Greg Walden

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker, I rise today to share with you and my colleagues my pride in Georgette Brown. Georgette is a dedicated public servant, a good friend, and a stalwart guardian of the American election process. Georgette is retiring after 25 years of elected service as County Clerk in Josephine County, Oregon. As all of you know, to be elected to a position repeatedly for over two and a half decades, a person must be extremely well liked, dedicated, competent, and a proven leader. Those attributes truly personify Georgette Brown. In her career, Georgette has brought innovation and modernization to the Office of Josephine County Clerk since assuming office in 1983. She oversaw significant transitions that took the county from hand-counted paper ballots to punch cards to optical scan ballots, which are now in their third generation. She flawlessly facilitated the change from voting at polling places to a 100 percent vote-by-mail system today. Georgette has been a true professional as County Clerk, and I have relied on her many times to understand how proposed legislation might affect the local elections process. Georgette has continually modernized the recordkeeping and reporting functions of the County Clerk's office, now utilizing the Internet extensively. She has created a user friendly office where you can easily obtain passports and other public documents. As County Clerk, Georgette also performs marriages. To accomplish what Georgette has as County Clerk would be considered remarkable in and of itself, but Georgette also excelled at being a loving wife, mother, and now a grandmother. Her public service and leadership has gone beyond her elected position to include her long service in Rotary and Zonta. Georgette has served as president of both of those organizations dedicated to serving others. Georgette serves on the executive board of the International Association of Clerks, Recorders, Election Officials, and Treasurers. In her retirement, she plans to continue her international involvement in the elections process. For most of her adult life, Georgette was at the side of her husband, Larry, who was tragically taken from us all too soon a few years ago when a long battle with cancer ended his life. Larry was, in every sense of the word, a great American, patriot, and one who accomplished great things. Larry and Georgette were a very effective team working to better their community. When Larry passed away, it took great courage for Georgette to carry on without him, but she has been up to this ultimate personal test. She has kept the flame of public service burning brightly for which the Browns were so well known. Madam Speaker, with all of her significant accomplishments, Georgette would assuredly point with most pride to the two great daughters that she and Larry raised, Monique and Martie. Monique is married to Shane Anderson and they have presented Georgette with her first grandchild, Taylor Anderson. Even though Georgette Brown is retiring from public office, she will always be active in serving others, and she remains committed to making her country and her community a better place in which to live and work. Madam Speaker, we may pass laws, but people like Georgette Brown make those laws work for all of us. Although she will be missed as County Clerk, she can leave that phase of her public service knowing that she gave it her all and she made a real difference. With public service such a part of her moral fiber, we know that she will soon be serving in new and innovative ways and continuing to improve the lives of others. I highly value Georgette's service and her friendship. I ask you to join me in honoring this very special woman.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Yes.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, at the outset, let me say I have a long history of supporting mass transit in the urban areas of my State, including light rail development and bus transportation systems. I've received State-wide recognition for this work. Unfortunately, there are no light rail routes, and few successful bus routes, in rural Oregon and in most of my district. In fact, the most important public mass transit in most of rural Oregon and, indeed, across most of rural America is a bright yellow school bus, like this one, that safely transports American children to and from school each day. No one in America is immune from the impact of record-high gas prices, but for those of us from rural areas, the impact has been particularly severe not only on farms, families and small businesses, but also on our local governments that are struggling to pay sky-high fuel prices to maintain basic services. Before you know it, our public school doors will open, and millions of our children will return to school, many of them on that familiar yellow school bus. Yet all across this country, school superintendents are struggling mightily to figure out exactly how they'll afford to operate those school buses and to get our children to school. Newspapers are filling with accounts of school districts and how they're going to respond to the cost of fuel. Some districts, including one just a few miles from here in Maryland, are considering reducing bus services and forcing children to walk up to 2 miles to school. Some schools are even discussing going to 4-day school weeks in order to reduce fuel consumption. As profound as this problem is in urban and suburban area, it is even worse for those of us from rural communities where school buses must travel long distances to pick up and drop off children. This is what the Yakima Herald-Republic in Washington State had to say just 5 days ago: ``Some of the surrounding districts in rural areas feel the pinch from increased costs a bit more because their buses have to travel farther to transport students. The Mt. Adams School District, which has about 1,000 students, is the third-largest district in the State with an area of 1,325 square miles. The district's 10 buses still travel more than 200,000 miles in a year.'' All the way across the country in Franklin County, Virginia, the