Patty Murray

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Select Committee on Intelligence be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on May 1, 2014, at 2:30 p.m.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I would like to speak about the excellent nominee we are considering to be U.S. district judge for the Eastern District of Washington, Stan Bastian. In my home State of Washington we have a bipartisan judicial selection process that allows us to recommend nominees who are supported by Republicans and Democrats alike, and while we don't always agree on every nominee, that process has served our State well for a long time. As the Senate votes today on the nomination of Mr. Bastian, I would like to inform my colleagues that during the bipartisan process to select him, his support was unanimous. That means every Republican and every Democrat who helps select judicial nominees in our State supports Mr. Bastian on the Federal bench. In today's political atmosphere, that is the strongest endorsement I can think of. He has nearly 30 years of litigation experience. He is a fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers. He is the chairman of the Equal Justice Coalition, and throughout his career he has served the Washington bar, first as a member of the board of governors and eventually as president. He has practiced in both State and Federal courts, tried hundreds of cases, including civil and criminal cases and jury and bench trials. Our system of government is at its best when good people step up to the plate and are willing to serve. Throughout his legal career Stan Bastian has done just that. So I am here to express my support and urge our colleagues to do the same. Thank you. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Minnesota for her really important statement. I come here today to join her and talk about this one small idea that stands for a huge difference in the lives of all of our constituents and, as she pointed out, for women in particular; that is, of course, the idea that if you are putting in 40 or 50 or 60 hours of work per week, you are able to put food on the table and pay your bills and you will not be stuck below the poverty line. This idea could change the lives of millions of Americans if Congress simply acted and raised the minimum wage. But we have to act now because right now one in four women in our workforce is making the minimum wage. That is 15 million American women who are making the equivalent of about two gallons of gas per hour. Are we prepared to tell them that should be enough to support themselves and their kids? In fact, as we have heard several times now here in this Chamber, nearly two-thirds of those who earn the minimum wage or less are women. This is coming at a time when more and more women are depended upon as the sole income earners in American families. Right now, in cities and towns across America, there are millions of those women who are getting up at the crack of dawn for work every day who are stuck living in poverty, who cannot save for a car, much less a house. They cannot pay for school to get new skills and a new job, and they cannot even afford to provide their children with warm winter clothes or basic medical care. Unfortunately, this also comes at a time now when we are seeing CEO salaries skyrocketing across the country, all while America's minimum wage stays flat. In 2013, the average S&P CEO earned $11.7 million. That is 21 percent more than they earned in 2009--21 percent--and 630 percent more in real value than in 1983--630 percent more. Unbelievably, this means that the average CEO today earns more before lunchtime on his first day of work than a minimum-wage worker earns all year. That is not how it is supposed to work in America, the country where you are told if you work hard and you play by the rules, you can get ahead. So when we talk about the minimum wage, let's be clear: Raising the minimum wage is about bringing back our middle class. I am proud that in my State we are taking the lead. In my home State of Washington, our workforce enjoys the highest minimum wage in the country. I wish to point out to our friends on the other side of the aisle, Washington State's economy has not been negatively impacted by our high minimum wage. In fact, our economy has benefited from a high minimum wage. Job growth has continued at a rate above the national average. Payrolls in our restaurants and in our bars have expanded because more people have more money in their pockets to spend out at dinner at night or on the weekend. Poverty in Washington State has trailed the national level for at least 7 years. It is not just in Washington State that we are seeing those successes. In fact, this week the Center for Economic and Policy Research reported that of the 13 States that increased their minimum wage in early 2014, 11 of them have seen a gain in employment since then, and half of the 10 fastest growing States by employment were among this group of minimum-wage raisers. This is just one of many reasons why I strongly support increasing the national minimum wage to $10.10. It is not going to make anyone rich, but for the 400,000 Washington residents who would be directly impacted, it would mean an average annual raise of approximately $375. That is no small amount for the over 48,000 in my State who would be lifted out of poverty with an increase in the minimum wage. But we have to do more. In fact, today two-thirds of our families rely on income from both parents. Thanks to our outdated Tax Code, a woman who is thinking about reentering the workforce as the second earner may face higher tax rates than her husband. That is unfair and it has got to change. So last month I introduced the 21st Century Worker Tax Cut Act, which would help solve that problem by giving struggling two-earner families with children a tax deduction on the second earner's income. My hope is that tomorrow here in the Senate we can come together on behalf of the millions of Americans who, like my own mother when I was growing up, are the sole breadwinner and caregiver in their family. I hope our colleagues have gotten a sense of how $7.25 an hour translates to a grocery trip for a family of four or to shopping for school supplies or even how it impacts making the daily commute. That is why all of us are here today, this afternoon, to give that mom or that dad a fair shot at succeeding in America. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I would like to pay tribute to a strong community leader, dedicated public servant, and advocate from the State of Washington, Val Ogden. Val was a longtime friend and I would not be where I am today without her support. She was a community advocate, in the truest and strongest sense of the word, and she was a champion for women and children. She was a member of the Washington State House of Representatives, serving as speaker pro tempore. Val was a leader for her community, securing funding for Washington State University Vancouver. She was a strong Democrat and very active in the Clark County Democratic Party. Val served as the executive director of the Clark County YWCA. But you can't talk about Val without talking about her husband of 67 years, Dan. They were a team and were always working together to make their community a better place to live. Val was also a very dedicated mother and grandmother. Along with Dan, she is survived by three children: Dan, Janeth and Patti, six grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. She will be missed by many but her legacy and leadership lives on. Mr. President, I would like to ask my colleagues to join me in paying homage to Val Ogden. She lived a full life and our thoughts are with her loved ones at this time of great loss.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to introduce the Military and Veteran Caregiver Services Improvement Act. This is a bill that will make critical improvements to how we support our ill and injured veterans and their caregivers. I am especially pleased to be joined this morning by our former colleague Senator Elizabeth Dole, who has come to the floor today and who has been such a tremendous and invaluable person in working to bring these caregiver issues to national attention. I really appreciate her being here and being such a champion on this, and a leader. She has brought people from all over the country together to make a difference for our caregivers and for our veterans. We also have many of the very caregivers this bill is designed to help--representing, by the way, almost every State--in the gallery today to see this legislation introduced. I am very proud they are here. It is incredibly important that they are here today and on Capitol Hill because, as the Presiding Officer knows, our caregivers work extremely hard without any recognition, and they rarely ask for anything for themselves. In fact, most of the caregivers I have met sound much like the veterans and servicemembers they care for when they say: Oh, this isn't about me; I am just doing my part. So last week, when RAND released their comprehensive, groundbreaking study on military caregivers, they chose a very appropriate title: ``Hidden Heroes.'' That is why it is so important to have all of those caregivers here today and working constantly to make sure we all understand what they do. I am very proud to be introducing this bill not only as a Senator and a senior member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee and someone who has fought so hard for the implementation of the VA caregivers program, but, as many of my colleagues know, for me, this is really a deeply personal issue. Growing up, I saw firsthand the many ways military service can affect both veterans and their families. My father served in World War II. He was among the first soldiers to land in Okinawa. He came home as a disabled veteran and was awarded the Purple Heart. Later in life he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Eventually he became too sick to work at the little five-and-dime store he managed, and my mom became his caregiver. This was no small burden for my mom, who had to raise seven children, care for my dad, and was now all of a sudden the primary source of income for our family. Today, after more than a decade of two wars, men and women in uniform, as did my father, have done everything that has been asked of them and so much more. But now, as our role in this conflict winds down, the support we provide cannot end when the war no longer leads the nightly news broadcasts and disappears from the front pages of our newspapers. It is an enduring commitment for those who will first need help now or those who will need help later in their lives. It is a lifetime of care for so many. In so many cases, the responsibility for providing that care often falls on the loved ones of severely injured veterans. Their courage and their devotion in taking on these responsibilities is inspiring for all of us. They are the reason we created the VA caregivers program, which now provides these family members with health care and counseling and training and respite and a living stipend. I was proud to lead congressional efforts to push the VA to stop delaying the implementation of the caregivers program and restore the eligibility criteria to the intent of the law. Thankfully, as we know, in the end the White House and the VA announced they would allow more caregivers of more veterans to be eligible for benefits and finally got the program implemented. But there is a lot more we can do because, as the RAND study clearly shows us, caregivers are still struggling. Military caregivers have significantly worse health than noncaregivers, and they are at higher risk for depression. The stress they live under jeopardizes their relationships and puts them at greater risk of divorce, and they have trouble with employment and keeping health insurance. There is no way we will sit by and let caregivers and veterans face this on their own--not when we can make it a little bit easier. The bill we are introducing this morning, the Military and Veterans Caregivers and Services Improvement Act, makes some broad changes to help give caregivers and veterans the tools they need to help tackle what they face. I wish to take a moment on the floor today to highlight just a few of the important provisions contained in this bill. First and foremost, this bill