[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 149 (Tuesday, September 17, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H7732-H7734]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        HELEN KELLER NATIONAL CENTER REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2019

  Ms. JAYAPAL. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 2134) to reauthorize the Helen Keller National Center for 
Youths and Adults Who Are Deaf-Blind, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2134

       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 ``Helen Keller National Center 
     Reauthorization Act of 2019''.

     SEC. 2. HELEN KELLER NATIONAL CENTER REAUTHORIZED.

       The first sentence of section 205(a) of the Helen Keller 
     National Center Act (29 U.S.C. 1904(a)) is amended by 
     striking ``1999 through 2003'' and inserting ``2019 through 
     2023''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Washington (Ms. Jayapal) and the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. 
Grothman) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Washington.

[[Page H7733]]

  



                             General Leave

  Ms. JAYAPAL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on H.R. 2134.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Washington?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. JAYAPAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am excited that the House of Representatives is 
considering this bill, the Helen Keller National Center Reauthorization 
Act, a bipartisan bill, and I urge my colleagues to support it. This 
bill will reauthorize funding for the center through 2023.
  Congress established the Helen Keller National Center in 1967 to 
provide nationwide services for people who are deaf-blind. 
Headquartered in New York with regional offices across the country, the 
center is the only organization of its kind that provides training and 
resources exclusively to people 16 and over who have both vision and 
hearing loss.
  Unfortunately, deaf-blind people face unique and diverse challenges. 
Many youth who are deaf-blind have not been provided with the type or 
quality of education that generally yields successful outcomes in 
employment, independent living, and community involvement. In fact, 
deaf-blind youth have some of the lowest levels of access to special 
education services.
  I am so proud of some of the work that we are doing in my home State 
of Washington to advance justice for deaf-blind people. Washington 
State Deaf-Blind Citizens is doing incredible work to organize 
community events, to provide support for everyday tasks like reading 
the mail and doing errands, and to advocate with lawmakers on the 
unique needs of the deaf-blind community.
  We also have the Deaf-Blind Service Center of Seattle, which focuses 
on breaking down communication barriers by providing interpretation and 
advocacy services for free to deaf-blind individuals.
  I think we can all agree that every deaf-blind person deserves equal 
access to services that promote their successes, independence, and full 
participation in their communities. That is exactly what the Helen 
Keller National Center provides to this underserved population. Thanks 
to the center, deaf-blind people in every congressional district can 
connect with support systems to grow productively and find meaning in 
their lives.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to enthusiastically support this bill to 
extend congressional authorization for the Helen Keller National 
Center. I urge my colleagues to support it as well, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. GROTHMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support H.R. 2134, the legislation to 
reauthorize the Helen Keller National Center Act. Originally enacted in 
1967, the law established the Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-
Blind Youths and Adults.
  Today's legislation allows the important center--the only 
organization of its kind--to continue to support individuals with 
combined vision and hearing loss, as well as their families and service 
providers.
  Helen Keller's story is well-known to us all. It is an example of 
determination and hard work. Not only did she overcome her 
difficulties, she also worked tirelessly to benefit the lives of 
others. In doing so, she showed the world there are no boundaries.
  I would like to read a couple of quotes of Helen Keller: ``Remember, 
no effort that we make to attain something beautiful is ever lost.''
  ``Sometime, somewhere, somehow we shall find that which we seek.''
  In an article from 1933, entitled, ``The Simplest Way to Be Happy,'' 
she wrote: ``A happy life consists not in the absence, but in the 
mastery of hardships.''
  These quotes embody her perseverance. The Helen Keller National 
Center carries on this message by working to give the deaf-blind 
community the tools they need to work and thrive in communities of 
their choice.
  The center offers hope and dignity to those it serves through on-
campus assistive technology education; vocational, orientation and 
mobility, and communication services; and independent living support 
through its headquarters in Sands Point, New York. Individuals from 
across the country travel to their headquarters for these incredible 
resources.
  The National Center also provides similar services to local 
communities in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. 
territories. The goal of these programs and services is to advance the 
personal development and independence of individuals who are deaf-
blind.
  Federal support allows the center to continue its invaluable research 
and development programs in several areas, including communication 
techniques and teaching methods. All of this leads to improved program 
offerings and, ultimately, better lives for deaf-blind Americans and 
their families.
  H.R. 2134 will reauthorize the Helen Keller Center through the year 
2023, which demonstrates this body's continued commitment to providing 
deaf-blind youths and adults with opportunities to lead successful, 
independent lives. By passing this legislation, Congress recognizes the 
unique needs of individuals who are deaf-blind as well as the unique 
care and developmental programs they need.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill. Doing so allows 
us to carry on Hellen Keller's incredible story of independence and 
success that has given hope to generations of those who are deaf-blind.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. JAYAPAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Wisconsin (Mr. Pocan), who is the sponsor of this bill, H.R. 2134, a 
member of the Appropriations Committee, and my co-chair of the 
Congressional Progressive Caucus. He is a real champion for communities 
across the country.

