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

Legislative work on a number of noncontroversial bills. Votes are expected at about 3 00 p. M. Eastern. And now to live coverage of the u. S. House. The speaker pro tempore the house will be in order. The prayer will be offered by our guest chaplain, rabbi mark getman, Temple Emanuel of canarsie, brooklyn, new york. The chaplain let us pray. Hetchly one, our protector and redeemer, guardian of life and liberty, we ask for your continued blessings as we open this session of the house of representatives. May our nation and its leaders be blessed with your protection as they continue their work for the constituents across these United States. God, continue to send your light to all elected officials across this land, guiding them with your good Council Counsel and providing them with wisdom and forebearance. Now our nation and its citizens always work toward world peace and harmony as part and party representing this great nation. God of peace and prosperity, bless this house of representatives and all those who lead, serve, and defend our nation. As they continue to serve with honor. And remember those who have died in defense of our ideals and values. May the one who makes peace in the universe make peace for all of us, for all the United States, for all the world. God bless america, amen. The speaker pro tempore the speaker pro tempore the chair has examined the journal of the last days proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. Pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1 the journal stands approved. The pledge of allegiance will be offered by the gentleman from florida, mr. Dunn. Mr. Dunn i pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentlewoman from new york, miss rice, is recognized for one minute. Miss rice thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today to welcome rabbi mark getman of Temple Emanuel of canarsie and thank you for leading us in prayer on the house floor. I was proud to invite him to give our opening prayer today and proud to call him a constituent of new yorks fourth Congressional District. Hes a military veteran, a cancer survivor, a community leader, and a man of deep faith. He embodies the strength, leadershipship, and patriotism that we look for in every american. I cant express how grateful i am for rabbi getman for making the trip down to washington today to represent our community and to deliver a message of harmony and compassion. I believe that is a message that our country needs to hear, perhaps now more than ever. Rabbi getman graciously reminded us today we are a country united under god in our pursuit of prosperity and peace for all people, and he reminded us this shared purpose is more powerful, more important than any Political Division we may have, and i couldnt agree more. As a member of the committee on veterans affairs, im beyond appreciative that rabbi getman paid such a touching tribute to the brave men and women who wear our uniform today and to those who pay the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our great nation. As a veteran himself, i know that rabbi getman understands that sacrifice better than most. I want to thank the rabbi once more for his service to our community and to our country and, above all, for taking the time to be here with us today and delivering a muchneeded essage of unity. The speaker pro tempore the chair will entertain up to 15 further requests for oneminute speeches on each side of the aisle. For what purpose does the gentleman from maryland seek recognition . Mr. Hoyer mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to speak out of order for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Hoyer mr. Speaker, this is a sad day in the history of the house. Ome 21 years ago, a deranged individual came through the door that we now call the memorial door and took the lives of two of our officers. Rise to pay tribute to my constituent, officer jacob chestnut, and detective john gibson from the state of virginia. Both of them were shot and killed defending this capitol 21 years ago today. July 24, 1998. A lone gunman burst through what we now call memorial door and attacked this sacred home of american democracy. These brave officers, who we remember today, placed themselves in the line of fire protect their lives to members, staff, and visitors in the building that morning. Memorial door, mr. Speaker, is right outside my office. I go through it almost every day. Every time i pass through it, i look at the memorial plaque and remember these two xtraordinary and brave men whose sacrifice will not be forgotten by those who work in this house, by their brothers and sisters in the Capitol Police force who stand century and watch over it and by their grateful fellow americans. Today sentry and watch over it and by their grateful fellow americans. Today, mr. Speaker, let us pay tribute to officer chust nut, chestnut, detective gibson, and thank all those of the Capitol Police and indeed to all Law Enforcement officers who every morning get up and put a badge, perhaps, on their chest or on their belt or in their wallet and go out to protect us, their neighbors, their friends. Let us thank all Law Enforcement officers in communities across this country for their service, their dedication, and their sacrifices, which make the xercise of democracy possible. Mr. Speaker, i just spoke about capitol and our our country. They lost their lives. I now speak about one who has served our house of representatives as an institution much more happily because shes served so well and so faithfully and so long and is now retiring and hopefully to a very happy retirement. We cannot do our job representing the American People without the tireless and sometimes thankless labors of the men and women who make this house function behind the scenes. They sit at the desk behind us. They sit at the upper rostrum. They make a difference, and they record what we have to say. From the Clerks Office to the parliamentarian staff, from the cspan crew to the recorders, the nonpartisan professional staff who enable the work of the house and its members are central to the success of our constitutional mission. The house has relied on the services of shorthand reporters of debates for almost 200 years, and the very wait improceedings of the house business has been published as part of the congressional record since 1873. We have a young woman whos now taking down my remarks, which may or may not be profound but somebody will be able to say, what did hoyer say, what did my representative say. A division of the office of the clerk, the office of official reporters is charged with providing nonpartisan, professional, stenographic services for the house floor committees and leadership. It has grown from a fiveperson shop in the 19th century to a diverse 43person operation today. They work extraordinarily long hours. They work very hard, and they are extraordinarily competent. Today, i join all my colleagues in thanking one of those outstanding, wonderful individuals who is retiring as the chief recorder of debates. Melinda walker. Melinda is with us on the floor today. Melinda, thank you very much. And i know, mr. Speaker, if it werent out of order i would mention that her family is in the gallery, but because thats not in order, i wont do that. Melinda will step down in august after more than 20 years of service to the house of representatives. A proud native of texas, melinda came to the house in 1999 after serving as a Court Reporter for the u. S. International criminal tribunal for rwanda in tanzania. Her career began after graduating from the Stenographic Institute of texas in 1989, and her work took her around the country and across the world with positions in the united kingdom, the caribbean, and south africa. Melinda has reported both House Committee hearings and floor proceedings. Shes taken down Committee Testimony from the chief from two chief justices of the Supreme Court and three secretaries of state, among many others. On the floor, melinda has reported the state of the Union Messages for three president s as well as the remarks of numerous foreign dignitaries during joint meetings of the congress. Upon melindas promotion to chief reporter in 2015, she led the team of reporters and staff in charge of the production of the congressional record. Under her watch, the office has been successful in