Elizabeth Esty

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my good friend and colleague from Maryland, Congressman Sarbanes, as well as the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kinzinger), for their roles in bringing this bill to the floor today. Mr. Speaker, I rise as a proud sponsor of the Collinsville Renewable Energy Production Act. This bill provides, as has been noted, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, commonly known as FERC, the authority to reinstate, extend, and transfer the licenses of two dams in my district to the town of Canton in order to redevelop hydropower at these two facilities that have been dormant since 1966. The upper and lower Collinsville dams on the Farmington River were first built in the 18th and 19th centuries to power an ax manufacturer. Although this business closed in the 1960s, the dams have remained and are a lasting symbol of the manufacturing history of the Farmington Valley. Today's legislation provides Canton the opportunity to create local clean energy and to stimulate local economic development along the scenic Farmington River. As provided in the Senate's amendment to H.R. 316, Canton would need to file an application for approval with FERC that describes the town's qualifications to hold these licenses and to operate the dams. It would require the town to be subject to the same conditions as in the original licenses, as well as any additional terms that FERC may deem necessary after reviewing the application. I am aware that there are legitimate environmental concerns about the impact on the river and the surrounding ecosystem's health. These concerns are reflected in part with the addition of fish ladders to the hydrodams in the ensuing years since the closing of the facility. To address those concerns, FERC would need to update the environmental impact statement provided for in the original licenses before they could be reinstated, extended, and transferred to the town. If the Commission, under the authority provided in this bill, approves the application to reinstate these permits, the upper and lower Collinsville dams would provide nearly 2 megawatts of power. That is enough to power more than 1,500 homes. It is important for me to acknowledge that the passage of this bill today is only possible because of the work and support of many others who have labored over this for many years. First, I want to thank Senator Chris Murphy--my colleague, friend, and neighbor--who championed this issue for several sessions here in the House, and our senior Senator, Richard Blumenthal, for their leadership and sponsorship of the Senate amendment, which is before us today. My thanks also go out to Chairman Whitfield, as well as Chairman Upton and Ranking Members Waxman and Rush and their staffs, for their bipartisan support to advance this legislation. I also want to thank First Selectman Richard Barlow for all he has done over many years to spearhead this effort at home. Finally, as I mentioned, 1\1/2\ years ago, when this bill first came to the floor, I want to honor two gentleman, Art Fournier and Mark Quattro, environmental and community leaders who sadly are no longer with us, but who championed this effort for many years. We could not be here today without their efforts. Mr. Speaker, roughly 5,000 bills have been introduced in the House of Representatives this Congress. Of those 5,000 pieces of legislation, this bill, H.R. 316, represents just the 167th bill which hopefully will pass both the House and the Senate. I am honored and humbled to be able to work with colleagues across the aisle in this Congress to advance clean energy legislation that empowers local communities to harness local resources to produce renewable electricity and, at the same time, supports and advances local economic development. There is much more that we can and should do to advance energy production and to protect our environment, but today is an excellent start. I urge my colleagues to support the motion to concur in the Senate Amendment to H.R. 316.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.

Ms. ESTY. I am in its current form.

