Donna Shalala

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Mr. Speaker, for purposes of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. General Leave

Ms. SHALALA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members be given 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Ms. SHALALA. Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday, the Rules Committee met and reported a rule, House Resolution 866, providing for the consideration of H.R. 2339, Protecting American Lungs and Reversing the Youth Tobacco Epidemic Act of 2020 under a closed rule. The rule provides 90 minutes of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and the ranking member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the chair and ranking member of the Committee on Ways and Means. The rule self-executes a manager's amendment to make technical corrections and provides one motion to recommit. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the bill in this rule. Mr. Speaker, as our Nation anticipates the probability of a pandemic, here today in the people's House we have the opportunity to save almost six million young lives that would be cut short by nicotine if we fail to act. I am not exaggerating. The CDC has predicted that if the children of our country continue to use tobacco products at the current rate, 5.6 million children will have premature deaths. This is a test of our courage. Let's look at the facts: In 1997, 24.6 percent of all 12th graders reported daily use of cigarettes, and 36.5 percent reported some use in the past 30 days. Thanks to smart, tough policies and a national commitment to reduce cigarette use by children, those numbers dropped to 3.6 percent and 7.6 percent by 2018. Nearly 90 percent of adult smokers began smoking before the age of 18. If you do not start smoking as a child, it is very unlikely you will smoke as an adult. This is not a secret. Public health officials know this, and tobacco companies know this, too. They also know that nicotine is a highly addictive substance. This dramatic reduction in cigarette use by children put tobacco companies in a bind. If children and teenagers have stopped using cigarettes, and 90 percent of all adult smokers began smoking as children, how can they maintain their pipeline of customers? Their answer arrived in the form of a new technology, e-cigarettes and vaping products. Companies knew that the pipeline of lifetime smokers was dwindling, so they started marketing new vaping products to young people through Instagram ads and influencers and other social media platforms. They also handed out free vaping products at music events and movies. They clearly targeted children, our children, and their strategy worked. Today, 26.7 percent of 12th graders vaped in the last month. This rate has more than doubled in the last 2 years alone. In 2010, only 1.5 percent of 12th graders reported vaping. We banned flavored cigarettes in 2009 because they appealed to children and encouraged them to take up smoking. Tobacco companies switched to flavored vape products and flavored cigarillos because these products are not held to the same standard, even though they are tobacco products and contain nicotine. In 2018, 67 percent of high school students and 49 percent of middle school students who used tobacco products in the past 30 days reported using a flavored tobacco product. So while kids can't buy cotton candy or banana smash cigarettes, they can buy those flavors in vaping products or in cigarillos. For the record, nicotine has health effects beyond addiction. Nicotine exposure damages adolescent brain development, and brains are not fully done developing until the mid-20s. Nicotine also contributes to the hardening of arterial walls, which in turn, may lead to a cardiac event. It is time, Mr. Speaker, to ensure our children do not face a lifetime of nicotine addiction. It is time to finally pass a bill that protects their health, and that is what the Protecting American Lungs and Reversing the Youth Tobacco Epidemic Act will do. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and let me simply say we can never go too far when we are protecting our children. Madam Speaker, I include in the Record a February 5 NBC News article titled ``Federal flavor ban goes into effect Thursday, but many flavored vape products will still be available.'' [From NBC News, Feb. 5, 2020] Federal Flavor Ban Goes Into Effect Thursday, but Many Flavored Vape Products Will Still Be Available (By Erika Edwards) A nationwide ban on many flavored e-cigarette products goes into effect Thursday, but teenagers will still have access to nicotine vapes, experts say. The ban covers a number of kid-friendly flavorings, such as mint and fruit, though menthol and tobacco flavorings will remain legal. However, the ban only applies to specific types of devices: cartridge or pre-filled pod devices, like the ones made popular by Juul. All other devices will be left on the market. But limiting access to Juul, which stopped selling all non- menthol and tobacco flavored pods in November, is unlikely to have much of an effect on teens already addicted to nicotine. ``Kids have moved on,'' Meredith Berkman, co-founder of Parents Against Vaping E-cigarettes, or PAVE, told NBC News. Teenagers know that teachers are now educated about how to detect vaping in classrooms, she said. So they're getting their nicotine fix in other ways, including products not covered by the looming ban. ``Kids are sucking on flavored nicotine pouches to get through the day until they can get home to their device,'' Berkman said. The pouches are reminiscent of chewing tobacco, but are advertised as being ``tobacco-free.'' Experts in teen addiction also said there's plenty of evidence that teens now favor highly concentrated, refillable nicotine vape products called Smok and Suorin Drops as well as cheaper, disposable vape pods called Puff Bars--also to be left on the market after Thursday. ``I'm not very optimistic,'' Bonnie Halpern-Felsher, a professor at Stanford University who studies teen vaping, said. ``We really do need to have enforcement of the law across all tobacco products, regardless of these loopholes.'' ``The new policy does not solve the problem,'' Matthew Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said, adding parents need to keep their guard up and educate their teenagers about the harms of nicotine addiction. ``Millions of flavored products will remain available.'' Plans for restricting e-cigarette flavors on a federal level first came up in September, when key national data on teen vaping was released. It was revealed that from 2017 to 2019, rates of vaping had more than doubled among 8th, 10th and 12th grade students. New cases of those lung illnesses have declined considerably since then. As of Jan. 21 (the latest data available), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that there have been 2,711 cases of people who've been hospitalized with EVALI, or e-cigarette, or vaping, product use-associated lung injury. All 50 states, plus Washington, D.C., have reported EVALI cases. Sixty people have died. Many others were left with lasting lung damage. Investigations suggested most cases were not associated with vaping nicotine, but instead THC, the psychoactive ingredient found in marijuana. Most of those THC vapes came from drug dealers or friends. Vitamin E oil has been the leading culprit in the lung damage, though other chemicals and additives can't be ruled out, according to the CDC. After Thursday, companies that make any vape products-- including those covered in the ban--will have to meet a May 12 deadline to apply to the Food and Drug Administration to continue selling their products. It will take one year for the FDA to review those applications, during which time products can, and likely will, remain on the market. ``It's not a `forever' ban,'' Halpern-Felsher said. ``We have a long way to go.''

