Dan Benishek

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I thank Dr. Roe. I rise today in support of legislation to name the Traverse City VA Clinic after Colonel Demas T. Craw, a Medal of Honor recipient from my district in Traverse City. As I soon will be retiring from Congress, I quickly want to say that it has been quite an honor for me to work with the chairman, Jeff Miller, and all the members of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee over the last 6 years. It hasn't been an easy fight, but I believe we have made real progress toward a better VA for the men and women who have fought for our freedom. This sacred work must continue, as they still deserve much better. I have faith that the next chairman of the committee, my friend, Dr. Phil Roe, will be able to continue this progress and break new ground in the fight for our Nation's heroes. I have been very pleased to assist in the effort to honor Colonel Craw in the House, along with a dedicated team of veterans and patriotic citizens. Led by retired Lieutenant Colonel Terry Hawn and Dr. Dan Lathrop, they worked to gather the over 2,000 signatures needed and build support within the community to honor this truly deserving local hero. Born near Traverse City in 1900, Colonel Craw served in the U.S. Army during both world wars. As a United States Army Air Forces officer in World War II, he served as a U.S. adviser to the Royal Air Force prior to American entry to the war, and was captured and interned by German forces for 6 weeks in 1941. He was killed in action, described previously, on November 8, 1942, after volunteering to lead a dangerous and, ultimately, successful mission behind enemy lines. He received the Medal of Honor posthumously for ``conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action above and beyond the call of duty.'' We couldn't have done this without the support of the entire Michigan congressional delegation, as well as the Grand Traverse Area Veterans Coalition, the American Legion Department of Michigan, the Veterans of Foreign Wars of Michigan, and many other veteran service organizations. I want to thank Senator Gary Peters for introducing the Senate version of this legislation that we are considering today. I urge my colleagues to help honor this American hero and pass S. 3492.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, as a lifelong resident of northern Michigan, I know how important it is to protect and conserve our precious natural resources. Northern Michigan's economy depends on our Great Lakes and our outdoor spaces for tourism, agriculture, and sporting activities. Generations of people in my district have grown up experiencing the outdoors from the shores of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore to Isle Royale National Park. However, we need to make sure that there is a balance and that we do not undertake rash and unproven regulatory policies that are almost guaranteed to negatively impact our economy in the hope of some potential--and often unquantifiable--environmental gain. I just got back from northern Michigan. As a matter of fact, I was in Ottawa National Forest hunting. What strikes me about the regulatory nature of the Federal Government is it doesn't really take into account what is happening in the wild. The Ottawa National Forest, for example, hasn't been properly managed. The regulations as far as managing the forest make it so difficult that the forest is aging and the trees are actually falling down and rotting rather than being harvested. This is just one of the policies of this administration, and I am really hoping, now that we have a new administration coming forward, there will be a lot of change in the regulatory policies to actually develop policies that make sense for our environment and make sense for our people. That is why I wanted to speak tonight about many of these policies that affect our environment and global warming. A lot of policies of the last administration, even the administration before that, really don't have the globe at the forefront of solving these problems. What they have been doing is just writing more and more regulations that stop whatever we are doing, and they don't have any particular effect on the global environment. I am bringing this up for a reason. I just brought this little pollution-by-country chart, and this is the global pollution for the whole world. We know the United States is a pretty big part of that. The EU is a big part of that. India is big, and China is the biggest. The rest of the world provides, probably, the largest. But what strikes me about this is the fact that we in America haven't done things right all the time, but we are constantly striving to make improvements. My problem with the way that the regulations are written under this administration is the fact that we are killing our economy to improve the global environment, and yet we are a relatively small part of the problem of pollution and global warming--if you believe that it is manmade--and we are not really doing anything about the rest of this. We are putting so many regulatory burdens on our industry, like, for example, energy production. The cost of energy production is a big part of making steel, for example. Many of the countries around the world are buying steel not so much from us but from China and India because they are polluting the planet in order to produce cheap steel, and we are really helping the environment with all our regulations and everything to the point that we are losing all of our jobs. That doesn't make any sense. If we were allowed to harvest our energy in a very environmentally friendly way, we would have more jobs here in this country. These guys would have less jobs. I want to keep jobs here in America. This is just one of the examples. Wait until you see some of the pictures I have. My district was once a huge mining area. We mine iron ore, construction sand and gravel, salt is produced in Michigan, and copper. And these are all good-paying jobs. I am going to give you a great example of one of the weirdest regulations that have come out of this administration. And that is we do have a mine in my district that recently opened, a new nickel mine, the first nickel mine in this country, I think, in over 50 years. The road to the mine, there is no good road to the mine. There is 68 miles of road through a downtown and around a roundabout to the processing mill to process the nickel ore. The local county