Sheila Jackson Lee

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor, and I also rise to challenge. My honoring is to acknowledge the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial and to honor those who have fallen in battle, and to acknowledge the fact that an officer is killed somewhere in the United States every 60 hours, and there are also 58,930 assaults and 15,404 injuries. So I salute those who have fallen and offer my sympathy to their families, but I recognize that it is important to honor them, and we do honor them. That is why I rise today with sadness on what we did on the floor of the House, where we actually said to the LGBT community that serve in the United States military or by contracting work serve the United States Government, that you are not equal. How sad that is. I am looking forward to this House, next week, overturning that dastardly provision that says that one American who comes under the Constitution is not equal. Finally, let me say that we are suffering from the possibility of the Zika virus, and this House must fully fund for the Zika virus epidemic that is coming. Mr. Speaker, this week the nation observes National Police Week, as we have since President John F. Kennedy first proclaimed National Peace Officers Memorial Day on May 15, 1962. The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial is the nation's monument to law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty. Dedicated on October 15, 1991, the Memorial honors federal, state and local law enforcement officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice for the safety and protection of our nation and its people. Carved on its walls are the names of 20,789 officers who have been killed in the line of duty throughout U.S. history, dating back to the first known death in 1791. Added to the Wall this year will be the names of the 123 police officers killed in the line of duty in 2015. Mr. Speaker, enshrined on the Memorial Wall of Honor also are the names of 1,695 fallen peace officers from the state of Texas, the most of any state, including 114 members of the Houston Police Department who gave their lives to keep their city safe. I include a list of these fallen heroes from Houston, Texas. Mr. Speaker, today there are more than 900,000 law enforcement personnel serving the people of our country, the highest amount ever. About 12 percent of them are female. These brave men and women risk their lives to keep the peace and keep us safe but they are too often taken by the violence they are working to prevent. Every year, a law enforcement officer is killed somewhere in the United States every 60 hours, and there are also 58,930 assaults against our law officers each year, resulting in 15,404 injuries. Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Law Enforcement Caucus I am proud to represent the people of the 18th Congressional District of Texas in paying tribute to the 123 fallen heroes who will be joining the 20,789 gallant men and women who gave the last full measure of devotion to the communities they took an oath to protect and serve. In closing, Mr. Speaker, let me pay tribute to one of the finest public servants America has produced, Lee Patrick Brown, who is perhaps best known to the law enforcement community as the ``The Father of Community Policing.'' Lee Brown was appointed in 1982 as the first African-American Chief of Police of the Houston Police Department, where he pioneered techniques in community policing to reduce crime that still used throughout the country today. Lee Brown enjoyed a long and distinguished career leading several of the nation's most important and largest police departments, including those of Atlanta, Georgia, and New York City, before becoming the first African American Mayor of Houston, Texas in 1997. Following Lee Brown as Chief of the Houston Police Department were the following good and true public servants: Elizabeth Watson (1990- 1992); Sam Nuchia (1992-1997); Clarence Bradford (1997-2004); Harold Hunt (2004-2009); and Charles McClelland (2010-2016). Mr. Speaker, I ask for a moment of silence in memory of the officers whose names will be added to the National Peace Officers Memorial Wall of Honor. Houston Law Enforcement Officers Memorialized on the Wall of Honor 1. TIMOTHY SCOTT ABERNETHY, End of Watch: December 7, 2008, Houston, Texas, P.D. 2. CHARLES H BAKER, End of Watch: August 16, 1979, Houston, Texas, P.D. 3. JOHNNY TERRELL BAMSCH, End of Watch: January 30, 1975, Houston, Texas, P.D. 4. CLAUDE R BECK, End of Watch: December 10, 1971, Houston, Texas, P.D. 5. JACK B BEETS, End of Watch: March 30, 1955, Houston, Texas, P.D. 6. TROY A BLANDO, End of Watch: May 19, 1999, Houston, Texas, P.D. 7. JAMES CHARLES BOSWELL, End of Watch: December 9, 1989, Houston, Texas, P.D. 8. C E BRANON, End of Watch: March 20, 1959, Houston, Texas, P.D. 9. JOHN M CAIN, End of Watch: August 3, 1911, Houston, Texas, P.D. 10. RICHARD H CALHOUN, End of Watch: October 10, 1975, Houston Texas Police Department. 11 DIONICIO M CAMACHO, End of Watch: October 23, 2009, Harris County, Texas, S.O. 12. HENRY CANALES, End of Watch: June 23, 2009, Houston, Texas, P.D. 13. FRANK MANUEL CANTU JR, End of Watch: March 25, 2004, Houston, Texas, P.D. 14. E C CHAVEZ, End of Watch: September 17, 1925, Houston, Texas, P.D. 15. CHARLES ROY CLARK, End of Watch: April 3, 2003, Houston, Texas, P.D. 16. CHARLES ROBERT COATES II, End of Watch: February 23, 1983, Houston, Texas, P.D. 17. PETE CORRALES, End of Watch: January 25, 1925, Houston, Texas, P.D. 18. RUFUS E DANIELS, End of Watch: August 23, 1917, Houston, Texas, P.D. 19. JOHNNIE DAVIDSON, End of Watch: February 19, 1921, Houston, Texas, P.D. 20. WORTH DAVIS, End of Watch: June 17, 1928, Houston, Texas, P.D. 21. KEITH ALAN DEES, End of Watch: March 7, 2002, Houston, Texas, P.D. 22. REUBEN BECERRA DELEON, JR, End of Watch: October 26, 2005, Houston, Texas, P.D. 23. WILLIAM EDWIN DELEON, End of Watch: March 29, 1982, Houston, Texas, P.D. 24. FLOYD T DELOACH JR, End of Watch: June 30, 1965, Houston, Texas, P.D. 25. GEORGE D EDWARDS, End of Watch: June 30, 1939, Houston, Texas, P.D. 26. DAWN SUZANNE ERICKSON, End of Watch: December 24, 1995, Houston, Texas, P.D. 27. J C ETHERIDGE, End of Watch: August 23, 1924, Houston, Texas, P.D. 28. JAMES E FENN, End of Watch: March 14, 1891, Houston, Texas, P.D. 29. E D FITZGERALD, End of Watch: September 30, 1930, Houston, Texas, P.D. 30. C EDWARD FOLEY, End of Watch: March 10, 1860, Houston, Texas, P.D. 31. JOSEPH ROBERT FREE, End of Watch: October 18, 1912, Houston, Texas, P.D. 32. GUY P GADDIS, End of Watch: January 31, 1994, Houston, Texas, P.D. 33. JAMES T GAMBILL, End of Watch: December 1, 1936, Houston, Texas, P.D. 34. FLORENTINO M GARCIA JR, End of Watch: November 10, 1989, Houston, Texas, P.D. 35. BEN EDDIE GERHART, End of Watch: June 26, 1968, Houston, Texas, P.D. 36. G Q GONZALEZ, End of Watch: February 28, 1960, Houston, Texas, P.D. 37. CHARLES R GOUGENHEIM, End of Watch: April 30, 1955, Houston, Texas, P.D. 38. CARL GREENE, End of Watch: March 14, 1928, Houston, Texas, P.D. 39. LEON GRIGGS, End of Watch: January 31, 1970, Houston, Texas, P.D. 40. MARIA MICHELLE GROVES, End of Watch: April 10, 1987, Houston, Texas, P.D. 41. GARY ALLEN GRYDER, End of Watch: June 29, 2008, Houston, Texas, P.D. 42. ANTONIO GUZMAN JF, End of Watch: January 9, 1973, Houston, Texas, P.D. 43. HOWARD B HAMMOND, End of Watch: August 18, 1946, Houston, Texas, P.D. 44. JAMES DONALD HARRIS, End of Watch: July 13, 1982, Houston, Texas, P.D. 45. DAVID MICHAEL HEALY, End of Watch: November 12, 1994, Houston, Texas, P.D. 46. TIMOTHY A HEARN, End of Watch: June 8, 1978, Houston, Texas, P.D. 47. OSCAR HOPE, End of Watch: June 22, 1929, Houston, Texas, P.D. 48. ELSTON M HOWARD, End of Watch: July 20, 1988, Houston, Texas, P.D. 49. DAVID HUERTA, End of Watch: September 19, 1973, Houston, Texas, P.D. 50. JAMES BRUCE IRBY, End of Watch: June 27, 1990, Houston, Texas, P.D. 51. BOBBY L JAMES, End of Watch: June 26, 1968, Houston, Texas, P.D. 52. JOHN C JAMES, End of Watch: December 12, 1901, Houston, Texas, P.D. 53. RODNEY JOSEPH JOHNSON, End of Watch: September 21, 2006, Houston, Texas, P.D. 54. ED JONES, End of Watch: September 13, 1929, Houston, Texas, P.D. 55. P P JONES, End of Watch: January 30, 1927, Houston, Texas, P.D. 56. FRANK L KELLOGG, End of Watch: November 30, 1955, Houston, Texas, P.D. 57. S A BUSTER KENT, End of Watch: January 12, 1954, Houston, Texas, P.D. 58. JAMES F KILTY, End of Watch: April 8, 1976, Houston, Texas, P.D. 59. KENT DEAN KINCAID, End of Watch: May 23, 1998, Houston, Texas, P.D. 60. LOUIS R KUBA, End of Watch: May 17, 1967, Houston, Texas, P.D. 61. J D LANDRY, End of Watch: December 3, 1930, Houston, Texas, P.D. 62. ROBERT WAYNE LEE, End of Watch: January 31, 1971, Houston, Texas, P.D. 63. FRED MADDOX JR, End of Watch: February 24, 1954, Houston, Texas, P.D. 64. EYDELMEN MANI, End of Watch: May 19, 2010, Houston, Texas, P.D. 65. A P MARSHALL, End of Watch: November 8, 1937, Houston, Texas, P.D. 66. CHARLES R MCDANIEL, End of Watch: August 4, 1963, Houston, Texas, P.D. 67. E G MEINKE, End of Watch: August 23, 1917, Houston, Texas, P.D. 68. HARRY MERENESS, End of Watch: October 18, 1933, Houston, Texas, P.D. 69. NOEL R MILLER, End of Watch: June 6, 1958, Houston, Texas, P.D. 70. KENNETH L MOODY, End of Watch: November 26, 1969, Houston, Texas, P.D. 71. HORACE MOODY, End of Watch: August 23, 1917, Houston, Texas, P.D. 72. WILLIAM MOSS, End of Watch: September 12, 1983, Houston Airport Police, Texas. 73. DAVE MURDOCK, End of Watch: June 27, 1921, Houston, Texas, P.D. 74. WILLIAM E MURPHY, End of Watch: April 1, 1910, Houston, Texas, P.D. 75. DAVID FRANKLIN NOEL, End of Watch: June 17, 1972, Houston, Texas, P.D. 76. M E PALMER, End of Watch: March 24, 1938, Houston, Texas, P.D. 77. ISAAC PARSON, End of Watch: May 24, 1914, Houston, Texas, P.D. 78. ROSS PATTON, End of Watch: August 23, 1917, Houston, Texas, P.D. 79. W B PHARES, End of Watch: September 30, 1930, Houston, Texas, P.D. 80. HERBERT N PLANER, End of Watch: February 18, 1965, Houston, Texas, P.D. 81. IRA RANEY, End of Watch: August 23, 1917, Houston, Texas, P.D. 82. WINSTON J RAWLINGS, End of Watch: March 29, 1982, Houston, Texas, P.D. 83. JERRY LAWRENCE RILEY, End of Watch: June 18, 1974, Houston, Texas, P.D. 84. JOHN CHARLES RISLEY, End of Watch: October 23, 2000, Harris County, Texas, S.O. 85. SANDRA ANN ROBBINS, End of Watch: March 17, 1991, South Houston, Texas, P.D. 86. GEORGE G ROJAS, End of Watch: January 28, 1976, Houston, Texas, P.D. 87. MICHAEL P ROMAN, End of Watch: January 6, 1994, Houston, Texas, P.D. 88. JOHN ANTHONY SALVAGGIO, End of Watch: November 25, 1990, Houston, Texas, P.D. 89. LOUIS L SANDER, End of Watch: January 21, 1967, Houston, Texas, P.D. 90. JEFFERY SCOTT SANFORD, End of Watch: September 14, 1991, Harris County, Texas, S.O. 91. KATHLEEN C SCHAEFER, End of Watch: August 18, 1982, Houston, Texas, P.D. 92. ROBERT SCHULTEA, End of Watch: August 25, 1956, Houston, Texas, P.D. 93. DARYL WAYNE SHIRLEY, End of Watch: April 28, 1982, Houston, Texas, P.D. 94. RICHARD SNOW, End of Watch: March 17, 1882, Houston, Texas, P.D. 95. BRUNO DAVID SOBOLESKI, End of Watch: April 12, 1991, Houston, Texas, P.D. 96. JERRY LEON SPRUILL, End of Watch: October 27, 1972, Houston, Texas, P.D. 97. R H SULLIVAN, End of Watch: March 9, 1935, Houston, Texas, P.D. 98. JOHN W SUTTLE, End of Watch: August 3, 1959, Houston, Texas, P.D. 99. CUONG HUY TRINH, End of Watch: April 6, 1997, Houston, Texas, P.D. l00. ALBERTO VASQUEZ, End of Watch: May 22, 2001, Houston, Texas, P.D. 101. JAMES T WALKER, End of Watch: March 8, 1963, Houston, Texas, P.D. 102. VICTOR R WELLS III, End of Watch: October 2, 1980, Houston, Texas, P.D. 103. R O WELLS, End of Watch: July 30, 1927, Houston, Texas, P.D. 104. ALBERT CHARLES WILKINS, End of Watch: January 6, 1978, Harris County, Texas, C.O. 105. KEVIN SCOTT WILL, End of Watch: May 29, 2011, Houston, Texas, P.D. 106. HENRY WILLIAMS, End of Watch: February 8, 1886, Houston, Texas, P.D. 107. WILLIAM C WILLIAMS JR, End of Watch: April 16, 1930, Harris County, Texas, S.O. 108. EDD WILLIAMS, End of Watch: January 12, 1974, Harris County, Texas, S.O. 109. JAMES FRANKLIN WILLIS, End of Watch: July 1, 1964, Houston, Texas, P.D. 110. MARVIN ALTON WINTER, End of Watch: December 4, 1937, Harris County, Texas, C.O., Pct. 4 111. ANDREW WINZER, End of Watch: February 18, 1988, Houston, Texas, P.D. 112. JETER YOUNG, End of Watch: June 19, 1921, Houston, Texas, P.D. 113. HERMAN YOUNGST, End of Watch: December 12, 1901, Houston, Texas, P.D. 114. JOE A ZAMARRON, 60-W: 2, End of Watch: April 18, 1981, Houston, Texas, P.D

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to remember the anniversary of the inauguration of Nelson Mandela, the President of South Africa, who was a leading antiapartheid revolutionary and philanthropist. On May 10, 1994, Nelson Mandela, a leading figure in the anti- apartheid movement, was inaugurated as South Africa's first black President. The inauguration ceremony took place in the Union Buildings amphitheatre in Pretoria, South Africa; and politicians and dignitaries from more than 140 countries around the world were in attendance. This historic day, for the people of South Africa, signified a monumental shift towards progress and away from hatred for those once treated as second-class citizens. Nelson Mandela's historic election marked the end of an oppressive apartheid regime. His inaugural speech, addressing the South African people, called for the continuation of work towards national and social reconciliation. Jubilant scenes on the streets of Pretoria followed the ceremony as sects of all people celebrated together. More than 100,000 South African men, women, and children of all races sang and danced with joy. The crowd went wild when the new President, flanked by First Deputy President Thabo Mbeki and Second Deputy President FW de Klerk, appeared on the Botha Lawn. Ever aware of the past and the history that had brought him to this moment, President Mandela honored his predecessor, President FW de Klerk, by acknowledging the indispensable role he played in South Africa's transformation. Pursuing human rights through tireless efforts to create a better society, President Mandela's speech thematically echoed the importance of forgiveness for those previously committing many travesties on their brethren before the nation could begin to move forward. He also spoke of the human disaster that was apartheid, recounting: ``We saw our country tear itself apart in terrible conflict . . . The time for healing of wounds has come . . . Never, never again will this beautiful land experience the oppression of one by another.'' Even after his term concluded, President Mandela continued to dedicate his life as an advocate for peace and equality in Africa and throughout the world. The world mourned on December 5, 2013, the day Nelson Mandela passed, surrounded by his family at his Johannesburg home. Mr. Speaker, I stand in this chamber to honor President Mandela who was freed after enduring 27 years of imprisonment, who nonetheless managed to use his inaugural platform to inspire the world. President Mandela taught us that we all have the right to be free and the will to be compassionate.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. I thank the gentleman so very much. Mr. Chair, it is a disease, however, that can be conquered. Triple negative breast cancer, TNBC, accounts for between 13 percent and 25 percent of all breast cancers in the United States. It is of a higher grade, and it onsets at a young age. That means these women are in the United States military. Finally, because it continues, there is a need for research funding for biomarker selection, drug discovery, and clinical trials that will lead to the early detection of TNBC and to the development of multiple targeted therapies to treat this awful disease. My amendment would provide for that. In coming from Houston, Texas, with MD Anderson Cancer Center, I can tell you that they are looking at major research that can be very helpful between the NIH and the Department of Defense. I hope my amendment will stay in this particular bill, and I hope it will go to the Senate and will be signed by the President. Mr. Chair, I thank Chairman Thornberry, Ranking Member Adam Smith and the Rules Committee for making in order and including Jackson Lee Amendment and including it in En Bloc Amendment Number 2 to the ``National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017.'' This is the first of 3 Jackson Lee amendments made in order by the House Rules Committee. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 45, calls for increased collaboration between the DoD and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to combat Triple Negative Breast Cancer. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 45 directs the DoD and NIH to collaborate to combat Triple Negative Breast Cancer. This amendment directs the Department of Defense to identify specific genetic and molecular targets and biomarkers for TNBC. ``Triple Negative Breast Cancer'' is a term used to describe breast cancers whose cells do not have estrogen receptors and progesterone receptors, and do not have an excess of the ``HER2'' protein on their cell membrane of tumor cells. This makes commonly used tests and methods to detect breast cancer not as effective. This is a serious illness that affects between 10-17% of female breast cancer patients and this condition is more likely to cause death than the most common form of breast cancer. Seventy percent of women with metastatic triple negative breast cancer do not live more than five years after being diagnosed. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 45 will help to save lives. TNBC disproportionately impacts younger women, African American women, Hispanic/Latina women, and women with a ``BRCA1 genetic mutation, which is prevalent in Jewish women. TNBC usually affects women under 50 years of age and makes up more than 30% of all breast cancer diagnoses in African Americans. Black women are far more susceptible to this dangerous subtype than white or Hispanic women. The collaboration between the Department of Defense and NIH to combat Triple Negative Breast Cancer can support the development of multiple targeted therapies for this devastating disease. Triple negative breast cancer is a specific strain of breast cancer for which no targeted treatment is available. The American Cancer Society calls this particular strain of breast cancer ``an aggressive subtype associated with lower survival rates.'' Triple negative breast cancer is a term used to describe breast cancers whose cells do not have estrogen receptors and progesterone receptors, and do not have an excess of the HER2 protein on their cell membrane of tumor cells In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control predicted that that year 26,840 black women would be diagnosed with TNBC. The overall incidence rate of breast cancer is 10% lower in African American women than white women. African American women have a five year survival rate of 78% after diagnosis as compared to 90% for white women. The incidence rate of breast cancer among women under 45 is higher for African American women compared to white women. Triple Negative Breast Cancer cells: TNBC accounts for between 13% and 25% of all breast cancer in the United States; usually of a higher grade and size; onset at a younger age; are more aggressive; are more likely to metastasize. Currently, 70% of women with metastatic triple negative breast cancer do not live more than five years after being diagnosed. African American women are 3 times more likely to develop triple- negative breast cancer than White women. African-American women have prevalence TNBC of 26% versus 16% in non- African-American women. African-American women are more likely to be diagnosed with larger tumors and more advanced stages of breast cancer. Currently there is no targeted treatment for TNBC. Breast cancers with specific, targeted treatment methods, such as hormone and gene based strains, have higher survival rates than the triple negative subtype, highlighting the need for a targeted treatment. Because there continues to be a need for research funding for biomarker selection, drug discovery, and clinical trial designs that will lead to the early detection of TNBC and to the development of multiple targeted therapies to treat this awful disease Jackson Lee Amendment Number 45 included in En Bloc 2 is essential to paving a way for advancements in these areas. I thank Chairman Thornberry and Ranking Member Smith for including these amendments in the En Bloc Amendment Number 2, and I urge all Members to join me in voting for its adoption.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Let me thank the gentleman from Massachusetts for yielding and also for his service to the Nation. I thank the ranking member of the full committee, Mr. Smith; the chairman of the full committee, Mr. Thornberry; and the Rules Committee for accepting this amendment. Let me thank the gentlemen doubly and triply for being kind enough to accept this amendment on a regular basis, and I am going to persist because I believe it is important. Mr. Chair, let me make a big pronouncement or announcement or breaking news: there are women in the United States military. I want to say that again. There are women in the United States military. My amendment deals with triple negative breast cancer. It calls for the increased collaboration between the DOD and the National Institutes of Health to combat triple negative breast cancer. This amendment directs the Department of Defense to identify specific genetic and molecular targets and biomarkers for TNBC. ``Triple negative breast cancer'' is a term used to describe breast cancer. Its cells do not have estrogen receptors and progesterone receptors and does not have an excess of HER2 protein on its cell membrane of tumor cells. I am not in the military. I have had many family members in the military, but I would venture to say this is a case in which you have battalions, and you are on the field, and you have a difficult enemy who keeps moving away from your sight and your target. Though you have used overlapping forces, you can't seem to pinpoint the enemy. Ultimately you are victorious, but that is because you collaborate and you work together. This makes commonly used tests and methods to detect breast cancer not as effective, meaning the ordinary style of fighting does not work for triple negative breast cancer. Seventy percent of women with metastatic triple negative breast cancer do not live more than 5 years after being diagnosed. It is important to note that TNBC affects women under 50 years of age, and it makes up more than 30 percent of all breast cancer diagnoses, specifically in African American women. The collaboration between the Department of Defense and the NIH to combat triple negative breast cancer can support the development of multiple targeted therapies for this devastating disease and can help women in the United States military, those who are serving our country. Triple negative breast cancer is a specific strain of breast cancer for which no targeted treatment is available.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chairman, again, I thank the distinguished gentleman, and I also thank the chairman of the full committee, the ranking member of the full committee, and the subcommittee chairs as well. I serve on the Homeland Security Committee, and I am constantly aware of the overlapping duties and responsibilities, Mr. Chairman, of the United States military, which has its confinement in certain areas, but also working to secure the homeland. The Jackson Lee amendment No. 64 in en bloc amendment No. 4 makes an important contribution to the bill by improving the effectiveness of U.S. Northern Command, or NORTHCOM, in fulfilling its critical mission of protecting the U.S. homeland in the event of war and to provide support to local, State, and Federal authorities in times of national emergency. Specifically, here is what my amendment does. It develops and has in place a leadership strategy that will strengthen and foster necessary institutional and interpersonal relationships with State and local governments. The backbone of securing the homeland is engaging State and local governments. Also, to develop an instructional program to train key personnel how to lead effectively in the event of a disaster when they do not have command authority to dictate actions. In addition, NORTHCOM, which was established in 2002 in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, is to bring the capabilities and the resources of the U.S. military to the assistance the American people during a catastrophic disaster like war or a pandemic outbreak of diseases, such as Ebola, Zika, SARS, or influenza; major earthquakes, floods, and natural disasters; or terrorist attacks. I live in the Gulf Coast, and I am well familiar with hurricanes, enormous rains that we have just experienced, needing to bring to bear moving large numbers of people, housing large numbers of people. And then this morning I spent time after time of dealing with the Zika virus, which, again, our southern Gulf Coast region may be the epicenter. Let me quote, for example, a quote from a renowned professor, Leonard Marcus, out of Harvard. What we are trying to do is: ``Effective emergency preparedness and response requires leadership that can accomplish perceptive coordination and communication amongst diverse agencies . . . ''

Ms. JACKSON LEE. The challenge is, as we learned from 9/11, ``operating within their specified scope of authority, preparedness leaders in characteristic bureaucratic fashion often serve to bolster the profile and import of their own organization, thereby creating a silo effect . . . '' So let me speak as that Homeland Security member and the person who has been engaged in the crises or disasters in my own community. When we collaborate we work better together. When we develop relationships, we work better together. Let me just offer a moment of personal privilege as someone speaking about relationships. This bill has many good elements in it, and I am propelled and committed to diversity and respecting all people. I am saddened by the language that the Russell amendment has dealing with the LGBT, and I am saddened that the Dent amendment was not allowed in. We need to build on collaborating with all people to secure America and to make a better military. I thank the gentleman for the support of my amendment in the en bloc. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of En Bloc Amendment Number 4 to H.R. 4909, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017, offered by Chairman Thornberry. I want to express my thanks and appreciation to Chairman Thornberry and Ranking Member Smith, and their colleagues on the Armed Services Committee for their work thank on this bill and their devotion to the men and women of the Armed Forces. I also thank Chairman Sessions and Ranking Member Slaughter of the Rules Committee for making in order Jackson Lee Amendment Number 64, which is included in En Bloc Amendment Number 4. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 64 makes an important contribution to the bill by improving the effectiveness of the Northern Command (``NORTHCOM'') in fulfilling its critical mission of protecting the U.S. homeland in event of war and to provide support to local, state, and federal authorities in times of national emergency. Specifically, Jackson Lee Amendment Number 64 encourages NORTHCOM to: 1. Develop and has in place a leadership strategy that will strengthen and foster necessary institutional and interpersonal relationships with state and local governments; and 2. Develop an instructional program to train key personnel how to lead effectively in the event of a disaster when they do not have command authority to dictate actions. A mission critical function of NORTHCOM, which was established in 2002 in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks is to bring the capabilities and the resources of the U.S. military to the assistance of the American people during a catastrophic disaster like war, a pandemic outbreak of diseases such Ebola, Zika, Sars, or influenza; major earthquakes, floods, and natural disasters; or terrorist attacks like those occurring on September 11, 2001 and at the Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013. NORTHCOM leaders will be much more effective in saving lives, protecting assets, and enhancing resilience after the disaster has occurred if they are trained in the techniques of effective engagement with civilian leadership. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 64 will help ensure that such training will be available. Mr. Chair, let me explain why this type of training--commonly referred to as ``Resilience'' training is very important. As stated in a highly influential journal article by Professor Leonard Marcus and his colleagues at Harvard's National Public Leadership Initiative, ``effective emergency preparedness and response requires leadership that can accomplish perceptive coordination and communication amongst diverse agencies and sectors.'' (Leonard J. Marcus, Barry C. Dorn, and Joseph M. Henderson, Meta-Leadership and National Emergency Preparedness: A Model to Build Government Connectivity, in Biosecurity And Bioterrorism: Biodefense Strategy, Practice, And Science Volume 4, Number 2, 2006). The challenge is, as we learned from the 9/11 Commission, operating within their specified scope of authority, preparedness leaders in characteristic bureaucratic fashion often serve to bolster the profile and import of their own organization, thereby creating a silo effect that interferes with effective system wide planning and response. Resilience training seeks to equip preparedness leaders overcome this obstacle of ``traditional silo thinking by teaching ``meta- leadership,'' a new type of overarching leadership that intentionally connects the purposes and work of different organizations or organizational units. Meta-leadership training enables leaders to provide guidance, direction, and momentum across organizational lines that develop into a shared course of action and a commonality of purpose among people and agencies that are doing what may appear to be very different work. Meta-leaders have the skill and training to imaginatively and effectively leverage system assets, information, and capacities, which a particularly critical function for organizations with emergency preparedness responsibilities like responding to terrorist attacks, natural disasters, or pandemic outbreaks of infectious diseases like the Ebola and the Zika Virus, which may disproportionately affect persons in the Gulf Coast region, including my congressional district in Houston, Texas. As a senior and charter member of the Homeland Security Committee, and the Ranking Member of Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations, I have spent the better part of the last decade and a half working to craft policies and provide the resources, personnel, equipment, and funding needed to protect the security of our homeland and the American people. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 64 will help ensure that those responsible for providing leadership in times of national emergency have the skills and training to prevent, mitigate, or recover from any major catastrophe, disaster, or tragedy that could befall our nation. I urge my colleagues to support En Bloc Amendment Number 64 and thank the Chairman and Ranking Member for including Jackson Lee Amendment Number 64 in this important measure.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chairman, thanks again to the Armed Services Committee for making in order with the Rules Committee my three amendments that I have discussed today, two that I have already discussed, and this one that I will now bring to my colleagues' attention. Today, walking out of the bush of Nigeria, it was determined that another Chibok girl has been found, discovered, or fled. The debate is whether or not the military forces of Nigeria helped her out. What we do know is that she was missing for 2 years, along with the 200-plus girls that were taken. Fifty-seven of them escaped in the immediacy of the hours, and six of them died, and this young woman has now come out 2 years later. Families are suffering, and Boko Haram has become one of the most vile and most vicious terrorist groups in the world. They are affiliated with ISIS, ISIL, but they have, if you will, no conformity to any protocol but killing. They have burned and killed Muslims and Christians alike, schools, homes, mosques, and churches. They have decapitated people. They have sent 8-year-olds with bombs strapped to their bodies to kill. So my amendment is very straightforward. As I do this, let me say that a number of you have joined Congresswoman Frederica Wilson week after week wearing red to bring the girls home. She joined me, and we traveled together within weeks of the girls being taken in 2014. We confronted families, saw the pain, saw women with slashed throats that had healed, and we saw the leaders of government who then were somewhat, if you will, challenged about this task. So my amendment is one that deals with collaboration. It is a sense of Congress that provides for condemning the ongoing violence, expresses its support for the Nigerian people, and calls on the President to support Nigeria, Lake Chad Basin, and the international community to ensure accountability for crimes against humanity. It also asks for the initiative that we can engage the Department of Defense to assist the Government of Nigeria and countries in the Lake Chad Basin to develop capacities to deploy and destroy Boko Haram, obviously with the use of possible security forces, recognizing the Leahy amendment, but also with technology. Lives are still in the midst. Lives are still not being provided for.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chairman, I am asking that we collaborate with the forces in Nigeria and the forces that have been part of the multinational task force to be able to have a strategy that deals with Boko Haram. This report can be critical in our efforts to empower and complement the efforts of the Multinational Joint Task Force as well as the commitment espoused at the recent Lake Chad Basin Regional Security Summit. So I would say that we have to recognize that we now have an individual. This young woman can give us the intelligence. I am concerned that these girls cannot be rescued now. This is partly asking President Buhari of Nigeria to join in with this information--this new information, the collaboration that, hopefully, as we move through this legislation, ongoing, right now--to rescue those girls and also support the idea of a special envoy to focus on the dangers in the Lake Chad Basin region. Let me compliment the African command. I met many of them when I was in Nigeria. I think it is an excellent command among all the other commands. They can be dynamic in their work. My resolution, my amendment, my sense of Congress, is to give us focus to bring back the girls and save these girls. We have the information. Bring back these girls. Mr. Chair, I thank Chairman Thornberry, Ranking Member Adam Smith and the Rules Committee for making in order and including Jackson Lee Amendment Number 99 and including it in En Bloc Amendment Number 8 to the ``National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017.'' This is the third of 3 Jackson Lee amendments made in order by the House Rules Committee. