Forward in whatever their path of life to make a positive contribution to the strength of our democracy. Bless us this day bless us this day and every day and all that is done within these hallowed halls n for your greater honor and glory amen. The speaker pro tempore the compare compare and announces to the house his approval thereof. Pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1, the journal stands approved. The pledge of allegiance will be led by the gentleman from ohio, mr. Chabot. Mr. Chabot please join me in the pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The speaker pro tempore the chair will entertain requests for oneminute speeches. For what purpose does the gentleman from nebraska seek recognition . Request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. Revise and extend my. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of h. R. 1732, the regulatory integrity plow text act and aloud its passage by the house of representatives. Mr. Smith this bill prohibits the e. P. A. From using its waters of the u. S. Rule to expand its authority, yea beyond congressional intent. Waters of the u. S. Is another executive overreach by this administration. The clean water act intentionally limited the e. P. A. s jurisdiction to navigable waters, yet waters of u. S. Would expand federal jurisdiction to include virtually all water flows from pitches to prairie potholes, even on private land. Nebraskans are concerned waters of the us cows severely harm our ag economy by increasing costs and uncertainty for producers. Americas farmers and ranchers are already great stewards of the land and take numerous steps to protect our Natural Resources. By blocking the u. S. Waters of u. S. Rule stops the latest power grab and sports ag producers across the supports ag producers across the country. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition 1234 i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. Revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Green thank you mr. Speaker. Members, it doesnt take long for a texan to brag about things we do in texas, but i wanted to take our oneminute today to talk about what the Houston Rockets has done. First time in 19 years to advance to the next level of the nba playoffs. Being a rockets fan for as long as we have had them, i know all the houstonians and basketball fans were amazed they came from three games behind to win. Also, sports, basket is not the only thing a couple blocks from where the rockets play, the Houston Astros are playing a. Few years ago we had the worst team in baseball. But now they have been leading their division now and just swept another home standard. I want to congratulation stand. I to congratulate the Houston Rockets and the Houston Astros. Its a long season. We need to keep it up. Are you bringing sports history into houston again. Thank you. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Chabot thank you. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to mark the sixth anniversary of the end of the civil war in sri lanka. In a brutal war that lasted 37 years we saw nearly 100000 People Killed many of them civilians, as a result of the tensions between the countrys buddhist majority and hindu minority. Since the war ended however, corruption and ongoing human rights abuses have prevented sri lanka from reaching a national reconciliation. Then in january of this year, we saw the president , democratically elected with significant support from all communities. Mr. Speaker, on this occasion i call on the new government to release the 200 detained Political Prisoners account for the nearly 20,000 missing civilians from the war, and end oppressive restrictions on the tamil provinces. This sixth anniversary serves as the reminder of sri lankas wartorn past and a chance to move it towards a future of democracy justice, and equality for all its people because only then can sri lanka finally achieve the stability, peace, and prosperity it deserves. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlewoman from North Carolina seek recognition . Ms. Foxx i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. Revise and extend. The speaker pro tempore without objection. The gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. Ms. Foxx thank you, mr. Speaker. In 2014 the u. S. Environmental Protection Agency and the u. S. Army corps of engineers issued a rule that would significantly broaden the federal governments power to regulate waters in adjacent lands under the clean water act. The waters of the United States rule would give the federal government jurisdiction over puddles, roadside ditches, irrigation ditches, and storm and waste walter systems, federal agencies frequently place burdensome regulations on the american public, and this rule is no exception. Fortunately, last week the house passed h. R. 1732, the regulatory integrity protection act which would require the agencies to start over and develop a new rule in consultation with state and local governments and other stakeholders. This commonsense legislation prevents an outoftouch administration from threatening the livelihood of North Carolinas farmers and saddling local governments with exorbitant compliance costs. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the chair lays before the house a communication. The clerk the honorable the speaker, house of representatives. Sir, pursuant to the permission granted in clause 2h of rule 2 of the rules of the u. S. House of representatives, i have the honor to transmit a sealed vfl received from the white house enveloped received from the white house on may 15, 2015, at 3 33 p. M. And said to contain a message from the president whereby he smits a copy of a notice filed earlier with the federal register continuing the emergency with burma first declared in executive order 13047 of may 20 1997. Signed, sincerely rob bert f. Breeze, deputy clerk. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will read the message. The clerk to the congress of the United States section 202d of the National Emergencies act 50 u. S. C. 1622d provides for the automatic termination of a National Emergency unless within 90 days prior to the anniversary date of its declaration the president publishes in the federal register and transmits to the congress a notice stating that the emergency is to continue in effect beyond the anniversary date. In accordance with this provision, i have sent to the federal register for publication the enclosed notice stating the National Emergency with respect to burma that was declared on may 20, 1997, is to continue in effect beyond may 20 2015. The government of burma has made significant progress across a number of important areas, including the release of over 1,300 Political Prisoners, continued progress toward a nationwide ceasefire, the discharge of hundreds of child soldiers from the military, steps to improve labor standards, and expanding political space for Civil Society to have a greater voice in shaping issues critical to burmas future. In addition burma has become a signatory of the International AtomicEnergy AgencysAdditional Protocol and ratified the blol cal weapons convention. Significant steps towards supporting global nonproliferation. Despite these strides, the situation and the country continues to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the National Security and Foreign Policy of the United States. Concerns persist regarding the ongoing conflict and human rights abuses in the country. Particularly in ethnic minority areas. In addition, burmas military operations with little oversight from the civilian government and often acts of impunity. For these reasons i have determined that it is necessary to continue the National Emergency with respect to burma. Despite this action, the United States relanes committed to supporting and strengthening burmas Reform Efforts and to continue working with those of the burmese government and people to ensure the democratic transition is sustained and irreversible. Signed, barack obama, the white house. May 15, 2015. The speaker pro tempore referred to the committee on Foreign Affairs and ordered printed. Pursuant to clause 12a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in re right now, the Manhattan Institute for policy research hosted a series of Panel Discussions on the future of americas black community. Its focused on reducing crime and related factors including legalization of drugs and the breakdown of the family. Speakers include former Maryland Governor bob ehrlich this years 50th anniversary of a study on black america which was conducted by then assistant secretary Daniel Patrick moynihan under president johnson, who later represented maryland in the senate. Good morning. Maybe we can get started. Good morning, everyone. My name is jason reilly, im a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute for policy research and id like to welcome everyone to our symposium today titled prospects for black america, the moynihan report turns 50. White america symposium youre in the wrong room that would be any of the other rooms in the building. Ill be very brief with my remarks because weve got some excellent panels lined up and i want to give them as much time as possible for discussion. Ill get a chance to speak a little later on this afternoon so i hope you can stick around. I began working at the Manhattan Institute in february of this year. But the idea for this conference, a conference on race, first occurred to me many years ago when i was still on staff with the wall street journal. I came across a book called the fairmont papers which essentially is a transcription of a conference that occurred in 1980 at the Fairmont Hotel in san francisco. The conference was organized and hosted by the economist thomas sole and it was entitled black alternatives. He save sole gave the opening remarks where he noted that the economic and social advancement of blacks in this country is still a great unfinished task he said methods and approaches currently being used to advance blacks demand reexamination. He said theres growing factual evidence of counterproductive results from noble intentions and that the goal of the conference was to explore alternative approaches. Thats why were here, he explained. To explore alternatives. Not to create a new orthodoxy with its own messiahs and its own excommunications of those who dare to think for themselves. He said the people who were invited to speak here are people seeking alternatives. People who have challenged conventional wisdom on one or more issues. People who think for themselves. Some are democrats, some are republicans, some are liberals, some are conservatives. But all are open to fundamentally reassessing whats been tried in terms of Public Policy and helping black underclass. And finally, he noted finally, he noted that americas been through a historic phase of struggle for basic civil rights for blacks. A struggle that was necessary but not sufficient. He said the very success of that struggle created