{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://sires.house.gov/media-center/washington-reviews/washington-review-december-9-2016", "Washington Review, December 9, 2016", "2016-12-09", "2016", "2016-12", "Democrat", "House", "NJ", "Albio Sires", "S001165", "sires.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "As the 114th Congress drew to a close this week, I participated in a number of meetings and voted on important legislation.\nMeetings\nOn Tuesday, I met with Vitaly Vanshelboim, the Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS).\u00a0 UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations and is used to support the successful implementation of peacebuilding, humanitarian, and development projects around the world.\u00a0\u00a0 Mr. Vanshelboim provided me with an update on his efforts to make UNOPS more efficient by improving business practices as well as identifying and eliminating wasteful spending and corruption within the UN system.\nThis week, I taped a segment for Meet the Leaders in which I discussed the future of U.S.-Cuba policy and the importance of investing in our nation\u2019s transportation and infrastructure.\u00a0 I also discussed my opposition to privatizing Medicare and Social Security.\u00a0 Since its inception the Medicare program has assisted Americans, including seniors and the disabled, with the costs of health care and long term care needs. It is our responsibility to honor our commitments to older Americans by preserving these crucial benefits and fighting attempts to destroy the Medicare guarantee.\nOn Thursday, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) and I met with the former President of Colombia, Alvaro Uribe to discuss the ongoing peace process between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).\u00a0 The FARC is a violent insurgent group in Colombia that has been in an armed conflict with the government since 1964.\u00a0 In June of 2016, the Colombian government and the FARC reached a peace accord for a cessation of hostilities.\u00a0 However, on October 2nd, 2016 the Colombian people narrowly defeated a vote to approve the peace accord, which lead to President Santos reopening negotiations with FARC.\u00a0 An updated agreement was approved by the Colombian Congress last week.\nFeatured Legislation\nOn Wednesday, I joined my colleagues in the House of Representatives to pass S.2971, the National Urban Search and Rescue Response System Act of 2016, by a vote of 405-7.\u00a0 The Urban Search and Rescue Response System (USAR) involves the domestic and international location, rescue, and initial medical stabilization of disaster victims, including those who are trapped in confined spaces in the aftermath.\u00a0 There are currently 28 USAR teams located around the United States.\u00a0 This bill codifies the current USAR Response System in statute and clarifies liabilities and compensation issues.\u00a0 It also requires the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to submit a report to Congress about plans to finance, maintain, and replace system equipment.\u00a0 This legislation is currently awaiting President Obama\u2019s signature.\nEarlier this year, I joined various colleagues in sending a letter to Speaker Ryan urging him to act on legislation that would address the ongoing health crisis in Flint, Michigan.\u00a0 On Thursday, the House of Representatives passed S. 612, the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act, by a vote of 360-61.\u00a0 This legislation authorizes funding to address the contaminated public water system in Flint and provide necessary resources so that the city can recover.\u00a0 Specifically, it includes $100 million in additional funding for the Safe Water Drinking Act state revolving loan fund which provides low-interest financing to communities for compliance with federal water standards. It also provides $20 million for a lead exposure registry, $15 million for the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, and $15 million for the Healthy Start Program.\u00a0\nThank you for reading the Washington Review. For regular updates, you may stay in touch by leaving comments on my Facebook, Twitter, and website.", 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://sires.house.gov/media-center/washington-reviews/washington-review-december-9-2016"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.0113689824938774, "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"}