Lee Terry

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 731 to commend the Patriot Guard Riders for their valiant efforts to shield mourning military families from protesters at the funeral services of their loved ones. I recently had the honor and privilege to attend the funeral of Army Sergeant Lonnie Calvin Allen, Jr., who was killed along with three other servicemembers when a roadside bomb struck his Humvee in Baghdad. Over 500 people attended the standing-room-only service to honor the life of this brave young man. The Nebraska Chapter of the Patriot Guard Riders--decked out in leather and holding American flags--lined the walkway into the church for the protection and peace of mind of friends and family members. I felt proud to be an American as I witnessed this unforgettable display of honor and respect for one of our fallen heroes. The personal dedication and commitment of the Patriot Guard Riders is an inspiring example of true American patriotism. The Patriot Guard Riders also shielded the surviving family members of Army Captain Joel Cahill, who was on his second tour of duty in Iraq when he was killed late last year by an Improvised Explosive Device, IED, that struck his vehicle. As protesters held signs such as ``God sent the IED,'' and ``thank God for dead soldiers,'' Patriot Guard Riders outnumbered them by at least five to one on the other side of the street, shielding Capt. Cahill's wife and two young daughters. Captain Cahill's 59-year-old father also took action in his own style: he handed the protesters sheets of paper containing biblical verses such as ``Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.'' Sgt. L.C. Allen and Capt. Joel Cahill were buried with full military honors in Arlington National Cemetery. Their valor and courage will stand the test of time, while the protesters dishonoring their noble sacrifices will fade into the annals of history. I commend Nebraska State Captain Mike Smith and all the members of the Patriot Guard Riders, both in my State and nationwide. I join them in thanking the families of our servicemembers who have made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom at home and abroad. I urge all of my colleagues to support this resolution to recognize the outstanding and selfless contributions of the Patriot Guard Riders--protectors of our fallen American heroes and their families.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the resolution to affirm the United States of America will ultimately achieve victory in the Global War on Terror. On September 11, 2001, 3,000 of our fellow Americans were brutally killed by Islamic terrorists under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. President Bush responded by declaring war against terrorism and its strongholds throughout the world. He said we would fight the enemy on their ground to prevent terrorists from once again attacking our citizens on U.S. soil. The Bush Doctrine stated: ``Any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime.'' U.S. and Coalition forces have verified his words with irrefutable action. The state-sponsored ``safe harbor'' Al Qaeda enjoyed in Afghanistan ended when U.S. and Northern Alliance forces routed the Taliban in a decisive military victory. Afghanistan now has a newly elected parliament, a market economy, equality for women, and millions of children attending school for the first time. We still face challenges in this nation, but it is on its way to becoming a stable and secure democracy, freed from the oppression of the Taliban extremists. Most importantly, Al Qaeda can no longer use this nation as a launching ground from which to attack the United States. In Iraq, Saddam Hussein repeatedly refused to comply with U.N. weapons inspection. Sovereignty was turned over to Iraqis a year and a half ago; a Constitution was drafted last summer and ratified in October; and a new government is being established. The seeds of democracy are beginning to take root, and a major threat of state- sponsored terrorism against the U.S. was removed. Despite the danger of violent retaliation from radical extremists, 59 percent of Iraqi citizens exercised their right to vote in January, and approximately 70 percent in December. Iraq is on its way to fully assuming responsibility for its own security and governance. The challenges we face are undeniable and difficult. President Bush was correct when he said this war would come at great cost in blood and treasure. However, the cost would be much higher--intolerably high--had we not decisively acted to protect the security and interests of the United States. Who can forget the cheering of Iraqi citizens in the streets as Baghdad was liberated and the statue of Saddam Hussein toppled to the ground? Who can forget the courage of the Iraqi's who proudly displayed the purple ink on their index finger after exercising their right to vote? Who can forget the sight of Saddam Hussein cowering like a cornered rat when U.S. soldiers forced him from hiding? Above all, who can forget the sight of the North and South Towers of the World Trade Center collapsing, the burning embers of the attack on the Pentagon, or the scorched field in Pennsylvania that will forever stand as a testament to heroism and self-sacrifice. Our successes in the Global War on Terror have prevented additional horrifying images from filling our TV screens, saving untold innocent American lives. We may never know what catastrophes have been averted by the dedication and vigilance of U.S. servicemen and women. Nearly 2,500 Americans have nobly given their lives in exchange for the peace that we have enjoyed here at home these past four and one-half years. The very fact that we have not endured another terrorist attack on U.S. soil proves their lives were not given in vain. We have not seen additional attacks such as those in London and Madrid, or experienced the fear Israelis face on a daily basis. We owe our safety and security to the soldiers who are giving their all to protect our families, communities, lives and liberties. Al Qaeda remains a persistent danger to the United States. This terrorist network operates in over 60 countries around the world. It brainwashes men and women into becoming suicide bombers; destroys religious sites; bombs and beheads innocent civilians; and seeks the destruction and overthrow of America, our values, our people, our freedoms and our way of life. We cannot allow Al Qaeda the opportunity to establish a permanent base in Iraq from which to attack the United States. The collapse of Iraq's new democratic government would be a huge victory for Al Qaeda, drawing additional recruits for bin Laden's brand of terrorism from the ranks of young Muslims. It is well-known that bin Laden seeks nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons of mass destruction to inflict severe casualties on the United States and allied countries. Al Qaeda conducted poison gas experiments on dogs in Afghanistan, and the governments of Britain, France, and Jordan have each foiled plans by Al Qaeda to use chemical weapons. U.S. intelligence sources have documented repeated attempts by Al Qaeda to purchase nuclear material, including weapons grade uranium. Nations such as Iran and North Korea are a potential risk for transferring nuclear capabilities to terrorist insurgents. We must not fall into a sense of complacency. The continued threat from Al Qaeda to our citizens at home and abroad is real. Thankfully, U.S. and Coalition forces have captured or killed more than three-fourths of Al Qaeda's known pre-9ll leaders. These include senior field commanders, masterminds of the September 11th attacks, communications coordinators, and other key operational leaders. Just last week, the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq was killed by U.S. forces. Abu Musab al-Zarqawi had repeatedly attacked religious shrines and Iraqi political leaders to destabilize Iraq, provoke a civil war, and create a haven for terrorism. The February bombing of the Askariya shrine in Samarra--one of Iraq's holiest religious sites--ignited a firestorm of reprisals that led to the deaths of over 130 Iraqis. Killing the man who incited this violence was a resounding victory toward building a safe, secure, stable Iraq. More than 4,000 suspected Al Qaeda members have been arrested worldwide since 9/11, and Al Qaeda cells have been identified and dismantled in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa. Over $140 million in terrorist financial assets have been confiscated or seized from over 1,400 bank accounts worldwide. Mistakes have been made in the War on Terror, but the Bush Doctrine of dissuasion and deterrence is working. Pakistan broke its state- sponsored ties to Al Qaeda and the Taliban, and Libya surrendered its WMD and disavowed terrorism. Until recently, Iran had frozen its uranium enrichment program, but is now threatening our country amid the perceived weakness that we will pull our forces out of Iraq before that nation is able to govern and protect itself from terror. This dangerous situation underscores the fact that we must finish the job we began to ensure the continued safety and security of the American people. We must not give in to terrorism by pulling out of Iraq too early. Fortunately, the talents and capabilities of our U.S. servicemen and women are protecting our nation well. Air Force Chief of Staff, General T. Michael Moseley, told reporters in February that Air Force satellites can locate activities and individuals on a global scale, and targets can be held at risk or struck down with the lethality of a weapon that detonates within several feet of the target. Al-Zarqawi learned this lesson the hard way. General Moseley continued: ``It must be a bit disturbing [to terrorists] to know that if you act against the United States or its Coalition partners, the U. S. Air Force will find you and strike you. And there's nothing you can do about it. We may never know what has not happened because of this capability.'' General Ronald Keyes, head of the Air Force's Air Combat Command, rightly said: ``If you're a terrorist and you've got static on your phone, that's me . . . That shadow passing over you, that's me. That computer that will not boot, that's me. That noise you thought you heard until it's too late, that is me. And it will continue to be me until our children and grandchildren and those of freedom-loving nations everywhere emerge from this plight of terrorism.'' We can and we must improve our intelligence and military capabilities to ultimately eradicate terrorism worldwide. This war has not been waged perfectly, but it has in arguably succeeded in preventing additional terrorist attacks on U.S. soil, protecting American lives and liberty, and forcing terrorists to spend their time running rather than plotting additional ways to murder innocent citizens and spread darkness and destruction. Voting ``yes'' for this resolution today will send the clear message to Al Qaeda that the United States is truly united in defeating terrorism and promoting a strong and stable Iraq. I urge my colleagues to join me in thanking our U.S. soldiers, sailors and airmen for their incredible sacrifices, and in supporting this resolution to protect our citizens from terrorism at home and abroad.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentlewoman from New York for not only sponsoring this, but yielding me the time. I rise in support of this amendment as a coauthor, cosponsor of this important amendment. What this amendment does is it restores $35 million to help States combat childhood lead poisoning. I happen to represent a district where a significant geographical portion has been declared a Superfund site because of lead contamination. Although the lead contamination in the soil is a different issue and a different agency, the reality is one agency, EPA, cleans up the yards from lead contamination. What they are finding is that part of the contamination is also from the lead-based paint from the outside or exterior of the home. At the same time, we have the lead paint interior issues in these older, poorer parts of my city. So what happens is we clean up one area and leave other contaminated areas. It makes sense that we do a more holistic approach and clean up lead paint at the same time in those homes. But, unfortunately, the fund that deals with the lead paint for houses has been cut. This program has already fallen from a previous level of $175 million in fiscal year 2003. This appropriations bill under consideration today would further cut the funding from $150 million in fiscal year 2006 to about $115 million in fiscal year 2007. I realize the budget is tight, and we try to take this out of the administrative salary side so we don't have to take it out of the programs that Mr. Sweeney had referenced. This is important to the health and safety of children in many inner- city urban areas, and I respectfully request my colleagues support this amendment.