Adam Schiff

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. I yield myself such time as I may consume. H.R. 1333 addresses the gap in the law governing the transportation of explosive materials by giving federally recognized Indian tribes the same status already given Federal, State and local governments. In 2002, Congress passed the Safe Explosives Act, which prohibits the transportation, shipment, receipt and importation of explosive materials without specific Federal permits or licenses. The act exempts Federal, State and local governments from this requirement, but due to an oversight, the exemption does not cover federally recognized Indian tribes and their agencies. This bill corrects that oversight. Fireworks can play an integral role in the religious and cultural ceremonies of many Indian tribes. This bill will facilitate those religious and cultural practices without compromising safety. This act does not exempt Indian tribes from complying with safe storage requirements. Like State agencies, tribes still will be required to comply with Federal explosives storage regulations. H.R. 1333 enjoys bipartisan support. I thank the gentleman from Arizona, Mr. Raul Grijalva, for bringing this oversight to the attention of the House and for his hard work on this bill. I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers and will reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Arizona, Mr. Grijalva, for his leadership on this issue and urge passage of the bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 1289) to improve title 18 of the United States Code.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I introduced the Foreign Evidence Request Efficiency Act in July with my colleague Representative Dan Lungren from California. The bill before us today, S. 1289, is an identical companion bill introduced by Senators Whitehouse, Sessions, and Leahy, and passed by the Senate on July 10, 2010. I would like to commend Senator Whitehouse for his leadership on this issue and thank him for the opportunity to work with him, given our shared experience as former Federal prosecutors, to address this matter. Mr. Speaker, as we know, crime knows no borders. A fraud committed in France may involve banks and financial records located here in the United States. Modern technology links the countries of the world more and more, and the need for international cooperation in fighting crime increases. The U.S. routinely assists foreign law enforcement agencies in the investigations in the same way that foreign law enforcement entities assist the United States with its investigations. When a foreign law enforcement agency makes a request for evidence in the United States, such as financial records or Internet records or other evidence, U.S. attorneys review the requests and, upon approval, seek warrants for the evidence. When the evidence is collected, it is then transmitted to foreign authorities. The current process, though, is very cumbersome. Under existing law, international requests for evidence are processed under civil practice rules that require prosecutors to file in every district in which evidence or a witness may be found. For example, evidence sought for one criminal matter may involve financial records housed in banks in several different Federal judicial districts, in several different States, Internet records in more than one district, and other evidence spread over many districts and States. So, under current law, over a dozen different U.S. attorneys' offices could have to work on an evidence request for a single case. Several district courts would also have to be involved. This process is inefficient, it's burdensome, and makes little sense for Federal prosecutors across the country or for the interests of justice. The Foreign Evidence Request Efficiency Act would rectify this situation by allowing foreign evidence requests to be handled centrally, ideally by one or two U.S. attorney offices. Specifically under the proposal, a legitimate request for assistance can be filed in the District of Columbia, in any of the districts in which any of the several records or witnesses are located, or in any district in which there is a related Federal criminal case already being conducted. Courts will continue to act as gatekeepers to make sure that requests for foreign evidence meet the same standards as those required in domestic cases. But by streamlining the evidence collection process, the U.S. will be able to more quickly respond to foreign evidence requests. These efforts will assist us with our investigations as foreign authorities will be urged to respond in kind to our evidence requests in a speedy manner. In addition, the current authority to respond to foreign evidence requests is found in a patchwork of treaties, the inherent power of the courts, and analogous domestic statutes. This legislation would provide clear statutory authority in one place. The legislation before us is strongly supported by the Department of Justice. The Department believes the changes in this bill will facilitate the ability of the United States to assist in foreign investigations, prosecutions, and related proceedings involving organized crime, trafficking in child pornography, intellectual property violations, identity theft, and all other serious crimes. Mr. Speaker, the important changes in this bill will greatly improve our crime-fighting abilities and that of our allies. I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire of my colleague from Texas how many speakers he has remaining.