Fred Upton

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation. It is good legislation, a win-win. I look forward to getting it to the President's desk and working with the other body as well to make sure this bill happens.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of this amendment en bloc but particularly to an amendment that I offered which supports our Nation's reservists. In the event of a domestic terrorism attack this country's reservists, particularly the National Guard's weapons of mass destruction team, could be called up at any time to protect and defend their fellow citizens, working with their fellow first responders across the country, police and firefighters. It would clarify that the first response to a domestic terrorism attack will qualify reservists for hostile fire and imminent danger pay. Ultimately, it is a matter of appreciation for the service to our Nation's Reserve forces. I hope all of you will join in supporting this amendment.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I offer an amendment to the title.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I offer an amendment to the Preamble.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Energy and Commerce be discharged from further consideration of the resolution (H. Res. 100) recognizing the 100th anniversary year of the founding of the Ford Motor Company, which has been a significant part of the social, economic, and cultural heritage of the United States and many other nations and a revolutionary industrial and global institution, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a milestone in American ingenuity, to honor the 100th anniversary of the founding of Ford Motor Company. It was June 16, 1903, when 39-year-old Henry Ford and 11 associates, armed with little cash, some tools, a few blueprints, and unbridled faith, traveled to Lansing, MI to file papers launching Ford Motor Company. With just $28,000 in cash, the pioneering industrialists gave birth to what was to become one of the world's largest corporations. As with most great enterprises, Ford Motor Company's beginnings were modest. The company had anxious moments in its infancy. The earliest record of a shipment is July 20, 1903, approximately 1 month after incorporation, to a Detroit physician. Perhaps Ford Motor Company's single greatest contribution to automotive manufacturing was the moving assembly line. First implemented at the Highland Park plant in 1913, the new technique allowed individual workers to stay in one place and perform the same task repeatedly on multiple vehicles that passed by them. The line proved tremendously efficient, helping the company far surpass the production levels of their competitors--and making the vehicles more affordable. Henry Ford insisted that the company's future lay in the production of affordable cars for a mass market. Beginning in 1903, the company began using the first 19 letters of the alphabet to name new cars. In 1908, the Model T was born. Nineteen years and 15 million Model T's later, Ford Motor Company was a giant industrial complex that spanned the globe. From the Model T, to the T-Bird and Mustang, to today's Ford Focus, Ford Motor Company has been at the forefront of the automotive industry. What started that momentous June day in 1903 by Henry Ford and his 11 associates has grown into a worldwide franchise over the last 100 years. Today, Ford Motor Company is a family of automotive brands consisting of Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Mazda, Jaguar, Land Rover, Aston Martin, and Volvo. Ford Motor Company is synonymous with American ingenuity. They are a very part of the American cultural fabric. It is as if both Ford and the country grew together during the 20th century. Ford's contributions to the country have been great. They are a stalwart presence in the American economy, and they employ tens of thousands of Americans. For millions of Americans, Ford has become a part of our everyday lives. And the Ford Motor Company will continue to be a major presence on the American scene over the next 100 years.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have permission to revise and extend their remarks on H. Res. 100, the resolution just agreed to.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the brave men and women of the 110th Fighter Wing of the Michigan Air National Guard as they returned this past Saturday from a successful completion of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Often overlooked, our National Guard personnel provide an invaluable service to our country and to our Armed Forces. The men and women of the 110th Fighter Wing have shown the utmost courage, traveling a world away to help remove a threat to civilization. These folks made a great sacrifice, departing from families, careers, and livelihoods to preserve our way of life. Because of their sacrifices, the Hussein regime is gone and our world is a more secure place. Freedom isn't free; it comes at a price--and individuals like these are the ones who bear the cost. I wish them well as they are reunited with their families and loved ones.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the accomplishments of Pat Moody, host of the popular radio show, ``Moody in the Morning.'' Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Pat has enjoyed a thirty year storied career in broadcast media informing and entertaining the residents of Southwest Michigan with his communication skills and talents. Behind the scenes, Pat has been extremely active within the communities of Southwest Michigan, filling such prominent roles as Executive Vice President of the Cornerstone Chamber of Commerce, Vice-Chairman of the Lake Michigan College Board of Trustees, and Member of the Berrien County Cancer Service Board of Directors, just to name a few of his volunteer activities. In fact, Pat Moody has also been honored with the Volunteer of the Year award that identifies him as one of the most dedicated servants in all of Southwest Michigan. Constantly working to contribute to his community, Pat has truly earned my admiration and the respect of the entire Southwest Michigan Community. Happy anniversary, Pat! We wish you continued success!

