Mark Takano

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3262 authorizes the VA to convey to the Danville Area Community College of Danville, Illinois, what is known as Building Number 48, which is part of the VA Illiana Health Care System. In return, the college will convey back to the VA certain lands near the college library building. We do not have any issues with the legislation, and I urge its passage. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, again, I wish to thank my colleagues, Ms. Brownley and Ms. Sinema, for bringing the issues surrounding the prevention of female suicides in the military to our attention. I urge passage of this very important bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Brownley).

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in support of H.R. 2915, a bill to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to identify mental health care and suicide prevention programs that are effective in treating women veterans as a part of the evaluation of such programs by the Secretary. My friend, the ranking member of the Health Subcommittee, Ms. Julia Brownley, was integral to identifying the issues affecting women suicides. I commend her leadership in bringing this issue to our attention. Congress has long recognized the unacceptable rates of suicide among our Nation's veterans. Most recently, Congress passed the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act, Public Law 114-2, which requires an independent third party to evaluate VA mental health care and suicide prevention programs. VA's most recent suicide data report was released in February of 2013. That report found that 18 to 22 veterans per day commit suicide. In a follow-up report, the VA found an increase in the suicide rate among female veterans who use the VA healthcare system. This finding echoes recent research that found that female veterans commit suicide nearly six times the rate of other women and that women veterans are five times more likely to be successful in committing suicide than male veterans. This bill would amend the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act to include within the independent third-party evaluation specific metrics applicable to women and to identify the VA mental health care and suicide prevention programs that are most effective and have the highest satisfaction rates among with women veterans. Additionally, this legislation includes a provision that my friend, Representative Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, has been working on for years. This section requires the VA to establish and publish standards and procedures to ensure that a woman who participated in a classified mission or served in a sensitive unit while in the Armed Forces may access VA mental health care without improperly disclosing classified information. This provision would also require the VA to find alternative methods of mental health treatment for veterans who need to access care without being put in a position where they may reveal information that should not be disclosed. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, this legislation, H.R. 3234, as amended, is designed to establish criteria for the evaluation and improvement of VA medical centers. The bill requires the VA to create key health metrics to measure whether each medical center is satisfactory or underperforming. The metrics will be published on the VA Web site, and an underperforming medical center will be subject to a rapid deployment team being sent to the facility to create a remediation plan and bring them up to standards. The VA will issue quarterly reports on the underperforming facilities and their progress in the following remediation plan. Additionally, the bill seeks to require the VA to enter into partnerships with recognized schools of nursing to provide undergraduate nursing students enrolled in such schools with standardized training. The bill lists the 11 areas the training should involve, including PTSD, TBI, and military sexual trauma. Mr. Speaker, this bill addresses issues the committee has expressed concerns about in the past. I support its passage. Mr. Speaker, I urge the passage of H.R. 3234, as amended. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. As I conclude, I would like to speak about a provision in this bill. Included here is language extending the very successful pilot program run by the Department of Veterans Affairs which provides psychiatric and psychological counseling and support in retreat settings for newly returned women veterans. A Veterans Health Administration report showed that this limited, 2- year pilot program, run by the Readjustment Counseling Service, produced positive, measurable results helping returning women veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress, depression, sleep disturbances and isolation, many having been evaluated as service-connected for severe PTSD. In surveys, participants have consistently reported experiencing a marked decrease in stress symptoms and an increase in coping skills, including understanding better how to develop support systems and to access available resources at the VA and in their communities as they reenter civilian life. Post-9/11 women veterans, often combat veterans, are brought together in groups of about 20, in outdoor settings. These veterans, most of whom are coping with the effects of severe PTSD, some as a result of sexual trauma while in the military, participated in trust-building exercises and worked with counselors and psychological educators to build peer support. Financial and occupational counseling and conflict resolution training were also offered on an as-needed basis. I urge support of this provision and the underlying legislation. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Butterfield).

