Don Young

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the chairman, Mr. Shuster, and the ranking member, Mr. DeFazio, for bringing a bipartisan bill to the floor. This is a piece of legislation that is long overdue. I think we have had--how many extensions?--five extensions. This bill is needed for air traffic. As everybody knows in this room, if you take Alaska, which is 2\1/2\ times the size of Texas, we don't have any roads; we have air travel. Everybody travels in Alaska, probably more than you travel in your car, by airplane. So this bill handles a lot of the problems in Alaska that we have been addressing through the FAA, which plays a major role. Number one is Essential Air Service. Many people don't understand the history of Essential Air Service. When we deregulated the airlines, Alaska was left out. Senator Stevens and I kept regulated airlines for 2 extra years until we got the commitment from Essential Air Service so we can serve our communities, and this committee has always seen to it that that did occur. Now, it has been used in other rural areas of America. I understand that need. There will be an amendment to do away with Essential Air Service. I hope all of you will vote against that. It is crucially important to my State. We have another small issue that has come up--and I want to thank the chairman again--which is lithium batteries. These were talked about, and it was just talked about by the ranking member. In my State, again, we don't have highways, we can't truck things, so an air carrier that has no passengers can transport lithium batteries. They were not allowed to do that under the toxic transportation clause in our law that says they can't do it. I will tell you, again, that it takes care of the Alaskan Part 121 pilots, who are subject to burdensome Terminal Aerodrome Forecasting regulations. This will allow pilots to use area forecasting for weather, et cetera, for flying our airplanes. This is a good bill. I am really proud of what Congressman Shuster has been able to do. I believe this will be Congressman LoBiondo's last bill working on something of this significance for the United States of America. We do have a great air system. I will say that it has worked, it is working, and I am quite proud of the people who work for the airlines. I will only make one suggestion in closing, Mr. Chairman. I am a little concerned about some of the airlines making the spaces a little bit narrower, less legroom. I think, frankly, when you have less legroom, you have safety problems. I say that because it is awful hard, in a 3-year-old seat, to get people out from the window if there is an accident when they are all jammed together. So I am just respectfully suggesting the airlines don't take away any more space; in fact, give some of it back. Mr. Chairman, this is a good bill. I urge my colleagues to support it, vote for it, and let's get this bipartisan piece of legislation passed.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewomen from Hawaii (Mses. Hanabusa and Gabbard). I am privileged to stand on this floor because of them and honor, to me, a great friend. I know that we are saying we are honoring Senator Danny Akaka, or Daniel. I would like to refer him to the higher body as Congressman Akaka. Thirteen years we served together. I have never found a gentleman, as you said before, one that loved and remembers better than he. He worked with me, and I probably knew Danny better than anybody else. I call him Danny because we were friends. I knew him probably better than anybody else because his locker was right next to mine down in the gym. We would have conversations about Alaska and about Hawaii, and how we worked together with Danny Inouye, Senator Stevens, and myself. It was a marvelous combination. And I believe that Alaskan combination with Hawaii still exists today because of the two congressional ladies. We work together. We have a unique difference from all of the other States. We are not contiguous to the big body of the United States. We are actually scattered far north and far west, but we work together. Although they have a tropical climate and we have a frozen climate, we have the comradeship that is necessary to work together, and we continue to do that. Danny was a soldier, a teacher, and, yes, a great Congressman. I will tell you that the people of Hawaii will miss him, but I hope he has left a legacy that will continue to encourage young people to become involved in the political arena to try to solve problems. I can't agree more with what was said by the previous speaker about the lack of aloha, the lack of recognition for one another in differences of opinion. I do not think that you can accuse me of that because I recognize each person elected in this House is elected by 730,000 people, and they represent those people. So recognize and respect the beliefs, but work out and solve problems. Danny did that. All the time that we worked together, there was never a Democratic problem or a Republican problem. There was a problem, and we would reach across the aisle, one another, with all of the chairmen that served together collectively, and we would solve those problems. We were able to legislate. Somewhere along the line, the well was poisoned, and we no longer legislate. I think Danny would be deeply disturbed by that. I think he would wish us greater things. I believe he would understand that it is time for us to work together as a nation. I am proud to say that we still work together as Alaskans and Hawaiians trying to solve those areas where problems exist in no other place in the United States, and we do work together to solve them and we do get it achieved. Now, if we can just do that, maybe we ought to send the rest of the Congress to Hawaii in the wintertime and bring the rest of them to Alaska in the summertime, and everybody would love one another and we would get a lot more done. So, again, it was mentioned about Millie, his wife, and his family, and he would be proud. There are great people in our history, and I can tell you, I considered Danny Akaka, Senator or Congressman, as one of the greater ones. As we know, he is gone, and I know he will be looking upon what we can achieve if we actually aloha one another.