Lois Capps

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, I thank my leader for yielding, and I rise today in opposition to the Republican amendment that would undermine key provisions in the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization, and to urge strong support for the underlying Senate bill which protects our young people on our school campuses. VAWA is a vital program addressing violence against women holistically: through prevention programs, survivor supports, and provisions to hold perpetrators accountable. But it is also a symbol that relationship violence and sexual assault is real and that it's unacceptable. It has been a symbol in this Congress that we can put aside our differences and come together to do what is right for violence victims and survivors. And as we saw in the Senate--and we will hopefully see it here in the House--this is still true. Our daughters, sisters, and mothers, no matter where they are, including on our school campuses, deserve to live without fear of abuse, and we cannot delay their safety any longer. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support the Senate bill.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues in addressing the immediate and increasing threat of climate change. States and localities are beginning to respond to this threat, but they can't do it alone. That's why I'm introducing two bills to help our communities prepare for the future impacts of climate change. The first is the Coastal States Climate Change Planning Act. It provides funding to coastal States and communities so they can plan and implement climate change mitigation projects, such as seawalls, habitat buffer zones, and flood control systems. The second bill is the Water Infrastructure Resiliency and Sustainability Act, which provides funding for local water agencies. Water agencies are very concerned about the need to increase the resiliency of our aging water infrastructure systems because they're going to be impacted by climate change. These critical infrastructure projects will not only improve public health and safety, but they will also help our local economies grow by providing jobs. Mr. Speaker, it is time to take action on climate change, so I hope we can work together to pass these and other commonsense measures to address such a critical issue.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate the anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act, a critical law that has helped Americans balance the demands of work and family for 20 years. Over these last two decades, FMLA has helped to foster strong family relationships, ensuring parents could take time with a new child, allowing workers to care for older family members, and permitting military families the time to prepare for new deployments. For this, we are all grateful. But we must remember that FMLA is only the first step to helping our working families. Too many are still without FMLA's protections, and millions who are eligible can't afford to take unpaid leave. As we reflect on 20 years of great success, let's recommit to improving this program going forward to help keep all American families strong.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. I thank my colleague for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 225, the National Pediatric Research Network Act. I want to associate myself with the remarks of our committee chairman, Mr. Upton. He has a family dear to his heart, as I have one too; and they reflect families across this country for whom this bill will provide a stronger glimmer of hope for the future. This is a bipartisan bill. It will improve research in clinical trials on pediatric diseases, train future pediatric researchers, and disseminate research findings quickly so that all children may benefit. It does not replace our current pediatric research investments, but instead builds upon the work already being done at the National Institutes of Health and at so many research centers across the country by creating research consortia to form a nationwide network of pediatric researchers. This is important to make sure that we are always working with the most current science and that this information is quickly shared and verified. This bill will also expand the geographic scope of research, giving sick kids easier access to research programs and clinical trials. Moreover, this bill will help a wider variety of institutions participate in this critical research while providing training grounds for our next generation of pediatric researchers. Another key feature of this bill is that it will place an added emphasis on researching children's rare diseases and develop new treatments to fight them. My colleagues have heard me talk before about diseases like spinal muscular atrophy just referenced by our committee chair. This does not just affect a sick child, but it also fundamentally changes the daily lives of their family, their school, their community. The low prevalence of such diseases makes them particularly hard to research. But for those affected, a new cure or treatment could mean a world of difference. The National Pediatric Research Network Act will be an important step forward to helping these families and those who may develop these diseases long into the future. I am a nurse, a mother, and a grandmother as well, and I am very pleased to have authored this bill that will help bring more treatments and cures to many children. Children have unique health care experiences, treatment needs, research challenges; and while public and private research has come a very long way on pediatric diseases over the years, we know that we are still far behind on important diagnostics, cures, and treatments for far too many of our ailing children, which is why this bill is so important. I especially thank Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers for co- leading