Frank Ballance

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, let me thank the gentleman again for organizing this Special Order tonight and thank him for that bill. I am very proud to be a part of it and am hopeful that it will come to fruition.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, I could not be here to vote on Tuesday, September 23, 2003, as I was touring the 1st Congressional District, meeting with Federal, State, and local officials and my constituents as they recover from Hurricane Isabel. Had I been present, on rollcall vote No. 509, I would have voted ``aye''; on rollcall vote No. 510, I would have voted `` aye''; on rollcall vote No. 511, I would have voted ``aye''; and on rollcall vote No. 512, I would have voted ``aye.''

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, it is my high honor and privilege to stand and speak today on H. Res. 303, sponsored by my esteemed colleague, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis), which is honoring the late, great Mayor Maynard Holbrook Jackson, Jr. It is said that time, like an ever-flowing stream, bears all its sons and daughters away. I suppose I am unique among the speakers today, in that I had the great pleasure of meeting and studying with Maynard Jackson beginning in 1963 at North Carolina Central University Law School, where I was and he had transferred from Boston. There in Durham, North Carolina, during a pivotal chapter in the civil rights struggle, Maynard transferred to be where his mother, Dr. Irene Dobbs Jackson, was a professor at North Carolina Central University. We established a close friendship which spanned a period of almost 40 years, through his three terms as mayor of Atlanta and his entering back into the business world, where he was serving at the time of his untimely death. Maynard's contributions to his adopted city of Atlanta and to America are unparalleled in our times, and he will be remembered as a giant in not only the political world but in the social and economic world as well, and his legacy will extend for all times.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank the floor leaders of this bill on both sides. I appreciate this opportunity on behalf of myself and my colleagues, the gentleman from California (Mr. Baca) and the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson). Mr. Chairman, I am deeply concerned about the state of minority affairs at USDA. We know that on April 1 of last year, Mr. Vernon Parker, the first USDA Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, was sworn in and given the enormous task of improving how minorities are currently treated at USDA, preempting future civil rights problems at USDA and righting past wrongs. I applaud the President for his efforts in creating this Office of Civil Rights, but I urge my colleagues, and the reason I am standing with this amendment, is to not let this office be only window dressing for this very serious matter. In the 1994 report commissioned by USDA, it was pointed out that minority participation in Farm Service Agency programs is particularly low; and minorities receive less than their fair share of USDA funding for crop payments, disaster payments and loans. The report found gross deficiencies in USDA data collection and handling that helped these minority farmers. Mr. Chairman, there are currently 11 class action lawsuits pending against USDA, all of which allege discrimination by USDA. There is a Latino farmer lawsuit, a Native American farm lawsuit and others, and the famous case of Pickford versus Glickman was settled in 1999. Since then we have spent over $800 million, but there are still 2,000 cases sitting around at USDA gathering dust waiting to be reviewed in connection with the Pickford case. We are hemorrhaging money. We have an Office of Civil rights. It is underfunded. We met with Mr. Parker. He has a 90-day plan where he wants to attack this issue, but he has two staffers in addition to himself, and he has no money. This amendment would allow that office to be properly funded. It would also allow about $2 million to go into the Office of Civil Rights so that they can review these old cases, and it would allow some funding to go for the benefit of Latino population education. We think that this $8 million we are seeking here is meaningful to address all of these civil rights issues. We think it would not only serve the Department but it would serve this Congress and would serve this country. So I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, I want to say at the outset that it is an honor for me to be standing in these hallowed halls as we address issues of such great import to the people of this country. A little more than a year ago, I campaigned in rural eastern North Carolina. I spoke to citizens at AARP meetings, at senior centers, at residences and elsewhere; and like most of my colleagues in this 108th Congress, I made a solemn promise that I would support and vote for a prescription drug benefit program. Each of us, I believe, most of us I know, made that promise to our constituents; and I, and I hope most of my colleagues, will keep that promise. I know that I will keep mine, and I will not vote for a plan that simply has the label on it. The plan