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 99, calls for a report on efforts to combat Boko Haram in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin. In the wake of the Rules Committee making this Amendment in order, I hold in my hand an article entitled ``#BringBackOurGirls: Chibok Victim Found in Nigeria After 2 Years, Activist Says.'' Two years after her captivity, we learn that a 19 year Chibok school girl named Ameina Nkeki was found Tuesday by the Civilian JTF vigilante group, which fights alongside the Nigerian military, in a village near the Sambisa Forest. Nkeki had a baby with her and told the militia members she had escaped from Boko Haram captivity. Indeed, just last night right before presenting before the Rules Committee on this Amendment, I met with a remarkable couple whose name I do not want to mention in order not to place their lives in danger. This couple, through their NGO, helped in the rescue, recovery and reintegration of over 10 Chibok girls. Because of their remarkable work, the girls are now able to continue to pursue their education. Unfortunately, the lives of these good Samaritans are now in jeopardy. I plan to do everything in my power to make sure that they and the persons they seek to empower are not harmed. This is why I have introduced the bipartisan measure H. Res. 528-- Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the Victims of the Terror Protection Fund. And this is why I am working on a measure related to a Special Envoy on Boko Haram to the Lake Chad Basin. Support for this Amendment is timely as it is: 1. Strongly condemns the ongoing violence and the systematic gross human rights violations against the people of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin carried out by Boko Haram; 2. Expresses support for the people of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin who wish to live in a peaceful, economically prosperous, and democratic region; 3. Calls on the President to support Nigerian, Lake Chad Basin, and International Community efforts to ensure accountability for crimes against humanity committed by Boko Haram against the people of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin, particularly young girls kidnapped from Chibok and other internally displaced persons affected by the actions of Boko Haram; Additionally, the Report calls that no later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of State, and the Attorney General shall jointly submit to Congress a report on efforts to combat Boko Haram in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin; Among others, the report shall also include the following elements: 1. A description of initiatives undertaken by the Department of Defense to assist the Government of Nigeria and countries in the Lake Chad Basin to develop capacities to deploy special forces to combat Boko Haram; 2. A description of United States' activities to enhance the capacity of Nigeria and the countries in the Lake Chad Basin to investigate and prosecute human rights violations perpetrated against the people of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin by Boko Haram, al-Qaeda affiliates, and other terrorist organizations to promote respect for rule of law in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin; 3. This report can be critical in our efforts to empower and complement the efforts of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) as well as the commitments espoused at the recent Lake Chad Basin Regional Security Summit. Mr. Chair, the U.S. war on terror has been waged for over a decade and the lesson is clear that our adversaries adapt very quickly because they are not constrained by geographic limitations. In the beginning it was only Al Qaeda--now the list includes Al Shabaab, Boko Haram which last year affiliated itself with ISIS/ISIL. Indeed, the data on persons affected by violent extremism is staggering. There are now more than 2.2 million Nigerians, and over 450,000 internally-displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees in neighboring Cameroon, Chad and Niger. An estimated 4.2 million people in the Lake Chad Basin region face water and food security crises, including 800,000 in Nigeria's northern Borno and Yobe states, Nigeria, where an estimated 184 children a day risk starvation without the immediate provision of emergency food assistance. Boko Haram continues to claim responsibility for atrocious and targeted violence ranging from burnings, kidnappings and killings of civilians and school children, such as the Chibok girls and a suicide bombing of the United Nations building in Abuja on August 26, 2011, that killed 21 people and injured dozens more, many of them aid workers supporting development projects across Nigeria. Half of persons displaced are children. I continue to commend the tireless efforts of the United Nations, United States officials, Regional Leaders, Civil Society Organizations, Community Groups and good Samaritans who have helped to support efforts of combatting Boko Haram and securing peace and security in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin. Through this Amendment, we will establish our strong support and commitment for the protection and empowerment of the peoples of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin who continue to face the threat of terrorism and violent extremism from Syria to Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin which covers Cameroon, Niger, Nigeria, Chad and everywhere in between. As terrorist craft new strategies to threaten our homeland and harm our allies, it is in the U.S. security interest to double our counterterrorism efforts that identify, engage and empower people who are victimized by terrorist groups like Boko Haram, Al Shabaab, Al Qaeda and ISIS in Africa and Pakistan. For this reason, our military must adapt as quickly and as seamlessly as our adversaries in empowering our allies. Our message must be clear: the United States must expand its capacity to meet the terrorist threat where it emerges whether here in the homeland or abroad. The Nuremberg trials were essential in bringing to justice war criminals who committed acts of barbarism against civilians and military personnel during World War II, but a critical component of bringing war criminals to justice is the gathering and preservation of evidence. No person whether they travel to a battle field and later return to their native country or live in the region where they commit acts of terrors should rest well because they believe that no one will come to seek justice on behalf of the millions of lives destroyed. Our message must be clear: terrorism will not thrive on our watch. I ask for your support of this Amendment. [May 18, 2016] #BringBackOurGirls: Chibok Victim Found in Nigeria After 2 Years, Activist Says (By Alexander Smith) The mass kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls by Boko Haram from the Nigerian town of Chibok in April 2014 ignited an international outcry. The ensuing#BringBackOurGirls campaign was backed by the likes of Michelle Obama, while the U.S. and other countries sent military assistance. A handful of the kidnapped girls managed to escape early on but most were never found. Both Nigeria's military and the #BringBackOurGirls campaign said Wednesday that one of the girls was now in safe hands-- but gave conflicting information on the circumstances and her identity. Bukky Shonibare, one of the strategic team members of the #BringBackOurGirls campaign, told NBC News that a 19-year-old named Ameina Nkeki was found Tuesday by the Civilian JTF vigilante group, which fights alongside the Nigerian military, in a village near the Sambisa Forest. Nkeki had a baby with her and told the militia members she had escaped from Boko Haram captivity, Shonibare said, noting that the details of the girl's escape were not immediately clear. This is a major, major breakthrough--this is the breakthrough we've been waiting for,'' she said. Nkeki was taken to a military base in Damboa before being brought to her mother and her former high-school head teacher--both of whom positively confirmed her identify, according to Shonibare. The activists are ``100 percent sure that this was one of the Chibok girls,'' Shonibare added. Col. Sani Usman, a spokesman for the Nigerian Army, confirmed via WhatsApp message that one of the kidnapped Chibok girls had been recovered. He added in a statement that the girl was ``rescued'' by ``our troops'' near Damboa. It was not immediately clear if he was referring to his soldiers or the JTF. Usman's statement also identified the girl as Falmata Mbalala--which did not correspond to the name given by Shonibare and the Bring Back Our Girls movement. Both Usman and Shonibare insisted they had the correct name for the young woman. NBC News was not immediately able to reconcile the differing accounts. While the Chibok Girls drew the most international attention, an estimated 2,000-plus women and girls have been abducted during Boko Haram's violent campaign in Nigeria. Chibok may not even be the largest group to be kidnapped, with Human Rights Watch reporting that some 400 people were taken from the town of Damasak last year. The army gave details of a large-scale operation against Boko Haram on Tuesday--the day the young woman was reportedly found--in Sambisa forest. The military said troops killed 15 Boko Haram fighters after coming under heavy fire in the area of Alafa. Troops also rescued 41 hostages--mainly women and children the military added in a statement. While Nigeria's government has publicly touted an aggressive campaign to beat back Boko Haram, its failure to find the girls has drawn criticism. The news comes one day after the president's wife, Aisha Buhari, presented ``symbolic'' checks to the mothers of the missing girls.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, let me thank the gentlewoman from New York and let me thank the chairman of the full committee, and let me thank the health scientists and doctors who have given us the real story of this case. Mr. Speaker, the first Ebola case was in Texas, the first case in the United States. And the CDC says that we have not extinguished or eliminated Ebola. The proposal today is not $1.2 billion. It is $600 million because you have taken $600 million or so out of the Ebola. And the doctors indicate that there are about 8 clusters or more of Ebola in Africa, where 85 CDC personnel are there. And if one case breaks out, we will need 1,000 personnel to deal with it. So what are we doing with the Zika funding if we are not providing the Centers for Disease Control what they need, $10 million to care for a child? They do not have the tools in order to do it. They cannot. People carrying the Zika virus do not know that they have the Zika virus and, as well, they have asked for $800 million, which you are not giving to them. This is the epicenter of the potential of the Zika virus in the United States. The idea that there is sitting water in places like the Gulf region, the idea that people travel, and the person who is traveling has a mosquito that bites them, and then they--that mosquito can transmit it. Here are the mosquito cesspools in Houston, Texas. So today I stand in opposition to the underlying proposal. We need the $1.9 billion that the administration has asked for. We cannot rob from Peter to pay Paul. If you listen to the diagnosis, or you listen to the assessment, the doctors are saying that the Zika virus invades the brain of the baby and destroys that brain and, therefore, we do not know the long-term effects of a woman or of those who have not yet been assessed of the Zika virus. This is the wrong way to go. Vote against this bill. Give what the President wants and the CDC wants now. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in opposition to H.R. 5243, the ``Zika Response Appropriations Act of 2016,'' because this appropriations measure falls short of what is needed to aggressively address the enormity of the Zika Virus threat to the Americas and the United States, with particular concern for Puerto Rico. I thank President Obama for his leadership in requesting $1.9 billion to address the threat of the Zika Virus, and facing congressional delay he took funds from Ebola response to prepare the nation to face the Zika Virus threat. Let us not forget--Ebola was on our doorstep last year before Congress acted and there are still Ebola hot spots that are occurring, which have to be addressed, but we now lack the resources to deal with that ever present threat. I am committed to doing everything I can to address the threat of Zika Virus, but I am not supportive of tricks or misguided strategies to get legislation to the House floor in the name of Zika prevention that will do too little; and funding that will abruptly end on September 30, 2016. As the founder and Chair of the Children's Caucus and a senior member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, I am acutely aware of how dangerous the Zika Virus is to women who may be pregnant or may become pregnant should they be exposed to the Caribbean. Houston, Texas, like many cities, towns, and parishes along the Gulf Coast, has a tropical climate hospitable to mosquitoes that carry the Zika Virus like parts of Central and South America, as well as the Caribbean. For this reason, I am sympathetic to those members who have districts along the Gulf Coast. These Gulf Coast areas, which include Houston, the third largest city in the nation, are known to have both types of the Zika Virus carrying mosquitoes: the Aedes Aegypti the Asian Tiger Mosquito; which is why I held a meeting in Houston on March 10, 2016 about this evolving health threat. I convened this meeting with Houston, Harris County and State officials at every level of responsibility to combat the Zika Virus and to discuss preparations that would mitigate its. The participants included Dr. Peter Hotez, Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine and Professor of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and Dr. Dubboun, Director of the Harris County Public Health Environmental Services Mosquito Control Division who gave strong input on the critical need to address the threat on a multi- pronged approach. The potential for the Zika Virus outbreaks in the United States if we do not act is real, and the people on the front lines are state and local governments who must prepare for mosquito season, establish community oriented education campaigns, provide Zika Virus prevent resources to women who live in areas where poverty is present, and environmental remediation of mosquito breeding near where people live. The assumption that everyone has air conditioning; window and door screens that are in good repair or present at all; does not take into consideration the pockets of poverty that are present in every major city including many towns, counties, parishes, and cities along the Gulf Coast. The 18th Congressional District of Texas, which I represent, has a tropical climate and is very likely to confront the challenge of Zika Virus carrying mosquitoes before mosquito season ends in the fall. Mr. Dubboun, Director of the Harris County Public Health Environmental Services Mosquito Control Division stressed that we cannot spray our way out of the Zika Virus threat. He was particularly cautious about the over use of spraying because of its collateral threat to the environment and people. We should not forget that Flint, Michigan was an example of short- sighted thinking on the part of government decision makers, which resulted in the contamination of that city's water supply. The participants in the meeting I held in Houston represented the senior persons at every state and local agency with responsibility for Zika Virus response. The expert view of those present was that we need a unity of effort plan to address the Zika Virus in the Houston and Harris County area that will include every aspect of the community. The collective wisdom of these experts revealed that we should not let the fear of the Zika Virus control public policy. Instead we should get in front of the problem then we can control the Zika Virus from its source--targeting mosquito breeding environments. The real fight against the Zika Virus will be fought neighborhood by neighborhood and will rely upon the resources and expertise of local government working closely with State governments supported by federal government agencies. The consensus of Texas, Houston, and Harris County experts is that we make significant strides to stay ahead of the arrival of mosquito transmission of Zika Virus if we act now. The CDC said that for the period January 1, 2015 to May 11, 2016, the number of cases are as follows: the united states Travel-associated cases reported: 503 Locally acquired through mosquito bites reported: 0 Total: 503 Pregnant: 48 Sexually transmitted: 10 Guillain-Barre syndrome: 1 us territories Travel-associated cases reported: 3 Mosquito acquired cases reported: 698 Total: 701 Pregnant: 65 Guillain-Barre syndrome: 5 There are 49 countries and territories in our hemisphere where mosquito borne transmission of the Zika Virus is the primary way the virus is spread include: American Samoa; Aruba; Belize; Barbados; Bolivia; Brazil; Bonaire; Cape Verde; Central America; Colombia; Costa Rica; Cuba; Curacao; Dominica; Dominican Republic; El Salvador; Ecuador; Fiji; French Guiana; Grenada; the Grenadines; Guatemala; Guadeloupe; Haiti; Honduras; Islands Guyana; Jamaica; Martinique; Kosrae (Federated States of Micronesia); Marshall Islands; Mexico; Nicaragua; New Caledonia; the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Panama; Papua New Guinea, Paraguay; Peru; Samoa, a US territory; Saint Barthelemy; Saint Lucia; Saint Martin; Saint Vincent; Saint Maarten; Suriname; Tonga; Trinidad and Tobago; US Virgin Islands, Venezuela and particular note is made by the CDC by listing the 2016 Summer Olympics (Rio 2016) separately. As of May 11, 2016, there were more than 1,200 confirmed Zika cases in the continental United States and U.S. Territories, including over 110 pregnant women with confirmed cases of the Zika virus. The Zika virus is spreading in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa and abroad, and there will likely be mosquito-borne transmission within the continental United States in the coming summer months. The most important approach to control the spread of Zika Virus is poverty and the conditions that may exist in poor communities can be of greatest risk for the Zika Virus breeding habitats for vector mosquitoes. The spread of disease is opportunistic--Zika Virus is an opportunistic disease that is spread by 2 mosquitoes out of the 57 verities. We should be planning to fight those 2 mosquitoes in a multi-pronged way with every resource we can bring to the battle. sources of zika virus spread Poverty is where the mosquito will find places to breed in great numbers, but these mosquitoes will not be limited to low income areas nor does the disease does not care how much someone earns. The Aedes Aegypti or Yellow Fever mosquito has evolved to feed on people for the blood needed to lay its eggs. This mosquito can breed in as little as a cap of dirty water; it will breed in aquariums in homes; pant water catching dishes; the well of discarded tires; puddles or pools of water; ditches; and children's wading pools; Although water may evaporate mosquito eggs will remain viable and when it rains again or water is placed where they are the process for mosquitos development resumes. Our enemies are those who illegal dump tires; open ditches, torn screens, or no screens; tropical climates that create heat and humidity that force people without air conditioning to open windows or face heat exhaustion. the battle against the zika virus It might be hard for people who do not live in the tropical climates along the Gulf Coast to understand what a heat index is--it is a combination of temperature and humidity, which can mean that temperatures in summer are over 100 degrees. Zika Virus Prevention Kits like those being distributed in Puerto Rico, which are vital to the effort there to protect women, will be essential to the fight against Zika Virus along the Gulf Coast. These kits should include mosquito nets for beds. Bed nets have proven to be essential in the battle to reduce malaria by providing protection and reducing the ability of biting insects to come in contact with people. Mosquito netting has fine holes that are big enough to allow breezes to easily pass through, but small enough to keep mosquitoes and other biting insects out. The kits should also include DEET mosquito replant products that can be sprayed on clothing to protect against mosquito bites. Mr. Speaker, we should be preparing aggressively so that this nation does not have a reoccurrence of what happened during the Ebola crisis-- when the Federal government seemed unprepared because this Congress was unmoved by the science, until domestic transmission of the disease were recorded. what we know about the zika virus The Zika Virus is a neurogenic virus that can attack the brain tissue of children in their mother's womb. The Zika Virus will be difficult to detect and track in all cases because 4 in 5 people who get the disease will have no symptoms. We know that 33 states have one or both of the vector mosquitoes. Dr. Peter Hotez said that we can anticipate that the Americas including the United States can expect 4 million the Zika Virus cases in the next four months and to date there are over a million cases in Brazil. The virus has been transmitted through sexual contact. We know that evidence of the Zika Virus in newborns in the United States may not become apparent until we are in the late fall or winter of next year. The most serious outcome the Zika Virus exposure is birth defects that can occur during pregnancy if the mother is exposed to the Zika Virus. Infections of pregnant women can result in: Still births; The rate of Microcephaly based on Zika Virus exposure far exceeds that number. Microcephaly is brain underdevelopment either at birth or the brain failing to develop properly after birth, which can cause: Difficulty walking; Difficulty hearing; and Difficulty with speech. what we do not know Researchers and scientists at the CDC; NIH and HHS do not know how the disease attacks the nervous system of developing babies. They cannot answer what the long term health prospects are for children born with such a severe brain birth defect. They have not discovered the right vaccine to fight the disease-- which requires care to be sure that it is safe and effective especially in pregnant women or women who may become pregnant. They do not know what plan will work and to what degree if any a tight network of mosquito control established in areas most likely to have the Zika Virus carrying mosquitoes will work as well. How the Zika Virus may evolve over time and what they may mean for human health. I urge my colleagues to reject H.R. 5243, and support the President's request for $1.9 billion to fight the Zika Virus threat.