meeting its daily production deadlines while capturing the intory indicate parliamentary intory indicate parliamentary nuances. She has an updated, more than 200 pages long for the office of official reporters. Americans will be advantaged by that work for decades to come. Shes been recognized by the national Court Reporters association as a registered professional reporter and a certified manager of reporting services, and she remains a certified shorthand reporter in her native texas. Melinda plans to return to her hometown of san saba, texas, and spend more time with her family and faithful dog, blue. Ucky dog to have melinda back. Mr. Speaker, i hope my colleagues will join me in thanking Melinda Walker for her many years of distinguished and dedicated service to the house and in wishing her the very best in retirement. Melinda, we owe you and your colleagues a debt of gratitude. You silently serve and sit and listen to verb after noun after adjective after word after word after word. And you stay awake. It is amazing. And you do it so well to the advantage of all of us who serve here, but more importantly, to the advantage of the people of the United States who will know what their representatives say on their behalf and will be, therefore, able in a democracy to make a sound judgment as to whether those words are the words they want intoned on this floor on their behalf. So, melinda, to you and to all your colleagues, we say thank you, god speed, be well. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from maryland yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from florida rise, seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks, as necessary. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you very much, mr. Speaker. I rise today to recognize a local hero from jackson county, florida, mr. Ed southern son is known inter sorensen is known to rescue and retrieve be cave divers. Mr. Dunn just this past march he was called on the Dominican Republic to retrieve two bodies on the brink of not being recovered due to dangerous conditions. In tennessee he was called upon in the middle of the night to save the life of a professional cave diver, josh bratchly, widely known as the man who saved the Thai Soccer Team from their cave incident. When ed is not answering a call for the next cave rescue, youll find him managing his cave diving business in florida where hes a cave dive instructor. Ed is a truly remarkable individual. Mr. Speaker, please join me in ecognizing mr. Ed sorensen for his heroic and selfless actions who saved many and brought closure to the means that would not have been possible. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one inute. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to highlight the suffering of ethiopian israelis. Mr. Payne a couple of weeks ago, a young ethiopianisraeli man was killed by an Israeli Police officer. After this tragedy, there have been massive protests against Police Brutality. Unfortunately, these protests have turned violent. While i do not condone violence, i believe people have the right to protest systemic racism. The Ethiopian Community in israel has been treated like second class citizens for decades. In the 1990s, ethiopianisraelis had their donated blood secretly disposed of by israeli officials because they believed it may contain h. I. V. Virus. Just four years ago, an ethiopianisraeli i. D. F. Soldier was brutally beaten by an Israeli Police officer setting off another wave of massive demonstrations. Now there are reports that the protests against Police Brutality with are being cast as antiisraeli. This is nothing more than an attempt to delegitimize their suffering. I will not tolerate it and neither should any member of this body. With that, i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. For what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition . I request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Thompson this week, the u. S. Department of agriculture announced and published a new rule about broadbased eligibility for snap, known as food stamps. Snap recipients in dozens of states have been automatly enrolled in the program despite not demonstrating financial need imply by receiving other services. Anyone with is truly economic distressed and eligible will continue to continue to receive snap benefits. But through the loophole thats been existent, some were enrolled in the program without meeting its asset and income tests. These are Critical Metrics to ensure Program Integrity and prevent benefits from going to those who would not normally qualify or truly need assistance. This new regulation attempts to fix the problem by limiting cat gorical eligibility for snap resip yonets only to those who receive substantial Welfare Benefits rather than nominal ones. As a former chairman of the nutrition subcommittee, i rise in strong support of this proposal. Enacting this rule will help address waste and abuse within snap while encouraging the continued availability for our friends in need who truly find themselves food insecure. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today to honor the life of paul haney, a longtime leader in rochester and Monroe County and my very dear friend who passed away on sunday. As a former county legislator and city councilman, he was a fixture in our community, a man who truly embodied the high ideals of public service. He was kind, honest, smart as a whip and deeply passionate about improving the community he loved. He devoted his life and service to his neighbors and was always the first to lend a hand to those in need. Mr. Morelle paul haneys contributions have left a profound and Lasting Impact on his beloved city. His legacy will never be forgotten. I join all rochester and Monroe County in mourning his loss and extend my prayers around and sympathies to the haney family. Thank you, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today to congratulate midshipman Chandler Washburn and the entire United States Naval Academy mixed crew team for their victory at the historic, nowhistoric kings cup this past july. The kings cup is a prestigious race between eight allied military forces and has only en held twice, once in 1919, and this year on the 100th anniversary. The u. S. Naval academy the feeted countries like canada, france, and germany on their way to winning the cup. This northeast Florida Community is incredibly proud of chandler and his fellow midshipmen on this extraordinary accomplishment. Mr. Rutherford chandler graduated from the ebusiness copal school in jacksonville and is a sophomore and the Naval Academy. Like all those representing us as Service Academies across the country, his commitment to academics and military service inspire us all. Congratulations to chandler and the Naval Academy mixed crew team for a victory theyll remember for the rest of their lives. With that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from florida yields ack. The chair lays before the house an enrolled bill. The clerk h. R. 1327, an act to extend authorization for the september 11 Victim Compensation fund of 2001 through fiscal year 2092 and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlewoman from california seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, by direction of the committee on rules, i call up House Resolution 509 and ask for its immediate consideration. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the resolution. The clerk house calendar number 38, Temple Emanuel<\/a> of canarsie, brooklyn, new york. The chaplain let us pray. Hetchly one, our protector and redeemer, guardian of life and liberty, we ask for your continued blessings as we open this session of the house of representatives. May our nation and its leaders be blessed with your protection as they continue their work for the constituents across these United States<\/a>. God, continue to send your light to all elected officials across this land, guiding them with your good Council Counsel<\/a> and providing them with wisdom and forebearance. Now our nation and its citizens always work toward world peace and harmony as part and party representing this great nation. God of peace and prosperity, bless this house of representatives and all those who lead, serve, and defend our nation. As they continue to serve with honor. And remember those who have died in defense of our ideals and values. May the one who makes peace in the universe make peace for all of us, for all the United States<\/a>, for all the world. God bless america, amen. The speaker pro tempore the speaker pro tempore the chair has examined the journal of the last days proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. Pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1 the journal stands approved. The pledge of allegiance will be offered by the gentleman from florida, mr. Dunn. Mr. Dunn i pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States<\/a> of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentlewoman from new york, miss rice, is recognized for one minute. Miss rice thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today to welcome rabbi mark getman of Temple Emanuel<\/a> of canarsie and thank you for leading us in prayer on the house floor. I was proud to invite him to give our opening prayer today and proud to call him a constituent of new yorks fourth Congressional District<\/a>. Hes a military veteran, a cancer survivor, a community leader, and a man of deep faith. He embodies the strength, leadershipship, and patriotism that we look for in every american. I cant express how grateful i am for rabbi getman for making the trip down to washington today to represent our community and to deliver a message of harmony and compassion. I believe that is a message that our country needs to hear, perhaps now more than ever. Rabbi getman graciously reminded us today we are a country united under god in our pursuit of prosperity and peace for all people, and he reminded us this shared purpose is more powerful, more important than any Political Division<\/a> we may have, and i couldnt agree more. As a member of the committee on veterans affairs, im beyond appreciative that rabbi getman paid such a touching tribute to the brave men and women who wear our uniform today and to those who pay the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our great nation. As a veteran himself, i know that rabbi getman understands that sacrifice better than most. I want to thank the rabbi once more for his service to our community and to our country and, above all, for taking the time to be here with us today and delivering a muchneeded essage of unity. The speaker pro tempore the chair will entertain up to 15 further requests for oneminute speeches on each side of the aisle. For what purpose does the gentleman from maryland seek recognition . Mr. Hoyer mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to speak out of order for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Hoyer mr. Speaker, this is a sad day in the history of the house. Ome 21 years ago, a deranged individual came through the door that we now call the memorial door and took the lives of two of our officers. Rise to pay tribute to my constituent, officer jacob chestnut, and detective john gibson from the state of virginia. Both of them were shot and killed defending this capitol 21 years ago today. July 24, 1998. A lone gunman burst through what we now call memorial door and attacked this sacred home of american democracy. These brave officers, who we remember today, placed themselves in the line of fire protect their lives to members, staff, and visitors in the building that morning. Memorial door, mr. Speaker, is right outside my office. I go through it almost every day. Every time i pass through it, i look at the memorial plaque and remember these two xtraordinary and brave men whose sacrifice will not be forgotten by those who work in this house, by their brothers and sisters in the Capitol Police<\/a> force who stand century and watch over it and by their grateful fellow americans. Today sentry and watch over it and by their grateful fellow americans. Today, mr. Speaker, let us pay tribute to officer chust nut, chestnut, detective gibson, and thank all those of the Capitol Police<\/a> and indeed to all Law Enforcement<\/a> officers who every morning get up and put a badge, perhaps, on their chest or on their belt or in their wallet and go out to protect us, their neighbors, their friends. Let us thank all Law Enforcement<\/a> officers in communities across this country for their service, their dedication, and their sacrifices, which make the xercise of democracy possible. Mr. Speaker, i just spoke about capitol and our our country. They lost their lives. I now speak about one who has served our house of representatives as an institution much more happily because shes served so well and so faithfully and so long and is now retiring and hopefully to a very happy retirement. We cannot do our job representing the American People<\/a> without the tireless and sometimes thankless labors of the men and women who make this house function behind the scenes. They sit at the desk behind us. They sit at the upper rostrum. They make a difference, and they record what we have to say. From the Clerks Office<\/a> to the parliamentarian staff, from the cspan crew to the recorders, the nonpartisan professional staff who enable the work of the house and its members are central to the success of our constitutional mission. The house has relied on the services of shorthand reporters of debates for almost 200 years, and the very wait improceedings of the house business has been published as part of the congressional record since 1873. We have a young woman whos now taking down my remarks, which may or may not be profound but somebody will be able to say, what did hoyer say, what did my representative say. A division of the office of the clerk, the office of official reporters is charged with providing nonpartisan, professional, stenographic services for the house floor committees and leadership. It has grown from a fiveperson shop in the 19th century to a diverse 43person operation today. They work extraordinarily long hours. They work very hard, and they are extraordinarily competent. Today, i join all my colleagues in thanking one of those outstanding, wonderful individuals who is retiring as the chief recorder of debates. Melinda walker. Melinda is with us on the floor today. Melinda, thank you very much. And i know, mr. Speaker, if it werent out of order i would mention that her family is in the gallery, but because thats not in order, i wont do that. Melinda will step down in august after more than 20 years of service to the house of representatives. A proud native of texas, melinda came to the house in 1999 after serving as a Court Reporter<\/a> for the u. S. International criminal tribunal for rwanda in tanzania. Her career began after graduating from the Stenographic Institute<\/a> of texas in 1989, and her work took her around the country and across the world with positions in the united kingdom, the caribbean, and south africa. Melinda has reported both House Committee<\/a> hearings and floor proceedings. Shes taken down Committee Testimony<\/a> from the chief from two chief justices of the Supreme Court<\/a> and three secretaries of state, among many others. On the floor, melinda has reported the state of the Union Messages<\/a> for three president s as well as the remarks of numerous foreign dignitaries during joint meetings of the congress. Upon melindas promotion to chief reporter in 2015, she led the team of reporters and staff in charge of the production of the congressional record. Under her watch, the office has been successful in meeting its daily production deadlines while capturing the intory indicate parliamentary intory indicate parliamentary nuances. She has an updated, more than 200 pages long for the office of official reporters. Americans will be advantaged by that work for decades to come. Shes been recognized by the national Court Reporter<\/a>s association as a registered professional reporter and a certified manager of reporting services, and she remains a certified shorthand reporter in her native texas. Melinda plans to return to her hometown of san saba, texas, and spend more time with her family and faithful dog, blue. Ucky dog to have melinda back. Mr. Speaker, i hope my colleagues will join me in thanking Melinda Walker<\/a> for her many years of distinguished and dedicated service to the house and in wishing her the very best in retirement. Melinda, we owe you and your colleagues a debt of gratitude. You silently serve and sit and listen to verb after noun after adjective after word after word after word. And you stay awake. It is amazing. And you do it so well to the advantage of all of us who serve here, but more importantly, to the advantage of the people of the United States<\/a> who will know what their representatives say on their behalf and will be, therefore, able in a democracy to make a sound judgment as to whether those words are the words they want intoned on this floor on their behalf. So, melinda, to you and to all your colleagues, we say thank you, god speed, be well. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from maryland yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from florida rise, seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks, as necessary. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you very much, mr. Speaker. I rise today to recognize a local hero from jackson county, florida, mr. Ed southern son is known inter sorensen is known to rescue and retrieve be cave divers. Mr. Dunn just this past march he was called on the Dominican Republic<\/a> to retrieve two bodies on the brink of not being recovered due to dangerous conditions. In tennessee he was called upon in the middle of the night to save the life of a professional cave diver, josh bratchly, widely known as the man who saved the Thai Soccer Team<\/a> from their cave incident. When ed is not answering a call for the next cave rescue, youll find him managing his cave diving business in florida where hes a cave dive instructor. Ed is a truly remarkable individual. Mr. Speaker, please join me in ecognizing mr. Ed sorensen for his heroic and selfless actions who saved many and brought closure to the means that would not have been possible. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one inute. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to highlight the suffering of ethiopian israelis. Mr. Payne a couple of weeks ago, a young ethiopianisraeli man was killed by an Israeli Police<\/a> officer. After this tragedy, there have been massive protests against Police Brutality<\/a>. Unfortunately, these protests have turned violent. While i do not condone violence, i believe people have the right to protest systemic racism. The Ethiopian Community<\/a> in israel has been treated like second class citizens for decades. In the 1990s, ethiopianisraelis had their donated blood secretly disposed of by israeli officials because they believed it may contain h. I. V. Virus. Just four years ago, an ethiopianisraeli i. D. F. Soldier was brutally beaten by an Israeli Police<\/a> officer setting off another wave of massive demonstrations. Now there are reports that the protests against Police Brutality<\/a> with are being cast as antiisraeli. This is nothing more than an attempt to delegitimize their suffering. I will not tolerate it and neither should any member of this body. With that, i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. For what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition . I request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Thompson this week, the u. S. Department of agriculture announced and published a new rule about broadbased eligibility for snap, known as food stamps. Snap recipients in dozens of states have been automatly enrolled in the program despite not demonstrating financial need imply by receiving other services. Anyone with is truly economic distressed and eligible will continue to continue to receive snap benefits. But through the loophole thats been existent, some were enrolled in the program without meeting its asset and income tests. These are Critical Metrics<\/a> to ensure Program Integrity<\/a> and prevent benefits from going to those who would not normally qualify or truly need assistance. This new regulation attempts to fix the problem by limiting cat gorical eligibility for snap resip yonets only to those who receive substantial Welfare Benefits<\/a> rather than nominal ones. As a former chairman of the nutrition subcommittee, i rise in strong support of this proposal. Enacting this rule will help address waste and abuse within snap while encouraging the continued availability for our friends in need who truly find themselves food insecure. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today to honor the life of paul haney, a longtime leader in rochester and Monroe County<\/a> and my very dear friend who passed away on sunday. As a former county legislator and city councilman, he was a fixture in our community, a man who truly embodied the high ideals of public service. He was kind, honest, smart as a whip and deeply passionate about improving the community he loved. He devoted his life and service to his neighbors and was always the first to lend a hand to those in need. Mr. Morelle paul haneys contributions have left a profound and Lasting Impact<\/a> on his beloved city. His legacy will never be forgotten. I join all rochester and Monroe County<\/a> in mourning his loss and extend my prayers around and sympathies to the haney family. Thank you, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today to congratulate midshipman Chandler Washburn<\/a> and the entire United States<\/a> Naval Academy<\/a> mixed crew team for their victory at the historic, nowhistoric kings cup this past july. The kings cup is a prestigious race between eight allied military forces and has only en held twice, once in 1919, and this year on the 100th anniversary. The u. S. Naval academy the feeted countries like canada, france, and germany on their way to winning the cup. This northeast Florida Community<\/a> is incredibly proud of chandler and his fellow midshipmen on this extraordinary accomplishment. Mr. Rutherford chandler graduated from the ebusiness copal school in jacksonville and is a sophomore and the Naval Academy<\/a>. Like all those representing us as Service Academies<\/a> across the country, his commitment to academics and military service inspire us all. Congratulations to chandler and the Naval Academy<\/a> mixed crew team for a victory theyll remember for the rest of their lives. With that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from florida yields ack. The chair lays before the house an enrolled bill. The clerk h. R. 1327, an act to extend authorization for the september 11 Victim Compensation<\/a> fund of 2001 through fiscal year 2092 and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlewoman from california seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, by direction of the committee on rules, i call up House Resolution<\/a> 509 and ask for its immediate consideration. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the resolution. The clerk house calendar number 38, House Resolution<\/a> 509. Resolved that upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the house the bill h. R. 397 to amend the Internal Revenue<\/a> code of 1986, to create a pension Rehabilitation Trust<\/a> fund, to establish a Pension Rehabilitation Administration<\/a> within the department of the treasury to make loans to multiemployer defined benefit plans and for other purposes. All points ofed offer against consideration of the bill are waived. In lieu of the amendments in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committees on education and labor, and ways and means now printed in the bill, an amendment in the nature of a substitute condition cysting of the text of rules Committee Print<\/a> 11624 shall be considered as adopted. The bill is a the bill as amended shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill are waive. The previous question shall be considered on the bill as amended and on any further amendment thereto to final passage without intervening motion except one, one hour of debate equally divided among and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on education and labor and the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on ways and means. Two, further amendment printed in part a of the report of the committee on rules acompanying this resolution if offered by the member designated in the report which shall be in order without intervention of any point of order hall be considered as read, shall be separately debatable for the time specified in the report, equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question. And three, one motion to recommit with or without instructions. Section 2. At any time after adoption of this resolution, the speaker may, pursuant to clause 2b of rule 218, declare the house resolved in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for consideration of the bill h. R. 3239, require u. S. Customs and Border Protection<\/a> to perform an initial Health Screening<\/a> on detainees and for other purposes. The First Reading<\/a> of the bill shall be dispensed with. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. General debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed one hour, equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee of the judiciary. After general debate, the bill shall be considered for amendment under the fiveminute rule. In lufe the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on the judiciary now printed in the bill, it shall be in order to consider as an original bill an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of rules Committee Print<\/a> 11626, modified by the amendment printed in part b of the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution. That amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be considered as read. All points of order against that amendment in the nature of a substitute are waived. No amendment to that amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be in order except those printed in part c of the report of the committee on rules. Each such amendment may be offered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report, equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment and shall not be subject to demand for division of the question in the house or in the committee of the whole. All points of order against such amendments are waived. At the conclusion of consideration of the bill for amendment, the Committee Shall<\/a> rise and report the bill to the house with such amendments as may have been adopted. Any member may demand a separate vote in the house on any amendment adopted in the committee of the whole to the bill or to the amendment in the nature of of a substitute made in order as original text. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill and amendments thereto to final passage without intervening motion except one motion to recommit with or without instructions. Section 3. House resolution 50 is hereby adopted. 507 is hereby adopted. Section 4, it shall be in order at any time on the legislative day of july 25, 2019 or july 26, 2019, for the speaker to entertain motions to suspend the rules as under clause 15. The speaker or her designee shall consult with the minority leader or his designee on the consideration of any matter pursuant to this section. Section 5. On any legislative day from the period from jewel 29, 2019, through september 6, 2019, a, the journal of the proceeds of the previous day shall be considered as approved and b, the chair may at any time declare the house adjourned to meet at a date and time within the limits of clause 4, section 5, article 1 of the constitution to be announced by the chair in declaring the adjournment. Section 6. The speaker may appoint members to perform the duties of the chair for the duration of the period addressed by section 5 of this resolution as though under clause 8a of rule 1. Section 7. Each tai during the period addressed by section 5 of this resolution shall not constitute a calendar day for purposes of section 7 of the war powers resolution 50 United States<\/a> code 1546. Section 8. Each day during the period addressed by section 5 of this resolution shall not constitute a legislative day for purposes of clause 7 of rule 13. Section 9. Each day during the period addressed by section 5 of this resolution shall not constitute a legislative day for purposes f clause 7 of rule 15. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from california is recognized for one hour. Mr. Speaker, for the purposes of debate only, i yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from texas, pending which i yield myself such time as i may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purposes of debate only. And i ask for unanimous consent that all members be given five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Speaker, on tuesday, the rules committee met and reported a rule, House Resolution<\/a> 509, providing for consideration of h. R. 397. The rehabilitation for multiemployer pensions act of 2019 under a structured rule. The rule makes in order one amendment. Mrs. Torres the rule provides one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on education and labor and ways and means. The rule also provides for consideration of h. R. 3239, the humanitarian standards for individuals in customs and Border Protection<\/a> custody act under a structured rule. The rule selfexecutes chairman nadlers managers amendment and makes in order two further amendments. The rules provide one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on the judiciary. Upon passage of the rule, House Resolution<\/a> 507 will be considered as adopted. Finally, the rule provides Suspension Authority<\/a> for this thursday and friday and standard floor recess instructions for the august district work period. Mr. Speaker, in a few day, we will be celebrating 200 days since democrats took back the majority in the u. S. House of representatives. We have spent the past eight months fighting for american families. American values. While republicans spent eight years in charge, what did they get done . Their crowning acheevement was a massive tax giveaway to corporations to line the pockets of the super wealthy while exploding the federal deficit by 1. 5 trillion. Clearly a tax scam was a result of special interests having too much power in washington. It is time, it is time, mr. Speaker, to give back that power to the people, to the American People<\/a> that sent us here. Democrats passed the for the people act which puts elections back in the hands of the people and gets special interests out of the government. Instead of giving tax cuts to billionaires, democrats last week passed legislation to increase the minimum wage to 15 an hour. As a result, 33 million americans will finally get a raise. And no more singling out to our young Puerto Ricans<\/a>. The raise the wage act repeals a shortsighted republican measure that allowed employers to pay Puerto Ricans<\/a> under the age of for upasly 4. 25 an hour to four years. I dont know about my colleagues background but i was raising a but at 20 years old i was raising a family and i could not have done that on 4. 25 an hour. And we proclaim to all the american women, whether you are a supervisor at a fast food restaurant, a nurse at a hospital, or a world cup winning soccer player, Women Deserve<\/a> equal pay for equal work and for dreamers, without permanent legal status, who came here as children, and just want to contribute to the greatness that makes america, democrats passed the dream act so that they can have a pathway to citizenship. My republican colleagues refuse to bring up the dream act when they were in charge, even when clearly we had enough votes to pass the bill. Mr. Speaker, thats the kind of progress americans wanted to see, that is why elections matter. Today we are going to protect the pensions of hardworking americans. I come from a proud union household. For 17 1 2 years, i worked as a 911 dispatcher, and my husband was a member of the building and construction trades for 20 years. We taught our children, our sons to work hard and save for their future, and we showed them the honor of public service. Mr. Speaker, december of 2014, this body passed the multiemployer pension reform act of 2014, a misguided bill that reneged on the promise we make to retirees that they will get the benefits they worked and negotiated for. And here we sit almost five years later, and the multiemployer Pension System<\/a> is still on the brink of a real and disastrous crisis. While these plans have historically been a safe and secure retirement option, many plans now face financial shortfalls because of the Great Recession<\/a> and other structural challenges, like a lack of new workers, an increase in the number of retirees, and employees abandoning the commitments they employers abandoning the commitments they made to their employees. Over 130 plans covering over a million americans are rapidly running out of money to pay benefits that were promised to these employees. Truck drivers, electricians, ironworkers, steelworkers, coal miners and many, many others participate in multiemployer Pension Plans<\/a>. More than 5,000 of my constituents alone participate in multiemployer Pension