that the Republican leadership of this Chamber has proposed would not benefit our seniors in the way that they need and deserve. It is not a real prescription drug plan. It is what I would call an empty promise. Mexico, Canada, Germany, England and France, what do all these countries have in common? Their seniors all pay lower prices for the exact same prescription drug medication that American seniors today cannot afford. One month's supply of Zocor, a prescription commonly taken by seniors to lower their cholesterol, costs $124 in the United States. In Europe, the same medication costs $28. The antidepressant Prozac, also widely prescribed throughout America, costs nearly $100 for just 20 pills. In Canada, those same 20 pills cost $20. Throughout America, seniors have for years been forced to choose between food on the table and medication, stories that we have heard about cutting pills in half or going without. Hardest hit are seniors and disabled of rural America, such as those in Arkansas and in North Carolina, the area that I represent. We have three plans before this Congress: the House Republican measure that focuses on nothing less than the absolute dismantling of Medicare as we know it; a Senate bipartisan measure that is somewhat better, although still falls far short; and we have a Democratic plan that is affordable, it is available, guaranteed and will maintain Medicare. Our plan has no gap in coverage, no doughnut hole, does not depend on the whims of HMOs or private insurance companies. However, we all know full well that, because it is a real plan, it probably will never see the light of day. Hopefully, however, the Democratic plan will force the Republican leadership to reconsider their devastating proposal and treat our seniors fair. So tonight we focus on the reality of how House Republican leadership efforts hurt seniors in rural America, disenfranchise, dismantle and ultimately devastate. That is what we can expect in eastern North Carolina if the House GOP has its way with this prescription drug coverage. That plan will privatize the prescription drug benefits by relying heavily on HMOs to facilitate these programs. Anyone who lives in rural America, such as eastern North Carolina, already knows the health crisis facing families and seniors, as big HMOs have abandoned them and consider them unprofitable. I am going to close because I think we know what we are facing. We know what we must do. We must fight to ensure that even hard-to-reach rural communities are included equally and with real results in a much- needed drug coverage plan; and we, Mr. Speaker, must keep our solemn promise.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding to me. Mr. Speaker, all of these women share one great quality, whether they are helping educate our youth, building houses for our families, creating jobs for our workers, or representing the people in the public arena. They all lead. These women are but a few women leaders from the congressional district that I represent. I want to close by saying that there are so many other women that I could call on and mention in my remarks, but I know my time is short. I do want to mention Joyce Dickens, president and CEO of the Rocky Mountain Edgecombe Community Development Commission and Andrea Harris, of Vance County, president of the Institute for Minority Economic Development. These and so many other women are blazing trails all over North Carolina and showing that women are great leaders, not only in North Carolina, but more particularly, in the First Congressional District.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, we have had wonderful debate in these halls, both this evening and during the week, on issues of great significance to the people of this country. I am here today to speak to the determination and grace of women in transcending the hurdles they face on a daily basis as they lead others along the paths they have carved out for future generations. While it is true, Mr. Speaker, that we stand here tonight highlighting the many obstacles faced by women on a daily basis, I would like to take these next few minutes to focus on the strength and dedication exemplified by so many women in my rural district in eastern North Carolina, the First Congressional District. The First District transcends hurdles and lead others along the paths they carved out, these women, for our future generation. The women of eastern North Carolina are many things. They are mothers and wives and sisters and daughters. They are doctors and lawyers, teachers, cooks, business owners and preachers. Most of all, these women are leaders. Tonight, I am proud to share with my colleagues stories of women who lead with distinction every day in areas of education, the political arena, housing, and economic development among others. I can think of no better example to begin with regarding the success for women in leadership than my predecessor in these halls, the honorable Eva Clayton, the first woman to be elected from North Carolina and one of only three to ever join the North Carolina congressional delegation. For 10 years, the First Congressional District made history with the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Mrs. Clayton) at the helm, leading