Gene Green

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall Nos. 53 and 54, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.'' personal explanation

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, Members, when the U.S. economy is showing signs of progress, our House majority's threatening to take 2 percent of the gross national product out of our economy, killing the gains we've made, and doing it on the backs of the people who need help the most, the middle class and the unemployed. Even though we were able to extend the payroll tax cut, unemployment insurance, and also the Medicare physician payments for just 2 months, millions of Americans dodged an average of $1,500 from a GOP tax hike. Now it's time to get to work and pass a year-long extension of these three important programs. We cannot afford to take more risks with the incomes of 160 million Americans the way the House majority did at the end of 2011.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the American Bureau of Shipping for their 150 years at the forefront of setting the standard of excellence in marine and offshore classification in the United States and around the world. From its world headquarters in Houston, Texas, the American Bureau of Shipping, or ABS, manages the third largest class society on the globe, with a classed fleet of over 10,000 commercial vessels, in more than 150 offices in 70 countries. From the time it was first chartered in the State of New York in 1862 as the American Shipmasters' Association, ABS has been committed to the maritime industry and deeply involved in its technical development and the improvement of its safety standards. Born out of a need for industry self-regulation, ABS published its first technical standards, Rules for Survey and Classing Wooden Vessels, in 1870. When the era of wooden ships gave way to iron, ABS established standards for these structures, and later for steel vessels. ABS was officially recognized by the U.S. Government in the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, requiring that in work involving a classification organization, every governmental agency in the United States would turn to ABS. ABS has continued its tradition of leading the classification and maritime safety industry through the 20th and 21st centuries by being the first society to publish rules for the construction and classing of offshore drilling units, submersibles, and aluminum vessels, as well as the first society to classify small-waterplane-area twin hull (or SWATH) vessels, floating production storage and offloading (or FPSOs) vessels. I congratulate ABS, its Board of Directors, and its hard-working employees for their commitment to the Houston community and for 150 more years of success as the world leader in maritime classification and safety.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, during this Season of Giving, when our nation should be reflecting on the need of friends and neighbors who are out of work and struggling to provide for their loved ones, this chamber will vote today to cut unemployment benefits for one million of our fellow Americans. The House Majority's bill, H.R. 3630, would eliminate several tiers of benefits, created under the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, which has provided up to 99 weeks of support for those who lost their jobs through no fault of their own. If this legislation becomes law, the maximum potential unemployment benefit will fall to 59 weeks. This legislation would also allow states, many of which are struggling to balance their budgets, to reduce the average weekly amount available to beneficiaries. I am strongly opposed to any reduction in emergency unemployment insurance. This Congress cannot and must not adjourn for the holidays and go home to tell our unemployed neighbors that the richest country on earth cannot find a place in their heart to help them in their time of need. Mr. Speaker, unfortunately I am not able to support H.R. 3630 even though I am a strong supporter of moving the Keystone XL Project along and would support the language included in this bill if considered separately. The Keystone XL project makes both energy and economic sense for our country, and I hope that the Administration could find a way to allow for construction to commence in some of the states while simultaneously revisiting the route in Nebraska. I urge my colleagues to stand in support of the millions of our fellow Americans struggling to find work and to oppose this legislation.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker. I support the Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Creation Act. This bill has been improved since it was marked up by the Energy and Commerce and Transportation and Infrastructure Committees. I know that there are residual issues that some in the industry and some in the environmental community still have. No legislation will make everyone happy all the time, but I think my colleagues Representatives Upton and Dingell, have worked hard to come as close as possible with the legislation before us today. I thank them for their leadership and I am pleased that they have set an example of bipartisan legislating that we should all follow. Pipeline safety is one that is particularly important to me. I represent parts of Houston and East Harris County, where virtually everyone either lives on, or in close proximity to, a natural gas or oil pipeline. I also have thousands of constituents who rely on this industry for employment and their livelihood. I understand the need to pass a bill that addresses the dual priorities of ensuring safety along these pipelines and providing regulatory certainty for the operators in the years ahead. There are problems with the bill, for instance, this bill may lead to an attempt by this Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, PHMSA, or future PHMSAs to regulate offshore gathering