[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 6]
[House]
[Pages 7907-7911]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 SUPPORTING GOAL OF ENSURING ALL HOLOCAUST VICTIMS LIVE WITH DIGNITY, 
                         COMFORT, AND SECURITY

  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree 
to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 129) expressing support for 
the goal of ensuring that all Holocaust victims live with dignity, 
comfort, and security in their remaining years, and urging the Federal 
Republic of Germany to reaffirm its commitment to this goal through a 
financial commitment to comprehensively address the unique health and 
welfare needs of vulnerable Holocaust victims, including home care and 
other medically prescribed needs, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the concurrent resolution.
  The text of the concurrent resolution is as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 129

       Whereas the annihilation of 6,000,000 Jews during the 
     Holocaust and the murder of millions of others by the Nazi 
     German state

[[Page 7908]]

     constitutes one of the most tragic and heinous crimes in 
     human history;
       Whereas hundreds of thousands of Jews survived persecution 
     by the Nazi regime despite being imprisoned, subjected to 
     slave labor, moved into ghettos, forced to live in hiding or 
     under false identity, forced to live under curfew, or 
     required to wear the ``yellow star'';
       Whereas in fear of the oncoming Nazi Einsatzgruppen (``Nazi 
     Killing Squads'') and the likelihood of extermination, 
     hundreds of thousands of Jewish Nazi victims fled for their 
     lives;
       Whereas whatever type of persecution suffered by Jews 
     during the Holocaust, the common thread that binds these 
     Holocaust victims is that they were targeted for 
     extermination and that they lived with a constant fear for 
     their lives and the lives of their loved ones;
       Whereas Holocaust victims immigrated to the United States 
     from Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, and the former 
     Soviet Union from 1933 to today;
       Whereas it is estimated that there are at least 100,000 
     Holocaust victims living in the United States and 
     approximately 500,000 living around the world today, 
     including child survivors;
       Whereas tens of thousands of Holocaust victims are in their 
     80s or 90s or are more than 100 years in age, and the number 
     of Holocaust victims is diminishing;
       Whereas at least 50 percent of Holocaust victims alive 
     today will pass away within the next decade, and those alive 
     are becoming frailer and have increasing health and welfare 
     needs;
       Whereas Holocaust victims throughout the world continue to 
     suffer from permanent physical and psychological injuries and 
     disabilities and live with the emotional scars of this 
     systematic genocide against the Jewish people;
       Whereas many of the emotional and psychological scars of 
     Holocaust victims are exacerbated in their old age, the past 
     haunts and overwhelms many aspects of their lives when their 
     health fails them;
       Whereas Holocaust victims suffer particular trauma when 
     their emotional and physical circumstances force them to 
     leave the security of their own home and enter institutional 
     or other group living residential facilities;
       Whereas tens of thousands of Holocaust victims live in 
     poverty, cannot afford and do not receive sufficient medical 
     care, home care, mental health care, medicine, food, 
     transportation, and other vital life-sustaining services that 
     allow them to live their final years with comfort and 
     dignity;
       Whereas Holocaust victims often lack family support 
     networks and require social worker-supported case management 
     in order to manage their daily lives and access government 
     funded services;
       Whereas in response to a letter sent by Members of Congress 
     to Germany's Minister of Finance in December 2015 regarding 
     increased funding for Holocaust victims, German officials 
     acknowledged that ``recent experience has shown that the care 
     financed by the German Government to date is insufficient'' 
     and that ``it is imperative to expand these assistance 
     measures quickly given the advanced age of many of the 
     affected persons'';
       Whereas German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer acknowledged in 
     1951 Germany's responsibility to provide moral and financial 
     compensation to Holocaust victims worldwide;
       Whereas every successive German Chancellor has reaffirmed 
     this position, including Chancellor Angela Merkel, who in 
     2007 reaffirmed that ``only by fully accepting its enduring 
     responsibility for this most appalling period and for the 
     cruelest crimes in its history, can Germany shape the 
     future'';
       Whereas in 2015 Chancellor Merkel's spokesperson again 
     confirmed ``all Germans know the history of the murderous 
     race mania of the Nazis that led to the break with 
     civilization that was the Holocaust . . . we know that 
     responsibility for this crime against humanity is German and 
     very much our own''; and
       Whereas Congress believes it is Germany's moral and 
     historical responsibility to comprehensively, permanently, 
     and urgently provide the resources for all Holocaust victims' 
     medical, mental health, and long-term care needs: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) acknowledges the financial and moral commitment of the 
     Federal Republic of Germany over the past seven decades to 
     provide a measure of justice for Holocaust victims;
       (2) supports the goal of ensuring that all Holocaust 
     victims in the United States and around the world are able to 
     live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining 
     years;
       (3) applauds the nonprofit organizations and agencies that 
     work tirelessly to honor and assist Holocaust victims in 
     their communities;
       (4) acknowledges the ongoing process of negotiations 
     between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Conference on 
     Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) in 
     order to secure funding for Holocaust victims and for vital 
     social services provided through nonprofit organizations and 
     agencies around the world;
       (5) acknowledges that the Federal Republic of Germany and 
     the Claims Conference have established a new high-level 
     working group that will develop proposals for extensive 
     assistance for homecare and other social welfare needs of 
     Holocaust victims;
       (6) urges the working group to recognize the imperative of 
     immediately and fully funding victims' medical, mental 
     health, and long-term care needs and to do so with full 
     transparency and accountability to ensure all funds for 
     Holocaust victims from the Federal Republic of Germany are 
     administered efficiently, fairly, and without delay; and
       (7) urges the Federal Republic of Germany to continue to 
     reaffirm its commitment and fulfill its moral responsibility 
     to Holocaust victims by ensuring that every Holocaust victim 
     receives all of the prescribed medical care, home care, 
     mental health care, and other vital services necessary to 
     live in dignity and by providing, without delay, additional 
     financial resources to address the unique needs of Holocaust 
     victims.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Deutch) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Florida.


