[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 7]
[House]
[Page 9941]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        IMMIGRANT HERITAGE MONTH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Curbelo) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CURBELO of Florida. Mr. Speaker, June is Immigrant Heritage 
Month, and as the son of parents who fled Castro's Cuba, like so many 
other residents of south Florida, I am especially proud of my 
district's rich immigrant history and culture. From small-business 
owners to law enforcement, hundreds of thousands of immigrants and 
their descendants across south Florida are contributing to our economy, 
culture, and local communities as living examples of American success.
  I know from firsthand experience the great and generous spirit of the 
American people and the unimaginable opportunities our Nation provides 
to all who are willing to work for them.
  Despite the longstanding tradition of welcoming immigrants to our 
shores, our Nation continues to have vigorous debate about immigration 
policy. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, the current debate has left 
thousands of immigrant children, who were brought to this country by 
their parents, in constant fear of deportation to countries of origin 
many of them don't even remember.
  They have attended school with our own children, graduated high 
school, sometimes even serving in the military, and today are seeking 
to contribute to American society and help grow our economy.
  Mr. Speaker, the President, the former President, and Members of 
Congress in both Chambers and from both parties agree that these young 
people, commonly referred to as DREAMers, should be treated with 
compassion.
  I too agree, which is why I introduced legislation that would give 
these young people the certainty that they deserve. The Recognizing 
America's Children Act creates three pathways to legal status for them: 
academic, military service, or employment. All qualified applicants 
would be thoroughly vetted, and any individual who has been involved in 
serious criminal conduct will be disqualified.
  Mr. Speaker, immigration reform means strengthening security at our 
border and modernizing our visa program to keep Americans safe, but it 
also means offering immigrants who love our country just as much as we 
do the opportunity to fully participate in the American experience. It 
is my hope that this Immigrant Heritage Month will lead us to act in 
this regard.


              Mental Health Awareness Semipostal Stamp Act

  Mr. CURBELO of Florida. Mr. Speaker, neurological and psychiatric 
disorders have exacted a tremendous toll on our society. Despite the 
great scientific strides being made daily in neuroscience research, the 
underlying causes of conditions like Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's 
disease, autism, epilepsy, schizophrenia, depression, and traumatic 
brain injury remain unsolved. For true breakthroughs to occur, 
researchers require additional data to better treat these conditions.
  To address this, the previous administration announced the Brain 
Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies Initiative in 
2013. Known as the BRAIN Initiative, this collaborative public-private 
research will advance our understanding of how the brain functions as 
researchers work to map the brain and study how individual cells 
interact in both time and space.
  The data generated from this research will help scientists fill in 
the gaps in our current understanding and provide unprecedented 
opportunities for exploring how the brain enables us to record, 
process, utilize, store, and retrieve vast quantities of information. 
This information will also provide researchers with a better 
understanding of mental illness and posttraumatic stress disorder in 
hopes of better treating these diseases and reducing the number of 
suicides each year.
  I was pleased that the 21st Century Cures Act, which I supported here 
in the House and was signed into law, authorized $1.51 billion for this 
important research.
  Mr. Speaker, to help accelerate this project and raise public 
attention to this initiative, today I introduced the Mental Health 
Awareness Semipostal Stamp Act with Representative Grace Napolitano to 
raise awareness for this important cause. This would come at no cost to 
taxpayers.
  Revenues generated from the sale of a specialized postage stamp would 
be directed to the National Institute of Mental Health to further this 
ambitious program that has the potential to revolutionize neurological 
and psychiatric care all around the world.

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