[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 98 (Tuesday, June 11, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H3720-H3723]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
IN RECOGNITION OF THE PLACER COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of
January 9, 2023, the Chair recognizes the
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gentleman from California (Mr. Kiley) for 30 minutes.
Mr. KILEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to name the following members of the
Placer County Sheriff's Office to the 2024 Third Congressional District
Police Honor Roll: Sergeant Isaiah Tchobanoff, Deputy Richard Porter,
Deputy John Tannarome, Deputy Brandon Winschell, Deputy Paul Solbos,
Deputy Kevin Hills, Deputy Joseph Durant.
On the night of May 2, 2024, deputies in the Placer County Sheriff's
Office were on patrol in the city of Colfax in Placer County. The
deputies observed a suspicious vehicle parked at the rear of a local
restaurant that matched the vehicle description of one used while in
the commission of a residential burglary earlier in the week of a
Placer County citizen.
Deputies Solbos, Porter, and Tannarome attempted to contact the van
occupant, who was verbally uncooperative and refused lawful orders to
exit the vehicle.
Deputy Solbos called for his supervisor, Sergeant Tchobanoff, and
Deputy Durant to respond and assist them. Deputies Winschell and Hills
arrived a short time later.
While instituting a plan to deescalate the situation and remove the
occupant from the vehicle safely, the driver of the van fired a gun
from inside the vehicle, striking Deputy Porter in the upper torso.
Deputies at the scene returned fire, and Deputy Porter was
immediately provided medical aid by deputies on the scene and was
transported to the nearest helicopter landing zone by his fellow
deputies awaiting an air ambulance.
Additional deputies and officers from outside agencies began arriving
as Deputy Porter was flown to the nearest trauma center, Sutter
Roseville Medical Center.
Deputy Porter spent four nights in the hospital surrounded by his
loved ones and his colleagues from the sheriff's office. In tremendous
news, he was released to go home on Monday, May 6, 2024, and was
escorted home by the sheriff, undersheriff, and assistant sheriff,
along with the command staff and patrol staff.
These law enforcement officers acted with the utmost professionalism
and bravery on May 2, 2024. They trusted the advanced officer training
the sheriff's office had provided and were calm, committed, and
focused.
That night was a true testament to their unwavering commitment to the
community they serve. Their actions embody the core values of the
Placer County Sheriff's Office, and all Placer County residents can
take enormous pride in these outstanding officers.
For their bravery and dedication to public safety, I am honored to
include these fine law enforcement officers in the 2024 Third
Congressional District Police Honor Roll.
In Remembrance of Aldo Pineschi
Mr. KILEY. Mr. Speaker, it is with a very heavy heart that I wish to
take a moment to honor the memory of Aldo Pineschi, a Roseville
resident and community leader who passed away a few weeks ago on May
28, 2024.
Aldo was born and raised in Roseville, California, which is also
where he decided to raise his family. Aldo attended the local high
school and community college until he transferred to UC Davis, where he
graduated with a degree in political science.
After his education, he worked in government relations and public
affairs for 40 years and owned and operated Aldo Pineschi Consulting.
Beyond his thriving career, Aldo placed his heart at the center of
Placer County and served the communities within numerous leadership and
volunteer positions.
His contributions to the region include his work with the Placer
Business Alliance, with many of the area chambers of commerce, and
several local nonprofits, such as Lighthouse Counseling, Visit Placer,
The Placer Breast Cancer Foundation, and many, many more.
He raised scholarship funds for local students and was a driving
force behind organizations that would help struggling families afford
everyday necessities. He had a strong commitment to and understanding
of the pulse of the local business community and was an invaluable
contributor to the economic vitality and success of the region.
Aldo's wide diversity of accomplishments improved the quality of life
and experiences for residents, businesses, and visitors in the area. It
is because of the exceptional leadership and passion of people like
Aldo Pineschi that Placer County and the communities that comprise it
are such great places to live, work, raise a family, and retire.
Aldo will be remembered for many, many things: by his countless
friends in our county, for his wise counsel, his innate kindness, and
his care and consideration for those around him. As a pillar in our
community, I am confident that the remarkable legacy he left behind in
Placer County will be felt for generations to come.
Therefore, on behalf of California's Third Congressional District and
the United States House of Representatives, I want to offer a heartfelt
condolence to Aldo's wife, Lesli, children, Evangeline and Anthony, and
the countless other lives that he touched throughout Placer County and
the surrounding region.
Mr. Aldo Pineschi will be greatly missed, but his legacy will be felt
for a very, very long time to come.
In Recognition of Johanna Tackitt
Mr. KILEY. Mr. Speaker, I wish to take a moment to recognize an
outstanding and prominent educator from California's Third
Congressional District.