                             General Leave

  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks 
and to include extraneous material on this resolution.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, first I would like to thank my good friend and south 
Florida colleague, Mr. Ted Deutch, for his work on this resolution and 
for cointroducing it together. It is an important resolution, Mr. 
Speaker. I also want to thank our chairman, Chairman Royce, and the 
ranking member, Mr. Engel, for always working in a bipartisan manner, 
for recognizing the importance of this resolution, and for moving this 
bill out of our Committee on Foreign Affairs in an expeditious manner.
  This resolution, simply put, Mr. Speaker, urges Germany to honor its 
moral and historical obligations to Holocaust survivors and to provide 
for their unmet needs immediately and comprehensively. I know that for 
Mr. Deutch and for me, this is an issue that deeply impacts many of our 
constituents in south Florida.
  There are just over 500,000 Holocaust survivors worldwide. About a 
quarter of that number live right here in the United States, with over 
15,000 living in our south Florida communities, Mr. Speaker. I have had 
the honor and privilege to work closely with survivors from south 
Florida, many of whom I have come to call dear friends: my friends 
David Mermelstein, David Schaecter, Herbie Karliner, Joe Sachs, and 
Alex Gross; and Jack Rubin, who has testified before Congress on issues 
related to Holocaust survivors, including a hearing that I chaired 
alongside Mr. Deutch in the year 2014.
  There are also many more to thank, those who have made justice for 
Holocaust survivors their life's work, individuals like Sam Dubbin, 
Mark Talisman, and the list goes on and on, Mr. Speaker.
  It has been my close relationship with these individuals that has 
really helped me to understand the realities that survivors have 
endured during humanity's darkest period and, unfortunately, the sad 
reality that they face today--today--Mr. Speaker, especially when it 
comes to their home healthcare needs, to their mental health needs, to 
their medical care needs.
  Do you know, Mr. Speaker, that nearly half of all survivors worldwide 
live at or below the poverty level? After going through what is almost 
indescribable horror, these survivors are living at or below the 
poverty level. Many survivors are unable to maintain even a modest and 
dignified standard of living: they lack funds for home care; they don't 
have the money for medicine; they don't have the funds for food; they 
can't pay the utilities; and

