[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 171 (Tuesday, November 6, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H13183-H13198]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 3043, DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN 
 SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2008

  Mr. OBEY. Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 794, I call up 
the conference report on the bill (H.R. 3043) making appropriations for 
the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and 
related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2008, and for 
other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Tauscher). Pursuant to House Resolution 
794, the conference report is considered read.
  (For conference report and statement, see proceedings of the House of 
November 5, 2007, at page H12486.)
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Obey) and 
the gentleman from New York (Mr. Walsh) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Wisconsin.


                             General Leave

  Mr. OBEY. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include tabular and extraneous material on the conference report to 
accompany H.R. 3043.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Wisconsin?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. OBEY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 30 seconds.
  I think everyone understands what the legislation is before us, and I 
urge adoption of the conference report.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. WALSH of New York. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  I thank my chairman, Mr. Obey, for the hard work, the energy and the 
thought that went into this bill, and both the minority and the 
majority staff for the hard work that they did in preparing us for the 
culmination of this work.
  But I have to say, Madam Speaker, as someone who supported both of 
these bills that are contained in this conference report before us, I 
must admit to no small measure of frustration and disappointment with 
respect to where we stand today. I'm disappointed because this exercise 
embodies what is wrong with Washington.
  By lancing these two bills together, we ensure a Presidential veto of 
both. By combining these bills, it makes certain that neither will 
advance in a timely fashion. And tying them together guarantees that we 
will further delay vital and noncontroversial spending for our 
veterans; funding to provide our wounded warriors needed health care; 
funding to reduce the backlog in the processing of claims benefits; and 
funding to invest in our veterans hospitals and defense facilities, 
both here at home and abroad.
  I've said over and over, I can't figure out how anyone thinks that 
holding the veterans funding, which we all support, hostage to a bill 
that is going to be vetoed is good public policy. The fact is, everyone 
knows it's not good

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public policy; and, frankly, it's not even good politics. As former 
Appropriations Committee Chairman Bill Young asked, Give me one good 
government reason why joining these two bills makes sense.
  I supported both the Labor-HHS and the Military Construction-Veterans 
Appropriations bills when they came to the House earlier this year. I 
think they're both good bills, and they're both well designed by the 
chairmen and the ranking members.
  Chairman Obey and I have worked shoulder to shoulder on the Labor-HHS 
bill for several months now, and I am satisfied with this bill as it 
has been produced over the last several weeks. I think it is a fair 
compromise. Knowing the President is not going to sign the bill, I am 
optimistic that he will negotiate with us in good faith in the coming 
weeks so that we can produce a final product that he can sign and we 
can pass that preserves the important bipartisan priorities this 
legislation seeks to address.
  I am incredibly disappointed that leaders of this committee have been 
forced to yield to the political whims and flippant strategies of party 
leaders advancing this needless game of partisan one-upmanship.
  Appropriations has always been a committee of principle, a committee 
of good governance. Appropriators have traditionally cast aside 
politics for policy. Tonight, Madam Speaker, this committee has become 
the primary sponsor of a partisan stand-off, and that's a shame.
  My constituents sent me here to develop good policy. They sent me 
here to do the right thing. And the fact is that delaying vital funding 
for our veterans is not the right thing.
  I regret that we're here discussing this. I regret that we haven't 
seen the Military Construction-Veterans bill go to the White House. 
It's a bill that could have been sent a month ago.
  If the Senate sends the Labor-HHS bill back to us as a stand-alone 
conference report, I will vote for it. As importantly, I will be among 
the first to vote for a stand-alone Military Construction-Veterans 
conference report as soon as the House decides to appoint conferees, 
but the process that has been used to bring us to this point leaves a 
very bad taste in my mouth.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. OBEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 7 minutes to the distinguished 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Edwards), chairman of the Military 
Subcommittee.
  Mr. EDWARDS. Madam Speaker, let me first respond to my colleague and 
friend, the last speaker, who is highly critical of Democrats having 
the gall to combine the VA appropriation bill with another bill. I must 
say, if that is a crime, then some of my Republican colleagues would be 
serving a life sentence, because in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 they did 
exactly what they're criticizing tonight. They put the VA appropriation 
bill in other bills. And oh, by the way, they forgot to tell you, as 
they criticize us tonight for being 1 month late in passing the VA 
appropriation bill after Democrats have already led the charge to add 
$5.2 billion for veterans health care and benefits programs, they 
forgot to tell you they didn't pass a VA appropriation bill at all last 
year, not one month late, not two months late, not three months late, 
not four months late. They just simply didn't do it at all.
  So I think it would be fair for an objective person to raise a 
question of credibility when some in this House say one thing and do 
another. And by the way, when they talk about how, under Democratic 
leadership, we're late, just over a month now, in passing the 
appropriation bill, they conveniently seem to forget, I call it 
``politically convenient memory,'' maybe I should call it ``politically 
convenient loss of memory,'' they forget to say the last time under a 
Republican leadership they passed a VA appropriation bill on time 
wasn't 2005 or 2004 or 2003 or 2002 or 2001. It was 1996.
  But let's talk about the substance of this bill under the new 
leadership in Congress, because that's what this debate is all about. 
And I'm proud of that substance.
  This conference report sends a clear message to America's servicemen 
and women, their families, and our veterans that a grateful Nation 
deeply respects their service and sacrifice. This bill says to all who 
have served in uniform, just as you have kept your promise to our 
country, we intend to keep our promise to you.
  For our veterans, this is a historic bill under Democratic 
leadership, without precedent. We increase VA discretionary spending by 
$6.6 billion, which is $3.7 billion above the President's request.
  This bill represents the largest single increase in VA discretionary 
and health care funding in the 77-year history of the Veterans 
Administration, and our veterans have earned every dime through their 
service and sacrifice for our Nation.
  What this bill means, this bill crafted under Democratic leadership, 
to our veterans is this: more doctors and nurses for improved medical 
care, shorter waiting times for doctors appointments. It means case 
managers for Iraq war veterans with traumatic combat wounds. For those 
suffering from combat-related PTSD and mental health care issues, it 
means better and more timely services. For members of the National 
Guard and Reserve forces in rural areas, it means quality health care 
closer to home. And for many of the 2,000 homeless veterans on the 
streets of our Nation tonight, this bill means the dignity of housing 
and hope for the future.
  Let me mention seven major initiatives in this bill, Madam Speaker. 
First, we increase VA health care funding by $5.3 billion above last 
year's levels. It bears repeating this is the largest single increase 
in VA health care funding in our Nation's history.

                              {time}  2130

  When combined with the fiscal year 2000 continuing resolution passed 
under Democratic leadership and the 2007 Iraq supplemental bill passed 
earlier this year, listen to this my colleagues, this new Congress in 
less than 12 months under new leadership will have added $10.2 billion 
to improve millions of veterans' health care, and $11 billion in 
increase in VA discretionary spending, which includes health care and 
benefits.
  For the first time in the 21-year history of the veterans service 
organizations independent budget, led by the DAV, the VFW, AMVETS and 
Paralyzed Veterans of America and 52 other organizations, under 
Democratic leadership we meet and exceed the independent budget to the 
Veterans Health Administration, the first time, and will require no 
less than $2.9 billion be invested in PTSD and mental health care 
treatment for veterans.
  Our second initiative, and this is important, we had 1,800 new VA 
caseworkers to reduce unacceptable waiting times for VA benefits, 
waiting times that are averaging 6 months. Many of those veterans are 
combat wounded.
  A third initiative, for the first time since 1979 when gasoline 
prices were 90 cents a gallon, we increased the mileage reimbursement 
for veterans from 11 cents to 28\1/2\ cents. That is $78 more for a 
400-mile round trip for a veteran to get the care he or she needs at a 
VA hospital. It may not be a lot of money to some, but to many of our 
Nation's veterans it might mean the difference between making that trip 
or not.
  Fourth, for the first time in 5 years, we fund a real increase after 
inflation in VA medical research. That research will help millions of 
America's veterans live better, longer lives.
  Fifth, we increase VA construction by $870 million. Why? Because we 
want to ensure that not one veteran, not one, ever has to live with the 
indignity that many of our Army soldiers had to face at Walter Reed 
Hospital Annex 18.
  Six, under Democratic leadership, we recognize that our military 
spouses and children are truly the unsung heroes and heroines of our 
Nation's defense. They may not wear our Nation's uniform, but they 
sacrifice and serve every day. We take a new initiative, the military 
family initiative, in this bill, that I wish my Republican colleagues 
would join with us in voting for tonight, provide $130 million for 16 
new day care centers to help 3,500 military children get the day care 
they need.
  Seven, we fund $2.8 billion to continue growing the active Army and 
the Marines so that our Marines and Army soldiers can spend more time 
at home with the families they love and less time deployed overseas.