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, this is the final amendment to the bill, which will not kill the bill or send it back to committee. If adopted, the bill will immediately proceed to final passage, as amended. Mr. Speaker, we owe Americans a safe transportation system. Drivers need to know that their cars are safe. Parents shouldn't have to worry about a faulty accelerator propelling them at speeds of 100 miles an hour as they drive to work or pick up their children from soccer practice. None of us should be concerned about a faulty switch turning off power steering, our brakes, or airbags. Tragically, as recent news reports and congressional investigations have shown, Americans are justifiably worried. The costs of inadequate safety oversight are real. My friend and senior Senator Richard Blumenthal shared the following story with me. A woman from Fairfield County was driving one of the recently recalled car models on a major highway. She wound up under a freight dump truck, and her airbags failed to deploy. Her head hit the steering wheel, and she was knocked unconscious. Nine months and two surgeries later, she still suffers from postconcussion syndrome. In her own words, she said: I had to move back home . . . giving up the dream I had been pursuing. Mr. Speaker, the free market won't protect consumers by itself. We have learned over the decades that consumer safety depends not only on our automakers, but also on our Department of Transportation having the resources to conduct investigations and enforce our recall system. I am a mother of three children, all of them young drivers. I know how important product safety oversight can be to keeping our children safe. In fact, just before coming on the floor this afternoon, I learned that two school buses in my district were involved in a multivehicle accident, sending dozens of students to the hospital. I also know oversight won't save lives, unless we provide investigators the resources they need to keep our vehicles safe. We can do better. We must do better. Do you know why? We need to save lives. Unfortunately, the bill before us today provides millions less than the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has requested for operations and research. My motion to recommit adds $5 million for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's vehicle safety enforcement program. This amendment would not add one penny to the deficit. Mr. Speaker, it shouldn't take a record settlement, after years of litigation, to bring some small measure of closure to victims and their families following a preventable defect, nor should it take 10 years to issue a recall once a major problem is discovered. Whatever your position is on the underlying bill, I ask you to support my amendment in the name of common sense. I ask you to support this proposal in the name of auto dealers in my State and in yours, who have reported difficulty getting replacement parts that are desperately needed for these recalls. I ask for your support on behalf of the thousands of Connecticut carowners and millions across this country affected by recent recalls. Safety is--and should be--a bipartisan issue. We can do better. We should do better. We must do better. I ask for your support as someone who believes that we can write better legislation without spending more money. Let's do the right thing. Let's do the reasonable thing. I ask all House Members to join me to vote for this motion, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

Ms. ESTY. I rise today to express my opposition to the funding priorities in this appropriations bill. While I am supportive of advancing the appropriations bills in a timely manner, this bill underfunds many important programs and initiatives, including TIGER grants, the Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Program, housing assistance, and our rail and transportation initiative. In Connecticut, community leaders in Waterbury and Meriden have applied for TIGER grants to undertake important improvement projects in their cities. TIGER grants are critical for our communities to leverage Federal funds to create lasting, substantial improvements. But, unfortunately, this bill underfunds the TIGER grant program. This bill funds TIGER grants at $500 million less than last year, and $1.15 billion less than the President's request. TIGER grants are essential to provide that leverage for our State and local communities to make those choices about what will create jobs and allow those created jobs we have be something people can get to by using the highways, as my colleagues have already mentioned the difficulty, particularly in the Northeast, with our aging infrastructure. Mr. Chairman, in addition to the TIGER provisions of the bill, one of the most important, life-saving programs is the Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction program. Approximately 23 million U.S. households have significant lead-based paint hazards. The Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction program gives funds for lead abatement in low-income communities, where the combination of lead paint and inadequate nutrition makes young children particularly vulnerable to learning disabilities. I am disappointed that this bill funds that program at $40 million below last year and $50 million less than the President's budget request. With 23 million households still having significant exposure to lead-based paint, we must fully fund this program to protect our children and young families. In Connecticut, we are still recovering from the recession, and we have the seventh-most-expensive housing market in the country. In Danbury, an individual making the minimum wage--which is higher in Connecticut than Federal minimum wage--would need 3.5 full-time jobs to afford a two-bedroom rental apartment. That is why HUD's public housing and housing choice vouchers are essential in my State and my community, and why it is so disappointing that HUD is not funded at a level to restore the housing vouchers that were lost during sequestration. Finally, Mr. Chairman, we need to get serious about investing in our highways and rail infrastructure. Just last Friday, the railroad bridge in Norwalk, Connecticut, failed, stranding thousands of passengers, including our colleague, Congressman Jim Himes. The bridge--which was built in 1895--is now 118 years old and in desperate need of repair. Earlier today, the entire Connecticut delegation sent a letter to the Department of Transportation asking that the State receive funding to repair this very old and crumbling bridge. We should not have to wait until the bridge falls down or the train derails to repair our country's infrastructure. Unfortunately, this bill does not adequately fund the needs of the Federal Transit Administration. Until we do our job together in this body and fully fund the Department of Transportation, our bridges and roads will continue to fail. These are, indeed, tough budgetary times, but we must fund our transportation and housing programs to protect and to serve the constituents we represent.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk. I would like to offer and withdraw my amendment.