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would like to express my appreciation to all the members of our committee who have worked to address these issues in a bipartisan manner, and I truly hope we can stay focused on what is important here, which is helping veterans. This bill extends a pilot counseling program for women veterans separating from the military and coping with PTSD and other combat- related stress issues. These specialized programs are helping women transition from the military and start the next phase of their lives. I would also like to highlight an important piece of this legislation that was originally introduced by my friend and colleague, Mr. O'Rourke, the Express Appeals Act. As highlighted by my friend and colleague, Representative Titus, other members of the committee, and even the VA Secretary just 2 weeks ago, the appeals process is in crisis. We in the House have heard the cry for help and have responded. After passing this bill, we will wait for our friends in the Senate to take action. We encourage them to remember our veterans suffer for our inaction. This action provides a critical and widely supported alternative appeals process. I applaud Representatives O'Rourke and Cook, Chairman Miller, the VA, the Board of Appeals, the DAV, the VFW, PVA, AMVETS, IAVA, and MOAA in working together for almost 2 years to reach broad consensus on an alternative path forward. The Express Appeals Act, similar to the VA's Fully Developed Claim program, offers veterans an alternative option to do more of the work on their own, with the promise of an expedited decision from the Board of Veterans Appeals. My friend and colleague, Representative Ruiz's bill, H.R. 2691, the Veterans' Survivors Claims Processing and Automation Act of 2015, is also included in this legislation. This provision would automate claims for the surviving family members of veterans. I truly believe how we treat our veterans plays a major role in who is willing to fight our wars and defend our Nation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Frankel).

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. I thank Ranking Member Corrine Brown for yielding time. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3016. While there are parts of this bill that I hope to see changed as it moves forward, it includes numerous provisions that will have a positive impact on our Nation's veteran population, including several provisions I authored. Section 307 of this bill is the language from my GI Bill Fairness Act, bipartisan legislation to close a gap faced by our National Guardsmen and Reservists who have been repeatedly called to war throughout operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Currently, members of the Guard and Reserve who are wounded in combat are sometimes placed on Active Duty for their recovery, treatment, and rehabilitation. Unfortunately, current Federal law does not recognize such Active Duty orders as eligible for Post-9/11 GI Bill education assistance, meaning that, unlike other members of the military, those who serve in the Guard and Reserve may actually lose benefits for being injured in the line of duty. This provision in H.R. 3016 would end unequal treatment and ensure these guardsmen and reservists are able to accrue GI Bill benefits, when ordered to Active Duty, for the purposes of receiving medical care. H.R. 3016 also includes my Work-Study for Student Veterans Act, which would reinstate certain VA work-study activities that expired on June 30, 2013. The VA's Student Work-Study Allowance Program allows qualifying student veterans who are in college degree programs or in vocational or professional programs to be paid for working in a variety of capacities on campus, at VA facilities, or at other veteran-centered organizations to assist fellow veterans. The work-study program achieves two important goals: offering student veterans a way to earn a little extra money and providing transitioning veterans with the guidance and assistance of fellow veterans who know firsthand what that transition is like. I also strongly support section 306 of the bill, which caps the amount of post-9/11 GI Bill funds available to flight schools--private flight schools--that contract with community colleges at the same amount that the GI Bill caps funds available to private universities. Due to a current loophole in the GI Bill, student veterans have been able to take pilot training classes with questionable job placement prospects at exorbitant cost to the taxpayers. According to the Los Angeles Times, one flight company charged 12 student veterans over $500,000 each in GI Bill funds. While it is true that flight training can be more expensive than other vocational or academic programs, VA data shows that while the number of student veterans taking flight training increased by only 9 percent between fiscal years '13 and '14, the total cost to taxpayers for this program grew by 87 percent during this same period, costing $37 million in taxpayer dollars. The drafters of the GI Bill never intended to create this windfall for the flight school industry. What's more, VFW and the American Legion support the cap, agreeing that this loophole is a disservice to student veterans who would be better served by one of the many flight school programs that cost well under the cap. I do have serious reservations about section 301 of this legislation, which would cut by half the monthly housing allowance provided to children of servicemembers who will have post-9/11 GI Bill benefits transferred to them. I don't believe that we should be paying for the great provisions in this bill by cutting benefits. Furthermore, the bill on the House floor today does not include a grandfather clause. That means that some current servicemembers will see the terms that they agreed to when they signed up changed. As this bill advances, I strongly urge the chairman and ranking member to find another pay-for and eliminate section 301. With that being said, I believe overall, with some tweaks, this legislation will provide valuable support for our veterans, and I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3016.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Gary Locke, a man who has brought pride and joy to my community for more than three decades as the director of the Riverside Community College's marching band. When Gary was hired to direct the program in 1984, the school had no drums, no uniforms, and just 16 kids who showed up to camp that first summer. Thirty-two years later, the Marching Tigers are a world-renowned marching band that has represented Riverside proudly in blockbuster movies, in television shows, and at prestigious venues around the world. Last week Gary and his wife, Sheila, led the band for the final time when they performed ``Bon Voyage'' at the New Year's Day parade in Paris. Congratulations, Gary, on your retirement. Thank you for inspiring your students and for invigorating our community throughout your incredible career.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of two members of my community who lost their lives in the attack on San Bernardino. Sierra Clayborn was a bright and kind young woman. She was a graduate of the University of California, Riverside, with a degree in biochemistry. Sierra's friends described her as always smiling and always offering an encouraging word. She loved to make people laugh. Damian Meins will be remembered as a selfless, gentle, and intelligent man. He enjoyed traveling, painting, and serving others, which included dressing up as Santa Claus for school pictures. He leaves behind his high school sweetheart and their two daughters. Mr. Speaker, yesterday we remembered the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School; today we honor the victims at San Bernardino. My question to this body is: Will we do anything to protect our communities from gun violence tomorrow?

