Hilda Solis

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3127, the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act of 2006. Nearly 2 years ago, I joined my colleagues in Congress to declare the atrocities in Darfur ``genocide.'' Despite this declaration, hundreds of thousands are dead, millions remain displaced and peacekeepers continue to lack needed support. It is clear that additional action is needed and I am pleased to join my colleagues today in supporting passage of the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act of 2006. The Khartoum government must be held accountable. It is my hope that with this legislation President Bush will exercise the influence of the United States at the United Nations to garner greater support from the world community to end the crisis in Darfur and bring peace to the Sudanese people.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to introduce the Cesar Estrada Chavez Study Act. This legislation authorizes the Department of Interior to conduct a special resources study to examine the areas that Cesar Estrada Chavez lived for potential incorporation into the National Park Service. Cesar Estrada Chavez was a humble man who knew the importance of hard work and sacrifice. Raised during the Great Depression, Chavez's family lost everything and he was forced to wander the southwestern United States with thousands of other farmworker families. As a migrant farmworker he learned the value of community and family. Farmworkers were united as they fought to survive in the often harsh working and living conditions of the migrant life. Chavez eventually left the fields in 1952 and began to campaign peacefully against racial and economic discrimination. In 1962, Chavez returned to help farmworker families and started the National Farmworkers Association. Today we know this organization as the United Farm Workers of America. Through non-violent action, the United Farm Workers have fought for fair wages, health care coverage, pension benefits, housing improvements, pesticide and health regulations and countless other protections for the health and wellbeing of the farmworker and their family. Despite the work of Chavez as a civil rights and labor leader, religious and spiritual figure, community servant and social entrepreneur, there are no historical, geographical or cultural designations in the National Park Service to honor him or his spirit which lives on today. I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation, so the stories of Chavez's struggles and triumphs need to be communicated and preserved for all Americans.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of my special order today.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to highlight how the President's fiscal year 2007 budget will harm millions of women and children around the country. Tonight you are going to hear from some of my colleagues about those specific programs that have proven to be successful for all women but are currently being cut and in some cases eliminated altogether. The President is proposing to cut programs that disproportionately help women, children, the elderly, and the increasing population of Americans living in poverty. Earlier this month, I was part of a recent delegation of Members of Congress who traveled to the gulf coast and New Orleans where most communities are still struggling to clean up their homes and get back to some sense of normalcy after Hurricane Katrina. We need to be doing more to help those, those that lost everything to regain their lives. These communities must have quality health care, emergency care, and safe environmental conditions. But we cannot accomplish these goals and help the millions of women and children around the country who are living in poverty with the reckless and immoral budget that President Bush has proposed. Key domestic programs that provide food and housing and support to women are vulnerable under this administration. In fact, the Bush administration is determined to protect tax cuts for the very wealthiest of Americans and provide health care for those who already have health care coverage and not include the 50 million uninsured people in our country today. The President wants to eliminate educational support for women, food assistance for seniors living in poverty, and he wants to significantly slash funding from important safety net programs like Medicaid and food stamps. In just 4 years, the cost of making these tax cuts permanent will exceed the amount that the Federal Government spends on education beginning in preschool through college. Where is the economic recovery that the administration promised? Real wages as we know are down. The number of people living in poverty has increased. Job growth has been stagnant. And tonight I am glad that so many of our colleagues in our Congress, the Women's Democratic Congress, who serve here are coming together to speak out against the President's budget and how it is going in the wrong direction for women and their families. I would like to begin by talking about education. But first I would like to begin by addressing the President's failure to address rising college costs. With increased funding for student financial aid programs like the PELL Grant program and the Perkins loan program. Before my election to public office, I worked for the California Student Opportunity and Access Program and helped many young people in my community obtain the ideal of going to college and receiving financial aid because there was no other means to go to college. The President's budget currently continues to shortchange America's students who rely on financial aid to pursue their college education. Just one month after Congressional Republicans cut college aid by $12 billion, $12 billion, the President proposed a budget that eliminates, decreases and freezes funding for much needed programs that are vital to helping students of color, people from my own community. Low interest Perkins loans are crucial resources as we know for college students who have demonstrated need. Two-thirds of the Perkins loan recipients are from families with annual incomes less than $40,000 a year. Yet, the Perkins loan program took a hit in the President's 2007 budget and would recall $664 million from the federal Perkins loan fund for nearly 1,800 colleges in the year 2007. And as a result 463,000 college students would lose a key part of their financial aid. Despite the record tuition increases that we all know are going through in our States, Bush's budget breaks his promise yet again of making college more affordable and he actually freezes the maximum PELL grant in scholarships. Six years ago President Bush promised to increase the maximum PELL scholarship for all college freshmen at $5,100. This budget is now the fourth time that the President has frozen the Pell Grant. Access to financial aid, as we know, is a huge factor for many students, particularly from low-income areas like my own. Three out of four young Latino adults who do not attend college cite the fact that without having financial aid they cannot continue to have the American dream. About 40 percent of African American students and 30 percent of Hispanic students depend on Pell Grants, compared to 23 percent of all students. Young women, just trying to improve their earning potential and get a better job also disproportionately rely on the Pell Grant program, and I have to tell you, when I was a student, that was my means of going on to college. My parents could not afford to send me to college. They could not afford to give me a substantial amount of money to go to a university. So thank God that we had Federal financial aid programs available, work study programs and the National Student Loan Program, where I was able to attend a 4-year institution to have my full tuition paid for, including expenses; and I thank God that our government at that time stepped up to the plate. I cannot say that