Pete Sessions

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the opening of Texans Can! at Paul Quinn College on September 17, 2004. I am very delighted to join my fellow colleagues in highlighting the tremendous public service that this organization has provided to the local community and praise its current expansion. In almost 20 years of service, Texans Can! have provided educational opportunities to more than thirty thousand academically at-risk students who may have never finished high school. Texans Cans currently operates three campus locations in the greater Dallas community, and the new location at Paul Quinn College will provide additional capacity to enroll more students that otherwise might not receive a quality educational experience. The new campus at Paul Quinn College will serve as an outreach to students from neighborhoods in Duncanville, DeSoto, Grand Prairie, Lancaster and other surrounding communities. I congratulate the first year's class of students at this new location, as they christen the new school and help pave the way for all of the students that will follow them in the future. I wish Texans Cans continued success in their service to the future of our community, and I thank Mr. Grant East the founder of Texans Can!, the teachers, administrators, and staff of Texans Can! for their unswerving commitment to education.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, earlier this month the 2004 YMCA Youth Conference on National Affairs was held in Black Mountain, North Carolina. This annual conference brings together the best and brightest of the Youth and Government programs from across the country. Over 500 high school student leaders meet and discuss issues of national importance, and at the conclusion of the conference six graduating seniors are selected to serve as presiding officers for the next conference. This is considered one of the highest honors that one can receive in the YMCA Youth and Government program. I join my colleagues in honoring Gina Bullock for being selected as one of the six presiding officers to serve for the 2005 YMCA Youth Conference on National Affairs. Gina becomes the first Texan to serve as a presiding officer at this conference since 1997, and she will be a great representative for the Lone Star State. I wish her continued success and thank her for outstanding leadership for Texas.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. What this legislation does do is run the risk of encouraging entrepreneurs and companies and people to work harder, produce better products for this country, to do the right thing for the investor, but mostly it runs the risk of making sure that the person who would get that stock option is able to then take advantage of that and better their life and to better the life of America by making sure that people have money in their pockets to where they can make their own decisions. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), chairman of the Committee on Rules.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 725 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I thank you for your indulgence in hearing this debate today and for your wisdom and hard work to be with us through this process. Mr. Speaker, what we have heard today is, Members of Congress from all across this great country, California, Oregon, Florida, Texas and other places, who have talked about the need and the desire for us to pass this legislation that we have before us. I am proud that our speaker, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hastert) and our majority leader, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay) are fully in support of this bipartisan legislation, legislation that has been brought to the floor through the leadership of the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Oxley) and the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Baker) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Barton), who is the chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and certainly the words from the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), the chairman of the Committee on Rules, in talking about how this excites America and workers to achieve not only dedication and hard work, but also encourages biotech firms. I think this is exciting. I think this is the right thing. I think this is what Congress should be doing in the leadership of the gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hastert) to make sure this kind of legislation consumes our time, is important to America and our future. In 2002, nearly 15 million Americans held stock options, about 13 percent of private sector workers nationwide. About 85 percent of the existing stock options are held by nonmanagement workers. This is a whole lot to do about allowing people who get up and go to work every day, Mr. Speaker, who care about not only this country and about their families, but this offers them to protect that nest egg that grows. I am proud of what the Republican Party is doing by bringing this legislation to the floor. I am equally as proud that it is bipartisan, because it is doing the right thing for people, and I stand in support of this, encourage my colleagues to support the underlying legislation in the rule. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution. The previous question was ordered.