[[Page 7909]]

they can't pay their rent. As Jack Rubin said before our subcommittee 
in the year 2014: the existing system has fallen tragically short of 
what survivors need and deserve.
  The current funding and care delivery systems are difficult for 
survivors to access, and they are severely underfunded. That is why it 
is so important that we pass this resolution and urge our friends in 
Germany, our good partners in Germany, to honor the obligations and the 
commitments that they have made to provide for the needs of Holocaust 
survivors.
  German Governments have provided some support through income 
assistance programs and have doubled funding for home care services in 
the past 5 years, so they are trying. They want to do better. In fact, 
even by Germany's own admission, the care financed by the German 
Government to date has been insufficient for those in need of intensive 
long-term care.
  Mr. Speaker, because of the horrors that these survivors have endured 
and the emotional and physical scars they continue to carry with them, 
their medical, mental, and home care needs are far more complex, far 
more extensive than those of other elderly individuals.

                              {time}  1630

  These survivors have endured the torture; they have endured the labor 
camps, experiments, the loss of loved ones, and even the loss of entire 
families. We owe these survivors the opportunity to live out the 
remainder of their days in the dignity and comfort they deserve.
  Germany owes it to the survivors to alleviate and end the continuing 
injuries inflicted by the Nazi regime by finding a way to provide for 
all of their medical, mental health, and home care needs, directly and 
without delay.
  I urge my colleagues to join Mr. Deutch and to join me in urging 
Germany to do the right thing, because time is of the essence.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DEUTCH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise in support of this resolution. And I thank Chairman Royce and 
Ranking Member Engel for moving so quickly to pass this resolution 
through committee and bring it to the floor, because time is, sadly, 
very much of the essence.
  Today we will vote on H. Con. Res. 129, which calls upon Germany to 
fully fund the needs of aging Holocaust survivors. I want to thank my 
friend, Chairman Emeritus Ros-Lehtinen, for her steadfast leadership 
and for her longstanding commitment to championing the needs of 
Holocaust survivors.
  More than anything else, I want to thank the survivors in south 
Florida and throughout the Nation. You are my constituents, my friends, 
and my heroes. This includes Jack Rubin, whose tireless advocacy 
through trips to Washington to educate and testify in Congress shaped 
this very effort; and Norman Frajman, whose dedication to educating 
students in our own community helped ensure that they will never 
forget.
  My friend, Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen, mentioned so many of the 
people that she is so close to. I want to thank her for giving me the 
opportunity and the blessing of getting to know and spend time with 
David Schaecter, David Mermelstein, and others.
  It breaks my heart that today in the United States there are tens of 
thousands of survivors who live in poverty and cannot afford, and thus 
do not receive, sufficient medical care, home care, and other vital 
life-sustaining services.
  Today we have an opportunity to send a clear message that these 
survivors, who made it through the darkest time in history, deserve to 
live out their lives with the dignity that they are so worthy of and 
have long been promised.
  Some of my colleagues might wonder: Why is this resolution needed?
  It is simple: Holocaust survivors are not receiving the care that 
they need.
  For decades, the German Government has remained committed to funding 
survivor needs. This is something I know Chancellor Merkel cares a 
great deal about, as she has reaffirmed that commitment. But the 
survivor population is aging into their eighties, their nineties, and 
hundreds. Their needs are greater.
  Unfortunately, despite the payments of the German Government over 
decades, significant gaps in survivor care remain. And German officials 
have acknowledged that shortfall. Right now there are special 
negotiations going on with the German Government. In the coming days, 
decisions will be made in Berlin that will determine whether or not 
survivors will receive the funding and the care that they so 
desperately need.
  But I am worried. I am worried that time is running out. I am worried 
that this is our last chance to ensure that, once and for all, 
survivors have what they need. Every survivor deserves to receive the 
care needed to live in comfort.
  So many survivors are struggling. And, again, while we appreciate the 
decades-long commitment of the German Government, I am not certain that 
our ally, Germany, understands the scope of the true need--the needs 
that Chairman Ros-Lehtinen and I see in our communities in south 
Florida every day. That is why passing this resolution here will send a 
message that is unmistakable; and that is that Congress is fully 
united.
  We stand at a decisive moment in the lives of our aging survivor 
population. Each month it seems that there is another funeral in my 
community and another survivor passes. So it is with a heavy heart that 
we must acknowledge that these current negotiations are likely the last 
opportunity for Germany to comprehensively address the unique health 
and welfare needs of survivors before it is too late.
  Mr. Speaker, the resolution before us today urges our German partners 
to fulfill the moral and financial commitment to the victims of the 
Holocaust. The shortfall is the most dramatic when it comes to home 
care. For survivors, the need to stay in their homes as they age is 
critical. The thought of institutionalized care or being removed from 
their home is a devastatingly painful reminder of the past. As they 
age, they rely more on home care services.
  Under the current system, home care is capped so that even the most 
infirmed, isolated, and poor Nazi victims can only receive a maximum of 
25 hours of home care per week. That is 5 hours a day for 5 days a 
week. There is no funding for additional hours.
  In committee I spoke about my 91-year-old constituent who survived 
Bergen-Belsen. He fell and suffered a fracture. He requires assistance 
with all of the activities of daily living. He now needs round-the-
clock care, but the current funding system does not provide it.
  Many of those who survived also lack family support to help with 
transportation to doctors' appointments or help preparing meals. They 
deserve to have these most basic needs met. They deserve to be able to 
access care for all of their mental and medical health needs. And they 
deserve our support.
  Today I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the passage of 
this resolution and for Germany to seize upon this opportunity to 
alleviate the suffering of survivors. While no amount of money can ever 
erase the horrors faced by Nazi victims, there is a moral 
responsibility to ensure that they can receive all of the vital 
services and medical care necessary to live out the remainder of their 
days with dignity.
  No more limitations on home care hours. Complete the negotiations. 
And fund the needs now, once and for all.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DEUTCH. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Connolly), my friend.
  Mr. CONNOLLY. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, Ted Deutch, for his 
leadership, and also my good friend, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the Florida 
twins who have so steadfastly brought this matter of conscience and 
history to the floor of the House of Representatives.