[[Page H13185]]

  We spend $21.5 billion in military construction, support operations, 
training, quality of life improvements for our service men and women. 
This is a $5.2 billion increase over fiscal year 2007. The DAV, one of 
America's most respected veterans organizations, urges this House to 
vote for this bill. Our veterans, our service men and women deserve 
that vote tonight.

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  Mr. WALSH of New York. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in an attempt to set the record straight with 
respect to recent history of funding for these important veterans 
programs. Certain speakers over the past several days have made 
statements that have, in the least, inferred that the manner in which 
we are being asked to vote for the veterans portion of this package 
before us is consistent with past practice. This is simply not the 
case.
  The facts of the matter are these: In 7 of 12 years of previous 
Republican control, funding for veterans was approved in stand-alone 
bills. In five of those cases, the conference report containing 
veterans funding was approved in September or October. In one case, the 
conference report was approved on November 8, and another was approved 
on November 18.
  In 4 of the remaining 5 years, veterans funding was included in 
multiple omnibus bills. But in all but one of these cases, the House 
had approved the stand-alone veterans bill. In all but two cases, the 
Senate passed a stand-alone bill. In one case, fiscal year 2003, the 
election year in which the Senate switched its majority, neither body 
approved a stand-alone bill.
  In every one of these 4 years, the omnibus bill that was finally 
approved was both fiscally responsible and negotiated openly by the 
House and the Senate bodies with full awareness and agreement of the 
executive branch. In the final circumstance, last year, the House 
approved a veterans bill before the beginning of the fiscal year and 
waited until the day before Congress adjourned for the Senate to 
appoint conferees.
  Unfortunately, such appointment occurred too late to act. As we saw, 
when we had the majority in the House, there was a tremendous amount of 
frustration with the other body in closing some of these conferences 
out. I suspect my good friends on the other side of the aisle are 
experiencing similar frustration this evening.
  Although funding for our veterans has found its way to these 
deserving Americans in more than one manner, the real point here is 
that not once in the past 12 years or even before that, as far as I am 
aware, has such funding for veterans been placed in jeopardy in the 
manner that it is being placed tonight. Never has it been paired with a 
bill that everyone is certain will be vetoed. Never has it been used as 
a pawn to force the President to choose veterans over other programs, 
no matter how important they may be.
  Madam Speaker, as many of my friends are wont to say, people are 
entitled to their own opinions but not to their own facts. In the 
debate regarding the funding for our veterans, it is particularly 
important that the facts are not distorted for political purposes.

          Veterans Funding History Under Republican Congresses

       FY 1996: Stand alone VA-HUD conference report passed in 
     December. Subsequently vetoed, and wrapped into an Omnibus 
     which passed the following Spring (4/25/96). House passed 
     conference report 12/7/95. Senate passed conference report 
     12/14/95. President vetoed conference report 12/18/95. 
     Enacted as part of the Omnibus 4/25/96.
       FY 1997: Stand alone VA-HUD conference report enacted 
     before the end of the fiscal year (9/26/06). House passed 
     conference report 9/24/96. Senate passed conference report 9/
     25/96. President signed conference report 9/26/96.
       FY 1998: Stand alone VA-HUD conference report enacted in 
     October (10/27/97). House passed conference report 10/8/97. 
     Senate passed conference report 10/9/97. President signed 
     conference report 10/27/97.
       FY 1999: Stand alone VA-HUD conference report enacted in 
     October (10/21/98). House passed conference report 10/6/98. 
     Senate passed conference report 10/8/98. President signed 
     conference report 10/21/98.
       FY 2000: Stand alone VA-HUD conference report enacted in 
     October (10/20/99). House passed conference report 10/14/99. 
     Senate passed conference report 10/15/99. President signed 
     conference report 10/20/99.
       FY 2001: VA-HUD conference report enacted in October with 
     the Energy and Water attached (10/27/00). Energy and Water 
     conference was previously vetoed and the revised E&W 
     agreement was included within the VA-HUD conference 
     agreement. House passed conference report 10/19/00. Senate 
     passed conference report 10/19/00. President signed 
     conference report 10/27/00.
       FY 2002: Stand alone VA-HUD conference report enacted in 
     November (11/26/01). House passed conference report 11/8/01. 
     Senate passed conference report 11/8/01. President signed 
     conference report 11/26/01.
       FY 2003: Neither the House nor Senate passed a VA-HUD bill 
     (nor did they pass 9 other appropriations bills). This was 
     the year the Senate changed parties in the 2002 election. The 
     omnibus which was enacted in February 2003 contained 11 of 
     the 13 appropriations bills. House passed omnibus conference 
     report 2/13/03. Senate passed omnibus conference report 2/13/
     03. President signed omnibus conference report 2/13/03.
       FY 2004: Senate did not pass the VA-HUD bill until November 
     18, 2003. The bill was wrapped into an omnibus conference 
     report which was filed one week after Senate passage (11/25/
     03) that included 7 of 13 appropriations bills.
       The House passed the omnibus in December (12/8/03), however 
     a filibuster in the Senate delayed passage of the omnibus 
     conference report until January (1/22/04) and the omnibus was 
     enacted the next day (1/23/04). House passed omnibus 
     conference report 12/08/03. Senate passed omnibus conference 
     report 1/22/04. President signed omnibus conference report 1/
     23/04.
       FY 2005: Senate never passed the VA-HUD bill. The bill was 
     wrapped into an omnibus which contained 9 of the 13 
     appropriations bills. The omnibus conference report was 
     enacted in December (12/8/04). House passed omnibus 
     conference report 11/20/04. Senate passed omnibus conference 
     report 11/20/04. President signed omnibus conference report 
     12/08/04.
       FY 2006: Stand alone Military Quality of Life-VA conference 
     report enacted in November (11/30/05). House passed 
     conference report 11/18/05. Senate passed conference report 
     11/18/05. President signed conference report 11/30/06.
       FY 2007: Senate did not pass the Military Quality of Life-
     VA bill until November (11/14/06) and did not appoint 
     conferees until December (12/06/06) due to objections over 
     earmarks. The bill was wrapped into an omnibus continuing 
     resolution enacted in February 2007 (2/15/07) which contained 
     9 of the 11 appropriations bills.

  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. OBEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 15 seconds to the gentleman from 
Texas.
  Mr. EDWARDS. Madam Speaker, facts are a stubborn thing. These are the 
facts. In the last 5 years under Republican leadership, only one time, 
only one time under Republican House leadership did they send a VA 
appropriation bill to the President as a free-standing bill. And in one 
of those 5 years, they didn't send any bills at all. Those are the 
facts.
  Mr. WALSH of New York. Madam Speaker, at this time, I yield 4 minutes 
to the member of the subcommittee, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. 
Weldon).
  Mr. WELDON of Florida. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for 
yielding.
  I rise to say while I am pleased with many of the provisions in this 
bill, and I certainly want to commend the chairman particularly for a 
hard-fought negotiation with the other body on the issue of getting a 
toxic substance, mercury, out of the injections that we give little 
babies, I have to vote ``no'' on this conference report. I want to make 
very clear that there is an important, I think, distinction. There has 
been a lot of discussion back and forth about how we had combined 
appropriations bills in the past as the majority is doing today. At 
least my recollection of the facts in the past, we were forced to 
combine appropriations bills typically because there was a problem 
getting these bills through the other body because they wanted more 
spending and we wanted less spending.
  The purpose of the combination here tonight is to achieve more 
spending. Now, I saw a poll recently, and it truly amazed me, if you 
asked the American people a question, do you think the Federal 
Government taxes and spends too much, you get about 85 percent of 
Americans agree with that statement. Indeed, a majority of Democrats 
feel that we tax and spend too much. This bill increases spending $21.2 
billion over last year.
  Now, the majority has been very quick to point out this is less than 
what we will spend in 2 months in Iraq and Afghanistan as if we can't 
deal with those problems and we can walk away from them. I think we 
have all agreed in this body, we have to try to see the war on terror 
and the challenges we have there through. But the important point with 
those conflicts is they will some day end; whereas, the money that is 
going in this bill will be incorporated in the baseline, and next year, 
all of these dollars will be increased another, I don't know, what, 3, 
4, 5 percent. Depending on how you do the calculations, this $21 
billion of increased spending could be $200 billion