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I would like to notify my colleague, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings), that at this time the majority does not have additional speakers. I believe I have approximately 5 minutes remaining, and I would encourage him to utilize that time that is necessary for him to close, and then I will do so myself.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. Mr. Speaker, the resolution before us is a well-balanced, structured rule that makes in order a manager's amendment and three amendments offered by members of the minority, including a minority amendment in the nature of a substitute. It provides for 1 hour of general debate, equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on Financial Services. The rule waives all points of order against consideration of the bill and provides that the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the Committee on Financial Services, now printed in the bill, shall be considered as an original bill for the purpose of amendment, and shall be considered as read. It makes in order only those amendments printed in the Committee on Rules report accompanying the resolution, and provides that the amendments printed in the report may be considered only in the order printed in the report, and may only be offered by a Member designated in the report. They shall be considered as read, debatable for the time specified in the report, equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, not be subject to amendment, and not be subject to a demand for a division of the question in the House or in the Committee of the Whole. Finally, the rules waive all points of order against the amendments printed in the report, and provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the rule for H.R. 3574 as well as the underlying legislation. This bill offered by my good friend from Louisiana (Mr. Baker) is carefully constructed legislation that will help the United States to retain its global dominance in the biotechnology and high-technology sectors while creating new jobs, fostering innovation and enhancing productivity. It will also empower rank-and-file employees to share in the benefits of their hard work by allowing them to earn an equity stake in the companies where they work every day to create new products and technologies keeping America one step ahead of the rest of the world in technological advances and competitiveness. H.R. 3574 achieves this worthy goal by bringing some common sense and discipline back to the debate over stock options expensing. First, it requires the immediate expensing of the stock options granted to the CEO and the next four most highly compensated executives of a company, consistent with information that must be filed with the SEC. Second, it requires that options granted to the five top senior executives be valued in such a way that mitigates some of the most severe problems with FASB's expected valuation models which are based on valuation models for a type of option that differs fundamentally from stock options by virtue of being freely traded on open exchanges. Third, it exempts certain small businesses from what we call the top five rule expensing requirement and delays option expensing for small business issuers until 3 years after an initial public offering has taken place, allowing a small business' stock to settle down from the initial volatility of the initial public offering. Fourth, it prohibits the SEC from recognizing any stock option expensing accounting standard until the standard recognizes the true expense of the stock option on a company's financial statement when the option is exercised, expires or is forfeited, and a comprehensive economic impact study has been completed by the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of Labor. Finally, this legislation improves corporate governance and transparency by requiring the SEC to issue a rule mandating that public companies include more detailed information on stock option and stock purchase plans in their public periodic reports, such as plain-English descriptions that describe the effect that stock options will have on earnings per share and the number of outstanding stock options. Throughout the 108th Congress, the Republican majority in this House has championed and advanced a legislative program full of efforts to improve economic growth, corporate governance, and transparency on behalf of investors across the United States. Unfortunately, the Financial Accounting Standards Board's recent recommendation to mandate the expensing of stock option runs contrary to this pro-investor agenda. It represents a step in the wrong direction by providing investors with less accurate information about public-traded companies which will lead investors to a distorted picture of a company's financial performance. Even worse, the mandatory expensing proposal threatens to destroy broad-based plans and the productivity, innovation, and economic growth they currently generate. I do not believe that Congress should replace FASB or become suddenly interested in micromanaging accounting standards; however, the proposal to expense all stock options does not simply have an academic outcome. It would have a negative real-world policy impact by destroying the American partnership culture of distributing stock options to our entire workforce. I believe that allowing such a proposal to go forward will choke off job growth, innovation, and entrepreneurship that broad- based ownership generates; and Congress does have a very real and immediate response to prevent this from happening. The