it wasn't ours. we did the same thing with some of our therapeutics. we made sure that we had control over the distribution of that because supply was very limited and we didn't want disproportionate amount of that going to places that could for instance just pay more money. so we were very meticulous about understanding the vulnerability of americans to this [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2022] >> you can watch the rest of this program on c-span now, our video app. on which yeas and nays are ordered the clerk will report the title. the clerk: h.r. 5616, a bill to require reporting acquiring accreditation of training

programs at the department ofhomeland security and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: will the house pass the bill as amended. members will record their votes by electronic device. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does gentleman seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. brooks of alabama, i inform the house that mr. brooks will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from indiana seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mrs. spartz of indiana, i inform the house that mrs. spartz will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from oklahoma seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. gonzales of texas, i inform the house that mr. gonzales will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia seek recognition? >> as the member designated by ms. bonamici of oregon, mr. cohen of tennessee, mr. suozzi of new york and ins sewell of alabama and ms. delbene of mr. moulton of massachusetts, these members will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. long of missouri, i inform the house that mr. long will vote yes on h.r. 5616. and madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. desjarlais of tennessee, i inform the house that mr. desjarlais will vote yes on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman

from new york seek recognition? >> as the member designated by chairwoman lofgren and johnson and kelly and bobbie rush, these members will vote yes on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from north dakota seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. timmons of south carolina, i inform the house that mr. timmons will vote yes on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. reed of new york, i inform the house that mr. reed of new york will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? >> as the member designated by representatives cuss tour and bus tows and clarke, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. larson and mr. crist, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> as the member designated by

mr. waltz of florida, pursuant to house resolution 8, i inform the house that mr. waltz will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from utah seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. carl of

alabama, i inform the house that mr. carl will vote yea on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from washington seek

recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. raskin from maryland and mr. bowman from new york, i inform the house that these members will vote aye on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? mr. correa: madam speaker, as the member designated by the following members, chuy garcia, ms. roybal-allard and mr. vargas, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for

what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? mr. kildee: madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. ryan of ohio, i inform the house that mr. ryan will vote yes on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? mr. pallone: madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. sires, mr. kim and mrs. kirkpatrick, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. rogers of kentucky, i inform the house that mr. rogers will vote yea on h.r. 5616. additionally, as the member designated by mr. mccaul of texas, i inform the house that mr. mccaul also will vote yea on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek

recognition? mr. takano: madam speaker, as the member designated by representatives waters, kahele and thompson, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for

what purpose does the gentleman from virginia seek recognition? mr. connolly: madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. turner of maryland, ms. keating of massachusetts, mr. doyle of pennsylvania and mr. horsford of nevada, i inform the house that these members will vote aye on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. joe wilson from south carolina, i inform the house that mr. wilson will vote yea on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from virginia seek recognition? ms. wexton: madam speaker, as the member designated by representatives mceachin, porter and frankel, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from colorado seek recognition? mrs. boebert: as the member designated by mr. gaetz of florida, i inform the house that mr. gaetz will vote nay on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. cawthorn of north carolina, i inform the house that mr. cawthorn will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. grijalva, i inform the house that mr. grijalva will vote yes on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> as the member designated by representatives barragan, vela and gonzalez, i inform the house that these members will vote aye on h.r. 5616.

>> i inform the house that mr. cawthorn will vote no on h.r. 5616.

the speaker pro tempore: on this vote, the yeas are 390, the nays are 33. 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the unfinished business is the vote on the motion of the gentlewoman from florida, mrs. demings, to suspend the rules and pass s. 658 as amended on which the yeas and nays are ordered. the clerk will report the title. the clerk: senate 658, an act to authorize the secretary of

homeland security to work with cyber security consortium for training and other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill as amended. members will record their votes by electronic device. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. desjarlais of tennessee, i inform the house that mr. desjarlais will vote yea on s. 658. and madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. long of missouri, i inform the house

that mr. long will vote yea on s. 658. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. grijalva, i inform the house that mr. grijalva will vote yes on h.r. 5616. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> thank you, madam speaker. as the member designated by mr. rogers of kentucky, i inform the house that mr. rogers will vote yea on s. 658. additionally, as the member designated by mike mccall of texas, i inform the house that mr. mccaul will also vote yea on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: frap does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. grijalva, i inform the house that mr. grijalva will vote yes on s. 658.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from oklahoma seek recognition? as the member designated by mr. gonzalez -- gonzales of texas, i inform the house that mr. gonzales will vote yea on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. ryan of ohio, i inform the house that mr. ryan will vote yes on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from indiana seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by ms. sparks of -- sparts of indiana, i inform the house that ms. sparks will vote aye on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> as the member designated by representative barragan, vela and vicente gonzales, i inform the house that these members will vote aye on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman

from north dakota seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. timmons from south carolina, i inform the house that mr. timmons will vote yes on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. moulton of massachusetts, mr. suozzi of new york, mr. yarmuth of kentucky, mr. cohen of tennessee, ms. delbene of washington, ms. bonamici of oregon, mr. harder of california, and ms. sewell of alabama, i inform the house that those eight members will vote yes on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from colorado seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. gaetz of florida, i inform the house that mr. gaetz will vote yea on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member

designated by mr. trone of maryland, mr. keating of massachusetts, mr. doyle of pennsylvania, mr. horsford of nevada, i inform the house that these members will vote aye on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> thank you, madam speaker. as the member designated by mr. walz of florida, i inform the house that mr. waltz will vote yes on senate 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? >> as the member designated by representative cheri bustos, yvette clarke and annie kuster, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. brooks of alabama, i inform the house that mr. brooks will vote yes on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from washington seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member

designated by mr. raskin of maryland and mr. bowman of new york, i inform the house that these members will vote aye on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from utah seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. carl of alabama, i inform the house that mr. carl will vote yea on s. 658. roll tide. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from virginia seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by representatives porter, mceachin and frankel, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by policemen reed of new york, i inform the house that mr. reed will vote yea on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. crist and mr. lawson, i inform the house

that these members will vote yea on senate bill 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by representatives kahele, thompson, and chairwoman maxine waters, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. cawthorn of north carolina, i inform the house that mr. cawthorn will vote yes on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. sires, mr. kim, and mrs. kirkpatrick, i inform the house that these

members will vote yes on s. 658. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by the following members, chuy garcia, lucille roybal-allard and juan vargas, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on s. 658.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? mr. jeffries: as the member designated by chairwoman lofgren, chairwoman johnson, representatives rush, robin kelly and underwood, i inform the house that these members will vote yea on s. 658.

the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 403. the nays are 19.