lines in the same way that onshore lines are regulated. While not prescribed by this legislation, the door is left open. It is important that PHMSA carefully consider how to regulate these lines and not take a one-size fits all approach. There are other tweaks that would have been nice, but this is a good bill and represents a bipartisan compromise. Failure to pass a bill, or one side or another pursuing a partisan agenda over good policy, would have been far worse than the small problems I have with this bill. I commend Representatives Upton and Dingell for this bill and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, during this season of giving, when our Nation should be reflecting on the needs of our friends and neighbors who are out of work struggling to provide for their loved ones, this Chamber yesterday voted to cut unemployment benefits for 1 million of our fellow Americans. The House majority's bill would eliminate several tiers of benefits created under the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, which has provided up to 99 weeks of support for those who lost their jobs through no fault of their own. If this legislation becomes law, the maximum potential unemployment benefit will fall by 40 weeks. This legislation would also allow States, many of which are struggling to balance their budgets, to reduce the average weekly amount available to beneficiaries. With over 8 percent unemployment, I'm strongly opposed to any reduction in emergency unemployment insurance. I am a proud supporter, though, of moving the XL pipeline project forward and supported it in separate legislation. The XL pipeline makes both energy and economic sense for our country, and I hope the administration will find a way to allow the construction to commence in some States while still revisiting the route in Nebraska. I urge my colleagues to stand in support of the over 13 million Americans looking for work this holiday season and pass a clean extension of the unemployment insurance program.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to state that I meant to vote ``nay'' on H.R. 1633, the Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act, when it was considered on the House Floor on December 9, 2011. I am strongly opposed to this unnecessary bill and voted ``aye'' by accident.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. I rise in opposition to H.R. 1633, the Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act of 2011. I just heard it referred to as ``Tinker Bell,'' but I think this is more like Alice in Wonderland legislation. It seeks to solve a problem that's not there while dancing around a lot of our real problems that we have to deal with in our country and particularly in this Congress. This bill would prohibit the EPA from proposing, finalizing, implementing, or enforcing any regulation revising the National Ambient Air Quality Standards applicable to coarse particulate matter for 1 year from the date of enactment. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson committed in an October 14, 2011, letter that the EPA plans to propose keeping the PM10 National Ambient Air Quality Standards as they are, with no change. These standards have been in place since 1987. When Gina McCarthy, the Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation at the EPA, testified before our Energy and Power Subcommittee of the full committee, she also confirmed that this bill is not necessary since the administrator plans to propose retaining the current standards that have been in place since 1987. For this reason, I did not support H.R. 1633 when it came up for a vote in our Energy and Commerce Committee, and I encourage my colleagues to oppose it today. I've had very public disagreements with the EPA on other regulations they are revising, but this bill is a solution in search of a problem, and it is not a good use of our congressional time. Taking up a bill that's not necessary hurts our efforts to work with the EPA and to revise some of the standards the EPA is setting that are real problems. That's why, Mr. Chairman, I urge a ``no'' vote on this bill. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, Oct. 14, 2011. Hon. Debbie Stabenow, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Dear Senator Stabenow: Thank you for your inquiry on the status of EPA's Review of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for particulate matter. Particulate matter includes fine particles (known as PM2.5) and coarse particles (known as PM10). PM2.5 can come from fossil-fuel combustion, including power plants and motor vehicles, and wildfires and PM10 can come from construction and demolition activities, industrial operations, wildfires, and dust from unpaved roads. It is well established that particulate matter emissions are linked to premature death and numerous adverse health impacts. We have been making steady progress in reducing emissions of particulate matter--both fine and coarse--in this country for more than two decades, improving the public health of Americans while the economy has continued to grow. It is important that a standard for particulate matter be protective of the health of the public. Based on my consideration of the scientific record, analysis provided by EPA scientists, and advice from the Clean Air Science Advisory Council, I am prepared to propose the retention-- with no revision--of the current PM10 standard and form when it is sent to OMB for interagency review. This rulemaking package will also consider the latest scientific evidence and assessments for PM2.5. Again, thank you for the inquiry. It is EPA's responsibility to protect the health of all Americans--rural and urban--from known pollutants, including particulate matter. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, or your staff can contact Arvin Ganesan, Associate Administrator for the Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations at (202) 564-4741. Sincerely, Lisa P. Jackson.