road commission wanted to build a 22-mile road that would bypass the 68 miles of road through a downtown, but they can't get a permit to build the road because EPA blocked it. Now, the Federal Government in Washington, D.C., is telling a local county in my district that they can't build a road because it involves some wetlands. Well, there is about 5 acres of wetlands that have to be filled in order to build this road. Believe me, you can't build a road anywhere in this country without filling in some wetlands in order to have the grade be safe. We have had environmental laws in this country that said: if you are going to fill in some wetlands to build a road, you have got to create some wetlands somewhere else to mitigate for the fact that you have taken away some habitat from some species maybe and that sort of thing. Well, the road commission put up 100 times the acreage of the wetlands that they were going to use for the roadway to mitigate for that. But that wasn't good enough for the EPA. As a matter of fact, the EPA stopped the road without even listening very well to the mitigation plan. This was bad for jobs. It makes it difficult for the mine to do business. It makes the longevity of the mine not as good because it is more expensive to process the ore. And it creates more pollution because the trucks are driving 68 miles to the ore processing plant versus the 22 miles on a new road. Besides, the new road would open up a lot of other areas for economic development as well. Well, this is the type of rule and regulation that doesn't make any sense to the people that want to protect their environment with fewer miles on the road with diesel trucks and also provide economic opportunity in an area that needs jobs. So I am really hopeful that we will continue with a new administration to improve and stop this ridiculous rulemaking that has absolutely no effect on the environment--if anything, it makes it worse--all because people in Washington here under this administration have decided that they know better than the people in Michigan who actually live there, and they can't make a decision for themselves because you can't possibly know it would be good for the environment because you are just living on the UP and you don't really know what is what. That has been my frustration in my time here in Congress. That is a really good example of what is going on. I want to show you a couple of pictures of some places around the world that aren't managing the environment, such as the United States is. Here we have a factory, a Chinese factory that is putting out all kinds of pollutants without any significant environmental controls on them at all. These are the kind of factories that we are competing with, with our factories, which are much better. We just had a coal-fired power plant stopped in my district several years ago by the EPA because of this administration's war on coal. This coal plant was a state-of-the-art coal plant. It didn't even produce CO2 because, in my district, they are able to harness the technology to capture the CO2 and sell it and actually use it to pump in the ground to help the production of local oil wells. The CO2 is not an issue. So we are actually competing with people that do this to our environment, and losing jobs overseas because of the tight regulations we have here, but we are not doing anything about this that is going on across the world. None of the policies that we have instituted on our industry are in effect over there. We haven't put any significant demands on the Chinese to make them stop doing this. I was talking to some biologists from the University of Michigan. We have an environmental research station in my district. The University of Michigan has been studying the environment for the last 100 years or so. And one of the things that I found really interesting was the fact that one of the great concerns about coal mining and coal used for energy production was the mercury in the air. I was talking to these guys from the University of Michigan and they said: we solved the mercury problem in this country decades ago; that is not a problem anymore. Most of the mercury that is in our environment here in the United States comes from China and India. Because it is over in China and India doesn't mean that it is not a global problem. That stuff goes up in the atmosphere. It takes the jet stream, and it comes all the way over here. The majority of the pollutant mercury in our country is coming from places like this. This administration has done nothing about it except for putting more stringent controls on our energy production, making our energy more expensive, and making people want to buy steel and other products from countries that do this to our environment. This is not the right way to deal with this issue. If we are going to deal with global pollution, global production of harmful toxins, or global warming, we have to talk to people that are bad actors around the world and make them do their part and not make our industries really the joke of everyone else in the world because they are making money and we are losing our jobs and it doesn't make any sense whatsoever. Let's see another picture here. This is a pretty good one from India. This is a river in India. This is all trash in the middle of the river in India. I went to India, and I was appalled by how filthy it was and the lack of environmental rules. This is what we are dealing with. Now, I know the Indians and, perhaps, the Chinese are not as developed as we are, but they are competing in the same environment for industry as we are along the globe. I am hopeful that the coming Trump administration is going to take this kind of stuff seriously, unlike the Obama administration, which his only answer to global warming and global pollution is to put more and more restrictions on our industry, killing jobs in this country and giving more jobs to people around the world that do this. This picture is a good example of the way things are done across the world. Now, I come from a timber district where we want to harvest responsibly the timber that we have in our national forests. That means cutting trees down as they mature in a logical fashion so that there are a lot of healthy trees in the forest that are not overcome by disease and fire, which is what we have seen out West over the last couple of decades because those forests are not being managed. Originally, the national forests were developed as a place for