Rush Holt

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Lifetime Innovations of Thomas Edison Act, originally sponsored by my colleague Mr. Payne from New Jersey, with others of us from New Jersey joining him. The legislation before us would reclassify the Edison home and laboratory as a National Historic Park. First dedicated as the Edison National Historic site by the National Park Service in 1962, the site is badly in need of restoration. Dedicating this site as a National Historic Park and authorizing funding for the preservation of the Edison home and laboratory will preserve a national treasure. As you have heard from my colleague, the collection there, as well as the buildings themselves, are of great historical national importance. Thomas Edison was one of America's most prominent inventors. From starting one of the first industrial laboratories, something that is often forgotten, to inventing the first incandescent light bulb, the motion picture, the phonograph, et cetera, Edison played an integral role in the technological advances that helped spur America's industrial revolution. Mr. Edison held over 1,000 patents in the United States and other countries, was named by Life magazine as the man of the millennium, and awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by the Congress in 1928 for his development and application of inventions that have revolutionized civilization. Thomas Edison certainly deserves to be remembered and his collection deserves to be preserved. The 13.5 acre site will make an outstanding national historic park. It will draw people from all across the country to see the important collection there, as well as the site of the first really major scientific industrial laboratory in the United States. Despite being designated a national historic site, it has fallen into disrepair, and in 1992 the National Trust for Historic Preservation listed this as one of the Nation's most endangered historic places. This redesignation is of great importance. Mr. Speaker, we are not only recognizing Thomas Edison's numerous contributions to American society, but we will, with this, be preserving the Edison National Historic Site as a leading educational, scientific, and cultural center. I thank the gentlelady.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of this measure, which will give our men and women in uniform the resources they need to help protect our Nation and its people. Taking care of our military families is a vital responsibility, and this bill meets that obligation. It provides a 3.5 percent pay raise for all military personnel, rejects the President's proposed increases in TRICARE co-pays by fully funding the $1.9 billion TRICARE shortfall without cost to our troops, and allocates $2.6 billion to provide more counselors, teachers, and child care providers to reinforce the support network serving military families. The bill also provides $615.7 million for Army facilities to upgrade barracks, improve child care facilities and enhance community services at bases throughout the U.S., Europe and Korea. All of these things will improve the quality of life of our military families, and I appreciate what Chairman Murtha has done on their behalf. Providing our deployed troops with the equipment they need is our other vital responsibility. This bill provides $11.6 billion for Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles and for body armor and other protective equipment. Earlier this year, I joined a number of my colleagues in a letter to Defense Secretary Gates urging him to make the acquisition of MRAP vehicles a priority, and I'm pleased he has worked with the Congress to expedite the acquisition of these life- saving vehicles. Our Guard and Reserve units will also benefit from a $980 million appropriation in this bill for new equipment. I think just about all of us in this House have Guard and Reserve units in our districts that have been short of key equipment, a situation that not only has compromised the deployability of those units overseas but has also made it harder for Guard units to provide disaster support to communities in the wake of floods, hurricanes, and other natural disasters. I'm glad these equipment shortages are being addressed in this bill, and I hope we'll continue working this problem until all Guard and Reserve units have their full allocation of needed equipment. Finally, to help those who return from war wounded, this bill provides $70 million for the Dignified Treatment of Wounded Warriors Act (H.R. 1538), which passed the Congress in July 2007. That legislation mandated improvements in the care of wounded service members and in the services provided to them, including improving the system of case managers for wounded service members, creating a system of patient advocates, and the creation of a formal transition process from the Armed Forces to the VA for service members who are being retired or separated for health reasons. I'm pleased we're finally funding this important bill, which was passed in the wake of the Walter Reed Medical Center scandal in January. However, I view this as just the first step in properly funding these programs, and I hope we can do even more in next year's budget. Mr. Chairman, this bill will help us give our men and women in uniform and their families the support and resources they need, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for it.