Roanoke Times reports that ``a school official advised the board of supervisors Tuesday that the division could face an extra $690,000 in added fuel costs.'' Yet, today we have before us a bill that does absolutely nothing, nothing to lower the price of gasoline or diesel and nothing to help our schools, our school districts, and to help them pay for the bus transportation costs they're incurring. Instead, it proposes to increase subsidies for public transit systems that reduce their fares and expand taxpayer-funded travel perks for Federal employees. What's even worse is that existing Federal law would actually prohibit the funds authorized under this bill from being used to provide assistance to struggling school districts. Let me repeat that. This law, and the law on the books, don't allow the use of these funds for our school systems. As the school year approaches, it's time to get our priorities right and to take care of our kids first. My motion to recommit would fix this problem by sending this bill back to committee with instructions that they revise it, to specifically provide that in an area where school bus services are being cut back because of high fuel prices, that the funds under this bill shall be used first and foremost to help restore those school bus services, and that preference shall be given to rural and suburban areas where school buses have to travel greater distances to transport our children. If the Democratic leadership's going to refuse to even allow a vote on proposals to increase domestic energy supplies so that we can lower gas prices for all Americans, then the least we can do is try to soften the blow for our Nation's schools, our school bus system and our children. As currently drafted, this bill does not do that. We have a chance to fix it. We have a chance to help our school districts, particularly those in rural areas. Now, the majority will undoubtedly try to rally their Members against this motion, but I ask, given that Congress is recessing tomorrow, what's wrong with sending this bill back to committee where the staff can review the amendment over the break and the full committee can carefully consider the importance of helping local schools cope with their busing needs and report this bill back in 10 days? Or you can reject this on some sort of procedural grounds, and leave local schools in the lurch, and literally put our school children on the shoulder of the roadways, dodging traffic on their way to and from school this fall. When schools start closing a day a week early, when parents can't figure out how to get their children to and from school, Americans will look back on this moment and see who stood with our rural and suburban schools and with our children and who stood against them. This is a reasonable motion to recommit. The committee clearly has the time to take this up. It is of no disservice to the committee or this process to say our first priority in this House, if we're not going to allow greater access to American fuel, is to at least take care of America's school children and their busing needs. Every paper in your district is probably writing about this issue or will be as skyrocketing fuel costs cost them the ability to run their bus routes. You can smirk and you can laugh, but this reality is coming to us here and now.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion to recommit.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Reserving the right to object.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. In its present form, I am.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. To my friend and the Chair of the Transportation Committee, I would be happy to agree to the unanimous consent request provided that you and your side would also agree to allow us to add a proposal to reduce gas prices for struggling American families. Specifically, would the gentleman agree to add to the bill either the No More Excuses Energy Act, H.R. 3089, or at a minimum, the proposal to allow the deep ocean oil exploration, H.R. 6108, the Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act? I yield to the gentleman.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. While I appreciate the gentleman's position, clearly there is an opportunity for the committee to consider this and other issues related to transportation, so I would object.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, were the gentleman's words in order?

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate that we have arrived here today like an out-of-control car skidding to a stop. Let's not forget why we are here. We are here because of a changed Federal timber policy that has bankrupted the people that live in my district and many of yours, and as a result we now have fires at costs that are unbelievable. They are historic. We are burning more acres of our Federal forests than at any time in our Nation's history, and we are paying more for it. Forty-seven percent of the Federal budget for the Forest Service now goes to put out fires. Yet we have shut down the Federal forests from active management. That is why we are here today, because the revenues that used to flow to our communities to pay for basic services, to be the good partner that Teddy Roosevelt envisioned the great forest reserves more than 100 years ago, to be a partnership with the local community, that partnership, that bond, that pledge has been broken. People are put out of work. Services are lost. The tragedy that brings us here today is another broken promise, and that is when this bill was considered by the House Natural Resources Committee there was a consistent and common pledge that this bill would be brought to the floor with a different offset. I have a quote here from the spokesperson from the committee that makes that very clear. It says very clearly, it is definitely our intention for the money not to come from increased fees on oil and gas companies. It is definitely not our intention for the money to come from increased fees on oil and gas companies. That is what the committee said. I just couldn't read it. It is too far in front of me. I