this bill through two Congresses with me and for all her hard work on children's health issues. I want to thank the leadership of the Energy and Commerce Committee. Chairman Upton I have referenced, but I also thank Ranking Member Waxman, Chairman Pitts, Ranking Member Pallone, and their staffs for their dedication to this bill. I especially thank Ruth Katz for helping us move this bill through the committee quickly. I thank my colleague Congresswoman DeGette, who has worked on this bill with me for many years. Finally, I would like to thank my constituents Bill and Victoria Strong for their tireless work on behalf of their daughter, Gwendolyn, and all the children with spinal muscular atrophy and other rare diseases. For them, I wear a particular bracelet, which reads: ``Never give up.'' Gwendolyn, who it was once thought would never live past age 2, is now in kindergarten. The work her parents, Bill and Victoria, do day in and day out to make their daughter's world a little better is so inspiring. The dedication of her parents and their medical team truly allows Gwendolyn to live life to the fullest. They have shown how entire communities can come together and fight diseases like SMA. I urge my colleagues to follow their example. Come together, and support this bill today so we can do all we can to make it law. Mr. Speaker, the National Pediatric Research Network Act is an important bill, not just for current and future researchers, but for sick children and for their families. It is a bipartisan measure that received overwhelming support in the 112th Congress, and it's the right thing to do, so I urge its full support.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I also rise today to recognize the 40th anniversary of the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision. This landmark decision granted American women the right to make their own personal health decisions, in consultation with their family and their faith, and without government intrusion. However, this right has been under steady attack in recent years, with a clear goal: to make it so difficult to obtain a safe and legal abortion that it's become de facto illegal. But I'm among those who remember what it was like when women were pushed into the shadows to get care, and we cannot go back to that dangerous time. The truth is, none of us can walk in the shoes of each woman facing an unwanted pregnancy, so let's use this anniversary to renew our commitment to ensuring that every woman in America can make her own decision and walk her own path.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I was not able to be present for the following rollcall vote on January 14, 2013 and would like the record to reflect that I would have voted as follows: rollcall No. 8: ``yes''; rollcall No. 9: ``yes''; and rollcall No. 10: ``no''.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my disappointment that House leadership is again playing political games instead of getting our work done. With time running short, they've decided to prohibit a vote on extending the middle class tax cuts for families making up to $250,000 per year. Instead, we will only be voting on the so-called Republican Plan B. Plan B is yet another giveaway to the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans and at the expense of middle class families. It forces middle class families to pay $1,000 more a year in taxes in order to give millionaires a $50,000 break. That's not what the American people voted for in November. They sent a clear message that they wanted us to put aside our differences and work together to pass a balanced plan that protects middle class families and ensures that everyone pays their fair share. We agree. We all agree that families making up to $250,000 should not see their taxes go up on January 1. We could pass that bill today and give millions of families across this country peace of mind, but we're not even getting to vote on that bill. Instead, we're taking a symbolic vote that solves nothing. My constituents--all of our constituents-- deserve better.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. I do want to acknowledge the gentlelady in the chair as my partner in the Capps-Emerson lectures and as my neighbor and a real friend. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the PREEMIE Reauthorization Act. This is an important bill to improve the health outcomes of pregnant women and their babies, and it shows our Nation's commitment to addressing the costly and emotionally troubling incidence of preterm birth. While this is enough reason for me to support this legislation, I would like to highlight two additional sections of the bill that will improve the health and well-being not only of newborns but of our children as they grow. First, it includes the reauthorization of the Children's Hospital Graduate Medical Education program. This is a critical investment in both the health of our kids and in the health of our economy by bringing new, talented individuals into the health care workforce. From my years as a school nurse, I know the difficulty that children experience, especially those with special health care needs, when they look for a pediatric specialist. Over the years, we have seen how CHGME programs have made a measurable impact in alleviating that burden, allowing these children and their families to focus on healing. I am proud to be an original cosponsor of this legislation and will continue to champion it in the House. While we must ensure that the providers are available for our kids, we are still far behind on too many important diagnostics, cures, and treatments for many of our ailing children. That is why this bill also includes the National Pediatric Research Network Act, which is a bill that I coauthored with my colleague, Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers. This legislation will help strengthen and