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate the 62nd anniversary of the historic Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which overturned the doctrine of ``separate but equal'' that had been the law of the land since 1896 when the Supreme Court decided Plessy v. Ferguson. In Brown v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court declared that separate public schools for black and white Americans were unconstitutional. This unanimous decision sparked the movement toward desegregation of American institutions and paved the way for the civil rights movement. On the anniversary of this landmark decision, it is appropriate that we pay tribute to our ancestors who endured and lived through those days of crisis and challenge so that we could enjoy the right to vote, the right to equal protection of the law, and to enjoy the blessings of liberties. This historic case originated in Topeka, Kansas, and involved a black third-grader named Linda Brown, who had to walk one mile through a railroad switchyard to get to her black elementary school, even though a white elementary school was only seven blocks away. Linda's father, Oliver Brown, tried to enroll her in the white elementary school, but the principal of the school refused. Brown went to McKinley Burnett, the head of Topeka's branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and asked for help. The NAACP persuaded other black parents to join in a complaint and in 1951 the NAACP sought an injunction that would forbid the segregation of Topeka's public schools. The U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas heard Brown's case and refused to overrule the precedent of Plessy v. Ferguson which allowed separate but equal school systems for blacks and whites. The case was taken to the Supreme Court on October 1, 1951 and set up one of the landmark cases in the history of the American justice system. The argument of the great civil rights lawyer, Thurgood Marshall of the NAACP, and counsel for plaintiff Brown won the day. On May 17, 1954, Chief Justice Earl Warren read the unanimous decision of the Supreme Court: We come then to the question presented: Does segregation of children in public schools solely on the basis of race, even though the physical facilities and other ``tangible'' factors may be equal, deprive the children of the minority group of equal educational opportunities? We believe that it does. . . . We conclude that in the field of public education the doctrine of `separate but equal' has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. With those few words more than a century of racial discrimination and separation were dealt a great blow. It is up to us to preserve the hard-won gains of those who led the fight and won the case of Brown v. Board of Education.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in opposition to H.R. 897, the ``Zika Vector Control Act,'' because this bill was not written with the intent to control Zika carrying mosquitoes, but rather to allow higher amounts of rodenticides, fungicides, and insecticides in water. The title for H.R. 897, two days ago was the ``Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2015.'' I am very interested in doing everything I can to address the threat of Zika Virus, but I am not supportive of tricks or misguided strategies to get legislation to the House floor in the name of Zika prevention that was conceived with no thought of the Zika Virus in mind. As a senior member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, which has a core mission of emergency preparedness of state and local governments to be equipped to react to emergencies make me acutely aware of the potential for the Zika Virus to be a real challenge for state and local governments during the coming months. I thank President Obama for his leadership in requesting $1.9 billion to address the threat of the Zika Virus. The 18th Congressional District of Texas, which I represent has a tropical climate and very likely of having to confront the challenge of Zika Virus carrying mosquitoes before mosquito season ends in the Fall. Houston, Texas, like many cities, towns, and parishes along the Gulf Coast, has a tropical climate hospitable to mosquitoes that carry the Zika Virus like parts of Central and South America, as well as the Caribbean. For this reason, I am sympathetic to those members who have districts along the Gulf Coast. These areas are known to have both types of the Zika Virus vectors: the Aedes Aegypti [A-up-ti] and the Asian Tiger Mosquito, which is why I held a meeting in Houston on March 10, 2016 about this evolving health threat. I convened a meeting with Houston, Harris County and State officials at every level of responsibility to combat the Zika Virus to discuss preparations that would mitigate its. The participants included Dr. Peter Hotez, Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine and Professor of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and Dr. Dubboun, Director of the Harris County Public Health Environmental Services Mosquito Control Division who gave strong input on the critical need to address the threat on a multi- pronged approach. Dr. Dubboun, Director of the Harris County Public Health Environmental Services Mosquito Control Division stressed that we cannot spray our way out of the Zika Virus threat. He was particularly cautious about the over use of spraying because of its collateral threat to the environment and people. We should not forget that Flint, Michigan was an example of short sighted thinking on the part of government decision makers, which resulted in the contamination of the city's water supply. The participants in the meeting represented the senior persons at every, state and local agency with responsiblity for Zika Virus response and they agreed we need plan to address the Zika Virus in the Houston and Harris County area that will include every aspect of the community. The collective wisdom of these experts revealed that we should not let the fear of the Zika Virus control public policy. Instead we should get in front of the problem then we can control the Zika Virus from its source--targeting mosquitoes. The consequences of too much insecticide, rodenticides or fungicides in water are known--to kill aquatic life and cause real damage to the food chain upon which fish and larger sea life rely. Along the Coast of the United States, many habitat restoration efforts are centered on the reduction of chemical run off from urban areas, not increasing insecticide pollutants in their waters. The real fight against the Zika Virus will be bottled neighborhood by neighborhood and will rely upon the resources and expertise of local government working closely with State governments with supported of federal government agencies. The consensus of the experts related to H.R. 897, the Zika Vector Control Act, is that we cannot rely heavily on spraying techniques to control Zika Virus carrying mosquitoes. Yes, spraying can reduce the population of mosquitoes, but it cannot eliminate the threat and we can reach a point where the presence of chemical insecticides is in fact more harmful than helpful. The Aedes Aegypti mosquito is the greatest threat to people has evolved to be near people. These mosquitoes fly close to the ground, enter homes or stay nearby places where people live. The spraying that this bill permits is on an industrial scale using products that are not found in a local grocery or home supply store. The most important approach to control the spread of Zika Virus is poverty and the conditions that may exist in poor communities can be of greatest risk for the Zika Virus breeding habitats for vector mosquitoes. It is the illegal dumping of tires; open ditches, torn screens, or no screens at all during the long hot days of summer that will unfortunately create a perfect storm for the spread of the virus. Zika Virus Prevention Kits like those being distributed in Puerto Rico will be essential to the fight against Zika Virus along the Gulf Coast. These kits should include mosquito nets for beds. Bed nets have proven to be essential in the battle to reduce malaria by providing protection and reducing the ability of biting insects to come in contact with people. Mosquito netting has fine holes that are big enough to allow breezes to easily pass through, but small enough to keep mosquitoes and other biting insects out. Bed nets that are not pre-treated with insecticide are effective and they can be treated with DEET products after purchase. Mr. Speaker, there is no need to be alarmed, but we should be preparing to do what we can to prevent and mitigate the Zika Virus in communities around the nation. We know that 33 states have one or both of the vector mosquitoes. Dr. Peter Hotez said that we can anticipated that the Americas including the United States can expect 4 million the Zika Virus cases in the next four months and to date there are over a million cases in Brazil. The most serious outcome the Zika Virus exposure is birth defects that can occur during pregnancy if the mother is exposed to the Zika Virus. Infections of pregnant women can result in: still births; the rate of Microcephaly based on Zika Virus exposure far exceeds that number. Microcephaly is brain underdevelopment either at birth or the brain failing to develop properly after birth, which can cause: difficulty walking; difficulty hearing; and difficulty with speech. I call on my colleagues to pass the President's request for the $1.9 billion in emergency supplemental appropriations. I urge my colleagues to reject H.R. 897, and support the President's request to fight the Zika Virus threat.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chair, I rise to speak on House consideration of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017. I thank Chairman Thornberry and Ranking Member Smith and the Armed Services Committee for their work on the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015. As a senior member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, I take our role in Congress as stewards of our nation's security seriously. I offer my thanks and appreciation to the men and women of the armed services who place themselves in harm's way each day for the safety and security of our nation's people. The National Defense Authorization Act's purpose is to address the threats our nation must deal with not just today, but into the future. This makes our work vital to our national interest and it should reflect our strong commitment to ensure that the men and women of our Armed Services receive the benefits and support that they deserve for their faithful service. This is the 54th consecutive National Defense Authorization Act, which speaks to the long term commitment of the Congress and successive Administrations to provide for National Defense. This bill encompasses a number of initiatives designed to confront the military challenges posed by violent extremism, terrorists engaging in ground wars, making more efficient the work of protecting America, addresses the medical health needs of men and women in the armed services, and extends economic and education opportunity to small minority and women owned businesses. We do live in a dangerous world, where threats are not always easily identifiable, and our enemies are not bound by borders. Boko Haram, ISIL, and Al Shabaab remind us of how fragile our nation's security could be without a well trained and equipped military. I appreciate the House Armed Services Committee's continued support of our national defense and support a number of provisions in H.R. 1735, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year (FY) 2016, such as authorities that support ongoing operations. The Administration also appreciates much of the work of the committee, but is expressing strong objections because the bill: Redirects $18 billion in funding intended for use in defeating ISIL to base budget programs; Extends operations at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; Increases costs of the TRICARE administration; Prohibits the retiring or inactivation of Ticonderoga-Class cruisers or dock landing ships; Reduces by $250 million the Counterterrorism Partnership Fund; Bars the administration from making sure that companies that break United States labor laws are not rewarded; Prohibition on the use of funds for Countering Weapons of Mass Production; and Eliminates for the Department of Defense's Joint Urgent Operational Needs Fund. Although the Administration points out areas of agreement with the Committee, the Administration strongly objects to several provisions in the bill. The opportunity to amend the bill will offer an opportunity to address these and other Administration concerns that will improve the bill. Congress should authorize sufficient funding for our military's priorities, and avoid using the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding in ways that leaders of both parties over the years have made clear is inappropriate. The final bill considered by the Congress should adopt many of the needed force structure and weapons system reforms that have been identified by military leaders and experts. As written the President's senior advisors would recommend that he veto this bill. It is my hope that the Rules Committee will make in order a number of perfecting amendments for consideration under the Rule for H.R. 4909. I have amendments that have been offered for consideration of H.R. 4909. Let me discuss briefly the amendments I offered that were adopted by the House and included in the final version of the bill. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 1 calls for increased collaboration with NIH to combat Triple Negative Breast Cancer. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 2 provides authorization for $2.5 million increase in funding to combat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Jackson Lee Amendment Number 3 condemns the actions of Boko Haram and urges the Commander-in-Chief to ensure accountability for crimes against humanity committed by Boko Haram against the Nigerian people. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 4 authorizes the Secretary of Defense to work with local security partners in facilitating the provision of security at civilian nuclear research centers in educational institutions to ascertain that nuclear weapons do not end up in the hands of terrorists, in promotion of the United States' and its allies' security interests. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 5 authorizes the Secretary of Defense to work with local and international security partners, innovators, law enforcement, and other civil society organizations in the provision of technical assistance for the creation, facilitation and implementation of a technological app designed to enable the location, protection and tracking of missing persons, refugees, returnees and internally displaced persons. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 6 directs Secretary of the Navy to submit report to Congress on the feasibility of applying desalinization technologies to provide drought relief in areas impacted by sharp declines in water availability for both military as well as civilian purposes. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 7 authorizes the Secretary of Defense to provide technical assistance to local and international security partners in the provision of security and protection for activists and civil society organizations advocating for and promoting freedom of religion, education, press expression and personal expression. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 8 directs Secretary of Defense to conduct study and submit to Congress report regarding the awarding of secret and top secret security clearances to better understand the process for awarding clearances in effective and fair. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 9 requires outreach for small business concerns owned and controlled by women and minorities required before conversation of certain functions to contractor performance. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 10 expresses the sense of Congress regarding the importance of increasing the effectiveness of the Northern Command (``NORTHCOM'') in fulfilling its critical mission of protecting the U.S. homeland in event of war and to provide support to local, state, and federal authorities in times of national emergency. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 11 requires the Government Accountability Office to include in its annual report to Congress a list of the most common grounds for sustaining protests related to bids for contracts. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 12 directs the Secretary of Defense to report to Congress on the Department's ability to support the rapid development, production and deployment of vaccines or treatments of emerging tropical diseases, like the Zika and Ebola viruses, to protect the men and women of the armed forces and their families. We must continue to direct our efforts as a body to ensure that our troops remain the best equipped and prepared military force in the world. They are not just soldiers they are sons and daughters, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters--they are some of the people we represent as members of Congress. Support of our men and women in uniform is a sacred obligation of Congress both to those who are at risk on battle fields and serving as the guard against threats around the world, but they are also those who have returned home from war. I look forward to the inclusion of the Jackson Lee Amendments and others that will improve the underlying bill.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chair, coming from the State of Texas, let me express my continued appreciation for the men and women of the United States military, so many of them living in our State, so many different bases, so many veterans living in our State as well, which has caused me to continue to support the men and women who are posted overseas, those who are here domestically as well on bases here in the United States, and, of course, our veterans. As we move toward Memorial Day, it is important that we look holistically at our military and look at them as an entity that includes personnel. I want to take note of the fact that there is a 2.1 percent pay increase for military personnel and that this bill does update the Uniform Code of Military Justice to include new protections for victims of military sexual assaults. I am concerned, however, that the bill shortchanges war funding for efforts against ISIS and redirects funds that should continue to be used for base budget projects toward nonwar-related base budget projects. Let me be clear that I think some of these projects are very important, but I would have wanted this legislation to deal with the fight against ISIS and not go into the contingency fund. As I indicated, I heard the debate and there was some suggestion that the President's budget went into the contingency fund, but in the way that it is done in this bill, it is larger than should be. I also want to take note of the fact that I have concerns regarding an amendment in the bill, and I hope that we will be able to address it because this amendment allows any religious corporation, religious association, religious educational institution, or religious society that receives a Federal grant or grant to claim religious exemptions from antidiscrimination protections of LGBT individuals whom they may employ. I believe in the First Amendment and the separation of church and State and, as well, religious freedom, but under the Federal funding where we as taxpayers have the responsibility not to discriminate against anyone, this goes against that duty, and it also undermines President Obama's landmark 2014 executive order banning all Federal contractors and grantees from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. So I am hoping, Mr. Chairman, that we will have the opportunity to work through this legislation and to move forward in a way that embraces all Americans. I do want to thank, however, Chairman Thornberry and Ranking Member Smith and the Committee on Rules for making two of my amendments in order. They are in the en bloc No. 1 and No. 2.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. The amendments are amendment No. 8 and amendment No. 9. Amendment No. 8 calls for outreach for small-business concerns owned and controlled by women and minorities prior to conversion of certain functions to contract upfront performance. Amendment No. 9 requires the Government Accountability Office to include in its annual report to Congress a list of the most common grounds for sustaining protests relating to bids for contracts. These are important amendments because they help to grow small businesses owned and controlled by women and minorities before conversation of certain functions of contractor performance. This amendment seeks to provide information to businesses that may have little experience in government contracting to make them aware of new opportunities. Amendment No. 9 seeks a report to be provided to oversight committees to better understand the circumstances that impact when a company wins a Federal contract award that is challenged. These challenges often come from companies that are big, competing for the same contract, and little companies can't stand up. Successfully competing for a Federal contract can be difficult and costly, especially for new entrants into Federal contracting competition. I would ask my colleagues to support the included amendments and look forward to us working through this bill on some of the issues of concern. Mr. Chair, I thank Chairman Thornberry and Ranking Member Adam Smith and the Rules Committee for making in order and including in En Bloc Number 1 two of the amendments I have offered to ``National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017.'' The first of these amendments, Amendment Number 8 calls for outreach to small business concerns owned and controlled by women and minorities prior to conversion of certain functions to contractor performance. The second amendment, Jackson Lee Amendment Number 9, requires the Government Accountability Office to include in its annual report to Congress a list of the most common grounds for sustaining protests relating to bids for contracts. Amendment Number 8 will provide information to businesses that may have little experience in government contracting to make them aware of new opportunities to contract for business with the Department of Defense. There are instances where it is prudent and appropriate for agencies to engage in sole source contracting. This can occur if the work is highly specialized and only one source can meet the needs of a component or agency. A sole source contract arrangement might arise because the work is only for a brief period of time. However, these sole source contracting arrangements may over time be converted to a competitive bidding process. The Jackson Lee amendment ensures that the Department of Defense make known to small and minority owned businesses when a sole source contract will be converted to a competitive bidding process. Having more competition for government contracting is the goal. Receiving notice that a new competitive bidding opportunity is coming does not mean that an award will be made to that business. However, the more businesses who compete for Federal government business the better off the government and the economy will be. Amendment Number 9 requires GAO to conduct a study and report to Congress on the successful challenges to competitive bid awards. Challenges to federal contract awarded by competitive bidding often come from companies that were unsuccessful in winning the contract in the bidding process. Successfully competing for a federal contract can be difficult and costly especially for new entrants into federal competitive contracting. Challenges to federal contract awards, especially when the winner is a small business can make it difficult for these businesses to pursue opportunities they have won. The amendment provides Congress relevant and useful information regarding how often challenges to a contract award are sustained and awards withdrawn, and upon which grounds. I thank Chairman Thornberry and Ranking Member Smith for including these amendments in the En Bloc Amendment Number 1, and I urge all Members to join me in voting for its adoption.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1150, amending the Frank Wolf International Religious Freedom Act. I support this measure because the right to freedom of religion has been a cornerstone of the American conscience. Many of our country's first leaders fled religious persecution abroad and went on to establish laws protecting religious freedom. This core belief of our great nation does not stop at our national borders; we offer refuge to those suffering from religious persecution throughout the world. A testament to this commitment was the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 which was a landmark piece of legislation seeking to make religious freedom a higher priority in U.S. Foreign policy. The Act was approved by Congress unanimously in 1998 and signed into law by President Clinton. The Act condemns violations of religious freedom and promotes and assists other governments in the promotion of the fundamental right to freedom of religion. While strides have been made in establishing worldwide practice of freedom of religion, it is currently under attack. Let me also note that people are being prosecuted under blasphemy laws for freedom of expression, which is why I introduced the bipartisan measure H. Res. 290, calling for the global repeal of blasphemy laws. I support H.R. 1150 because we must continue to work to preserve religious freedoms as well as making sure that religion is not a pretext for prosecution or persecution in the world. Indeed, one of the key amendments to IRFA would be to relocate the Office of International Religious Freedom within the Office of the Secretary of State. This action would allow for greater coordination of strategic focus and the minimization of duplicated efforts, streamline mandates, and centralize efforts to engage religious communities and promote human rights more generally in regards to religious freedom. Currently, the office is headed by the Ambassador at-Large for International Religious Freedom which monitors religious persecution and discrimination worldwide to develop policy recommendations, programs, and awareness. Besides being placed in the Secretary of State's office, the Ambassador at large would be able to make every effort to collaborate and coordinate across all U.S. agencies and departments to formulate strategic religious freedom policies, programs, and activities. These two changes will provide a greater ability for us to advance religious freedom throughout the world. H.R. 1150 will also allow us to assist emerging democracies to implement freedom of religion while also helping older partners maintain their freedom of religion practices and conscience. H.R. 1150 calls to ensure that our diplomats and foreign policy experts are well versed in the importance of religious freedom and how to address atrocities related to religion. H.R. 1150 also addresses how to improve our ability to promote freedom of religion by enhancing the capabilities and knowledge of our diplomats. Our Foreign Service Officers (FSO) are on the front lines everyday carrying out American foreign policy while also shaping it, which makes sure that they are adequately trained on religious freedom. H.R. 1150 directs the Secretary to develop mandatory religious freedom training for all Foreign Service Officers. This major change will enhance FSO capabilities to identify severe persecutors to help assemble the Ambassador's Annual Report on International Religious Freedom. In addition to the Annual Report, H.R. 1150 calls for an updated lists of persons that are currently being persecuted and forced to renounce their faith. This is essential in bringing awareness to countries that need to be monitored or that have non-state actors that have high levels of detainment, disappearance, torture, or murder based on someone's religion. Another key aspect of H.R. 1150 is to enhance engagement and coordination with the executive branch on issues pertaining to international religious freedom policies and global religion engagement strategies. This would be achieved through amendment of The National Security Act of 1947, calling for the appointment of a Special Adviser for Global Religious Engagement and establishing the Interagency Policy Committee on Religious Freedom and Engagement. Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support adequate funding in order to enable rapid and decisive efforts of supporting democracy and preservation of human rights.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1887, repeals the requirement directing the Administrator of General Services to sell Federal property and assets that support the operations of the Plum Island Animal Disease Center in Plum Island, New York, and for other purposes. Mr. Speaker, as a senior member of the Homeland Security I support this bill because the safety record of the Plum Island Animal Disease Center is unparalleled. The Plum Island Animal Disease Center is a United States federal research facility dedicated to the study of animal diseases. It is part of the DHS Directorate for Science and Technology. Since 1954, the center has had the goal of protecting America's livestock from animal diseases Throughout the history of the Plum Island Animal Disease Center, there have been no accidental releases of infected animals to the mainland. The Animal Disease Center on Plum Island has conducted first rate scientific research on a variety of infectious animal-borne diseases, including foot-and-mouth disease, resulting most recently, in the development of a new cell line that rapidly and reliably detects this highly debilitating disease of livestock Mr. Speaker, in addition to the Animal Disease Center Plum Island contains cultural, historical, ecological, and natural resources of regional and national significance. Importantly, the Federal Government has invested hundreds of millions of tax payer dollars over the last two decades to make long-term improvements with respect to the conservation and management needs of Long Island Sound and Peconic Bay. Mr. Speaker, preserving historical and geographical entities play a pivotal role in maintaining homeland security and the sustainability of our ecosystem and health of our community. I urge all members to join me in voting to pass H.R. 1887.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4407, Counterterrorism Advisory Board Act of 2016, because it will establish a board to coordinate and integrate DHS's intelligence, activities, and clarify policy related to its counterterrorism mission and functions. As a member of the House Committee on Homeland Security since its establishment, and current Ranking Member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security this bill is of importance to me. It was said of the George W. Bush Administration by the 9-11 Commission that it did not connect the dots that would have allowed the intelligence and law enforcement communities to detect and possibly deter the September 11, 2001 attack against our nation. We have learned a great deal over the nearly 15 years since Al Qaeda attacked our nation. One of the more important lessons is the need to have coordination and unity of effort among and within intelligence and law enforcement agencies in our battle to defeat terrorists. H.R. 4407 establishes a board that will: (1) advise the Secretary of DHS on the issuance of terrorism alerts, and meet on a regular basis to discuss intelligence; and (2) coordinate ongoing threat mitigation efforts and departmental activities. The terrorism alert system initiated following September 2001, caused confusion and uncertainty. In November 2002, I was proud to join my colleagues in voting to create the Department of Homeland Security. H.R. 4407 will develop a process for determining when alerts should be issued, which will make it easier for the Department of Homeland Security to develop messages that will guide public and interagency actions. My work on the Homeland Security Committee has allowed me the privilege of serving as Chair of the Subcommittee on Transportation Security, and the Ranking Member of the Border and Maritime Security Subcommittee. The Homeland Security Committee has worked over the years since its founding to ensure that this agency is prepared and staffed to meet the challenges and demands of its mandate. As we have worked to define and support the mission of the Department of Homeland Security we have worked to keep the efforts of the agency focused not only on the threats we have faced, but also the new ones that may come. It is the responsibility of Congress not only to provide DHS with new guidelines, but also to provide the agency with the funding it needs to do the work of protecting this great nation. For several Congresses DHS has faced a government shutdown and sequestration that has depleted its resources and stranded its efforts to do all of the work members of this body demands. Mr. Speaker, since DHS initiated its headquarters consolidation in 2006, it has progressed despite changes in senior leadership and waning funding support from Congress. As I urge my colleagues to support this bill, I also remind them that the passage of new laws that require more of the agency should also mean that we should require more of ourselves as members of Congress. We should support the work of the men and women of DHS as they stand on the front line of our nation's domestic security by making sure that they have the tools and the skills needed to do the job we require. I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 4407.