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Chairman, my amendment strikes section 539 of the bill. Section 539 is an unnecessary and harmful gun rider that would bar the ATF from using any funds to investigate straw purchases or trafficking of certain highly dangerous weapons. This ``long gun'' requirement, which has been in effect since 2011, is an essential tool for law enforcement to combat drug cartels and weapons trafficking. In fact, in the first 8 months after the rule was enacted, more than 100 criminals and traffickers were identified for prosecution. Mr. Chairman, it is clear that the reporting requirement is keeping guns out of the hands of criminals, and the ATF must be able to continue to do this important work. I thank my colleagues who are in support of our gun violence prevention efforts, today and every day. I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut, Rosa DeLauro, my colleague.

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentlelady from New York (Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney), my colleague.

Ms. ESTY. Thank you, Mr. Ranking Member, and thank you for your leadership on this issue. I appreciate the kind words of my colleagues and their support for this amendment.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support the Thompson-King-Esty-Heck amendment to increase funding for the National Instant Criminal Background Checks Systems (NICS). The NICS database provides critical information on prospective firearms buyers, protecting the 2nd Amendment rights of law-abiding gun owners. Information in the database is used to determine whether an individual is ineligible to purchase a firearm because they are a felon, a domestic abuser, or seriously mentally ill. The NICS database allows sellers to conduct criminal background checks to make sure firearms are not getting into the hands of people who may be a danger to the public or even themselves. Unfortunately, many states do not have adequate funding and resources to submit the most recent and comprehensive data to the NICS database. Our amendment would increase funding for NICS by $19.5 million to meet the growing demand from states to responsibly update the database. According to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, criminal background checks have blocked more than 2.1 million illegal gun purchases, including more than 291,000 by domestic abusers. Background checks prevent more than 171 convicted felons from purchasing firearms every single day. These simple checks have saved countless lives in the past two decades, and it is essential that states have the necessary tools to prevent more tragedies in the future. I thank my good friends Rep. Mike Thompson, Rep. Peter King, and Rep. Joe Heck for their outstanding partnership on this commonsense amendment. Their leadership proves that legislation to prevent gun violence and protect our families should not be a partisan issue. I urge all Members to support this commonsense amendment to save lives.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, earlier this year, the State of Connecticut lost one of its great sons with the passing of Edward Iwanicki, Sr., a leader who served Connecticut through a long and distinguished career in public service. Mr. Iwanicki, one of ten children born to Polish immigrants Konstanty and Mary Pauline Boczkowska Iwanicki, was born and raised in Meriden, Connecticut. A talented athlete, he excelled at sports, even being named All-State Quarterback in 1937. He went on to share his passion for athletics with younger generations of Meriden youth, serving as a coach and umpire for city baseball and football teams. When the United States entered World War II, Mr. Iwanicki served his country as an infantryman in the U.S. Army. Following World War II, Mr. Iwanicki returned to Meriden and began his 35-year career at New Departure, which was then part of General Motors. Mr. Iwanicki was a proud member of the United Auto Workers and spent much of his life fighting for the rights of workers everywhere. Mr. Iwanicki devoted his entire life to serving his community. He was the Boy Scout Master of Troop #31, President of the Meriden Umpires Association, President of Father's Club of Meriden Girls Club, and participated in many other cultural organizations. Mr. Iwanicki continued his service to his country and his community when he got involved in Meriden and Connecticut politics. He served as Treasurer of the Meriden Democratic Party, Alderman in the City Council, and was then elected State Representative from the 79th Assembly District. Edward Iwanicki, Sr.'s life embodied the spirit of civic engagement that strengthens our communities and makes our country a better place. His contributions to the City of Meriden, the State of Connecticut, and to the United States will not be forgotten.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, last week Connecticut broke ground on a new memorial to honor the 65 men and women who died serving our country in the war on terror. Like all memorials, this beautiful place will serve both as a source of comfort for loved ones, as well as a lasting reminder of the cost of freedom. That cost is measured in lives, but also in promises kept. We have a duty to honor our veterans and support their families. That is why I am a proud author of the Caregivers Expansion and Improvement Act. My bill would assist home caregivers of all veterans injured during their service, allowing them to recover in the comfort of their own homes. I stand with the VFW and the DAV to do my part to ensure that we care and honor all those who so bravely serve our country. I urge my colleagues to cosponsor H.R. 3383.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate a group of five talented students from Danbury. These students, part of the Connecticut Pre-Engineering Program at Danbury High School, won Best in State in the second annual Verizon Innovative App Challenge. With the guidance of their teacher advisers, Jack Tracey and Linda Kimble, they created an app, Mediminder, that reminds people to refill their prescriptions and provides them with their doctor's contact information. As a member of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee and as a cofounder of the congressional student app competition, I am a strong believer in hands-on opportunities like this. In fact, this weekend, I will be hosting an app workshop in Waterbury. When students create and design their own app, they transform from passive consumers of technology into active innovators, problem solvers, and entrepreneurs. Tommy, Anjali, Lexie, Steven, and Sameena, I applaud your innovative spirit. Congratulations on winning Best in State. I can't wait to see what you come up with next.