research behind the economic benefits of stock options support this view. As two Rutgers researchers recently concluded `` . . . using broad-based options to create a partnership model of the corporation will, over the long run, help to make most companies more competitive and create more wealth for shareholders.'' Research also shows that companies with stock-based option plans receive a one-time, but permanent, boost to their productivity of about 4 percent compared to what productivity would have been without entrepreneurship and employee ownership. More importantly, total shareholder returns go up by an average of about 2 percent. This kind of growth is vital to improving our economy and creating jobs; and I believe this kind of incentive should be nurtured, not eliminated. Data on stock ownership also shows that the 100 largest high-tech firms that focus on the Internet, average employees hold approximately 19 percent of their company's stock, 17 percent accumulated through stock options. Top executives hold only 14 percent, demonstrating that stock options have empowered rank-and-file employees and low-level managers to acquire a stake in their work by accumulating more ownership in their companies than their bosses. Ninety-eight of these 100 companies provide options to them or to most of their employees. In Intel's case, for example, 98 percent of the options granted between 1998 and 2002 went to employees other than the top five executives. More than 200 companies from more than 29 States have filed public comments opposing mandatory expensing. The NASDAQ, which lists 3,600 companies, opposes expensing, and opposition to FASB's proposal comes not only from the high-tech and biotech sectors but also from other areas of our economy, such as from the National Association of Manufacturers, the U.S. Chamber, America's Community Bankers, the Business Roundtable, and the Association of Financial Professionals. I would like to thank the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Baker), the Committee on Financial Services chairman; the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Oxley); and the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), the young chairman of the Committee on Rules, for all of their hard work, their vision, and leadership on this issue on behalf of American workers and investors. I believe this legislation improves the financial information available to investing for the public while ensuring that rank-and-file employees and middle management can still participate in the great American tradition of a broad-based employee ownership of their company. The choice presented by this legislation is very stark and clear: Should Congress allow inside-the-beltway accounting technicians to implement standards with severe negative economic consequences, or should we develop policies that encourage economic growth, job creation, and international competitiveness? I say yes. I believe the choice is clear and that Congress should take this opportunity to stand up for American workers and business. I encourage all of my colleagues to support this rule and the underlying legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the ``For the Love of the Lake'' organization that has played a crucial role in the preservation of White Rock Lake in Dallas. ``For the Love of the Lake'' is a volunteer organization that leads the conservation efforts at White Rock Lake. I am proud to be associated with this organization for more than 8 years as an Adopt a Shore Leader, as it brings together many people from the community to come together for a common cause in keeping our ``White Rock Lake as the crown jewel of Dallas.'' I joined with the outpouring of community support this past Saturday, July 10, 2004, as we celebrated the last 100 months before starting our normal routine of cleaning up the lake. Thousands of concerned citizens have given up countless amounts of time in maintaining White Rock Lake as a sanctuary for a wide variety of wildlife and as an enjoyable place to take the family for a nice day in the outdoors. I honor the noble efforts of the volunteers of ``For the Love of the Lake,'' as it is a model example of what private citizens can do to achieve a greater public good in the preservation of one of our great resources in Dallas. Without ``For the Love of the Lake,'' White Rock Lake would not be the enjoyable place for the community that it is today, and I honor the efforts of all of the volunteers who ensure the quality of the lake and shoreline. I wish ``For the Love of the Lake'' continued success in maintaining our lake so that future residents of Dallas may enjoy the same beautiful preserve of White Rock Lake that we enjoy today.