Gregorio Sablan

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Speaker, I was unavoidably detained on June 18, 2019, during the vote on Ms. Speier's amendment to prevent the Department of Defense from spending funds to implement the ban on open transgender service in the U.S. military. Had I been present, I would have voted ``Aye.''

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, 8 months after Typhoon Mangkhut and 7 months after Super Typhoon Yutu, we are finally ready to send a disaster relief bill to the President for signature. Of course, this has taken longer than any of us might wish. But I want to use my time simply to say thank you to my fellow Americans who are always willing to help when they see a neighbor in need. Is not this attitude of charity for all, as Lincoln said, what binds our Nation? Almost 50 years ago, the people of the Northern Mariana Islands, whom I represent here, voted to join the United States. It is at moments like this that we remember what a wise decision that was and what a great nation we are now part of. On behalf of all in the Northern Mariana Islands who suffer to this day because of the lasting effects of Typhoons Mangkhut and Yutu, I say thank you.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time. Mr. Speaker, 12 years ago, Congress enacted legislation extending U.S. immigration law to my district, the Northern Mariana Islands; and for my 11 years here in Congress, I have worked to make the resulting transition as least difficult as possible. Because there were unforeseen consequences, there were people who fell through the cracks. Today we have the chance to help some of those people. Their circumstances were not taken into account when Federal immigration was extended to our islands. During the Obama administration, they were granted humanitarian parole that allowed them to stay. But President Trump decided that was an improper use of parole. The President's executive order of January 25, 2017, directed that parole be granted only on a case-by-case basis not to categories of people, as had been done in the Marianas. As a result, 1,039 long-term residents of my island lost their parole status last December. They were given until June 29 to adjust status or leave. I have no argument with the President's thinking. In fact, I have worked to provide permanent status in law for these long-term residents. But immigration legislation is difficult. I have not been successful. I hope today that will change because even though the Trump administration ended parole, at the same time, the administration also recognized that these long-term residents should be allowed to stay in the Marianas. The administration drafted legislation giving these people permanent status in the Marianas, and just in the Marianas, so they could continue to live and work as they have for years as part of our community. I introduced that legislation, H.R. 559, and the administration submitted a statement for the hearing record to the Natural Resources Committee supporting passage, which I include in the Record. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Washington, DC, February 21, 2019. Hon. Raul M. Grijalva, Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear Representative Grijalva: This letter sets forth Department of Homeland Security (DHS) views with regard to H.R. 559, the ``Northern Mariana Islands Long-Term Legal Residents Relief Act.'' Thank you for seeking the Department's input on this new legislation. We appreciate the opportunity to review H.R. 559 as the Committee begins the legislative process in the 1st session of the 116th Congress. As you are aware, H.R. 559 would provide for the admission of certain aliens who are currently present in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and who had been parolees as CNMI residents. In doing so, the bill would establish an alternative regime to the now-terminated categorical parole program for the CNMI. DHS believes that the bill would address the discrete needs of this alien group in an equitable and lawful manner--more so than any other bill that is now pending Congressional consideration. In light of the aforementioned, DHS supports H.R. 559. DHS would respectfully urge the Committee to consider the bill favorably. Further, it is the Department's hope that the full House of Representatives will take up and pass the measure expeditiously. The Department is pleased to inform you that the Office of Management and Budget has no objection to the presentation of this letter to Congress. Nonetheless, I appreciate your interest in the Administration's concerns on this matter. Fortunately, there are none. Again, thank you for the opportunity to review and share the Department's position on H.R. 559. An identical letter has been sent to Representatives Sablan and Bishop. Respectfully, Christine M. Ciccone, Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs.

Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, let me read from the administration's letter. ``H.R. 559 would provide for the admission of certain aliens who are currently present in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, CNMI, and who had been parolees. . . . In doing so, the bill would establish an alternative regime to the now-terminated categorical parole program for the CNMI. DHS believes that the bill would address the discrete needs of this alien group in an equitable and lawful manner. . . . It is the Department's hope that the full House of Representatives will take up and pass the measure expeditiously.'' Signed: Christine M. Ciccone, Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs, Department of Homeland Security. To be completely transparent, the bill before us has been altered slightly from the original. The bill now includes an administrative appeal procedure if an applicant believes an error was made in processing their petition for permanent status. But that new language was also drafted, at my request, by the administration. So the bill remains 100 percent as drafted by the administration. Again, the bill provides permanent status in the Marianas only, with no right of entry to any other part of the United States and no right to any public assistance, to a small group of people who have lived and worked in the Marianas, always lawfully present, since before U.S. immigration law was ever extended to our islands. The Trump administration agrees. These individuals should be allowed to stay, but not by administrative fiat. They should be allowed to stay under the rule of law. Today, I ask my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass that law. Do as the administration advises. Vote ``yes'' on H.R. 559.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the GI Bill Access to Career Credentials Act, which would allow Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) educational assistance to cover the cost of approved preparatory courses for professional license and certification exams. By covering these courses under the GI Bill, veterans and their eligible family members will have better access to the support they need to enter in-demand careers in health care, teaching, technology and other fields that may require government licenses and certifications. To ensure quality and accountability, courses eligible for reimbursement must be approved beforehand by their State Approving Agency based on current requirements in law. For the past 75 years, the VA estimates the GI Bill has helped more than 25 million veterans and their families nationwide including the Marianas achieve their educational and career goals. During this time, Congress expanded the GI Bill to cover non-tuition expenses such as college admissions test fees, admissions test preparatory courses and exam fees for licenses and certifications. While the more than 5,700 GI Bill students across the country over the last year and half used their license and certification exam fees reimbursement benefit according to the VA, courses designed to help them pass these tests, such as a $400 nurse licensing exam course offered by Northern Marianas College, are not reimbursable. Not all students pass these exams on their first attempt which is why the GI Bill must be updated so VA educational assistance covers both preparatory courses and reimbursement of test fees for licenses and certifications. Around 20 to 30 percent of graduating seniors each year enter the military according to the Marianas Public School System. When these future veterans transition to civilian life, the GI Bill benefits they earned should help prepare them to succeed in an economy increasingly reliant on technical skills which often requires paying for various tests, professional licenses, and other credentials. The gentleman from Indiana, Mr. Banks, is an original cosponsor of the bill. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation, endorsed by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, which will help veterans and their eligible family members access the necessary credentials to make their educational and career dreams a reality.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Speaker, today I am introducing a bill that would require the United States Census Bureau to conduct a census every five years in the U.S. insular areas of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. This legislation is necessary because the priority, availability, timeliness, and types of data collected by federal agencies in the insular areas remains deficient compared to data collection in the states. Without accurate and timely information on changes in the economy, employment, income levels, and other key indicators, insular governments are hindered in the establishment of appropriate policy. And without these data, governments and the public are less able to assess the effectiveness of policies that have been established. Every decade, the Census Bureau conducts a census throughout the country to determine the number of people living in the country. In the insular areas, detailed demographic, housing, and socioeconomic data is also collected in the decennial census using a ``long-form'' questionnaire consisting of about 75 questions. The decennial census