Michael Capuano

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, this week I missed a roll call vote. I wish to state how I would have voted had I been present: Roll Call No. 102-- ``yes.''

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I missed several votes last week while meeting with the Speaker of Parliament of the Republic of the Sudan. I wish to state how I would have voted had I been present: Roll Call No. 55--No Roll Call No. 56--No

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Chair, I have a question for the bill's managers regarding the project-based voucher provisions. The bill generally limits a public housing agency's use of voucher funds for project-based vouchers to 20 percent of the authorized voucher units for the agency, but contains an exception among others providing that units of project- based assistance that are attached to units previously receiving another type of long-term subsidy provided by HUD will not count against this limitation. We have an exciting initiative in Boston that would replace our 75- year-old Charlestown public housing development with a substantially larger, new construction mixed-income community on the same site. The public housing units are to be fully replaced with project-based vouchers. This will require a large commitment of project-based vouchers by the Boston Housing Authority, which would reduce the BHA's flexibility to commit project-based vouchers elsewhere as needed if the Charlestown commitment is not covered by the exception. Is it the intention of the bill's managers that the commitment of project-based vouchers to replace the former public housing units in a newly constructed development such as this would fall within the bill's exception for units attached to units previously receiving another type of long-term HUD subsidy?

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I missed several votes last week to attend a funeral service in Massachusetts. I wish to state how I would have voted had I been present: Roll Call No. 33--No; Roll Call No. 32--Yes; Roll Call No. 31--Yes; Roll Call No. 30--Yes; Roll Call No. 29--Yes; Roll Call No. 28--Yes; Roll Call No. 27--Yes; Roll Call No. 26--Yes; Roll Call No. 25--Yes; Roll Call No. 24--Yes; and Roll Call No. 23-- Yes.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a moment to recognize one of the most distinguished constituents in my district, Naakh Vysoky, who will turn ninety-five on January 3, 2016. Quite simply Mr. Vysoky is a man who overcame some of life's greatest obstacles to become a champion within the field of medicine and a respected leader amongst the Russian Jewish Community. Naakh Vysoky was born in 1921, in Kishinev, Moldavia, when it was still a part of Romania. In 1940, during an invasion by the U.S.S.R., the Soviets considered his family ``rich'' and took almost everything they owned. Hardship and tragedy again struck Naakh's family in 1941 when Nazi Germany invaded Romania. Naakh witnessed the death of his mother, sister, brother-in-law and a young nephew. To compound matters further, he also lost all contact with his father. Forced to make an almost impossible choice, Naakh escaped Nazi persecution by fleeing to the Soviet Union. He was immediately sent to a Siberian concentration camp. After several years in this camp--and having witnessed countless deaths of his friends almost on a daily basis--he was given an option to stay there or join the Soviet Army to fight the Nazis. He chose to fight and was wounded shortly after. While in the hospital during his recovery, Naakh was recruited and trained to become a medical professional. He spent the rest of the war working at that hospital and helping countless wounded soldiers and civilians. After the war, Naakh embarked upon an extensive search for his father and found him in 1948 in the City of Chernowetz. Although the city had been part of Romania, it was then part of the western Ukraine inside the Soviet Union. When the U.S.S.R. closed their borders, Naakh's hopes of emigrating were dashed. However, he was able to find a good hospital job and a place to live in Storoshinetz, one of Chernowetz's suburbs. While there, Naakh was recognized as a talented medical professional who championed efforts to provide the best quality of care for countless people. In 1952, he married his wife Klara, who was a school teacher. Two years later, his daughter Faina was born. His wife Klara became one of the most respected teachers in the region due to her strong advocacy for education and her devotion to her students. During his time in Storoshinetz, Naakh became increasingly alarmed and appalled at the rampant anti-Semitism that existed under the oppressive Soviet regime. In 1972, due to the international movement against Soviet anti-Semitism, the possibility of immigration became real. However, that same year, Faina was accepted into medical school in Chernowetz. Naakh decided to stay so Faina could attain her medical degree. Once that was achieved, Naakh and his family applied for permission to leave the Soviet Union within a month of Faina's graduation and wedding, and, in October of 1979, left the Soviet Union for New York in the United States. Upon their arrival in New York, Naakh's grandson Gregory was born. Naakh and Klara dedicated their lives to taking care of Gregory and making sure Faina had every opportunity to study and become a physician in America. It was a very special day for the family when Faina passed her qualifying exam for a foreign medical graduate degree in September 1980, less than a year after their arrival. With great pride, Naakh and Klara watched their daughter, now Faina Shtern, become the first Russian-born physician to be appointed by the Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School in 1984, and then recognized as a leader in the field of Radiology, when she became Chief of the Diagnostic Imaging Research Branch of the National Cancer Institute in 1990. A year later, in 1985, Naakh and Klara followed Faina to Boston, where they had helped countless members of the Russian Jewish Community (RJC) in Brighton and Allston and championed their causes. Several years later, Naakh was elected a leader of the RJC grass roots movement. He has been serving in that capacity ever since and has received wide recognition for his leadership and accomplishments. A number of elected officials, including former Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and the current Governor Charlie Baker; members of the Massachusetts Congressional Delegation, members of the Massachusetts State Legislature, former Boston mayor Thomas Menino, and the current mayor of Boston, the Honorable Marty Walsh; and the Boston City Council, have all risen to acknowledge Naakh for his service to the Commonwealth and the Russian Jewish Community. With all this in mind, I want to acknowledge and sincerely thank Naakh Vysoky for his many contributions and wish him a very happy birthday and pray that he has many more to come.