[[Page H13192]]

in 7 years, 10 years, and in my opinion, we have a responsibility to 
make tough decisions. And this bill is an attempt to achieve additional 
spending over and above the President's request. In my opinion, it just 
goes too far.
  I also want to just mention one other item. There are a lot of items 
in this bill. We cut the Department of Labor 20 percent that oversees 
our unions. When I first got on this committee, I have to say, I was 
shocked to see the loose degree of regulation and oversight that we 
have. The unions have to file a document called an LM-2, which details 
all their spending. And I saw a document from one union. It was a big 
union. They had taken in about $78 million. It was one page on one 
side. The reason it had gotten so bad is because, under the previous 
administration, oversight had been very, very lax. And this 
administration, because it is the union workers' money, and how it gets 
spent needs to be monitored because sometimes it is abused, and it is 
funneled into political operations inappropriately, this bill reduces 
that level of oversight. Now, I think that is taking us in a wrong 
direction.
  While there are a lot of features in this bill I think are good, I am 
forced to vote ``no'' on the conference report.
  Mr. OBEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished 
Speaker of the House.
  Ms. PELOSI. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. I 
thank him for his leadership in bringing this important legislation to 
the floor. I commend Chairman Obey for his leadership of the 
Appropriations Committee, particularly on the Labor, Health and Human 
Services and Education Subcommittee on which I had the privilege to 
serve for a number of years. I commend the chairman of the Veterans 
Quality of Life Subcommittee, Mr. Edwards, for his extraordinary 
leadership on behalf of America's veterans.
  Everyone who wants to honor our promises to our veterans, everyone 
who salutes their service to our country owes a deep debt of gratitude 
to you, Mr. Edwards, for your extraordinary leadership.
  Madam Speaker, our national budget should be a statement of our 
national values. The legislation that we debate here today invests in 
America's correct priorities. It includes the largest increase in 
veterans benefits in the 77-year history of the Veterans 
Administration, and potentially life-saving biomedical research, and it 
does it all in a fiscally sound way.
  Madam Speaker, I have a long speech this evening. But in the interest 
of time, I am going to submit it for the Record and just say two 
things, because the main focus of this legislation is on our veterans 
and the other is on the investments made by the Labor, Health and Human 
Services and Education Subcommittee.
  In the military, it is said that we leave no soldier behind on the 
battlefield, and when they come home, we promise here in this House 
that we will leave no veteran behind. This legislation fulfills that 
promise to our veterans. The President has said that he will perhaps 
veto this bill. I hope that he will have a change of heart and a change 
of mind in that regard because those who care about our veterans, and I 
believe that includes everyone, I know everyone in this Chamber and in 
the Senate, in the Congress and in the country wants them to have what 
they have earned and what they deserve.
  In terms of the other aspects of the bill, I bring to the floor some 
deep concerns about the priorities that the President is criticizing in 
this bill. The President says he will veto any bill that is $1 more 
than what he has asked for in his budget. In this bill, we have $1.4 
billion more for the National Institutes of Health. That isn't even 
enough to meet their needs, to meet the requests for grants that they 
have in any responsible way. But it is $1.4 billion more than what the 
President requests. And I can't help but juxtaposition the war in Iraq 
with this budget today. In the war in Iraq, we spend about 10, $12 
billion a month, some of it unaccounted for, some of it in no-bid 
contracts, some of it in no-performance contracts, some of it the money 
has just disappeared. Democrats, in taking over the majority, have 
tried to hold the administration accountable. What we are finding is 
that it is hard to find some of that money. At the same time, consider 
this. As the President is spending 10 to $12 billion a month in Iraq, 
we spend 5 billion, $5\1/2\ billion a year on cancer research.

                              {time}  2145

  In America, 550,000 people die of cancer each year. That doesn't 
count those who are diagnosed, those who are suffering with; I am just 
talking about 550,000 people who die of cancer. Wouldn't it be better 
for us to invest more money? Say we doubled the biomedical research for 
cancer research from $5.5 billion to $10 billion or $11 billion in a 
year. Think of the return that that could be in scientific advancement. 
We know the scientific opportunity is there.
  The heads of the National Institutes of Health, the National Cancer 
Institute, the Centers for Disease Control, all the entities of 
government that deal with the health of the American people want more 
investments in their budgets; and yet their boss, the President of the 
United States, who has appointed them, has dismissed their professional 
judgment on these issues, and not only failed to fund, but threatened 
to veto if we in Congress try to meet those needs.
  Across America, almost every family, certainly probably every family 
in this body, has been affected by cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, 
diabetes, HIV/AIDS, you name it, the list goes on, all of which would 
benefit by a bigger, more robust investment in basic biomedical 
research in the budget of the National Institutes of Health. So that is 
why this bill is so important, because it directly relates to health 
and well-being of the American people and it directly relates to our 
national security and how we honor our commitment and our promises to 
our veterans.
  I wish the President were here, and I wish the rules of this House 
would allow us to address him directly because it's a mystery to me and 
I wonder how anyone who might consider our national budget a statement 
of our national values could possibly say that although I know that 
hundreds of thousands of people in this country are dying of cancer, 
and although I know that scientific opportunity exists that we are 
ignoring. We have a moral responsibility to fund that opportunity, that 
scientific opportunity, but which we are ignoring by the President's 
call for a veto. How do you justify that?
  So, my colleagues, I think it is really important that we send a 
message to the President in the only way that the rules allow us to do 
in this House, and that is to send it with this bill to the President's 
desk with a very, very strong vote, a vote for the health and well-
being of the American people. How do you explain to your constituents 
that we cannot afford to find cures for cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes, 
as I said, and the list goes on, but we can afford to spend $1 trillion 
in Iraq, much of it unaccounted for, and do that all at the same time?
  I urge my colleagues to think about your friends, think about your 
neighbors, think about your families, think about your own 
responsibility to a healthy America when you make this vote, because 
you can make all the difference in the world. I think that we should 
vote as if the lives of our constituents depended upon this vote, 
because they certainly do. With that, I urge a ``yes'' vote on this 
important legislation and once again commend the presenters of this 
legislation for their great leadership.
  Our budget is a statement of our values.
  The legislation we debate today invests in American priorities: it 
includes the largest increase in veterans spending in the 77-year 
history of the VA, and potentially lifesaving medical research, and it 
does so in a fiscally responsible way.
  These bills have passed the House and Senate with the strong 
bipartisan majorities they deserve.
  The President has said he will veto these bills. But allow me to make 
the case that these are investments that are necessary and right.
  The Labor-HHS spending bill has been historically called the 
``People's Bill.'' It is where Congress addresses the aspirations of 
the American people: the economic security of their families, the 
health and well being of their families, and the education of their 
children.
  Today, this bill is once again the ``People's Bill.''
  This is because it makes crucial investments in the health of all 
Americans: every dollar spent on NIH research is returned to us 
manifold: in improved quality of life and millions of lives saved.

