[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 83 (Wednesday, May 17, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1707-S1709]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. THUNE (for himself, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Marshall, and Ms. 
        Smith):
  S. 1652. A bill to amend the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 to 
preserve foreign markets for goods using common names, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
  Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 1652

       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 ``Safeguarding American Value-
     Added Exports Act of 2023'' or the ``SAVE Act of 2023''.

     SEC. 2. PRESERVING FOREIGN MARKETS FOR GOODS USING COMMON 
                   NAMES.

       (a) Definitions.--Section 102 of the Agricultural Trade Act 
     of 1978 (7 U.S.C. 5602) is amended--
       (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ``As 
     used in this Act--'' and inserting ``In this Act:'';
       (2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (8) as 
     paragraphs (3), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), and (4), 
     respectively, and reordering accordingly;
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
       ``(2) Common name.--
       ``(A) In general.--The term `common name' means a name 
     that, as determined by the Secretary--
       ``(i) is ordinarily or customarily used for an agricultural 
     commodity or food product;
       ``(ii) is typically placed on the packaging and product 
     label of the agricultural commodity or food product;
       ``(iii) with respect to wine--

       ``(I) is--

       ``(aa) ordinarily or customarily used for a wine grape 
     varietal name; or
       ``(bb) a traditional term or expression that is typically 
     placed on the packaging and label of the wine; and

       ``(II) does not mean any appellation of origin for wine 
     listed in subpart C of part 9 of title 27, Code of Federal 
     Regulations (or successor regulations); and

       ``(iv) the use of which is consistent with standards of the 
     Codex Alimentarius Commission.
       ``(B) Considerations.--In making a determination under 
     subparagraph (A), the Secretary may take into account--
       ``(i) competent sources, such as dictionaries, newspapers, 
     professional journals and literature, and information posted 
     on websites that are determined by the Secretary to be 
     reliable in reporting market information;
       ``(ii) the use of the common name in a domestic, regional, 
     or international product standard, including a standard 
     promulgated by the Codex Alimentarius Commission, for the 
     agricultural commodity or food product; and
       ``(iii) the ordinary and customary use of the common name 
     in the production or marketing of the agricultural commodity 
     or food product in the United States or in other 
     countries.''; and
       (4) in paragraph (7) (as so redesignated), in subparagraph 
     (A)--
       (A) in clause (v), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (B) in clause (vi), by striking the period at the end and 
     inserting ``; or''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(vii) prohibits or disallows the use of the common name 
     of an agricultural commodity or food product of the United 
     States.''.
       (b) Negotiations to Defend Use of Common Names.--Title III 
     of the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 (7 U.S.C. 5652 et seq.) 
     is amended by adding at the end the following:

     ``SEC. 303. NEGOTIATIONS TO DEFEND THE USE OF COMMON NAMES.

       ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall coordinate efforts 
     with the United States Trade Representative to secure the 
     right of United States agricultural producers, processors, 
     and exporters to use common names for agricultural 
     commodities or food products in foreign markets through the 
     negotiation of bilateral, plurilateral, or multilateral 
     agreements, memoranda of understanding, or exchanges of 
     letters that assure the current and future use of each common 
     name identified by the Secretary in connection with United 
     States agricultural commodities or food products.
       ``(b) Report.--The Secretary and the United States Trade 
     Representative shall submit to Congress a report every 2 
     years regarding efforts and successes in carrying out 
     subsection (a).''.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. BOOKER (for himself and Mr. Vance):
  S. 1658. A bill to amend title 5, United States Code, to include 
certain Federal positions within the definition of law enforcement 
officer for retirement purposes, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
  Mr. BOOKER. Madam President, less than a mile from where we are right 
now--just a 15-minute walk away--are two curving, blue-gray limestone 
walls about 304 feet long. They curve their way through the center of 
Judiciary Square, under the shadow of neatly organized trees, adjacent 
to the National Law Enforcement Museum. Built and dedicated in 1991, 
these walls were inscribed with nearly 12,000 names at the time they 
were built.
  Each year since then, more names have been added. In fact, just this 
weekend, families, loved ones--Americans of all backgrounds, Americans 
of all beliefs, a tapestry of our humanity--gathered under the night 
sky for a candlelight vigil; and very solemnly, additional names were 
read aloud and inscribed into that limestone, adding, once again, to 
the total.
  These are hallowed names, engraved into those walls and etched 
forever into our Nation's memory. These are names that belong to our 
fallen heroes. The names are of brave, loyal, patriotic law enforcement 
officers--our great citizens--who answered the call, who sacrificed for 
their communities.
  No greater love hath a man than this, than to give his life for his 
friends, for his Nation.
  These were men and women who knew, every day when they suited up, 
that they could face danger, potentially even the ultimate call. They 
are the names of police officers who had tragedy visited upon them and 
their families and their loved ones. They are also police officers who 
took their own lives. They are the names of officers who fell to 
COVID--officers who, in the midst of the pandemic and when we were 
sheltering in place, were out doing their duty.
  Each one of these names is a son. Each one of these people is a 
daughter. They are husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, friends 
and colleagues. They are parents who have perished. In short, they are 
the names of public servants--of men and women--who made the ultimate 
sacrifice in the line of duty.
  It pains me to say that I am familiar with some of these names listed 
on the walls. I am familiar from my time as mayor when I oversaw a 
city, including a mighty police department. I remember vividly those 
times when I would receive that call that one of our officers had been 
injured in the line of duty or had been shot or, in two cases, when 
they were tragically killed. I remember those phone calls. I remember 
the visits with loved ones, with their fellow officers, with friends. I 
remember the pain and the hurt and the agony. I remember the eulogies 
and the funerals--the grief that lingers still. I remember the families 
and communities shattered then and still feeling the loss now.
  It first happened in March of 2007, just months after I had become 
mayor. Sergeant Tommaso Popolizio was the youngest of seven siblings. 
He was an avid paintball player and a loyal son of Newark. His family 
had immigrated from Italy back in the sixties and had settled in the 
city, where Sergeant Popolizio attended high school. Police work, you 
could say, was in his DNA. Two of his older brothers were Newark 
officers, and Sergeant Popolizio was following in his family's 
footsteps.
  He had been a Newark police officer for 12 years when he had 
responded to a call, on a late night, of dangerous drag racing going 
on. Sergeant Popolizio pursued a subject in a high-speed chase during 
which his SUV crashed into a pole and rolled several times. He 
succumbed to head injuries 2 hours later.
  I remember vividly, that day, speaking to news media at the hospital. 
I remember speaking to his heroism. I remember speaking to his 
dedication, to his commitment. And those words are as true today as 
they were then.
  Those words of heroism ring true also for Detective Michael Morgan, a 
6-year veteran of the Newark police force, who was tragically taken 
from us in November of 2011. It was said that Detective Morgan was 
destined to be a

[[Page S1708]]

