Robert Aderholt

Mr. ADERHOLT

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Speaker, I want to recognize the work of ALARM (the African Leadership and Reconciliation Ministries) on their 20th anniversary, and especially, the President and Founder of the organization, Dr. Celestin Musekura, an ordained Baptist minister who was born and raised in Rwanda. It is important to note that ALARM works to strengthen the church in Africa to be an instrument of change in the community by focusing on three areas: developing servant leaders, reconciling relationships, and transforming communities. ALARM is made up of three charitable organizations: 1) ALARM-Africa, which has offices in eight countries; 2) ALARM-UK; and 3) ALARM-USA. ALARM-Africa was founded after civil wars and political violence in Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, northern Uganda, and southern Sudan left a vacuum of leadership in Christian churches. These churches, once led primarily by western missionaries who were forced to flee due to the violence, needed leadership from within their own countries. These leaders needed to be trained in guiding, teaching, forgiving and reconciling, to bring healing and transformation to their communities. In the aftermath of these crises, Dr. Musekura and his wife, Bernadette, felt called to help fill this void and to help train others in the ministry. They founded ALARM and continue to dedicate their lives to it. Dr. Musekura received a Bachelor of Theology at Kenya Highlands Evangelical University in Kenya, a Master of Divinity at the Africa International University (AIU) in Kenya, a Master of Sacred Theology at Dallas Theological Seminary, a Master of Science in Justice Administration and Leadership at the University of Texas at Dallas, and a Ph.D. in theological studies at Dallas Theological Seminary in Dallas, Texas. ALARM-Africa uses curriculum, most of which is internally developed, to equip untrained church and community leaders and reconcile hurting communities. Since its founding in 1994, ALARM-Africa has expanded into eight countries across east and central Africa (Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda) with its head office in Nairobi, Kenya. All offices are staffed by well- trained, professional African men and women who act as local missionaries to their people. I would like to congratulate ALARM and Dr. Celestin Musekura on the occasion of this anniversary and for their dedication to this important work.

Mr. ADERHOLT

Mr. ADERHOLT. Thank you for yielding, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Speaker, it has been discussed throughout this debate this afternoon and this evening that we do face an unprecedented humanitarian emergency with literally thousands of unaccompanied alien children that are crossing our southwest border monthly, a number that has more than doubled since the last year. It has been said by some that it is due to President Obama's mixed messages and the administration's unwillingness to enforce the law, but regardless of what the reason is, we have a crisis that is growing. The bill that is before us this evening represents a simple, measured approach to the crisis at the border. It is not comprehensive immigration reform; rather, its focus is on fixing the issues within the context of the law, issues that have fueled the influx of these children. It also streamlines the process to ensure that those who are not eligible for asylum are quickly and safely repatriated to their families while, at the same time, adding protection to make sure that children who have been trafficked or genuinely in need of asylum get that protection they need. Like many of my colleagues, I appreciate the leadership's willingness to listen and address these matters in the bill that is before us. I think we have all come together and done a great job to craft this legislation. I believe this version now provides the necessary and appropriate language needed to move forward and to address the crisis that we are seeing. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation.