[[Page H13193]]

  We should be proud that NIH supported researchers have made the 
United States the world leader in biomedical and behavioral research, 
creating thousands of jobs and new businesses in the process.
  But in order to build upon past scientific achievements, address 
current medical needs, and anticipate future health challenges, we must 
make investments today.
  We stand today on the precipice of countless scientific 
breakthroughs. For example, mapping of the human genome has greatly 
advanced our knowledge about the links between genetics and diseases.
  Scientists are working right now to identify genetic changes that 
increase and decrease risk for cancer, to determine patterns of protein 
markers for very early detection of cancer, and to better treat and 
cure the disease.
  By funding these critical investments, we can declare a national war 
on cancer--a disease that kills 550,000 Americans a year.
  In my hometown, NIH is funding cutting edge research at the San 
Francisco VA Medical Center on the health of our veterans. Right now, 
scientists are breaking new ground in the diagnosis, prevention and 
management of disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder, 
traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries that result from 
combat.
  No group of Americans has stood stronger and braver for our Nation 
than those who serve in the Armed Forces. From the bitter cold winter 
at Valley Forge to the boiling hot Iraqi terrain, our soldiers have 
courageously answered when called, gone where ordered, and defended our 
Nation with honor. They have done everything asked of them.
  How we repay that service speaks volumes about our national 
character.
  I want to thank all of our veterans and military service 
organizations who have long advocated for the funding contained in this 
bill.
  I also want to thank Chairman Spratt, Chairman Obey, and Chairman 
Edwards for their leadership and their dedication to those who have 
worn our Nation's uniform.
  This bill provides $6.6 billion more than last year and $3.7 billion 
more than the President's budget. These are dollars well-invested.
  For example in this bill:
  We provide quality healthcare to 5.8 million America veterans, 
including 263,000 who have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.
  We ensure that the veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan--one 
third of whom will be suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and 
300,000 who are expected to suffer from Traumatic Brain Injury--get the 
best treatment possible. We will ensure the poly-trauma centers and 
Centers of Excellence for Mental Health and PTSD are fully operational.
  For our veterans living in rural areas, this bill will increase the 
travel reimbursement rates for those who travel long distances to the 
nearest VA facility.
  These benefits have been earned. These are the benefits our veterans 
deserve.
  Madam Speaker, on this coming Monday, our Nation will honor its 
veterans with Veterans Day. But in this body, every day should be 
Veterans Day. On the battlefield, the military pledges to leave no 
soldier behind. As a Nation, let it be our promise that when they 
return home, we leave no veteran behind.
  Today, we are delivering on that promise.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Mr. WALSH of New York. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Lewis), the distinguished 
ranking member of the Appropriations Committee.
  Mr. LEWIS of California. Madam Speaker, I appreciate my colleague 
yielding me this time and rise simply to say that one of the most 
important things for all of us to recognize on both sides of the aisle 
is that the American public is absolutely sick and tired of seeing us 
doing purely partisan battle in the name of serving the public.
  Over the years, if there's an arena where we have come together in a 
totally nonpartisan way, it has been in support of our veterans. To 
hear my friend, my colleague from Texas, this evening painting veterans 
affairs programs in partisan terms, as though this is a partisan 
political game, would cause our colleague Sonny Montgomery to turn over 
in his grave. Absolutely he would find this style unacceptable.
  Our veteran service organizations know an awful lot better than we do 
how important it is that we strike a nonpartisan tone. In this arena we 
have the opportunity to come together, Democrats and Republicans, on 
behalf of the American people. I urge us to get back to that pattern 
that says this is not a partisan game. We all, Democrats and 
Republicans, support our veterans. The record has already been laid out 
that will make that very, very clear to anybody who would but take the 
time to read it.
  Above and beyond that, Madam Speaker, it is very likely that this 
package will be vetoed by the President, largely because the President 
is trying to strike a tone which says you don't solve every problem 
that faces the American public by way of simply throwing money at those 
problems. There are those who think that government is the only 
solution and the only way to get to an end is by throwing mud at the 
wall and hoping some will stick.
  In the arena that involves fundamental and basic research leading to 
better health care for all Americans, when we played a nonpartisan 
role, we have gotten very, very positive results. I think the public 
recognizes that the sooner we can get this House to come together and 
bring our people together, the more progress we are going to make. It's 
long past due that we recognize that we do our best work by going to 
the subcommittee level and setting aside partisan politics, knowing 
full well that our Appropriation Committee works extremely well with 
the give-and-take and compromise that happens at the subcommittee 
level. Some way this year in this House we have gotten away from this. 
If we continue on this pattern, I predict that we are going to destroy 
the Appropriations Committee as we know it.
  Now, one more thing. The President will veto this bill. I predict his 
veto will be sustained. Then this House will come back and hopefully in 
a nonpartisan way, I say to my friend from Texas, in a nonpartisan way 
pass a bill that reflects all of our support for America's veterans.
  Mr. OBEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Edwards).
  Mr. EDWARDS. Madam Speaker, I would like to respond to my colleague 
Mr. Lewis's comments. He said he doesn't like partisan politics. I 
agree. Let me tell you what is partisan politics on this bill. Partisan 
politics is having the Republican majority in this house for 12 years 
and not passing a VA appropriation bill on time since 1996, and then 
coming to the floor of this House on a bill I worked with the 
Republicans on a bipartisan basis on, come to the floor of this House 
and say it is shameful that we are now 1 month late in passing a VA 
appropriation bill, while ignoring the fact that under Democratic 
leadership we have already added more money for VA health care funding 
and benefits this year, $5.2 billion, than the Republicans ever passed. 
That is partisan politics.
  I will tell you what partisan politics is, Madam Speaker. It is 
members of the Republican Caucus in this House coming to this floor and 
chastising Democrats for having the audacity to put the VA 
appropriation bill with another appropriation bill, when the ugly fact 
is they don't want to admit that in four of the last five years they 
did exactly what they are criticizing tonight. Mr. Lewis, that is what 
partisan politics is.
  What is good for veterans is what the DAV has said is on this floor 
tonight, what the Disabled American Veterans have said should be passed 
in this House. I would urge my Republican colleagues to join with us 
and vote together on a bipartisan basis for the largest increase in the 
history of VA health care funding.
  Democrats promised a new direction for veterans, and tonight and all 
this year we have delivered on that promise. When we came into the 
majority in January of this year, under Republican leadership they had 
frozen VA health care funding and our VA hospitals were struggling to 
keep up with care for Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. What did we 
do? We increased VA health care and benefits funding by $5.2 billion, 
and then we passed a budget resolution to provide an additional $6.6 
billion in increased funding for veterans health care and for other 
veterans benefits, including benefits to combat wounded veterans. I am 
disappointed that every Republican who spoke on the floor tonight about 
wanting to support veterans and wanting to be bipartisan voted against 
the budget resolution led by Democrats to provide an unprecedented 
increase in veterans spending.
  So, yes, Madam Speaker, there has been partisan politics played with 
this bill. But at the end of the debate, I hope my colleagues, 
Republicans and

[[Page H13194]]

Democrats alike, will listen to the words of the Disabled American 
Veterans and pass what in their words is the best bill that has ever 
been provided for veterans, the largest increase for veterans health 
care spending in our Nation's history.
  Mr. WALSH of New York. Madam Speaker, I yield myself just a few brief 
moments, but first I would like to ask the chairman if he has any 
additional speakers.
  Mr. OBEY. I have one remaining speaker--me.
  Mr. WALSH of New York. In that case I will wrap up.
  I would just like to express to my good friend and colleague, the 
chairman of the Military Construction and Veterans' Affairs Committee, 
that I envy him the ability to say tonight that he has provided, his 
subcommittee bill has provided, the greatest increase in the history of 
veterans spending, because I was able to do that four times myself, and 
it is a great feeling. It is a credit to the subcommittee.
  I do believe that is a good bill. I think it is just really 
unfortunate that we had to put these two bills together and put them 
both at risk.
  With that, Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. OBEY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Wisconsin is recognized 
for 18\1/4\ minutes.
  Mr. OBEY. First of all, Madam Speaker, I will not take the full time, 
but I simply want to rise to thank the staff that has helped to put 
these bills together: Cheryl Smith, Sue Quantius, Nicole Kunko, Teri 
Bergman, Andria Oliver, Beth Chaney, Rob Nabors, David Reich, Kirstin 
Brost, Lesley Turner, John Daniel, Christina Hamilton, Steve Crane, 
Anne Marie Goldsmith, Ron Anderson, all the associate staff and the 
staff on both sides of the aisle.
  I also want to express my appreciation to Mr. Walsh. He is a good man 
and I think he understands these issues very thoroughly.
  Having said that, I would like to spend just a few moments to talk 
about what this debate is really about, because, so far, it has skirted 
around the edges.
  The fact is that last November the public sent two messages to 
Washington. The first is that they wanted a change in Iraqi policy and 
the second is that they wanted a change in priorities here at home.
  The President has decided to stiff the American public and reject 
both of those messages. First, what he is saying to the American people 
is forget what message you thought you were sending in the last 
election. I am the great decider and we are going to do things my way. 
That is what is happening here.
  The President isn't just stiffing the Congress when he says that he 
will veto any appropriation bill that departs from his budget ceiling 
by one dollar. He is also stiffing the American people, who made it 
quite clear that they thought very little of his budget and foreign 
policy priorities.
  Since that time, since the election, the President had said ``stay 
the course'' in Iraq, and in addition to the gargantuan defense budget 
that he has asked for, he is also asking for $200 billion in additional 
spending just to deal with the war that he started.

