Kevin Brady

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a larger- than-life Texan, James Frank Pollard. This afternoon in San Angelo, TX, Frank will be laid to rest. I ask my colleagues and all those present in the chamber to join me in offering their thoughts and prayers to his beloved family, daughter Lisa, son Jim, daughter-in-law Wendy, and his grandchildren, Charless and Sophia. Born to Charlie and Grace Pollard in Coleman, TX in 1931, Frank's ingrained Texan values, can-do spirit, and a healthy dose of pragmatism drove him to make his mark in many arenas. A graduate of the University of Mines in El Paso and a member of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers during the Korean War, Frank jumped into the family business just in time to play an integral role in some of the most storied oil discoveries in Texas. A lifelong student, he always had a book handy to feed his quest for knowledge. It was during his wildcatting days that Frank embarked on the biggest adventure of his life--his 35-year marriage to Martha. They settled into the life of a west Texas ranching family moving to Fort Stockton and then Alpine to raise their three children. The tragic death of their oldest child, Mark, only served to strengthen the Pollard family's bond by encouraging them all to live every day to the absolute fullest. A man who could play devil's advocate on any issue, ``Daddy Frank'' was one of a kind. No matter the topic or the audience he could offer opinions and hold court. With a larger-than-life personality, he could enjoy himself in a roomful full of oilmen or children. He knew when to lead, when to inspire, and when to let someone learn their own lessons. If Hollywood had ever wanted to put a real Texas wildcatter and rancher on the silver screen, a casting director could have struck Texas gold with Frank Pollard. Always armed with a story, a joke, a way to draw people in, Daddy Frank was the epitome of the proud Texas wildcatter from the tips of his boots to the top of his cowboy hat, and we can all learn from his example of what it means to have Texas integrity. On December 6, Frank was reunited with his beloved Martha and their oldest son, Mark. He leaves behind for his family and friends a lifetime of Daddy Frank stories to tell and a legacy of the Texas spirit. Once again, I thank those in the chamber and all Americans for allowing me to share Frank's story of the importance of family, friends, and living life each and every day to the fullest.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Thank you, Jim McCrery, for your leadership throughout the years on this issue and so many other important ones. Congress must act. Our Nation faces the fiercest financial crisis in our lifetime, and for lawmakers entrusted with America's prosperity to stand by and do nothing, that's no longer an option. I don't like this bill any more than my constituents do. The thought of our interfering in the marketplace, of spending taxpayer dollars for irresponsible Wall Street firms, it makes my constituents angry and me too. But the fact of the matter is these bad loans have infected too much of America's economy and they threaten the world's economy as well. And make no mistake, if these Wall Street financial companies go down, our businesses and families in Texas are pulled down with them. Families in my district are already watching their life savings disappear before their eyes. I met a Texas worker. She only had $15,000 in her savings; she lost $8,000 of it over the past 2 weeks. I talked to a woman who stopped me in my car as I was leaving my neighborhood, and she said she and her husband have a small business. Their good customers can't get the credit to buy their products anymore. For the first time in 17 years since they started their business, she is truly frightened. And I ask myself why should our local families, why should our local communities pay the price in lost jobs and lost savings because of Wall Street greed? Haven't these Wall Street companies caused enough damage? This is not my solution. This is not the only solution. America faces tough times. We're going to have to come right back in November, in my opinion, and bring about the reforms to stop this from happening again. But I am going to vote ``yes'' again to pull this Nation back from its economic brink and protect the families and jobs and small businesses in Texas.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today in order to state for the record an explanation of my absence and how I would have voted on several of the bills that were considered by the House of Representatives while I was in Texas helping the relief and recovery effort after Hurricane Ike damaged my district and communities so hard. As my colleagues and those in the gallery know, Hurricane Ike made landfall along the Upper Texas Coast early in the morning of Saturday, September 13. The effects of this storm stretched from Alabama to Texas, with the 11 counties that I represent landing right in the middle of the storm's path. The resulting damage was widespread and in some cases very significant. Many of the people that I represent are still without power and for many, especially in Orange County, life will never be the same. Their homes were completely flooded and many will never be livable again. It is a testament to the hardworking and self-reliant people of southeast Texas that they are already picking up the pieces and helping themselves and others in the recovery. I want to thank those first responders, the local governments, the State of Texas, and selfless individuals that have helped during the evacuation and recovery process. We have worked tirelessly since Hurricane Rita to ensure that Texas' first responders were better prepared for the next time a hurricane hit the Texas coast. I have spent my time since September 13, meeting with individual citizens, FEMA, officials from Texas and local communities, utility providers and others to identify shortcomings, offer help and support, and ensure the best level of service is provided now and the next time a hurricane strikes Texas or we are affected by some other emergency situation. While I was working in Texas after Ike made landfall, the House voted on several important pieces of legislation for which I would like to register my views. First, H.R. 6899, the Comprehensive American Energy Security and Consumer Protection Act; despite the bill's name, H.R. 6899 