will make veterans of all eras eligible for the full range of caregiver support services. We took an important first step in creating the post-9/11 veterans caregivers program. Now that the VA has had some time to get this program working, it is time for us to get services to our older veterans who are also in great need. The bill also expands eligibility for the VA caregivers program by recognizing a wider array of needs which may require caregiving, placing greater emphasis on mental health injuries and removing restrictions on who is eligible to become a caregiver. Under the bill, caregiver services will also be expanded to include childcare, financial advice, and legal counseling. Those are some of the top and currently unmet needs of family caregivers. The bill will also require the Federal Government to meet the unique needs of employees who are caregivers with flexible work arrangements so they can stay employed while caring for their veteran. I, of course, want to see all employers make these kinds of accommodations for caregivers, but I want the Federal Government to lead by example. When it comes to the Department of Defense, the bill makes several improvements to the special compensation for assistance with activities of daily living--first, by making those benefits tax exempt, and second, eligibility for special compensation would also be set at a more appropriate level of disability and would be more inclusive of mental health injuries and TBI. The Military and Veteran Caregiver Services Improvement Act also addresses a key theme identified by RAND. There are many services inside the government and outside to assist caregivers, but these programs are not coordinated. Eligibility criteria are different for each one of them, and there is not enough oversight to ensure the quality of those services. So what our bill does is create a national interagency working group on caregiver services. It will coordinate caregiver policy among all the different departments and create standards of care and oversight tools to make sure our veterans and their caregivers receive high-quality services. The last provision I wish to highlight is intended to help a military spouse who may be required to become the primary source of income for the family after the servicemember has been injured, just as my mom was. In order to help that spouse get the job they need to support the family, this bill will allow the injured servicemember or veteran to transfer their post-9/11 GI bill benefits to their dependents by exempting them from the length of service requirements that would currently prevent them from transferring those benefits. Injured veterans should not be penalized because their injury occurred early in their service. This provision is extremely important because for 2013 the unemployment rate for people with bachelor's degrees was only 4 percent--about one-third lower than the national average--and their median weekly earnings were 34 percent higher than the national average. Meanwhile, the RAND study found that 62 percent of post-9/11 caregivers reported financial strain because of their caregiving. I know this is important because I saw it in my family. For my family, the additional education my mom obtained got her a better job so she could support her family while she was caring for my dad. It is what made the difference. I want to again thank some key people who have been true leaders to get this to this point. I again want to thank Senator Dole and her great staff at the Elizabeth Dole Foundation for keeping our country focused on the needs of our military and veteran caregivers and for bringing such national momentum to make the changes we need. I also want to thank the Wounded Warrior Project, which was a driving force in creating the very first VA caregivers program. They have provided invaluable advice in developing the bill I am introducing today. Finally, I really want to thank the outstanding folks at the RAND Corporation. They have put together a truly groundbreaking study that takes stock of where care and benefits have fallen short, where new needs are emerging, and how we can make it easier for veterans to get the care and benefits they deserve. There are many ways for the whole country--government, nonprofits, businesses, community leaders, faith leaders--to do more to help. For all of us in Congress, that starts with passing this legislation to help our hidden heroes--our military and veteran caregivers. I again want to thank all of our tremendous caregivers in this country for their service, for not asking for help, as they should. We are the ones who need to ask for help for them and to be there to provide it. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to introduce the Military and Veteran Caregiver Services Improvement Act. This is a bill that will make critical improvements to how we support our ill and injured veterans and their caregivers. I am especially pleased to be joined this morning by our former colleague Senator Elizabeth Dole, who has come to the floor today and who has been such a tremendous and invaluable person in working to bring these caregiver issues to national attention. I really appreciate her being here and being such a champion on this, and a leader. She has brought people from all over the country together to make a difference for our caregivers and for our veterans. We also have many of the very caregivers this bill is designed to help--representing, by the way, almost every State--in the gallery today to see this legislation introduced. I am very proud they are here. It is incredibly important that they are here today and on Capitol Hill because, as the Presiding Officer knows, our caregivers work extremely hard without any recognition, and they rarely ask for anything for themselves. In fact, most of the caregivers I have met sound much like the veterans and servicemembers they care for when they say: Oh, this isn't about me; I am just doing my part. So last week, when RAND released their comprehensive, groundbreaking study on military caregivers, they chose a very appropriate title: ``Hidden Heroes.'' That is why it is so important to have all of those caregivers here today and working constantly