coordinate our Nation's research on pediatric diseases. It will disseminate research findings quickly so that all children may benefit, especially those who have rare diseases; and it will expand the geographic scope of research, giving sick kids easier access to research programs and to clinical trials. Moreover, this bill places an added emphasis on researching children's rare diseases, like spinal muscular atrophy, as my colleague Mr. Upton has noted, and on developing new treatments to fight them. The low prevalence of these diseases makes them particularly hard to research, and yet these diseases have such a marked impact on the lives of far too many families and communities, like the Strong family of Santa Barbara. My constituents Bill and Victoria Strong have worked tirelessly on behalf of their daughter, Gwendolyn, and all children with spinal muscular atrophy and other rare diseases. The work they've done to help raise the profile of pediatric rare disease research is going to help families all across the Nation. I thank them. I also thank the leadership of the Energy and Commerce Committee-- Chairman Upton, Ranking Member Waxman, Chairman Pitts, and Ranking Member Pallone--for their dedication to this bill. I thank the staff, especially Ruth Katz, for working across the aisle and across the Capitol to bring a strong bill now to the floor. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill. I urge its swift passage in the Senate so that we can improve the health and well- being of all infants and all children.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Con. Res. 833, and in support of the greater Newtown community in the wake of the tragic Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Twenty seven lives have been lost and countless others have been affected by the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut on December 15, 2012. Twenty first-graders were killed in their classroom. And teachers and school administrators died while protecting their students. As a nation, we are heartsick. As a mother and grandmother of eight, I cannot even begin to fathom what the families of Newtown are going through. As they have just begun the long and slow process of grieving and healing, our nation's hearts, prayers, and deepest sympathies are with them. This horrible crime reminds us that our time here is precious and short. And it reminds us that even though we cannot prevent every single senseless violent act, we must come together to all we can to reduce the gun violence that contributed to these losses. For too long we have neglected to take the steps necessary to stem the damage and harm inflicted by gun violence. I pray that this horrific event will remind us that our highest priority is to keep our children safe--and right now we are not doing enough. There is so much more that we can do to protect our families and communities from gun violence. But there is also much more that we can and must do to strengthen our mental health care systems--to treat those in need, avert future violence, and support those whose lives have been affected by it. In the coming days, weeks, and months, and as time passes for the community of Newtown, the nation will reflect on this tragedy. I hope that through this soul searching we will conclude that we have a moral responsibility to take strong, effective action to reduce the harm caused by gun violence. We owe it to the victims and their families to take every step possible to prevent another horrific tragedy like this one. If not now, when?

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I was not able to be present for the following rollcall vote on December 17, 2012, and would like the record to reflect that I would have voted as follows: Rollcall No. 627: yes. Rollcall No. 628: yes.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Sequestration would be a huge blow not only to middle class families but also to our clean energy innovators and entrepreneurs. According to the Office of Management and Budget, sequestration would impose an across-the-board cut of nearly 10 percent to critical clean energy and innovation programs. That would mean a $148 million cut to the Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Program alone. These cuts would tremendously damage our ability to develop the clean energy technologies of tomorrow, technologies that lead not only to lower energy bills for our constituents but also to new businesses and middle class jobs. I see it every day in my congressional district, where cutting-edge companies like LaunchPoint Technologies and Transphorm use Federal funding to develop exciting new ideas that would otherwise languish on the drawing board. Mr. Speaker, the threat of sequestration and the fiscal cliff is very real. It's time for us to come together and pass a balanced package that continues building for a clean energy future.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. I would like to thank my colleague, George Miller, for setting aside this hour. He just asked about the amount of time, and I will take that to heart as I make my comments because we could all go on for great lengths about all of these dear people who won't be with us in the next Congress. And I add my congratulations for their service, Republicans and Democrats, all of us alike, but I will speak now for the six of our Democratic colleagues who will not come back. I want to start with our dear friend, Lynn Woolsey, to whom I get compared. My progressive constituents often say to me, Now, Lois, why don't you vote more like Lynn Woolsey? She was one of the first people I met. Her story is compelling as a woman Member of Congress. I don't know how it would be to raise kids by yourself. She is a good voice and advocate for all mothers, all working families, and particularly those who carry extra burdens themselves. She's put her heart and soul into her work