Transcripts For CSPAN U.S. House Of Representatives 20180118

Thats the responsible thing to do. Thats what i think this house will do. Thats why on both sides will choose to do. Both with they vote here and when they take it up in the United States senate. With that, mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves his time of the the gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter thank you, mr. Speaker. Sorry about that. I hope it wasnt anything i said. Mr. Speaker, for months the majoritys been holding the health care of nine million children and more than nine million individuals, including seniors and pregnant women and veterans hostage while they pass the tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires. Time is up. To orry about act, our constitution constituents face with each day futures. This is wrong. Mr. Speaker, even President Trump agrees we need to act on chip. Just this morning he tweeted, quote, chip should be part of a longterm solution. Shortterm or extension. Heres our chance to stop playing politics except we cant do it until 7 00 this evening because the president and some of the members of the house are in pennsylvania at a political rally. I guess this wasnt important as we thought it was. If we defeat the previous question, i will offer an amendment to the rule. To bring up representatives representative mceachins bill, h. R. 4820, advancing seniors and kids act. This bill would restore certainty and stability to so vulnerable most citizens by responsibly addressing Critical Health care priorities. It permanently reauthorizes chip saving us 6 billion. It reauthorizes the Community Health centers for two years. And includes other Vital Health Care vulnerable citizens by responsibly Program Relief to pregnant women, seniors, and so many more. Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the record along with extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Ms. Slaughter to discuss our proposal im pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from South Carolina, the assistant minority leader leader, mr. Clyburn. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from South Carolina is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Clyburn thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, republicans control the house, the senate, and the white house. The responsibility to govern rests squarely on their shoulders. Keep ats stand ready to government opened, but neither speaker ryan nor leader mcconnell seem interested in finding bipartisan solutions. Maybe they are add heernt to President Trumps admonition we need a Good Government shutdown. House democrats wholeheartedly disagree. We ought to Work Together in a bipartisan way to help our veterans to fight the opioid epidemic. To protect millions of workers pensions. And to help the dreamers. Todays c. R. Is a kick of the can. Once again republicans are engaging in legislative sleight of hand, shamefully using lowincome children as political pawns. The Childrens Health Insurance Program provides Health Insurance for nine million lowincome children. Every democratic member of this body supports it. Republicans allowed it to expire more than four months ago and refused to bring it up on its own until they can get something in return. Thats wrong. What good is Health Insurance if you have refused to bring nowher child is sick . Republicans leave Community Health centers and disproportionate share of hospitals out of their temporary authorization. Mr. Speaker, we should could save 6 billion if we permanently authorize chip. We should fund Community Health enters and protect disproportionate share hospitals for two years. We should permanently repeal the cap on Therapist Services for seniors in medicare. We should fund the highly successful Home Visiting program for five years. And we could do all of this by passing representative mceachins advancing seniors and kids act. I urge my republican colleagues to stop playing games with the Childrens Health. Reject this grotesque political calculation and lets work in a bipartisan way to keep government opened. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york reserves her time. The gentleman from oklahoma. Mr. Cole i thank the speaker. I yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Cole thank you, mr. Speaker. Lets be Crystal Clear on something. The house of representatives never held up chip. They passed it in october. Were still waiting for democrats in the senate to work with republicans in the senate and send us something back. In the meantime in this bill my friends say they want to reauthorize chip. We reauthorize it for six years. There is nothing in it they object to. They believe in the prom. I believe in the prom. Program. I believe in the program h bipartisan support. When we passed it it got almost every republican vote. Couple dozen democratic votes. We made the bill better in the process. If you want to fix chip vote for this bill. And my friends, frankly, we wouldnt be racing members back here or the president of the United States if my friends werent threatening to block a vote against funding the government while negotiations are under way. What advantage do you have in shutting down the government of the United States, which is precisely what my friends are threatening to do. I think theyll not succeed here, but actually have the ability to do in the United States senate should they choose to do it under the rules of that body. While negotiations are going on, if you think shutting down the governments a good idea, i beg to differ. If you are using it as a negotiating tactic, you ought to be ashamed. Because thats no way to treat the American People. Were operating in good faith, there is not an item in this bill that offends any democrat. Nobody i know is against chip. We just heard that. Nobody i know is against delaying the cadillac tax or the medical device tax and obamacare. Two parts of that bill that even my friends who supported it tend to disagree w i know my friends are not opposed to providing Ballistic Missile defense for the United States of america. I know my friends surely dont want to handicap the American Military to dangerous times by a government shutdown. There is nothing in here that could possibly be offensive to them. And there are negotiations under way on the very items they are most concerned about. Immigration and appropriate balance in funding level. Shutting down the government while those negotiations are under way isnt going to help us get daca reform. Go to help us actually get a budget we can operate on. It will simply switch attention away from those and create a crisis, which i assume my friends think will work somehow to their political benefit. I dont think thats true. I speak from some experience here. I argued against it, but i watched my own side do Something Like this when it came to defunding obama a care. It was not successful. It was not the appropriate way to proceed. There was a pretty harsh verdict by the American People. I suggest my friends are running the same risk today. They have every right to do this. I never question any members right to vote how they think is appropriate. But in this case, in this body, i think we have the votes to make sure they dont shut down they threaten as to do. The United States senate thats going to be up to them. Frankly, if Democratic Senators want to shut down the government to achieve they threaten to do. The United States senate thats going some policy objective, thats their choice. I think it will be Crystal Clear tend of the day who actually closed down the government for some unrelated policy name that was actually under negotiation at the time. I would again just urge my friends to benefit from our experience and sit down and keep negotiating while we keep the government opened. I think if we do that, well arrive at a constructive solution for the American People. I think if we dont, its going to be a political crisis that was unprovoked and unnecessary. With that, mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves his time. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield three minutes to the gentlewoman from texas, ms. Jackson lee. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Jackson lee my good friend from oklahoma, and he is a good friend, we have seen each other often in the rules committee, protest too much. This is not a bill. And the American People should not its not a bill. It is an affirmation of the inability of republicans to govern. Republicans have the presidency, the senate, and the house. A few months ago their president indicated we need a good, beautiful government shutdown. Those are not my words. Those are the words of the president of the United States. This is not an appropriations bill. This is a stopgap emergency method in order to save ourselves from collapse. That is the republicans responsibility. Democrats, so many months ago, passed a budget. As a member of the budget committee, a budget that respected the needs of all americans. Including the United States department of defense. It provided funding for ordinary men and women who put on the uniform, some of them on food stamps. It provided for veterans health. It provided for the Childrens Health insurance. It provided for infrastructure. And it provided for ensuring that americans could have good health care. That was a democrats budget. The republican budget was a 2. 4 trillion and counting cut to the needs of the American People. It threatened medicaid and medicare. Quite contrary to democrats. Now we find ourselves in the midst of those in puerto rico and the Virgin Islands who barely got lights or power during the Holiday Season or thereafter. Its dealing with texans who have no power in their homes. Living in shells. They have no heat. Waiting on disaster supplemental relief. That is not coming. And of course what about chip . I represent the texas children with my colleagues. My district surrounds that area. I have been to that hospital. I have seen what the Childrens Health Insurance Program means to saving lives. What does that mean . Six years, thats nebulous. What about permanent . What about passing mr. Mceachins bill on working with seniors and children . Thats serious. I dont know what my friends heard but earlier this morning i heard the president say snap it. S out of they want to be in negotiation, i just want to be me. You know how youre being mean . Youre not here seriously dealing with this. You are going off ton it. They want to be a rally so that you can support the man that is running in the pennsylvania suburbs who loves the president. Thats not democratcy. Whoever is running, let them run. Right now and here we need some help. Thats not democratcy. We need to work on these issues. Or the 700,000 near americans, they are dreamers, but they serve in the military, they are in medical school, they are ph. D. s, they are teachers, and we have them suffering. Some of them have committed suicide. Because of the ugliness of this body. Controlled by republicans, controlled by democrats excuse me republicans in the house and the senate. Finally, let me say that any president that can call something an shole is not a serious negotiator. I believe that it is the republicans responsibility to put a bill on this floor that deals with getting the dreamers and fixing this appropriations pros test in the hard work that our appropriators have done. Mr. Speaker, im soarry. We have not been listened to. This is their responsibility. The speaker pro tempore the gentleladys time has expired. The gentlelady is not recognized. The gentleman from oklahoma. Mr. Cole thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Cole just be clear with my good friend from texas, democrats didnt pass a budget. They proposed a budget. Thats fair enough. But never passed a budget in this house. There was a budget that was passed by the republican majority. Its interesting. That budget actually came into balance within 10 years. Our friends on the other side never presented a budget that came into balance from any of their various groups. Frankly the last Administration Never presented a budget that came into balance. Its hard to talk about a budget that never comes into balance as if its a responsible document. Its clearly not. In terms of my friends concern about chip, its an appropriate chern. Of answer is in front of her her. The answer is in front of her. Vote for this bill. The negotiations were last fall. This house is actually, again, met all of its obligations. Y friends counterparts in the other body have used their votes under the rules of that body to sabotage any appropriations process whatsoever. Require 60 votes in the United States senate. Unfortunately we only have 51. Thats why were here today. Frankly were here to make sure that government doesnt shut down. Now, again, my friends have every right to shut down the government. If that he vote no on this measure thats exact if they vote no on this measure theyre voting to taxing the American People, putting taxes on their health care plan, putting taxes on their medical devices. Theyre missing the opportunity to help us with Missile Defense in a very dangerous era and theyre throwing away the time while negotiations on the topics theyre concerned about is under way. Negotiations on the budget. Negotiations on daca. So why my friends want to do this at this particular point is beyond me. But i would suggest its not likely to work. Its likely to backfire and if we end up in a government shutdown, something i would very much advise against, i think my friends, all of whom would vote to shut down the government will bear the responsibility. I think the American People will understand. Again, i dont think my friends will succeed in this house, but they may well in the Upper Chamber because up there they do have the votes under the rules of that body to shut down the government. I would urge them not to do that, to keep the government operational, to take these victories, and they are victories where we agree, and keep negotiating on the issues that most concern you. I think thats the appropriate way to proceed, and i would urge my friends to adopt that course. With that, mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves his time. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from california, ms. Lee. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. Ms. Lee thank you very much. I want to thank the gentlelady for yielding, once again for her tremendous leadership on so many issues as our Ranking Member. Now, i serve as a member of the appropriations and budget committees, and i rise in strong opposition to this rule and the continuing resolution. And i just want to make one comment before i start my statement with regard to what was just said about democrats shutting down the government. First of all, theres no way that democrats are voting to shut down the government given the fact that republicans control the house, the senate and the white house. The numbers just arent there for democrats to do this. As i hope people on the other side, republicans, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle be honest about that because theres no way given the numbers and given the comp significance of the house and the compigs of the house and senate and white house that democrats can do this. This bill kicks the d down the road for the fourth time since october. Republicans control, again, what i said, the three bodies, house, senate, white house. The least they can do is honor the basic responsibility of being in the majority and thats to keep the government open. Sadly, they continue to drive this country to the brink of one un one avoidable selfinflicted crisis after another. This shortterm resolution ignores, ignores urgent bipartisan priorities that democrats have been pushing for months with republicans. The most urgent of which is passing a clean dream act. Daca recipients are american in every way except on paper, and right now their lives are hanging in the balance. Every day Congress Fails to take action 122 Daca Recipients lose their protection. Its time to put politics aside and pass a clean dream act immediately. Mr. Speaker, this continuing resolution is really irresponsible and its morally bankrupt. It fails to honor the temporary protective status for immigrants. It fails to raise budget caps, especially for nondefense spending. It fails to fund Community Health centers, and it neglects to provide desperately needed funding for hurricane and wildfireimpacted communities, the opioid epidemic, Community Health centers and our veterans. This bill underscores the majoritys complete lack of regard for Everyday Americans he and struggling families. Americans and struggling families. This leaves the americans with no confidence in their own government. This resolution makes it clear thats just republicans want republicans want us to do. The American People sent us to govern in their best interest. Unfortunately, this c. R. Is just the opposite. It is completely irresponsible may i have another 30 seconds . Ms. Slaughter yes, you may. Ms. Lee thank you very much. This c. R. Does nothing, nothing to help create jobs, better wages and ultimately a Better Future for our children and our families. And its really clear to me that the delay on this vote, on this bill is because some House Republicans are in pennsylvania i was shocked when i learned this pennsylvania with the president at a political rally. Whats that about . They should be here in washington, d. C. , to do their job. Shame on them. I urge a no vote on this rule and the bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentlelady from new york reserves her time. The gentleman from oklahoma. Mr. Cole mr. Speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Cole thank you, mr. Speaker. I just want to submit for the record, my friends may have missed this, the Childrens Hospital association has actually urged that this bill be adopted. They have urged that we, you know, for six years ensure the funding and they would like my friends, who i know believe in this program, to actually vote for the measure in front of them. Now, we heard a number of things about kicking the can down the road. I confess, keeping the government open while negotiations are in progress is something we are trying to do. But i also point out this is not simply a normal c. R. It settles the Childrens Health Insurance Program for the next six years and appropriately funds it. It delays tax increases, which my friends also oppose, although they voted for them on obamacare, on peoples Health Insurance programs and on medical devices. It provides badly needed dollars for Missile Defense in an era of crisis with an irresponsible state, and it doesnt have anything in it that offends my friends in any way. Theres nothing in this bill they are against. If it is i would like to know it. If its chip youre against, is it delaying the cadillac tax that youre against, is it frankly delaying the medical device tax increase medical device tax increase youre against . Is it putting more money in Ballistic Missile defense you are against . Or is it continuing Government Operations you are against while negotiations are under way . I am not sure which win they are for. If its nothing you are against, you ought to be voting for the bill. Finally to my Friends Point and they are wiser about this than their comments would suggest, to suggest we simply can control the universe around here isnt true. We dont live to write the senate rules. It would probably look different and we would probably have a lesser of a problem. My friends tried to shut the government in december. I dont think theyll be able to shut down the government, although theyll try to again today. But in the United States senate, the democrats will decide whether or not the government continues to operate, whether or not chip is reauthorized for six years, as the association of Childrens Hospital urges, whether or not millions of American Families are spared from a tax increase simply because they fought and worked for a decent insurance plan, whether or not millions of americans that depend on medical devices for their survival have to pay more for them, whether or not we have a higher level of certainty that we can defend ourselves against unprovoked and dangerous attack that might occur at any moment, that will be a decision for democrats in the senate to make as long as we vote here to move this legislation forward. I think we will, and i would invite my friends to join us in that. Theres nothing in here that offends you. There are many things that you like, and there are negotiations under way on the things that are your concerns. I would suspect thats the course that we ought to take, and i would urge my friends to reconsider and adopt that course. With that, mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves his time. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, may i inquire of my colleague if hes prepared to close . I have no further speakers. Mr. Cole i am certainly prepared to close whenever my good friend is. Ms. Slaughter thank you very much. Mr. Speaker, my good friend, mr. Cole, seems to me almost desperate for us to vote for this continuing resolution which says to me you dont have enough votes to pass it. Somehow by saying that because democrats will not support this farce we will be responsible for it. Frankly, my good friends, you are 33 in government shutdowns just since i have been a member of congress. And nobody is going to believe that with your excess number of votes here, i think you have 23 more members than we got, we are at fault. Anyway, lets get to the business here. Instead of treating this like a serious issue that it is, the president is treating it like another reality show. He has suggested democrats would certainly be blamed for the majoritys inability to keep the government running, but hes wrong about that too. Just this week, a poll from Heart Research Associates Hart Research associate said they will blame the majority for a double digit margin. The gap looks wider when you look at independent americans. History shows this to be true. When the majority shut down the government over the Affordable Care act in 2013, a majority of the public placed the blame on them, not president obama. We saw similar results when former speaker gingrich engaged in a shutdown in both 1995 and 6because he thought the seat given to him on air force one did not fit his stature. The American People then blamed the republican congressional majority, not president bill clinton. Thats because facts matter. The fact here is that the majority chose a partisan approach that threatens our ability to keep the government functioning, but this discussion should not be centered on blame. It is about whether the republican margin majority can govern. Holding the white house, the senate and house comes with great responsibility, and obviously the most basic one, and we all understand to start with, is