The United States Chamber of Commerce today presented Rep. Michael Burgess (TX-26) with its 2005 “Spirit of Enterprise” award for his strong support for its pro-business legislative agenda in the second session of the 108th Congress. “It is critical to have Members of Congress fighting for American business and their employees at this time of economic expansion and opportunity,” said Thomas J. Donohue, Chamber President and CEO. “Michael Burgess is a leader who has voted time and again to create... Read more

Mr. Speaker, it is my sad duty to report to the House that we lost a pioneer in medicine this weekend down in Dallas: Dr. Charles Baxter , a surgeon whose research in clinical skills saved thousands of lives over the years. Dr. Baxter will be remembered for a lot of things back home, not the least of which was his treatment of a severely burned patient and his introduction of very aggressive fluid management in the initial hours after the burn had occurred, saving countless patients from going i... Read more

Congressman Michael C. Burgess participated in an event in support of Lifetime Television Network’s Stop Violence Against Women campaign this week in Washington. Alongside his fellow Texas representatives, Dr. Burgess stood for a photograph while wearing the Lifetime Television Network’s necktie designed to promote the weeks’ activities. “Violent acts against women cuts across every line of geography and income,” stated Congressman Michael Burgess. “Abuse is found in every community in our count... Read more

Legislation that would provide $284 billion in federal highway, transit and road safety projects through 2009 was overwhelmingly approved by the House of Representatives by a vote of 417 to 9. The legislation, H.R. 3 - “The Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users,” is a critical bill which determines the federal funding amounts for America’s transportation infrastructure including highways, transit and aviation. H.R. 3 authorizes $225.5 billion for the Federal Highway Administration, $52.3... Read more

Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Chairman, I rise to oppose this amendment. Our State department of transportation is very opposed to the language in the Kennedy amendment and would ask that the House defeat this amendment and use the language that is in the main bill. In Texas, we have such a unique problem because we have such a large geographic footprint, second only to Alaska. Yet at the same time, we receive nowhere near the Federal funding the State of Alaska receives. As a consequence, we are constantly ... Read more

Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, we hear a lot of talk about Social Security and what is the right word to use. Is it a crisis? Is it just a problem? Is there no problem with a system awash in cash that perhaps just needs some minor adjustments down the road? Well, Mr. Speaker, I do believe there is a crisis, or at least a serious problem that is looming. There is no question we are held captive by our demographics. In order for our Social Security System to work, we need large numbers of young people ... Read more

Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to comment on that. For a number of years, ever since the Institute of Medicine study came out, and I bought the book and read through it, I felt that their study methods were significantly flawed. While I agree with their premise that if there is one death from medical errors, that is too many, the book is worth reading if only to look through the very tortured methods that they went through to come up with the number at the end of 98,000 deaths a year. T... Read more

Congressman Burgess discusses successes in medical liability in the State of Texas on the House of Representatives floor. For more information on medical liability, please see the Medical Liability section under the "Issues" area of this website. Click here to watch the video. Read more

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess) is recognized for 5 minutes. Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, the American people are hearing a lot of information about our Social Security system, and I am sure they have got legitimate questions: Is there a crisis or not? If there is a crisis, then is there a trust fund or not? If there is not a trust fund, where did it go, who took it and when? There are, of course, those who say that there is no cr... Read more

The Westlake Fire Department has received a grant of over $440,000 from the 2004 Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. With FY04 funds, $745 million will be awarded to several thousand fire departments. “I am glad to see this critical funding for our local fire departments and their firefighters who put their lives on the line each day to protect our families, homes and communities, stated Congressman Michael C. Burgess. “Our first res... Read more