Maria Cantwell

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the U.S.-China Market Engagement and Export Promotion Act of 2009. For many small- and medium-sized businesses across this country, some of which are in my home State of Washington, getting access to the Chinese market proves difficult at best. However, to establish a foothold in the ever expanding Chinese market can prove pivotal in achieving financial success. China is a tremendous market for U.S. goods and services. According to the U.S.-China Business Council, despite the global economic downturn, 85 percent of congressional districts increased their exports to China in 2008. In addition, exports to China in almost every congressional district grew more than exports to anywhere else from 2000 to 2008. In 2008, U.S. total exports to China equaled $71.5 billion. During the same time, however, our imports from China equaled $337.8 billion. That means our trading balance with China in 2008 was a $266.3 billion deficit. This bill would help States establish export promotion offices in China and create a new China Market Advocate Program at U.S. Export Assistance Centers around the Nation. The bill also provides assistance to small businesses for China trade missions and authorizes grants for Chinese business education programs. I support this bill because of the enormous role that small businesses play in our economy. Small- and medium-sized businesses are a great potential engine of growth. Between 2004 and 2005, small businesses created 78.9 percent of the Nation's net new jobs, and with expanded export opportunities that number will be able to increase in the near future. Considering the huge impact that small- and medium- sized businesses have on our economy, I urge all my colleagues to support this bill and give the business owners the assistance they need to succeed in the Chinese export market. The U.S.-China Market Engagement and Promotion Act will build the infrastructure necessary to connect American small- and medium-sized businesses with export opportunities in China. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, today I honor Mr. Eddie Lee Pepple, varsity basketball coach at Mercer Island High School, in retiring after 52 years of faithful service to our Nation and our youth. His distinguished career has culminated as varsity coach at Mercer Island High School where he has taught basketball for 42 years, leading the team to win 4 Washington State AAA Championships, and inspiring thousands of young students. Coach Pepple was born in Denver, CO. He graduated from the University of Utah in 1955 with a bachelor of arts degree, and went on to serve in the Marine Corps from 1956-1957. He was the captain of the Quantico Marine Corps basketball team and Pendleton Marine Corps basketball team, winning a Marine Corps Championship with the Quantico Marines in 1956. He later earned his masters' degree in 1965 at Oregon State University. He began his coaching career in 1958 as the varsity basketball coach at Fife High School in Washington State, where he led the team to a 4th place finish in the 1961 State Tournament. After 6 years of dedicated service to Fife High School, Coach Pepple went on to be the assistant coach at Meadowdale High School from 1964-1966, and then varsity coach at Mark Morris High School in 1967. In 1968, Coach Ed Pepple began as varsity coach at Mercer Island High School, where he has led the team to 23 league championship tournaments, 4 final placements as State AAA Champions, and 13 second place finishes in the State championship tournament. His overall winning record during his tenure at Mercer Island High School is 78.8 percent after winning 882 of the 1119 games he has coached. During these 52 years of devoted public service, Coach Pepple has been recognized by numerous organizations as an outstanding basketball coach and is nationally renowned for his inspiration, dedication, and success. In 1985, after leading Mercer Island High School to his first State AAA championship, Coach Pepple was awarded his first Coach of the Year Award by both the Kingco Conference, and the Washington State Interscholastic Basketball Association. He has since won the Kingco Coach of the year award five more times, and the Washington State Interscholastic Basketball Association award again in 1993. In 1986, Coach Pepple was nationally celebrated when he received the Region 7 Coach of the Year award from the National High School Athletic Coaches Association, NHSACA. He received this award once again in 1993 and 1998. In 1998 Coach Pepple was also recognized by the NHSACA as the National Coach of the Year, one of the highest national awards a distinguished coach can receive. He has also served as the prestigious West Head Coach of the McDonald's All American Game, and served on the McDonalds All American Game Selection Committee for 17 years. In 1997 and 1999, the Washington Interscholastic Basketball Coaches Association also recognized Coach Pepple as the AAA Coach of the Year. He has been the chairman of this organization for the past 26 years. In total, Coach Pepple has been awarded 17 Coach of the Year awards and has been inaugurated into the Puget Sound Hall of Fame, the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association Hall of Fame, the Washington Interscholastic Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, and most recently the National High School Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2006. Upon his retirement Coach Pepple will be inaugurated into the Everett Community College Hall of Fame, and honored by the establishment of the Ed Pepple Coaches' Service Award by the Washington Interscholastic Basketball Coaches Association, as recognition of his service to the Washington State basketball community. It is through the commitment and sacrifice of Americans such as Eddie Lee Pepple that our young adults are able to thrive and succeed. He has bettered our communities in Washington State, and touched the lives of countless students through his dedication to coaching and teaching. I am proud to thank him, his wife Shirley, and children Terry, Jill, Jody, and Kyle for his honorable service to our Nation as a coach. I congratulate Coach Pepple and give my best wishes as he concludes his distinguished career.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise to introduce legislation that will remove an unintended obstacle in the tax-exempt bond rules so that states can use these bonds to finance the purchase of fixed-wing air ambulances in the same way they can now use them to finance the purchase of medical helicopters. The difference between a medical helicopter and a fixed wing air ambulance may seem minor to some, but if you live in a remote area the difference can be as big as life or death. Air medical services, AMS, are an essential component of the health care system. When appropriately used, air critical care transport saves lives and reduces the cost of health care by minimizing the time the critically injured and ill spend out of a hospital, by bringing more medical capabilities to the patient than are normally provided by ground emergency medical services, and by quickly getting the patient to the right specialty care. Dedicated medical helicopters and fixed wing aircraft are mobile flying emergency intensive care units deployed at a moment's notice to patients whose lives depend on rapid care and transport. In remote rural areas, the use of helicopters often is impractical and unsafe because of the long distances that patients must be transported, sometimes during poor weather conditions. In these situations, the better alternative is a fixed-wing aircraft. Both helicopters and fixed wing aircraft cost millions of dollars to purchase or lease, operate, house and maintain. But under the way that the tax-exempt bond rules currently work, states are prohibited from using these bonds to finance air ambulance services in rural areas, even though they can use these bonds for helicopters. This result was not what Congress intended, and our bill would make that clear. Under current law, tax-exempt bonds can not be issued for the purchase of any ``airplane, skybox or other privacy luxury box, health club facility, facility primarily used for gambling, or store the principal business of which is the sale of alcoholic beverages for consumption off premises.'' The restrictions were enacted in order to prevent tax-exmpt bonds to be used for frivolous or extravagant purposes. Unfortunately, the law has been interpreted to exclude the purchase of new fixed-wing planes to provide air ambulance services, but the purchase of helicopters--which are not airplanes--is permitted. This result is not what was intended by the restrictions and our bill would simply make it clear that the general restriction against the use of tax-exempt bonds for purchasing an airplane does not apply in the case of planes that are equipped for and exclusively dedicated to emergency medical services. There is supporting precedent in distinguishing planes for air ambulance services different than other airplanes. The air transportation excise tax provides an exemption for air transportation that is used to provide ``emergency medical services . . . by a fixed- wing aircraft equipped for and exclusively dedicated on that flight to acute care emergency medical services.'' This issue hits close to home for me and my colleagues who are joining me on this legislation, but we are certainly not alone with respect to the need to ensure that folks in our rural and remote areas have access to needed medical services. Inland Northwest Health Services, INHS, is a non-profit organization that provides critical health care support services in the Inland Northwest, including air ambulance services through Northwest MedStar. INHS is based in Spokane, Washington, and provides health care services in Eastern Washington, Eastern Oregon, Northern Idaho, and Western Montana. Unfortunately, this unintended restriction in the tax code is preventing INHS from asking the appropriate state authorities to issue tax-exempt bonds to finance the purchase of new fixed-wing planes for air ambulance service. The legislation that I am introducing with Senator Murray is a common-sense fix to this problem, and I hope we can address it quickly. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise to introduce legislation that will remove an unintended obstacle in the tax-exempt bond rules so that states can use these bonds to finance the purchase of fixed-wing air ambulances in the same way they can now use them to finance the purchase of medical helicopters. The difference between a medical helicopter and a fixed wing air ambulance may seem minor to some, but if you live in a remote area the difference can be as big as life or death. Air medical services, AMS, are an essential component of the health care system. When appropriately used, air critical care transport saves lives and reduces the cost of health care by minimizing the time the critically injured and ill spend out of a hospital, by bringing more medical capabilities to the patient than are normally provided by ground emergency medical services, and by quickly getting the patient to the right specialty care. Dedicated medical helicopters and fixed wing aircraft are mobile flying emergency intensive care units deployed at a moment's notice to patients whose lives depend on rapid care and transport. In remote rural areas, the use of helicopters often is impractical and unsafe because of the long distances that patients must be transported, sometimes during poor weather conditions. In these situations, the better alternative is a fixed-wing aircraft. Both helicopters and fixed wing aircraft cost millions of dollars to purchase or lease, operate, house and maintain. But under the way that the tax-exempt bond rules currently work, states are prohibited from using these bonds to finance air ambulance services in rural areas, even though they can use these bonds for helicopters. This result was not what Congress intended, and our bill would make that clear. Under current law, tax-exempt bonds can not be issued for the purchase of any ``airplane, skybox or other privacy luxury box, health club facility, facility primarily used for gambling, or store the principal business of which is the sale of alcoholic beverages for consumption off premises.'' The restrictions were enacted in order to prevent tax-exmpt bonds to be used for frivolous or extravagant purposes. Unfortunately, the law has been interpreted to exclude the purchase of new fixed-wing planes to provide air ambulance services, but the purchase of helicopters--which are not airplanes--is permitted. This result is not what was intended by the restrictions and our bill would simply make it clear that the general restriction against the use of tax-exempt bonds for purchasing an airplane does not apply in the case of planes that are equipped for and exclusively dedicated to emergency medical services. There is supporting precedent in distinguishing planes for air ambulance services different than other airplanes. The air transportation excise tax provides an exemption for air transportation that is used to provide ``emergency medical services . . . by a fixed- wing aircraft equipped for and exclusively dedicated on that flight to acute care emergency medical services.'' This issue hits close to home for me and my colleagues who are joining me on this legislation, but we are certainly not alone with respect to the need to ensure that folks in our rural and remote areas have access to needed medical services. Inland Northwest Health Services, INHS, is a non-profit organization that provides critical health care support services in the Inland Northwest, including air ambulance services through Northwest MedStar. INHS is based in Spokane, Washington, and provides health care services in Eastern Washington, Eastern Oregon, Northern Idaho, and Western Montana. Unfortunately, this unintended restriction in the tax code is preventing INHS from asking the appropriate state authorities to issue tax-exempt bonds to finance the purchase of new fixed-wing planes for air ambulance service. The legislation that I am introducing with Senator Murray is a common-sense fix to this problem, and I hope we can address it quickly. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, today I honor VADM Bruce E. MacDonald, Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Navy, who is retiring after more than 31 years of faithful service to our Nation, culminating in his service as the Judge Advocate General of the Navy. VADM Bruce MacDonald was born in 1956 in Cincinnati, OH. He graduated from the College of the Holy Cross in 1978 with a bachelor of arts degree in English, and entered the Navy in May of that year. Vice Admiral MacDonald was commissioned an ensign in the unrestricted line through the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps. Following surface warfare training, he reported to the USS Hepburn, FF 1055, in October 1979, where he served as the Main Propulsion Assistant and Navigator. After a 2-year tour at Fleet Combat Training Center, Pacific, where he served as Intermediate Combat Systems Team Training and Advanced Multi-Threat Team Training Course Director, he was selected for the Navy's Law Education Program in 1984. He received his degree of Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law in 1987. In 1987, Vice Admiral MacDonald reported to Naval Legal Service Office, San Diego, where he served as Senior Defense Counsel, Trial Counsel, and Medical Care Recovery Act claims officer. In 1990, he reported aboard USS Independence, CV 62, as the Command Judge Advocate. After receiving a master of laws degree from Harvard Law School in 1992, he was transferred to Seoul, Republic of Korea, where he served as Chief, Operational Law Division, on the staffs of United Nations Command, Combined Forces Command and United States Forces Korea. He also served as Staff Judge Advocate on the staff of U.S. Naval Forces Korea. In August 1994, Vice Admiral MacDonald reported aboard Naval Legal Service Office Northwest as its executive officer. In November 1996, he became the Officer-in-Charge of Trial Service Office West Detachment, Bremerton, WA. In July 1997, he reported to Commander Seventh Fleet in Yokosuka, Japan, as the Fleet Judge Advocate. Vice Admiral MacDonald assumed command of Naval Legal Service Office, Northwest, in August 1999, serving as commanding officer until June 2002. He was assigned to the Pentagon as the Special Counsel to the Chief of Naval Operations from June 2002 through October 2004. In November 2004, Vice Admiral MacDonald became the Deputy Judge Advocate General of the Navy and Commander, Naval Legal Service Command. In July 2006, Vice Admiral MacDonald assumed his current position as Judge Advocate General of the Navy. Vice Admiral MacDonald is admitted to practice before the courts of the State of California and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. His military decorations include the Navy Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit with two Gold Stars, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy Meritorious Service Medal with Gold Star, the Navy Commendation Medal with Gold Star, and the Navy Achievement Medal with Gold Star. It is through the commitment and sacrifice of Americans such as Vice Admiral MacDonald that our Nation is able to continue upon the path of democracy and strive for the betterment of mankind. I am proud to thank him, his wife Karen, and daughter Erin for his honorable service to our nation in the U.S. Navy. I wish him fair winds and following seas as he concludes a distinguished naval career.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Medical Efficiency and Delivery Improvement of Care Act, MEDIC, a bill which provides common-sense solutions to many of the most critical problems besetting our health care system. As we embark on reforming health care in America, we are faced with restructuring a system as complex as it is important--a system which includes not only doctors and patients but medical schools, nursing homes, hospitals and community health centers. While every piece of the health care puzzle requires individual attention, one common thread connects them all: the need for improved efficiency among providers though increased access to primary care physicians. They are the ones who can provide coordinated care for patients, leading to better quality and a more efficient system. That is why I am introducing this bill as a vehicle for proposals which increase the efficiency and coordination across the health care spectrum to improve health and save money. In my State of Washington doctors and hospitals provide some of the a highest quality and most cost-efficient care in the nation. However, instead of rewarding our State for reining in unnecessary costs and improving the health of patients, the current system actually penalizes them. Under the current fee-for-service structure we have today, health care providers are rewarded for maximizing the number of services they provide rather than focusing primarily on health outcomes. This provides a financial disincentive to efficient care because such efficiencies actually result in decreased payments. My bill addresses this issue by linking physician payments to the quality of care they provide, not the amount of services they perform. At the same time, the bill recognizes the need to allow for the differences in the cost of doing business across different regions. The resulting policy creates a fair payment system that increases the overall quality of care while resulting in a savings of $55 billion a year off the Medicare rolls. The backbone of our health care system is comprised of the men and women who devote their lives to the practice of medicine. While our nation's physician workforce is the best in the world, current policies have left our primary care network woefully lacking, leaving many families--especially those in rural areas--without access to basic care. As few as 2 percent of medical students opt for careers in family medicine and general surgery primarily due to the low pay associated with such specialties. Therefore, a fundamental goal of reform must be expanding the primary care workforce. My legislation includes provisions which provide financial incentives for medical students and teaching hospitals--such as interest-free loans and scholarships for students going into primary care, and increased funding for small and rural hospitals to improve their primary care residency programs. The bill also calls for increasing payments to primary care physicians currently in practice. These policies will result in an improved primary care infrastructure throughout the nation, providing for quality primary care today and well into the future. Finally, we cannot address health care reform without addressing the needs the individuals who require it the most: those in long-term care. For many older Americans and people with disabilities, long-term care is not a luxury but a necessity, a required service needed to maintain their overall quality of life. Traditionally this care has been provided in institutions such as nursing homes, which can cost upwards of $70,000 a year. While some people require the around-the-clock care provided in nursing homes, many of those in need of long-term care would be better off remaining in their homes where they can continue to be active members of the community. Home- and community-based services provide people the care they need in non-institutional settings, which, in addition to saving a significant amount of money, allows for the freedom and independence to which people are accustomed. This legislation contains several provisions which provide States with the resources they need to move away from institutional long-term care and towards home- and community-based services, such as increasing Federal Medicaid dollars to transition to home- and community-based services, and providing incentives to create consolidated information centers so consumers and their families can make well-informed decisions about long-term care options. If we gave just 5 percent of those who go into nursing homes the ability to receive care in their own homes and communities, the Federal Government would see a net savings of more than $10 billion over 5 years. This significant savings can be achieved while simultaneously providing better care; a truly win-win situation. In introducing this bill I am reminding my colleagues that reforming health care need not be a zero-sum game. We can achieve our goals of improving the health care workforce, stabilizing the physician payment structure, improving access to needed care and decreasing the financial and emotional burdens associated with long-term care while simultaneously providing significant savings throughout the health care system. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to ensure these crtical reforms are enacted. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Medical Efficiency and Delivery Improvement of Care Act, MEDIC, a bill which provides common-sense solutions to many of the most critical problems besetting our health care system. As we embark on reforming health care in America, we are faced with restructuring a system as complex as it is important--a system which includes not only doctors and patients but medical schools, nursing homes, hospitals and community health centers. While every piece of the health care puzzle requires individual attention, one common thread connects them all: the need for improved efficiency among providers though increased access to primary care physicians. They are the ones who can provide coordinated care for patients, leading to better quality and a more efficient system. That is why I am introducing this bill as a vehicle for proposals which increase the efficiency and coordination across the health care spectrum to improve health and save money. In my State of Washington doctors and hospitals provide some of the a highest quality and most cost-efficient care in the nation. However, instead of rewarding our State for reining in unnecessary costs and improving the health of patients, the current system actually penalizes them. Under the current fee-for-service structure we have today, health care providers are rewarded for maximizing the number of services they provide rather than focusing primarily on health outcomes. This provides a financial disincentive to efficient care because such efficiencies actually result in decreased payments. My bill addresses this issue by linking physician payments to the quality of care they provide, not the amount of services they perform. At the same time, the bill recognizes the need to allow for the differences in the cost of doing business across different regions. The resulting policy creates a fair payment system that increases the overall quality of care while resulting in a savings of $55 billion a year off the Medicare rolls. The backbone of our health care system is comprised of the men and women who devote their lives to the practice of medicine. While our nation's physician workforce is the best in the world, current policies have left our primary care network woefully lacking, leaving many families--especially those in rural areas--without access to basic care. As few as 2 percent of medical students opt for careers in family medicine and general surgery primarily due to the low pay associated with such specialties. Therefore, a fundamental goal of reform must be expanding the primary care workforce. My legislation includes provisions which provide financial incentives for medical students and teaching hospitals--such as interest-free loans and scholarships for students going into primary care, and increased funding for small and rural hospitals to improve their primary care residency programs. The bill also calls for increasing payments to primary care physicians currently in practice. These policies will result in an improved primary care infrastructure throughout the nation, providing for quality primary care today and well into the future. Finally, we cannot address health care reform without addressing the needs the individuals who require it the most: those in long-term care. For many older Americans and people with disabilities, long-term care is not a luxury but a necessity, a required service needed to maintain their overall quality of life. Traditionally this care has been provided in institutions such as nursing homes, which can cost upwards of $70,000 a year. While some people require the around-the-clock care provided in nursing homes, many of those in need of long-term care would be better off remaining in their homes where they can continue to be active members of the community. Home- and community-based services provide people the care they need in non-institutional settings, which, in addition to saving a significant amount of money, allows for the freedom and independence to which people are accustomed. This legislation contains several provisions which provide States with the resources they need to move away from institutional long-term care and towards home- and community-based services, such as increasing Federal Medicaid dollars to transition to home- and community-based services, and providing incentives to create consolidated information centers so consumers and their families can make well-informed decisions about long-term care options. If we gave just 5 percent of those who go into nursing homes the ability to receive care in their own homes and communities, the Federal Government would see a net savings of more than $10 billion over 5 years. This significant savings can be achieved while simultaneously providing better care; a truly win-win situation. In introducing this bill I am reminding my colleagues that reforming health care need not be a zero-sum game. We can achieve our goals of improving the health care workforce, stabilizing the physician payment structure, improving access to needed care and decreasing the financial and emotional burdens associated with long-term care while simultaneously providing significant savings throughout the health care system. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to ensure these crtical reforms are enacted. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce Project 2020: Building on the Promise of Home and Community-Based Services Act with my colleague from Michigan, Senator Stabenow. By the year 2020, almost 1 in 6 Americans will be over the age of 65 and the population of people over the age of 85, the fastest growing segment of the population, will double. Our current long term care financing structure is unsustainable as the population in need of such services rapidly increases. As such, we must turn our focus to reforming the long term care system to provide the best care available to this vulnerable population. The average cost of a nursing home in this country is $70,000 a year, making this an unrealistic option for most Americans. In fact, most people who end up in a nursing home last just six months before they have spent so much they become poor enough to qualify for Medicaid. This situation is expensive for consumers, for states, and for the federal government. Fortunately, there is a clear answer. It costs Medicaid one third as much to provide someone with home and community based care as it would cost to care for them in a nursing home. In addition, most people want to stay in their own home or community whenever possible. An independent analysis conducted by the Lewin Group shows that Project 2020 would reach over 40 million Americans, while simultaneously reducing Medicare and Medicaid costs by more than $2.8 billion over 5 years. Project 2020 addresses the urgent need to shift away from institutional care and towards home and community based services in three distinct ways: through enhanced nursing home diversion; by increasing the use of person-centered access to information; and by utilizing evidence-based disease and injury prevention. As I previously mentioned, increased nursing home diversion will not only provide significant savings to the Medicaid program, it will also allow families to stay together and let people be active members of their communities. Through the creation of a person-center access point to information, consumers, family members, and caregivers will be given the tools necessary to make well informed decisions about long term care. Finally, this bill will provide for programs that help consumers get proven education about avoiding preventable diseased and injuries, such as falls and malnutrition, which result in thousands of unnecessary hospitalizations every year. As you can see, these three programs constitute a common-sense, multifaceted approach to improving the quality of life of individuals and their families, while providing a substantial amount of savings to the health care system. I am pleased to introduce this important legislation along with my colleague Senator Stabenow and I look forward to working with the rest of my Senate colleagues to provide families with the long term care services and support they need. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Home and Community Balanced Incentives Act of 2009, together with my colleague from Wisconsin, Senator Kohl. As we in the Senate embark on reforming America's health care system, we cannot forget those who are dependent on daily care in order to survive: those in long-term care. Long-term care provides health care and daily living services to the elderly and disabled population, providing them with the ability to live happy, productive lives that age, illness and disability would otherwise prevent. In 2007, the U.S. spent close to $109 billion on long term institutional care services under the Medicaid program; in my state of Washington it was approximately $2 billion. This amount represents more than 30 percent of all Medicaid payments, and is a number we can easily reduce. This legislation seeks to rebalance how states handle long term care by providing the tools they need to shift people out of expensive institutional care facilities and into home and community based care, where they can remain vibrant, active members of their community. As Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz once said: There is no place like home. I could not agree more, which is why I believe in providing individuals and families with the option to remain in their home, where studies have shown the overall quality of life is far superior to that in an institutional facility. Additionally, home and community based care is far more cost efficient than institutional care; by diverting just 5 percent of the long term care community away from institutional care and into home and community based services, we would see a net savings of more than $10 billion dollars over five years. In a time when rising health care spending plays such a pivotal role in the health of the overall economy, these savings represent a giant step towards reining in unnecessary health care spending. The Home and Community Balanced Incentives Act would achieve the goal of transitioning to home and community based services by offering states modest increases to their federal medical assistance payment, FMAP, for home and community based services. States would have to use these increases to develop the programs needed to provide effective home and community based services. These services will reduce barriers that currently prohibit people from accessing home and community based services. This bill succeeds in not only saving the Medicaid program a significant amount of money, but it will empower families to make informed decisions about their long term care needs. Specifically, this bill would: improve case management to help people remain in their homes and communities and out of nursing homes; provide consumer empowerment helping to put individuals in charge of their care; provide a coordinated transition structure for those wishing to leave institutional care and return to their homes and communities; create a clear and well coordinated system for providing long term care information and support; improve methodology for determining eligibility and tracking provider data on services and quality outcomes. Senator Kohl and I are excited to introduce this important legislation and to begin working with our colleagues on improving the long term care system in America. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce Project 2020: Building on the Promise of Home and Community-Based Services Act with my colleague from Michigan, Senator Stabenow. By the year 2020, almost 1 in 6 Americans will be over the age of 65 and the population of people over the age of 85, the fastest growing segment of the population, will double. Our current long term care financing structure is unsustainable as the population in need of such services rapidly increases. As such, we must turn our focus to reforming the long term care system to provide the best care available to this vulnerable population. The average cost of a nursing home in this country is $70,000 a year, making this an unrealistic option for most Americans. In fact, most people who end up in a nursing home last just six months before they have spent so much they become poor enough to qualify for Medicaid. This situation is expensive for consumers, for states, and for the federal government. Fortunately, there is a clear answer. It costs Medicaid one third as much to provide someone with home and community based care as it would cost to care for them in a nursing home. In addition, most people want to stay in their own home or community whenever possible. An independent analysis conducted by the Lewin Group shows that Project 2020 would reach over 40 million Americans, while simultaneously reducing Medicare and Medicaid costs by more than $2.8 billion over 5 years. Project 2020 addresses the urgent need to shift away from institutional care and towards home and community based services in three distinct ways: through enhanced nursing home diversion; by increasing the use of person-centered access to information; and by utilizing evidence-based disease and injury prevention. As I previously mentioned, increased nursing home diversion will not only provide significant savings to the Medicaid program, it will also allow families to stay together and let people be active members of their communities. Through the creation of a person-center access point to information, consumers, family members, and caregivers will be given the tools necessary to make well informed decisions about long term care. Finally, this bill will provide for programs that help consumers get proven education about avoiding preventable diseased and injuries, such as falls and malnutrition, which result in thousands of unnecessary hospitalizations every year. As you can see, these three programs constitute a common-sense, multifaceted approach to improving the quality of life of individuals and their families, while providing a substantial amount of savings to the health care system. I am pleased to introduce this important legislation along with my colleague Senator Stabenow and I look forward to working with the rest of my Senate colleagues to provide families with the long term care services and support they need. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Home and Community Balanced Incentives Act of 2009, together with my colleague from Wisconsin, Senator Kohl. As we in the Senate embark on reforming America's health care system, we cannot forget those who are dependent on daily care in order to survive: those in long-term care. Long-term care provides health care and daily living services to the elderly and disabled population, providing them with the ability to live happy, productive lives that age, illness and disability would otherwise prevent. In 2007, the U.S. spent close to $109 billion on long term institutional care services under the Medicaid program; in my state of Washington it was approximately $2 billion. This amount represents more than 30 percent of all Medicaid payments, and is a number we can easily reduce. This legislation seeks to rebalance how states handle long term care by providing the tools they need to shift people out of expensive institutional care facilities and into home and community based care, where they can remain vibrant, active members of their community. As Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz once said: There is no place like home. I could not agree more, which is why I believe in providing individuals and families with the option to remain in their home, where studies have shown the overall quality of life is far superior to that in an institutional facility. Additionally, home and community based care is far more cost efficient than institutional care; by diverting just 5 percent of the long term care community away from institutional care and into home and community based services, we would see a net savings of more than $10 billion dollars over five years. In a time when rising health care spending plays such a pivotal role in the health of the overall economy, these savings represent a giant step towards reining in unnecessary health care spending. The Home and Community Balanced Incentives Act would achieve the goal of transitioning to home and community based services by offering states modest increases to their federal medical assistance payment, FMAP, for home and community based services. States would have to use these increases to develop the programs needed to provide effective home and community based services. These services will reduce barriers that currently prohibit people from accessing home and community based services. This bill succeeds in not only saving the Medicaid program a significant amount of money, but it will empower families to make informed decisions about their long term care needs. Specifically, this bill would: improve case management to help people remain in their homes and communities and out of nursing homes; provide consumer empowerment helping to put individuals in charge of their care; provide a coordinated transition structure for those wishing to leave institutional care and return to their homes and communities; create a clear and well coordinated system for providing long term care information and support; improve methodology for determining eligibility and tracking provider data on services and quality outcomes. Senator Kohl and I are excited to introduce this important legislation and to begin working with our colleagues on improving the long term care system in America. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, for countless communities around the country, our oceans are the heartbeat of their histories and economies. In fact, according to a report by the Joint Oceans Commission, healthy oceans and coasts are an important means of transportation, trade, and national security. Ocean-dependent industries generate about $138 billion and support millions of jobs in the United States' economy. According to the National Ocean Economic Project, 30 U.S. coastal States accounted for 82 percent of total population and 81 percent of all U.S. jobs in 2006. In my home State of Washington, the Port of Seattle's facilities and activities alone support 190,000 jobs, and the State has 3,000 fishing vessels that employ 10,000 fishermen. There is no group that is more important to the health and safety of our ports, fishing industry, and maritime community than the U.S. Coast Guard. The brave men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard are charged with many missions--from serving as our environmental stewards, performing search and rescue missions, and protecting us from terrorism, to helping clean up oil spills and enforcing fisheries laws. They are largely responsible for keeping these coastal economic engines running, and have proved time and time again that they are, as their motto says, ``Always ready.'' But for the Coast Guard to do its job Congress needs to support those who serve in its ranks. We have a responsibility to ensure the Coast Guard has the tools it needs to carry out the missions of today, while looking ahead to the challenges of tomorrow. The bill I am introducing today, The Coast Guard Authorization Act for fiscal years 2010 and 2011, is designed to help the Coast Guard move toward the future, and ensure our maritime industries remain the clean and safe economic engine our nation's coastal communities have depended on for generations. As the U.S. experiences major oil spills, tropical storms, hurricanes, and terrorism, our maritime economy faces ever-present threats. Congress needs to uphold its end of the bargain and provide the legislative backing the Coast Guard needs to do its job, and do its job well. This bill gives the Coast Guard greater authority to work with international maritime authorities, get better access to global safety and security information, and work more cooperatively with other nations on law enforcement; allows the Coast Guard to rework its command structure and increase its alignment with other armed forces; better supports the men and women who serve in the U.S. Coast Guard by allowing greater reimbursement for medical-related expenses and allowing Coast Guard service-members to participate in the Armed Forces Retirement Home system; and directs the Coast Guard to conduct a thorough cost-benefit analysis for recapitalizing its polar icebreaker fleet so the service can prepare for future mission demands in the Arctic. This bill also contains the most ambitious reform of its acquisitions program in the Coast Guard's history. The Coast Guard is struggling right now to replace their rapidly aging fleet of ships, aircraft, and facilities. At a cost of $24 billion, the Deepwater program is the Coast Guard's largest and most complex acquisition program ever. Congress has a responsibility to ensure there is transparency and oversight so this program is as efficient and effective as possible. Unfortunately, the Coast Guard's Deepwater program has experienced major failures and setbacks. The program utilized a private sector lead systems integrator, LSI, know as Integrated Coast Guard Systems, ICGS, to oversee acquisition of a ``system of systems.'' When the Deepwater contract was originally awarded in 2002, the Coast Guard did not have the personnel within their ranks to manage such a large contract. Congress was told that outsourcing that role to industry would save the Coast Guard time and money over the long run. That approach, which may have