the way on so many issues, among them minority farming, agriculture, housing, education and community and economic development, and her passion, hunger. Congresswoman Clayton carved out a path upon which I am proud to follow. Women in eastern North Carolina are leading the way in areas of housing, but while the ownership rates are increasing, women still lag considerably behind the general population in homeownership. One woman in Wilson, North Carolina, is helping entire communities realize the dream of homeownership. Her name is Fannie Corbett. She served for more than 31 years with the Wilson Community Improvement Association, being a founding member in 1968. Ms. Corbett and her colleagues have spent the last 3 decades moving from improving existing housing to initiating the building of more than 200 houses for families in the Wilson community, including playgrounds, arts, crafts, computer classes, Bible studies and exercise programs. Women around the country are building quality, affordable housing as they try to help their neighbors, friends and themselves improve their lives. For 31 years, Ms. Corbett, who will retire at the end of this month, led the way. Helping ensure the children of North Carolina receive quality education they deserve is Dr. Shirley Carraway, from Kinston, North Carolina. A lifelong education professional, Dr. Carraway served for many years in the Pitt County school system, one of the largest systems in my district. As assistant school superintendent for Pitt County, Dr. Carraway's dedication to educating the young minds of our district saw her recently voted as head school superintendent for another North Carolina county. On a national level, women lag behind men in earning doctoral professional degrees and are underrepresented in math and science. Dr. Carraway is leading the way to break down these barriers and open the doors of education for all children. North Carolina ranks number 31 in the Nation for women in managerial and professional occupations and 32 in women-owned businesses.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Mrs. Fannie Petway, a native of Pinetop, North Carolina, who passed on to her reward Sunday, April 27, 2003 at the age of 97. Mrs. Petway was a devoted parishioner of Bethlehem Baptist Church of Rocky Mount, North Carolina. She is survived by her loving son Columbus Petway, and a host of other relatives. Mrs. Petway's doors were always open to discuss family issues and she helped raise many children and grandchildren. She would keep them in awe with the many stories she told about her experiences on the farm where many of the children in her life spent their summers. The men in her family reflect fondly when they would get a call from Fannie asking them to stop by and get something to eat--and they would never say no, especially when wooed with her memorable peach cobbler and coconut cake, in spite of the fact that their wives had another meal waiting for them at home. Mrs. Petway is preceded in death by her daughter Annie Elizabeth Knight, her son Edward Petway, and daughters-in-law Eunice Irene Petway and Madie Moore Petway. She was the loving and proud grandmother to seven granddaughters and seven grandsons. Mrs. Petway's gracious and warm smile will be deeply missed along with the many wonderful memories and recipes she has left behind. The blessing of her warmth and love have left a mark on those close to her and will be remembered vividly and fondly. My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, today as we stand in these halls, we are experiencing an unprecedented crisis in our community, our cities, and our towns all across America, as dedicated hardworking citizens find themselves receiving pink slips, they are laid off. And the big problem is that they are unable to find jobs. This economic crisis is at its worst. In the district that I represent in rural eastern North Carolina, an area that once thrived on agriculture and textiles, both of which have been hard hit, it appears that as far as the textile industry, there is little or no hope for recovery. More than half a million jobs have been lost nationwide in the last 5 months alone. At this moment there are fewer jobs in the labor market than at any other time since the current recession began. Since January of 2001, the Nation has lost 2.7 million private sector jobs, and the unemployment rate has risen from 4.5 in 2001 to 6 percent 2 years later. In North Carolina we have lost 130,000 jobs since the Bush administration took office; 80,000 of these jobs have been lost in the manufacturing sector; 5,328 textiles/apparel jobs have been lost in the first district alone since 1999; 32,640 textile/apparel jobs have been lost in North Carolina since 1999; 12,669 manufacturing jobs lost in the first district since 2001. In addition to plant closings all across the State, they are leaving thousands of families in financial peril. In the Halifax County town of Roanoke Rapids, in my district, the closure of the West Point Stevens textile plant, and many of you may remember the plant immortalized as the foundation for workers' rights in the movie ``Norma Rae,'' will put 350 families out of work next month. There will not be one yard of textile production in Halifax County