Danny Davis

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such time as he might consume to the sponsor of this legislation, Representative Jefferson from Louisiana.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such time as he might consume to the sponsor of this legislation, Representative Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri.

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

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3572) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 4320 Blue Parkway in Kansas City, Missouri, as the ``Wallace S. Hartsfield Post Office Building''.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such time as he might consume to the author of this resolution, the sponsor of this legislation, Representative Patrick Murphy from Pennsylvania.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, first of all, I want to commend Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton and Representative Tom Davis for their continued work and collaboration on the development of this legislation. I rise in strong support of H.R. 1124, the District of Columbia College Access Act of 1999. It will reauthorize funding for the District of Columbia Tuition Assistance Grant (DCTAG) program which will help promote higher education for high school graduates in the District of Columbia. DCTAG provides grants for District high school students to attend public colleges and universities nationwide at in-State tuition rates. The bill provides smaller grants for District students to attend private institutions in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area and to attend Historically Black Colleges and Universities, HBCUs, nationwide. The impact of this legislation on the community and in the lives of the students who receive the grant cannot be minimized. DCTAG reaches students and communities where there is little hope of being able to obtain a college education. This is particularly true for many of the students that participate in DCTAG; 58 percent of the students that participate in the program come from low-income households. Furthermore, students that participate in the program are attending educational institutions that are known to nurture students of color. Five of the top 10 private schools these students attend are Historically Black Colleges and Universities: Hampton University, Morehouse College, Virginia Union University, and St. Augustine's College and Bennett College. While students from all races participate in the program and attend over 270,000 institutions in 47 States, including nationally recognized public institutions like the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, the University of Illinois at both Chicago and Champaign-Urbana, the University of California Berkley, and the Ohio State University, this program serves a community that is lacking resources, especially for students of color from low-income households. On March 22, 2007, the Subcommittee on the Federal Workforce, Postal Service and the District of Columbia held a hearing on DCTAG. During the hearing, the Mayor of the District of Columbia, parents of DCTAG students, and former DCTAG scholars testified to the benefits of the program. DCTAG has helped thousands of D.C. residents achieve their dream of attending college. If not for DCTAG, many of these students would not be able to afford the rising cost of a college education. The DCTAG program helps to turn dreams into realities. Madam Speaker, again I want to commend ranking minority member, Representative Tom Davis, and Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton for introducing this legislation. I want to end by suggesting that, given the fact that there is only one public institution of higher learning in the District of Columbia, that many of these young people would never have the opportunity to attend traditional State colleges and universities were it not for the DCTAG program. I urge its passage. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in the Senate amendment to the bill (H.R. 1124) to extend the District of Columbia College Access Act of 1999.

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

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia, the Honorable, and I wanted to say Representative and I will say Representative, Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, as a member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I am pleased to join my colleagues in the consideration of H.R. 3518, which names the postal facility in Cantonment, Florida, after Charles H. Hendrix. H.R. 3518, which was introduced by Representative Jeff Miller on September 10, 2007, was reported from the Oversight Committee on September 20, 2007, by a voice vote. This measure has the support of the entire Florida congressional delegation. Madam Speaker, Mr. Charles Hendrix is the former Postmaster of the Cantonment Post Office and worked there for 37 years. He retired from the postal service in 1986. Mr. Hendrix was a charter member of the Molino Volunteer Fire Department where he served as fire chief and a member of the Cantonment Rotary Club since 1962. He was a prominent and respected resident of the Cantonment and Molino communities in Florida. Madam Speaker, I commend my colleague, Representative Jeff Miller, for introducing this legislation, and I urge its swift passage. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3518) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1430 South Highway 29 in Cantonment, Florida, as the ``Charles H. Hendix Post Office Building,'' as amended.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