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, today I want to call attention to an important event occurring in my district and recognize the two programs giving rise to this event, which have had a tremendous impact on the health care of underserved populations in our country. Beginning June 10 and continuing through June 14, the Nebraska Area Health Education program and the University of Nebraska Medical Center are sponsoring the National Area Health Education Center Organization's (NAO) annual meeting in my district in Omaha, Nebraska. I want to use the opportunity of the national meeting to illustrate the importance of Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) and Health Education Training Centers (HETCs) through the many services and programs they offer. Area Health Education Centers, established by Congress in 1971, are academic-community partnerships that train health care providers at sites and in programs that are responsive to state and local needs. AHECs improve the supply, distribution, diversity and quality of the health workforce and increase access to health care in medically underserved areas. Furthermore, AHECs facilitate coordination of the resources of health science centers with local educational and clinical resources, which in turn establishes a network that provides multi- disciplinary educational services to students, faculty, and practitioners. Health Education Training Centers, established in 1989, provide community health education and health professions training programs in areas of the United States with severely underserved populations, such as border states. Together, AHEC and HETC programs recruit, train, and retain health professionals committed to serving underserved populations and provide community programs for specific populations with severe unmet health needs. Across the country, there are 61 AHEC/ HETC programs and 215 affiliated AHEC centers that collaborate with over 120 medical schools and 600 nursing and allied health schools to improve the health of the underserved. As reported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in a typical year, AHECs alone will train 37,000 health professions students in community-based sites, provide health career enhancement and recruitment activities of 20 hours or more to 42,000 high school students, and provide continuing education to 315,000 health care providers. In FY 2005, nearly 10,000 physicians participated in mentoring and training activities to students in community sites. Also, AHEC/HETCs were credited with providing training in medically underserved communities to over 47,000 health professions students. Recent studies and reports express serious concern regarding the current and predicted shortage of health care professionals across the country, which further illustrates the important work of AHEC/HETCs. In 2005, AHECs/HETCs were successful in introducing health careers to 300,000 students ranging from kindergarten through college. Mr. Speaker, AHEC/HETC programs serve many important purposes with respect to the recruitment, retention, education and training of health professionals in underserved areas. Today, I would like to fully recognize, appreciate and honor the efforts and activities of AHEC/HETC programs and centers throughout the United States in addressing the nation's most critical health care and health care access issues. I hope my colleagues will join me in commending all the participants in Omaha on the occasion of their national meeting, and thanking them for their service to our country.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. TERRY. Reclaiming my time, I want to thank the chairman for those comments and pointing out the steps that have been taken. Those are reassuring. I thank you for accepting the amendment. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Kansas. Mr. Chairman, I yield to the gentleman from Arizona, the great chairman.

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, my amendment tries to protect one of America's greatest assets, and that is its intellectual properties, its creativity that has been trademarked. Unfortunately, there have been incidents where U.S. tax dollars have been provided to various agencies outside of the borders who have used those taxpayer dollars to solicit the help from organizations or companies that have usurped America's trademarks or intellectual properties. This amendment is simple. It ensures that the foreign assistance dollars are not used to support the importation of counterfeit goods and services. This amendment is a modification of a bill of which Mr. Tiahrt and I have authored, which has bipartisan support of 29 of my colleagues. By the way, I will say that the major impetus of this bill is with the Gallup Organization, partly headquartered in my district, whose pooling is world renowned, but yet its trade name has been usurped for various purposes in parts of the world of which U.S. tax dollars unfortunately have gone to support. So this is our effort. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Tiahrt).

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight the importance of the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant program. The White House again proposed eliminating this critical asset in the war on drugs. That would be a tremendous mistake. Congress must protect this funding to address the clear and present danger of meth in our communities. In my home state of Nebraska, 60 percent of prison inmates are serving time for meth-related crimes. State social services programs are overwhelmed by the rising number of children coming from meth homes. The number of babies born addicted to meth is an unspeakable tragedy. Each day, our dedicated law enforcement officers put their lives on the line to rescue families and communities from the scourge of meth. Anything less than full funding of Byrne-JAG would break faith with those who risk their lives to keep meth off our streets and away from our children. In Nebraska, Byrne task forces were responsible for 5,500 drug arrests last year. Nationwide, Byrne task forces seized 5,600 meth labs, 55,000 weapons, and massive quantities of narcotics, including 2.7 million grams of meth. The results of Byrne task forces are real, they are quantifiable, they are defensible, and they demonstrate the power of using federal dollars to leverage state and local investment in public safety.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the sponsors of this amendment for bringing this forward today, because it is relevant. I agree with the chairman of our committee that the universal service is built on a 1920s or 1930s model, and it is outdated and in need of reform. I also believe that universal service is as relevant today as it was back then, and maybe even more so. In modernizing universal service so that all people in America can enjoy the services of telephony and its advanced services, broadband, we need to fix universal service. And one of the areas that we need to fix is that as different technology or VoIP emerges, then companies use this digital process to avoid paying into the universal service, therefore strangling it. This is just one piece of the universal service puzzle. I support these efforts to fix this little piece today and also look forward to working on the total reform of universal service and modernizing it.

