Tom Petri

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. We have reviewed your amendment and feel that it is a reasonable and important amendment. We support it and urge a ``yes'' vote on your amendment.

Mr. PETRI. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. PETRI. Thank you. We have reviewed this amendment. We support the goal that he is attempting to achieve. We want to continue working with him, but even with its being adopted, because the FAA has raised some concerns, mainly that it, as drafted, would capture all airports and would have an overly broad effect. But I understand the difficulty that created that; so we're trying to figure out if there is some way we can achieve the objective which, as best we can tell, is a perfectly reasonable, sensible objective within the rules of the House and without causing problems in other places that are unintended. With those caveats, we support the amendment and look forward to working with you as we go forward.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1079) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend the funding and expenditure authority of the Airport and Airway Trust Fund, to amend title 49, United States Code, to extend the airport improvement program, and for other purposes.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 1079.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I would like to include in the Congressional Record the exchange of letters concerning H.R. 1079 between the Committee on Ways and Means and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Committee on Ways and Means, House of Representatives, Washington, DC, March 22, 2011. Hon. John Mica, Chairman, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 2165 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman Mica: I am writing concerning H.R. 1079, the ``Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2011,'' which is expected to be scheduled for floor consideration the week of March 28, 2011. As you know, the Committee on Ways and Means has jurisdiction over the Internal Revenue Code. Sections 2 and 3 of this bill amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 by extending the current Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF) expenditure authority and the associated Federal excise taxes to May 31, 2011. In order to expedite H.R. 1079 for Floor consideration, the Committee will forgo action on the bill. This is being done with the understanding that it does not in any way prejudice the Committee with respect to the appointment of conferees or its jurisdictional prerogatives on this or similar legislation. In that regard, I would note that the Committee on Ways and Means recently favorably reported H.R. 1034, the ``Airport and Airway Trust Fund Financing Reauthorization Act of 2011,'' which would provide a similar, but longer-term reauthorization, through September 30, 2014, of the AATF expenditure authority and associated excise taxes. I would appreciate your response to this letter, confirming this understanding with respect to H.R. 1079, and would ask that a copy of our exchange of letters on this matter be included in the Congressional Record during Floor consideration. Sincerely, Dave Camp, Chairman.

Mr. PETRI. I would just like to observe to my colleague, we will have plenty of opportunity to defend and debate the overall reauthorization later this week. The reauthorization bill is broadly supported by the industry affected. We may differ on some portions of it, but one of the major features of the reauthorization is to put in place a strengthened framework and benchmarks for NextGen; and as that new technology is deployed, almost every expert we've had testifying before the committee has said it will markedly increase the efficiency and safety of the aviation industry and reduce fuel use by some 25 percent, helping the environment and our import situation as well. In any event, I would like to mention that the current reauthorization extension, the short-term extension before us, has bipartisan support. I would urge my colleagues in both parties to support it. I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Yes, I am delighted to have the opportunity to join with my colleagues in recognizing the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Peace Corps. It was my pleasure some 25 years ago to work with the fellow whose picture is up by the podium, Sargent Shriver, on some of the arrangements for the 25th anniversary of the Peace Corps. They'd had a gala reunion and a program at the Kennedy Center with such luminaries at that time as Harry Belafonte and many others. It was a memorable occasion. Sargent Shriver, of course, was a great leader in many different areas. I met him in a reception line awhile back. He didn't really much like, though, that I'd said, So great to meet Arnold Schwarzenegger's father-in-law. He really didn't want to be known as Arnold Schwarzenegger's father-in-law. He wanted to be known, and is known, as the most dynamic director of the Peace Corps and for many others of his works--with Mrs. Shriver on the Special Olympics and for a variety of other good works that he did with his life. We all have our Peace Corps experiences. I had the opportunity to serve in the neighboring country to Ethiopia, which was Somalia--a troubled place now. It was a great experience, though. People ask about the Peace Corps, and I always say that one of the things you have to remember about the Peace Corps is that you get a lot more out of it than you really give. You're serving other people, but you're learning. You're learning about another culture; and at the same time, you're learning about your own country and your own experiences because of the points of contrast. What a wonderful thing it is that America has now tens of thousands of people who have served in the Peace Corps, who have returned and who now are working in every walk of life--working in international organizations, working in business organizations, knowing different cultures, knowing different languages--thereby providing a dimension to our own national life that we would otherwise not have if