Transcripts For CSPAN U.S. 20240703

Important challenge we have got in our lifetimes. It is always going to be the most important challenge. If we do not get this right, we have got nothing. It is education and it is climate. I have [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2024] we will break away at this pointer for live coverage of the u. S. House. Lawmakers are considering a handful of bills today, including one that doubles u. S. Customs area of operation in coastal waters. Live coverage of the u. S. House is here on cspan. The clerk h. R. 53433, a bill to amend the Small Business investment act of 1958, to exclude from the limit on leverage certain amounts invested in Smaller Enterprises located in rural or lowincome areas and Small Businesses and Critical Technology areas and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuan t to the rule, the gentleman from texas, mr. Williams, and the gentlewoman from new york, ms. Velazquez, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. Mr. Williams i ask all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill. The speaker pro tempore so ordered. Mr. Williams i think think of no better way to pass h. R. 5333, the investing in all of america act. Small businesses are faced with could be stapbt challenges when it comes to constant challenges when it comes to accessing capital. With high Interest Rates pwa rpbgs are being forced to tighten their lending standards, forcing Small Business owners to pay higher prices for muchneeded funds. Unlike large corporations, Small Businesses dont share the luxury of utilizing debt and equity markets for financing. Main street america is instead forced to bridge the funding gap and return to resources like the sbic program which federal funding is matched with experienced private investors to invest in Small Businesses. The program has been successful in the early Stage Funding of several companies that have gone on to become threshold names, household names, rather, such as apple and tesla, among others. However, overoverlooked are investments in rural areas. This is where h. R. 5333 comes in, making the thoughtful improvements to ensure that the sbic Program Continues to be an essential part of helping Small Businesses in addition p navigate the current economic challenges and increase avenues to access capital. This program has never cost taxpayers any money and has always been seen as a positive return on tim the spkepro tee f wh purpose doe t ntleman i r ms. Velazque i a paso ere today ase crate more than 60 years ago, pridtnedyelebrated small besses and every year ncehen country has throughout cntry. Io osmall binel nation a andhey arefrk force,crs a local pmb orcontractor. And the state of our Small Business is growing stronger. We have seen more than 17 million new business starts since President Biden took office, with a vast majority of those being filled by women, including women of color. That is good news and gives us a reason to celebrate. But more work needs to be done and today were considering four bipartisan bills that will create additional opportunities for entrepreneurs. Turning to our first bill, h. R. 5333, as amended, makes statutory improvements to the Small Business Investment Company program to provide sbics with access to additional leverage when they invest in Small Businesses critical to National Security or located in a rural or underserved community. Due to their often capitalintensive nature, Small Businesses operating in americas Critical Technology sector need Institutional Investors with longterm horizons to raise capital. Yet due to statutory constraints, these investors are often limited in their ability to participate in the sbic program, making it an unsuitable option for Critical Technology innovators to raise capital. By providing sbics with additional leverage flexibility, h. R. 5333 more appropriately matches the sbic program with the Capital Needs of this industry. Doing so will enable the s. B. A. And d. O. D. To successfully carry out the joint sbic Critical Technology initiative. At the same time the evidence demonstrates there continues to be a significant lack of private investment in Small Businesses in rural and underserved communities. By providing sbics with additional bonus leverage, we are encouraging investment in our communities that need it the most. I want to thank representative the representatives for their leadership on this bill. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Williams thank you, mr. Speaker. At this time i would like to yield as much time as he may consume to mr. Meuser from the great state of pennsylvania. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Meuser thank you, mr. Chairman. And i want to thank our chairman, mr. Roger williams from the great state of texas, for yielding and for his leadership. Mr. Speaker, i rise today during Small Business week in support of h. R. 5333, the investing in all of america act of 2023, introduced by myself and representative scoalten. This administration aims to incentivize greater private Capital Investments in Small Businesses located in rural or lowincome areas, and those operating the National Security sector by providing additional bonus leverage for funds participating in the s. B. A. s sbic program. The Small Business Investment Companies are privately owned companies that are licensed and regulated by the s. B. A. , sbics rise private capital that is matched with leverage by the s. B. A. Currently capped at 175 million. Sbics then deploy these private funds to vifnt directly in Small Businesses to invest directly in Small Businesses. The sbic operates at zero subsidy cost to the american taxpayer. In other words, taxpayer funds are not utilized for the credit extended in sbic investments. Throughout the last two decades, sbicbacked businesses have created five million new jobs, supported an additional 10. 5 10. 5 million new jobs. And last year alone, sbics invested over 8 billion in Small Businesses across america, including 412 million in Small Businesses located in my home state, the commonwealth of pennsylvania. Though the sbic program has been very successful in responsibly deploying capital Small Businesses, recent studies have shown that close to 20 of the sbic investment reach only 20 only 20 reaches low to middle income communities, but with this legislation, this number will significantly increase. The investing in all of america act would intent vietz the deployment of incentivize the deployment of Additional Capital to Small Businesses located in rural or low income areas, as well as Small Businesses, again, in the National Security technology sector. Dollars invested in these areas will not count against the individual sbics 175 million leverage cap. And by again creating this incentive, the investing in all of america act will increase investment for these underserved communities. It is important to note that the bonus leverage included in this legislation does not change the cost or risks of the sbic program. And the existing successful private capital ratio to s. B. A. Lafn raj that has kept the leverage that has kept the Program Operating at no subsidy and this will remain the same. This legislation would adjust the sbic leverage caps to account for inflation. Sbic leverage caps have not been adjusted since 2015 for single licensees and since 2018 for family of funds. Since the last adjustments, as we know, inflation has risen rapidly. Soond as we continue to and so as we continue to deal with inflation, readjusting the inflation for the cap is necessary to ensure the investment power of the sbics remains consistent with the broader markets and ensure the program can continue to provide Small Businesses with the capital they need. So recently the subcommittee on Economic Growth, tax and Capital Access which i chair, held a hearing examining the sbic program. In addition to discussing the positive effects of the program, we discussed the improvements that could be made. Im happy to say a number of reforms suggested by the witnesses are included in this legislation. While theres more work to do, this legislation would make a very positive impact on those participating in the sbic program and assist them in deploying even more capital onto these worthy Small Businesses. I would like to thank very much representative scoalton for her partnership on this legislation and the Bipartisan Group of 14 members who have cosponsored it and, again, i want to thank chairman williams and the Ranking Member for his leadership and the ladys leadership respectfully and support of this legislation and i encourage a yes vote and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The gentleman from Texas Reserves. Mr. Williams i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york is recognized. Ms. Velazquez thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield as much time as she may consume to the gentlelady from michigan, ms. Scoalten, the Ranking Member of the contracting and infrastructure subcommittee. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Scholten thank you, mr. Speaker. And thank you so much to chairman williams and to Ranking Member velazquez for holding this really important hearing during Small Business week. 99. 6 . Thats the number of Small Businesses in michigan that are considered Small Businesses. Thats nearly one million Small Businesses that call our state home. As diverse as these businesses are, there is one thing that binds them all together. These Small Business owners consistently tell me that access to capital is the number one thing that they need and rely on to keep their doors open. And this is especially true for our Small Businesses in low income and rural communities. Thats why this bipartisan bill with my colleague, dan meuser, the investing in all of america act, is so important. It will build on the success of the Small Business Investment Companies program to ensure that more capital can reach the Small Businesses that need it most. Our legislation will incentivize deployment of Additional Capital by changing how investments are counted against the sbics leverage cap. In doing so, Small Businesses will be able to access more capital than before. Especially those in underserved communities and again, as my colleague noted, without costing the taxpayers additional dollars. Recent studiesy shown that less than 20 of sbic funds reach low income and rural communities. That disparity is unacceptable. And if we pass this bill and we change the statistic, its incumbent on this body to invest in the people who are investing in our communities. Im known to say back home, were bringing boring back to congress. Thats what i set out to do every time when i come here. Oftentimes this body is not known for that, but it is essential that we do this type of bipartisan, unglamorous work that corrects errors in our laws that so disproportionately impact the people who need it most. This bipartisan solution will address an urgent need in every corner of our nation. And i urge my colleagues to support this muchneeded bill. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the boring lady yields back. The gentlelady from new york reservings. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Williams mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers and im prepared to close and reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentlelady from new york is recognized. Ms. Velazquez i have no further speakers and im prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Velazquez thank you. Today under President Bidens leadership, the sbic program is making historic investments. In f. Y. 2023, the sbic program provided a record high 8 billion in investment and collective financed more than 1,200 Small Businesses and startups, resulting in over 130,000 jobs. H. R. 5333 will build on this monumental success and unleash even further investment in americas small firms. Innovation is the cornerstone of Economic Growth and u. S. Global competitiveness. And most often, the most innovative and disruptive r d is happening in our Small Business community. H. R. 5333 will encourage more sbic investment in Small Businesses operating in our innovative sector and in rural and underserved areas all over the country. I again want to thank representative scholten and meuser for leading this effort. I encourage members to vote yes and i yield back the remainder of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york yields back. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Williams thank you, mr. Speaker. I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation that will provide more opportunities for our nations i thank them for bringing this and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore will the house suspend the rules and pass h. R. 5333 as amended. Those in favor, say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative the rules are suspend pennedded and without objection, the bill is passed and the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Williams i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill the Agency Accountability act of 2024 as reported. The clerk Union Calendar number 325, h. R. 7103, a bill to amend the Small Business act to require federal agencies to testify and report on scores received under the Scorecard Program for evaluating federal Agency Compliance with Small Business contracting goals, to testify for failure to meet governmentwide contracting goals, and for other purposes. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from texas, mr. Williams and the gentlewoman from new york, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. Mr. Williams i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to exclude extraneous material on the bill. I yield myself such time as i may consume. I rise in support of h. R. 7103 Agency Accountability act introduced by representatives stauber and mcgarvey. It holds federal agencies accountable for failing Small Businesses. The federal government is one of the largest customers. To ensure Small Businesses to have access, a goal for federal agencies to award a certain percentage of contracts to Small Businesses. This hasnt opened the federal marketplace but a strong and resilient base. Unfortunately not every federal agency is meeting to contract with the little guys. Worse than that, when an agency misses its contracting goals, they face no consequences. The Agency Accountability act will solve these agencies. They will testify to congress and explain why they arent meeting Small Business goals and what they will do to rectify these issues. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlewoman from new york is recognized. Ms. Velazquez i yield myself such time as i may consume. I would like to thank my colleagues, mr. Stauber and mr. Mcgarvey to bring this bipartisan bill to the floor today. In an effort to ensure small firms can play on the level Playing Field, government has awards 23 of prime contracting dollars to Small Businesses. These goals have helped millions of spall businesses compete and helped the government leverage their innovation. Agencies meet or even exceed their individual goals, but some do not and they are not penalized for this failure. This would apply additional pressure to federal agencies to meet their Small Business goal by requiring them to testify before us when they fail. It is a productive staff that will add congressional oversight to max mids contracting opportunities for small government contractors. I reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Williams i would like to yield as much time to mr. Stauber from the state of minnesota. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from minnesota is recognized. Mr. Stauber i rise to speak in favor of the Agency Accountability act. I would like to thank my colleague from kentucky, representative mcgarvey for his support. I can think of no better way to start off Small Business week to ensure that federal contracting system has a fair Playing Field for even the smallest of our businesses. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy. They are the innovators, job createors and driving force behind Economic Growth. In minnesota, Small Businesses account for over 99 of all businesses and employ over half of the work force. The very least we can do to ensure that Small Businesses have every opportunity to contract with the largest purchaser of goods and services in the world, the federal government. Right now, federal agencies set goals for awarding contractor Small Businesses, but meeting those goals is often treated like a suggestion, and not a requirement. The result, too many agencies fall short leaving billions of dollars out of reach of american Small Business owners. My bill changes the game. It shines a spotlight on Agency Performance by requiring public testimony for failures. Agency heads will answer directly to congress for missing goals explaining why they havent prioritized Small Businesses and what theyll do to fix it. This isnt just about finger pointing but finding solutions, public scrutiny with score Board Performance will expose roadblocks and identify best practices. Our Small Businesses are more than just economic engines but the embodiment of the American Experience with a fierce determination to succeed. This bill gives them a fighting chance, a seat at the table and the opportunity to prove themselves on the national stage. I urge my colleagues to vote yes on the Agency Accountability act. And i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentleman from Texas Reserves. The gentlelady from new york is recognized. Ms. Velazquez i yield to the gentleman from ken tuck, mr. Mcgarvey, the Ranking Member of the innovation entrepreneurship and Work Force Development subcommittee. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized mr. Mcgarvey i rise in support of the Agency Accountability act. I thank chair man williams and Ranking Member velazquez for bringing this bill forward and getting it to the floor. As representative stauber said Small Businesses are the backbone of the American Economy and what keep things moving. In louisville our Small Businesses are so special, we have a saying, make Small Businesses are here and they are thriving. One of the reasons i enjoy being on the Small Business committee we get together every week and talk about what Small Businesses need and how we can make sure we are helping foster the growth and interviewer ship entrepreneurship Small Businesses moving forward. They need a fair shot. And the federal government is the largest purchaser of goods and services around the world. So we recognize that the federal government must engage in purchasing things from our Small Businesses. Representative stauber, former hockey player, knows the rule isnt any good unless it is enforced. And so what the federal government having a quota, what happens if it doesnt meet it . This bill answers that question. And it says that remust hold failing agencies accountable, that if they arent meeting their quota of purchasing from Small Businesses, they have to come before the house and the senate and testify as to why. I am proud to support this bill because it makes sure that we are continuing to support our Small Businesses all over this country. I am proud to be a cosponsor of the Agency Accountability act. And i yield back. Thank you. The gentleman from texas kentucky yields back. Mr. Williams we have no further speakers. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlelady from new york is recognized. Ms. Velazquez i would like to close by emphasizing this bill specifies that agencies that have not met two or more of their sub category goals must also testify before our committee. Each of the categories including and especially continue to meet additional that the professionals are maximizing contracting opportunity for those Small Businesses. Again, i thank the sponsor of this bill. And i yield back. The speaker pro tempore got from new york yields back. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Williams i urge my colleagues to support this legislation that they will have access to the federal government. I thank congressmen stauber and mcgarvey for working on this legislation to help our government meet its contracting objectives. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the question is will the house pass the bill. Those in favor, say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative the rules are suspended. The bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Williams i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 7985, entrepreneurs disability reporting act of 2024. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 7985, a bill to require the administrator of the Small Business administration to submit to congress a report on the entrepreneurial challenges facing entrepreneurs with a disbuilt and for others purposes pursuant to the rule, scwasm texas, mr. Williams and the gentlelady from new york ms. Velazquez each will control 20 minutes. Mr. Williams i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill. I yield myself such time as i may consume. I rise in full start of h. R. 7985. And introduced by representatives mcgarvey and mow lynn narrow. This will ensure a report to congress that individuals with disabilities faiths. It will look at the resources across the federal government that assist individuals with disabilities. The Government Accountability office estimates there are 50 programs across nine federal agencies that support Employment Opportunities for individuals with disabilities. They fail to coordinate with such programs to ensure their efforts are not duplicated and working as efficiently as possible. This bill will require the s. B. A. To look at this system and streamline those efforts. I want to thank representatives mcgarvey and mow lynn narrow on this important issue. I urge a yes vote on this bill and i reserve. Ms. Velazquez i yield myself such time as i may consume. It the gentlelady is recognized. We are considering h. R. 7985 will require the cab a report facing entrepreneurs with disabilities. Despite progress to increase employment rates, 25 of persons with disabilities participate in the labor force. That is why we need a comprehensive study to assess the resources that are available to people with disabilities examining the effectiveness and determine what needs to be taken to support entrepreneurs with disabilities. I appreciate the efforts of mr. Mcgarvey and mr. Molinaro and urge my colleagues to support h. R. 7985. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york reserves. The gentleman from texas is reserved. Mr. Williams i recognize the gentleman from new york, mr. Molinaro. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized mr. Molinaro i rise in strong support of h. R. 7985, which i am proud to colead along side my colleague representative mcgarvey and greatful to his commitment to move legislation forward to address an important need in our communities across this country. This bipartisan bill will provide much needed clarity for our entrepreneurs with disabilities as they navigate the complex maze of 50 different programs geared to support individuals with intellectual, and Developmental Disabilities as they start a business. As of april, 2022. 74 of adults with disabilities work outside the work force. From limited access to affordable capital to a scarcity of supports and services tailored to unique needs, the s. B. A. Needs to step up and provide much greater support in working to support this system. Entrepreneurs of every ability should have a fair shot of pursuing their passion. I remain committed as i know my colleague mr. Mcgarvey to empower our entrepreneurs with disabilities to contribute more to main street and lead more independent lives. The absence of reporting data renders this highly Competent Community to the sidelines. The entrepreneurs would provide a comprehensive assessment of entrepreneurs about disabilities and inform lawmakers to address the challenges these individuals face to break down barriers and create opportunities to owning their own business and employment. I thank representative mcdparvey for his partnership on this bill. And i urge my colleagues to support this Bipartisan Legislation and show america what it means to think differently. And with that, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york is recognized. I yield to mr. Mcgarvey. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Mcgarvey i rise in support of my bill, the entrepreneurs with disabilities reporting act. There isnt enough attention paid to when things come together and works the way it should. I would like to thank chairman williams and Ranking Member velazquez and especially like to thank chairman molinaro, the chairman of the subcommittee on innovation, entrepreneurship, and work force. Through his courage and compassion and personally navigating the maze of people who face intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. We had a subcommittee hearing. He brought up mave, a young woman from new york talking about her coffee shop. I brought up coty clarke from louisville, a truly inspiring young man who not only is an entrepreneur and told us about his experience, i think he performed the first ever magic trick in front of the Small Business committee this year to highlight his point of what we can accomplish. And you know, this bill, it helps ensure that every american, every american, has the opportunity to become that successful type of entrepreneur. After all, isnt that the fundamental promise of the american dream, that any person in this country can work hard, take risks, and hopefully find success . But what we highlighted in this hearing and through the stories of mave and coty and others, is that americans with disabilities, like other underprivileged groups, see fewer opportunities to make this dream a reality. In fact, 74 of people with disabilities do not participate in our nations labor force. Too many barriers, both physical and intangible, block their way to joining the work force or starting a business. And the federal government must do more to help break those down. To do that, we have to better understand what these challenges are. And this bill takes a really important first step in that process. It will require the Small Business administration to submit a report to congress on the challenges faced by entrepreneurs with disabilities. This report will assess the entrepreneurs needs and detail the resources the s. B. A. Currently provides and recommends what actions we can take to improve how the Small Business administration serves entrepreneurs with disabilities. The Better Congress understands these challenges, the easier it will be to knock them down to take these barriers away and make sure every american has the chance to succeed. I again thank chairman williams, Ranking Member velazquez, chairman molinaro, and everyone else involved for their leadership and support of this bill. I urge my colleagues to support h. R. 7985, and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The gentlelady from new york reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Williams we have no further speakers and i am prepared to close and reserve my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Velazquez this bill allows those with disabilities to contribute to the work force and improve their lives. We are comprised of thousands of Resource Partners across the country and we provide free training to launch and control their Small Businesses. But we dont know how well s. B. A. And its Resource Partners are meeting their needs and what more could be done to better serve these individuals. This bill will go a long way in assessing the outreach and engagement provided by s. B. A. And make legislative recommendations to address any deficiencies in the Services Provided to people with disabilities. I applaud mr. Mcgarvey and mr. Molinaro for their bipartisan efforts, and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york yields back. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Williams thank you, mr. Speaker. We held hearings that highlighted disabled entrepreneurs across the country. Id like to thank representatives mcgarvey and molinaro to make sure the government is working efficiently offer these resources that are available. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 7985. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Williams mr. Speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 7987, the plain language in contracting act. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk Union Calendar number 390, h. R. 7987, a bill to require plain language and the inclusion of key words and covered notices that are clear, concise, and accessible to Small Business concerns, and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuan t to the rule, mr. Williams, and ms. Velazquez will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. Mr. Williams i ask that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill. The speaker pro tempore without objection, so ordered. Mr. Williams i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Williams i rise in support of h. R. 7987, the plain language in contracting act. Far too often the government uses language thats difficult to understand when it solicits contract opportunities. No one feels the burden of this government speak more than Small Business owners looking to break into the federal marketplace. Weve heard from Small Business owners about how their limited resources often prevent them from hiring a team of attorney to go through the solicitations to see what the government is trying to purchase. One told our committee they examined several contracts and only 3 were written in a way someone without a College Degree could understand. The number of Small Businesses working with the government is shrinking and we hear the barrier is too high. This bill would remove the barrier and force the government to take commonsense action and write contracts using simple and plain language. I urge all my colleagues to support h. R. 7987. Thank you. I reserve my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from Texas Reserves his time. The gentlelady from new york is recognized. Ms. Velazquez i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Velazquez id like to thank my colleagues for their work on this bill which states certain contracting documents should be written in a way thats clear, concise, and acceptable for Small Businesses. This bill is an attempt to reduce confusion and add priority for some small firms that contract with or are looking to contract with the federal government. While we have concerns about how elements of this legislation could be implemented, simplifying the contracting process and recruiting new entrants into the fair marketplace are priorities that we share. And there are certainly new ways for the government to improve in both of those areas. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Williams at this time id like to yield as much time as he may consume to mr. La rowata from the great state of new york. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. La rowata businesses mr. Lalota ive introduced the plain language act to simplify things for Small Businesses to enter in contracts. I extend to mr. Tanendar for leading this legislation across party lines and to the skipper and chairman williams for his diligent staff and seeing to it the bill got to the floor today. With over 33 million Small Businesses in america, only a very small fraction win federal contracts. Many entrepreneurs site the complexity of Government Procurement processes as a major deterrent. The language used in contract solicitations is often ambiguous and unnecessarily complex, deterring Small Businesses from even attempting to bid on a contract. A study by the Naval Post Graduate School revealed that less than 3 of department of defense contract solicitations are written in plain english. This complexity drives Small Businesses away from federal contracting, eroding competition, and harming our economy. My bill mandates federal agencies to use clear language in contract solicitations, fostering greater accessibility for Small Businesses. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, recognizing the pivotal role Small Businesses play in our nations economy. Together lets pave the way for more accessible federal contracting contracts for all Small Businesses. Doing so benefits Small Businesses, the federal government, and all of our taxpayers. Thank you, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from new york yields back. The gentleman from Texas Reserve s. The gentlelady from new york is recognized. Ms. Velazquez thank you. I yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from michigan. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Thanedar i rise to support h. R. 7987, the plain language in contracting act that im coleading with representative nick lalota of new york. I applaud representative lalotas leadership, and its a pleasure to work with him on this bipartisan bill. Also, as an entrepreneur, im delighted and excited to be working on the Small Business Committee Led so well by chairman williams and Ranking Member velazquez. Having experienced the challenges of running a Small Business, i recognize the urgent need to cut through the jargon of bureaucracy and provide clear, concise, and Accessible Information to our nations Small Business owners. This bill would require all notices related to Small Business concerns to comply with the federal plain language guidelines established by the plain writing act of 2010, reflecting our core values of transparency, efficiency, and our unwavering dedication to fostering a level Playing Field for all businesses regardless of size. By including key words and sticking to the federal plain language guidelines, we are not just drafting legislation, we are empowering Small Businesses to navigate the complexity of Government Contracting with confidence and ease. This is about more about than just policies, its about supporting our economy and ensuring that every entrepreneur has the opportunity to succeed. Walking down illinois in my strict, i meet a lot of Small Business owners every day. I am in the district. And often i hear from these Small Businesses, the mom and pop shops where the entrepreneurs are working so hard that the complex complexity of the language and difficulty in obtaining federal contracts due to the the complexity. And this bill goes a long way in simplifying the matters and helping our hardworking Small Businesses that create most of the jobs to be able to acquire federal contracts and work with the federal government. So i urge my colleagues to support this bill, and i thank you and yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from michigan yields back. The gentlelady from new york reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Williams i am prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from Texas Reserves. The gentlelady from new york is recognized. Ms. Velazquez i thank the sponsors for the work on this bill and believe the goals are laudable. It is the mandate of our committee to regularly review the processes that s. B. A. And federal agencies put in place to recruit, retain, and contract with Small Businesses and do so with the goal of making it easier for them to compete for and win federal awards. Given that Small Businesses are leaving the federal market at a record pace and fewer Small Businesses are choosing to work with the government to begin with, we must use the tools available to us to provide remedies where we can. In closing, i want to thank the chairman and the sponsors of the legislation for their commitment and dedication to our nations Small Business owners. Small business week is a good reminder that we need to Work Together in a bipartisan way to create more opportunities for our nations 33 million entrepreneurs. With that said, i would be remiss if i didnt mention, there are a sizable number of democratic bills that have been reported favorably from the committee but have not been scheduled for the floor. I look forward to the chairman for bringing more of this bill to the floor soon. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york yields back. The gentleman from texas is recognized. The spker prore for whatpose does e ntlen fr oa seek recnion . Mr. Lucas iove t suspe the rules andass h. R. 4866ire weather dopmentct o 2024 asmended. The bill. Or the title of the clerk l to direct the ogram torove fe weath and eironmeorecasting dectio and loc coaboratio and forer pursuant the rulhe gentlemanoklahoma and the ntwomanrom michin, mssteven each will contr 20 mites. Ha five legislative day to inclaterl on h. R 4866 th bill now undcoiderio the spkepro tempore ut jection e geleman recognize. Luca i yield myselfuch time as i may consu develoenct o 2024ffered my fri mr. Cia. Th billirects the natnal ocea andospher fostingnd dettion offi weaers wl predt fires. Borati whstate andao hundredsf hhousands oftl lt. The effects of thi fir be felt inur region forany years. It wasn ahift for wind direction at t right time, my proper would hav bn pt of that. At homedattlento fiel that wer les lik t burn. Loingacn thisvent da this one good tng we tionaleather serviceast the tos and capitynd pron that can pdict live prty. This began inhis extde fostixaysefore the smeou itsy there wouldave beenore not f the w thnal weather svice dirti by cgrs ands nece resou, n ompnan tseapacitid every citizen c andho develo fireather a feenvironmens onsiovel tecies sh dvance sat litet and aive sse sawye for deployme on unmd systems. Whlimitihe risk ofires. Ha modelr ingighters in wog togher, tsill have accurate andimely wildfire detectio monitoring and th b ass ste and servis this b estabshesns. Independentational advisory counl t ensure lal table and provide input on whatt introduci thisill. All my cleagues to jn resee. Support ts bill and i speakete the gentmaneserves. The gelewoman from mn is ms. Stevens i yie mys sh a may consume hawaii, calornia, colorad mian, wildfires areosing an increasin tea toives an lelihoods oso my wifireeaso the westlas 30ears te mohs tot nber ofsev s bned perr h nearl doubled. Clate chae h contributedto warmd frequent and inten wilfires. Undersg the fdant Science Behind wildfir ing impacts omate chgebsolut essential to ourbility to irove the anher essenti ent tourfires. Responseo wdfs the informionnd risks t land nage ando thoseivg in ldfire vneble areas. Ande forecasts a warnings. The brave and tireless wk o anagemt teams is abtely the cornetonef succsfildfireespons this inclu incident teologis w wor around elock at aiv fire sigs foation about wilire environmtal conditiso firefighrs and manags. This bill also allow noaa weathe service to compeate forrtime andil exhe capacity to conct eirenal work. The bil requireoaa to leverage colboratis wh state, local tri andhe private sector to decase e loss les and prorty fro wildfires andport fire i wan to commendgressman colora congrswoman for woing on thi important legislatio that will truly put posion to respond tcreasing thrf ldfires. And i encoura my colleags to orhis bill. An reserve talance of my ti, mr. Aker. Thspeaker o mpor t gentleman from okla i recogniz as much a h conme,entleman mr. Garcia tponsor of this iny distrts as. Nk you for security a economic curi aboutchl secu,ts nehbhood surityndes, boecuritys well as prting sial securit ifou live i d 4866 i tly about secury. My district in north a. A cnty has theostense and lar inrff wilands with man beings andou velopmen and t arell too fiar with t dgers th the wildfires tour homes and lihoods demoat issue but life o athue and i have made to priorir ilit to prect and fight thasters t keep o refighters,ur homes andfamili s. My bil. 4is a isan step forward a cotant against the tastrophic wes. This bl will impve na aby to res t wilires local ergency fst spders. It wou b ey for t lt o yeahat have bn security the next big firll us f seasons rig aroundhe has explo o gssnds wthertas dry out again, so will theorest. Trsforng greenerynt b. T. U. That a stray spark or ghtningrkanetaze. Sohe califora will tinder box t fall ahe torevent tildfires now and we ctt for another wilire seaso whe lifornia 4 mon acres due in texas andawaiiust last ar taking the lesf so many stal inederald iy fore this istant w take ce this issue a iest not justur pdictn efforts havery toolt theirefhter anere isoson they shoue asell equipped as ey fht our fires as ovasndeed to aanht enees imag toeeires aros to rch t s a reme fis and irovemucation and jusik our soldiers, ne to send the firefiger toangerousnificances only wheit aolutely necessary. And myl unmanned vehicle ananne wildfire behaviors aore and a eteps takne surhey fig t comm indanger aoro home. The side benefit, er is a g againurce this willvehe lives of as welde the wdfir events hant done gd jobfand as a result of that,ee econy eecia in sther the teatotno bad suraeompanies a jacking up rates o curre cme toed offg policie constituenbouthe housefire polie 10imeshat they in a church p reached outhi la wkend who saidisiums wt3,000o 30,000 a yr for aerllchch. To ca sierullet you that isoi to sve the iancerobl, d problems comin out of sacramento to address. But ife can irove o abily to protect peoples ha you mr. Speak ield ba. Yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Williams i reserve my time. And for the record i dont believe i have any additional speakers. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlewoman from michigan is recognized. Id like to yield to ms. Car vieo. I would like to thank my colleagues, congresswoman guards and congresswoman kim. We know wildfires are seasonal. The impact of these fires are felt long after the flames are distinguished. The wildfire was the most expensive in our States History and was driven by an extreme windstorm. With the total cost of the marshall fire estimated at 2 billion, its critical we continue to invest in new ways to understand fire weather. This is where our bill, the Fire Weather Development act comes in. This bill will give noaa the tools to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to fire Weather Technology to allow the agency to access airborne and space daysed data to enhance fire monitoring. The bill gives noaa the ability to determine drone usage and to conduct drone Pilot Programs. Finally, the bill helps our local and state responders more through several provisions focused on improving communications especially around forecasting. The front range and colorado knows how important it is that we do what we can to predict fire weather especially when it means protecting our homes and economic wellbeing. In colorados eighth district we have a burgeoning Energy Sector and the largest agriculture economy in the state. As we saw in texas this year, one wildfire could pose serious damage to that. By passing the act we bolster the tools we have for fire weather. I look forward to working with representatives garcia and kim to get this bill across the finish line as soon as possible. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and yield back. Mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time and were prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserves. The gentleman is recognized from oklahoma. I have no further requests for time and am prepared to close once the gentlelady from michigan does. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlelady from michigan is recognized. We find ourselves in a prominent moment on the house floor. Ms. Stevens hopefully seeing the passage of h. R. 4866 to address some of these extraordinary fire considerations that have taken place, and i continue to encourage my colleagues to join those of us who do this hard and great work on the Science Committee to pass this bill. And with that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma vehicles. Mr. Lucas thank you, mr. Speaker, i yield myself as much time as i may consume. Over the last five years, the average annual cost of federal firefighting suppression has been 2. 8 billion, while forest and Land Management can help prevent wildfires, long and shortterm weather observations or modeling play a Critical Role in limiting their spread and damage. The Fire Weather Development act takes immediate action to address this by increasing noaa and the Weather Service activities to best protect lives and property at risk of wildfires. I want to again thank the gentleman from california, mr. Garcia, for working tirelessly to get this bill across the finish line and increasing lifesaving Services Available to his constituents. I urge all my colleagues to support this legislation, and i yield back the balance of my time, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 4866 as amended . Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative for what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition . Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. Those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. A sufficient number having arisen, yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. For what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition . Mr. Lucas i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 1069, the Clean Energy Demonstration Transparency Act of 2023 as amended. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 1069, a bill to amend the infrastructure, investment, and jobs act to report Clean Energy Demonstration projects and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuan t to the rule, the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. Lucas, and the gentlewoman from michigan, ms. Stevens, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from oklahoma. Mr. Lucas i ask that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on h. R. 1069, the bill now under consideration. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Lucas thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in support of h. R. 1069, the Clean Energy Demonstration Transparency Act of 2023, offered by the gentleman from ohio, mr. Carey. This legislation will provide congress with the necessary tools to conduct thorough oversight of the department of energys growing number of demonstration projects, specifically 1069 requires the secretary of energy to report to congress on all demonstration projects administered by the office of Clean Energy Demonstrations. As a part of this report, the secretary must include all contracts, milestones, schedules, funding profiles, including cost share agreements. D. O. E. Established osed to carry out the Technology Demonstration projects authorized in the energy act of 2020 and the infrastructure, investments, and job act. This includes the advanced Reactor Demonstration Program and Long Duration Energy Storage demonstrations. Typically d. O. E. s applied Energy Offices have administered these programs creating a natural pipeline from the lab to the field with the creation of oced, d. O. E. Put these activities in a new and untested office, separating expertise and adding a new layer of bureaucracy at the same time the infrastructure bill and Inflation Reduction Act appropriated 27 billion to eced to fund these projects. This organizational change and influx of money should concern every lawmaker given previous instances of d. O. E. s mismanagement of demonstration projects. Already oced has been slow to reward recipients and struggled to identify unique capacities not discovered by the applied Energy Offices. Currently congress lacks the necessary safeguards and ability to conduct rigorous oversight over oced and its demonstration projects. For example, when the Science Committee tried to get information from d. O. E. Waving the cost share requirement for multimillion dollar projects, d. O. E. Had no requirement to document or justify their decision. H. R. 1069 requires d. O. E. To submit semi annual reports that include all contracts, agreements, and funding breakdowns, and enables congress to have the tools to protect taxpayers dollars and hold oced accountable and ensure a truly competitive selection project based on merits. Im proud to cosponsor this bill along with representative lofgren and urge all of my colleagues to support this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlewoman from michigan is recognized. Ms. Stevens mr. Speaker, i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Stevens this is one of the moments we find ourselves so grateful for the house record as we yet again are moving to pass a bipartisan piece of legislation, h. R. 1069, the Clean Energy Demonstration Transparency Act in bipartisan fashion here forever commemorated on the house floor. We are recognizing that here in the United States of america, our phenomenal department of energy now being run by michigans former governor secretary, jennifer granholm, is doing clean energy and these are Clean Energy Projects that are coming to fruition because of the invest in america agenda promulgated by the president of the United States, the great joe biden. So we have there years on a bipartisan infrastructure law that was established the first of its kind, Clean Energy Demonstration office centrally coordinating the department of energys larger scale Energy Technology development. And i really appreciate when we can say as democrats and republicans yes to transparency because we do want the world to see that we are doing clean energy, and we will lead the sustainability vision for the future. We also know that 25 billion coming out of this bipartisan infrastructure law legislation is funding and scaling emerging technologies such as Clean Hydrogen and advanced nuclear energy, which is needed to tackle some of our most pressing climate challenges, and certainly to achieve our net zero goals that we have established for ourselves. And one of the initiatives that has been supported by the office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, one that i am very excited about and has great meaning for us in michigan, Automotive Supply Chain Innovation Capital of the world is the Hydrogen Hubs. We have these Hydrogen Hubs that have come to fruition and being invested in out of the bipartisan infrastructure law, and certainly, i mentioned these hubs are helping my state of michigan and we have the Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen, and its going to leverage my states famous Industrial Power to lead the nation in this Clean Energy Hydrogen production. The hubs are going to benefit from this transparency legislation and this network of Hydrogen Hubs seeking to lower our emissions as a nation in certainly a very trying moment for decarbonization. And we see hydrogen really coming into play with heavy duty transportation and maritime port equipment. I really invite everyone to take a peek at whats happening in michigan because its really quite phenomenal with these supply chain corridors and manufacturers and how theyre adopting hydrogen. I kept my finger on the pulse of their work for many years to come. So here we stand now with this demonstration activity. Were going to push for transparency. We have this great group, the chairman of the Science Committee, the Ranking Member lofgren of the Science Committee that has come together to support this legislation. And we Want Congress to have a hand in it because we know when we pass these big old bills, a lot of times they just go forward and then were hungry to implement and hungry to keep a finger on the pulse and maybe we can have a couple hearings. But h. R. 1069 gives us a runway. And it also helps the department of energy, particularly President Bidens department of energy continue to do what it is doing really well. Let us all see this phenomenal bill get passed. I join the chairman of the Science Committee on calling on both members on the side of the aisle, and with that, mr. Speaker, ill reserve the rest of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i yield to the gentleman from ohio, mr. Carey, however much time he may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Carey i rise in support of a bill that will lead america towards an all of the above energy future, h. R. 1069, the clean energy i would like to thank you for your work of bringing this bill to the floor. And i thank the staff for their bipartisan efforts in moving this legislation forward. Strengthening Energy Category of Domestic Energy production including renewables, oil, gas, coal and nuclear will safeguard our supply chains and defend our National Security and in fact, boost our economy. H. R. 1069 is a commonsense bill that will increase transparency and oversight of investments and home grown clean energy and taxpayer dollars to the office of Clean Energy Demonstrations. Specifically, the bill requires the office of Clean Energy Demonstrations submit semiannual reports to Congress Regarding the budget, the schedule and participating entities of their demonstration projects. I encourage my colleagues to vote yes on this bill that will give americans confidence that their taxpayer dollars are being used wisely in pursuit of energy independent. I yield back. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i have no further requests for time i am prepared to close once the gentlewoman from michigan does. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves. Ms. Stevens the gentlewoman from michigan has no further speakers and is prepared to close. The gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Stevens the feel passionate about this and i thank mr. Carry and i look for this bill becoming law. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i yield myself such time as i may consume. One of our most important responsibilities is to serve as steward of the taxpayer dollars. I want to see d. O. I. And federal Research Agencies succeed in developing next generation technologies. But at the same time, we need to be conscience of the body and keep anne on the projects well before they balloon into billions of dollars. H. R. 1069 allows us to do exactly that. It increases the transparency between d. O. E. And congress enabling both sides to have beneficial information and insights into the success. Once again, i want to thank mr. Car korea for leading this bill carey. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 1069 as amended. Those in favor, say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended and the bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition . Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 4755 as amended. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 4755 a bill to support research on privacy enhancing technologies and promote responsible data use and for other purposes pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from oklahoma, mr. Lucas and the gentlewoman from michigan, ms. Stevens, each will control 20 minutes. Mr. Lucas i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include material on h. R. 4755 the bill now under consideration. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Lucas i yield myself such time as i may consume. I rise in support of h. R. 4755, the Privacy Enhancing Technology research act offered by the gentlewoman from michigan, ms. Stevens and the gentleman from new jersey. The bill supports advanced technologies to safeguard individuals privacy. As americans have moved more and more of their lives online, it has resulted in Digital Consumer data and personal information being generated than ever before. This personal information has long been a target of cyber criminals and the threat has only worsened over time. In 2023, the federal trade commission received more than one million reports of identity theft. This problem is ex as per ated by failure of some companies to safeguard data. This is a valuable asset. When utilized it can support innovations like Artificial Intelligence and quantum computing. Our task is to ensure this resource doesnt fall in the hands of bad actors putting american information at risk. This pits may be part of the solution. It uses and statistics to minimize the amount of personal identifiable information while ensuring that the data sets are usable. However, more research is needed to understand and encourage further development and adoption. This bill requires that the National Science foundation support the fundamental research, the math that underlies them and additional technologies that promotes standards. The legislation also directs nist to work with stakeholders to develop standards for incorporating these technologies in the commercial regular you layings. This is a testament of the value of this bill. I thank representative stevens and i encourage my colleagues to support the bill. And i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from michigan is recognized. Ms. Stevens i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Stevens h. R. 4755, Privacy Enhancing Technology research act, another very important bipartisan bees of legislation that we bring to the house floor this evening on the heels of the pronouncement of the speaker and minority leader to form an a. I. Task force that is led by mr. Obernolte yes of california on the republican side and mr. Lieu from california on the democratic side. What the privacy enhancing research act gets us is an opportunity to further strengthen and utilize federal agencies to regulate Artificial Intelligence. And this legislation has been met with the endorsement of the federation of american scientists, the carnegie melon the u. S. Chamber of commerce and future privacy forum. I tharng my colleague for joining me in this legislation. But i want to recognize that senators cortez mass toe of nevada and senator deb fisher of nebraska are working in the other chamber and have contributed to this legislation. So we have a path not only to see this pass here in the house, but see it pass in the senate and become federal law. We are living, as we all know in the time of modern Digital Economy, probably hyper Digital Economy that is just fueled by an astronomical amount of personal data, compounded over decades at this point in time. And so in this a. I. Powered world, personal Data Protection is absolutely imperative. And theres certainly a struggle with the processes that can protect and enable the protection of the productive use of personal data and secure the confidentiality of information. In 2023, a survey by the pew research sent irfound that 81 of American Adults are concerned about how Companies Use their personal data, liking, clicking, purchasing, browsing, whats going on with all of that and it is a friend of mine in my conversations regarding a. I. In congress and with my constituents back home in oakland county, michigan. There remains lots of opportunities to capture the benefits of data including for safer roads, improved public health, better educational outcomes, tackling inequities and other disparities. However, in any use of personal data, we must ensure privacy and confidentiality and a critical way to achieve that is through the development of privacyenhancing. P. E. T. s are technologies that allow them to collect, share and use data while mitigating the privacy risks that arise from those activities. The goal is to make systems that use personal Information Private by default opening up those data to a wide range of researchers who would otherwise not have access. So these technologies even have the potential to enable broader use of federal data sets as privacy risks are often the greatest barrier to open data efforts. So unform, the technology is immature and not ready for widespread use and what we are looking to do with h. R. 4755 is to support the research, Work Force Development, the standardsetting and government coordination for p. E. T. s. So we are going to direct the National Science foundation to conduct fundamental Privacy Research that can improve these technologies, assess these limitations and broaden their applicability. The National Science foundation will support Work Force Development activities in order to help address some of the exacerbating shortage of professionals across the United States and springboard from cybersecurity Work Force Development that have taken place from years prior. H. R. 4755 supports activities at the National Institute of standards and technology to facilitate the development of those standards and best practices for integration of p. E. T. s in public and private sectors. Folks, these two groups, the public and private sector are encouraging of this legislation. They are asking for us to act in this way. And finally, h. R. 4755 directs the White House Office of science and Technology Policy to coordinate federal activities to accelerate the development of p. E. T. s across government. Congress, we all know, has been debating proposals on privacy legislation for a long time. And sometimes we are even wondering if we have legislation but wech h. R. 4755 which takes the amazing and necessary steps of ownership of this new technology that we want to own and manage in this country. So, yes, let us be encouraged by bipartisan activity. Let us continue to come together and ensure we have the necessary tools to fully implement privacy legislation without stifleling legislation. And thank you again to my colleague, congressman k arch n emp, of new jersey for his bipartisan efforts. And with that, i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i yield to the gentleman from new jersey, mr. Kane, to speak on the bill. I am proud to be the colead on h. R. 4755 my colleague congressman stevens. I have had many conversations about data privacy concerns in the 7th district in new jersey. Ensuring their specific needs and concerns are met to protect their privacy shy needs online is critical. We need to improve personal Data Protections for all americans and commit to enhancing individual privacy and security online. Increasingly interconnected world where Digital Technologies affect our lives, this is a critical concern for all americans especially during a time when vast amounts of data is collected online. Data breaches and development of Artificial Intelligence, the need for cutting edge privacy enhancing technologies have never been more pressing. Recognizing these challenges and the threats we face, this legislation directs the National Science foundation to support fundamental research on Privacy Enhancing Technology. This legislation also directs the National Institutes of standard and technology to facilitate the development of voluntary consensus standards to better integrate privacy enhancement technologies into public and private sectors. This is a key step to mitigating risks and promoting trustworthiness. Privacy enhancing technologies act represents a promising opportunity to prioritize protecting an individuals data privacy in our evergrowing interconnected world. Additionally, the bill will not only facilitate Crucial Research efforts, but also contribute to the development of Skilled Workforce and foster effective government coordination to ensure an impactful implementation of these technologies. Advancing our legislation will support the development of robust safeguards for how people interact online and how their data is collected. This legislation seeks to empower individuals with a greater control over their personal information, mitigating the risks of unauthorized access and misuses and maintaining trust in our digital ecosystem. Through Cutting Edge Research and technologies, we will develop Innovative Solutions to not only shield Sensitive Data from malicious actors, but also establish robust standards for Data Collection and for sharing access, enhancing a more secure online environment. I want to thank congresswoman stevens for her extraordinary leadership in this regard and the chairman and Ranking Member for helping advance this legislation. I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Speaker, i have no further requests for time and im prepared to close once the gentlewoman from michigan does. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from michigan is recognized. Ms. Stevens mr. Speaker, i have no further speakers at this time. Im prepared to cloassments i Research Reserve close. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Stevens thank you, mr. Speaker. I continue to call on my colleagues to join me and congressman kean, the chairman of the Science Committee, Ranking Member of the Science Committee, and passing in passing h. R. 4755. This certainly will mark a very important moment in time where the United States chooses to lead on privacy enhancing technologies for the betterment of all. And with that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Speaker, i yield myself as much time as i may consume and i congratulate my colleagues from michigan and new jersey on an outstanding piece of legislation and i urge the body to adopt it. Mr. Lucas i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill, h. R. 4755, as amended. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended for what purpose does the gentleman mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. All those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. A sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. For what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition . Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h. R. 48 24rbgs the carbon 4824, the Carbon Sequestration act, as amended. The clerk h. R. 4824, a bill to amend the Energy Policy act of 2005, to require the secretary of energy to carry out terrestrial Carbon Sequestration research and Development Activities and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. Lucas, and the gentlewoman from pennsylvania, ms. Lee, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from oklahoma. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h. R. 4824, the bill now under consideration. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i rise in support of h. R. 4824, the Carbon Sequestration collaboration act. This commonsense legislation increases the coordination among federal Research Entities and are focused on the topic of Carbon Sequestration, specifically this bill improves the capacity to sequester carbon through land use activities authorized by a coordinated Research Effort across the department of energy, the department of interior and the department of agriculture. To date, most federal research has been focused toen large scale Carbon Sequestration and geologic formations. That entails finding a specific spot deep in the earth to trap carbon generated by large sources. Like multiple power plants that supply an entire region. This leaves a significant knowledge gap related to Carbon Storage potential at small tracks and everyday sites like soils, rangelands, biochar, mine tailings and forest. The usda has already started to explore programs for farmers, ranchers and landowners to generate carbon credits for adopted practices to reduce emissions or sequester carbon on their land. Yet ill be the first to admit that usda is by no means an expert on qualifying amounts of caulkerren sequestration to track Carbon Sequestration to track how it behaves over time. We have to make sure we have scientific support to have tools that are needed to track changes over time, especially in the shortterm. By combining d. O. E. Expertise in fundamental research and Carbon Storage, d. O. I. Capacities in geologic mapping and usda knowledge in plant and crop interaction, we can rapidly develop the research to mature technologies and ensure scientific transparency. I introduced a similar bill in the last congress to address these activities. I am very pleased with my colleague, representative baird, who has worked so hard on championing this issue, wands that, mr. Speaker and with that, mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee mr. Speaker, i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Lee i rise today in support of the Carbon Sequestration collaboration act. The bill amends the Carbon Storage provisions in the Bipartisan Energy act of 2020 to support research and development on ways to sequester carbon in terrestrial ecosystems, agriculture and forestry. Recent Academic Research has found that agricultural approaches that enhance the carbon uptake of soils have many potential benefits, including increased productivity and improvement in the improvements in the ability of yields. This would help us understand the behavior of sequestered carbon and help identify any scientific barriers to the widespread deployment of these technologies. This is not dimension this is not to mention the added benefit of removing carben from the atmosphere, making this one of the Many Solutions we need to advance if we are to slow down or even reverse the effects of climate change. I urge my colleagues to join in supporting it. Thank you, mr. Speaker, and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from indiana, mr. Baird, to speak on his bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from indiana is recognized. Mr. Baird thank you, mr. Speaker. And i do want to thank the chairman for yielding. And for all the work that we did in committee to get this important piece of legislation to the floor. I would also like to thank the gentlewoman from california and Ranking Member of science, space and Technology Committee, ms. Lofgren, for her leadership and support on this bill. Theres a lot of misconceptions about what this bill does and unfortunately there are some who are intentionally spreading misinformation about this bill for political gain. Before i continue any further, lets put these rumors to rest by telling the American People what this bill does not do. This bill does not give federal agencies any authority to seize private property. Im a farmer and a private landowner and id never sponsor or support a bill that would give the federal government more power to seize private land. This bill does not specify any land for Carbon Capture projects or undermine the Property Rights of american citizens. This bill does not directly benefit or impact private companies with an interest in Carbon Sequestration. The United States has been using Carbon Sequestration methods to store excess Carbon Emissions underground for over 50 years. And bidens department of energy is currently studying large scale Carbon Sequestration at the federal level. The problem is our federal agencies are not communicating properly about this technology and leaving a knowledge gap that wastes taxpayer dollars and could result in important findings falling through the cracks. H. R. 4824 will force the executive branch to submit a plan to congress and require federal agencies to Share Research, data and current sequestration technologies. Simply put, this bill puts guardrails on the Administrations National energy plan by adding a reporting requirement to congress and requires federal agencies to talk to one another and Share Research in the most efficient way. Im sponsoring this legislation because i believe every hoosier and americans for that and american for that matter should have the best information thats available when making informed decisions about their land and about their community. Thats why i urge all my colleagues to support this legislation and with that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i have no further requests for time and am prepared to close once the gentlewoman from michigan or the gentlewoman from ohio ms. Lee pennsylvania. Mr. Lucas pennsylvania. Ms. Lee very close. Were getting closer and closer. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee mr. Speaker, i have no further requests for time or speakers and im prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Lee thank you, mr. Speaker. I urge my colleagues to vote yes on h. R. 4824 and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i yield myself as much time as i might consume. The speaker pro tempore youre recognized. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, h. R. 4824 is a practical bill that lets federal agencies collaborate on this important issue. Dr. Baird, who i would note before my fathers family lived in oklahoma, we lived in indiana, but i would also note to my gentlecolleague on the other side of the room, before they lived in indiana, they lived in pennsylvania. Even if i have some geographical challenges. Nonetheless, this is an important piece of legislation and we need to pass this. And with that, i encourage my colleagues to adopt it and i yield back, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill, h. R. 4824, as amended. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative mr. Lucas mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition . Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. All those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. A sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. For what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition . Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill, h. R. 4877, the abandoned well Remediation Research and development act, as amended. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 4877. A bill to amend the Energy Policy act of 2005, to direct the secretary of energy to carry out a research, development and Demonstration Program with respect to abandoned wells and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. Lucas, and the gentlewoman from pennsylvania, ms. Lee, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from oklahoma. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on h. R. 4877, the bill now under consideration. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i rise in support of h. R. 4877, the abandoned well Remediation Research and development act. This bill was introduced by two of my Science Committee colleagues, the gentlewoman from pennsylvania, representative lee, and my fellow oklahoman, representative buys. The bill bice. The bill directs the department of energy to support research, development and demonstration activities that accelerate the remediation of abandoned or orphaned oil and gas wells across the country. Currently there is an estimated 700,000 to maybe three million abandoned wells in the United States. These wells cost between 30,000 to potentially as much as 1 million per well to plug. Meaning a remarkable amount of money will be needed just to cover past developments. Wells in remote locations like tribal land in oklahoma are more difficult and costly to locate and plug. Thus increasing the likelihood theyll remain unmitigated. Improving the technologies and methods associated with plugging and remediation process for abandoned wells would lower the overall cost, improve efficiency, reduce environmental harm and potentially result in new and improved purposes. That is why i support h. R. 4877. This bill will capitalize on the department of energys existing research and infrastructure within the office of fossil, energy and carbon management, to improve the processes, lower the costs associated with abandoned wells. Conducts activities conducted by d. O. E. Have the potential to develop innovative processes like repurposing abandoned wells for Geothermal Power production and Carbon Capture, utilization and storage. Additionally, this bill directs d. O. E. To improve technology to pinpoint and map the location of abandoned wells. Before we can plug or repurpose a well, we need to know exactly where they are located. Efforts for states to plug abandoned wells are already under way and funded by federal investment. This bill ensures that those efforts efficiently use taxpayer dollars and remain effective in the longterm. I want to thank representative lee and representative bice for leading this bill. I urge all of my colleagues to support its passage and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Lee i rise in support of legislation im proud to see pass on behalf of the people of pennsylvania and oklahoma. The bipartisan abandoned well Remediation Research and development act. Across the country, there are around three million aban toned oil and gas wells in urgent need of remediation and plugging. In pennsylvania there are well over 350,000 abandoned wells, only 27,000 of these have been identified and documented in order to be plug. These wells not only contribute to the Climate Crisis by leaking methane but they expose our families to cancer causing toxins, leave our homes vulnerable to explosive gases and lower property values, making it tougher for families to maintain and sell their homes. Our economies suffer while we allow wells to pollute our communities without plans to plug them. Last week, i visited the home of pamela and ivan who recently discovered a leaky well on their property. During my visit pamela describes how she got does sir and almost fainted while gardening in her backyard while being exposed to the pungent odor she recognized as gas. Fortunately they caught the leakage in time to reach out to the department of Environmental Protection to begin the process of plugging the well and preventing permanent harm to the familys health and value of their property. However, until Congress Takes action to invest in the identification and remediation of abandoned wells, starting with this bill, tens of thousands of people in my district and across pennsylvania will continue to suffer the cons agains. Pennsylvania has more abandoned wells than any other state except texas. Many were drilled in the mid 1800 irks decades before regulations existed to properly track and document. The my district suffers some of the worst air quality in the nation and serious exposure to toxins in our water. We cant leave leaky oil and gas wells from the 1800s to continue poisoning and endangering our communities we have also cant afford inaction. We must invest significant resources to research and develop solutions to this crisis by passing this bipartisan bill because until we do it will be nearly impossible to track every orphan and abandoned well. This bipartisan bill well introduced builds on the 23 million worth of investment to plug abandon wells we have already delivered to pennsylvania by demonstrating a new program to lo cat and locate and identify the problems with abandon wells this. Will enhance our ability to locate the wells and direct research to see what causes some of these wells to become superemitters. It will fuel development of new uses for the well, such as if they are suitable for conversion to Geothermal Power production. I thank chairman lucas and representative above green for supporting this a as well as representative bias for bringing this to the floor. Today the sypes committee has twice unanimously approved bill, i urge my colleagues to do the same thank you, mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i yield the gentlelady from oklahoma, mrs. Bice, such time as she may consume to speak on the bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Mrs. Bice thank you, mr. Speaker, and thank you to chairman lucas. I rise in support of h. R. 4877 the abandoned well research and redevelopment act. In oklahoma there are over a half million oil and gas wells to allow our state to rank eighth in oil and Gas Production in the country. Whiling ative wells support hundreds of thousands of jobs, legacy sites and abandoned wells can present environmental and economic problems. Across the country, some wells are slowly leaking harmful gases and chemical into the ecosome. This is partly due to some wells being left after their use. However others are the result of plugging material that has not withstood the test of time different states have implemented plugging and cleanup programs with varying levs of success. For example the Oklahoma Energy Resource Board invested 132 million to successfully clean up over 18,000 sites across our state. Additionally, the federal plugging and Remediation Program established last congress provided 25 million in initial grants to oklahoma. This was a great first step. But unless we want to continue to spend on temporary solution we must have innovation. H. R. 4877 will address this innovation gap and potentially save billions of dplars future efforts. Through the research, development, and demonstration activities authorized by this bill, the department of energy will improve the data on the location of abandoned well, the process for plugging, reclaim, and repurposing well, and the ability to mitigate potential environmental impacts of leaking wells. In the future, we wont need another 4 billion in federal plugging program. The innovation spurred by this bill could cut those costs in half and save billions in taxpayer funds. H. R. 4877 directs the type of forwardlooking research and the development that will solve our legacy challenges while allowing responsible Environmental Stewardship to continue into the next generation. I am proud to lead this bill with my colleague from pennsylvania, ms. Lee, and i want to thank her for working alongside me in a bipartisan fashion to get this bill to the floor. I urge a yes vote from my colleagues which is a great example of innovating to solve a realworld issue and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i have no further requests for time and i am prepared to close once the gentlewoman from pennsylvania does. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Lee i have no further requests for time, and i yield myself the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Lee i urge my colleagues to vote yes on h. R. 4777 and i yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Lucas i yield myself such time as i may consume. We all share concern about the tens of thousands of known abandoned oil and gas wells across the country that have the capability of polluting groundwater. This is a major step in addressing that. I urge my colleagues to vote for h. R. 4877. I thank congresswoman lee and congresswoman bias for their effort. With that, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 4877. As amended. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The gentleman from oklahoma. Mr. Lucas i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore in the opinion of the chair 2 3 being in the affirmative for what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition . Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. All those in favor of taking the vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. A sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. For what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition . Mr. Lucas i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 6093, the weather act reauthorization act of 2023 as amended. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 6093, a bill to imflief National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations Weather Research, support improvements in Weather Forecasting and prediction, expand commercial opportunities for the provision of weather data, and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. Lucas, and the gentlewoman from pennsylvania, ms. Lee, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from oklahoma. Mr. Lucas i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h. R. 6093, the bill under consideration. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Lucas i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Lucas i rise in support of h. R. 6093, the Weather Forecast and innovation act of 2023, known as the weather act reauthorization. In 2017 i was proud to lead the First Comprehensive weather authorization in 25 years that resulted in the original weather act being signed into law. The bill we are considering today, the weather act reauthorization, builds on previous accomplishments, makes further advancements in Weather Forecasting and prediction of high impact weather events. It will undoubtedly save the lives of citizens across our country. In the simplest of term, the weather act reauthorization gives americans better forecasts. What that means is so much more than what meets the eyes. It improves hurricane prediction accuracy, Tornado Warning lead time, it supports cutting edge forecast big establishing a new research and Development Program related to the next generation of radar, atmospheric rivers, coastal flood, and more. The weather act reauthorization increases noaas access to critical forecasting data by expanding its authority to contract with the private sector to acquire commercial weather data and codifying the commercial data program to lead this work. Again, building on what we started in 2017. Noaa will have more flexibility to purchase data from trust ander have fid Industry Partners instead of building out expensive, expensive observation systems and satellite networks. The weather act reauthorization ensures all this research and progress doesnt result in over will i complex products the public cant understand. This bill strengthens the Emergency Preparedness of every community by improving the communication of welcome and water events to the public. This ensures all americans understand watches, warnings and other information and how to respond this. Bill also provides farmers and ranchers with better tools and services for agriculture and Water Management including improvements in subseasonal and Seasonal Research and forecasting. As perhaps the most weatherdependent sector in our country, the Agricultural Industry needs accurate forecast for efficient crop planting and timely cycles. At the end of the day this is what feeds and clothe ours country. Finally the weather act reauthorization authorizes the continuation of key public tools including the National Integrated drought information system, the National Coordinated soil moisture monitoring network, noaa is, after all, a taxpayerfunded agency. Therefore it should continue to provide, invest in tools that benefit the taxpayers. This its clear this bill is not a one trick pony and will accomplish many things so it should come as no surprise to hear the widespread support we received. 63 republican and Democrat Members have cosponsored bills that appear in this package. It is letters it has letters of support from 50 stake holders representing groups as diverse as Recreational Fishers to twoway radio suppliers. Its a bipartisan bill with 29 cosponsors on both sides of the aisle. The weather act reauthorization ensures noaa is modern and reliable which will secure the United States Global Leadership in feather forecasting and prediction. More importantly, the welcome act reauthorize ensures noaa equips americans with timely warning and support, providing lifesaving information to communities across the country. I want to thank my partner in this effort, Ranking Member lofgren, who has been essential in continuing the successes of the Science Committee in this congress. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and reserve and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Lee i rise in support of h. R. 6093. Sadly this year is expected to set another record for Global Temperatures according to the World Meteorological organization. Last year the u. S. Experienced 28 separate extreme weather and climate disasters costing more than 1 billion each. Surpassing the previous record set in 2020. Climate change is causing an increase in the frequency and intensity of severe storms. Just two weeks ago, pittsburgh was inundated by a severe storm that flooded many parts of the area. Daily rainfall records for the area were shattered and there were numerous road closures and water rescues across allegheny county, pa, which i represent. As we adapt to this unfortunate new norm of Severe Weather events, our forecasting capabilities and preparedness must improve. H. R. 6093 will build on the bipartisan 2017 Weather Research and forecasting innovation act that led to the Critical Research and advancements in weather and climate forecasting. This bill before us today will support the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in continuing to improve research, development, dissemination and communication of environmental forecasts, warnings, and information. We must ensure that noaa has access to every tool to improve the accuracy and timeliness of weather and Climate Information to effectively meet its mission in protecting people, property and the economy. Specifically, this bill modifies and extend key weather and climate programs for tornadoes, hurricane, syn synes, drought drought tsunamis, brought issues. And coastal flooding including storm surges. Additionally the bill authorizes noaa to extend its partnership with the industry in gathering more data while solidifying its role as the driver of enterprises and utilizes intelligence to meet its missions. Our weather models will continue to be while improvement is necessary, the communication of the information is also a key element to effective forecasting. Underobserveed, underserved and highly vulnerable communities are disproportionately affected by Severe Weather and climate events to. Better serve these events. To better serve these communities, we must determine how to best communication information. Understanding how the public receives, interprets and responds to and values Severe Weather information is necessary to produce better forecasts and warnings. This bill aims to accomplish this by expanding noaas social and Behavioral Program to improve the communication of hazardous weather. I would like to thank chairman lucas and Ranking Member lofgren for their diligent work and cooperation on this important legislation and also many of my colleagues who make significant contributions to this excellent piece of legislation. I strongly support this sensible, bipartisan bill and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserve or yield . Ms. Lee yes, i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from oklahoma, mrs. Bice, to speak on the bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Mrs. Bice thank you, mr. Speaker, and mr. Chairman. I rise today in support of the weather act reauthorization. Over the weekend, we saw the terrible effects that weather can have on our communities and states. Throughout the heartland, where there were more than 50 confirmed tornadoes, which left many injured and sadly took the lives of four oklahomans. This is why the weather act reauthorization is so important. We must ensure that americans have the resources they need when critical weather events strike. This includes having access to accurate Weather Forecasting and other necessary resources to protect life and property. I was pleased to see that my legislation, the noaa Weather Radio act, the National Authorization act, and the wing act, were included in this package. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Weather Radio modernization act will help save lives by updating our Emergency Alert system. Specifically, it paves the way for future development and provides failsafe options so that the national Weather Radio is never down for an extended period and that outages will be less frequent. Over the weekend, there were issues with receiving and transmitting alerts from the national Weather Radios. My bill will help address the aging infrastructure in these systems and prevent outages like these from occurring in the future. The authorization act will work to increase the Overall Coverage and accuracy of the national program, which provides reliable, Realtime Data and observations for the weather prediction, Severe Weather warnings and emergency response. I want to thank chairman lucas for his leadership on this legislation and for his focus on protecting oklahomans. I urge my colleagues to support the legislation. Mr. Speaker, thank you and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas does the gentlelady continue to reserve . The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee mr. Speaker, i yield three minutes to the gentleman from florida, mr. Frost. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Frost mr. Speaker, i rise today to support the reauthorization of the weather act. Since its passage in 2017, the weather act has been the driving force behind faster and more precise hurricane and tornado forecasting. This reauthorization will build upon that research by updating existing projects and adding new project programs focused on coastal flooding, storm surge and improving weather radar. Im also proud that included in this package is my bipartisan bill, the fixing gaps in hurricane preparedness act, coled by my colleague from florida, congressman daniel webster. Congressman webster and i know that we need to do more to keep our people and most atrisk communities safe during extreme weather events, that due to the Climate Crisis are continuing and happening more often in florida and across the entire country. Our bill works to better protect the lives of seniors, folks with disabilities and nonenglish speakers during hurricanes nonenglish speakers during hurricanes. Our bill instructs noaa to evaluate the level of peoples preparedness in hurricaneprone areas, better understand how atrisk populations receive, interpret and react to emergency notifications, including seniors, people with disabilities, communities with language barriers, and rural, suburban and urban populations. And finally, examine the unique risks for areas with large senior populations like retirement communities before, during and after a hurricane. This bill was inspired by devastating National Data and conversations with my own constituents in Central Florida who have experienced some of the worst storms that our state has ever seen. Floridians speak to me about living in neighborhoods that quickly flood, confusing messaging from the media on whether they should evacuate or not, and alerts that are usually just in english or in spanish. While inspired by the needs of our constituents, this bill will help folks far beyond just the state of florida. When these storms come, people with disabilities must undergo evacuations at far greater rates than others, yet folks have told me that they feel like an afterthought when it comes down to the accusations accommodations. Folks with disabilities and seniors oftentimes get stuck without electricity. As a result, seniors are most likely to die during a hurricane. Making up 2 3 of the deaths with hurricane catrina, katrina, florence and ian. This will reduce fear and help floridians and americans. I urge my colleagues to vote yes on this critical package and i yield back to representative lee. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. Garcia, the speaker to speak on the bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Garcia thank you, mr. Speaker. And thank you, chairman lucas, for introducing the reauthorization of the weather act which includes my bill, the improving atmospheric forecasting act. In my home state of california, we can experience devastating flooding, wildfires and droughts all in the same year, if not in the same season. Needless to say we have learned the value of being well prepared and the past two winters weve experienced a new threat called atmospheric rivers. This past winter 51 atmospheric rivers hit california, dumping trillions of gallons of water on us, causing flooding and damage to homes and businesses and its clear we need to do more to improve our predictive capabilities to give emergency coordinators as much of a heads up as possible. We need to make sure were taking advantage of this free water as much as possible. The problem in california isnt that we dont have enough water, its that we dont retain enough of it. We dont have enough storage, we dont have enough capacity and we dont plan appropriately based on the predictions. The l. A. Times recently reported that nearly 95 of the water from the atmospheric rivers this last year flowed back into the ocean. Thats trillions of gallons of free water that could have been stored for dry seasons. Its clear that sacramento isnt going to build more storage any time soon so we need to be investing in infrastructure we already have and improve the efficiency of our reservoirs. Thats why my bill increases research into whats called forecast informed reservoir operations. If we can give water managers a heads up that these storms are coming, they can prepare reservoirs to capture the water, helping us fight off droughts when the dry seasons come. We got lucky this last time, we got so much water that even californias terrible water policies werent enough to keep us in a prolonged drought. We cant keep relying on luck and we cant wait around for sacramento to get its act together. There was a zombie apocalypse, mr. Speaker, in sacramento, even the zombies would die because theres not enough brains in our States Capital right now when it comes to water policies and this goes a long way in helping them. We need improved prediction of atmospheric rivers moving forward and thats what this bill does. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee mr. Speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from washington, ms. Delbene. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Delbene thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of the weather act. For the past three years, the National Landslide preparedness act has been providing communities with the tools and resources that they need to reduce the potential devastation of landslides. Washington state knows this pain too well. A decade ago the single deadliest landslide in u. S. History destroyed a community and took 43 lives in mere minutes. I knew in the aftermath of that that we have to do more to prevent future natural disasterrers from becoming National Disasters from becoming national tragedies. The landslide law i championed is doing exactly that. The programs established by the law are increasing preparedness and improving mapping data so communities understand where vulnerabilities exist. We cannot let these programs expire when theyre just getting up and running. The landslide law passed this chamber without opposition in 2020 because every state in this country has some form of landslide risk. Each year landslides kill between 20 and 50 people and cause over 3 billion in damage. With a changing climate and more unpredictable weather, landslide risks are only going to grow more frequent, more dangerous and more costly. I urge my colleagues to support the weather act, which includes my legislation that extends these programs. I also want to thank congresswoman schrier and senators for their support in reauthorizing the landslide law. Thank you and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman yields. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from indiana dr. Baird, to speak on the bill indiana, dr. Baird, to speak on the bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Baird thank you, mr. Speaker. I do want to thank the chairman for yielding. And for all the work that we did in the committee to include my bill, the preciptation forecasting precipitation forecasting for agriculture act in this reauthorization. The precipitation forecasting for agriculture act is a simple piece of legislation. This bill simply directs the United States Weather Research program to study seasonal precipitation forecasts for agriculture. Hoosier farmers rely on accurate forecasts to determine whether or not their farms will have rain needed for their crops. This bill supports the basic need through a collaboration between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and our universities to create measurable objectives in forecasting improvements. This study will address the scientific challenges for improving precipitation forecasting by enacting the national Weather Services recommendations for subseasonal and seasonal forecasting innovation in the 21st century. These recommendations will enable the Indiana State Climate Office at Purdue University to produce operational models for land surfaces, soil moisture and flash drought processes. Our farmers need the most accurate Data Available to guarantee a successful harvest. Thats why i urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation and with that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee mr. Speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from North Carolina, mr. Jackson. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Jackson mr. Speaker, the week after i was elected to congress, a group of meteorologists from my district got in touch with me and they thought me something i didnt know. Which is that my district, which is the chore lot charlotte area, is in the largest weather radar gap in the country. Our nearest radar is roughly 100 miles away which makes it very difficult to have accurate forecasts for especially low altitude storms and fastmoving tornadoes. So our office at the request of these meteorologists got to work on a piece of legislation to address this. Im very grateful that it has been included in this bill. It would address this by asking noaa to have a plan to implement the next generation of weather radar and specifically to prioritize districts like mine that currently exist in these blind spots. In these weather radar gaps. So this legislation isnt going to just help solve this problem, but its going to identify a number of these spots across the country and prioritize those to make sure that we have accurate forecasts across the country. Im very grateful for its inclusion and i ask all of my colleagues to join me in supporting it. Thank you very much. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas mr. Speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from georgia, mr. Mccormick, to speak on the bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Corps corps thank you, mr. Speaker corps corps thank you, mr. Speaker mr. Mccormick thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of this act. The weather act reauthorization is sensible legislation that will strengthen the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasting capabilities and elevate the u. S. Weather enterprise, greatly benefiting communities across the country. As a former helicopter pilot in the marine corps, i know firsthand the consideration you must give to the weather before taking to the skies. Fog, high winds, turbulence, thunderstorms, ice and snow are all routine weather occurrences that can impact commercial and recreational flights, as well as ground crew operations and maintenance tasks. Additionally, i think every member of congress here and many of our constituents have experienced some flight or other type of delays of turbulence in the last six months, as weather volatility is a consistent threat to travel plans. That is why i introduced h. R. 3915, the Aviation Weather improvement act, which has been included in this larger legislative package. This will authorize the national Weather Service to acquire data to deploy critical atmospheric sensors. In addition to authorizing the Publicprivate Partnership on weather data, h. R. 3515 improvee events in the Aviation Weather center this will ensure that recreational and commercial pilots have a definitive, accurate source for turbulence information to inform routespecific flight plans. Put simply, my bill will lower the other 5,000 flights per year that encounter severe turbulence, as well as make a dent in 30 of annual delays caused by weather. In closing i want to thank chairman lucas, Ranking Member lofgren and my colleagues on the sypes, space and Technology Committee for supporting the efforts of all the members who contributed to this important weather act reauthorization. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers and i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i yield two minutes to the gentleman from new jersey, mr. Kaine, to speak on the will. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Kaine thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in support of h. R. 6093, the weather act reauthorization, introduced by chairman lucas and Ranking Member lofgren. I would like to thank the chairman and Ranking Member for including my bill, h. R. 4069, the protecting coasts and cities from Severe Weather act in the overall package. With the weather act reauthorization and my legislation, we are modernizing Critical Research programs to address weather observation gaps in highly vulnerable areas which will improve ourable to protect lives and property from disasters and allow noah to include and allow noaa to include predictions. This is crucial for mitigating the risking poses by extreme weather events. By expanding noaas authority to acquire commercial weather data, were not only improving the efficiency of weather data acquisition, but also fostering innovation in the private sector. These measures underscore our commitment to protect the safety and well being of the people of new jersey, ensuring that they have the information and resources needed to withstand and recover from weatherrelated disasters. This bill establishes new programs to improve forecasting models, for weather phenomena like atmospheric rivers and coastal flood, directly benefiting new jerseys coastal residents. This will lead to better Preparedness Measures for people back home in new jersey. In conclusion, the weather act the reauthorization is about empowering individuals and communities with the tools they need to mitigate the risk of Severe Weather events. I encourage my colleagues to support this impact. Legislation and i yield back, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The gentlewoman from oklahoma reserves. The the gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i yield two minutes to the gentleman from iowa, mr. Feenstra, to speak on the bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Feenstra thank you, mr. Speaker, and thank you, mr. Lucas. This past friday, a powerful tornado struck parts of my district in southwest iowa. Minden, iowa, felt the worst of these storms. Roughly 180 homes or businesses were either devastated or destroyed and a Community Member sadly passed away. Even in our grief, iowans are resilient. These tornadoes are a tragic reminder that we need to use every tool available to keep our communities safe. Im glad that two of my bills are part of this package. My bills help ensure that our weather radar can better detect serious storms, especially lowhanging tornadoes and the national Weather Service can quickly disseminate information more quickly. These reforms will save lives, keep iowans informed and deliver accurate and timely updates during storms. When it comes to Severe Weather, seconds can make a difference between life and death. Thats why i urge my colleagues thank you and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee mr. Speaker, i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas how much time remains on my side . The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma has five and a half minutes. Mr. Lucas i yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. Obernolte, to speak on the bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Obernolte i rise in strong support of reauthorization of the weather act. This bill includes in section 115 my legislation to also he reauthorize the National Landslide Hazard Reduction program. This is a critically Important Program for reducing landslide hazards in the United States that will, absent reauthorization, expire at the end of this year. Its a littleknown fact that land slides cause over 1 billion in Property Damage every year in the United States as well as costing countless lives. This is particularly true in my district in Southern California my district has experienced substantial wildfire damage in the last several years. And in last august, we experienced the first prop call storm in 83 years in california. This resulted in the we faction of the soil beneath the burn scars in the mountains and the resulting landslides erased an entire community. Houses were uprooted and displaced. And many of my residents were trapped and had to be lifted by helicopter to safety. Mr. Speaker, the landslide Hazard Reduction program is a Critical Program for identifying hazards that exist with land slides and improving coordination with local Emergency Responders and agencies to ensure those hazards are addressed. Id like to thank chairman lucas and my colleague on the science, space, and technology, and the Natural Resources committees, for including my lang wamg in the bill and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Lee i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i have no further requests for time and im prepared to close once the gentlewoman from pennsylvania does. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Lee i am prepared to close, i yield myself the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Lee thank you. I want to recognize the democratic staff who were the driving force behind this bill. Christy perry, noah hunt and dalia sock love. I sokolov. I urge my colleagues to vote yes on h. R. 6093 and i yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman yields. The gentleman from oklahoma is recognized. Mr. Lucas i yield myself as much time as i have remaining. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Lucas i want to express my sincere thanks to representative lofgren for working on this. I urge my colleagues to join us in supporting the weather act reauthorization and yield back the balance of my time, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields. The question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 6093 as amended. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative mr. Lucas mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition . Mr. Lucas i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. Those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. A sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. For what purpose does the gentleman from indiana seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 7032. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk Union Calendar 393, h. R. 7032, a bill to amend the congressional budget act of 1974 to provide the Congressional Budget Office with authorities to expedite sharing of data from executive Branch Agencies and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from indiana, mr. A kim, and the gentleman from pennsylvania will each control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from indiana. Mr. A kim i mr. Yakim i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Yakim i yield myself such time as i may consume. Mr. Yakym id like to thank mrn this reform and our subcommittee chair representative arrington for his work as well. The current budgetary process is not working for the American People. Congress adopted a budget resolution by the statutorily required april 15 deadline only four times in the last four decades. We have to find ways to address this brokenness so we can serve and steward the American Peoples hardearned tax dollars. A key part of this is process reform. To me, process is the set of incentives that drive behavior and we must change the current behavior thats failing this country, especially our children and grandchildren. Right now, the c. B. O. Encounters ongoing challenges in obtaining necessary data for executive Branch Agencies in a timely manner without restrictions. C. B. O. s recent interactions with the Social Security administration reveal a systemic issue that extends beyond a single agency. The process of renewing data agreements which are vital for the c. B. O. s analysis has been met with significant delays. For example, a particular Social Security agreement with the Social Security administration critical for ongoing access to essential data required over a year of negotiations before it was finalized and renewed. This consumed significant resources and time and depriving congress of value usual information. Its clear that the current framework is broken. There are many interpretations of various legislative mandates that bring inefficiencies and obstacles to data access. These challenges impact how quickly c. B. O. Can provide information to congress and hinder members ability to make decisions regarding the budgetary impact of proposed legislation. Our bill would put an end to this troubling dynamic. The Congressional Budget Office data sharing act would require the c. B. O. , ensure the c. B. O. , has the tools it needs to deliver for us. Their customer. With timely and Accurate Information. It assists c. B. O. Is in providing congress with cost estimates for legislation and other fiscal reports that are critical for bringing accountability and transparency. We streamline the c. B. O. s ability to obtain necessary data, enabling timely completion of its work we strengthen and clarify the c. P. O. s ability to request and receive data from executive Branch Agencies. This doesnt threaten the confidential of sensitive information. Rather, the c. B. O. Would be required to maintain confident cialty in a way similar to the executive Branch Agency thats providing it. This bill also ensures that future laws will not limit or modify this enhanced authority unless explicitly stated. Finally, the bill provides increased transparency by requiring the c. B. O. To report to the house and Senate Budget committees on the request it makes to agencies and any challenges encountered in reviewing necessary information. Im proud to support this measure that will give c. B. O. Some of the tools it needs to provide timely, accurate and complete information to congress. This legislation is smart. It is bipartisan. And its a step in the right direction to improving the way that we budget americans hardearned tax dollars. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from indiana reserves. The gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized. Mr. Boyle thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Boyle mr. Speaker, im proud to rise today as the author of h. R. 7032, the Congressional Budget Office data sharing act. 50 years ago, almost to the day, Congress Passed the congressional budget act of 1974, which created the modern congressional budget process as well as the senate and house Budget Committees and finally the Congressional Budget Office. With 270 dedicated nonpartisan staff led by director dr. Fillip sweyingle, c. B. O. Is critle to our work on behalf of the American People. C. B. O. Issues hundreds of cost estimates on proposed legislation annually, provides Technical Assistance in crafting legislation and keeps the public informed about the costs and impacts of legislation as well as the Overall Fiscal Health of our nation. The budget helps the c. B. O. Serve better as an institution and is one of my top priorities. Just a few months ago the c. B. O. Director testified before our committee on the issues c. B. O. Faces when requesting data from executive Branch Agencies. In many cases, even when agencies want to cooperate with the c. B. O. , they sometimes have concerns about their Legal Authority to provide data that creates delays. Just one example the doctor gave, the c. W. O. Faced delays regarding fema regarding Flood Insurance because fema was unsure of their Legal Authority to provide the data that was requested. In cases like this, c. B. O. Is forced to rely on less detailed, Public Information in order to complete their reports on time. My bill remedies this by clarifying c. B. O. s authority to request data from executive agencies and grant c. B. O. Better and timely information so c. B. O. Can provide this analysis to congress. And it accomplishes that while maintaining that c. B. O. Protect data to the same standards as the federal agency providing it. The security of Sensitive Data is important to agencies, c. B. O. , and congress, and this legislation ensures c. B. O. Will continue to follow the procedures of the providing agency when it comes to protecting that data. Mr. Speaker, as you heard a few moments ago, this bill is a commonsense solution to an issue thats plagued c. B. O. Both through republican and democratic administrations, and im proud it had unanimous bipartisan support in the Budget Committee. I also want to thank the lead cosponsor of this legislation, chairman jodey arrington, who has been a crucial partner in advancing this bill. Id like to thank as well, my friend from the south bend, indiana, area who has spoken so positively about this Bipartisan Legislation. 50 years ago after the enactment of the budget act, congress clearly still has work to do this comes to improving our budget and the appropriations process and ensuring we deliver for the American People on time. This bill is the first step to improve our budget process. I urge all my colleagues to support this bill, and with that, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from pennsylvania reserves. The gentleman from indiana is recognized. Mr. Speaker, i yield three minutes to the gentleman from georgia, mr. Carter. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Carter i thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, i rise today in strong support of 7032, the Congressional Budget Office status sharing act, led by Ranking Member boyle and chairman arrington. You know, when we in Congress Make decisions on legislation and programs, we often look to c. B. O. , the Congressional Budget Office, for their estimates on how it will affect our economy and federal budget. With federal debts reaching new heights every hour, its of the utmost importance to define people at the c. B. O. Have access to all the data they need when doing their analysis. All this bill does is to clarify and strengthen c. B. O. s access to executive branch data, and thats extremely important. The vital data we need when making decisions regarding the future of our country is the data that we need in order to make these type of decisions, and thats why the c. B. O. Needs access to that data, and in turn, we get access to that data. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan piece of legislation, and i yield back. Is. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields, the gentleman from indiana reserves. The gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized. Mr. Boyle mr. Speaker, im prepared to close on my side. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from indiana is recognized. Mr. Yakym im prepared to close and i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized. Mr. Boyle thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Boyle mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to include in the record a letter from the Congressional Budget Office on how this bill would clarify and strengthen the agencys General Authority from accessing data from executive Branch Agencies as well as a letter from the Bipartisan Policy Center in support of this bill. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Boyle mr. Speaker, this is a commonsense bipartisan bill that gives c. B. O. The tools it needs to do its job to serve this institution better. This is really about strengthening the institution of congress in addition to ensuring c. B. O. Is better able to deliver a product. Helping c. B. O. Provide more timely and Accurate Information to congress will help us as a body make better and more informed decisions on behalf of the people who sent us here. I urge all of my colleagues to support the c. B. O. Data sharing act. And id like to once again thank the director and all the dedicated staff at c. B. O. For their hard work. I again thank chairman arrington for his friendship and his support, as well as all of my colleagues on the Budget Committee, including the gentleman from indiana who unanimously supported this legislation. And as always, a heartfelt thank you to the staff in my office as well as both the democratic and republican staffs of the Budget Committee for their hard work to make this legislation possible. And with that, i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from pennsylvania yields. The gentleman from indiana is recognized. Mr. Yakym mr. Speaker, i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Yakym i ask to include in the record various letters of support from individuals and organizations, including the Congressional Budget Office, several former directors of the Budget Office including dan, doug, and sandy davis who served as the Congressional Budget Offices associate director of legislative affairs from 20032015, the Bipartisan Policy Center, the cato institute, and the National Taxpayers union foundation. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Yakym mr. Speaker, again, i express my sincere gratitude to the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. Boyle, my friend, my fellow notre dame graduate, and the Ranking Member of the Budget Committee for his bipartisan work and his partnership on the c. B. O. Datasharing act. Its a testament to the spirit of bipartisanship that we have on the house Budget Committee. I would also like to thank again our budget chair, mr. Arrington of texas for his work and commitment on this bill. I also extend my deep appreciation to my fellow members of the budget for their work in support of this legislation as well as the Budget Committee staff, both on the republican and democrat side. Its critical the Congressional Budget Office has access to the data needed to support the budget process and ensure that we are the best stewards of the americans hard earned tax dollars. The c. B. O. Plays a Critical Role in determining the fiscal impact of important potential policy decisions that we undertake here in this house. Too often the c. B. O. Struggles to obtain the necessary data from executive Branch Agencies in a timely matter. As mentioned earlier, this has ripple effects on its ability to deliver prompt budgetary analysis to congress. As we all know, this in turn delays the congress in making fully informed decisions regarding the budgetary impact of the legislation. H. R. 7032 removes this hurdle and helps streamline the budget process. This Bipartisan Legislation will grant the c. B. O. The authority to request and receive key data from executive Branch Agencies, ensuring it is able to fulfill its mission as laid out in the congressional budget act of 1974. While expanding access, however, this bill recognizes the importance of protecting data privacy and ensures the c. B. O. Continues to be subject to congressional oversight. Given the critical nature of the c. B. O. s work we cant allow for them to continue to operate in a broken budgetary system. This Bipartisan Legislation supports strengthening the c. B. O. While allowing us as lawmakers to make the most informed and forward hyphening decisions possible. Im grateful to everyone who played a part in moving this bill, and i commend the bipartisan members of the Budget Committee who voted unanimously for this bill during committee markup. Im proud to express my strong support for the c. B. O. Data sharing act. I look forward to voting in favor of this piece of legislation. I urge my colleagues to do the same. Mr. Speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from indiana yields back. The question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 7032 . Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative for what purpose does the gentleman the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection, the motion is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill s. 474. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk senate 474, an act to amend title 18, United States code, to strengthen reporting to the cybertip line related to online Sexual Exploitation of children to modernize liabilities for such supports, to preserve the content of such reports for one year, and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuan t to the rule, the gentleman from florida, ms. Lee, and the gentlewoman from pennsylvania, ms. Dean, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentlewoman from florida. Ms. Lee i ask unanimous consent all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to insert extraneous material on s. 474. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Ms. Lee i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Lee the bill were here to discuss today is the revising existing procedures on reporting via technology, or report act. This is a strong bipartisan bill that provides additional tools to investigate and catch criminal purveyors of child sex abuse material or cpcsam. It remains a serious problem across the United States and abroad. Weve heard testimony in two victim focus hearings of the crime subcommittee of the judiciary committee, one in september and one earlier this month. Reports of cpcsam continue to grow exponentially with 3,000 reports in 1998 to growing to more than one million in 2013 and 2. 6 million in 2023. We have gaps in federal law that prevent the National Center for missing and exploited children or ncfmec which prevents holding these predators accountable. The Homeland Security investigation and other entities that protect children need Additional Support and investigative tools to bring these predators to justice. The report act will extend the duration for which evidence submitted to the cybertip line is preserved from 90 days to one year and allow Law Enforcement agencies the muchneeded time to conduct comprehensive investigations and strengthen the Legal Framework against online predators. This bill will strengthen existing law that requires providers to provide Law Enforcement knowledge as soon as reasonably possible after obtaining information about cspcsam. Many providers maintain an accurate reporting system, but the report act will increase fines for companies that fail to meet these standards and will further penalize companies that repeatedly fail to report exploitative content. Id like to thank all the advocates that helped us get to where we are with this bill including the american conservation union, the National Center for missing and exploited children, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, International Justice mission, rights for girls, pact u. S. A. , raven, the american conservative union, the tim tebow foundation, and so many more. I cannot thank you enough for all that each of you does to protect and advocate on behalf of child victims in both of the United States and abroad. Id also like to thank my colleagues across the aisle for their support of this bill, including representative madeleine dean, representative lucy mcbeth, and representative glenn ivey. Lastly, id like to thank Law Enforcement for their tireless efforts to protect children, including Homeland Security investigations and the internet crimes against Children Task forces across the country. This legislation will make a Significant Impact on our ability to investigate and prosecute child predators. Im politicalled this im thrilled that this passed out of committee unanimously and im thrilled to see it brought before the house today. It is supported by Law Enforcement advocacy groups and Tech Companies alike. Its bipartisan, its common sense and it will save lives. I urge my colleagues to pass the report act and take this important step to protect children. Thank you, and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. Ms. Dean thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Dean i rise in support of s. 4674 s. 474, the report act. I thank you, representative lee, for your leadership on this by the report act would strengthen the ongoing collaboration between Law Enforcement and Technology Providers to investigate the exploitation of children. The exploitation of children through child sexual abuse material, csam, can only be stopped with cooperation across many sectors of American Society from law enformts to victims groups to local leaders and Technology Providers. The report act would enable this cooperation and encourage much greater reporting to the Cyber Tipline operated by the National Center for missing and exploited children, or ncmec. This would change reporting environments and give Law Enforcement more time to investigate these cases. By making updates to the law the report act will help law ep forcement evolve with this threat as consumption of child sexual abuse content permeates new technology spaces. Advancements in technology from generative a. I. To social networking platforms clearly benefit society. Technology has brought us cutting edge medical and therapeutic breakthroughs, the ability to keep in touch with loved ones for a away and opportunities for budding entrepreneurs and artist who Leverage Technology to reach their audiences without costly barriers to entry. Yet there is also a dark side. Law enforcement experts and victims advocates agree, advancedments in technology have led to an explosion of images depicting child sexual abuse available and distributed online. Demand for new and more egregious photos and videos drive the mark for this material resulting in the continued grotesque abuse and exploitation of children. Through their comprehensive efforts, the internet crimes against children, icac, task force which represent more than 5 5,400 local, state and federal prosecutorial agencies are making progress in identifying and rescuing victims of child sex abuse material. The growth of the problem continues to out pace the res oo locate and identify victims, especially since Law Enforcement prorks cuters, the Tech Industry and other organizations must continually contend with the emergence of new technologies like a. I. Which further complicates their efforts. Under the process for reporting child sexual abuse material today, Electronic Service providers or companies that offer a platform through which users can communicate are required to report instances of csam to cyber tip line. After a tip is reported, the Company Works with ncmec to share relevant information. Refers them out to a relate agency. Today ncmec reports the Cyber Tipline has received more than 92 million reports since its began in 1998. The majority of them from Electronic Communication Service providers. Ncmecs Child Victim Identification Program has reviewed more than 331 million images and videos. That is more than 25 million images a year. That is grotesque. While most children reflected in the images remain unknown, more than 19,300 victims have been identified. I commend the successes of ncmec and other Law Enforcement agencies in identifying and rescues victims but we cannot be satisfied while so many victims remain unidentified. Thats why the report act is an important first step to increasing the effectiveness of csam reports and better identifying victims of child sexual abuse. The Senate Passed this bill by unanimous consent with the support of Law Enforcement groups. The National Center for missing and exploited children, ncmec, and Technology Providers with passage of this bill today the next stop will be President Bidens desk. Again, i thank representative lee for your extreerdnary leader sthoip protect all our children. I urge members to support this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves. The gentlewoman from florida is recognized. Ms. Lee i would inform the gentlelady that i have no further speakers and i am prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleladyis recognized. Ms. Dean i too have no further speakers, i am prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Ms. Dean thank you, mr. Speaker. In conclusion, the report act takes an important step toward combating the proliferation of child sexual abuse material online and protecting victims from future abuse. I want to thank representative lee for your leadership in introducing the house version of this bill. Im proud to cosponsor it with you, and our Senate Partners for sponsoring the legislation. This is about our children. I urge all members to support the bill and i yield the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from pennsylvania yields. The gentlewoman from florida is recognized. Ms. Lee thank you, mr. Speaker. I want to thank representative dean. It was a privilege to cosponsor this legislation with you. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman yields. The question is will the house suspend the rules and pass s. 474. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair 2 3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition . I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 3738, the veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition Administration act. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the bill. The clerk h. R. 3738, to establish the veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition Administration and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from illinois, mr. Bost, and the gentleman from california, mr. Takano, each will criminal 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. Mr. Bost i ask unanimous consent that all members have five leng slative days to revise and extend their remarks on h. R. 3738 as amended. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Bost i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Bost i rise in support of h. R. 3738 as amended offered by dr. Wenstrup of ohio. H. R. 3738 as amended would establish a new administration called the veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition Administration within the department of Veterans Affairs. For years the Veterans Benefits administration has been overburdened and overwhelmed with the bureaucracy and red tape. Right now v. B. A. Simply has too many important duties to fulfill on behalf of the veterans and has pulled into too many directions. Even with the pact act giving record funding to reduce backlogs and increasing veterans benefit, this Committee Still sees poor performance from this part of the v. A. Dr. Wenstrups bill will amend and would increase accountability and provide additional needed manpower to veterans and certain programs. For year, we have led the let the v. A. Use their own judgment on how to handle these programs. V. B. A. Is making too many decisions without notifying veterans, putting new burdensome requirements on schools and creating new programs that will cost billion of taxpayer dollars. Changes are frequently made to the program with little input from congress, our stake holders and with little recourse for schools or veterans. While the Biden Administration has been especially guilty of this it must stop regardless of who is in the white house. This bill on the floor today is just the beginning of our efforts to improve the delivery of benefits for veterans and their families. I thank the v. F. W. , the f. B. A. , the d. A. V. An american leefor their support of the bill. I want to thank my friend, dr. Wenstrup, for his continuing to be an advocate for this bill before he retires from congress and my colleagues across the aisle for cosponsoring and supporting the legislation through the committee process. The legacy of this bill will make a difference for veterans and their families. This will match the important legacy of dr. Wenstrups steadfast support of veterans and Service Members as a u. S. Army veteran. Now i urge all my colleagues to support h. R. 3738 as amended and with that, mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from illinois reserves. The gentleman from california is recognized. Mr. Takano thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Takano i rise to express my support for h. R. 3738 as amended, a bill to establish a new administration at the department of Veterans Affairs. We have passed similar versions of this bill in the last several congresses and i thank dr. Wenstrup for his continued work on this as well as that of the current Economic Opportunity subcommittee Ranking Member, mr. V. A. Administers major programs like the bill, vrne and v. A. Home loan program. Yet these programs must compete for attention and oversight within the Veterans Benefits administration. Often theres a lack of attention from v. B. A. On critical benefits, since a majority of the staff and resources are dedicated to the administration of disability compensation and pension claims. Soy support h. R. 3738 and urge my colleagues to do the same. Thank you, mr. Speaker, and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from illinois is recognized. Mr. Bost as this time id like to yield three minutes to my good friend and representative from ohios second district, dr. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized mr. Wenstrup thank you, mr. Chairman, thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in support of my bill, h. R. 3738, the veterans Economic Opportunity and transition act, veota act. As a retired member of the United States army reserve, iraq war veteran, i know how important it is to help our war fighters succeed in their transition to civilian life. Far too often, people think unjustly that veterans return from war defeated and with skills that arent applicable to the civilian world. This could be no further from the truth than anything else ive ever heard. Our veterans are strong, dependable leaders and team players. Our commitment to programs that promote opportunity and success brings forth their abilities and potentials. I believe our Service Members should have a plan from the day that they enter the military to the day they transition out and beyond. We should care about their military and postmilitary careers. Our veterans are soldiers for life, as we say in the army, and we need to put as much emphasis and attention on their successes after service as we do during it. Currently, the Veterans Benefit Administration is responsible for all department of Veterans Affairs benefits provided to veterans outside of health care and cemetery services. While there are many benefits the v. B. A. Provides, the bulk of staffing and resources have been understandably directed toward the administration of disability compensation and pension claims. This has resulted in a lack of attention on administration of other v. B. A. Benefits such as the forever g. I. Bill, vocational reha pill billation, home loan benefits and the v. A. s portion of the strains ition Assistance Program we cant let these benefits fall by the wayside, especially those that empower veterans and help set them on a path for success in civilian life. By aligning transition, education and employment programs in a Fourth Administration with the v. A. , this act will modernize the department and ensure these programs get the high priority they deserve, the oversight they need and serve our veterans much better. I want to thank representative levin for leading this legislation with me now for the third time and we have many senators supporting us as well. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and with that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from california is recognized. Mr. Takano i have no further speakers, im prepared to close. Mr. Bost i have no further speakers, im prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from california is recognized to close. Mr. Takano i ask my colleagues to support h. R. 3738 as amended and yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from illinois is recognized. Mr. Bost i encourage all members to support this legislation to help improve the way v. A. Services are veterans are receiving it. I yield back the balance of my time. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. For what purpose does we request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore yeas and nays are ordered. Those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. A sufficient number having arisen, yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. Proceedings will resume now on motions to suspend the rules previously postponed. Votes will be taken in the following order, h. R. 4866 and h. R. 4755. The first electronic vote will be conducted as a 15minute vote. Pursuant to clause 9 of rule 20, remaining electronic votes will be conducted as fiveminute votes. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the Unfinished Business is the vote on the motion of the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. Lucas, to suspend the rules and pass h. R. 4866 as amended. On which the yeas and nays are ordered. The clerk will please report the title. The clerk h. R. 4866, a bill to direct the administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to establish a program to improve Fire Protection and local collaboration and force. The speaker pro tempore the question and force. And for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore 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. ] forefor other purposes the speaker pro tempore on this vote the yeas are 341, the nays are 48. 2 3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. Without objection, the title is amended. The speaker pro tempore the house will be in order. The speaker the house will be in order. For what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i rise, along with my colleagues, to convey our deepest sorrow of the passing of our good friend, six term new jersey congressman donald payne jr. Of the 10th congressional district. Were grateful for his Public Service and offer our prayers and condolences to his wife and their children. Like his father before him, and i served with him as a great man, donald payne sr. , donald jr. Was a dedicated Public Servant who tirelessly and tenaciously worked to improve the lives of new jersey families, especially the poor. He was a kind and compassionate lawmaker who cared deeply for his people, his district, the state, and the country, and especially those in need, especially the sick. As a diabetic, he fought to lower the cost of insulin. He wrote the removing barriers to colorectal screening act and compassion act to provide full coverage for p. A. D. To help reduce amputations. His test for lead act was designed to protect children from lead contaminated Drinking Water in schools and he wrote the Homeland Security interoperable act that became law in 2015. As chairman and Ranking Member of the house railroads, pipelines and Hazardous Material subcommittee, he helped lead the charge to improve americas infrastructure and played a key role in securing the gateway project and was a powerful ally of amtrak. Donald payne served two terms on the new york city council, including as his president , and beginning in 2005, three terms assets excounty free holder, which we now call commissioner. Donald payne jr. Will be deeply missed. Id like to yield to my good friend and colleague, mr. Pallone, for any comments he would have. Mr. Pallone thank you, chris. Chris really laid out all the great accomplishments of don payne in terms of what he accomplished here, which was so much as a member of congress. But i just want to talk a little bit about the man. I think that many of us know don for his trademark bow tie, his big smile, and his friendly demeanor. More than a member of new jerseys congressional delegation, he was a part of our family, and he affectionately called me uncle frank. He used his time here to improve the lives and health of new jerseyans and americans with so many things that chris smith mentioned, but don was always struggling with Health Issues from the day he came here. I dont know many of you knew that. But it never stopped him from his work from voting. So many times in the past year, we had very close votes, and he would always show up if there was any way possible. And also, doing special orders, he had the record for most special orders in several years. If you look over there in seat number one where democrats would sit if they wanted to line up for special orders, youd see the flowers and the morning cloak. He was always the first one to come down. And i think a lot of you maybe didnt realize how uncomfortable he was when he was sick. But he always took the time to ask how you were doing. If i would go up to him and say donald, how are you feeling today, he would say fine, just move on, but say how are you doing, frank . How do you feel . How is the family . He just made you feel like he was your friend. And it didnt matter whether you were democrat or republican or where you were from. So i do want to join chris in mentioning his wife beatrice and children, he had triplets, donald iii, jack, and yvonne who want to honor his legacy and service to our state and our country. But i just want to say in closing to don, uncle frank says goodbye. But you will certainly not be forgotten by any of us. And with that i yield back to chris smith. Mr. Smith i would ask everyone to join us in a moment of silent prayer for our deceased colleague. The speaker pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the Unfinished Business is the vote on the motion of the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. Lucas, to suspend the rules and pass h. R. 4755 as amended on which the yeas and nays are ordered. The clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 4755, the bill to support research on progress enhancing technologies and promote responsible data use and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill as amended. 