once this West Point Stevens facility closes, abandoning a city on the Roanoke River founded on textiles. Unless some long-term remedies are found, North Carolinians and, most specifically, workers in northeastern North Carolina, will face a crisis of chronic unemployment with shrinking safety nets to combat this crisis. The percentage of workers nearly receiving regular unemployment benefits who subsequently exhausted those benefits without finding work was at its highest level ever just a few months ago in February. The tax plan forced through this House last week included no provision whatsoever for extending unemployment insurance benefits, which are due to expire in just 17 days. We have got to do something about this problem. It is time that we pass the bill that extended this deadline and provided jobs for our people. I urge us to take this step.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel) for yielding me this time. As a new Member of this 108th Congress, I recently traveled throughout the rural areas of North Carolina. I find that the people who sent me down to Washington, D.C. are hurting. We are losing manufacturing jobs. When I go into the farm community, our farmers are suffering. They have huge tractors that they do not need and they cannot pay for. They have built barns that cost $15,000 that they do not have any tobacco to put in them. I find that many of these same farmers have hired workers to take care of their crops. They no longer have an opportunity to pay these people who can then support their families. We are hurting in rural America. We need an opportunity to put some money in the pockets of people who will spend it and spur this economy, not this plan that is being sent by the majority.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I am thankful for this opportunity to offer this amendment to the United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003. I would like to commend the efforts of my friends and colleagues on both sides of the aisle. I thank the gentleman from Illinois (Chairman Hyde) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos), ranking member, for their leadership; but I also want to take a moment to point my finger at the honorable gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee), our good friend and long-time leader in this effort who has stood tall on this issue for so many years, and I would like to take the opportunity to commend our President for getting involved in this issue. I have been in this Congress now for about 4 months, and there have not been many issues that have touched me. This one has. So I have come today to add my voice on behalf of a growing problem compounding the HIV/AIDS crisis in many African nations. America stands ready to help provide food assistance to our brothers and sisters in Africa suffering from this devastating disease, HIV/AIDS. We already provide more than 60 percent of all food aid around the world, and yet some parts of the world question the quality of our foods on the basis of unscientific concerns. Thus it is that some nations object to our food aid; and one I would point out, Zambia, has completely rejected our help. Mr. Chairman, I am concerned that America may not be doing enough to educate foreign countries about genetically modified foods. Many poor nations lack infrastructure to determine if food is safe. With images on television of epidemics like Mad Cow Disease, many African leaders are very hesitant to go on the findings of food safety inspections and research services of another nation. With many countries in Africa dealing with HIV/AIDS, their leaders are hesitant to introduce any item into the food supply that they suspect might further complicate health problems. Without adequate information, it is no wonder many of these countries have come to different conclusions about food products they allow into their country. Mr. Chairman, if we asked most HIV/AIDS victims in Africa what they need most, I would venture to say that they will tell us that they need food. More than any medication, providing proper nutrition to regions without adequate food can prolong lives. The most at risk in this debilitating crisis are women and children. The links between malnutrition and AIDS deaths is undeniable. Malnutrition accelerates the progression from HIV to AIDS and leaves those with HIV/AIDS vulnerable to opportunistic infections that often are fatal. The devastation that this disease causes in Africa, the hundreds of thousands of orphans, the decimated communities and the economic damage can be alleviated with a combined program of medical aid and good nutrition. Food is much less expensive than antiretroviral drugs, and good nutrition can prolong the lives of AIDS victims for many years and sometimes decades. According to the recently published Demographic Health Survey and the 2000 Census of Population and Housing by the United Nations, children born between 1970 and 1975 in Zambia could expect to live 47.2 years. That same study now has shown that their life expectancy has decreased to 40.5 years. Unfounded fears should not hold up food aid. This amendment I believe will go a long way to alleviate those concerns, and I would urge my colleagues to adopt this amendment.

