Nancy Pelosi

Ms. PELOSI

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Justice Stanley Mosk, a justice of the California Supreme Court, who died a couple of weeks ago after 37 years on the California Supreme Court. He was remembered at his funeral service for what speaker after speaker called his ``legacy of justice.'' Stanley Mosk was the only Democrat on the State High Court and a very progressive member. He died in San Francisco. He was my neighbor and he was my friend. Our colleague, the gentleman from California (Mr. Schiff), will be speaking more specifically about Stanley Mosk's contribution to the law in California and our country. I want to speak briefly about him personally. Stanley Mosk was a genius. He was a great tennis player. He took great pride in that. He might have wanted that to be first. He was a great family person. Of course, that did come first. He was a person of such great intellect that his decisions when he wrote them were the subject of great admiration and study by law students and admired by those who followed the law. He will be greatly missed in San Francisco, where the supreme court resides in California. He was the first person elected statewide in California, when he ran for office many years ago, the first person of the Jewish religion ever elected. Once and for all, he settled that issue. Because of Stanley Mosk, Jewish candidates know that their religion is not a factor in elections in this great State. Indeed, if they were a factor at all, it is a plus. With that, Mr. Speaker, I want to mention further that it is said of him that many people learned much about pain and much about joy from him. Stanley Mosk did not want to retire. He went home, he was with his family, but he planned to retire in the fall. So, if I am hesitant about this, it is with great sorrow that I tell our colleagues that Stanley was vigorous to the end, of course, with his great and powerful intellect, benefiting all of us to the end. His plan was to retire in the fall. That was not in the cards for him. God took him sooner. But I want his family to know that many of us in the Congress mourn his passing, and I hope it is a comfort to them that so many people share their grief, but also their great pride in California Justice Stanley Mosk.

Ms. PELOSI

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay my final respects to California Supreme Court Justice Stanley Mosk. It is with great sadness and deep respect that I share with my colleagues the following words on the life of Justice Stanley Mosk. Justice Mosk was born in San Antonio, Texas, graduated from the University of Chicago Law School, and in 1933 he moved to California. Justice Mosk served for his country in WWII before returning to his family and career as a judge of the Superior Court in Los Angeles. Justice Mosk was elected Attorney General in 1958 with an overwhelming million vote majority--the largest of any election that year. During his six years as the Chief Law Officer of the State of California he argued before the United States Supreme Court in the Arizona v. California water case and other landmark cases before the California Supreme Court. In 1961 Justice Mosk was credited with persuading the Professional Golf Association to admit African American golfers. In 1964 Justice Mosk was appointed to the California Supreme Court by Governor Pat Brown. Justice Mosk was an astute, independent thinker whose tenure as a California Supreme Court Justice was both brilliant and controversial. As Mosk's former colleague California Chief Justice Ronald George stated correctly, ``Stanley Mosk was giant in the law``. He revealed that status by writing nearly 1,500 opinions while serving for 37 years, the longest tenure of any California Supreme Court Justice. Stanley Mosk continued his tireless efforts until his last day. Each year in the last decade, Justice Mosk authored more opinions than any other Supreme Court Justice. Although widely considered a liberal, he chose not to abide to any limitations on his opinions. On several occasions, Justice Mosk's decisions stunned the legal and political community. As Justice, Mosk traveled extensively. He observed the South-West Africa case at the World Court, on behalf of the State Department. He lectured throughout Africa thereafter. Justice Mosk traveled to the Netherlands in 1970 to participate in summer sessions of The Hague Academy of International Law at the Peace Palace. Justice Mosk lectured at Universities throughout the United States as well. Justice Mosk was valued and respected by his colleagues. He will be remembered as a passionate proponent of the will of the law. Justice Mosk was one of the most influential figures in shaping California law and his death brings a void to the bench that will not easily be filled. Justice Mosk was confirmed for a new twelve-year term in November of 1998. Sadly, he was not able to fulfill the wishes of the California people. The death of Justice Stanley Mosk is a tremendous loss to the California Supreme Court, to California, and to America's judicial system. My thoughts and prayers are with Justice Mosk's wife Kaygey, and his son Richard. We will all miss him greatly.