I would like to highlight a teacher from the Eastern Sierra Unified
School District, Johanna Tackitt, who has dedicated 22 years toward a
career in education.
Mrs. Tackitt earned her bachelor of science degree in elementary
education from the University of Nevada, Reno, and a master's in
advanced teaching leadership from Sierra Nevada College.
She proudly teaches at Antelope Elementary School in Coleville,
California, where she has instructed classes of students in the third
grade and transitional kindergarten and kindergarten.
As a young girl, Mrs. Tackitt became passionate about horses and
barrel racing. Through this passion, she was inspired to become a
teacher by her friend and mentor, Lauretta, who taught her dressage.
She strove to emulate Lauretta's qualities of patience, positivity, and
care, and later became a coach herself.
This ultimately led Mrs. Tackitt to the teaching profession, where
she used these skills and values to become beloved by students,
parents, and staff.
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Her unique abilities as a former coach help her build trusting
relationships with students in which she guides them toward reaching
their goals, and thereby creates confident young students who believe
in themselves and know they can achieve anything.
For these reasons and many more, Mrs. Tackitt was recently recognized
as the 2022-2023 Mono County Teacher of the Year. She is known by
others for her strong work ethic, patience, and knowledge, as well as
for treating her students with respect, kindness, and empathy.
Students leave Mrs. Tackitt's classroom excited about school and
learning, which is commendable. I applaud Mrs. Tackitt for her
dedication to education, to the development of her students, and to
promoting overall student success in academic achievement.
Therefore, on behalf of the United States House of Representatives, I
am pleased to recognize Mrs. Johanna Tackitt for her significant
contributions to the Eastern Sierra Unified School District and to the
students of Antelope Elementary School.
Recognizing Tahoe Forest Health System
Mr. KILEY. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a moment to recognize
the Tahoe Forest Health System for 75 years of providing exceptional
healthcare services to the Tahoe region.
In 1949, Richard Joseph and his family donated the land necessary for
the construction of the new hospital in Truckee. The donation was made
with the desire to care for their local community members and in memory
of their son, Levon Joseph, who was tragically killed during his
military service in World War II.
The community rallied behind the idea of a new hospital, and under
the legacy of generosity, the Tahoe Forest Hospital District was
formed. In 1952, the hospital facility named the Tahoe
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Forest Hospital officially opened its doors.
The original hospital consisted of 15 beds and 2 physicians. Since
its inception, the Tahoe Forest Health System has grown along with the
community it serves. The Tahoe Forest Hospital expanded to 25 acute
care beds and 36 long-term care beds while also providing a wide array
of critical rural healthcare services, including community health
outreach programs.
The hospital service area now covers six rural counties, two States,
and approximately 3,500 square miles. The hospital was further
developed by building the Gene Upshaw Memorial Tahoe Cancer Center and
the Incline Village Community Hospital, a four-bed critical access
hospital offering 24-hour emergency care, as well as a variety of other
clinical health services.
The Tahoe Forest Health System has contributed to the health and
well-being of Tahoe residents and visitors for more than seven decades
and is a vital resource for our local mountain communities.
Tahoe Forest Health has earned multiple awards, partnerships, and
recognitions and sets a high standard for excellence in rural
healthcare. Therefore, on behalf of the United States House of
Representatives, I am honored to recognize the Tahoe Forest Health
System in celebration of their 75-year anniversary, and I applaud them
for their ongoing commitment to providing quality and compassionate
healthcare services.
Overturn Proposition 47
Mr. KILEY. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a moment this evening to
bring the country's attention to one of the most shocking and twisted
things I have ever seen in the world of politics, which is happening
right now in my State of California.
There is a scheme playing out right now on the part of the State's
ruling politicians to undermine a democratic election and make nearly
40 million Californians less safe. This relates to the crime problem in
our State, which, of course, is not just a California issue.
As a member of the Judiciary Committee, I have been part of several
field hearings in some of America's worst cities when it comes to high
crime rates, including Chicago, Philadelphia, Manhattan, and right here
in Washington, D.C.
It is perhaps in my State, in California, especially in cities like
Oakland, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, where the problem is most
pronounced, thanks in large part to a series of criminal laws that have
been passed that are uniquely permissive and that are uniquely
restrictive of the ability of law enforcement to keep our communities
safe.
Yet, there is one law in particular that is at the root of many of
the problems that we see in California when it comes to homelessness,
open-air drug markets, retail theft, and smash-and-grabs. That is an
initiative known as Proposition 47, which was passed in 2014 under the
false name of the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, and since that
time has caused an epidemic of retail theft by eliminating virtually
any consequence for stealing.