Plans<\/a>. These hardworking individuals are staring down the possibility of losing their retirement through no fault of their own. I know that some of my colleagues are going to tar and feather this bill. They are going to call it a bailout. They are going to say it is fiscally irresponsible, but this bill only authorizes loans, loans for multiemployer Pension Plans<\/a>. If it is clear that those loans can be repaid with interest, this is not a bailout. This is a loan. And i am happy to have my staff provide a dictionary if any of my colleagues from the other side of the aisle are still confused about the difference and the meaning of each. Hardworking American Workers<\/a> and retirees are counting on us to protect the benefits that theyve earned and keep them on a solid financial footing. R. 397 does that exactly. And all without forcing workers and retirees to pay a single cent more for the benefits that they have earned. Now, id like to turn your attention to h. R. 3239. Humanitarian standards for individuals in customs and Border Protection<\/a> custody act. Ive had the opportunity to witness the horrendous conditions at our southern border. Children jailed in freezing cold cages. Toddlers going without nutritious food they need to grow up and be healthy and strong. 6yearold who is are not allowed to shower. Border patrol agents parading them around with degrading messages hanging from their necks. This is the greatest country in the world, and no child, no child should die in our custody and in the greatest custody in the world. Jacqueline should not have died. Felipe gomez should not have died. And Carlos Hernandez<\/a> should not have died. We cannot bring these children back from the dead, but we can try to prevent the next child from dying, and we must. We must because we have a moral responsibility to these children. Today, we have the opportunity to act. The humanitarian standards for individuals in customs and Border Protection<\/a> act would protect the health and safety c. B. P. In cfpb care. It will bring care the children need and ensure children have access to the basic nutritious food, a shower, toothpaste, and clean clothes. So i urge my colleagues to support this important legislation. Vote yes on the rule for the children. Vote yes on the rule for the children. Mr. Speaker, i reserve my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from california reserves the balance of her time. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Burgess thank you, mr. Speaker. I thank mrs. Torres for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized, without objection. Mr. Burgess mr. Speaker, today we are considering two bills that will never become law. Theyre not going to be taken up by the senate. If they did they would not pass and the president likely would not sign them. The first bill, h. R. 397, the rehabilitation for multiemployer pensions act, was drafted by the majority as an attempt to fix the multiemployer pension crisis. Unfortunately, the bill does nothing but create more government, increase the deficit, and kick the can down the road for another generation that will have to ultimately deal with it. To lets examine the facts. Multiemployer Pension Plans<\/a> are pensions run jointly by a union and multiple Companies Whose<\/a> employees are members of that union. These are defined benefit plans that guarantee employees receive a specific amount upon retirement, regardless of the funding available. These plans must comply with collective bargaining agreements, and the Employee Retirement<\/a> income security act and pay into the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation<\/a>, the federal insurer of the plans. Over 1,300 multiemployer Pension Plans<\/a> cover more than 10 million participants and well over a million are in plans that are insolvent or will be within the next two decades. This means that more than one million retirees may have their Retirement Plan<\/a> benefits cut if no action is taken. Multiemployer Pension Plans<\/a> are 38 ently underfunded by 6 billion dollars, and the figure increases by 15 billion each and every year. The largest plan is the Central States<\/a> pension fund, which has been sponsored by the teamsters. It has approximately 385,000 participants and is underfunded by 41 billion. To ensure struggling Pension Plans<\/a> would not affect the defined benefit promise to employers, congress created the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation<\/a> to provide Financial Assistance<\/a> to pay participant benefits. The Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation<\/a> is funded through premiums paid by plan funds and is currently not backed by the taxpayer. Since 2003, the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation<\/a> has held a deficit when comparing its current multiemployer pension assets to its outstanding liabilities due to these insolvent unionmanaged Pension Plans<\/a>. Today, the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation<\/a> has a deficit of 54 billion. The entity congress created to protect insolvent plans is estimated to be insolvent tself. This crisis did not materialize suddenly. During the 2008 recession, Retirement Plan<\/a>s throughout the country lost nearly 30 of their value. But the weaknesses of the multiemployer system were not conceived in one event. The American Academy<\/a> of actuaries outlined some of the decisions that led to this instability. Generally, many plans overleveraged their risk and increased their benefits in an unsustainable fashion and did not maintain appropriate resources to recover from losses and kept fewer working employees. Additionally, Many Employers<\/a> have left their multiemployer Pension Plans<\/a>, further limiting funding for those who remain. At the end of the day, these plans were mismanaged in a way that has increased cost and decreased revenue. So how are our colleagues across the aisle hoping to fix this troubling situation . The rehabilitation for multiemployer pension act would create a trust fund called the pension Rehabilitation Trust<\/a> fund that would be administered by a brand new federal Agency Within<\/a> the department of treasury called the Pension Rehabilitation Administration<\/a>. This new agency would provide unsecured federally subsidized 30year loans to critical or declining multiemployer plans without requiring the plans to make any actuarially changes to bring them back to solvency. If the plan cannot certify it can repay the loan, the plan would also receive a grant from the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation<\/a> to pay Retiree Benefits<\/a> and to pay back the loan, essentially double dipping federal support. If a plan cannot make interest or principal payments on the loan, payments can be forgiven to pay Retiree Benefits<\/a>. Finally, h. R. 397 would reverse reforms made in 2014 that allowed certain plans greater flexibility to regain solvency. Earlier this month, the Congressional Budget Office<\/a> published a report on the estimated budget impact of a previous version of h. R. 397. The new subsidies and the expanded assistance would increase the federal deficit by 64 billion without truly addressing the underlying financial issues. Should this bill be signed into law, it will be the first time that the federal government has placed United States<\/a> taxpayers on the hook to subsidize private Pension Plans<\/a>. It is important to note that many taxpayers who would finance this subsidy have not themselves been included in a pension plan. As presented today, h. R. 397 would result in a large balloon payment due in year 30 of the pension Rehabilitation Trust<\/a> fund loan. And if a plan cannot afford loan payments without cutting benefits, the new Pension Rehabilitation Administration<\/a> would be allowed to forgive these debts. Mr. Speaker, this is the definition of a taxpayer bailout. The majority knows this bill will never move in the senate, and i do urge my colleagues to reconsider this legislation. There perhaps are ways to fix this crisis and address it in a fiscally and actuarially sound manner. A bipartisan agreement is the only way, is the only way for a solution to this crisis that will actually make it to the president s desk. The second bill in this rule is yet another attempt to fix the crisis at our southern border without addressing any root cause. H. R. 3239, the humanitarian