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I will reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I would be happy to engage in a colloquy with my colleague if it would help Mr. Lungren. I appreciate his support on this legislation, and I have enjoyed the opportunity to work with Mr. Lungren on this. Of course, I want to particularly acknowledge my colleague in the Senate, Sheldon Whitehouse, for his leadership as well as Senators Sessions and Leahy. I'm hoping that this will take some of the burden off the U.S. Attorney's offices around this country and speed our ability to handle these foreign requests, and thereby I hope we will see reciprocity in our requests of these other countries that they act expeditiously. I would be happy to yield to my colleague.

Mr. SCHIFF. I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I know if Mr. Lungren were here, he would make some unnecessarily gracious remarks in my direction. They are reciprocated. Once again, I thank him for his work.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1727) to establish a national criminal arsonist and criminal bomber registry program and establish guidelines and incentives for States, territories and tribes to participate in such program, as amended.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. SCHIFF. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Managing Arson Through Criminal History Act, the MATCH Act, and am very proud to join Congresswoman Mary Bono Mack in sponsoring this important legislation and who has led the charge on this for several years now. I want to congratulate you on your perseverance. This, I think, will be a very important and powerful tool in bringing arsonists to justice. Our collaboration on this issue stems from a painful understanding of the devastation that arson can cause and has caused in both of our districts. In fact, as we debate this bill today, firefighters are still mopping up the last vestiges of the Station fire which has burned thousands and thousands of acres in the Angeles Forest in the past month and resulted in the tragic death of two firefighters. The fire was deliberately set, and the perpetrator is still at large. The bill before us today would create a nationwide registry of arsonists to help fire investigators find arsonists and prevent additional fires. Because arsonists commit their crimes in secret, arson is among the most difficult of crimes to investigate. According to FBI statistics, only about 18 percent of arsons from 2008 have been ``cleared'' by an arrest. In the wake of a fire, investigators are faced with the daunting challenge of piecing together evidence from a scorched tract of land or a house. The Station fire, for example, is a 250-square-mile crime scene. Investigators have isolated where they believe the blaze originated, but there have been no arrests thus far, despite the offer of a $150,000 reward. I know from firsthand experience the difficulty of an arson investigation. When I was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles in the late 1980s and early 1990s, I prosecuted an individual who started fires in the San Bernardino Forest. The arsonist followed a pattern. He used a distinct incendiary device made from a cigarette with matches taped around it. He would drive through the forest and throw the cigarette with the matches taped around it into the brush. The cigarette would burn down to the matches, ignite the matches, which would ignite the brush. The cigarette was basically like a slow fuse. By the time the brush caught on fire, he was far away from the point of origin of the fire. Catching someone like that who doesn't have a traditional motive to set a fire or commit a crime is extremely challenging. Eventually, using video surveillance, law enforcement made an arrest. We discovered in the course of the investigation that the suspect had a history of setting fires using the same distinct incendiary device made from a cigarette with matches taped around it. We didn't discover that information in an electronic database or even in the suspect's criminal record. The information was eventually found before the trial, stored in a box in his former parole officer's basement. If we had a national arsonist registry at the time, we would have known of convicted arsonists who lived in the region. We would have known of their modus operandi. We might have been able to stop him before he set several of the later fires. Keeping records in your basement is not a sound investigative law enforcement strategy. The national arsonist registry created by the MATCH Act is. The MATCH Act would create a national registry of arsonists that is similar but more extensive than what three States have right now. Currently, three States, including California, maintain such registries, but they are very limited. Arsonists can and do cross State lines to start fires. They don't necessarily contain updated information about the arsonist's current address, their place of employment, where they go to school and a myriad of other pieces of information that could be useful to investigators. Under the MATCH Act, a convicted