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the Texas delegation to the 2004 YMCA Youth Conference on National Affairs. The Youth Conference on National Affairs brings together the best and brightest students from across the country that was involved in the YMCA Youth and Government program. Youth and Government seeks to teach teenagers the process of learning about government through hands-on experiences and in-depth learning. The YMCA Youth Conference on National Affairs was held last week in Black Mountain, NC, and I am proud of each and every one of the delegates that did a wonderful job in representing the Lone Star State: Nathan Ball of Sugar Land, Skylar Brogdon of Fort Worth, Gina Bullock of Fort Worth, Spencer Colglazier of North Richland Hills, Rashad Deckard of Palestine, Whitney Ferguson of Houston, Delores ``DeDee'' Fowler of Beaumont, Michael Foley of Palestine, Garret Gibson of Damon, Morgan Gibson of Damon, Nathan Gonzalez of Benbrook, Kathleen Gulley of Sugar Land, Stephanie Hinds of Houston, Jacob Holt of Katy, Melissa Hooper of Midland, Joshua Jemente of Ft. Worth, Robby Johnston of Roanoke, Cody Kielmeyer of Azle, Michelle McClathy of Ft. Worth, Holly Nichols of Sugar Land, Hunter Patterson of Garland, Anna Peters of Houston, Jillian Sheridan of Weatherford. I would also like to sincerely thank the adult advisors that are accompanying the delegates at the conference. Without the kind service of these adults that give up so much of their free time, the conference would not be the stunning success that it is year in and year out. I would like to thank the Texas YMCA Youth and Government State Director Suzanne Mabie, John Reyes of the Houston YMCA, and Sue Six of Lake Country Christian School.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to remove the name of the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Green) as a cosponsor of H.R. 4634.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the White House Commission on Remembrance and the Sands of Remembrance Memorial constructed this past Memorial Day at Normandy beach during the 60th anniversary of D-Day. The White House Commission on Remembrance was established by Congress (PL 106-579) in 2000 and is an independent government agency honoring America's fallen, recognizing our men and women who have served our nation, and recognizing the veterans who have made the ultimate sacrifice as well as those who continue to serve our country. The Commission also promotes the values of Memorial Day throughout the year. In 2002, Carmella LaSpada, the Director of the White House Commission on Remembrance and sand sculptors John Gowdy (American), and Dale Murdock (Canadian) discussed an idea: to create, from the very sand on which blood was shed for freedom, a life-size and historically accurate sand sculpture on the Normandy Beach to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of D-Day. Thus, the ``Sands of Remembrance'' was born. So from May 25 through May 29 a team of award-winning sand sculptors from the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom began an effort to create one of the most memorable and beautiful artistic memorials dedicated to one of the most heroic events in our history. To honor D- Day's fallen heroes in a symbolic and tangible way, this sand sculpture was an act of remembrance. This sculpted sand served as a touching and unique reminder of the sacrifices made for freedom to those who visited the memorial. The team of award-winning sand sculptors created a 30 x 30 life-size sand sculpture of the D-Day landing commemorating the 60th Anniversary of that historic event. Dear Abby and Home Box Office (HBO) partnered with the White House Commission on Remembrance for the ``Sands of Remembrance'' memorial, initiated by the Commission. Some of the reactions of those who witnessed the sculpture were: ``It brought tears to my eyes.'' ``So inspiring.'' ``It makes you feel gratitude.'' ``It makes you think.'' ``Spectacular!'' ``Superb!'' ``Stupendous!'' ``Awesome!'' ``Astonishing!'' ``Incredible!'' ``I've never seen anything like it!'' ``Magnificent.'' ``Marvelous.'' ``How could this have been done? It's unbelievable.'' ``What a tribute!'' ``It's so personal and emotional.'' ``It touches the mind and the heart.'' ``No other commemoration for those who died has so much meaning.'' ``I feel the presence of those who died.'' For the sculpture, fifty tons of sand from the five landing beaches: Gold, Juno, Omaha, Sword, and Utah, depicted soldiers landing on the Normandy Beaches. For the first time in history sand sculptors John Gowdy and Matthew Deibert (United States); Mark Anderson and Edward Dudley (United Kingdom); and Dale Murdock (Canada) created a historically accurate sand sculpture. These sculptors worked for six days, putting in approximately 10 hours each day to create the sculpture. Throngs of thousands from many countries viewed the sculpture as they attended ceremonies marking the 60th Anniversary of D-Day. Of the international community of visitors that visited the ``Sands of Remembrance'', a Russian woman said emotionally, ``It brought tears to my eyes.'' The sand sculpture, located in Vierville-sur-Mer on Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, was dedicated on May 30 and remained on exhibit through June 8. I want to thank the White House Commission on Remembrance, the sculptors who made the Sands of Remembrance a reality, and of course, the men and women who made freedom a reality on the shores of Normandy 60 years ago.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time to close with one speaker at the very end.