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 on the table.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from washington seek recognition? >> madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent to remove myself as a co-sponsor of house resolution 6181. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's request is accepted. the chair will now entertain requests for one-minute speeches.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from connecticut seek recognition? >> madam speaker, to seek unanimous consent to address the body for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. larson: madam speaker, i'm here to commend chairman neal and the racial equity initiative headed by terri sewell and steve horse fathers and jimmie gomez -- horsford and jimmie gomez and recognize [newline]johns.: beatty for the work -- joyce beatty for the work that they've done in bringing forward the inequity that has existed in this country for far too long. more than five million of our fellow americans get below poverty level checks from social security because the congress of the united states has not done anything to enhance social security in more than 50 years. and who does that affect the

most? it effects women of color and women specifically. people who held jobs that weren't earning the same kind of salary or wages, people who were caregivers at home for their children. help is on the way. social security 2100 is coming to the floor and finally millions of americans who get below poverty level checks after having worked all their lives and paid into the system are going to get what they richly deserve. with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from north carolina seek recognition? ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. the american people are asking one simple question. why does the biden administration hate energy freedom in america? they've asked that question every time they've gone to the gas station and seen prices skyrocketing.

now they're asking this question as this administration is falling to its knees and begging iran for a nuclear deal. sacrificing our geopolitical leverage by piling to our enemies is appalling and it's the last thing that should ever be considered. madam speaker, this administration would rather be awarded a participation trophy than dig in and fight to put american interests first. that mentality is bankrupting our great country and we've been led into a political mine field. it's a display of pure weakness and an absolute disgrace. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from texas seek recognition? >> madam speaker, i rise to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> madam speaker, it is with a heavy heart that i rise today to honor the life of ingabord who

passed away after a lifetime in the arts. she immigrated to the united states from germany after world war ii, arriving to el paso in 1953 as the wife of a service member. as a classical ballet dancer, she opened her first studio that year and became ballet director of the texas western civic ballet. ms. escobar: over the next 47 years, she would establish and direct ballet el paso, ballet of the americas and the university of texas at el paso ballet. thousands of students passed through her studio doors and countless audience members were exposed to a wide range of classical ballet through her service. her cross-border collaboration with companies in europe, mexico and latin america contributed to the exchange of international artistic endeavors, including the first u.s.-mexico exchange in 1977. madam speaker, we have lost one of el paso's shining stars, a trail blazer of the arts for our region and i ask you to join me

in paying tribute to the life of ingabor. meijer legacy and commitment to the arts continue to be an inspiration for us all. madam speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition? mr. carter: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. carter: madam speaker, i rise today to recognize and horn the life joel williams. joel was born december 19, 1942, in the family farm kitchen in georgia. unlike many children nowadays, joel grew up without electricity and indoor blumming. learning to -- plumbing. learning to read by kerosene lamps. his drive and determination revealed themselves early as he earned valedictorian honors at his high school and graduated from college. he then went on to attend the walter f. george school of law at murcer university where he was the first honor graduate of the class of 1967. joel began his legal career as

an assistant attorney general of the state of georgia under arthur k. bolton. he then left washington for savannah in 1971 to become vice president and chief compliance officer for savannah foods and industries. during this time he met his wife of 25 years, ms. gurney williams, and had two beautiful daughters. joel committed his life to political and community service through all of his achieve -- service. through all of his achievements, he was most proud of his daughters and grandchildren. the children he raised and grandchildren he loved will forever remember the man joel was throughout his life. thank you, madam speaker. and i yield back the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio seek recognition? >> i rise to address for one minute and ask unanimous consent to do so. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. kaptur: i rise tonight to call attention to the continuing horror being unleashed in

ukraine by the treacherous tyrant, vladimir putin, a pitiful creature of darkness. 44 million freedom-loving ukrainian december serve to live in peace and freedom. they voted for liberty, 09% of them. they've done nothing to putin. they pose no threat to russia. putin invaded a sovereign nation and is committing war crimes against civilians. he's creating a humanitarian crisis flooding across europe. the trains aren't big enough to haul all the people seeking peace. in the 11 days since he invaded and since 2014 he has murdered over 14,000 ukrainians and 1.5 million have fled across the board entire neighboring countries. the american people are opening their hearts with humanitarian aid but the free world must help provide more fighter jets, javelins, stingers, small arm, ammunition, body armor and air defense. ukraine is the scrimmage line for liberty in europe. here at the beginning of the

21st century, liberty requires vigilance for ukraine. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> madam speaker, request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> thank you, madam speaker. i rise today to congratulate kenneth burkett, a jefferson county reds dent -- resident for receive thelg crabtree award from the society of american, anology. this award is given annually to an outstanding archaeologist in remembrance of don crabtree who brought experimental, a yalg to prominence. recipients of the award have contributed to advance the understanding of local, regional and national archaeology through excavation, research, publication or site protection all in connection with the professional community and public outreach. he's spent his career conducting research and excavations

focusing on the lifeways of prehistoric native americans who once lived in the red black creek walletter shedd. he's director of the jefferson county history center as well as a field swoasht the carnegie museum of natural history and spends time working closely with the society for pennsylvania's archaeology's 29th chapter. he's he has a true passion for bringing our history to life and sharing the art facts with the people who walked this earth before us. i want to con grj late kenneth on this well-deserved accomplishment. thank you, madam speaker, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? >> madam speaker, i request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> madam speaker, i rise today to recognize new york's capital region radio station on the occasion of its 100th anniversary thrusm decades of informing and entertaining capital region listeners, wty

has stood as a pill already of the schenectady community. this pioneering station pioneered by engineers at general electric in 19 2 has spent a century at the forefront of radio technology, conducting the first two-rayway radio to england, to being one of the first to broadcast the world series, it's played a key role in adapting new york's capital district as a global and national hub for advancement. i extend my warm congratulations to everyone at wty for reaching this milestone. throughout its first 100 years they've connected with listeners through talent and revered hosts. here's to many more successful years delivering power. stories and quality news to our communities. con dwrajlations, wgy. with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina seek recognition? >> madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise

and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> thank you, madam speaker. mr. wilson: the murderous putin's war on ukraine is criminal. i'm grate we are supporting you yain -- ukrainian president zelensky and the ukrainian people. i have faith that the russian people will reject putin's war atroughscis -- atrocities. i'm introducing a bill to encourage russian military defectors with immediate refugee status for america with up to $100,000 for any russian military equipment transferred to ukraine. putin betrays the troops to death. additionally i'll introduce a bill for a bust of zelensky to be placed in the u.s. capitol as the s. the bust of winston churchill.