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, I rise for many reasons in support of this amendment. One of the main reasons that I rise in support of this amendment is because of language that I was able to get inserted as part of it, and I thank my chairman, the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin), and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) for accepting this language so we did not need a separate amendment but make this as part of a comprehensive amendment. Part of this amendment reads, the language I was able to insert, says this: ``In carrying out immunization programs and other programs in developing countries for the prevention, treatment, and control of infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria, the director of the CDC and Prevention, in coordination with the coordinator of the U.S. Government to combat AIDS globally, the National Institutes of Health, national and local government, and other organizations such as the World Health Organization, and the United Nations Children's Fund, shall development and implement effective strategies to improve injection safety, including eliminating unnecessary injections.'' Now, why is this important? A couple of years ago I participated in a bipartisan lunch here in the Capitol, and they talked about many villages in Africa that are really led by children because there are no more adults there. It became quite clear that for many of these injections they used syringes that were used over and over and over again. As a consequence, if one person had HIV/AIDS in that community, they all got it. They all died. They all got this terrible disease. In fact, we know from data provided by the Safe Injection Global Network, an organization affiliated with the WHO, that unsafe injection practices in developing countries cause 8 to 16 million hepatitis B infections, 2 to almost 5 million Hepatitis C infections, and the original 1976 Ebola epidemic in Zaire was traced to the reuse of three syringes. This language that was included will prevent that. I look forward to its adoption, and I again compliment the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) for including the language.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to this amendment. The answer to better fuel mileage is probably in a different fueled vehicle. It is called hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. This morning I met GM officials who gave me their new brochures on these cars that they are going to be manufacturing. They have spent hundreds of millions of dollars to develop and finance the new hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Now, what this amendment would do you cannot create with just magic. You cannot say just ``Poof, here it is. There you go.'' It would be nice to have a vehicle that delivered 40 or 50 miles per gallon. But to do that would take all of the engineering gusto away from developing what I think is the real answer, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. It would take hundreds of millions of dollars out of that engineering cycle today and invest it into something else. This is the answer. Let science prevail. Let science and the experts decide that this is the vehicle. Let them develop these types of vehicles, knowing that we are there, that we are going to have these cars in the showroom before too long. Let us not get off that track. Let us defeat this amendment. Let the research and development continue so that all of us will be able to drive one of these vehicles in the near future.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, I have been tracking the progress of this bill for some time now, and I applaud the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner), the chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary. My district had a young girl missing for most of this month, a 14-year-old girl by the name of Lindsay Ryan. It was alleged that she was, in fact, abducted by a convicted murderer, and Michigan's AMBER Alert was initiated. I called the county sheriff, Joe Underwood, a fine professional, as I tried to lend him my moral support. As I talked with him, I asked him the question of what could I do to help. He shared his frustration that other States did not have a system like we have in Michigan. He felt that, in fact, if other States, and there are 12 that have no AMBER Alert system at all, but if other States had a system like Michigan, the word would have gotten out right away. My district is right along the Indiana border, very close to Illinois. After our conversation, I called the Committee on the Judiciary; and in fact, they told me about this piece of legislation which I cosponsor. I am delighted to say that it is on the House floor today, and there is good news. Just like there was good news with Elizabeth Smart last week, there was good news this week with Lindsay Ryan. She was found alive, alive because California had a system. It was probably the good work of a Frito-Lay truck driver that, in fact, spotted the vehicle, and the police were able to get to the scene and rescue Lindsay Ryan, who is now with her family alive and hopefully well. We want to prevent this tragedy for other families, whether they be in Michigan or North Carolina, Wisconsin or any other State. An AMBER Alert system nationwide is needed, for this family, for every family; and I would urge my colleagues to pass this legislation so that, in fact, we can use the eyes and ears of millions of Americans looking to prevent a nightmare that no family ever wants to have happen in their community or certainly in their family.