in Congress, and it shows. As I met you early on when I came here, you were kind and befriended me. I know that you have served your constituents in the same passionate way, and I thank you for the role model you've provided me. Howard Berman has provided another kind of role model for me. My husband, before me, came to Congress, in part, to work on Middle Eastern issues; and there's a go-to person in this Congress that I have always relied upon for advice and support in that area, and that's Howard Berman. He's a Congressperson's Congressman, in my opinion. My Human Rights Watch folks have held him in such high esteem. It has been a very great honor to serve almost as a neighbor to him. With his district in the Central Valley, San Fernando Valley, and mine on the coast, it has been a real joy to have him as a colleague here. I will treasure always his role in getting me elected and also keeping me here. I also came to Congress from the health care field, and so the name I heard often was Congressman Pete Stark. He's been here since the seventies, knows all about health care and through all of the intricacies. I'm pleased, Mr. Stark, that you have been here through the passage of the Affordable Care Act. That's a crowning jewel for you and for all of us. But you've been through many health care ups and downs through the years. You've been a role model for me being on the Ways and Means Committee and in my role on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Thank you for your service and your friendship. It's hard to go through this list, Mr. Miller. This is a wonderful privilege to say thank you. The countless hours that you could add up for the service to constituents and the tremendous leadership within this body and these Members who have given their all and now will not be back in the 113th, it's important to say their names and to honor them and give them credit for what they've done. Joe Baca has been a fixture for the Central Valley and agriculture, as someone who has agriculture number one in my district as well, but we can't say his name without thinking of the baseball team. There's much to remember Joe Baca for, such as his contributions in agriculture and on the Financial Services Committee as well. My former colleague now, Bob Filner, who has already assumed another position within our government as mayor of San Diego. When I think of Bob Filner, I think of veterans' issues, and also the fact that he was a college professor before he came to Congress, as my husband was, and they reached out to each other in that capacity. He has worked hard on veterans' issue. I have about 50,000 veterans in my district. So the GI bill is often something I can give him credit for but also work with my veterans with. Finally, Laura Richardson. When I think of Laura, it's my daughter's name, but I also think of her beautiful singing voice. I know that I shouldn't say that first to my colleague who has shown tremendous leadership within Congress as well, but she'll take her beautiful voice with her. I have been able to work with Laura on transportation issues as they relate particularly to our ports because she is known for her work with the Port of Long Beach, and I have ports in my district as well. She also will be missed on the women's softball team. We are friends here. We are colleagues here. We bring our human qualities, and we bring our leadership skills. The California delegation makes me proud every day, and in the next Congress, it will be the memories and the service that has been given to us from these colleagues of ours. That's why I thank you, Mr. Miller, for setting aside this hour for us to share our thoughts. Thank you.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. I rise today to congratulate Teach Elementary School in San Luis Obispo on becoming a National Blue Ribbon School. For 30 years, the Department of Education has bestowed this coveted award for outstanding academic achievement, and I am delighted that one of our local schools on the central coast of California was awarded such a tremendous honor. This distinguished recognition highlights the hard work and dedication of the entire staff at Teach Elementary, and I would specifically like to note the outstanding leadership of Principal Dan Block. For Teach Elementary to have such remarkable results--particularly during these tough budget times--is truly commendable. At a time when we must invest in high-quality education in order to strengthen our Nation's economic vitality, it is important that we recognize and replicate the successes of schools such as Teach Elementary. Our students are our Nation's greatest resource, and it's our responsibility to provide them with high-quality schools that put them on a solid path towards success. San Luis Obispo, California, is truly fortunate to have a remarkable school such as Teach Elementary.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. I rise to voice my very strong support of our Nation's maternal and child health programs. And I want to thank my colleague from Illinois, Jan Schakowsky, for getting the idea that we come together around this topic today because of the implications that it has for the beautiful young woman and her child that you're picturing next to you that is a reminder to all of us that these are not numbers when we're talking about sequestration. They really have impacts in people's very lives. So it's an honor for me to follow our colleague, Rosa DeLauro from Connecticut, and also to have as part of your discussion Gwen Moore, a very eloquent spokesperson from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. So, really, this is very diverse in terms of regions of the country that are going to be impacted should we ever cross this threshold. But most of the public discussion we've had so far on this fiscal cliff, however it's described, that we face, the discussion has been