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, today we will hear the good features of this legislation, the 4.5 million families that can afford college better because of tuition deductions, teachers who can get deductions for classroom expenses, the extension of the R&D tax credit, the 11 million families who will benefit from sales tax deduction, and of course the central piece of this, the relief from the alternative minimum tax. In fact, in my own district, which is one of the most hardest hit in the country by the alternative minimum tax, 88,000 of my constituents are unfairly caught in the AMT, and they will find relief in this bill. I would like to address a feature that I am particularly pleased to see in this legislation. Property taxes are applied locally, as we know, and for some years I've tried to get relief at the Federal level for these local taxes, which have grown far ahead of the rate of inflation. Several years ago, in the previous Congress, I introduced legislation that would provide a standard deduction for homeowners who do not itemize their taxes. Now the Ways and Means Committee, under the new leadership of Chairman Rangel, and with the strong advocacy of Representative Emanuel, has included in this legislation such a deduction. Now, more than 30 million homeowners who do not currently itemize their tax deductions and yet still pay high property taxes will find relief in this bill. It will be a standard deduction of $350 for those filing individually, $700 for those filing jointly, and it will be available, I repeat, for something like 30 million Americans, including those in New Jersey who pay the highest property taxes in the country. So, I thank the chairman and the committee for their wisdom in including this legislation. I urge adoption of the rule and the passage of the underlying bill.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, as a strong supporter of inclusive ENDA that provides employment protections for sexual orientation as well as gender identity, I am an original cosponsor of the original ENDA that was introduced earlier this year, the legislation we should be taking up today. In my home State of New Jersey, we are proud to have a fully inclusive employment nondiscrimination law. We are proud of the New Jersey-based businesses that have corporate policies against discrimination based on gender identity, in addition to sexual orientation. Companies such as Johnson & Johnson, Merck and Prudential Financial prohibit employment discrimination based on gender identity, not only because they believe it's the right thing to do morally and ethically, but also they know it's a matter of corporate competitiveness and good for their companies. Mr. Speaker, our distinguished colleague John Lewis often reminds us of the words of Dr. King, ``The time is always right to do the right thing.'' Dr. King warned us against the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. I am concerned that when we break apart legislation, some pieces fall on the floor to get swept into the dustbin of history or to be considered only years later. We should not do this to members of our society who need and deserve the same protections as all other Americans. I want to thank the members of Garden State Equality, New Jersey Stonewall Democrats, the New Jersey Lesbian and Gay Coalition for their hard work and tireless efforts for inclusive protections. I ask to include in the Record a letter from Johnson & Johnson Company supporting an inclusive ENDA bill and a copy of the statement of dissent by Representatives Clarke, Kucinich, Sanchez and me in the committee markup of this legislation. Johnson & Johnson Services, Inc., Washington, DC, October 19, 2007. Hon. Rush Holt, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear Congressman Holt: I would like to express Johnson & Johnson's support for H.R. 2015, the Employment Non- Discrimination Act (ENDA). This legislation is essential in providing federal protections to prevent workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. At Johnson & Johnson, we recognize employees as the cornerstone of our success. For this reason, the company adheres to a vigorous Equal Employment Opportunity Policy that provides a working environment free of discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation. This policy is consistent with our commitment to ensuring the respect of our employees and guaranteeing each individual a sense of security. We believe that H.R. 2015 is a very important step towards addressing employment discrimination and fostering true equality. In addition to establishing federal protections, ENDA legislation also creates an enforcement mechanism through the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission (EEOC). This enforcement power has led to the monumental successes of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991. I look forward to working with you in the future to achieve our mutual goal of eradicating workplace discrimination. Please do not hesitate to contact me if I may provide further assistance. Best regards, Shannon Salmon, VP, President Affairs.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. I thank the chairman and commend my colleague from West Virginia for bringing this legislation to the floor. Mr. Chairman, we are doing a good thing here. The Mining Act of 1872 is as archaic and as deserving of updating as the name suggests. It was written at a time of manifest destiny, the belief of our predecessors, who held that we should expand from coast to coast and that mining was recognized as one of the best uses of public lands when the country seemed so vast that no one could imagine that human actions would affect the world. Many things have changed over 135 years. Our Nation is settled. We have come to realize the worth of our natural environment. We have come to comprehend the effects of human actions on the resources that we will pass down to future generations. This legislation is governing hardrock mining, an industry that's remained exempt from environmental regulations despite the fact that the U.S. EPA's toxic release inventory has determined that hardrock mining is a primary source of toxic pollution in the United States. I am pleased that in committee we have included language, important language, I would say, to restrict permits for activities that would harm national parks and national monuments. There are thousands of claims and could be thousands more in the close environment of national parks and national monuments, some of our most treasured lands. This legislation will provide vital protection for those lands. We all know well the costs to American taxpayers of refusing to look after the environment. This language about national parks, I think, will also save the taxpayer money, because we will have to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to clean up damage to water supplies and so forth. I commend the chairman for bringing such a good bill forward and urge its passage.