to make sure we all understand what they do. I am very proud to be introducing this bill not only as a Senator and a senior member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee and someone who has fought so hard for the implementation of the VA caregivers program, but, as many of my colleagues know, for me, this is really a deeply personal issue. Growing up, I saw firsthand the many ways military service can affect both veterans and their families. My father served in World War II. He was among the first soldiers to land in Okinawa. He came home as a disabled veteran and was awarded the Purple Heart. Later in life he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Eventually he became too sick to work at the little five-and-dime store he managed, and my mom became his caregiver. This was no small burden for my mom, who had to raise seven children, care for my dad, and was now all of a sudden the primary source of income for our family. Today, after more than a decade of two wars, men and women in uniform, as did my father, have done everything that has been asked of them and so much more. But now, as our role in this conflict winds down, the support we provide cannot end when the war no longer leads the nightly news broadcasts and disappears from the front pages of our newspapers. It is an enduring commitment for those who will first need help now or those who will need help later in their lives. It is a lifetime of care for so many. In so many cases, the responsibility for providing that care often falls on the loved ones of severely injured veterans. Their courage and their devotion in taking on these responsibilities is inspiring for all of us. They are the reason we created the VA caregivers program, which now provides these family members with health care and counseling and training and respite and a living stipend. I was proud to lead congressional efforts to push the VA to stop delaying the implementation of the caregivers program and restore the eligibility criteria to the intent of the law. Thankfully, as we know, in the end the White House and the VA announced they would allow more caregivers of more veterans to be eligible for benefits and finally got the program implemented. But there is a lot more we can do because, as the RAND study clearly shows us, caregivers are still struggling. Military caregivers have significantly worse health than noncaregivers, and they are at higher risk for depression. The stress they live under jeopardizes their relationships and puts them at greater risk of divorce, and they have trouble with employment and keeping health insurance. There is no way we will sit by and let caregivers and veterans face this on their own--not when we can make it a little bit easier. The bill we are introducing this morning, the Military and Veterans Caregivers and Services Improvement Act, makes some broad changes to help give caregivers and veterans the tools they need to help tackle what they face. I wish to take a moment on the floor today to highlight just a few of the important provisions contained in this bill. First and foremost, this bill will make veterans of all eras eligible for the full range of caregiver support services. We took an important first step in creating the post-9/11 veterans caregivers program. Now that the VA has had some time to get this program working, it is time for us to get services to our older veterans who are also in great need. The bill also expands eligibility for the VA caregivers program by recognizing a wider array of needs which may require caregiving, placing greater emphasis on mental health injuries and removing restrictions on who is eligible to become a caregiver. Under the bill, caregiver services will also be expanded to include childcare, financial advice, and legal counseling. Those are some of the top and currently unmet needs of family caregivers. The bill will also require the Federal Government to meet the unique needs of employees who are caregivers with flexible work arrangements so they can stay employed while caring for their veteran. I, of course, want to see all employers make these kinds of accommodations for caregivers, but I want the Federal Government to lead by example. When it comes to the Department of Defense, the bill makes several improvements to the special compensation for assistance with activities of daily living--first, by making those benefits tax exempt, and second, eligibility for special compensation would also be set at a more appropriate level of disability and would be more inclusive of mental health injuries and TBI. The Military and Veteran Caregiver Services Improvement Act also addresses a key theme identified by RAND. There are many services inside the government and outside to assist caregivers, but these programs are not coordinated. Eligibility criteria are different for each one of them, and there is not enough oversight to ensure the quality of those services. So what our bill does is create a national interagency working group on caregiver services. It will coordinate caregiver policy among all the different departments and create standards of care and oversight tools to make sure our veterans and their caregivers receive high-quality services. The last provision I wish to highlight is intended to help a military spouse who may be required to become the primary source of income for the family after the servicemember has been injured, just as my mom was. In order to help that spouse get the job they need to support the family, this bill will allow the injured servicemember or veteran to transfer their post-9/11 GI bill benefits to their dependents by exempting them from the length of service requirements that would currently prevent them from transferring those benefits. Injured veterans should not be penalized because their injury occurred early in their service. This provision is extremely important because for 2013 the unemployment rate for people with bachelor's degrees was only 4 percent--about one-third lower than the national average--and their median weekly earnings were 34 percent higher than the national average. Meanwhile, the RAND study found that 62 percent of post-9/11 caregivers reported financial strain