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), the chairman of the Committee on Rules, to close this great debate and this opportunity we have had to talk about energy and water. (Mr. DREIER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Wamp), the vice chairman of the subcommittee. (Mr. WAMP asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I do want to quote my colleague who said that this is a good bill. It is a good bill and it does deserve to be passed. It also is a bill that does not need to address what is known as the Eshoo amendment, because it has already been addressed. It has been addressed in the H.R. 6 conference report and H.R. 4503 that was passed last week by the House and is pending in the Senate; and that will provide the authority to FERC to ensure that the proper elements are taken care of as it relates to serious allegations that have been raised, especially in California. I do thank the gentleman for his support of the bill. I believe he has qualified it appropriately, and I do, too, give thanks to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Hobson) for the work he has done. Mr. Speaker, I would like to notify the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) that at this time I do not have any speakers as a result of the adequacy of the bill that has taken care of many requests on this side; and so I would like to inform the gentleman that I would allow him to go ahead and consume the time that is necessary. Mr. Speaker, I will reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. The resolution before the House today provides for consideration of the 2005 Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill under an open rule that provides for 1 hour of general debate, equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking member of the Committee on Appropriations. It waives all points of order against consideration of the bill, and under the rules of the House, the bill shall be considered for amendment by paragraph. The rule waives points of order against provisions in the bill as amended for failure to comply with clause 2 of rule XXI except as specified in the resolution. It authorizes the chairman to accord priority in recognition to Members who have been preprinted their amendments in the Congressional Record, and finally it provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the rule for H.R. 4614, the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act of 2005. This legislation provides for a total of $28 billion in new discretionary spending authority for the civil U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Interior, the Department of Energy and several associated Independent Agencies. I would like to thank my friend, the chairman, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Hobson), for his leadership and vision in crafting this legislation and for striking a good balance between existing prudent fiscal restraint and funding our Nation's energy and water development priorities. This bill increases funding for our Nation's energy and water priorities at $734.5 million above 2004 levels, and $49.6 million above the President's budget request, while ensuring that this money is spent wisely on programs that also reflect the needs and the core missions that its agencies find within their mission statements. This legislation adequately funds the Corps of Engineers and concentrates its resources on helping to fulfill its traditional missions such as flood control, shoreline protection, navigation and safety on our Nation's waterways. Over the last few years, the Corps has been given an increased workload to complete with an inadequate budget. This bill focuses on protecting our critical infrastructure and completing outstanding projects while prioritizing our Nation's infrastructure needs in a thoughtful and efficient way. It provides funding needed to maintain, operate, and rehabilitate the Bureau of Reclamation projects throughout the western United States and protects the Federal investment in western water infrastructure. It also ensures that renewable energy programs are funded at $343 million, $1 million above the fiscal year 2004 amounts. Under this legislation, the Department of Energy receives a total of $22.48 billion, an increase of $511 million over fiscal year 2004. As with the Corps, this legislation tasks the Department of Energy with beginning to prepare its 5-year budget plans, first for individual programs and then an integrated plan for the entire Department. This plan must include business plans for each of the DOE laboratories, so that Congress and the Department can understand the mission and resource needs of each laboratory to ensure that they can use their funding that is provided more efficiently. Funding for the National Nuclear Security Administration is $9 billion, an increase of $372 million over fiscal year 2004 and a decrease of $22 million from the budget request. The United States has in place a strategic plan to realign and modernize our nuclear arsenal, however, much of the DOE weapons complex is still sized to support a Cold War stockpile. The funding included in this bill will help NNSA to review its weapons complex in relation to the security needs, budget constraints and this new stockpiling plan while still providing adequate funding for its ongoing operations and needs. Finally, this bill provides $202 million for several independent agencies, including the Defense Nuclear Facilities Board, the Delta Regional Authority, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and its Inspector General, the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board, and the Office of Inspector General for the Tennessee Valley Authority. Mr. Speaker, I am very proud of this legislative product, created by our Committee on Appropriations with input from many Members. It will help to fund our Nation's energy and water development needs. I would also like to personally commend the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Hobson) for his hard work and vision in crafting this legislation. And I would also like to thank the chairman for his inclusion of level funding, that was important to this Member, for the Dallas Floodway Extension Project which is a cornerstone in Dallas, Texas, for our Trinity River Corridor Project. This project will help Dallas to mitigate flood risks in over 12,500 structures in Dallas' central business district and includes some 792 acres of land that are currently in a 100-year flood plain. I support this project and this bill, and I urge my colleagues to do the same by supporting the rule and the underlying legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 694 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 4663.