churchill was the leader in world war ii as zelensky is the leader now. god bless the united states, god bless ukraine, long live president zelensky. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous concept to address the house for one minute. >> the gentleman is recognized. >> it is with a with great admiration i rise to recognize women's history month and sandra who works with meals on wheels seism she has worked with meals on wheels for 6 years theasms demand for services increased over the past year in the covid-19 pandemic, meals on wheels rose to the challenge and delivered over 1,700 meals daily prork vieded over 750,000 wellness checks and celebrated its nine millionth delivery. madam speaker, as we recognize women's history month, please join me in thanking sandra and everyone at meals on wheels for the extraordinary services they provide to northwest indiana. let us recommit to continuing to support their invaluable work

and recognize this month and every day the invaluable ways that women continue to provide healing and promote help, not just in care give bug in all aspects of our society. with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee seek recognition? >> i seek unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> this past weekend on my way to a mill mare medal presentation, i stopped to fill my s.u.v. with gas. i was shocked to have to pay nearly $4 a gallon for gasoline. putin's invasion of ukraine has no doubt made this situation worse. but our skyrocketing gas prices are primarily due to president biden's reversal of president trump's highly successful energy policies that had oil and gas production high, gas pump prices low, had created hundreds of thousands of new energy jobs,

and had created an energy independent united states for the first time in decades. instead of admitting this mistake, ending the freeze on new oil and gas prices and stopping the regulatory assault on new energy projects in the united states, the biden administration reportedly has been secretly meeting with venezuela in its corrupt authoritarian regime to discuss the possible lifting of sanctions against importing venezuelan oil. we currently purchase more than half a million barrels of oil a day from russia. which needs to stop immediately. instead of replacing russian oil with equally nefarious venezuelan oil why not create those jobs here in america? thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio seek recognition? >> madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> madam speaker, i rise today to honor can diseverhart who

recently made history by becoming the first black woman to lead the akron, cleveland -- akron-cleveland association of realtors, also known as acar, across its existence. she has held many titles. youngest minority real estate broke for the akron, emerging leader and entrepreneur. now she adds one more, glass ceiling breaker. but i'm most grateful for the way she gives back to our community. she helps develop young agents. she speaks to community groups about home ownership. she's held key roles in local government. she's served narvetion aacp housing chair and remembers high school students. through her impressive career and considerable contributions she's paveed a path that more black women in northeast ohio will follow. i would like to congratulate mse and thank her for serving as a trail blazer, changemaker and role mode until northeast ohio. i yield back, madam speaker.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek reckings in? >> unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and het het -- and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. lamalfa: today the national average for a imln of gas is late over $4. $4.06. in my home state of california the average price across our state is $5.34. the first time ever, the average gas price per gallon is over $5 in every single california county. i know california brings a lot of pain upon itself, self-inflicted, but i've seen a lot of mainstream media try to claim the prices and increases are due to russia's attack on ukraine, not the biden administration's anti-energy agenda. if that were true how has our gas price increased $1.60 over the last year, not just the last two wreaks of the ukraine conflict? since taking office, the biden administration has frozen all

new oil and gas project osen federal lands and implemented extreme financial barriers on domestic production. on kay one he dhild keystone x.l. pipeline which could be supplying more oil than what russia imports to us. in his first week we had executive orders stopping on our federal lands. we need to replace russian energy with our own production. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> madam speaker, i rise to ask for one minute to address the house. >> woip x. >> i rise today to stand in solidarity with congregation beth israel in colleyville, texas, and stand against anti-semitism in all forms. and other forms of religious big terrorism. mr. veasey: on january 5 of this year, congregation beth israel endured a preplanned terrorist attack with the explicit purpose of targeting jews. this attack was personal to me

because i know the rap bee of that congressation and his wife very well. i met them very well when they moved to the area. that's why i'm here today. because no community should have to endure that type of attack while they're trying to worship. doesn't matter what religion they happen to be. it has absolutely no place in our houses of worship. so tomorrow, in the house, we will vote on a bipartisan resolution that my fellow colleague from north texas, beth van duyne and i, are leading. this resolution condemns the actions taken in colleyville in january and underscores our commitment to fighting anti-semitism and i ask everybody to support it because we must root out hate. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: under the speaker's announced policy of january 4, 2021, the gentlewoman from texas, ms. jackson lee, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee

of the majority leader. ms. jackson lee: let me thank the speaker for yielding and it is my pleasure to co-anchor this congressional black caucus special order and to be ginned by my co-anchor, the distinguished gentleman from new york, congressman torres. i thank him so very much for his presence here today. let me acknowledge the chair of the congressional black caucus as well, and thank her for helping to order this -- organize this special order and as well to be able to discuss health equity and the black family and the reasons why the c.b.c. strongly urges and supports substantial investments for health care in the budget for f.y.2023. i also want to especially acknowledge my friend and colleague, the honorable donald payne. whose office initiative has

always focused us on the enormity of health disparities in the african-american community. but as i do so, let me start with a few comments to be made regarding he work of the congressional black caucus. let me acknowledge and express my appreciation to the president of the united states for hosting the members of the congressional black caucus this afternoon, that serve on the executive committee. and the concern and interest that the president has expressed in a number of issues that i think are important to where we are today in america. so let me borrow this picture from congresswoman kaptur who heads the ukraine caucus. and just remind everyone because

the congressional black caucus has been at the forefront of fleeing persons persecuted, we have been a leader, whether it's haiti or places in africa or the caribbean or europe, african-americans have been at the forefront. this happens to be the mass of people that are trying to escape ukraine pause of the bloody and immoral and purposeless and vicious and vile actions of vladimir putin. we stand here today recognizing the humanitarian crisis and recognizing as well that we as americans are going to be supporting any people who are fighting for democracy. and as we fight for those people, we will also recognize that we will ensure that we are protecting democracy and the freedom of all people. with that in mind, we had a

number of issues that we discussed and i think it is important that health care was certainly a part of it and the disparities. disparities dealing with african-american boys and african-american men. and recognize that we need to focus on eliminating those stark disparities that would result in less of a future for these young boys, for their lives turning around, even before they enter school. that there's not an intervention to ensure that they become the best of what they can be. that is a crucial element of what we talked about as well. i'm very grateful that we were also in discussions on h.r. 40, the commission to study and develop reparation proposals, and of course the very positive discussion that we had, breaking news is that progress will be made on the idea of healing and repairing and reparations and we're certainly grateful for that discussion.