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am getting sick and tired of agreeing with my colleagues. This is the way transportation issues are supposed to be: bipartisan, thoughtful, and relatively easy to pass. Mr. Speaker, I rise to support S. 808, which reauthorizes the STB, as you have already heard. This Board has not been reauthorized since it was created by the Interstate Commerce Commission Termination Act of 1995. That is ridiculous. It is about time we do it, and I am happy that I am here today to participate in that. For those who don't know, the Surface Transportation Board is currently a three-member, bipartisan agency within the Department of Transportation. They have regulatory jurisdiction over the rates freight railroads charge their customers, mergers between railroad companies, new rail line construction, abandonment and conversion of existing rail lines, and other such matters. Though an agency very few Americans know about, the STB has a profound impact on the availability and cost of goods across our Nation. This bill makes a number of commonsense reforms to the Board. It establishes the STB as an independent entity, rather than as part of the Department of Transportation, and expands Board membership from three to five. I know that sounds like a small matter, but by doing so, it allows members to actually talk to each other without breaking certain laws of members being unable to talk for obvious open government purposes. The bill requires the STB to streamline their processes for certain rate cases; sets rate review timelines for full, standalone cost rate challenges; and requires the STB to initiate a proceeding to develop other methods to expedite rate cases. For the first time, the STB will be able to initiate their own investigations on different allegations. Right now, current law requires someone to bring a complaint before they can initiate a review. This is a major improvement. The bill requires the STB to establish a voluntary and binding arbitration process to resolve rail rate and service complaints, and it requires the STB to evaluate whether current large rate case methodologies are sufficient, cost-effective, and are not unduly complex. S. 808 is an important step forward on an important, if not widely known, issue. I urge Members to support this bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio), my friend, the ranking member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Mildred Hailey, tenant activist and community leader, who passed away on November 18, 2015. Mrs Hailey was born in Jackson, Mississippi eighty-two years ago. As a child, her family moved to Boston. At the time, Boston was not as open to diversity as it is today. Mrs. Hailey's family, being among the first African-American families in their neighborhood, suffered from discrimination and were treated by some of their neighbors with antipathy. Mildred approached this as a challenge to become a community leader. By the 1960s, Mrs. Hailey had taken a leadership role at the Bromley- Heath housing development and, with co-founder Anna Mae Cole, incorporated the Bromley-Heath Tenant Management Corporation (TMC). The TMC was the nation's first tenant-run public housing development. Initially, TMC, under Mrs. Hailey's leadership, tackled basic quality of life issues on behalf of Bromley-Heath residents: fixing broken windows, making sure basic utilities were in working order, ensuring trash pickup. Eventually TMC moved on to residents' greater needs, such as creating a day care program, developing a health center on the Bromley-Heath campus and running its own security force. Finally, Mrs. Hailey and TMC became instrumental in guiding development around Bromley-Heath, partnering to bring a supermarket to the neighborhood, protesting to successfully halt a planned highway close by and lending an outspoken voice in planning the Southwest Corridor Park. Through it all, Mrs. Hailey always had time and energy to bring together the members of her beloved Bromley-Heath community to work out disagreements and support one another. She was truly an indispensable leader. In closing, I salute Mildred Hailey for her leadership, selflessness and passion for her community.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Madam Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. CAPUANO. Madam Chair, this is all well and good, but that presumes that moms, dads, and kids don't use the Interstate Highway System to go to school. Well, in my district they do, and especially in urban districts they do. When it comes to these humongously long trucks, what are we talking about? We are talking about a 14 percent increase in weight in a truck that is up to 100 feet long. Now, if you want your moms, dads, and kids to be driving next to them, that is your prerogative in your State. I don't want them in my State, and that is up to us. As a Member of Congress, I don't want them on the Interstate Highway System. By the way, if we are going to talk about the DOT study, let's be sure we understand the conclusion of that study, which basically says, ``At this time, the Department believes that the current data limitations are so profound that the results cannot accurately be extrapolated to predict national impacts. As such, the Department believes that no changes in the relevant truck size and weight laws and regulations should be considered.'' That is their conclusion after the study that they did that was just cited. I will end on this particular note. We have to understand who else is with us who opposes this at this time. The National Troopers Association, the National Sheriffs' Association, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the National Association of Police Organizations, the AAA organization, the United States Conference of Mayors, the Advocates for Auto Safety, and the Teamsters Union. Madam Chair, I think those all speak for themselves who is on the side of safety and who is not on the side of safety. I hope that this amendment is not adopted. Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CAPUANO. Madam Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Barletta).

