Transcripts For CSPAN U.S. House Of Representatives U.S. House Of Representatives 20240714

On which the yeas and nays are ordered. The clerk will report the title of the resolution. The clerk house calendar number 32 House Resolution 460. Resolution providing for consideration of the bill h. R. 2722 to protect elections for Public Office by providing Financial Support and enhanced security for the infrastructure used to carry out such elections around for other purposes. Waiving a requirement of clause 6a of rule 13 with respect to consideration of certain rules reported from the committee on rules and providing for consideration of bill h. R. 3351 making appropriations for Financial Services and general government for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2020, and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore the question is on ordering the previous question. Members will record their votes by electronic device. 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 227 and the nays are the speaker pro tempore on this vote, the yeas are 228, the nays are 188. The previous question is ordered. The question is on adoption of the resolution. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. The yeas and nays are requested. Those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. A sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. 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 225. The nays are 190. The resolution is a adopted. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. Pursuant to House Resolution 445 and rule 18, the chair declares the house in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for further consideration of h. R. 3055. Will the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. Mcgovern, kindly take the chair. The chair the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for further consideration of h. R. 3055 which the clerk will report by title. The clerk a bill making appropriations for the departments of commerce and justice, science, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2020, and for other purposes. The chair when the committee of the whole rose on monday, june 24, 2019, amendment number 244 printed in house report 160119 offered by the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. Grothman, had been disposed of. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, proceedings will now resume on those amendments printed in part b of house report 116119, on which further proceedings were postponed in the following order. Amendment number 251 by mr. Banks of indiana. Amendment number 268 by ms. Jayapal of washington. The chair will reduce to two minutes the time for any electronic vote in the series. The Unfinished Business is the request for recorded vote on amendment number 251 printed in part b of house report 116119 offered by the gentleman from indiana, mr. Banks, on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. The clerk will designate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 251 printed in part b of house report 116119 offered by mr. Banks of indiana. The chair a recorded vote has been requested. Those in support of request for recorded vote will rise and be counted. A sufficient number having arisen, members will record their votes by electronic device. This will be a twominute 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 chair on this vote the yeas are 131. The nays are 287. The amendment is not adopted. The Unfinished Business is a request for recorded vote on amendment number 268 printed in part b of house report 116119 offered by the gentlewoman from washington, ms. Jayapal, on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the ayes prevailed by voice vote. The clerk will redesignate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 268 printed in part b of house report 116119 offered by ms. Jayapal of washington. The chair a recorded vote has been requested. Those in support of the request for a recorded vote will rise and be counted. A sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. Members will record their votes by electronic device. This will be a twominute 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 chair on this vote the yeas are 294. The nays are 127. The amendment is adopted. There being no further amendments, under the rule the committee rises. Mr. Speaker, the committee of the whole house on the state of the union has had under consideration h. R. 3055 and pursuant to House Resolution 445 i report the bill as amended back to the house with sundry further amendments adopted in the committee of the whole. The speaker pro tempore the chair of the committee of the whole house on the state of the Union Reports that the committee has had under consideration the bill h. R. 3055, and pursuant to House Resolution 445, reports the bill as amended pursuant to that resolution back to the house with sundry further amendments adopted in the committee of the whole. Under the rule the previous question is ordered. Pursuant to House Resolution 445, the question is on adoption of the further amendments will be put en gros. The question is on adoption of the amendments. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The amendments are adopted. The question is on engrossment and third reading of the bill. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The ayes have it. Third reading. The clerk a bill making appropriations for the departments of commerce and justice, science, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2020, and or other purposes. The speaker pro tempore the ouse will be in order. For what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i have a motion to recommit at the desk. The speaker pro tempore is the gentleman opposed to the bill . I am in its current form. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman qualifies. The clerk will report the motion. The clerk mr. Hurd of texas moves to recommit the bill h. R. 3055 to the committee on appropriations to report the same back to the house forthwith with the following amendment. Page 7, line 12, after the dollar amount insert reduced by 75 million. Page 25, line 7, after the first dollar amount, insert increase by 75 million. The speaker pro tempore the house will be in order. The gentleman is recognized for five minutes. Mr. Hurd thank you, mr. Speaker. My colleagues know i am the only republican on the border. My colleagues know im the only member of congress that has 820 miles along the border. My colleagues know that ive spent a good deal of my time up here working with them on things like stopping the separation of families along the border. My colleagues also know that i know that some of yall are not for open borders. It is an understatement to say that our nations immigration is of concern. The caseload has increased by nearly fivefold since the end of 2008. Now, it stands roughly at 9,000 cases. The average wait for nondetained individuals is over 670 days, with many individuals waiting much longer for an immigration hearing. The net effect of this untenable backlog situation is to delay justice, in many cases for years for those with valid claims. This is simply outrageous. The adjudication of immigration matters is essential to the Proper Administration of justice in our country. Congress must make sure that our immigration laws are consistent with due process. This motion adds 75 million to our Immigration Court system. It will support additional immigration judge teams and the expansion of courtroom capacity. Now, some of my colleagues will say there are already judges in this bill. There are. They meet the requests of actually this white house, but that is not enough. In 2016, aclu came out and said that to get back with the backlog, to address the backlog then which was only 500,000, we needed 500 immigration judge teams. We need more. Many of yall have already voted for more than this when yall helped me jam Republican Leadership last year or tried to jam Republican Leadership last year on sorting out the immigration issue. Now, some of my colleagues will say taking money away from census to do that is not the right way to go. This underlying bill funds the census 40 above the president s request. Thats more than 2. 3 billion. This bill includes 8 billion with or without this amendment. And most importantly, this motion to recommit does not address or change the question that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have addressed in this bill and thats whether or not the Citizenship Question can be added on the 2020 census. This bill says it cannot. This motion to recommit does not change that. Let me repeat, this motion to recommit does not change you that. We are taking money out of the census reserve slush fund. This is money that may or may not be used. We can hold onto this funding for unforeseen problems or we can use this funding now to help solve a problem we see loud and clear. Our current shortage of Immigration Judges delays justice for individuals who have valid immigration claims while preserving many years of continued illegal present for others who do not. The lure of weakened system entices migrants to take the incredibly dangerous journey north with young children. I urge a yes vote on this motion to help reverse these regrettable and unsustainable trends caused by our broken immigration system. And mr. Speaker, i yield back he balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i rise in opposition to the motion. The motion to recommit. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. Mr. Speaker, i rise in opposition to the motion. With the approach of the 2020 census, the u. S. Census bureau needs a strong infusion of resources to ensure a thorough and accurate count. As a member of the Appropriations Committee, my colleague knows that the funding level provided from the Census Bureau in this bill is more in line with recent revised budget costs and estimates. This bill also supports critical funding of the bureau as it embarks on the most technological vee advanced nsus in its toe knowlogically advanced technologically advanced census in its history. It protects personal data and information submitted to the bureau. Every dollar can be tied to an original plan, a cost estimate, or a recommendation submitted by the department. There appears to be a growing attack on the census out of fear of demographically changing country and a concerning effort by the other side to skew results in their favor. Mr. Aguilar we need every dollar in this census because the administration is fear mongering, because they are trying to force an undercount with the inclusion of the Citizenship Question, and in reality, we are recommending a funding level consistent with what they indicated they need for a fair and accurate count. Any proposal to decrease this amount increases the risk of undercounts of minority and hardtocount communities including rural parts of this country that lack Broadband Services. Such an undercount would cause these areas to lose out on Political Representation and federal funding. Reduced funding for the census also increases the risk to cyberintrusion and release of personal protected data. This bill already provides a strong increase for federal judges consistent with the administrations request. An increase of over 110 million over the fiscal year f. Y. 2019 level, which provides for 100 additional judge teams. Which my colleague acknowledged in his remarks. Im not aware of a census slush fund, but i am aware that these are vital resources that will help count our communities, help ensure this is done fairly, and help ensure that hard to count communities are counted. The Justice Department is not able to hire any faster than that, as the gentleman acknowledged. I urge rejection on this motion and i urge my colleagues to vote o. With that i yield back. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the previous we is order oed on the motion the previous question is ordered on the motion to recommit. The question is on the motion to recommit. So many as are in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The noes have it. The motion is not adopted. The gentleman from texas is recognized. I request a recorded vote, please. The speaker pro tempore a recorded vote is requested. Those favoring a recorded vote will rise. A sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. Members will record their votes y electronic device. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule 9, this is a fiveminute vote on the motion to recommit will be followed by a fiveminute vote on the passage of the bill. 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 201. The nays are 220. The motion is not adopted. The question is on the passage of the bill. Pursuant to clause 10 of rule 20, the yeas and nays are ordered. 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 227. The nays are 194. The bill is passed. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent that in the engrossment of h. R. 3055, the clerk be authorized to make technical and conforming changes to reflect the actions of the house. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Quigley mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on h. R. 3351. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Pursuant to House Resolution 460 and rule 18, the chair declares the house in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for 51. Ideration of h. R. 35 the chair appoints the leman from massachusetts h. R. 3351. The chair appoints the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. Keating, to preside over he committee of the whole. The chair the house is in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for the consideration of h. R. 3351 which the clerk will report by title. The clerk a bill making appropriations for Financial Services and general government for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2020, and for other purposes. The chair pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered as read for the first time. General debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed one hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on appropriations. The gentleman from illinois, mr. Quigley, and the gentleman from georgia, mr. Graves, each will control 30 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. Mr. Quigley thank you, mr. Chairman. I yield myself such time as i may consume. As chairman of the Financial Services and general government subcommittee, i first want to thank Ranking Member tom graves, the gentleman from georgia, who i now have had the privilege of working with for a third year managing the bill. Our discussions have always been both valuable and productive and i want to thank him for his partnership throughout this process. Of course, i always like to take the opportunity to thank staff on both sides for all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes, and my personal office that includes doug and juan. And our Committee Staff on the majority side, that includes laura, mary beth, elliott, parker, and lisa. And for the minority, john martins. The Committee Staff in particular sacrificed many long nights and weekends to get us to this stage. I am truly grateful, and i know members on both sides share the same sentiment. The bill before us today provides 24. 95 billion in total discretionary resources, including 400 million in adjustments for tax Enforcement Program integrity activities. The fsgg bill encompasses a wide range of programs, everything from the Internal Revenue service to the federal courts to the district of columbia to the Small Business administration. In total, the bill includes 12 billion for the i. R. S. , an increase of more than 6 above the president s request. A good first step toward restoring cuts this agency has suffered for almost a decade. Notably, the bill almost doubles the amount provided in f. Y. 2019 to the systems modernization account to support the i. R. S. s i. T. Modernization efforts. Investing in the i. R. S. Will supply more effective and efficient enforcement ack tests activities to help close the tax gap, reduce wait times and increasing support to those trying to navigate the complex tax code. My friend across the aisle speaks a lot about deficit reduction and as a fiscal moderate, i understand and agree, but underfunding tax enforcement for all these years has been penny wise and pound foolish. The i. R. S. Generates 4 in revenue for every 1 in enforcement expenses. Thats fiscally sound policy we should all support. On the National Security front, the bill also provides increases totaling 15. 6 million for the Treasury Department offices and programs focused on combating money laundering, enforcing sanctions and countering the financing of terrorism. The bill includes funding for numerous important independent agencies critical to the operation of the entire federal government as well as the communities throughout the country. Let me highlight just a few of the many investments provided in this bill. One of the Top Priorities this year has been to step states and local governments meet the challenge of restoring the security and integrity of our elections. To this end, the bill includes 600 million in funding to the Election Assistance Commission. Just last month, special Counsel Robert Mueller described russias concerted attack on our political system in 2016 saying, there were multiple, systematic to interfere in our election. He detailed the russian efforts and specified they were designed and timed to interfere with and damage a president ial candidate. It was a purposeful strategy involving sophisticated cyber techniques to influence the outcome of our election. The underpinning of american democracy whereby american citizens alone decide who represents them in government. Mr. Mueller concluded with a call to action. The efforts to interfere in our election deserve the attention of every american. I couldnt agree more. This is not a partisan matter. If anything, the challenge of securing our election systems should unite all americans. Another major priority in this bill has been to support the regulatory agencies funded in this bill, especially the financial regulatory agencies that protect consumers, taxpayers, and investors and to help police wall street and prevent another financial meltdown. We boost funding for the securities and Exchange Commission by 148 million above 2019 and 104 million above the budget request. We also provide increases for the federal trade commission to help refoes can you on preventing anticompetitive practices and for various Inspector Generals offices. And we give 8. 5 million to the Consumer Product Safety Commission to better protect our families from potentially dangerous products. The bill also makes targeted investments to ensure that Small Businesses on main street and lowincome communities and too often forgotten neighborhoods both urban and rural have access to the capital and assistance needed to thrive. For instance, this bill increases Entrepreneurial Development and programs at the Small Business administration 19 and million above 20 this rejects the president s proposal to eliminate Grant Programs under the Community Development Financial Institutions fund which directly supports the expansion of affordable housing, Small Business creation, and infrastructure growth in underserved and rural areas. In addition to supplying credit to revitalize neglected communities. Instead, the bill boosts funding by 50 million for this extremely successful and broadly bipartisan program. Ultimately, im a capitalist that believes in the power of the free market economy. But i also believe there needs to be reasonable measures and checks in place to make sure our economy is benefiting everyone, and not just a few select at the top. If you believe, as i do, that fraudsters shouldnt be able to manipulate markets and scam seniors of their hardearned savings and that you dont have to be a fortune 500 company to access affordable financing for your business, then you should support the investments in this bill, to empower everyday investors, consumers, and entrepreneurs. Finally, the bill takes significant steps toward reducing undo congressional interference in local d. C. Affairs and eliminating restrictions on the district that do not apply to other parts of the nation. Importantly, it ends the uniquely restricted prohibition on the use of locally raised funds for abortion. Thereby, placing the district in the same position as the 50 states in that regard. It also discontinues the ban on federal funds for local Needle Exchange programs and allows the district to implement local legalizing marijuana. As has been done in most states. In closing, id like to reiterate how grateful i am to all the staff that helped put this product together. Its a bill we all can be proud of, and i urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation. Thank you and i reserve the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman from illinois reserves. The gentleman from georgia, mr. Graves, is recognized. Mr. Graves thank you, mr. Chairman. I rise today to express some concerns and opposition to the current bill before us, the Financial Services and general government appropriations bill. But first, before i get into it, some of the highlights of our opposition, ive been through this process before last year as chairman of this subcommittee. So i truly understand and am aware of the hard work that mr. Quigley and his team have put into this bill and commend them for navigating the process thats not easy and making it to this point that we are here today. I certainly value the approach that chairman quigley took in the strong relationship he and i both had over the years and continue to have. The bill we are addressing a few key priorities that have been important to republican colleagues and myself and we appreciate that and look forward to supporting those in the future. And it does strike a bit of bipartisan tone in away that i know we all appreciate and our constituents value the most and we could value that a little more around here. This is a really good starting point and we are at a starting point, a Small Foundation we can draw from. I would like to highlight some of the areas that we need to work on. First and foremost if we were to have a budget agreement and thats a big if because there is a big discussion about budget agreements but there hasnt been any movement. This is about navigating the budget process and a budget hasnt been passed out of committee, this bill will continue the spending that our nation has seen at a skyrocketing fashion, one we just dont need to accept. The total level of Discretionary Spending increases by 8 over last year. That is a significant number. Last year, when i was chair, we were proposing cutting this bill by 5 and this year we are 13 points different, going up 8 which is a nearly 2 billion in increase. This bill blocks the administration from doing what they are so focused on and that is securing this nation and our country particularly see southern border. Im sure we will hear later this week if the in a mort has the votes to bring the bill to the floor about a supplemental. Why do we need it . We had the opportunity with a Conference Committee report to provide the funds the administration requested and the new majority rejected that and comes forward with a supplemental while at the same time obstructing the spending from the Administration Currently from spending funds to secure the border through this bill. The irony of the failure of the Conference Committee report and inability to get a supplemental to the floor this week and yet refusing to allow the administration to secure the border. That is something we would like to see restored. This would remove oversight and accountability that this body has over the district of columbia. It is not like a city, it is a district, a different entity under a different charter of which the greatest nation on the Planet Capital exists and i believe we should continue that oversight but this gives the district of columbia a blank checkbook here. And then next, i would say, we have talked about bipartisanship. This bill does omit some long standing bipartisan provisions that we have always agreed on and im not sure why we would object jegget to them today or the new majority would, but one in particular is to allow taxpayer funding for the ending of the lives of the innocent unborn. I dont know why we would go there today, while year after year after year, we have said those libes are precious and protect them from the use of taxpayer funds to eliminate their life. Im concerned that the bill as it is currently written would force schools to withdraw from the opportunity Scholarship Program. One of the great successes this body has enjoyed is celebrating in the success of children of the district of columbia benefiting from a Scholarship Program to see their lives, improved and enriched and move on to a better future. The Scholarship Program has a great record of success, 98 of all the students who are participating are graduating. 86 of them are accepted to a two or Fouryear College after graduation. We shouldnt be making it harder for these schools to operate or harder for kids to enjoy this opportunity. It is an assault on the lowincome children right here in the district of columbia. It is disappointing that this bill drops a prohibition about requiring contractors to disclose funds. This process should be about getting the best service by the best company for the best price for the american people. The best to serve our constituents. Instead now, the provision as stated in this bill continues, and we might be creating a higher bidder scenario in which the highest bidder of political contributions going to a Company Might get the bid instead of the best price to the best company with the best price. These are poison pills. We know this isnt going to be signed into law. Just yesterday President Trump said if this bill were on his desk, he would veto this legislation. I know we will have a robust debate and maybe improve upon its foundation but with the federal debt exceeding 22 trillion, we dont need to spend more. Just because we can spend it, doesnt mean we should nor should it spend at any time in the future. Today we are spending more. Its up to us. Lets set the example, lets leave this countrys pocket book in better shape. I want to close on a positive note. I want to thank chairman quigley and his team and addressed some of the issues that are important to us and crafted a Small Foundation that we can work from in the days ahead and i reserve. The chair the gentleman from georgia reserves. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. Quigley. Mr. Quigley i yield three minutes to the gentlelady from new york, the distinguished chairwoman of the full committee, mrs. Lowey. The chair the gentlelady is recognized for three minutes. Mrs. Lowey i thank the chairman for yielding. And i would like to congratulate chairman quigley, the Ranking Member graves and the outstanding staff for the bill before us. House democrats are fighting to ensure that america is safe, strong and moving forward. The investments in this bill to Fund Financial regulateors and Small Businesses improve the Financial Security of every american. And with the inclusion of funding for Election Security, we can safeguard our democracy. This bill would provide 12 billion for the i. R. S. Including 2. 