[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 3]
[House]
[Page 3241]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      MONROE COUNTY ROADS PROJECT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Curbelo) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CURBELO of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I come to the floor today to 
congratulate and express my gratitude to Monroe County leaders who 
recently took steps to address the impact sea level rise is having on 
roads and infrastructure in my district.
  Earlier this year, the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners 
took action that sets new standards for determining elevation of future 
county road improvement projects to account for future sea level rise. 
This is a problem my district is already facing. The 2015 King Tides 
led to flooding that lasted more than 3 weeks in several neighborhoods, 
causing damage to homes and businesses and leaving my constituents 
unable to move freely to and from their homes.
  Mr. Speaker, few cities or counties around the United States are as 
advanced in sea level rise planning and implementation as Monroe 
County. I am grateful for their leadership, and I am committed to 
continuing to support their efforts any way I can here in Washington, 
from advocating for transportation infrastructure research grants that 
will help ensure we have the best engineering at our disposal to 
working with my fellow members of the Climate Solutions Caucus to 
discuss and build consensus for proposals that will mitigate the 
effects of rising sea levels.
  It is critical we continue to work toward an infrastructure package 
that will give our communities the funds they need to bring our 
roadways like those in Monroe County into the 21st century.


                             National Debt

  Mr. CURBELO of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss one of 
the most serious issues facing the United States--the staggering 
national debt that will reach $20 trillion this month, or $62,715 per 
person living in our country. While the national debt grew over $9 
trillion under President Obama, we now have a new opportunity here in 
this Congress to work together with the new administration to propose 
and debate solutions that will address our country's debt and get our 
fiscal house back in order.
  Every day, families across my district sit around the dinner table 
and make tough decisions about how they will spend their money. Most 
stick to their budgets because they don't have a choice, and their 
government should be no different.
  In 2015, I was proud to support a 2-year bipartisan budget agreement 
that implemented new caps on discretionary spending for both fiscal 
years 2016 and 2017. Too often, enormous sums are wasted due to 
unpredictable budget cycles and government shutdown threats. With the 
adoption of this 2-year budget, Congress was able to reduce wasteful 
spending by providing certainty to agencies as they plan for the 
future.
  The budget also included reforms to entitlement programs, which is 
the largest percentage of national debt. It is important that we 
protect programs like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid--the 
invaluable safety net for those who need the help--while working to 
implement reforms to make these programs solvent for future 
generations.
  Mr. Speaker, my constituents sent me back to Washington to continue 
to build consensus with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to 
advance solutions that will rein in our national debt, and that is 
exactly what I plan to do. It is our duty, as elected officials, to 
leave our children and grandchildren with the same economic 
opportunities as previous generations, and that will continue to be one 
of my main priorities here in Congress.


                        Small Business Highlight

  Mr. CURBELO of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I have never had much of a sweet 
tooth, but it has recently been brought to my attention that my 
district is home to some thriving small businesses that are putting 
south Florida on the map for desserts.
  Not far from my district office, Night Owl Cookie Company, recently 
named Forbes 30 Under 30, is delivering fresh-baked cookies to 
constituents across West Kendall. Since starting the business in 2015, 
when he would make and deliver cookies from his parents' kitchen, 
Andrew Gonzalez's success has flourished to three brick-and-mortar 
locations across Florida.
  Further south is Knaus Berry Farm in the Redlands where families from 
all across south Florida will travel to pick up fresh produce and, of 
course, to wait in line for fresh, homemade cinnamon rolls. Founded as 
a family farm in 1956, Knaus Berry has since become a Miami staple, 
with generation after generation making the trip to south Dade to pick 
up fresh produce and baked goods. The farm's success has spread, 
leading to partnerships with other south Florida small businesses that 
use their cinnamon rolls to create Knaus Berry Farm-inspired doughnuts 
and ice cream.
  It is important that we celebrate these small businesses, Mr. 
Speaker, because they provide hope, opportunity, and jobs to so many 
Americans in my district and across the country. It is critical for us 
to continue advancing policies in this Congress that will continue 
allowing these small businesses the opportunity to provide hope and 
jobs for so many Americans.

                          ____________________