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend, Mr. Larson, for being such a champion for our volunteer firefighters and first responders. Mr, Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act. I'm proud to cosponsor this bipartisan bill with Mr. Barletta. This bill makes a sensible fix to the Affordable Care Act that protects volunteer firefighters and first responders in Connecticut and across the country. I heard concerns from fire chiefs in my district--including Chief Jack Casner from my hometown of Cheshire--that the IRS may incorrectly count volunteers as employees. We rely on hundreds of volunteer firefighters to keep our community safe. These men and women are proud to volunteer--and do a terrific job. And so, with my colleagues, I immediately expressed their concerns to the Obama Administration. This bipartisan bill codifies important clarifications. . . and shows that we can work together--as Democrats and Republicans--to make the Affordable Care Act work better for the American people. I urge my colleagues to join us in supporting H.R. 3979.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I want to state for the record that on Wednesday, March 5, 2014, I unfortunately missed rollcall votes as I traveled to New Britain, CT, with President Barack Obama on official business. Had I been present I would have voted: ``No'' on the Previous Question (roll #93). Had a majority of the House voted no, this bill would have allowed a vote to renew the emergency unemployment insurance to help over 35,000 jobseekers in Connecticut; ``No'' on H. Res. 497 (roll #94), which prevented any amendments to H.R. 4118 from being considered; ``Aye'' on H.R. 938, the U.S.-Israel Strategic Partnership Act (roll #95), which I proudly cosponsored; ``Aye'' on the Motion to Recommit H.R. 4118 (roll #96) to prevent H.R. 4118 from altering, weakening, or delaying the ACA's prohibition of discrimination based on pre-existing conditions or gender and tax credits and rebates; ``No'' on H.R. 4118 (roll #97). Back in July of last year, I was concerned that the federal marketplace would not be ready for the October 1, 2013, start date for enrollment under the Affordable Care Act. And, in fact, as we saw last fall, the federal website was not ready to handle the volume from states that didn't set up their own exchange. The website problems were unacceptable. Based on the situation that I saw eight months ago, I believed that giving folks an extra year to learn about the benefits and responsibilities under the new law without penalty was a reasonable modification, particularly with misinformation spread about the Affordable Care Act and the uncertainty about the readiness of the marketplace. I believe that my job is to solve problems and vote based on actual facts in my state and district, not ideology. And the facts in Connecticut in March 2014 are quite different than they were in July 2013. The exchanges have been up and running for five full months, and Connecticut is leading the way. With less than one month left in the enrollment period, over 130,000 people in Connecticut have signed up for health coverage through Access Health CT, exceeding the state and federal government's goals. Now is not the time to retroactively delay the individual mandate. As I've previously stated, the individual mandate, upheld by the Supreme Court, is a critical part of the Affordable Care Act. Since July 2013, I've held workshops for small businesses and individuals to learn more about the Affordable Care Act and how to sign up for health insurance. I've heard stories from constituents about how the Affordable Care Act has helped them access affordable, quality health care. A woman from Canaan, a breast cancer survivor, is now saving over $1,500 on her monthly premium; a former small business owner in New Britain can afford health insurance for the first time in 12 years. The law is not perfect, and improvements can, should, and have been made. I will continue to raise concerns I've heard from folks in my district and to work with the Obama Administration to fix problems as they arise. But there is no question that the responsible course of action is to continue to move forward; ``Aye'' on H.R. 2126, the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act (roll #98), which was a bipartisan bill to expand energy efficiency standards.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to thank Team 26 for continuing the call for commonsense gun violence prevention. This Saturday, Team 26 begins their second Ride on Washington. This courageous group of men and women will be biking 400 miles from Newtown, Connecticut, in my district, to Washington, D.C. Team 26 is made up of parents whose children attend or attended Sandy Hook Elementary School and folks who have lost loved ones to gun violence. They ride to honor the victims of gun violence from Newtown and from across the country, and they ride to urge Congress to act. Team 26 rides to bring the message of peace, hope, and love. Let's listen to Team 26 and put politics aside. Mr. Speaker, let us vote to enact meaningful gun violence prevention legislation this year.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor and congratulate VFW Post 308 in Newtown, Connecticut, which celebrated its 75th anniversary this past Sunday. Since 1939, the members of Post 308 have demonstrated a remarkable commitment to civic engagement and community service in everything they do, whether it is assisting tornado victims in Oklahoma, providing college scholarships to deserving high school graduates, or supporting families affected by the tragic shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in their hometown. The men and women of Post 308 serve their community, their State, and their country with distinction. I congratulate Post 308 on celebrating this milestone.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.