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in memorial to an Alaskan who dedicated his life to his business and making his customers feel as though they were in their own living room having a meal with friends. On January 13, 2018, Alaska lost one of its hardest working, most dedicated and adventurous fathers, Mr. George Brown. George embodied the ``Greatest Generation'' that came to Alaska in the years following World War II. He valued hard work, personal relationships, and personal responsibility. He and his wife, Peggy founded the Lucky Wishbone diner in Anchorage, Alaska in 1955, the same year McDonalds was founded but in a much different environment, serving the best burgers, shakes and especially fried chicken you could find anywhere. Sorry Kentucky, the Colonel had nothing on Mr. Brown. George kept the very spirit of the Greatest Generation alive up until his passing by ensuring that generations of Alaskans had simple, handcrafted diner food that was unsurpassed by any other restaurant. He also pioneered the ``smoking ban'' in Anchorage by banning smoking in the restaurant in 1991. George and Peggy's place was home to so many of us. His smile and his infectious spirit could light up a room and his sense of humor warmed the restaurant where he was a fixture for over 60 years. George was more than a restauranteur, he was my friend. As a frequent patron of the Lucky Wishbone, I can speak to his service to customers and how he always cared for his employees as though they were immediately family. He treated his staff like they were his daughters and sons which meant everyone made you feel at home when you visited the Lucky Wishbone. George, Peggy and the Lucky Wishbone will live in infamy in our hearts and souls. I hope that George's sister Elaine, daughter Pat, son Corky, and his grandchildren can take comfort in the bond they have with George and the legacy of the Lucky Wishbone. I also hope the precious memories of George will bring them comfort, and that they will come to find, in the lovely words of Hugh Robert Orr: ``They are not dead who live in lives they leave behind. In those whom they have blessed, they live a life again, and shall live through the years eternal life, and shall grow each day more beautiful, as time declares their good, forgets the rest, and proves their immortality.'' Please join me in expressing heartfelt appreciation for George and sympathies for his Alaskan family.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in memorial to an Alaskan who dedicated his life to the athletes, families, and Special Olympics Alaska. On February 1, 2018, Alaska lost a one-of-a-kind person, Mr. Jim Balamaci. Many executive directors and presidents of non-profit organizations do a lot of good work. They encourage others to provide financial support to their cause, uplift the recipients of their work, and contribute greatly to their communities. Jim however, was much more than just another head of a non-profit organization who did good work for the cause. Jim lived, breathed, and was Special Olympics Alaska. His beloved organization was everything to him, and he fostered an infectious feeling in others to conduct themselves with the same faith, loyalty, and honest approach as he had. Mr. Speaker, I have a hard time knowing that Special Olympics and Alaska have lost this great man. Jim Balamaci ``is'' Special Olympics Alaska and it will never been the same without him. Jim absolutely loved his colleagues and those he served. His presence was a blessing. The best part is that they loved and respected him even more in return. Aside from talking to Jim on a regular basis about a wide variety of topics, I had the distinct pleasure of golfing with him every year to benefit Special Olympics Alaska. For eight to ten hours (depending on how I played), I had the rare fortune of being able to admire Jim's passion for ``his'' athletes. During that time, Jim allowed me to bask in his world where everything was righteous, good, and just plain fun despite any challenges. It's nice to hear about people's memories and friendship with Jim. I'm proud to call Jim my dear friend too. As you know, it is extremely difficult for a Member of Congress to call someone a true friend. Jim embodied the word. He comforted me when my dear wife Lu died, he gave me advice to help my grandson, and I could always count on him to be there for me and my family. Mr. Speaker, the sudden loss of Jim was like a hard punch by Mike Tyson to my gut. His loss hurts all of us. I take comfort in knowing that the Lord called Jim home because he needed another great soul in heaven to help him counter everything that is bad. To all of the athletes, coaches, family members, sponsors, volunteers, staff, the Board of Directors of Special Olympics Alaska, and to Jim's family--I share your grief and your loss today as we remember Jim. I do take comfort in Jim's legacy, his friendship, and the privilege of knowing a truly great man for he has not left us behind but walks beside us now. Thank God for Jim.