the president, is that those people can get insurance, those folks who have pre-existing conditions can get insurance. we can have portable -- the ability to go from one job to another, not be locked into a job for fear of losing our insurance. so i appreciated the comments. and i'll yield -- you'll get another chance. i'm sure the gentlelady has a lot of time. she'll yield to you. the other thing i wanted to say to my good friend because he brought up the economics of everything, was that in the --

in the last 18 months of the bush administration, this country lost about $17 trillion in wealth. in homes, in 401-k's, in pension plans, and in jobs. since last year we have gained -- the country, each one of us, in our little way, each one of us has gained about $5 trillion back. our 401-k's have improved, our pensions have improved. there's been a stabilizing of home prices, and jobs as we talked about earlier are starting to come back after being lost at an unbelievable rate under the bush administration. so, the stock market is up by 4,000 points in the last year. it lost 7,500 points in the

last 18 months of the bush administration. so we are not -- anywelfare reform we need to be, but i say to my friend who is complaining about the laws of economics, that those laws seem to be working in a positive sense now. i'd like -- madam speaker, to yield two minutes to the gentleman from new jersey who will actually speak about the bill. before us, which is about fema funding and job training. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> i rise today in strong support of the rule and the underlying legislation, h.r. 4899, the disaster relief and summer jobs act of 2010. i want to commend the rules committee, chairman obey, and the rest of the appropriations committee for their work in bringing this to the floor. this legislation further shows the democratic majority's commitment to supporting jobs for the american people. jobs for over 300,000 young people this summer are supported and fully offset in

this legislation. last weekend, the eighth congressional district of new jersey, along with many other communities throughout the state were hit with a severe northeasterner that caused record flooding. the rising waters, combined with downed trees and power lines led to the closing of many roads and bridges. over 2,500 residents and families were forced to evacuate. state and county and local first responders continued their great work to help safeguard life and property. the flooding has damaged over 3,000 homes and i went back on monday to see for myself, took three hours, then came right back again. devastation. over 400 businesses. preliminary damage assessment estimates the cost to the public sector alone to be almost $10 million.

that's the public sector. on monday, i was able to briefly return to that district and see for myself. the federal emergency management agency, fee marx was there on schedule. we hope there will be a short period between the time they present their information to the governor of the state of new jersey and then he will make his appeal to the federal government, that's how fema should work. we got notice yesterday that the snow daster that occurred in the southern part of the state had just been responded to so these are bureaucratic nightmares, particularly for people forced out of their homes. may i have 30 seconds more? >> i yield the gentleman another 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognize plsmed pascrell: it's critical we approve the $5.1 billion in this emergency legislation to allow fema to continue its work in helping areas of the country like northern new jersey

recover from natural disasters. i urge an aye vote on the rule and the underlying bill and i thank you, madam speaker, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from colorado reserves, the gentlewoman from north carolina is recognize. ms. foxx: i'd like to yield two additional minutes to my colleague from arizona, mr. flake. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognize. mr. flake: what got me to the floor was not to talk about fema, but the gentleman talked about jobs and that's what i want to talk about. the gentleman mentioned pre-existing conditions. i said this may or may not be good public policy to deal with it, i think it is. but we need to deal with it in a responsible way. the republican idea was to have existing pools for those with pre-existing conditions to go

into. you don't just suspend the laws of economics and tell insurance that they can't raise rates, but you do it honestly. not the way we did it by saying we're going to pass a law, have everybody covered and assume we suspended the laws of economics and insurance rates will not go up. insurance rates have been rising over the years, part of the reason for that is we've shielded insurance company from competition. we don't allow them to sell insurance across state lines. nowhere in this legislation do we allow them to do that. we don't allow individuals to have the same purchasing power companies have you can't as an individual with pretax dollars shop for health insurance. we've shielded them from competition, of course rates are going to go up. but they're going to go up rapidly now because we have imposed these costs upon them.