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, many teens today have moved from using flavored e-cigarettes to other flavored nicotine-laced products. That includes things like flavored pouches, drops, and pods. These products are still on the market today. The recent national ban, which my distinguished colleague referred to, didn't take them off the shelves. Something more is needed to make sure our children don't go from one bad addictive product to the next. The products might be different, but the impacts are the same. It is a distinction without a difference, Madam Speaker. That is why we have to pass this bill to keep life-threatening products out of the hands of our children. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro).

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I would like to clarify some misunderstandings related to the bill that I have just heard. Some have suggested that H.R. 2339 allows certain cigars to be exempt from the flavor prohibition. I want to be very clear. Under this legislation, all tobacco products are subject to the flavor prohibition, including cigars. In fact, the text of the definition of cigar product explicitly states that these cigars cannot contain a characterizing flavor. Under the legislation, menthol is a characterizing flavor. The only way to tackle the youth tobacco epidemic is to prohibit all flavors in all products, which is exactly what H.R. 2339 does. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. DeSaulnier), a distinguished member of the Rules Committee.

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Madam Speaker, I am a little confused. I may be a freshman, but I know that my good friend, Mario Diaz-Balart, usually gives me a little advanced notice before he presents something. My Republican colleagues are promising that, if we defeat the previous question, they will bring up a resolution to condemn the terrible comments Senator Sanders made regarding the dictator Fidel Castro. But let me be clear: Defeating the previous question means that Republicans can bring up any germane bill or amendment they want. The key word here being ``germane.'' The resolution is not germane to the rule. That means, under the House rules, rules that have been in place since the founding of this institution, Republicans cannot bring to the floor the resolution they are promising to because it is not germane to the rule. The vote on the previous question is not a vote on the Diaz-Balart resolution. It is a vote to end debate on the rule and proceed to consideration of the legislation at hand, a bill to help prevent kids from taking up smoking. I am not disputing the merits of the resolution that my distinguished Republican colleague is offering as the previous question. In fact, I support this resolution; and to be very clear, I have requested to be added as a cosponsor. I was the first Democratic Member of Congress to speak out against these misguided, ill-informed, hurtful, and unacceptable comments made by Senator Sanders from Vermont. Over the last six decades, hundreds of thousands of Cubans have risked their lives to escape the tyranny of the Castro regime, a regime of fear, paranoia, and oppression that regularly abuses human rights in order to stifle free thought and democracy in Cuba to this very day. Yesterday, my good friend and south Florida colleague, Mr. Diaz- Balart, spoke about the horrors of Castro's Cuba. He so eloquently explained: ``If anybody wants to know the devastation of socialism and the tyranny that often is accompanied by socialism, I invite you to come and speak to some of my constituents, including the thousands-- thousands--of former political prisoners.'' This is a joint invitation. Please, come to my south Florida community and meet Mr. Diaz-Balart's constituents and meet my constituents who will make it clear the Cuban regime and other similar authoritarian regimes across Latin America are instruments of evil and are not worthy of praise. I would like to close again by quoting my good friend, Mr. Diaz- Balart: ``The Castro regime is a threat, not only to the national security of the United States but also to all the democracies in this hemisphere.'' He is absolutely correct, and I stand with him. I have always stood with him and alongside our constituents in south Florida to denounce the evil Cuban regime. But today we are here to debate a bill that protects our children from the dangers of tobacco and nicotine use. I hope my Republican colleagues will join us in voting ``yes'' on the previous question and ``yes'' on this rule, so we can move on to consideration of a bill to reverse the youth tobacco epidemic. The minority