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the tenth anniversary of the East Aldine Management District for their commitment to improving the safety and development in East Aldine. The District was created in June of 2001 with the purpose to improve the physical, social, and economic well-being of the community. Their goal is to attract public and private investments and promote the area as a leading place to not only invest but also to work and live. Since then the District has gained the power to finance public safety and transportation projects as well as assist with environmental and economic development. District funding has improved the community's street conditions by adding pedestrian crosswalks, signage to the streets and landscaping, making the area more attractive to families and businesses. In the year 2010 alone, the District funded over $240,000 in community projects. The District's economic development program provides across the board marketing and public relations activities for the District to support business retention and encourage new business within the District as well as expansion of small businesses. The development program is successful due to the advanced media outreach which includes traditional methods such as print and mailings but also utilizes the District's alliance with community partners. Over the past ten years this community has witnessed significant advancements but the next ten years will bring even more economic growth to the area. The District is located just four miles away from Houston Intercontinental Airport and the Port of Houston is a mere twelve miles away, making the District a great expansion location for manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution companies. I congratulate the President and CEO David Hawes, Board Chairman Gerald Overturff, the entire East Aldine District staff, and the many other volunteers that have dedicated their time to improving their community.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, as a personal aside, this probably won't be the headline on the 6 o'clock news tonight around the country because we're actually agreeing on something, and I think I can associate myself with the remarks of my colleague, the primary sponsor of this bill, as well as he could associate with mine, Mr. Pallone, and Mr. Pitts. But I rise today in strong support of H.R. 2405, the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act of 2011, which will reauthorize certain provisions of the Project BioShield Act of 2004 and the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act of 2006, and I'm proud to be an original cosponsor of this legislation. This legislation was initially passed by Congress to help the U.S. develop medical countermeasures against chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear terrorism agents to provide a mechanism for Federal acquisition of these newly developed countermeasures. Our Nation remains vulnerable to these threats because many of the vaccines and medicines that are needed to protect our citizens do not exist. Developing and stockpiling these medical countermeasures require time, resources and research, all of which will be provided under this legislation before us today. As my colleague from Michigan said, it may not be the bestseller on the market, like so many other pharmaceuticals, but this is something that our country needs. H.R. 2405 is important to me because the University of Texas Medical Branch-Galveston National Laboratory is literally in the backyard of our congressional district. The Galveston National Lab is the only BSL- 4 lab located on a university campus. At the lab, the scientists conduct research and develop therapies, vaccines, and diagnostic tests for naturally-occurring emerging diseases such as SARS and avian influenza, as well as for microbes that may be employed by terrorists. This is exactly the type of research we hope to encourage under the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act. As an original cosponsor of H.R. 2405 with Mr. Rogers, I'm really pleased with how quickly we moved this rare bipartisan piece of legislation. I want to thank Mr. Rogers, Chairman Upton, Ranking Member Waxman and Ranking Member Pallone, along with the chair of our Health Subcommittee, Mr. Pitts, Mrs. Myrick, Ms. Eshoo, and Mr. Markey for their work on H.R. 2405. I strongly urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H. Res. 470, the Rule providing for consideration of H.R. 3094, the Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act. The misleadingly named Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act has one overriding goal--to frustrate workers' right to vote in a union election. Seventy-six years ago, this body passed the National Labor Relations Act, which stated: ``It is declared to be the policy of the United States to . . . encourag[e] the practice and procedure of collective bargaining . . . for the purpose of negotiating the terms and conditions of [workers'] employment.'' The legislation being considered today would undermine the very intent of the NLRA by setting aside decades of labor jurisprudence set by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and our nation's courts, and replace it with new and untested processes that would cause uncertainty, delay elections, and prevent rather than encourage collective bargaining. The Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act would do this by mandating a set of waiting periods and a full, pre-election hearing over any issue that is raised by a party. For instance, no election would be allowed to occur no sooner than 35 days after the filing of a petition. However, there is no limit on how long an election may be delayed. Delay gives unscrupulous employers more time to use any means, legal or illegal, to pressure employees into abandoning their organizing efforts. Also found in this legislation are provisions that would encourage frivolous litigation for the purpose of slowing the election process and stalling any vote. This will create a massive backlog of cases on the taxpayer's dime. This bill would also give employers the ability to gerrymander elections through the proposed legislation's one-size-fits-all test in defining who would be allowed to vote in an organizing election, thereby making a majority vote all the more difficult to achieve. It is time for this Chamber to put aside its war on the American worker and his or her right to organize and collectively bargain. I ask my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to stand up for working Americans and vote against this rule and the underlining legislation.