would actually harm our nation's energy security, and accordingly, I would have voted against passage of the bill. This bill opens a sliver of our offshore resources to development, while permanently closing off the rest. In fact, the Department of Interior's Mineral and Management Service calculated that this bill would ban most of our nation's outer continental shelf oil and gas natural resources from development. This bill is the equivalent of cracking open the gate, bolting the front door shut and then throwing away the key. It is the wrong energy policy for our country. Moreover, in addition to this bait-and-switch approach to the offshore moratorium on energy exploration, the bill neglects to provide for revenue sharing among the states for offshore leasing. Without a revenue sharing incentive from the federal government, states are highly unlikely to allow the drilling that our country desperately needs. This is not the energy solution the American people want, and Congress should not replace the current temporary ban on offshore exploration with a permanent one. House Democrats also offered another gimmick on energy policy instead of providing real relief at the pump to my constituents recovering from Hurricane Ike and all Americans. H.R. 6604 was billed as a way to cut speculation in energy markets, while in reality it did nothing but paper over Democrat's inaction on offering real solutions to America's energy problems. I voted against largely the same bill this summer and would have done so here as well. This bill was nothing more than window dressing and a thinly veiled attempt to placate the American public. In reality, it does little more than insult the intelligence of the American public; but the American public won't be fooled. But Democrats are starting to buckle to pressure from the American public. In the House-passed stop-gap funding bill, the House lifted the moratorium on off-shore oil exploration and oil shale production. If the moratorium is lifted in the Senate as well, America will be one step closer to energy relief. Lastly, the House passed legislation last week to uphold the landmark Supreme Court's decision in DC v. Heller. DC v. Heller upheld the 2nd Amendment rights of residents of Washington, DC that had been trampled on for over 30 years. I would have proudly supported the Childers amendment to H.R. 6691 and supported the amended bill on final passage. As a matter of fact I am a co-sponsor of legislation very similar to the Childers Amendment, H.R. 1399, the District of Columbia Personal Protection Act. I am glad to see that the House has taken a bi-partisan step to protect the Constitutional right to keep and bear arms. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to continue providing relief to those suffering from Hurricane Ike and I appreciate the speed with which this Congress has acted to help provide that relief thus far. However, just as we learned after Hurricane Rita, this process will be on going and it will take the continued effort of Congress, Texas, local communities and individual citizens to complete the recovery effort. I ask that all Americans continue to offer their thoughts and prayers to those along the gulf coast.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Let me first thank Mr. Deal for his remarkable leadership in shepherding this bill to the floor. Without him championing it through the Energy and Commerce Committee along with Mrs. Capps, this simply would not be happening. I want to thank Mr. Deal for his leadership on behalf of many, many, many patients. I would also like to take a brief moment to reflect on the loss of my friend and one of pulmonary hypertension's most important voices in Congress, Tom Lantos. I know I speak for each one of us here when I say that we have dearly missed Tom's passion for his work and for the House of Representatives. As chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee, Tom was regularly confronting some of the most pressing challenges facing our country in the world today. Nevertheless, it was his work on PH that he routinely cited the most important thing he was doing in Congress. As many of us know, Tom's granddaughter, Charity, was diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension several years ago. Ever since he had been a tireless advocates on behalf of PH patients and, in my opinion, a large part of why we have made so much progress over the last decade. Like Tom, my involvement with PH is very personal. It is now more than a decade since the daughter of my very good friend, Jack Stibbs, was diagnosed with PH. Jack's daughter, Emily, was only 5 when her parents noticed at a community parade that she was struggling to bicycle fast enough to keep up with her friends. She always seemed out of breath and struggled to climb stairs. Doctors eventually diagnosed her with pulmonary hypertension. PH is a serious and often-fatal condition where the blood pressure in the lungs rises to dangerously high levels. In PH patients, the walls of the arteries that take blood from the right side of the heart to the lungs, thicken and constrict. As a result, the right side of the heart has to pump harder and harder to move blood into the lungs, causing it to enlarge and ultimately fail. PH can occur without a known cause or be secondary to other conditions, such as scleroderma, lupus, HIV, sickle cell, and liver disease. Patients develop symptoms that include shortness of breath, fatigue, chest pain, dizziness and fainting. Unfortunately, these symptoms are frequently misdiagnosed, leaving patients with the false impression that they have a minor pulmonary or cardiovascular condition. By the time many patients receive an accurate diagnosis, the disease has progressed to a late stage, making it impossible to receive a necessary heart or lung transplant. When Emily Stibbs was first diagnosed in 1977, the average survival rate for PH patients was just 2\1/2\ years. There was only one FDA- approved therapy at the time, and the best that doctors could do was to make patients comfortable as their condition deteriorated. To make matters worse, there is very little research on PH being supported by the National Institutes of Health. Fortunately we have come a very long way in a relatively short period of time. There are now six FDA-approved therapies for PH with many, many more in the pipeline. People are living longer with a better quality of life than ever before. Our