because of their caregiving. I know this is important because I saw it in my family. For my family, the additional education my mom obtained got her a better job so she could support her family while she was caring for my dad. It is what made the difference. I want to again thank some key people who have been true leaders to get this to this point. I again want to thank Senator Dole and her great staff at the Elizabeth Dole Foundation for keeping our country focused on the needs of our military and veteran caregivers and for bringing such national momentum to make the changes we need. I also want to thank the Wounded Warrior Project, which was a driving force in creating the very first VA caregivers program. They have provided invaluable advice in developing the bill I am introducing today. Finally, I really want to thank the outstanding folks at the RAND Corporation. They have put together a truly groundbreaking study that takes stock of where care and benefits have fallen short, where new needs are emerging, and how we can make it easier for veterans to get the care and benefits they deserve. There are many ways for the whole country--government, nonprofits, businesses, community leaders, faith leaders--to do more to help. For all of us in Congress, that starts with passing this legislation to help our hidden heroes--our military and veteran caregivers. I again want to thank all of our tremendous caregivers in this country for their service, for not asking for help, as they should. We are the ones who need to ask for help for them and to be there to provide it. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I want to start by expressing my deep thanks and appreciation to Senator Mikulski for her tremendous leadership in the fight for equal pay and for bringing the Paycheck Fairness Act to the forefront of the debate this session. The role of women in our families and in our economy has really shifted dramatically over the last few decades. Today 60 percent of families rely on earnings from both parents. That is up from 37 percent in 1975--60 percent. Women today make up nearly half the workforce, and more than ever women are likely to be the primary breadwinner in their families. Women are making a difference in our economy, in board rooms, lecture halls and small businesses. But despite the important progress we have made since the Equal Pay Act passed now 50 years ago, including passing the Lilly Ledbetter Act in 2009--thanks again to Senator Mikulski--giving women more tools to fight against pay discrimination, women's wages have not caught up with the times. Across the country today women still earn 77 cents on the dollar, on average, to do the exact same work as men. It would take a typical woman until today to earn what a man would earn doing the same work in 2013. That difference really adds up. In Seattle, in my home State, last year women earned 73 cents on the dollar--73 cents on the dollar-- compared to their male counterparts. That translated to a yearly gap of $16,346. Nationwide, over a typical woman's lifetime, pay discrimination amounts to $464,320 in lost wages. That is not only unfair to women, it is bad for our families, and it is bad for our economy. At a time when more and more families rely on women's wages to put food on the table or stay in their homes or build a nest egg for retirement or help pay for their children's education, it is absolutely critical we do more to eliminate pay discrimination and unfairness in the workplace. The Paycheck Fairness Act would tackle pay discrimination head on. It would ramp up enforcement of equal pay laws and strengthen assistance to businesses to improve equal pay practices. I hope we can all agree that 21st century workers should be compensated based on how they do their job, not whether they are male or female. I hope to be able to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act as quickly as possible for working women and their families in this country, but we can't stop there. We need to build then on these critical reforms with other steps toward giving women a better and a fairer shot at getting ahead. One out of four women in the United States today would benefit from raising the minimum wage. That is 15 million American women who are making the equivalent of about 2 gallons of gas per hour. It is clearly time to raise the minimum wage and give working women in the country some much deserved relief. There are other ways we can, and should be, updating our policies to help working women and their families make ends meet. For example, thanks to our outdated Tax Code, a woman who is thinking about reentering the workforce as the second earner in her family is likely going to face higher tax rates than her husband. That would come in addition to increased costs that she would then have with child care and transportation and the possibility of losing tax credits and other benefits as her household income rises. All of this means struggling families will experience higher tax rates than what many of the wealthiest Americans pay. This can discourage a potential second earner, such as a mom who is talking about reentering the workforce and returning to her professional career. I recently introduced the 21st Century Worker Tax Cut Act, which would help solve this problem by giving struggling two-earner families with children a tax deduction on the second earner's income. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that change alone would cut taxes by an average of $700 for 7.3 million families next year. The 21st Century Worker Tax Cut Act would also expand the EITC for childless workers and lower the eligibility age so that people without dependents and young workers just starting out can benefit from the credit. By the way, this has bipartisan support. It builds on work incentives from the EITC and is paid for by getting rid of wasteful corporate tax loopholes that both Ways and Means Chairman Camp and Democrats agree ought to be closed. Opinion leaders from across the political spectrum have said this bill would provide much-needed relief to workers and families. One conservative commentator wrote in the National Review that the 21st Century Worker Tax Cut Act is ``a serious proposal that has the potential to better the lives of a large number of workers.'' A New York Times editorial columnist says it would be ``a huge benefit to low-income childless families and two-earner families.'' So I am hopeful that here in Congress we will see similar support on both sides of the aisle for a bill that would help women and working families keep more of what they earn. We have come a long way in terms of the opportunities women have in our country today, but there is no question we have a lot more work to do. If we take these steps I have talked about, and that others here are talking about, we will do much to break down the very real barriers that still exist today. We will help working women and their families, we will strengthen our economy, and we will expand opportunity for the next generation of women who enter the workforce. So I am here today to urge my colleagues to support the Paycheck Fairness Act and then build on that step by continuing to help level the playing field for American women and their families. Madam President, I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, last October families and communities across our country were forced to endure a completely unnecessary government shutdown. Coming after years of budget uncertainty and constant crises, the shutdown hurt our workers and threatened our fragile economic recovery. It shook the confidence of people across the country who expected their elected officials to come together to avoid such a needless and self-inflicted crisis. It was a dark time here in Congress. I think many of my colleagues regret letting the tea party minority push us into that. When the shutdown finally ended, I sat down with House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan in a budget conference that many of us had been trying to start for months. We worked through the issues. We compromised. We reached a 2-year budget deal that rolled back the devastating cuts from sequestration. We prevented another government shutdown and restored much needed certainty to the budget process. That budget deal was a strong step in the right direction, but it was not the only step Congress needs to take to create jobs and economic growth. It was not the only step we need to take to ensure that we do not lurch to another avoidable crisis because if Congress does not act, we are headed toward another crisis in just a few months--not a budget crisis this time but a construction shutdown that could ramp up when our highway trust fund reaches critically low levels. It will get worse and worse if we do not solve the problem. So I have come to the floor today to call on my colleagues, Democrats and Republicans, to work together to avert this looming crisis and to do it in a commonsense way that gives our States the multiyear certainty they need to plan projects, to invest in their communities, and to create jobs. Since the mid-1950s our Nation has relied on the highway trust fund to support transportation projects that create jobs and keep our economy moving. The fund helps to repave our roads so they are not pockmarked with potholes. It helps congestion on our Nation's highways, and it helps repair bridges that are outdated and unsafe. But as soon as July--just a few months from now--the Department of Transportation predicts the highway trust fund will reach a critically low level. If this is not resolved, construction projects to improve our roads and our bridges could shut down and leave workers without a paycheck. We are already seeing some consequences from this crisis. In Arkansas, 10 construction projects, such as building highway connections and replacing bridges, have already been put on hold. The State of Colorado wants to widen a major highway to ease congestion between Denver and Fort Collins, but officials say that with this funding shortage in the highway trust fund, that project could be delayed. These are not isolated cases. States from Vermont to California might have to stop construction in its tracks because of this highway trust fund shortfall. This crisis will also cut jobs. As we all know, construction is at its peak in the summer months. But without funding States may have no choice but to stop construction and leave workers without a job. That is going to hurt communities with needless delays on the very improvements that would help our businesses and spur economic growth. This is unacceptable. It is unnecessary. Congress needs to work to avoid this construction shutdown. There is no reason--none--to lurch to another avoidable crisis when workers and families across the country are struggling. We need to ensure that construction can continue this summer. We need to support workers. We need to deliver a multiyear solution for the highway trust fund. Fortunately, we can solve this in a way that should have bipartisan support. President Obama and House Republican Dave Camp, who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee, have proposed using corporate revenue to shore up the highway trust fund. That approach makes a lot of sense. By closing wasteful corporate tax loopholes, we can support improvements to our roads and bridges that benefit everyone--including our big businesses, so they can move their products quickly and efficiently--and make our broken Tax Code a bit fairer in the process. We can start by taking a close look at the tax loopholes House Republicans have proposed closing in Chairman Camp's recent plan. Replenishing the highway trust fund with revenue by closing wasteful corporate loopholes will provide multiyear funding so we can provide our States with the certainty they need to plan. That kind of certainty has been absent for a long time. It has forced States to hold off on bigger projects that will help create jobs and long-term economic growth. I am very hopeful that Democrats and Republicans can work together to restore some certainty to States around our country. I know bipartisan support is possible, especially on an issue as important as this one. Since the highway trust fund's inception under Dwight D. Eisenhower, Republicans and Democrats have come together to invest in this national priority. Under Democratic and Republican