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I oppose this balanced budget amendment. It's not because I support reckless spending, deficit spending, or believe that we don't have a fiscal problem in this country. I oppose this balanced budget amendment because I believe it is a heavy handed approach, which has the potential to harm Social Security and Medicare recipients and will hamstring our Nation's ability to respond to natural disasters, terrorist attacks, and acts of war. We balanced our budget in the 1990s without a balanced budget amendment to our Constitution and we can do it again. Balancing our budget is good policy, I am even open to the idea of a carefully crafted amendment that will not threaten Social Security and Medicare recipients and not endanger our future national security and emergency preparedness. The proposal before us today does none of this and is just bad policy. It is true that our Nation's debt has gotten too big and it is projected to expand even more if nothing is done to curtail it. For this reason, I support immediate measures to reduce our debt to a level that is both manageable and sustainable, which will put our country on a path to economic stability and prosperity. I oppose this proposal, but look forward to working with my colleagues, Democrat and Republican, to find better ways to address our fiscal challenges.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to welcome ESPN's College GameDay to the campus of the University of Houston. This is the first time in the history of that show that the University of Houston and the city of Houston has been given this honor. The University of Houston Cougars, led by Heisman hopeful Case Keenum, is the highlighted game, as the 10-0 Cougars face the SMU Mustangs this Saturday. The Cougars will push for an undefeated season and potential at-large BCS bowl opportunity. The University of Houston has a long, storied tradition of athletic success, including 55 NCAA individual championships and 17 NCAA team titles, 19 college football bowl appearances, five NCAA men's basketball Final Fours, and a trip to the College World Series. The University of Houston has received the Tier-One research university distinction from the Carnegie Foundation. The University of Houston is one of only three Carnegie-designated Tier-One public research universities in Texas. The University of Houston is also known as a first-generation school, for many of the students are the first in their families to attend college. Our undergraduates choose from 120 majors and minors. The University of Houston also offers 139 master's, 54 doctoral, and three professional degree programs. The University of Houston is the second most ethnically diverse major research university in the United States. Students come from as many as 137 nations and from across the Nation. As a proud alumnus of the University of Houston, I salute the successes of the athletic and academic programs and welcome ESPN to our campus today.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I rise in strong support of H.R. 822, the National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011. This important, bipartisan, legislation reinforces fundamental rights enshrined in the U.S. Constitution by allowing any person with a valid, state-issued concealed firearm permit to carry a concealed firearm in any state that issues concealed firearm permits. As an avid hunter and outdoorsman, and as a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association, I can share with personal experience the frustration of my fellow hunters and outdoorsmen the absurdity of having to know which states recognize visiting permit holders from other states and which states that do not. Our country should not force its law-abiding citizens to check in their fundamental right to self-defense at the state line. The National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act would clarify this matter by requiring states that allow concealed carry to recognize each other's permits, similar to how states recognize each other's driver's licenses. Right-to-carry laws also help deter crime. Presently, 40 states have right-to-carry laws. Based on crime data from the FBI, right-to-carry states have 22 percent lower total violent crime rates in comparison to the rest of the country. In my home state of Texas, violent crime has dropped 20 percent and the murder rate has dropped 31 percent, since the enactment of its right-to-carry law in 1996. This legislation is also in-line with recent rulings found by the U.S. Supreme Court. In 2008 in District of Columbia v. Heller and again in 2010 in McDonald v. City of Chicago, the high court found the right to possess a firearm for self-defense cannot be infringed. I am a proud co-sponsor of the bill and have co-sponsored similar legislation in previous Congresses. I call on my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to stand up in support of the U.S. Constitution and the millions of hunters and outdoorsmen in our country and vote in favor of this bill.