                              {time}  2200

  He is also saying stay the course when it comes to the $60 billion we 
are providing this year in tax cuts for people who make a million 
dollars a year. But at the same time, Madam Speaker, he is saying oh, 
tut, tut, tut, we cannot afford to invest here at home, so he sends the 
Congress a budget which cuts $16 billion out of education, out of 
health care, out of science, out of law enforcement and other critical 
domestic national priorities. And then he threatens to veto any 
appropriation bill that departs from his great wisdom.
  Well, let's walk through where this bill would be and what it would 
look like tonight if we had followed the President's budget advice. If 
this bill did what the President wanted to do in his budget, it would 
be cutting vocational education by 50 percent. Is there anybody on 
either side of the aisle who is shortsighted enough to think that is a 
good idea?
  If we had followed his instructions, we would have eliminated every 
student aid program on the books except Work-Study and Pell Grants.
  In the area of handicapped education, there are a number of Members 
on the Republican side of the aisle who have made that their number one 
priority. They want to raise funds for special education. The President 
suggested we cut $300 million out of that program. Even the Republican 
Party objected in the House to that, and they raised the money that I 
had provided in the chairman's mark above the mark that we had 
provided, and we restored a significant amount of money to that 
program.
  The President wanted us to cut mental health services by $100 
million. He wanted us to cut funds that teach medical personnel how to 
deal with illness in children's hospitals by 63 percent. The President 
wanted us to cut rural health programs by 54 percent. He wanted us to 
cut the Low-Income Heating Assistance Program by 18 percent. We have 
rejected those cuts, and this House on a bipartisan basis provided 53 
Republican votes for this bill as it left the House.
  Now some people say this bill spends too much. This bill is a billion 
dollars less than it was when it left the House because we cut that in 
a concession to our minority party Members.
  We have also in the bill respected a good many Republican priorities 
and respected a good many Republican initiatives, and in the process we 
have cut $1 billion.
  Surely, surely at a time when we are spending $200 billion or close 
to it in Iraq, surely we can spend the equivalent of what we spend in 
Iraq in 6 weeks in order to meet high-priority domestic needs in the 
education, health, and job training areas.
  Now our Republican friends cry newly found crocodile tears because we 
are also marrying this bill up with the military construction bill. 
Well, it seems to me if we can't agree on the advisability of the war, 
at least we ought to be able to agree how we feel about the warriors. 
And what we are doing in this bill is adding $3.5 billion for veterans 
health care. And we paid for it. We paid for it by making an identical 
reduction in the Defense appropriation bill, but that didn't suit the 
President. He said you have to pay for it again, and so he has issued 
this dictate that we pay for this increase in veterans health care 
twice by now going in and cutting other domestic programs by $3.5 
billion. And that is why we are marrying these two bills together, 
because we want the public to see what the specifics are. We want the 
public to see what the domestic priorities are that would have to be 
cut if the President wants us to double pay for the bill we have 
already paid for in increasing veterans health care by $3.5 billion.
  Now the President says he is going to veto any bill we send him, and 
the House Republican leadership says they already have the votes to 
sustain any veto the President makes. So we have a choice. We can sit 
here like potted palms and do nothing and supinely roll over to the 
President's dictation; or we can try to make it as uncomfortable as 
possible for him to be irresponsible and unnecessarily confrontational. 
And that's what we are trying to do.
  We are sending these bills to the Senate because it is the right 
thing to do. And as the gentleman from Texas points out, when the 
minority says that this is an unprecedented act, that is absolute 
nonsense, because they did the same thing four times themselves; nary a 
peep from anybody on that side of the aisle then.
  I would simply make one last point. We have heard the slogan ``better 
late than never.'' Well, last year the Republicans decided rather than 
being late, they chose never. And they delivered not one dollar, not 
one dollar in additional expenditures for veterans health care, and it 
fell to us after they shut this Congress down and went home without 
appropriating a single dollar in veterans health care. It was left to 
us to fix that mess and to add over $3.5 billion in new funding for 
veterans. We did it last year. We are doing it again this year. We have 
made it our number one priority.
  But that isn't what the boys and the girls on the other side of the 
aisle want to talk about. They want to obscure a few facts. And here 
they are:

[[Page H13195]]