apologize. That clearly is not the case. It is clearly not the case. So we have before us a bill with a broken promise, first of all, and it didn't have to be that way. Yes, I have come to this floor repeatedly and called for this bill to come to this floor for consideration. I don't know why it was held hostage for 130 or so days. But I came here calling for this bill to come to the floor with the clear understanding, the promise and pledge of that committee that it would come here with a different offset, one that was palatable. That promise and pledge was broken. Meanwhile, I know the Speaker was out in Oregon a while back and said where we go from here is we ought to phase out that system. That doesn't sound like the Speaker is very supportive to me. So what we have here today is an offset of questionable legality. And I say that not because I am a lawyer, I am not, but because of court cases that have occurred that said when it comes to levying a fee on conservation of resources on the Outer Continental Shelf, that leases that exist today prohibit the application of future laws and regulations except future regulations related to conservation of the resources of the Outer Continental Shelf. What does that mean in real people talk? It means if you are going to levy the fee that you plan to levy, you have to spend it in a legal way, which is on conservation efforts on the Outer Continental Shelf, or else the courts will say you are not following the decisions we already gave you, Mobil v. U.S., among others. So this is of questionable legal status. So, I asked my colleague from Oregon, we talked, we have worked really closely on this issue over the years in a bipartisan manner, and I said I think we are going to have a lot of problems on our side with this and I don't think it is legal. And indeed that is where we are today. So we have exchanged letters. My colleague wrote me on May 30. Mr. DeFazio said if you have other suggestions for offsets that won't raise the ire of oil patch or mineral-dependent Members, I would welcome the input. So we talked on Monday and I said give me a day. This is rushed on the suspension of the rules. Give me a day to come up with an alternative, and we did. We spent all day yesterday with the Congressional Budget Office, technical experts, legal experts, and we came up with a proposal that legally funds county payments, legally and fully funds PILT, legally and fully accesses energy resources on the Outer Continental Shelf. It is very similar to a proposal that my colleague from the Fourth District voted for that was passed by this house less than 2 years ago that would generate revenue legally. By the way, for those 98-99 leases, we do levy a fee so that they do pay, but we do it in a constitutional legal way so it is applied for conservation, coastal line improvements. So we get at the 98-99 lease issue in a legal way under this proposal. The Coalition of County Roads and Schools, we presented this to them yesterday afternoon, they embraced it wholeheartedly. But it was rejected. Under suspension of the rules, I am not allowed to offer it as an alternative. If this bill goes down today on a vote on the suspension calendar, it can be brought up. The placeholder that this represents is a seat on a bus going into a cliff. It is going off the cliff and into a chasm. Fortunately, there is a cable attached to that bus. If this goes down today, counties aren't lost. They can come back, bring it up under a rule and we can have a real and substantive debate about a way to fully fund it. House of Representatives, Washington, DC, May 30, 2008. Hon. Greg Walden, Longworth House Office Building, Washington, DC. Dear Greg: As you know, I worked with the administration to come up with several other potential offsets to pay for a multi-year extension of the county payments program. Unfortunately, those offsets were strongly objected to on a bi-partisan basis. If you have other suggestions for offsets that won't raise the ire of oil patch or mineral-dependent members, I would welcome the input. I look forward to talking to you this afternoon or on Monday. Sincerely, Peter A. DeFazio, Member of Congress.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker. I rise today to note the passing of a true American hero and fellow Oregonian, Dr. Charles Joseph Zerzan, Jr. Dr. Zerzan passed from this world on May 23, 2008 in the presence of his beloved wife and children. This man devoted his life to service of his family, the community and our Nation, and it is a singular sign of America's special blessing that individuals such as he have lived, enriching us all in the great enterprise of our Nation. I know this entire body will rise with me and give a solemn note of thanks to Dr. Zerzan, and our condolences to his family. Charles Zerzan was born on December 1, 1921 in Portland, Oregon and attended primary and secondary school in the Portland and Salem areas. At the age of sixteen his parents lied about his age so that he could enlist in the Oregon National Guard; three years later America entered World War II and Dr. Zerzan found himself a 2nd Lieutenant in an Airborne division commanding men several years older than he in the harsh jungle and mountain terrain of the China-Burma-India theatre. At the end of the war, by which time he had earned the rank of Captain, he returned home to Oregon to attend Willamette University and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. He then proceeded to medical school at the University of Marquette, where he earned the degree of Medical Doctor with a specialty in internal medicine. Following medical school Dr. Zerzan re-enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in many prestigious posts. Among these were two tours in Washington at Walter Reed Army Hospital; Chief of Medicine at Rodriguez Army Hospital; and he served as U.S. Army Medical Advisor to the Jordan Arab Army. Dr. Zerzan had the privilege of serving as personal physician to President Dwight D. Eisenhower, His Majesty King Hussein bin Talal of Jordan, members of the U.S. Supreme Court and numerous United States Senators and Congressmen. During