Stephen Lynch

Mr. LYNCH

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

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I join my colleague to ask all of our colleagues to join us in supporting Resolution 214 recognizing the citizens of Kentucky. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I would like to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Yarmuth).

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. As a member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I join my colleagues in support of House Resolution 214, which recognizes the efforts of volunteers from across the country who helped the Commonwealth of Kentucky recover from a devastating ice storm in January 2009. I would like to thank our colleague Mr. Brett Guthrie from Kentucky for sponsoring this thoughtful resolution which was introduced on March 5, 2009. I would also like to commend my colleagues on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform for acting so quickly to bring this measure to the floor. Additionally, this measure has the support and cosponsorship of 59 Members of Congress, which of course include the entire House delegation from Kentucky. As many Americans are aware, the Commonwealth of Kentucky suffered a horrendous ice storm on January 26, 2009. More than 700,000 homes and businesses were left without power. Sadly, some estimated 200,000 Americans found themselves without access to water and other basic necessities. In fact, the dreadful ice storm that hit a number of States in the Midwest in addition to the State of Kentucky back in January has been considered the worst natural disaster in Kentucky's history. As expected, when Americans saw their fellow countrymen in need of help and assistance, support poured into the State of Kentucky immediately following the storm's devastating effect. For example, State and local officials acted quickly to band together in order to coordinate the relief efforts and to ultimately save lives. Volunteer agencies, faith-based groups and community organizations from 15 States came to the aid of Kentucky's cities and neighborhoods, and nearly 200 makeshift shelters provided refuge for almost 8,000 Kentuckians. While certainly tragic in nature, the ice storm once again demonstrated the unyielding resolve of Americans to work together to ensure the common good of the neighbors. Mr. Speaker, it is also important that we as Members of the House of Representatives take a moment to recognize the supportive efforts of the Kentucky National Guard as some 4,600 guardsmen went door to door throughout the affected communities to make certain that no citizen was beyond the reach of a helpful hand. For their commitment, we say thank you, and for their service, we say a job well done. In closing, House Resolution 214 is designed to simply recognize the Commonwealth of Kentucky for showing incredible resolve in the face of disaster. The selflessness exhibited by volunteers and aid agencies speaks volumes about the American spirit. That said, Mr. Speaker, as Kentucky and their neighboring Midwestern States continue to pick up the pieces, let us take pause to acknowledge those who came to the aid of these Americans in their time of need. With that, I urge support for House Resolution 214, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 214) recognizing the efforts of the countless volunteers who helped the Commonwealth of Kentucky recover from the ice storm of January 2009.

Mr. LYNCH

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, at this point, I want to thank Ms. Brown- Waite for bringing this measure before the House. I urge all of my colleagues to unanimously support this bill, which would designate the post office in Dade City in memory of Sergeant Marcus Mathes. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve.

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve my time.