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4743, the National Cybersecurity Preparedness Consortium Act of 2016, because it will establish an important resource to ensure that private sector entities are better prepared to protect against cyber threats. As a senior member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, I am well aware of the threats posed by cybersecurity vulnerabilities, and this bill takes an essential step to strengthen domestic cybersecurity. H.R. 4743 establishes a National Cybersecurity Preparedness Consortium to engage academic, nonprofit, private industry, and federal, state, and local government partners to address cybersecurity risks and incidents, including threats or acts of terrorism. The Consortium may provide training to State and local first responders and officials to equip them with the tools and skills needed to prepare for and respond to cybersecurity risks and incidents, including threats and acts of terrorism, in accordance with current law. I thank both Chairman McCaul and Ranking Member Thompson for the bipartisan work done to bring the bill before the House for Consideration. I am pleased that during the Committee markup of H.R. 4743, two important Jackson Lee Amendments were adopted. The first Jackson Lee Amendment to H.R. 4743 establishes metrics as a measure of the effectiveness of the National Cybersecurity Preparedness Consortium program. Having the information provided by my amendment to H.R. 4743, will allow the Congressional oversight committees to better plan future programs around cybersecurity collaborations that are intended to share knowledge on best practices in securing computer networks from attack. The second Jackson Lee Amendment added an additional objective of the bill, a directive that should help participants prepare to address continuity of operations. This amendment provides a focus for the Consortium's work on the issue of continuity of operation, which addresses whether an entity can survive a cyber-attack, continue to provide information or services during an attack; or the likelihood that the time to recovery from a successful cyberattack or threat is predictable and reasonable. Just as the attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001 came without notice so may a major cyber-attack. In March, of this year, U.S. Attorney General Lynch announced ``wanted'' notices for a group of Iranian hackers the United States believes are behind a 2013 computer intrusion of a small New York dam and a series of cyberattacks on dozens of U.S. banks. There are many companies offering continuity of operations services to companies large and small with the intent that they will be there to support their clients in the event of a cyber incident. The work of the Consortium should go beyond planning to the answering questions regarding the operationalization of plans in the event of an attack or cyber incident. We know that planning is crucial, but we must encourage cybersecurity planning to go beyond the planning process to understand the capacity of an entity's continuity of operations plans by looking at continuity of operations of service providers should an incident impact an area or industry. I support H.R. 4743, because it provides this assurance by providing critical cybersecurity collaboration among experts and industries that are essential to critical infrastructure operations or have a significant economic presence in our nation's economy that a cyber- attack would have broad repercussions. I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 4743.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4780, the ``Department of Homeland Security Strategy for International Programs Act.'' This legislation directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to submit a comprehensive three-year strategy for international programs in which DHS personnel and resources are deployed abroad for vetting and screening persons seeking to enter the United States. Mr. Speaker, as a senior member of the Homeland Security I support this bill because the issue of proper vetting and screening processes' upon the entry into the country is paramount. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4780 directs the Security Committee of the Department of Homeland Security to use the following strategies to implement this legislation: 1. A risk-based method for determining whether to establish new international programs in new locations, given resource constraints, or expand existing international programs; 2. Alignment with the highest DHS-wide and government-wide strategic priorities of resource allocations on such programs; and 3. A common reporting framework for the submission of reliable, comparable cost data by DHS components on overseas expenditures attributable to such programs. In developing this strategy the Department for health and human services shall secure: 1. Information on existing operations of DHS programs that includes corresponding information for each location in which each such program operates, 2. Analysis of the impact of each such international program on domestic activities of DHS components, 3. The number of DHS personnel deployed to each location at which such an international program is in operation during the current and preceding fiscal year, and 4. Analysis of barriers to the expansion of such an international program. There should be a proper vetting and screening process for individuals entering the country from locations abroad. Border security is an evolving process, and our legislative process must evolve with it. Avoiding recurrences of attacks on the homeland such as the 911 attack is a major reason entry into the country should be heavily monitored. I urge all members to join me in voting to pass H.R. 4780.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I have the privilege of serving on the Homeland Security Committee, and in that capacity I have the oversight for any number of agencies, including the Transportation Security Administration agency, along with our ranking member and ranking member of our subcommittee and our chairpersons. Let me be very clear: we want America to be secured. But I had the privilege of meeting again with the Administrator of TSA, and as we watched incidents in Arizona and Chicago, I am very sure that as we build the TSOs and as we work to correct these issues, we could not have a better frontline defense for protecting America. As I have traveled to airports across the Nation and watched civilians or citizens, passengers traveling through, I have seen a smile and a recognition of how important TSOs are. It is important to make sure that equipment works, and it is more important to make sure that we have the right kind of staffing. We are almost 3,000 to 4,000 short of the number of TSOs that we need. It is also important that we recognize that a professional Federal staff is very important, similar to the many other law enforcement agencies that we have. Privatization is not the answer, but efficiency, expediency, good equipment, and training is. I believe we are moving forward to make sure that we have that kind of trained force to secure the American people and secure the Nation's airports.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I want to add my appreciation to the gentlewoman from Ohio; the gentleman from New York; and the Members who have spoken, including the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Mr. Butterfield; the former chair, Ms. Fudge; and the ranking member on the Committee on Education and the Workforce, Mr. Scott. There could not be a more important topic than the topic that we are speaking about tonight. There are moments in history that I think come at times when urgency is the call of the day. It is often said that Dr. King emphasized in his tenure the urgency of moving forward on civil rights and spoke eloquently about the fact of why we cannot wait. If I might, I want to capture his theme of why we cannot wait to end the school-to-prison pipeline. End it now and begin the whole comprehensive approach of criminal justice reform. Let me take Texas as an example and cite some very important statistics from the Appleseed Report and as well a comment on the work that we are doing in the Committee on the Judiciary. I am so glad at this moment in history to be the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations and working with the members of my subcommittee, including Mr. Jeffries, who is a member, Ms. Bass, who is a member, and a number of other members as well, on this very difficult hurdle that we have. Let it be very clear that this hurdle of criminal justice reform is, as I heard Mr. Jeffries make mention of, that we have taken hold of this issue of opioids and heroin in a way that not one single bill was passed last week that had a criminal focus, particularly out of the Committee on the Judiciary. Not one bill had mandatory minimums. In the debate last week, on Friday, I reiterated over and over again no mandatory minimums in this legislation. That should be the perfect that we try to achieve going forward on criminal justice reform. But let me give the beginnings of that very tragic outcome in America, filling up the Nation's prisons, not having criminal justice but criminal unfairness. It starts with a path to incarceration, which includes in the schools, stops, failing public schools, zero tolerance and other school discipline, police in school hallways, disciplinary alternative schools, and court involvement in juvenile detention. All of these are a path for students to incarceration, and it is without understanding what a class C misdemeanor ticket and a trip to court for thousands of Texas students and their families means. Texas students as young as 6 have been ticketed at school in past years, and it is not uncommon for elementary school students to be ticketed by school-based law enforcement. School-based arrest of students often occurs without prior notice to parents. Police officers in some Texas schools are resorting to use of force, measures more commonly associated with fighting street crime: pepper spray, tasers, and trained canines when a schoolyard fight breaks out or when students are misbehaving in a cafeteria or at a school event. This should not be the picture for a 6-year-old or a 4-year-old or an 8-year-old or an 11-year-old or a 13-year-old. This should not be equated with school. Let me read to you part of the Appleseed Report and a quote by Ryan Kellus Turner and Mark Goodner: ``In a little over two decades, a paradigm shift has occurred in the Lone Star State. The misdeeds of children--acts that in the near recent past resulted in trips to the principal's office, corporal punishment, or extra laps under the supervision of a middle school or high school coach . . . '' Now, of course, corporal punishment will be eliminated from that. What is worse, `` . . . now result in criminal prosecution, criminal records, and untold millions of dollars in punitive fines and hefty court costs being imposed against children ages 10 through 16.'' ``It is conservatively estimated that more than 275,000 non-traffic tickets are issued to juveniles in Texas each year . . . '' And based on the information from the Texas Office of Court Administration, the number of non-traffic tickets issued to students may well grossly exceed that number because it was very difficult to get it. ``Texas can interrupt this destructive cycle and prevent the loss of more young people to the `school-to-prison pipeline' through early interventions focused less on punishment and more on creating positive school environments that address students' academic and behavioral needs.'' Let me just say that ``police officers in some Texas schools are resorting to `use of force.' '' Now, they are supposed to be there as SROs. SROs are supposed to have educational training. SROs are supposed to be able to have the understanding of how to deal with counseling issues and teaching that is evidence based, but here is the problem. The problem is that they are focused more on law enforcement. I am glad to be part of this Special Order tonight that deals with the pipeline that has started working our children toward incarceration: overcrowded schools, lack of qualified teachers, inadequate resources, and then the zero tolerance for school discipline of children and the rate of suspension having increased dramatically in recent years from 1.7 million in 1974 to 3.1 million in 2000; and it has gone beyond that, and the greatest emphasis has been on children of color. So here is my call to the United States Congress. We have to begin the process of dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline. We have to understand that children can learn. No child is a throwaway. I offer that often in my remarks in my district. The detention system is an unfair system. I don't know how many of you realize that when a child is sent to juvie, that child can remain there until they reach the age of 21. How does that happen? Even if their sentence is not as egregious as one might think--a simple misbehavior in school. The way that happens is because in juvenile, you can assess more time on a child without telling that child's parent because that child did not follow orders or, in essence, that child did not behave or that child chewed gum when you told them not to. We in the Judiciary Committee are working on juvenile justice reform. One of them that I am most concerned about and want to move is ending solitary confinement for juveniles, recognizing Kalief's Law, involving the death of one inside the New York prison at Rikers Island. The individual in solitary confinement had not been rendered guilty yet. And so we want to eliminate putting juveniles in solitary confinement. Because the tragedy, Mr. Speaker, was that that youngster was released, ultimately, but after he was released, he, in essence, committed suicide. So I want to close my remarks by indicating that I want to turn this system upside down. I want to make sure that we deal with juvenile justice reform. I want to ban the box. We have done that in legislation that has not yet passed. I want to make sure that we have alternative sentencing. At the same time, the Judiciary Committee has moved two bills out of committee. I want to see these bills have a vigorous discussion and debate on the floor of the House so that we can move to conference. Time is going by. Let us not let the perfect be, in essence, the downfall of change. H.R. 3713 provides for the reduction of sentencing for many who are languishing, by law, in prison today in the Federal system. As I have spoken to people across the country, they have indicated that, even though some States like my State of Texas have made enormous, enormous strides--I am proud of that--it has not happened around the country. The bully pulpit of the Federal Government can be the most effective tool to moving toward criminal justice reform and sentencing reduction dealing with felony drug offenses. We are moving toward that point. A vote on the floor of the House and moving toward conference can move our efforts toward legislation that can truly be responsive to both concerns and as well positives that are in that bill. So as we deal with this prison pipeline, we have to not only talk, we have to do. And when we do, we have to make sure that we respond to the concerns, but we also have to make sure that we move legislation that can ultimately come out of the Senate and go to conference and make a difference in the lives of so many. I want to thank the gentlewoman from Ohio. I also want to say how timely the Congressional Black Caucus is. All that have been crying out, from Black Lives Matter to the Mother of the Movement, say that we need changes dealing with the whole vastness of criminal justice reform: police-community relations, police actions, actions dealing with guns, actions dealing with the loss of life of our young people. Let's get a framework that can allow us to debate, to fix, to amend, and to get a product that will ultimately be signed by the President of the United States on behalf of the people of the United States who are crying out for relief. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (D-OH) who are anchoring this Special Order on Ending the School-to-Prison Pipeline. The over-criminalization of school children in America can no longer be swept under the rug, ignored or irrationally justified. We are in a state of national crisis and it is time to act. Upon taking office, every Member of Congress makes a solemn pledge: to protect and defend the American people. This is the most important oath we take as elected officials--and, to honor this promise, we must do everything in our power to stem the School-to-Prison Pipeline in our nation. The three most important concerns for Members of Congress today are No. 1 Children, No. 2 Children, and No. 3 Children. House Republicans are still unwilling to act to stop the criminalization of our children in schools and instead work towards providing children the opportunity to thrive in American communities. This Congress has a moral obligation to do our part to end the epidemic of losing our children to the correctional system. Now is the time for Republicans to join Democrats in protecting the lives of America's youth by taking common sense steps in redirecting those who go astray. Over the past year, several proposals have been introduced to address the need for overarching reform of our nation's criminal justice system. Americans must consider the educational environment in which we place our students, from preschool to high school, subjecting them to disciplinary policies that more closely resemble policing than teaching. Around the country, advocates are collecting data illustrating the devastating effects of what they call the ``school-to-prison pipeline,'' where student behavior is criminalized, children are treated like prisoners and, all too often, actually end up behind bars. The school-to-prison pipeline refers to interlocking sets of relationships at the institutional/structural and the individual levels. All of these policies and practices work together to push our nation's schoolchildren--youth of color, especially, our most at-risk children--out of schools and into unemployment and into the juvenile and criminal justice legal systems. This pipeline reflects the prioritization of incarceration over education. For a growing number of students, the path to incarceration includes the ``stops'' deterring matriculation such as: 1) Failing Public Schools; 2) Zero-Tolerance and Other School Discipline; 3) Policing School Hallways; 4) Disciplinary Alternative Schools; and 5) Court Involvement and Juvenile Detention. In a little over two decades, a paradigm shift has occurred in the Lone Star State. The misdeeds of children--acts that in the near recent past resulted in trips to the principal's office, corporal punishment, or extra laps under the supervision of a middle school or high school coach, now result in criminal prosecution, criminal records, and untold millions of dollars in punitive fines and hefty court costs being imposed against children in elementary and high schools. Disrupting class, using profanity, misbehaving on a school bus, student fights, and truancy once meant a trip to the principal's office. Today, such misbehavior results in a Class C misdemeanor ticket and a trip to court for thousands of Texas students and their families each year. It is conservatively estimated that more than 275,000 non-traffic tickets are issued to juveniles in Texas each year. While it is impossible to pinpoint how many of these tickets are issued by campus police, the vast majority of these tickets are issued for offenses most commonly linked to school-related misbehavior-- disruption of class, disorderly conduct, disruption of transportation, truancy, and simple assaults related to student fights. ``Criminalization'' of student misbehavior extends to even the youngest students. In Texas, students as young as six have been ticketed at school in the past five years, and it is not uncommon for elementary-school students to be ticketed by school-based law enforcement. School-based arrest of students often occurs without prior notice to parents or a lawyer being present during initial questioning of the