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 43rd Annual YMCA Youth Governor's Conference scheduled to be held in Washington next week. I am pleased to once again have the honor of being the Congressional sponsor for the Youth Governor's breakfast with my fellow colleagues in the House. The YMCA Youth Governor's Conference brings together some of the most outstanding youth leaders in America. YMCA Youth and Government is a nation-wide program that allows thousands of teenagers to simulate state and national government. Mr. Speaker, I would like to personally recognize each of this year's YMCA Youth Governors for their dedication and service to America's youth. Grant Reid of Texas; Jason Hill of South Carolina; William Bloom of Alabama; Cori Trazwell of Arizona; Xavier Lopez-Ayala of California; Elizabeth Brittenham of Connecticut; Angelyn Tinsman of Delaware; Nithya Krishnam of Florida; Jess Morgan of Georgia; James Hess of Idaho; Dustin Herr of Illinois; Lisa Wanninger of Indiana; R.T. Lowry and David Padron of Kentucky; Patrick Coco of Louisiana; Ben Crockett of Maine; Allison Korycki of Maryland; Emily Sheehan of Massachusetts; Brandon Laventure and Shaundra Crittenden of Michigan; Zachary Skalko of Minnesota; Robert Goggins of Mississippi; Alex Ricke of Missouri; David Earl of New Jersey; Jackie Burns of Model United Nations; Jamie Brooks of New Mexico; Alex Bowerman of New York; Rob Stephens of North Carolina; Joshua Watkins of Oklahoma; Jakob Wilson of Oregon; Sara Gellatly of Pennsylvania; George Richardson and Patrick Fox of Tennessee; Matthew Sundquist of Virginia; Joseph Jenkins of Washington; Nathaniel Cole of the District of Columbia; and Loren Balhorn of Wisconsin. I wish all of the 2004 Youth Governors a very successful conference here in Washington, and I encourage them to continue their sincere devotion to leadership and public service in this and their future endeavors.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I join my colleagues in honoring a unique man and a graceful diplomat. Ambassador Chen is returning to Taiwan after four years of exemplary service as the representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative office, the quasi embassy of the Republic of China. In fact, since joining his country's foreign service 37 years ago, Ambassador Chen has always been involved with the U.S.-Taiwan relations in his many job assignments both in Taiwan and in the United States. His diplomatic career mirrors very much the ups and downs of U.S.- Taiwan relations. The nadir of U.S.-Taiwan relations came in 1979 when the Carter Administration severed diplomatic ties with Taipei and recognized Beijing. C.J. Chen was then working in Taiwan's embassy in Washington. He spent days and nights negotiating and communicating with U.S. government officials and lawmakers in drafting the Taiwan Relations Act which became U.S. law on April 10, 1979. The TRA has enabled Taiwan to grow economically and politically in the last quarter of century. In the subsequent years, in his many key roles in Taiwan's foreign ministry, C.J. made sure that the U.S. would play a role as balancer, stabilizer and facilitator in handling its relations with both Taiwan and the mainland. In addition, C.J. and other leaders in Taiwan have been successful in urging the U.S. to continue to provide Taiwan with the military sales necessary for Taiwan's self defense. In the last 4 years, C.J., in his capacity as Taiwan's top diplomat in Washington, has further strengthened U.S.-Taiwan relations. U.S. confidence in Taiwan continues to rise and U.S.-Taiwan relations are now at its best since 1979. While there have been no major changes in the U.S. policy towards the two sides of the Taiwan Straits, U.S. tone towards Taiwan has markedly improved, since Taiwan is a democracy and democracies count for something. In addition to the Bush administration's goodwill towards Taiwan, congressional support and friendship continues to grow, especially in the last 4 years. Since the inception of the 108th Congress, both the Senate and the House have introduced or passed a number of pro-Taiwan bills and resolutions such as Taiwan's participation in the WHO, a U.S.-Taiwan Free Trade Agreement, security in the Taiwan Strait, welcome for transits by Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian etc. All these achievements are directly attributable to the efforts of Ambassador C.J. Chen. Mr. Speaker, C.J. and his wife Yolanda will be missed in Washington. I wish C.J. and Yolanda all the best and hope they will keep in touch with their many friends in Washington.