the Cuban Missile crisis Dr. Zerzan was part of the invasion force planning to go ashore in Cuba, in the event of a conflict which thankfully never came to pass. Dr. Zerzan was highly decorated for his service to the United States. Among the military honors he received are the Legion of Merit, the Army Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters, the World War II Victory Medal, the Pacific Theater Medal with two battle stars, the National Defense ribbon and the American Defense ribbon. These honors, which are awarded among other reasons for ``exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements,'' are but a small symbol of the patriotism and devotion of Dr. Zerzan to our country. As is true for so many of our veterans the true worth of his service cannot be measured. Upon retirement from the Army in 1968 Dr. Zerzan returned to Oregon, where he served as Director of Continuing Medical Education at the Medical School of the University of Oregon-Portland (now known as Oregon Health Sciences University), and later as partner in the NW Permanente Clinic, Sunnyside Kaiser. Despite his many professional achievements Dr. Zerzan viewed his greatest accomplishment to be his family. It was while attending college at Willamette University that Dr. Zerzan met the great love of his life, Ms. Joan Margaret Kathan of Rogue River, Oregon. As Mrs. Zerzan described it, the first time they kissed her ``shoes flew off,'' and she knew it was true love. They married on February 7, 1948 and during their 60 years of marriage proceeded to have 12 children. These children, who live in Oregon and throughout the United States, in turn gave Dr. Zerzan 30 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. The passing of Dr. Zerzan is a sad day for Oregon and all of America. But at the same time, it is a source of celebration for the accomplishment of his life's work. Dr. Zerzan was a man of courage, honor and great faith. As recorded in the Gospel of St. Matthew: ``Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.'' Dr. Zerzan's treasure was in his devotion to his family, his country and his work. He has now passed on to receive his reward, and to enjoy the treasure he stored up during his time on earth. Thank you, Madam Speaker, for joining with me and our colleagues today to celebrate Dr. Zerzan's life and reward.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker, I rise today to inform our colleagues of a milestone event that occurred yesterday for a very special lady in the Grande Ronde Valley of Oregon. Mrs. Monica (Ruhl) Kinnel turned 100 years old yesterday and celebrated over the weekend in Island City, Oregon with many generations of her family and a legion of friends and admirers. Monica is an amazing lady who has led a remarkable and exciting life, and The Observer newspaper in La Grande, Oregon recently chronicled her adventures to date and I'd like to share with you some highlights from it. In July 1892 a land purchase was made on the outskirts of Alicel in modern day Union County that became the seminal grounds for a ranching/ farming family that has spanned five generations in the Grande Ronde Valley. Monica's grandparents, Henry and Anna Ruhl, purchased 338 acres near Alicel for $10,000 and assumed a $2,500 debt on the land. Their son Harry continued operation of the Alicel ranch and married Maude Gaskill whose parents owned a farm less than two miles away. Maude designed a ranch home that her father-in-law Henry built on his land. Built with brick from the La Grande brickyard and mortar made from sand from the Grande Ronde River, the home was completed in 1906. Two years later on June 2, 1908, Monica was born. Monica lives with her daughter and son-in-law, Sharon and Bob Beck, in the house she was born in 100 years ago. Harry and Maude were fun-loving and curious and involved Monica in life's happenings. Monica remembers an outing to Boise with her father when he bought a toaster. Monica asked him what he was going to do with it since they didn't have electricity. Harry replied, ``We'll be ready.'' Monica was married to Bob Kinnel in 1930. They took over the family ranch, raising Hereford cattle and farming. They added more farm land adjacent to the Ruhl ranch and the whole became the Kinnel Ranch where they raised their family and lived until Bob's untimely demise at the age of 43 in 1955. Monica and Bob made a real team and raised three lovely daughters, Suzanne (who passed away in 1999), Joanne and Sharon. Sharon recounts that her parents had ``a love affair so powerful and so joyful that the two of them seemed to know something that no one else knew.'' Willis Ketchum, who now owns a neighboring farm, and the girls who were then in their early 20s, rallied around Monica and pitched in to save the ranch. In the fall of 1956 Monica hired on a scrapping, ranch- raised young man from Telocaset named Bob Beck. In just over a year he married Sharon and together they have added their own chapter to the family saga. Monica traveled the world with daughter Joanne and the United States with other family and friends. Monica's legacy of love and laughter has been imparted to her grandchildren and great grandchildren as well. Anecdotes abound, like the time she brought grandson Rob a male tarantula from California. He built a terrarium and the next year she took Rob to the same desert to release him. Another is when grandson Brad and some contractor working on the house witnessed Monica--then in her 80s--leave the house with a fishing pole and satchel ``to go catch breakfast'' and came back within 30 minutes with a 22-inch rainbow trout. Monica has always taught her family to live in the now, don't put things off til later as there may not be a later. Given the choice of describing her life as a hard-working, tenacious and productive ant or a carefree, live-for-the-moment grasshopper, Monica chose the grasshopper without hesitation. Her philosophy is ``live and let live.'' Fortunately for Monica and her family, she continues to live an exhilarating journey. Madam Speaker, on behalf of the United States Congress, I wish Monica Kinnel a very happy 100th birthday!