Federal health care agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Food and Drug Administration are actively and aggressively engaged in the fight against PH. Those of us here on Capitol Hill are more aware of this disease than ever before. The 247 Representatives who cosponsored our PH bill in the last Congress are testament to that fact. But there is still more work that can and must be done as pulmonary hypertension afflicts over 100,000 Americans and continues to strike women of child-bearing age in growing numbers. Representative Lois Capps has joined me in introducing the bill before us today, the Tom Lantos Pulmonary Hypertension Research and Education Act. This bill builds on what we have already accomplished and further emphasizes the need for more research, more training and more awareness. Specifically, it urges the NIH to aggressively pursue collaborative research into better treatments and provides funding to increase physician and public awareness of the disease to ensure early and accurate diagnoses. I am proud of what we have done together and believe that a cure for PH is just around the corner, so long as we continue to keep the National Institutes of Health and medical community focused. On behalf of pulmonary hypertension patients everywhere, I would like to thank Representative Lois Capps for her leadership of this bill, Energy and Commerce Chairman Dingell, Ranking Member Joe Barton, Health Subcommittee Chairman Frank Pallone, and, as I mentioned before, my dear friend, Nathan Deal, again, whose leadership was remarkable. I conclude with this, over the last 10 years, we have decided that if I did nothing else in Congress, I would find a cure for this incurable disease. I appreciate so much the Pulmonary Hypertension Association, which has raised, over the years, $10 million for research and education; the chairman of the association, Carl Hicks; its great president, Rino Aldrighetti; Katie Kroner and Gavin Lindberg, who have spent many years advocating on behalf of our patients in the association; Dr. Elizabeth Nabel, director of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, who helped start the first Centers of Excellence for PH at the National Institutes of Health; and finally the staff of the Energy and Commerce Committee, including Jessica McNiece, Aarti Shaw, Brandon Clark, and Ryan Long. It takes a collaborative effort to tackle a disease like this. We are making progress, and I am eternally grateful for their support.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I submit the following: Requesting Member: Congressman Kevin Brady, Texas 8th Congressional District. Bill Number: H.R. 2638--The Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009. Account: Combat Vehicle and Automotive Advanced Technology, 33 0603005A. Requesting Entity: Verdient Technologies LLC. Address of Requesting Entity: 1401 McKinney Street, Suite 900, Houston, TX 77010. Description of Request: For the final year of a 2 year project, I am requesting funding aimed at completing a project that will allow military personnel in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other theaters to stay cool in their vehicles without running the engine. Today vehicles must run their engine to keep crew members cool, a heat-signature is created and that provides a target for enemy fire and fuel is wasted resulting in decreased combat effectiveness and operational range. The request funds completion of the No-Idle Complex Compound (``NICC'') project, which is developing technology powered by diesel fuel to cool or heat the crew cabin in military vehicles when the vehicle engine is not operating. Without this system, the vehicle engine must be idled to provide cooling or heating thus wasting significant amounts of fuel, polluting the environment and creating a thermal and acoustic signature. The proposed development will design and build prototypes of the NICC system for military combat vehicles, address critical manufacturing, and quality control processes and manufacturing technology. When utilized in combat, the NICC will cool personnel and electronics with minimal thermal or noise signature, enhancing both the comfort and safety of our troops--allowing them to more safely and effectively execute their mission. The $1.6 million project will be completed in four stages: (1) manufacture of three prototypes at $750,000 (47%); (2) tracking results of field testing at $450,000 (28%); (3) implement second round of field testing at $250,000 (15.5%); and (4) design of final product for vehicle integration at $150,000 (9%). Requesting Member: Congressman Kevin Brady, Texas 8th Congressional District. Bill Number: H.R. 2638--The Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009. Account: R1: Aerospace Propulsion and Power Technology. Requesting Entity: Sam Houston State University. Address of Requesting Entity: Sam Houston State University, 1806 Ave J, Suite 303, Huntsville, TX 77340. Description of Request: With one more year to go before completion, this is the second year I have requested funding for TRIES. The project has received funding for a total of 7 non-consecutive years. This request will provide funds to Sam Houston State University and Texas State University System to finalize research of a technology for the treatment of contaminated water to make it usable for our troops in the field or during natural disasters. Of the $1.6 million TRIES received this year, approximately $312,000 (19.5%) will go to direct labor; $360,000 (22.5%) for materials; $824,000 (51.5%) for other direct expenses; and $104,000 (6.5%) for demonstration.