[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 201 (Thursday, December 20, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H10415-H10416]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STEPHEN MICHAEL GLEASON CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL ACT

  Mr. HUIZENGA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (S. 2652) to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Stephen Michael 
Gleason.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                S. 2652

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Stephen Michael Gleason 
     Congressional Gold Medal Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       The Congress finds the following:
       (1) Stephen ``Steve'' Gleason was born March 19, 1977, in 
     Spokane, Washington to Mike and Gail Gleason.
       (2) Steve attended Gonzaga Preparatory School for high 
     school where he excelled as both a football and baseball 
     player.
       (3) In 1995, Steve enrolled at Washington State University 
     where he was a 2-sport athlete for the baseball and football 
     teams and helped the Cougars football team advance to the 
     1997 Rose Bowl.
       (4) In 2000, Steve signed a professional football contract 
     with the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League 
     as an undrafted free agent but later joined the New Orleans 
     Saints in November of that same season.
       (5) Steve would go on to play 7 more seasons as a member of 
     the New Orleans Saints.
       (6) Steve will always be remembered for his blocked punt on 
     September 25, 2006, against the Atlanta Falcons, the night 
     the Louisiana Superdome reopened for the first time after 
     Hurricane Katrina in a game the Saints would win 23 to 3.
       (7) In January, 2011 Steve was diagnosed with amyotrophic 
     lateral sclerosis or ALS, considered a terminal neuro-
     muscular disease.
       (8) Following his diagnosis, Steve, with the loving support 
     of his wife, Michel, began a mission to show that patients 
     can not only live but thrive after a diagnosis of ALS and 
     established The Gleason Initiative Foundation also known 
     simply as ``Team Gleason''.
       (9) At the time of his diagnosis, however, Steve said there 
     will be ``No White Flags'', which has become the mantra of 
     Team Gleason.
       (10) The Gleason Initiative Foundation helps provide 
     individuals with neuromuscular diseases or injuries with 
     leading edge technology, equipment and services, raises 
     global awareness about ALS to find solutions and an end to 
     the disease, and has helped hundreds of people with ALS 
     experience life adventures they never thought possible after 
     their diagnosis.
       (11) Steve's story and mission have been told by the NFL 
     Network, ESPN, HBO, ABC, CBS, CNN, and many local media 
     outlets, as well as in a 2016 documentary titled ``Gleason'', 
     which was heralded at the Sundance Film Festival and 
     premiered across the country with Variety calling the 
     production ``an emotional powerhouse''. The documentary won 
     several awards, including the 2016 Washington, D.C. Area Film 
     Critics Association Award for Best Documentary.
       (12) Steve was named one of two Sports Illustrated's 
     Inspirations of the Year in 2014, has been a keynote speaker 
     for Microsoft and at two United Nations sponsored Social 
     Innovation Summits, and received the 2015 George S. Halas 
     Courage Award, given to a NFL player, coach or staff member 
     who overcomes the most adversity to succeed.
       (13) Steve helped advocate for the Steve Gleason Act of 
     2015 (Public Law 114-40; 129 Stat. 441), and the Steve 
     Gleason Enduring Voices Act of 2017, H.R. 2465, 115th 
     Congress (2017), which permanently ensures people living with 
     diseases such ALS have access to speech generating devices 
     regardless of their setting, whether at home or a healthcare 
     institution.
       (14) In 2014, Steve and Team Gleason hosted a global summit 
     to bring together researchers, patients, caregivers, and all 
     ALS stakeholders to create a plan to ultimately end ALS. That 
     summit resulted in the single largest coordinated and 
     collaborative ALS research project in the world, Answer ALS, 
     which brings together nearly two dozen research institutions, 
     1,000 patients and 20,000,000,000,000 data points that are 
     important to the project and that will define the unknown 
     pathways that will lead to treatments or finally a cure.
       (15) In 2015, Steve and Microsoft worked together to create 
     a method for people who are completely paralyzed to navigate 
     their power wheelchairs with their eyes. Today, Steve, 
     Microsoft and all wheelchair manufacturers are working 
     collaboratively to make it widely available to all who need 
     this technology. In addition, Microsoft has also made eye 
     tracking technology part of all Windows 10 products across 
     the globe.
       (16) In 2011, 10 months after his diagnosis, Steve and 
     Michel made their most significant accomplishment, becoming 
     parents to their son Rivers.
       (17) Steve and Michel Gleason continue to fight to find a 
     solution for ALS so they can share many years together and as 
     parents to Rivers.

     SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

       (a) Award Authorized.--The Speaker of the House of 
     Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate 
     shall make appropriate arrangements for the award, on behalf 
     of the Congress, of a single gold medal of appropriate design 
     to Stephen Michael Gleason.
       (b) Design and Striking.--For the purposes of the award 
     referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury 
     (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ``Secretary'') 
     shall strike the gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, 
     and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary.

     SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

       Under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, the 
     Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the 
     gold medal struck under section 3, at a price sufficient to 
     cover the costs of the medals, including labor, materials, 
     dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses.

     SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS.

       Medals struck pursuant to this Act are national medals for 
     purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Huizenga) and the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Clay) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan.


                             General Leave

  Mr. HUIZENGA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to 
include any extraneous material on this bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Michigan?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. HUIZENGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, this important bill has wide bipartisan support, and I 
urge all Members to support this legislation.
  Mr. Gleason who was a former player with the New Orleans Saints, has 
done significant work in the area of ALS--in ALS education and advocacy 
and its damaging effects.
  I, like many people in this Chamber and many people across the 
country, have been touched by this personally, with friends or family 
members, and we know the ravages that occur with this horrible disease, 
ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this important 
legislation, the Stephen Michael Gleason Congressional Gold Medal Act, 
and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 2652 and its House companion 
sponsored by my friend, Representative Cedric Richmond, which awards a 
Congressional Gold Medal to Stephen Michael Gleason, whose tireless 
work for people living with ALS should be honored.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Richmond), the sponsor of the House 
version of this bill.
  Mr. RICHMOND. Mr. Speaker, let me thank my colleague, Mr. Clay from 
St. Louis, and my colleague from Michigan. I understand the difficulty 
in saying very loud the ``New Orleans

[[Page H10416]]

Saints,'' but I just want to also thank Senator Bill Cassidy, and 
Senator Patty Murray for authoring this bill and working so hard to get 
it across the finish line. I would also like to thank Representative 
Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Representative  Steve Scalise for working 
with me in the House.
  The Congressional Gold Medal is a special award, and today we are 
coming together to support giving it to a special person. This is an 
award for people who dedicate themselves to causes bigger than 
themselves and for those who work tirelessly to help the lives of 
others. Both of those describe the son of Who Dat Nation, Steve 
Gleason.
  Steve, after being diagnosed with ALS, came together with his team to 
form Team Gleason, and he declared then that there would be no white 
flags in dealing with ALS. Steve is a selfless individual who has used 
his life to raise awareness of ALS and who has been instrumental in 
developing technology in order to combat this disease.
  He has done so much that has tangibly improved people's lives now and 
will continue to do so for years to come. That is why I am proud to 
introduce this bill in the House and to be standing here today 
concurring in the Senate bill to honor Steve's contributions to 
society.
  Mr. Speaker, I would urge my colleagues to support giving the 
Congressional Gold Medal to our son of Who Dat Nation, Steve Gleason.
  Mr. HUIZENGA. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to reserve, but I would like 
to note to my friend from Louisiana, as a Lions fan, it is much easier 
to be supportive of a Saints player than if this guy had actually been 
a Green Bay Packer.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I have no football team in St. Louis, but we do have the Kansas City 
Chiefs, who are doing pretty well.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I urge Members to vote for 
this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. HUIZENGA. Mr. Speaker, I will note to my colleagues that as a 
Detroit Lions fan, I, too, don't have a football team, but I am proud 
to stand on the floor today and note that this is an important time to 
address these things. We all, as a nation, are thankful for the work of 
Mr. Gleason in this important issue, and I do urge support from all of 
my colleagues.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Huizenga) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, S. 2652.
  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. MASSIE. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

                          ____________________