Presidencies--from President Clinton to President Reagan to President Clinton--we updated and supported the highway trust fund. Even 2 years ago in a hyperpartisan election year, Congress reached a bipartisan agreement so that we could continue to build the roads and bridges and transit systems our communities need. In the past Republicans and Democrats have stepped up to support our workers and make sure we can invest in our transportation systems that put workers on the job and help businesses move their goods and help our economy grow. There is no reason to wait until the last minute to get this done. The threat is growing on our construction sites and for jobs across the country. We have to give our States and our communities the confidence that Congress will not push them into another crisis. Six months ago our communities and families endured a needless government shutdown. Americans are sick and tired of the dysfunction of Washington, DC, and constant crises. There is no reason for Congress to put them through anything even remotely similar, especially over transportation projects that will benefit our families, our communities, and our economy. We must act to prevent a construction shutdown this summer. Let's build on the common ground that Democrats and Republicans share on this issue. Let's work together to show the American people that Congress can act to support our workers, families, and communities. Let's prevent a construction shutdown and give the highway trust fund some certainty. We need to make sure our States can keep investing in jobs and economic growth at this critical time. I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mrs. MURRAY. I ask that all time be yielded back.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. There are a number of women who are going to be joining me today. They are leaders in this Capitol who are working each and every day, both here and back in their home States, to give more of their constituents a chance to succeed. Today we are here to talk about one small idea that stands to make a huge difference in the lives of our constituents, and for women in particular, and that is the idea that if you are putting in 40 or 50 or 60 hours of work per week you should be able to put food on your table and pay your bills, and you won't be stuck below the poverty line. This idea could change the lives of millions of Americans if Congress simply acted and raised the minimum wage. We need to act now because right now one in four women--one in four women--is making minimum wage today. That is 15 million American women who are making the equivalent of about 2 gallons of gas per hour. Are we prepared to tell them that should be enough to support themselves and their kids? In fact, as I am sure you will hear repeated by others today, nearly two-thirds of those who earn minimum wage or less are women. This is coming at a time when more women are now depended upon as the sole income earners in their families. Right now in cities and towns across America there are millions of those women who are getting up at the crack of dawn for work every day. They are stuck living in poverty. They cannot save for a car, much less a house. They cannot pay for school so they can get better skills and a better paying job. They cannot even afford to provide their children with more winter clothes or basic medical care. That is not how it is supposed to work in America, the country where you are told if you work hard and play by the rules you can get ahead. So when we talk about the minimum wage, let's be clear: Raising the minimum wage is about bringing back our middle class. I am proud that in my State of Washington we are taking the lead. In our State our workforce enjoys the highest minimum wage in the country, and I am glad to point out to all of our friends on the other side of the aisle, Washington State's economy has not been negatively impacted by our high minimum wage. In fact, our economy has benefited from a high minimum wage. Job growth has continued at a rate above the national average. Payrolls in our restaurants and bars have expanded due to people having more money in their pockets to spend at dinner or a night on the town, and poverty in Washington State has trailed the national level for at least 7 years now. That is why I support making the national minimum wage $10.10 for families from Washington to Wisconsin, from Massachusetts to Minnesota and Hawaii and everywhere in-between. It is not enough to make you rich, but it is a small raise for millions of families who desperately need it. It is a small raise for moms and dads who need help. We have to do more. Today, two-thirds of families rely on income from both parents, but thanks to our outdated Tax Code, a woman thinking about reentering the workforce as a second earner in her family may face higher tax rates than her husband. That is unfair, and it has to change. Last week I introduced the 21st Century Worker Tax Cut Act which will help solve that problem by giving struggling two-earner families with children a tax deduction on that second earner's income. My hope is that over the coming weeks we can all come together in this Chamber on behalf of millions of American women who--like my own mother when I was growing up--are the sole caregiver and breadwinner in their families. I hope our colleagues have gotten a sense of how the current $7.25 an hour translates to a grocery trip for a family of four, shopping for school supplies or even how it impacts people's daily commutes. That is why we are here today--to give that mom or that dad a fair shot at succeeding in America. I am proud to be joined today by a number of my colleagues in the Senate who are strong women and fighting for women and men in their home States. I yield the floor.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, pursuant to section 904 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and the waiver provisions of applicable budget resolutions, I move to waive all applicable sections of that act and applicable budget resolutions for purposes of the pending amendment, and I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the vote occur at the time set under the previous order.