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I now yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, as chairman of the House subcommittee with jurisdiction over the United States Postal Service, I am pleased to present H.R. 1516 for consideration. This legislation will designate the United States postal facility located at 37926 Church Street in Dade City, Florida, as the ``Sergeant Marcus Mathes Post Office.'' Introduced by my colleague, Representative Ginny Brown-Waite, on March 16, 2009, and reported out of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee on April 2, 2009, by unanimous consent, H.R. 1516 enjoys the support of the entire Florida House delegation. A resident of Zephyrhills, Florida, Sergeant Mathes bravely served with the 94th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Light Infantry Division out of Fort Polk, Louisiana. On April 28, 2008, Sergeant Mathes, at age 26, and two of his fellow soldiers were killed in Baghdad, Iraq, when enemy forces attacked their forward- operating base with indirect rocket fire. Sergeant Mathes, a graduate of Zephyrhills High School, grew up in the City of Sebring in Highlands County and subsequently became a resident of Pasco County. Stirred by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Sergeant Mathes proudly joined the United States Army in 2005. He left for boot camp on March 15, 2005, the date of his 23rd birthday. Sergeant Mathes was then deployed in support of Operating Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan from October 2006 until March of 2007. Eight months later, in November of 2007, he was deployed to Baghdad, Iraq, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. As noted by his loving mother, Sue Sawyer, Sergeant Mathes was extremely proud of his duty. He genuinely appreciated the strangers who often approached him to thank him for his service to his country. According to his father, Ralph Mathes, his son loved the excitement, challenges and adventure associated with serving in the United States Army. His love of family and love of country were further evidenced by the tattoos on his body. Alongside the name of his beloved wife were two more tattoos, one reading ``United States Army'' and the other, the second, an emblem of the American bald eagle. Sergeant Mathes was full of promise. Just prior to his death in April of 2008, he had passed his Sergeant's exam and has since been posthumously promoted. Additionally, having married his high school sweetheart, Julia, 6 years earlier, he anticipated starting a family. Mr. Speaker, Sergeant Marcus Mathes' life stands as a testament to the bravery and dedication of the heroic men and women who continue to serve our country at home and abroad. It is my hope that we can further honor his service through the passage of this resolution. And so I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 1516 and dedicating the Church Street Post Office in Dade City, Florida, in honor of our fallen hero. I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1516) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 37926 Church Street in Dade City, Florida, as the ``Sergeant Marcus Mathes Post Office''.

Mr. LYNCH

Mr. LYNCH. I now yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, representing the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and being one of Irish heritage, I am happy to rise in support of this resolution, House Resolution 254, which is a bill to recognize the importance of Irish-American heritage and to honor the significance of Irish-Americans in the history of the United States. This bill was introduced by my friend and colleague last month, Carolyn McCarthy of New York, on St. Patrick's Day, and the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform amended the measure on April 2 in order that it be reported by unanimous consent. House Resolution 254 gives the Members of this Chamber the chance to honor the valuable contributions that Americans of Irish heritage have made to our country since its inception. In fact, nine of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence were men of Irish origin, and Irish-Americans have served in the Armed Services for this country in every war in which the United States has ever fought. At least 19 Presidents of the United States can claim Irish heritage, including our current President, Barack Obama. The works of Eugene O'Neill, F. Scott Fitzgerald and George Bernard Shaw remain invaluable parts of our literary history. Artists including Gregory Peck, John Wayne and Helen Hayes have helped enrich our Nation's culture, and social reformers such as suffragist Leonora Barry and labor organizer Mary Kenny O'Sullivan fought to extend basic rights to others. Henry Ford's assembly line revolutionized manufacturing, and Irish immigrants who settled here in the 1840s helped to make our largest cities into centers of commerce and industry. I would like to thank my colleague, the gentlelady from New York, Carolyn McCarthy, for sponsoring this measure. I would also like to thank the ranking member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa), for helping us to get it to the floor today. Many emigrated here from Ireland, hoping to share in our freedom and prosperity. In turn, they have helped to make our country great. For their countless contributions to American history and progress, I urge my colleagues to support the quick passage of House Resolution 254. I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 254) recognizing the designation of March 2009 as Irish-American Heritage Month and honoring the significance of Irish- Americans in the history and progress of the United States, as amended.

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I just want to thank the gentlelady from New York (Mrs. McCarthy). As others are, she is also traveling to Washington at this time, and wanted to be here for this resolution. I ask our colleagues to join Member Carolyn McCarthy in supporting the resolution. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LYNCH

Mr. LYNCH. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LYNCH. In closing, Mr. Speaker, this is a travel day for Members of Congress, but I do want to recognize the other cosponsors of this measure: Representative James Clyburn from South Carolina; the chairman of our committee, Representative Ed Towns from Brooklyn; Representative Barbara Lee from California; Representative Sheila Jackson-Lee from Texas; Representative Steve Cohen from Tennessee; and the gentleman John Lewis from Georgia, who also, but for the fact that they are traveling today on their way to Washington, would be here to speak in favor of this resolution as well. Together, we all, the cosponsors and those who have spoken on the floor today, urge our colleagues to join us in this great recognition of Dr. Franklin.