arsonist would be required to register with the State in which they reside and provide updated biographical information, along with a photograph and information on the cars that they own. No information in this registry would be publicly available. The information would only be accessible to law enforcement and fire investigators. Last year, the Congressional Budget Office scored the cost of implementing the act at $17 million over 5 years, that is, if we fully fund a small authorization to offset the costs to States in setting up the program. Given the millions and millions we spend fighting wildfires and the billions, literally billions, in property damage due to arson, this is a reasonable investment to save lives in the future. The House passed this legislation overwhelmingly in 2007, but unfortunately it was never enacted. It didn't clear the Senate. As my constituents can attest, though, the problem of arson is not going away. And so we press on for this bill that will assist investigators and, we hope, prevent arson fires in the future. I urge my colleagues to support the bill and reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how many more speakers my colleague from Texas has.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague Representative Bono Mack for all of her work on this issue. It's been a pleasure working together. I think when we had the bill come up in committee last session and the Burbank fire chief, Tracy Pancini, testified, he pointed out really how this bill will be of great service to investigators by pointing to the case of someone who was a serial arsonist in New York, who set fire to many carports, for whatever reason, for whatever perverse thrill, as my colleague from Texas pointed out some of these arsonists seem to get by setting fires. He was well-known to authorities in New York and he moved to California where he was unknown, and when there were a series of carport fires in California, California authorities didn't necessarily connect it to what happened in New York. With a national registry, we can connect these events and we can connect the dots, and not only, I hope, put away some of these arsonists, but maybe more importantly deter arsonists who, if they know that they are being tracked and are being followed by this registry, will think twice before they set additional fires. So, with that, I want to once again thank my colleague and urge the House to support this bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 757) supporting the goals and ideals of a National Day of Remembrance for Homicide Victims.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Helen Kleberg Groves, who will be honored on October 3, 2009 at the Autry National Center's Annual Gala, ``Celebrate the Spirit: Women of the West.'' The Autry National Center's mission is to tell the stories of all the diverse peoples of the American West, and that is reflected in the themes of their Galas--this year's theme, `Celebrate the Spirit: Women of the West' reflects the often neglected stories of Western women. Helen Kleberg Groves is a true Texas cowgirl, a mother, a grandmother, an author, and a philanthropist with a heart as big as the King Ranch, her family home. Groves was born in San Antonio on October 10, 1927, the child of Robert J. Kleberg Jr. and Helen C. Kleberg. She was reared on the 825,000-acre ranch in South Texas, where she learned about ranching, line breeding, genetics, and working cattle from her father. She attended Henrietta M. King High School in Kingsville; St. Mary's Hall in San Antonio; and Foxcroft School in Middleburg, Virginia. She also attended Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. In addition to raising five daughters and a son, Groves made time for civic work while spending a lifetime in ranching and livestock. For more than 30 years, from 1956 to 1988, she was on the board of directors of King Ranch Inc. She is president of the Robert J. Kleberg Jr. and Helen C. Kleberg Foundation, established in 1950 by her parents. The foundation has funded countless projects in Texas and across the country, particularly in the areas of biomedical research, health services, higher education, and veterinary and wildlife projects. Ms. Kleberg Groves has been called an ambassador to the equine industry for her support of equine research and contributions to the development of the American Quarter Horse. Known as the ``First Lady of Cutting,'' Groves has spent decades breeding, raising, and riding cutting horses. She began competing in cutting horse events in 1972 and took many championships until she retired from competition. She is a member of the National Cutting Horse Association Hall of Fame, National Cowgirl Hall of Fame, and the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame. Among her numerous honors is the Order of Australia from the Governor General of Australia. She was only the second American to receive this award. She is emeritus director of the U.S. Equestrian Team and a lifetime vice president of the Texas and Southwest Cattle Raisers Association. I ask all Members of Congress to join me in paying tribute to Helen Kleberg Groves, an inspiring individual--and true Woman of the West.