[[Page 7910]]

  It was said about the Holocaust that ``we should never forget'' and 
``never again.'' What a legacy it would be that those who survived the 
darkest chapter of human history should live out the remainder of their 
years in want--in want of basic medical care, in want of home health 
care and caregiving so that they can have dignity in their twilight 
years.
  How can we ignore that plight? How can we say to that generation, You 
should go without?
  They are living reminders of the dark side of human nature and of how 
history can go so terribly wrong. Honoring them with this resolution 
and engaging our partner, our ally, Germany, in this one last endeavor 
is a noble cause.
  I am pleased to support H. Con. Res. 129, and I applaud the 
leadership of my colleagues from Florida in reminding this House of the 
duty still in front of us.
  Mr. DEUTCH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, today we are talking about the frailest people in our 
community who have endured the worst, most unimaginable horrors. They 
are people whose entire families were destroyed.
  Mr. Speaker, Hitler tried to destroy them. He succeeded in killing 
millions, but his goal was genocide. His goal was to wipe the Jewish 
people from the face of the Earth.
  We can't imagine the magnitude of that evil, but we have just a few 
years left with those who managed to survive, to escape death--
sometimes multiple times--to endure concentration camps when everyone 
around them was sent to the gas chambers, and to flee death squads that 
roamed the European countryside killing--and mass killings--again and 
again and again.
  For them to live through all of that, to survive all of that, should 
we tell them that we are sorry, we must cap the amount of care you can 
receive in your home? Or that the social service agencies and their 
employees and their volunteers who know what their clients need should 
tell them to need less?
  Mr. Speaker, let's pass this resolution and tell every person sitting 
at the negotiating table in Berlin that we will not accept half 
measures. The German Government has reiterated its moral obligation to 
act. This resolution calls for action. The time to act is now. 
Survivors of the Holocaust deserve dignity.
  I would like to again thank my dear friend and fierce advocate for 
survivors, Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. We have stood together on 
their behalf for years. She is remarkably committed to justice.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing, there are Holocaust survivors who are 
watching us now. When we pass this resolution, many will cry. They told 
me that. I cannot and I will not go back to south Florida on Friday and 
look into the eyes of these sweet people whom we are so fortunate to 
know, so privileged to have in our community, and tell them that 
Congress passed a resolution to make them feel better. They don't need 
symbolism.
  What I will tell them is that the United States House of 
Representatives overwhelmingly spoke on their behalf--a group that 80 
years ago had no one speaking for them. And we expect the German 
Government to hear what we are saying.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I want to thank Mr. Deutch and Mr. Connolly. What a joy it has been 
for me to have worked with them, especially with my twin. The poor guy. 
That was a low blow by Mr. Connolly. Mr. Deutch might not forgive him 
for that. But what heartfelt words from Mr. Deutch. I thank him for 
that.
  We are indeed fortunate, Mr. Speaker, that we have so many 
constituents in our districts for whom this issue is so important. We 
are blessed that we have so many Holocaust survivors in our districts. 
But, sadly, as Mr. Deutch, Mr. Connolly, and I have pointed out, time 
is of the essence. These survivors are passing away without the urgent 
care that they have been promised and without the comforts that they 
need.
  So I want to close by saying, Mr. Speaker, just how important this 
measure is. Mr. Deutch talked about how our constituents are watching 
in south Florida. And it is so true. How important it is that we send a 
clear message to the German Government that time is of the essence.
  For over 70 years, Holocaust survivors have had to live with the 
painful memories and the toll that their experiences have had on their 
minds and their bodies.