is claiming that they will do something that has been against the Rules of the House since the very first Congress in 1789. Clause 7 of rule XVI clearly states: ``No motion or proposition on a subject different from that under consideration shall be admitted under color of amendment.'' It doesn't matter whether or not a Member would support my colleague's resolution, which I have not had the opportunity to fully read since it was introduced just minutes ago. It is completely unrelated to the public health bill we are discussing right now and could not actually be offered. The right way to do this would have been to consult with all of us who have spoken out on this issue and build support in the traditional way. I have always joined my colleague, Mr. Diaz-Balart, to consult with other Members and to join together to denounce tyranny wherever it may exist. Madam Speaker, I will close by saying that I have worked on tobacco issues for years. When I was Secretary of Health and Human Services, we knew we were facing a problem with youth usage of tobacco products, particularly e-cigarettes. Thanks to smart and tough policies and comprehensive outreach campaigns, we succeeded in dramatically reducing youth cigarette use. It was an extraordinary public-health achievement. But here we are again with flavored e-cigarettes and vape products. Tobacco companies will not give up, but we will not either. Nicotine exposure during youth and young adulthood is particularly dangerous. The children who are using flavored e-cigarettes and vaping products are people who likely wouldn't have taken up smoking otherwise. This is the public health crisis of the 21st century. Children don't vote or contribute to our campaigns, but they are our future. In fairy tales, children are saved by caring adults. We must save them from disease and death. We are the caring adults of this generation. We must save them from an industry that would trade their lives for profit. It is important to acknowledge that we have made a lot of bipartisan progress on this public health issue. We have raised the age to buy tobacco products to 21. But the administration has enacted a very narrow flavor ban. It is too narrow. It only restricts flavors in closed pod products like Juul. Further, disposable flavored e-cigarette products like Puff Bar will still be available in flavors like mango, banana ice, or lychee. There is clear evidence that teens are already switching to use these products. We need a comprehensive policy, and that is what this bill does. H.R. 2339 prohibits the sale of all flavored tobacco products and bans the marketing of e-cigarettes to people under 21 years of age. This is a comprehensive solution. We need to curb this epidemic now. It is our responsibility to protect our children's future. Madam Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on the rule and on the previous question.

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Chair, our fellow Americans in Puerto Rico have suffered greatly in the last few years, from fiscal calamity to a monster hurricane to the Earth shaking and continuing to shake. I have seen the suffering personally. These disasters have resulted in many Puerto Ricans leaving the island, and many are children or young adults who are still in school. This amendment increases funding to conduct a study on the impacts that these young people face when they have to disrupt their education. The truth is, we don't know the best way to help children who have to leave their homes to pursue their education in another State or have to miss weeks of school because their school building is structurally unsound after an earthquake. But we need to. We need to know the best way to make sure that all children can reach their full potential and are able to cope with whatever trauma they may have faced. Ultimately, this amendment will save us money because we will have future natural disasters where children will have to move away from their schools or pause their education. Unfortunately, there will be more Marias and more Katrinas, and there will be more wildfires. We need to make sure that we are serving both children and the taxpayers. We should spend our money in the most impactful way possible. The study will guide us on the most effective policies and the most effective way we can use disaster funds to help our children. I thank my distinguished colleague, Congresswoman Gonzalez-Colon, for her work and her support on this amendment, as well as Congresswoman Stephanie Murphy, Congressman Alcee Hastings, and Chairman Jim McGovern. Madam Chair, I support the underlying bill. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro).