conducted in the states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico only asks 10 questions because the vital information gathered in the decennial census is now acquired annually in the American Community Survey. The American Community Survey does not include data from the insular areas. The Census Bureau has claimed that a lack of funding to collect the data and the absence of a proven methodology tested in the territories leaves the Bureau unable to include our districts and the hundreds of thousands of Americans living there. As a result, the insular areas have to wait every 10 years for critical, up-to date information on education, income, housing, jobs, and insurance that surveys like the American Community Survey provide. This data is vital to sustain economic development and for prudent government and business decisions. The decennial census is inadequate to this need. The allocation of federal funding for numerous programs is also largely based on the most recent census data available. With no alternative, most current funding allocations to the insular areas are based on data from the previous decennial census. 2010 Census data will continue to be used for many federal program funding allocations until 2023--the earliest key 2020 Census demographic data for the insular areas will likely be available. As an alternative to annual surveys, my bill would require the Census Bureau to conduct a mid-decade census in the insular areas. The bill starts the first mid-decade census in 2025 and in addition to the decennial census, a census will be conducted every five years. This will provide more current data in the insular areas, similar to that provided by five-year estimates produced by the American Community Survey. Having a mid-decade census will also enable insular governments and the Census Bureau to plan and conduct data collection efforts that are often logistically challenging in these diverse, remote regions. My bill also authorizes appropriations for the mid-decade census, based on costs estimates provided by the Census Bureau to conduct the 2020 decennial census in U.S. insular areas. I ask my colleagues for their support.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Chair, Congress will depend on the expertise of Federal agencies to tell us how much funding is needed by communities recovering from disaster. That was the case when the House passed H.R. 268 on January 16. We set aside $10.4 million in that bill for water and sewer recovery for areas impacted by Super Typhoon Yutu, and we relied on the Environmental Protection Agency to verify that amount. But, as happens in recovery situations, preliminarily estimates were not completely accurate. When debris is removed, unseen damage is revealed. In March, after the House passed H.R. 268, EPA revised its estimate of the cost for repairing sewer systems in the Marianas. But H.R. 2157, the bill now under consideration, has not taken that new March estimate from EPA into account. H.R. 2157 simply repeats what was in H.R. 268, the January bill. The amendment I am offering instead relies on EPA's new, updated assessment of the true need. Madam Chair, I include in the Record EPA's estimate. EPA-Related Projects To Support Typhoon Yutu Recovery in CNMI Community Planning and Capacity Building, Infrastructure Systems, and Natural and Cultural Resources, March 20, 2019 Smart, Safe Growth. Implement next phase of the ongoing FEMA-funded, EPA-managed Smart, Safe Growth project which has helped the CNMI identify policies and practices to encourage sustainable growth and long-term resiliency. Using contractors and direct assistance, help the CNMI government analyze and implement recent International Building Codes and incorporate smart safe growth practices into local permit decisions and longterm planning. Cost: $1.5M Treatment for PFAS-contaminated well. Provide Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) treatment for 6 drinking water wells contaminated by PFAS (associated with fire retardant). Benefit: would add about one-half million gallons per day (0.5 MGD) to Saipan's water supply; would significantly improve the ability to recover drinking water availability and safety in another disaster. Cost: $2.5M New Dandan 1.0 MG water tank. Install a new 1.0 MG tank next to the existing 0.5 MG Dandan water tank to enhance water delivery during a disaster and meet projected long-term system demand. Cost: $4.0M Waterline and service line replacement. Replace deteriorating waterlines (Texas Rd to Oleai, San Antonio/ Afetnas, and San Roque distribution systems), and deteriorating service lines to homes and businesses (San Roque, Tanapag service areas). Benefit: would significantly reduce leaks and improve drinking water system integrity; would improve drinking water resiliency during a disaster. Cost: $7.5M New Kagman Reservoir. Start construction of USDA NRCS- proposed 75 MG Water reservoir, delayed 25 years due to lack of funding. Benefit: would eliminate agriculture use of CUC drinking water for farming, increase drinking water supply by 30 percent, reduce drinking water salinity, and improve drinking water quality. Cost: $8M SCADA (water and sewer). Expand Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), an electronic network control system, from the current pilot (serving