multiple use-- for harvesting for logs, for entertainment to go hunting and fishing. I hunt and fish in a national forest. But when the trees become over mature and they are not managed in a way that allow new growth, there is a limited amount of species that can exist in that type of a forest. This is what they do in Indonesia. This is a forest in Indonesia that was clear-cut for miles and miles and miles. This is the way it was left. Now, that is not the way it is done in Michigan, not where I live, not in my Federal forests. The problem is we are not doing enough of the select cuts, the limited clear-cuts that allow spreading of new growth. We are competing on our timber products with people that do this to their environment. Now, in this country, private forests and State forests are managed with the stewardship program where third-party stewards of the forest, who are registered, licensed, and trained how to manage forests, are given the opportunity to manage forests over decades, over centuries, so that there is always a healthy forest with mid-term growth, long- term growth, new growth. There is a multiple of species that can live amongst that. People can hunt and enjoy that area. I just want to try to, Mr. Speaker, make sure the American people are aware of the fact that our environment is a place where we live, we want it to be good and healthy, and we want it also to be able to provide jobs for the people that live in my district and across the country. Some of the statistics I could give you about the Chinese, for example, is that in 2012, China was responsible for over a quarter of the pollution worldwide. As you saw in that circle, the total pollution in China currently equals the pollution from the United States and the European Union combined. This is expected to only increase. Now, China is run by a centralized government that has not traditionally respected the environment or the concerns of the locals when it comes to major decisions or projects. This is the type of policy that we can talk to the Chinese and have a discussion about what they can do to improve their behavior. India is currently the world's fastest growing economy and already the fourth largest polluter. As the Indian economy grows, these emissions are going to continue to rise. As you see from Indonesia, there is deforestation and clear-cutting in the rain forest. I want to have responsible and sustainable forestry practices because timber is a renewable resource. Now, our environmental actions have been incremental in nature, but, until this last administration, they haven't been killing our industry. Now with the Obama administration's war on coal, significant areas of our economy have fallen into disrepair. I am so thankful, frankly, that we have a new administration coming in that is going to, hopefully, put a stop to those policies that have been driving our jobs overseas and making it difficult for us here at home. I just want to show another graph here for U.S. employment in manufacturing industries. Now, starting in 1980 into 2014, as you can see, thousands of jobs in the manufacturing industries have gone down. I am not saying that environmental regulations are the complete cause of this, but I think this should be a pretty major part of our decisionmaking process as to how we do these things. We have a regulatory and approval process in the United States that most other countries don't even approach or even pretend to go through. Having incremental change consulting with industry and still having strict standards, I think, can all happen at once. But when the current administration has had a policy of killing our industry and not doing anything about these foreign people, we need to put a change to that and turn this manufacturing number around and bring manufacturing back to where it should be. This slide was made up before the election, so I wasn't sure it was going to happen in the next administration. Here are the economically significant regulations this government has put out all the way back to 2000. The number of regulations are expected to cost $100 million or more to the American people. You can see that, consistently, from the beginning of the Obama administration that that number has significantly increased. I am so happy to hear that Mr. Trump has promised, for every new regulation, to cut two. Let's start with the cutting. At the end of the day, we need to protect our environment. However, hamstringing our economy will not save our environment. The other people on the planet provide for most of the pollution and for the other things that people are afraid of in the environment--more than we are by far. All too often, the consequences of overburdening regulations here in America is the flight of manufacturing and industry to nations such as China, Indonesia, and India. I am hopeful that my colleagues here in the House and in the Senate, along with a new administration, will change that and make logical regulations. I think this will benefit our planet. It will certainly benefit the American citizens. We shouldn't be implementing expensive nonsolutions to a problem of which the extent and impact remain uncertain. I have been criticized in the past for talking about global warming and what the future is going to bring. With anything you talk about with regard to the administration's being over-regulatory, then you are accused of being a polluter of the planet. I ran for election several times, and these are the types of arguments that people will make to try to make you look bad, to make you look as if you want to pollute the planet. I think, really, Americans are tired of that baloney. We want to have a decent living; we want to have a clean planet; we want to make sure that the people around the world have the same values and interests that we do in that, if we are going to work hard to try to make our planet cleaner, they should, too, so that we are competing on an even scale here. With what we are doing now, we are not competing on an even scale. It is very important that we don't allow people to intimidate us when we say: ``I want to have more mining in this country. I want to be able to use coal.'' They just immediately say that you are an anti- environmentalist, and it is just torture. Most of the people who say this kind of stuff have never been to a community that actually does mining. They just see it from afar. They don't see the end result of a mine that has been rehabilitated and that is covered