  Mr. POCAN. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my friend, Ms. Jayapal, for 
yielding me some time. I want to thank my friend from Wisconsin (Mr. 
Grothman) for his supportive words. I appreciate that.
  I am happy that we here today to pass H.R. 2134, the Helen Keller 
National Center Reauthorization Act of 2019, which I am glad to author 
and introduce with my colleagues, Representatives  Tom Suozzi and   Tom 
Cole. Without their support, as well as the support of Representatives 
Rosa DeLauro, Pete King, and Chairman Bobby Scott, this legislation 
would not be on the floor today.
  The Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults was 
first authorized by Congress in 1967 to assist the deaf-blind community 
in America. To this day, it is the only comprehensive national program 
that provides information, referrals, support, and training exclusively 
to Americans who have combined vision and hearing loss, while also 
supporting families and professionals who work with the deaf-blind 
community.
  Unfortunately, the center's authorization has lapsed, but through our 
actions today, we will be able to reauthorize it through 2023 and 
continue to advocate on its behalf during the annual appropriations 
process.
  In my home State of Wisconsin, the Helen Keller National Center has 
partnered with the Wisconsin Division of Vocational Rehabilitation 
through a formal agreement to provide job preparation and job placement 
services, independent living, and communication skills, training, and 
self-advocacy training.
  Additionally, it co-led the Midwest Deaf-Blind Transition Institute 
this past July, where deaf-blind youths from across Wisconsin and their 
family members explored post-high school options and met with peer 
mentors.
  The center has also recently provided training to 55 professionals in 
Wisconsin on haptics, a system of providing tactual signs to deaf-blind 
persons to relay information, which can increase independence and 
engagement in daily life.
  Clearly, the work the Helen Keller National Center performs is vital 
and life-changing. That is why I am proud to stand here on the floor of 
the House of Representatives in support of the center and its work. The 
Helen Keller National Center is worthy of all of our support.
  I thank Sue Ruzenski at the Helen Keller National Center for bringing 
its work and the needs of the deaf-blind community to my attention.

[[Page H7734]]

  I thank Jacque Mosely of the House Education and Labor Committee, who 
has been invaluable.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to stand in support of the 
American deaf-blind community and vote in favor of this bipartisan 
legislation before us.
  Mr. GROTHMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  H.R. 2134 is legislation to reauthorize the Helen Keller National 
Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults. The center offers 
groundbreaking educational programs across the country that help deaf-
blind individuals triumph over adversity, just as Helen Keller did more 
than 50 years ago. By passing today's legislation, we ensure this 
center can continue its critical work providing our Nation's deaf-blind 
with the resources needed to lead successful and independent lives.
  Mr. Speaker, I join my colleague, Congressman Pocan, whom I thank for 
authoring this bill. I once again urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on 
H.R. 2134, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. JAYAPAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Suozzi), who is my good friend.
  Mr. SUOZZI. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Jayapal for yielding 
me time.
  Today I rise in support of H.R. 2134, the Helen Keller National 
Center Reauthorization Act of 2019.
  The Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults is 
located in my district in Sands Point, Long Island. It is a national 
organization and, really, the only one of its type.
  I want to thank my colleagues, Representative Pocan, who is the 
author of this bill, and Congressman Peter King, Congressman  Bobby 
Scott, Congresswoman DeLauro, Congressman Cole, and Congresswoman 
Lowey, for championing the authorization of the Helen Keller National 
Center.
  Think about it: This was formed in 1967, and it is a unique facility 
in that it serves a population that is both deaf and blind, combined. 
Imagine how important this organization is in the lives of these folks 
who are confronting being deaf and blind at the same time.
  It is estimated that there are 2.4 million deaf and blind youths and 
adults in America, and that number is going up dramatically as the 
population ages.
  Mr. Speaker, this organization services adults who are over 16 years 
of age. They travel from all over the country to come to this facility, 
as well as having regional centers, which have been mentioned already, 
that provide what you would characterize as outpatient services.
  In my second week in office, in 2017, I visited the Helen Keller 
National Center in my district. I met with deaf and blind individuals 
in the program. I learned about their experiences and how Helen Keller 
services made a difference in their lives and the lives of their 
families. Many described how they had gained skills in order to live 
independently and to be successfully employed in a career of their 
choice.
  We must all recognize the critical importance of this group, and the 
reauthorization of the Helen Keller Act is one significant way that 
Congress can collectively convey to the deaf-blind community that we 
are all committed to ensuring quality services are available to promote 
their empowerment and their success, not only the work they have done 
in the past, but that they will do in the future as well.
  I want people to know that, since coming to Congress in 2017, after 
years of no increases in their funding, my colleagues and I have helped 
increase funding at the Helen Keller National Center from $10.3 million 
a year to $13.5 million for the Helen Keller National Center. It is 
really a modest investment, but with this funding, they have been able 
to provide a wider array of critical services to deaf-blind individuals 
by building a network all across the Nation among professionals and 
service providers with 11 regional offices located across the country. 
This year's appropriations bill package passed by the House included 
$16 million and is awaiting action in the Senate.
  Again, Mr. Speaker, I want to thank all of my colleagues who have 
done so much for such an important organization.
  Ms. JAYAPAL. Mr. Speaker, in closing, this is commonsense, bipartisan 
legislation to help deaf-blind students across the country. I am so 
proud that the House is considering this legislation today. I urge a 
``yes'' vote, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 
2134 the ``Helen Keller National Center Reauthorization Act of 2019.''
  Helen Keller was an American author, political activist, and lecturer 
who was the first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelors Degree in the 
United States.
  She was born in Tuscumbia, Alabama on June 27, 1880 and she spent her 
life campaigning for women's suffrage, labor rights and antimilitarism.
  The Helen Keller National Center Act established a Helen Keller 
National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults to provide specialized 
intensive services for deaf-blind persons, to train personnel to 
provide such services, and to conduct applied research, development, 
and demonstrations relating to communication techniques, teaching 
methods, aids, devices and delivery of services.
  This bill requires an annual audit of the Center and it directs the 
Secretary of Education to ensure that Center service and training 
programs are monitored regularly, and Center operation is evaluated 
annually, with written reports to the President and Congress submitted 
by specified deadlines.
  There are approximately thirty-six million adult Americans that 
suffer some type of hearing loss and approximately ten million 
Americans that are blind or visually impaired.
  This legislation will help ensure that these Americans get the help 
they need to fulfill their dreams.
  That is why I urge all Members to join me in voting for H.R. 2134.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Jayapal) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2134, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________