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, the interesting irony about this is that the bill, as written, does not regulate or tamper or mess with anything on the Internet. The amendment that we are discussing here is the regulation of the Internet. And I agree with the Speaker beforehand. There is not an issue today on prioritization along the network or through the pipelines. I look at it like, this amendment, if it was brought up 100 years ago, would have froze the Pony Express into that permanent state. But yet, we all know that later on developed first class mail, airplane, FedEx, UPS and a variety of different ways to deliver to the consumer. I say, let's wait until there is a discriminatory process that is put in place, that is anti-consumer and trying to guess that something that, we don't know what, may happen in the future. Let's not regulate the Internet today. Let's defeat this amendment.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of our Speaker, Denny Hastert, a gentleman whom I wholeheartedly trust and believe that he is one of the most ethical stand-up people I have ever met in my life. And most of us know that around here, and that is why a story about his being investigated is so unbelievable that it should not run. Now, in Washington when a Speaker has criticized an action of the Justice Department on a constitutional ground, I guess we should not be surprised that there is retaliation from those that have been criticized. But let us realize what that is: retaliation. Now, what frustrates me even more or frightens me even more than retaliation by an executive agency like this is the fact that a news station so desirous of bringing down Washington, DC and the representatives here would run a false story about an investigation on the Speaker when the Justice Department said there is no investigation. This noncredible journalism, I think, degrades freedom of speech and the reputation of journalists.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Indiana and probably the leader in Congress in helping fight our war against drugs in our communities across this Nation. I stand with my colleagues here in discussing a problem in our towns and our neighborhoods, particularly in Nebraska, and it is methamphetamines. Also, our teenagers are experimenting with prescription drugs where they can get a hold of them. It is our police officers and our sheriffs and then our State patrol that are on the front lines. It was they 2 years ago who were telling me that some of the gangs in Omaha that had cocaine or marijuana were changing their product of distribution away from those drugs to crystal meth made in Mexico. Mr. Souder held a hearing with Mr. Walters a year ago, who was really, I am not exaggerating here, flabbergasted that some of the grant moneys that the administration had zeroed out was actually being used for task forces against methamphetamines and these gangs, and yet my police department knew about it 2 years ago. I know that this amendment that I have drafted sounds almost nonsensical in its common sense. Why would the national director of our drug policy not be communicating with local police officers who are our front line in this battle? But the reality is they have detached themselves and are advancing a policy to move all of this over to the Justice Department where there will be even less communication with those on the ground that know exactly what is occurring in our communities and what then we must do on the national level to make sure that we arm them correctly to protect our families from these international drug lords. This is a commonsense amendment that I would encourage all of my colleagues to support.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to this amendment, my friend's amendment to the National Uniformity for Food Act. We have seen time and time again in recent years it takes swift and coordinated response from local, State and Federal officials to confront disasters of any kind, especially those caused by terrorists who seek to do us harm. This amendment, however well-intentioned, will do little more than add to the bureaucratic wrangling that can hamper, not improve, our ability to launch a coordinated response in time of trouble. State officials have nothing to fear from this bill as originally written. It has no impact on the ability of local, State and Federal officials to respond to a food emergency or bioterrorist threat. However, for those who, like me, like additional assurances that this legislation would in no way inhibit our ability to cope with a natural or terrorist-made disaster, I respectfully offer that the Rogers amendment that was agreed to would assuage those concerns. It would require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, to certify that the legislation poses no additional threat to public health or safety in time of crisis. Therefore, the law can take effect. It should adequately assuage the concerns of Mr. Waxman and all others. I urge my colleagues to support the Rogers amendment and vote against the Waxman amendment.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1259, a Resolution authorizing the President to award a gold medal on behalf of the Congress to the Tuskegee Airmen. This recognition of the Tuskegee Airmen, members of an elite group who fought valiantly for America's freedoms overseas while overcoming racial discrimination, is long overdue. Their story deserves to be told often, not just during this month of February, to remind all Americans of the many sacrifices made along the way by Americans of color in the military who faced discrimination here at home. I have the privilege of representing four Tuskegee Airmen who reside in my Congressional District: Robert Holts, Ralph Orduna, and Charles Lane, all of Omaha and just south of Omaha in Bellevue, Harry Tull. A fifth Airman, Paul Adams, lives in nearby Lincoln, Nebraska. I am especially proud to note that Colonel Lane of Omaha was the youngest black fighter in World War II. His daughter, Karen Davis, is a longtime member of my District Office staff. I also want to mention Omaha native Alphonza Davis, who graduated from Omaha Tech High School and later Omaha University. He finished first in his class at Tuskegee and was chosen squadron leader. He was killed in combat in 1944 while over Germany. The