Eleanor Norton

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and congratulate Julius C. Jefferson, Jr., for his service this past year as the national president of the American Library Association (ALA). A fourth- generation native of Washington, D.C., Julius received his bachelor's degree in history from Howard University and his master's degree in library science from the University of Maryland. As a librarian, Mr. Jefferson has spent his career committed to advocacy, information policy, diversity, equity and inclusion and professional and leadership development. In recognition of his leadership and dedication to librarianship, the members of the ALA elected Mr. Jefferson to be their 2020-2021 president. Like so many of us, libraries have had to adapt to changing circumstances during the pandemic, and Julius provided extraordinary leadership throughout this time. Mr. Jefferson began his term as ALA president with a virtual tour of 12 libraries. The ``Holding Space'' tour is what he called a series of virtual conversations that highlighted the innovation and impact of a diverse range of libraries around the nation. The ``Holding Space'' tour engaged stakeholders, including elected officials at every level of government, to advocate for libraries and the communities they serve. I note that many of us in Congress benefit directly from the work of Mr. Jefferson, who serves as a section head of the Congressional Research Service at the Library of Congress. Mr. Jefferson has also served as president of the national Freedom to Read Foundation and of the Washington, D.C. Library Association. As a member of several boards, including the Black Caucus of the American Library Association, Mr. Jefferson has worked to diversify the profession of librarianship and elevate the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion. Once again, I want to congratulate Julius Jefferson on his term as President of the American Library Association.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to include in the Record a statement of a constituent of mine, Staff Sergeant Ashley Carothers, who is a veteran of the United States Air Force. Staff Sergeant Carothers served from 2005 to 2013, and thus was subject to the ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' policy for most of her service. I share her story as we commemorate 10 years since the repeal of ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'' Staff Sergeant Carothers was honorably discharged in 2013 and lives in the District of Columbia. This is what she has said about her experience: During my Air Force career, I lived a double life. I was an actress portraying a straight Airman on a stage called life and behind closed doors a very broken human being that desperately just wanted to be herself. I was a lesbian in hiding. I was the Airman that did it all, scored as high as they could on tests, worked to know the job better than the rest and volunteer for everything that I could in hopes that my busy life would never uncover the truth. Behind the curtain I dated but relationships couldn't really completely build because there was always a sense of getting caught especially in a mil to mil relationship. Supervisors constantly questioning you and trying to set you up with the new guy in the shop and always prying into why you constantly denied any male advances. The worst part was the feeling of always being alone while fending off the wolves (male airmen) and dodging sexual harassment and assault as a woman just trying to serve her country. I guess it made me stronger in a weird messed up way as I was able to provide support to others later in my career, support I never had. While serving in Germany I had the privilege to be one of the chapter leaders for the then-underground organization known as OutServe. Prior to the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell we had a large number of LGBT service members all over the European theater that relied on each other for support and a sense of community. During this timeframe, multiple individuals struggled further with their military leadership as those opposed to the repeal expressed their views verbally, leaving many with anxiety about the future. There were many late-night phone calls trying to be the voice of reason in moments of doubt and desperation when options to turn to mental health professionals were nonexistent for fear of discharge. Not being able to fight for them and speak freely and openly to commands for support damaged individuals beyond repair. If anyone went to speak to a mental health professional and disclosed the fact that they identified as gay, lesbian or bisexual, they would be on the chopping block as they were serving under Don't Ask, Don't Tell. On top of that, many served in career fields that they had to report any visit to a mental health professional, further limiting these individuals who desperately needed assistance. These individuals had no one to turn to and suffered in silence. Most even after the repeal couldn't come out as lesbian, gay or bisexual for fear of mistreatment from their superiors. Some suffered greatly by coming out to their commands, as they had to work twice as hard to prove themselves and were often overlooked for promotion and awards. Balancing my own life struggles and the struggles of those that looked to me for support was a pretty demanding time in my career. My career and health did suffer, but I often think about what life would have been like if I hadn't been able to give so much or if the military would have just let humans be humans by being their true authentic selves in the first place. The constant jokes, ridicule and mistreatment from superiors hasn't gone away. On this anniversary, I hope that those in charge will finally take the right steps and change the culture. Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to share Staff Sergeant Carothers' story and to remember the thousands like her who were harmed by Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the National Capital Planning Commission District of Columbia Home Rule Act. This bill would remove the authority of the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), a federal agency, to review or approve the development of District of Columbia-owned land. This bill would also remove the requirement that the Mayor of the District get NCPC's approval before selling D.C.-owned real estate, and would allow D.C. agencies to transfer jurisdiction over D.C.-owned land among themselves without NCPC's approval. Under federal law, NCPC has approval authority for the development of D.C.-owned public buildings located in the central area, including the location, height, bulk, number of stories, and size of such buildings. The District is required to consult with NCPC on its buildings outside the central area, but NCPC has only advisory authority in those areas. The central area is defined by the concurrent action of NCPC and the D.C. Council and currently consists of the Downtown and Shaw Urban Renewal Areas. This authority is unnecessary, as shown by the virtual absence of its use to disapprove sales or development, and violates D.C. home rule. This latent authority of the federal government should not be able to slow or block the development of D.C.-owned land or add to the cost of development. The District is not a federal agency and should not be treated any differently by federal law than other local jurisdictions, where local development proceeds without federal interference. This bill is one more important step to increase home rule for the District, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the Protecting Independent Contractors from Discrimination Act, which would extend to independent contractors the same federal antidiscrimination protections enjoyed by employees. My bill would extend the following antidiscrimination statutes, which apply to employees, to independent contractors: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 505 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008. In a Bureau of Labor Statistics 2005 analysis of the American workforce, approximately seven percent of workers were considered independent contractors. That number has surely only grown in the 16 years since that analysis with the growth of the so-called gig economy. A more recent poll estimates the number at 14 percent. Independent contractors, who often do the same work as employees, have almost none of the same protections, including health insurance, collective bargaining, retirement security, and even antidiscrimination. My bill focuses only on discrimination, such as discrimination based on race, age, and gender, from which every worker is entitled to be free. I strongly urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to introduce the Bayard Rustin Stamp Act. This bill would direct the United States Postmaster General to issue a forever stamp to commemorate the life and work of Bayard Rustin. I introduce this bill with Representatives Mondaire Jones and Ritchie Torres. We introduce the bill now to coincide with the anniversary of the March on Washington, which occurred on August 28, 1963, and the anniversary of Rustin's death, which occurred on August 24, 1987. Born March 17, 1912, Bayard Rustin became one of the most important leaders in the 20th century civil rights movement. At a young age, Rustin learned the values of nonviolence and peacekeeping from his grandparents' Quaker faith, and he would continue to build these values into his life as a civil rights movement leader. Rustin attended City College of New York, where he joined a progressive club that aimed to remedy racial issues during turbulent times. His time with the club was short-lived, but it inspired him to join the Fellowship of Reconciliation, an organization that became a champion for labor rights, equity and world peace. Rustin's time with the Fellowship of Reconciliation led him to become a leader in the 1947 ``Journey to Reconciliation,'' where white and black people across the South rode buses together to challenge segregation laws, a precursor to the Freedom Rides. Rustin was an advisor in Martin Luther King Jr.'s inner circle as King advocated pacifism and nonviolence for achieving equal treatment for African Americans. Rustin applied his brilliant strategic mind to execute aggressive, peaceful action in the civil rights movement and throughout his life as an activist. His most important role was as the chief organizer of the historic 1963 March on Washington, the largest demonstration ever organized at the time, in which a quarter of a million people turned out to demand civil rights for African Americans. In the years after the civil rights movement, Rustin, a gay man, inspired others to advocate for and to achieve LGBTQ rights. He remained a strategist and public speaker for workers' rights movements, including co-founding the A. Philip Randolph Institute for black trade union members. Rustin remained committed to promoting social good, and advocating for the disenfranchised, until his death. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the National Commission to Combat Workplace Sexual Harassment Act to establish a national commission to examine and combat sexual harassment in the U.S. workplace. I have modeled this bill on legislation Congress has passed to address other national problems considered to be serious, such as gambling. The almost daily exposure of allegations of sexual harassment, including the recent allegations made against New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, more than qualifies sexual harassment for national attention and priority. This bill would create a national commission to focus on sexual harassment in major industries and workplaces throughout the United States. Congress has adopted legislation that addresses harassment in the congressional workplace. It requires Members of the House and Senate to be personally liable for settlements and awards resulting from harassment and retaliation claims, removes mandatory counseling, mediation and ``cooling off'' periods for accusers that had been required, mandates publicly reporting awards and settlements and covers unpaid staff as well. These steps move in the right direction beginning where Congress should--right here in the Congress itself. However, nothing equivalent has been done for sexual harassment that affects the American people. We have largely neglected our own constituents, despite the increasing number of troubling reports in the news of sexual harassment claims. A national commission would assure the American people that Congress takes sexual harassment affecting them--the typical worker--seriously, beyond the high-profile examples, such as allegations against Harvey Weinstein, Jeffrey Epstein, Governor Cuomo and the Congress itself, that have garnered the headlines. Most importantly, the commission would hear from a cross section of the public--from office and factory workers to retail and food service employees--whose experiences with sexual harassment have received almost no national attention. The commission could travel or invite witnesses to Washington from throughout the country to recommend changes in laws or regulations and best practices on preventing, training, investigating, responding to and penalizing sexual harassment in the private and public sectors. Our constituents expect Congress, which represents every sector, to take on the problem of sexual harassment throughout our national economy, including private and public (Federal, state and local) workplaces. A national commission could help reach and reduce sexual harassment, a form of gender discrimination, where the average American works. I strongly urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the District of Columbia Zoning Commission Home Rule Act. This bill would give the District of Columbia the authority to appoint all members of the D.C. Zoning Commission (Commission). Currently, the Commission consists of two federal officials (the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) and the Director of the National Park Service (NPS), or their designees), and three mayoral appointees, subject to D.C. Council approval. The federal officials are members even though the Commission has no authority over federal property. Land use is a quintessential local matter in our country. Despite the D.C. Home Rule Act, which gave the District jurisdiction over its local matters, 40 percent of the members of the Commission are federal officials, who are unaccountable to the more than 700,000 residents who live in the District. The federal government would lose nothing as a result of this bill because the federal government's land-use interests in the nation's capital are protected by federal law and federal agencies. The Commission creates the zoning maps and regulations, which must ``not be inconsistent with the comprehensive plan for the national capital.'' The mayor is responsible for the local elements of the comprehensive plan, subject to Council approval. The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), which is the central federal planning agency for the federal government in D.C. and approves federal projects here, is responsible for the federal elements of the comprehensive plan. This bill would not alter the comprehensive plan process or the authority of NCPC and the Commission. This bill would immediately remove the AOC and the Director of the NPS from the Commission, and the Commission would, at least initially, consist solely of the three mayoral appointees. The District would have the authority to reconstitute the membership of the Commission through local legislation. This is an important step to increase home rule for the District, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I rise to salute whistleblowers and to mark a day of appreciation for their critical contribution to American justice and to the safety and security of us all. Whistleblowers, among other things, keep companies that do business with the federal government honest and accountable. Working from confidential tips and insights provided by whistleblowers in qui tam cases, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) recovers billions of dollars annually under the False Claims Act. Over a recent four-year period, the government recovered $11.4 billion in fraud prosecutions and distributed more than $1.54 billion in whistleblower reward payments. For example, last year, a major toxicology laboratory was required to pay the government $12 million in a False Claims Act qui tam case when it was found to have paid unlawful kickbacks to a marketer and health care provider in exchange for referrals for urine drug tests. The whistleblower-inspired investigation also led to a criminal indictment of individuals involved in the scheme and the establishment of a five- year Corporate Integrity Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Service's Office of Inspector General, which required the company to retain an Independent Review Organization to monitor its arrangements with individuals and other entities and to routinely report to the Office