Mr. BALLANCE. I yield to the gentleman from California.

Mr. BALLANCE. I yield to the gentleman from Illinois.

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Chairman, reclaiming my time, one other thing I wanted to say which was not in my prepared remarks was we grow a lot of corn in North Carolina. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, HIV and AIDS infections represent a crippling medical crisis worldwide, and it is for that reason I want to sort of focus my remarks on that particular subject in the context of the subject we are discussing this evening. This problem is so pervasive around the world, but as we focus the microscope on the tiny Nation of Haiti, it is indeed an epidemic. I regret very much that America has not done its share to address this issue. In fact, for so long, most of us have been missing in action. But there is a soldier who has been standing and fighting this battle for so many years. She is the chair of the CBC Brain Trust on Global AIDS and HIV, and that is the distinguished gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee). I say to the gentlewoman, I do not wear a hat this time of year, but I take my hat off to you for standing so tall. A lot of people, as we look back on this issue, were afraid to even speak out, were afraid to get involved. As I look back on my own career and on my own life and the life of my fore parents, I recall that it is a long journey from Africa to America. It is a long journey from slavery to freedom. But history tells me that my ancestors got on a boat involuntarily somewhere on the West Coast of Africa. We have been so journeying in America now for more than 400 years. Is it not amazing that we, as ancestors of those who were taken, now find ourselves in a position to provide some help and, hopefully, to provide some financial assistance and, hopefully, to lead our government to say that, in fact, we are compassionate beyond words, but we are compassionate in deeds. That is what it is going to take to address this issue. So I have come today to add my voice to those who are crying aloud for attention and help on the subject of HIV and AIDS in this small, tiny Nation of about 8 million people in Africa. We all have an obligation to make a contribution. Even though we may be healed of whatever ailment may have afflicted us, I believe we have the obligation to turn back and say ``thank you.'' We all remember the story from Luke, chapter 17 when the 10 lepers were passing by and Jesus was on the scene. And they asked for some help. And when they were healed, they went on their way, but one, and only one, turned back to say thank you. Jesus asked the question, what happened to the other nine? As Members of this great body, in these historic halls of the United States, I am sure sometimes my colleague asks the question, where are the other 434? Well, there are a few of us here today to stand with the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee) to say, keep on fighting. To say that help is on the way, we believe, and we thank all who have joined in this recent struggle, including our President. I hope he is genuine in his assessment that he is going to try to make funds available. I hope we can convince some other nations who are concerned about our grain because of this very issue and the generic factor in our grain; a lot of times we can help others by helping ourselves. We can reach out to help this Nation and other nations. We can also help our farmers who have excess grain. America is a great Nation. I am proud to be an American. But when we stand up to help others, our true greatness comes out. I believe on this issue, history will judge us harshly if we do not respond to this critical issue, not only in this country, but in particular, in a poor country where the income is so low, maybe $60 a year, that they have not the resources to address this problem. We must add our voice. We must turn back and say ``thank you'' by our actions and by our deeds.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, I am honored this evening to join with my colleagues on this important issue. A careful reading of history reminds us that the first Americans, whom we now call Native Americans and sometimes we call Indians, those whose ancestors walked the Trail of Tears, part of which is in my native State of North Carolina, those who suffered through broken promises from our government, and even as we stand here today in combat in Federal court with our Department of Interior over how to account for funds derived from lands that America allegedly set aside for Native Americans, we all know how important small businesses are all over our Nation and in every community, where they make up 75 percent of new employment and, by some figures, more than 90 percent of all new employers. The average unemployment rate of Native Americans, particularly those on the reservation, languishes today around 45 percent. That is unacceptable in modern America, when we keep in mind that the national unemployment rate in February of this year was 5.8 percent. Even more alarming, one-third of Native Americans currently live below the poverty line. And so that is why I am honored to stand with my colleagues in support of this important legislation which I understand was introduced and went forward last year but did not make it all the way. We are hopeful that we can pass this legislation in the House of Representatives and it can become law. Native American small businesses grew at a rate of 84 percent over the last 5 years. And we not only have a legal, I think, responsibility, but we have a moral responsibility to ensure that this trend continues to ensure that we make efforts to right past wrongs, and for selfish reasons, to ensure that in our country that every segment of our community has an opportunity for its young people to move forward and to enjoy the American dream. I am strongly in support of this legislation and I urge my colleagues to pass it.