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

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to Representative Jo Ann Davis with whom I served as she served as chairperson and I as ranking member on our subcommittee in Government Reform. It was always a pleasure to work with her. And while we didn't always agree on every issue that came before us, we always agreed that we would be civil and that we would work in tandem for the best interests of the people of this country. So I'm going to miss her. I extend my personal condolences to her family and would just like for her to know that it was indeed a pleasure working with her.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 588) recognizing Martha Coffin Wright on the 200th anniversary of her birth and her induction into the National Women's Hall of Fame.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. As a member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I am pleased to join my colleague in the consideration of H.R. 3530, which names a postal facility in Inverness, Florida, after Chief Warrant Officer Aaron Weaver. H.R. 3530, which was introduced by Representative Ginny Brown-Waite on September 14, 2007, was reported from the Oversight and Government Reform Committee on September 20, 2007, by voice vote. This measure has the support of the entire Florida congressional delegation. Madam Speaker, Chief Warrant Officer Aaron A. Weaver was killed on January 8, 2004, while on board a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter when it crashed during a Medevac mission in Fallujah, Iraq. He was assigned to C Troop, 1st Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Chief Warrant Officer Weaver's job in Iraq was to fly observation helicopters, monitor the enemy and send the information he gathered back to headquarters. He was on a Black Hawk helicopter en route to Baghdad for a checkup when the craft was shot down by enemy fire. Eight soldiers besides Chief Warrant Officer Weaver were killed. Chief Warrant Officer Weaver survived the October 1993 battle of Mogadishu in Somalia, but did not survive his tour in Iraq. He was a committed soldier and leader who served his country with honor and distinction. Madam Speaker, I commend my colleague, Representative Ginny Brown- Waite, for introducing this legislation and urge its passage. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3530) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1400 Highway 41 North in Inverness, Florida, as the ``Chief Warrant Officer Aaron Weaver Post Office Building''.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I continue to reserve.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I am pleased that Senator Daniel Akaka will be joining me today in introducing the Senior Executive Service Diversity Assurance Act. The act addresses the extremely important issue of diversity in the Senior Executive Service, SES. Senator Akaka and I plan to continue our collaboration in the future, introducing additional legislation that will make a difference in the lives of Federal employees. Our introduction of the Senior Executive Service Diversity Assurance Act would not have been possible without the hard work of the African American Federal Executives Association, the National Association of Hispanic Federal Executives, the Asian American Government Executives Network, Federally Employed Women, Blacks in Government, and the Senior Executive Association. I applaud them for not only raising the lack of diversity in the SES as an issue but for devoting their time and energy to work with our subcommittees to rectify it. The lack of diversity in the SES has been a longstanding concern of mine. As a first step toward doing something about it, I asked the Government Accountability Office, GAO, to investigate the situation. GAO subsequently issued two reports--in 2001 and 2003. Both reports documented a poorly diversified SES. The 2003 report was entitled ``Senior Executive Service: Enhanced Agency Efforts Needed To Improve Diversity as the Senior Corps Turns Over'' (GAO-03-34). As the title suggests, this report revealed that while there will be a large amount of turnover in the SES in the years ahead due to retirements and attrition, it will not result in greater racial diversity. While there are numerous minorities in the pipeline ready to be promoted, to few are being given the opportunity to advance. Well, you might ask, why not, and what can be done about it? In 2003, I joined then Office of Personnel Management, OPM, Director Kay Cole James in announcing the creation of OPM's SES Candidate Development Program. This program was created to address the lack of minority representation in the SES. Yet last July, when I attended the program's first graduation ceremony and saw few minority graduates, I realized that much more had to be done to effectively change the racial and the gender make up of the SES. Diversity is valuable because it can bring a wider variety of perspectives and approaches to policy development and implementation. Minorities and women need to be at the table contributing when strategic planning, problem solving and decision making is taking place. Our ideas and talents can help strengthen an organization and lead to the achievement of results. That is not really happening today. What I see as I visit Federal agencies is a senior level workforce that is not reflective of the diverse people we serve. As chairman of the House Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, Postal Service, and the District of Columbia, I held a hearing in May of this year on diversity in the SES. It was after that hearing that I began to meet with the Federal minority groups represented here to effect change that would help diversify the SES. The subcommittee met extensively with these groups and what we heard was that it was not a lack of training, experience, or minorities in the feeder pool that caused the lack of diversity in the SES. What we heard was that there are flaws in the selection process, and that there is a lack of oversight and accountability when it comes to promoting and hiring minorities in the SES. The Senior Executive Service Diversity Assurance Act aims to fix all of that. The act establishes SES evaluation panels that are charged with reviewing the qualifications of all candidates for career reserve vacancies. The evaluation panels must be a diverse group consisting of three members. One must be a member of a racial or ethnic group and one member must be a woman. The panel will forward the names of the most qualified candidates to the Executive Resource Board. In addition, the