about taxes, about who's going to pay what in taxes. But what has been so underreported and overlooked, which is why I'm so grateful to you for calling this out today for us, is the impacts that sequestration cuts would have on our economy, but especially on that vital element of our economy which is our most vulnerable in our society--our children. They're our future. They are not just statistics. They are real little people who cannot wait for services because their bodies will change, their minds will be stunted. They will lose out if we withhold support for them. And I speak from my many years of being a nurse, as you described, and being a nurse in our public sector, in our public schools and a public health nurse. And I've seen firsthand what happens when we cut services to our children. We need to be investing in our children because they are our economic engine for tomorrow and we cannot afford to leave one of them behind. We, therefore, can't afford to slash the very programs that will give them the kind of healthy start in life. You invest a dollar up front in a child and you recoup that dollar so many times over their lifetime and you prevent a lot of other kinds of dollars from being spent in ways that we don't want to. But sequestration would be devastating for our children. I focused on my State of California in terms of looking at what this would be like. These cuts, should sequestration come to pass, would be so devastating to the health and well-being of hundreds and thousands of women and children in the State I come from. For example, in the program that we've all been talking about because it's so central to what families need--food security--the Women, Infants and Children's program that helps those who don't have enough for their children to give them that healthy start, over 120,000 women and children would be cut from this essential program just in California if sequestration came to be. And this provides nutrition assistance, vital links to a healthy, thriving brain and body for families that might not have access to healthy food. For Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grants, nearly 400,000 fewer women and children would be served by these block grants that go to the State to provide the essential services in the local communities. And so the ripple effect down our State and throughout our communities would be so tremendous because these services provide a wide range of health care and they allow the expansion of certain quality health care programs for children, for example, with disabilities. In California, we would be facing, should sequestration happen, 2,000 fewer women having access to breast and cervical screenings, the preventive services that keep cancer full-blown from occurring in these women's lives, so costly to them personally, to their families, but also taxpayers, and nearly a million dollars--and this is what I want to close by focusing on, because we don't stop and think when we cut a million dollars from the Children's Hospitals Graduate Medical Education Program, in sequestration a million dollars would be cut just for these training programs in California. That program makes sure that we have enough resources necessary to train the next generation of pediatric physicians, people who are there on the front line with families to pull them through what they face in life. I met the real-life impact of this program when a remarkable young man came to Capitol Hill from California last year, Max Page. Now, you may not remember his name, but you probably remember if you watched the Super Bowl in 2011 little Darth Vader in the ad, the popular Volkswagen Super Bowl commercial. He's a real young child. He's only 7 years old. And I came to meet him here on Capitol Hill last year. He was born with a congenital heart defect--not uncommon. But it has required numerous surgeries during the 7 years of his short life. He is being treated at Children's Hospital in Los Angeles, which my colleagues from California know very well as an outstanding medical facility serving a wide region in the Southwest. Last year, when Max came to Washington with his parents and little brother, he came to tell Members of Congress his own story and how important it is that we continue to invest in preparing new doctors to care for our children. I know it's every parent's worst fear what will happen if their child becomes sick, not just a runny nose or a sore throat, but seriously ill with perhaps a life-threatening or a chronic condition that needs lifelong treating. We owe it to every parent in America to do what we can to make sure that every child has access to the best health care available if they need it. We don't want them to be concerned that there is not going to be that trained pediatrician, that hospital to send their sick child to should that happen, and it's because we couldn't get our act together and avoid the sequestration. So I'm so pleased that you took the time to organize this hour of sharing with the American people the impact of sequestration, that it would have such a profound effect on our lives when we think about ensuring that every child in America gets a healthy start to life. We take it for granted that every small child needs and deserves this right in this country that we are proud to live in, the United States of America. So we need to come together now on behalf of our Nation's children and their mothers and their families to stop these sequestration cuts, to ensure that we have a balanced approach to reducing our debt, and to continue to support our communities and the frontline services that they provide to our families, because our smallest, our most vulnerable and their families, they're depending on us now in this hour. So again, I thank you for bringing us together, my colleague from Illinois, and for focusing us on the real-life impact of what we're facing here with the cliff.