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Chairman, on rollcall No. 87, I was in attendance at a meeting of the CBC Foundation at the National Press Club and did not return in time to vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.'' Announcement by the Chairman Pro Tempore

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, the medical community is rightfully concerned about the rising cost of medical insurance, and I strongly agree that Congress needs to address this urgent issue. There are three key points to be made in responding to this important issue: First, reform the insurance industry; second, reduce frivolous lawsuits wherever they are to be found; and, third, reduce the number of medical errors made, I am advised by my research, by a small minority of 5 percent of the physicians. The Republican bill's attempt to cap damage awards and blame the trial lawyers would achieve none of these goals. The insurance companies victimize patients through denial of medical coverage while doctors are severely gouged by staggering premiums. Caps only serve to further victimize patients without providing any relief to the medical profession. More importantly, in my opinion, caps take away our constitutional and time-honored right to trial by jury. Mr. Speaker, I urge that we vote against this bill and let us pass a real medical malpractice reform bill.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker. I wanted to thank my colleague, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), for this opportunity. I want to add my voice to that of my colleagues on this very, very important issue. When I was running for this office, and I am a new Member, a little over 1 year ago when I started, and as I traveled around rural, poor eastern North Carolina, almost one-quarter of our State, my district covers 23 counties, the number one or number two, certainly the number three issue that always came up was that of a prescription drug benefit. We kept talking to our constituents, and many of them were seniors. And I happen to believe that all across the country, this entire body put itself before our citizens for reelection, there were a lot of promises made on both sides of the aisle that when we get back to Washington we are going to enact a prescription drug benefit, many of us would say, for seniors. I have a tremendous number of seniors in my district, particularly when it comes to those who are active and involved. I want to say in my prior life in the State legislature, we wrestled with similar issues that were important to seniors; and I always felt if you make a promise, you ought to keep it. And as I add my voice to that of my colleagues tonight, I really think of all of the voices all across northeastern North Carolina, across the rest of North Carolina and across this country, people who are hurting, who need help, who are demanding help. Many of these people, as the gentleman knows, are unable to afford their prescriptions. People are cutting pills in half and going without and taking one every other day, when they should be taking one every day. Now, the President has proposed a plan that will not benefit these seniors, will not give them what we promised them. It will give them the label on the box, but the box is empty. I am so proud that the Democrats have come up with a plan, and, very frankly, it ought to be bipartisan. It ought to be nonpartisan, because, frankly, once we get elected, we ought to turn our attention to the people we represent. Our voices ought to mingle together like a choir, like a symphony, as we seek to produce those things that we have promised. As I say, the time has come to deliver; and I am here tonight to support what I believe and what I see and what I have read to be an outstanding plan promised by the Democrats. It would ensure that even hard-to-reach rural communities, just like my district, are included equally in this much-needed and much-demanded prescription drug plan. The premiums, as has already been said, would be affordable. The deductibles would be reasonable, and they would be similar to coinsurance. I heard the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) talk about $25 a month, up to $100 a year, and then an 80/20 plan. I think that is imminently reasonable and fair. The other thing, this plan is inclusive. It reaches everyone. It is a simple plan. It is straightforward. It gives seniors and those with disabilities the coverage and the drugs they need, and that not only they need, but they have been promised. The plan covers catastrophic coverage. It takes special note to include the poorest Americans, people earning between 150 and 175 percent of poverty level. That is about $13,500 a year. As I said, the