just i would also like to mention as i begin is that in the immediacy of the news of the day, we're well aware of my constituent that is now being held in russia, that is brittney griner. olympian. a double honors wnba player and unfortunately we don't have the proof of the allegations. we are disturbed but we know that she has the possibility of being held for 10 years because of the alleged charges that they are making against her. and grateful to have had the opportunity to bring this to the attention of the president of the united states and we expect that hopefully this situation will be looked at as closely as possible and that help will be

coming. i mentioned this because our chairwoman has always said, our power, our message. and tonight we speak of a multitude of messages that we'll have tonight, focused on, particularly, the issue of health care. as a member of the united states congress and congressional black caucus, we can't stop or start this without talking about covid-19 pandemic that has laid bare for the nation to see the stark racial and ethnic inequalities exacerbated by the virus. in my home state of texas, as of the end of september, 2020, there have been more than 760,000 cases of covid-19. and 16,000 deaths. according to the texas state department of state health care services, 70% of the confirmed fatalities are people of color. in texas, covid-19 mortality rates are 30% higher for african-americans and 80% higher for hispanics. one factor is that hispanic and

african-american populations being more likely to contract covid-19 is employment in occupations associated with public contact that cannot be done remotely. and we saw that in the early stages of covid-19, when testing was not at its peak. that the numbers were so high in new york, new orleans, detroit and, yes, in houston, texas, because african-americans in particular were in jobs that they could not -- that this he had had -- that they had hands on, that they were encountering people. whether they were metro bus drivers, task force workers in the federal system, whether they were retailers in the grocery store, they were -- whether they were firefighters and first responders, police officers, we were finding out that they were being confronted by these particular issues. the idea of health disparities in the african-american community lends itself to the very reason why this special

order is crucial. health coverage as it relates to african-americans in 2017, 10.6% of african-americans were uninsured compared with 5.9% of nonhispanic whites -- non-hispanic whites. 44.1% of african-americans had government health insurance coverage in 2017 and 12.1% of african-americans under the age of 65 reported having no health insurance coverage. chronic health conditions are prevalent in our community. 13.8% of african-americans reported having fair or poor health. we are prone to diabetes, cancer, particularly breast cancer, prostate cancer, lung cancer, brain cancer. and the leading cause of death among african-americans are heart disease, cancer and accidents. there are 11 infants death per 1 thorough births among black

americans. this is almost twice the national average of 5.8. and we have a serious problem with black maternity mortality. of which i'm very glad that the congressional black caucus has taken on as an important issue. i know there's also the different kinds of cancer that impact african-american males and i know my colleagues will spend their time discussing that. so i think the point that is most important is that we realize that all of the issues fall on african-americans. one i forgot to mention is obesity. african-american women have the highest rates of obesity or being overweight compared to other groups in the united states. about four out of five african-american women are overweight or obese. and so as we discuss tonight, there are several things that i think we should be reminded of. 12 states refuse to take the expanded medicaid, when the affordable care act was finalized and signed by the president united states.

i was here, we were fighting. in fact, we had included expanded medicaid as a response to the public option. that we were fighting for. i was in support of the public option. but we compromised and lo and behold, if i may use that terminology, didn't it get taken out? didn't we have states refusing to accept expanded medicaid and they're in the worst dire straits which includes the state that is a poster child for uninsured and that is the state of texas. but in this build back better act, we created with the work of the congressional black caucus a federal medicaid process that we could opt into so that whatever state you lived in, the 12 orific states that -- horrific states that did not accept it, who suffer every single day, not the state, not the state government, but the people suffer every day, the children suffer every day, that we provided this in build back better. i was so comprised because we were pushing and work -- excitessed because we were pushing and working and sent -- excited because we were pushing and working and sending letters.

we were able to secure that. here we are with build back better stalled in the united states senate after we worked so hard to get a bill that has so many elements to it that deals with the disparities in health care. so as i conclude, let me indicate that the idea of these disparities fall right into the umbrella of h.r. 40rbgs the commission to study slave -- 40, the commission to study slavery and develop reparation proposals. but the idea is to track slavery and its trajectory to 2021, why these stark disparities in health care and education and science and housing and the criminal justice system, but health care is life or death. and we can see it in a glaring panoramic of any community you go into, of hospitals that you go into, of hospice that you're in, that you see this disproportionate proportion of african-americans who either did not have access to health care

in the early stages of their disease, or either suffered from diseases that were in fact inherited from families down through the generations because of diet, because of living conditions or lack thereof. and we stand here today on the floor of the house to say that it's imperative that we work together as americans to find a way to provide an even playing field for all of our children. and if it takes legislation that focuses specifically on diseases that we have that falls on our shoulders, as i am a breast cancer survivor and have introduced over the years triple negative breast cancer legislation that i hope i will see in the next few months passing for triple negative breast cancer is more deadly in our african-american populations and hispanic populations. so i know all the cancer clusts that are are in the fifth water -- clusters that are in the

fifth district in texas, because there are toxic chemicals that these people are breathing or they're eating them because they're in the soil that they plant their gardens in. can you imagine, madam speaker, this is what we are confronting. so that is why the black caucus rises on the floor today, to be able to address these serious questions of health disparities, of which i believe is at this time a crucial moment in history for us to speak about. so i point to -- i am going to express my appreciation. i will probably come back but i would at this time like to yield the managing of the time to ms. brown who i'm going to yield the managing of the time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from texas can yield back and the chair will