56 billion for Taxpayer Services and 290 million for Business Systems modernization. These increases are particularly important to secure Sensitive Data housed at the i. R. S. Small businesses are the foundation of our economy. And this bill gives them and their employees a better shot at success. A merely 0 increase to the Small Business administration 40 increase to the Small Business administration for Entrepreneurial Development programs like womens business centers. To combat the attacks on our democracy by foreign powers, the bill would provide 16. 2 million for Election Assistance Commission operating expenses, 76 increase and 600 million for Election Security grants. Other important issues would make Daca Recipients eligible for federal employment and prohibit the use of funds from the Treasury Forfeiture Fund to construct the president s illconceived border wall. Whats not in this bill is also noteworthy starting with objectionable riders from previous years that threaten home rule for d. C. Such as the ban on d. C. Using its own local funds to support abortion services, and the legalization of marijuana and the bill would eliminate three riders related the s. E. C. And f. E. C. Armed of transparency of political contributions. This bill would invest in a future that supports the security of our data and our elections while setting up our communities making sure that our communities succeed. I urge support. And i yield back the balance of my time. The chair the chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia. Mr. Graves i appreciate the chairwoman and has done a great job with the committee and absolutely right in congratulating mr. Quigley on his good work. With that, i would like to bring to the podium our republican Appropriations Committee, ms. Granger. Ms. Granger i appreciate the work that you and chairman quigley have crafted Financial Services and government bill for fiscal year 2020. The bill includes many priorities from members on both sides of the aisle such as support for Small Businesses, drug control programs and the Treasury Departments counterterrorism and financial issues. There are several controversial items regarding immigration policy, the border wall, collective bargaining and other provisions that will tie this administrations hands. Regarding the district of columbia, this bill fails to provide appropriate oversight. Disappointing that the bill does not include a long standing prolife provision regarding the use of d. C. Local funds. Im troubled that my colleague from the other side of the aisle rejected an amendment offered in committee offered by dr. Harris that would prevent the district of columbia from profitting from the sex work of others. The possibility of the bill pending before the d. C. Council becoming law is appalling and Congress Must make it clear this is unacceptable. Congress should not allow prostitution to be legalized in our Nations Capital. The bill includes 8 increase in spending above the current year. This level of spending is excessive. As i said before this is using an unusable funding level. For a bill to be signed into law, both parties and the Administration Must come together and agree to a funding framework. Then we can turn to drafting appropriation bills with bipartisan support that can be signed into law. In closing, i thank chairman lowey, chairman quigley and mr. Graves as well as the subCommittee Members and their staff for their hard work on this bill and i yield back. The chair the gentleman from georgia reserves. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. Quigley. Mr. Quigley i yield four minutes to the gentleman from new york, the chairman of the commerce, justice, Science Committee and member of the Financial Services subcommittee, mr. Serrano. Mr. Serrano i rise in strong support of this bill, the Financial Services and general joft appropriations act. I want to congratulate chairman mike quigley for his leadership in bringing this bill to the house floor. Speaking from experience, i know this is no easy task and im sure the relations between he and mr. Graves will have a final prouth we can all vote for. Im proud of the work that has been accomplished here that takes care of so many issues. This provides 24. 95 billion to assist elderly and lowincome taxpayers and support our entrepreneurs and grow our Small Businesses and ensure the products on our store shelves are safe for children and family and policing wall street. Protects and strengthens the integrity of our election system and provides a 3. 1 pay raise to federal employees. And once again, empower the district of columbia to handle its own local affairs. The administration has proposed to eliminate the Community Development financial nstitutions fund risking the publicprivate investment generating Economic Growth in places like my district in the south bronx. In response, congress is investing 300 million for this program, increase of 50 million over f. Y. 2019. This provides Election Assistance Commission grants who help state elections to improve the security and integrity of our election. Our election systems remain vulnerable and additional investments can give voters a peace of mind when they cast their ballot their vote will count and be counted correctly. As approach elections this fall in several states across the country and the president ial ection next year, we must be be ready to combat. The Small Business administration will receive nearly 1 billion to provide Technical Assistance and other services to our nation. To help get their ideas off the ground. 150 million will go to the Small Business Development Centers program. T will have 0 million towards supporting and investing in womenowned businesses. These investments will help create jobs. Last but not least, this restores home rule to the district of columbia. I cannot think of anything more insulting than telling any city across our country how they can spend their locally raised funds or require a congressional approval to implement laws theyre duly elected government officials enact. The intrusive rider policies in this bill will ensure that d. C. Can govern itself and address challenges it faces when serving its residents. This is now our 10th bill on the floor. , i Appropriations Committee congratulate again, mr. Quigley, on your work and i stand ready to vote for this with great enthusiasm. Mr. Quigley thank you, mr. Chair. We reserve. The chair the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from georgia. Mr. Graves thank you, mr. Chairman. I appreciate mr. Serranos years of work on the commerce, justice, Science Committee. We are going to miss his presence after this term, as i know he announced hes not running for reelection. Id like to yield to the lady from North Carolina, ms. Foxx, for four minutes. The chair the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Foxx thank you, mr. Chairman. I thank my colleague from georgia for yielding. Mr. Chairman, i rise in opposition to h. R. 3351. One of the many faults of this legislation is language designed to eliminate Educational Options for lowincome families in the district of columbia. Mr. Chairman, every member of this body wants all students to receive an excellent education. That is why congress authorized the d. C. Opportunities Scholarship Program in 2004 which provided lowincome students in the district of columbia the chance to escape Public Schools that were not working for them and find a private school that would meet their educational needs. Congress reauthorized this program twice, most recently in 2017. We know the program works. Just recently, a witness testifying before the committee on education and labor described our son pursued private School Options through the program in part because he was bullied in his public elementary school. He ultimately graduated from his private high school as atorian. Also a department of Education Study on the d. C. Opportunity Scholarship Program found that students receiving scholarships were 21 more likely to graduate high school than their Public School peers. An urban Institute Study of the florida tax credit Scholarship Program released earlier this year found system results. Students participating in that program are more likely to attend and graduate college than their Public School peers. If we truly believe in improving educational outcomes for students, supporting educational freedom is something all of us should support. Unfortunately, the bill before us today seeks to strip these choices from lowincome parents in d. C. Under the guise of protecting students civil rights. For example, the language would require private schools to follow most of the requirements of the individuals with disabilities act. On the surface, that sounds like it makes sense, but families with students with disabilities are exercising their freedom to pursue private School Options because the Public School has failed their child. They believe the private School Provides an Educational Program that will provide a better outcome for their student. They know that student better than the federal government does. Who are you to take that choice away . And to be clear, the system the majority wants to shackle these families with is failing. Since 2007, the department has education has evaluated states and the district of columbia on their compliance with the requirements of the individuals with disabilities act. In every single year since then, the districts Public School system has failed to meet the requirements of the law. To put this in plain language, the majority wants to return students who have found educational choices that work for them to a failing system. And theyre couching this policy in civil rights terms. That is shameful. The majority will presumably pass this bill, but i urge the senate to reject this attempt to hide a special interest giveaway behind civil rights language. I urge a no vote on this bill, and i yield the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman from georgia reserves. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. Quigley. Mr. Quigley thank you, mr. Chairman. I yield three minutes to the gentleman from georgia, the chairman of the agriculture subcommittee and a member of the Financial Services subcommittee, mr. Beneficiary of on. The chair the gentleman from georgia is recognized. Mr. Bishop thank you very much , mr. Chairman. I rise in strong support of the f. Y. 2020 Financial Services and general government appropriations act. The legislation before the house today is vitally important to ensuring the federal government and the u. S. Economy can work for the american people. This bill safeguards our Financial System and provides fair playing fields for our taxpayers. It funds those agencies that cultivate a vibrant and competitive Telecommunications System that support new businesses and makes sure our consumers are safe from dangerous and defective products. Perhaps more importantly, this bill helps protect the integrity of our elections. As has been illustrated over the last few years, it is imperative that we provide the states with the resources to ensure the sanctity of our democratic institutions. This bill includes 600 million in Grant Funding for Election Security grants, additional 6. 2 million is included for the Election Assistance Commission operating expenses, an increase of million above the 2019 enacted level. Im also pleased that this legislation includes a total of 2. 6 billion for Taxpayer Services, which provides assistance for the elderly, lowincome taxpayers who help navigate our complex tax code. As well as increases in funding to address the growing tax gap. Further, the legislation rejects the administrations elimination of the Community Development Financial Institutions fund, a Successful Program that leverages publicprivate investment to revitalize and provide jobs to distressed, rural, and urban communities. This bill further embodies our democratic mode of government by supporting home rule for the district of columbia. Finally, i thank chairman quigley for rejecting the administrations misguided plan to merge g. S. A. And o. P. M. The g. S. A. Manages our federal properties while o. P. M. Acts as a chief Human Resources agency for our federal workforce. The administrations unilateral proposal to merge these two agencies without any analysis of cost, rationale or risk would disrupt both agencies without contributing to their mission. It will potentially politicize our federal career employees and create confusion and bureaucracy for no reason. To close, id like to thank full Committee Chairman lowey, Ranking Member granger, subCommittee Chairman quigley and Ranking Member graves for their work on this bill. As a member of the house Financial Services appropriations subcommittee, i urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this legislation, and i thank you for the time and i yield back the remainder of my time. The chair the gentleman from illinois reserves. Mr. Quigley i reserve. The chair the chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia, mr. Graves. Mr. Graves ill reserve as well, mr. Chairman. The chair the gentleman reserves. Mr. Quigley mr. Chairman, i ask that the committee do now rise. The chair the question is on the motion that the committee rise. All those in favor say aye. All those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The motion is adopted. Accordingly, the committee rises. The committee of the whole house on the state of the union having had under consideration the speaker pro tempore mr. Chair. The chair the committee of the whole house on the state of the union having had under consideration