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of International Education Week, which is sponsored by the Departments of Education and State. International Education Week reminds us of the value of learning foreign languages and learning about foreign cultures and traditions. In an increasingly interdependent global community, it is important for America's students to be students of the world, and to have the opportunity to study abroad. While such cultural exchanges benefit the individual, they are equally important for America's international competitiveness and national security. Still, a survey from the Institute of International Education shows that during the 2004/2005 school year, fewer than one percent of American undergraduates studied abroad. This event reminds us that we can and must do better. This week also reminds us of the importance of foreign language study. Studies have shown that early exposure to foreign language education in elementary school has been found to improve children's thinking processes, which help student achievement across all subject areas. It is my great hope that this year, from November 12 through November 16, all those who recognize the importance of American involvement in the world will take part in International Education Week.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Madam Speaker, yesterday I voted in favor of H.R. 1483, the Celebrating America's Heritage Act. I am pleased to support this legislation which creates six new national heritage areas and reauthorizes nine additional heritage areas, including one in my home State of New Jersey. Since 1988, the New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail, stretching roughly 300 miles from Perth Amboy to Cape May and west along the Delaware Bay to Deepwater, has been successful in encouraging New Jersey residents and visitors alike to explore the State's coastal resources and culture. For nearly 20 years, the New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail has played a key role in preventing overdevelopment of the Nation's most densely populated State. The trail has helped preserve a wide variety of natural resources and historical landmarks including bird sanctuaries, wildlife refuges and lighthouses. It has helped boost tourism and economic activity and has provided countless visitors with enjoyable and interesting opportunities for recreation. Whether visiting the Nation's oldest operating lighthouse at Sandy Hook, canoeing on a fresh water creek in Double Trouble State Park, shopping at the 200-year-old fishing village of Belford, or taking in the view from Mount Mitchill, the highest point on the eastern seaboard, the New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail offers something for everyone to enjoy. National Heritage Areas provide great opportunities for Americans to experience the history and culture of a particular State or region. My Central New Jersey district is home to the Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Area. This heritage area protects and promotes more than 250 historic sites. On October 12, 2006, I was proud to see the Crossroads National Heritage Area signed into law by the President. I hope that with the passage of this bill and eventual signature of the President, many of my colleagues will get to experience similar pride with the creation of national heritage areas in their districts for the benefit of their constituents. Many of these National Heritage Areas do not receive money from the Federal Government alone. The New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail, for example, receives only a third of its funding from the Federal Government. Our investments in National Heritage Areas are often matched by State and local governments as well as the private sector. Madam Speaker, H.R. 1483 will enable millions of Americans to visit and treasure heritage areas in their home State and across the Nation. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this important piece of legislation.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to voice my strong support for H.R. 189, the Paterson Great Falls National Park Act of 2007. I am proud to be a cosponsor of this legislation along with the New Jersey Congressional delegation. I also want to thank my colleague, Mr. Pascrell, a Paterson native and former mayor, for his hard work in drafting this bill and bringing it to the floor. H.R. 189 will establish a National Park in Paterson, NJ, encompassing 118 acres of the Great Falls National Historic District and the adjacent Hinchliffe Stadium. These sites are of great historical significance to New Jersey and to the Nation at large. In 1791, Alexander Hamilton created the Society for the Establishment of Useful Manufactures, a public-private corporation, to fulfill his vision of transforming the United States from an agrarian society into an industrial power. The society, in turn, established Paterson 1 year later as America's first planned industrial city. Located 15 miles west of New York City, the centerpiece of Hamilton's industrial city is the Great Falls, a 77-foot waterfall on the Passaic River. After implementing engineer Pierre Charles L'Enfant's water power system, dozens of mills and manufacturing buildings were built on the banks of the