standards for individuals in customs and Border Protection<\/a> ustody act, is a reactionary bill to restructure customs and Border Protection<\/a> through overly printive mandates that ignores that has its resources and core mission. If this legislation were be signed into law, customs and Border Protection<\/a> would be required to provide health and medical screenings to all migrants that enter their custody. Customs and Border Protection<\/a> must provide individuals one gallon of water per day, access to safe and clean toilets and showers, diaper changing facilities, and provide sanitation products. C. B. P. Will also be required to provide three meals a day totaling 2,000 calories, interpreters, video monitoring, adequate lighting and to keep facilities within a specific temperature range. Medical staff are required to be on site to conduct medical screenings, regardless of the number of staff or apprehensions and specialty physicians are required to at the very least be on call. These physicians specialties included pediatric, geriatric medicine, Mental Health<\/a>, and dietitians. Immediate access to such specialists is not even available to some of our veterans, and yet, we are mandating it be there for undocumented migrants. The bill also requires adult chaperones for children receiving medical exams. It will consist of parents, legal guardians, adult relatives, although adult relative is not defined, meaning a distant relative or someone that states they are a relative can pose as the childs guardian in the absence of a parent or legal guardian. This is concerning for identifying trafficking victims. When children are victims of trafficking, often the only time they get to be apart from their trafficker is when receiving medical care and sometimes then the trafficker will refuse to leave the child alone. If we mandate the presence of an adult during a medical exam you may never learn that the child is a victim. Additionally, children who arrive with adult relatives are to be kept together. Under current law, the office of Refugee Resettlement<\/a> has custody of and must provide care for each unaccompanied alien child as defined as a child without lawful immigration status under the age of 18 without a parent or legal forwardian to provide care. If children arrive with an adult relative and theyre not allowed to be transferred to the office of ref je resettlement this bill is simultaneously mandating that o. R. R. Violate current law. Customs and Border Protection<\/a>s mission is to safeguard americas borders to protect the public from dangerous people and materials while facilitating legal trade and travel. Due to the migrant crisis, more c. B. P. Agents and officers are concentrated on the southern border, making taking them away from other lawful responsibilities. If customs and board brother text is required to implement these mandates that are in this bill, customs inspections will be limited and lines at ports of entry will become much longer. If customs and Border Protection<\/a>s inspects our agriculture, food, checks for counterfeit or defective Consumer Products<\/a> an searches for an seizes ill list drugs, much of which is fueling the opioid crisis, if theyre not on the line to to do their job, these things done happen. Customs and board brother text officers are also the first to welcome americans home from abroad and foreigners with legal documentation into the country. Due to the democrats refusal to deal with our southern border crisis these important functions will also suffer. We must also remember the customs and border Border Protection<\/a> facilities done just exist along the southern border. Theyre located in every state, every territory and several overseas facilities. Mandating the presence of specialty medical personnel in certain and certain facility upgrades is not only unfeasible in some of these remote locations it would cost an enormous amount of money. The cost to comply with the provisions of this bill is unclear. Because we dont have the Congressional Budget Office<\/a> score. But it is likely to be high. Customs and berder protection currently has 3 billion in unmet funding needs due to the cry soins the southern border, requiring updates to houvens customs and board brother text facilities, increasing personnel and equipment would add significantly to the shortfall. Heres the real amazing part. This bill contains no authorization for appropriations. Last night the rules committee was asked how democrats were planning to pay for the mandate in the bill response was, theres money in. It was recently appropriated in the supplemental. The same supplemental that people told us in may, house leadership, democratic leadership, tole us was not necessary because this was a manufactured crisis and then suddenly right before the fourth of july recess, it became a very real crisis and the congress did step up and provide additional funding that was required. But this funding was provided for specific purposes and not for new requirements upon customs and Border Protection<\/a>. The answer is that there is no funding provided to implement this bill which amounts to an Unfunded Mandate<\/a> and anyone herbs the likelihood that any of it would actually happen should it become law. Most importantly, this bill does nothing to stop the flow of irregular migrants, including vulnerable children, to our southern border. Placing overly burdensome and unreasonable standards of care on custom and Border Protection<\/a> will only exacerbate the security and crisis on our southern border. Let me just say this, having been at the facility last friday, men and women of customs and board brother text are doing the job Congress Asked<\/a> them to do congress didnt ask them to do, we told them to do we passed laws. They are delivering on what we told them to do. But the men and women of customs and Border Protection<\/a> are good people who are driven to do the right thing. They care. But at the same time, we complicate their lives so much by not funding the needs that they actually have and then adding on top of it all of these Unfunded Mandate<\/a>s. I urge my democratic colleagues to work across the aisle to implement Real Solutions<\/a> rather than reactionary mandates. I do urge opposition to this rule and ill reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas reserves. The gentlewoman from california is recognized. Mrs. Torres if my colleague had read the bill they would know that not only are there numerous incentives for plans to repay the loans, there is statutory requirement for planned actuaries to demonstrate that the plan will be able to pay the loan back with interest. Lets talk about how we got in this situation. After the 9 11 attacks this eairline industry was in desperate need for help and congress stepped up and approved loan assistance. We acted because it was seen as an emergency. In 2008, during the greatest financial crisis in our lifetime, wall street banks and the Auto Industry<\/a> were in trouble. And in desperate need of help. Congress again acted because it was seen as an emergency. Mr. Speaker, what make this is situation any different . Congress disbursed approximately 624. 6 billion in taxpayer money during these emergencies and roughly 699. 7 billion have come back, revenue, interest, fees and asset sales. Ultimately it earned taxpayers more than 75 billion in profit. So to the 89 retirees in texas 26th Congressional District<\/a>, i say to you, democrats have your back. And democrats are fighting for you. Mr. Speaker, i yield one and a half minutes to the gentlewoman from ohio, ms. Kaptur. The speaker pro tempore members are reminded to address their ares to the chair. The gentlewoman from ohio is recognized for one and a half minutes. Ms. Kaptur mr. Chairman, it is with great pleasure today that i rise in support of strong, bipartisan passage of the Butch Lewis Act<\/a> and this rule and thank congresswoman torres for yielding me this time and richard neal for moving this. This will provide the Economic Security<\/a> this body ripped out from under millions of hardworking americans in past congresses. Across our country, 1. 