again, when we talk about these jobs, this seems to be the mantra now, if we can't allow the job creating sector to create jobs by having a reasonable tax and regulatory environment out there, then we're just going to create government jobs. that's what we're doing here. we're going to be borrowing, again, borrowing $600 million because even if it's in another program, we're borrowing that money too. we're going to be borrowing $600 million and saying to people we're going to create more temporary government jobs throughout the summer. that's not the answer to our economic woes. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentlewoman reserves. the gentleman from colorado. mr. perlmutter: may i ask my friend from north carolina how many more speakers she has? merchandise foxx: i'm prepared to close if you're prepared to close. mr. perlmutter: please. ms. foxx: may i inquire how much time is left?

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman has five minutes, the gentleman has 13. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. we keep talking about the economic situation in this country because it is extraordinarily important to all of us and all these bills being passed are exacerbating the problem. as my colleague from arizona said and we've said over and over, you cannot repeal the law os of economics. -- the laws of economics. our colleagues across the aisle think they can. right now, just the interest on u.s. debt in f.y. 2010 is going to be $425 billion. that's like paying interest on a credit card and never, ever paying off the principal. the enormous burden of the interest costs on our debt take muns out of the economy for future generations and dweshts funds from being used for other, more pressing priorities. in addition, the u.s. dependence on borrowing money to fund our deficit places us in the precarious situation of

being beholden to foreign nations like china to fund our spending. high national debt also decreases confidence in the economy. as president obama said in 2009, i think it's important to recognize if we keep on adding to the debt, even in the midst of a covery, people could lose confidence in the economy in a way that could lead to a double-bip recession. the president and colleagues on the other side of the aisle talk a good game and then do the opposite. despite their rhetoric of fiscal responsibility, the president's budget more than doubles the debt, drives spending to a new record of $3.8 trillion -- trillion -- in fy-2011, pushes the deficit to a new record of $1.6 trillion in fn-2010 and raises taxes by over $2 trillion through 2020 by the administration's own

estimates. the president's fy-2011 budget doubles the debt in five years, triples it between fy-2011 to fy-2020 levels. the largest debt in history and the largest debt as a share of our economy in 59 years. despite the senate's passage of a $1.9 trillion increase in the debt limit, congress would need to increase this limit again before october 1, 2011 under the president's budget. the interest bill on the debt would more than quadruple by the end of the decade, reaching $840 billion in 20 20. the budget boosts the deaf stoit a record level this year, $1.6 trillion or $10 -- or 10.6% of g.d.p. this is the largest deficit as a share of the economy since

world war ii, deficits never fall behind below $7 billion and end the decade at more than $1 trillion. even with the the cline in spending due to the repayment of most tarp funds and eventually spendout of stimulus funds, spending reaches a record level of $3.8 trillion in f.y.-2011. this does not include the spending of the administration. even so, spending is still 23.7% of the economy at the end of the decade, when the historical average has always been 20%. madam speaker, we are in a critical time and in our country. economists have told me that unless we stop spending in a very sport period of time, we are going to become like a third world nation. what has set us apardon for -- apart for so lodge from the

rest of world has been the rule of law and the fact that we have been fiscally conservative. the american people are fiscally conservative. they expect their government to be so. we are putting this country in danger and republicans are sounding the call. we want to help the american people, but we know the best way to do that is for the federal government to get out of the way and let the entrepreneurial spirit and the freedom that has always characterized this country allow people to do what's the right thing to do for our economy. this direction is wrong, we're going to continue to say that it is wrong, and we know the american people understand that. i urge my colleagues to vote no on this rule to vote no on the underlying bill, we don't need to create more government jobs. we need to let people have control of their lives and of their money. they will bring the economy

back. with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from north carolina yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from colorado is recognized. mr. perlmutter: thank you, madam speaker. i would remind my friend from north carolina and the other members of her party that when you cut taxers in wealthiest of americans, as was done under the bush administration and the republican congress, prosecute two wars without paying for them and have absolutely no regulation of wall street, you get a financial disaster, we're talking about natural disasters, but they created a financial disaster that we saw caused the loss of millions of jobs beginning in 2008. we need to resers -- reverse that. that's precisely what's happening the job loss has gone from 780,000 jobs lost in january of 2009, the last month that george bush was in office to 20,000 jobs lost in january,