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker, consistent with the House Republican Leadership's policy on earmarks, to the best of my knowledge this request (1) is not directed to an entity or program that will be named after a sitting Member of Congress; and (2) is not intended to be used by an entity to secure funds for other entities unless the use of funding is consistent with the specified purpose of the earmark. As required by earmark standards adopted by the House Republican Conference, I submit to the House an explanation and justification of this funding in an effort to provide as much public disclosure and transparency as possible on congressionally directed funding and earmarks. I hereby submit the following information on a project I requested and the House Armed Services Committee included in H.R. 5658, the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 2009. Account: Air Force; Research, Development, Test & Evaluation. Legal Name of Requesting Entity: University of Oregon (on behalf of the Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnology Institute (ONAMI) which consists of the University of Oregon, Oregon State University, and Portland State University). Address of Requesting Entity: Attn: Rich Linton, Vice President for Research, 203 Johnson Hall, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403. Description of Project: H.R. 5658 has authorized $1,000,000 for the Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnology Institute (ONAMI) Safer Nanomaterials and Nanomanufacturing Initiative. 26 percent of the funds will be used for equipment and 74 percent will be used for project expenses associated with personnel, including: salary, benefits, travel, and tuition off sets for research assistants. The ONAMI Safer Nanomaterials and Nanomanufacturing Initiative develops inherently safer and greener nanomaterials and nanomanufacturing methods, which directly impact the military's need for high performance materials that do not emit unintended wastestreams or material hazards. Three general areas of activity included within the Initiative are: (1) rational design of safer and greener materials based upon unique properties found at the nanoscale, (2) systematic assessment of the biological impacts of engineered nanomaterials, and (3) development of technology for high volume manufacturing and application of high-performance nanomaterials. Examples of nanomaterials and manufacturing of importance for military technology include nanoelectronics and nanophotonics, thermoelectric coolers, medical diagnostics and therapeutics, drinking water purification and environmental monitoring & remediation systems. The ONAMI Safer Nanomaterials and Safer Nanomanufacturing Initiative cost share includes: state funding of approximately $2.23 million for research activities; private funding of over $2 million (cash and in- kind) from Hewlett-Packard, Invitrogen, FEI, and companies involved in related research efforts; and peer-reviewed federal awards and competitive awards from foundations, including the Keck Foundation, worth several million dollars.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker, consistent with the House Republican Leadership's policy on earmarks, to the best of my knowledge this request (1) is not directed to an entity or program that will be named after a sitting Member of Congress; and (2) is not intended to be used by an entity to secure funds for other entities unless the use of funding is consistent with the specified purpose of the earmark. As required by earmark standards adopted by the House Republican Conference, I submit to the House an explanation and justification of this funding in an effort to provide as much public disclosure and transparency as possible on congressionally directed funding and earmarks. I hereby submit the following information on a project I requested and the House Armed Services Committee included in H.R. 5658, the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 2009. Account: Department of Energy (DOE); Other. Legal Name of Requesting Entity: U.S. Department of Energy. Address of Requesting Entity: U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20585. Description of Project: The $10 million programmatic increase provided for in the bill will be used for the U.S. Department of Energy's Environmental Management program at the Hanford Site located in Washington state in Fiscal Year 2009. The federal government has a legal and moral obligation to cleanup the massive wastes and contamination it created at Hanford during the Manhattan Project, World War II and the Cold War. The over-500-square-mile Hanford site is the world's largest and most complex environmental cleanup project, and the federal government must keep its commitment to clean it up. No matching funds are required.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, by refusing to renew the county payments program, Congress has broken its promise to rural, timbered America. I've told you in the past about Harney County, a county that has 78 percent of its land mass, the size of New Jersey, all Federally controlled, 70 percent of its road budget affected by this law that has not been reauthorized. Let me tell you today about Hood River County, where Congress' failure to act to renew the county timber payments program has forced this county to develop multiple county budgets because we don't know what's going to happen in my home county. One thing is for sure, though, the county annually uses up to $130,000 of Federal forest payments to fund search and rescue operations in the Mount Hood National Forest and Mount Hood itself. You see, Hood River County is responsible for most of the search and rescue operations on that great mountain, and now those costs will be borne by the county because the Federal Government is shirking its responsibility. That could change. We could pass H.R. 3058, a bill to reauthorize county timber payments. It has been on the Union Calendar for 127 days, held hostage by this leadership. The Democratic leadership refuses to bring it up for a vote. Make good on the Federal promise. Let us vote on H.R. 3058.