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 219) to correct the Swan Lake hydroelectric project survey boundary and to provide for the conveyance of the remaining tract of land within the corrected survey boundary to the State of Alaska.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, first, let me thank my good friend from Hawaii (Ms. Hanabusa) for coming over here to help manage the bill. I know it was an imposition, but I thank her. It means a great deal to me. Mr. Speaker, the Swan Lake hydroelectric project is a remote facility in southeast Alaska that provides electric power to nearly 20,000 of my constituents in the cities of Petersburg, Wrangell, Ketchikan, and the surrounding areas. In 1994, the project's operator began work to raise the dam height by 15 feet, working with the State of Alaska to secure 1,500 acres of land from the Federal Government inside the reservoir's new coverage area. The land was surveyed by the Federal Government and transferred to the State of Alaska in 1997. In 2012, the project operator discovered an error in the Federal Government's survey and determined an additional 25.8 acres of Federal land would be inundated if the water level were raised. There is no disagreement among the Federal and State agencies concerned that an error occurred. H.R. 219 will fix the error by requiring the Secretary of the Interior to correct the survey and transfer the remaining acreage to the State of Alaska. This is a commonsense bill that promotes green energy development at zero cost to the Federal Government. Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the measure, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I wish my good friend from Hawaii good luck in the upcoming election. I know it is against the rules, but I am going to say it anyway. The gentlewoman will make a fine Governor as she made a fine Congresswoman; believe me. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in memorial to a dedicated husband, proud father, pioneer of aviation and entrepreneurship, and importantly, a great Alaskan. On December 7, 2017, Alaska lost one if its hardest working and most dedicated fathers, Mr. Cliff Everts. Cliff Everts is a keepsake original forged from rare earth. He matriculated from New York but had the spirit of an Alaskan Wolf, the business acumen of a Rockefeller, and the fortitude of a Sourdough. His smile could light up a room and his sense of humor warmed any room he happened to grace. In thinking of that astounding smile and infectious laugh, I am reminded of one of his famous quotes and something he said the last time I saw him ``Dude, that was sick!'' It's how he lived his life. In reflecting upon Cliff's many accomplishments and his life, one could go on for days about all he did. I can speak to his service to his customers and how he always found a way to deliver cargo ranging from reindeer to homebuilding materials (beat that Home Depot), or start a business to sell ice cream to Alaskans! He did so at the best price with the best service to those customers. I can speak to all of his service to the community. How much he cared for Alaskans and loved Alaska. However, what gives me the most pleasure and puts a massive smile on my face, is Cliff's dedication and his love for his wife and six children. Whenever anyone asked what made Cliff happy or what made Cliff such a success, it was always his family. He always shined when he talked about them and you could see how he would glow whenever he thought about them or saw them in person. You just do not find that in most people but you always knew it with Cliff. Suffice to say that Cliff will live in infamy in our hearts and souls. I hope that Cliff's family and especially his wife Betty can take comfort in the bond they have with him; always. I hope the precious memories the family has of their precious Cliff will one day bring them comfort, and that they will come to find, in the lovely words of Hugh Orr: ``They are not dead who live in lives they leave behind. In those whom they have blessed, they live a life again, and shall live through the years eternal life, and shall grow each day more beautiful, as time declares their good, forgets the rest, and proves their immortality.'' Please join me in expressing our heartfelt appreciation for Cliff and our sympathies for his wife, Betty; son, Robert Everts and his wife Paula; his daughters, Melanie Moyer; Debbie Baggen; Karen Wing; Vicki Parrish and her husband Albert; and Susan Hoshaw and her husband Don; 16 grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren; and so many close, cherished family and friends.