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D.C. and District Talk

· National Law Enforcement Memorial Dedicated
I participated in a candlelight vigil on Friday, May 13, at which my great-grandfather, Hiram Mundy, was added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC. My mother, Kathleen Mondy (the spelling was changed) Shimkus, attended the ceremony with me.

Mr. Mundy was an Equality, Illinois, marshal killed in the line of duty in 1931. After his death, his widow and children moved to the metro-east area, where my mother was later born and raised.

I want to thank the Fraternal Order of Police, particularly Bill Mehrtens, for their assistance in getting my great-grandfather added to the memorial. The recognition of every officer killed in the line of duty is important.

At Friday’s vigil, 415 fallen officers were recognized. I was fortunate to participate by reading the names of the Illinoisans added to the memorial. Among those were: Dane Ray Johns, Williamson County deputy sheriff; Patrick James Nalty, Madison County deputy sheriff; and Harold T. Swanson, Alton village marshal.

Those listed on the memorial include individuals employed on a full-time basis by a law enforcement agency who are killed in the line of duty. The memorial’s website lists the requirements for being listed, a complete list of the new additions, and searchable database of all 17,000 names on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.

You can visit the memorial’s website at http://www.nleomf.com.

· Homeland Security Funding Passes House
This week I voted in support of the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill, H.R. 2360.

When we formed the Department of Homeland Security, I acknowledged that terrorism was not going to be solved through one action but is an ongoing threat. I also hoped that putting all areas of security under one agency would be helpful. I believe that we are safer today than on September 11, 2001, but we cannot let our guard down. Thus we must continue to fund these security areas.

The House provided $30.85 billion for the Department of Homeland Security:

Border Security

Adds 1,000 new Border Patrol Agents;

Expands the US-VISIT entry/exit process as part of our immigration system.

Aviation Security

Enhancing the Federal Air Marshal program;

Installing in-line explosive detection systems;

Hiring 100 new air cargo inspectors.

First Responders

$600 million Firefighter Assistance Grants;

$200 million First Responder Training;

$180 million Emergency Management Performance Grants.

Immigration Enforcement

Provides funding for 350 new Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents;

Provide funding for 1,920 new detention beds.

Homeland Security also covers many other areas of our nation’s safety, such as research into a huge variety of technologies, protecting our critical infrastructure, disaster relief, the Coast Guard, the Secret Service, and cyber-security.

For more information on Homeland Security funding please visit http://hsc.house.gov.

Constituent Corner

· Seeking Exhibitors for the 8th Annual Congressional Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Expo

The House and Senate Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Caucuses and the Sustainable Energy Coalition are seeking possible exhibitors at the Eighth Annual Congressional Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency EXPO to be held June 21, 2005 in the Cannon Caucus Room of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Each year, the EXPO has brought together more than 50 exhibitors to showcase cutting-edge energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies and has attracted as many as 2,500 visitors including members of Congress, congressional staff, members of the Administration, the media, and others.

The EXPO is presently scheduled to run from 10:30 am through 5:00 pm; a news conference featuring a number of congressional and other speakers will be held during the day at a time yet to be determined. As has become traditional, free ice cream and soft drinks will be available to all EXPO visitors.

Organizers for this year's program hope to bring in exhibitors representing most, if not all, 50 states who will be able to display more than two dozen different sustainable energy technologies.

Given the very limited number of exhibit spaces, we are giving priority to exhibitors from among profit-making firms, with 25 or more employees, that now have commercially-available products and services in the marketplace. Several national laboratories and government agencies are also expected to exhibit.

If you know of any Illinois or 19th district firms that you think should be considered for one of the available spaces, we would welcome receiving their name and a contact as well as any descriptive information you can provide. Please contact Ray Fitzgerald in my Washington, D.C. office at 202-225-5271 with any suggestions or for more information.

· 7th Annual Illinois Capitol Forum on America's Future

The 2006 application for the Illinois Capitol Forum on America's Future, a year-long initiative of the Illinois Humanities Council and the Watson Institute at Brown University, currently is available online. The program is designed to give high school students a voice in public consideration of contemporary international issues both in their social studies classroom and in the State Capitol.

Twenty schools will be selected for participation in the seventh Forum, which begins with a teacher workshop in October. Curriculum units and other classroom materials are provided.

For more information and to view the application please visit http://www.prairie.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/dir_library.doc_results_prog/object_id/437800a8-7133-46f9-9a8e-d1c07fc6c403/DcoumentsForCapitolForumonAmericasFuture.cfm.

· New “Traveling Help Desk” Dates

On Tuesday, May 24, Mary Ballard of my Springfield district office will be available to help the residents of Carrollton and Jerseyville. In Carrollton she will be at the City Hall on 621 South Main from 8:00 a.m. until 9:30 a.m. In Jerseyville she will be in the Council Room in City Hall on 115 East Prairie from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

Appointments are not necessary, so feel free to drop by at any time. For more information, please visit my web page at http://www.house.gov/shimkus/helpdesk.htm. I hope you stop in to see us!

Legislative Week in Review

· The following bills were passed by the House of Representatives this week:

o H.Res. 266 – Supporting the goals and ideals of Peace Officers Memorial Day (Rep. Hefley – Government Reform)

o H.R. 2107 – National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Maintenance Fund Act of 2005 (Rep. Saxton – Resources)

o H.R. 2360 – Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (Rep. Rogers {KY} – Appropriations)

o H.R. 1817 – Homeland Security Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (Rep. Cox – Homeland Security)

o H.R. 2361 – Department of the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (Rep. Taylor {NC} – Appropriations)

· To keep up to date on legislation as it moves through the legislative process please visit http://thomas.loc.gov and type in the bill number.

Anticipated Action on the House Floor Next Week

· Congress will be in session from Monday through Friday of next week. Some of the legislation which will be considered includes:

o Military Construction Appropriations for FY2006

o Energy and Water Appropriations for FY2006

· Want to know more? Keep an eye on the Office of the Clerk’s web site: http://clerk.house.gov/legisAct/index.html. This site provides up-to-date information on House legislative schedules.

Did You Know?

· Interview on Energy Bill Available Online

This past week I did an interview with E&E TV here in D.C. on the Energy Bill. To view the interview please visit: http://www.eande.tv/main. For more information on the Energy Bill please visit http://thomas.loc.gov and type in HR 6.

Thank you for the interest in my newsletter! Remember to tell your friends about it as well--they can sign up on my web page at http://www.house.gov/shimkus.

Sincerely,

Congressman John Shimkus