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Chair, this amendment is simply about helping American children, and I urge my colleagues to support it. Madam Chair, I yield to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey), the chair of Committee on Appropriations.

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, this is National Gun Violence Survivors Week, and I rise to recognize the victims and survivors of domestic violence across the United States who have felt the effects of our weak gun laws. Just last week in my community in Miami, a man killed his infant son's mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother with a high-powered rifle before abducting the days-old baby. The infant, Andrew, is still missing. Stories like this are not unusual in this country. Women in the United States are 21 times more likely to be murdered with a gun than in other high-income countries. When we don't take action, it is people like Andrew, his mother, his grandmother, and his great-grandmother who pay the price. Andrew deserves to grow up with his family. He deserves leaders who prioritize his well-being over the violent whims of abusers. He deserves a chance at life not tinged with tragedy.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I rise in celebration of the 75th anniversary of Riviera Presbyterian Church. Founded in 1945, Riviera Presbyterian Church provides a religious home for people of faith from the greater Miami area. As a mission- driven church, Riviera Presbyterian Church strives to help improve its community by maintaining an active outreach program. Advocating for undocumented immigrants, the LGBT community, and environmental protection, Riviera Presbyterian Church is committed to promoting equality for all through social justice. In 75 years of service, Riviera Presbyterian has shown inspiration and love to whoever walks into the church, regardless of culture and background. Riviera Presbyterian was the first Anglo Presbyterian congregation to welcome a black man into pastoral leadership and ordained the first woman of the Presbyterian Church in South Florida. May the church continue to break barriers while assisting our beautiful community. I'm deeply grateful to Riviera Presbyterian Church for its hard work and dedication to the Miami community.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Ms. SHALALA. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, when you default on a student loan, you impact your credit score. Indeed, your credit score with all three credit agencies will most likely drop. That means that buying or renting a house, purchasing or leasing a vehicle, going back to school, or receiving competitive offers for credit cards will be very difficult. Each year, more than 1 million student loan borrowers go into default. Nearly 40 percent of borrowers today are expected to default on their student loans by 2023. We know that people most at risk of defaulting on their student loans are more likely to be Hispanic or African American. Defaulters are more likely to be older, to be Pell grant recipients, and to come from a nontraditional educational background when compared to borrowers who never default. Research also tells us that people of color are more burdened by their educational debt. They have less parental wealth to draw on, as well as higher rates of unemployment. By the time their loan falls into default, a typical borrower will see their score drop around 60 points, to an average of 550, which is considered very poor. Entering default makes it harder to obtain future loans and prevents borrowers from receiving any additional Federal student aid until their loans return to good standing. Loan providers can then begin to garnish their wages, to impose restrictions on earnings, and to take their tax refund. A student loan default stays on your credit report for 7 years--even if you pay off the loan in full. Having that notification on your credit report will make lenders nervous about working with you and hurt your economic stability for years. Mr. Chairman, my amendment instructs the GAO to carry out a thorough review on how credit scores impacted by a student loan default can destroy people's lives. The amendment also asks the GAO to examine how multiple delinquencies on private student loans can hurt borrowers, including a demographic breakdown by race, gender, age, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status. Allowing student loans to enter delinquency can often have a negative effect on a borrower's credit score and in credit reports due to the fact that each loan is reported individually. Mr. Chairman, Congress has a vested interest in ensuring that we expand the middle class, we grow the economy, and we protect consumers from irreversible financial damage to their credit. I believe that H.R. 3621, with the inclusion of this amendment, will establish parity for student borrowers and provide Congress with the necessary tools to craft meaningful legislation that will help avoid the tragedy of student loan default. I thank Congresswoman Kendra Horn for sharing my concerns on this issue and for cosponsoring this amendment. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Mr. Speaker, today, on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. We remember the 6 million Jews, as well as millions of other minority populations, who were systematically murdered by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. We remember the families who were separated and the sacrifices made by those who protected Jewish lives. Pure evil was committed against Jews, Roma, Catholics, LGBTQ individuals, people with disabilities, and others. We honor the 10,000 Holocaust survivors who live in south Florida and the nearly 70,000 more who live around the United States. Mr. Speaker, I also want to honor my friend, Dr. Miriam Klein Kassenoff, who fled Nazi Europe as a child in 1941. An educational specialist for Holocaust studies at Miami-Dade County Public Schools and director of the Holocaust Institute at the University of Miami, Miriam has dedicated her life to educating the new generation of teachers and students about the horrors of the Holocaust. Mr. Speaker, as we enter this new decade, we recommit ourselves to ensuring that ``never again'' means never again. We will never stop fighting virulent, hateful anti-Semitism and discrimination wherever and whenever it appears. In this House, the people's House, we stand together, united against hate. We stand together in pledging ``never again.'' Never again.