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, first, let me thank the Speaker and the minority leader for their introductions. I have been in the House for 45 years, with nine Speakers and nine Presidents. I have been in this House with 2,000 Members who have left. I love this body. I can suggest one thing: My greatest honor has been being able to achieve results for my State. I am the only Congressman from the whole State of Alaska, and I love it. It is my responsibility to represent the State and this House as the single person to do the job that I have been asked to do. One of the things that I have enjoyed is the friendships. I don't think there is an enemy in the House. I worked across the aisle. Jimmy Oberstar and I never had an adversarial vote at any one time on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Now, when George Miller was the minority member, we had a lot of arguments and a lot of disagreements, but we hunted together and we ate together. I believe in bipartisanship. I believe in this body to lead this Nation. Nine Presidents, the House has its job to do regardless of who the President is. I thank my wife, who is in the audience up there in the gallery. A man gets lucky usually once in his life. I got lucky twice. My past wife was with me for 46\1/2\ years. My new wife has been with me about 8 years now. I want the State to pay her because she keeps me alive. And she likes what I do. I want to thank my colleagues. Being the dean will not change me. I will still holler, ``Vote.'' I will sometimes get out of line. But in doing so, remember, it comes from my heart, and my heart is in this House.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to include in the Record the following letter which provides information about my bill, H.R. 228, the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Consolidation Act. November 27, 2017. Hon. Ryan Zinke, Secretary, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, DC. Dear Secretary Zinke: We write today to provide information about our legislation, the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Consolidation Act (H.R. 228 as passed the House/S. 91 as reported by committee in the Senate). Our legislation has bipartisan backing and the support of a broad coalition of tribes and tribal organizations. During consideration of the legislation, a question was raised as to whether any Head Start services would be eligible for incorporation into a tribal ``477 Plan'' under H.R. 228/S. 91. The answer is no--Head Start is an early childhood education program, and does not fit into any of the categories of eligible programs' purposes that are listed in Section 6 of the bills. Head Start services are not eligible under current law for incorporation into tribal 477 plans, and will not be eligible under our legislation. We wanted to take the opportunity to provide this background should it be helpful in the future. Sincerely, Don Young, Congressman for All Alaska. Lisa Murkowski, United States Senator.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, Congress established Alaska Native Settlement Trusts in 1988 to provide permanent health, education, and welfare benefits to Alaska Natives, who are among the most economically disadvantaged populations in the United States. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, the Tax Code has, in many cases, impeded the creation and funding of Alaska Native Settlement Trusts. As a result, Alaska Native Settlement Trusts have not been able to function in the manner Congress originally intended to provide benefits for Alaska Natives. To remedy some of these tax issues, I have sponsored H.R. 3524, which permits an Alaska Native corporation to deduct contributions to their settlement trust. The provisions of H.R. 3524 were not included in H.R. 1, and the tax bill also adversely increases Alaska Native Settlement Trust tax rates from 10 percent to 12 percent. This would make it more difficult for Alaska Native Settlement Trusts to provide long-term benefits to Alaska Natives. Mr. Speaker, I request that the provisions of H.R. 3524 be included in the final conference report that results from the conference committee.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. I yield to the gentleman.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for those remarks. He has been great to work with. His staff has been outstanding. I thank him for his commitment to working on the inclusion of H.R. 3524 and maintaining existing rates in law with regard to Alaska Native Settlement Trusts, and, more generally, for his support of the Alaska Native community.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Chair, I thank Chairman Black and Chairman Bishop for including ANWR, the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge, in the budget process. I am looking forward to this. With this legislation, we contribute money to solving some of our national debt. The small area of 1002 in the National Wildlife Refuge is an area of 2,000 acres, smaller than Dulles Airport. Potentially, though, we have a little over 20 billion barrels of oil. Think how much money that would bring to the Treasury immediately through the bidding process. This is an issue I have been working on for the last 45 years. It is time we passed it. Once it went to the Senate, and President Clinton vetoed it because it wouldn't help us with that embargo we had at that time. Now is the time to make sure this Nation is independent totally. It won't happen overnight, but only Congress can do this. It is not a wilderness area. It is designated to be drilled at the behest of the Congress for the good of the Nation. It will reduce the debt. Again, I said I expect bids of about $10 billion to $20 billion just to have the right to drill. With the new royalties that are coming down from the Secretary of the Interior, we will have not only a large amount going into the Treasury, we will have about 776,000 new jobs created by the discovery of this oil. We have already seen what we have been able to do in other States by fracking and becoming more energy independent and