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, at this point I would like to yield to the gentleman from North Carolina, who is also a cosponsor of this legislation, and earlier the lead sponsor until that position was assumed by Mr. Watt, the distinguished gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Price) for 5 minutes.

Mr. LYNCH. I yield the gentleman an additional 2 minutes.

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, at this time I would like to yield 5 minutes to the lead sponsor of this measure, the distinguished gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Watt).

Mr. LYNCH. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, it is with deep respect that I rise in support of House Resolution 320, which celebrates the life of legendary scholar, professor, author and historian, Dr. John Hope Franklin. I would first like to thank my colleague and friend from North Carolina, Congressman Mel Watt, for sponsoring this afternoon's condolence measure which has amassed over 90 cosponsors since being introduced on April 2nd, 2009. I would also like to thank Congressman David Price and Congresswoman Barbara Lee and Senator Kay Hagan for cosponsoring similar legislation. The outpouring of bipartisan support surely speaks to Dr. Franklin's legacy. Dr. Franklin was more than a historian. His academic and civic contributions helped integrate the African American narrative into American history. He did as much or more to influence the American historical perspective than nearly any scholar in recent memory in this respect. One of Dr. Franklin's first contributions to our national story came when he was a young academic working alongside Thurgood Marshall and the NAACP in the landmark 1954 Supreme Court case, Brown v. Board of Education. By his work, Dr. Franklin helped bring an end to the ``separate but equal'' doctrine in America's public schools, ending decades of institutionalized injustice. John Hope Franklin graduated from Fisk University in 1935, and received both a master's and Ph.D. in history from Harvard University. He taught at a number of institutions, including Fisk University, North Carolina Central University, St. Augustine's College and Howard University. In 1956, Mr. Franklin became the Chairman of the Department of History at Brooklyn College and in 1964 he joined the faculty of the University of Chicago and served as Chairman of the Department of History from 1967 to 1970. In 1982, Dr. Franklin joined the faculty of Duke University, where he remained until his passing. He held such positions as the James B. Duke Professor of History, Professor of History Emeritus and Professor of Legal History at Duke University Law School. In 2000, Duke University opened the John Hope Franklin Center for Interdisciplinary and International Studies, dedicated to new methods of knowledge sharing and collaborative understanding. In 1947, Dr. Franklin published the seminal piece, ``From Slavery to Freedom: A History of African Americans.'' Now in its seventh edition, it is considered the preeminent account of the African American experience in the United States. Other works by Dr. Franklin include ``The Emancipation Proclamation,'' ``The Free Negro in North Carolina,'' ``The Militant South,'' ``A Southern Odyssey, Travelers in the Antebellum North,'' ``Reconstruction After the Civil War,'' and his influential autobiography, ``Mirror to America.'' Dr. Franklin was active in an array of professions and educational organizations. He served as President of the Organization of American Historians, the Southern Historical Association, the American Studies Association, and the United Chapters of Phi Beta Kappa. In 1979, he became the first African American to serve as President of the American Historical Association, and he also served his country on national delegations and commissions, such as the National Council on the Humanities and the Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy. In 1997, President Clinton tapped Dr. Franklin to chair the Race Initiative Advisory Board. Dr. Franklin was the recipient of countless awards and accolades, including the Nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Dr. Franklin received the inaugural W.E.B. DuBois Award from the Fisk University Alumni Association, the Organization For American Historians Award for Outstanding Achievement, the Alpha Phi Alpha Award of Merit, the NAACP's Spingarn Medal, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Academy of the Arts and Sciences. Dr. Franklin married his college sweetheart, Aurelia Whittington, in 1940. Aurelia passed away on January 27, 1999. They are survived by their son, John Whittington Franklin. I ask that this body join the American people in celebrating the life of Dr. John Hope Franklin, who we lost on March 25, at the age of 94. We will certainly miss his keen intellect, his graceful humility and humor. He was a true scholar and stalwart for justice, whose chronicling of American history affirmed the dignity of African Americans everywhere, while giving us a richer understanding of our journey together as Americans. And so, Mr. Speaker, let us collectively and formally express our appreciation for Dr. John Hope Franklin's life and accomplishments and career by agreeing to House Resolution 320. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 320) honoring the life and achievements of Dr. John Hope Franklin.

