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Today, Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-5) delivered remarks at an afternoon banquet hosted by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in commemoration of the 84th birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and as part of the National Service Day.

Today, Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-5) took part in the National Day of Service a day for Americans across the country to come together to serve their communities in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Today, Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-5) attended the 18th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Prayer Breakfast hosted by the Charles County NAACP and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Nu Zeta Omega Chapter.

I commend Governor OMalley on his comprehensive approach to improve public safety and address gun violence in Maryland. The Governors agenda will go a long way to keep our families and communities safe by banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, strengthening licensing requirements, enhancing school safety, and expanding mental health safeguards and services.

It was an honor to join the Maryland Senate and the House of Delegates today for the opening of the 433rdSession of the General Assembly. Im proud that state lawmakers passed landmark legislation last session, including the DREAM Act and marriage equality, and worked with Governor OMalleys administration to support job creation, encourage greater economic development, and to strengthen education in our state. Now, in the opening of this new session, the General Assembly has the opportunity to build on the work they performed in 2012.

Thanks to their dedication and hard work, our schools have been rated best in the nation for the fifth consecutive year.

Id like to thank the Chesapeake Bay Foundation for their briefing today on their 2012 State of the Bay report. Their findings show that we have made progress in cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries, but we must continue to work together to restore our local waterways.

I am encouraged by the jobs numbers for December released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics today, which show that our economy added 168,000 private sector jobs last month. While we continue to move in the right direction, we must remain focused on taking action to support economic growth and job creation. As the 113th Congress begins, Democrats and Republicans have an opportunity to come together to build on these gains and help more Americans get back to work.