{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://morgangriffith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=364610", "Congressman Griffith's Weekly E-Newsletter 12.16.13", "2013-12-16", "2013", "2013-12", "Republican", "House", "VA", "Morgan Griffith", "G000568", "morgangriffith.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "The ADAPT Act, Fire Hydrants, and the NSA The ADAPT Act Regular readers of this column are aware of my ongoing efforts to improve the quality and safety of our health care system and increase patient choice and control.\u00a0 We have numerous bills that have been introduced, and that the various committees are working on.\u00a0 Among those committees that are working on improvements to our health care systems is the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, on which I serve. Among my efforts are the bipartisan Drug Quality and Security Act (H.R. 3089) to clarify oversight of the compounding drug manufacturing system (which was signed into law) and the Patient Choice Act (H.R. 2090), bipartisan legislation to speed up Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of drugs and give certain patients the option to buy new, innovative, experimental drugs and therapies at their own expense. Last week, I joined with several of my colleagues, Democrats and Republicans, in introducing H.R. 3742, the Antibiotic Development to Advance Patient Treatment (ADAPT) Act.\u00a0 The ADAPT Act seeks to advance drug development with the end goal of combating the growing public health threat of \u201csuperbugs,\u201d which are resistant to antibiotics.\u00a0 Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or drug-resistant Salmonella are examples of these superbugs. I believe strongly, when battling deadly diseases, patients and their physicians need more choices. Our nation boasts an array of entities that are working hard to develop new treatments and therapies.\u00a0 The ADAPT Act is a critical next step in working to address antibiotic resistance.\u00a0 This bill develops a new, accelerated pathway for antibiotics and antifungals in limited and specific patient populations.\u00a0 It will further innovation and ultimately will provide new, antibiotic options in the fight against superbugs. I will continue working with my colleagues to improve our health care system and increase the options and control you and your loved ones have over treatment.\u00a0 Further, I will keep you updated on any advancements with the ADAPT Act and our other efforts as well. Update on Fire Hydrants In last week\u2019s column, I wrote about a new bill I introduced that would cut the Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s (EPA) workforce by a reasonable 15 percent over a realistic three- to four-year period.\u00a0 When discussing that bill \u2013 H.R. 3641, the EPA Maximum Achievable Contraction of Technocrats Act \u2013 I mentioned recent EPA guidance that would require fire hydrants installed after January 4, 2014 to be lead-free. Senator Charles (Chuck) Schumer (D-NY) said in a prepared statement, \u201cThe EPA\u2019s absurd interpretation of the reduced lead standards will force municipalities to throw out and replace their current stockpile of hundreds of thousands of dollars\u2019 worth of fire hydrants without any discernible safety benefit.\u201d\u00a0 On this, Senator Schumer and I agree. Over the weekend, I came across a story in which EPA spokeswoman Julia Valentine said, \u201c...the guidance should be revised to exclude fire hydrants if Congress doesn't take action to do so before the January deadline.\u201d It seems that the EPA in this instance may have seen the light.\u00a0 But I must ask: Why even propose these \u201cabsurd\u201d regulations in the first place?\u00a0 Maybe they have too many people looking for solutions to problems that are either miniscule or don\u2019t exist. The House of Representatives recently passed legislation that would add fire hydrants to the list of items exempt from this guidance.\u00a0 I would urge Senator Schumer and his colleagues in the Senate to take action as well. NSA The first court opinion of what I believe will be more has ruled that the National Security Agency (NSA) program that collects the phone data of law-abiding American citizens appears to violate the Constitution.\u00a0 In the case of Klayman v. Obama, U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that collecting such metadata is likely unconstitutional under the Fourth Amendment, and, in ruling in favor of an injunction against the NSA, found that the plaintiffs were likely to prevail on the merits and will suffer irreparable harm absent injunctive relief.\u00a0 Judge Leon also found that the public interest and potential injury to other interested parties also weigh in favor of injunctive relief.\u00a0 Notwithstanding his concerns, he stayed the injunction pending appeal by the government. I do not know what the appellate courts will do, but I agree with the reasoning of Judge Leon in this case.\u00a0 Liberty and freedom are worth our attention. As always, if you have concerns or comments or wish to inquire about legislative issues, feel free to contact my offices. You can call my Abingdon office at 276-525-1405 or my Christiansburg office at 540-381-5671. To reach my office via email, please visit my website at www.morgangriffith.house.gov. \n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://morgangriffith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=364610"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.6735050119459629, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}