of Inspector General. Those who blow the whistle on federal contractors are typically awarded 15 to 30 percent of the funds recovered by DOJ. One whistle blower collected $4 million in a False Claims Act qui ram case on behalf of the government against two contractors that knowingly failed to comply with federal and state prevailing wage laws. The contractors agreed to correct their compensation practices, and their employees were paid back wages. In these cases, whistleblowers brought the fraud to light, companies were held accountable, taxpayer funds were recovered, future misconduct was averted, and workers were made whole. I want to thank my constituent Renee Brooker, partner at Tycko & Zavareei LLP and former Civil Frauds Assistant Director at DOJ for sharing her expertise on whistleblower law with my office. Today, on National Whistleblower Appreciation Day, I ask my colleagues to recognize whistleblowers and to encourage more individuals to become whistleblowers.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the District of Columbia Courts Vacancy Reduction Act. This bill would allow local District of Columbia court nominees to be seated after a 30-day congressional review period unless a resolution of disapproval is enacted into law during that period. Currently, nominees cannot be seated without affirmative Senate approval. The congressional review process for nominees would be the same as used for legislation passed by the D.C. Council. It is therefore a reliable process, long- recognized by Congress. My bill is prompted by the unique requirement that judges for the local D.C. courts be confirmed by the Senate, where nominees for the federal courts and executive branch, understandably, get the primary focus and priority. There has been a longstanding vacancy crisis facing the District's local criminal and civil courts, and the local D.C. courts have raised serious concerns about these longstanding vacancies. Whether Democrats or Republicans control the Senate, the local D.C. courts regularly face vacancy crises, which harm the operations of the local judicial system in the District. Congress created the D.C. Judicial Nomination Commission (JNC) to recommend candidates to the President, and Congress should generally defer to its judgment. This bill is a compromise, useful to all concerned, that retains a congressional role while saving the Senate time by removing the need for committee and floor action on local judges and increasing the odds that D.C. will have a full complement of local judges. Currently, there are 12 vacancies out of 62 authorized judges on the D.C. Superior Court and three vacancies out of nine authorized judges on the D.C. Court of Appeals. Both pre- and post-home rule, the District has never had control over the nomination and approval of local D.C. judges. My bill would not alter the role of the JNC or the President in the nomination process. Under the Home Rule Act, the JNC recommends to the President a list of three candidates for each vacancy on the Superior Court and the Court of Appeals. The President must nominate a candidate recommended by the JNC within 60 days to the Senate for advice and consent. If the President fails to nominate such a person within 60 days, the JNC must nominate a recommended person directly to the Senate for advice and consent. The Senate has no obligation to provide its advice and consent. Under this bill, once a nomination has been transmitted to Congress, the nomination would be deemed approved unless a resolution of disapproval is enacted into law during a 30-day review period. I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 272) to amend the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006, to require the budget justifications and appropriation requests of agencies be made publicly available.

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure before us.

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the bill before us, the Congressional Budget Justification Transparency Act, is a commonsense, good government measure every Member should support. It would require the congressional budget justification documents that agencies prepare for congressional committees to be posted online in a centralized, searchable database. This would make these detailed, plain-language explanations of how agencies plan to spend taxpayer dollars more accessible to the public. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Representative Mike Quigley for his work on the House companion to this measure. He has a long history as a strong advocate of transparency in the operations of the Federal Government. This bill builds on the work of the Committee to improve government transparency by allowing the public to more easily learn about how Federal agencies spend their taxpayer dollars. Mr. Speaker, I support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman from Pennsylvania has no further speakers, I am prepared to close.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials on H.R. 3533.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1204) to amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to permit the District of Columbia to establish the rate of pay of the Chief Financial Officer of the District of Columbia.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure before us.

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of H.R. 2485, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2485) to require the Director of the Government Publishing Office to establish and maintain an online portal accessible to the public that allows the public to obtain electronic copies of all congressionally mandated reports in one place, and for other purposes, as amended.