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. At the outset, Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the chairman for moving this resolution so expeditiously and in time for a memorial service that will be conducted at Dodger Stadium this Saturday. I rise today to speak in support of legislation I've introduced with my colleague, David Dreier, my neighbor in California, honoring the first responders to the recent California wildfires, paying tribute to all those who helped during this crisis, and mourning the loss of Firefighter Captain Tedmund ``Ted'' Hall and Firefighter Specialist Arnaldo ``Arnie'' Quinones who died while bravely fighting the Station fire. These courageous men made the ultimate sacrifice for their family and friends and greater community, deserve our recognition and have earned our undying gratitude. It is, I suppose, fitting, Mr. Speaker, that we take up this resolution following the September 11 resolution. When we think of September 11, in addition to the terrible tragedy and the loss of so many innocent lives, we think of the bravery of the emergency responders who, while others were rushing out of those collapsing building, they were rushing in. Similarly, in California, 3,000 miles away from the site of that terrible tragedy, we, once again see firefighters rushing in while others are rushing out. And none could exemplify this courage and this call to service more than Specialist Quinones and Captain Hall. Our thoughts today go out to the families of these brave men. And with this resolution we seek to honor their lives and also highlight the contributions of thousands of other personnel who helped fight these massive wild fires which have burned hundreds of thousands of acres of public and private lands, destroyed and damaged structures and homes and forced the evacuation of thousands of families. The weather conditions in California have been mixed. At times the weather has been still; the wind has been still. But that has caused smoke to accumulate and hampered emergency aircraft. At other times the winds have fanned the flames and started new fires. Low humidity has also, and high ambient temperatures have, contributed to the heat of the blaze, to the point where the Governor of California proclaimed a state of emergency in several counties in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Santa Cruz, Placer, Monterey and Mariposa. The Station fire, ignited by arson, began on August 26 and burned more than 160,000 acres of public lands and private property in L.A. County and the Angeles National Forest where it continues to burn, including over 200 structures and homes. It is currently one of the largest fires in modern California history, and the largest wild fire in the history of Los Angeles County, as far as we can tell. The Station fire continues to threaten 7,000 structures in the national forest and nearby communities like Altadena, Acton, Glendale, La Canada Flintridge, La Crescenta, Pasadena, Littlerock, Sunland, Sierra Madre, and Tujunga. More than 8,000 fire personnel, 800 fire engines and approximately 40 helicopters, 13 fixed-wing aircraft and 88 water tenders have been deployed statewide to assist with firefighting efforts. The continuing commitment and heroism exhibited by fire fighters have saved countless lives, homes and businesses. We also recognize the additional emergency personnel such as law enforcement and medical personnel who have coordinated with local authorities and fire fighters and performed beyond the call of duty in the preservation and protection of human lives. We also recognize hundreds of volunteers who gave their time to help ensure that evacuees are sheltered, clothed, fed and comforted during this traumatic event. I can recall visiting some of the shelters in La Crescenta and La Canada, meeting with volunteers for the Red Cross. One, Kim Lardia, who's a Glendale police officer, worked a full day in uniform as a police officer, then came out in the evening to volunteer at the shelter to make sure that people had a place to sleep. It's people like this, bravely serving the community that are such an inspiration to us and give us confidence that we will finally get this fire put out. So I want to join with my colleague again, David Dreier. We had the chance to visit the command center and speak with the fire chief and the incident commander, see the incredible coordination of Federal, State and local resources, had the chance to see not only acres and acres of burned forest land, but also homes that had been destroyed and devastated. And we wanted to introduce this resolution today to acknowledge all the superb people who have come together to fight these fires and to pledge our commitment to make sure that the Federal Government continues to be a good partner. And once again, I urge support for this resolution.