local Tuskegee Airmen chapter in Omaha is named after him. Mr. Speaker, the story of the Tuskegee Airmen was written in the context of racial segregation that existed in our country during World War II. African Americans who wanted to fly in the military were trained at a separate location near Tuskegee, Alabama. The Tuskegee Airmen, known as the Red Tails because of the crimson tails on their aircraft, were the first squadron of African American combat pilots in the U.S. military. Nearly 1,000 men had graduated from pilot training at Tuskegee by the end of the war. Under the command of Colonel Benjamin Davis, Jr., these aviators served in combat in campaigns in North Africa, Sicily and Europe. Colonel Davis later became the first African American general in the U.S. Air Force. The Tuskegee Airmen and their record of success during the war are unmatched. Not a single American bomber protected by the Red Tails was ever shot down by enemy aircraft. By war's end, the Tuskegee Airmen had flown over 15,000 sorties, completed over 1,500 missions, destroyed more than 260 enemy aircraft, and more than 1,000 enemy vehicles on the ground. The Airmen were awarded 744 Air Medals, 150 Distinguished Flying Crosses, 14 Bronze Stars, and 8 Purple Hearts. I join my colleagues in recognizing the Tuskegee Airmen for their gallant and heroic achievements and urge adoption of H.R. 1259. The award of gold medals to these national heroes is only a small token of the thanks they richly deserve for their service to our Nation.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I believe that America is at its best when we welcome people from other countries, other cultures and possessing diverse skill sets. I believe that, in fact, this strengthens our country. I need only to go back a couple of generations to see this in my family, who immigrated to this amazing country from Ireland and Eastern Europe. But my ancestors came legally and that is the question, in part, before us today. We have lost control of both our northern and southern borders, our maritime border is porous and anyone with the most innocent or worst of intentions can walk or drive into the United States and assimilate into our communities. This illegal immigration must be stopped. Securing our border is the proper first step. This Act authorizes a thousand new border patrol agents and properly equips them with modern technology. More needs to be done to properly secure our ports of entry along our east and west coasts and our northern and southern borders. For the many agencies involved this is a large but very important task. Employers are provided better means to information, allowing them to determine whether or not the potential hire is properly documented. This Act also places some responsibility on employers to make such a determination. We must revise our current laws to allow legal and secure immigration. I am disappointed that this bill doesn't include a sensible, nonamnesty guest-worker provision. We have the opportunity to take the lead on this aspect of immigration policy and it would be a mistake to ignore it. A good guest-worker statute recognizes that folks from around the world and yes, from Mexico, desire to work in the United States to earn good wages to help their families, and these workers add to the value of our country and its economy. A guest-worker statute should ensure that the guest-worker is not a criminal, is not associated with a terrorist organization, is healthy and has an employer-sponsor. The employer must have some responsibility to actually hire this person for the entire duration of the worker's time in the United States and notify the proper agency if the worker changes or leaves the employer. As the great nation we are, we should welcome those who want to contribute and not accept those who refuse to live under our rule of law.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2017, the Torture Victims Relief Reauthorization Act of 2005. Congress originally approved the Torture Victims Relief Act in 1998 to provide medical, psychological and social services for survivors of torture in the United States. These survivors are primarily refugees from war-torn nations such as Bosnia, Iraq, the Sudan, Rwanda, Liberia, Afghanistan and others. Since the TVRA became law, over three dozen centers have been established nationwide to help survivors of torture regain the ability to care for themselves and their families, and positively contribute to our society. Most programs are at-capacity and must refer ``waiting list'' survivors to less-specialized clinics until treatment becomes available. Reauthorization is critical to the estimated 400,000 torture survivors residing in the United States. The city of Lincoln, Nebraska, is home to the second highest refugee population in the Nation, and a corresponding treatment center that effectively transforms the lives of torture survivors to benefit the entire community. H.R. 2017 will help ensure such critical treatment centers remain available for torture survivors nationwide by reauthorizing the TVRA. The demand for treatment is so high that federal funding had to be cut to some existing centers last year in order to open new centers. Reauthorizing the TVRA will help provide critical support to all existing centers working to restore the lives and health of many refugees. H.R. 2017 will authorize $25 million in fiscal years 2006 and 2007 to fund domestic treatment centers, $25 million over 2 years for the United States Agency for International Development, USAID, Victims of Torture Fund, and $15 million over two years for the United Nations' Voluntary Fund for the Victims of Torture, which supports almost all U.S. centers. The House Energy and Commerce Committee, on which I serve, unanimously reported this legislation during the last Congress. Here are some facts underlining the importance of this legislation: The Office of Refugee Resettlement of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services currently funds 27 treatment centers in 16 States, while other similar programs are funded in State health departments. Many centers do not have enough resources to meet existing demand from torture survivors in their communities. Not surprisingly, few programs engage in outreach to refugee communities since they would not have the capacity to absorb