[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 170 (Sunday, December 30, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H7446-H7448]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       CLOTHE A HOMELESS HERO ACT

  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in 
the Senate amendment to the bill (H.R. 6328) to amend title 49, United 
States Code, to direct the Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security 
(Transportation Security Administration) to transfer unclaimed clothing 
recovered at airport security checkpoints to local veterans 
organizations and other local charitable organizations, and for other 
purposes.

[[Page H7447]]

  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the Senate amendment is as follows:

       Senate amendment:
       On page 2, line 20, after ``clothing to'' insert ``the 
     local airport authority or other local authorities for 
     donation to charity, including''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) and the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Hochul) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include any extraneous material on this bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, as vice chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee and 
a senior member of the Committee on Homeland Security, I rise in favor 
of H.R. 6328, the Clothe a Homeless Hero Act, which passed the House by 
voice vote last month and was approved by the Senate with an amendment.
  According to estimates from the Department of Housing and Urban 
Development, in 2011 approximately 14 percent of all homeless adults 
were veterans, and with more than 67,000 veterans homeless on any given 
night. I know that you agree we must do all that we can to ensure that 
the veterans who have so courageously served our country are not 
forgotten and are receiving the care and services they deserve. VA 
Secretary Eric Shinseki has set a laudable goal of ending veterans' 
homelessness by 2015 and has established partnerships with other 
Federal agencies, such as HUD, to accomplish it.
  The bill before us today will forge another important partnership in 
our efforts to serve homeless veterans, one with the Transportation 
Security Administration.
  Each day as Americans travel through screening checkpoints, Mr. 
Speaker, operated by TSA at our Nation's airports, many articles of 
clothing are left behind. In fact, TSA reports that they collect 
between 500 and 1,000 garments per day. H.R. 6328 directs the TSA 
administrator to make every reasonable effort to donate this unclaimed 
clothing to local organizations that serve homeless or needy veterans.
  I commend the House sponsor, Ms. Hochul, the gentlelady from New 
York, for this fine piece of legislation. I once again urge Members to 
support this legislation and in turn support homeless veterans.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. HOCHUL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Senate amendment to 
H.R. 6328, Clothe a Homeless Hero Act, and I yield myself such time as 
I may consume.
  Yesterday my hometown paper, The Buffalo News, ran an editorial that 
says, ``Homeless vets need our help: The reward for serving our country 
shouldn't be a life on the streets.''
  Mr. Speaker, I couldn't agree more.
  We are here today to aid and honor America's veterans, especially 
those who've fallen on hard times, are most in need, and all too 
forgotten.
  As the American people rush through lines at airports with their 
shoes, gloves, hats, scarves, and coats, it's easy to forget that so 
many Americans go without these basic comforts during the cold winter 
months. I know this personally. I just flew in from Buffalo, New York, 
where we have about a foot and a half of snow on the ground, and it 
calls to mind the sense that there are a lot of people in need, 
particularly our veterans. As we rush through airports, it's easy to 
leave behind these kinds of garments. That's what happened to me when I 
left a scarf at the Buffalo airport while coming to Washington.
  As you've heard, TSA has reported that as many as 1,000 articles of 
clothing, like mine, are left behind at airport checkpoints every day. 
This adds up to thousands of pounds of abandoned, unclaimed clothing. 
At the same time, tens of thousands of veterans are homeless on any 
given night.
  This is unconscionable, Mr. Speaker. Veteran homelessness is nothing 
less than a national tragedy. We must fully embrace the President's 
call to end veteran homelessness by 2015. We must work to end 
homelessness for all Americans--especially those heroes who risked 
their lives for our freedom. But until we end veteran homelessness, we 
must do everything we can to aid these American heroes.
  I am sure you'll agree there is no better purpose for unclaimed warm 
clothing than to help America's homeless veterans. That's why I was so 
proud to introduce the Clothe a Homeless Hero Act, and to work with my 
colleagues in the Homeland Security Committee and Senator Gillibrand 
and Senator Toomey to improve and advance this bipartisan legislation.
  This simple bill directs unclaimed clothing left at checkpoints like 
this to go to charitable organizations for distribution to homeless 
veterans and others in need.
  Mr. Speaker, this is probably my last speech on the floor of 
Congress. I can't think of a worthier cause to champion than to make 
sure that our homeless veterans get the clothing they need and deserve. 
This measure is a simple, commonsense example of an opportunity for all 
of us, Democrats and Republicans alike, to work together and find 
common ground. Clearly we need much more of that, particularly on a day 
like this. I know every one of us is proud of the work our men and 
women in uniform do every day, and we're proud of the veterans who come 
home. We need to ask ourselves: are they proud of us?
  Let us make this bill be a template for the bipartisanship that our 
veterans, indeed our country, deserves from the people they send to 
Washington to represent them.
  I thank Chairman Bilirakis and my colleagues on the Homeland Security 
Committee for supporting this legislation.
  With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. Does the 
gentlelady have further speakers?
  Ms. HOCHUL. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the 
gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), the ranking member of the 
Subcommittee on Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection 
of the Committee on Homeland Security.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentlelady 
from New York, and I want to first of all say this will not be the last 
we hear of your voice, and what a stupendous voice you have. Thank you 
so much for making this time on the floor a time that pays tribute to 
veterans but also recognizes the outstanding service that you've given 
to this Nation, to the Committee on Homeland Security and your other 
committees, but more importantly the passion that you've shown as a 
true American. I hope that we heed the voice that you just lifted up 
that we owe to veterans not only this great legislation, but also the 
ability to come together and work on their behalf and on behalf of all 
Americans.