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, as a Nation, we spend almost twice as much per person on health care as any other country, or about 16 percent of our gross domestic product. And for all the money that we are spending, our health care system does not produce the best outcomes. Millions of Americans have no health care insurance and receive their care at the emergency room. Millions more must make the difficult choice of whether to pay their medical bills or pay their mortgage because they can't afford to do both. I support reforms in the health care package that will bring down health care costs by tying payments to outcomes rather than the quantity of tests being run, by ending the government's overpayment for prescription drugs, by empowering an independent commission to put health care cost reductions before the Congress for up-or-down votes, and by investing in prevention and primary care. One of the choices that should be made available in the health insurance exchange is a public health insurance option. I strongly believe that the advent of a public plan alongside private insurance coverage would achieve a number of beneficial goals, providing a greater choice to families and much-needed competition with private insurers. The new plan would also use its inherent advantages to control costs over the long term through lower administrative overhead and the ability to bargain for volume discounts. In order to make sure the public plan has the legs to compete with private insurers, I believe it needs to be available now, not as a fallback, and that we need to allow it access to an established provider network, like Medicare, that will ensure the plan competes on a level playing field. As a nation we spend almost twice as much per person on health care as any other country or about 16 percent of our gross domestic product. And for all the money we are spending, our health care system does not produce the best outcomes. Millions of Americans have no health care insurance and receive their care at the emergency room. Millions more must make the difficult choice of whether to pay their medical bills or pay their mortgage because they cannot afford to do both. I support reforms in the health-care package that will bring down health-care costs by tying payments to outcomes, rather than the quantity of tests being run, by ending the government's overpayment for prescription drugs, by empowering an independent commission to put health care cost reductions before the Congress for an up-or-down vote, and by investing in prevention and primary care. One of the choices that should be made available in the health insurance exchange is a public health insurance option.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. I thank the gentleman from California for yielding. I am pleased that for the first time in 17 years the FAA has deemed the Part 161 nighttime curfew application officially complete. This is a big step in the right direction and shouldn't be overlooked. I strongly believe that Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, California, has met the criteria for a curfew set by law and that a curfew would impact a relatively small number of diverted flights while delivering significant reductions in both the noise impact to surrounding communities and the cost associated with sound mitigation. However, I share my colleague's concern that the FAA has not been serious about moving forward with mandatory curfews, despite congressional intent when Part 161 was signed into law. I look forward to working with Chairman Olver and the authorizing committee to ensure that Part 161 has the meaning and credibility and that the process is real and can lead to results.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, as Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee Task Force on Judicial Impeachment that was directed to inquire whether Judge Samuel B. Kent should be impeached, I rise to discuss the resolution before the House today and urge its adoption. On June 19, 2009, the House of Representatives voted to impeach Samuel B. Kent, judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, for high crimes and misdemeanors. Four Articles of Impeachment were agreed to without dissent. On June 24, 2009, I was joined by the other House Managers in this matter in presenting the Articles of Impeachment to the United States Senate, whereupon proceedings were commenced. Later that day, Judge Kent was served with a summons by the Senate Sergeant at Arms, commanding an answer to the Articles of Impeachment. Upon being served, Judge Kent tendered his resignation to the President of the United States, effective June 30, 2009, which was accepted by the President. On July 6, 2009, the managers on the part of the House advised the Senate, sitting as a court of impeachment in this proceeding, of the resignation and its acceptance, and further advised the Senate that the managers had determined to recommend to the House that the pending impeachment proceedings in the Senate be discontinued. Given that Samuel B. Kent is no longer a civil officer of the United States, having ceased to be a judge, the managers on the part of the House of Representatives respectfully recommend that the impeachment proceedings pending in the Senate be discontinued. The resolution before us today instructs the House Managers to return to the Senate, to inform the Senate that, in light of Samuel Kent's resignation, the House no longer seeks to urge the articles of impeachment in trial before the Senate. This will enable the Senate to dispense with the pending trial. I wish to emphasize that, although the Senate trial has proved unnecessary, the House has fulfilled its purpose of seeking to remove from office a judge who had committed high crimes and misdemeanors rendering him unfit to continue serving. I would like to thank all my House colleagues for helping bring this matter to a successful result--and particularly my colleague Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, the Ranking Member of the Impeachment Task Force, for his leadership. I urge the House to adopt this resolution.