student. The increase in ticketing and arrest of students, in Texas and nationwide, has coincided with the growth in school-based policing. Campus policing is the largest and fastest growing area of law enforcement in Texas, according to its own professional association. With counselors stretched to handle class scheduling and test administration duties, school administrators and teachers are increasingly turning to campus police officers to handle student behavior problems. Today in Texas, most public schools have a police officer assigned to patrol hallways, lunchrooms, school grounds, and after-school events. Police officers in some Texas schools are resorting to ``use of force'' measures more commonly associated with fighting street crime-- pepper spray, Tasers and trained canines--when a schoolyard fight breaks out or when students are misbehaving in a cafeteria or at a school event. The intent is to keep schools and students safe, but there can be unintended consequences to disciplining public school students in a way that introduces them to the justice system or exposes them to policing techniques more commonly used with adults. Texas can interrupt this destructive cycle and prevent the loss of more young people to the ``school-to-prison pipeline'' through early interventions focused less on punishment and more on creating positive school environments that address students' academic and behavioral needs. We must seek appropriate recommendations for reform. For most students, the pipeline begins with inadequate resources in public schools. Overcrowded classrooms, a lack of qualified teachers, and insufficient funding for ``extras'' such as counselors, special education services, and even textbooks, lock students into second-rate educational environments. This failure to meet educational needs increases disengagement and dropouts, increasing the risk of later court involvement. Even worse, schools may actually encourage dropouts in response to pressures from test-based accountability regimes such as the No Child Left Behind Act, which create incentives to push out low-performing students to boost overall test scores. Lacking resources, facing incentives to push out low-performing students, and responding to a handful of highly-publicized school shootings, schools have embraced zero-tolerance policies that automatically impose severe punishment regardless of circumstances. Under these policies, students have been expelled for bringing nail clippers or scissors to school. Rates of suspension have increased dramatically in recent years--from 1.7 million in 1974 to 3.1 million in 2000--and have been most dramatic for children of color. Overly harsh disciplinary policies push students down the pipeline and into the juvenile justice system. Suspended and expelled children are often left unsupervised and without constructive activities. They also can easily fall behind in their coursework, leading to a greater likelihood of disengagement and drop-outs. All of these factors increase the likelihood of court involvement. As harsh penalties for minor misbehavior become more pervasive, schools increasingly ignore or bypass due process protections for suspensions and expulsions. The lack of due process is particularly acute for students with special needs, who are disproportionately represented in the pipeline despite the heightened protections afforded to them under law. Many under-resourced schools become ``pipeline gateways'' by placing increased reliance on police rather than teachers and administrators to maintain discipline. Growing numbers of districts employ school resource officers to patrol school hallways, often with little or no training in working with youth. As a result, children are far more likely to be subject to school- based arrests--the majority of which are for non-violent offenses, such as disruptive behavior--than they were a generation ago. The rise in school-based arrests, the quickest route from the classroom to the jailhouse, most directly exemplifies the criminalization of school children. In some jurisdictions, students who have been suspended or expelled have been completely denied their right to an education. In others, they are sent to disciplinary alternative schools. Growing in number across the country, these shadow systems--sometimes run by private, for-profit companies--are immune from educational accountability standards (such as minimum classroom hours and curriculum requirements) and may fail to provide meaningful educational services to the students who need them the most. As a result, struggling students return to their regular schools unprepared, are permanently locked into inferior educational settings, or are funneled through alternative schools into the juvenile justice system. Youth who become involved in the juvenile justice system are often denied procedural protections in the courts. Studies demonstrate that as many as 80 percent of court-involved children do not have lawyers. Students who commit minor offenses may end up in secured detention if they violate boilerplate probation conditions prohibiting them from activities like missing school or disobeying teachers. Students pushed along the pipeline find themselves in juvenile detention facilities, many of which provide few, if any, educational services. Students of color, who are far more likely than their white peers to be suspended, expelled, or arrested for the same kind of conduct at school, and those with disabilities are particularly likely to travel down this pipeline. Though many students are propelled down the pipeline from school to jail, it is difficult for them to make the journey in reverse. Students who enter the juvenile justice system face many barriers to their re-entry into traditional schools. The vast majority of these students never graduate from high school. Numerous studies have also shown that as many as 70-80 percent of youth involved in the justice system meet the criteria for a disability. We must move away from the engrained culture of criminalization as the answer to our problems. It is no secret that 1 in every 3 black males born today can expect to go to prison at some point in their life, compared with 1 in every 6 Latino males, and 1 in every 17 white males. It is a statistic we know well because it is one that has been reported since 2001 and has remained unchanged for nearly 15 years. It is time we stop repeating and start understanding and unraveling the fateful 1 in 3 trend that continues to sweep entire generations of young men of color into a lifetime of systematic and barriers. The United States currently has the largest number of prisoners in the world due to its skyrocketing national imprisonment rate. Rather than investing in premier educational responses, the United States pays the highest cost globally for incarceration. Federal, state, and local leaders are looking for innovative ways to improve public health and public safety outcomes, while reducing the costs of criminal justice and corrections. A number of innovative strategies can save public funds and improve public health by keeping low-risk, non-violent, drug-involved offenders out of prison or jail, while still holding them accountable and ensuring the safety of our communities. The Obama Administration is committed to funding and evaluating the long-term effects of these innovative criminal justice and corrections interventions. I too call upon my colleagues to come together and pass legislation that will help stop the derailment of children's lives. Meanwhile, Federal agencies will continue to seek opportunities to expand smart probation and problem-solving court initiatives around the country in collaboration with state, local, and tribal agencies. In recognition of the considerable potential in cost savings, improved outcomes for offenders, and improved public safety, a growing number of state and local officials around the country are starting their own promising initiatives to break the cycle of drug use, crime, and incarceration. Nearly every state is struggling with significant shortfalls in revenue and making significant cuts to spending in order to close budget gaps. In making these cuts, many states are focusing attention on corrections spending, one of the fastest growing lines in state budgets over the past two decades. Many states are pursuing a justice reinvestment approach, using data to determine what has been driving the growth in the prison population and how that growth might be stopped. In addition, small investments have been made in programs designed to reduce recidivism. New policies have been enacted, slowing the growth of prison populations or even downsizing corrections systems, saving states hundreds of millions of dollars. A portion of those savings are being reinvested in community-based services and supports, including substance abuse treatment. However, to have meaningful impact on behaviors that contribute to crime, recidivism, and substance abuse, states must focus on a handful of proven strategies that will maximize the impact of limited investments being made in the treatment of substance use disorders and community supervision. I am a strong supporter of education and I am particularly sensitive and protective of measures to keep students safe in school. In this same spirit, we must invest in a multi-step, collaborative process that involves the combined efforts of law enforcement, prosecutors, influential community members, social services, reentry services, community corrections, faith-based organizations, and city management. We have seen too often the horrific abuses of school officers dragging, punching, slapping, and more to students. First and foremost school-based law enforcement personnel need to be removed from the educational setting. And if law enforcement are not removed, they should be required to receive post-certification training in issues specific to youth, including: 1) de-escalation and mediation techniques; 2) restraint techniques to be used when force cannot be avoided; 3) signs and symptoms of trauma, abuse and neglect in children and youth, as well as appropriate responses; 4) signs and symptoms of mental illness in children and youth, and appropriate responses; and 5) manifestations of other disabilities, such as autism, and appropriate responses, adolescent development, Juvenile law, and Special education and applicable general education law. Prohibit school districts from receiving any revenue from Class C ticketing for truancy or any other offense. Eliminate Disruption of Class and Disruption of Transportation as penal code offenses. Prohibit ticketing of students under the age of 14. Young children are simply not equipped to understand a Class C misdemeanor ticket as a meaningful consequence of misbehavior, and the consequences of court involvement on academic success are too great to allow this practice to continue. Ticketing of older students should be a last resort. Ticketing, arrest and use of force in schools is preposterously reshaping today's school disciplinary policies disproportionately to actual need. We must acknowledge this epidemic and move to correct the inevitable injustice that follows when our children are derailed from their futures. I thank my colleagues of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (D-OH) for hosting this Special Order on Ending the School-to-Prison Pipeline. It is an invaluable and much needed effort.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Let me thank Mr. Goodlatte, Mr. Conyers, the Judiciary Committee, and Mr. Sensenbrenner, who mentioned yesterday that he had been working on this for 2 years. We have joined him as the original cosponsors in supporting this on the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations, of which I am the ranking member, along with Mr. Sensenbrenner, and this is a moment that all of us are appreciative of. Mr. Speaker, as I thought about this week, during which we are honoring police and we are also acknowledging those who have fallen in the line of duty, this bill, the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, becomes even more important. This week, the House adopted a number of bills that, together, are intended to provide a response to the opioid crisis that is commensurate with the scope of the problem. Yesterday the House passed, by an overwhelming vote, the primary contribution of the Judiciary Committee's to this effort, H.R. 5046, the Comprehensive Opioid Reduction Act. I am an original cosponsor of that bill, and I was a cosponsor of the predecessor bill, both of which were introduced by my colleague, Jim Sensenbrenner, the chairman of the subcommittee. I commend him for the years of work and persistence on this issue. I also commend Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Conyers for their leadership, for it would not have been shepherded through the committee if we had not all worked together to find common ground on this very important issue. That has been the trend of the Judiciary Committee's as we work on criminal justice reform, which includes sentencing reduction and prison reform--provocative, innovative bills that are going to change the lives of many of those who are incarcerated for many, many years. We are going to turn mass incarceration upside down and on its ears and cause it to be extinct. This new approach to opioids is part of that. This bill has no mandatory minimums. As we take the steps today which will allow us to engage in discussions with the Senate so that we may soon send a bill to the President for his signature, I am pleased of the progress that has been made. I can only hope that our work on sentencing reduction, prison reform, and juvenile justice will have the same kind of impetus and will wind up on the President's desk. That is the vision, I believe, of many Republicans and Democrats in and out of this House. As well, it is the vision of the President's; but, more importantly, it is the vision of suffering families' who do not have their loved ones with them. The reason we must work together is that the leading killer of Americans today, which is drug overdose, started first by prescription use in many instances. Between 2000 and 2014, almost half a million people died from drug overdoses. That is a startling number. In 2014 alone, more than 47,000 people died of drug overdoses. The largest percentage of overdose deaths in 2014 was attributed to opioids, like prescription painkillers, methadone, morphine, and heroin. Specifically, 28,647 people overdosed and died because of an opioid in 2014. This is an emergency, and it is a combination of prescription painkillers and heroin. Prescription painkillers abuse is the strongest risk for the future use of heroin. That is our athletes or those who have had surgery--just everyday Americans who find themselves caught in the trap of addiction. Approximately three out of four new heroin users report that their use began with the abuse of prescription drugs. Heroin use becomes appealing to those who are addicted to prescription drugs because it is cheaper and easier to obtain, and due to its potency, heroin use tends to lead to addiction. We know that from the 1980s and 1990s with crack cocaine in that crack was a more potent extraction of cocaine, and we saw many of those individuals not get treatment. They actually only got incarceration. Heroin addiction is often deadly just as crack cocaine was in leading to overdose or to other chronic diseases. The rate at which the occurrence of heroin overdose deaths has increased is cause for alarm. In the 4 years between 2010 and 2014, heroin overdoses more than tripled. In 2013, 11 million people admitted to the improper use of prescription painkillers and, therefore, were at a heightened risk of becoming addicted. That is why we have worked together this week on legislation to put together something like an omnibus in order to reduce the risks of addiction and to fund appropriate treatment responses for those who abuse these drugs. The bill that was passed yesterday reflects the strategy by proposing to establish a grant program to be administered by the Department of Justice to assist States and local governments. It is important to note these statistics: the rate of deaths from heroin overdoses that account from the White population saw a 267 percent increase between 2010 and 2014; in African Americans, there was an increase of 213 percent in 2010 to 2014; in Hispanics, there was a 137 percent increase from 2010 to 2014; and in Native Americans, there was a 236 percent increase. No aspect of American life has been uninfluenced by the devastation of heroin overdoses and deaths--many of it impacting families whose young, bright, talented, athletic, and, otherwise, young people have fallen victim to this. This grant program is extremely helpful, for which I am very pleased, because it deals with monitoring the prescription drugs, and it deals with matching those who are committed to working with police officers. It is truly an important bill. Let me close by saying that we must have money to support all of this, and I am hoping that this will not be the last stop we will make. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this amendment to S. 524, the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act. This week, the House adopted a number of bills that--together--are intended to provide a response to the opioid crisis that is commensurate with the scope of the problem. Yesterday, the House passed--by an overwhelming vote--the primary contribution of the Judiciary Committee to this effort, H.R. 5046, the Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Reduction Act. I am an original cosponsor of that bill, and I was a cosponsor of the predecessor bill, both of which were introduced by my colleague, Jim Sensenbrenner, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime. I commend him for his years of work and persistence on this issue, and I also commend Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Conyers for their leadership and work to find common ground on this very important issue. As we take the steps today which will allow us to engage in discussions with the Senate so that we may soon send a bill to the President for signature, I am pleased at the progress we have made. The reason we must work together is that a leading killer of Americans today is drug overdose. Between 2000 and 2014, almost half a million people died from drug overdoses. In 2014 alone, more than 47,000 people died of drug overdoses. The largest percentage of overdose deaths in 2014 was attributed to opioids--like prescription painkillers, methadone, morphine, and heroin. Specifically, 28,647 people overdosed and died because of an opioid in 2014. This emergency is compounded due to the perilous connection between prescription painkillers and heroin. Prescription painkiller abuse is the strongest risk factor for future heroin use. Approximately three out of four new heroin users report that their use began with their abuse of prescription painkillers. Heroin use becomes appealing to those addicted to prescription painkillers because it is cheaper and easier to obtain. Due to its potency, heroin use tends to lead to addiction. Heroin addiction is often deadly, leading to overdose or other chronic diseases. The rate at which the occurrence of heroin overdose deaths increased is cause for alarm. In the four years between 2010 and 2014, heroin overdoses more than tripled. In 2013, 11 million people admitted to improper use of prescription painkillers and therefore were at a heightened risk of becoming addicted to heroin--with its attendant risks and dangers. That is why we have worked together this week on legislation to reduce the risks of addiction and to fund appropriate treatment responses to those who abuse these drugs. The bill we passed yesterday, H.R. 5046, reflects this strategy by proposing to establish a grant program, to be administered by the Department of Justice, to assist states and local governments, particularly by helping criminal justice agencies to tackle the opioid problem from a variety of angles. This bill, included in this amendment, encourages the development of alternatives to incarceration that provide treatment as a solution to the underlying motivation for criminal behavior or conduct associated with mental disorders. We must make our best efforts to prevent individuals from moving from painkillers to heroin by making treatment for addicts more accessible by encouraging the use of evidence-based programs, such as medication- assisted treatment. Life-saving overdose reversal drugs, like naloxone, are most valuable in the hands of trained individuals who regularly come in contact with individuals who are prone to drug overdoses. This legislation will increase the use and availability of naloxone and other overdose reversal drugs to first responders. Addiction is a disease that affects the brain and eventually changes the behavior of addicts, causing them to experience mental health issues and encounter legal problems. Treatment is the most reasonable and effective approach to diverting these individuals away from homelessness and prison. There are also specific provisions we have proposed that allow for a wide range of services to be offered to our veterans who tend to suffer from mental health issues and addiction. I support this legislation because I believe that it will help save lives and prevent and treat opioid addiction. The approach Congress is taking with the crisis of heroin and other opioids is thoughtful and comprehensive. I hope it signals a departure from some of the failed approaches concerning other drug crises in the past. For instance, our response to the surge in crack cocaine in the 1980s was to enact draconian mandatory minimum penalties with vastly disparate treatment for crack and powder cocaine. At that time, we in Congress took action that we are still trying to rectify. At one point, more than 80% of the defendants sentenced for crack offenses were African American, despite the fact that more than 66% of crack users are white or Hispanic. As we work on other legislation to address the enforcement and sentencing disparities related to the crack issue, we must re-examine our approach to that and other drug issues. While law enforcement has an appropriate role and the bills recognize that, the bills we adopted this week and that we put forth as an amendment to the Senate bill today reflect a broader strategy that reflects the fact that this is an addiction issue. Accordingly, we are not raising sentences or impacting mandatory minimums but we are funding anti-addiction mechanisms such as treatment alternatives to incarceration. We are not adding to mass incarceration--with all of the related and devastating collateral consequences--but instead we are incentivizing state and local governments to prevent, treat, and heal. That is what we should be doing, and that is what we should have done for crack and cocaine addicts. With that history in mind and with the chance to take smarter and more effective steps now, I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues in the House--and in the Senate--to apply this more comprehensive approach, including treatment alternatives, to those suffering from crack and cocaine addiction. Yesterday, in my closing remarks on H.R. 5046, I stated my intention to ensure that we make progress on addiction not only involving opioids but drugs like crack and powder cocaine as well. As I express my support for this legislation, I urge my colleagues to work with me in this broader initiative as well as join me in voting for this amendment to the Senate bill today.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak on the topic of the Zika Virus threat that is real and something that the Congress should address. As a senior member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, which has a core mission of emergency preparedness of state and local governments to be equipped to react to emergencies make me acutely aware of the potential for the Zika Virus to be a real challenge for state and local governments in the coming months. I thank President Obama for his leadership in requesting $1.9 billion to address the threat of the Zika Virus. The Administration due to the threat posed by Zika has used funds allocated for Ebola, which will need to be replaced once Zika funding is available. The region of the world impacted by Ebola is still seeing new victims and the funds allotted for Ebola are therefore still needed. I like many of my colleagues with districts along the Gulf Coast am well aware of the presence of mosquitoes. These areas are known to have both types of the Zika Virus vectors: the Aedes Aegypti and the Aedes Albopictus, which is why I held a meeting in Houston on March 10, 2016 about the evolving health threat. I convened a meeting with Houston, Harris County and State officials at every level with responsibility for combating the Zika Virus to discuss preparations that would mitigate the spread of the mosquitoes that can carry the virus. Houston, Texas, like many cities, towns, and parishes along the Gulf Coast, has a tropical climate like parts of Central and South America, as well as the Caribbean. Tropical climates are hospitable to mosquitoes that carry the Zika Virus. In addition, Houston has a large and very diverse population that travels to many of the Zika Virus impacted zones, located throughout Central and South America and the Caribbean where mosquito transmission of the Zika Virus is the primary means of exposure to the illness. I have identified shared concerns among state and local agency officials regarding a need to have a plan to address the Zika Virus in the Houston and Harris County area that would include every aspect of the community. Part of the Zika Virus response must be to ensure that we are doing all that we can and should be doing to reach every community. CDC has a disease surveillance unit at Bush Intercontinental Airport. The participants in the March 10, 2016 meeting I hosted on the Zika Virus provided insight into each of the areas that local governments will have to address. The participants in the March 10, 2016 meeting I held in Houston included: Dr. Peter Hotez, Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine and Professor of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology & Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine; Dr. Umair Shah, Executive Director for Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services; Dr. Dubboun, Director of the Harris County Public Health Environmental Services Mosquito Control Division; Dr. Gruber, Assistant Commissioner from Regional and Local Health Services for the State of Texas; Dr. Raouf Arafat, Houston Health and Human Services Office of Surveillance and Public Health Preparedness; Stephen Williams, Director of Houston Health Department; Dr. David Persse, Physician Director, Emergency Medical Services, Houston Public Health Authority; and Julie Graves, (Confirmed) MD, MPH, PhD, Regional Medical Director, Health Service Region 6/5S, Texas Department of State Health Services. The collective wisdom of these experts revealed that we should not let the fear of the Zika Virus control public policy; but that we should get in front of the problem, then we can control the Zika Virus from its source--mosquitoes. The fight against the Zika Virus will be neighborhood by neighborhood and will rely upon the resources and expertise of local government working closely with State governments with the support of federal government agencies. The consensus of the experts is that the existence of the Zika Virus are through: health community communication with the public; correct vector control; surveillance; planning; keep yards clean, road ways, and lots free of any breeding environments for mosquitoes; and community engagement in the work that must be done is essential. Poverty and the conditions that may exist in poor communities can be of greatest risk for the Zika Virus breeding habitats for vector mosquitoes. Illegal dumping of tires; open ditches, torn screens, or no screens during the long hot days of summer will make for a perfect storm for the spread of the virus. Mr. Speaker, I will remind my colleagues that eighty percent of those infected will not know they have the Zika Virus. An uninfected mosquito biting this person can spread the virus when it bites other people. The rate of spread of the disease by the Aedes Aegypti is problematic because the mosquito will bite many people to collect enough blood to lay eggs. The Aedes Aegypti has evolved to rely exclusively on human blood, which means it adapted to fly low--close to the ground; seeks any opportunity to enter homes; can breed in as little as a cap of dirty water; is known to breed in fish aquariums; plant water catch dishes; or tires. Blood is essential for breeding of the vector mosquitoes for the Zika Virus and the Aedes Aegypti is seeking an opportunity that keeps it near people. Mr. Speaker, there is no need to be alarmed, but we should be preparing to do what we can to prevent and mitigate the Zika Virus in communities around the nation. We know that 33 states have one or both of the vector mosquitoes. It is anticipated that the Americas including the United States can expect 4 million Zika Virus cases in the next four months and to date there are over a million cases in Brazil. The most serious outcome of the Zika Virus exposure is birth defects that can occur during pregnancy if the mother is exposed to the Zika Virus. The virus is believed to invade the central nervous system of the developing baby and inhibit brain development, which can result in: still births; microcephaly; the rate for the Zika Virus exposure far exceeds that number. Microcephaly is brain underdevelopment either at birth or the brain failing to develop properly after birth, which can cause: difficulty walking; difficulty hearing; and difficulty with speech. There are no tests to detect the virus and there is no vaccine or cure. If we do not act--the public reaction to Ebola will seem tame compared to how the public might react to the arrival of mosquitoes transmitting the Zika Virus. I call on my colleagues to pass the President's request for the $1.9 billion in emergency supplemental appropriations. If you are not sure whether the Zika Virus is a potential problem in your districts, I challenge you to hold a meeting like the one I held in Houston on March 10, to become informed.

Ms. JACKSON LEE

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Chair, I thank the distinguished ranking member and the dean of this institution for yielding and for his leadership; but it is even more powerful that the leadership joins with our distinguished chairman of the full committee, Mr. Goodlatte, because this is the beginning of our effort of criminal justice reform that certainly has been one of the guiding focuses of the chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations, Mr. Sensenbrenner, who has, likewise, been a former chair of the full committee but has steadily worked on thoughtful legislation dealing with the overall issue of criminal justice reform. I am delighted to be a partner in this legislation and to be a cosponsor and to work on this whole concept of dealing with opioids but, as well, to deal with the question of criminal justice reform with a whole new attitude. I might say that I heard words from Leader Pelosi yesterday evening as she received the Hubert H. Humphrey Civil and Human Rights Award. She indicated that there are three major issues that we should be governed by in this Congress: number one, children; number two, children; and number three, children. One might ask: Why are we discussing children? I thought we were discussing the Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Reduction Act of 2016, and that we are. I am very pleased that it is a very forthright and thoughtful approach to this issue. I support it. But it is a compilation, if you will, of many thoughts about how we should deal with the question of mass incarceration. What does mass incarceration deal with? It deals with human beings. It deals with men and women. It deals with families. It deals with mothers who have children. Previously, if you were on any manner of drugs or you possessed drugs, you were nonviolent, you were incarcerated. If you were on crack or cocaine, you were incarcerated. I commend the chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations, Mr. Sensenbrenner, for his work, as I said, and Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Conyers because we now have, from the Committee on the Judiciary, a legislative initiative that does not have mandatory minimums. In fact, it deals with a passionate and compassionate approach, and it deals with the issue of addiction and recovery, the bill that I was a sponsor of earlier, a predecessor to this one, the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act. I would be happy to see the committee pass that bill, but I am pleased that we have been able to work together to produce an alternative bill that will help address issues related to opioid abuse--again, I emphasize, no mandatory minimums, but a way of addressing this question, Madam Chair, that I think will be long term. I look forward to continued collaboration with my colleagues to find additional solutions to the drug crisis America now faces. We must take action because today a leading killer of Americans is drug overdose. Between 2000 and 2014, almost a half million people died from drug overdoses. Many of these deaths were preventable. In 2014 alone, more than 47,000 people died of drug overdoses. The largest percentage of overdose deaths in 2014 was attributable to opioids like prescription painkillers, methadone, morphine, and heroin. Therein lies the origin of this massive impact, including our juveniles, who find them in many different ways. Specifically, 28,647 people overdosed and died because of an opioid in 2014. We are experiencing an emergency that impacts citizens in every State, city, and town in this country--that is, prescription painkiller and opioid abuse. This emergency is compounded due to the perilous connection between prescription painkillers and heroin. I get it. We understand that physicians who did take their oath very seriously wanted to provide the medical care, the legitimate medical care when there was a massive response to pain from all of their patients and others. Prescription painkiller abuse is the strongest risk factor for future heroin use, but it came about maybe not through the prescription and the initial prescription, but from lack of information that patients should have about the impact of opioids: what it does to the brain, what it does when you do not have it, how you become addicted. So out of this, approximately three out of four new heroin users report that their use began with their abuse of prescription painkillers initially given to them legitimately for medical reasons. Heroin use becomes appealing to those addicted to prescription painkillers because it is cheaper and easier to obtain. Due to its potency, heroin use tends to lead to addiction. The same kind of lack of information maybe led to a young woman, in my district, on hydrocodone with two little babies in the car driving and sideswiping two cars and killing an innocent person on a motorcycle.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Or the mother who gave hydrocodone and alcohol as a prom gift to her son and his date. That date wound up dead at the end of that prom. The rate at which the occurrence of heroin overdose deaths increased is cause for alarm. In the 4 years between 2010 and 2014, heroin overdoses more than tripled. This legislation encourages the development of alternatives to incarceration that provide treatment as a solution to the underlying motivation for criminal behavior or conduct associated with mental disorders. We must make our best efforts. It puts police in a position to be trained to use those drugs that will help when they come upon an unconscious person, like naloxone. It allows the criminal justice system to talk to the substance abuse system. In essence, it increases the use and availability of those drugs. Addiction is a disease; we recognize that. Finally, if I might say, I started with children, children, children. Just today, Dr. Phil is here discussing the foster care system. He said that most children are taken away because of neglect, and that neglect is based upon the use of drugs. That is a wrong direction. The direction should be that we keep families together, we invest, and we provide the training to provide them parental skills and, if they are addicted, to get them off of those addictive ways to be able to keep families together. Today I will introduce a bill that provides for nurseries in the Federal prison system for women in short-term nonviolent offenses, mostly drug offenses, to reinforce the value of mothers and children being together. This bill, even though it may not point to that, is an overall change of attitude that looks to America and says: We want you not to be addicted. We don't want you to be on prescription drugs and lead you to addiction after your illness is over. We want you to be cared for medically, but we don't want you to become addicted. In order to do that, we are not going to criminalize you. We are going to give you treatment and allow the criminal justice system--police, prosecutors, and others--to have an alternative to ensure that that can be done. I am very pleased that we are on the floor today. I know that we will have an omnibus tomorrow. I hope that you will support the underlying bill.