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of this bill and urge my colleagues to join me in supporting it. The 29th District of Texas that I represent encompasses the Port of Houston--the largest foreign tonnage port in the country. It drives economic activity in region, and is home to one of the largest petro- chemical complexes in the world. Because of this, security on the waterway is critical, and the Coast Guard has been exceptional in providing that security. The Coast Guard enforces the nation's laws in U.S. waters and on the high seas, and protects the lives and property of those at sea. The Coast Guard's missions include maritime search and rescue, illegal drug and migrant interdiction, oil spill prevention and response in the marine environment, marine safety, maintenance of aids to navigation, enforcement of U.S. fisheries, and other marine environmental laws, and maritime defense readiness. I know this bill is not perfect, but I support it because it provides the Coast Guard with the resources they need to meet the security and environmental demands they are tasked with. The measure authorizes programs of the Coast Guard in FY 2012. Passage of the bill will continue today's high levels of offshore safety, ensure important projects are not delayed, and will protect the lives and livelihood of those who live and work around American waterways, such as the Houston Ship Channel. Mr. Chair, I again thank the Committee for their work on this bill and urge my colleagues to join me in supporting it.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of the McCaul Amendment to the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act. For over 75 years, the Jones Act allowed only one non-governmental organization, the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), a not-for-profit marine classification society located in my district in Houston, the authority to review and inspect U.S. flagged vessels on behalf of the U.S. Coast Guard. In 1996, Congress expanded this authority to allow foreign-based classification societies to perform similar tasks. Today, five foreign classification societies act as Agents of our government on behalf of the Coast Guard. Unfortunately, four of these foreign organizations also act as Agents of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the review and inspection of Iranian flagged vessels. These foreign-based classification societies also continue to have business interest with, and often operate within, other rogue nations and state sponsors of terrorism. I support the McCaul Amendment, which would close this loophole in our laws and send a clear message to foreign-based classification societies that you must choose to work with the United States or work with state sponsors of terrorism, such as Iran. I ask my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support the word and spirit of the Iranian sanctions regime that this Chamber has supported time and again, and vote in favor of this amendment.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker and Members, I rise in support of the 54 million retirees, disabled workers, children and spouses in our country who currently receive Social Security. For 75 years, Social Security has served as a promise to the men and women who worked hard all their lives to make this country great that they could look forward to financial security later in their lives. Social Security was designed to be one leg of a three-legged stool. Unfortunately, the other two legs--savings and pensions--aren't there for many seniors. Only 41 percent of seniors have employer-sponsored pensions. Three out of five senior households have no retirement savings at all, and one in three seniors rely on Social Security for 90 percent or more of their entire income. The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction should not look at Social Security as a way to pay down our national debt or as a way to offset tax cuts for the most fortunate in our country. Social Security is not in crisis. It presently has a surplus of over $2.6 trillion-- enough to pay its obligations in full over the next 25 years. Social Security needs to be reformed over the long term. These reforms need to be debated in proper order inside the appropriate committees in the House and Senate and not hastily put together. I ask my colleagues to stand together with America's seniors and support a strong, robust Social Security program.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support one of our Nation's crowning achievements, the Social Security program, and the 55 million Americans who benefit from this critical program. Since 1935, Social Security has kept its promise to America's seniors that after a lifetime of working and playing by the rules, you should not have to live in poverty when you retire. I was happy to see last week that after 2 years, our Nation's seniors will receive a well-deserved cost-of-living-adjustment increase of 3.6 percent. The American people should be concerned, however, that the recently announced COLA increase would effectively disappear if this Congress decides to adopt a chained CPI formula for Social Security. The chained Consumer Price Index would lower benefits by $112 billion for current and future beneficiaries over the next 10 years. I support efforts to reduce our Federal deficit, but we should not balance the Nation's budget on the backs of seniors, the disabled, and children. I call on our colleagues to stand with America's seniors and support Social Security. It's not a Ponzi scheme, as some candidates for President allege; and let's celebrate the 3.6 percent for our seniors.