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, at this time I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support in H.R. 7006, the Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2008, a bill that provides targeted tax benefits to victims of federally declared natural disasters. As the chairman and gentleman from New York said, we have had a tough year here in the United States for disasters across this country; most recently, Hurricane Ike which hit the gulf coast and Texas especially. Ike will likely be the worst storm to hit Texas in 50 years. Ike damaged or destroyed about $52 billion worth of homes and businesses. It was far worse than Hurricane Rita that just hit us 3 years ago. And this is the region of Texas that was so quick to open their homes and their hearts and their churches to those victims of Hurricane Katrina, so it feels a bit like we are being piled on. We look to areas like Galveston and Bolivar, and Orange and Bridge City where the storm surge destroyed thousands of homes and damaged businesses and left people homeless. Today, 11 days after Hurricane Ike, despite heroic efforts, 250,000 people are still without running water and many more are still without power as the Texas heat continues to bear down on them. So these folks are suffering. They need our help now. Damage from the hurricane was widespread, and lives were disrupted and destroyed. Yet here it is 11 days after Hurricane Ike, and to its credit, this Congress, which I have criticized at times as not moving quickly enough or substantively enough, has moved quickly to respond to the needs of not just Texas, but Louisiana, the Midwest and throughout this country. I am grateful to them for that. I am encouraged that Congress responded so quickly, and I urge my colleagues to support this assistance. I, along with my friend and colleague from Houston, Al Green, along with the Texas delegation, introduced a bill much like Congressman Kind's to provide even more expansive tax benefits to Hurricane Ike victims. While we hope that Congress will consider it in the future because it has some key provisions important to our recovery, this legislation today is a very good step forward, especially coming so quickly after the hurricane. This bill will provide Texans and others much-needed help through a variety of tax relief measures. One provision is enhanced casualty loss deductions, which in plain English just allows families to write off more of the property loss from Hurricane Ike and other disasters without regard to their adjusted gross income. We have increased low income housing tax credits by $2 billion under this bill. That is important to help those who most need housing. Another provision is the ability to allow States to use mortgage revenue bonds to provide loans to repair or reconstruct homes and rental housing units that are now unsafe for use as residences because of hurricane damage. In addition, we all must recognize that the business community, those who provide our jobs, experienced severe disruption and damage from Hurricane Ike. To help businesses recover quickly, this legislation will allow them to write off and immediately expense costs for disaster recovery, including demolition, repair, cleanup and environmental remediation. Any business with net operating losses from the disaster, and there are many, will be allowed to carry back those losses for 5 years, which means they will be able to put more money back into recovery and put workers back to work and getting back into business which is important for property values and sale tax values in our affected communities. Also, the Treasury Department is authorized under this bill to permit States to issue $13 billion of tax-exempt bonds to finance the replacement, the repair, the reconstruction and renovation of business property damaged or destroyed by a federally declared disaster like Hurricane Ike. I believe these private activity bonds are a critical tool to help damaged businesses through these hard times. And we should not forget the remarkable charitable work that people and businesses provided to their friends and neighbors in hard times. I witnessed this myself throughout our district that was hit so hard. We've seen this in past disasters. To assist those who come selflessly to work so that they do not get hit so hard by the high price of gasoline, the mileage reimbursement rate for charitable work will be increased and, moreover, limits for charitable relief contributions in response to a federal disaster are waived. This is a very important bill. And while I strongly believe and hope that Congress might take a look at additional measures in the future, this bill is a crucial first step, and I strongly support it. With that, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, at this time, I yield 2 minutes to my colleague from Houston, the gentlelady from Texas, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee. (Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I would reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BRADY of Texas. I yield myself, for closing, as much time as I may consume. Disasters are so hard on families and especially on small businesses and on communities as they try to recover, whether it is the flooding in the Midwest or wildfires in the West or Hurricane Ike, Hurricane Gustav or hurricanes that have hit Florida. It is just a terrible time. And I know in our case, you always know your own communities best, and we saw 8- to 10-foot storm surge in Orange County that went over the levees, flooded one-third of that town and most of its historic district. It completely flooded about 6 feet up in every home in Bridge City. I think out of almost 4,000 homes, 15 were left untouched. And when I was there touring the area, we toured it the day after by boat, and these are land cities. We could see the devastation, and today, those communities are trying to recover and those families are trying to repair their homes. The problem we have is that Hurricane Rita, which had just come through 3 years ago, wiped out all the hotel-motels, had wiped out all available rental housing. So our workers in our energy refineries and shipbuilding and chemical refineries are staying 90, 100 miles away in available hotels, driving each day an hour-and-a-half each way to try to pull the carpet and the sheetrock out of their homes. They have all their possessions in the world piled in the front yard for insurance adjusters to appraise or for others to just simply take away. And to give them hope that they can recover, it's important Congress do all that we can, and these tax provisions help those families and small businesses try to take those first steps, which is why not only do I strongly support this, I appreciate the gentleman from Wisconsin's long effort to provide disaster relief throughout this country. I appreciate Chairman Rangel and the Ways and Means Committee taking a leadership role to move this bill to the floor before the session is over. I appreciate the support of our Texas delegation, Republicans and Democrats, as we move forward. I strongly support this and appreciate the responsiveness of this Congress. I yield back.

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Would the gentleman yield?