with green. They don't have any idea what is really going on. They just use it in fear so that the American people don't really realize the truth of what is going on, and they want their vote. They are causing fear in the American people by their saying: ``This guy doesn't want to protect the environment.'' I mean, I want to protect the environment. I come from one of the most beautiful places in the country, I think. I want it to be clean and healthy for my children as well, and it is going to be really clean and healthy if nobody lives there because there are no jobs. We need to protect our environment, have policies that allow jobs to continue to occur in this country, and have reasonable regulations that make sense and that have sound, scientific studies. This administration has hid the scientific studies behind closed doors in many cases. I am a physician. I wrote research papers. I had to show my evidence to the world and have other people criticize what I wrote so that they could say: ``You didn't do that right,'' or ``your technique was flawed,'' or ``the study you did didn't really show what you said it shows.'' That is what happens in scientific research--you have to have your research open to criticism. This administration has used science in the way that they say: ``The scientists say `this,''' but they don't want to show you the data because they don't want other people to criticize what they have done. They say that other people who might criticize them are just politicized when they, themselves, are politicized. They also don't want the other side to speak, because they will say: ``You are just anti-environment.'' We need to have an open discourse of scientists on both sides of issues--and consensus--before we make policies and regulations that kill millions of jobs and that cost families as their raises for the last 8 years have been meager. We need to be sure that science is open and not politicized as it has been in this administration. I encourage my colleagues to not be afraid to stand up for what is right and for jobs in this country. I encourage the people who may be watching, too, to think about what the politicians they listen to are saying and how it affects jobs and how it really affects the environment because, although we want a clean environment, we are not going to write rules that kill jobs and that do not do anything about the real polluters on this planet, who care nothing about the environment, and who are causing the majority of the problems around the globe. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize September as Veterans Suicide Prevention Month. America has a veteran suicide epidemic. In 2014, 20 veterans a day committed suicide. Only six of these were users of VA services. I know that the challenges of military life do not end once our servicemen and -women return home from Active Duty. A veteran in northern Michigan pointed out to me that, when calling a VA medical center, an automated voice directed those in a mental health crisis to hang up and dial a long 800 number. This made no sense. I am pleased VA has finally taken steps to address this. Now when a veteran calls Iron Mountain VA Hospital, he or she can be immediately connected to a mental health crisis line. I hope this feature will be rolled out to every VA medical facility as soon as possible. To all veterans struggling with whether to take your life, know there is no shame in asking for help. I thank those who have served our country for their immeasurable service and sacrifice.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize 100 years of service from the Mio Hydro facility, named after the adjacent town of Mio and located on the lower Au Sable River. During that time it has provided reliable power to thousands of families and businesses in Oscoda County, Michigan. In the early 1900's, Consumers Energy founders, William A. and James B. Foote sought out to harness the energy of the Au Sable River to power the mills and growing cities of the surrounding area. Between 1911 and 1924, six hydroelectric dams were constructed. Mio Hydro was the fourth dam constructed and was completed in 1916. This facility was unique in that it was the first hydroelectric dam to utilize an under-sluice spillway. Invented and patented by Consumers civil engineer, William W. Tefft, the design allows excess water to flow through conduits built into the foundation of the powerhouse instead of through an above ground gated spillway. This new design was proven to lower construction costs and increased the plant's power production. This year I am pleased to join all the Consumers Energy employees and retirees to commemorate 100 years of clean, reliable and renewable energy generated by this facility. A century of service is a testament to the dedicated men and women that have kept watch over Mio and supplied power to generations of Michiganders. Congratulations on this great achievement.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Kirtana Choragudi from Iron Mountain, Michigan, on being named the Students Against Destructive Decisions, or SADD, student of the year. Founded in 1981, SADD is a peer-to-peer youth education and prevention organization focusing primarily on traffic safety. Today, July 14th, SADD is holding an advocacy-training program here in Washington to develop students' skills in advocacy and leadership, as well as to educate them on how public policy can be used to encourage young people to make good decisions. Kirtana and 13 other high school juniors and seniors from all over the country were selected to attend SADD SPEAKs after going through a very competitive selection process. These students were selected based on their experience and leadership qualities. Northern Michigan is proud to have a student from one of our communities so dedicated to making the roads safer for all drivers. I commend all these young individuals for their efforts to make our roads safer.