2010. not good enough but a lot better. the stock market lost 7,500 points. in the last year, it's gained 4,000 points back. not where we want to be but a heck of a lot better. $17 trillion of wealth lost by each american in their home, in their pension, in their 401k's and in their jobs in the last 18 months of the george bush administration we gained $5 trillion back, not good enough but a heck of a lot better. finally the fourth quart over 2008, the last quarter of the bush administration, the steepest drop in the gross domestic product, what this country produces, really, sthins depression. 6% drop. gained 5.7% in the fourth quarter of 2009. hasn't gotten us back to even but it's a lot better. that's what's going on. what we want to do on our side

of the aisle is get those americans back to work who lost their jobs. that's what this bill is about. the $600 million for job training, for summer jobs, it's to get people back to work. when we get people back to work -- back to work, when this country has employment that's better than today, we can take a good look at the debt as they suggest. that's true. we need to look at the debt that exists in this country. we've got to get people back to work. let's talk about what's the guts of the bill that's before us and the rule, and that is to fund disaster relief. the dast e relief fund -- the disaster relief fund for fema is just about out of money. we need to fund that to deal with the disasters existing today in north dakota, minnesota, new jersey, north carolina, but also the ones that we know are coming over the course of the next six or eight months. so the bill provides for fema

funding, it provides for job training, and summer jobs, and madam speaker this bill that is before us is about saving lives, it's about dealing with disasters, we need to be prepared and that's the whole purpose. we can't have any more katrinas, we need to do our best to try to deal with those disasters we know are coming. with that, i urge a yes vote on the previous question and on the rule and i yield back the balance of my time and i move the previous question. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from colorado yields back the balance of his time. without objection, the previous question is ordered. the question is on the adoption of the resolution. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. ms. foxx: madam speaker, on that i request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. .

pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition? mr. perlmutter: madam speaker, i send to the desk a privileged concurrent resolution and ask for its immediate consideration. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the concurrent resolution. the clerk: house concurrent resolution 267, resolved that when the house adjourns on any legislative day from wednesday, march 24, 2010, through monday, march 29, 2010, on a motion offered pursuant to this concurrent resolution by its majority leader or his designee, it stand adjourned until 2:00 p.m. on tuesday, april 13, 2010, or until the time of any reassembly pursuant to section 2 of this concurrent resolution which ever occurs first. and that when the senate

recesses or adjourns on any day from thursday, march 25, 2010, through wednesday, march 31, 2010, on a motion offered pursuant to this concurrent resolution by its majority leader or his designee, it stand recessed or adjourned until noon on monday, april 12, 2010 or such other time on that day as may be specified in the motion to recess or adjourn, or until the time of any reassembly pursuant to section 2 of this concurrent resolution which ever occurs first. section 2, the speaker of the house and the majority leader of the senate or their respective designees acting jointly after consultation with the minority leader of the house and minority leader of the senate shall notify the members of the house and senate respectively to reassemble at such place and time as they may designate in their opinion the public interest shall warrant it. the speaker pro tempore: the concurrent resolution is not debatable.

the question is on the concurrent resolution. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. ms. foxx: madam speaker. on that -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from north carolina. miss financial: i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from north carolina objects -- the yeas and nays are requested. those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. i think a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 , this 15-minute vote on house concurrent resolution 257 will be followed by five-minute votes on adopting house resolution 1204 and suspend the rules and adopting house resolution 917.

this will be a 15-minute vote.'s