Wm. Clay

Mr. CLAY

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

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4791) to amend title 44, United States Code, to strengthen requirements for ensuring the effectiveness of information security controls over information resources that support Federal operations and assets, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, as chairman of the Subcommittee of Information Policy, Census and National Archives, I am pleased to join my colleagues in the consideration of H.R. 4791, the Federal Agency Data Protection Act, a bill to protect personally identifiable information of individuals that is maintained in or transmitted by Federal agency information systems. H.R. 4791, which I introduced along with Chairman Henry Waxman and Representative Ed Towns on December 18, 2007, was reported from the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on May 21, 2008. I want to also thank Ranking Member Tom Davis for working with us on this legislation, especially on the notification provision. Despite progress made with the implementation of the Federal Information Security Management Act, or FISMA, GAO found that pervasive weaknesses continue to exist primarily because agencies fail to maintain secure IT networks. As a result, GAO concluded that Federal financial data are at risk of unauthorized modification or destruction, sensitive information at risk of inappropriate disclosure, and critical operations at risk of disruption. H.R. 4791 would secure our agencies' IT access and require an annual audit of agency programs. The bill would also establish a comprehensive definition for ``personally identifiable information'' and mandate that agencies notify individuals when their personal information is accessed in a data breach. Mr. Speaker, in light of today's report that 1,000 patients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other military hospitals had their names, Social Security numbers and birth dates exposed in a security breach, this is a timely measure that provides Americans with some assurance that the Federal Government will work diligently to protect their personal information. I urge the swift passage of H.R. 4791. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to urge the House to support this bill, H.R. 4791, and to say that the American people expect that personal information that they share with their government should be kept private and should be protected, and this bill will ensure that that information is protected.

Mr. CLAY

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time and urge my colleagues to support this measure.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, S. 2420, the Federal Food Donation Act, is a modest measure designed to help address a very large problem, hunger in America. In 2005, 25 million people in this country, including 9 million children, had to rely on soup kitchens and other charitable feeding programs to help meet their nutritional needs. S. 2420 is very similar to legislation introduced by Representative Jo Ann Emerson, H.R. 4220, which passed the House on a voice vote last December. It requires Federal agencies to include in their food service and space rental contracts a provision which encourages contractors to donate any surplus wholesome food to nonprofit organizations that provide assistance to the hungry. This bill builds on the work of some innovative nonprofit organizations and think tanks that have been conducting similar programs in the private sector. The bill also includes provisions which would ensure that cost of collecting, transporting and storing donated food would not be borne by the Federal Government, and that executive agencies and contractors would be protected from civil or criminal liability. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill (S. 2420) to encourage the donation of excess food to nonprofit organizations that provide assistance to food-insecure people in the United States in contracts entered into by executive agencies for the provision, service, or sale of food.

Mr. CLAY

Mr. CLAY. Let me thank Chairwoman Waters for yielding and also for her leadership on this issue in getting this bill out of committee and to the floor. As an original cosponsor of this legislation, I support its speedy passage through the legislative process. This bill is sorely needed to help stabilize neighborhoods in various types of communities that have high incidences of housing foreclosures. This act establishes a loan and grant program administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to help States purchase and rehabilitate owner-vacated, foreclosed homes with the goal of stabilizing and occupying them as soon as possible, either through resale or rental to qualified families. I raised concerns about the distribution of loans and grants to Chairwoman Waters, and the bill's funds were originally designed for distribution to States with priority for the 25 most populated cities in the country. My concern was that many of us had districts that had higher density of foreclosures than many of the top 25 cities in population. Additionally, we needed to ascertain that housing was provided for low- and moderate-income families, inclusive of those who had already suffered foreclosures. My staff and I worked closely with Chairwoman Waters and her committee staff and placed provisions in the bill that address these concerns. My district, the First Congressional District of Missouri, has alarmingly high foreclosure rates and large numbers of low- and moderate-income families. The bill now mandates a priority for addressing this high foreclosure level area and others like it across the country. Again, I want to thank Chairwoman Waters for her leadership on this.

Mr. CLAY

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, let me thank the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry) for bringing this timely resolution to the floor. And also let me wish all of the sisters, mothers, aunts, nieces, grandmothers, and friends Happy Mother's Day this Sunday. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CLAY

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1113) celebrating the role of mothers in the United States and supporting the goals and ideals of Mother's Day.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, with the annual mother's holiday just a few short days away, I am pleased to join in the consideration of H. Res. 1113, which aims to recognize and celebrate the role of mothers in our country by supporting the goals and ideals of Mother's Day.

Mr. CLAY

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 952) expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that there should be established a National Teacher Day to honor and celebrate teachers in the United States.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, at this time I would like to yield as much time as my friend from Florida (Mr. Klein) may consume.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. CLAY

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

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I'd like to thank my friend from Florida (Mr. Klein) for bringing this resolution and to say that, after hearing the speakers today, it made me think about the impact some of my teachers had on my learning throughout my life. In the words of a famed historian and author, Henry Adams, he said, Teachers affect eternity because they can never tell you where their influence stops. So, today, let us stand in support and recognition of the timeless influence of our country's teachers and educators by passing H. Res. 952, which expresses the sense of the House that there should be established a National Teacher Day to honor and celebrate teachers in the United States, and I urge passage of the bill.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CLAY

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1091) honoring the life, achievements, and contributions of Charlton Heston and extending its deepest sympathies to the family of Charlton Heston for the loss of such a great generous man, husband, and father, as amended.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I present for consideration H. Res. 1091, which seeks to recognize the life of Charlton Heston for his accomplishments both and off the big screen. Not only did Heston command an overwhelming presence in theaters, but his actions in support of the civil rights movement during the 1960s and on behalf of other social causes throughout his life deserve recognition. For example, Charlton Heston joined Martin Luther King, Jr., in the march on Washington, D.C. in 1963, and was an early civil rights activist long before Hollywood found it fashionable. H. Res. 1091 was introduced by Representative Don Young of Alaska on April 8, 2008, and was considered by and reported from the Oversight Committee on April 16, 2008, by voice vote after being amended by the panel. The measure has the support of well over 100 Members of Congress and is evidence of a wide, national appreciation for the enduring legacy that this great American citizen left behind. Heston was born on October 4, 1923, in No Man's Land, Illinois. In 1944, Heston enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, spending 2 years of his life as a B-25 radio operator and gunner in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands. In August of 2002, after a long and illustrious acting career, Heston publicly announced that he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. In 2003, Mr. Heston was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in commemoration of the positive impact he has had on our culture and country. In memory of his life of greatness and activism, I urge swift passage of H. Res. 1091. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CLAY

Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve my time.