[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 160 (Wednesday, September 16, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5650-S5651]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS

  The following petitions and memorials were laid before the Senate and 
were referred or ordered to lie on the table as indicated:

       POM-234. A resolution adopted by the Senate of the State of 
     New Jersey expressing opposition to the Department of Housing 
     and Urban Development's proposed changes to the Affirmatively 
     Furthering Fair Housing Rule adopted in 2015; to the 
     Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

                        Senate Resolution No. 76

       Whereas, In 2015, the United States Department of Housing 
     and Urban Development (``HUD'') adopted an Affirmatively 
     Furthering Fair Housing (``AFFH'') rule that established a 
     new framework for HUD funding recipients to meet their 
     longstanding legal obligation under the federal Fair Housing 
     Act to reduce barriers to fair housing and equal opportunity; 
     and
       Whereas, The AFFH rule was promulgated in response to the 
     recommendations of the United States Government 
     Accountability Office and affected stakeholders centered on 
     the need for HUD to bolster its fair housing planning 
     obligations by providing greater clarity and support to HUD 
     funding recipients and facilitating local decision-making on 
     fair housing priorities and goals; and
       Whereas, The AFFH rule achieves these ends by providing 
     clearer standards for meeting fair housing obligations, 
     greater transparency, increased access to data concerning 
     fair housing conditions and access to opportunity, and new 
     mapping and customizable assessment tools, as well as by 
     encouraging collaboration between jurisdictions and community 
     input and participation; and
       Whereas, The AFFH rule ultimately serves to help HUD 
     funding recipients take meaningful actions to overcome 
     historic patterns of segregation, promote fair housing 
     choice, and foster inclusive communities that are free from 
     discrimination; and
       Whereas, On August 9, 2018, HUD issued an advance notice of 
     a proposed rulemaking that would undo much of the AFFH rule 
     for the stated reasons that the rule impeded the development 
     and rehabilitation of affordable housing and provided 
     inadequate autonomy to HUD funding recipients; and
       Whereas, The AFFH rule has not been in effect long enough 
     to adequately assess its effect on the development and 
     rehabilitation of affordable housing, the rule does not in 
     fact dictate how communities should meet their fair housing 
     obligations, and the rule has produced concrete improvements 
     in fair housing, such as the commitment of Chester County, 
     Pennsylvania to reduce the number of Section 8 recipients 
     living in high-poverty census tracts by five percentage 
     points; and
       Whereas, It is altogether fitting, proper, and in the 
     public interest, for this House to express opposition to 
     HUD's proposed rulemaking that would upend the AFFH rule and 
     exacerbate housing inequities in both this State and across 
     the United States; now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, by the Senate of the State of New Jersey:
       1. This House expresses its opposition to and disapproval 
     of the United States Department of Housing and Urban 
     Development's proposed rulemaking revising its Affirmatively 
     Furthering Fair Housing rule adopted in 2015.
       2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary 
     of State, shall be transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate 
     to the President and Vice President of the United States, the 
     United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and 
     each member of Congress elected from this State.
                                  ____

       POM-235. A resolution adopted by the General Assembly of 
     the State of New Jersey urging the United States Congress and 
     the President of the United States to eliminate funding 
     disparities among land-grant institutions of higher 
     education; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
     Pensions.