                              {time}  1645

  Successive German Governments have acknowledged Germany's 
responsibility for the Nazi regime's atrocities. Most recently, 
Chancellor Merkel's office stated: ``We know the responsibility for 
this crime against humanity is German and very much our own.''
  I agree with Chancellor Merkel's office. We don't have time for 
negotiations, Mr. Speaker. How long will those negotiations take while, 
every day, yet another Holocaust survivor passes away.
  We don't need Germany to engage with the bureaucratic nightmare that 
is the Claims Conference. This was a process that was set up to deal 
with these issues, but it has not worked out that way. Why add another 
layer to the process when Germany can and should provide this 
assistance directly?
  The proof that this Claims Conference process has been nothing short 
of an abject failure is that nearly half of the survivors today, Mr. 
Speaker, are living at or below the poverty level. Under this current 
system, many have died well before their time as a result of this 
current broken system, to say nothing about the fraud, the corruption, 
and the embezzlement that has been documented.
  Mr. Speaker, the Claims Conference has failed to live up to its 
mandate to advocate and work on behalf of survivors. The Claims 
Conference provides artificial caps on survivors' needs. When those 
caps are reached, good luck.
  Just recently, a survivor from our own area right here in D.C. was 
told by a local service agency that the Claims Conference would no 
longer fund her Lifeline button. This woman lives alone, Mr. Speaker. 
She needs this service, but she was cut off.
  The Conference stops assistance for many, and many others receive no 
assistance at all, while their pleas fall on deaf ears.
  With the Claims Conference, there is no transparency, little 
accountability, and a shocking disregard for the actual survivors, 
themselves; but I believe Chancellor Merkel's heartfelt expression of 
concern about Germany's responsibility to survivors and her leadership 
on moral issues, and this will finally resolve this longstanding 
tragedy for survivors.
  That is why our resolution, Mr. Speaker, to fund, directly, 
survivors' needs is so important. We have seen what happens when the 
Claims Conference gets involved. Survivors are just not afforded the 
assistance they desperately need.
  So I urge my colleagues to join Mr. Deutch and me in urging Germany 
to fund, directly and comprehensively, all of the needs of survivors 
like it has pledged. There is no time to waste.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Chairman Ros-Lehtinen and 
Ranking Member Deutch for their work on this resolution, and their 
continued work on Holocaust issues.
  The horrors wrought by the Nazi regime did not end when prisoners 
finally walked out from behind the barbed wire fences in 1945. Today, 
the after-effects of Hitler's death camps still haunt the lives of 
those who survived.
  Tens of thousands of Holocaust survivors throughout the world live in 
poverty, forced to choose between feeding themselves and purchasing 
necessary medication.
  The problem is staggering. Five hundred thousand survivors remain--
most of them in their 80s. Today, more than one in four lack sufficient 
access to the care they need to live their final years in comfort and 
in dignity.