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Jeff Davis High School in Houston, Texas, for their 85 years of excellence and dedication to improving the education of young adults. As a Jeff Davis High School graduate I am proud to say that since 1925, Jeff Davis has established a legacy of success in academics as well as in extracurricular programs by providing students with opportunities to ensure that they are equipped with the tools that are necessary to excel. Due to the hard work of the school's faculty and staff, Jefferson Davis has been able to significantly decrease its dropout rate and increase its programs to prepare students for college. In 2009 Jefferson Davis increased its number of students enrolled in dual credit courses in Houston area colleges by 450 percent. Since 1993 the school has sent approximately 100 juniors to participate in the Cornell Summer Program, where students are able to spend a summer at Cornell University to earn college credit while still in high school. In just the last school year, Jeff Davis was recognized for the dedication to decreasing dropout rates and increasing the number of college-bound students. Jeff Davis has been nominated as a candidate to be featured on the U.S. Department of Education ``Doing What Works'' website based on its success with dropout prevention. One hundred fifty-two students were able to successfully earn college credit through dual enrollment at the University of Houston Downtown and Houston Community College and over 50 individuals were awarded in numerous UIL competitions in areas such as math, writing, and accounting. In 2009-2010, the graduation rate increased to 80 percent and there was an amazing 250 percent increase in student advanced placement passing scores. In 2008-2009, the school became TEA recognized for the first time in Davis history and received the Gold Performance Acknowledgement for comparable improvement in mathematics. In recognition of this outstanding work, Jeff Davis was recognized as one of the top ten most improved high schools in Harris County and its surrounding counties by Children At Risk. In 1993, Project GRAD & Gear Up programs were founded by former Tenneco CEO James Ketelsen at Jeff Davis. This program provides scholarships to students as an incentive to complete high school and continue their education after graduation. Last year the program awarded 2.8 million dollars in scholarships to over 700 graduating seniors in HISD. Jefferson Davis offers a wide range of extracurricular activities, ensuring that students become well rounded and are given a wide range of opportunities to prepare them for our ever-changing society. In 2010, Davis received international recognition in Robotics, as well as significant regional awards in dance, ROTC and Culinary Arts. I congratulate the past and present administration, faculty, staff, and students of Jefferson Davis High School for all of their hard work and dedication to excellence.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. I yield 3 minutes to our colleague and committee member, Ms. Castor from Florida.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. I thank our ranking member for allowing me time to speak. I rise to express my support for H.R. 2273, the Coal Residuals Reuse and Management Act. As a Member of Congress from basically an oil and gas and refinery and chemical plant area, for the last 8 months I have learned more about coal ash than I think I have ever wanted to. We know that coal combustion waste can be responsibly recycled and beneficially used. Wisconsin recycles 97 percent of their coal ash. Encouraging beneficial reuse of coal ash ensures less of it in landfills, which is good for our environment and good for the economy. The great debate with coal combustion waste is how do we ensure we have enough environmental protections for coal ash disposal without discouraging beneficial use. As ranking member of the Environment and Economy Subcommittee of Energy and Commerce, I believe the legislation before us today is a vastly improved version of the legislation considered by our subcommittee for markup, which would simply ban EPA from deeming coal ash as a hazardous material. This legislation would further be improved by the adoption of the Shimkus amendment, the manager's amendment, later. Currently, there is a patchwork of State programs to regulate the disposal of coal combustion waste. H.R. 2273 for the first time establishes comprehensive, minimum Federal standards for coal ash management and disposal. Contrary to statements made, H.R. 2273 does include groundwater monitoring provisions. The legislation applies existing requirements for groundwater monitoring and corrective action measures to coal combustion residuals. Facilities would be required to monitor and respond to any releases. In addition, States have the authority to require facilities that don't meet the standards to close. Additionally, this legislation includes a provision championed by my good friend, Congressman Doyle from Pennsylvania, which would ensure adequate closure standards for surface impoundments, including closure plans and drainage standards. I know some Members have concerns about the legislation, but we worked diligently with the majority and stakeholders to make improvements to the bill. There has been an assertion by some of my colleagues that the legislation does nothing to protect the environment. EPA has no current authority, and this bill for the first time sets those standards. The assertions by some of my colleagues that this legislation does nothing to protect the environment are misleading at best. EPA has no authority now and this bill for the first time sets national standards. No, this bill is not perfect. But part of legislating is moving the ball forward and we cannot continue to spend months working on legislation that is simply sent to the Senate to die. I believe my colleagues on the Majority made significant improvements since their first draft of the bill and a good faith effort to address many of the concerns raised by the minority.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Chair, I yield 3 minutes to my colleague and a member of the committee, the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Doyle).