now, under this administration, but for the last 4 years now we have seen an increase of 57 percent in costs to attend college, by this President. We need to reject the President's freezes and cuts to financial aid and help those students who want to go to college, but the high cost of tuition is just way out of line. When these students get to college, we need to do more to encourage them to pursue fields that will encourage innovation and increase America's competitiveness and increase the number of women that seek access into the technical fields like science and math. While women account for more than half of the number of bachelor's and master's degrees awarded, they make up a small number in the fields that are crucial to spurring innovation and job creation, for example, in areas like engineering, computer science, physical sciences and math. Only 21 percent of master's degrees in engineering were awarded to women. For computer science and physical science, women only earn about 35 percent of the master's degrees in the country. The statistics are far worse for women of color, like Latinas and African American women and even Asian Americans. Within the small number of women who earn an engineering master's degree, 11 percent are Asian American, a little over 4 percent are African American and less than 4 percent are Latinas. We need to encourage women to be part of the technical and skilled workforce from school age all the way up to adulthood. The President's budget also eliminates the Dropout Prevention Program and, therefore, ignores the big problem that we have currently in many of our communities where we see a number of our students dropping out of high school. For the past 4 years, the Bush administration has cut funding for dropout prevention, denying our most-needed students the opportunity to succeed, and in Los Angeles, by the way, only 29 percent of Latinos and 47 percent of African Americans actually graduate from high school. This budget also freezes over $1 billion in current funding for ongoing programs, including the GEAR UP program, the TRIO and Upward Bound program, which are vital programs to many youngsters in our community. Many that attend and currently are enrolled in those programs are the first in their family to have the opportunity to be trained and have the motivation and support and mentoring that is needed to be successful in college. With the President saying that he wants to zero out these programs, he is sending the wrong message to my community and to communities across this country. We need to be encouraging all of our young people to pursue higher education to keep America competitive and to increase our productivity and economy. With deep cuts to student aid proposed by the President, we are closing the doors to eager students instead of providing a helping hand to those who want to learn, who want to work and want to be a part of the society. We must defeat this immoral budget to help our students achieve their goals and access all the opportunities that our Nation can provide. I would like to briefly speak about women in the workforce. Once these young women who complete college graduate, they face challenges in the workforce. The wage gap among women and men continues to this day. Some of you may know that women earn on an average 76 cents to every dollar that a man earns. Instead of eliminating the wage gap and providing more opportunities for women to enter the workforce and earn good wages, the Bush budget continues to undercut and devalue women's contributions to the American labor force. The Bush budget eliminates the women in apprenticeships and nontraditional occupational programs. This program, which only costs $1 million per year, provides grants to employers to help them recruit, train and retain women in nontraditional and well-paying jobs. Women who were a part of Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations projects were 47 percent more likely to enter higher-paying technical jobs than others. The overwhelming lack of women in technical fields like science and math, as you know, is astounding. Even if women graduate with engineering and science and math degrees, they are still faced with low salaries. On the average, women hold Ph.D.s in computer science and engineering, but still earn $9,000 less per year than their male counterparts. Latino engineers, both men and women, earn $10,000 less than the average salary for all engineers, and African American engineers earn $8,000 less. We need to encourage women to be a part of the technical and skilled workforce from school age right up to adulthood. Programs like Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations Act are a part of that effort, and I will work in Congress, along with my colleagues, to reject the elimination of this or any other programs that help women achieve their dreams and realize their potential to be an important component of the technical workforce. From the wage gap to discrimination, we need to do more to help women succeed and support this vital and necessary part of the American workforce. I urge all of my colleagues here today and tonight to do everything possible to defeat the President's immoral and irresponsible budget that puts women and children's futures at risk. I would now like to introduce one of my colleagues who has joined me tonight, who is also part of the Women's Issues Group here in the Congress, the distinguished former ambassador and Congresswoman, Diane Watson, who is going to also join me in discussion regarding this important topic with respect to the budget cuts towards women and their families.

Ms. SOLIS. Thank you, Honorable Congresswoman Diane Watson for your eloquent words. I know that there are thousands, millions of people out watching us tonight, and I know in my great State of California there is a lot of preoccupation in terms of what is occurring here in the House. It is very disappointing to go back home and tell folks that the policies this administration has leveled are outrageous and severely harmful to our most vulnerable populations, our children, our seniors, our working families. And we don't have to look too far to be reminded what the President attempted to do just last year when he talked about privatizing Social Security. A failed policy. He tried to sell it. I think he had several town hall meetings. I know I did. And when we went out and spoke to our seniors in an open, unbiased setting, where no one was given pretickets and everyone was allowed to come in, where we had lay people, we had doctors, and we had folks in the health care industry but we had also the seniors there, they asked the very important questions: How is making this program, Social Security, which is the bedrock, our insurance plan for all Americans when they retire, how is it going to help to privatize it? Who is going to make the money off of that? And if I don't pay into it and put money aside, who is going to support me in my old age? I heard this from widows and disabled people, and I heard an outpouring of negative support for the privatization of Social Security. In just about every forum that I held in my district, in east Los Angeles, in the San Gabriel Valley, we heard by an overwhelming margin that the people did not support that plan. Do not touch Social Security was the clear message that I got. And I know that many colleagues in the House on our side, in the Democratic Caucus, held several, if not thousands, close to a thousand, I believe, town hall meetings last year, and overwhelmingly there is a consensus that we can't afford to shortchange our seniors and people who have paid into the system. And to also neglect the disabled, because there are some very vulnerable populations that rely on that Social Security check. Many people wrote me personally and said, Congresswoman Solis, please do not allow for further cuts in Social Security. We need to have an indexing system so that we can keep up with the cost of