Passaic, harnessing the hydropower made available by the Great Falls. Paterson was the heart of the industrial revolution in the United States, with dozens of mills producing paper, cotton, and enough silk for Paterson to earn the nickname ``Silk City.'' As one of the earliest centers of manufacturing in the United States, Paterson was also home to historic inventions such as Samuel Colt's first repeating revolver and inventor John Holland's early submarine prototypes. Paterson's Great Falls is also the site of historic Hinchliffe Stadium, which served as the homefield for the New York Black Yankees of the Negro Leagues during America's Jim Crow era. Placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004, Hinchliffe Stadium is one of a handful of remaining stadiums used by Negro League baseball teams. Hinchliffe stadium hosted baseball legends such as Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, and Larry Doby, who became the first African American to integrate the American League. The stadium is a poignant reminder of a bygone era of our country's national pastime. With the passage of this bill, Members of the House will create a unique national park that protects a striking natural resource along with cultural and historical sites that tell the stories of our Founding Fathers, America's economic rise and of the African American experience. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 751, which recognizes National Chemistry Week. I am proud to support this resolution, as I have done in past years, which acknowledges the critical role chemistry plays in maintaining and improving our quality of life. I thank the gentleman from Texas, (Mr. Silvestre Reyes) for sponsoring this resolution and I thank the leadership for providing Members of Congress with the opportunity to show our support for this bill on the floor. This year marks the 20th anniversary of National Chemistry Week. Started by the American Chemical Society in 1987, this year's National Chemistry Week brings together businesses, schools, and nearly 200 ACS chapters to raise awareness of chemistry in our daily lives. Through aggressive outreach, hands-on demonstrations within local communities and laboratory open houses, National Chemistry Week engages millions of Americans, particularly elementary and secondary students, asking them to think about the how chemistry surrounds us all. National Chemistry Week's theme for 2007, ``The Many Faces of Chemistry,'' highlights the diverse roles chemistry professionals play in our society. From teaching in the classroom to conducting research in the laboratory, chemistry professionals provide countless services to society. ``The Many Faces of Chemistry'' is also a challenge to educators to promote diversity in chemistry and the sciences. Madam Speaker, while ACS organizes National Chemistry Week to celebrate the contributions of chemistry to the common good, as well as the progress in achieving diversity within the field, ACS is also issuing a challenge and a warning to Americans. Issues such as climate change and infectious disease pose threats not only to the United States, but also to the entire world. In order to solve these problems, we must insist that science education be a priority in our elementary and secondary schools to cultivate the next generation of scientists. Additionally, this year's National Chemistry Week reminds us that our work is not done promoting diversity within the sciences. While the number of women, African-Americans, and Hispanics earning advanced science and engineering degrees has increased, growth has stagnated recently, and these groups remain underrepresented, when compared to the general population. If the United States is to remain the locus of scientific research and innovation in an increasingly competitive global playing field, we must continue to broaden these groups. Once again I commend the American Chemical Society for establishing National Chemistry Week in 1987 and thank the organization for two decades of promoting science education. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution recognizing the goals and ideals of National Chemistry Week.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, later today the House will vote on the RESTORE Act, on electronic surveillance, which its well-intentioned authors believe will help both protect our liberties and protect our security. It does the latter, but, unfortunately, does not fully do the former. The bill includes a provision that could be used to spy on Americans without warrants. There is no need for us to pass in haste yet again a bill that does not protect the citizens. We must not give in to the politics of fear. I urge our leadership to make the changes necessary to this bill so that it protects our citizens from both enemy attacks and warrantless government surveillance. Mr. Speaker, executive branch assurances that the rights of Americans will be protected through administrative procedures are no substitute for judicial protections. In recent weeks and months we have seen too many abuses of administrative warrants to find reassurance in that. We will have the best protection when agencies have to demonstrate to a court that they know what they are doing.