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, this week marks Aquatic Invasive Species Awareness Week. This is a good time to consider the threat that invasive species pose to all of our districts. Northern Michigan's economy depends on the Great Lakes and our beautiful outdoors. Invasive species represent a direct threat to our way of life. Even before I came to Congress, I was working on invasive species issues. I live on an inland lake, and we had a really difficult invasive weed get out of control. I have been working for years with my neighbors to control it, so I know just how difficult, and important, it is to get local buy-in for this fight. Volunteers throughout northern Michigan are working right now to attack invasive species on the ground. State officials are working to educate the public on how we can lessen the chance of spreading these invasive species. These efforts are in addition to the great work in my district by professionals at institutions like Northern Michigan University and the Hammond Bay Biological Station. I hope this week we will bring further attention to this fight and help Congress to focus more resources on this issue.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, we are here today to vote on long overdue bipartisan mental health legislation. This bill will finally take concrete steps toward improving the quality of care available to those suffering from mental illness. For too long, the most desperate among us have not had access to proper mental health care. Patients, along with their families and loved ones, have had nowhere to turn. As a doctor taking care of patients in northern Michigan for 30 years, I am all too familiar with the lack of resources and attention devoted to providing quality mental health care for our Nation. There are many communities in my district there are no psychiatric beds available. Local agencies don't have the staff or the resources to provide answers for those seeking help, let alone treatment. This bill represents a major step forward in turning all that around. I hope all my colleagues will join me in supporting this commonsense step to help deliver better mental health care.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, this week northern Michigan is proud to host the 90th Annual National Cherry Festival in Traverse City. The festival consists of over 150 events and activities with over 500,000 attendees over the course of 8 days. The cherry festival celebrates not only the delicious Michigan cherry treats on dinner tables for millions of Americans, but the enormous economic impact of cherry production. In fact, just this past year, Michigan companies produced 75 percent of the Nation's tart cherries, with 50 percent of those grown in Michigan's First District. This past month we were proud to bring a little bit of the festival here to Washington, D.C. The cherry festival queen, Danielle Bott, came to visit my office, bringing along some great cherry festival spirit and pie. I was honored to show her around the Capitol and introduce her to Speaker Ryan. I want to thank all the organizers of the cherry festival, the thousands of volunteers, and the hardworking Michigan farmers who bring us cherries and all the delicious Michigan agricultural products. We are so happy to enjoy the fruits of their labor.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, June is Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month. This month is set aside as a time for us to raise awareness of what Alzheimer's disease is, the devastating impact that this disease has on millions of people throughout our Nation, and what we can do to help fight this condition. In Michigan alone, over 180,000 of our seniors are currently facing Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's is the sixth leading cause of death in the State. These numbers are only expected to go up over the coming years. As a doctor from northern Michigan, I have seen firsthand the struggle that those living with Alzheimer's face. Here in Congress, I have supported numerous efforts to increase Federal funding for Alzheimer's research as well as plans to offer a higher quality of care for Alzheimer's patients. While we have made great progress in the research and treatment of Alzheimer's disease, it is my hope that we will all continue to work together toward ending this plight.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Madam Speaker, today I rise in celebration of our servicemen and -women, past and present. With Memorial Day right around the corner, there is no better time to remember the people who have kept our Nation safe. Yesterday I was proud to welcome a UP Honor Flight of veterans to the World War II Memorial and thank them for their service. I am always deeply touched by the joy and humility I see on their faces as they visit the memorials erected in their honor. Memorial Day is when we remember the heroes America has lost defending our freedoms and thank the families that have borne the brunt of that painful loss. One of the best ways we honor those we have lost is to care for those that came home. We have made progress at the VA, but we can do better. Our veterans deserve better. I am committed to breaking down the barriers to high-quality veterans' health care. To all our veterans and servicemembers, on behalf of all the citizens of Michigan's First District, I say thank you. We remain forever in your debt.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, it is past time to give our healthcare providers the tools they need to confront the growing epidemic of opioid abuse in our country. This is an emergency. As a doctor who has treated patients in northern Michigan for over 30 years, both in private practice and in the VA system, I know how urgent the need for immediate action is. The amendment to the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act that we are considering today will be a giant step forward in how we provide treatment and care for those suffering from opioid addiction. The bill will also improve the quality of care available to our Nation's veterans. The rate of abuse for legal prescription drugs is significantly higher among our veteran population than it is in the general population, and this problem is only continuing to grow. We have an opportunity today to take a first step in fixing a major national problem and pass meaningful legislation that will help save the lives of thousands and thousands of Americans. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and continue working together on bipartisan solutions for our Nation's growing epidemic of substance abuse.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Yoho for putting on this Special Order hour. I am very happy to be able to participate in it. I think that we really need to be sure the American people are aware of what is going on and that they make their decisions when they go to the polls based on this information. So thank you very much.

Mr. BENISHEK. Sure.