recognize the gentlewoman from ohio. ms. jackson lee: will you recognize her as the managing of the time? the speaker pro tempore: correct. ms. jackson lee: thank you. and so though i may come back to speak later, i'm going to yield the managing of the time to the distinguished gentlelady from cleveland, ohio, congresswoman brown. we will have mr. torres and mr. payne who will be speakers. thank you so very much. i yield back, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from texas yields back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 4, 2021, the gentlewoman from ohio, ms. brown, is recognized for the remainder of the hour as the designee of the majority leader. ms. brown: ok. madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and

include any extraneous material on the subject of this special order. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. brown: thank you so much. i want to thank the gentlewoman from texas, congresswoman jackson lee, and also the gentleman from new york, congressman ritchie torres, for hosting this special order hour. and i'd like to thank my sister, chair beatty, and all my congressional black caucus colleagues for their continued work to shine a spotlight on racial health disparities. madam speaker, dr. martin luther king once said, of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane. madam speaker, what was true in dr. king's time continues to be true in our own. communities of color have long experienced inadequate access to health care, housing, healthy

food and economic opportunity. these inequalities,ment inly and working together, -- independently, and working together, increase the privileging lens of a host dangerous health condition -- prevalence of a host of dangerous health conditions, including diabetes, as ma, owe beats -- asthma, obesity, heart disease and high blood pressure. one of the most shocking examples of health inequity is our nation's maternal and infant mortality crisis. infants born to black mothers are nearly twice as likely to die compared to those born to white mothers. continuing after birth, minority americans face far higher rates of illness and death from an array of conditions. and what does this lead to, you might ask? well, i'm glad you did. black americans have a life expectancy that is four years, i repeat, four years shorter than white americans.

the covid pandemic's disproportionate impact on minority americans exacerbated and exposed these disparities and the underlying inequalities driving them. black and brown americans have faced far higher rates of hospitalization and death during the pandemic. and a growing body of research confirm what is we suspected. no, what we've known. what we've known for years. and that is there is an undeniable link between historical racism and the present-day medical health problems black americans face. health disparities that disproportionately impact black americans, from heart disease to maternal and infant mortality, are not merely an be a rigs. no. , they are a direct result of structural, systemic and institutional racism that has been passed down from generation to generation to generation.

to build a healthier america fo all, we must address the generational injustices that drive the racial inequities we continue to see today. that is whists proud -- that was why i was proud to declare racism as a public health crisis as a county councilmember and that is why i am proud to i am proud to work today with to improve health outcomes and address health care throughout our society. for as dr. king said, injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. that is our power and our message. and with that, i yield to mr. torres -- i'm sorry, the gentleman from new jersey, donald payne. mr. payne: let me thank the

gentlelady from ohio for those wonderful remarks and h.r. continued leadership here in the house of representatives. madam speaker, i rise today to discuss health's equity disparities in america. today, american minorities do not get the same quality of health care as our white counterparts. and it is -- causes too many of them to die needlessly every single day. it is a problem that we must solve immediately. the numbers tell the story. african american-americans are 24% more likely to die in this country than white americans.

the average life expectancy for a white-american male is 75. for black american-males, it is about 71. and african american-americans between 14 are twice as likely to die from disease than our white counterparts. 35-64 years old are 50% more likely to have high blood pressure than our counterparts and one-5 african-american deaths could have been prevented if they received the same level of health care as white americans. this should not be a surprise to

anyone. research shows that black americans receive less and lower quality care for a variety of ailments. one study of 400 u.s. hospitals found that african american-americans with heart disease receive cheaper and older treatments than white americans, not the newest technology available. they were less likely to receive corner area bypass operations. they were discharged earlier regardless of post-health conditions. more than that, african-american women are less likely to receive

radiation therapy if they are diagnosed with breadth cancer. these disturbing facts are part of the reason we need the health equity and accountability act. and it would invest in solutions to make sure that all americans have access to quality health care. it would help diversity of our country's medical work force to improve the care in marginalized communities and would eliminate the gap particularly for medicare and medicaid recipients. this is not all we must do. i am working diligently to improve the health disparities and how we treat

colo-recollectal cancer. it is the second highest cause of cancer death and fourth highest cause of new cancers nationwide. this career, 150,000 americans will be diagnosed with colo-recollectal cancer and 250,000 people will die from it. it is an ever problem. african american-americans are 20% more likely to be diagnosed with this cancer than white americans. and they are more likely to die from this deadly disease. yet, this cancer is one of the most preventable cancers if detected earlier. that is why i'm taking actions

to save lives. in the 116th congress, my removing barriers bill was signed into law and allows medicare to remove cancerous growths during screenings. and in addition, i introduced the colo-recollectal payment fairness act. we must introduce more legislation and take more actions to encourage more colo-recollectal can.

it is a disease of the arteries that is related toll conditions that cause heart attacks. it can blockages in arms and legs that could lead to amputations. there are more than 200,000 p.a.d. patients who lose limbs to this disease every single year and it is worse in minority communities, as usual. african american-americans are three times more likely to have limbs amputated than other americans. these patients are less likely to receive the treatment for p.a.d. compared to white patients. too few doctors who serve

minority communities didn't know about p.a.d. and they miss the warning signs that could have prevented amputations. but when they understand p.a.d., doctors can order a screening and target it specifically. i co-founded the bipartisan congressional colorectal caucus and the bipartisan congressional p.a.d. caucus to create more awareness of these diseases. awareness is key. but we must do more to close the gap. we must give americans access to the best medical care. it will save thousands of lives every year in america. and it is simply the right thing

to do. and with that, madam speaker, i yield back the remainder of my time. the speaker pro tempore: thank you. thank you very much, mr. payne, for those remarks. now, i would like tore yield the balance of my time to the gentleman from new york, my friend, congressman, the honorable, mr. ritchie torres. -- yes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 4, 2021, the gentleman from new york mr. torres, is recognized as the designee of the majority leader.

mrs.torres: -- mrs.torres: the first is and the united states has among the highest rate of maternal mortality and in the worst sense of the word. america is exceptionally cruel to black mothers who face fatal barriers to accessing care before, during and after pregnancy. although representing 13% of the population, black woman is 40% of maternal deaths and racial disparities not only in maternal. the black community has an

infant mortality rate that is more than double in the white community. no health program is more critical which bases 40% of births nationwide. and so attempts by republican governors to prevent medicaid expansion has what is most tragic, most maternal deaths in america are prevental and can be preventable like the build back act. it is so urgently needed because it would bring a long overdue expansion of medicaid to every corner of black america. the second topic is cancer.