living. My rent is $400, but my check for that month is maybe $800. I have to pay for utilities. I have to pay for medicine, and it isn't enough to cover my medicine. So I have to cut my medicine in half and spread it out for the week or the month. And still no one there to listen, to help. This administration has turned their backs on our most vulnerable population. Thank goodness that that proposal went nowhere. But I understand that there are current attempts to try to revive it again, and I know that our colleagues on the other side of the aisle have also heard very strongly that their constituents are not in agreement with privatizing Social Security. That leads me to something else, because one of the things I think is most important for us tonight is to talk about Medicaid and its effect on women and the proposed cuts that this President would like to make. We can't allow it. Here on this chart I would like to explain to the public and to my colleagues that this is the Republican budget, which fails to provide health care for women and families. And if you note, women account for over 56 percent of Medicare beneficiaries. The Republican budget slashes Medicare by $36 billion over 5 years. The majority of Medicaid beneficiaries are women and girls. The Republican budget cuts Medicaid by $42 billion over 5 years, and more than 20 million women do not have any form of health insurance. The Republicans health savings account, which is much like the privatization of Social Security, would lead to higher out-of-pocket costs for most Americans. And once people hear about this, they will turn down the notion of health savings accounts. In my district, you have to have money to be able to put away just to set up that account. We are talking about needy people, working class people, working families that are struggling. They can't afford to put $200 and $300 away per month just to provide for a premium to pay for that health care account. And then we are probably sure to hear that some of these providers that are going to get into these accounts are going to be very selective and cherry pick who their patients will be. They are not going to take the very ill, the very sick. That is why it is important that the government step in and continue to fully fund Medicaid and not go in the wrong direction that this administration would like to go into. I would like to go back to my comments here where the President's budget proposes new rounds of Medicaid cuts that would take another $14 billion out of Medicaid, as I said over the next 5 years. These cuts come just months after Republicans in Congress forced through an ill- conceived budget reconciliation bill which slashed $6.9 billion over the next 5 years in the Medicaid program. Over 20 million women in our country lack any form of health care. Again, cuts to Medicaid, an already underfunded program, would have a devastating impact on women and their families. And more than 53 million people, including 14 percent of low-income Americans, currently have no access to health care. And it is even more important because more than one in every four children in the United States is covered by Medicaid. That is more than 25 million children in our country. More than 30 percent of children with disabilities rely on Medicaid for health coverage and services. Medicaid provides essential care, such as family planning, breast and cervical cancer treatment, and care for disabled women to more than 16 million women, including approximately 10 million women of childbearing age. Nearly one in ten women in the U.S. receives health care coverage through Medicaid, and one-third of all poor women are covered by Medicaid, including 40 percent of single moms. Medicaid is so important to Latinas, who have the highest rate of uninsurance, 37 percent, of any racial and ethnic minority group. Approximately 12 percent of low-income Latinas rely on Medicaid for their health care coverage. Even Latinas who are legal immigrants, who are here legally, find barriers to health care access. Since 1996, legal immigrants have been barred from receiving Medicaid coverage for the first 5 years of their residency unless the State they reside in specifically covers them through State funds. In our State of California, we have been able to do that. This is a 5-year period in which these women and men who legally emigrated to the United States are denied regular health care and screenings for diseases that plague communities of color, like cancer, diabetes, HIV and AIDS. Without health insurance, many Latinas are forced to delay or forego their health care coverage all together. For example, approximately 25 percent of Latinas have not even visited a physician in the last year. Incredible. Almost one-third of Latinas do not have any health care provider at all. And Latinas do not access prenatal care or cervical and breast cancer screenings at the same rate as the regular population. We need to do more to expand access to Medicaid for all women, all women of color. Women are twice as likely as men to qualify for Medicaid because they are poorer, in lower-paying jobs, and are less likely to be offered health care insurance. Women of reproductive age are especially vulnerable because they are more likely to lack health insurance. Medicaid accounts for two-thirds, two-thirds of all Federal and State family planning funding nationwide. This is the largest source of public funding for family planning services and products. Low-income pregnant women can receive critical prenatal care when they need it without being turned away. Medicaid ensures that women receive a full spectrum of maternity coverage, including prenatal, labor, delivery and postpartum care. Medicaid is also important for elderly women, as we spoke about earlier. It is the largest source of funding for women over the age of 80 living in nursing homes. The program covers high-cost nursing homes and long-term care services. Medicaid also covers important health screenings for cervical and breast cancer as well as for sexually transmitted infections. Medicaid in California provides vital health services to low-income women of all ages who comprise 75 percent of the beneficiaries ages 19 and older. In California, in our great State, 42 percent of all births in the State are paid for by Medicaid. There is no question or doubt in my mind that Medicaid is a significant health safety net program for women. The cuts in Medicaid that are being proposed would shut the neediest individuals out of the public health system and put the health care of millions of women and young women and girls at risk. Proposing reductions without ensuring the preservation of coverage for those in need simply transfers the burden to States that are already over stretched, and Medicaid cuts would shift costs to the States and impose higher costs to beneficiaries and health care providers who are already strapped. States would be forced to reduce Medicaid coverage and benefits, increasing the number of low-income Americans who are uninsured or underinsured. The proposed Bush budget that we are discussing tonight would cut billions from Medicaid while doing nothing to make health care more affordable. Democrats believe in strengthening and not undermining Medicaid. The Federal Government should fulfill its promise of being a reliable partner in Medicaid, and we must protect Medicaid and maintain the current Federal commitment to this fundamental public health insurance program. I stand in strong opposition to the President's budget because I know it does not go far enough in protecting the health and wellbeing of our families and our children. In his State of the Union address, the President touted the government's responsibility to provide health care for the poor and the elderly and he set forth a goal of confronting the rising costs for all Americans. Unfortunately, the President's budget fails to live up to that goal. Instead, his budget undercuts health care