Mr. ADERHOLT

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Speaker, I would like to pay tribute on the passing of a gracious and wonderful man who made a significant impact on his state, his community and his family. A man I was proud to call my father-in-law, Albert Clyde McDonald. He was the kind of man who some may call old-fashioned with his quiet dedication to service--service to God, his family, his land, and his state. Albert McDonald passed from this life on July 6, 2014 at his home in the Huntsville area, surrounded by his beloved family. He was born in Dayton, Tennessee to Clyde McDonald and Nahoma Welch McDonald. He was preceded in death by both his parents and his siblings, Malcolm Rhea McDonald and Mary Lynn Goodwin. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Shirley Shields McDonald; and four children, Mark Russell McDonald, Stan (Mabel) McDonald, Caroline McDonald Aderholt, and Leah McDonald Engler. Also, he is survived by fourteen grandchildren, Dr. Matthew McDonald, Carter McDonald, Lewis McDonald, Locker McDonald, Lloyd McDonald, Mary Eleanor McDonald, Melissa Suzanne McDonald, Luke McDonald, Manie McDonald, Christian Rutherford, Mary Elliott Aderholt, Robert Hayes Aderholt, Bruce Erich Engler, and Anna Kate Engler. After graduating from Auburn University in 1953, Commissioner McDonald made his home in North Alabama, planting cotton, soybeans, and grain on his family farm in the Huntsville area. He was a member of various agriculture-related organizations, such as the National Cotton Council, and served on the Cotton Incorporated Executive Committee, and as President of the Southern Cotton Growers Incorporated. Recognizing that he could play a role in representing agriculture because of his talents and farming experience, Albert McDonald launched his political career in 1974. He served two terms in Alabama State Senate. During his second term, Albert served as chairman of the Senate Rules Committee. Then, in 1982, he ran for and was elected to serve as Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries for the State of Alabama and was re-elected to serve a second term in 1986. In 1991, he was appointed by President George H.W. Bush to be the Executive Director of the Alabama Farm Services Administration. Beginning in 1995, he was appointed by the Huntsville City Council to serve on the governing board of Huntsville Hospital, and was appointed by Alabama Governor Fob James to serve on the Auburn University Board of Trustees in 1996. Sometimes, he was a man of few words. However, when Albert McDonald spoke, people listened. He was a leader and statesman in every sense of the word, as well as my father-in-law. He will be missed by so many at home and across the state. I can only imagine that he was welcomed to heaven with those sweet words, ``Well done, my good and faithful servant.''

Mr. ADERHOLT

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Speaker, I would like to honor the 100th anniversary of the Congressional Research Service (CRS), a service unit of the Library of Congress. For Members and staff on Capitol Hill, CRS is known as our own think tank, providing invaluable information. Perhaps most importantly, CRS provides data and analyses free from agendas and free from partisanship. They also provide a range of reports, confidential memoranda, briefings, and programs to Members and staff about policy issues and legislative process. We rely on this information to craft legislation, analyze bills pending before Congress, respond to our constituents, and to ensure the accuracy of communications. The idea of a legislative reference service for Congress was first championed by Sen. Robert M. LaFollette Sr. (served in the House from 1885-1891, and in the Senate from 1906-1925), and Rep. John M. Nelson (served in the House from 1906-1919, and from 1921-1933). Supporters realized their goal through a Senate floor amendment offered by Sen. LaFollette to the Library's 1915 appropriations bill. Librarian of Congress Herbert Putnam established the Legislative Reference Service (LRS) in the Library of Congress by administrative order on July 18, 1914. In its early years, LRS provided basic reference services to assist lawmakers in their work. The research service, in its various iterations, has benefited from the Library's collections for its research, analysis, and dissemination of information and materials to assist the Congress. By the 1940s and following World War II, demands on LRS had increased significantly. The 1946 Legislative Reorganization Act (LRA) called for an increase in the size and scope of LRS and directed it to hire expert policy specialists to provide information to Congress in subject fields aligned with a new committee system. In 1970, the Service underwent another transformation, which renamed it the Congressional Research Service. Emphasizing the fact that the research and informational needs of the Congress required the services of highly-skilled experts, the 1970 Act mandated that CRS provide authoritative and objective research and analysis and close support for Members and committees. The Service evolved into a 21st century organization that utilizes formats and delivery methods (e.g., CRS4Congress Twitter, CRS.gov, Congress.gov) for CRS products and services. Today, CRS provides comprehensive, objective and non-partisan research and analysis to the entire Congress on all legislative and oversight issues of interest. In the Second Session of this Congress, CRS identified over 150 issues of interest to Congress that CRS could support. CRS has a workforce of over 600 analysts, attorneys, information professionals and support staff. These expert, highly-trained and collaborative professional staff are dedicated to supporting the work of the Congress. In FY2013, Members and committees received information and analysis from CRS in more than 636,000 responses that took the form of 67,000 requests for custom analysis and research, 9,000 congressional participations in 350 seminars, and over half a million instances of Website services. I want to congratulate the Congressional Research Service as they celebrate this important milestone.