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman. The RESTORE Act, which its well-meaning authors believe will both help protect our liberties and our security, does the latter but, unfortunately, does not fully do the former. If I had more time, I would talk about the good features of this bill, but in the time I have, I would like to point to the one thing that it needs most, that it lacks, which is ironclad language that maintains the fourth amendment's individual warrant requirement when Americans' property or communications are searched and seized by the government. The RESTORE Act would allow the government to collect the communications of innocent Americans. The executive branch assurances that the rights of Americans will be protected through administrative procedures are no substitute for judicial protections. In recent weeks and months, we've seen too many abuses of administrative warrants to find any reassurance or to even find these assurances believable. Yes, I voted ``yes'' in committee to bring this to the floor, with the assurances that we would work to get it better. I regret to say that I've seen no effort to resolve this point. It could be fixed easily to the safety of Americans, because Americans will be safer when agencies have to demonstrate to a court that they know what they are doing. We get better intelligence, just as we get better law enforcement, when you do it by the rules. In fact, my own leadership I believe would deny me time to speak on this issue to try to strengthen this bill, but for the sake of the security of Americans, I implore the leadership to make these improvements.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to support the amendment from my colleague from New Jersey, Mr. Pallone and my colleague from Pennsylvania, Mr. Murphy to the Federal Railway Safety and Safety Improvement Act. Mr. Pallone and Mr. Murphy's amendment would exclude from the jurisdiction of the Surface Transportation Board the regulation and approval of solid waste transfer and processing facilities near railway stations. This amendment addresses a serious environmental concern in allowing companies to skirt solid waste regulations and I fully support this amendment. The Interstate Commerce Commission Termination Act of 1995 gave the STB jurisdiction over transportation by rail carriers and authorized the STB to pre-empt Federal, State or local laws in conflict with Commerce Clause. This law was intended to extend the STB's authority only to railroad operations, not to the operation of facilities located by rail services or to businesses which have a connection to a rail company. Unfortunately, confusion about Congressional intent behind the ICCTA has been exploited by some companies to override State and Federal environmental regulations for the sake of profit and have put both the environment and the public health at risk. It is through a gross misinterpretation of ICCTA that the STB allows companies to seek Federal preemption of a host of environmental and public health laws by simply locating their facilities on railroad property. One of the more egregious examples of this abuse is the building of solid waste facilities along rail lines. In the State of New Jersey, the STB has allowed nine railroad transfer facilities to operate under the supposed Federal preemption supposedly authorized through the ICCTA--at least one of which handles toxic waste. Many of these facilities are little more than trash heaps which do not have to comply with either State or Federal solid waste regulations. This is unacceptable. We have spent the last decade working to clean up the damage that has been caused by improper waste disposal, and continuing to allow companies to exploit the ICCTA is a step backwards in the progress we have made in regulating this industry. Mr. Pallone and Mr. Murphy's amendment would take a crucial step towards correcting this problem and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased the House is taking action today to help protect reporters from prosecutions simply for doing their jobs. Over the last few years, more than forty reporters have been subpoenaed for the identities of confidential sources in nearly a dozen cases. Although the Department of Justice has promulgated voluntary guidelines for issuing subpoenas to the media and reporters, these guidelines do not apply to civil litigants in federal court and give unreviewable discretion to special prosecutors. H.R. 2102 would establish a Federal standard for all parties-- prosecutors, civil litigants, journalists and sources--and send a signal to potential sources that they will be protected in most circumstances when they pass to news organizations evidence of waste, fraud and abuse in government and in the private sector. The bill requires journalists to testify at the request of criminal prosecutors, criminal defendants and civil litigants who have shown by a preponderance of the evidence that they have met the various tests for compelled disclosure. The bill contains provisions to ensure that the privilege would not impair law enforcement's efforts to identify a person who has disclosed significant trade secrets or certain financial or medical information in violation of current law. In the case of national security issues, the test is that ``disclosure of the identity of such a source is necessary to prevent an act of terrorism against the United States or its allies or other significant and specified harm to national security with the objective to prevent such harm.'' It is the latter half of this clause that would allow the Justice Department to compel testimony from reporters in national security leak cases. It is important that we ensure that information that is properly classified be protected from unauthorized disclosure. However, as we've seen repeatedly over the last century, too often government officials will misuse the classification system to hide evidence of their own lawbreaking. It will be important for Congress to carefully monitor how this particular provision is employed by the Department of Justice to ensure it is not abused in a way that prevents Congress and the public from learning about violations of law carried out in the name of protecting the nation's security. Organizations representing publishers, broadcasters, and journalists agree that this legislation provides a suitable framework for balancing the needs of a free press with the need to uphold our laws, and on balance, so do I. I urge my colleagues to vote for this important legislation.