we did not have people who had had the experience of serving in the Peace Corps. There is one other thing. I still can remember the quizzical but interested reaction that so many people in Somalia or, I'm sure, anywhere in the world had: Who are you? Why are you doing it? Explain that to me again. The spirit was kind of catching, and they would participate in all kinds of little volunteer activities and things that they hadn't necessarily thought of doing themselves. Of course, the Peace Corps volunteers are not representatives of the American Government. They are representatives of the American people. That was always emphasized very, very strongly to all of us as part of our Peace Corps training. The way we were living was among the people, not behind these diplomatic bunkers that we sometimes see in the world today. You're experiencing life in the country in which you're serving. One thing, just as an example, is that Peace Corps volunteers, of course, do their assignments, but they're also people who do volunteer work of one kind or another. One of the big hits was when I was in Mogadishu in the Peace Corps. I was with two other people who were Peace Corps lawyers at that time, and there were about 50, 60 people who were teachers. Some were community health workers, and some were community school construction workers. They would come to Mogadishu for a couple days off, for vacation time, when school was down, that kind of thing. And five or six of them got together and started playing some American young people's music. And the next thing you know they were invited to a restaurant in Mogadishu. Crowds of hundreds of people gathered, and it was the sensation of the town for a couple weeks. Of course they couldn't be paid for doing this sort of thing, but they might have gotten a couple of free meals from the restaurant and that kind of thing. What a wonderful, sort of natural way of building bridges. The people in this country had never really seen something like this. They weren't on a tour for any of these international shows, and they just thought it was the most wonderful thing to see live music played by American Peace Corps volunteers. And that was the face of America that they were presenting in this country, and it was one that I think has served our Nation very well. So thank you again for giving me the opportunity to participate in this Special Order that you've organized to mark the 50th anniversary of the United States Peace Corps.

Mr. PETRI. We were there during the peaceful years between the two countries. The Peace Corps had been in Somalia and then had been pulled out because war erupted between Ethiopia and Somalia. The people on the Horn of Africa have very close and great respect for each other but also a strong rivalry. It's a very interesting thing to learn about.

Mr. PETRI. Thank you for organizing this occasion.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chair, I support the amendment offered by my colleague from Ohio, Representative LaTourette. I do believe the time has come for Congress to address a federal deficit that will exceed $1 trillion for the third consecutive year. I do agree that the total dollar amount cut by the underlying bill is appropriate and represents a move toward fiscal responsibility. The amendment under consideration shows the same commitment to fiscal responsibility; in fact, it cuts more spending than the underlying bill. Beyond that, the amendment spreads the spending cuts across all non- security federal programs for the remainder of 2011. No programs are eliminated, and with limited exceptions, no non- security spending is left untouched. Meeting our financial crisis will entail sacrifice from many quarters, and this amendment shares that sacrifice broadly across our entire discretionary spending budget. Beyond this year, an across-the-board cut provides a better point of departure for the 2012 appropriations process which will begin shortly. I urge my colleagues to vote in support of this amendment.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, as Congress considers the reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act this year, we have an obligation to listen closely to the students, parents, and educators that we represent to ensure that our efforts result in responsible and pragmatic improvements. While we have made great strides in the areas of assessment and accountability over the last nine years, this reauthorization provides a critical opportunity to learn from our experiences and fine-tune the law. One example of a lesson my constituents have learned, and have vigorously shared with me, is that we should be encouraging states to move towards better assessment models. As I have met with educators over the past several years, one of the primary concerns that I have heard is that the state assessment fails to provide information of value to educators and administrators. Even more disturbing, it often takes four to six months before scores are returned to schools, which leaves little or no time for teachers to use the information to address student performance before they advance to the next grade. However, I believe there is a sensible solution that Congress can adopt to address these concerns and give states more options in assessment design. Today, Rep. David Wu and I are introducing the bipartisan Assessment Accuracy and Improvement Act of 2011 to give states the option to use adaptive testing as their statewide assessment measuring reading, math, and science to fulfill No Child Left Behind requirements. I believe that this legislation will give states the ability to truly track the academic growth of every child and provide more accurate information to teachers, parents and school administrators through the use of an adaptive test. For those who may be unfamiliar with adaptive testing, it is a test that changes in response to previously-asked questions. For example, if a student answers a question correctly, the test presents a question of increased difficulty. If a student answers incorrectly, the test presents a question of decreased difficulty. As you can see, an adaptive test customizes itself