one water tank system) to a utility-wide system for drinking water and wastewater. Benefit: would improve water monitoring, water production, water billing, water distribution management, and wastewater conveyance and treatment management; would decrease water loss, waste, and energy consumption; and facilitate better strategic planning and decisions. Cost: $5.0M Agingan Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrades. Numerous upgrades are necessary for the WWTP to meet EPA permit conditions. As a result of previous deficiencies and damage inflicted by Typhoon Yutu, about 1 MGD of barely-treated sewage effluent is discharged to the ocean on an ongoing basis. Upgrades needed include: aerator replacement, VFD drive installation, sludge dewatering screw press, headworks rehab, electrical rehab, corroded pipe support replacement, and hydrogen sulfide controls. Benefits: provide adequate wastewater treatment to protect human health and the environment. Cost: $2.4M Sadog Tasi Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrades. Situation is similar to Agingan WWTP with even additional needed upgrades, including clarifier retrofit and improvements to sludge digester. Cost: $3.2M Lift Station upgrades. Lift stations need new pumps, piping and valves, VFD controls, generator overhaul, and wetwell aeration to improve compliance, as well as gates, fencing, and lighting to improve security. Backup generators damaged by flooding and high winds also need improvements. Benefit: would reduce sewage spills and overflows on land and nearshore, both following a disaster and on a long-term basis. Cost: $8.4M Lower Base and Beach Road Sewer system replacement. Replace the deteriorating old (pre-Trust Territories era) sewage collection system in Lower Base (Saipan's main industrial area), including installation of one new lift station Along Beach Road, replace deteriorating old sewage lines as CNMI DPW makes roadway improvements. (Note the Beach Road project cost includes only Phase I at $2.5M; the entire project would cost $12M.) Cost: $7.0M Marpi Landfill improvements. Debris from Typhoon Yutu and other recent typhoons are enough to ``fill half a Rose Bowl.'' Much of the debris is lying on open ground next to the existing Marpi Landfill, exacerbating an already non- compliant situation. The landfill's Cell #1 is already overcapacity. Cell #2 has been constructed but requires repairs and additional enhancements before it is RCRA- compliant and can accept waste. Cell #3 is designed but requires construction in order to accommodate typhoon debris as well as Saipan's regular municipal waste. Cost: $32M ($12M for Cell #2 repairs + $20M for Cell #3 construction) Tinian landfill construction. No landfill currently exists on Tinian. A new landfill is needed to accommodate typhoon debris as well as municipal waste. Cost: $12M Rota landfill construction. No landfill currently exists on Rota. A new landfill is needed to accommodate typhoon debris as well as municipal waste. Cost $12M Provide a Sustainability Advisor for recovery operations. This position will advise the FEMA Interagency Recovery Coordination team, Recovery Support Functions (RSFs), Federal, territorial and local officials on sustainable communities, climate change adaptation and low-impact growth, materials and products for recovery planners in the adaptation of sustainable, green, and resilient principles and practices. Access to EPA's Recovery/Sustainability HQ blanket purchase agreement (BPA) capacity that can provide expect subject matter assistance. This blanket purchase agreement is focused on technical assistance related to assessing policy barriers and facilitating planning workshops which covers a range of topics related to community revitalization. The core subject matter of the assistance will center upon community revitalization, but the expertise required includes topics such as: Strategies for encouraging redevelopment in distressed neighborhoods Resiliency/hazard mitigation/sustainable long-term recovery Green infrastructure and complete streets Equitable development Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and scenario planning tools Community wealth building strategies in collaboration with anchor institutions, Economic diversification through place-based local food system expansion, Improving human health through healthy community design Broadband internet as a catalyst for workforce and small business development Revitalization strategies based on recreational assets Public engagement, including with hard-to-reach or environmentally overburdened populations. Air Quality & Energy. Provide staff expertise on energy efficiency (including EnergySTAR resources), renewable energy, and electric vehicle readiness to assist with rebuilding efforts. Drinking Water Systems. Develop and increase the capacity and resiliency of public water systems by supporting capacity development and operator certification programs. Brownfields and Land Revitalization. Help the CNMI identify brownfields that support long-term sustainability planning efforts and can be redeveloped for a higher public use. Ensure brownfields redevelopment and land revitalization are included as priorities in local planning efforts; advance the reuse of sites perceived as being contaminated post- and pre- typhoon.