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Representative Mike Quigley for his persistence in pursuing this good government legislation. Hopefully, we can get this bill enacted this Congress. H.R. 2485, the Access to Congressionally Mandated Reports Act, is a non-controversial bill that has been approved by the Oversight and Reform Committee many times. The bill is a commonsense measure that would make the government more transparent and accountable. It would create a one-stop-shop where Congress and members of the public could access agency reports to Congress. Federal agencies submit thousands of reports to Congress each year. This bill will improve congressional oversight by making it easy to find and access those reports. H.R. 2485 would give the public access to agency reports. Currently, members of the public often have to file requests under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain agency reports to Congress because many of these reports are not available online. An online library of Federal reports would improve our ability to use the information in them to make sound policy. It also would encourage agency compliance with reporting requirements. Finally, it would support timely access to the reports by State and local governments, students, academics, and others with the additional benefit of decreasing the burden on agencies to process Freedom of Information Act requests. The Access to Congressionally Mandated Reports Act is endorsed by almost 40 organizations from across the political spectrum. Mr. Speaker, I support this bill and urge all my colleagues to support it, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman from Pennsylvania has no further speakers, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure before us.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2617) to amend section 1115 of title 31, United States Code, to amend the description of how performance goals are achieved, and for other purposes, as amended.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 2382) to authorize the National Cyber Director to accept details from other elements of the Federal Government on nonreimbursable basis, and for other purposes.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 848, the Consider Teachers Act of 2021. I introduced the companion bill with Congresswoman Victoria Spartz. I would like to thank Senators Mike Braun and Kyrsten Sinema also for their leadership on this bill, and my good friend, Chairman Bobby Scott, for bringing this bill to the floor today. This bill would improve the service obligation verification process for the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant Program, or TEACH grant program, as it is called. The TEACH grant program was created to attract the best and brightest to the teaching profession in underserved communities. The TEACH grant program provides up to $4,000 a year in grants to students who agree to serve for at least 4 years as full-time teachers in a high-need field in a public or private elementary or secondary school that serves low-income families. The obligation to teach 4 years must be completed within an 8-year period. Those who do not fulfill their service requirement have their grants converted into Federal direct unsubsidized Stafford loans which must be paid back with interest. These loans cannot revert to grants. According to the Office of Management and Budget, 66 percent of the grants are converted into loans. Though 21,000 grant recipients have completed the program without conversion, 94,000 recipients have had their grants converted to loans. Those conversions are often triggered by small paperwork issues, such as submitting the annual form 1 day late or missing a date or signature. In 2018, the U.S. Department of Education released a reconsideration process for recipients who had their grants converted into loans but had either fulfilled, or could still fulfill, their service obligations. The department also turned back the clock to allow teachers who had left the TEACH grant program once their grants were converted to loans to give them more time to complete their service obligations. These changes allowed the department to lift the debt of 2,300 recipients. I am pleased that the department made additional improvements to the program on July 1, 2021, including opening the reconsideration process to all TEACH grant program recipients. This bill would codify some of these changes, creating a safeguard from changes in department leadership. This bill would also outline yearly deadlines and notification requirements to rectify some of the TEACH grant program's previous administrative mishaps. Furthermore, with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, many recipients have had trouble finding qualifying work. This bill would create a grace period for those individuals by extending the service obligation fulfillment period by 3 years for anyone who was fulfilling their obligations when the coronavirus pandemic began. This past year has given us all a hard lesson in the invaluable service that teachers and educators provide to our society. As many young students have turned to homeschooling and remote learning, we have all come to appreciate the hard work and incredible talent of our teachers who foster the mental, physical, and emotional growth of our children every day. This bill ensures that that pipeline of talent for the teaching profession remains strong and that we do not unduly burden TEACH grant program recipients who have dedicated themselves to serving our most vulnerable communities. I understand what that means because my own mother, Vela Holmes, was a teacher in the D.C. Public Schools. Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill.

Ms. NORTON

Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, with a detailed poll showing that 54 percent of the American people now support statehood for our Nation's capital, the District of Columbia, we are optimistic about passage in the Senate of H.R. 51. I thank the House for passage of our statehood bill, for that passage has spurred the American majority that now supports D.C. statehood. The recent hearing in the Senate helped further educate Americans about our statehood bill, noting that our country is the only democratic country that denies equal representation for the people of its capital. With continuing success with our D.C. statehood bill, we look forward to reporting progress on our bill on becoming the State of Washington, Douglass Commonwealth.