to a student's actual level of performance with a great degree of accuracy. Giving states the flexibility to use an adaptive test and to ask questions outside of grade level will improve the accuracy of student assessment and enable educators to target appropriate instruction for each child based on performance at, above, or below grade level. In addition, using an adaptive test over time will allow accurate measurement of the performance growth of each individual student. In Wisconsin, hundreds of school districts currently use their own funds to participate in adaptive testing in addition to the state assessment required by NCLB. Educators and administrators appreciate the diagnostic information it yields and the efficiency that it provides. I believe that school districts nationally are already ``speaking with their wallets'' by spending scarce resources to voluntarily participate in this testing because it provides valuable information that the state assessment does not. Additionally, 30 states are currently participating in the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, SBAC, one of the two state assessment consortia to receive funding under Race to the Top. SBAC is developing a researched-based computer adaptive test aligned to the common core standards. This legislation will ensure that these states will be able to fully utilize the capabilities of this next assessment. Mr. Speaker, adaptive testing is one of the keys to putting the `child' back into No Child Left Behind. I hope that our colleagues will join us in this pragmatic and responsible improvement to the law as we work towards a bipartisan reauthorization this year.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, today, I am introducing the Charitable Driving Tax Relief Act of 2011 to remove a serious disincentive to participation in charitable activities. Private charitable activity plays an important role in our society, and it is important that Congress not stand in the way by penalizing those who wish to offer their services to these groups. Under current law, individuals that volunteer their time and energy by driving their personal vehicles on behalf of a charitable group can end up with an unpleasant surprise in the form of an unanticipated tax bill. Specifically, volunteer drivers receiving reimbursement for the use of their vehicle are taxed on these payments to the extent that they exceed 14 cents per mile. This treatment stands in stark contrast to the allowance for reimbursement for the business use of that same vehicle, 51 cents per mile in 2011. The Charitable Driving Tax Relief Act will equalize the tax treatment of charitable reimbursements with those received for business driving because the point of the payment is essentially the same, that is, to cover the cost of operating a personal vehicle while performing an important service in the pursuit of a greater good. To achieve this end, my legislation would exclude from gross income any reimbursement received for the use of a volunteer's car while assisting a charitable group, limited only by the cap the Internal Revenue Service sets regarding business driving. This treatment would be available only for services provided without compensation and drivers would be required to maintain sufficient records to substantiate the charitable use of their vehicles. Finally, this bill drops the requirement that charitable groups report these reimbursements to the IRS, removing an administrative and paperwork burden that detracts resources from a charity's larger purpose. Each day, thousands of Americans lend a hand in providing transportation services to a multitude of organizations engaged in good works. These activities include assisting individuals with their routine grocery shopping, providing the use of a four-wheel drive vehicle to transport home-visit nurses during inclement weather, delivering meals as part of a holiday food drive, helping individuals to keep their medical appointments, and many more similar activities. These volunteer drivers are donating their time and their talents, not their vehicles, and accepting reimbursement for the use of that car, incidental to their time and talent donation, is a reasonable act, which should not result in an additional tax liability. Today, when it comes to driving a personal vehicle, our tax code makes a distinction between business and charitable uses. This distinction is a mistake; it is a serious disincentive to charitable activities, and it should be corrected. I encourage my colleagues to support the continued efforts of our charity-minded constituents by cosponsoring the Charitable Driving Tax Relief Act of 2009.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, as a returned Peace Corps volunteer, I rise today to note the passing of Sargent Shriver, who founded the Peace Corps and headed it for its first five years. He was the enthusiastic and committed leader of the new agency, taking it from its founding in 1961 to more than 14,500 volunteers serving in 55 countries by 1966. I served in the Peace Corps in Somalia in 1966 and 1967 and saw firsthand the contribution that Peace Corps volunteers make to the communities they serve, as well as the effect service has on the volunteers. Fifty years later, the continued selfless and noble service outside our borders remains a testament to the timeless American ideals demonstrated and encouraged by Sargent Shriver. But it wasn't just the Peace Corps. Sargent Shriver led a life of service, founding the Office of Economic Opportunity and helping to develop its many programs. From 1968 to 1970, he was our able ambassador to France during a difficult time in our relations with that country. In 1972, he ran for Vice President with George McGovern and then ran for President in 1976. And yet, there are many people who are unfamiliar with Sargent Shriver's service and achievements. His biographer, Scott Stossel, told the Washington Post that it's hard to find another American figure where the disproportion between how much he accomplished and how little he is known is so large. Let us pause to mark the passage of this public servant and say ``thank you.''

