Greg Walden

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of H.R. 1289, the PHONE Act. Now, this legislation will ensure that Americans who lose their homes during a wildfire or other natural disaster do not also have to worry about losing their home phone numbers. As we have seen recently from the tragic wildfires that have ravaged communities in California and my home State of Oregon, these disasters can destroy everything in their path, often with little notice. No matter how resilient a home or communications tower might be, you cannot regulate your way out of a fire's burning path. When a natural disaster occurs, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, is activated to provide emergency housing assistance and other resources. If your house burns to the ground, the last thing you should have to worry about is whether or not your landline phone number will be available to you when you do return. Yet, that is what happens. Many people, especially seniors, rely on their landline to stay connected to their family, their doctor, or others. Thankfully, the Federal Communications Commission already has a process to prevent victims of natural disasters from losing their landline numbers. The FCC uses its authority, and did this as recently as last week for northern California and Oregon, to waive rules and regulations that require landline phone numbers to return to the pool of available numbers when a home is completely destroyed by a natural disaster. So what this bill does is codify the process and seeks to make several improvements. During the committee process, Republicans sought changes to this bill to ensure it does not upend the current procedure, so no consumers will be left in the lurch. This type of relief should only apply to areas where significant physical damage has occurred to render a home inhabitable, as is the objective of the bill. We worked for the inclusion of FEMA in the notification process and have stated our concerns that FEMA should still play a large role in determining which households have sustained damage in an affected county. Now, this did receive some pushback from the majority, and we should defer to the assessment of FEMA, the experts on the ground, before these proceedings go into effect. Ultimately, the majority on the committee accepted many of our changes to make sure this legislation is beneficial to consumers, and the bill was passed unanimously by the committee. Mr. Speaker, I support this measure moving forward, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers on this matter. I would encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support the PHONE Act, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers on this side. I would just encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting passage of H.R. 360. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 359, the Enhancing Grid Security Through Public- Private Partnerships Act, was authored by my Energy and Commerce Committee colleagues Mr. McNerney and Mr. Latta. The bill was reported unanimously from the Energy and Commerce Committee as an important measure for strengthening the cybersecurity and resilience in the energy systems used to deliver power to our homes and businesses. Mr. Speaker, protecting our Nation's critical electric infrastructure is a shared responsibility. It requires robust partnerships between industry and the government to leverage strength and ensure the responsive and resilient system that the public needs and relies upon. H.R. 359 focuses on these very partnerships. The bill would establish a program to facilitate and encourage public-private partnerships to promote and enhance physical and cybersecurity of electric utilities. The bill would require the Secretary of Energy to deploy the Department of Energy's world-class technical know-how to assist utilities with cybersecurity practices and procedures, especially those utilities that have fewer resources due to their size or the region in which they are located. It would foster development of maturity models, self-assessments, and auditing methods. It would provide training and technical assistance to electric utilities to address and mitigate cybersecurity supply chain management risks. And H.R. 359 would increase opportunities for sharing best practices and data collection within the electric sector. The amended version of the bill also makes clear the Department of Energy will work as appropriate with other Federal agencies to safeguard the electric system. A vote for H.R. 359 is a vote for providing an important new tool to protect our Nation yet once again from these very serious cybersecurity threats. Mr. Speaker, I urge support of the legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the prior speaker for his comments and great work on these pieces of legislation. Together, we are doing what we can to protect America's energy sector from attack, and I thank Mr. McNerney and others on the committee for their work. Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in support of H.R. 1754, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020. From the Pacific Northwest to the renowned racetracks in Kentucky, New York, and New Jersey, horseracing holds a very special place in our culture and in our local community life. In my district alone, thousands of people a year travel to Pendleton, Oregon--well, most years, other than with COVID; in 2020, we didn't have the Pendleton Round-Up, but they do almost every other year--to participate in the world-famous Pendleton Round-Up. So, I am no stranger to the important role of horses and horseracing and what a role that plays in our lives. Currently, horseracing is regulated on a State-by-State basis, as you heard, and despite the industry's best efforts, some inconsistencies still exist in the regulation of horses. This bill is designed to provide national uniformity on antidoping and medication programs, as well as racetrack safety standards. H.R. 1754 would establish the horse racing integrity and safety authority. This would be a private, independent, self-regulatory, nonprofit corporation that would develop and implement a horseracing antidoping and medication control program as well as a racetrack safety program. I am pleased to see updates to the original Horse Racing Integrity Act that my friend Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, as well as my colleagues Mr. Tonko and Mr. Barr, worked with industry to include. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this improved version, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and I especially thank Ms. Schakowsky, whom I have had the great privilege to serve with for many years. There is no more fierce warrior for consumers and consumer protection than the gentlewoman from Illinois. It has been a delight to serve with the gentlewoman and work with the gentlewoman from Illinois on many causes. And while we haven't always agreed, we have always tried to be agreeable with each other. I think that, Madam Speaker, is what is often missed outside of this institution is that we come here representing different people, different philosophies, and then we also come here with a common goal: to solve problems. We have different approaches to that from time to time, but we generally come together and move a lot of good legislation, especially in the Energy and Commerce Committee. I think I can brag on that committee, having been a member of it for 20 years, rose to not only chair a subcommittee, but chair the full committee; and now, as I kiddingly say, I am chairman in exile, in permanent exile. But it has been a great run, and I am not one of those Members who is cranky or grumpy about leaving either. It is a fine institution. Democracy was built to be messy and loud, and some days it is a little louder and messier than any of us would like, but we do come together, as we are on this legislation and on other things. I thank the gentlewoman for her very kind comments. I rise today in support of this legislation, H.R. 8132, the COMPETE Act. I thank Ms. Schakowsky and Mrs. Rodgers for their hard work. The gentlewomen have worked really well together on these and many other issues. I asked committee members earlier in the year to prioritize our leadership on emerging technologies, and the importance of that was emphasized by the COVID-19 pandemic. We cannot let other countries, especially China or any other adversary, advance past us on emerging technologies while our economy recovers. I applaud the leadership on artificial intelligence and our committee's commitment to ensuring America leads the world in emerging technologies. For America to lead, we need to be laser-focused on critical technologies that will define our future, and that is what this bill does. The American COMPETE Act will help us unleash American innovation and free-market ingenuity in artificial intelligence, quantum computing, autonomous tech, and other emerging technologies. The American COMPETE Act also aims to help us secure our supply chains and develop national strategies to advance our private-sector industries. By the way, that means good American, high-paying jobs. These technologies will drive information breakthroughs, save lives, spur economic growth, and will do so for generations to come. I am proud to see the Energy and Commerce Committee so focused on these issues. Madam Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to vote in support of this bill.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today, also, in support of H.R. 4764, the Timely Reauthorization of Necessary Stem-Cell Programs Lends Access to Needed Therapies Act, or the TRANSPLANT Act. This critical bill, led by Representatives Matsui, Bilirakis, and Pingree, reauthorizes the C.W. Bill Young Transplantation Program, which provides lifesaving bone marrow and umbilical blood transplants to patients suffering from over 70 diseases that can be treated with blood or immune system reconstruction using bone marrow, peripheral blood, or cord blood. These diseases include leukemia, lymphoma, sickle cell anemia, and certain other immune system disorders. I thank our colleagues, Representatives Matsui, Bilirakis, and Pingree, for being tireless advocates for this program. They truly have just never stopped working to get this done. I also express my appreciation to Representative Chris Smith from New Jersey, who played a critical role in the creation of this program, spearheaded previous reauthorizations, and has been a longtime champion for patients whose only chance at life is a transplant through this program. Representative Smith wanted to be here today to express his strong support for this bipartisan initiative, but, unfortunately, he could not be present because of a death in his own family. All of this is to say that I am incredibly grateful for all of the bipartisan efforts from multiple Members of Congress who have prioritized this program and worked together to get this bill across the finish line. Madam Speaker, I strongly urge a ``yes'' vote on this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I have a statement from Congressman Chris Smith of New Jersey that I will include in the Record in support of this legislation. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis), who is one of the real advocates of this legislation.