Ms. PELOSI

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, as a member of the Committee on Appropriations, I am pleased to rise and join the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Mrs. Clayton), a member of the authorizing committee, the Committee on Agriculture, in offering this amendment to ensure continued funding to reduce the burden of hunger for HIV-AIDS patients and children orphaned by AIDS in the developing world. I commend the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Mrs. Clayton) for her leadership on this issue. She worked with us on this issue in the Committee on Agriculture as well as a member of the Congressional HIV Task Force. She developed this proposal, and her leadership has been very important, because this amendment affects so many millions of families worldwide. I would like to thank the gentleman from Texas (Chairman Bonilla) and the ranking member, the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), for their leadership on the subcommittee and their support for this amendment. Mr. Chairman, I will submit my statement for the record, but I just want to make two quick points. Poor nutrition accelerates the progression of HIV to AIDS, and an adequate food supply is critical to any prevention and care strategy. When a family member becomes infected with HIV, household food production is undermined, limited financial resources are used for medical costs rather than crop production, and family members are forced to care for the sick, rather than work in the fields. Starting last year, $25 million was provided through the Food for Peace program to reduce the burden of hunger for families impacted by AIDS through agricultural improvement, maternal and child health programs and direct distribution of food commodities. Today's amendment will continue this vital funding. I wish that we could have the number be higher in the future, but the $25 million called for here is a very, very important addition. I thank my colleagues for their support of this important amendment. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Mrs. Clayton), the real author of this amendment, and commend her for her tremendous leadership.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I thank the distinguished chairman of the committee for his words of cooperation. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the very distinguished ranking member of the subcommittee.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I rise to join Representative Clayton in offering this amendment to ensure continued funding to reduce the burden of hunger for HIV/AIDS patients and children orphaned by AIDS in the developing world. I commend Representative Clayton for her leadership on this issue, which affects so many millions of families worldwide. I would also like to thank Ranking Member Kaptur and Chairman Bonilla for their leadership on the Subcommittee and their support for this amendment. We have all heard the staggering statistics--36 million people infected with HIV, 22 million deaths from AIDS, and nearly 14 million children orphaned. Archbishop Desmond Tutu has said, ``AIDS in Africa is a plague of biblical proportions. It is a holy war that we must win.'' It is indeed, and the battles in this war occur on many fronts. Poor nutrition accelerates the progression from HIV to AIDS. In addition to the prevention, treatment, and infrastructure needs that must be addressed to stem the tide of the pandemic, we must also recognize that good nutrition is critical to any prevention and care strategy. The impact of HIV/AIDS on poor families goes beyond the pain that accompanies the loss of a loved one. AIDS strikes people during their most productive years, and family income is cut by more than half when a parent is sick. Household food production is undermined as limited financial resources are used for medical costs rather than crop production, and family members are forced to care for the sick rather than work in the fields. Many families must mortgage their land and sell productive assets, including livestock, to pay for food and medicine. The U.S. has sought to reduce the burden of hunger that results from families' diminished ability to produce food. Starting last year, $25 million was provided through the Food for Peace program to improve food security through agricultural improvement, maternal and child health programs, and direct distribution of food commodities. Today's amendment continues this vital funding. I thank my colleagues for their support of this important amendment.

Ms. PELOSI

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, as we consider the Energy and Water bill today here in Washington, California and the West are in the throes of an energy crisis. Now is the time to strengthen and increase the federal commitment to new, clean energy sources. Instead, the Bush Administration proposed deep cuts in federal renewable energy programs, slashing core renewable energy research and development programs by 50%. The Appropriations Committee chose to fund renewable energy programs at $377 million, $100 more than the President's proposal. However, $377 million gives us only $1 million more than we have in the current year for these important programs. We should increase our commitment to renewable energy resources and technologies, including wind, solar, and biomass. For this reason, I will vote for the Hinchey amendment to increase funding for renewable energy by $50 million, which would provide funding for programs to deploy promising new technologies more rapidly.

Ms. PELOSI

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I support the Sabo amendment, which would ensure that Mexican trucking companies undergo safety reviews before their trucks gain access to American highways. Trucks are a major factor in highway fatalities. Even with safety regulations in place in the U.S., crashes involving large trucks killed 5,282 people in 1999. Of these fatalities, 363 occurred in my home state of California. Mexico's regulations are much weaker than ours. Drivers do not log their hours on the road, restrictions on hours behind the wheel are not enforced, drivers can be under 21, trucks that violate safety standards are not taken off the road, and trucks can weigh significantly more than in the U.S. Of the nearly 4 million trucks that enter the U.S. commercial zones from Mexico annually, the U.S. inspects only 1%. Of that 1%, more than a third are removed from service because they are unsafe. This is a dismal record. We must ensure that trucks from Mexico are safe before they are allowed on every highway in the United States. I urge my colleagues to vote for the Sabo amendment.

Ms. PELOSI

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in support of H. Res. 166 and applaud Ms. Jackson-Lee for introducing this resolution. H. Res. 166 commends the many volunteers, public safety officials, agencies, and businesses that rose to the challenge of tropical storm Allison. The storm took 22 lives and caused at least $4.8 billion in property damage. Living in San Francisco, in an area that is prone to natural disasters, I appreciate the commitment and heroism shown by so many people in the wake of a major natural disaster. Thanks to many brave and generous individuals, Houston and the communities around it pulled through the storm and are on the road to recovery. I came back this morning from Houston, where I had the great pleasure of meeting my 6th grandchild, who was born on Sunday. While the damage in the area is clearly visible, so are the signs of healing. For my own family and all the people who call Houston home, I was pleased to see the recovery already underway. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.