keeping the government of the United States running, and yet we are confronted all the time with this problem are we going to be able to pay the bills and keep things going . That is so humiliating for america. Theres no other word for it. But this majority has pointed out before, governing from crisis to crisis to crisis and they lurch from one deadline to the next without a plan and all the time all you need to do is let us Work Together, let democrats in on your back room plans and we never get to see that. Were never consulted, never a part of any plan. Let me remind everyone watching that the last republican shutdown in 2013 cost the economy an estimated 24 billion. Federal loans to small businesses, homeowners and families were halted, and numbers of great federal employees were furloughed. Federal permitting were stopped. Hundreds of patients at the National Institutes of health were unable to enroll in possible lifesaving clinical trials. Federal Scientific Research was also put on hold. We had five nobel prizewinning scientists working for the federal government at that time, and four of them were furloughed. The majority apparently thinks it has the votes to go it alone on this bill, but i dont think so anymore. They think were going to prevent a repeat of all that carnage. Its a shame that they squandered a chance to work with us to craft a bipartisan bill. Frankly, i think its tragedy, and i think it is no way to run the government. Without question, we could have kept the government running while addressing the priorities that members of both parties agree on like we used to. I urge a no vote on the previous question, the rule, and the bill, and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york yields her time back. The gentleman from oklahoma. Mr. Cole i thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Cole thank you very much, mr. Speaker. I want as always thank my good friend. We disagree on this but theres nobody that i enjoy serving with on the rules committee more than my good friend, the Ranking Member. Shes a wise and able legislator, and there are a couple things she said i am going to agree with. She did say facts matter. I actually agree with that. Facts do matter here. And the fact of the matter is anyone who votes no on this resolution is voting to shut down the government. Anyone, republican or democrat, that votes no, that said i am not willing to keep the government open while negotiations are under way, anyone who votes no is voting against a sixyear extension of the Childrens Health Insurance Program that we all agree on and say is critical. Anyone who votes no is absolutely guaranteeing a tax increase or will be voting for a tax increase on American Workers who happen to have fairly decent Insurance Programs. Anybody who votes no is going to raise taxes on americans who are ill enough to require medical devices. Anyone who votes no is going to make sure we dont have the resources we need to protect this country at a time of International Crisis against a potential rogue missile attack. Anyone who votes no is voting to shut down the government. That simple. My friends did that in december because they thought, well, gosh, they cant do it without us. But we did. I suspect well be able to do that again, but i regret anyone would vote no on those kinds of votes because i think theyll come back to haunt them. My friend also said and i think this may actually be the key to the issue. She quoted polling data. The republicans will get the blame anyway. That may be true. I dont doubt the accuracy of my friends numbers. I suspect once they watch the process, the American People are pretty smart and they understand a no vote is a vote to shut down the government. If my friends are gambling, gosh, republicans will get the blame for this because they have done this in the past, i think they are running a terrible risk with their own credibility. This body will succeed. I dont serve in the United States senate. Never served in the United States senate. Never worked for anybody that served in the senate. They have rules that will allow the democrats to shut down the government if they choose to do it. I dont think they will. If they do i think theyll regret it. Certainly many on my side regret some of the decisions they made in the last one of these crises. I hope we do the responsible thing in this body and count on cooler heads in the United States senate to do the same thing. I also would point out in this bill that people are going to vote no on, my friends probably in overwhelming numbers, sad to say, there is nothing in it they disagree w they dont disagree with chip reauthorization. They dont disagree with delaying taxes and the Affordable Care act. They dont disagree with providing additional Missile Defense. They tell us they want to keep the government operating. And particularly when there are negotiations under way on the matters that actually concern them. That strikes me as incredibly disingenuous or shortsighted or both. I would urge my a friends, do what you must on the rule, the rule is a rule. Its always a partisan exercise. I respect my friends for voting no on a rule. Butted underlying legislation, thats real but the underlying legislation, thats real. Thats whether or not the government operates. Whether or not we take care of these knotty problems where we happen to agree. Whether or not we put the wellbeing of the country in terms of its defense above the partisan interests. Those things are areas that shouldnt be tough votes. I hope my friends reconsider. Come down and vote to keep the government running instead of shutting it down. Come down and vote to keep taxes from, imposed on hardworking families for the Health Insurance plan for medical devices. Come down and vote to make sure we have the strongest possible defense against any possible attack on our country. And come down and vote to deep the government keep the government opened while negotiations are under way. I think the failure to do that is one that my friends will look back on with deep regret in the years ahead. With that, mr. Speaker, i would like to just, in closing, encourage all members to support the rule. Todays bill represents the next step toward fulfilling our primary obligation. As members of congress, to fund the government. Although not perfect, the bill before us today will fund our government and keep it open and operating through february 16, 201. Well reauthorize the Childrens Health Insurance Program for six years. Achieve a delay in several harmful obama taxes while doing so we bolster the defense of our country at a dangerous time. While i look forward to completing our work and passing a bipartisan, bicameral full , for mnibus spending bill now this legislation will keep the government opened. And operating. And give us time to continue working toward the bipartisan agreement for the American People. I applaud my colleagues for their work. With that, mr. Speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. And i move the previous question on the resolution. The speaker pro tempore the question is on ordering the previous question on the resolution. So many as are in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman new york. Ms. Slaughter i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. Those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. A sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. Members will record their votes y electronic device. Pursuant to clause 8 and clause 9 of rule 20, this 15minute vote on ordering the previous question will be followed by fiveminute votes on adoption of the resolution, if ordered, ordering the previous question on those on House