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today to speak in support of H.R. 5373, as did the chairman, the United States Anti-Doping Agency Reauthorization Act, sponsored by Representatives Mike Thompson, Bill Johnson, and Diana DeGette. This bill reauthorizes the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which is the national entity charged with administering antidoping programs for the United States for Olympic, Paralympic, Pan American, and Parapan American sports. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency handles in-competition and out-of- competition testing, results management processes, drug reference resources, and athlete education for all of our United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee-recognized sports' national governing bodies, their athletes, and their events. USADA is also the administrator for the Ultimate Fighting Championship Anti-Doping Program. Reauthorizing this important agency furthers the advancement of clean sports, fair games, and positive sportsmanship, so I urge support of the legislation. I don't believe I have any speakers on my side of the aisle, Madam Speaker, so I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the bill, Young Women's Breast Health Education and Awareness Act, the EARLY Act Reauthorization, which was introduced by Representatives Wasserman Schultz and Brooks. This bill reauthorizes the EARLY Act of 2009, which established a national public health education campaign to promote awareness and early detection of breast cancer among young women. Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in women under the age of 40, and each year almost 24,000 new cases are diagnosed. It is critical that both young women and healthcare professionals are equipped with the knowledge and healthcare services needed for early detection and treatment of breast cancer. Madam Speaker, by reauthorizing the EARLY Act, H.R. 4078 would enhance early detection of breast cancer, increase public awareness of risk factors and risk reduction strategies, and support the provision of psychosocial and medical services for young women diagnosed with breast cancer. Madam Speaker, I thank Mrs. Brooks for all of her work on the Energy and Commerce Committee. From day one on our committee, we all knew she was going to be prepared and ready to go to work. Congresswoman Brooks has the experience. She was a U.S. Attorney and has been an invaluable member of our committee, and she will be retiring and leaving Congress at the end of this term. Her grace, her skill, her knowledge, her friendship, her incredible work ethic will all be missed as this Congress and the next one continues to navigate complex issues that come across our desks. So, Madam Speaker, to Congresswoman Brooks, I thank her for her service. The committee will miss her, but she has left an indelible mark in an important chapter in American history. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I would just conclude by thanking the gentlewoman from Florida for sharing her story. I know it has been a rugged journey that she has endured on, but this legislation will save lives. It is so important that we do this work today. I had a dear friend who was diagnosed at an early age, and they had it pretty much under control. Then, after the birth of their second child, it came back with a vengeance and claimed her young life. This is a vicious, vicious attack on the body. I know we have all joined together to invest in research, and someday, we hope we will overcome this and save all lives. But in the meantime, reauthorizing this important body of work that the gentlewoman has led on is critical. So, I would encourage our colleagues to join us in passing this legislation. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4996. This is the Helping Medicaid Offer Maternity Services, or MOMS, Act of 2019. It was introduced by Representative Kelly from Illinois and Dr. Burgess from Texas. As you have heard, this legislation gives States the option to extend the length of continuous postpartum eligibility for Medicaid to 12 months. Now, this is a critically important bill. Despite everything that is going on in the country, it is an example of, once again, Congress coming together to do the right thing for the right reason. This bipartisan legislation furthers the Committee on Energy and Commerce's mission to address maternal mortality, which we all agree needs further attention, and to improve the health outcomes in expectant or new moms. Last Congress, Madam Speaker, President Trump signed bipartisan legislation from our committee into law to advance maternal health. We are now building on that progress today. Medicaid is the largest single-payer of maternity care in the United States. Medicaid covered 43 percent of all births in 2017, the latest data we have. Now, in some of our States, the share of healthcare costs of births financed by Medicaid is even higher. As such, this program plays a significant role in improving maternal health and helping to eliminate preventable maternal mortality. I want to thank Ms. Kelly and Dr. Burgess for leading this effort, and I want to thank Chairman Pallone and his staff for working together to find a path forward with this important legislation. Getting this measure signed into law will have a meaningful impact on the maternal mortality crisis. We will make a difference with this legislation. We will save more moms' lives. Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to support this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2468, the School-Based Allergies and Asthma Management Program Act, introduced by Representatives Roe and Hoyer. This important legislation would direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in making asthma-related grants, to give preference to States that require schools to implement policies that improve the care of children with allergies and asthma. These policies include having plans in place for managing students with allergies and asthma and having at least one person trained to administer rescue medication on the premises during operating hours. By incentivizing States to have comprehensive school-based asthma and allergy management programs in place, this bill will help ensure that school nurses, staff, and administrators are prepared to help students with allergies and asthma excel at school in a safe environment. I want to thank Dr. Roe and Leader Hoyer, who have championed the cause of ensuring children at school have access to needed medicines for many, many years. I also want to thank Dr. Roe for his years of service to this institution. Like some of the rest of us, he, too, will be retiring at the end of this year. As a veteran, as a doctor, and as a leader--and, by the way, as a great musician, not that he will be able to perform that here on the House floor--he has done so much for veterans, for improving healthcare, and for the people of the district he represents. He has left his mark, and he doesn't have to worry about whether he made a difference, because he has. So, Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I thank the majority leader for his comments in support and authorship of this legislation. Our son battled childhood asthma. It is a really scary thing as a parent to watch a child deal with an asthma attack. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. David P. Roe), the champion of this legislation, the great champion for a positive public health outcome for all of us, especially for our veterans.