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, by refusing to renew the Federal county payments program, Congress has broken its promise to rural, timbered America. Counties like Wasco County in Oregon are affected. It has laid off nine people from its road department, seven full-time, two part-time. That's one-third of its entire road department. The county has more than 700 miles of road, and not a single road construction project is now underway. County Commissioner Sherry Holliday said, ``Counties can't do any strategic planning when our budget is totally up in the air.'' Well, there is a solution, H.R. 3058, a bipartisan 4-year reauthorization of county timber payments. It's been on the Union Calendar and ready for a vote since January 15. The administration has put forward a variety of offsets to pay for it, and yet the Democratic leadership of this House has refused to bring it up for a vote. That's 126 days that H.R. 3058 has been held hostage by the leadership of this House. It's time to restore the Federal Government's century-old commitment to rural, timbered communities where Federal lands make up so much of their county. I call on the leadership once again, free H.R. 3058, bring it up for a vote, keep the roads and schools open in rural America.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker, by refusing to renew the Federal county payments program, Congress has broken the bond with rural areas all across this country. Counties such as Crook County in Oregon have been affected. Congress' inaction means that county's road department's been whacked. It's half what it was 10 years ago. Road improvements needed for the future are being shelved. Maintenance projects are being put on hold. Crook County Judge Scott Cooper said: ``Congress just passed a new farm bill to help get products from farm to market, but without county payments, the products won't have roads or bridges to go over.'' H.R. 3058 would help solve this. It's a bipartisan, 4-year authorization for county payments; yet the leadership of this House has held it hostage on the Union Calendar since January 15. That's 121 days that the Democratic leadership has prevented the House from voting to reauthorize the county payments program. It's time to restore the Federal Government's century-old commitment to rural timbered communities, where Federal lands make up the bulk of the area. I call on the Democratic leadership once again, free H.R. 3058 for a vote, and keep the roads and schools open in rural America.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker, on the occasion of the change of command this weekend at the 173rd Figher Wing at Kingsley Field in Klamath Falls, Oregon, I rise to share with you and our colleagues my pride in an outstanding officer and a great American: Colonel Tom Schiess, United States Air Force, Commander of the 173rd Fighter Wing at Kingsley Field. I will have the honor of attending the change of command ceremony in Klamath Falls this weekend, and before Colonel Schiess relinquishes his command I want to express our nation's gratitude for his service. My comments today echo the admiration of residents of the Klamath Basin community and the respect and affection of the men and women who serve in his command. Colonel Schiess is the type of leader who makes a difference in any endeavor he pursues, and he has made a tremendously positive impact at Kingsley Field. Colonel Schiess, who is approaching 5,000 flight hours, spent eight and a half years in the United States Air Force before joining the Oregon Air National Guard in 1991. His active duty assignments include: Tyndall AFB as a T-33 Instructor Pilot; McDill AFB as an F-16 Student Pilot; Hill AFB, UT; and AL Minhad AB, United Arab Emirates as an F-16 Pilot. He flew 34 combat missions in Operation Desert Storm while deployed in support of the war effort. While stationed at Kingsley Field, he has been Chief of Wing Standardization and Evaluation, 114th Fighter Squadron Operations Officer, 114th Fighter Squadron Commander, 173rd Operations Group Commander, and 173rd Maintenance Group Commander. Colonel Schiess excelled in each of these roles. Madam Speaker, in the course of his unselfish service to his country and the State of Oregon, Colonel Schiess has earned many awards, including the Meritorious Service Medal, Aerial Achievement Medal, Air Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal, Air Force Achievement Medal, Combat Readiness Medal, Air Force Longevity Award, National Defense Service Medal, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, Global War on Terrorism Medal, Kuwait Liberation Medal, Southwest Asia Campaign Medal, and Oregon Faithful Service Medal with ``M'' device. Colonel Tom Schiess has clearly distinguished himself with awards and recognitions, Madam Speaker, but he is most proud of the collective accomplishments of the 173rd Fighter Wing, which he has led so ably. With the motto of ``Land of No Slack,'' Colonel Schiess leads a world class training facility of more than 1,000 Oregon Air National Guard personnel and state and contract employees at Kingsley Field. As Wing Commander, Colonel Schiess is essentially the Chief Executive Officer and top leader of a very large and highly successful organization. Colonel Schiess is responsible for the production of F-15 sorties to generate student-flying training to graduate the best air- to-air F-15 pilots in the world. The 173rd Fighter Wing serves as one of only two professional F-15 schoolhouses in the United States for Air Force and Air National Guard fighter pilots. The 173rd Fighter Wing accomplishes its primary mission, F-15 flight training, on the leading edge of innovative training technology and techniques, setting the standard for military training centers worldwide. The Wing flawlessly provides over 4,700 hours and over 3,500 sorties for the training mission as well as training opportunities for the Combat Air Force. The Wing has received a Lockheed Martin award for its generation of 20,000 accident-free F-15 