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. I thank my colleague. I think what Congressman Doyle was saying was, we're doing something here we don't do very often in this House: We actually have a bill that came out of committee that has bipartisan support. It moved the bill to where EPA does not have the authority under current law unless they label it toxic coal ash so the EPA has oversight. We're giving them oversight over what our States have been doing--in most cases, very good. That's why this bill is something we haven't done on this floor very often in the last 10 months. We actually compromise and come up with good legislation. And we hope the Senate will pass it.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. I thank the ranking member on our subcommittee for accepting the amendment. This amendment does make the bill better, but if we're looking for the perfect, you're in the wrong place. A legislative process is not where you get perfection. We come together. We compromise. This floor amendment by the ranking member actually makes the bill better than it was when it came out of committee, and I voted for it out of committee. So I'm glad he made it better with this amendment. But we'll never get perfection, whether it be the House, and I can guarantee, almost, not in the Senate. But this bill is better by this amendment, and that's why I encourage its adoption.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 358, the Protect Life Act. At a time when the current unemployment rate is 9.1 percent, we need to focus on creating jobs and spurring economic growth. Instead, the Majority has chosen to focus on unnecessary legislation aimed at endangering the health of women across this country. The Majority has spent weeks and months in the House trying to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care act. After those attempts failed they began attacking individual provisions in the health reform law. The Protect Life Act is another attack on health reform. Beyond that, the legislation is unnecessary. We already established that no federal funds will be used to perform abortion under health reform because these protections are already included in the underlying law of the land known as the Hyde amendment, which simply states that no federal funds from being used to perform abortions. Supporters of the Protect Life Act assert that they are ensuring no federal funds being used for abortions, but this argument ignores the overreaching nature of the bill and the dangerous consequences for women associated with this legislation. Under this legislation, health care entities could refuse to ``participate in'' abortions. This could mean that a hospital employee could refuse to process bills, handle medical records, or set up an examination room. The bill also endangers women's health and lives by creating a dangerous loophole in longstanding state and federal laws that require hospitals to provide appropriate emergency care to pregnant women and would eliminate existing protections for women seeking care in emergency circumstances--allowing a hospital to deny abortion care to a woman, even if it would save her life. The Protect Life Act also allows states to enact sweeping ``conscience'' laws that would allow health plans to refuse to cover women's preventive services, including birth control, without cost- sharing--potentially undoing a new protection that 66 percent of Americans support. This legislation goes far beyond any legislation passed by the House with regard to abortion. Quite simply, it endangers the health and lives of women. Beyond that, we are wasting valuable time on a bill that cannot pass the Senate and will be vetoed by President Obama instead of debating and voting on the American Jobs Act. Our constituents both Republicans and Democrats want us to work on creating jobs and reducing our deficit. I fail to see how this legislation accomplishes either of those goals. I strongly urge my colleagues to oppose this legislation.