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the father of Lake Highlands Education, Bill B. Passmore. I am proud to represent the Lake Highlands community in the 32nd Congressional District of Texas, and Mr. Passmore's commitment to education in the community has been long and distinguished. Mr. Passmore is being honored this Sunday afternoon, June 13, 2004 for his career achievements, and I congratulate him and his family on a lifetime of accomplishments. After graduating from The University of Texas at Austin with a BBA degree in 1949, he taught for two years in Angleton High School before moving to Dallas. Mr. Passmore resumed his teaching career at Richardson High School in the fall of 1952. He taught business subjects for two years before being named the Business Manager and assistant to Superintendent J.J. Pearce for the 1954-55 school year. Mr. Passmore was selected in 1955 as the principal to open the first school in the Lake Highlands area: Lake Highlands Elementary School. He was later named as the third principal to serve the school in 1976. Named principal of Richardson High School in 1956, he remained in that capacity for nine years. When the Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) opened El Centro College as its first campus, Passmore was hired as the first of eight counselors for the college. During six years at El Centro, he left the counseling department to serve as Dean of the Evening School and later as the Associate Dean of Instruction. When the Richland College opened in 1972, he moved to the new campus to serve as Association Dean of Instruction until 1976 when he returned to the RISD as principal of Lake Highlands Elementary School. In 1979, Mr. Passmore was again asked to serve as principal of a new school in the Lake Highlands area: Merriman Park Elementary. He retired from Merriman Park Elementary in 1989, and since that time has worked ten years for the University of North Texas on a part-time basis as a University Supervisor of Student Teachers. During his professional career, Mr. Passmore earned his Master's Degree from the University of North Texas and some 36 hours of post- graduate credit from the University of Texas at Austin. He was a member of the Richardson Kiwanis Club for 12 years and served for one year as its president. He was a staff member or an administrator during the opening of seven new campuses in Angleton, Richardson, and DCCCD. Mr. Passmore's personal commitment to education and the Lake Highland's community have been exceptional for several decades, and I congratulate him for his lifetime of public service.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, Ronald Wilson Reagan first entered into our national consciousness in 1964, asking Americans to make a choice in the face of the growing threat of socialism both at home and abroad. We know him as the eternal optimist, the ``Great Communicator'', and the man who maintained that Communism would surely fall aside onto the ``ash heap of history.'' I had the personal privilege of knowing President Reagan when my father, Judge William S. Sessions, served as Director of the FBI during his administration. Like many of my generation, I was inspired by the optimism of Ronald Reagan, a leader who never lacked the courage and the principle to do what he felt was right even in the face of great obstacles. President Reagan saw the world in black and white, whether it was confronting the programs of the ``Great Society'' as the beginnings of a new ``undemocratic socialism'' or chiding the actions of the ``Evil Empire'' in Eastern Europe. This moral clarity was the hallmark of his Presidency. Ronald Reagan came in to office with three core principles and an agenda by which to implement them. He believed that the government was too big, that it taxed too much, and that the Soviet Union was an evil empire, getting away with atrocities across the world. From the first day of his Presidency, Reagan began to move systematically towards enacting his campaign promises, and, in so doing, he rejuvenated the American spirit. America is forever indebted to this President whose resolve and determination to pursue ``peace through strength'' helped to end the Cold War and ensured that, as the President himself said, ``America's best days are yet to come. Our proudest moments are yet to be. Our most glorious achievements are just ahead.'' Thank you, President Reagan. May God bless you as you enter your rest in that shining city.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his leadership to come to the floor of the House tonight, along with the cochairmen of the Careers for 21st Century America, the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Tiahrt). I serve as another one of the cochairmen of this very important part of our Republican Conference. Tonight we are going to talk about lifelong learning and its impact on this country. As we today held a press conference, the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Tiahrt) and I, we talked about a number of things that face America, our opportunity to make sure that the educational system that we have in this country is not only aiming at the right things but is prepared to make sure that we are ready for its future. A number of facts came to us today that were very interesting. Among others that we learned were approximately 60 percent of corporations are prevented from updating technologies by the low educational and technically skilled level of their workers, meaning that the workers that are in today's workplace have to be retrained, have to be retrained on a regular basis, and that the corporation that today spends some $60 billion a year on training their employees and making sure that their employees can deal with not only the technologies that are new and emerging but also the