Ms. ESTY. I am in its present form.

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, this is the final amendment to the bill, which will not kill the bill or send it back to committee. If adopted, the bill will immediately proceed to final passage, as amended. Mr. Speaker, let's be reasonable here. This bill before us is an ideological attempt to weaken and delay all regulations, even those that protect consumers and small businesses, help veterans, and keep our families safe. I think we can all agree, just as it is ridiculous to say that all regulations are good, it is also ridiculous to say that all regulations are bad. I am the mother of three children, and I know how important regulations can be to keep our children safe. A few years ago, Congress passed a bill to strengthen standards on baby cribs. Regulations prohibited drop-side cribs and required all new cribs to have stronger mattress supports. And do you know why? To save lives. There were devastating instances of children suffocating and dying because of drop-side cribs. Clearly, this regulation is critical to our children's safety. But, unfortunately, the bill before us today would delay the implementation of safety regulations like baby crib standards and safety regulations like those that prohibit the sale of contaminated food from China here in America like rat meat labeled as lamb in Shanghai and the Chinese chickens likely infected with bird flu. Americans have the right to know that the food they are feeding their families is safe, and that is why the bill before us today just doesn't make sense. Delaying all regulations across the board and preventing the Federal Government from rapidly responding to situations, even when the American people are asking for safeguards, is dangerous and harmful. This ideologically driven bill does not just harm Americans by derailing safety regulations; this bill would also weaken and delay regulations that are important to our economy, regulations that protect consumers and small businesses. Folks, we are just 6 weeks away from when tax returns are due. Why would we want to pass a bill that may delay provisions that save taxpayers money? Why would we get in the way when taxpayers want their refunds and rebates returned quickly? But not only that. This bill would delay regulations that would help ensure women receive equal pay for equal work. This bill would weaken regulations that could help protect small businesses against predatory loans and hinder job growth. This bill would delay protections that could help ensure that workplace environments are safe for all workers. And this bill would delay our efforts to speed up veterans receiving their benefits. And something that is particularly important to my State and my district, where folks are concerned about fatal accidents and service delays on the Metro-North railroad, this bill would delay the very regulations that will help ensure that Metro-North is safe and timely for commuters. On-time, safe rail service is critical to our State's economy, and this bill could jeopardize that. My district, Connecticut's economy, and our Nation's economy cannot afford this ideological, destructive bill. So, Mr. Speaker, I am here today to offer an amendment, an amendment that will help make this bill work better for families and small businesses. I was sent to Congress to get things done, and I am working to eliminate and streamline unnecessary regulations and to help cut through red tape and save taxpayers money. At the same time, though, we know that smart regulations save money and save lives. I hear all the time from people back home that Washington isn't working for them and that they are sick and tired of partisan gridlock. My constituents want Washington to be responsive to their needs and to get things done. And that is why I oppose this bill. It unnecessarily delays our ability to act swiftly and decisively. My amendment would work to make sure that smart regulations are not weakened or delayed-- regulations that could save taxpayers money, that could help small businesses, that expedite veterans' benefits, that protect our families' safety and the safety of our food supply, and that could prevent pay discrimination just because you are a woman or because of your race or sexual orientation. We were sent here to work together to help the American people, not to engage in an ideological battle. Let's do the right thing. Let's do the responsible thing. I ask all House Members to join with me to vote for this motion. I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. ESTY. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Ms. ESTY

Ms. ESTY. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert my statement into the Record in support of extending unemployment insurance for 1.6 million Americans instead of this radical Republican assault on women's health care rights.