sorties since it converted to the F-15 in 1998. The Wing, under the command of Colonel Schiess, has not only distinguished itself as a world class training facility, but has also proven itself to be a significant international ambassador, deploying to Plovdiv, Bulgaria to participate in Sentry Lion, an air-to-air exercise with the Bulgarian Air Force. Subsequently, the 173rd Operations Group hosted six Bulgarian officers for a week as part of a familiarization program in the United States. The Wing consistently earns outstanding ratings in accomplishing its mission. The high morale and job satisfaction of Colonel Schiess' team are reflected in extremely high retention rates, reenlistment rates, and manning and training rates in the unit career advisory program. Colonel Schiess and his team have endeared themselves to the community, rendering over 45,000 volunteer hours annually. Each year they welcome the community onto the base with their Sentry Eagle Exercise open house or hosting an outstanding air show. The men and woman at Kingsley Field are not visitors to the Klamath community; they are active and deeply involved neighbors who do a great deal to make the Klamath Basin the very special place that it is. Madam Speaker, I know that my praise of Colonel Tom Schiess and his exceptional team not only represents the gratitude of the local community, but of a nation well served and protected by highly trained and highly motivated individuals. The time that Colonel Schiess has dedicated in commanding the 173rd Fighter Wing will long be remembered as a period of unmatched accomplishment and stellar service at Kingsley Field. Tom has achieved his goal of seeing that the men and women of the 173rd Fighter Wing are citizen airmen who are second to none, and are constantly ready, reliable, and relevant in answering America's needs through brave, confident, and unselfish service. My colleagues, please join me in thanking Colonel Tom Schiess for his dedication, his commitment, and his tremendous success in a very big and important job.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, by refusing to renew the county payments program, Congress, this Congress, has broken its pledge to rural areas all across this country, such as Harney County, Oregon. County payments account for 70 percent of the road budget in Harney County, in part because 78 percent of Harney County is Federal land. That's an area nearly the size of New Jersey. Now, imagine if the tax revenue from 78 percent of the land in New Jersey suddenly dried up. It would be paralyzing, just as paralyzing as the loss of county payments is proving in the rural West. Harney County Judge Steve Grasty said, ``It is now so bad that we've got fewer road crew employees than snow removal equipment. Our road department is now 50 percent of its historic staffing level.'' H.R. 3058 would give some relief to this problem and would help keep the roads open in Harney County and schools open across the West. Yet the Democratic leadership in the House has held this bill hostage on the Union Calendar since January 15. Today is day 120 that this bill could have been brought to the floor and voted on. It is a bipartisan bill. The lead sponsor is my colleague from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio). Keep the commitment to these rural communities. Pass H.R. 3058.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, by refusing to renew the county payments program, Congress has broken its pledge to rural areas all across this country like Lake County, Oregon, where Federal land covers 61 percent of the county. Lake County has had to cut its road department from 42 people to 14, the equipment is aging and overworked, it needs maintenance on the roads that's being deferred. In this winter's record snowfall, or near- record, Lake County had to call in the Oregon Air National Guard to come in and help plow the streets so the safety vehicles could get through this county that's larger than the States of Connecticut and Delaware combined. Now they will be forced to let paved roads revert to gravel. H.R. 3058 would solve this problem and would help keep the roads open in Lake County and schools open throughout the west. Yet H.R. 3058 is still held hostage on the Union Calendar. It's been approved by the committees of this House. It has been held hostage since January 15. This is day 114. All we're asking is that the majority schedule it for a vote on this House floor. Let us vote on secure rural schools and roads just to vote. That's all. Let's keep the commitment of the Federal Government for 100 years to these rural communities where Federal land makes up the bulk of their counties. I call on the Democrat leadership, day 114 held hostage, H.R. 3058, bring it up for a vote.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker, by refusing to renew the county payments program, Congress has broken its pledge to rural areas all across this country like Grant County, Oregon, where Federal land covers 61 percent of the county. That's 300 square miles larger than the entire State of Delaware. The school children of Grant County rely on the Federal Government to be a good neighbor. During my most recent visit to Prairie City School and the eighth grade class of Andy Demko, I was told by the school superintendent, Newell Cleaver, that only the county payments funds through the Road Department have kept the schools going. Our Speaker has said she would like this to be ``The Children's Congress.'' So why won't the Democratic leadership bring a vote on H.R. 3058, which is a bipartisan, 4-year reauthorization timber program, keeping a 100-year-old commitment from this government to these counties? It has been 112 days since H.R. 3058 was made eligible for a vote. It's here on the Union Calendar of the House. We have had 51 legislative days when it could have been brought up for a vote to help secure rural schools, and yet the leadership of this House refuses to even schedule it for a vote on the House floor. When will the Democrat leadership of the House keep its commitment to rural communities?