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. I thank the gentleman from Virginia for yielding time. Mr. Speaker, as a former public schoolteacher for 24 years, I am proud to rise in support of this bill, which will improve our schools, offer more support to teachers, and, most importantly, provide more students the education they deserve. Having served in the classroom during the implementation of No Child Left Behind, I can say without hesitation that our current education system needs a reset. While well-intentioned, No Child Left Behind created a punitive approach to education policy that punishes underperforming schools instead of helping them to improve. That rigid, test-driven approach to accountability, combined with heavyhanded intervention from the Federal Government, has failed to close the achievement gaps in our country. This reauthorization replaces our test-and-punish system with a more flexible test-and-reveal approach that returns decisionmaking to States and school districts. It will empower educators who best understand their students' needs to develop new ways to meet local challenges. I am also pleased this bill increases overall education funding and ensures States are maintaining their investments in schools. As a teacher, I might not give this bill an A-plus, but it is a solid bipartisan compromise, and it is an overdue replacement for a status quo that we all know is unacceptable. For that reason, I give this bill a passing grade.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of this bipartisan amendment which brings us one step closer to realizing the enormous potential of battery energy storage. This technology is capable of transforming our energy landscape by storing power in times of excess production and releasing power in times of excess demand. It can make our grid more reliable and secure. It can save consumers money by replacing costly gas-powered peaker stations. And, perhaps most importantly, it is compatible with any source of energy. Its compatibility with multiple power sources means we aren't picking winners and losers. Rather, we are increasing our capacity to use all sources of energy. Battery energy storage is particularly promising in its ability to unlock the power of renewables, leading to a cleaner, more sustainable energy portfolio. Even as the cost of renewable energy sources drops closer to that of fossil fuels, the viability of wind and solar power is limited by inconsistency. Put simply, the wind doesn't always blow and the sun doesn't always shine. Battery energy storage offers a solution to this challenge. This week at the climate summit in Paris, we have heard about the importance of innovation in reaching our environmental goals. Battery storage is exactly the type of revolutionary technology that will help get us there, creating new jobs and economic growth in the process. A GAO report on large-scale battery storage will help us make informed decisions about accelerating its growth while signaling our commitment to supporting the next chapter in America's energy infrastructure. I am thankful to be joined by Mr. Collins of New York as well as my good friend Mr. Honda of California. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. TAKANO. I thank the chairman for supporting this bipartisan amendment. I am honored to have that support. I encourage its adoption. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, 70 years ago my parents and grandparents were stripped of their possessions and placed in Japanese American internment camps. They were not guilty of espionage. They did not commit treason. They simply looked like our enemy, and that cost my family their freedom. Yesterday the mayor of Roanoke, Virginia, suggested that this country's treatment of Japanese Americans during the 1940s is a model for how we should address today's global refugee crisis. It does not take courage to condemn such disgraceful comments, nor does it take wisdom to say our World War II policies were a product of fear and hysteria. What takes wisdom is recognizing that history is now repeating itself. What takes courage is sending a message to the world that America will protect innocent people regardless of their nationality or religion. That is what my mother and father deserved 70 years ago, and that is what these refugees deserve today.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, with Veterans Day 1 week from today, I rise to call attention to an issue affecting military families across the country. In 2006, Congress enacted the Military Lending Act to protect servicemembers from predatory lenders, but those same protections are not in place for veterans and their families. As a result, veterans often fall victim to payday lenders who offer unaffordable loans, forcing them even deeper into debt. In 2013, California payday lenders generated three-quarters of their revenue from borrowers who took out seven or more loans. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau should use its authority to crack down on the worst abuses in the payday loan market. Veterans and their families have made tremendous sacrifices to keep us safe. The least we can do is protect them from unethical lenders who deliberately trap them in a cycle of debt.