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Again, I want to thank you for your leadership, and this is a great piece of legislation. I was remiss in not recognizing my colleague, Congressman Al Green from Houston. He's the lead Democrat cosponsor with me on the Texas portion of disaster relief. He is tied up in Financial Services today working on issues. I know he is here in spirit, and I just wanted to publicly thank him for his role as well.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Mr. Reynolds, thank you for your leadership, as well as Mr. Neal, on trying to not only keep more middle class families from being hit by the alternative minimum tax, but hopefully to find a long-term solution where there is no AMT looming over our families. The truth of the matter is, this was a tax created many years ago to hit the very, very wealthy in America, at the time just 155 or so, who did not pay taxes. Unfortunately, it wasn't indexed. It is now each year more and more attacking middle class families who frankly are still struggling to make ends meet. Then after they do their regular taxes, they find they have a second tax that comes after them and catches them even if they didn't owe on the first. So this Congress has taken seriously the need to not allow the AMT to hit more families. This action today makes sure that 24 million American families are not hit by this second tax at an average tax rate increase of about $2,400. For a lot of families in America, that is real money in a big way. It is time to repeal the AMT permanently. It is time for both parties to work together to do that. I look forward to the day when we can bury it and help protect our families. All year long, Republicans have urged Democrats to enact a clean AMT patch without tax increases and to do so in a more timely manner than occurred in 2007. Last year, House Democrats' insistence on linking the 2007 patch to unrelated tax hikes resulted in the patch being enacted later in the year than ever before, causing headaches and uncertainty for taxpayers and the IRS alike. On May 21, 2008, and again on June 25, 2008, Republicans supported Motions to Recommit that would have provided a clean AMT patch--without tax hikes. Unfortunately, Democrats opposed those common-sense proposals, putting us on the same regrettable path as last year--toward another historically late AMT patch. Today, just days before Congress's scheduled adjournment, the Majority has finally acknowledged the obvious: an AMT patch that is offset with tax increases stands no chance of being enacted. Unfortunately, instead of considering the Senate's comprehensive, bipartisan tax package that addresses not just the AMT patch, but other critically important tax priorities as well, the Majority is pursuing a piecemeal approach that seems unlikely to advance in the Senate. During debate on the comprehensive Senate package on September 23rd, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid made precisely this point, stating: ``I say to my friends on the other side of the Capitol, the House: `Don't send us back something else. We can't get it passed.' If they try to mess with our package, it will come back here, it will die, and we will . . . have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.'' While it is a welcome development that Democrats have abandoned their efforts to patch the AMT by raising taxes, the Majority should be working with the Senate to ensure enactment of all our critical tax priorities. An estimated 26 million taxpayers will owe higher taxes for 2008 because of the AMT, according to the latest Treasury Department estimates. This is sharply up from about 4 million people last year in 2007 that would have been affected if Democrats had not agreed to patch the AMT without tax increases. The AMT was created in the late 1960s to ensure that fewer than 200 high-income taxpayers couldn't avoid paying any income tax at all. The AMT was intended as a fail safe mechanism, NOT as a tax Increase. However, the tax is now hitting the middle class and hitting them hard. From 1992-2002, the number of filers paying AMT increased tenfold to 1.3 million people. By 2010, nearly 1 in 3 tax filers will be subject to the AMT. Although the AMT is highly progressive, the distribution of AMT liability will shift toward tax units with lower incomes. In 2006, taxpayers with $500,000 or more in income will pay 47 percent of the tax. By 2010, they will pay only 16 percent. Over 80 percent of households with incomes between $100,000-200,000 and almost half of those with incomes between $75,000-100,000 will pay the AMT by 2010 (compared to 4.8 percent and 0.7 percent in 2006). Simply put, Congress should act decisively to prevent $61.5+ billion of tax increases on the American people. Not patching the AMT means an average tax hike of $2,400 for over 25 million taxpayers. Delaying action on patching the AMT hurts taxpayers. According to Treasury Secretary Paulson, the failure of Congress to enact an AMT patch earlier in the year results in delayed tax refunds totaling approximately $75 billion for as many as 50 million taxpayers. Tax compliance is onerous enough for Americans without Congress getting into the mix to make it even harder!

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 25th anniversary of the Tri-County Mental Health and Mental Retardation being designated as the MHMR center for Montgomery, Liberty and Walker counties in southeast Texas. I ask my colleagues and those visitors in the House Chamber to join me in congratulating Tri-County MHMR and applauding the work they've done over the past quarter century. Twenty-six years ago, a small group of community leaders joined together to make the dream of local MHMR services a reality--the dream they shared became a reality on September 1, 1983. What initially was only an out-patient service center grew to have a budget of $1.5 million and 46 employees by the end of the first year. Tri-County MHMR grew from these humble beginnings into a $22 million system that serves nearly 7,000 people and has more than 350 employees. It is only through the dedication of the founders, the continued work of the employees, and the support of the community that Tri-County MHMR has seen such tremendous success and been able to make such a positive impact on the community. If you name the service chances are Tri-County MHMR offers it; from outpatient psychiatric services, nursing and counseling to supported employment, habilitation and vocational training for both adults and children. The impact they've had has been felt locally and with the help of Federal grants, they continue to offer new services and provide better care. Only last year, they received over $1.3 million to build additional supported apartment housing in Montgomery County. Tri-County MHMR continues to grow and identify new areas where they can contribute and, with the help of the State of Texas, the Montgomery County Hospital District, and the Montgomery County United Way, Tri-County MHMR will open a much needed Crisis Stabilization Unit in 2009. It is an honor to recognize such an impressive group of individuals and such a noble organization. I hope all Americans can learn from the example Tri-County MHMR continues to make and step forward to fill a need in their local community, help other people, and in a small way help make life better for someone else.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I hoped to comment on the Democrat energy bill tonight, but it is still under construction in the back rooms. What I don't understand is why this Congress, this Democrat Congress, stands in the way of the American people and does not allow a straight up-or-down vote on exploring for more energy here in America. Our Republican plan is simple: use less energy, find more sources here in America, conserve more, bring the renewables online, but let's explore more for oil and gas in our deep ocean waters and arctic reserve. That's the only way we can have an affordable bridge to the future. We can reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and again, give some help to the families and small businesses and school districts across this country who are suffering because of high gas prices. Now is the time to act. Now is the time. We need a straight up-or- down vote.