in 2022, more than 73 black americans are expected to die from cancer. when it comes to cancers, they have the highest death rate and the shortest and we need to keep um president biden's unity agenda and double down on early detection. we must invest in the early detection tests. plaque americans a far likelihood of receiving screening. early detection can mean the life and death and prevent cancer beyond the point of no return. early cancer screenings are less common in the comak community than elsewhere in america. even in cases where the white

community has a hire incidence, they will have a hire mortality because of cancer detection and diagnosis and expanding access to the tests would bring us closer to closing the racial gap in early detection and early diagnosis and in doing so, it would save lives. i yield the rest of my time to the chair. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include any remarks on the subject of this special order. the speaker pro tempore: without objection the speaker pro tempore: under the policy of january 4, 2021, the gentleman from arkansas, mre

designee of the minority leader. mr. hill: i speak on the house floor today and what we are witnessing as we turn on our televisions and see the horrors in europe. for the first time in eight decades and witnessing a mass, unpro voaghted ground and air invasion in continental europe. not since world war ii that we have seen this evil action let alone by a global power and member of the united nations council. the tragedy unfolding has no precedent in recent history and not the ethnic cleansing. let's be clear, madam speaker,

putin feels embolden and can yield his power including in his own backward in a ruth less attempt to restore his idea of some 18th russian kingdom with himself as czar. . he hasn't paid a price for his previous violations of international law, the u.n. charter or common decency and norms. one only has to recall the poisoning in a london park of an opposition voice in 2006. forging a partnership in 2015 with the butcher assad in the mass destruction, murder and mayhem in syria. waltzing into crimea without firing a shot in 2014. and his border incursions into

georgia in 2008. he has simply marched on, trampling international law, sovereign borders, all the while thumbing his nose, madam speaker, at international norms and the negligentable reaction of his neighbors. in face, his neighbors, dependent on the european drug of choice, russian natural gas, for so long they just stared glassy-eyed at their enabler, unable to stand up for themselves and fight back. now these neighbors have rejected the dominance of putin's pushing and are fighting back. and that's why america once more steps into the breach as the essential indispensable nation. our resolve encourages a stronger european union and a stronger nato. during the 20th century, our

freedom-loverring people consistently -- freedom-loving people consistently stood up to push back against the disposition and destruction of individual rights, international norms, and sovereign nations. europe doesn't want to go back to their ancient fights and ukrainians don't want to return to a vasylle state status under the boot of russia. ukrainians want to go forward. they do not want to go backward. they don't want to go back to the berlin airlift, checkpoint charlie, the gap and churchill's iron curtain. at the height of the cold war, madam speaker, the cold war, i traveled through checkpoint charlie to the other side of the iron curtain. i witnessed what life is like in communism, socialism. i've laid a wreath at off which it's -- auschwitz. i've laid a wreath at normandy.

and, madam speaker, americans don't want to go back to those days either. our boys sacrificed their lives in the forests of germany, the beaches of france, the hills of italy and the sands of north africa to prevent this very thing from happening again. that's why american leadership is critical. partnering with our trans-atlantic allies, we must muster the military, economic and diplomatic clout and might to hit this bully in the nose. bullies only respect clout and might. while europe and the united states were timid in the obama-merkel days, our collective leadership must fill the void now and push back once and for all against the assault against the sovereignty and freedom that we are witnessing in europe. if not now, when?

if not in ukraine on the borders of ukraine, where, madam speaker? if we fail here, despots will race to trample borders around the world. and democracy and freedom everywhere will be in peril. madam speaker, i rise today to bring attention to how the international monetary fund fuels russia's war in ukraine. by providing them a blank check in the form of special drawing rights or s.d.r.'s. last week with 40 of my republican colleagues in the house and the senate, we wrote treasury secretary janet yellen, urging that the i.m.f. member countries not bail out russia by facilitating the exchange of russian s.d.r.'s with their own hard currency. russia was handed a blank check of nearly $17 billion equivalent

in s.d.r.'s by the i.m.f. just last year. and has an estimated total of $24 billion in s.d.r. reserves. this should have never happened, madam speaker, and that's why i've been so adamant for years about limiting the issue of i.m.f. special drawing rights. earlier last week the united states and other countries expanded economic sanctions against russian central bank, and while this is a welcome, while late but welcome development, we must do more. for decades russia's been accumulating a war chest that includes gold, international reserves and, importantly, special drawing rights. and with the ruble tanking in open markets, the kremlin's access to foreign currency reserves being cut off, these s.d.r.'s are one of the only remaining ways that russia can access foreign resources for its war mongering in the ukraine.

that's why now is the time for the u.s. to lead in i. -- at the i.m.f., for calling for all member countries, including china, madam speaker, to formally agree not to facilitate any exchange of their currencies with russian s.d.r.'s. we are already seeing china and russia deepening their ties, forming the latest and newest axis of evil. we cannot allow moscow to turn to beijing for an s.d.r. bailout. as the largest shareholder of the i.m.f., the united states has a responsibility to ensure that these resources are not hijacked to fuel russian bombs or tanks. madam speaker, i rise today to bring attention to the latest consumer financial protection bureau, the cfpb, proposed small business data collection regulation. it's called section 1071.

access to capital for small businesses is the life blood of each of our local economies. and for many, the community bank lender is often leading the way in supporting our entrepreneurs and the small businesses across our districts. and yet the cfpb's new regulation, if finalized, would actually hurt small business, by making the cost of credit more expensive and imposing significant compliance costs that would fall on the hardest -- fall the hardest on the smallest lenders across our nation. that's why i, along with congressman williams of texas and luetkemeyer of missouri, have introduced the small lender act. a new bill that would provide regulatory leaf to small business lend -- relief to small business lenders by exempting them from this proposed cfpb 1071 rule. and providing an additional year to comply, plus a two-year safe

harbor. specifically my bill would expand the definition of a small lender as one that originates 500 small business loans per year instead of the only 25-loan limit proposed by the bureau. it would also codify that a small business has gross revenues of $1 million or less instead of $5 million threshold that the rule proposed. finally, the bill extends the effective compliance state with the final rule to be -- date with the final rule to be three years, plus that two-year grace period, instead of only 18 months, as proposed by the cfpb. in the absence of congress repealing section 1071 of the dodd-frank act, this bill would prevent some of the most harmful aspects of the rule from going into effect. i urge my colleagues to support the small lender act.