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, the things we are talking about here today really are examples of the Federal Government getting involved in things that they don't have the right to do. I think a lot of it comes from these bureaucrats that are just writing regulations that really you can't comply with, and that is basically the reason that these coal-fired power plants are going out of existence. Most of these problems have been eliminated by the work that we have done on improving our environment, and I applaud that America has made the investment before any other country in making that happen, but to regulate us to the point that businesses are going overseas and polluting the planet worse because of our policies, because if we did the stuff here, we would do it cleaner. The University of Michigan has had an environmental research station in northern Michigan in my district for the last 60, 70 years. The scientists at the University of Michigan tell me that most of the mercury that falls from the sky in Michigan comes from China and India, that we have essentially eliminated mercury as a problem in the environment from our industry here. But because we are not dealing with that problem of the Indians and the Chinese doing that, we are ignoring that and actually giving them the ability--by not having to comply with a lot of these rules, the ability to pollute the planet worse than we would if we were doing those things here.

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I agree with the gentleman from Florida. In my district, although it has been several years, the EPA shut down the construction of a brand-new coal plant. Okay? This coal plant would have been the purest coal-fired power plant in the country. It ran with new technology, and there is no reason for it being shut down. This plant would not even produce any CO2. That CO2 was being captured by the coal plant and used by industry to create other products. So this administration has taken on a proposal and used the EPA not to make our environment better, but to have a war on coal. I mean, the EPA and the President doesn't talk about making our atmosphere and our environment cleaner. It talks about a war on coal. That is just the wrong attitude to have, and it really needs to be directed by Congress. It is unbelievable what we have gone through. It can cause economic damage to this country. Right now we are competing with the Chinese who don't have any significant pollution controls on their power plants, and we have invested billions as Americans, each one of us, by paying for more expensive power to really clean up our atmosphere. How are the Chinese doing that? Now that we have basically cleaned up our atmosphere, they want to impose even higher and higher standards that actually are causing our business to go down and steel production is going over there where they are polluting even worse.

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Yoho for organizing this Special Order hour. You know, this is one of the reasons I ran for Congress. The abuse of power and executive overreach coming from the White House right now is completely unacceptable. Like many of my colleagues here tonight, I am a firm believer in the Constitution. I believe it is the duty of the President to faithfully execute the law, not to willfully ignore it for political gain. A President cannot implement legislation through Executive orders or agency rulemaking. Yet, we have witnessed this administration launch attacks against the Second Amendment, impose burdensome regulations through the EPA and other agencies, and enact many policies without the support of Congress or the American people. I have spoken to a wide array of my constituents throughout the northern half of Michigan in the time I have been here in Congress. They are constantly telling me about some new regulation that some Federal agency is coming up with that doesn't seem to do anything as far as promoting welfare or improving the environment, but it is simply making it more difficult for businesses to remain open. It is really affecting their ability to hire people. In my district, one of the big complaints we have had is the EPA attempting to limit the ability to have a wood stove. Well, it gets pretty cold in northern Michigan in the winter, and people save money by cutting their own wood and burning it in their homes. Then the EPA comes out saying that we can't have wood stoves that don't meet this criterion, and it doesn't make any sense for people in my district. Furthermore, the EPA's waters of the U.S. proposal to regulate ditches to manmade ponds doesn't do one thing to truly protect our water resources. Instead, it overloads small farmers, loggers, and other businesses with needless red tape and compliance costs. There is a reason that our Founding Fathers created separate, but equal, branches of government. The executive branch and agencies like the EPA are charged with carrying out the intent of Congress. We have made incredible strides in cleaning up our Nation's air and water. However, what happens when these giant bureaucracies start to feel themselves becoming relevant? Unelected bureaucrats began writing onerous legislation to justify their own existence, and they do this with absolutely no regard for the practical effect that these regulations have on local families and businesses.