seemed innovative at the time, has not produced the promised results. Instead of cost and time savings, we have seen cost overruns, schedule delays, less competition and inadequate technical oversight. The Department of Homeland Security Inspector General, IG, released three reports in 2006 and early 2007 detailing some of the problems with Deepwater, including problems with electronics equipment, crucial design flaws and cost overruns created by a faulty contract structure and lack of oversight, and serious issues with the 123-foot cutter conversion project. This legislation wipes the slate clean and makes fundamental changes to the Coast Guard's acquisition program. It requires the Coast Guard to abandon the industry-led Lead Systems Integrator and get back to basics--full and open competition for all future assets. It requires a completely new ``analysis of alternatives'' for all future Deepwater acquisitions to ensure that the Coast Guard is getting the assets best-suited for their needs. It requires the Coast Guard to follow a rigorous acquisitions process to make sure taxpayer dollars are spent wisely. And, it gives the Coast Guard the tools it needs to manage acquisitions effectively, including requiring the Coast Guard to make internal management changes to ensure open competition, increase technical oversight and improve reporting to Congress. This legislation takes major steps towards getting the Coast Guard the assets they need while ensuring responsible management of taxpayer dollars. I look forward to working with my colleagues to enact the changes I am proposing today so we can get this program back on track and help the Coast Guard accomplish its missions. If we fail to pass legislation, we are doing a major disservice to those very people we depend on. We will do so as they continue to place their lives at risk while they perform the mission of the Coast Guard. This bill is good for taxpayers, good for the Coast Guard, and good for every American depending on them to be, ``Always ready.'' Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate the University of Washington softball team on their 2009 NCAA National Championship. On June 2, led by National Player of the Year Danielle Lawrie and head coach Heather Tarr, the Huskies earned their first title in a thrilling 3-2 victory over the University of Florida. The win caps an amazing 51-12 season that saw the team capture the hearts and minds of the entire region. Facing challenges and setbacks throughout the season, the team found the courage and determination needed to break through to highest achievement in college softball. Following the game, National Player of the Year Danielle Lawrie added to her already lengthy resume when she was selected as the Most Outstanding Player of the College World Series. She was joined on this year's First-Team All-America team by teammate Ashley Charters who closes out her Husky career with her third All-America selection. However, it was not individuals who won this championship; it was a team. The commitment and passion of each and every player has turned the University of Washington into one of the most feared softball teams in the Nation. This season marks the 16th straight postseason appearance by the Huskies. Competing in the indisputably toughest conference in America, the Pac-10, the University of Washington has steadily climbed into the ranks of softball's elite. At a time when budget shortfalls are forcing universities across the Nation to eliminate athletic programs, the University of Washington softball team stands as a testament to the role of athletics in our schools. These are not superstars headed to lucrative paychecks; they are committed student-athletes who dedicate themselves every day on the field and in the classroom. I reserve special praise for the league- leading seven Huskies named to the Pac-10 All-Academic team: Morgan Stuart, Amanda Fleischman, Alyson McWherter, Ashlyn Watson, Ashley Charters, Marnie Koziol and Alicia Blake. Congratulations once more to our newest national champions, the University of Washington Huskies. Go Dawgs!

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Preserving Patient Access to Primary Care Act of 2009, together with my colleagues from Maine, Senator Susan Collins, and from Rhode Island, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. As we set about the urgently important business of health care reform, we will be hearing a lot about the uninsured. But there is another urgent problem in our health care system: the underserved. We must address both problems as we set about reforming the health care system. It does you little good to have health care insurance if the nearest primary care physician is hundreds of miles away. This bipartisan proposal sets out a multifaceted approach to supporting and expanding our primary care workforce as well as enhancing the coordination of care within our health care system. I am grateful for the input and collaboration of key health-care stakeholders in Washington state that has helped make this legislation possible. In my state, we know it is possible to both increase health care quality while also lowering costs, all within an integrated system that places a priority on expanding our primary care workforce and protecting patients' relationships with their doctors. A dramatic increase in the primary care physician workforce will be needed. My legislation not only addresses the needs of those individuals to whom health insurance coverage will be extended but also of those who are currently insured but who live in areas underserved by our current health care system. I believe we can address this problem by adopting long overdue reforms to improve pay levels for primary care providers while also taking measures to ensure an adequate primary care workforce, particularly in rural areas. As more Americans gain health care coverage, the experts estimate there will be a shortage of 46,000 primary care physicians available to care for the influx of patients by the year 2025. As the need grows, the number of medical students choosing primary care is rapidly dwindling. Detailed studies from the Center for Evaluative Clinical Sciences at Dartmouth and the Commonwealth Fund found that populations with ready access to primary care physicians realize improved health outcomes, reduced mortality, lower utilization of health care resources, and lower overall costs of care. Yet despite what we know, all across this country, we are failing to realize the benefits of primary care and a system of having a primary care physician coordinate a patient's health care needs. This bill includes several key provisions aimed at achieving a high quality, more comprehensive integrated health system. Specific provisions include: scholarship and loan repayment opportunities for primary care providers who serve in areas with critical shortages of primary care services. New residency positions for primary care with a focus on more opportunities to train in ambulatory care settings--including community in health centers. Increased reimbursements for primary care providers. Medicare payments for care coordination services, and bonus payments to providers who serve as integrated patient-centered medical homes. Improved access to primary care for seniors by eliminating copayments for preventives care services in Medicare. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to ensure we make the necessary investments in our primary care workforce. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill and letters of support be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Preserving Patient Access to Primary Care Act of 2009, together with my colleagues from Maine, Senator Susan Collins, and from Rhode Island, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. As we set about the urgently important business of health care reform, we will be hearing a lot about the uninsured. But there is another urgent problem in our health care system: the underserved. We must address both problems as we set about reforming the health care system. It does you little good to have health care insurance if the nearest primary care physician is hundreds of miles away. This bipartisan proposal sets out a multifaceted approach to supporting and expanding our primary care workforce as well as enhancing the coordination of care within our health care system. I am grateful for the input and collaboration of key health-care stakeholders in Washington state that has helped make this legislation possible. In my state, we know it is possible to both increase health care quality while also lowering costs, all within an integrated system that places a priority on expanding our primary care workforce and protecting patients' relationships with their doctors. A dramatic increase in the primary care physician workforce will be needed. My legislation not only addresses the needs of those individuals to whom health insurance coverage will be extended but also of those who are currently insured but who live in areas underserved by our current health care system. I believe we can address this problem by adopting long overdue reforms to improve pay levels for primary care providers while also taking measures to ensure an adequate primary care workforce, particularly in rural areas. As more Americans gain health care coverage, the experts estimate there will be a shortage of 46,000 primary care physicians available to care for the influx of patients by the year 2025. As the need grows, the number of medical students choosing primary care is rapidly dwindling. Detailed studies from the Center for Evaluative Clinical Sciences at Dartmouth and the Commonwealth Fund found that populations with ready access to primary care physicians realize improved health outcomes, reduced mortality, lower utilization of health care resources, and lower overall costs of care. Yet despite what we know, all across this country, we are failing to realize the benefits of primary care and a system of having a primary care physician coordinate a patient's health care needs. This bill includes several key provisions aimed at achieving a high quality, more comprehensive integrated health system. Specific provisions include: scholarship and loan repayment opportunities for primary care providers who serve in areas with critical shortages of primary care services. New residency positions for primary care with a focus on more opportunities to train in ambulatory care settings--including community in health centers. Increased reimbursements for primary care providers. Medicare payments for care coordination services, and bonus payments to providers who serve as integrated patient-centered medical homes. Improved access to primary care for seniors by eliminating copayments for preventives care services in Medicare. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to ensure we make the necessary investments in our primary care workforce. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill and letters of support be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 152, submitted earlier today; that the resolution be agreed to and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss the administration's truly historic announcement last week that in writing they supported bringing unregulated ``dark'' over-the-counter derivative markets under full regulation for the very first time. For months I have been urging the Obama administration to move quickly and propose strong regulatory controls on these markets, to require transparency in derivatives trading, and to restrict market manipulation. With the announcement last week by Secretary Geithner of these new regulations, the administration has come down decisively against dangerously unrestricted trading. They have come down on the side of imposing order on a marketplace whose collapse made the current recession much deeper and more painful for average Americans than it needed to be. The administration's commitment to bringing a ``dark'' market into light is very important. Congress has received a written commitment from the administration that they will bring the unregulated over-the- counter derivatives market under full regulation for the very first time. This means they have correctly identified three goals of regulatory reform of the over-the-counter derivatives markets. First, if Congress and the administration push through, we will finally gain transparency in the ``dark'' markets. All derivatives transactions and dealers will be brought under prudent regulation and supervision. That means even those that are customized derivatives, not just the OTC market; so prudent regulation and supervision, including capital adequacy requirements, antifraud and antimanipulation authority, very clear transparency and reporting requirements. Second, standardized trading of physical commodities and derivatives will finally be required to trade on fully regulated exchanges. Third, the administration is also committed to opposing position limits on regulated markets to prevent any market player from amassing large positions that can harm markets. I have received assurances from the White House that the administration believes these position limits should be applied in the aggregate across all markets. I still remain concerned about Mr. Gensler's nomination to chair the Commodities Futures Trading Commission. Mr. Gensler was at the Department of the Treasury a decade ago and helped push through a bill, passed by Congress, that provided an ironclad protection against the regulation of financial products such as credit default swaps and derivatives at the heart of this financial crisis. The unfettered speculation that resulted helped bring about not only the energy crisis in my region but decades of other problems that contributed to the demise of AIG, Lehman Brothers, and Bear Sterns. I believe we need new blood at the CFTC and all regulatory agencies. We need people who will move us from a world of unregulated toxic assets to a world of transparency and aggressive oversight. For nearly three decades the financial industry has had its way in Washington, successfully pushing deregulation in the name of innovation. Time- tested regulatory policies that protected investors and consumers since the Depression were systematically eroded. Many factors led to the present economic meltdown, but we know that chief among them was the policy advocated by Mr. Gensler of not fully regulating the derivatives market. A decade ago, at the end of the 106th Congress, in the dark of night, Congress passed a law known as the Commodities Futures Modernization Act. But instead of modernizing commodities trading, it took us back in time to the day when securities trading was subject to wild speculation. This law, backed by Mr. Gensler, provided ironclad protection against regulation and oversight of derivatives and has caused many problems. One courageous regulator at the time, then CFTC chairwoman Brooksley Born, warned Congress and the financial community that unregulated derivatives would expose the economy to serious dangers. But some in Washington blocked her efforts, including many on Wall Street. One high-ranking Treasury official charged with pushing these deregulation bills through Congress was Gary Gensler, a former high-ranking executive at Goldman Sachs. As Under Secretary of the Treasury, Mr. Gensler testified before Congress that he opposed regulating the derivatives market. Mr. Gensler, as we know, was wrong. Just yesterday Brooksley Born received recognition for her courage in standing up to the powerful financial interests in proposing tough rules. She was presented with the Profile in Courage award by the John F. Kennedy Foundation. Remarkably, the Senate is now considering confirming Mr. Gensler to serve as chair of the CFTC, the same agency Brooksley Born chaired and the same agency Mr. Gensler worked so hard to defang in his previous tenure as Under Secretary of the Treasury. That is why I oppose his confirmation to run the CFTC at a critically important time when we need more financial regulation in these agencies. In the months ahead I will be looking forward to working with the CFTC and the President's working group on financial markets and the Department of the Treasury to actively engage Congress on the reforms that need to be passed into law. I will be looking to the CFTC to do its job, to prevent excessive speculation from stopping the Nation's economic recovery. I will be looking to Mr. Gensler to earn the trust of Congress and provide oversight over the commodities and derivatives markets.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Madam President, I rise to discuss what I hope will be a turning point on our road to economic recovery. The Obama administration yesterday asked Congress to swiftly pass sweeping and historic regulatory reforms on derivatives, credit default swaps, commodities trading, and other sectors of the financial marketplace that collapsed last year under the weight of unrestrained speculation. The road to this point has not been easy. For months I have been urging the administration to move quickly to propose strong regulatory controls on these markets, require transparency in derivatives trading, and restrict market manipulation. With the announcement yesterday by Treasury Secretary Geithner in a letter he sent to Senate and House leaders, the administration has come down decisively on the side of imposing order on a marketplace whose collapse made this current recession so much deeper and more painful for the average American than it needed to be. The administration clearly supported in writing bringing the unregulated ``dark'' over-the-counter derivative markets under full regulation for the very first time. The administration has correctly identified the top three key goals of regulatory reform in the unregulated over-the-counter derivatives market. First, transparency on all dark markets. All derivative transaction dealers will be brought under prudential regulation and supervision which means capital adequacy requirements, antifraud and antimanipulation authority, and very clear transparency and reporting requirements. Second, all standardized trading of physical commodities and other derivatives will finally be required to be traded on fully regulated exchanges. Third, imposing position limits on regulated markets to prevent any market player from amassing large positions that can harm the market. I have received in e-mail additional assurances from the administration that they believe these position limits should be applied in the aggregate across all contract markets to prevent fraud and manipulation. Mr. Geithner's announcement yesterday was truly historic. Americans have suffered through an era of deregulation that is primarily the cause of this economic crisis. How did we get here and why is this historic? A decade ago Congress passed, in the dark of night at the end of the Congress in 2000, a law known as the Commodities Futures Modernization Act that provided ironclad protections from regulation for financial tools. One courageous regulator, then Commodities Futures Trading Commission Chairwoman Brooksley Born, warned Congress and the financial community that unregulated derivatives could cause potential serious dangers to the economy. But some in Washington blocked her efforts, including Wall Street and senior administration officials. One high-ranking Treasury official charged with pushing this deregulation bill through Congress was Gary Gensler, a former high- ranking executive at Goldman Sachs. As Under Secretary of the Treasury, Mr. Gensler testified before Congress that he ``unambiguously opposed'' regulating the derivatives market. Mr. Gensler was wrong. For Brooksley Born's courage in standing up to powerful financial interests in proposing tougher rules, she is being awarded the Profiles in Courage award by the John F. Kennedy Foundation this year. With yesterday's announcement, this administration embraces the reforms that Brooksley Born argued we needed a decade ago. This was an uphill battle. There were too many people with a financial stake in the old, unrestrained trading system. But it was because of my concern that the President's commitments to government reform and increased transparency would be overshadowed by those willing to take a go-slow approach to regulatory reform that I placed a hold on the President's nomination of Gary Gensler to be Chairman of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission. In my view, Mr. Gensler helped perpetuate the lax regulation that contributed to our current economic crisis while he was Under Secretary of Treasury during the latter years of the Clinton administration. While Mr. Gensler has recently stated he supports stronger regulatory rules for financial markets, in 2000, he supported legislation that provided ironclad protections against regulation of financial products such as credit default swaps and derivatives. I hardly need to remind my colleagues of the disastrous results of that course of action. The world of derivatives and credit default swaps is foreign to most Americans. The vulnerability of these markets to rampant speculation and the complex set of regulatory structures needed to address the problems are not easy to grasp, even for insiders of the financial industry. But my constituents in Washington State know all too well the consequences of inaction and lax oversight. To us, the financial meltdown is not just an object lesson in greed and avarice playing out on the other coast; it is an issue that has affected our daily lives. We remember when the lights went out over the energy crisis brought on by Enron's predatory speculation that threw the western power grid into disarray. This perfect storm--a combination of drought, botched regulation, and Enron's market manipulation--cost west coast consumers more than $40 billion, and it took years to unravel the mess. The rules of the financial game may be esoteric, but the consequences of a financial meltdown are well understood by my constituents. It is because of my involvement in bringing Enron's speculative schemes to light and seeing the type of business abuse in the financial markets that I am determined to take steps to ensure that such abuse does not happen again. I am glad President Obama