Mrs. CAPPS. Thank you for this opportunity.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, we have just a few short weeks left in the 112th Congress, but our work here is far from done. Sadly, partisan games and gridlock have made this Congress one of the least productive in history; but with the election finally behind us, I hope we will put aside our differences and get back to work. That means passing a bipartisan farm bill to support our farmers and ranchers. It means extending the production tax credit to create jobs in a growing wind industry and reduce electricity bills for consumers. It means passing the Violence Against Women Act to protect women from abuse. And it means extending tax cuts for middle class families and small businesses now and passing a balanced plan to avert sequestration. We must address these critical issues, and the only way to do that is by coming together and doing what's right for the American people. Mr. Speaker, the election is over. It's time to get back to work.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I was not able to be present for the following rollcall vote on November 13, 2012 and would like the Record to reflect that I would have voted as follows: rollcall No. 604, ``yes.''

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 604, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.

Mrs. CAPPS. Yes, I am opposed.

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, there are many times when we come to this floor and engage in heated debate, and we've heard some heated debate on this bill. But my final amendment offers us the opportunity to come together to do something extraordinarily important, and that is to ensure our constituents' hard-earned cash is redirected away from the gas pump and back into their wallets. I want to be clear, the passage of this amendment will not prevent the passage of the underlying bill. If it's adopted, my amendment will be incorporated into the bill and the bill will be immediately voted upon. Now I make no apologies for opposing this bill. Regardless of how you feel about the bill, my amendment should be something we could all agree on. My amendment preserves new fuel efficiency standards issued last month if their repeal would mean higher prices at the pump for our constituents or lost jobs for our workers. These new standards raise fuel efficiency to 54.5 miles per gallon. That's roughly twice the mileage our cars are getting today. By 2025, these standards will save consumers $1.7 trillion at the gas pump, and they will cut our oil imports by 2 million barrels per day. That's one half our current imports for OPEC. They also represent a new chapter for American ingenuity. Mr. Speaker, if U.S. engineers made it possible for every car to include a computer more powerful than the one that sent a man to the Moon, then surely they can produce cars that go further on a gallon of gas. The good news is they can and they are. There are now 57 fuel-efficient models available in showrooms today, up from 27 models in 2009. Car makers have retooled some of their most popular models to boost efficiency, and the improvements keep coming. The first half of this year set the record for highest-ever fuel efficiency for new vehicles. Consumers are rewarding these breakthroughs. Fuel efficiency is the top concern for car buyers by far, and this is according to Consumer Reports. Consumers support these new standards. Families will save an estimated $8,000 in gasoline costs over the lifetime of their car, and that's equivalent to lowering the price of gasoline by $1 per gallon. These new standards also provide something consumer trends cannot: long-term certainty. And that's why three major automakers--General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler--all support them. Strong standards tell carmakers exactly what goal they need to reach by when so they can invest in innovation, deploy new technologies, and build cars right here in America. When they do that, they hire more workers. More than 150,000 Americans have jobs making parts for and assembling more efficient cars in America today. Car makers are moving production to our shores also. One car maker alone, Honda, recently announced plans to move all global Civic hybrid manufacturing to Indiana from Japan, creating 300 jobs by the end of the year. This onshoring of jobs is because of our commitment to making more efficient cars and components in America. That's why GM's CEO, Dan Akerson, called these standards, ``a win for American manufacturers for the very first time.'' Mr. Speaker, everybody wins when more efficient cars hit the road. American workers win, drivers win, and automakers. These standards demonstrate the best of America, how creating jobs goes hand-in-hand with protecting the environment and health, how drivers can save billions in gasoline costs, how the American auto industry can compete with any country in the world. That's why we must preserve these historic standards