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Today I rise in support of H.R. 2, legislation which would repeal the health care law passed last year. Even if it is unlikely that this bill will pass the Senate, I think it's important for the House majority to state its position in the clearest possible terms to encourage a general reevaluation of the new law. Make no mistake. My colleagues and I support health care reform which would ensure that all Americans, including those with preexisting conditions, have access to affordable coverage. However, the health care law that passed last year takes a fundamentally wrong approach to achieving that goal and will only make worse our skyrocketing health care costs and Federal deficits. My State of Wisconsin is a leader in terms of providing efficient, high-quality care; and I have been meeting and will continue to work with medical providers in my State as well as my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to develop proposals which will reward high-quality, low-cost medical services instead of simply giving government more control over our health care. Only by implementing proposals that rein in out-of-control health care costs will we be able to make affordable coverage available to all Americans. I look forward to working with my colleagues on this important issue.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, the purpose of this legislation is to make clear that schools participating in the school lunch program are legally allowed to donate excess food to local food banks. In 1996, Congress passed the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Act, which protects donors who give to food banks in good faith from all liability except in cases of gross negligence or intentional misconduct. This landmark law has allowed businesses and civic organizations to donate critically-needed food to local food banks and food pantries. Despite this law, many schools and school districts have been hesitant to donate excess food from school lunches, primarily due to a misperception that U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations don't allow for excess food to be donated. Loudoun County, Virginia, in Congressman Frank Wolf's district, has expressed these reservations. That is why Congressman Wolf, an original cosponsor of this bill, reached out to work with me to help address this issue. I'm sure there are many other examples in congressional districts across the country. This is unfortunate as excess food is being thrown away rather than provided to food banks to support those in need. In many cases, students who rely on school lunches also rely on support from local food banks. The purpose of this bill is straightforward: to keep excess school food out of the garbage and get it into food banks. The bill will clarify that schools and school districts are permitted to donate excess food and that they are covered under the Good Samaritan Act when doing so.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the bill before us, the Museum and Library Services Act, reauthorizes the Institute for Museum and Library Services, the Federal agency that oversees Federal funds going to libraries and museums nationwide, and generally updates the law. The Museum and Library Services Act authorizes funding for the Library Services and Technology Act and for Museum Services. The library program funding is distributed to States through a formula, and the funds are spent on a wide variety of libraries across our Nation. Through this bill, the Library Services and Technology Act is updated to require greater coordination and better leveraging of Federal and State investment in our Nation's libraries. The museum funds are distributed through five competitive grant programs and two cooperative agreements. In this section of the bill, the Museum Services Act is updated to encourage greater collaboration between museums and other organizations to leverage resources and improve local communities. It also tries to strengthen capacity for the conservation and preservation of museum collections and helps support State efforts to leverage museum funds. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Today, we consider S. 1275, the National Foundation on Physical Fitness and Sports Establishment Act. This legislation would establish a charitable and nonprofit foundation to raise private funds to carry out new initiatives by the President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition. The bill establishes a board of directors to govern the activities of the foundation appointed by the Speaker, the majority leaders of the House and Senate, and the minority leaders of the House and Senate. First established in 1965, the President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition has been renewed by every President for the last 45 years. The council is made up of 25 volunteer citizens, including New Orleans Saints quarterback and Super Bowl XLIV MVP Drew Brees, three-time Olympic gymnast Dominique Dawes, Billie Jean King, Grant Hill, and Michelle Kwan. The council advises the President and the Secretary of Health and Human Services on opportunities to develop accessible, affordable, and sustainable physical activity, fitness, sports, and nutrition programs for all Americans regardless of age, background, or ability. The council has played an important role over the years in raising the awareness of Americans about the need to become physically active. It sponsors an array of programs, events, and initiatives, including the establishment of May as National Physical Fitness and Sports Month; runs the Presidential Physical Fitness Award; recognizes national and local contributions to physical activities; and has played an instrumental role in the development of physical activity guidelines, dietary guidelines, and the National Physical Activity Plan. Currently, the President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition lacks any grant making or regulatory authority, which has limited its activities to providing consultation and technical assistance, general publications, a Web site, and guidance to schools, government agencies, and other interested parties on how to improve physical activity. The bill before us, S. 1275, would establish a charitable and nonprofit foundation to raise private funds so that the council can award grants to carry out and support its activities. The foundation