  In health care, the President cut funding for the primary Federal 
agencies responsible for increasing health care access in this country. 
This conference report rejects those cuts and provides $1.5 billion 
above the President's request to provide programs to improve health 
care access for the millions of Americans that don't have it. We do 
that at the cost of 5 days of what we spend in Iraq.
  On education, the President cut funding for the Department of 
Education by $1.2 billion. This conference report rejects those cuts. 
We invest $4.5 billion above the President's request to the Department 
of Education, roughly the cost of 2 weeks in Iraq. And by doing that, 
we provide strong increases for Pell Grants, Head Start and various 
other education programs.
  In job training, the President cut the largest job training in 
vocational education programs by $1.2 billion. This conference report 
rejects those cuts and invests $1.3 billion above the President's 
request, roughly the cost of 4 days of the war in Iraq.
  In medical research, the President cut funding for medical research 
at the National Institutes of Health by $480 million. I have never had 
anybody in my life come to me and say, ``Obey, why don't you guys in 
Washington get together and cut cancer research.'' But that's what the 
previous Congress did in each of the last 2 years. They cut 1,100 
grants out of the National Institutes of Health with the complicity of 
this President. We are saying no way. Let's have an end to that 
nonsense. We reject those cuts. We invest $1.4 billion above the 
President's request, roughly the cost of 3 days of fighting in Iraq.
  For economic development, in helping to alleviate poverty, the 
President slashed those programs by over a billion dollars. We rejected 
those cuts, costing roughly 4 days of what we spend in Iraq.
  Lastly, the Low-Income Heating Assistance Program. The President 
comes from an oil State. He knows energy prices have skyrocketed, but 
he has cut LIHEAP by $380 million in his budget. We have rejected those 
cuts and invested $630 million more than the President's request, 
roughly the cost of 2 days of activity in Iraq.
  So we are left with this. We are left with two arguments. We hear 
some of our Republican friends say we are going to vote ``no,'' we are 
going to vote against the Labor-Health-Education bill because we don't 
like the fact that the bill also contains the veterans funding. And we 
hear others say we are going to vote ``no'' on the Military 
Construction bill because we don't like the fact that it contains too 
much for education and health. Those are two beauties as reasons for 
voting against this bill.
  I want to see whether the minority party Members of this House, I 
want to see whether they are going to be following the wishes of their 
constituents or whether they have their votes tied once again lock, 
stock and barrel to the President's desk. I want to see if they came 
here to represent their constituents or be another set of lemmings 
jumping off the cliff once again for this President. We will find out 
on that vote tonight. I hope we see the right vote.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support 
of the Conference Report on the Labor, Health and Human Services and 
Education and Military Construction/Veterans Affairs Appropriations 
bills. This bill begins to correct key deficits in biomedical research, 
elementary and secondary education, job training, and health care for 
veterans and civilians alike, and sets out a clear, sustainable vision 
for the future. I want to thank and congratulate Chairman Obey, Ranking 
Member Walsh, the Conferees and their staff for putting together such 
an excellent bill, one which will bring needed relief to so many of our 
constituents.
  The President, of course, has vowed to veto this bill, because he 
believes it costs too much, that we can't afford to make these 
investments in cancer research, in Head Start, in economic development. 
Meanwhile, the President is asking us to spend an additional $200 
billion this year alone in his misguided war in Iraq. The amount by 
which this bill exceeds the President's request, $9.8 billion, would 
pay for approximately 1 month of that war. Instead, this bill would use 
that money to help States provide health coverage to people with pre-
existing conditions, help college-ready low-income students afford 
higher education, and help low-income individuals and their families 
keep their homes warm in the wintertime--a wintertime that could well 
feature oil at costs in excess of $100 a barrel.
  The President says we can't afford to make these investments; I 
believe we can't afford not to. These are investments which pay 
dividends over time, investments which will keep America strong, 
competitive, and healthy. While I strongly support this Conference 
Report, I would be remiss if I didn't express my concern that this bill 
includes a $27.8 million increase for abstinence education programs, 
which research has shown to be ineffective, and worse, often medically 
inaccurate. Since 2001, we have spent more than $1 billion on these 
programs, some of which tell our children that using condoms is ``like 
Russian Roulette,'' and that HIV/AIDS can be transmitted through skin-
to-skin contact.
  Madam Speaker, teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections are 
serious problems that demand serious solutions. Of course we should 
want to delay the onset of sexual activity in our children--what parent 
of a teenager wouldn't want that? But we cannot let that desire blind 
us to the very real fact that teenagers, despite our best intentions, 
will and do have sex, and that our wanting them not to does not absolve 
us of our obligation to protect them and keep them safe.
  Pretending that sexual activity among teenagers does not exist will 
not reduce the number of new sexually transmitted infections; it will 
not reduce the number of teenage girls who become pregnant; and it will 
not reduce the number of abortions performed every year.
  I want to thank Chairman Obey for including language in this 
Conference Report to ensure that programs will not be funded that are 
medically inaccurate. I hope that in the future, we can continue to 
work together to ensure that our children receive high quality, 
science-based, age-appropriate sex education that is medically sound 
and free from ideological or religious bias. Despite my concerns about 
this program, Madam Speaker, I am proud to support this important bill 
and urge my colleagues to do the same, so that we can get needed funds 
to these critical programs as soon as possible.
  Mr. CARDOZA. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of this 
conference report and want to single out one provision that is vital if 
we are going to protect our children.
  I want to thank Chairman Obey for including language in this 
conference report adopted by the Senate which includs $500,000 for a 
feasibility study for a National Registry of Substantiated Cases of 
Child Abuse or Neglect, as described in the Adam Walsh Child Protection 
Act. I also want to thank my home state colleague, Senator Dianne 
Feinstein, who was instrumental in getting the Senate to adopt this 
important provision.
  The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act was signed into law in 
July of 2006. This landmark piece of legislation served to reform the 
Federal standards for sex offender registration, enhances criminal 
penalties for sex offenders, creates and amends various grant programs 
to protect children, and called for the creation of a National Child 
Abuse Registry to further protect America's children.
  Unfortunately, child abuse is a huge problem and the statistics tell 
a troubling story. Each week, child protective services, CPS, agencies 
throughout the United States receive more than 50,000 reports of 
suspected child abuse or neglect. In 2002, 2.6 million reports 
concerning the welfare of approximately 4.5 million children were made.
  In over two-thirds of these cases, an assessment or investigation 
followed. As a result of these investigations, approximately 896,000 
children were found to have been victims of abuse or neglect--an 
average of more than 2,450 children per day.
  As the parent of two children adopted from foster care, I am 
particularly concerned about the number of children in the foster care 
system who have been physically abused.
  People who work in the foster care system estimate that the 
percentages of boys and girls in foster care who have been physically 
abused is as high as 75 percent. Many came into foster care initally 
because of physical abuse and others are children who were revictimized 
while in foster care.
  This is unconscionable. All children, no matter what their 
background, deserve to grow up in a stable and loving home.
  The Adam Walsh Act addresses this problem by directing the Secretary 
of Health and Human Services to establish the National Registry which 
would be available to child protection authorities for use as a 
resource in tracking previous instances of child maltreatment in order 
to enable child protection workers to be better equipped with relevant 
information in assessing cases.
  Each State already collects information on substantiated cases of 
abuse and neglect, but once an investigation is under way, adult 
perpetrators need only to move to another State to escape detection and 
punishment. This National Registry will address this loophole and 
ensure that violators, no matter where they live, can be brought to 
justice.

[[Page H13196]]

  Unfortunately, the Registry has not come to fruition. This 
legislation would require the Department of Health and Human Services 
to complete the study on the feasibility of establishing the Registry 
within a year of enactment.
  The President should sign this conference report and enact this vital 
provision. We must do a better job of protecting our Nation's most 
vital resource, our children, and this money will help us in that 
effort.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, thank you to Chairman Obey and Ranking 
Member Walsh and their staffs for their hard work in crafting this 
bill.
  This conference report goes a long way towards addressing the current 
and future needs of millions of Americans and their families.
  It provides relief for families that desperately need child care and 
afterschool programs; for teachers anxious to receive classroom 
training or professional development; for students who won't be able to 
attend college without an increase in the maximum Pell Grant; and for 
the elderly who depend on LIHEAP to help pay for the rising cost of 
home heating oil.