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I rise in honor of Philip Stoddard, mayor of South Miami. First elected in 2010, he has gained a reputation as one of the most environmentally conscious mayors in the United States. Ten years ago, Mayor Stoddard implemented term limits for city officials, preventing himself from serving more than five two-year terms. Now, as he nears the end of his final term, Mayor Stoddard can look back on his time in office with pride He fundamentally changed the standards of public policy in the city of South Miami. A biology professor at Florida International University, Mayor Stoddard made environmental science and conservation a priority for the city. He signed laws requiring the installation of solar panels on new homes and banning pesticide spraying in the city. Last year, he led South Miami to commit to a goal of 100 percent renewable energy citywide by 2040. Mayor Stoddard's expertise in environmental public policy extended beyond South Miami. In 2015, he helped the Obama administration develop policy to address sea level rise. Mayor Stoddard is an inspiration for all of us who hope to help South Florida become greener and more resilient to climate change. I'm grateful for his decade of service and wish him all the best in his future endeavors.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Mr. Speaker, the 2016 borrower defense rule created a process for student loan borrowers to demonstrate that their loans did not need to be repaid due to their school's misleading, fraudulent, or otherwise illegal conduct. Many of those that closed their doors left thousands of students with no credible recourse. Instead of working to protect students and taxpayers, however, the Education Secretary and the Department have repeatedly sided with these bad actors. By rewriting the borrower defense rule to favor those institutions, the Secretary has made it harder for borrowers to get relief and shifted the cost of providing debt relief from the schools to the taxpayer. Several independent reports have concluded that this rewrite is fundamentally rigged against defrauded borrowers, depriving them of the opportunity for assistance promised them under the Higher Education Act. According to an analysis based on the Department's data, the changes to the financial triggers in the 2019 rule will result in institutions repaying only 1 percent of the eligible loan debt. Mr. Speaker, I have led three institutions of higher education. The Secretary has created a bureaucratic nightmare. Even I, after reading the regulation carefully, could not figure out all the information that was necessary to apply for relief. The Federal Government should be putting students and taxpayers first rather than helping financially irresponsible schools stay afloat. Mr. Speaker, nearly 20,000 students in my State are currently seeking relief because they were cheated by predatory colleges. I did not come to Congress to protect corporations that seek to take advantage of low- income students, veterans, and taxpayers. Until we take a definitive stance on for-profit schools, they will continue to defraud students.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the War Powers Resolution to limit the President's military actions regarding Iran. As a Member of Congress, one of our most sacred votes is our vote to declare war. We, therefore, have an obligation to study the evidence and share concerns about the administration's decision to engage in hostilities against Iran. We have a duty to question its strategy, or lack of strategy, moving forward. My expertise, Madam Speaker, is not foreign policy, but I know Iran. I lived there. I worked there as a Peace Corps volunteer many years ago. I have been a student of Iranian history and politics for more than 3 decades. There is no question about Iran's role in sponsoring terrorism. Soleimani himself was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Americans and thousands around the world. He actively worked to foment instability across the Middle East on behalf of the government of Iran. Nevertheless, the President of the United States, in his response to Iran, announced that he would commit a war crime by targeting Iran's extraordinary cultural sites. War crimes. No matter who is President of the United States, when he or she indicates that they are prepared to commit a war crime, then Congress better step up and reassert its authority under the Constitution. We must demand that the President justify any act, and that is what this resolution does. That is why I support it.

Ms. SHALALA

Ms. SHALALA. Mr. Speaker, today millions of Americans are working to pay off their student debt. This is already an enormous burden for those who have graduated from reputable schools, but it is nearly impossible for those who attend schools that failed to live up to their responsibilities to their students. Predatory for-profit institutions recruit students with false promises and leave them with worthless degrees and thousands of dollars of debt. These schools are prone to sudden closure, leaving students stranded, with no recourse to continue their education. The College Affordability Act works to solve these pressing issues that plague far too many students. The bill would prevent sudden closure of colleges by requiring creditors to act on warning signs. Finally, it would close the GI Bill loophole that allows for-profit colleges to take advantage of our brave veterans. I urge my colleagues to support this crucial legislation and hold the schools accountable to their students.