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 353 the speaker pro tempore on this vote, the yeas are 354, the nays are 36. 2 3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended and the bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from wisconsin seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent that i here after consider to be the first sponsor of h. R. 1303 a bill originally introduced by by reprintings pursuant to clause 7 of rule 12. The speaker pro tempore without objection without objection. So ordered. For what purpose does the gentleman from wisconsin seek recognition . I unanimous consent when the house adjourns today it meet at 10 00 a. M. Tomorrow. The speaker pro tempore without objection so ordered. For what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition . I offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration. The speaker pro tempore s hmp hhh. The clerk will report the resolution. The clerk House Resolution 1172 resolved that the house has heard with profound sorrow of the death of honorable donald m. Payne junior a representative of the state of new jersey, resolved that the clerk communicate these resolutions to the senate and transmit to the family of the deceased, resolved, when the house rejowrns today it adjourn as a mutter mark of the memory of the deceased. The speaker pro tempore without objection the resolution is agreed to and the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from missouri, mr. Smith, seek recognition . Mr. Smith pursuant to House Resolution 1125, i call up the bill h. R. 529, the extending limits of u. S. Customs waters act and ask for its immediate consideration in the house. The clerk Union Calendar number 361, h. R. 529 a bill to extend the customs waters of the United States from 12 nautical miles to 24 nautical miles from the baselines of the United States consistent with president ial proclamation 2217. The speaker pro tempore the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on ways and means and the bill is considered read. The bill as amended shall be debatable for one hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member. The gentleman from missouri, mr. Smith, and the gentleman from california, mr. Panetta each will control 30 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from missouri. Mr. Smith i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to submit material on the bill under consideration. The speaker pro tempore without objection so ordered. Mr. Smith i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized mr. Smith thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in support of the extending limits of u. S. Customs waters act introduced by good friend mike waltz. This bill would double the current distance that customs and Border Patrol can enforce u. S. Laws from 12 to 24 nautical miles off the coast of the United States. Congress should pass this legislation to protect americas National Security and economic interests. C. B. P. Is responsible for enforcing americas trade laws. With this expanded area of operations, the agency can better protect intellectual property, fight Illegal Dumping of products and ensure america is paid the customs revenues we are owed. Other Law Enforcement agencies like the coast guard, already operate at the 24 nauticalmile limit. C. B. P. Must be empowered fully to carry out its responsibilities and protect our National Security and enforce our trade laws. Currently c. B. P. Must rely on president ial proclamations for Legal Authority to pursue our board vessels more than 123 nautical miles off of our coast. In some cases, courts have created uncertainty by questioning the validity of this authority. Congress can use its legislative power to give the agency more certainty and the ability to operate more effectively in the future. Making this change will also help keep American Families safer. International crime rings smuggle drugs through our sea and airports. In fiscal year 2022, c. B. P. Captured hundreds of thousands of pounds of Illegal Drugs including 200,000 pounds of cocaine and 146 pounds of deadly fentanyl poisoning americans. More than 80 of those drugs that were seized on the water. This bill makes it easier to stop Illegal Drugs from reaching our border and entering our communities. This bill makes it easier for us to end the abuses of Human Trafficking. It is not just drugs that are smuggled into the United States. Humans are being trafficked and oftentimes by sea. By expanding and law the area in which they can operate, c. B. P. Agents will have more flexibility to capture and arrest criminals smuggling drugs and people into our country. This bill won bipartisan approval in the wise and Means Committee last year because it is an approach to stop International Crime rings. It is a change customs and border has asked us for and of which the Biden White House has previously supported. I urge all my colleagues to support this legislation and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. Panetta. Mr. Panetta i yield myself such time as i may consume. Thank you to chairman smith for that argument. I rise in support of the extending limits of the u. S. Customs waters act. H. R. 529 authored and introduced by mike waltz would extend the customs waters of the United States from 12 to 24 nautical miles, a change that would expand the coastal area in which air and Marine Operations can exercise their Law Enforcement authority to stem the flow of Human Trafficking and secure our borders. C. B. P. s air and Marine Operations plays an Important Role in preventing the unlawful entry by sea into our nation as spoke to by chairman smith. Our coastal domain is over 95,000 miles long and in an area that is open and maneuverable than air and land and it is vulnerable being transnational. The current law prevents a. M. O. From stopping those smugglers more than 12 nautical miles from shore even though as you heard the waters of the United States extend out to 24 nautical miles. Soy what we have seen is the Transnational Criminal Organizations are taking advantage of that situation, taking advantage of this limitation which is demonstrated by the numbers including that in 2022, 82 of drug seizures by a. M. O. Including 702 pounds of fentanyl occurred in the maritime environment. A. M. O. Has the authority to intrm september vessels that are smuggling people on the sea which is unform as we have seen is one of the most dangerous ways to enter into any country. A. M. O. Has the duty to prevent loss of life and discouraging by rescuing those traps. Many of the vessels used to smuggle people these days are not built for the waters they are on nor are they equipped for the long journey. The u. S. Coast guard says every vessel has improvised materials and no concern for the people on board. Mover, smugglers often overload their vessels which risks capsizing the loss of life. When a. M. O. Encounters suspicious people, these operations turn into rescues. With many on board being sick and hydrated and even overboard in the water. A. M. O. Are trained and equipped to train for the people on board. Many personnel are trained as Emergency Medical Technicians and e. M. T. T. s and they are trained first responders. A. M. O. Vessels are equipped with trauma and first aid kits and ladders. By increasing the custom waters from 12 to 24, we are giving a. M. O. More opportunity to rescue people, to save lives to respond to suspected see vehicles and set up interdictions from shore and safely away from lawabiding vote rs. The expansion of the area will help them better do their job and stop drugs and protect the people who are on board. I support this legislation that passed unanimously out of the ways and Means Committee in november and i urge my colleagues to do the same. By supporting this legislation, we would not only support the legislation of a. M. O. To stop illegal narcotics and Human Trafficking and helping to secure our nations borders. I reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The chair recognizes the gentleman from missouri. Mr. Smith we have no additional speakers and are prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlemanfrom missouri reserves. The chair recognizes the gentleman from california. Mr. Panetta i have no further speakers and am prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized mr. Panetta this legislation has full bipartisan support of the ways and Means Committee and beyond and support from c. B. P. Air and Marine Operations. We need to combat Transnational Criminal Organizations. Extending it to 24 miles would exercise its Law Enforcement authority and protect human life and our communities by helping them secure our borders. I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentleman from missouri is recognized. Mr. Smith i yield myself the remainder of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized mr. Smith this bill helps gives customs and Border Protection the certainty to know they can enforce u. S. Trade laws without fear of their authority being challenged in court. Allowing our customs agents the authority to go out 24 miles off the coast is consistent with what both republican and democrat president s have supported. This bill helps c. B. P. Protect the livelihood of American Workers when foreigners treat our u. S. Are trade system. Its American Workers and Small Businesses who suffer. Improved trade enforcement not only helps our economy, but will help save american lives. Too many families know the pain of losing a loved one from a drug like fentanyl, that should have never come into our country. Customs need to catch the drugs before they reach our shore. We need to end the current inconsistency congress has fully authorized the coast guard to pursue and board suspicious vessels up to 24 miles off of our coast but has not done the same for c. B. P. I urge all my colleagues to vote yes on this legislation. Mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from missouri yields back. All time for debate has expired. The previous question is ordered on the bill as amended. 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 to extend the customs waters of the United States from 12 nautical miles to 24 nautical miles from the baselines of the United States consistent with president ial proclamation 7219. The speaker pro tempore the question on passage of the bill. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The bill is passed. And without objection mr. Smith mr. Speaker . The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri seek recognition . Mr. Smith i demand the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. Those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. A sufficient number having arisen. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the chair will postpone further proceedings today on additional motions to suspend the rules and for a recorded vote where the yeas and nays are ordered or if the vote is objected to under clause 6 of rule 20. The house will resume proceedings on postponed questions at a later time. For what purpose does the gentlelady from virginia seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h. R. 3722 as amended. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 3722, a bill to require Pilot Program on activities under the preseparation transition process of members of the armed forces for a reduction in suicide among veterans and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuan t to the rule, the gentlelady from virginia, ms. Kiggans and mr. Davis, each will control 20 minutes. The gentlelady from virginia is recognized. Mr. Kiggans i ask that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on the bill under consideration. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mrs. Kiggans i yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Mrs. Kiggans i rise in support of h. R. 3722, the daniel j. Harvey jr. And Adam Lambert Improving Service member transition to reduce veteran suicide act. I commend the gentleman from iowa for his leadership on this important issue. H. R. 3722 seeks to improve the transition Assistance Program run by the department of defense and the Solid Start Program run by the department of Veterans Affairs. Both programs provide critical assistance to the over 2,000 war fighters who transition to civilian life each year. Every departing Service Member is required to complete the tap program before leaving the service. The Program Provides valuable education and training on veteran benefits, financial planning, how to find a job and start a business, as well as Mental Health Resources Available to Service Members and their families. Departing military service can be very stressful times for Service Members and their families. Service members often experience feelings of isolation and loss of community that can exacerbate other Mental Health conditions. H. R. 3722 seeks to ensure all departing Service Members receive information on how to recognize and cope with these stressors as well as help them identify risk factors for suicide. On behalf of the Armed Services committee, we look forward to working with the gentleman from iowa as this bill works forward that may hinder its proper execution by the d. O. D. Its important we regularly review transition programs like tap and solid start and make sure they are meeting the needs of our departing Service Members and their families. The men and women of our armed forces sacrificed tremendously when they agree to serve our nation. When that service is complete, the least we can do is ensure they have an opportunity for a healthy and successful civilian life. Thats the goal of h. R. 3722. I urge all members to support it. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserves. The gentleman from North Carolina, mr. Davis, is recognized. Mr. Davis thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Davis id like to join my colleague, representative kiggans of virginia, and rise in support of h. R. 3722, the daniel j. Harvey jr. And Adam Lambert Improving Servicemember transition to reduce veteran suicide act. As a proud United States air force veteran and voice for over 46,000 veterans in North Carolinas first congressional district, i was proud to join my friend and colleague, the honorable zach nunn, in introducing this bipartisan bill last year ahead of memorial day weekend. The suicide rate in our military ranks and among our veterans is unacceptable. We must not have Service Members put themselves in harms way, fighting for our country, only to return home to take their own lives. By requiring the department of defense and the department of Veterans Affairs to jointly pursue a fiveyear Pilot Program, h. R. 3722, will help assess the feasibility of providing specified counseling and services as part of the transition Assistance Program. This bill will close the information gap and ensure veterans can access the services they need when and where they need them. When our active duty personnel take off their uniform and begin to transition to civilian life, we must ensure they have the Mental Health resources and support they need, not only to survive, but thrive. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlelady from virginia is recognized. Mrs. Kiggans i yield three minutes to the gentleman from iowa. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Thank you, madam speaker, thank you, madam chair. I rise to share the story of adam lambert, a proud marine from iowa. He brought joy and last tore his mother, jill, and proud sponsorship to his father dean. He was a protective brother to his siblings. He put himself before his country, his friends, his family, and service. And during boot camp, adam met with a fellow marine named Daniel Harvey from rhode island. Together these two became friends and stayed connected through their deployments and return to civilian life. And at 22 years old, sadly daniel died by suicide just a year after he left the marines, and tragically, as was noted, adam followed him in less than a month later. Unfortunately, adam and daniels story are all too often and is becoming one common among our veterans. Veteran suicide is a casualty of war and one that demands immediate attention and action by this congress. The truth is when our men and women in uniform leave the service, that transition to civilian life can be extremely difficult and often very much left alone. This is something ive witnessed firsthand as a 20year combat veteran as many others highlighted here from their military service and Squadron Commander in the air force. You saw air men struggle with life as they transition from defense of this nation. Lack of fellowship, Substance Abuse and finding a purpose weighs on all our veterans as they return to civilian life. Many of our brothers and sisters sadly do not make it. We need to do more to ensure veterans are aware of the Resources Available to them as they leave the armed forces. In honor of adam and daniel, as well as the countless other Service Members, i introduce the dan gentlelady j. Harvey jr. And Adam Lambert Improving Service member transition to reduce veteran suicide act. This Bipartisan Legislation, led by veterans, makes critical improvements to the transition Assistance Program to provide Service Members who are returning home with access to the Mental Health resources, more vet v. A. Checkins and Clear Communication about available Assistance Programs as they navigate their return from the battlefield and before its too late. I thank all who have served our nation for their service and i strongly encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass this important and critical legislation. Thank you, madam speaker, thank you to my fellow veterans and thank to you all who serve. With that i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore does the gentlelady reserve . Mrs. Kiggans i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from North Carolina is recognized. Mr. Davis i thank my representative for bringing this forward and reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentlelady from virginia is recognized. Mrs. Kiggans i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from iowa. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. I thank you and thank chair kiggans for the opportunity to speak. I stand in support of h. R. 3722, the daniel j. Harvey and Adam Lambert Improving Service member transition to reduce veteran suicide act which is coled by my colleague from iowa, representative zach nunn. Our brave men and women in uniform have sacrificed immeasurably to defend our nation and uphold our freedoms and as a 24year veteran i know too well when they return home many face significant challenges transitioning back to civilian life. Mrs. Miller meeks too often they lead to tragic outcomes including the heartbreaking reality of veteran suicide. This bipartisan bill presents an opportunity for us to take meaningful action to address this crisis. By implementing a Pilot Program to enhance the preseparation transition process for our Service Members, we can provide them with the necessary support and resources to navigate this challengesing period successfully. The proposed model outlined in this bill provides education on the potential risks and challenges facing our transitioning Service Members including issues such as posttraumatic stress disorder, and homelessness. It provides information on available resources and Treatment Options through the department of veteran affairs and other organizations. Furthermore, by offering individualized services such as assessments of eligibility for v. A. Health care, counseling, and coordination of health care based on individual needs, we can ensure our veterans receive the support they deserve as they reintegrate back into civilian life. This is not a partisan issue. Its a moral imperative. We must always stand for our military and honor our veterans by supporting h. R. 3722, we reaffirm our commitment to fulfilling this sacred duty. I thank my good friend from iowa, representative nunn, for introducing this legislation and urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in supporting this bill and taking Decisive Action to reduce veteran suicide rates and ensure that those who have served our country receive the support and care they need and deserve. Thank you and i yield back. Mrs. Kiggans i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserves. The gentleman from North Carolina is recognized. Mr. Davis i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from virginia is recognized. Mrs. Kiggans were prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserves. The gentleman from North Carolina is recognized. Mr. Davis i have no further speakers and am prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Davis thank you, mr. Speaker. As we conclude today on this vital legislation, im compelled to emphasize the significance of the issue at hand. According to the v. A. s 2023 National Veteran suicide annual report, 6,392 veterans died by suicide in 2021. 114 more than the previous year. This rate is more than double of that of the civilian population, underscoring a crisis that requires immediate and Decisive Action. The stories of Corporal Adam lambert and lance corpsal Daniel Harvey lost their lives after serving in afghanistan remind us that we must do more. The enhancement of d. L. D. And v. A. Transition Assistance Programs in h. R. 3722 will ensure that every Service Member leaving the military is not only aware of but also able to assess resources to address Mental Health conditions, Substance Use disorders and other risk factors associated with suicide. To honor the leg answer of our legacy of our fallen, we must recommit ourselves to our Service Members and veterans, our real heroes. Thank you. I support the legislation and urge my colleagues to support the legislation. And again, thank the the gentleman, in closing to reiterate the points that have been made by our veteran colleagues, hard to transition out of the military. We wake up every day with the mission and we are part of a team and gets us out of bed in the morning and no higher calling and the day that stops and the day you are not part of that team and might not know what is ahead in life and a lot of unknowns. It is hard and we have to do better for our servicemen and women. We are thankful for the two Young Marines we spoke but one veteran suicide is too many. In my district, take ships out of commission and put them on the yards and we have seen suicides there as well. Taking those servicemembers out of their role and defending the country and putting them in a holding pen is very hard and no more challenging time than that. This is the least we can do. The education is a powerful tool and one of the tools. So mandating this education be given to servicemen and women who have great long lives ahead and what resources are available to them especially for Mental Health. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. I look forward to supporting it myself and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the good yields. The question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 3722 as amended. Those in favor, say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended and the bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition . I move to suspend penned the rules and pass the veterans accuracy and training or vet act as amended. The clerk Union Calendar number 373, h. R. 5914, a bill to amend title 38 to improve the processes to approve programs of education for purposes of the Educational Programs of department of Veterans Affairs and for other purposes pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from illinois, mr. Bust and the gentleman from california, mr. Takano will control 20 minutes. Bust bust i ask that members have. I yield myself such time as i pay consume. Bust bust i rise in support as amended by my friend and colleague mr. Van orden this bill as amended would improve the information schools are required to give individuals regarding their g. I. Bill benefits. Right now schools are required to give an estimated cost to education to anyone using the g. I. Bill. However, there are cases where the school cannot accurately estimate the tuition and expenses for that year. This could cause a veteran to pick a school based on Incorrect Information that might harm them financially this the future. I support giving veterans the information they need to make the right decision about their education. I do not support schools being forced to give an estimate before the student enrolls. This bill would ensure that schools have a Central Place to find information to train their staff and charge of student veterans use their been have its. Timely, this bill as amended would improve opportunities for veterans wanting to get commercial drivers licenses. I thank representative edwards as well for his work on key provisions of this bill. I urge my colleagues to support h. R. 5914 as amended and i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from california. Mr. Takano i yield myself such time as i may consume. I rise to express my support for h. R. 5914 as amended veteran transparency and training or vett act. This bill makes changes to rules and regulations and planning for veterans to participate in commercial diver certification programs. It makes improvements to the shopping to student veterans. While i support the legislation, i wish to raise a concern is that legislation this chooses one industry commercial truck living over others. I understand that this industry is in need of workers. However, Truck Driving is not the career choice for all and putting one industry ahead of others doesnt benefit. Should this bill become law, we should ensure we do oversight of enrollments, quality jetion and earnings. The legislation improves shopping sheets for enrollments. This is a welcome improvement we wont waste time on paperwork that wont benefit. I thank representative van orden. I support h. R. 5914 and i urge my colleagues to do the same. Thank you. I reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. Bust bust bus bus i would like to yield three minutes to the gentleman from, representative van orden and i appreciate the job he has done on this. Senator van hollen mr. Van orden i rm speak on my legislation the vet act. It addresses barriers while trying to been fits that they earned and transition to civilian life. One provision the requirement by reversing the mandate for shopping sheets. With the department of education many institutions cannot provide an accurate aid information to our student veterans and and it is unsettability. My legislation resolves this burden that it can disapprove programs when schools failed to provide information. This change offers the needed flexibility like Police Academies and Truck Driving schools to operate effectively while safeguarding veterans and their families. These are two industries that should be supported by congress and the American People. I am thankful to see the inclusion of the provision that will aid our veterans in the Trucking Industry. And by eliminating weights for commercial drivers license this opens up jobs and aids for fulfilling the necessary roles. We need to get our servicemen transition from productive members of the military to productive members of civilian life and this dovetails with h. R. 3722 because the 24month window following separating from active duty service and we will do anything to prevent that. I thank Ranking Member takano for your support and i urge my colleagues to support it. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentleman from california is recognized. Mr. Takano i have no further speakers and prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore jarred. The gentleman reserves. The gentleman from illinois is recognized. I yield three minutes to the gentleman from to the gentleman from North Carolina. Thank you, mr. Speaker. And thank you to mr. Van orden for his legislation on the veterans education transparency and training act. This bill makes much needed improvements to veteran educational Assistance Programs and it will expand Job Opportunities for the brave men and women who serve our great nation. I am particularly grateful to mr. Van orden including my pill bill into the vet act. The v. A. Will increase veteran access to timely quality training increase the truck driver work force pool and reduce the strain that is worsened by the severe truck Driver Shortage. Across the United States, the Trucking Industry is facing more than 78,000 Driver Shortage which sole estimate could reach by 160,000 by 2030. The shortage is exacerbated in part by burdensome red tape restricting access to commercial training. Currently, 8400 commercial driving programs are approved by use for eligible programs but statutory twoyear rule prevents them from benefits. This red tape has excluded many veterans from attending closer Training Facilities and it has been forcing veterans to travel hundreds of miles for training or wait two years to pursue their c. D. L. There are new branches of preapproved Training Facilities located in the same state as the the twoyear wait. Before i close, i thank mr. Pappas from New Hampshire for being my bipartisan colead on the bill and senators fisher and padilla for leading this effort in the senate. This is commonsense reform that will reduce road blocks to vetted ran training. Im grateful for inclusion in the vet act and i urge support for h. R. 5419. And i yield back. I have no more speakers and i am ready to close and i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from california is recognized. Mr. Takano madam speaker, i ask all my colleagues in join me passing h. R. 5914 the vet act and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back and the gentleman from illinois. I encourage to support this legislation and get the most out of our g. I. Benefits and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 5914 as amended. Those in favor, say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 are in the affirmative. The rules are suspended and the bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsiders is laid on the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition . I move to suspend the rules and pass h. R. 4016 veterans fraud reurmt act. The clerk Union Calendar number 379 h. R. 4016 a bill to amend United Statescode to improve the repayment of secretary of of benefits misused by a beneficiary. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from illinois, mr. Boast and the gentleman from mr. Takano each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. I ask unanimous consent that all members may have legislative days to extend their remarks on 4016. The speaker pro tempore without objection i yield myself such time as i may consume. I rise in support of h. R. 4016 as offered by representative connolly. This will would ensure that v. A. s fiduciary program is managed effectively so our nations most vulnerable receive the benefits they deserve. V. A. Provides fiduciary for veterans who cannot manage their own well being. A fiduciary misuses funds if they spend those funds on anything other than the vote ran. Before the funds can be put on hold, v. A. Has to determine if the misuse was the result of negligence. V. A. Doesnt adequately monitor whether the judgments are made in a timely way. This has led to long wait times for veterans to recoup misused veterans. Some veterans have passed away before recouping their benefits. We must ensure the v. A. Promptly makes whole any veteran who was a victim of mits use by a fiduciary. H. R. 4016 would ensure just that. It would prohibit v. A. From withholding repayment of misused benefits because v. A. Is still working on a negligence determination. It would also require v. A. To es tab lush methods to ensure that negligence determinations are made in a timely way. Veterans serve to receive their benefits without bureaucratic hurdles and unnecessary delays. I urge all of my colleagues to support h. R. 4016 and with that, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from california is recognized. Mr. Takano i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Takano thank you, madam speaker. I rise in strong support of the bill from representative connolly, h. R. 4016, the veteran fraud reimbursement act, and urge my colleagues to do the same beneficiaries in the fiduciary program are among the most vulnerable in v. A. s care. Because theyre often elderly or mentally ill they are at greatest risk for financial abuse. Unfortunately, despite the v. A. s best efforts at vetting fiduciaries, bad actors to arise from time to time. When that happens, theft or misuse can have a devastating impact on the beneficiary. Not only that the strain of being taken advantage of can further erode their physical and Mental Health as well. As such, i support this bills goal of speeding restitution to beneficiaries who have may have suffered from to theft or misuse of funds by a fiduciary we must empower v. A. To make these beneficiaries whole as soon as possible. It is the right thing to do. I encourage my colleagues to support the bill. Thank you, madam speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from illinois is recognized. Mr. Bost thank you, madam speaker. At this time i would like to yield three minutes to the gentlewoman, dr. Miller meeks, from iowa. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Mrs. Millermeeks thank you, madam speaker. I thank chairman bost for yielding me time to speak. I rise in strong support of h. R. 4016, the veteran fraud reimbursement act. This bipartisan piece of legislation introduced by representatives ciscomani and connolly, aims to enhance the process for misappropriated benefits. Our veterans have selflessly served our nation with honor and courage and its our duty to ensure they receive the benefits they rightly deserve and have earned. However, instances of misappropriation of Veterans Benefits are a grave injustice that cannot be tolerated. This bill addresses this issue head on by instituting crucial reform tones sure that our veterans are promptly reimbursted for any benefits misappropriated by their fiduciaries. You should this proposed legislation, the veteran of vet the secretary of Veterans Affair will reissue benefits to those defrauded of their funds. They must make efforts to recoup the Funds Holding the misusers of funds. We cannot turn a blind eye to the injustices faced by our veterans. By supporting h. R. 4016, we demonstrate our up wavering commitment to protecting the rights and well being of those who have bravely served our country. I urge all of my colleagues to support me in supporting this crucial legislation and standing up for our veterans. Thank you and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from california is recognized. Mr. Takano thank you, madam speaker. Id like to at this time yield five minutes to my good friend, the coauthor of this legislation who serves on the veterans Fairs Committee and the oversight and accountability committee, the representative from virginia, jerry connolly. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized mr. Connolly thank you, madam speaker. And thank you to mr. Bost and mr. Takano for their support in trying to fix a wrong. Mr. Bost i think perfectly described the intent of the bill and what the problem is i think mr. Takano did a great job in helping us understand what pain is incurred when veterans in a fiduciary status experience fraud and cannot get reimbursed in a timely manner for the benefits. As both gentlemen indicated, we have examples of veterans who have died before this issue is adjudicated. That is wrong. No veteran and no family of veterans should have to go through that once the determination has been made that fraud has occurred. And more than 50 of the people in this fiduciary category are pensioners. And as mr. Takano said this is among the most vulnerable population of veterans. And so easy to defraud, easy to exploit, take advantage of, and the government must stand by those men and women who served in uniform, served bravely, and deserve the best treatment from their government. Not negligent treatment so today with this bill, h. R. 4016, the veteran fraud reimbursement act which grew out of actually abencounter i had with veterans in my district who were describing this very problem. We cant solve every problem. But this one we can. Soy urge my colleagues tonight to support this legislation. I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for making this a bipartisan effort. I hope that it will pass with no opposition. And clear the senate. So that we can start making sure that our veterans are kept whole. With that, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore madam speaker, i have no further speakers and im prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman re mr. The gentleman reserves. Mr. Bost we have in more speakers. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from california. Mr. Takano i ask my colleagues to join me in supporting h. R. 4016 and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The gentleman from illinois. Mr. Bost madam speaker, once again, i encourage members to support this legislation. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 4016. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative mr. Bost i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. All those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. A sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. For what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition . Mr. Bost i move to suspend the rules and pass h. R. 1767, the student veterans benefit restoration act, as amended. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 1767, a bill to amend title 38 United States code to provide that Educational Assistance paid under department of Veterans Affairs educational Assistance Programs to an individual who pursued a program or course of education that was suspended or terminated for certain reasons that will not be sharnlged against the entitle entitlement will not be charged against the entitlement and for other reasons. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from illinois, mr. Bost, and the gentleman from california, mr. Takano, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. Mr. Bost i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on h. R. 1767 as amended. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Bost mr. Speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Bost thank you. Madam speaker, i rise in support of h. R. 1767 as amended, introduced by my friend and colleague representative ramirez, from my home state of illinois. The bill on the floor today is a result of good, bipartisan work to improve the lives of veterans. Now im pleased that representative ramirez was willing to work with me and make the changes that i believe were necessary to get this bill moving forward. H. R. 1767 as amended would restore the g. I. Bill benefits to student veterans that were harmed by misrepresentation or fraud of an Educational Institution. The g. I. Bill is one of the very best benefits a veteran earns for their service. No veteran should be unable to use their benefits to receive an education because of a fraudulent school stole their g. I. Bill. However, adequate due process ensures a fair system for both veterans and the school is necessary. This congress, we have seen Biden White House weaponize the department of education and use Student Loans for political gain. Their decision to act without listening to congress or courts will cost american taxpayers billions of dollars. We cannot let v. A. Become another department of education. Despite there being some people that would like to see that happen, for this reason, h. R. 1767 as amended would provide schools with a route for due process and appeal. Let me be clear a school found guilty of fraud would still have to repay the entitlement even with the additional due process provisions we have included in the bill. This proposed solution would rely on v. A. To make decisions about schools participating in the g. I. Bill program rather than leaving the Decision Making process to an entirely different agency. Now i thank the broader veteran community for their support of this bill as amended. I also want to thank my colleague, representative ramirez, and the minority staff, for helping us to get this bill into a good place. Now i urge all of my colleagues to support h. R. 1767 as amended. With that, madam speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from california is recognized. Mr. Takano thank you, madam speaker. I yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Takano i rise to express my support for h. R. 1767 as amended. A bill that will help some veterans have their g. I. Bill have their earned g. I. Bill benefits restored in the cases of fraud. The language before us is a narrower fix than our committee considered last summer, so while i will be supporting this bill, i want to send a message to some student veterans who unfortunately wont be helped by this legislation today. We hear you we will not stop working on a comprehensive fix for all student veterans impacted by fraudulent actors in higher education. I want to thank representative ramirez for her tireless efforts on behalf of student veterans. From her first days in congress shes put student Veterans First and its only right that she can lead the house in restoring benefits for our student veterans. I want to thank chairman bost for working with us on this language to get it to a place where he can support it. I look forward to working with you and your staff on improving this bill in the senate to ensure that no student veterans are left out. Its frankly quite disappointing and shocking that student veterans have lacked the same access to relief that student loan borrowers have generally. At a minimum, our veteran december serve the same protections that pr traditional student loan barroers can receive, especially when an Educational Institution closes, is suspended or terminated a program due to a determination of fraud. This bill does not get us all the way there. But i refuse to let perfect be the enemy of the good. This bill will help student veterans. For that reason, i urge support. I reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from illinois mr. Bost we have no more speakers, i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from california. Mr. Takano at this time id like to yield five minutes to my very good friend, a coauthor of this important piece of legislation, she also serves on the disability assistance and memorial afFairs Committee, subcommittee, and the Economic Opportunities subcommittee on the house Veterans Affairs committee. I yield to the gentlewoman from i rise today to urge the passage of 1767 the student benefit restoration act. When i came to congress about 16 months ago, i made a commitment to deliver legislative victories and every possible resource that would positively impact. During my first term in our work in the forp afFairs Committee, i have made a priority to ensure veterans have access to benefit and resource they have rightfully earned. That work includes protecting them from bad actors seeking to exploit them from the benefits they deserve. I am proud the student benefits restoration act bass passed the committee and come to the floor today. I thank the congressman for being an originally and chairman boston and the fantastic Committee Staff because we dont acknowledge the work they do enough. Thank you for the work you have done and your leadership to move this bill through committee. I thank veterans success and stupid veterans of america to protect our student veterans seeking to exploit their benefits. And the National Education association for the support of my bill and the work they do on behalf of student veterans and all students. I want to take the time to express my gratitude to my staff and the rest of the Committee Staff for the countless hours they have spent majority and minority working on bill. I thank them for this effort. I thank to justin who continues to do this instrumental work. Active quality education is one of the promises we have made and we have to deliver. The educational benefits have provided in veterans gaining access. The benefits will help ensure student veterans are transitioned back into civilian life. This bill starts the process of restoring the g. I. Benefits of student veterans who were defrauded. This bill will help veterans like Christopher Brown from illinois who was promised an education that would be covered but he used his benefits and left them with 95,000 of debt. Because of this bill, thousands of veterans across the country will now have a pathway to be able to seek restoration and i want to thank our Ranking Member for your commitment and our chairman. I believe that today is the beginning of the journey of making sure that every single veteran in this country is able to go to school and an opportunity to seek the education they did he severe and yes, my bill was negotiated and amended and i look forward to Work Together to have full party. And in the coming months and making sure this bill passes the senate. We will protect our student veterans in passing this and madam speaker, i urge my colleague to support the swift passage today and i look forward to it becoming law. Thank you. And i yield become to mr. Takano. Mr. Takano i reserve. And i have no further speakers and am prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized to close. Mr. Takano thank you, madam speaker, i ask my students to join me in passing h. R. 5767 and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentleman from illinois. I encourage all of our members to support this bill as well as the other bills we have moved here tonight. I thank the Ranking Member and the staffs on both sides of the aisle and with that, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the question is, will the house success pinned the rules and pass the bill h. R. 1767 as amended. Those in favor, say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 being in the affirmative the gentleman from illinois. I ask that we request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. All those in favor of take thing vote by yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. A sufficient number having arisen, yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. For what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition . I now move that the house do now adjourn. The speaker pro tempore the question is on the motion to adjourn. Those in favor, say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The motion is agreed to. Accordingly, pursuant to House Resolution 1172, the house stands adjourned until 10 00 a. M. Tomorrow as a further respect of the late donald m. Payne junior. House makers, licorice worked on several things. To come to him and talking drugs. Also on the floor, measures and with online child specialist petition, veteran benefits and wildfire detection. Later the streets of the chamber could take up legislation to codify the definition of entertainment is applied to the federally funded Educational Programs. When the house returns, what coverage here on cspan. Get information from members of government right at the palm of your hand when you your copy o4 congressional directories, click Contact Information for every house and Senate Member of the 118th congress. Important information on congressional committees, the president s cabinet, federal agencies, and state governors. Scan the code on your right to preorder your copy today for early shipping and delivery. For go to cspanshop. Org. Order your copy today. Announcer cspan is your unfiltered view of government funded by these Television Companies and including Charter Communications. Charter is proud to be recognized as one of the best internet providers and we are just getting started. Building 100,000 miles of new infrastructure to reach those who need it most. Announcer Charter Communications supports and as a Public Service along with these other television providers, giving you a frontrow seat to democracy. Journal continues. Host on mondays when congress is in session would like to look at the week ahead in washington. Joining us is politicos katherine tullymcmanus. I want to start with speaker johnson and his job security