Mr. BENISHEK. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 673, a commonsense bill that expresses the support of Congress for having the IRS continue to provide taxpayers with a paper copy of instructions on how to file their taxes. I thank Representative Grothman for introducing this resolution and for giving us the opportunity to discuss this important issue during tax week. I hear from constituents all the time about how difficult it is to access paper tax forms, let alone how hard it is to file their taxes. Every year, millions of people continue to file their taxes on paper, but, every year, the IRS continues to make this process even more difficult. As the IRS has transitioned to preferring an electronic filing system, many of my constituents are getting left behind. Not everyone is easily able to get access to paper forms on their own. The response that my constituents receive when they ask for help from the IRS is that all of the forms are easily available online. Unfortunately, more than 25 percent of all Americans lack regular or easy access to the Internet, and over 50 percent of seniors do not own a computer. Other people just want to file by paper. We need to preserve this option. Beyond the accessibility concerns, we hear more and more about the dangers of electronic data security and tax fraud--dangers which are exacerbated by e-filing. Many of my constituents want to avoid these threats to their personal information, and the IRS is actively hindering them from taking sensible precautions. I actually introduced legislation--the PAPER Act--in this Congress, which would require the IRS to send filing instructions and tax forms in paper format if someone traditionally files his taxes by paper. This seems pretty easy to me. While many of my constituents have concerns about how complicated their taxes are or about how high their rates are, they want to pay their taxes. We should not be keeping them from doing so. I urge all of my colleagues to support this simple resolution. I think, if the IRS would stop going after individuals about their politics, they would have plenty of money with which to send out the forms.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to urge the Senate to quickly act on House-passed VA accountability legislation. According to recent VA Inspector General reports, wait time manipulation occurred at 40 VA facilities in 19 States. Yet, almost no one has seriously been held accountable for these failures. This isn't even including the most egregious example of failures, like the VA employee who was convicted of charges related to armed robbery and still couldn't be fired. The House has passed legislation to get at the root of this problem, and it is past time the Senate acts. H.R. 1994, the VA Accountability Act, contains my legislation that forces VA employees to solve problems for veterans. If they can't, then the VA needs to make room for someone who can. Our veterans are too important to us, and they are counting on Congress to deliver them the care they need and deserve. We have to send the VA accountability legislation to the President's desk now.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. I thank Ms. Kaptur very much for setting up this time for us to come together on the floor to talk about the importance of the Great Lakes. I also thank Mr. Kelly for being here as well. It is nice to know there are some issues that are truly bipartisan. I believe that protecting our Great Lakes is really one of those. The Great Lakes are a vital part of our life in Michigan, particularly my district. I have more Great Lakes frontage than any other district in the country. I have three Great Lakes in my district with over 1,500 miles of frontage on three of the Great Lakes. We have more shoreline than any district in the country other than the State of Alaska, but that is all saltwater up there. I do not think there is a person in my district who does not consider the lakes a vital part of their lives, whether it is fishing or swimming or sailing or kayaking or just plain sitting by the water. We love our lakes. It is a pure Michigan experience. I encourage you all to visit. Since coming to Congress, one of my top priorities has been working to keep the Great Lakes clean so that future generations may also enjoy them. I want my grandkids and their kids to experience the joy of their first local fishing derby on a summer day or going ice fishing with their buddies in the winter. The joys of living on or near the Great Lakes inspire us all to ensure that they stay clean for future generations. However, we treasure our Great Lakes not only for their beauty and recreation they provide, but the incredible value they provide to our economy. In Michigan alone, outdoor recreation generates $18.7 billion in consumer spending and supports nearly 200,000 jobs. Protecting the Great Lakes requires action on many fronts, which only makes sense. As Ms. Kaptur said, these five Great Lakes represent more than 20 percent of all the fresh water in the world. That is why I have worked along with so many other of my midwestern colleagues to provide adequate funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, something the President always seems to cut back on in his budget. This bipartisan effort, which must be renewed every year to guarantee that this important program continues, gives local communities across the Great Lakes the ability to clean up local beaches, preserve natural wildlife habitats, and to restore local watersheds, among many other useful products for the Great Lakes. In my district alone, GLRI funds support projects like the Grand Traverse Bay Watershed Protection Project and the Beaver Island Archipelago Invasive Species Initiative. These programs help protect the Great Lakes while at the same time providing a boost to the local economy. The Soo Locks also have a major impact on our economy. Maintaining the integrity of the current lock system and ensuring the construction of a second lock is vital for both our national economy and our national security. Some people do not even realize that these locks exist. They are basically the Panama Canal of America. Much of the iron ore that is made into steel, which a lot of the industry in America depends on, passes through this lock. It would cause a major crisis if it should fail. I am proud to have led a trip with other Members of Congress to the Soo Locks last summer to raise the importance about the importance of these locks. While we have secured funding for a new Economic Reevaluation Report from the Corps of Engineers, we must continue to raise awareness about the importance of this project while we await the publication of this report. Another issue that concerns all of us in the Great Lakes region is the threat of invasive species. From sea lampreys to quagga mussels that are already present in the Great Lakes, to the Asian carp which we are currently trying to prevent from gaining access, invasive species present a constant threat to this precious resource. I have worked closely with the gentleman from California (Mr. Thompson) to reorganize the Congressional Invasive Species Caucus, and we are working to make invasive species a priority in this Congress. While I will be leaving Congress at the end of this term, it is my hope that we can continue to work together this year in a bipartisan and constructive manner to protect the Great Lakes. I am willing to partner with anyone who is willing to do that. I thank Ms. Kaptur for doing this Special Order hour.