how that controls the OPEC nations. But this is the area which oil has been developed by God. It is only going to be available to the United States, and it is time that this Congress steps forth and brings this to fruition for the people. We will hear a lot from the other side of those interest groups that have no knowledge at all about the area I am talking about. We hear that the caribou herd will be affected. It is ironic that Prudhoe Bay has produced 17 billion barrels of oil, and when we started, there were 5,000 caribou. Now we have about 31,000 caribou. Oil didn't disturb them. Oil is not evil. It is the necessity for this Nation socially to create jobs. It will make a healthier economy. I am asking my colleagues again to consider this legislation. It is necessary for this Nation. It is necessary, very frankly, for the good of this Congress. With $20 trillion in debt, I have yet to hear anything that will create new wealth. You can cut all you want to cut, I will cut what I want to cut, but you have to create new wealth. You have to bring it into the fold of the general budget process and for the economy of this Nation. Let's not keep putting our heads in the sand and saying: Oh, we don't need to do this; it is not the time to do it. Now is the time for the good of the Nation and because we are in debt. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to consider this in this budget. I compliment Mrs. Black and her work, her chairmanship, on the budget. It is a very difficult process.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Chairman, I yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Calvert), my good chairman from the Appropriations Committee.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment that was successfully included in the House fiscal year 2017, which prohibits funds in this act being used to implement the Obama administration National Park Service rule that interferes with the State's wildlife management authority on national preserved lands of Alaska. Mr. Chairman, when we became a State, we were guaranteed to have management of all Federal lands and State lands on fish and wildlife management. Under the Obama administration, they tried to do differently on the wildlife lands, and now they are trying to do it on the BLM lands and the park preserves, not the parks themselves. I suggest, respectfully, if you want to follow the law, you adopt this amendment, as it should be, as is proposed, and we will be able to manage lands we were guaranteed by this Congress to the State of Alaska. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. You know, I rarely do this, but I'm deeply disappointed in my good lady from Washington. * * * This was a preserve, and we were guaranteed this in the Alaska National Lands Act. No more. No more. And the State, under the Constitution, has the right to manage fish and game. Now, I know your side doesn't believe in State's rights. You don't; I do. My job is to protect my State, not your State--my State. And what you said a while ago was really nonsense. It was written by an interest group, not yourself. Maybe your staff is affiliated with the Humane Society or some other group, and I'm disappointed. My Native people support this amendment. You talk about natives. Alaskans, our first Americans, support this amendment. And I really am disturbed. * * * I am still talking.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. I didn't say ``damn.'' You said it.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to withdraw my offending words. And to the gentlewoman, I do apologize. I get very defensive about my State. We have gone through these battles for the last, actually, 45 years, and we are a State. I have my people to represent, as you do yours. I do apologize for my statement. I recognize it was out of order, so I hope you accept my apology.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. And I thank the gentlewoman.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Chairman, I urge passage of my amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of this amendment to increase funding of bilateral tuberculosis (TB) assistance, and I want to thank Representatives Engel (D-NY) and Green (D-TX) for joining me. The three of us are Co-Chairs of the Tuberculosis Elimination Caucus and have long worked toward that goal. This includes domestically, such as in the State of Alaska, which suffers from high per-capita TB rates in the United States, but also internationally. The U.S. Agency for International Development does a tremendous amount of work across the globe providing aid. One of its most important battles is against TB, which kills more people worldwide than any other infectious disease. In 2015 this amounted to 1.8 million people dying, out of the 10.4 million affected. This is more than HIV and Malaria combined. To make things worse, TB is preventable and curable. Imagine if the Centers for Disease Control came out and said next year there is going to be a new disease. That this disease is going to infect over 10 million people and kill almost 20 percent of them in just one year. I imagine we would take it very seriously. This is not an old world disease. TB is real and it is deadly. Pandemics of infectious disease in recent years have shown us the need to combat them ahead of time, not wait until it arrives at our shores. We have come a long way in combating TB, but more work needs to be done. This amendment makes that possible and I urge its adoption.