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of George F. Rozelle III. Mr. Rozelle recently left this earth and joined his Heavenly Father. A native of Fort Worth, Texas, Mr. Rozelle was a proud Texan and Longhorn fan even when life took him to other parts of the country. After growing up in Arlington and attending Arlington High School he went on to graduate from the University of Texas at Arlington. The business degree he earned at UT--Arlington served him well as he quickly started his career with the Junior Chamber of Commerce and began to climb the Chamber ladder. After moving to Arizona and marrying Marty, he joined the Fiesta Bowl Committee in 1979. He played a critical role in turning the Fiesta Bowl into one of the premier sporting events in the world; he served on the Board of Directors for six years. Mr. Rozelle's lifelong passion was serving others and his community. Besides his time with the Fiesta Bowl, he was the President of the Arizona Club, Executive Director of the Arizona chapter of the American Roads and Transportation Builder's Association and spent time with the Arizona Corporation Commission. Mr. Rozelle was best known for his smile, easy going sense of humor, and his ability to make everyone feel comfortable. His friends and family will also miss his skill in the kitchen; a true gourmet, he was written up in the Arizona Republic for his ability and participation in a local gourmet cooking group. George is survived by his loving and faithful wife of 31 years, Dr. Martha Rozelle, their daughters, Deborah and Vicki; son George; granddaughters Brooke, Janessa, Joni, Julie, Katy; and grandsons, Chris and Braydn. Madam Speaker, I thank the House of Representatives and America for joining me in honoring the life of George F. Rozelle III and offering our prayers and condolences to his family and friends.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support, with my colleagues, of H.R. 6560, a bill that as has been said will make certain changes to the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement, which the House passed exactly 3 years ago yesterday. It will also make changes to our African trade preference program and will extend the generalized system of preference for one more year. The changes to the DR-CAFTA agreement will encourage the use of American-made fabrics in the production of pants in the DR. This helps to support American textile jobs, and it gives the Dominican Republic more flexibility to strengthen its competitiveness, too. So it is a win-win for jobs here in America and for jobs in Central America as well. It's a small change, but it can help American exporters and Dominican producers, and it's evidence of how the agreement has created economic benefits for all participants. In fact, if you drill down a little deeper into this agreement, in the past 3 years, even though it's really not fully implemented, Guatemala, for example, has not only shown remarkable economic progress and growth since the CAFTA agreement was put into place, but a lot of their jobs that they're creating are in the rural areas, in the poorest of the poor. So they're helping not just the number of a few big producers; they're helping the average person in Guatemala by raising the standard of living and by their having some hope for the future just as it is creating jobs here in America. What we have learned over the years is that it's not enough to simply buy American. You have to sell American. We have to aggressively sell our American products and services all throughout this world. For the U.S., as it has been pointed out, our $1.9 billion trade deficit with the six partners in Central America has now turned into a $3.6 billion trade surplus thanks to this agreement. That means we're selling more than we're buying and that we're supporting good paying American jobs in manufacturing, in services, in transportation, in logistics, and in agriculture. We recently learned that, if you take all of our current free trade and fair trade agreements, we see the same trend, that deficits are turning into surpluses across the board. We now have a surplus of nearly $3 billion, and our free trade agreement partners, who are only a small part of the world economy, now account for half of all that America sells overseas. So we are creating some of the best customers for American products and for American workers here in our agreements. In fact, if you look at the American economy today, nearly 40 percent of our economic growth comes from selling our products all around the world, and we're selling them to the countries we have these agreements with. They are great customers, and we need more of them. What I've realized is that, as to the giant sucking sound that was predicted for trade agreements, it turns out that that's the hot air deflated from the critics who've been proven wrong about each one of them, especially about CAFTA. This is yet another reason why this Congress needs to pass the U.S.-Colombian Trade Promotion Agreement. Like Central America before it, Colombia already enjoys access to America. They can sell their products almost duty free into the United States, but when we try to sell our products back into Colombia, their tariff is almost 14 percent, much higher than Central America's was before. They don't create a level playing field for American workers. We want to have two-way trade and equal competition. An agreement would lock in Colombia's trade preferences while creating a better investment climate for the country, which would help build its legitimate economy, which is dynamic throughout this region. A stable Colombia is good for the United States and for the hemisphere. If you've been following the news, you've seen remarkable progress by Colombia and by President Uribe on human rights, on labor rights and especially, just lately, on its remarkable rescue of the American hostages after their being 5 years within the FARC. They are taming the terrorist organizations with our help, and they deserve our continued support in that effort. Madam Speaker, the Central American agreement has helped to bolster ties with our partners in the region. It has helped to create U.S. jobs and to encourage economic growth in neighboring countries. Colombia will do the same. I reiterate my call for the leadership of this House to schedule an up-or-down vote on Colombia this year. Given the nature of our trade laws, it will be too late if this gets put on hold until next year, and we will have missed a critical opportunity to strengthen our relationship with an important partner in the region and to create fair trade for Americans. Ladies and gentlemen, the whole world is watching America. Let's not turn our back on Colombia. Let's not show the world we're economic isolationists--afraid to compete or afraid to hold out our hand to partners in our backyard. Let's not as a Congress be beholden to a few special interests. Democrats and Republicans, Defense Secretaries and Secretaries of State agree that this is one of the most important foreign policy decisions that we can make. The whole world is watching. Let us schedule a vote for Colombia and pass it this year.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Well, isn't it my understanding as well that technology has long existed to turn our vast resources of coal into super clean liquid fuels, the type, because you always think of coal will help lower your utility bills at home, but the truth of the matter is the technology since the 1940s in Germany converted coal to diesel fuel, the type we use in our cars and trucks. And today some of our African countries are using coal, converting it to diesel for almost a third of all their transportation needs. I recently talked to our major research company, the Woodlands Huntsman, to talk about coal and its conversion and could it be done. And their researchers just laughed. They said, are you kidding? Of course we can do this. My understanding is the gentleman from Texas, Mr. Hensarling, has introduced legislation to use the purchasing power of our Air Force, to use the purchasing power of our own government to accelerate that type of research and bring it into the marketplace so we can develop those super clean liquid fuels coming from an abundant resource that will be less dependent on foreign countries for our energy needs.