[[Page 7911]]

  For decades, Germany has instituted and funded a number of aid 
programs in recognition of its obligation to these survivors. However, 
Germany's own evaluations made clear that more needs to be done.
  We urge the German government to immediately and fully fund 
programming for victims' medical, mental health, and long-term care 
needs.
  Time is of the essence. Every day that decisions are stalled, we lose 
another survivor, another story, another chance to show our respect for 
these individuals who have already endured what no one should.
  Today's resolution recognizes the moral imperative for us--all of 
us--to work to ensure a life of dignity, security, and comfort for 
Holocaust survivors.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. 
Con. Res. 129, urging the Federal Republic of Germany to further 
fulfill its commitment to support the welfare of Holocaust survivors by 
ensuring that they receive the medical, mental health, and long-term 
care they require.
  In 1952, the West German government concluded an agreement with 
representatives from major Jewish national and international 
organizations and the State of Israel to provide indemnification and 
restitution directly to survivors of the Holocaust. This agreement 
reflected an overdue but basic recognition at the time by many, 
including then-German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer who saw such 
restitution as, quote, ``easing the way to the spiritual settlement of 
infinite suffering.''
  Mr. Speaker, that infinite suffering inflicted by the genocidal Nazi 
regime continues to this day. It is a daily reality for the aging 
survivors of that infamous crime who live with the mental and sometimes 
physical consequences of being tortured and abused.
  There are over 500,000 Holocaust survivors living around the world 
today, and over 100,000 live here in the United States--witnesses to 
both the stunning evil and miraculous resilience of which humanity is 
capable. Their quiet presence in our midst is a treasure seldom 
sufficiently cherished. Today, as they age, they are increasingly in 
need of support and assistance that will allow them to live their 
remaining days with access to quality care and the peace that comes 
with it.
  Mr. Speaker, I support H. Con. Res 129 because I think it is right 
that the Federal Republic of Germany deliver direct support to 
Holocaust survivors to guarantee that they live the rest of their lives 
with the dignity, comfort, and security that was deprived them decades 
ago.
  The resolution calls on the German government to make every effort--
whether through direct assistance or negotiated arrangements--to 
support the medical, mental health, and long-term care needs of 
Holocaust victims. This support would be fully consistent with the 
German government's longstanding commitment to Holocaust survivors and 
it cannot wait.
  It is important, Mr. Speaker, to also note the important steps 
already taken by the Federal Republic of Germany and the tremendous 
efforts and achievements it has made in making amends for the genocide 
committed under the Nazi dictatorship. H. Con. Res. 129 urges Germany 
to continue on this path and as such deserves our support in the House.
  Finally, I would like to thank my friend and colleague Rep. Ileana 
Ros-Lehtinen, for introducing this laudable resolution.
  Ms. FRANKEL of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this 
resolution, which urges the German government to ensure that Holocaust 
victims live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining 
years. Today there are approximately 500,000 Holocaust survivors living 
around the world. Within the next decade, it is estimated at least 50 
percent of them will pass away. The 300 welfare agencies serving 
Holocaust victims worldwide desperately need support to help the most 
isolated, disabled, and vulnerable survivors receive critical services.
  A Holocaust survivor in South Florida, who is 95 and a widower, sadly 
illustrates this need. He survived a Hungarian forced labor battalion 
and two concentration camps, Mauthausen and Gunskirchen. He now 
requires assistance with everyday activities including bathing, 
dressing, and meal preparation. He receives a total of 32 hours a week 
of home care funded by the Claims Conference and the U.S. Government. 
He has unmet needs of 50 hours per week and would greatly benefit from 
increased funding from the German Government.
  I urge support for this critical resolution to allow Holocaust 
survivors to live their remaining years with dignity.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) that the House suspend the 
rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 129, as 
amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. 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.

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