Mr. SABLAN. EPA reports that funds will be needed to upgrade the Agingan and Sadog Tasi wastewater treatment plants ``as a result of damage inflicted by Typhoon Yutu,'' and for lift stations and backup generators that were ``damaged by flooding and high winds.'' EPA says these projects cost $14 million. My amendment takes into account funding already in the base bill, however, and asks only for an increase of $8.8 million. Again, this requested increase is based on EPA's estimates only available after passage of H.R. 268, the bill on which H.R. 2157 is based. Madam Chair, I ask my colleagues for their support of my amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Chair, I have no further speakers. I ask for support of Sablan amendment No. 3 and the underlying bill, H.R. 2157. Madam Chair, I thank my colleague and friend from American Samoa for her support of the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the Northern Mariana Islands Small Business Act, which would ensure small businesses in my district have access to the Small Business Administration's (SBA) Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Lead Center grant program, the Federal and State Technology (FAST) partnership grant program and the Microloan program. The Marianas are the only U.S. jurisdiction not included in these programs, which help small businesses access the knowledge and capital necessary to succeed and compete for federal contracting opportunities. Last fall, our islands were struck by two catastrophic natural disasters. Typhoon Mangkhut and Super Typhoon Yutu, the second most powerful storm ever in United States history, caused widespread destruction of homes, businesses, schools and infrastructure. Under presidential disaster declarations, the SBA set up temporary disaster recovery centers on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota to assist small businesses to apply for loans and other funds to cover damages resulting from the storms. We are grateful for the SBA's assistance during these disasters. However, all SBA disaster outreach centers in the Marianas are now closed and our economy is projected to take years to fully recover. The SBA estimates there are over 1,700 small businesses in the Marianas which employ over 18,000 people. These businesses and employees do not have access to the full range of SBA programs to help them fully recover. My bill would correct that by ensuring access on the same basis as their counterparts across the nation, many of whom are also recovering from natural disasters. Under my bill, the Marianas can apply to establish a Lead SBDC, which would make available around $600,000 in renewable funding to expand the reach and capacity of the existing SBDC service center on Saipan. With additional funding, small businesses on Saipan, Tinian and Rota will have better access to free or low-cost services such as incubator workspaces for entrepreneurs, assistance with loan applications, business planning, operations, personnel administration, marketing, export assistance, sales and other areas required for small business growth and success. The bill would benefit aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners in the Marianas who are not able to access conventional loans at commercial banks. This legislation would provide them access to the SBA's Microloan program which provides loans up to $50,000 typically not offered by banks for working capital or the acquisition of materials, supplies, or equipment. In addition, the SBA microloan program, which is designed to assist women, low-income, veteran, and minority entrepreneurs, provides marketing, management, and technical assistance to borrowers. The Northern Mariana Islands Small Business Act would also help our small businesses participate in federal research and development opportunities. The bill includes the Marianas in the SBA's FAST partnership program which funds outreach and technical assistance to small businesses interested in competing for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. The SBIR and STTR programs have funded the development of new sources of renewable energy and low-cost technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and help give the aspiring entrepreneurs and small businesses from the Marianas access to the full range of federal resources needed to help our economy recover from disaster and make their dreams of small business ownership a reality.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa College Access Act, which would authorize tuition assistance grants to cover the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition costs for Northern Marianas and American Samoa community college graduates seeking to attend a four-year public university. The importance of having an educated citizenry is a bedrock principle of our nation and has been since our founding. And in today's competitive job market, a postsecondary education is increasingly becoming a critical necessity for obtaining a decent job with a decent wage. The Northern Mariana Islands has only been part of America for forty years. We understand well that education is key to our continued growth, but the reality is that household incomes in the Northern Marianas are less than half the national median. The U.S. territory of American Samoa is in similar economic straits. Poverty and unemployment rates there are among the highest in the country. I believe the best way to improve economic conditions in these territories is to improve the educational opportunities of our residents. Unfortunately, however, neither the Northern Marianas nor American Samoa has a four-year institution of higher education. In fact, they are the only two congressional districts in the country without a public four-year college or university. Each has an accredited community college, but academic offerings are substantially limited. Students from these U.S. territories wanting the advantages of a four-year university in another state or territory face significant financial difficulty. Nonresident students spend an average of $14,480 in out-of-state tuition and fees more per year than their resident peers at public four-year colleges, according to College Board. And many students in the Marianas and American Samoa wanting to attend a four-year university not only face the cost of nonresident tuition, but also the significant expense of travel. The Marianas are over 3,700 miles from the nearest state, Hawaii--a $1,100 one-way trip by plane. American Samoa to Hawaii is over 2,500 miles, over $800 one-way. The bill follows the model of P.L. 106-98, the DC College Access Act, which allows students residing in the District of Columbia to apply for grants to help pay the cost of attending colleges outside D.C., but much smaller in scope and cost. It creates a program through which public four-year schools in the 50 states, D.C., and other U.S. territories may be reimbursed for offering in-state tuition to undergraduate students from the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa. The gentlelady from American Samoa, Mrs. Radewagen, is an original cosponsor of the bill. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation and help give students from the Northern Marianas and American Samoa the means needed to make their educational dreams a reality.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Chair, the people of the Northern Mariana Islands, whom I represent, are on the front line of climate change. In the past year, back-to-back typhoons struck our islands. Lives were lost. We suffered hundreds of millions in damage. No single weather event can be attributed to climate change. But science tells us that global warming means more frequent and more intense storms of the kind that hit the Marianas. And we know the sudden increase in intensity of one of those storms, Super Typhoon Yutu, just before landfall in the Marianas, is characteristic of a new normal caused by higher atmospheric temperatures and warmer ocean waters. We saw the same acceleration of force as Hurricane Michael came ashore in the Gulf last year. Today, Congress has an opportunity to act to slow climate change and reduce the disasters being caused. We can vote to return the United States to the company of nations that is working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with the Paris Agreement of 2015. I support H.R. 9, the Climate Action Now Act. There are those who argue it is too expensive to lower carbon pollution of our planet's atmosphere. I point to the disaster supplemental appropriation bills this House will take up shortly and previously passed in January. If we are willing to spend billions to repair the impact of climate change on communities around our nation, should we not be willing to spend to prevent that damage in the first place? Would that not be wise? I make this plea especially for people in the Marianas and other Pacific islands. We are increasingly battered by storms. As sea levels rise, our islands are disappearing. And the coral reefs that protect our coasts and give us nourishment are dying before our eyes. We are the front line of the consequences, yet had little to do with the decades of carbon pollution that are causing this destruction. Nevertheless, we in the islands are willing to transform, just as our nation as a whole must transform to reduce carbon emissions and protect our safety in the decades ahead. A yes vote on H.R. 9 is an important first step.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Chair, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 154.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Chair, I rise to enter into a short colloquy with the distinguished gentlewoman from American Samoa. As it is in your district, it is in my district. Sometimes we have to leave our home and travel by airplane to a place where we can receive the medical attention we need for VA services for our veterans. I would like to discover, which I think I may already know the answer, but just for the record, a veteran who lives, say, in Saipan going to Tripler or Spark M. Matsunaga VA Medical Center in Hawaii, that childcare is provided for that time, including the travel time and the time when the veteran is receiving medical attention in Hawaii and until that veteran returns home. Is that an appropriate or correct interpretation of this legislation?

Mr. SABLAN. I yield to the gentlewoman from American Samoa.

Mr. SABLAN. It happens many times that a veteran, again, has to leave. For example, in my district, they would have to leave the island of Tinian or the island of Rota, fly to Saipan even to have a teleconference, a telemedicine video, with their licensed social worker, their psychologist, or their psychiatrist, and it takes time. Flights are just once a day, for example, or a flight to Guam requires an overnight stay. So for the time that the veteran leaves home, goes to Guam, for example, gets the care and comes back, I was hoping that that restriction is appropriate.

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Chair, I would like to engage the gentleman from Tennessee in a colloquy.

Mr. SABLAN. I yield to the gentleman.

Mr. SABLAN. I thank the ranking member of the committee and my distinguished colleague from American Samoa.

Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to offer an amendment clarifying that telemental health services furnished by the VA are included in the list of covered healthcare services under H.R. 840. Making it easier for veterans to get mental healthcare services by providing childcare while they are receiving treatment just makes sense. Most parents are not going to use the mental health services the VA provides if it means leaving their kids at home alone. Worrying about their children will only worsen the mental stress for veterans in need of care. So I support H.R. 840, but I want to make sure the childcare the bill offers will be available to veterans in my district who can only receive mental health service by videoconference. We do not have a VA psychologist in the Marianas. For that matter, we do not have a community-based outpatient clinic or a vet center or a VBA specialist, services that veterans in the rest of America can take for granted. So my vets must sit in front of a video monitor to get mental health counseling--not exactly the best arrangement, in my opinion. So let us at least try and make sure that veterans in the Marianas-- or anywhere else in the Nation--or anywhere else the VA only offers telemedicine instead of real person-to-person care, that those veterans do not have to worry about the safety and well-being of their children. Let us be sure there is no ambiguity in H.R. 840. I ask my colleagues for their support of my amendment, backed by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, so we can be sure that even vets receiving mental health services by video can have the cost of childcare covered. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Chair, I very much thank the chairman of the committee, the gentleman from California, and the ranking member, the gentleman from Tennessee, for their leadership on the House Veterans' Affairs Committee. Mr. Chair, I would like to thank my colleague, Ms. Brownley, for introducing this bill. Mr. Chair, I yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Takano), the chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee.

Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Chair, I have no further speakers. I ask for support for H.R. 840, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SABLAN

Mr. SABLAN. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from the great State of New York and the great city of New York for inviting me to speak on the need for comprehensive immigration reform for our Nation as a whole and, specifically, about how the broken immigration system hurts people I represent in the Mariana Islands. In 2013, the Senate passed a comprehensive immigration reform bill, with Republicans and Democrats voting together, that would have gone a long way to fixing immigration. The bill gave people who came here illegally but are now contributing to the economic prosperity of all Americans a way to come out of the shadows, and it provided for substantial improvements in border security--just what the President says he wants. The Republican-led House decided not to take the path the Senate had courageously shown us in 2013, but I hope that, in this 116th Congress, we can dust off that comprehensive immigration reform bill and breathe new life into it. Because our immigration problems still need fixing, we have a solution, ready-made, that already passed the Senate with Republican and Democratic votes. I worked with the Gang of Eight in the Senate who drafted that legislation. I was able to include a section that dealt with groups of people in the Mariana Islands who fell through the cracks when Congress extended U.S. immigration law to my islands in 2008. Let me begin by saying that none of the people I wanted to help came into our country illegally or stayed illegally. They were all lawfully present, but their situations were not understood or accounted for when Federal law was applied to the Mariana Islands. I have wanted to help them since my first days in Congress 10 years ago, and I will not stop working until they are pulled out of the limbo we left them in. Let me tell you about these people. Imagine you are the daughter or son of parents who came to the Mariana Islands before 1976, before our islands were even part of the United States. The Mariana Islands is your only home. You grew up in the Islands, went to school, have worked there ever since, raising your own family, always lawfully present. Then, three decades later, Congress decides to extend America's immigration borders. Suddenly, you are told you are a foreigner. You need a work visa or humanitarian parole or, otherwise, you will have to leave the only home you have ever known. Imagine. The Senate comprehensive immigration reform bill would have fixed that. Imagine you are living in the Mariana Islands and the local government passes a law, as it has every right to do, that gives you permanent resident status. Then along comes Congress, 25 years later, and says the Mariana Islands is within U.S. immigration borders now. Oh, and by the way, you permanent residents, you do not have that status anymore. If you want to stay, you need a work visa or humanitarian parole; otherwise, you will have to leave your home, your children, your family. Imagine. The Senate comprehensive immigration reform bill would have fixed that. Imagine coming to the Marianas as a foreign worker. You have contributed to economic growth and have been a lawfully present resident for decades. But Congress passes a new law, and suddenly, your status changes. Even if you have a spouse or children who are U.S. citizens, they cannot petition for you because they are too poor or underage. Under the Obama administration, at least you were granted humanitarian parole. But the Trump administration wants you gone by June 30, June 30 of this year. You must uproot your family, pull your children out of school, or leave them behind as orphans. Imagine. The Senate comprehensive immigration reform bill would have fixed that, too. Madam Speaker, I come from a very small community, compared to my colleagues here in the House, just 50,000 people. When I ask you to imagine the plight of those who were forgotten when Congress extended Federal immigration law to the Marianas, I do not have to imagine who they are. I know them individually. They are my neighbors. Some are my relatives. None are strangers to me. They are good people who came in legally and remained lawfully present. But their lives are precarious, and the Trump administration is tightening the noose. We do not have to imagine how to help them. The solution is before us. The Senate-passed comprehensive immigration reform in 2013, a bipartisan vote, a set of policies to fix our broken system and strengthen border security, I dare say could pass this House today. Let us act. Again, I thank the gentleman from New York for giving me this time to speak. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Garcia).