act establishes the Senior Executive Service Resources Office, SESRO, within OPM. The purpose of the SESRO is to ensure that the Senior Executive Service is reflective of the Nation's diversity and to establish and maintain records, to the extent possible, on the race, ethnicity, gender and disabilities of employees in the SES. This bill aims to create an environment where diversity will flourish. And where it does not, Congress will have the tools and information to hold agencies accountable. Diversity of gender, ethnicity, age and disability, as well as diversity of education, thinking, and experience are crucial if the Federal workforce is to mirror the communities we live in and serve. To stay competitive in an increasingly global economy and recruit the best and brightest workforce, diversity is an issue that we must pay close attention to. All Americans want to work for organizations where they have the opportunity to use their knowledge and skills, develop their careers and be promoted to the highest levels. The Senior Executive Service Diversity Assurance Act is going to give ethnic minorities and women that opportunity; an opportunity that does not broadly exist today. Please see the attached Washington Post article dated October 5, 2007, entitled, ``Bill Pushes Diversity Among Senior Executives.'' (By Stephen Barr) Legislation to promote diversity in the government's career executive ranks was introduced yesterday by the chairmen of the House and Senate federal workplace subcommittees. Rep. Danny K. Davis (D-Ill.) and Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (D- Hawaii) said their bill would address the lack of diversity in the Senior Executive Service, the group of about 6,300 career executives who manage the day-to-day operations of the government. The bill would establish a Senior Executive Service program office in the Office of Personnel Management. The proposed office would collect and maintain data on the race, ethnicity, gender and any disabilities of people who have been certified as qualified to serve in the SES. The bill also would require federal agencies to establish SES evaluation panels to review the qualifications of applicants for SES jobs. Each panel would have three members. One must be a woman and one other a member of a racial or ethnic minority group. ``We are doing this really to try to bring about some improvement in the management of the Senior Executive Service and to enhance diversity,'' Akaka said. Davis said ``diversity is valuable because it can bring a wider variety of perspectives and approaches to policy development and implementation. Minorities and women need to be at the table to contribute when strategic planning, problem solving and decision making take place.'' Davis added, ``What I see as I visit federal agencies is a senior-level workforce that is not reflective of the diverse people we serve.'' Reports by the Government Accountability Office show that ``the numbers of women and minorities are low in the SES,'' Akaka said. Davis said the reports ``documented a poorly diversified SES.'' Of the 6,349 career SES members, the most recent GAO tally counted 325 African American men, 221 African American women, 164 Hispanic men and 65 Hispanic women. That demographic profile of the SES, which was released in May, also showed there were 90 Asian-Pacific Islander men, 56 Asian-Pacific Islander women, 59 American Indian/Alaska native men and 27 American Indian/Alaska Native women. The overwhelming majority of SES members were white--3,900 white men and 1,436 white women. The GAO tally also included six as ``unspecified.'' Davis, an African American who represents a Chicago district, and Akaka, a Native Hawaiian, said they want the OPM to track the racial, ethnic and gender diversity of the SES because a significant number of federal executives will soon retire. The OPM estimates that 90 percent of federal executives will be eligible to retire over the next 10 years. However, a GAO analysis in 2003 suggested that the projected turnover in the SES ``will not result in greater racial diversity,'' Davis said. ``While there are numerous minorities in the pipeline ready to be promoted, too few are being given the opportunity to advance.'' Leaders of employee groups were on hand for yesterday's announcement to show support for the legislation. They included William A. Brown Sr., president of the African American Federal Executives Association; Jose Osegueda, president of the National Association of Hispanic Federal Executives; Carson K. Eoyang, executive director of the Asian American Government Executives Network; Rhonda Trent, president of Federally Employed Women; and Darlene H. Young, president of Blacks in Government. Carol A. Bonosaro, president of the Senior Executives Association, issued a statement in support of increasing diversity in the SES. Bonosaro, who was attending the funeral of a SES member, said her group was pleased to see the bill consolidates policy and program management of the SES at OPM. An OPM spokeswoman said the administration is reviewing the Davis-Akaka proposal.

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois

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

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume. Madam Speaker, as a member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I am pleased to join my colleague in the consideration of H. Res. 654, a bill that congratulates the Phoenix Mercury basketball team for winning the 2007 Women's National Basketball Association Championship. H. Res. 654, which has 53 cosponsors, was introduced by Representative Ed Pastor on September 17, 2007. H. Res. 654 was reported from the Oversight Committee on October 4, 2007, by voice vote. On September 16, 2007, the Phoenix Mercury beat the Detroit Shock 108-92 to win the Women's National Basketball Association Championship. This was the first national championship for the Phoenix Mercury basketball team. The Phoenix Mercury team was led by three aggressive players, Ms. Cappie Pondexter, Ms. Penny Taylor and Ms. Diana Taurasi, who scored 73 points of the team's 108 points to dominate the Detroit Shock team. I commend my colleague, Representative Pastor, for congratulating the Phoenix Mercury basketball team for winning the 2007 Women's National Basketball Association Championship. I urge swift passage of this legislation and would just like to extend personal congratulations to Ms. Cappie Pondexter, who lived in the community where I lived, attended school there, and, of course, went on to become a great female basketball player. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.