the increased client load that such outreach might generate. Consequently, many torture victims are not receiving the rehabilitation treatment they need. There has been no increase in funding levels since fiscal year 2001. At the same time, the number of survivors seeking treatment at U.S. centers has steadily increased. The client base at 14 centers increased from 935 in 1999, to 1,550 in 2000, and to 2,579 in 2001. In 2002, a subsequent survey showed that 23 federally-funded centers had treated 3,664 clients that year. Despite the high need and demand for torture survivor services, the Office of Refugee Resettlement was forced to reduce funding to existing programs last year in order to open additional needed centers. One program had to close its doors, while others laid off employees or reduced the number of torture victims that can receive treatment. The network of treatment centers in the United States still needs to be expanded, especially in areas with significant refugee and immigrant communities. For example, there are no treatment centers in Miami, New Orleans, Cleveland or Seattle. Current funding does not provide for evaluation and research to strengthen the effectiveness of treatment programs for victims. In order to reach a greater number of torture survivors in the United States, training on the identification and treatment of victims of torture should be provided to general health care providers and hospitals. Torture victims are often targeted for persecution by repressive regimes because of their independent political, religious or labor activities. Even after a dictatorial regime has fallen, the impact of torture can be felt for years: Dissidents are broken and potential leaders are lost; their families and communities are still frightened and disengaged from public life; there is a profound lack of trust in public institutions, police, and courts; political apathy is a lesson learned and lived out every day. But with medical, psychological and social services, torture survivors can again become contributing members of their communities, and lead lives of hope and success. H.R. 2017 is critical for torture victims and their families, and I urge all of my colleagues to strongly support it.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, as the House of Representatives considers passage of the Deficit Reduction Act, I rise in overall support of H.R. 4241. As the process moves forward, I urge my colleagues in this chamber and in the conference to consider some additions and changes. The actual estimated average cost to a community retail pharmacy to dispense prescription drugs ($9.25) is greater than the minimum multi- source dispensing fee established by H.R. 4241 ($8.00). Because H.R. 4241 does not establish a dispensing fee for single source medications, commonly known as brand-name drugs, I urge my colleagues to consider an increase in dispensing fees for both single source and multisource medications that adequately compensates community retail pharmacies for their cost to dispense prescription drugs within the Medicaid program. In addition, I urge my colleagues to encourage the states to conduct mandatory comprehensive studies to determine actual distribution expenses incurred by community retail pharmacies participating in the Medicaid program so that fair and equitable distribution reimbursement rates can be established. We should also do all we can to provide incentives to increase the distribution of generic therapeutic equivalent drugs when they are available. While our bill provides higher dispensing fees for generics based on Retail Average Manufacturers Price (RAMP) plus cost, I still do not feel that there is enough incentive in our model to encourage effective use of generics. I encourage continued work in conference to increase the utilization of generics, which in itself has significant savings potential. H.R. 4241 establishes a new benchmark formula for establishing reimbursement rates for community retail pharmacies participating in the Medicaid program. The benchmark formula, known as RAMP, can often be significantly out of date because it is updated on a quarterly basis and it often is not determined and posted for another quarter. Because pharmaceuticals prices are updated on a daily basis, the RAMP has the potential to be as much as six months out of date. Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to consider modifying requirements related to RAMP from a quarterly recalculation basis to a monthly basis so that community retail pharmacies do not have to absorb significant financial losses due to fluctuations in real cost.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Wisconsin for yielding me this time. I rise in opposition to this bill, and I first want to say that the gentleman from Florida is my chairman. I am a part of his subcommittee and really respect and appreciate his efforts on this bill. We have just drawn different conclusions. I think the fundamental question that we have to ask about this bill is whether or not boxing, professional boxing, and that is what we are here to talk about is professional boxing, is worth creating another bureaucracy within the Department of Commerce. No matter how we cloak this, it is creating a new entity of rules and regulation, enforcement within the Department of Commerce to oversee a professional sport, although I will say ``professional sport'' with quotations around it. Where we have professional sports, all of the professional sports have their own regulatory body where they themselves have gotten together and formed, like the Mayflower Compact, their own regulatory or government overseeing body with their own rules and regulations within that body. To my knowledge, boxing is the only sport that has come before Congress asking us to save the sport from itself. We held several hearings on this within our committee and subcommittee. We had several big-name people from the sport, Muhammad Ali, commissioners from around the State, promoters. All testified to the corruptness of professional boxing, and I asked the witnesses before us at one of our panels, I said, if professional boxing wants to eliminate any semblance of legitimacy, make themselves in essence the wrestling of that sport, why should we care? They came back and said, Well, because we have to. We cannot, in essence, get our own act together; and it is for the health of the boxers. That is why if it is for the health of the boxers, I suggested that we should just ban professional boxing. I offered an amendment and withdrew it. But the issue to me is if the boxing profession wants to make itself irrelevant as a legitimate professional sport, let us give them that opportunity to do so. Let us not create a new Federal bureaucracy to save themselves from themselves.