Mr. BRADY of Texas. If the gentleman from Illinois would yield.

Mr. BRADY of Texas. I thank the gentleman from Texas, Mr. Hensarling, for his leadership on this issue and his legislation, including leadership in the American Energy Act just introduced last week to try to force this Congress to finally get serious about taking responsibility for our own energy needs in this country. I have been in Congress a while, but one of the best decisions my wife and I made was not to move to Washington. We live at home in Texas with our two young boys, six and nine years old. I commute to work each week here in Washington. We do that so I can stay closer to the families and neighborhoods in Texas that I represent. Flying up today to Washington, I just was glancing at some of the headlines in our local papers. They read like this: Fuel costs forcing county to rethink current budget; county gives food banks a break at gas because they're getting fewer and fewer volunteers who just can't afford those high prices; trash companies increase rates to cover fuel costs so families will pay more for their trash pick up; fuel costs cause schools to raise food prices. So our children and the parents of children will be paying more for school lunches because of energy costs. I just met with a number of our law enforcement agencies, our constables and Sheriffs and police forces, and they are not cutting their emergency response but they are cutting back on their community policing. They're patrolling within our neighborhoods to try and stretch their fuel budgets. Frankly, their fuel budgets are gone for the year. Small businesses, so many are telling me that they are working essentially for nothing these days. What has this Congress done about it? Nothing really but gimmicks. I call it the Democrats' Jed Clampett Energy Plan. They shoot at a bunch of targets and hope that energy is going to come bubbling up from the ground just like old Jed found. And look at the gimmicks they proposed. Democrats in Congress have said, ``Let us sue OPEC and we will lower your gas prices.'' Well, has anyone seen their gas prices lowered? They said, ``Let's force companies to use it or lose it,'' which frankly, every independent geological group in America just started laughing at. Did you see your gas prices go down? They said, ``Let's stop filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve,'' our nest egg for a rainy day in energy. Did your prices go down? Last week they said, ``Well, it's drawn some of that down.'' Of course, gas prices aren't going down significantly, certainly not because of these gimmicks. The truth of the matter is as the speaker tonight, Mr. Shimkus, the gentlemen from Texas, Mr. Hensarling and Mr. Gohmert, have talked about is that three-legged stool of energy: more conservation, because we can all be more efficient in our homes in our daily use; bring those renewables on line--renewable energy not from food but from non-food sources; and then, of course, the third leg, we've had votes on conservation and we've done it. We have had votes on renewable energy, and we are achieving it. We've just not had a single vote on more exploration, more American-made energy. Now, I think the first goal America should set is that we are going to take responsibility for two-thirds of our daily energy needs. Today we rely upon the rest of the world for that. We ought to take more responsibility for what we need here in America, and to do that is what the speakers in the Republican party are talking about tonight, all-of- the-above. Let's explore offshore and those deep ocean waters that hold so much potential, proven reserves for us. Let's tap responsibly into ANWR. Let's convert coal to super clean liquid fuels, and let's tap the oil shale in America. Let's begin creating more American-made energy and more American-made jobs because, at the end of the day, even a hillbilly isn't going to buy the thought that we can just gimmick our way out of this problem, not with families and with small businesses paying what they do today. We've got an abundant supply of energy. We need more supply in America. We need to take more responsibility for our own energy needs. The good news is that we're capable of it. So all we ask, and all of us tonight are asking one thing of our Speaker. Just give us a vote. Just let the will of the American people prevail. Let the little guy in the door for once. Give him a voice, Mr. Speaker. Tell the special interest lobby to stand aside. Let the little guy's voice be heard. He doesn't have lobbyists. He probably hasn't made campaign contributions to you. He's just paying the freight on energy prices he can't afford and that his family can't afford anymore. We need to let that voice be heard. Before we leave in August, give us a vote, just a single vote. Let the American public's and let the little guy's voices be heard in Congress again so we can develop more American-made energy here in America. That will lower prices. With that, I yield back.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. When will we put the special interests aside? When will the little guy have a vote? When will the little guy, that doesn't have a lobbyist, and big campaign contributions, when will he have a say in this public? It's time to vote this gimmick down and let us have a vote.