has listened to those on Capitol Hill and those within his own administration who believed strongly that bold and timely action was critical to ensure stability of our financial markets. I continue to have concerns about Mr. Gensler's appointment to head the agency responsible for regulating swaps and other derivatives whose collapse amid unrestricted speculation caused so much damage to the economy. But in light of the administration's significant and potentially historic stand on new controls over derivative markets, I am prepared to lift my hold on his confirmation and, instead, focus on ensuring that the legislation we pass includes the recommendations the administration has made. I say that I hope the administration's new policy will become a turning point, because we have more work to do to make sure these concepts become law. The Treasury Department announcement was not a piece of legislation but, rather, a policy outline, a statement of the kind of bill the White House would support. It is now up to us in Congress to turn this into law. I am committed to working with Senate leadership to ensure that the resulting legislation closes loopholes and that we get about making sure that the previously poorly designed controls are eliminated. Where necessary, we must be willing to go even further than the administration in crafting a bill that puts an end to destructive and predatory forms of speculation. But I applaud the bold position outlined in the Treasury Secretary's letter to House and Senate leadership yesterday. The idea here is not to impose regulation for regulation's sake. The idea is to protect the American people from the consequences of unrestrained speculation. Our constituents are justifiably angry, because they have seen millions of jobs and trillions of dollars in savings evaporate while speculators who aggravated the crisis floated away on golden parachutes. Undoubtedly, in the weeks to come, Wall Street interests will have a lot to say about regulatory reforms. They should say it to the average American who has been taking a crash course in the financial crisis over the past year. Our obligation is not to these speculators. It is to the people who work hard, whose ingenuity and extraordinary productivity have provided the lift that has made our economy the envy of the world. It is now our time to do our job to put in the robust reforms that will make their hard work pay off in the days ahead. I ask unanimous consent that Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's letter be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Ms. CANTWELL. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Marine Mammals Rescue Assistance Amendments Act. In my home State of Washington, our history and economy is based on a rich maritime tradition that contributes as much as $3 billion to the State's economy each year. There are 3,000 vessels in Washington's fishing fleet that employ 10,000 fishermen. Nationwide, ocean-dependent industries generate approximately $138 billion and millions of jobs to the U.S. economy. According to the National Ocean Economic Project, 30 U.S. coastal states accounted for 82 percent of total population and 81 percent of U.S. jobs in 2006. For these communities, their histories and economies literally ebb and flow with the tide. It is vital we remember the ocean resources these communities depend on are a public trust, and a resource to be both treasured and protected. One important element of the oceans' ecosystems is marine mammals. They reflect the greater health of the ocean environment, like a canary in a coal mine. In Washington state, marine mammals like the endangered Puget Sound southern resident orcas are icons for our region. My State's coastal waters are inhabited by gray whales, harbor seals, orcas, humpback whales, Dall's porpoise, California sea lions, and sea otters. They are an important part of Washington's marine environment, and deserve to be protected and respected. But occasionally these remarkable animals run into trouble and need our help. They become stranded on beaches, ensnared in fishing gear, hit by boats, or harmed by marine trash. Human activities endanger these animals, as such, it is our responsibility to do all that we can to protect them. The Marine Mammals Rescue Assistance Amendments Act continues our Government's efforts to protect and preserve these remarkable creatures. It would reauthorize and amend provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 relating to the John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program, Prescott program. Before this program was created, saving troubled marine mammals was the burden of small, locally-funded volunteer organizations, many of whom were members of the Marine Mammal Stranding Network. These groups of local citizens took on the financial burden of rescuing and rehabilitating stranded mammals, relied mainly on piecemeal fundraising, and were woefully underfunded. The Prescott program lends a much-needed helping hand to these organizations, helping to defray their costs for marine mammal rescue and rehabilitation. It also allows eligible Marine Mammal Stranding Network participants to use funds to collect scientific data to improve the treatment and operation of rescue and rehabilitation centers. Reauthorization of this program is important to the Marine Mammal Stranding Networks around the nation, aquariums and zoos, the environmental community, and NOAA. For example, in my home state of Washington, organizations like the Orca Network, the Makah Tribe, The Whale Museum, and the Cascadia Research Collective rely on this funding, and last year received a total of $319,000 in Prescott grant funding to help support their work preserving and protecting marine mammals. The Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Amendments Act would amend section 403 of the MMPA to: define the term ``entanglement'' and add authorization for entanglement response as eligible for funding under the program; require the Secretary of Commerce to collect and update existing practices and procedures for rescuing and rehabilitating entangled marine mammals; establishes an interest bearing fund in the Treasury for emergency response to marine mammal entanglement and stranding, and allow the program to solicit and accept gifts and other donations to increase the impact of the program; increase authorization for the program to $7 million for each fiscal years 2009 to 2013; and increase the maximum grant for projects from $100,000 to $200,000. We cannot turn our backs on the damage we do to our marine mammals every day. When marine mammals are harmed by human activities--whether intentional or unintentional, direct or indirect--we have an ethical obligation to do what we can to help. As stewards of the oceans, we owe it to our coastal communities, our precious marine mammals, and future generations to fulfill that obligation. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Marine Mammals Rescue Assistance Amendments Act. In my home State of Washington, our history and economy is based on a rich maritime tradition that contributes as much as $3 billion to the State's economy each year. There are 3,000 vessels in Washington's fishing fleet that employ 10,000 fishermen. Nationwide, ocean-dependent industries generate approximately $138 billion and millions of jobs to the U.S. economy. According to the National Ocean Economic Project, 30 U.S. coastal states accounted for 82 percent of total population and 81 percent of U.S. jobs in 2006. For these communities, their histories and economies literally ebb and flow with the tide. It is vital we remember the ocean resources these communities depend on are a public trust, and a resource to be both treasured and protected. One important element of the oceans' ecosystems is marine mammals. They reflect the greater health of the ocean environment, like a canary in a coal mine. In Washington state, marine mammals like the endangered Puget Sound southern resident orcas are icons for our region. My State's coastal waters are inhabited by gray whales, harbor seals, orcas, humpback whales, Dall's porpoise, California sea lions, and sea otters. They are an important part of Washington's marine environment, and deserve to be protected and respected. But occasionally these remarkable animals run into trouble and need our help. They become stranded on beaches, ensnared in fishing gear, hit by boats, or harmed by marine trash. Human activities endanger these animals, as such, it is our responsibility to do all that we can to protect them. The Marine Mammals Rescue Assistance Amendments Act continues our Government's efforts to protect and preserve these remarkable creatures. It would reauthorize and amend provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 relating to the John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program, Prescott program. Before this program was created, saving troubled marine mammals was the burden of small, locally-funded volunteer organizations, many of whom were members of the Marine Mammal Stranding Network. These groups of local citizens took on the financial burden of rescuing and rehabilitating stranded mammals, relied mainly on piecemeal fundraising, and were woefully underfunded. The Prescott program lends a much-needed helping hand to these organizations, helping to defray their costs for marine mammal rescue and rehabilitation. It also allows eligible Marine Mammal Stranding Network participants to use funds to collect scientific data to improve the treatment and operation of rescue and rehabilitation centers. Reauthorization of this program is important to the Marine Mammal Stranding Networks around the nation, aquariums and zoos, the environmental community, and NOAA. For example, in my home state of Washington, organizations like the Orca Network, the Makah Tribe, The Whale Museum, and the Cascadia Research Collective rely on this funding, and last year received a total of $319,000 in Prescott grant funding to help support their work preserving and protecting marine mammals. The Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Amendments Act would amend section 403 of the MMPA to: define the term ``entanglement'' and add authorization for entanglement response as eligible for funding under the program; require the Secretary of Commerce to collect and update existing practices and procedures for rescuing and rehabilitating entangled marine mammals; establishes an interest bearing fund in the Treasury for emergency response to marine mammal entanglement and stranding, and allow the program to solicit and accept gifts and other donations to increase the impact of the program; increase authorization for the program to $7 million for each fiscal years 2009 to 2013; and increase the maximum grant for projects from $100,000 to $200,000. We cannot turn our backs on the damage we do to our marine mammals every day. When marine mammals are harmed by human activities--whether intentional or unintentional, direct or indirect--we have an ethical obligation to do what we can to help. As stewards of the oceans, we owe it to our coastal communities, our precious marine mammals, and future generations to fulfill that obligation. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Pacific Salmon Stronghold Conservation Act of 2009, together with my colleague from Alaska Senator Murkowski. I am grateful for all the input and collaboration from key stakeholders in Washington State that I have received on this legislation. I am especially grateful for the input from the Quileute Tribe, the Wild Salmon Center, and Bill Ruckelshaus. Wild Pacific salmon are central to the culture, economy, and environment of western North America. While current Federal, State, and local salmon recovery efforts are focused on recovering salmon listed under the Endangered Species Act, ESA, seeking to restore what we've lost--the Salmon Stronghold Act seeks to protect what we have. Current efforts to recover threatened or endangered salmon stocks are vital. This is why I have consistently fought for increased funding for the Pacific Coast Salmon Recovery Fund, PCSRF, and will continue to proudly do so. The PCSRF, since its inception in 2000, has allowed my home State of Washington to focus the efforts of counties and conservation districts, on average, to remove 300 barriers to fish passage and to open 300 miles of habitat each year. That's 2,400 barriers removed and 2,400 miles of habitat restored. In 2008, for every Federal dollar spent on this program it leveraged about $2 local and State dollars. I will continue the fight to protect this salmon recovery funding. But more must be done. A key purpose of this act is to complement existing Federal, State and local salmon recovery efforts by directing new Federal resources to conserve healthy salmon populations. This legislation will utilize sound science to identify and sustain core centers of salmon abundance, productivity, and diversity in the healthiest remaining salmon ecosystems throughout the Pacific States. This bill establishes a new regional Salmon Stronghold Partnership program that provides federal support and resources to protect a network of the healthiest remaining wild Pacific salmon ecosystems in North America. The bill promotes enhanced coordination and cooperation of Federal, tribal, State and local governments, public and private land managers, fisheries managers, power authorities, and non- governmental organizations in efforts to protect salmon strongholds. It is time to increase funding for recovery efforts, but also focus on prevention. It is time to adopt the kind of comprehensive solution that can solidify the place wild Pacific salmon hold in American culture for generations to come. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Pacific Salmon Stronghold Conservation Act of 2009, together with my colleague from Alaska Senator Murkowski. I am grateful for all the input and collaboration from key stakeholders in Washington State that I have received on this legislation. I am especially grateful for the input from the Quileute Tribe, the Wild Salmon Center, and Bill Ruckelshaus. Wild Pacific salmon are central to the culture, economy, and environment of western North America. While current Federal, State, and local salmon recovery efforts are focused on recovering salmon listed under the Endangered Species Act, ESA, seeking to restore what we've lost--the Salmon Stronghold Act seeks to protect what we have. Current efforts to recover threatened or endangered salmon stocks are vital. This is why I have consistently fought for increased funding for the Pacific Coast Salmon Recovery Fund, PCSRF, and will continue to proudly do so. The PCSRF, since its inception in 2000, has allowed my home State of Washington to focus the efforts of counties and conservation districts, on average, to remove 300 barriers to fish passage and to open 300 miles of habitat each year. That's 2,400 barriers removed and 2,400 miles of habitat restored. In 2008, for every Federal dollar spent on this program it leveraged about $2 local and State dollars. I will continue the fight to protect this salmon recovery funding. But more must be done. A key purpose of this act is to complement existing Federal, State and local salmon recovery efforts by directing new Federal resources to conserve healthy salmon populations. This legislation will utilize sound science to identify and sustain core centers of salmon abundance, productivity, and diversity in the healthiest remaining salmon ecosystems throughout the Pacific States. This bill establishes a new regional Salmon Stronghold Partnership program that provides federal support and resources to protect a network of the healthiest remaining wild Pacific salmon ecosystems in North America. The bill promotes enhanced coordination and cooperation of Federal, tribal, State and local governments, public and private land managers, fisheries managers, power authorities, and non- governmental organizations in efforts to protect salmon strongholds. It is time to increase funding for recovery efforts, but also focus on prevention. It is time to adopt the kind of comprehensive solution that can solidify the place wild Pacific salmon hold in American culture for generations to come. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. CANTWELL

Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, today, Congress can be very proud of a very significant accomplishment. Because today, Congress stood up for the enjoyment and protection of some of our nation's most pristine and breathtaking wilderness areas, historical sites, national parks, forests, trails, scenic rivers, and oceans. This bill will help our country address the impacts of climate change on our coastal areas, and provide educational opportunities for our Nation's children. Today, the U.S. House of Representatives will pass the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 one of the most sweeping conservation bills that Congress has passed in many years. It is a huge victory for the generations of Americans who enjoy these sites each year. It is a huge victory for our American heritage. And, it is a huge victory for Washington State. This bill has been through many twists and turns over the last year. But today's successful vote could not have been possible without the tenacity and dedication of Majority Leader Reid. I thank the majority leader for his steadfast support and dedication to seeing that these important public land and ocean priorities became law. Today, I would like to highlight some of the provisions in this bill that I am especially pleased to see go to the President's desk. First, this package includes the Snoqualmie Pass Land Conveyance Act, which I sponsored. This bill would transfer an acre and a half of Forest Service land to the Snoqualmie Pass Fire District to help them build a new fire station. For decades, the Fire District has been leasing its current site from the Forest Service. They operate out of an aging building that was not designed to be a fire station. While they have been able to serve their community despite this building's many shortcomings, the time has come for us to pay them back for their hard work and dedication. With traffic on the rise and the need for emergency services in the area growing, the Fire District needs to move to a true fire station and this bill will finally help them do that. Second, the Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail Designation Act is included in this bill. Since 2001, I have been working with communities in Central and Eastern Washington, the National Park Service, and community stakeholders to create an Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail through portions of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. Visitors to the trail will not only provide an important economic boost to central and eastern Washington communities, but they will learn about an amazing, and often overlooked, part of our region's history. You see, most people don't know that during the last Ice Age, when a glacial lake in Montana formed and deepened enough, the sheer force of the backed up water undermined the glacial ice-dam. And, the ice gave way in a cracking explosion. The huge lake, bigger than all the rivers of the world today combined, was released all at once and carved its way through the Pacific Northwest. This changed the region's geography. But these cataclysmic floods have been a story that's gone largely untold. Because of this bill, more people will know this important part of Pacific Northwest history. Third, this package includes my Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail Act. The Pacific Northwest Trail runs from the Continental Divide to the Pacific Coast, is 1,200 miles long, and is one of the most pristine and breathtaking trails in the world. This carefully chosen path runs through the Rocky Mountains, Selkirk Mountains, Pasayten Wilderness, North Cascades, Olympic Mountains, and Wilderness Coast. From beginning to end it passes through three states. It crosses three National Parks. And it winds through seven National Forests. Finally, this trail will receive the designation is deserves. This package also includes my Wildland Firefighter Safety legislation. Wildland firefighting and the safety of wildland firefighters is vitally important to our brave men and women who battle these blazes, and for the communities that depend on them. This legislation will improve accountability and transparency in wildland firefighter safety training programs. Through training and certification we can lower the risk to the brave men and women who protect our forests and communities. It's critical that Congress is actively engaged to make sure this happens. I would also like to mention the three provisions in this package aimed and conserving and protecting our nation's oceans and the communities that depend on them. This is particularly important in these days of economic turmoil, as millions of Americans depend directly and indirectly on healthy oceans and coasts. Also, as our climate changes, we must work to address some of the issues that have the potential to affect millions of jobs. That is why I was thankful that Majority Leader Reid included several provisions in this package that address our oceans. I am particularly thrilled about the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act. The world's oceans are absorbing roughly 22 million tons of carbon dioxide every day, causing seawater chemistry to become more acidic possibly withholding the basic chemical building blocks needed by many marine organisms. This act creates a comprehensive national ocean acidification research and monitoring program that will take a hard look at the devastating impacts greenhouse gas emissions are having on our oceans. All of this could not have been accomplished without the strong support and hard work and dedication of the majority leader and I thank the leader for successfully moving these priorities. Today is a proud day for Congress, for Washington State, for our world's ocean and marine environments, and for some of the most breathtaking views and important legacies this Nation has to offer. Because the steps we have taken in this package will protect our lands, our coastal areas, and our first responders.