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 3121, the Flood Insurance Reform and Modernization Act of 2007. In April of this year, severe rainstorms in New Jersey caused the Delaware River to overflow for the fourth time in the past 2 years. Each of these floods caused substantial damage to the homes and businesses of my constituents in Mercer and Hunterdon counties. After each incident I toured the affected areas and met with local officials, residents, and business owners. Two primary concerns were raised by my constituents in each of these meetings. Residents wanted to know what efforts are being made to prevent future flooding and they wanted to be assured access to the financial resources available to them. The legislation before us today provides needed comprehensive flood insurance reform. It will address concerns of the residents in my Central New Jersey district by expanding, improving and reauthorizing the National Flood Insurance Program, NFIP, through 2013. The NFIP is federally backed flood insurance available for purchase to homeowners, renters and business owners in 20,000 communities across the nation. In order to be eligible, these communities are required to adopt floodplain management ordinances to reduce future flood damage. H.R. 3121 will improve the NFIP by increasing and expanding access to flood insurance policies. For the first time since 1994, the bill updates maximum insurance coverage limits for residential and nonresidential properties. It will create business interruption coverage policies for business owners to better prepare them to meet payroll and other obligations after a flood occurs. Additionally, this bill makes optional coverage at actuarial rates for basement improvements and for the replacement of items damaged by flooding. It also encourages participation in the NFIP through community outreach programs. This legislation will help protect consumers and ensure that homeowners who should have flood insurance have it. H.R. 3121 increases the fines on lenders who do not enforce the mandatory flood insurance policy purchase requirement for those who live in a floodplain and hold a federally-backed mortgage. It will also clarify the disclosure requirements for flood insurance availability and require plain language information on flood insurance policies. It removes the current $500,000 per apartment building insurance cap and will allow each unit in the building to be insured for its total value. It requires landlords to notify their tenants of contents coverage availability. Further, the bill makes flood insurance effective immediately upon purchase of a home. Not only does this bill work to ensure that insurance coverage is available to those who need it, it will help us to find better ways to prevent flooding in the future by requiring the Federal Emergency Management Administration, FEMA, to map the 500-year floodplain. It also makes the updating and modernization of flood maps an ongoing process, and increases funding for mapping. According to the Delaware River Basin Commission which works on issues relating to the Delaware River, updated floodplain maps will allow us to better predict areas that are vulnerable to flooding and identify ways to prevent floods from happening. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3121.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 3567 the Small Business Investment Expansion Act. Much of the economic success that we enjoy as a Nation is the result of innovation and development by America's small business community. Almost half of Americans working in the private sector are employed by small businesses. They are responsible for over 45 percent of our national payroll and have created 60 to 80 percent of new jobs over the last 10 years. Since it was created in 1953, the Small Business Administration, SBA, has played an essential role in maintaining and strengthening the Nation's economy by aiding, assisting and protecting the interests of America's small businesses. However, there is an expanding gap between the assistance that the SBA's programs are able to provide and the capital needs of small businesses. The legislation before us today will help to close this gap by expanding and improving two of the SBA's most successful programs, the Small Business Investment Company and the New Markets Capital Program. As a public-private partnership the Small Business Investment Company program stimulates and supplements the flow of private equity capital and long term loan funds for the sound financing, growth, expansion and modernization of small business operations. This program was able to leverage more than $21 billion to 2,000 small businesses in the last year alone; however more could be done to improve access to this program. This legislation will expand access for early-stage and capital-intensive small businesses by simplifying how maximum leverage caps are calculated and revising the limitation on aggregate investments. H.R. 3567 will also expand access to the New Markets Venture Capital program that provides entrepreneurial expertise and equity capital to small businesses in low-income regions. This legislation not only expands the programs but provides incentives for investors to invest in small manufacturing companies. Additionally, H.R. 3567 will create a new office within the SBA to help start-up of companies find investors to support them in their early stages of growth, the Office of Angel vestment. This legislation will focus on three main initiatives: providing angel groups with matching financing leverage, create a federal directory of angel investors, and funding for awareness and educational programs about angel Investment opportunities. Small businesses make up the engine that drives our economy. The legislation before us today will give small businesses the tools that they need to succeed. I therefore encourage my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Rothman).