for women, children and the elderly. America cannot afford to go in that direction. In recent years, health care costs have risen by almost 60 percent, and the number of uninsured continues to grow and grow, including more than 13.7 million Latinos. Today, 22 million women, one in 5 adult women, rely on Medicare for basic health insurance protection. In fact, women comprise 56 percent of the Medicare population. By the time women are age 85 and older, they account for nearly three-quarters of all beneficiaries, and President Bush's fiscal year 2007 budget that is being debated tonight in the Committee on Rules goes way off the mark by cutting back good proposals that help many, many of our Americans in the Medicare and Medicaid programs by increasing the fees paid by our veterans, and by increasing Medicare premiums paid by our poor seniors. That includes $39.4 billion in cuts to Medicare over 5 years and $105 billion in cuts over 10 years. With the shoddy implementation of the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit program and the growing population of seniors who are living longer than ever, now is definitely not the time to cut back on Medicare. And women who are eligible for Medicare are going to be at greater risk if these cuts are implemented. I have to tell you in my own district we had a series of these forums where we also talked with our seniors at various senior citizen sites about this very complicated program. Many said they refused to sign up. They refused to sign up because they could not go through the quagmire of 40 different programs that they were being told to select from. Many did not have access to appropriate linguistic information in Spanish and in Chinese. Some were not able to access a computer because there may be only one computer in their entire neighborhood. Our seniors cannot even afford a computer in their home, and are even less likely to be able to pay for an increased premium in the Medicare prescription drug program. It is a failure in my opinion. Just this last week on Monday we had a forum, a press forum in front of a pharmacy in east Los Angeles, Mr. Ramirez's pharmacy, and we heard from some of our pharmacists as well as some of our seniors that those individuals who are dual eligible on Medicare and Medicaid had a very difficult time now going into the pharmacy to get their medicine. They did not know that all of a sudden Medicaid was just going to pay for the hospital service that they did not need at that time, but if they went in to get their medicine, they were going to be charged anywhere from $1 to $5 more for every prescription that needed to be filled. So if you needed to repeatedly get medicine to treat your diabetes, to treat your high blood pressure or heart disease, you would be paying anywhere from $100 to $200 more out of pocket. And these are the folks on a fixed income, so $5 and $10 is a hardship. It means no food, no electricity, no phone and could lead to death if they are not given the appropriate treatment. This continues to go on. As Democrats, we are fighting to try to extend the deadline so people can go beyond the May 15 deadline that this administration said they would like to impose. If seniors do not sign up for this program by that time, they will be penalized, just further demonstrating how insensitive this administration is. We have a bill as Democrats to extend that deadline to December 31, 2006. Why can't we get bipartisan support when the outcry has been so strong. I ask my colleagues to consider how we as Members of Congress can take care of ourselves, have the best health care programs for ourselves and our families and yet forget about our constituents in our districts. That is shameful and we need to address that immediately. I know in our communities, especially senior women of color, they are more likely to be low income. That is the case in east Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley. Fifty-six percent of African American women and 58 percent of Latinas live on Medicare and their annual incomes are less than $10,000 a year compared to 24 percent for white women beneficiaries. Who in their right mind could survive on $10,000 a year, maybe a widow who has outlived her spouse who maybe live in an apartment, does not even own a car and has very little wealth, and yet we are expecting them to pick themselves up by their bootstraps after they have given so much to our country and paid in to the tax base and the economy of this great country. Shame on the Bush administration for doing that, for cutting health care funding for the elderly when we cannot even agree to negotiate with, for example, the pharmaceutical companies to lower the cost of prescription drugs. We do it for our veterans, why can't we do it for all seniors. Why can't we allow for low cost and generic drugs to come into our country and import from those countries that we work with already. It is beyond comprehension for me to understand why this administration continues to have this roadblock where they do not want to support and preserve the rights of our seniors and our elderly. The President seeks Medicare savings through arbitrary reductions in provider payments, and we heard this at my press conference on Monday from our local pharmacy who said, ``Congresswoman, I cannot even afford to give some of these medicines out because I am not getting an appropriate refund or rebate on the medicine that I am giving. It is costing me more to give out the medicine than what I am getting in in payments from the Federal Government.'' There is something wrong with that scheme, and I know perhaps the President has not thoroughly spent enough time in communities like mine to understand the hardships that are going on throughout our country right now. Those are challenges that we have to face. We have to face those here in Congress and we must do everything we can to see that this administration minimizes any costs and hardships to our seniors. Medicare costs in my opinion definitely need to go back. We do not need to move forward with this prescription drug program that was implemented, that was given to us in the dawn of night, 2,000 pages that Members could not even read, and three or four more hours where the clock was running and people could not decide on how to vote. It just blew my mind to see that there was such a callous understanding of what the implications of this bill would be. Now we know the truth. The seniors know the truth, and they know that these programs are not working for them. That in fact this program, this facade of a program that was supposed to help seniors, actually helped the pharmaceutical companies. They are the ones that made millions. They are the ones that stand to make millions from the implementation of this program. That is wrong. That is not why we were sent here to this House. We were sent here to work on behalf of our constituents, and I refuse to vote for programs that will keep harming not only our seniors, our children, our women and also our veterans, which is happening here tonight in back of me in the Committee on Rules. We must talk freely about what is happening here and ask for transparency on the part of our elected leaders, especially those that control the domain of this House. We need to stand up. I know my colleagues in the Women's Caucus, in the Women's Democratic Caucus, will do everything we can to go out in the next few months, to hold forums and to continue to educate the public about the atrocities that are occurring. They need to be aware that we are here to speak to them clearly as Democrats, that we will stand for them and that we will fight with every fierce bone in our bodies to make sure that these cuts against our families and our children no longer occur. I pray for that moment to come soon. I thank my colleague, Ms. Watson, for joining me tonight, and I thank the Honorable Nancy Pelosi and our leadership and all of the 46 members of our caucus, the Democratic Women's Caucus, who stand tall every single day, coming here to work and working in their districts to make sure that the public is aware of the transparency that our party would want it to be like here for all of us. I want to thank also my staff and the staff of Leader Pelosi for helping us prepare for this one of many occasions we will come on the floor and speak the truth about these cuts that are being alleged and the harmful effects they will have to our communities, the senior community, the women's community, children's community and veterans' community. I would ask individuals to please take note that this is the Democratic Women's Working Group fighting for America's women and our families. Visit our Website at http://democraticleader.house.gov/dwwg/ or e-mail us at democratic womensworking group@mail.house.gov.