and the enormous benefits that come with them by voting for my final amendment. Mr. Speaker, I respectfully ask that all colleagues weigh this simple proposition: Do you want your constituents to pay less at the pump and drive more efficient cars made in America? If your answer is yes, then vote for my amendment. It ensures that our constituents will save thousands of dollars every year at the gas pump, and it makes sure that American workers will find jobs building the cars of the future right here in America. Today we have the opportunity to speak with one voice, to save these landmark car efficiency standards. It's up to us. Support this final amendment to the bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 5 minutes. Mr. Speaker, in the health care profession, we know that children aren't just little adults. They have unique health experiences, treatment needs, and research challenges. While public and private research has come a long way on pediatric diseases over the years, we also know that we are still far behind on important diagnostics, cures, and treatments for far too many ailing children. That's why I am so pleased to have coauthored the National Pediatric Research Network Act with my colleague and friend, Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers. This bipartisan bill would improve research and clinical trials on pediatric diseases. It would train future pediatric researchers and disseminate research findings so quickly so that all children may benefit. It does not replace our current pediatric research investments. Instead, it builds upon the work already being done at the NIH and at research centers across the country by creating, as Chairman Upton said, research consortia to form a nationwide network of pediatric researchers. This is important so that we can make sure that we're always working with the most current science and that information is shared and also verified. It will expand the geographic scope of research, giving sick kids easier access to research programs and clinical trials. Moreover, this bill will help a wider variety of institutions participating in this critical research while providing training grounds for our next generation of pediatric researchers. Another key feature to this bill is that it will place an added emphasis on researching children's rare diseases, such as the one already described, spinal muscular atrophy, and to develop new treatments to fight them. The low prevalence of these diseases makes them particularly hard to research, yet these diseases have such a marked impact on the lives of far too many families and communities. The National Pediatric Research Network Act will be an important step forward to help these families and those who may develop these diseases long into the future. I want to thank again the leadership of the Energy and Commerce Committee, Chairman Upton, Ranking Member Waxman, Chairman Pitts, and Ranking Member Pallone, for their dedication to this bill; and to the staff, my staff, and especially Ruth Katz, a committee staffer, working to improve the language and to bring this to the floor. I also include my colleague, Congresswoman DeGette, for her leadership on this issue over the years. And just like Chairman Upton, I would especially like to thank my constituents, dear friends, and a very remarkable family, Bill and Victoria Strong, who are the parents, for their tireless work on behalf of their own daughter, Gwendolyn, who has spinal muscular atrophy as well and just a few weeks ago celebrated an amazing achievement by entering public kindergarten at the age of 5. She's the favorite of all her classmates, and the parents are beside themselves with joy that this remarkable milestone has been achieved. They work day in and day out to make their daughter's world better, and in doing so they have created a very strong community within our larger community of people who care about Gwendolyn, but also care about other children with similar kinds of conditions and what we should be doing as a Nation to stand with them. They have shown how entire communities can come together to fight diseases like SMA. I urge my colleagues to follow their example. We need to come together now to support this bill, and in doing so we support families like those in Michigan and in Santa Barbara, California, and other places, as well, to do all we can do to make this a law and give them hope and courage for the future. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. CAPPS. In closing, Mr. Speaker, the National Pediatric Research Network Act is a very important bill, not just for current and future researchers, but for sick children and their families, today and in the future. It's a bipartisan measure that will really leverage all the good work that is currently being done on pediatric diseases but that will also fill gaps that make it so hard for progress to be made. I urge full support for this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.