Ms. PELOSI

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank the distinguished Chairman, Mr. Skeen, and ranking member Mr. Dicks, for their excellent work on this bill. It provides funding for many programs that will benefit both the natural and urban environments in our country, although I would support further increases in several critical areas, including energy research and the arts. Mr. Chairman, with California and the West in the midst of an energy crisis, the last thing we should do is cut funding for energy research, particularly research on clean energy sources and technologies. I am proud that the state of California now leads the country for its efficient use of energy. California and the country should press forward to increase our energy efficiency and shift toward clean, sustainable energy sources. Yet the President's budget proposed a 30% cut in energy efficiency research and development. Although the Committee wisely disregarded this proposal, we should be doing much more in this area. An important element in this bill is funding for the arts and humanities. The arts and humanities enrich our culture, boost our economy, and promote creativity and self-confidence in our youth. I support the Slaughter-Dicks amendment on increase funding for the National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The Interior bill recognizes the need to reduce the backlog of maintenance needs in our national parks. But it is also important to ensure that our parks have the operating funds they need to provide stewardship of wild lands and historic buildings and run informational programs. The bill also takes a step in the right direction providing a modest increase in operating funds, although the need is much greater. The Interior bill contains a commendable increase in funding for conservation programs. While the President's budget called for full funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund at $900 million, that increase would have been funded by cutting a number of other important conservation programs. The Committee chose instead to provide $709 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, while maintaining valuable existing conservation programs, including the Urban Park and Recreation Fund and ``Save America's Treasures.'' I applaud the decision of the Committee to omit funding for studies concerning oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Mr. Chairman, this is a good bill, but we could do so much more for our natural and cultural heritage with additional resources. Unfortunately, the tax cuts make it difficult to fund many of these valuable programs. Hopefully the President and the Congress will place a higher priority on the arts, recreation, and the environment in the future.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the Slaughter/ Dicks amendment which calls for increased funding for the NEA/NEH and IMLS. I commend Mr. Dicks, the ranking Member of the Interior Subcommittee, for his support of this important priority and Ms. Slaughter for her leadership as Chair of the Arts Caucus. We owe a debt of gratitude to Louise for the time and energy she has given to promoting the arts on behalf of her colleagues and on behalf of the citizens of this country and to Norm for his continued steadfast support. National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Bill Ivey envisions ``An America where the arts play a central role in the lives of all Americans,'' and the NEA has indeed had great success in bringing the arts to the center of community life. Through its Challenge America initiative, the NEA has been focusing on access to the arts, cultural heritage preservation and alternatives for at-risk youth. An increase in funding is critical for ensuring access to the arts for citizens of all economic backgrounds and in all regions of the country. The NEA has substantially increased arts activity in every state in the country but it is imperative that we do more to ensure that art is reaching all Americans in communities across the nation. The arts are important for our economy and yield major economic benefits: the industry generates $3.86 billion annually, supports $1.3 million jobs and returns $3.4 billion in income taxes to the federal government. The NEA represents less than one-hundredth of one percent of the federal budget and costs each American the equivalent of one postage stamp per year. More importantly, the arts are important for our children. Research continues to show that students exposed to the arts often perform better in school. The confidence children find through the arts better equips them to face both academic and other life challenges more effectively. But the founding fathers of our country knew this without the benefit of research. In a letter written to Abigail Adams, our second President, John Adams, wrote: ``I must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce, and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain.'' Let's fund the arts so that we can guarantee our children the right to develop their creativity and imagination in order to express themselves freely while gaining confidence. The Poet Shelley once wrote that ``the greatest force for moral good is imagination.'' With all the challenges facing our nation's children, it is clear that we need all of the imagination they can muster. We must encourage a child's creativity for its own sake and for the confidence it engenders in the child. Support creativity, support imagination, support the Slaughter/Dicks amendment.

Ms. PELOSI

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I yield \3/4\ minute to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Dicks).

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment, and I ask unanimous consent that it be considered at this point.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 1 minute. Mr. Chairman, the amendment that we have before us was a product of work done by the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo) and others in the Committee on Commerce which I was pleased to present to the full committee the other day. For my colleagues' benefit, the Federal Election Regulatory Commission was established under the Power Act, and under it the FERC, when it determined that power companies, generators, were charging unjust and unreasonable rates, they would reach a threshold whereby they could do something, they could mitigate for that. The gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo) and others have authored this amendment, and I will yield to him to explain the amendment to our colleagues, but first I wish to thank him for his tremendous leadership on behalf of consumers in the western United States. Mr. Chairman, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee).