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and celebrate the life of Marco Antonio Firebaugh. Marco Antonio Firebaugh was a former California state Assemblyman and a tireless advocate for working families. Mr. Firebaugh was an advocate for millions of Californians who have no voice in government. He represented the 50th Assembly District in southeast Los Angeles from 1998 to 2004 before leaving office due to term limits. Mr. Firebaugh was appointed Assembly Majority Floor Leader in 2002 and chaired the California Latino Legislative Caucus from 2002- 04. His achievements on behalf of the people of Los Angeles significantly improved their day-to-day quality of life. Perhaps Mr. Firebaugh's most notable accomplishment was the passage of his legislation to allow students living in California to pay in- state tuition to California state colleges and universities regardless of their immigration status. During his time in the Assembly, Mr. Firebaugh's work also included a bill directing state air quality funding toward low-income communities heavily affected by pollution. At the time of his death, Mr. Firebaugh was a candidate for the state Senate in the 30th District, in southeast Los Angeles County. I want to extend my sincere condolences to the family and friends of Marco Antonio Firebaugh--a man who so passionately fought to improve the lives of those he was elected to serve. Mr. Firebaugh is survived by his two children, Tlalli Ariana and Nicolas Andres, his mother, Carmen Ramos Garcia, brothers Carlos and Jesse, and sisters Cecilia and Esmeralda.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 185th anniversary of Greek independence, which took place on March 25, 2006. Thousands of years ago the spirit of democracy was born in Greece. In 1821, this democracy flourished when the Greeks successfully declared their independence from the Ottoman Empire. Their struggle and success reinforced their belief in freedom and democracy. This belief holds strong and true today, as Greeks continue to fight side-by-side in defense of democracy and freedom, and in opposition to terrorism. Today we celebrate Greece and the Greek people everywhere for their continued contribution to democracy and freedom. As nations around the world struggle with tyranny and injustice, may they look to the victories of the Greeks for hope that democracy can flourish.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, as a proud daughter of immigrants, I rise today to echo the message of immigrant families across America in support of comprehensive immigration reform. This past weekend, I took part in the largest demonstration that has ever taken place in California, in the area of Los Angeles, since the Vietnam War. Half a million people, if not a million, marched peacefully to let the Senate know that an enforcement-only border protection approach will not solve our broken immigration system. Nearly 40,000 students across Southern California and some from my district even marched to defend human rights and immigration reform. I urge them to return to their classrooms and empower themselves through education to make a difference in their future. President Bush said, ``Immigration is an important topic. We need to maintain our perspective. At its core immigration is a sign of a confident and successful Nation.'' Our Nation needs laws that protect our borders, embrace our families, and provide earned legalization for law-abiding immigrants. Immigrant families are an important part of our social fabric and economy. Our Nation should not turn its back and ignore their needs.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Madam Speaker, America's seniors are looking for some relief with the high cost of prescription drugs. The vast majority of seniors remain skeptical that the new Republican prescription drug plan will work for them, and therefore, many have not signed up and refuse to. Congressional Republicans and the Bush administration did not only make this plan confusing to understand, but they also included a provision that will financially penalize seniors if they don't sign up for the plan by May 15. While most Democrats would rather replace the plan for a simpler one within the Medicare system, we do not want to see seniors penalized any further. Without a deadline extension, seniors will encounter a 1 percent increase on their premiums for every month after they wait to sign up after the May 15 deadline. Since seniors would not be able to begin coverage after the deadline until January of next year, seniors would encounter a 7 percent Bush Medicare tax that would stay with them the rest of their lives. This is simply not fair. Seniors are already having to pay enough for their prescription drugs. Mr. President, you have 2 months to change your mind. Don't punish our seniors, Mr. President.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate St. Frances of Rome Church located in Azusa, California in honor of their 100th anniversary. I am proud to recognize the important contributions of St. Frances of Rome on this historic occasion. Before the turn of the century, the Roman Catholics in Azusa would travel to the San Gabriel Valley Mission for mass. Even with the establishment of churches in Pasadena and Monrovia, and occasional masses held in the home of Henry C. Robelts and Susanna Melendez, Catholics in Azusa did not have an official church they could attend within their city. In May of 1905 preparations were made for the construction of a church for the Catholic community of Azusa. On January 12, 1908 the church became an official parish. On the same day the Church also offered its first baptism and two days later the first recorded marriage took place. Over the years, the church has expanded and renovated to better serve its members. Throughout the years, St. Frances has thrived and has become a mainstay in the community. Today, St. Frances also houses a school and the Azusa Food Bank. St. Frances of Rome is not simply a church; it has become a mainstay of the city of Azusa and I wish them luck in the future as they continue to serve the community.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today, to pay tribute to Mr. Patricio ``Pat'' S. Miranda, who died unexpectedly on September 29, 2005. Sadly, 3 days after his passing, his wife, Mercy, also passed away. After graduating from Covina High School in 1945, Pat Miranda was drafted into the United States Army and was a member of the 77th Division. While serving our Nation, he saw action in the U.S. offensive in Okinawa and received an honorable discharge in 1946 as a sergeant. In 1957, Pat was appointed to the Irwindale Planning Commission, marking the beginning of a 44-year career of service to the city of Irwindale. In 1961, he was elected to the city council and served in various elected capacities, including mayor, for all but 3 years. Pat oversaw the growth of new homes, recreational and educational facilities, a swimming pool, post office, City Hall, police department, senior citizens building, and Las Casitas senior apartments. During his time in elected office, Pat was a member of the initial Irwindale delegation to visit Mexico to form a sister city relationship with Salvatierra, Mexico, a relationship which was formalized in 1965. He also made it a priority for the city and its residents to have regulatory control of the mining companies to ensure that the Irwindale community was treated fairly and with respect. Additionally, Pat was a charter commander of the Irwindale V.F.W. Post 9895 and a life member of Irwindale AmVets, Irwindale Lions and Rotary Clubs. Pat and his wife are remembered fondly by the city staff, city council members, and the Irwindale community. They are survived by three children: Sandra Pusey, Patrick J. Miranda II, and Magalee Carlson who all still reside in Irwindale, as well as four brothers, eight grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. I extend my deepest sympathy to them during this difficult time. The city, community, friends and family will greatly miss Pat and his wife and the many lasting contributions they made to the city of Irwindale.