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. I thank the gentlewoman. I rise in strong support of the 2010 State-Foreign Ops Appropriations bill and congratulate my Chair and friend, Nita Lowey, for her leadership in crafting a bill that not only addresses critical national security needs, but does so in a cost-effective manner. After too many years in which diplomacy and smart power were shunted aside, this legislation is a reassertion of American leadership in helping to assure a brighter, more peaceful future for America's children and for children around the world. I am particularly concerned about Somalia's renewed descent into chaos and the prospect that al Qaeda, which is under increasing pressure along the Afghan/Pakistan frontier, will take advantage of the power vacuum in that country as it did in Afghanistan during the 1990s. This must not be allowed to happen. And the U.S. must be willing to work with the United Nations, the African Union, and nongovernmental organizations to help stabilize Somalia and create an atmosphere in which governance and security are again possible. This will be a long and difficult process, and in the main it must be driven by the Somalis themselves. But I was gratified that the bill includes aid above the President's request to foster economic growth, encourages the State Department to continue its support of Somali refugees in neighboring countries and, most importantly, provides $102 million to support both the African Union mission in Somalia and security sector reform within Somalia itself. In this bill, even as we have provided funding for important initiatives like that, and we provided robust funding to increase the size of our Foreign Service and USAID professionals to revamp our aid to Pakistan and to help it to better confront the threat from al Qaeda, to provide crucial aid to key Middle Eastern allies Israel, Jordan and Egypt, to ramp up our efforts to fight the scourges of malaria, HIV/ AIDS, and tuberculosis, and fully meet our obligations to the United Nations, Ms. Lowey, Ranking Member Granger, and the staff of the subcommittee have also been mindful of the state of our economy here at home. In fact, this bill is $1.2 billion, or 2.4 percent, below the President's spending, and $3.2 billion, or 6 percent, below the administration's request. Finally, I am very pleased the bill includes $48 million in economic assistance to Armenia, as well as an increase in humanitarian assistance to Karabakh to $10 million, and maintains military assistance parity to both countries at $3 million, and the IMET assistance at $450,000 each. Importantly, the report accompanying the bill references the policy of parity in military assistance provided to Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Hill Avenue Grace Lutheran Church of Pasadena, California. The church is celebrating its ninetieth anniversary with a year-long series of celebrations commemorating the church's significant history in Pasadena. In 1914, Martha Thompson, Laura Tallakson, Christiana Ellingson, and Thea Thompson, members of a small Norwegian-speaking Lutheran congregation in Pasadena, founded the ``Dorcas Club.'' The group grew steadily over the next few years and dedicated itself to forming an officially recognized mission church and in 1919, the United Lutheran Synod Church was established. The new church, with its first pastor, N.B. Thorpe presiding, held services in a storefront building on Lake Avenue in Pasadena. In 1923 the congregation purchased a church building at Mountain Street and Summit Avenue in Pasadena. Under the leadership of Pastor W.J. Maakestad, the church's name was changed to Grace Lutheran Church, and in 1926, church services changed from Norwegian to English. By the late 1940s, after years of growth under Pastor Joseph Berg, the church needed more space, so the congregation built a new, larger church on Hill Avenue in Pasadena and changed the name to Hill Avenue Grace Lutheran Church. In 1966, the church was extensively remodeled, and the Sanctuary was rededicated under longtime Pastor Amon Johnson. Since then, Hill Avenue Grace Lutheran Church has continued to grow, adding a preschool and a new chapel, among other expansions. Today, under the leadership of Pastor Anthony Auer, Hill Avenue Grace Lutheran Church is not only a vibrant Lutheran congregation but a dedicated community servant. Among its many other programs, church members run a weekly Food Shelf, help staff the Cold Weather Shelter, provide food vouchers for underprivileged students at Pasadena City College, and sew quilts and knit prayer shawls as part of the Prayers and Squares program. Alongside other Pasadena-area Lutheran churches, Hill Avenue Grace Lutheran Church has participated in operating Jacob House, a day shelter for homeless teens and adults, and Rachel House, a day shelter for women with children. The church also runs the Grace Christian Academy, a K-8 school dedicated to academic, social, physical, and spiritual growth. I consider it a great privilege to represent Hill Avenue Grace Lutheran Church and I ask all Members to join me in congratulating the congregation upon their 90th anniversary.