Resolution 694, and adoption of House Resolution 694, if ordered. This is a 15minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Any use of the closedcaptioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u. S. House of representatives. ] the speaker pro tempore on this vote the yeas are 229, and the nays are 191. The previous question is ordered. The question is on adoption of the resolution. All those in favor say aye. All those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. Those in favor of a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. A sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. Members will record their votes y electronic device. This is a fiveminute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Any use of the closedcaptioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u. S. House of representatives. ] the speaker pro tempore on this vote the yeas are 226, the nays are 194. The resolution is adopted. And, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. The Unfinished Business is the vote on ordering the previous question on House Resolution 694 on which the yeas and nays are ordered. The clerk will report the title of the resolution. The clerk house calendar number 119. House resolution 694. Resolution providing for consideration of the bill, h. R. 4712, to amend title 18, United States code, to prohibit a Health Care Practitioner from failing to exercise the proper degree of care in the case of a child who survives an abortion or attempted survives an. Ortion or attempted abortion the speaker pro tempore the question is on ordering the previous question. Members will record their votes by electronic device. This will be a fiveminute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Any use of the closedcaptioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u. S. House of representatives. ] the speaker pro tempore the eas are 229 and the nays are 190. The previous question is ordered. Question is on adoption of the resolution. Those in favor say aye. The yeas have it. Mr. Speaker, i ask for the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from tennessee. Yeas and nays are requested. Those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. A sufficient number having , members will record their votes by electronic device. This is a fiveminute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Any use of the closedcaptioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u. S. House of representatives. ] the speaker pro tempore on this vote, the yeas are 228, the nays are 189. The resolution is adopted. , the motion toon reconsider is laid on the table. The speaker pro tempore the ouse will be in order. Members will please take conversations off the floor. Members will take their conversations off the floor. Members will take their onversations from the floor. For what purpose does the gentleman from texas, mr. Hensarling, seek recognition . Mr. Hensarling pursuant to House Resolution 693, i call up h. R. 2954 and ask for its immediate consideration in the house. The clerk Union Calendar number 359, h. R. 2954, a bill to amend the Home Mortgage disclosure act of 19 5 to specify which deposit tower institutions are subject to the maintenance of records and disclosure of records under such act and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to House Resolution 693, the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on Financial Services printed in the bill, modified by the amendment printed in part b of house report 115118 is adopted and the bill as amended is considered read. The bill shall be debatable for one hour equally divided by the chair and Ranking Member of the committee on Financial Services. The gentleman from texas, mr. Hensarling, and the gentlewoman from california, ms. Waters, each will control 30 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. But will suspend momentarily hile the house comes to order. Members will take conversations rom the floor. The house will be in order. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Hensarling i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and submit extraneous materials on the bill under consideration. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Hensarling i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Hensarling im pleased to support h. R. 2954, Home Mortgage disclosure adjustment act. H. R. 2954, which was introduced by mr. Emmer of minnesota, a very hardworking member of the Financial Services committee, a very important piece of legislation that will provide much needed regulatory relief for our Community Banks and cfpb unions from onerous regulations that are impeding their ability to make home loans to our constituents. On january 1, draconian changes went into effect relating to the act. These changes which were mandated by doddfrank and blindly implemented by the cfpb radically expanded the information that lenders are required to collect, record and report about Mortgage Applications and loans. But, many things the cfpb is involved in, the rule went far, far beyond what was originally intended by congress and effects have far reaching negative consequences on community ip institutions and home buyers. The cfpbs updated rule now requires Financial Institutions to collect 48, 48 unique, different data fields on each Mortgage Loan they make. This is more than double, double the number, mr. Speaker, the number of data fields lenders were required to collect before the rule went into effect. Now, as if adding two dozen more data fields, the cfpb rule also modified 20 of the 23 existing fields in this constant, scarnt changing of the regulatory scheme to fit the narrative of regulators rather than focus on the cost and benefits to our constituents and existing mr. Speaker, the house is not in order. The speaker pro tempore the entleman will suspend. Members, please take your conversations off the floor so the gentleman can be heard. Well wait until we do. The gentleman will continue, please. Mr. Hensarling thank you, mr. Speaker rment. Again, the constant changing of this regulatory scheme increase complexity and costs does not fully we do not fully appreciate the impact on our community Financial Institutions and we do not fully appreciate how this is impeding the success in growth of our community Financial Institutions and the communities we represent. And you dont have to take my word for it, mr. Speaker. Community banker in kansas said that, quote, as crazy as it seems, our current process includes four people verifying the data on each loan. Mr. Speaker, that was before, before the changes we are discussing today. According to that same Community Banker whos trying to fund homes in his local community, doubling the number of data fields as required in the rule quote, will almost be overwhelming for a bank such as ours. All the new mortgage lending rules have mad it almost impossible made it almost impossible to provide Timely Service to our local customers, unquote. And so homebuyers are feeling this effect, mr. Speaker. As one Community Banker from ohio explained, be he was working with he was working with a woman who recently went through the tragedy of divorce. She was trying to refinance her home in order to make ends meet. But after filing mountains and mountains of paperwork and wading through all the different forms, she looked up at the banker and said, quote, jim, just tell me it will be ok. As jim put it, quote, at that point i realized just how overwhelming all the forms and disclosures were to a customer. Sadly, we all have, the lawmakers, the regulators and the bankers have forgotten the most important item in this entire