Waiving Points of Order Against Conference Report on H.R.3010, Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies...
WAIVING POINTS OF ORDER AGAINST CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 3010, DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2006 -- (House of Representatives - November 17, 2005)
Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 559 and ask for its immediate consideration.
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Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Matsui), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.
Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 559 is a rule which waives all points of order against the conference report accompanying H.R. 3010 and against its consideration. The rule provides that the conference report shall be considered as read.
Mr. Speaker, the underlying legislation is one of the most important measures we consider each year. I would like to congratulate the members of the Appropriations Committee for putting together a comprehensive package that will improve the education of our children, care for our seniors and our underprivileged.
Mr. Speaker, I am happy to see that since Republicans took control of Congress, funding for the Department of Education has doubled. More recently, over the last 5 years, total education spending has increased by nearly 50 percent. Our children will benefit from an improved educational system that will enhance their ability to succeed and better prepare the next generation of workers.
The fundamental root of all education is reading. As a parent and a former educator, the time I spent reading with my children will be forever cherished. Unfortunately, some of our youth do not have that opportunity at home. So included in this legislation is $1 billion for reading programs that will enable States to eliminate the reading deficit through scientific research-based reading programs.
I am also very pleased that the TRIO and GEAR UP programs are included in this all important funding package. These programs assist low-income, first generation college students in their transition from high school to college. This is a difficult transition for any student, but especially for those who are the first in their families to attend college. We must continue to support programs like TRIO and GEAR UP so that these students can continue to flourish.
Mr. Speaker, another important responsibility we have is to ensure that citizens have access to health care facilities and treatments. Included in this legislation is a $66 million increase in the Community Health Centers that are so vitally important across the Nation, but especially in rural States like my home State of West Virginia.
The National Institutes of Health continues to serve our Nation well by developing new treatments and cures for the many diseases that plague our society. With a total funding level of $28.6 billion, the researchers at NIH will be able to continue this mission so that we become a healthier Nation and global society.
A key aspect of a healthier society is where all citizens have access to prescription drugs, and I am proud to say that as of November 15, just 2 days ago, Medicare eligible beneficiaries have been able to sign up for a prescription drug plan under Medicare. The resources provided in the underlying legislation will allow the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services to properly conduct an outreach effort that will hopefully enroll every senior that stands to benefit from this program.
Mr. Speaker, we are all aware of the challenges that could potentially face all Americans in the coming winter, especially the high cost of natural gas. I am pleased to say that the State formula grants for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, known as LIHEAP, are funded at $2 billion in this legislation and an additional $1 billion will be included in the House version of the budget reconciliation bill.
As with any appropriations legislation, tough choices were made. These choices are particularly difficult when dealing with the sensitive areas of health and education. The Appropriations Committee allotted the available resources in this bill in a manner that emphasizes these programs most important to our Nation.
Mr. Speaker, this is solid legislation that I believe all Members should be able to support.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I would like to point out that this bill probably touches every single American's life. It is extremely important because it is the broad reach of education and health care, and these are very complicated and large programs. And I want to congratulate the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Regula), chairman of the subcommittee, for the intense work that he has done not only on our side, but through the conference.
Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Regula).
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Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to talk a little bit about some of the priorities, particularly in the education section of this bill. I have already mentioned the TRIO and GEAR UP programs for first-time college goers. Certainly those are important programs in my State and throughout the United States.
But let us look at something that we are lacking across the Nation, and that is in our math and sciences. There has been special emphasis in this bill on math and science partnerships so we can train our future engineers to compete globally.
The chairman spoke about how the world is flat. Well, if we do not have math and science education at the elementary and high school level, we are not going to be able to compete in the global market. So I am proud of the $184 million that is going to help with training teachers.
Special education is something that I think touches many, many families throughout the United States. We hear a lot about that in our office, and I am certain every Member's office. In special ed, this bill is funding over last year's budget $100 million. Will that meet every need for every special ed student? No, unfortunately it will not, and it cannot. But it will go towards helping those families and that student become a productive person in their adult life.
Reading programs and improving teacher quality programs. Certainly the key to success in school is reading, but the key to success in school is a good teacher. We need to improve the teacher quality and help our teachers become not only as good as they can be but even better. And that goes also to the principals. There is a principal shortage here in our country. We have to work with our teachers so they want to become principals and guide our teachers to educate our children. Those are some of the education priorities I wanted to highlight in this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this fair rule and the bipartisan underlying legislation which funds critical dollars to our Nation's educational system, health care delivery system, and as the gentlewoman from California spoke so eloquently about, our health research areas.
With this funding, low-income Americans will be better prepared for a potentially long winter. It got a little colder here today, and we know it is going to continue to be cold as we move through the winter; and this bill provides $2 billion in LIHEAP funding. Our seniors will greatly benefit from the money appropriated, allowing CMS to conduct outreach to all Medicare beneficiaries who are now able to sign up for the new Medicare prescription drug plan.
These are all important programs, and there are others too numerous to mention. I urge my colleagues to support the rule, support the legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.
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