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I come to the floor this afternoon to request unanimous consent to pass a bill that is a very small step in what will be a very long recovery process for a community in my home State of Washington that was devastated by a landslide less than two weeks ago. This is the Green Mountain Lookout bill, which will be passed shortly. It is not going to rebuild anybody's home--which needs to be done--or provide desperately needed human aid that we are supporting through our recent Federal disaster designation. What this small, little bill does is provide a glimmer of hope for the long-term recovery of this region, and in particularly of the community of Darrington. For years now, along with Senator Cantwell, I have fought to pass this bill through procedural and political hurdles because I know what it means to Snohomish County and that region of my State. The Green Mountain Lookout is more than a hiking destination. It is part of the Pacific Northwest heritage. It is a cherished historical landmark. It is a place where parents have brought their kids for generations to appreciate the splendor of the great outdoors in the Northwest, and it is a place that has been a vital source of tourism-related income for the people who have been impacted by this deadly landslide that struck this region. I was in Darrington this weekend and had an opportunity to sit down with the mayor and many of the town officials--a town of about 1200 people--and they told me tremendous stories about the families that have been lost, about people who had driven to the store on that Saturday morning and now only had what they wore when they left their homes a few hours earlier. I heard about the needs this community is going to have for a long time and the emotional impact. After finishing our official meetings, the mayor took us aside and told me, Senator Cantwell, and Congresswoman DelBene that the one glimmer of hope he thought he could provide for this community was passage of this Green Mountain Lookout bill that we are going to pass in just a few moments. So I want to extend truly heartfelt thanks to both Senator Landrieu and Senator Murkowski, who have been incredibly understanding, and to all the Members of the Senate who have been helpful in going through the process of getting the bill to the floor today. They know what it means when communities large or small are impacted by a disaster of this size, and both of them know that the Federal Government needs to be there quickly to provide support. Madam President, the people of Oso, Arlington, and Darrington have a very long road to recovery ahead, so I was very pleased when the President granted a major disaster declaration just last night which will be vital to meeting many of the immediate human needs that we are going to be facing. It is important that these communities know we are in it for the long term as well. Even a small step like this one that supports the region's tourist economy and brings that little bit of hope is critical to showing them that all of us and the Federal Government will be there for them. So as they mourn their loved ones and work hard to recover and ultimately rebuild, I am proud that we will not forget them. With that, Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 338, S. 404.

Mrs. MURRAY. I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate.

Mrs. MURRAY. Thank you, Madam President. I know the town of Darrington will thank you as well.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Senator Begich's NOAA fellow, Bill Mowitt, be granted floor privileges for the remainder of the 113th Congress.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, section 114(d) of H.J. Res. 59, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, allows the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee to revise the allocations, aggregates, and levels filed on January 14, 2014, pursuant to section 111 of H.J. Res. 59, for a number of deficit-neutral reserve funds. These reserve funds were incorporated into the Bipartisan Budget Act by reference to sections of S. Con. Res. 8, the Senate-passed budget resolution for 2014. Among these sections is a reference to section 302 of S. Con. Res. 8, which, in subsection (c), establishes a deficit-neutral reserve fund for unemployment relief. The authority to adjust enforceable levels in the Senate for unemployment relief is contingent on that legislation not increasing the deficit over either the period of the total of fiscal years 2013 through 2018 or the period of the total of fiscal years 2013 through 2023. I find that amendment 2874, the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2014, to H.R. 3979 fulfills the conditions of the deficit-neutral reserve fund for unemployment relief, including not increasing the deficit over either of the 2013 through 2018 or 2013 through 2023 budget windows. Therefore, pursuant to section 114(d) of H.J. Res. 59, I am adjusting the budgetary aggregates, as well as the allocation to the Committee on Finance. I ask unanimous consent that the following tables detailing the revisions be printed in the Record.

Mrs. MURRAY

Mrs. MURRAY. I thank the Chair. (The remarks of Mrs. MURRAY pertaining to the introduction of S. 2164 are printed in today's Record under ``Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')