is similar to those established for the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control. Foundations created by Congress allow these programs to create partnerships with the private sector, leverage funds, and expand their work without increasing Federal expenditures. Consistent with this belief, the bill prohibits the foundation from accepting or competing for any Federal funds. As has been stated on this floor in the past, childhood and adult obesity is an issue that has now reached epidemic proportions in the United States. In 2008, 17 percent of children between the ages of 2 and 19 were obese, and approximately 70 to 80 percent of overweight or obese children remain obese in adulthood. These children are more likely to develop diseases such as high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. In order to reverse these dangerous trends, Americans need information and support to improve their diet and promote exercise in their daily lives. The bill will establish the President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition and will ensure that it continues to play an important role in attacking the obesity crisis that is negatively impacting the health of all Americans. I would also like to mention at this point the contributions of our former colleague from Maryland, Tom McMillen, in urging that we attempt this important matter before the end of this Congress, and I urge my colleagues to join me in doing so. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of House Resolution 1759, which supports the designation of an ``Ed Roberts Day'' for his tireless work as a leader and champion in the disability rights community. Born January 23, 1939, Edward Verne Roberts contracted polio at the age of 14 in 1953. Despite spending most of his adolescence in an iron lung, he graduated high school and was admitted into the University of California at Berkeley, where he became the first severely disabled person to attend that university. This feat is all the more amazing when you consider the obstacles that were thrown in Ed's way. A high school administrator threatened to deny him a diploma because he had not completed driver's education and physical education requirements. College administrators told him they had tried to educate students with disabilities before and it did not work. The director of campus housing was afraid that they could not accommodate his needs, offering him a room in the empty wing of the campus hospital. Ed accepted only on the condition that it was considered dormitory space. During his time at UC Berkeley and after he left college, Ed worked with other students with disabilities to push for curb cuts so that parts of the university could be accessible to disabled persons. He formed the Physical Disabled Student Program to help facilitate and ease the transition for other students with disabilities to attend college. In 1972, he established the first Center for Independent Living in order to support and assist disabled persons in gaining independence. The center's philosophy was, and it continues to be, based on three main points: First, comprehensive programs with a wide variety of services, such as employment and assistive technology, are the most effective at meeting the needs of persons with disabilities; Second, people with disabilities know best how to meet the needs of others with disabilities; and Third, the strongest and most vibrant communities are those that include and embrace all people, including disabled persons. Today, most independent living centers across the country use this model as a basis for their work with individuals with disabilities. To celebrate this fact, Ed is known as the ``Father of the Independent Living Movement.'' Mr. Speaker, Ed Roberts was a pioneer in the disability community until his death in 1995. Today, we honor him and acknowledge his work to reduce barriers, increase access, and improve the lives of all persons with disabilities. So I rise in support of House Resolution 1759, which supports the designation of an ``Ed Roberts Day.'' Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Madam Speaker, at the end of this Congress, we will say farewell to Congressman Jim Oberstar, who has represented Minnesota's 8th District since 1975. But his Congressional career started long before that in 1963 when he was appointed as a staff member on the then-Public Works Committee by Representative John Blatnick (who preceded Congressman Oberstar as the representative from Chisholm, MN, and later was Chairman of the Public Works Committee). Forty-four years later, Jim Oberstar would rise to become Chairman of that same committee, now known as the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Having served with Chairman Oberstar during my entire tenure on the Transportation Committee, I want to acknowledge his expertise, his valuable service and the many contributions he has made over many decades. No one knows more about the history of our nation's infrastructure and the critical role it has played in our development as a nation. He is an expert on the history of the Committee and has had a front row seat to the many dramas that have played out over the years as the Committee has worked to pass good, bipartisan bills to move our country forward in building needed highways and transit, airports, developing our ports, protecting our environment--including our shared interest in the Great Lakes--and improving safety amongst all the transportation modes. To appreciate the character of Jim Oberstar, one needs to look at his background growing up on the Iron Range in the small town of Chisholm. His father was an iron miner and Chairman Oberstar himself worked in the open pit mines to pay for his education. Many a time at Committee meetings we would hear stories of the lessons he learned from that experience and how it was a driving force behind his devotion to improving worker safety. As I stated on the Floor a few weeks ago, the people of the Iron Range are going to lose a great and dedicated champion with deep roots in the history of that mining region of the country. Another essential part of Jim Oberstar is his ear for languages. He majored in French at the College of St. Thomas in Minnesota and furthered his proficiency in the language during time spent in Belgium and Haiti. While at a function at the Residence of the French Ambassador, where Mr. Oberstar was able to communicate with our hosts