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today to talk about H.R. 3131, the South Asian Heart Health Awareness and Research Act of 2020 sponsored by my friend and colleague from the Northwest, Representative Jayapal. This bill authorizes initiatives that will help improve our understanding of cardiovascular disease in South Asians living in the United States, a laudable goal. The intent of this bill is laudable, as South Asians are a population disproportionately impacted by diabetes and heart disease. In fact, according to the American College of Cardiology, South Asians represent approximately 25 percent of the world's population, yet they account for 60 percent of the world's heart disease patients. While I support initiatives to improve health in ethnic and minority communities, I do have some concerns with the bill itself. In providing technical feedback on the legislation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC, expressed concerns that the grants authorized under the legislation would be duplicative of their current efforts to address cardiovascular disease in disproportionately impacted communities. These efforts include the CDC's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, in addition to the health promotion grants to States and the WISEWOMAN Program, which stands for Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for WOMen Across the Nation. In addition, the CDC expressed concerns that it would not be able to provide the data that the bill is mandating the agency report on. Broadly, the agency does have data on minority and disproportionately impacted groups with regard to cardiovascular disease; that is true. However, they do not have enough data on the specific subgroup of the South Asian population in order to put together a complete and meaningful report that would be useful for Congress in making future policy decisions. While unfortunate, it is because CDC does not yet have the data collection technology nor the capabilities to obtain that kind of granular data. Therefore, before mandating such a report, Congress should instead pass H.R. 5321, the Public Health Infrastructure Modernization Act, led by Representatives Carter and McBath, bipartisan legislation which would modernize CDC's data infrastructure and improve the collection of more granular information on communities disproportionately impacted by cardiovascular disease, such as South Asian communities. It would be nice if we had that bill moving through, because that, I think, would provide the ability for CDC to get the data that this bill before us today requires. So I appreciate the gentlewoman from Washington for bringing needed attention to this issue. I would like to thank the majority for working with us to get this bill to a better place. While we agree with the administration's concerns, we also think the bill is a good first step in raising awareness about this important public health issue. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I have no additional speakers on my side of the aisle, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Meuser), one of the coauthors of this very, very important and meaningful legislation, who serves Pennsylvania's Ninth Congressional District in the U.S. House.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2075. This is the School-Based Health Centers Reauthorization Act of 2020. It was introduced by Representative Sarbanes, whom I know we are going to hear from in a moment; Congressman Upton, former chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee; and Representatives Stefanik and Tonko. This bill reauthorizes the School-Based Health Centers program, which supports the provision of primary care, behavioral healthcare, dental health, counseling, nutritional education, and so many other really critical health services in our schools. Madam Speaker, I remember back in my days in the State legislature supporting community-based, school-based healthcare because, oftentimes, this was the only place many of our children could get basic healthcare services. It is so essential. I know, during the pandemic, we are getting reports from our doctors and others that say this loss of access to these kinds of services is taking its toll, especially in mental health services. These health centers usually operate as a partnership between the school and a community health organization so that the services provided by the health center best meet the needs of the community and the local school district. As I said, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for basic healthcare has not gone away just because students are learning from home. School-based health centers will continue to help in keeping students healthy and ready to learn, and we should reauthorize them, as we do in this act. So I urge support of this measure, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I call on my colleagues to support this important legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 7948, the Tribal Health Data Improvement Act, introduced by my Energy and Commerce Committee colleagues, Representatives Gianforte, Ruiz, Rodgers, O'Halleran, and Lujan. This is really important public health legislation. It addresses some chronic challenges that are faced by Tribal Nations and Tribal Epidemiology Centers as they try to gain access to critical Federal healthcare and public health surveillance data. Obtaining this data is critical for engaging in preventive public health work and combating current health crises in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. However, structural barriers to accessing data have been especially problematic during the COVID-19 pandemic, which, tragically, has disproportionately impacted these very communities. In order to ensure Tribal Nations and Tribal Epidemiology Centers have access to the data necessary to accomplish public health priorities, this legislation requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to create a data-sharing strategy that takes into consideration the recommendations of the Secretary's Tribal Advisory Committee. In addition, in reauthorizing the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, the bill requires the Secretary to make public health surveillance data available to the Indian Health Service, Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and Tribal Epidemiology Centers, so long as the data requested for use is consistent with Federal law and, of course, obligations. The Secretary must also consult with Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, urban Indian organizations, and the Tribal Health Advisory Group of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to develop guidelines for State and local health agencies to improve the quality and accuracy of birth and death records of American Indians and Alaska Natives. By improving the sharing of data between the Federal Government and the Tribes, this important bill would help address the health disparities in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Madam Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleagues, especially my friend from New Mexico for his leadership on this legislation. I would just say that they have all worked very hard on this. It is extraordinarily important to pass this. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.