process, the customer. And this Community Banker is right, mr. Speaker. Our local Financial Institutions , our Community Banks, our smallest Financial Institutions especially, they have to spend less time in resources, meeting washingtons complex, burdensome, onerous paperwork requirements. And instead we need to give them more freedom to do what they do best and that is help people in their communities get into homes they can actually afford to keep. But doubling, doubling humda data requirements needlessly, needlessly makes home buying more expensive, more confusing and more difficult for the very people that we should be trying to help. Homebuyers like april from kentucky wrote that the process to get a home, quote, is almost impossible, end quote, triegesly frustrating and extremely frustrating. Our homebuyer from michigan who explained, quote, the very people this was supposed to be helpful to, lowerincome working americans, have been the partys most devastated parties most devastated by the overreach. And thats exactly what this is, mr. Speaker. Overreach. And its not only these individuals, but even charities, Great Charities like habitat for humanity, who said, quote, thanks to the cfpbs burdensome regulations and rules, charities such as habitat that provide these loans have found it more difficult to do their important work. The gentleman from minnesota, simply addresses the fabblet that the fact that in order to make home loans, small Financial Institutions should not and cannot afford to keep pace with the massive laws that disregard their businesses, their business models, and create an uneven playing field. For this reason and for the others i have stated, mr. Speaker, i urge all colleagues to help struggling wouldbe homebuyers in our districts and support h. R. 2954. And i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Waters i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Waters mr. Chairman, i rise oday in opposition to h. R. 2954. The Home Mortgage disclosure adjustment act. Which would undermine efforts to monitor trends in mortgage lending, combat discriminatory and predatory lending, and ensure that consumers who reside in low and moderate income communities have fair access to mortgage credit. 1975, congress enacted the Home Mortgage disclosure act, also known as hmda in response to concerns hmda, in response to concerns that despite their responsibility to provide adequate home financing, to qualified applicants on reasonable terms and conditions, me lenders failure to do so had contributed to a decline in housing conditions. In communities of color. Hmda data provide the only comprehensive picture of the rates at which American Consumers request for mortgages are approved and denied. And as a result it has many important uses. Hmda data provide information on mortgage lending patterns and trends that allow regulators, lenders, researchers and the public to better understand and address red lining concerns by identifying possibly discriminatory lending patterns and monitoring compliance with an enforcement of statutes like the Community Reinvestment act and federal antidiscrimination laws like equal credit opportunity act, and the Fair Housing Act. Local governments also use hmda data to determine which Financial Institutions are meeting the needs of their communities and should receive important benefits funded by the taxpayers of those communities. For example, in california, the local government uses hmda data when selecting banks for contracts and participation in local programs. Hmda at that, da hmda data are also used by government officials to determine areas of disease investment that are in need disinvestment that are in need of targeted assistance. Take flint, michigan, for example. There hmda data has been used to target funds to remediate blight. Communities also use hmda data to identify discriminatory lending patterns and enforce antidiscrimination statutes. Hmda data, for example, were used in chicago to identify discrimination in lending patterns in its neighborhoods. Leading to a large discriminatory lending settlement. And it was precisely because of hmda data that Congress Learned during the runup to the financial crisis that africanamericans were routinely steered into predatory, subprime loans predatory subprime loans, even when they qualified for prime mortgages. And they received these loans at higher rates than white borrowers. Following the financial crisis, Congress Updated hmda when it passed the doddfrank act. Directing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to close information gaps about mortgage lending patterns and practices that contributed to the 20072008 financial crisis, as well as other data that could better identify discrimination. Accordingly, in 2015, the Consumer Bureau finalized a rule that required sufficient information to shed light on predatory practices in the Mortgage Market and considered Compliance Costs and burdens imposed on institutions that collect, maintain and report the data. Through this rule, the Consumer Bureau added and implemented Additional Data fields that must be reported in order to further close information gaps about mortgage lending patterns and practices. The new data fields include basic loan facts such as the address of the property, Interest Rate of the mortgage, and borrowers credit score. The Consumer Bureaus rule only excluded truly small lenders. Banks that originate fewer than 25 closed end loans like mortgages and 100 open end lines of credit like home equity lines. Because providing broader relief would negatively effect low and moderate income communities. Specifically the Consumer Bureau wrote, and i quote, the loss of ata in communities at closed end mortgage volume thresholds higher than 25 would substantially impede the publics and Public Officials ability to understand access to credit in their communities. Quoteunquote. Despite the harm posed to low and moderate income communities around the country, h. R. 2954 would permanently raise the threshold for new hmda data for both Mortgage Loantype data and lines of credit to 500 without a good understanding about the real impact of doing so. T this level, 85 or 5,400 depository institutions and 48 of nonbanks or 497 institutions would be exempt. Thats 6,000 Financial Institutions that would no longer report important lending data. By prohibiting these important new data fields from being reported under home run, regulators would not be able to fully determine the extent of red lining, discrimination and other harmful practices. This would make it harder for fair lending violations to be detected. As hmda data routinely used by the department of justice to identify and remedy discrimination in lending, these new data fields are essential for shedding light on the kinds of discrimination like age that now flies under the radar. Its not surprising that over 170 civil rights, fair housing, consumer and Community Organizations across the country have come out strongly against this bill. These groups have stated that the updated hmda data will provide critical information about whether similarly situated borrowers and underserved communities are receiving equitable access to mortgage credit, data that we lacked a decade ago when the crisis hit, quoteunquote. I recognize the need for congress to consider tailored and sensible regulatory relief to community Financial Institutions, but this bill is not that relief. Financial institutions are already required to collect this data as part of existing mortgage regulations, or as part of the mortgage underwriting process. I cannot support h. R. 2954, because it undermines effective, fair lending enforcement by reducing hmda data. This bill will contribute to unequal access to Affordable Credit for people of color, low to moderate income families, and borrowers in rural areas. History has repeatedly shown us that when Financial Institutions are merely trusted to operate in good faith, American Consumers are left vulnerable to discriminatory and predatory lending. Communities are stripped of wealth and our economy is weakened. For these reasons i urge my colleagues to reject this rollback of a key fair lending tool and join me in opposing h. R. 2954. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserves the balance of her time. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling mr. Speaker, i am very, very pleased to yield five minutes to the gentleman from minnesota, mr. Emmer, very valuable member of our committee, and the sponsor of the legislation. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Emmer thank you, mr. Chair. Mr. Speaker, every citizen in our nation desires the chance to achieve their American Dream. For thousands across this country, their American Dream consists of owning a home or starting their own business. Some laws have proven helpful in achieving this dream. Others have created obstacles by codifying government overreach. In 1975, the Home Mortgage disclosure act was enacted. This important law exposed and helped eliminate discriminatory lending practices, particularly against minorities. In short, this law helped more americans realize their dream of owning a home over the years, however, the disclosures required by the law have expanded away from the original intent and have actually become an obstacle, preventing small, medium and local lenders from helping aspiring landowners and business entrepreneurs. In 2015 the doddfrank created agency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or cfpb, demanded from lenders more than double the amount of data originally required under the Home Mortgage disclosure act. That double the data rule took effect on the first of this month. Larger lenders are able to adapt. In fact, most if not all continue to be in the Home Mortgage business today. But for smaller lenders, for this familyowned bank on main street, the double the data rule means making fewer mortgages or none at all. This unintended result is something each of us has heard over and over again in our home districts. Again, these are not the wells fargos, bank of americas, or jpmorgans. These are the small guys, the little guys on main street, minnesota, and main streets all across this country. We all remember the financial crisis of 2008 and the devastation it brought to this nation. Our economy suffered greatly. No one wants that again. Unfortunately congress reacted by demanding that small banks and Credit Unions quite literally paid for a crisis they didnt cause. In the great state of minnesota, the land of 10,000 lakes, i consistently hear from small banks and Credit Unions who want to do what they do best. Help minnesotans achieve the American Dream. Due to the increased cost of compliance with the cfpbs double the data rule, an estimated additional 326 million, many small banks in minnesota are reconsidering their ability to make mortgages and other covered loans. In 2014, minnesota Credit Unions were on the hook for 7. 2 billion in Compliance Costs. Thats before the double the data rule. Not only are the additional hmda compliance burdens ill suited and unnecessary for these institutions, the cfpbs rule does very little to provide additional protection, all while potentially exposing consumers to potential Identity Theft or fraud. This information comes from those on the ground and the ones who are seeing this misguided rule in action. A as a result of fewer institutions offering capital for their neighbors businesses to get off the ground, the cfpb rule has put it out of reach. Today we have to right size government regulation to create more opportunity. We have the opportunity to encourage small and and mediumsized Financial Institutions in our local communities to keep their doors open and make mortgages again, and make loans to wouldbe entrepreneurs and fund the dreeps of their neighbors and friends. We have the opportunity to expand not the law, but rather and instead the number of americans who can own a home or start their own business. I first introduced this when i came to congress in 2015. Its a bill that will keep the original intent of the 1975 law. Nothing will overright or exempt any Financial Institution big or small reporting data related to race and gender. It will provide desperately needed regulatory relief for main street baverages and Credit Unions and it has been perfected from both sides of the aisle and in both chambers. Our goal today shouldnt be to expand the law. Our goal should be to expand the number of americans who want to get one step closer to achieving their American Dream, whether owning a home or starting a business. Mr. Speaker, thats our goal. And today we can take a big step forward in reaching that goal. If you share that goal, i urge you to vote yes on h. R. 2954 and pass the Home Mortgage disclosure act. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Waters my colleague failed to mention the Economic Development association and Jewish Community action group all oppose this bill. And yow i will yield three minutes to the gentleman from florida and member of the committee on Financial Services. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. I would like to thank Ranking Member waters for her steadfast leadership. While i have Great Respect for the gentleman from minnesota, i rise in strong opposition before this bill before us today. I feel lucky to represent floridas 1th Congressional District which includes saint petersburg. It is a beautiful place to live, work and retire and it is bears some scars of segregation. The Fair Housing Act was signed 50 years ago. Why are so many neighborhoods still segregated, why are so many of our constituents have unequal access to credit. Fair housing data is a critical tool to right the wrongs of the past to see how banks are serving all of our communities and root out the occasional bad apple and the occasional bad institution. This data is worth the effort. In a perfect world, we wouldnt need laws to protect the vulnerable or data to enforce those laws. Having fought and won discrimination suits on behalf of the people of the state of florida, i will tell you this is not a perfect world. While they try to make gulations, lets not make it harder for banks to lend. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling i yield three minutes to the gentleman from missouri, mr. Luetkemeyer, the chairman of our Financial Services subcommittee on Financial Institutions. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Luetkemeyer i thank the chairman. I thank the gentleman from minnesota for sponsoring this important legislation. Banks and Credit Unions are drowning in a sea of paperwork. We hear about it from lenders who appear before the Financial Services committee. Because of the regulatory environment, mortgage lending is too burdensome for some Community Banks and Credit Unions. They have no choice but to limit the choices available or exit the Mortgage Business all together, which is some have done. The changes we have seen on Home Mortgage disclosure act requirements is regulation run amuck. On every loan, they must check a lengthy series of boxes. One mistake lands a bank or credit union in hot water. In committee, almost 300 boxes of things they have to look at. If one box, you are out of compliance and you could be exposed. They expanded regulatory requirements associated with hmda and now have to report 48 data fields. In fact, the requirements are more than double the statutory requirements blird by congress. What do we get for this . Not a lot beyond a more burdensome process in the best Case Scenario and slows the borrowing process. These rules make it more difficult for Smaller Institution and result in higher prices for consumers and customer needs. Compliance is one of the top concerns and frustrations i hear from Community Banks in missouri and we had a hearing recently where we had a president in the institution in there and had a file this thick. And i said how many pages do you have in that file . And he said, we dont measure it by the page anymore, but by the pound. This legislation aims to address some of those concerns. H. R. 2954 would exempt small ommunity banks from hmda requirements and this would apply to other lending institutions as well, including those who make loans on manufactured housing. We need to support legislation that will grant relief to the Smaller Institution and enable more access to our customers. I thank the gentleman from minnesota for his outstanding work on this legislation and his work on behalf of Financial Institutions and customers. I yield back and ask for support of the Home Mortgage disclosure adjustment act. The speaker pro tempore the chair lays before the house the following enrolled bill. The clerk senate 139 an act to amendment the foreign intelligence act of 1978 to improve safeguards accountability and oversight of acquisitions of foreign intelligence to extend title 7 of such act and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from california. Ms. Waters i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas. Mr. Hensarling i yield three minutes to the gentleman from from oklahoma, member of the Financial Services committee, mr. Lucas. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Lucas i support mr. Emmers bill, h. R. 2954. Doddfrank added unprecedented new regulations on industry. As we have as has been said already, institutions have to collect additional 25 fields of data. This is more than double what the banks and Credit Unions and other lenders had to report prior to the passage of doddfrank. Not only do these added requirements increase costs for all Financial Institutions but has taken lots of time for Smaller Community lenders to prepare for them. This house should be well aware of two surveys that reported an alarming inability of those entities toll meet those new requirements. In fact, in my meetings with small banks and Credit Unions from oklahoma, all of them have raised these specific rules and requirements as being costly enough to affect their Business Decisions such as how many mortgages they could feasibly originate. All of this makes this bill not only timely, but immensely necessary. I represent a district that is full of institutions that originate fewer than 500 closedend mortgages or open lines of credit for two years. While these new requirements were certainly well intended, their impact on small institutions cannot be overstated and we as a body should continue to find ways to grow the ability of americans to receive and to utilize Financial Instruments such as mortgages. These requirements, you put on all institutions nationwide will disproportionately affect those who are served by small financial entities. I urge my colleagues to support mr. Emmers bill and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentlelady from california. Ms. Waters i continue to reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling i am pleased to yield three minutes to the gentleman from colorado, mr. Tipton, the vice chairman of our subcommittee on oversight and investigations. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Tipton thank the chairman for his leadership on this issue. Mr. Speaker, the Home Mortgage disclosure act continues to be an important resource for regulators to identify discriminatory lending activity. But the previous administrations interpretation of the acts reporting requirements has become overly burdensome for smaller financial instewings. Community banks and Credit Unions are weighed down with the same compliance burdens. Without the advantages of massive compliance departments. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rulemaking of 2015 on the Home Mortgage disclosure act would require Financial Institutions to report 33 new data fields, more than double the statutory requirement laid out by congress on top of hmda ady detailed requirement. Mr. Emmers bill would remove some of the compliance burden placed on our nations smallest Financial Institutions by exempting deposit tower institutions that originated from than 500 closed loans Disclosure Requirements and maintenance of Mortgage Loan records under the 2015 rule. It requires Financial Institutions to report on over 100 total data points for any loan application regardless of whether the institution agrees to make the loan or not. To put that in perspective, the time and resources required by a Community Financial institution to fill out 100 data points for each application could be the difference between being able to make one more loan in the community or not. And in small communities across community, small communities that i represent, every single loan counts. If mr. Emmers legislation will and sore compliance burdens and turn their attention back to providing loans rather than meeting overly burdensome regulatory requirements. I applaud mr. Emmer for introducing this legislation and encourage my colleagues to be able to support this measure. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from colorado yields back. The gentleman from texas reserves. And the gentleman from minnesota is recognized. Mr. Ellsworth mr. Ellison i yield myself such time as i may consume. Mr. Speaker, this legislation we are talking about today, the Home Mortgage adjustment act has to be looked at in the light of the history that this country has had. Our country has a Home Mortgage disclosure act because of years literally centuries of discrimination and racism, which has allowed for americans to be excluded from the hope of home ownership. And when people say that look, i have been the victim of mortgage discrimination, they have been very difficult and hardpressed to prove it because the people who issue mortgages, well, that wasnt the reason. I know your credit score is just like other people. But thats not the reason. The truth is, its the data that the Home Mortgage disclosure act provides for that puts people in a position where they can say look, i have been discriminated against, how come there is wide disparity . And justice has been yielded to people who have been victims of discrimination seeking nothing more than than the American Dream of home ownership. The bill we are considering at this moment, which essentially says that we are going to back track on the Home Mortgage disclosure act. We are not going to enforce it, even though we have know it has granted equal protection under the law for people. The needs of businesses are just going to be so important that we are going to back slide on the issue of justice. So, mr. Speaker, we have to urge a very strong no vote on this bill because this bill says that americas commitment to liberty and justice for all is not something that this house wants to live up to. Were going to say, we cant abide government regulations, even if it means we are going to advance the cause of a civil and human equality for all americans. Its not all hmda were trying to change, were trying to change the hmda data for institutions of a smaller size, and its only certain data. Theyll minimize the