It is a sad sign of our times, Mr. Speaker, when the death of such an individual becomes an invitation for cheap political attack to those who found his brilliance and accomplishments threatening.

The matter, Mr. Speaker, is far from closed.

H.R. 1995 takes away the guarantee of smaller classes by rolling class size reduction funds into a block grant for professional development purposes and class size reduction.

We must not abandon our commitment to class size reduction and to helping our neediest students.

Overall, H.R. 1995 would divert resources away from districts, like many of those in New York City, that need the money the most.

H.R. 1995 severely undermines the original goal of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act--to provide assistance to the neediest students.

They want smaller classes. They want assurances that money isn't going to be taken from their low-income school districts and transferred to districts with more resources.

How can the American public have faith that we are going to improve their schools when nearly all education groups oppose the proposed education bill?

I rise today to oppose H.R. 1995, the Teacher Empowerment Act, and support the Martinez substitute.

Mr. Speaker, this summer Queens Theatre in the Park will present the 3rd Latino Arts Festival to celebrate the contributions of Latino and Latin American artists to the cultural life of Queens and the greater New York metropolitan area.

I urge anybody in the New York metropolitan area these next couple of weeks to get out to Queens and experience this celebration of Latino culture.

Clearly this amount is woefully inadequate when compared to the current high costs of housing faced by the residents of New York.