madam speaker, i rise today to bring attention to the economic crisis that's been fueled by the biden administration's out-of-control spending and the very accommodative monetary policies of our federal reserve. 2021 was the worst year, madam speaker, for consumer inflation since 1981. last year inflation cost the average worker roughly two paychecks. and the average family $3,500. and inflation doesn't just impact major corporations, but also our small businesses. 61% of which have had to raise prices in the last month in order just to try to keep up with inflation. of course getting people back to work will greatly aid supply chains. thus we need to encourage work. but president biden's policies include vaccine mandates, higher

regulations on employers, and policies that cut the supply of energy, hurt that cause of getting our citizens back to work. the president has called this inflation transitory and caused only by supply chain disruptions and greedy corporations. madam speaker in my view, this is just pure -- madam speaker, in my view, this is just pure political theater. instead of dressing these concerns, working to get spending under control, our nation economy fully back on track, president biden spent the bulk of his state of the union speech doubling down on those policies that got use in this inflationary situation in the first place. central arkansans' pockets are hurting. the president should stop proposing to spend trillions more of money. the president should cut regulatory burdens in hindering hiring employers like truck drivers, general contractors, health service employees. the president should unleash

american energy to help bring down prices for u.s. consumers and help our struggling allies in europe. i urge the biden administration and my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to reach across the aisle to help bring relief to the american people and get back to our pre-pandemic spending priorities and help alleviate these burdens that many face in our country, particularly the burden of inflation. madam speaker, i rise today to bring attention to the crisis at our southwest border. in january, a u.s. customs and border patrol report noted that 153,941 migrant encounters at our southwest border represented a 320% increase over january of 2020. 320%. of the over 150,000 migrants who were encountered, the biden

administration opened the door and said, come in, releasing about 60,000 migrants into the united states. deportations are down 70% when compared to 2020. averaging about 100 a day. and that was in the face of 7,000 migrants appearing at our border each day. officials at our southern border have estimated that nearly 400,000 illegal immigrants have successfully crossed the border without being caught. so not being interdistricted -- interdicted, not being processed new york city being turned back. those numbers -- processed, not being turned back. those numbers, like the inflation we're experiencing, are out of control. these numbers are unacceptable and we need to get back on track. i've encouraged the biden administration for over a year now, return to those trump-era policies that were controlling the flow across the border. resume construction on the wall, resume support of our personnel at the border, resume the

efforts to control and secure our southwest border. madam speaker, today i rise to bring awareness to an issue that concerns all americans and that's america's energy independence. every day the u.s. similar porting nearly 600,000 barrels of oil from russia. as we continue to increase sanctions against russia, we must also keep the american people in mind. who are already feeling the effects of inflation each day when they visit the pump. now we need to boost domestic production. that should be our priority. boosting american production. prior to the pandemic, we were producing 13 million barrels a day. today we're producing about 11 million barrels per day. that would more than make up for this russian oil that for some reason we still are importing.

this week i received a call from a constituent, the constituent's on a fixed income and shared with me her concerns about filling up at the gas station. she shared with me her concerns about ukraine and asked if she should expect her gas bill to increase even more as tensions rise. and the answer to that question, madam speaker, is, i believe that's right. that is what's going to happen. and that's why we can benefit europe and benefit american consumers by unleashing american energy production and get back to that 13 million barrels a day. that way we can offset what we've been importing from russia and benefit our american consumers. madam speaker, i rise to highlight the important work being accomplished through the success of the great american outdoors act, the bipartisan conservation legislation signed into law by president trump.

in arkansas i recently had the opportunity to visit one of those sites and visit with leaders at the national forest spear heading this effort at blanchard springs calve earns in the ozark national forest. these incredible calve earns not only attract thousands -- calve earns not -- caverns not only attract thousands each year to arkansas, but they have a robust economic effect for the surrounding areas as they're enjoyed by all americans each year. thanks to funding by the great american outdoors they are able to undergo renovations to improve the trail system and lighting system and to enhance the safety and resiliency of the underground system. this allows the caverns by families for years to come. and this is the first capital

calf earn since it was opened. >> i rise today to draw attention to the opioid crisis. each day, 250 individuals lose their lives to an opioid-related overdose. we lost a record number 99, 106 people between march of 2020 and march, 2021. what a milestone, what a grim milestone. we have one of the highest rates in our nation. in arkansas, we lost 225 nays.

opioid misuse begins at home. and many americans lose their lives to addiction, more in fact lose their lives to addiction than from car accidents, guns or h.i.v. this is a growing crisis and one that is reaching new highs. these deaths are preventable and each of us are needing to save lives. i introduced the bipartisan preventing overdosees and saving lives act with representative debbie dingell. this will allow states and localities to conduct research, create a strategic plan on how to response to the crisis.

increasing access reduces opioid fatalities. if this bill passes, we will save lives. arkansas offers co-prescriptions. i would like to see that broader across our nation. lives will be saved and in this bill, i urge my colleagues to join congresswoman dingell and i in this fight. madam speaker, i rise to speak about be pro, be proud, an initiative launched in 2016 as response to the work force shortage experienced in my home state arkansas. it introducees students to skilled trade jobs and what these jobs unlock.