h. R. 3055 directs me to report that it has to no resolution thereon. The speaker pro tempore mr. Chair, the committee of the whole house on the state of the Union Reports that the committee has had under consideration h. R. 3055 and has come to no resolution thereon. The chair lays before the house the following enrolled bill. The clerk h. R. 559, an act to amend section 6 of the joint resolution entitled a joint resolution to approve the covenant to establish a commonwealth of the northern Mariana Islands and Political Union with the United States of america and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to House Resolution 460 and rule 18, the chair declares the house in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for the further consideration of h. R. 3351. Will the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. Keating, kindly resume the chair. The chair the house is in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for the further consideration of h. R. 3351, which the clerk will report by title. The clerk a bill making appropriations for Financial Services and general government for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2020, and for other purposes. The chair when the committee of the whole rose earlier today, 31 minutes remained in general debate. The gentleman from illinois, mr. Quigley, has 13 1 2 minutes remaining, and the gentleman from georgia, mr. Graves, has 17 1 2 minutes remaining. Who yields time . Mr. Quigley mr. Chairman, i yield four minutes to the gentleman from pennsylvania, a member of the Financial Services subcommittee, mr. Cartwright. The chair the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania. Mr. Cartwright thank you, mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, as a member of the subcommittee, i rise today to discuss the importance of the Financial Services and general government bill, fsgg. First, i want to thank chairman quigley for his leadership on the subcommittee for his work on the bill. Id also like to thank Ranking Member graves for all that he has done to ensure this bill receives its proper airing and reaches the floor and for his support of several provisions in the bill. The fsgg bill supports a broad range of functions and services in both the executive and judicial branches that are essential to the operation of our federal government. The fsgg bill supports programs that assist and protect the public, such as shielding consumers from defective and dangerous products, assisting Small Businesses, investing in distressed communities, and ensuring the integrity of federal elections. This bill includes significant funding to support these critical functions. One especially important provision, the workers in my district appreciate is the increase in the federal civilian pay by 3. 1 in f. Y. 2020. This pay increase means so much to the hardworking men and women in our nation who struggle to make ends meet while serving our nation. Or far too long, federal workers wages have not kept up with the changes in our cost of living. This fsgg bill is about improving our economy, from increased funding to the i. R. S. To assist taxpayers and bolster enforcements to supporting the Small Business administration to help Small Businesses develop and expand throughout the country. This bill will make our economy stronger for every day americans. Mr. Chairman, another Important Program i would like to highlight in the bill is the funding to the office of National Drug control policy. My home state of pennsylvania like so many across the nation have suffered severely from the ffects of the opioid crisis. The ondcp receives 105 million for the drugcommunities program d High Intensity Program areas. These funding levels are a rejection of the administrations proposed transferor elimination of the ondcp Grant Programs. It is vital that we continue to support these programs which help fight addiction issues in communities across this nation. And timely, this fsgg bill takes an important step in improving Election Security and integrity. In the last president ial election, we saw unprecedented interference with our election system, an issue that we as a Congress Must address in the strongest of terms in support and defense of our national sovereignty. We cannot and will not allow any foreign power to harm our democracy. It rests solely in the hands of the american people. It provides 600 million to the assistance election commission. The Commission Deals with issues that are extraordinarily important to this nation conducting reliable, secure and accessible elections. The integrity of american elections should not be a partisan matter. Mr. Chairman, for these reasons i am proud to support this bill as the coims comes to the floor today and i urge my colleagues to do the same. And i yield back. The chair the gentleman from illinois reserves. The chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia, mr. Graves. Mr. Graves i reserve. The chair the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentleman from illinois. Mr. Quigley i yield three minutes to the gentlelady from california, a member of the Financial Services subcommittee, mrs. Torres. The chair the gentlelady is recognized. Mrs. Torres i would like to thank chairman quigley and Ranking Member graves for their hard work on the Financial Services general government appropriations bill. This legislation prioritizes Public Safety and invests in underserved communities like the ones that i represent havent i am especially grateful to the chairman for increasing funding to the high intensity Drug Trafficking areas program. At its highest possible level. Drug trafficking is a major challenge for my district. It brings violence and crime to our streets and flooding communities and schools with rmful Illegal Drugs like methamphetamine, cocaine. Our local Law Enforcement is the first line of defense and they understand whats going on in our neighborhoods, in our schools, in our families. And what i appreciate so much bout this, it creates a real partnership, a partnership between local Law Enforcement, state agencies and federal enforcement agencies. It provides them with important resources to bring the fight against Illegal Drugs. It also supports prevention and education campaigns to ensure that our children do not suffer from addiction and deadly overdoses. And on the subject of Public Safety, i am encourage that had this bill prevents the administration from raiding funds from the Treasury Departments asset Forfeiture Funds. These funds, our local Police Departments can use to purchase better equipment and keep our communities safe. Another way to strengthen Public Safety is by financially investing in our local communities. And i am pleased that the bill rejeggets President Trumps proposal to cut funding for Community Development Financial Institutions by 94 . Mr. Speaker, i look forward to the swift passage of the Financial Services, general government appropriations bill. Thank you, mr. Speaker. And i yield back. The chair the gentleman from illinois reserves. The chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia. Mr. Graves i would like to highlight one point there and i enjoy working with mrs. Torres and spends a lot of time in the rules committee and hears a lot of different issues that we all discuss, but the Forfeiture Fund, i think this is an important to highlight wouldnt necessarily go to local Law Enforcement. These are funds that are collected from criminals that the administration was going to use to stop criminals. What better way to secure our nation than using the funds that have been forfeited by criminals to stop future criminals. This bill eliminates the ability of the administration to do that. That was 290plus million. And unfortunately this bill has removed that. I reserve. The chair the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. Mr. Quigley i yield three minutes to the gentlelady from california, a member of the Appropriations Committee, mrs. Lee. The chair the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Lee let me thank you, chairman quigley, for your leadership and yielding. I rise in strong support of the fiscal 2020 bill. This includes 1. 4 billion over fiscal 2019 to support critical function services in the executive and judicial branches and ensures the integrity of our federal elections as well as supporting critical programs to protect consumers. Im pleased the bill includes my language that would nullify President Trumps proposed changes to the calculation of how we measure poverty, which would have a devastating impact on families all across the country. This bill includes 23 million for the Healthy Food Finance Initiative which provides funding do underserved areas. Thanks to the healthy food initiatives, these initiatives are available in all of our congressional districts in urban and Rural Communities and also in my congressional at the mandela marketplace in oakland, california. As cochair of the prochoice caucus, i thank the chairman for lifting the local bans of d. C. Funds for abortion services. It has provided women of reproductive age from accessing the full range of Reproductive Health care including abortion and this has been targeted to lowincome women. So thank you, chairman quigley. The bill includes language for prohibiting funds from being used to penalize Financial Institutions from providing Financial Services to an entity that participates in a business or organized activity involving cannabis that is legal on the state level. With 33 dates and the district of columbia legalizing some form of cannabis use, it is past time that the federal government cant infringe what state and local jurisdictions are doing on cannabis, whether you agree or not. States and local jurisdictions have passed some form of legalization or medical marijuana. Ts leave the states to this issue. I thank chairman quigley for including funding for development institutions, which is an increase over fiscal 2019. These are a lifeline across the country especially under Bank Communities which many of us represent and i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i thank the chairman again and i yield the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from georgia. Mr. Graves i reserve. The chair the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentleman from illinois is recognized. Mr. Quigley i ask my colleague if he is ready to close. Mr. Graves yes. The chair the gentleman from georgia is recognized. Mr. Graves we are reaching the conclusion of general debate and we have heard some positives about the bill and some negatives about the bill. I think this is a great opportunity to Work Together and build upon the Foundation Upon which there is agreement, but until then there are items that there is strong disagreement on. And so in summary, working with mr. Quigley has been fantastic and done a great job getting us to this point and we will have a product that republicans and democrats can support and get through the senate and yes, needs the signature of the president , donald trump. As the bill stands today, if i had to summit up, if you want to spend a lot more, you want to weaken our National Security, you want to wash your hands of oversight and accountability of washington, d. C. , here where we reside and our constituents come to visit or more importantly, if you want to limit the access of lowincome children from enjoying and benefiting from one of the best educations they could receive, then this is the bill for you. Its not the bill for us. We believe that we can reduce spending and believe that National Security should be a priority. We believe that d. C. Does deserve some oversight and we certainly believe that lowincome children deserve the best opportunity they can have and have the best education possible that provides them the best future that their dreams are imagining right now. This bill doesnt provide that. So, mr. Chairman, for those reasons that i cant support this. But lastly, i would say, knowing that this bill would never become law, i think that should cause us to pause and say maybe we should go back to the drawing board and find more areas of agreement and build a better product in which we could support and the senate could pass with 60 votes and the president of the United States could sign. I yield back. The chair the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. Mr. Quigley it has been a pleasure to work with my colleagues across the aisle, particularly the gentleman from georgia, mr. Graves. In response to a couple of the Ranking Members comments, if all we did was write a bill that we were convinced that the president of the United States would support, we would say what do you want us to introduce and approve . These are separate branches of government. It is our purpose to work on a bipartisan basis, recognizing where the president of the United States is on the issues and put together the best product we possibly can. And when the senate does the same, they there will be differences and its what Conference Committees are all about and i am somewhat lost in this town, this sense of compromise and working together. I want to stress a few things. The special counsel has only spoken to this country once since he revealed his twoyear work product and that was to tell us that we need to protect this country from further attack by the russians on our democratic process. This bill does that in extraordinarily appropriate fashion. With reference to the School Children of washington, d. C. , all we are doing is providing extraordinary amounts in funding to do so, all the schools of washington, d. C. , they have to follow the same rules. They have to play on the same level playing field. Thats only fair to those children. It doesnt deny anyone access to the best education that is possible. , i ith those things in mind think in referencing the district of columbia, last thing we can say, just because we can micro manage them doesnt mean we should micro manage them. Nobody here was elected to the d. C. City council unless it has Extraordinary National policy implications, let them run their own government. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back the balance of my time. The chair all time for general debate has expired. Pursuant to the rule the bill shall be be considered. The bill shall be considered as read. No amendment to the bill shall be in order except those printed in part b of house report 116126. Amendments en bloc described in section 5 and pro forma amendments described in section 6 of that resolution. Each amendment printed in part bmp of the report shall be considered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a member designated in the report shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by a pro opponent and opponent and withdrawn by the proponent, shall not be subject to the amendment except as provided by rule 6 and not subject to demand of division of the question. It shall be in order for the chair or the designee to offer amendments en bloc consisting of amendments. The amendments en bloc shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for 20 minutes equally divided by the chair and Ranking Membering minority member. Shall not be subject to demand except as provided by section 6 of House Resolution 460, shall not be subject to division of the demand of the question. The chair and ranking minority member on the committee of appropriations may offer up five pro forma amendments each at any point for the purpose of debate. Its now in order to consider amendment number 1 printed in art b of house report 116126. For what purpose does the gentleman from wisconsin seek recognition . Mr. Pocan mr. Chair, i have an amendment at the desk. The chair the clerk will designate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 1 printed in part b of house report 116126 offered by mr. Pocan of wisconsin. The chair pursuant to House Resolution 460, the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. Pocan, and a member opposed, each will control five minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from wisconsin. Mr. Pocan thank you, mr. Chairman. I rise to offer an amendment that would stop the federal Communications Commission from implementing a proposed agency rule that would kneecap our nations efforts to achieve universal phone and broadband service. Id like to thank representatives clyburn, butterfield and bustos for their work on this important amendment. Ccording to the f. C. C. Data, 21. 3 million lack broadband access. Other estimates are much higher and show as many as 162. 8 Million People may not have Broadband Speed internet. Thats why congress require the f. C. C. To work towards universal phone and broadband service. To that end, the f. C. C. Established the universal service fund and its four component programs the connect america fund, the lowincome support program, also known as lifeline, the Rural Health Care support program, and the schools and Libraries Program. The proposed f. C. C. Rule, which this amendment seeks to block, would mean cutting available funding for broadband buildout, broadband in schools and hospitals, and other critical programs. We cannot allow that to happen. The rule also proposes to combine the caps of the schools and Libraries Program and the Rural Health Care support program. Combining these programs would cap effectively schools and rural hospitals, pitting them against each other for universal service fund money while doing nothing to advance the goal of universal service. We cannot allow the f. C. C. To move forward with this rulemaking. We must ensure that lowincome and Rural Americans have access to broadband at home, that rural hospitals have reliable broadband, and that students can use broadband at school. I urge my colleagues to vote for this amendment, and i reserve my time. The chair the gentleman reserves. For what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition . Mr. Graves thank you, mr. Chairman. I rise in opposition, claim opposition to the amendment here. The chair the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. Mr. Graves thank you, mr. Chairman. I appreciate mr. Pocan and his concerns for Rural America. I represent a very rural district as well, and broadband and other are very challenging, even in our region, but one has to ask if we had this universal service fund for so many years amount of money collected from our constituents, then why do we still have this problem . Thats why i suggest we oppose this amendment and allow the f. C. C. To study what is going on here. And is this are these funds being used appropriately or not . In fact, its my understanding that the f. C. C. Has identified that there is no budgeting constraints, there is no top line budget whatsoever, and that when theyre doing considerations and studies or analyzing the use of funds, theres really no measurements, no benchmarks. I think this is a really Good Opportunity for us to allow them to at least move forward into this process and just thinking of the chairman of the from kansas ai, is himself. I think he understands the concerns of Rural America himself. Ultimately, its not fair to our constituents who are the ratepayers, who are paying into this fund on every bill they receive and yet are not being delivered the service that i think we expect in this day and age of new technology. With that im in opposition to the amendment and ask that we vote this amendment down, allow the commission to move forward to study this and to provide more and better access to Rural Broadband around across america. I yield back. The chair the gentleman yields back. The chair recognizes the gentleman from wisconsin. Mr. Pocan thank you, mr. Chair. Well, i appreciate the gentlemans comments. I actually live in a rural town of about 830 people. And last year we got internet. I was paying up to that point i got a half price sale, 300 a month for 80 measured gigs of internet. Often in winter i would call my husband at the end of the month and say, quit watching netflix. We cant afford 15 a gig in order to watch that. My neighbors across the street cant do their home work because they didnt have broadband. The Health Facilities in our area have problems. I dont know if studying this is going to solve it. I think having Funds Available seems to be the issue. I think this is important. But with that id like to yield as much time as he may consume to the chair of the subcommittee, the gentleman from illinois. Mr. Quigley thank you, sir. The chair the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Quigley thank you, mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, i support this amendment. The u. S. F. Is an important and effective funding mechanism to ensure all americans have access to the Broadband Services necessary to fully participate in modern life. Nonlt does u. S. F. Subsidize broadband buildout in areas that would otherwise be too expensive to serve but it includes lifeline, the support program that ensures that Communication Services are not just accessible but affordable. Unpopular and illadvised effort to undermine the u. S. F. , even as the country continues to face deep and lasting disparities and lack of Communication Services. For those reasons i support the amendment and reserve i yield back. The chair the gentleman from wisconsin is recognized. Mr. Pocan thank you. Ill close by saying, one of the founders of the Rural Broadband caucus. We have three rrps, three three republicans, three democrats. This is not an issue they want reports or studies. They want broadband. In my district you cant track your cows if you dont have broadband. You cant do home work and Health Care Needs this. I would hope we would support this amendment and i would yield back to the chair. The chair thank you. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from wisconsin. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. He amendment is agreed to. The chair understands that amendment number 2 will not be offered. Its now in order to consider amendment 3 printed in part b of house report 116126. For what purpose does the gentleman from iowa seek recognition . Mr. King thank you, mr. Chairman. To offer amendment number 3, according to the rule. The chair the clerk will designate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 3 printed in part b of house report 116126 offered by mr. King of iowa. The chair pursuant to House Resolution 460, the gentleman from iowa, mr. King, and a member opposed, each will control five minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from iowa. Mr. King thank you, mr. Chairman. I rise to offer my king amendment number 3, and what it does is strikes section 126 of the underlying bill, and section 126 is language that is notwithstanding language that prohibits the executive branch from using any of the funds in the department of treasurys Forfeiture Fund, the civil asset Forfeiture Fund to be used for anything to build a wall or a road that might support a wall on our southern border. And the language is very expansive. In the bill it says none of the funds may be obligated, expending or used to plan, design, construct or carry out a project to construct a wall, barrier, fence or road along the southern border of the United States or a road to provide access to the wall, barrier, fence construct along the southern border of the United States. So my amendment strikes that language, mr. Chairman. It does so with the idea in mind that we have a president who was elected with a mandate to secure our border. This has been an ongoing battle for the last twoplus years, 2 1 2 years, and still the resources are short. I think we should have done a better job in the Previous Congress to get that money into this project, but the president is going where he can to find the resources to keep his campaign promises. And so i certainly want to support that by striking that language and allowing the president to then have access to what amounts to 601 million that would be generated, be freed up by my amendment. It recognizes this. That the u. S. Treasury has bout 13. 6 billion of that are allocated to it under this bill. And this small piece of money here is not a lot of money, but it does send a message that its going to get harder and harder for the president to build a wall if we dont strike this language. I want to support the president s mission to do that. Its ironic, i think, that we are spending today im the only one in congress that i know of that tracks this spending, but were spending at least 6. 7 million a mile for every mile of the 2,000 miles of our southern border to secure that border. And just doing the math in my head quickly, that turns out to be about 13. 4 billion, almost the exact same amount thats freed up to the treasury, were spending it to secure the border for something probably less than 50 efficiency. Hen you build a wall, its 99. Something percent efficient. We need to strike this language in the bill. With that i reserve the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman reserves. For what purpose does the gentleman from illinois rise . Mr. Ley mr. Rise to chairman, i rise to claim opposition to the gentlemans amendment. The chair the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. Mr. Quigley this amendment ensures that the forfeitture fund that can rely upon this money to augment critical operations and support emergency operating needs such as forensic, title 3, wiretap intercepts and antimoney laundering investigations. It also ensures that the bipartisan, bicameral funding levels enacted by congress and signed into law by the president are not throughouted by executive action. Article 1, section 9 of the constitution states, no money shall be drawn from the treasury but in consequence of appropriations made by law. Any construction of border infrastructure should be based on bipartisan agreement, between both chambers of congress that is enacted into law. Not by an impulsive directive from 1600 pennsylvania avenue that disregards the will of congress and undermines the department of treasury and department of Homeland Security to address known threats against our Financial System and the nation. For these reasons i oppose this amendment and urge my colleagues to do the same. I reserve the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman reserves. The chair recognizes the gentleman from iowa. Mr. King i thank you, mr. Chairman. Id yield to the gentleman from georgia so much time as he may consume. The chair the chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia. R. Graves i rise in support of the gentlemans amendment. Mrs. Torres said these funds could be used to help local Law Enforcement. It cant. The statute says to be transferred to federal agencies for Law Enforcement purposes. Thats what the administration was using them for. Little bit of a history lesson. Last six months, we went through a Government Shutdown because of this issue. We had a Homeland Security Conference Committee report that was supposed to resolve this issue. So deficient that the president declared a National Emergency relating to this and now were having to have a supplemental Budget Discussion to deal with this very same issue while restricting the administrations access to these funds to address this very issue. Because of those reasons, i support the gentlemans amendment and ask for adoption. I yield back. Mr. King mr. Chairman, i reserve. The chair the gentleman from iowa is recognized. Mr. King thank you, mr. Chairman. I reserve. The chair the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from illinois is recognized. Mr. Quigley i yield back. The chair the gentleman yields back. The chair recognizes the gentleman from iowa. Mr. King thank you, mr. Chairman. Just some concluding thoughts on this. This is 84. 