It has also had the tragic consequence of making it so we cannot get
drug addicts who are living on our streets, in many cases dying
tragically on our streets, in many cases for fentanyl and other drugs,
where we can't get them the help they need now because it has decimated
our drug court system. Prosecutors no longer have the ability to use a
possible felony conviction as leverage to get offenders to sign up for
treatment.
For the last decade, this very misguided initiative, Proposition 47,
has caused these problems to build and build in California and has made
our communities less and less safe, has made our quality of life in
California lower and lower, has been a major reason why people have
been leaving our State in record numbers when, for much of its history,
California has been the State that everyone wanted to come to.
After a decade, over the course of the last several months, there has
been a citizen-led effort in California to overturn the worst
provisions of Proposition 47, to restore consequences for retail theft,
to revive drug treatment for those who need it, and to take on the
scourge of fentanyl that is ravaging far too many of our communities.
The people of California responded overwhelmingly, with over 900,000
people signing the petition to get this measure on the ballot. Just
about an hour ago this evening, it was officially announced by the
California secretary of state that the initiative has qualified and
that it will appear on the November ballot. All indications are that
the people of California will vote for it and end this radical failed
experiment in our State and set our State on a new course.
Unfortunately, there are some who hold power right now in California
who do not want that to happen.
I want to be very clear that this is not a partisan statement because
the initiative has broad bipartisan support. For example, it is
endorsed by the Democratic mayor of San Francisco, the Democratic mayor
of San Jose, and the Democratic mayor of San Diego because it is just
common sense that we need to restore public safety in California.
Yet, at the State level, the supermajority in the legislature, along
with Governor Gavin Newsom, have decided that they should take matters
into their own hands and deny voters the opportunity to bypass this
bipartisan initiative.
How might they do this, you ask? It has already qualified for the
ballot. The people have made their voices heard. It is official. What
is their plan? This is the scheme that they have come up with that
surpasses anything I have seen, perhaps, and I have seen a lot when it
comes to the machinations of California politics.
Here is what they have done. The Governor and leaders in the
legislature came up with their own package of bills that are ostensibly
designed to promote public safety. In fact, most if not all of those
bills are unobjectionable. Some of them are even positive, but they are
really just tweaking at the edges of the problem.
None of them does anything to deal with the actual problems of
Proposition 47. In fact, the bills by definition couldn't do that
because Proposition 47 was a voter initiative, and it could only be
corrected by voter initiative. The legislature doesn't have the power
to do that.
Nevertheless, for whatever reason, maybe to look like they were doing
something about the problem, maybe they genuinely wanted to help make
communities safer, you had these bills that were introduced that would
take some fairly modest steps in the direction of public safety.
We actually learned just a few days ago that there was a much more
sinister purpose behind these bills. The leaders of the legislature
will be introducing an amendment to these bills, which has what they
are calling an inoperability clause.
What does that mean? They are stipulating in the language of the
bills that if voters pass the initiative that is now going to be on the
ballot in November, then those bills will automatically be repealed.
They are putting in a provision that says that their own bills will be
repealed automatically if voters make a decision that they don't like
in November.
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This is truly extraordinary. It is a threat to the people of
California. Don't pass this initiative or we will weaken other criminal
laws. It is a loaded weapon because the effect is automatic. The threat
doesn't even need to be carried out; it is just there the moment the
initiative passes, at least, this is the way they have designed it.
Then those bills will be repealed, but the true purpose of this is even
worse.
The true purpose is to mislead voters and give them an upside-down
description of what this initiative will actually do. Because in
California, the language that appears on the ballot when you go to vote
that says, here is what this initiative will do, that language is
written by the attorney general who is, himself, a Statewide-elected
official.
The point of including what some are calling a poison pill, which
says that if you pass the initiative, then these public safety bills
are going to be repealed, is to influence the way that the initiative
is written, an initiative that is supposed to be about helping to limit
crime, reduce crime, and restore consequences. They will describe it in
precisely the opposite way.
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On the ballot, it will now say, oh, no, this initiative is going to
repeal these public safety measures.
It is a deeply cynical scheme designed to undermine a popular voter
initiative that is desperately needed to get our State back on track. I
think that when people ask whatever happened to California, how did our
beautiful State come to have all of these problems, where you walk
through the streets of San Francisco or Los Angeles and you can't even
believe that you are in the United States of America, how did this
happen? This is how it has happened.
Unfortunately, we have political leaders who are willing to go so far
as to undermine a democratic election and to make our State less safe
in order to advance their own particular political goals.
Mr. Speaker, I think it is absolutely shameful; however, I have faith
that at the end of the day, the will of the people will win out, and I
think that people are frustrated with what has happened to our State.
I hear it every day. They are frustrated with machinations like this,
and the people of California will find a way to make sure that this
change that is desperately needed happens and that our State gets back
on the right track.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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