new priorities and new urgencies. Economic realities to confront. And selfdevelopment to achieve. In schools, at work, in our communities. He said all that back in 1980. And i must have come across it in the late 1990s. Now here we are in 2015 and i dont think those sentiments are any less relevant today. A few years after i scored the fairmont papers, i became friends with sole who will be 85 this year and has yet another book out in a couple of months, i just got the galleys in the mail last week. I asked him about that conference. Ive asked him about it several times over the years. He said it went very well. Got a lot of press coverage. Lots of good feedback he said he had ever intention of hosting a second one but the plan simply fell through. He never got around to it. I said thats the kind of conference we need and if someone else is hosting it, ive never been invited. After i joined the Manhattan Institute, i figured id give it a shot, and so here we are. I hope we can proceed in the spirit that sole described, honestly evaluating whats been tried, opening our minds to alternative approaches. We know the conventional explanationers in blackwhite gaps we see today in education, incarceration, employment, incomes, etc. The conventional wisdom is that its mainly about residual racism. Legacy of slavery and jim crow, etc. Conventional wisdom is to call for more Government Resources more Government Programs more wealth redistribution, and so forth. But the people asked to participate in todays symposium all bring something new to these discussions. Theyre not afraid to think outside the box about addressing these problems. Theyre open to new approaches. And just as important, theyre willing to honestly evaluate whats been tried already. Whats working and whats not working. And quite a will the isnt working this year, were marking the 50th anniversary of Daniel Patrick moynihans report on the black family. It was a controversial document when he issued it while serving as assistant secretary of labor under president johnson and it remains controversial today. Moynihan highlighted troubling cultural trends among inner city blacks with a special focus on the increasing number of fatherless homes. The fundamental problem is that of freshmanly truck structure he wrote. The evidence not finally colorfully persuasive, said the negro family in the urban ghettos is crumbling. For his troubles, he was denounced as a victim blaming racism, bent on undermining the civil rights movement. Even worse, his findings were ignored by Public Policymakers including the Great Society architects who would go on to expand old programs an formulate new ones that exacerbated the problems that moynihan had identified. Marriage was penalized. Single parenting was substized. History has proved that moynihan was on to something. When the report was released, 25 of black children and 5 of white children lived in households headed by a single mother. In the next 20 years, the black percentage was double and the racial gap would widen. Today, more than 70 of all black births are to unmarried women, twice the white percentage. For decades, research has shown the likelihood of teen pregnancy, drug abuse, dropping out of school and many other social problems grew dramatically when fathers were absent. One of the most comprehensive studies ever done on juvenile delinquency included that the most critical factor in whether a male youth will encounter the criminal Justice System is the presence of a father in the home. Unfortunately, the moynihan report ultimately, i should say, the moynihan report was an attempt to have an honest conversation about family breakdown and black path loling. One that many today still refuse to join. Faulting ghetto culture for ghetto outcomes remains largely tattoo. An oped in the New York Times a few days ago about the baltimore rioting and high black crime rates carried the headline, black culture is not the problem. What is the problem . According to this author, the problem is white racism. Quote, the problem originates in a political culture that has long bound black bodies to questions of property. Yes, im referring to slavery. Unquote. Im hoping the discussions today will be a little less reductive than that and a little more honest. Black crime rates in 1960 were lower than they are today. If the legacy of slavery explains the level of black crime today that legacy must have skipped a couple of generations and then reasserted itself. Moynihan said that his goal was to better define a problem that many thought mistakenly, in his view, was no big deal and would solve itself in the wake of civil rights gained. Skepticism was warranted. Before we get started with the panels, i want to thank a few people. Larry moen who signed off on this event. Lee, debbie and others handled every everything from contacting the panelists and esecuring the venue, i thank them all for air hard work. Id like to invite the first hanlists up and while theyre doing so, i can read their buy yows. Bios. Mr. Riley the honorable robert every slick the first republican governor in maryland when he was fivers elected in 2002. He also served a a u. S. Congressman and state legislator. He made record investments in Public Schools as the governor of maryland, which i think is important for our discussion today he authored marylands first Public Charter School law. Which enabled more than 7,000 students to attend 30 new Public Charter Schools. And he doubled funding for needbased college scholarshipping, helping Colleg