Mr. ADERHOLT

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that when the House adjourns today, it adjourn to meet at 9 a.m. tomorrow.

Mr. ADERHOLT

Mr. ADERHOLT. Again, Mr. Chairman, I just rise in opposition to the amendment. Again, this bill is important. The bill that we have before the House would return the information technology investments to just below that of FY 2012, and this amendment will reduce IT by 33 percent. We feel like IT is very important. We think that the bill, as written, should stand, and therefore we would oppose the amendment. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I move that the Committee do now rise.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, this is the first time that we have seen this amendment. I do have to rise in opposition. We are very concerned that this is not the appropriate time to be reducing funds for FSAs. We are trying to implement the new farm program at this time, providing assistance to the farmers and ranchers across America. We have had bipartisan requests to prevent the administration from implementing its plan to close FSA offices. Members on both sides of the aisle have voiced their concerns to us about these closures. Supporting this amendment is equivalent to supporting the closure of offices, so I would urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, this amendment would severely starve the very regulator charged with overseeing the swaps, futures, and options markets of desperately needed information technology resources. The bill I brought before the House this afternoon would return information technology investments to just below the FY 2012 level, and this amendment would reduce IT by 33 percent. This amendment would only accomplish one objective, to grow the size of our government bureaucracy by hiring unneeded personnel to write more overreaching rules and regulations. Staff at the CFTC is already at a record high. The CFTC is preparing to regulate high-frequency trading. This amendment would ignore the reality of a regulator whose 82 percent of its employees make more than six-figure incomes, and staff enters by hand almost 20,000 paper forms per year. This is an exhaustive and costly exercise. This amendment would reward those misplaced resources. CFTC has seen a 166 percent increase in the amount of data it takes in. It takes in hundreds of millions of records per day and does not have the capability to store that data internally. The amendment ignores the advice of former CFTC chief economist, who was the recipient of the Chairman Gary Gensler's award for excellence in 2010, who stated: Financial regulation should recognize that automation and increasingly higher transaction speeds make it nearly impossible for humans to provide effective layers of risk management. Regulators need to change their surveillance and enforcement practices to be more cyber-centric rather than human-centric. Therefore, based on that information, I strongly urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, let me just say that the Farm Service Agency is a very important aspect of this bill. We are hearing from a lot of our Members about FSA office closure. If this amendment passes, this may mean the closure of some of the FSA offices. Again, I would oppose the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition.

Mr. ADERHOLT

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chair, again, I appreciate the gentleman's concern for the Federal debt, the deficit problem that we are facing in this Nation. Again, it is a very serious issue, and we need to address it in many ways. However, I would have to oppose this amendment, reluctantly. We have carefully reviewed the President's budget, the request that he has made, and we have tried to appropriately and adequately fund the mission areas within the Department of Agriculture. For that reason, again, we would have to oppose the amendment. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ADERHOLT. We will accept your amendment.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the gentleman's amendment.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the gentleman's concern for the Federal deficit and the debt problem that we are facing in this Nation. It is something that is very serious, and I appreciate his hard work on this issue. I know that he is very concerned, as we all are, about it. I am going to have to reluctantly oppose the amendment. We have carefully reviewed the President's budget request, and we believe that we have appropriately and adequately funded the various mission areas within the Department of Agriculture, and because of that, as I say, I will oppose the amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I move that the Committee do now rise.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, the House bill does provide significant funding for this project and report language regarding the citrus growing disease. Mr. Rooney, Mr. Valadao, along with Mr. McCarthy and Mr. Farr, have raised this issue. We understand how devastating this disease has been, especially to the Florida growers and, certainly, to California as well. The bill, itself, provides $44.5 million for the programs that protect the citrus industry, so I believe we have addressed the urgency of the need in this bill. I do accept the gentleman's amendment, understanding this is a very important issue. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ADERHOLT. Will the gentleman yield?