                              {time}  1710

  Thank you again for allowing me to comment on this bill as the 
ranking member on the Homeland Security Transportation Committee.
  I thank Mr. Bilirakis. We have worked together on a number of 
legislative initiatives, and I thank him as well for his service, along 
with the retiring chairman, Chairman King, and our Democratic ranking 
member, Mr. Thompson, for their leadership. It gives me great comfort 
to be able to come on the floor today and say thank you.
  Even though no one wants to see a homeless hero, a homeless veteran, 
I spent, over the holidays, time visiting a number of our centers where 
homeless veterans are, and I can tell you that they are the most giving 
and charitable persons.
  Many of us will be able to recount on Thanksgiving Day, or during the 
holiday, being able to give or to share or to be able to distribute 
food or to serve veterans who, unfortunately, not of their own doing, 
have fallen upon hard times, do not have a place to live, and are 
coming to the various food pantries and food kitchens. It was one of 
great pleasure to me, not for their condition, but to be able to humbly 
just provide them with a warm meal. This is a commonsense legislative 
initiative that

[[Page H7448]]

says to homeless heroes, every day we're thinking of you.
  As the ranking member on the Transportation Security Committee, I can 
assure you that Transportation Security officers are grateful to Ms. 
Hochul and to the Senate amendment for giving them this chance to 
further their service to the Nation.
  There are many things that are left behind, and many times in the 
airport you hear that PA system saying, Come back, come back to the 
security checkpoint; you've left your iPad, your coat, your shoes. What 
else could you have left? Many times, unfortunately, those individuals 
are already on the airplane, and so we try our best, but we leave 
behind quality items that could be used for our veterans.
  The Senate amendment expands this to other charities as well. But as 
the ranking member, I want to commend to our TSA officers and our 
officers that are supervisors across the Nation's airports, and to our 
airports, yes, you have the opportunity to give to veterans, charitable 
institutions and others, but I encourage you, because of the extensive 
number of homeless veterans, that you give these items so that we can 
have, not only resources, but clothing for homeless veterans of whom we 
hope that we will provide a pathway to be able to get out of the status 
of homelessness, but also while they're doing so, to provide them with 
this quality clothing.
  So again, I rise to support H.R. 6328, as amended by the Senate, to 
thank the author of this legislation, Ms. Hochul, the gentlelady from 
New York; again, remind her that she will not have a silent voice, and 
this is a very grand and wonderful way to end at least your legislative 
service, your bill-writing service on this floor of the House and in 
this Congress where you are serving the Nation's veterans. We are 
forever grateful, and I ask my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Ms. HOCHUL. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, what I'd like to do is I'll reserve the 
balance of my time, and then I'll close once the gentlelady does.
  Ms. HOCHUL. Mr. Speaker, again I simply want to thank on the Senate 
side Senator Gillibrand, Senator Toomey, and, of course, here my 
colleagues on the Homeland Security Committee led by Peter King and our 
Ranking Member Thompson, and certainly Chairman Bilirakis and my dear 
friend Ranking Member Jackson Lee for all their support for this 
commonsense legislation to assist America's homeless veterans.
  With that, I urge the adoption of the Senate amendment to H.R. 6328 
so this measure can be sent to the President for his signature.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I urge Members to support this 
commonsense piece of legislation and that the President promptly sign 
it into law.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) that the House suspend the rules 
and concur in the Senate amendment to the bill, H.R. 6328.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. 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.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this question will be postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

                          ____________________