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Mr. Speaker, another day, another energy gimmick, it must be the 110th Congress. The American public, hammered by high fuel prices, is getting tired of the Jed Clampett energy plan put forth by Democrats. You just can't shoot at imaginary targets and hope that energy is going to come bubbling up. Look at the record. Look at the record. In this past year Democrats said, if we can sue OPEC, we will lower gas prices. Have your gas prices gone down? They said if we pass use it or lose it, which was laughed at around the world, they said gas prices will go down. Have your fuel prices gone down? Earlier they said we'll just stop filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and your gas prices will go down. Did they? The answer is no. Today is just another gimmick. Depleting America's emergency oil nest egg at a time when the world is increasingly unstable in oil-producing nations like Nigeria, Venezuela and Iran, why, that makes no sense at all. Tapping our emergency reserves for three measly days of energy, three, that won't lower prices, nor does it send a signal to the rest of the world that America is serious about taking responsibility for our own energy needs. You really believe the world market that uses 85 million barrels a day is going to look at this tiny amount and lower the prices? If this bill were to pass--and it won't, it will fail again--at the end of the drawdown, America would be more dependent on foreign oil than when we started. And when it's replenished, we will have just bought oil at a higher price out of taxpayers' money. So here's the question: How high does gas have to be before Congress will act? How many families will be hurt? How many small businesses will go under? How hard will our economy be hit before Speaker Pelosi allows an up-or-down vote on producing more American-made energy? We voted on conservation, we voted on renewables. Why can't we vote on more exploration?

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Mr. Speaker, another day, another energy gimmick. It must be the 110th Congress. The American public, hammered by high fuel prices, is getting tired of the Democrats' Jed Clampett energy plan. You just can't shoot at a bunch of imaginary targets and hope that energy is going to come bubbling up from the ground. Today is another such gimmick. Depleting America's emergency oil nest egg at a time when the world is increasingly unstable in oil-producing nations like Nigeria, like Venezuela, and Iran, why, even a hillbilly like me doesn't think that makes much sense. Tapping our energy reserve for 3 measly days of energy, 3, 3 days of energy, that won't lower prices, nor does it send a signal to the world that America is serious about taking more responsibility for meeting our own daily energy needs. If this bill were to pass, and it will fail spectacularly today, but if it were to pass at the end of the drawdown, America would be more dependent on foreign oil than we are today. We would be more dependent on foreign oil than we are today. And how does that solve the problem? So here is the question: How high does gas have to get before Congress will act? How many families will be hurt? How many small businesses will go under? How hard will our economy be hit before our Speaker allows an up-or-down vote on producing more American-made energy? Congress has voted on conservation, we voted on renewable and passed them both. Why can't we get a vote on more exploration here at home with our resources? Speaker Pelosi to the Democrat leadership, I know that you have the right heart. Tell the special interests to step aside. Make room for the little guy who doesn't have a lobbyist, who hasn't contributed to your campaign. Let them have an up-or-down vote on this floor, a vote now for the American Energy Act so we can produce more American-made energy so we can get serious about lowering gas prices here in America.

Mr. BRADY of Texas

Mr. BRADY of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to this bill. There's no question that if Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae were to collapse, it would deal a serious blow to our economy, and nearly every community would feel the negative effects. But this bill fails to give taxpayers enough confidence that the two mortgage giants won't be back again for another dip in the trough. I'm concerned that we're unduly putting a massive burden on taxpayers for Wall Street's bad decisions and those of speculators who took on risky mortgages. I believe that before we use taxpayer dollars to potentially increase the national debt, provide an unlimited line of credit, and allow the government to buy a little less than $1 trillion in stock in private companies, then Congress needs to insist on these three conditions. First, unlike today, Freddie and Fannie must be required to have the capital standards necessary to ensure their fiscal stability. Secondly, that over a set period of time they are gradually reduced in size so that America's housing eggs are not all in one basket. And finally, that the leadership of Freddie and Fannie be replaced. The millionaire captains who grounded this ship have proven they are not capable to steer us to calmer waters. I am also hopeful that should this plan work, I unfortunately believe the underlying bill on housing misses the mark. Rather than a $300 billion bailout for the housing areas, what we've seen as an alternative is that the HOPE NOW Alliance, the private sector, has stepped forward to help 1.7 million homeowners transfer from those high ARM rates, adjustable rate mortgages, to fixed rate mortgages so they can keep their home. And I fear, too, that the way we pay for this bill, which would hurt American companies creating jobs here in America, and raises taxes on those with second homes, vacation homes, investment homes, retirement homes, will further hurt our housing economy at a time we simply can't afford it. Reluctantly, I oppose this bill.