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Chairman, I stand in strong opposition to this amendment. My friends across the aisle regularly reject legislation because it encroaches on states' rights, yet their commitment to State sovereignty disappears when it comes to protecting workers. This amendment does more than just clarify the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994. It changes and expands its application to preempt the will of States such as mine. California's meal and rest break laws ensure a safe working environment for truck drivers traveling within the State, and the U.S. Court of Appeals specifically ruled these laws are not preempted by the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act. This amendment overrules the court and State legislatures to weaken labor protections at the industry's request. As a member of the Education and the Workforce Committee, and as a Californian, I stand in strong opposition to this amendment and urge my colleagues to vote against it.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Chair, the Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects program in this bill will address critical infrastructure needs that will improve America's economic competitiveness, but will also bring tremendous benefit to our communities, especially districts like mine, which is the epicenter of the international supply chain flowing through the Ports of L.A. and Long Beach. Freight corridors that run through districts such as mine, and those in Chicago, Houston, Florida, Charleston, New York, New Jersey, and Seattle, bring jobs and spur economic growth. However, they also create congestion, pollution, and safety concerns. One of the primary strategies to alleviate these issues--congestion, air pollution, and accidents--is to build rail grade separations that allow trains and cars to flow freely. In fact, grade separations are explicitly mentioned in the bill as eligible to receive funding from the Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects program. However, the $100 million threshold far exceeds the cost of most grade separation projects. To better achieve the intent of this bill, my amendment simply clarifies that a program of eligible projects, such as a corridor of grade separations, be eligible to receive funding from this program. There is ample legislative precedent for ``programs of projects'' to be eligible for funding, most notably, in the TIFIA loan program, the National Highway Performance Program, and Highway Safety and Improvement Program. This amendment recognizes that addressing nationally significant transportation challenges are not always best addressed through one major project but, instead, a comprehensive package of related projects that achieve a meaningful national objective. An example of this type of project is the Alameda Corridor-East, which was first recognized 10 years ago by this House in SAFETEA-LU. The Alameda Corridor-East was designated as a Project of National and Regional Significance, spanning four counties in the Nation's largest urban area, stretching over 100 miles of rail. In my county alone, Riverside County, this Federal funding, in partnership with local self-help tax dollars, has made possible nearly a half billion dollars in freight projects that are cleaning our air, making our constituents safer, and making the national economy more efficient. However, of these 16 projects on the same corridor, the highest cost project was $67 million. Yet, together, they have had a tremendous impact on the transportation system. My amendment ensures that this momentum can continue, not just in my district, but in all communities that are impacted by our national freight system. This is an easy technical fix, and I urge my colleagues to support this amendment. Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Chair, I appreciate the sentiment of the gentleman from Pennsylvania, that he has been to our region and understands the importance of making sure that freight through rail is moved expeditiously. I do urge my colleagues to support this amendment. I wish that the gentleman would have a change of heart. I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Aguilar).

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to H.R. 10, legislation that would reauthorize the D.C. private school voucher program. This bill prioritizes an ideological agenda over the rights of D.C. residents to self-govern and, more importantly, over the rights of all students to get a quality education. In study after study, the voucher program has failed to show any meaningful improvement in student achievement, safety, satisfaction, motivation, or engagement; yet since 2003, it has received nearly $190 million while failing to adhere to basic accountability standards. Its funding should be dedicated to improving our underfunded and underresourced public school system, a school system that is required by law to serve all students. Unlike public schools, private schools receiving voucher students have no requirement to serve all students. Specifically, they are able to--and do--reject students based on prior academic achievement, language ability, socioeconomic background, and other discriminatory factors.