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, it is with great sadness that I rise to pay tribute to Army Captain Joel Cahill, a company commander in the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry, Fort Benning, Georgia. Captain Cahill was killed in western Iraq on Sunday, the 5th of November. He served two tours in Iraq, as well as two tours in Afghanistan with a unit of the U.S. Army Rangers. Captain Cahill grew up in Nebraska, and after graduating from Papillion La Vista High School, he joined the Army and began Special Forces training. He was awarded several citations including the Army Achievement Medal and the Soldier's Medal. He was a graduate with honors from the University of Nebraska--Omaha in 1999, earning his commission from the UNO-Creighton ROTC program. Because of his professionalism and bravery, Captain Cahill was accepted into the Army Rangers, one of the elite groups in the Armed Forces. Captain Cahill was a devoted father to his two daughters, Faith and Brenna, and devoted husband to their mother, Mary. Faith and Brenna were the joys of his life whenever he could be stateside. My prayers are with his family, and I offer my condolences to his parents, Larry and Barbara; his three brothers, Larry Jr., Randy, and Jason; and his sister, Erin Christensen. As a nation, we will honor Captain Cahill's service to the United States with his burial with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery Friday, November 18, 2005. We are blessed to have men and women like Captain Cahill serve in our military. His deeds, actions, decency, and passion for defending the freedoms we all enjoy will not be forgotten. May he be laid to rest as a hero to his family and to all of us who honor his service to America.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition of H.R. 420, the Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act of 2005. This legislation runs roughshod over States' rights, forcing State courts to enact onerous procedures and stripping States' jurisdiction in certain cases. This bill would also force restrictive venue provisions on all State courts, which essentially tells State courts they do not have jurisdiction over certain claims brought by its own citizens. Let State legislatures and State judiciaries set their own Rules. And, by the way, a frivolous, meritless lawsuit is damaging to the system and the offending parties should be punished. This bill also protects foreign corporations at the expense of consumers in that it unfairly dictates to States where their citizens can enforce legal right against a corporation based outside of the United States. While H.R. 420 allows a victim to file a claim in a court in his or her home State, because of existing jurisdictional rules that State may be unable to exercise power over the foreign corporation. For example, a corporation in Mexico sells cribs in the United States and those cribs are shipped to Kansas and sold in Nebraska. The cribs turn out to be defective and one collapses on a baby in Nebraska, killing it. It may be impossible, under this proposed bill, for that Nebraska family to file a lawsuit in Nebraska. The family may have to file the suit in Kansas but would have to take the case to Mexico under H.R. 420. I cannot in good conscience support a bill preventing a family in this situation from filing a lawsuit in its own State.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of this bill. What we have to remember is this is about the children, children whose families are trapped in poverty trying to get a head start on education, which is the surest way out of poverty. It is disappointing to me there are some in here, because we provide some level of flexibility, and perhaps in some community it is a faith-based operation that can deliver the services best to a poor child in need of these services, that there are some willing to kill Head Start because of that level of flexibility. In my hometown, thankfully, it is the public school systems that have taken over the Head Start program because we suffered through the difficulties of financial problems. The previous Head Start organization managed the program so poorly that they could not pay the teachers and continue Head Start. It had to be taken over by the Federal Government through an entity. Fortunately, Omaha Public Schools have taken over Head Start in Omaha, Nebraska, providing over a thousand children an opportunity to have a coordinated Head Start educational program, a better education program, with assurances to the parents that it is going to be there next year. In fact, they have even got a very progressive system for Head Start children based on EduCare, an outstanding private preschool program that involves a holistic approach of the entire family. I want to end by thanking the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner) because he also recognizes there was a glitch, a glitch that eliminated some of the lower-level rank-and-file service men and women from having their children in Head Start programs because of privatization of military housing. The gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner) recognized that problem, corrected that problem, and I want to thank him for standing up for our service men and women with children that would be eligible for Head Start.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of words. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the Markey amendment. As the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus) just mentioned, we have been through several attempts in the energy bill to recognize the NIMBY, not in my back yard movement, against LNG. You cannot have it both ways. This House spoke overwhelmingly to say that we need and will support more natural gas supply within the United States by beating or not adopting the Markey amendments in the energy bill, which I think is the proper place to discuss the topic of liquefied natural gas and its safety. And, by the way, what we adopted in that energy bill is a streamlined process that does give FERC the ultimate authority on permitting and siting but also in that bill mandates to FERC that they have to take into account the safety concerns. It is stated right there in black and white. They have to adopt or they have to take into account the safety concerns, the procedural concerns from both the local, the county, the State governments and all of the Federal agencies, including the Coast Guard, that are involved in this process. As the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus) mentioned, the Coast Guard is already part of the process. It has jurisdiction over part of the safety plan that makes sure that the ships are safely brought in to the port facility. It escorts those ships, in fact. You know, I just have got to say that we have got to get away from this NIMBY mentality here. Right now, we are paying $10 per Btu for natural gas. Mexico is a fraction of it. We look at what we use natural gas for in the United States, it is not just heating our homes. Eighty percent of the homes in Nebraska are heated with natural gas. I would presume that the majority of homes along the East Coast are heated with natural gas. Go tell your folks that you are in favor of their natural gas heating bill going up by 30 or 40 percent this December, January and February. Because that is what we are looking at. But, also, it is a major element in cost in manufacturing, manufacturing chemicals, manufacturing fertilizer; and I am telling you our farmers in Nebraska cannot withstand the price increases that they are going to have to incur with fertilizer. Chemical plants are pulling out of the United States to avoid the high cost of natural gas. We need this product in the United States. Let us keep it as this body has already decided with the streamlined approach that already incorporates all of the safety concerns from all of the local and State and Federal agencies. Let us join the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar), the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young), the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. LoBiondo), and all of the others that are in opposition to this amendment.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a moment to congratulate Chairman Barton on his leadership in driving this legislation to the finish line. This comprehensive energy bill is a vision. H.R. 6 aims to boost domestic sources of energy, increase the use of clean renewable power, and diversify the nation's energy portfolio. This legislation will not completely solve our dependence on foreign oil overnight, but it puts in place a number of tools to do just that. I applaud the increase of the use of bio-fuels, especially ethanol, to 7.5 billion gallons by 2012. This is important to our Nebraska farmers as well as a benefit for all Americans. The repel of the Public Utility Holding Company Act (PUHCA) will allow for increased private investment in US. electricity production such as wind farms and other non-fossil energy sources. This is a smart move. I am pleased to see several provisions that I authorized in this bill including a new provision to speed up the siting of new plants for Liquefied Natural Gas. LNG accounts for 90 percent of fertilizer production costs. Increased access to LNG will help our nation's farmers. I also author a new program to provide incentives for the use of stationary fuels cells and strong increases in renewable fuel efforts. This legislation provides $4 billion over five years to speed the arrival of affordable, viable hydrogen fuel cells; create a new Department of Energy program to encourage the use of on-site energy production from fuel cells and micro-turbines; and allow the use of livestock methane as an eligible source under the renewable energy fund for public power. And finally this legislation includes tax incentive, which I authored, for increased use of energy efficient products for the home and office. This is a solid bill, much needed by our Nation. This energy bill is an opportunity to ensure a better future. The bill addresses present day energy problems while looking beyond the horizon and I urge my colleagues to vote for the conference report.

Mr. TERRY

Mr. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the Hooley-Souder amendment to H.R. 2601. I ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. This amendment will authorize $4 million in 2006 and 2007 to help prevent the smuggling of methamphetamine from Mexico to the United States. It authorizes the Secretary of State to work with Mexican government and law enforcement officials to improve their abilities to fight the production and trafficking of meth. The U.S. Department of Justice estimates that 90 percent of the meth available in my home state of Nebraska is trafficked from Mexico, California and the southwestern states. Nationwide, 65 percent of available meth was smuggled into the U.S. by Mexican drug cartels and gangs. During a routine traffic stop last January, the Douglas County Sheriff's Office in Nebraska seized five pounds of meth from two Mexican nationals who had concealed the drug inside a spare tire in the trunk. In March, an 8-month investigation culminated in the arrest of five Mexican and Hispanic drug cartel members. Law enforcement officials seized 12.5 pounds of meth being transported to Omaha from California. Although 90 percent of the meth problem in Nebraska stems from international and intrastate drug trafficking, local law enforcement officers must spend the majority of their resources fighting home-based meth labs. Dismantling hundreds of ``Mom and Pop'' labs operated out of kitchen sinks and car trunks, and disposing of the highly toxic chemicals used to manufacture meth, is a timely and expensive process. The Hooley-Souder amendment is critical to support our police officers on the front lines in the battle against meth. Reducing the amount of meth smuggled into the U.S. from Mexican super-labs will help our law enforcement officers protect families and children from this insidious drug that destroys lives and ruins communities. I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for the Hooley-Souder amendment today.