coverage is fair and cost- effective, and in some cases it even has a sliding scale. On the other hand, the plan that is proposed by the President would be very, very harmful to people in my district; and I consider it my responsibility, in particular, to speak up for those in rural eastern North Carolina and to say is this really a plan, or is this an empty promise? This plan favors strongly HMOs. However, as we know from our history, HMOs are not particularly fond of rural and economically struggling communities; and, therefore, is this plan going to produce what it is promising, or is it going to leave our people holding a bag with nothing in it? For years now we have been saying older Americans are being forced to choose between food and medication that they need. This plan would force seniors to choose between their doctors and prescription drug coverage. Should Medicare benefits opt out of the President's plan, their only chance for drug coverage would be a discount card that we have also heard about tonight that gives a meager 12.4 percent discount. We know that that is little more than you can get with your bonus card at a supermarket. This is hardly the kind of relief that we need to give to our seniors. The administration today claims their plan would provide eligible recipients with the same coverage afforded to Members of Congress and Federal employees. However, our researchers at the Congressional Research Service value the President's proposal as well under half of what it provides to Members of Congress. The Democratic plan would provide coverage to everyone the entire year with affordable costs to Medicare beneficiaries. This institution, known as the United States Congress, has a great history. There have been times that we have responded to issues that have arisen throughout the country. We know how to respond. We have the ability to respond. The question today is, do we have the courage? It only takes a little bit of courage to give an honest answer and to keep our commitment. Mr. Speaker, I strongly encourage my colleagues to act now on a favorable plan.

Mr. BALLANCE. If the distinguished gentleman would just further yield, Mr. Speaker, I would say there has been a lot of talk about compassion. This is a great time for it to be shown. Anyone who has been in the senior centers that I have been in, that the gentleman has been in, that others of our colleagues have been in, and are going to go in again, we look around the room and look at these people who are there, and they are doing the best they can to get along in the world. We are here, and we are their voices. I just hope the gentleman will continue to raise his voice and others will raise their voices on their behalf, and hopefully we can get a plan that will be beneficial to them.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding to me, our distinguished Chair of the CBC. I am honored and, indeed, I am right proud that in the middle of a month that has been set aside as Black History Month to stand in the well of the House of Representatives of the United States of America representing 619,000 citizens of rural, poor, eastern North Carolina, known as the first congressional district. I am honored to be here as a freshman member of the 108th Congress. It is amazing that princes and kings and clowns that caper in sawdust rings, and ordinary people like a young boy who grew up on a tenant farm in Bertie County under civil rights, the 13th and 14th amendments to the United States Constitution, the Voting Rights Act, the Civil Rights Act, all of the great decisions of the United States Supreme Court guaranteeing that we hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men, including Africans in America, are created equal and that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, among them life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And I want to say that as we have struggled to gain equal rights and civil rights and to celebrate those rights and to build on those rights and to have the opportunities to work, to earn our living, to pay our taxes, to build institutions, to build businesses, to send our children to college, yes, to historically black universities founded by people fresh out of slavery, and even to those universities that at times in the past have denied our entry. Is it not amazing, as we stand here tonight, there are great debates going on in these halls of this prestigious institution known as the United States Congress, and I am told that the debate that was going on a minute ago about issues of welfare reform that this majority and this Congress, this Republican majority, Mr. Speaker, is going to use brute power and minutia rules to deny freshman Members like me my civil rights and to deny my constituents their rights, their constitutional rights, to have an opportunity to debate those issues involved in the welfare rights reform bill. That is to say, in this great, and I will call it the ``great depression'' that we are going into, where we are losing jobs all over this country because the party in power wants to give a tax cut to some rich Americans, and therefore we have no jobs. And now we have a bill that is going to say that people who cannot get a job have to work even longer hours or they will be thrown off the welfare rolls whether they deserve this assistance or not. Would