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety. In 1983, it was determined that the combination of Kalamazoo police and fire services could serve as an effective method of providing more efficient and productive use of resources and employees. By cross-training personnel in both disciplines, the fire department's 164 firefighters and the police department's 219 law enforcement positions were consolidated into 383 multifunctional employees. This streamlining provided an excellent public safety service to the community while minimizing expenses. The Department of Public Safety has continued to evolve and improve since its inception--forming specialty units and services and using state of the art technology. Today, the department is the largest public safety organization in the country, with 315 highly trained and educated employees, and 2003 marks the 20th year of these combined police and fire services. I wish them many more years of continued success.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bipartisan Animal Drug User Fee Act of 2003, legislation that I am introducing today with Reps. DeGette, Greenwood, Towns, Bilirakis, and John. Closely modeled after the Prescription Drug User Fee Act, the Animal Drug User Fee Act is designed to give the FDA the resources and incentives necessary to significantly improve the animal drug review process. This legislation is sorely needed. Despite a statutory review time of 180 days and the enhanced flexibility granted the agency in the Animal Drug Availability Act of 1996, the average review currently takes about 1.5 years and may drag on for several years. This slowdown in review times is jeopardizing the supply of the new, safe and effective animal drugs needed to keep our pets, flocks, and herds healthy. The Animal Drug User Fee Act of 2003 is endorsed by a coalition of organizations, including the American Veterinary Medical Association, the American Farm Bureau, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, the National Milk Producers Federation, the American Association of Equine Practitioners, the American Sheep Industry Association, the National Pork Producers Council, and the National Turkey Federation. My cosponsors and I anticipate that additional organizations will join in this endorsement as we move forward with the legislation. I urge my colleagues to join with me and the original bipartisan cosponsors of this legislation in supporting and cosponsoring the Animal Drug User Fee Act of 2003.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 399, the Organ Donation Improvement Act of 2003, of which I am a cosponsor. Let me just mention one number, that for me, says it all about why we need incentives to increase organ donations across the nation. In Michigan, over an 11-month period ending on December 1 of last year, 2,420 individuals were waiting for organs, and 164 people had died while waiting. These are our constituents, our families, our friends. I know the Transplant Society of Michigan, our state's organ procurement organization, is working hard to increase donations. But they could use a helping hand, as could OPOs across the nation. The Organ Donation Improvement Act we are marking up today is a very good start. As of September 2002, the organ transplant waiting list had more than 80,000 men, women, and children waiting for a new kidney, heart, liver, lung, pancreas, or intestine. Unfortunately, an average of 17 people die every day, one every 85 minutes, waiting for an organ that could have saved their lives. H.R. 399 takes aim at increasing anatomical giving to help meet the critical need for vital human organs and give hope for life for those that have no other options for treatment or cure. The key to donation is public education and awareness. This legislation gives the Secretary of Health and Human Services the ability to award grants to States for the purpose of assisting States in carrying out organ donor awareness, public education and outreach activities designed to increase the number of organ donors. While there is a desperate need for vital human organs, the American public should know that there is also a continuing need for donated human eyes and tissue. Donation is the term used to describe the humanitarian act of giving to help another. Anatomical gifts include vital, life-saving human organs, sight restoring eyes, and repair and reconstruction human tissue such as bone, cartilage, tendons, skin, and heart valves. At national, state, and local levels, a partnership exists between the organ, eye and tissue bank communities. While all three communities are considered separate, given differences in medical criteria, training needs and distribution pathways, they are united in their message to encourage the