                      Assembly Resolution No. 125

       Whereas, Historically Black Colleges and Universities 
     (HBCUs) have been providing a crucial means for the 
     educational and economic advancement of African-Americans for 
     more than a century; and
       Whereas, By serving the African-American community, HBCUs 
     serve all Americans by preparing gifted young men and women 
     to achieve their dreams and succeed in their life goals; and
       Whereas, Today, there are more than 100 HBCUs in the United 
     States, all of which embody many of our most deeply cherished 
     values such as equality, diversity, opportunity, and hard 
     work; and
       Whereas, HBCUs have their roots in the federal Morrill Act 
     of 1862, which required that each state have at least one 
     land-grant institution. Historically, most of these 
     institutions have been predominantly white. Since African-
     Americans were barred from many of these land-grant 
     institutions, a second Morrill Act was adopted in 1890 
     requiring states to show that race was not a factor in the 
     admission criteria of land-grant institutions or else they 
     would lose federal funding; and
       Whereas, Instead of unifying the institutions, some states 
     opted to create separate land-grant colleges for African-
     Americans, which allowed those states to keep segregated 
     colleges and at the same time not lose federal funding; and
       Whereas, 1890 land-grant institutions--HBC Us--have largely 
     received less funding per student when compared to their 1862 
     land-grant counterparts, in some instances receiving only 
     half the funding given to other institutions; and
       Whereas, It should be a public policy goal of the federal 
     government to enact laws aimed at eliminating the existing 
     funding inequity between HBCUs and 1862 land-grant 
     institutions; and
       Whereas, By increasing funding to HBCUs, the federal 
     government would be providing vital support to these 
     institutions as they continue their endeavor to improve the 
     quality of life of African-Americans by providing them with 
     high quality education; and
       Whereas, It is important, therefore, that Congress and the 
     President of the United States enact legislation which 
     eliminates the existing funding inequities between HBCUs and 
     1862 land-grant institutions in order to have equal education 
     opportunity through equal funding for all land-grant 
     institutions: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New 
     Jersey:
       1. The General Assembly of the State of New Jersey 
     respectfully urges Congress and the President of the United 
     States to enact legislation aimed at eliminating the existing 
     funding inequity between Historically Black Colleges and 
     Universities, which are the 1890 land-grant institutions of 
     higher education, and the 1862 land-grant institutions of 
     higher education.
       2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary 
     of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General 
     Assembly to the President and Vice-President of the United 
     States, the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United 
     States Senate, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United 
     States House of Representatives, and to every member of New 
     Jersey's Congressional delegation.
                                  ____

       POM-236. A resolution adopted by the Senate of the State of 
     Michigan urging the United States Congress to explore further 
     avenues of relief for businesses affected by the COVID-19 
     pandemic; to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
     Affairs.

                       Senate Resolution No. 130

       Whereas, The COVID-19 Pandemic has dramatically affected 
     Michigan and the United States. The first cases in Michigan 
     were reported on March 10, 2020, and since these initial 
     reports more than 56,000 cases have been confirmed and more 
     than 5,000 Michiganders have lost their lives to the novel 
     coronavirus. Nationally, there have been more than 1.7 
     million cases and 100,000 deaths; and
       Whereas, Mitigating the spread of the virus has required 
     extraordinary public health

[[Page S5651]]

     measures. Governor Gretchen Whitmer has issued executive 
     orders prohibiting large gatherings, closing all primary and 
     secondary schools, and requiring the temporary closure of all 
     nonessential businesses. At the federal level, the White 
     House Coronavirus Task Force's guidelines recommended the 
     closure of places where people gather, including businesses, 
     where there is evidence of community transmission. While some 
     industries and regions of the state have begun to partially 
     reopen, it is unclear how long mitigation measures will be 
     necessary before normal operations can resume; and
       Whereas, These measures have greatly impacted the 
     livelihoods of business owners across the state and our 
     nation. With the forced closures, small business owners have 
     been forced to lay off workers and forgo income for months, 
     while still needing to make payments for utilities, mortgages 
     and rent, and other expenses. According to a survey by the 
     Small Business Administration of Michigan, one in seven, or 
     about 14 percent, of small businesses are not confident that 
     they will survive the Pandemic. Nationally, a survey found 
     that 7.5 million small businesses are at risk of shutting 
     down; and
       Whereas, Federal and state governments have a 
     responsibility to assist small businesses since government 
     mitigation measures, while for the greater good, contributed 
     significantly to the current economic crisis. The economic 
     uncertainty and devastation caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic 
     and the related mitigation policies are not the fault of 
     small business owners. It would be unjust to fail to help 
     them and to allow them to bear an unfair share of the burden 
     of addressing this crisis; and
       Whereas, The failure of these businesses could have wide 
     ranging negative effects for Michigan and the United States. 
     Since the beginning of the crisis, more than 40 million 
     Americans have filed for unemployment, including more than 
     1.7 million in Michigan. If small businesses are unable to 
     reopen, many of these claimants may not be able to return to 
     work, magnifying the already devastating economic impact of 
     COVID-19; and
       Whereas, The small business relief already enacted by 
     Congress is not sufficient to mitigate these effects. As part 
     of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) 
     Act, Congress created the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) 
     to provide loans to small businesses. Even though additional 
     money was subsequently appropriated to the program, the PPP 
     has been unable to prove relief to millions of small 
     businesses that have been affected by the crisis: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate, That we memorialize the Congress of 
     the United States to explore further avenues of relief for 
     businesses affected by the COVlD-19 Pandemic; and be it 
     further
       Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to 
     the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, 
     the President of the United States Senate, and the members of 
     the Michigan congressional delegation.
                                  ____

       POM-237. A resolution adopted by the House of 
     Representatives of the State of Michigan urging the United 
     States Congress and the President of the United States to 
     immediately send humanitarian aid to Lebanon in response to 
     the Beirut port explosion; to the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations.