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo), who was a very critical part of putting this amendment together.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 15 seconds to comment on the previous speaker's comments. Mr. Chairman, clearly the gentleman from California (Mr. Ose) does not understand what our amendment does. What he described and its shortcomings is exactly what the FERC did this week, to give standing to the dirtiest and oldest technology and generators, and thereby making the problem that will certainly be skirted by suppliers. My amendment will do exactly what he described we want to happen. If he had an understanding of both of these, he would realize that and support my amendment.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. McDermott), who has been involved in these issues for a long time. (Mr. McDERMOTT asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I would like to inquire about the time remaining?

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio), who is an expert on power generation in our country and has been a tremendous resource to us.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. It is very interesting to hear my colleagues from California speak out about this solution to our crisis that we have there. Either they and our colleagues on the Republican side are closing their eyes to a situation which they do not wish to acknowledge, to quote the Music Man, or they refuse to acknowledge the caliber of disaster posed by the exploitation by the power companies who have withheld energy in order to drive up prices to exploit the market and increase costs to the consumers. This amendment, which is the Inslee amendment, is appropriate to come up on this emergency supplemental because it is an emergency indeed. It does not cost one penny. But what it says is that this body will recognize an emergency. You be the judge. In 1999, Californians spent $7 billion on energy. In 2000, it was $27 billion because of this exploitation. And projected for 2001 is 50 to $60 billion, nearly 10 times. This is taking a terrible toll on our economy. We will have a revenue bond issue to help cover the cost, to underwrite cost to consumers and businesses, residences and businesses, of about $12 billion, the highest State bond issue ever. What does that mean? It means that our credit rating for our State will be affected by that. And when our State's economy is affected, the economy of the whole country is and certainly that of the western United States as our colleagues from other States in the West have testified to. We have at this moment homeowners, residences, businesses, which will be driven out of existence. They cannot afford to pay even the cost that is not being underwritten by the State. In some cases their energy bills will go up $400 for a residence and even much more than that for some of the businesses, especially the small businesses will have their very existence threatened. We have 800,000 people who are disabled in California, who depend on energy at all times and will be very affected by not being able to pay their bills and have that source of energy. So when people want to talk about how we got where we are today, we can have that debate and frankly if we had more time we could have it right here. But the fact is that whatever those reasons, it does not eliminate the fact that power companies withheld energy to drive up the cost, to exploit the market, to have this impact on consumers. So our choice here, Mr. Chairman, is to make a choice between the exploiters and the consumers. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to yield the balance of my time to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee), who with the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo) and others from this region is the author of this amendment, which as I say I am pleased as an appropriator to offer and thank him again for his leadership.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I do not wish to be heard on the point of order.

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word. Mr. Chairman, I wanted to inquire of the distinguished chairman if there are any other authorizations in this supplemental, emergency supplemental bill.

Ms. PELOSI. I yield to the gentleman from Florida.

Ms. PELOSI. Would the gentleman be so kind as to inform our colleagues as to how many authorizations are within this bill? Is it something like 30?

Ms. PELOSI

Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time. Mr. Speaker, one would have thought that this emergency supplemental bill coming up when it did right on the heels of the storm damage and flooding to Houston, it would have provided an opportunity for this Congress to speak very clearly to the people in that area that their contract with our country is one that, in time of distress or natural disaster, we are there for them. Instead, we are sending the exact opposite message, a message of no confidence, by reducing the funding in FEMA. As a person who represents an area beset by earthquakes, I know how important the message from Washington is in the recovery. As a grandmother of grandchildren in Houston seeing the onset of mosquitos following the flood, I know personally the need for the increased funding in the emergency bill, and am bewildered, again from my own experience representing an area that is disaster-prone, that this committee would not rise to the occasion. So I rise in opposition to the rule on the supplemental appropriations bill because it misses opportunities on many scores. All we were asking for was a legitimate debate on spending priorities that are of an emergency nature for this Congress to address. We have missed the opportunity because of this rule to have the chance to stabilize the electricity markets in the western United States. We have missed the opportunity to discuss the Eshoo amendment to ensure refunds for electricity charges in the western regions that were not just and reasonable. In fact, there are about $8.9 billion in refunds. We have missed the opportunity to ensure that the DeLauro amendment would be discussed, which would increase the LIHEAP funding so it would be available to low income families throughout the summer and fall. Finally, we have missed the opportunity to provide the leadership required for this country in the fight to treat AIDS and prevent new infections globally. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to defeat the rule because it is a gag rule on discussion of issues of an emergency nature.