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Dave Perea, a longtime Rosemead resident and Teamsters union member, who passed away on February 14, 2006. Born and raised in East Los Angeles, Dave was the second oldest of 11 siblings and had 6 older half-siblings. Dave attended East Los Angeles schools including Hammel Elementary School, Belvedere Junior High, and Garfield High School. He also attended East Los Angeles College for a year before putting his studies aside to support his family during his father's illness. Dave became a Teamster and held various jobs before joining Momentum Textiles, where he worked for 22 years and retired in 1998. He was a surrogate parent for the friends of his children and was affectionately known as the ``Mayor of Charlotte Street.'' In 2003 Dave became deeply involved with the grassroots organization, Save Our Community, which is committed to stopping plans to build a Wal-Mart in a pristine area just two blocks from his house. Dave was a driving force for Save Our Community and was instrumental in many of its efforts. Whenever anyone in the organization needed anything, he was there to lend a helping hand. Dave is survived by his mother, Rosita, and 10 of his siblings; his wife, Mary Ellen; his daughters, Suzanne, Doreen, and Joanne; and his grandchildren, Nicholas, Andrew, Erica, Austin, Matthew, and Amber. He will be dearly missed by his family, friends, and the community.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a bill supporting the goals and ideals of a Salvadoran-American Day (EI Dia del Salvadoreno) in recognition of all Salvadoran-Americans for their hard work, dedication and contribution to the stability and well-being of the United States. Forty years of internal political turmoil forced hundreds of thousands of individuals from the Republic of EI Salvador to flee the country and seek peace and security in the United States. Currently, there are over 900,000 Salvadoran-Americans living in the United States, with the majority of them living in California, the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area and New York. In the Los Angeles metropolitan area alone, there are roughly 400,000 Salvadoran-Americans. In California, the state with the largest population of Salvadoran Americans, EI Dia del Salvadoreno is widely celebrated among the Latino community. This celebration of Salvadoran traditions dates back to 1525, when on August 6 the city of Villa De San Salvador was founded. August 6 also marks the date when Salvadorans around the United States celebrate the ``Fiestas Agostinas'' (August Holidays.) This celebration pays homage to the cultural festivities of EI Salvador while adapting itself to the lives of Salvadorans in the United States. Celebrated by Salvadoran-Americans in California and throughout our country, Salvadoran-American Day has grown in significance over the years. Let us not forget that our Nation was built by people from many nations and cultures whose lives and work have contributed to the greatness of our Nation. Likewise, we must recognize the efforts of Salvadoran-Americans for their cultural and economic contributions to the United States and support the ideals of a Salvadoran-American Day.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Madam Speaker, today I rise to commemorate International Women's Day. As cochair of the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, I am proud to be a part of a daylong shadow program working side by side with Iraqi women and members of the Transnational Assembly. In fact, my guest is here in the Chamber, Dr. Faiza Babakhan, who represents the National Assembly. In just 11 days, we will mark the third anniversary of the United States' invasion of Iraq. While U.S. involvement in Iraq in the past 3 years has caused much controversy in our country, we can all agree that increasing Iraqi women's rights and political representation should be a priority. Through the continued collaboration of American and Iraqi women in government, we can advance women's rights and women's issues around the world. But today we must also acknowledge the violence and human rights issues that affect women in places like Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, and in Guatemala where murders of women have gone unpunished for many years. On International Women's Day, we must remember that violence and injustice against women anywhere is violence and injustice against women everywhere.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to one of our Nation's young heroes, Lance Corporal Mario Atrian, Jr. Lance Corporal Mario Atrian joined the United States Marine Corps at the age of 17 and served two tours of duty in Iraq. On April 9, 2004, during his second tour of duty, LCpl. Atrian was injured while bravely fighting to protect a friendly unit from an enemy ambush. Despite bleeding profusely from both his right and left arms, and his driver being killed, LCpl. Atrian continued to defend his comrades and relinquished his position to receive medical attention only after the enemy ambush had been broken and his fellow wounded Marines were away from enemy fire. Today, LCpl. Atrian will receive one of our Nation's highest awards, the Silver Star for his leadership, his loyalty, and his courage. Lance Corporal Mario Atrian is from Los Angeles and is a resident of my district. Our community is blessed to have such a distinguished, brave, young man. I encourage him to continue to fight for that which he believes with such courage and dignity throughout the rest of his life.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, leave it to Washington Republicans to create a chaotic and confusing system that has left a large majority of seniors just saying no. The Republican prescription drug plan shows the everyday cost congressional corruption has on the American people. Republicans promised American seniors they would have access to prescription drugs through private plans beginning January 1, but to date it has been an utter failure. In many instances, beneficiaries who tried to have their prescriptions filled under the new system were either told that their enrollment could not be verified or that their drugs were not covered. As a result, many beneficiaries, particularly those that are called dually eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid, were at risk for receiving no coverage at all. Rather than choosing to work to alleviate drug costs for seniors, Republicans were more interested in coming up with a bill that benefited their friends in the pharmaceutical and insurance industries, friends who have been very loyal to them over the years. America must do better, we can do better and put special interests aside so that we can help those people who truly need our assistance. Let's start thinking about our senior citizens.