  What some of my friends on the other side of the aisle who intend to 
vote against this conference report don't seem to understand is that 
the programs funded in this bill literally make a life-or-death 
difference in the lives of millions of American families who are 
struggling to make ends meet.
  We find a way to pay $12 billion every month for the war in Iraq, yet 
some of you will fight tooth and nail against the additional $9.8 
billion in this bill that will help 436,000 more disadvantaged children 
receive math and reading assistance; or 130,000 more children receive 
afterschool care; or support 600 additional research grants at NIH; or 
provide 1.2 million uninsured Americans access to healthcare at 
community health centers.
  It is outrageous, and it is unconscionable.
  Chairman Obey should be commended for what he accomplished in this 
bill, and I urge every member in this body to support the conference 
report.
  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of this 
bill.
  The conference report includes funding for many important programs 
and I recognize that the conferees had a challenging task in shaping 
the report because of budget constraints. Overall, I think the report 
is a good one and I hope that the President will change his mind and 
sign it.
  This conference report funds our military construction needs and 
keeps our commitment to veterans, with the largest single funding 
increase in the history of the Department of Veterans Affairs. The 
report provides needed funding for veterans' medical care--both for VA 
hospitals and clinics as well as for research into conditions such as 
Traumatic Brain Injury and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, both of 
which are common problems facing Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. The 
report also includes funding to provide 1800 new claims processors to 
address the 400,000 benefit claims backlog.
  I am pleased that key funding for Colorado installations and 
facilities has also been included in this report.
  The report includes $7.3 million for a new F-16 facility for the 
140th Air Wing of the Colorado Air National Guard at Buckley Air Force 
Base (AFB). I led the Colorado delegation this year in securing this 
funding, which will help the Guard replace an outdated facility that 
can no longer provide proper security and communications to support one 
of its key missions--to fly F-16s in support of homeland defense. The 
soldiers and airmen of the Colorado National Guard who are activated 
and deployed to support our homeland defense deserve this safe and 
modern facility.
  The report also includes $61.3 million for the Fitzsimons Veterans 
Hospital, another key priority for the Colorado delegation. The funding 
will enable construction to begin on the facility's parking structure 
and energy plant. Denver's current Veterans Hospital is fifty years 
old, is at full capacity and does not meet the needs of our veterans. 
As Colorado's service members continue to be placed in harm's way, it 
is essential that we be prepared to meet their needs when they return 
home. This funding will put us on a path toward making the new campus 
at Fitzsimons a reality.
  The conference report also includes an amendment, passed 
overwhelmingly in the House in June and later passed in the Senate, 
that prohibits the Pentagon from taking the first steps toward 
expanding the Army's Pinon Canyon training site.
  After meeting with community members in La Junta and Trinidad in 
September, it is even more clear to me that the Pentagon has failed to 
convince Coloradans of a pressing military need for the Army to acquire 
an additional 418,000 acres at this particular location. I hope the 
Army hears the strong message Congress is delivering today that we will 
ensure that the livelihoods and property of Colorado citizens are 
respected and protected.
  Another key provision for southern Colorado is the inclusion of $35.1 
million for the construction of on-site chemical destruction facilities 
at the Pueblo Chemical Depot.
  We need to continue to do all we can to safely and expeditiously 
remove the mustard agent remaining at the Pueblo depot. The sooner we 
clean up these weapons, the sooner the surrounding communities will be 
safe--and a clean-up by the Chemical Weapons Convention treaty deadline 
of 2012 will come at a lower cost to taxpayers.
  The conference report also includes nearly $170 million to support 
Fort Carson as it expands because of the stationing of two new brigades 
and the new headquarters of the Fourth Infantry Division. This includes 
$53 million for new barracks; $18 million for an addition to Evans Army 
Hospital and a dental clinic; $8.3 million for a Defense Access Road to 
allow personnel and equipment to deploy easily from Peterson Air Force 
Base; $4.9 million for a new indoor range; $72 million for new unit 
operation facilities; and $13.5 million for construction of new 
facility support operations for the 13th Air Support Operations 
Squadron.
  The conference report also includes $24.5 million for an Air and 
Space Integration Facility at Schriever Air Force Base and $15 million 
to upgrade academic facilities at the Air Force Academy.
  This conference report also provides funding for the Department of 
Health and Human Services, one of the most vital agencies in our 
government. This report will increase funding by $4.4 billion over the 
fiscal year 2007 budget--a 6.9 percent increase and one that I strongly 
support. This funding will be important both to Colorado and to our 
country.
  This report provides funding for a broad range of important projects, 
from increasing funding for essential research at the National 
Institutes of Health (NIH) to increasing health care access in rural 
areas. I strongly support include the 3.8 percent increase in funding 
for the NIH. This increase will be pivotal in jump starting a 
reinvestment in important medical discoveries.
  Included in the report is important funding for Children's Hospital 
of Denver. Funding obtained to build the North Campus Ambulatory 
Surgery Center will broaden access to pediatric care in the north 
Denver metro area. This new development will also add more convenient 
alternative to patients, families, pediatricians, and physicians while 
also decreasing the burden on other health centers in the Denver metro 
area.
  Making our health care system safe and more efficient is a goal of 
this Congress and I am happy to announce that Avista Hospital will 
contribute to that goal. Avista has been a leader in the Electronic 
Medical Record field and will continue to implement a cutting edge 
system thanks to funding included in the report.
  The report provides for increases in the Center for Disease Control 
(CDC) which will fund important public health programs such as 
children's immunizations, environmental health and cervical and breast 
cancer screenings.
  Our nation's youth are our greatest resource, and we must do all that 
we can to prepare them to lead our country in future years. This report 
would provide very important funding for the Department of Education to 
further the education of our children.
  I supported the passage of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in 
2001 because we need to create higher academic standards and 
accountability in our education system and close the so-called 
achievement gap in this country. However, NCLB has been underfunded 
since it was first passed, meaning that local school districts do not 
have the resources available to try to meet these new standards. This 
report takes a step in the right direction by increasing funding for 
NCLB over both the fiscal year 2007 budget and the President's request. 
I am also pleased to see increases in funding for the Individuals with 
Disabilities Act (IDEA). IDEA provides resources to meet the unique 
challenges in educating children with disabilities.

  In an increasingly competitive global marketplace, higher education 
is more important than it has ever been. Yet skyrocketing tuitions are 
making college education increasingly difficult for many students and 
families to afford. Just a few weeks ago, the College Board announced 
that the average tuition at four-year schools in my home state of 
Colorado had increased 16 percent from last year. Pell Grants are one 
important and effective way that the federal government helps students 
and families afford college. The conference report will increase the 
maximum Pell Grant award to $4,925.
  I am encouraged that the report includes an increase in funding for 
the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP is a 
critical program that helps many Colorado families, who are struggling 
to get by, avoid having to make choices between paying their heating 
bill and putting food on the table. The conference report will increase 
funding for this program by $250 million over the fiscal year 2007 
budget.
  I am pleased the labor provisions of this report reflect a new 
direction and commitment to

[[Page H13197]]

expanding job training and enhancing the safety of workers, by 
increasing funding for a number of employment, education, and 
protection programs for the American workforce.
  With that said, I am disappointed the conference report does not 
include my amendment to increase the funding for the National Labor 
Relations Board (NLRB). The board plays a vital role in labor-
management relations. While funding is not the only problem that faces 
the NLRB I am concerned that without the additional funding, there is a 
danger they will have to layoff some of their staff in order to pay for 
their required overhead, including salaries.
  The funding for programs included in this report is a cause for 
celebration, not a veto. The President suggested underfunding for many 
of these programs and has threatened to veto the report in its current 
form. I request that the President reconsider his veto threat and sign 
this conference report.
  In summary, Madam Speaker, this is a good report that provides 
funding for many important purposes. It is good for Colorado and good 
for the country, and it deserves approval.
  Mr. CONYERS. Madam Speaker, colleagues, appropriations bills are 
moral statements. They document the direction that we as a Congress 
desire our Nation to go. With our vote on H.R. 3043 today, we once 
again have an opportunity to show Americans that the 110th Congress is 
committed to taking our Nation in a New Direction--putting the needs of 
the American people first and making long-delayed investments in our 
future.
  Unfortunately, this commitment to improving the lives of our 
soldiers, veterans and ordinary Americans seems not to be shared by the 
President. The Administration apparently feels that while it is 
necessary to spend $12 billion a month in Iraq, the Federal Year 2008 
Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill is 
just $9.8 billion too expensive and needs to be vetoed. He believes 
that an extra $10 billion to provide grants to low-income children for 
after school programs, increasing the purchasing power of Pell Grants, 
fund job training programs for dislocated workers and helping families 
facing rising energy prices with the Low Income Home Energy Assistance 
Program is just wasteful spending.
  The President, in an attempt to burnish his credentials as a bona 
fide fiscal conservative, now seems to know the cost of everything and 
the value of nothing. I wonder where this conservatism was from 2001 
through 2006, when the Republican-led Congress went on a deficit 
financed spending spree with our national treasury taking the United 
States from a $5.6 trillion, 10-year surplus to a $2 trillion, 10-year 
deficit.
  By passing H.R. 3043, which combines the Labor, Health and Human 
Services, Education FY 08 Appropriations bill and the Military 
Construction, Veterans Affairs FY 08 Appropriations bill, we will be 
making the largest investment in veterans' health care in history and 
making long overdue investments in education, worker safety and health 
care for our citizens.
  If the President is truly concerned with how his legacy will read, I 
urge him to listen to the overwhelming bi-partisan majority in Congress 
that supports H.R. 3043. Mr. Bush, help us reverse the sharp rise in 
college costs that continue to be a barrier to millions of low- and 
middle-income students by increasing the Pell Grant from $4,050 to 
$4,435. Help us increase access to Head Start programs so that more 
disadvantaged children have access to preschool. Provide a 10.1 percent 
increase for community health centers, an increase that will serve an 
additional 1 million uninsured people. Stand with the strong bipartisan 
majority that passed both these bills this summer. Mr. President, 
approve this bill and help us make America stronger.
  Mr. HOYER. Madam Speaker, I first want thank the Chairman of the 
Appropriations Committee, David Obey--who also chairs the Subcommittee 
on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education--for his hard work 
and vision in putting this appropriations conference report together.
  I also want to thank the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Military 
Construction and Veterans Affairs--Congressman Edwards of Texas--for 
his outstanding work on this conference report and his unwavering 
dedication to our Nation's veterans.
  This is an excellent, fiscally responsible conference report that 
makes vital investments in expanding access to health care for our 
people, in educating our children, in job training, in medical 
research, and in providing the largest single increase in the 77-year 
history of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
  Simply put, this conference report deserves the overwhelming support 
of members--just as the individual bills did when they were considered 
in both the House and Senate.
  Recall, we passed the Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill on a 
bipartisan vote of 276 to 140, with 53 Republicans joining a nearly 
unanimous Democratic caucus.
  The Senate passed its own version of this bill 75 to 19.
  And, both chambers passed the Military Construction-Veterans Affairs 
Appropriations bill by overwhelming margins--409 to 2 in the House, and 
92 to 1 in the Senate.
  This conference report demonstrates our democratic priorities--as 
well as the President's misguided, shortsighted budget proposals, which 
would cut funding for Labor, Health and Education programs by $3.6 
billion below the enacted funding level in fiscal year 2007.
  If the President had his way, he would cut vocational education; 
eliminate all student aid other than work study and Pell Grants; cut 
medical research; cut law enforcement grants; cut education for 
children with disabilities; cut rural health programs; cut clean water 
programs; and cut the Low-Income Heating Assistance Program. The 
American people do not support such a proposal. And neither do 
Democrats.
  Thus, this conference report provides $9.8 billion above the 
President's request for Labor, Health and Education programs--which 
barely keeps pace with inflation and population growth.
  Through this conference report, 1.2 million more Americans would have 
access to community health centers, and we would increase funding for 
programs that help parents pay for college, for No Child Left Behind 
programs, for vocational education and Job Corps, and for medical 
research into life threatening diseases.
  Through this conference report, we also will keep our commitment to 
our Nation's veterans, providing $3.7 billion more than the President 
requested for veterans' medical care, claims processing personnel, and 
facility improvements.
  The President has said such funding is unnecessary.
  We absolutely disagree.
  The idea that we cannot find the funds necessary to invest in health 
care, education and medical research, and in medical care of the men 
and women who have sacrificed for this country is patently absurd--and 
it must be rejected.
  How is it that the President can demand that this Congress spend 
another $200 billion of taxpayers' dollars for his failing policy in 
Iraq while he seeks to shortchange critical programs at home?
  His vain attempt to try to claim the mantle of fiscal responsibility 
by threatening to veto this conference report--particularly in light of 
his disastrous and irresponsible fiscal policies--will fool no one.
  Madam Speaker, this is an excellent conference report that reflects 
the priorities of the American people, and rejects the President's 
misguided proposals.
  Finally, let me say that Mr. Obey effectively dispensed yesterday--in 
his speech at the National Press Club--with the Republican complaint 
that this conference report threatens enactment of the Military 
Construction-Veterans Affairs bill.
  Only once in the last 5 years did the Republican Majority send the 
President a free-standing Military Construction conference report. 
Three times you packaged that bill with others. And last year, you 
failed to even enact a Military Construction-Veterans Affairs bill.
  I urge my colleagues: vote for this fiscally responsible conference 
report, which makes critical investments in our Nation, our people and 
our future.
  Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I am deeply disappointed that this bill 
increases the amount of money going to abstinence-only programs.
  In 2004 I asked my staff to look at the curricula most popular among 
federally funded grantees in this abstinence-only program. We found 
that most contained significant scientific and medical errors. Kids 
were being taught that HIV can be spread through tears and sweat. They 
were taught that condoms didn't help prevent STD transmission. And they 
were taught that pregnancy occurs one in every seven times a couple 
uses condoms.
  But these findings didn't lead to change--instead the administration 
and other defenders of this kind of program dug in their heels. They 
insisted there was no problem, without taking seriously the fact that 
flawed public health information was being provided to American teens 
with taxpayer dollars. In 2006, GAO found that HHS still wasn't 
reviewing the medical accuracy of curricula used in the biggest Federal 
abstinence-only programs.
  It would be one thing if these programs actually worked. If they 
helped kids make healthier decisions, then maybe it would make sense to 
go in and try to deal with some of the accuracy issues. But abstinence-
only programs don't work. In 2007, HHS released the results of an 
independent study it had requested on the effectiveness of federally 
funded abstinence-only programs. This was a randomized, controlled 
study--the gold standard of research. The researchers found that 
compared to the control group, abstinence-only