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker, of all of the counties in the Second Congressional District, perhaps none has been more profoundly impacted by Congress' refusal to reauthorize county payments than Josephine County. Nearly half of the county workforce has been cut in recent years. Public safety has been hardest hit. Overnight patrols by the Josephine County Sheriff's Office are down to one 10-hour shift split among six deputies who cover 1,640 square miles. That's six deputies patrolling an area the size of the State of Rhode Island. Maybe you remember the frantic search after Thanksgiving of 2006 for the James Kim family in the Federal forests off southern Oregon. The search-and-rescue funds for that operation came from this very program that Congress has refused to reauthorize. Why won't the Democrat leadership bring a vote on H.R. 3058? It's a bipartisan, 4-year reauthorization bill for county payments. It has been 3 months since the committees of jurisdiction have sent it to the full House, and yet no votes have been scheduled. So I again call on the Democratic leadership to do the right thing. Keep the commitment to the timbered communities of this country and pass a reauthorization or attach it to a vehicle that's moving. Restore faith with rural counties all across America. Keep the Federal commitment to the people of timbered counties like Josephine.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Madam Speaker, it is my privilege to rise today to recognize the 2008 National Teacher of the Year, Mr. Mike Geisen, whom I am proud to represent in Congress. I want to take the opportunity to draw the attention of our colleagues in the United States House of Representatives and our Nation's citizens to the tremendous contributions Mike has made to his students, the State of Oregon, and the profession of teaching. This morning, I have the great privilege to join Mike at the White House where the President will acknowledge his outstanding achievement. Mike and his wife, Jennifer, have two children, Johanna and Aspen, and together they make their home in beautiful Crook County, Oregon. Mike is a native of Washington State and made his way to Oregon's Second Congressional District by way of a job with the United States Forest Service, which took him to Grants Pass, Oregon. Fortunately for Oregon's students, Mike decided to translate his love of nature and desire to give into a career as a science teacher. After working as a student teacher at Crook County Middle School in Prineville, Oregon, he was hired as a seventh grade science teacher and has made a tremendously positive impact there for the past 7 years. It is remarkable that someone who began teaching such a short time ago could rise so rapidly to an honor such as the National Teacher of the Year. The Crook County School District is located in Central Oregon and includes all of Crook County and much of southeast Deschutes County, an area totaling approximately 3,000 square miles--the size of Rhode Island and Delaware combined. It is a rural district with its main offices located in Prineville, the oldest town in central Oregon. The school district itself has 3,200 students and Crook County Middle School, where Mike teaches, has 700 students. Mike is known for his extraordinary dedication and creative ways of engaging his students. For example, he and his students turned the dead grass, weeds and peeling paint of their school's courtyard into an outdoor learning lab. This ``naturescape'' is an area that students maintain and use to conduct experiments. He makes use of every resource available to him to engage his students and inspire them to learn. He is known for designing fun review games, performing demonstrations, helping students get involved with hands-on labs, acting out scientific principles, and even bringing his guitar to school and singing songs about the lesson at hand, such as gravity, atoms, and ``The Bacteria Blues.'' Mike's dedication to his students goes beyond just his science classroom curriculum; he fundraised to have a climbing wall installed at the school for the students. Mike's philosophy, in his own words: ``Teaching just doesn't happen inside the classroom, it happens all over the community.'' As chair of the science department at Crook County Middle School, Mike helps create assessments and design curriculum, and has earned the high respect of his colleagues. Mike's passion for teaching and engaging lessons makes learning fun for students and has led to increased test scores. Prior to Mike becoming science department chair, the school had reached a plateau, with 55 percent of students meeting the State's science benchmark. During his first 2 years as department chair, scores jumped from an average of 55 percent to 72 percent, meeting the State science benchmark. Mike's formula for success is putting a bit of himself, a bit of Prineville, and a good dose of humor and creativity into each activity, project, and assignment. The National Teacher of the Year must serve as an inspiration to students of all backgrounds and abilities to learn, have the respect and admiration of students, parents, and colleagues, play an active and positive role in the community as well as in the school, and be poised, articulate, and possess the energy to withstand a taxing schedule. Recipients of this rare honor are knowledgeable and skilled. Above all, they are exceptionally dedicated. Mike Geisen certainly exceeds each of these characteristics. The National Teacher of the Year award is obviously a tremendous honor, and I couldn't be more pleased that Mike has achieved this top status in our country. While he will surely be missed at Crook County Middle School during his year of national service as a spokesman for the teaching profession, Oregon's temporary loss of Mike in the classroom will be a significant gain for the United States as a whole. As the first Oregon teacher to be awarded this prestigious honor since 1973, I know that when Mike returns home to Prineville, he will bring a host of new experiences and ideas to share with his colleagues and students and will continue to excel and make learning fun for generations of Oregonians to come. Please join me in congratulating Mike Geisen for being chosen as the 2008 National Teacher of the Year and in thanking him for his deep commitment to educating our children.