be pro, be proud mobile work shop has completed 500 shops and recruited 20,000 individuals who joined the movement to learn about committee trades and new opportunities and finding that career that is right for them. after seeing the tremendous success, it is expanding to surrounding states and we are exposing young adults to middle school and high school, a career that starts immediately after high school graduation. in january, i joined the dpofer and state and local leaders that be pro, be proud was awarded in a grant to support the launch of a second mobile workshop to bring this story to schools. this expansion will see additional communities by be pro, be proud and faster

opportunities to be witnessed by our young people when they graduate from high school. madam speaker, i rise to recognize the life and legacy of a dear friend and rot ari international colleague, my friend sam chafin. sam passed away in november. born in 1936 in magnolia, arkansas, he was a proud graduate of the university of arkansas. shortly after graduation, sam opened his own business, eagle material handling which specialized in material and manufacturing management. in 1975, he joined the club 99 and during the time in rot ari, he served in many leadership positions and foundation share, president of our club and

district governor. and through our work together in rot ari, we had the opportunity to go to louisiana following katrina and help many, many families rebuild their homes and we couldn't haven't done that without sam's leadership. he was a friend to all who were blessed. my thoughts are with his wife and children and his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. thank you for your impact, our rot ari club, rot ari international and our state. i rise today toll recognize scipio jones. he was born into slavery in 1863, throughout his life he attended black schools and earned his bachelor's degree

from shorter college. although there were no schools for african american-americans to study law, he took on the challenge himself and began studying independently and in 1889 passed the arkansas bar. in 1900, he was admitted to the arkansas supreme court. 12-r share croppers were sentenced to death while 87 defendants awaited trial. jones' goal was to secure a fair trial for the 87 defendants and after his he defendants' passing, he became the lead trial attorney. of the 12 orange share croppers, charges were dismissed against six while the others had their

sentence commuted. and they received pardons. following these, he remapped an advocate. in recognition of his advocacy, the post office in downtown little rock was named in his honor. in 2020, president trump signed into law my bill which has a portrait of jones in that post offense. i had the honor tore gather and unveil this portrait of him. a special thanks are offered to john gill, gasho hernan our library system for all of their collaboration in making this portrait a retralt and

persistence and of jones honoring him as the amazing legal leader and citizen that he was. i rise today in honor of daisy bates and her actions that shaped history. when she moved to little rock in the early 1940's and joined the nac pmp. as a civil rights activist and played a legal role and served as a mentor to the little rock nine. it led her to achieve the unimaginable sparking a change. just last month, i had the opportunity to visit um students and speak about her impact at the daisy beats ellen and i'm

proud that daisy bates will be memorialized here in the united states capitol and her statue will be part of the commemorating. i look forward to honoring that memory and that fight for equality every time i pass that statue in our capital. madam speaker, i recognize the retired army colonel mike ross. colonel ross is a combat vet rap with 37 years and received awards the legion of merit, the bronze star and the meritorious service medal. he serves on the board of america where he operates a food pan try for veterans and

military personnel. they network in our communities to meet the needs of our veterans. colonel ross is indeed tireless. he continues to give back to others and serve others and serve thirllessly to ensure they are well cared tore. i thank colonel ross for his dedication to our veterans. i rise today to recognize the career ofmon teen mcnulty as the head of the arkansas hospital. early in 2020, she thought about retirement, she made a decision to guide her organization through the pandemic in the midst of great uncertainty.

i commend your embodiying of the montho, service above self and we recognize katie beck, the new head of the arkansas hospital. she had a distinguished communication and will be. the arkansas hospital association is valuable for our state and where katie takes the organization while continuing the legacy. may i inquire how much time remains? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman has 31 minutes. mr. hill: the united states currently has one of the highest prison populations in the world. every year we spend 34,000 per

inmate in our state. and in arkansas the current rate after re-offending is 57%, one of the highest in the nation. we can do better which is why i introduced the shift back to society act. this will enact individuals keeping people out of prison. this is accomplished by funding for our historically for educational programming that they design for offenders who have or almost completed serving their time. so engaging to better prepare people we know that are going to be released. by developing this pathway to education, we decrease the rate of recidivism and less likely they are to re-offend.

this legislation will save millions in current spending while creating individuals out of prison and transition them back into being productive members of society. as we face an uptick in crime i bring a bill that will save taxpayer dollars and improve paths for shifting back to society. i rise today to congratulate, our superintendent of little rock public schools, mike poore. mike has decided to retire and i wish him a happy and healthy retirement. in 2016, he made the move to little rock with the goal of transforming the district which was under the control of the state. in march 2020 with the world

turned upside down, mike did not skip a beat. he made sure that every student had the technology to continue learning. he worked mightily with the teachers, district and staff to make sure students were back in the classroom and that was a great accomplishment to have over 80% of our kids in the classroom during the midst of the pandemic. mike led that way. ing his other -- his other accomplishes, including being named arkansas superintend of the yore. your long -- year. your long lasting impact in our community is appreciated. congratulations and our best wishes for retirement. madam speaker, today i rise to recognize fellow eagle scout,

marco young of little rock. i'm congratulating him on his career with the boy scouts of america, having been active with that organization for over 40 years. since its founding, the boy scouts of america have remained committed to the idea that educating our youth and citizenship, service and leadership is best for their development and an amazing opportunity of service for our nation. marco has embraced these principles and in 2018 was named scout executive of the area council. throughout his career he's had a positive impact on thousands of young people and their families and as a result their communities. with their character development and value-based leadership programs, over 2.5 million young men have achieved the rank of eagle scout. in 1972, i earned the rank of eeg at -- eagle at trop 27 and

to this day -- troop 27 and to this day it's one of my proudest accomplishments. so i'm grateful for marco and his commitment to scouting and making those achievements possible for youth across the communities of our state. his leadership and influence will be remembered and i wish him the very best in his well-earned retirement. madam speaker, i rise today to recognize the retirement of margaret ellerbe and commemorate her service of 11 years as chancellor of the university of arkansas pulaski technical college. u.a. pulaski tech, a two-year community college in the heart of my district, has moved mountains for its students and faculty under her leadership. margaret ellerbe's critical decision to raise admission standards not only led to increased graduation rates but also reduced student loan default rates, positively impacting the school's performance and trustworthiness. i thank margaret for making

these achievements possible for our students and the faculty and grateful for her bold and robust leadership. her legacy will be remembered for years and i wish her the very best of a well-earned retirement. madam speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to section 11-b of house resolution 188, the house stands adjourned until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow for morning hour debate and noon for legislative business. >> also on the agenda, a resolution condemning violence against historically black

colleges and universities, and another measure condemning an attack on a civic house in texas. >> c-span is your unfiltered view of government. we are funded by these television companies and more, including buckeye broadband. ♪ >> buckeye broadband supports c-span as a public service, along with these other television providers, giving you a front-row seat to democracy. >> the defense department is deploying 500 additional troops to europe to assist u.s. forces in the region. john kirby made the