                        House Resolution No. 303

       Whereas, On August 4, 2020, a cache of the chemical 
     substance ammonium nitrate which was being stored in a 
     warehouse on the Pon of Beirut in Lebanon caught fire, 
     resulting in an explosion that killed more than 150 people 
     and wounded over 5,000 others. According to experts, the 
     blast registered on seismographs at 3.3, and the blast was 
     the third most powerful explosion in history after Hiroshima 
     and Nagasaki in Japan during World War II; and
       Whereas, In addition to the tragic loss of life, the 
     explosion has largely destroyed the port and its 
     infrastructure, which was responsible for 60 percent of 
     Lebanon's imports and was one of the largest and busiest 
     ports on the eastern Mediterranean Sea. As a result of the 
     explosion, most of the city's grain reserves and food imports 
     were destroyed, which is likely to cause widespread food 
     insecurity for years to come. In addition, the city of Beirut 
     is suffering billions in damages, with the explosion 
     shattering glass as far as 15 miles from the scene. In 
     response to the widespread devastation from the blast, a two-
     week state of emergency has been declared; and
       Whereas, The people of Lebanon were already suffering from 
     daily power outages, a lack of safe drinking water, food and 
     fuel shortages, and limited public health care before the 
     explosion. The COVID-19 Pandemic exacerbated these issues, 
     resulting in Lebanon's worst economic crisis since the 1975-
     1990 Civil War. Now with the devastation from the explosion, 
     it has become nearly impossible for the Lebanese people to 
     obtain basic human rights without humanitarian aid; and
       Whereas, Rescue efforts have been hampered by the lack of 
     electricity, and medical professionals are stitching the 
     wounded in the streets under their cellphone lights. Public 
     Health Minister Hamad Hassan said Lebanon's health sector is 
     short of beds and Jacked the equipment necessary lo treat the 
     injured and care for patients in critical condition. 
     Meanwhile, many buildings and homes have been reduced to an 
     uninhabitable mess of glass, leaving as many as 300.000 
     people homeless. Furthermore, the toxic gases released from 
     the explosion. combined with the impact of COVID-19 and the 
     thick Mediterranean summer air, have created a deeply 
     oppressive atmosphere where the people of Beirut cannot 
     breathe; and
       Whereas, Lebanon's Prime Minister Hassan Diab and his 
     government have stepped down after citing mass corruption 
     that contributed to the disaster. Before the resignation, 
     Prime Minster Hassan Diab made a plea to other countries for 
     aid. France, Russia, Iraq, and Iran have sent planes full of 
     doctors, medical supplies, medication, and more to help 
     Lebanon through this crisis: now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we urge the 
     Congress and President of the United States to send 
     humanitarian aid in the form of medical supplies, 
     medications, and emergency funding to Lebanon in the wake of 
     the Beirut Port Explosion, and be it further
       Resolved. That copies of this resolution be transmitted to 
     the President of the United States, the Speaker of the United 
     States House of Representatives, the President of the United 
     States Senate, and the Michigan congressional delegation.
                                  ____

       POM-238. A resolution adopted by the City Council of the 
     City of Oberlin, Ohio, expressing the support for the passage 
     of Senate Joint Resolution 6 to remove the deadline for state 
     ratification of the equal rights amendment; to the Committee 
     on the Judiciary.
       POM-239. A resolution adopted by the Pennsylvania State 
     Council of the Junior Order United American Mechanics 
     memorializing its opposition to the desecration and 
     destruction of American war monuments in this country; to the 
     Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
       POM-240. A petition from a citizen of the State of Texas 
     relative to recipients of public financial assistance; to the 
     Committee on Finance.
       POM-241. A petition from a citizen of the State of Texas 
     relative to territory and statehood status; to the Committee 
     on Energy and Natural Resources

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