in their native language, a Frenchman in attendance informed me that his accent was very good. Something that would make Mr. Oberstar very proud, I am sure. Let me close by recognizing the other essential element in Mr. Oberstar's life--his family. He married his wife Jo and raised four children before her death in 1991. For the last 17 years, he has had Jean by his side. My wife and I have been honored to consider them friends. He also has strong Wisconsin connections, with his daughters graduating from Marquette University in Milwaukee and his oldest daughter now raising her family in Kenosha. We expect to be welcoming Jim and Jean to Wisconsin often as they come to visit the family. So, it is the end of an era on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. I want to express my admiration and thanks for Jim Oberstar's service to the Committee and to the House. Most importantly, I appreciate his friendship and the many experiences we have shared over the years. I wish him and Jean all the best as they begin this new phase of their lives.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, as was pointed out, in May, the House passed H.R. 915, the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2009. In March of this year, the Senate passed its own FAA reauthorization bill. The House took that up, amended it, passed it, and sent it back to the Senate. Since then, we have been in formal discussions to reconcile the two bills. While these discussions have led to tentative agreements on nearly all of the provisions, a few controversial issues have prevented the House and Senate from reaching a final agreement. Therefore, with the FAA's authorities set to expire at the end of the calendar year, we again find it necessary to consider another extension. Like the 16 earlier extensions over the past 3 years, the bill before us would provide a short-term extension of the taxes, programs, and funding of the FAA, this time through the end of March 2011. It is unfortunate that this Congress has not been able to reach final agreement on a comprehensive FAA reauthorization bill. We recognize the importance of a multiyear authorization, and I look forward to working with Mr. Costello and my other colleagues in the next Congress to that end. However, in order to ensure the safe operation of the National Airspace System while Congress continues to debate a full reauthorization package, I certainly support passage of today's extension and urge my colleagues to do the same. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I just want to take a minute to acknowledge and express my admiration for the service of the chairman of our committee, the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar). The Public Works and Transportation Committee has a long and honorable record here in our Congress. I think the gentleman from Minnesota has been a contributing member of that committee both as a leading staff member, working his way up, and then as a member of the committee representing the Iron Range in northern Minnesota and working his way up to the chairmanship, for a significant percentage of the life of the committee. We are a 200-year-old-or-more- plus country and I think you've been on the committee for at least a quarter of that time. It has really been a joy for me to be able to learn about the background and history and contexts of a lot of the different decisions that the committee has faced over the years from the gentleman from Minnesota, who in some cases read about them, in other cases experienced firsthand the history that we were discussing and the background of the decisions that we were making. Like any other two Members of a body like this, we've never agreed on everything, but I think we've always tried to be agreeable. I certainly have appreciated that. And I think that there is no question that the people of the Iron Range in northern Minnesota are going to lose a great and dedicated champion with deep roots in the history of that mining region of our country. I would just like to yield for a brief moment to my chairman on the Education and Labor Committee, George Miller.

Mr. PETRI. Before I wrap up, just one last point, and that is that I think one thing I've learned watching Jim Oberstar is the way he has expressed appreciation for and treated the people he works with on the staff of the committee and in the House. I think the fact that he spent many years as a staffer himself, sometimes you get angry about things but he always recognized the contribution and the importance of the work that was being done by people who devoted their lives often not in the public spotlight but even in more important endeavors as they actually worked out the details of legislation that were working with us, such as David Heymsfeld that he just referred to. For these and many other reasons, you, sir, shall be missed. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Madam Speaker, as a representative from the Great Lakes region and a cosponsor of the House version of this bill, I support passage of S. 1421, the Asian Carp Prevention and Control Act. S. 1421 will explicitly ban Asian carp from being imported or shipped to the U.S. Entry and proliferation of Asian carp into the Great Lakes would be ruinous to businesses, particularly commercial fishing and recreation, which rely on the Great Lakes for their livelihood, as well as to the ecology of the Great Lakes system as a whole. This legislation is another necessary measure to ensure this damaging species is kept out of the Great Lakes. I am thankful that Congress has taken several steps so far, including authorization and funding of the electrical barriers in the Chicago Ship and Sanitary Canal, and other measures. We must continue to consider all options to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, including closing the locks on the Chicago Ship and Sanitary Canal and examining the benefits and costs of pursuing long- term ecological separation between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River basin to prevent carp and future invasive species from migrating through this pathway. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues to find solutions to protect our Great Lakes from this continuing threat. I ask the House to join me in supporting S. 1421.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the author of the resolution before us, my colleague from Tennessee, James Duncan.