cop. When he was a young boy, he would sit by his window and make siren 
noises as police cars went past his New Jersey home. Two of his cousins 
were police officers. His uncle was a police officer--a retired deputy 
chief no less. He was an athlete. He played linebacker and fullback for 
New Jersey City University.
  During his years on the force, he helped take hundreds of guns off 
the streets, protecting people from gun violence. He was more than just 
a Newark police officer. He was a community leader from Newark, serving 
Newark, involved in the community, loving his city in every way.
  On that November day, Detective Morgan was off duty when he attempted 
to stop an armed robbery suspect. Just as he was about to pull his 
weapon, he was shot in the torso. Other officers there tried to save 
his life. They rushed him to a nearby hospital, but he was pronounced 
dead.
  Today, these stories cut even deeper. They weigh even heavier. New 
Jersey has lost too many police officers.
  New Jersey grieves, recently, the loss of Deptford Police Officer 
Robert ``Bobby'' Shisler. He tragically passed away just this Sunday 
from a gunshot wound that he suffered 2 months ago following a 
pedestrian stop. A 4-year veteran of the force, he was the first 
Deptford police officer killed in the line of duty. He was just 27 
years old.
  The stories of these officers, of these three individuals--Sergeant 
Popolizio, Detective Morgan, and Officer Shisler--are among the 
hundreds and hundreds of stories of fallen officers whose names are on 
that wall. They are forever emblazoned on the heart and the soul and 
the character of our country. Their stories show duty; they show honor; 
stories of service, of selfless purpose and the ultimate sacrifice, 
stories that remind us of the dangers that every single day law 
enforcement officers face.
  Most importantly, they demonstrate what it takes in this democracy, 
the greatest Nation on the planet still--the call of duty, the 
challenge of what it takes to preserve peace. Without officers who put 
themselves in harms' way, I struggle to think how the challenges we 
face would be all the deeper.
  This week, as we commemorate National Police Week, the purpose of 
these days is for us to pay tribute. Police Week is about paying 
tribute to the law enforcement officers who made the ultimate sacrifice 
to our country. Let's not forget that.
  It is a chance for all of us to pause and reflect on how we can 
continue to work together to ensure that police officers have the 
support that they deserve in doing some of the most difficult jobs in 
America.
  Every day, law enforcement officers are on the frontlines of major 
crimes. They are there in our crises. They are there when we are 
afraid. They are there when we are under assault. They are there in our 
communities and our neighbors with a noble purpose to serve, to keep us 
safe, to make us strong. They respond to mass shootings, to domestic 
violence, to horrible accidents, and to painful crimes. They have to 
confront the scourge of the rising rates of gun violence in our 
country, walking into situations where they face individuals sometimes 
with weapons that belong not on our streets or in our neighborhoods but 
in theaters of war.
  I have seen situations, active shooter situations, where other people 
are running out; they are running in. Other people are ducking for 
cover; they stand strong to protect us.
  In the past few years, during the pandemic, I began to hear the 
stories of officers, with little regard for their own safety, still 
going out and doing their job. When fear and the unknown of this 
pandemic was hitting, you still had officers showing up for duty, going 
into dangerous situations, and I began to worry about their well-being.
  It is why, working with Senator Grassley, I was proud, in the depth 
of the pandemic, to introduce legislation with other colleagues from 
both sides of the aisle to expand the PSOB Program so that death 
benefits are given to survivors of police officers and first responders 
who lose their lives to COVID-19; that the presumption is, if an 
officer dies, that it was a line-of-duty death.
  Today, I introduced bipartisan legislation to ensure officers across 
the Federal Government receive their full retirement benefits. They are 
there for us for their whole career; we can make sure that we are there 
for them when they retire.
  Of all these bills that are introduced and debated in this body, I 
know that it is a shadow of the work being done by the law enforcement 
officers in this Nation. Many of us in this body were reminded of their 
heroism when this Chamber was attacked on January 6, and we saw officer 
after officer put their lives on the line. Indeed, as a result of that 
attack, we lost Capitol Police officers, including Brian Sicknick from 
the State of New Jersey. We stand here, and we debate. We stand here, 
and we legislate. But out on the walls just yards from where I stand 
are the officers who show that every single day they face a danger that 
we will never know.
  So this week, a week in which we remember our police officers, law 
enforcement themselves are still out there serving our community. Law 
enforcement officers are still, with little regard for their safety, 
running into situations of great danger. Whether it is a rookie cop on 
their first day or a seasoned veteran who has been on the job for 
decades, police officers put on their uniform, head outside, and their 
families and their children and their loved ones know the challenges 
and the dangers of the job. Most of them will come home. Most of them 
will raise their kids. Most of them will see retirement. But, 
tragically, some of them will not.
  So this week, we call it Police Week, but it is a bit of a divergence 
from the understanding of why this week came to be. This week is here 
to remember the sacrifice and the service and the patriotism: ``My 
country `tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing;'' land 
where fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers died who wear the 
uniform, land of patriotism and pride. Let us not forget those who have 
fallen, and let us continue in a bipartisan way to protect them, to 
serve them who so nobly serve us, protect us, and advance this Nation 
forward each and every day.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. PADILLA (for himself, Mr. Paul, Mr. Durbin, Ms. Collins, 
        Mr. King, Mr. Cramer, and Ms. Sinema):
  S. 1667. A bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to 
authorize lawful permanent resident status for certain college 
graduates who entered the United States as children, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mr. PADILLA. Madam President, I rise to introduce the Citizenship for 
Essential Workers Act.
  This legislation would provide a pathway to citizenship for these 
workers and their families, who have played a critical role in getting 
us through the pandemic and are helping with recovery efforts.
  A little over 2 years ago, after I was first sworn into the U.S. 
Senate, this was the very first bill I introduced.
  Every day, over 5 million essential workers without permanent legal 
status kept Americans healthy, fed, and safe during the COVID 
pandemic--all while risking their own health and the health of their 
families.
  They couldn't just Zoom into the office.
  Many served us while living in constant fear of deportation.
  Back then, for the first time, Americans were waking up to a reality 
what families like mine knew for years: that not only were these 
immigrant workers saving lives in a time of need but that their work 
had always been essential to our country.
  As the proud son of immigrants from Mexico whose mother worked as a 
housekeeper and father a short order cook--two jobs that today would be 
deemed essential--I can only imagine the fear and uncertainty my family 
would have experienced every day my dad walked out the door or my mom 
set off to enter another family's home in the middle of a pandemic.
  The Federal COVID-19 public health emergency comes to an end next 
month, but we can't forget the sacrifices these workers made--and still 
make every single day--for our country.
  And my legislation not only honors their sacrifice but also 
recognizes how critical essential workers are to our

[[Page S1709]]

economy even beyond a public health emergency.
  They have earned their place in this country.

                          ____________________