Mr. LYNCH

Mr. LYNCH. I thank the gentleman for his kind words. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of both Chairman Towns, the gentleman from Brooklyn, and also Mr. Skelton from Missouri in their endorsement of H.R. 1804, their sponsorship as well. This is the Federal Retirement Reform Act that includes enhancements to the Thrift Savings Plan as well as to other Federal retirement programs. And I do so because I am in agreement with both of those gentlemen that the TSP's offerings to Federal employees must finally be allowed to catch up to private sector 401(k) plans. Given the Thrift Savings Plan's integral role in providing retirement income security for Federal employees, it is time for Congress to adopt and extend the auto enrollment plan to TSP participants. This legislation would allow the Thrift Savings Plan to offer a Roth option. And both sides have talked about the impact of that. I think it is important to point out that by having Federal employees using this Roth option, it is calculated that we will bring in approximately $2.2 billion in new taxes, new tax revenues from Federal contributions from Federal employees over the next 10 years. This bill, unlike a lot of other bills on this floor, basically pays for itself. Mr. Speaker, in my role as chairman of the Federal Workforce, Postal Service, and the District of Columbia Subcommittee, I believe that the Federal Government must ensure that its benefits allow it to retain and recruit the best and the brightest. Toward that end, I authored H.R. 1263, legislation that would make improvements to the TSP, as well as to the Federal retirement programs. I have been pleased to work with both Chairman Towns and former Chairman Waxman on the issue, as well as my friend and colleague, Jim Moran from Virginia. This bill facilitates amending the Federal Employees Retirement System to provide employees with retirement credit for unused sick leave. Federal executives, managers and employees have called for crediting unused sick leave in the same way that the Civil Service Retirement System treats unused sick leave. Additionally, this legislation fixes a CSRS annuity calculation problem for those employees who wish to phase down to part-time work at the end of their Federal careers. That is an important option given the aging demographics of our Federal workforce. At a time of an overall aging workforce in America, and a particularly aging Federal workforce, the government as an employer must take the lead in addressing these workplace realities. I conclude my remarks by stating that I give my full support to these civil service provisions. On behalf of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, NARFE, I would also like to make it clear that this new obligation--this is very important--this new obligation does not result in an ``unfunded obligation'' for the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund as current law provides that new payments are fully funded. And I am submitting an additional clarification to that effect as part of the Record. Mr. Speaker, I would like to expand on a provision contained in H.R. 1804, the ``Federal Retirement Reform Act of 2009,'' which makes improvements to the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) and to the federal retirement programs. By amending the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) to credit unused sick leave for retirement purposes, the measure will modestly increase certain federal employees' retirement benefits. Thus, this bill will result in additional benefits, though small, from the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Trust Fund (CSRDF). However, on behalf of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE), I want to make it clear that this new obligation does not result in an ``unfunded obligation'' of the CSRDF as current law expressly provides that new payments from the CSRDF are fully funded. Since the creation of FERS in the 1980's, Section 8348f of Title 5 of the United States Code has ensured the integrity of the CSRDF by automatically setting-aside funds to cover the cost of any new benefits. Additionally, H.R. 1804 results in sufficient savings to cover the cost of this modest benefit increase under FERS.

Mr. LYNCH

Mr. LYNCH. Madam Speaker, in closing, I was introduced to Paul Harvey 30 years ago as an ironworker, working at the Inland Steel Plant in East Chicago, Indiana. Every day, when that lunch whistle would blow, all the ironworkers would gather at the lunchroom or in the trailer where we had lunch, and every ear was glued to that radio set. It was the plain-spoken, moral and commonsense views of Paul Harvey's that I think enlightened us all. So, with that, I just want to ask all of my colleagues to join with me and with the chief sponsor of this resolution, John Sullivan, the gentleman from Oklahoma. I ask that we pass this unanimously in memory of the life of Paul Harvey. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.