act of donation. Organ donation saves lives, eye donation restores sight, and tissue donation provides skin grafts for critically injured burn patients and benefits thousands of patients in need of bone, cartilage, tendons, and heart valves. Without a donor, transplant surgeons cannot save and improve the health of even one individual. Every individual can sign-up to be a donor, regardless of health or medical condition. It is imperative, however, that individuals openly discuss their decision to donate with family and friends so that they may help honor their loved one's wishes and are knowledgeable about their options. Just one individual can save and improve as many as 50 lives. Representatives of hospitals, organ banks, eye banks, and tissue banks work hand in hand to see that loved ones' wishes are respected and that gifts are properly handled for the benefit of others. I commend these organizations for working tirelessly toward this end and for their efforts to educate the public on the benefits of donation. In closing, I fully encourage all Americans to consider the altruistic act of donation and to make others aware of your decision.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join with Representatives Anna Eshoo, J.D. Hayworth, and Xavier Becerra in introducing the bipartisan Medicare Medical Nutrition Therapy Amendment Act of 2003. Several years ago, we amended the Medicare program to provide coverage for medical nutrition therapy services provided by registered dietitians and nutrition professionals for persons with diabetes or renal disease. The legislation we are introducing today will add Medicare coverage for services for beneficiaries with cardiovascular disease. Medical nutrition therapy provided by registered dietitians and nutrition professionals is sound health care policy. It can save millions of dollars for a health care system beleaguered by escalating costs, and it can prevent unnecessary pain and suffering for millions of people and their families. In response to a request in the 1997 Balanced Budget Act, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences studied the value of adding medical nutrition therapy services for Medicare beneficiaries and the Medicare program and issued a report recommending that this benefit be added to the program. The report stated that coverage for medical nutrition therapy will ``improve the quality of care and is likely to be a valuable and efficient use of Medicare resources, because of the comparatively low treatment costs and ancillary benefits associated with nutrition therapy.'' The report concluded that nutrition therapy has proven effective in the ``management and treatment of many chronic diseases that affect Medicare beneficiaries, including . . . hypertension, heart failure, diabetes, and chronic renal insufficiency.'' I urge my colleagues who have not yet cosponsored this bipartisan, sound health policy proposal to join us in this effort.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4. Mr. Chairman, welfare reform in the past did not work. We did not have it. It was welfare under the old system. We did not have reform. We passed welfare reform then; and President Clinton, after a couple of vetoes, ended up signing the bill, and we established a base to get our States out of the trouble that they were in. Last year, this House passed a bipartisan proposal to again move the process forward, but there were some in the other body who chose not to take that legislation up. This year, we are acting a little quicker. There are two very important components of this legislation. One is the abstinence-only education which provides $50 million each year to the States under a matching program. It does not take away from other programs, it works, and we have seen teen pregnancy rates drop dramatically in those States that have used it. In my State, a 40 percent drop. The second thing that we did was we removed the incentive for people to stay on welfare in lots of ways. Primarily what we did, though, through TMA, transitional medical assistance, we are able to say to those folks that were on welfare and knew that by taking a job they would lose their Medicaid for themselves and their kids, that that is not going to happen, that we provided the transition so that those families could take a job, get into the workforce, move up the ladder, that they would not lose that provision that would otherwise have taken away their health insurance. We changed that. TMA is in this bill, it was the bill that we helped write in our subcommittee, it was done, and it is part of this legislation. I urge my colleagues to support it and move the bill again to the other body so that we can see this legislation reach the President's desk. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4, legislation reauthorizing the very successful 1996 welfare reform act. As a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Education and the Workforce Committee, two of the three House committees with jurisdiction over welfare reform, I have worked closely with my colleagues to further strengthen this legislation so that more families can know the benefits of personal responsibility, work, and stronger family units. I'd like to focus today on two key components of the 1996 law that I have taken the lead on--the reauthorization of the Transitional Medical Assistance program and the Title V abstinence education block grant program. One of the greatest disincentives to leaving the welfare rolls is the lost of Medicaid coverage for oneself and one's family. H.R. 4 reauthorizes the Transitional Medical Assistance program, which will ensure that individuals leaving welfare for employment have guaranteed health care coverage for up to one year. H.R. 4 also reauthorizes the Title V abstinence education program at the current funding level of $50 million a year. When we passed welfare reform, we emphasized work and personal responsibility. We have made great strides in promoting work, but too many of young people's dreams are still being cut short by poor personal decisions that dramatically affect the course of their lives. Teen birth rates have been failing, but nearly \1/2\ million teens in this country give birth each year--a rate higher than those of most industrialized nations. And 8,519 births are to girls under the age of 15. We know that out-of-wedlock births and teen births take a high toll--on the child, the teen mother, and our society as a whole. Further, sexually transmitted diseases have reached epidemic proportions, placing the health and very lives our young people in serious peril. In the 1960s, one in 47 sexually active teens was infected with a sexually transmitted disease. Today, one in four is infected. It is important to note that State participation in the Title V abstinence education program is voluntary, and this is not free money to the States. States have to match every 4 federal dollars they receive with three dollars of their own. Yet today, 49 of the 50 states are participating. Anyone who doesn't think abstinence education works has only to examine my State of Michigan's record. The State began its own program in 1993--the Michigan Abstinence Partnership program. One reason that it works so well is its emphasis on involving entire communities-- parents, teachers, health professionals, youth leaders, youth organizations, and community leaders--in developing programs tailored to their unique needs. Michigan's teen pregnancy rates have dropped 40 percent in the targeted group of 15-17 year olds, and for the last several years, Michigan has been one of up to five states rewarded by the Department of Health and Human Services for achieving the largest decrease in their ratios of out-of-wedlock to total births while also experiencing a reduction in their abortion rates. Abstinence education programs are much more than ``just say no'' programs. They are positive, motivational programs that give young people the information and inspiration they need to think of their futures and abstain not only from sexual activity but also from drug and alcohol use. Mr. Chairman, President Bush got it exactly right when he said that abstinence is not just about saying no to sex, it is about saying yes to a happy, healthier future.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the brave men and women of the 415th Civil Affairs Company of the U.S. Army Reserve in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Often overlooked, our Reservists provide an invaluable service to our country and to our Armed Forces. The 415th Civil Affairs Company has been on continuous deployment for the better part of the last decade, separated from families, careers, and livelihoods. Now, these folks are being deployed to Kosovo to help keep the peace in an uncertain world. Freedom isn't free; it comes at a price--and individuals like these are the ones who bear the cost. I wish them a safe return.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, it was with some reluctance that I voted for the OSU resolution. Much has been said today about the quality of the Ohio State players, coaches, and fans. However, nothing has been said about the refs. After watching the game I too, wondered about the refs and their ability to be employed in the future. I was pleased to see that they seemed to be in action just a couple days later during the San Francisco-N.Y. Giants game on Sunday. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, as Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, I am pleased to join the distinguished Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Mr. Tauzin, in introducing the ``Commercial Spectrum Enhancement Act''. Earlier this year, we significantly changed spectrum auction policy by freeing the FCC's hands with respect to when auctions should be conducted. Now, with this bill, we are making another significant down payment on our Committee's spectrum reform efforts, by eliminating grave inefficiencies in spectrum management which have thwarted spectrum relocation efforts to date. The commercial wireless industry must have additional spectrum to provide innovative new services and other critical benefits to the American public and to foster economic growth. However, spectrum ideal for next generation wireless services currently is encumbered by the federal government. We all recognize the need to relocate federal government incumbents to comparable spectrum in order to make way for the commercial wireless industry, but the road to relocating federal government incumbents to comparable spectrum (or alternative facilities) is unpaved and filled with potholes. The ``Commercial Spectrum Enhancement Act'' would pave that road, establishing procedures to ensure a timely, certain, and privately--yet fully--funded relocation of federal incumbents to comparable spectrum (or alternative facilities). Hence, this bill represents a ``win-win'' for both the government and the commercial wireless industry, not to mention our nation's wireless users. Under the bill's provisions, when executive branch agencies