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to join our Nation in honoring the many great contributions of the African American Community by celebrating Black History Month. Overcoming enormous obstacles and racial barriers, the African American community has made vast contributions to all aspects of American society--music, literature, sports, education, science, business, and politics. We must remember not only our outstanding heroes such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Frederick Douglass, former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, Rosa Parks, and Coretta Scott King, this month, but also the extraordinary lives of everyday African Americans who have helped build our great Nation. I want to particularly honor the lives of two exceptional women who we lost recently: Rosa Parks and Mrs. Coretta Scott King. Their lives and their work for civil rights reflect the struggle and contributions that African Americans have made to our society. Their actions set America on a course of inclusion and tolerance, which continues to benefit us everyday. We must follow their steps and build upon their great accomplishments for equality and justice. During this month and throughout the year, I encourage those living in California's 32nd Congressional District and around the country to take the time to honor the African American community by learning about its vast accomplishments and rich culture.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise because I am deeply concerned with respect to the President's budget, his proposed cuts to women and children. In particular, the budget of fiscal year 2007 fails on all accounts and provides insufficient funding for our Nation's greatest investment, its children. Domestic programs, as we know, are vital to women and children, particularly the WIC program, which will see its funding decline by almost $5 billion over the next 5 years. For low-income families who rely solely on WIC to feed their children and keep them healthy, these cuts are simply unacceptable. We will see a continued rise in poverty and food shortage among these families. The President's budget is also hurting women who work to provide for their families by cutting back on their health care. Despite the huge budget cuts made already to the Medicaid program in the budget reconciliation bill, the President proposes to slash another $17 billion over the next 5 years. Medicaid, as many of you know, helps women and children, the most vulnerable in our population. I urge the Congress to reject this morally irresponsible budget.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise because I believe that working Americans deserve a Federal budget which is compassionate, decent, hopeful, and accountable to their needs. Yet the budget shortchanges many environmental programs designed to protect public health and improve our communities' quality of life. It cuts funding for environmental justice programs by 28 percent and cuts funding for clean water infrastructure by $199 million. It also fails to address the more than $300 billion gap in drinking water infrastructure, funds for brownfields cleanup and redevelopment at less than 20 percent of what Congress has authorized, and zeroes out funding to bring more green space to our communities. These cuts, Mr. Speaker, have very real implications on the quality of our health and our communities. Let us first consider the 28 percent cut in funding for environmental justice. For decades minority and low- income communities have lived in close proximity to industrial zones, power plants, toxic waste sites. These are the communities nationwide whose health and quality of life are negatively impacted most by environmental injustices. For example, 5.5 million Latinos live within a 10-mile radius of a power plant, and 68 percent of all African Americans live within 30 miles, the range where health impacts are most severe. Over 70 percent of all African Americans and Latinos live in counties that violate the Federal air pollution standards, compared to 58 percent for nonminorities. The administration is allegedly committed to protecting low-income and minority communities; yet the budget is just one of several actions taken recently which puts this commitment in doubt. Last year the Bush administration proposed removing race and income as considerations of environmental justice. Removing these considerations, in my opinion, would significantly disadvantage those communities which are already disproportionately affected by environmental toxins and the least able to defend and empower themselves. Most recently the Bush administration proposed changing toxic reporting requirements to benefit polluting industries at the expense of the health of this Nation's communities. In California, the State I represent, this would include nearly 60 ZIP codes, over half of which have at least 45 percent minority residents and large proportions of people living well below the poverty line. This budget also shortchanges our water infrastructure and water providers. It cuts funding for the Clean Water Revolving Fund by $199 million and funds safe drinking water infrastructure at 10 percent below last year's level. Yet our water infrastructure needs at least $300 billion invested just to maintain current services. President Bush's budget fails to adequately address the more than 119,000 confirmed releases at underground storage tanks, like the more than 1,000 in my congressional district alone, and that is in Los Angeles. In the interim the onerous burden of shoring up our water infrastructure and protecting supplies falls on our cities, our States, and ultimately the water providers. The budget fails the one in four Americans that live within 4 miles of a Superfund site, including 10 million children under the age of 12. There are three such sites in my own community. In fact, EPA itself admitted publicly the serious problems facing Superfund site cleanup. On December 2, 2004, then Assistant Administrator Thomas Dunne noted: ``For the last 3 years, we haven't started cleanup at some new sites. If we assume that EPA's budget will remain flat for the foreseeable future, construction funding could be delayed at more and more sites. Within a few years, unfunded cleanup work could total several hundred million dollars.'' Yet President Bush's budget is $100 million less than the request which was made in 2004 and $20 million less than the fiscal year 2005 request. Ultimately, the budget forces our country to continue to fall behind in its commitment to clean water, further disadvantages environmental justice communities like the one I live in, and passes the buck to our States. The Bush administration is putting its own policies above science, above the needs of public health, the environment, and our communities, and yet this administration is not being held accountable. Not once in the last 6 years has the Bush administration defended its budget in front of the Energy and Commerce Committee. Not once. It is well past time for this administration to defend its policies on environmental justice, water infrastructure, brownfields, and Superfund sites, where failures such as these will be even more costly for our country.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise because I believe working-class Americans deserve a Federal budget which is compassionate, decent, and provides hope to the American public. President Bush's budget for fiscal year 2007 fails on all counts and provides insufficient funding for one of our Nation's greatest investments: its health. Despite the confusing and poorly implemented new Medicare prescription drug benefit program, President Bush's budget cuts Medicare by $35 billion in the next 5 years, it cuts funding for public health programs by $126 million, and puts more families at risk of food and security by cutting more than $706 million in assistance. Even with the growing problem of health care disparities and lack of insurance for communities of color, the budget slashes the Office of Minority Health Programs by 20 percent. To our children, to those battling high health care costs, and to the uninsured, this budget, in my opinion, is not compassionate and it doesn't provide the American public with hope. Americans deserve better. We must not inflict this pain on the most vulnerable populations in our country.