tools, being able to do those things that will produce American products and make sure that America is leading edge. In 1950, 80 percent of the jobs were classified as unskilled. Today, roughly 85 percent are classified as skilled. That is a change in the marketplace. In the coming decade, 40 percent of the job growth will require postsecondary education, so says the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Approximately 75 percent of today's workforce will need to be retrained just to keep up with their current jobs, also from the Chamber of Commerce. Lastly, from the Chamber of Commerce, as much as 40 percent of tomorrow's jobs do not even exist today. So as we begin talking about this, not only in the Republican Conference but also in the press conference today, we recognize that our leadership, through the leadership of the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hastert) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay), that we needed to bring forth not only a vision statement about what we believe in, but also actual bills, pieces of legislation that will do those things that allow our country to be prepared for the future.

Mr. SESSIONS. And we recognize that, as we started talking about this, that three pieces of legislation, which are going to be on the floor this week, which are very, very important, one of them H.R. 4409, the Teacher Training Enhancement Act, which we are going to hear about in just a few minutes which the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Gingrey) brought forth to our conference because he recognized that we need to make sure that we are utilizing the best effort not only from what States do, because they are responsible for education, but also to make sure that companies and people who are out there in local cities and at the local level are able to engage in those things to bring their skill sets to the educational environment. We have H.R. 4410, the Teacher Shortage Response Act, which the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Wilson) has made sure is a part of our package. We need to make sure that we are able to accurately and carefully find those people who would come and be teachers in our public schools. We need to find those who have in particular a background in math and science, a high-tech background. It is difficult for school systems to come and compete for those specialized people who might want to get out of school and be able to pay off their student loans, so they go and they work for local industry. We need them in our schools. So the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Wilson) saw this need and said we need to be able to compete in our school systems to have those kinds of teachers to be ready and available to teach our children. He did a good job. Lastly, H.R. 4411, the Priorities For Graduate Studies Act. The gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Burns) saw this as a tremendous opportunity for us to capitalize on many people who receive higher education, meaning a masters or a doctorate degree, to be a part of our school system, to be a part of the teaching system that we have in this country, to make sure that our students are challenged with not only leading-edge tool sets, the tool kits that are necessary, but also by the teachers who would be employed to do that, to challenge our bright young students to make sure that the leading-edge concepts, the leading-edge ideas that will develop tomorrow so that we can make sure that this country is prepared. And that is what this week is about. That is why we operate Careers For the 21st Century in this week, talking about lifelong learning. We believe that if the United States Congress acts forthrightly to where we talk about what is the real job that Congress should be doing, we should be aiming this country in a direction that will allow the private sector and schools back home to not only compete and hire those people who will help our students, but also to make sure that the resources are available to do that. And that is why this Republican conference is so interested in making sure that this is a part of what is available in the tool kits for teachers and administrators back home. I am very proud of what this will mean and what it will do. Years ago early in my career I spent time at Bell Labs in New Jersey. And I was around some of the brightest and the best of the young people that this country produced. Now we have seen a proliferation of jobs all over this country where high tech has taken off, where jobs are available in not only health care but also the employment industry where it is high tech involved in helping our military or perhaps producing things for jobs in this country. We must continue in this country being the leading-edge producer of not only technology but also the students who will operate and make that technology work. I believe that America's greatest days are in our future because we have a vision and a dream about where we are going to go in terms of not only this generation but the next generation. This is a part of the Republican Party's commitment to the future of this country. I am proud of what we are doing. I am proud to be a co- chairman of this very important Careers For 21st Century. I thank the gentleman from North Carolina for taking his time tonight to make sure our message is given to our colleagues about how important our responsibility is to ensure the success of the next generation of Americans through education.