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I wish this resolution were not necessary, but maybe we should welcome this and embrace it as a teachable moment, not only to understand the religious tenets, practices, and traditions of various people in this country, but also to understand what it means to say we are a Nation dedicated to the proposition that all are equal. No one said that the freedoms we cherish need be convenient. They do require from each of us, from time to time, accommodation, even inconvenience. This is a teachable moment, an important lesson in tolerance, equality and, yes, accommodation. I thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Rothman) for bringing this forward, and I urge my colleagues to support this. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 25) calling on the Board of Directors of the National High School Mock Trial Championship to accommodate students of all religious faiths.

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I request 5 legislative days during which Members may insert material relevant to H. Res. 25 into the Record.

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Mr. HOLT asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 25, a resolution that calls on the National High School Mock Trial Championship board of directors to make provisions in the championship schedule to accommodate the religious faiths of all potential students and participants. This legislation was introduced by Mr. Rothman, my colleague from New Jersey, who has worked diligently on this issue to see that fairness and tolerance prevails. The National High School Mock Trial Championship is a competition between winning high schools on a national level designed to showcase bright and talented high school students. The event requires intense preparation, skill and dedication for those who reach the high level of competition. The current championship takes place on weekends. There are two rounds on Friday, two rounds on Saturday, and a championship round that occurs later on Saturday. In 2005, just a couple of years ago, this schedule caused an imposition to a team in that competition. The Torah Academy of Teaneck, New Jersey was scheduled to participate after winning the 2005 New Jersey State Bar Foundation high school tournament. Now, this school, without proper accommodation, would not have been able to compete because of their orthodox religious practice to observe the Sabbath from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday. In that instance, the board of the competition made a proper accommodation for the students' religious faiths. The team was able to compete in May of that year. Those who took part in that competition recognized that the adjustment made by the board showed fairness and tolerance, and it was a good way to approach a problem. All participating applauded the board for doing so. However, the board later voted to refuse any future accommodations for students who observe the Sabbath on Friday or Saturday. The vote carried and signified a rejection of participation for all future participants with religious prohibitions, religious practices that may require accommodation. Well, a number of legal organizations then withdrew their participation and support for the National High School Mock Trial Championship pointing to this act of the board of directors that quite clearly undermines free religious spirit, the kind of spirit on which this country was based. It is not without irony that this was applied in a competition that is intended for legal and constitutional education. The resolution before us today from Mr. Rothman and cosponsored by a number of us calls on the mock trial championship to recognize the diverse religious views and practices in this country and to restore its rules in order to accommodate excellent students of all faiths. I commend Mr. Rothman for pursuing this. We hope that this can be resolved in a way that is most inclusive and in the spirit, the constitutional spirit, of equality of religious practice in this country. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to my distinguished colleague, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Rothman), the author of this resolution.

Mr. HOLT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 95) expressing the sense of the House of Representatives supporting the goals and ideals of Campus Fire Safety Month, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

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