it not be one of my civil rights? And I know it is my constitutional right as a Member of this body to have an opportunity to debate that issue, to debate whether or not we are going to have funds to provide child care adequate so that those parents who are threatened to be thrown off welfare will indeed have an opportunity to go to work or to go to school. Yes, in the midst of this Black History Month, we celebrate the birthday of Abraham Lincoln, the author of the Emancipation Proclamation. President Lincoln, a member of the Republican Party, a party that supported civil rights at one time, a party that supported the enfranchisement of African Americans and former slaves. Yet as we stand here today, the leader of that former great party and the President of our country has come out foursquare against the concept of affirmative action; and therefore I will contend that he is against Black History Month. Why do I say that? What is Black History Month if it is not affirmative action? There was a time when those who wrote history left out of the pages of history about people of color, and so Carter G. Woodson came along, and as he read the history books, as he read the tabloids, he did not see anybody in the books that looked like him, and he saw none of the great works that Africans were doing in America. And so he started what became Black History Week, affirmative action, and then it became Black History Month, affirmative action. And now we have an opportunity under a plan that has been approved by the United States Supreme Court to say that race can be one factor in deciding admissions to the University of Michigan, and we find that the President is opposed. I am going to close by saying it is a long journey from Africa to America. It is a long journey from slavery to freedom. It is a long journey from the back of the bus to being the driver and owner of the bus company. But we have made it, and I contend that one reason we did was because of those human rights that were at one time properly enforced, and I hope and I pray that they will be in the future.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, today I am joined by my colleagues Representatives Walter Jones, Mike McIntryre, and Bob Etheridge, in introducing legislation to provide elderly residents of North Carolina affected by floods with resources to repair their homes. Despite the fact that several years have passed, the effects of the catastrophic flooding from a succession of hurricanes in the late 1990s continue to be felt in North Carolina even today. Thousands of North Carolinians suffered major damage to their homes and have yet to make the necessary repairs. As is often the case in situations like this, it is those who are already vulnerable who are affected most. In this case, the elderly have suffered disproportionately. Because many of the elderly are on fixed incomes, their ability to pay for home repairs is often limited. The late 1990s were an incredibly challenging time for Eastern North Carolina. For several years in a row, hurricanes struck our communities with torrential winds and tremendous rains. Hurricane Floyd alone was responsible for 51 storm-related deaths in North Carolina, the destruction of over 7,000 homes, and made 17,000 additional homes uninhabitable. Overall damage to the state of North Carolina was estimated at over $6 billion dollars, making it the most costly natural disaster in the history of North Carolina. The hurricane flooded a combined area of 18,000 square miles, an area roughly twice the size of Vermont. This legislation gives to the North Carolina Commissioner of Agriculture the authority to provide funds to low-income seniors in Eastern North Carolina for the purpose of home repair. The need is considerable. In fact, rural development officials in Raleigh tell me that they have over $1 million in pending applications from the elderly seeking to repair their homes but zero resources with which to address this matter. This legislation gives to the state of North Carolina the ability to respond to this need. Though Hurricane Floyd may be just a memory to many, the residents of Eastern North Carolina continue to confront the challenge of rebuilding our communities on a daily basis. This legislation is a modest but important step that will enable our senior citizens to remain in their homes and to make the improvements necessary to render them habitable once again. I am happy to say that this bipartisan legislation is founded on the shared recognition of both Republicans and Democrats that much work remains to be done to recover from the flooding that devastated our communities and I thank my colleagues for joining me in this effort. Our junior Senator, Mr. Edwards, is also a part of this effort and was recently successful in including language that is identical to this bill in an appropriations bill that is expected to be completed within several weeks. The bipartisan support for this bill is proof that the Edwards language should remain in the bill that the President will eventually sign.

Mr. BALLANCE

Mr. BALLANCE. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 12, Congratulating the Ohio State University for winning the 2002 NCAA Division I football championship, I was regretably unable to cast my vote at the appropriate time. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''