[[Page H13198]]

programs had no impact at all on whether participants had sex. They had 
no impact on the age of first sex. They had no impact on the number of 
partners. And they had no impact on rates of pregnancy or sexually 
transmitted disease.
  There is no evidence to support these programs, and they should get 
no Federal funding. It is an outrage that instead they are receiving an 
increase.
  Defenders of abstinence-only like to claim that parents support 
abstinence education. It's true that surveys show parents want programs 
to promote abstinence as the healthiest choice for young people. We all 
want that. But the surveys also show that parents overwhelmingly want a 
full range of age-appropriate information taught, so that youth are 
best prepared to stay healthy.
  Parents care more about the health of their children than about 
politics or ideology. I think that's probably why they understand that 
the abstinence-only programs we've been funding are a mistake. They 
contain serious misinformation and, most importantly, are not effective 
in improving adolescent health. After putting more than a billion 
Federal dollars into these programs, we have seen no results.
  I know it's critical that we pass this appropriations bill. But it's 
wrong to spend scarce dollars on programs that we know don't work. It's 
wrong to put our children at risk of health problems and unwanted 
pregnancies because we've withheld essential health information. And 
it's indefensible to use adolescents as political pawns instead of 
taking an honest, evidence-based look at their health and well-being.
  Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the 
conference report accompanying the fiscal year 2008 appropriations bill 
funding the Departments of Labor, HHS, and Education, as well as 
Military Construction and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
  On the domestic side, this legislation makes important investments in 
our health care and education programs. After many years of flat 
funding and small increases that have resulted in funding reductions 
when taking inflation into account, the National Institutes of Health 
would receive a 4 percent increase over current funding levels. This 
legislation provides $30 billion for life-saving medical research, much 
of which is performed in my back yard at the Baylor College of 
Medicine, the MD Anderson Cancer Center, UT Health Science Center, and 
many other impressive research facilities located in the Texas Medical 
Center.
  I am also pleased that the bill provides a 35 percent increase for 
the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program. The $2.4 billion in 
LIHEAP funding that this bill provides will better ensure that LIHEAP 
funding is more equitably distributed among cold weather and hot 
weather states. By providing LIHEAP funding above the threshold of 
$1.975 billion, this legislation ensures that the funding will be 
sufficient to meet the historical needs of cold weather states while 
also recognizing the unmet needs of hot weather states, which 
experience higher levels of weather-related deaths.
  I would also like to thank the conference committee for retaining 
House-passed funding for two projects in our district. The conference 
committee generously provided funding for Gateway to Care, the 
community health care access collaborative in Harris County. Gateway to 
Care will utilize this funding to help coordinate the deployment of 
health information technology among the county's health care clinics. 
The bill also provides much-needed funding for the Harris County 
Hospital District's Diabetes Program, which offers a culturally-
sensitive, interdisciplinary, and educational approach to the treatment 
of diabetes in our community, which experiences higher than normal 
rates of this devastating disease.
  As Veterans' Day approaches, we should also highlight the significant 
funding increases made in the Military Construction/VA portion of the 
bill. The conference agreement provides a total of $109.2 billion for 
veterans' affairs and military construction programs, roughly $18 
billion more than the current level and $4 billion more than the 
president's request. For the last 11 months, this Congress has 
demonstrated its commitment to fulfilling the promises made to our 
veterans, and this bill reaffirms that commitment in the strongest 
terms by providing the largest funding increase in VA history. With the 
current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan creating hundreds of thousands of 
new veterans, this level of funding reassures our veterans, our troops, 
and their families that this Congress will fulfill the promises we made 
to those who fight for our country, even after they are done with their 
service.
  I would also like to offer my thanks for the inclusion of funding for 
a new fire station at Ellington Field. I have supported this project 
for several years, and am glad to see it funded in this bill. The 
existing fire station at Ellington field is in a rapidly deteriorating 
condition and does not meet OSHA or Air Force Standards. Roof leaks and 
lack of insulation have resulted in equipment being destroyed and 
extremely high operating costs. New firefighting apparatus must be 
parked outside the station because they will not fit into the truck 
bays. This fire station supports all flying operations at Ellington 
Field including Air National Guard, Army National Guard, US Coast 
Guard, NASA, and civilian aircraft. Construction of the new fire 
station at Ellington is critical for the Texas Air National Guard and 
all units stationed at Ellington Field, and I am pleased funding for 
this project was included.
  Madam Speaker, I again urge my colleagues to join me in supporting 
this conference report.
  Mr. OBEY. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the previous question is 
ordered on the conference report.
  There was no objection.

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