4 million requested by the administration. There are plenty of issues in the underlying bill to take care of the obligations this congress has to the people of this country. But they also have an obligation to secure our border, restore the respect for the rule of law, and the chaos that we have on the border is not just something thats reflecting back on us in the United States and im hearing many laments about the tragedies, individual tragedies. Were counting them, though, on one hand for the most part. I asked the secretary of Homeland Security under oath just late last year, Kirstjen Nielsen at the time, whom i respect and appreciate, how many died on the way to our southern border . She said, i dont have the data for that. Ill get to you. I said, it will be too long for that. I want your best estimate. How many died on the way from Central America to our southern border . Her answer finally came, congressman, it would be thousands and thousands. Thats the history of what were trying to shut off here, and they will keep coming until we end up deciding that were not going to accept them any more. We must secure our border if we are going to be a sovereign nation. This is a piece of it. I support the president and i urge the adoption of this amendment and i yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentlemanyearolds back. The gentleman yields back. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from iowa. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. Chair, theion of the noes have it. The amendment is not agreed to. Mr. King i ask for chair, the noes a recorded vote. The chair pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, further pr seedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from iowa will be postponed. In now ined or to now order to consider amendment number 4 printed in house report 116119, for what purpose does the gentlelady from district of columbia rise . Ms. Norton i have an amendment at the desk. The clerk the the chair the clerk will report the amendment. The clerk amendment number 4 printed in house report 116126, offered by the gentlelady from district of columbia. The chair the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from the district of columbia. Ms. Norton this amendment prohibits the General Services administration, federal governments real estate arm from using its funds to relocate the department of agricultures National Institute of food and agriculture or the Economic Research service outside of the National Capital region. Earlier today, the house prohibited usda from using its pounds relocate these agencies outside of the National Capital region. Announced, 1919, usda out of its cate 547 644 employees of these agencies from the National Capital region to the kansas city region. Many members of congress opposing this relocation, i do are doing so not only to protect the employees of these agencies from the agonizing decision of moving halfway across the country or losing fightings, we are also to protect scientific research. And integrity. Uphold federal law. And ensure compliance with our real estate procurement process. The usda lacks the legal or the Budget Authority to carry out this relocation. Usda and g. S. A. Have violated the real estate procurement process. Further this move is not in the best interest of the taxpayers. Dont just take my word for it. The usda office of Inspector General initiated a review of the relocation for the same reasons. In november of 2018 that review is on fwoing. The relocation is about ideology and politics. Nothing more. The decision to relocate was made before any cost benefit analysis was done of the consequences. The relocation is about the Trump Administrations long documented antipathy to nonpartisan career federal employees. And the objective research they produce and fund. The employees of the National Institute of food and agriculture and the Economic Research service are being punished for doing their jobs. The job Congress Mandated. But the country, especially the agricultural community, is also being punished. As the union of concerned scientists noted, when the location was selected and i will read what they saiding the damage was already done before secretary perdue made his decision. It was clear from the start that the Trump Administration was systematic, hollowing it usdas ability to pr deuce objective science the white house proposed budget cuts to eliminate research that inconvenient that is inconvenient to its interests and at the same time they created this unnecessary relocation crisis. Its driving off scientists who conduct the very research thats necessary. This is a blatant attack on science and will especially hurt farmers, ranchers at a particularly vulnerable time, end quote. Mr. Speaker, we will fight this relocation using every tool at our disposal. I reserve the balance of my time. The chair the gentlelady reserves. The chair recognizes the gentleman from for what purpose does the gentleman rise . I rise to claim time in opposition to the gentleladys amendment. The chair the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. Mr. Chairman, in the words of a great orator here on the floor of the house, mr. Quigley, just because you can micromanage, doesnt mean you should. Great example of it here. He was absolutely right as it pertains to this. He was right. Mr. Graves last august, the usda sought interest from u. S. Town, cities, regions from all over the country to host two highly respected usda research agencies. So in october they received interest from 136 unique locations in 35 states to host these two federal agencies. After a thorough analysis, seeing the diverse, qualified applicants, quality of life, usda chose three locations and then selected the st. Louis area. Now this didnt wasnt just on a whim. In fact, it was ernst young who did an analysis that says said this one a savings of 300 million to the taxpayers and to the employees of the federal government. Secretary of agriculture has the authority to make this move and he did so on behalf of the publics interest. The american people. There was a time, yes, there was a time, when physically housing federal agencies here in washington, d. C. Was necessary. However, i think we all know the use of new technology, the advancements that we have today, its opened up the possibilities for these two and many other federal agencies to operate efficiently in almost any place in our country except for maybe mr. Pocans district where the lack of Rural Broadband. So why should we oppose this move of two Agriculture Research agencies to the heartland . To the heartland where agencies can recruit from a greater pool. A greater source of agricultural economists and operate closer to the farmers and ranchers and pr deucers and the rural economies, why would we want to stop the agency from ding that . Saving taxpayer dollars theantdeloofers our federal employees makes perfect sense to me and its because of those reasons that i urge a no vote on this amendment and reserve the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman reserves. The chair recognizes the gentlelady from the district of columbia. Ms. Norton why should i think this wouldnt happen this year. Every single year theres a move to move agencies out of the Nations Capital. Why in the world do you think that the framers created a Nations Capital in the first place . My good friend offers the notion that he wants to be closer to the people where agriculture takes place. Why dont you move the agriculture subcommittee . Why dont you move virtually everything that happens here that we deal with nationwide . Because there is a Nations Capital. This is a political move. The other side has shown in the st and not once, i must say, that science is not important and thats putting it mildly. So they object to the objective science. That this agency puts out. Perhaps some of us do as well. What the federal government but the federal government needs an objective scientific provision and thats what this is about. Thank you and i yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentlelady yields back. The chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia. Mr. Graves this is not a political decision. This is a Good Government decision. If this were a political decision, the secretary of agriculture, sonny perdue from the state of georgia, who is in the agriculture business, profession, himself in the past, would have moved it to the state of georgia, i would assume, if it was a political decision. If everything had to reside in d. C. I guess we wouldnt need Research Facilities of other agencies elsewhere. We wouldnt need f. B. I. Located in other spots. We wouldnt have the majority lead brother posing to move the f. B. I. Out of washington, d. C. , to maryland, of all places. Maybe thats a little more political, but maybe not. This is not a political decision. Its about putting making a Good Government decision closer to the farmers, to the researchers, to the universities, and to the ranchers. And you know what, might save 300 million in taxpayer dollars. For those reasons i oppose this amendment. I yield back. The chair the gentleman yields back. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentlelady from the district of columbia, ms. Norton. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The amendment is agreed to. Mr. Fwraves i ask for a recorded vote. The chair the gentleman from georgia asks for a recorded vote. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentlelady from the district of olumbia will be postponed. It is now in order to consider amendment number 5 printed in art b of house report 116126. For what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition . Mr. Huizenga i rise to offer an amendment. The chair the clerk will minority amendment. The clerk amendment number 5 printed in house report 116126, offered by by mr. Huizenga of michigan. The chair the chair recognizes the gentleman from michigan. Mr. Huizenga thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise to offer an amendment that suspends implementation of section 1502 of the doddfrank act. Despite the best intentions, section 1502 has proved unworkable and in some cases has even been shown to increase violence in Central Africa. This misguide prod vision in the doddfrank act requires that the securities and Exchange Commission mandate that Public Companies disclose whether socalled conflict minerals that they use for their products benefit armed groups in the democratic republic of con gow and its nine adjoining countries. This amendment im proposing passed the house last year as an amendment to the Financial Services and general government appropriations bill and a full repeal of section 1502 passed the house as part of the financial choice act. Conflict minerals refers to tin, ngue sten, tantalum, and gelled which have been used in a variety of products from cell phones, cosmetics, jewelry, footwear, apparel, even autosuppliers have used it who are located in western michigan and around the country. The breadth of voices opposing 1502 is remarkable. I want to start with those who matter most. For too long, the people of Central Africa have been overlooked in this debate. Even though theyre the ones who suffer from doddfranks unintended consequences. Doddfranks impact on african miners may seem unimportant to many rich country activists but in the con gow its been a mat ore of life or death. According to a Washington Post article titled how a wellintentioned u. S. Law left set ese miners jobless, off a chain of events that plunged miners deeper into poverty, with many miners finding other ways to survive including joining articled groups. This shares the story of how a co thmbings golese teenager who could no longer feed himself after doddfrank raveplged the country forced him to join an articled group, an outcome diametrically opposed to the rule. No one can claim the effects were unforeseeable. Leaders from three crombings ngolese mining cooperatives predicted it would leave to a devastating boycott. These miners wrote, quote, we cannot suffer any longer do, we now have to choose between die big a bullet or starving to death . Close quote. The rule applies to nine other african nations as if they were one single country. It treats over 230 million africans living in 10 distinct nations as one undifferentiated group. Doddfranks support ofers will say at this point that some countries neighboring con gow may help smuggle minerals on behalf of armed groups which is why we need to paint such a broad brush. I would ask my colleagues to name one other example where a country and each of its neighbors is targeted due to smuggling risk. Do iranian sanctions implicate all of its seven neighbors . How about north cree and its neighbors south korea and china . Perhaps advocates for section 1502 believe theres no smuggling from russia, iran, or north korea, but the real issue is this, doddfrank supporters have no problem treating africans differently than other rezwhroves world and i find that extremely troubling. Section 1502 has produced little meaningful information it. Found that more than half of the companies could not even determine what country their minerals came from. Most importantly, virtually none of the companies could tell whether their minerals benefited armed groups or not. A conclusion that echoed g. A. O. s findings from 2014 to 2017 as well. Its no wonder that companies cant figure this out. Even the department of commerce and both the obama and Trump Administrations has reported that its unable to determine whether smelters around the world use minerals traceable to armed groups. In other words, doddfrank is asking u. S. Companies, some of which are small and Medium Sized Enterprises and large in larger corporation supply chains, to produce information that even the federal government cant provide. As if that werent enough, the courts have also struck down parts of section 1502 for violating Companies First amendment rights. Mr. Speaker, the facts ive laid out in 1502 arent partisan and a suspension shouldnt be either. So let me close with the words of Barack Obamas s. E. C. Chair, mary jo white, who in 2013 said, quote, seeking to improve safety in mines for workers or an end to horrible human rights atrocities in the d. R. C. Are compelling objectives, which as a citizen i wholeheartedly share. But as chair of the s. E. C. , i must question as a policy matter using the federal securities laws and the s. E. C. s powers of mandatory disclosure to accomplish these goals. With that, i yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from illinois, for what purpose does the gentleman rise . I rise to claim time in opposition to the amendment offered by the gentleman from michigan. The chair the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois for five minutes. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, this amendment states that no funds may be used to enforce the s. E. C. s conflict mineral rules. Mr. Quigley which were required by section 1502 of the doddfrank wall street reform and Consumer Protection act. Section 1502 was enacted to help support peace in the democratic republican of congo and combat a deadly conflict Minerals Trade that threatens the security of men, women, children in eastern congo. This rule requires the s. E. C. Regulator firms that use gold in their products to publicly report where they obtain their supplies of these key minerals from the Central African republic region. If so these Companies Must report the Due Diligence they exercise to ensure that these purchases did not benefit armed groups in congo. The conflict in this region has spawned numerous militias, some politically oriented and some primarily criminal, but all of which have been characterized by extreme human rights abuses. But since the rule was adopted, we have seen a significant reduction in armed Group Activity in many mining areas in eastern congo and unprecedented improvements in the transparency of corporate mineral supply chains. This amendment would reverse that progress while allowing some of the worlds deadliest armed groups to profit from lucrative conflict minerals. Let us not forget the conflict minerals are commonly used in the manufacturing of cell phones, jewelry and airplanes. The goal of the rule is to prevent companies from buying these minerals from armed militant groups that kill and rape people in congo and neighboring countries. I oppose this amendment and urge my colleagues to do the same. I yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from michigan. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the noes have it. He amendment is not agreed to. It is now in order to consider amendment number 6 printed in part b of house report 116126. For what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition . Ms. Velazquez i have an amendment at the desk. The chair the clerk will designate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 6 printed in part b of house report 116126 offered by ms. Velazquez of new york. The chair pursuant to House Resolution 460, the gentlewoman from new york and a member opposed each will control five minutes. The chair recognizes the gentlewoman from new york. Ms. Velazquez thank you, mr. Chairman. There are nearly 30 million Small Businesses in the united ates, representing more than 99 of all businesses. They spur the American Economy by taking great risks to launch new ventures, develop new products and ultimately spread job growth. And the s. B. A. Is a vital part of their support system. The s. B. A. Administers a portfolio of Entrepreneurial Development programs which improves growth acceleraters. They help high growth startups develop their products, identify promising customer segments and secure resources like vital capital and ploles. My amendment aims to restore funding to prior levels so they have the resources they need to help aspiring entrepreneurs. Growth accelerators have long been a powerful tool for helping innovators grow. Each year since they were formed in 2005, they have gained in popularity. In fact, the numbers nearly doubled each year between 2008 and 2014, with growth remaining steady since then. They serve as an allinclusive creative hub that provides Technical Assistance for growing businesses and a Central Location for investors to find vetted businesses. The success of these companies is real. The average valuation of firms graduating from an accelerator is 90 million. But beyond promoting business expansion, growth accelerators also bring Economic Development and Job Opportunities to the communities in which they are located. The s. B. A. Office of advocacy found that startups working with their local accelerator hire an average of 8 1 2 more employees. Small businesses are the backbone of the American Economy and we should provide our entrepreneurs with the resources they need to succeed and that is what this amendment does. Im seeking to bring growth accelerators up to a reasonable funding level by providing a 1 million increase. Doing so brings the funding in line with previously enacted levels and gives them the ability to continue helping our nations innovative startups and spurring local job creation. Clearly accelerators are a vital part of our nations entrepreneurial ecosystem. Therefore i urge my colleagues to support this amendment and i reserve the balance of my time. The chair the gentlelady reserves the balance of her time. Does any member claim time in opposition . The chair recognizes the gentlelady from new york. Ms. Velazquez i yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentlelady from new york yields back. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentlelady from new york. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. He amendment is agreed to. It is now in order to consider amendment number 7 printed in part b of house report 116126. For what purpose does the gentleman from arkansas seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i have an amendment at the desk. The chair the clerk will designate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 7 printed in part b of house report 116126 offered by mr. Hill of arkansas. The chair pursuant to House Resolution 460the gentleman from arkansas and a member opposed each will control five minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from arkansas. Mr. Hill i thank my friend, the speaker. Mr. Speaker, this amendment is very straightforward. It ensures that 5 million within the Small Business administrations Entrepreneurial Development program is spent in support of the Small Business administrations Regional Innovation Clusters Program. Earlier this year, the s. B. A. Awarded a half a Million Dollar contract through this Regional Innovation Clusters Program to an organization in my district called the conductor. The conductors a Publicprivate Partnership between the university of Central Arkansas and conway in conway, arkansas, and a Startup Junkie in fayetteville, arkansas. Its one of seven clusters nationwide to be awarded this competitive contract. This important funding will enable the conductor to bolster its ability and expand its footprint across underserved areas, particularly in rural arkansas. With only a small amount of money, 5 million, the s. B. A. Can continue to drive innovation and job creation in arkansas. Mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time, but i want to yield two minutes to my good friend from arkansas, steve womack. The chair the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The chair recognizes the gentleman from arkansas. Womewome i mr. Womack i thank the chairman. I want to thank my friend, french hill, from little rock, for leading on this very important issue. I rise in strong support of his amendment. Im a proud cosponsor of this important amendment that restores funding for the Regional Innovation Cluster Program within the Small Business administration. The Regional Innovation Cluster Program provides region and industryspecific Technical Assistance to startup businesses. This program focuses on helping startups scale up to meet the growing needs of their customers. While there are Success Stories from across the country, one is near and dear to my heart. The ozark Regional Innovation cluster is based in fayetteville, arkansas, in my district. Last year alone the ozark regional and innovation cluster serviced 572 Small Business owners. They created 517 net jobs, raised 81. 5 million in capital and received eight new patents for their work. Nationwide businesses participating in the Regional Innovation Cluster Program have seen tremendous growth both in jobs created and in revenue. As we know, startups and Small Businesses account for about 2 3 of all new jobs and the growth that comes with these new jobs. Lets support them today by restoring funding for this Important Program. With that, i urge adoption of the amendment from my friend from arkansas and i yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. Does any member claim time in opposition . Seeing none, the gentleman from arkansas. Mr. Hill mr. Speaker, thank you. Im proud to work with my friend from northwest arkansas on this important amendment and i appreciate my colleagues support. In just the three years since its launched, the conductor has served nearly 9,000 people in its free programming, and its business consulting. I thank u. C. A. For leadership on the conductor. I yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from arkansas, mr. Hill, those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it and the amendment s agreed to. It is now in order to consider amendment number 8 printed in art b of house report 116126. For what purpose does the gentlewoman from california seek recognition . Ms. Lee thank you, mr. Chair. I rise as the designee of the gentlewoman from texas and i have an amendment at the desk. The chair the clerk will designate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 8 printed in part b of house report 116126 offered by ms. Lee of california. The chair pursuant to House Resolution 460, the gentlewoman from california, ms. Lee, and a member opposed each will control five minutes. The chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california. Ms. Lee thank you, mr. Chair. Thank you for this opportunity to speak in support of the jackson lee amendment to rules Committee Print 11620 which makes appropriations for fiscal year 2018, h. R. 3351, the Financial Services and general government appropriations act of 2020. I wish to commend chairwoman waters and Ranking Member mchenry for their work in shepherding this legislation to the floor. Mr. Chairman, the jackson lee amendment is simple, but provides an important and necessary protection for grieving parents. The jackson lee amendment ensures that the i. R. S. Tax advocate service has adequate resources to assist parents of a deceased child whose Social Security number was stolen by tax cheats and used on a federal tax return to receive an earned income tax credit. The jackson lee amendment is intended to be a compassionate use of i. R. S. Funds to help grieving parents navigate the process of reclaiming their childs identity from tax cheats. This amendment is necessary when we consider the story of little alexis who was just 4 years old when she died of a brain tumor in 2011. Her parents grieved. Someone stole alexis identity to commit tax fraud. Alexis parents did not discover the crime until they fiveminute filed their taxes. The sad fact is that alexis parents, who are not alone, were one the aft least at least 14 other parents whose children died of cancer and learned that their childs Social Security number had been stolen by tax thieves. Nearly all of usens the importance of safeguard us understand the importance of safeguarding our Social Security numbers, but after someone dies, Social Security numbers are published on a National Online registry called the masters death list. The mast master death list. The master death list registry exists to alert businesses and Financial Institutions to not renew credit cards or create new credit in the deceased persons name. But it also alerts thieves of opportunities to steal identities and commit tax fraud. As reported by thest crnical, identity thieves have stolen the tax refunds of more than 190,000 dead persons since 2008. The thieves typically claim the dead person is their dependent when they fill their tax return. In fiscal year 2012, the i. R. S. Initiated approximately 900 Identity Theftrelated criminal investigations, trip they will number of investigations initiated in 2011. Direct investigationive investigative time applied to Identity Theft related investigations increased by 129 over the same period. Oen july 30, 2013, in st. Louis, missouri, Tonya Henderson was convicted of theft of Government Funds and aggravated Identity Theft and sentenced to 144 months in prison anded or terd to 35,883 in restitution the u. S. Treasury. According to her plea afleemented on other Court Document she stole the identities of more than 400 individual, many of whom were deceased, and filed fraudulent tax returns using their using their names and Social Security account numbers. The theft of identities of deceased children for the purpose of committing tax fraud is a sad fact that too many parents have to face when theyre attempting to cope with the tragedy of losing their child. The jackson lee amendment would help ensure that the i. R. S. Tax advocate service has the resources needed to assist grieving parents with the filing of the last return when their where their childs name will be listed as being a member of their household. I urge all members to support the jackson lee amendment, which would be a compassionate, mind you, use of i. R. S. Funds. I reserve the balance of my time and thank you again. The chair the gentlelady reserves. Does anyone want to speak in opposition . Hearing none, the chair recognizes the gentlelady from california. Ms. Lee thank you, mr. Chairman. I ask for an aye vote. The chair does the gentlelady yield back . Ms. Lee i yield back the balance of my time. The chair the question is on the amendment offered by the gentlelady from california. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair the ayes have it. He amendment is agreed to. It is now in order to consider amendment number 9 printed in part b of house report 116126. For what purpose does the gentleman from connecticut seek recognition . The clerk has an amendment at the desk. The chair the clerk will designate the amendment. Does the gentleman rise as the designee . I do, mr. Speaker, for mr. Zeldin. The chair the chair thanks the gentleman. The clerk will designate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 9 printed in house report 116126, offered by mr. Courtney of connecticut. The chair pursuant to House Resolution 46, 0 the gentleman from connecticut, mr. Courtney, and a member opposed each will control five minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from connecticut. Mr. Courtney thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in support of this bipartisan amendment to protect plum island, which is being offered by mr. Zeldin of new york, myself, congresswoman wyer rowe and tom swozz suozzi who also represents a part of the island. Plum island is the ohm of home of over 200 bird species and clount countless rare plant species, including the black jack oak species. Our amendment is simple. It prevents the General Services administration from using federal dollars for the sale or marketing of plum island. Over a decade ago Congress Mandated the sal of plum island with proceeds intened to partially offset a new buy yow an agro facility in kansas. This dictated they mist sell to the highest bidder and also that transferring it to another federal entity or nonprofit was not an option which is normally the way that property such as this is disposed of in other cases. The statutory requirement enacted in 2008 was flawed and short circuits the g. S. A. s usual process of finding other federal uses for the land or nonprofits to take custody of the land before an auction. My colleague from across long island sound, congressman liezel din, and i have introduced several measures to slow down or block the sale of plum island which has been strongly supported by environmental and conservancy groups on both sides of long island sound. In the past several congress, ehouse has voted unanimously to help our effort, unfortunately, it has stalled in the senate. We have worked with congresswoman delauro to have language incruded in the Homeland Security bill which hopefully will be taken up shortly, that may come up late they are summer that would totally prevent the sale of plum island. We have been working in a bipartisan manner to save this ecological treasure, plum island, for over a decade. This amendment could help protect this ecological treasure from overdevelopment and destruction. I want to thank the Ranking Member and mr. Quigley for their support in allowing this matter to make it through the rules committee and strongly urge all members to support this amendment. I reserve the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman reserves. Does anyone claim time in opposition . Hearing none, the question the chair recognizes the gentleman from connecticut. Mr. Courtney i urge an aye vote and yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman yields back. The squone the amendment offered by the gentleman from connecticut. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, noful in the opinion of the chair the ayes have it. He amendment is agreed to. It is now in order to consider amendment number 10 printed in part b of house report 116126. For what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition . Mr. Pascrell i have an amendment at the desk. The chair the clerk will report the amendment. The clerk amendment number 10 printed in house report 116126, offered by mr. Pascrell of new jersey. The chair the gentleman from new jersey, mr. Pascrell, and a member opposed each will control five minutes. Mr. Pascrell i rise on behalf of more than 68 million americans who lack access to adequate banking services. Theyre often shut out of banks because of fees tied to minimum balances, overdrafts, direct deposit penalties, and of course a. T. M. Charges. Or worse. Many live in bank deserts. Because incredibly, even in 2019, their community lacks a bank or credit union altogether. This leaves underbanked americans to turn to unregulated predatory payday lenders and check cashers. That level obscene annual percentage rates. These pair sitic institutions keep families in poverty. And further cement the economic inequality which tears our country apart. It does not have to be this way. Our United States Postal Service is in a unique position to provide affordable, consume of consumerdriven Financial Services these millions of americans need. With branches in every zip code, from patterson, new jersey, with ne t, elko, nevada, to barrel, alaska, the post office is unmatched the post offices unmatched reach opens a world of opportunity. In 2014, the u. P. S. Inspector general determined that the Postal Service is well positioned to expand its Financial Services offerings. Which currently includes many money orders, check cashing, and Prepaid Debit Card services. The i. G. s report found there is a significant demand for these services. From populations underserved by private banks the post could fill perfectly. Its difficult to overstate what this law change would do, mr. Chairman. Postal banking would benefit americans from every walk of life. 90 of zip codes lacking a bank or credit union are in rural areas. Bank branches are also spars in lowincome urban areas. Approximately 46 of latino and 49 of africanamerican households are underbanked. Think about that. Democrats and republicans alike could derive enormous benefit for their constituents. Talk about uniting america. Its a practical thing. In a second study, the usps Inspector General conducted in 2015 the i. G. Included that expanding the Postal Services current Financial Services offerings would not even cost much. It is fully permissible under current Statutory Authority and could generate 1. 1 billion in additional revenue for the Postal Service annually after five year. You know whats happened to the Postal Service and how in debt the Postal Service is because of the foolish rules that are on the books. This is not a novel concept. Postal services in 139 countries around the world offer some form of Financial Services, including every other developed country in the world. Students of history can recall that the United States had a legendary postal savings system up to 1967. That was started in 1911. Managed over 3. 4 billion in assets. Or 35 billion in todays dollars at the peak of its use. I want america to back those successes. Mr. Chairman, i ask for a unanimous consent to submit for the record an essay i wrote for the Washington Monthly on modernizing the u. S. Postal service to make the institution thrive once more and benefit tens of millions of americans in the po process. The piece was titled congress is sabotaging your post office and it is high time we as a body sensible her to enact postal reform. This amendment is a small step in that direction. I thank you and i reserve the balance of my time. The chair the gentlemans request is kred by general leave. The gentleman reserves. Does any member speak in opposition . Hearing none, i recognize the gentleman from new jersey. Mr. Pascrell thank you, mr. Chairman. I thank representative pressley, representative almday for joining me in offering this burn amendment. I strongly encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting this amendment and yield back the balance of my time. The chair the gentleman yields back. The question is on the amendment of the gentleman from new jersey. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The amendment is agreed to. For what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition . Mr. Chairman, i move that the committee do now rise. The chair the question is on the motion that the committee rise. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The motion is adopted. Accordingly, the committee rises. The speaker pro tempore mr. Chairman. The chair the committee of the whole house on the state of the union having had under consideration h. R. 3351, directs me to report it has come no no resolution thereon. The speaker pro tempore the chair of the committee of the whole house on the state of the Union Reports that the committee has had under consideration h. R. 3351 and has come to no resolution thereon. Pursuant to clause 12a of rule 1, the chair declares in recess subject to the c cspans washington journal live every day with news and policy issues that impact you. Coming up wednesday morning, we discuss immigration and Border Security with Virginia Republican congressman ben cline. And then North Carolina democratic congressman g. K. Butterfield talks about the Trump Administrations plan to change how poverty is determined. And be sure to watch washington journal thursday and friday following the first democratic president ial candidates debate of the 2020 race. Join the conversation both mornings with your phone calls, Facebook Comments and tweets. On wednesday a hearing on the office of special counsels recommendation that President Trump fire white house counselor Kellyanne Conway for numerous alleged violations of the hatch act. Thats a federal law that limits certain Political Activities by executive branch employees. The hearing will be held by the House Oversight and Reform Committee live at 10 00 a. M. Eastern on cspan3. And later, the annual congressional baseball game between republicans and democrats. The event raises money each year for washington, d. C. , area charities. Our live coverage will begin 20 minutes before the first pitch at 6 45 p. M. Eastern on cspan2. You can also watch online at cspan. Org or listen to the live play by play on the cspan radio app. He had been able to hold onto the leadership and defy these expectations and i wanted to try to figure out why. As a reporter did i what we do and went out and tried to report. So i tried to recreate his childhood and bring together as much information as i could about how he grew up, how he became this leader that he is today. How he justifies to himself all of the brutal things he does to remain the leader. And at 9 00 p. M. , on afterwords, an executive in the Trump Organization is interviewed by cnn anchor and senior political analyst. In my view, you know, we have issues with china, we have issues with russia. We can see that these are the big emerging forces that we have to deal with. Isnt it pretty smart for my president to have good relationships with those leaders . Ok . Isnt that a smart thing . I take comfort in the fact that these people are all talking to each other. This weekend on book tv, on cspan2. Im a white male and i am prejudice and the reason it is is something that wasnt taught, but its kind of something that i learned. I dont like to be forced to like people. I like to be led to like people through example. What can i do to change, to be a better american . That was a remarkable moment. I didnt really realize until i stepped off the set, because there were more calls after that. We just had to keep rolling. How powerful it was. There was something in his voice that touched me. You can hear it. Its so authentic as he searches for the words to Say Something to a National Audience that most us wont admit in our homes. Im prejudice. Sunday night on q a. Heather mcgee, president of the Public Policy organization, was a guest on cspans washington journal in august of 2016 when gary called. She talks about that interaction and her followup with gary. Part of the reason for that is you have to remember, this is august. Weve had this sort of racially charged summer with Donald Trumps campaign, with black lives matter and the Police Shootings and then tragic events all in baton rouge and dallas. It was really a time when people felt like all they were seeing on tv about race was bad news. And here was, first, a white man admitting that he was prejudice. Which for people of color was, you know, we kind of just all said, finally. Sunday night at 8 00 eastern on cspans q a. Continues. Host we welcome scott perry, the first of two Committee Members who will be chatting with us. First the latest on iran and your reaction to the new round of sanctions President Trump announced yesterday. They i guest i think are appropriate and it is measured and warranted and certainly better than fighting. The United States in particular has a breadth and depth of