are required to relocate spectrum operations to a different spectrum band (or to switch to non-spectrum dependent facilities to transmit telecommunications), the agencies will have access to a trust fund from which their relocation costs will be paid. Relocation will be required when spectrum currently occupied by governmental entities is reallocated for commercial use. If an agency is required to relocate its spectrum operations, the agency must be able to achieve comparable telecommunications capability in the new band (or with the non-spectrum dependent facilities). Six months before the FCC conducts an auction of spectrum that has been reallocated for commercial use, NTIA (working in conjunction with the affected agency and OME) submits to the FCC a preliminary cost estimate and timeline for relocation. For an auction of reallocated spectrum to be valid, the net proceeds of the auction must be at least 110 percent of the preliminary costs estimated by NTIA. The auction proceeds, rather than being placed in the General Fund at Treasury, are deposited in a Spectrum Relocation Fund, from which relocation costs will be paid. The relocation fund is administered by OMB in consultation with NTIA. OMB determines whether an agency's costs are legitimate and whether the agency's timeline for relocation is appropriate. The Energy and Commerce Committee, Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and the House and Senate Appropriations Committees must be notified 30 days before money is transferred from the relocation fund to an agency. Also, the NTIA will be required to file periodic reports to apprise Congress of the progress being made to relocate in a timely and cost-effective manner. I look forward to working with Mr. Tauzin, other Members of the Energy and Commerce Committee, other interested committees, and the Bush Administration to advance this legislation in a bipartisan fashion.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that debate on this motion be limited to 30 minutes, 15 minutes on each side.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for his leadership and also the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) and the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. John) and others, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), for moving this legislation so quickly. Michigan is known as a Great Lakes State. I look at the other Great Lakes States. I look at Minnesota, the State of 10,000 lakes. Michigan has more than 11,000 inland lakes. But we have had 343 cases of West Nile this year, and the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. John) remarked that there were 16 reported deaths because of West Nile in Michigan. Actually, since those statistics, within the last couple of weeks, we have actually gone up to 21 deaths. So we are second only to the State of Illinois, which took a pounding by the Wolverines this past weekend, 45 to 28. But in all serious, Mr. Speaker, this is a grave problem that not only Michigan but Louisiana, all States across the Nation are facing. It is important that this legislation pass today, and then the next step is to make sure that we have adequate funding so that the CDC through the Labor-HHS appropriation bill in fact have right resources to make sure that not only can we help eradicate mosquitos wherever they may be across this country but we also find a cure for those who are impacted. I again thank the gentlemen for their leadership on this issue.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill (S. 2810) to amend the Communications Satellite Act of 1962 to extend the deadline for the INTELSAT initial public offering.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 2810 and urge swift passage of this noncontroversial legislation. Prior to adjourning in August, the Senate passed legislation, S. 2810, to extend the deadline by which INTELSAT is required to conduct its IPOs. I commend my colleagues in the other body and thank them for addressing this important issue. Under the Open-Market Reorganization for the Betterment of International Telecommunications (ORBIT) act, INTELSAT is required to privatize, and as part of that effort, INTELSAT is to conduct an IPO by December 31 of this year. As detailed by the FCC, INTELSAT has made significant progress in its privatization efforts. Moreover, INTELSAT has made substantial preparations to conduct its statutorily mandated IPO. However, volatility in the financial markets in general, and the telecommunications sector specifically, make this statutory deadline unrealistic. Indeed, one is hard-pressed to select a worse time for a satellite company IPO. Equally important, such an ill-timed IPO runs counter to one of the central policy objectives of ORBIT, dilution of foreign government ownership. If this IPO is forced to take place now, it is very likely that the foreign governments holding nonstrategic investments in INTELSAT will decide not to sell in this unattractive market. Rather, they will decide to hold on to their investments until a more attractive market price is available. The end result: no foreign government dilution in the near future. S. 2810 would therefore give INTELSAT another year in which to conduct its IPO. It also provides the FCC authority to allow an additional extension of time if warranted by market conditions. Congress provided identical relief last year to Inmarsat. I urge all of my colleagues to support this important yet noncontroversial legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.