Mr. CAPUANO. Madam Chair, how much time do I have remaining?

Mr. CAPUANO. I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler), my friend.

Mr. CAPUANO. Madam Chair, again, just two points. I think everything has been said. I do want to add that I have been informed that the independent owners and operators of trucking, which represents 90 percent of the owners of trucks in this country, oppose this bill. This bill will help only the largest truckers in the company. It will hurt the little guy. It will hurt the drivers of trucks. It will put my family and other families in danger for virtually no advancement in the economy. It is a bad proposal. I understand the desire. I know that some States have done it. And, God forbid, if they have done it, that is their prerogative. But they are the ones who are going to have to answer to their increased deaths and damages on the highways. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, last week I missed several roll call votes due to weather. I wish to state how I would have voted had I been present: Roll Call No. 534--Yes Roll Call No. 535--Yes

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, 2 years ago today, one of the most cowardly acts in American history was perpetrated on the people of Boston, of Massachusetts, of America, and, in fact, of the world when two lowly cowards blew up two bombs in the middle of the Boston Marathon, which is a celebration of American patriotism and of the birth of this country, killing three innocent people and, later on in the day, shooting a police officer in, again, another cowardly act, and injuring over 275 people. I just want to take a moment of the House's time to remember the people who died that day, the people who were injured that day, and to think for a moment as to what a wonderful country we have the good fortune to live in. God bless the United States of America. With that, Mr. Speaker, I would ask everyone to rise to share a moment of silence with me.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers on this bill. I would like to add my voice to supporting this bill as well. I will tell you unequivocally, my definition of rural is whatever Andy Barr and Ruben Hinojosa say it is. 11,591 people in a county? I have that on a street; I have that in a building. I will tell you that I understand full well that there are underserved communities in rural areas, as there are even in some of the most urban areas in the country. I thank the gentleman for this bill. I will tell you that my definition of rural is anyplace that would take me more than 15 minutes to drive to some good Italian food. If you can't do that, it must be rural. I am glad that this bill is about to pass, and I thank the gentleman for offering it. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hinojosa), my friend.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill. As Mr. Duffy just said, on occasion, we can come to an agreement. This is the second CFPB bill we have done in a row. There are many things we would like to work together on. We do wish, however, that on some of the other items on the CFPB, some of the members of the Financial Services Committee would kind of get off the horse a little bit and come on down and work with us. These two bills are very good bills, as far as I am concerned. The CFPB already does some of the things this act would impose, but they should do them all. There is no question about it. That is why this is an easy bill to support. I thank Mr. Duffy for offering it. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of this bill as well. Again, it is a simple, straightforward bill that simply says that American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands are part of America, as is every other part of America. They should be treated the same. This bill corrects a law that currently does not allow them to be treated the same in financial services matters. It should be passed immediately. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Mrs. Beatty), who is the cosponsor of this bill.

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers. I would just like to add my voice in support of this bill. It is a very commonsense bill, and I am proud to be able to support it. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CAPUANO

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Sherman).

Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I would just like to add my voice to those who support this bill, another commonsense bill that hopefully won't take us three more Congresses to get our friends on the other side to actually take action on something that is relatively simple and straightforward. I personally throw out six or seven of these notifications every month, so I would assume that millions of people are doing the same. I yield back the balance of my time.