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and celebrate the life of Mr. Marvin Braude. Marvin Braude was a long-time Los Angeles City Council Member, an outdoor enthusiast, and a pioneering environmentalist. Braude served on the L.A. City Council from 1965 until 1997. His achievements on behalf of the people of Los Angeles significantly improved their day-to-day quality of life. Braude's work included building a coalition to stop an oil-drilling project off the coast of Pacific Palisades and fighting for the ban on smoking in restaurants, elevators, city offices, and markets. Perhaps Braude's most notable accomplishment was the creation of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. Braude's vision for the area, stretching from North Santa Monica to Venice Beach, provides residents and visitors alike the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors by foot, bike, and even rollerblade. Marvin's late wife, Majorie, was a psychiatrist, a leader among women doctors, and a leader in the fight against domestic violence. Braude is survived by his two daughters, Ann and Liza Braude, and two grandchildren, Emma Braude Adler and Benjamin Braude Adler.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in strong opposition to this misguided and irresponsible bill. Just last night President Bush spoke about working together to build prosperity for our country, but this legislation pays for the prosperity of the richest, the wealthiest in our society while cutting vital services to very needy individuals. Since President Bush has been in office, the number of Americans in this country living in poverty has grown by 6 million people. In total, 13 million children, including 4.7 million children under the age of six, now live in poverty because of this administration. Health care costs have risen by 60 percent, and the number of uninsured keeps skyrocketing. More than 13 million Latinos alone continue to be uninsured. The cost of college education increased by 40 percent because of this administration's misguided approach, forcing typical students to borrow $17,000 in Federal loans and leaving almost 40 percent of student borrowers in unmanageable debt. Yet this bill cuts another $40 billion in vital programs, Medicaid, Medicare, student loans, and protects more than $70 billion in tax breaks for the wealthy. These programs are critical, not just to low- income people but to the working class Americans of this country. The reality is that this legislation will do very little to reduce the budget. It will do nothing to help the most vulnerable in our society, and it will do nothing but continue on the wrong path, down the wrong road. Working men and women and children will continue to fall, and our senior citizens will also be caught up in that net. The bill is not compassionate, it is not decent, and I do not support this legislation. I urge my colleagues to please protect the health and well-being of our citizens and to oppose this legislation.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, today I join the Chinese community in ushering in the Lunar New Year and celebrating the Year of the Dog. Since the earliest days of this country, people from all cultures have journeyed to our Nation seeking the promise of freedom, opportunity, and the American dream. As an integral part of our society, Chinese Americans are leaders in public service, government, science, law, education, athletics, and the arts. As business entrepreneurs, Chinese Americans are helping to strengthen our economy and our communities through their hard work and ingenuity. As patriots, Chinese Americans continue to risk their lives defending liberty. I am pleased to help celebrate the Year of the Dog and commend those organizing events in its honor. These events promote greater understanding of the Chinese culture and society and honor not only the historical contributions of Chinese traditions, but also encourage greater awareness of the modern contributions of Chinese Americans. As a member of the Congressional Asian Pacific Islander American Caucus, I am proud to pay tribute to the 120,000 individuals of Asian descent I represent in California's 32nd Congressional District. Residents of Rosemead, Monterey Park, Covina, West Covina, and other cities throughout my district know first hand the economic and cultural contributions of the Asian and Pacific Islander communities. Gung Hay Fat Choy. Xin Nien Kuai Le.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, today we celebrate the life and mourn the passing of Coretta Scott King. Following the assassination of her husband, Dr. Martin Luther King in 1968, Coretta Scott King worked tirelessly to keep the ideology of equality for all people alive. A civil rights leader in her own right, she created the King Center for Non-Violent Social Change in Atlanta, Georgia, in order to continue her husband's work. She fought with dignity and a quiet strength to end hunger, unemployment, voting rights violations and racism. We must continue to follow in the footsteps of Coretta Scott King and work to achieve equality though peaceful protests in order to improve our country for future generations.

Ms. SOLIS

Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, I thank our ranking member, and I thank Chairman Sensenbrenner also for the opportunity to provide my strong support of H.R. 3402, which includes a Violence against Women Act reauthorization. I want to also pay tribute to the Women's Caucus, the bipartisan Women's Caucus. We heard from Ginny Brown-Waite, who also spoke, and we worked very diligently on this issue, and also to the advocates throughout the country who worked laboriously for the last year on trying to seek amendments that could be provided and placed into this piece of legislation. I am very happy as cochair of the Congressional Caucus For Women's Issues that we were able to work together. This is one fine accomplishment that we can go home to our districts with. I am proud to have been able to author two provisions that were included in the final version of this very important act that will help women of color and women who are victims of domestic violence. One provision would provide an outreach campaign to attempt to service those underserved communities where we find a disproportionate number of women who are not in the forefront in terms of receiving this kind of information about prevention activities and domestic violence, and also with respect to court assistance. Because when women enter into the court, sometimes that court system is not very friendly, and it can be very intimidating. So I am very pleased we were able to get that provision also in the bill. Women of color, as you know, are less likely to report incidents of domestic violence, and particularly immigrant women are even at a greater disadvantage when they are found to be in an abusive situation. Many times their spouses or loved ones will intimidate them with reporting them to the immigration to be deported. So we know that this legislation will go very far in providing protections for these women and their families. By addressing domestic violence in communities of color in a way that understands their culture and language and values, we greatly increase the chances of making a difference, not only in the lives of women but of their children and also other family members. Mr. Speaker, I thank again the ranking member, Mr. Conyers, Chairman Sensenbrenner, and their staffs for working with us on a bipartisan level to help to provide a comprehensive Violence Against Women Act reauthorization. I urge all my colleagues today to support H.R. 3402 and put an end to domestic violence against women in our country.