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, today, March 21, is World Down Syndrome Day. This internationally recognized event is set aside to raise public awareness of what Down syndrome is and about the important role that people with Down syndrome play in our lives and our communities. According to the National Down Syndrome Society, there are currently about 400,000 people living with Down syndrome in the United States alone. These people are faced with elevated risks for many other health conditions and must confront obstacles every day of their lives. Organizations like the Upper Peninsula Down Syndrome Association in northern Michigan help to raise awareness of this condition. Through hosting events like the Buddy Walk, these organizations help to educate the general public and raise funds for programs that benefit those living with Down syndrome. In my own life, my family and I are blessed to have my youngest grandson, Archie, in our lives. We want Archie to have the ability and the freedom to be the best Archie that he can be. While we have made tremendous strides in helping those with Down syndrome, it is my hope that we continue to improve the quality of life and the opportunity for kids like Archie.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Rothfus for setting up this time so we can draw attention to this case of the Little Sisters of the Poor and for his eloquent defense of the right to life. I am here today to also support the Little Sisters of the Poor and all the faith-based groups in our country that seek to help the poor and unfortunate among us. Northern Michigan, where I come from, is home to many of these organizations, and I am very familiar with the good works that these groups do in our communities. We need to be doing more to encourage this type of service and make faith-based organizations even more important in our country, not put undue problems in their way and make them do things that they don't believe in. The undue burden that is being imposed on many of these organizations by the Federal Government is completely wrong. Thanks to the President's healthcare law, faith-based organizations are being forced to participate in a convoluted system that leads to abortion, a practice that is contrary to their and my deeply held beliefs. I stand with the Little Sisters of the Poor and many of my constituents in northern Michigan in the belief that life inside the womb is just as precious as life outside the womb. Both unborn and born children have a right to life, and we have a duty to defend this right. This is a civil right. This is what our country was founded upon. Life is the first of the freedoms that are enumerated. My hope is that Americans who believe in the sanctity of life will keep strong in their efforts to stop the Federal Government's intrusion into our religious freedom. I, myself, am frankly amazed that we live in a country that was founded on the right to life and liberty--and we all have heard the phrase ``life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness''--and that the Federal Government is paying for losing a civil right: the right to life. I don't know what it is exactly, how this country that is founded on principles like that could have gotten to this state. It is one of the reasons I am standing here. I never was involved with politics in my life until this administration came upon the scene and started destroying the fabric of our Republic. I think often, too: How does this happen? How does God allow this to happen? This time in our lives, in our country, is truly a test of our faith. Really, Mr. Speaker, I am here to be sure that all Americans continue to fight and not lose the hope that our country will solve this problem and get out of the business of paying for abortions and the tragedy of abortion over the many years that it has been legal in this country. I call upon those Americans to continue to work hard, to keep strong in their efforts, to bring an end to this tragedy that is going on in America and the overreaching Federal Government that is allowing it to happen. I again commend Mr. Rothfus for doing this and really call out to all Americans to not lose hope that we are going to put a stop to this and to continue to fight for the lives of the unborn and unfortunate. I again applaud those faith-based organizations that continue to fight and go to court over this and that we need to continue to do this. I thank the gentleman for the opportunity to speak.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Women's History Month. Since President Reagan's administration, we have designated the month of March as a time to acknowledge the enormous impact that generations of women have had on all of our lives. I have been blessed to have many strong women in my life, from the medical professionals who worked by my side at both the Iron Mountain VA and Dickinson Memorial Hospital to the strong women in my family, and, finally, the many Members of Congress that I am humbled to serve beside today. It is important to recognize the diverse and irreplaceable contributions that these women and so many others have made to our society while also acknowledging that there is still much work to be done. While we recognize Women's History Month this March, we should honor the important role that women play in our society every day and do our part to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to make their mark in the future.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in celebration of National Agriculture Day. Today we celebrate the farmers and ranchers who literally work to put the food on our dinner tables. Last week I was in Posen, Michigan, and met the Styma family. They are growing hundreds of thousands of potatoes each year that families across the country will enjoy. The next time you put a cherry on your ice cream sundae, think of Glen and Ben LaCross, who not only work full time raising cherries in northern Michigan, but also manage a fruit processing business to make delicious products, like maraschino cherries and pie fillings, available in Michigan and around the country. Farmers, ranchers, and agribusiness owners and workers don't just provide food and fiber for the Nation; they are an important part of our economy. In Michigan alone, the agriculture industry contributes over $100 billion annually to the economy, accounting for a quarter of Michigan's workforce. As a member of the House Committee on Agriculture, I want to thank the farmers, producers, and agribusiness workers who feed and clothe America's families.

Mr. BENISHEK

Mr. BENISHEK. Mr. Speaker, on roll call no. 105, I was unavoidably detained and was unfortunately unable to vote in favor of H.R. 3716, the Ensuring Removal of Terminated Providers from Medicaid and CHIP Act. As a doctor, I know how important it is to make sure that only qualified professionals are eligible for participating in health care programs like Medicaid and CHIP. Had I been present, I would have voted aye.