3 million workers, truck drivers, candymakers, coal miners, retirees face serious and significant threats of cuts to their hardearned, multiemployer Pension Plans<\/a> through no fault of their own. Several of these plans are large enough to take down the entire Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation<\/a> threatening the security of another 10 million hard working americans. I heard the message time and again from retirees in our district and across the nation, they worked for decades to earn these pensions. And they cannot sustain massive cuts. Now they are too old or their health too unstable to return to the work force. The stress and anxiety are sapping their will, some have taken their own lives. The Butch Lewis Act<\/a> will ensure hey receive their long overdue pensions which they earned. It keeps the promises to retirees, guaranteing their pension into the future and does so by allowing impacted Pension Plans<\/a> to borrow the money needed to he remain solvent over a 30year period of time with low interest loans that they must pay back. Pensions have afforded millions of middle class americans the opportunity might i have an additional 10 seconds. Mrs. Torres i yield 30 seconds. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Kaptur pensions have afforded millions of middle class americans an opportunity to enjoy their golden years with economic peace of mind. T us restore this peace to 1,300,000 americans and retirees who earned these benefits with swift and finally just passage of the Butch Lewis Act<\/a>. I yield back my additional time to the gentlelady. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentlelady from california reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Burgess thank you, mr. Speaker. At this time i would like to yield three minutes to the gentleman from texas, a valued a valuable member of the ways and means committee, mr. Arrington. The speaker pro tempore without objection the gentleman from texas is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Arrington thank you, mr. Speaker. I want to thank the gentleman from texas. I was on the i am on the ways and means committee. I was at the markup for this legislation, mr. Speaker. I do want to correct the record from the previous statement that my colleague on the other side of the aisle made that this was a bipartisan legislative initiative. Not one republican voted for this bill. We offered up several amendments, none of them were taken. One of them, for example, was one that i proposed, whereby these employees would take out a guarantee of policy that would ensure that taxpayers get paid back for these, quote, loans. They call them loans and my the gentlelady says they must be paid back. Thats not true. Read the fine print. My fellow americans, it says they can be forgiven, they can be converted into grants. This is a bailout. This is one of the most reckless, fiscally irresponsible pieces of legislation ive ever seen. Yes, we need to help those workers. They were the real victims. And the culprits . The unions. And the mes for making benefit promises that they knew good and well they couldnt deliver on. Who is now going to hold the bag . Our children and grandchildren. Today, were bailing out 100 billion worth of 130 plans. Irresponsibly managed. Grossly irresponsibly managed. And its our children that will pay for this. This is the first 100 billion. Theres 650 billion roughly dollars underfunned liabilities in this multiemployer pension. Of the 1,300 Pension Plans<\/a>, of the 1,300 Pension Plans<\/a>, whereby 10 million workers are covered, 50 , 50 of these or 75 rather of the workers are in plans that are less than a funded. This is a disaster. This is a terrible precedent. This is moral hazard if ive ever seen it. Because well do this for 100 billion. We wont fix the problem. We dont do anything to get at the root cause that brought us here and therell be a line as long as the eye can see to bail out the next 100 billion and the next 100 billion. It wont be the multiemployer pension. Itll be state pensions and local pensions. We are bankrupt, mr. Speaker. We are bankrupt. In this country. And this is the most irresponsible way to try to solve this problem of underfunded and unfunded liabilities for these workers. Hold the people who are responsible accountable. Dont just give a blank check from the taxpayers to bail this program out and get right here doing the same thing. I was regulator at the fdic. We would close a bank down who gave these socalled loans so fast your heads would spin. This is not a len. This is a complete writeoff of irresponsible behavior. We shouldnt have anything to do with it. I urge my colleagues to reject this bill. I oppose it. I hope they will too. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. The gentleman from texas reserves. The gentleman the gentlewoman from california is recognized. Mrs. Torres mr. Speaker, painting this greedy picture of union bosses who mismanage funds and overpromise benefits, doesnt get us anywhere. And that is simply not true. But ill tell you what is true. At is true is that 399 retirees in texas 19, Congressional District<\/a> 19, will lose. But guess what . Democrats got your back. In texas 19. Know that. Now i would like to yield one minute to the gentleman from california, mr. Ruiz. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman from california is recognized for one minute. Mr. Ruiz i rise in support of the rule for h. R. 3239, the humanitarian standards for individuals in c. B. P. Custody act my legislation to ensure c. B. P. Upholds basic standards to meet the humanitarian needs of children, women, and families. My bill is an American Values<\/a> based basic Public Health<\/a> approach to prevent the deaths of children and c. B. P. s under c. B. P. s custody and responsibility and to develop a professional, humane response to the humanitarian challenges at our border. Why are these humanitarian standards needed, you might ask . Because when i visited the border i saw open toilets and crowded cells without privacy. Baby who were dirty and didnt have diapers, sleeping on cold, cement floors. Because these inhumane and unsanitary conditions threaten the Mental Health<\/a> of c. B. P. Agents. Because six children have died in the custody and responsibility of c. B. P. We need to do more than send money to an administration that urged in court that children in c. B. P. Custody do not need soap and toothbrushes or basic hygiene needs. Mrs. Torres i yield 30 seconds. The speaker pro tempore gentleman from california is recognized for an additional 30 minutes. Mr. Ruiz this is the first step to ensure c. B. P. Facilities have basic necessaryities like humane sleeping conditions, private and clean bathrooms, sufficient water and nutrition, and showers. I urge my fellow representatives to support my bill, the humanitarian standards for individuals and c. B. P. Custody act to protect the health of our agents, prevent the deaths of children, and restore humanity to our treatment of children and families seeking asylum. I yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentlewoman from california reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Million burgess i yield myself such time as i may consume. If we defeat the previous question, republicans will amend the rule to add h. Con. Res. 54 that will reconstitute the joint select committee on multiemployer pensions through february of 2020. The select committee worked to find solutions to reestablish the solvency of multiemployer plans while a draft proposal was released, ultimately no legislative solution was achieved. By reconstituting this select committee through february of 2020, well build upon the work of Previous Committee<\/a> to finally ebb sure ensure the solvency of multiemployer Pension Plans<\/a>. This is an ability to work across the dais on an issue that affects millions of americans. I urge a no vote so we can come together to protect americans in retirement. I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the record along with extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question. Mr. Speaker, i now yield five minutes to my good friend, representative from wisconsin, mr. Steil. Mr. Steil thank you. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from wisconsin is recognized for five minutes. Mr. Steil thank you. I thank my colleague for yielding. I came to wisconsin to fight for workers. I also came to congress to make tough choices, not easy ones. Thats why we are here today. Stand up for workers throughout wisconsin and across the country. I rise to oppose the previous question so that my bill, h. Con. Res. 54, can be voted on. My bill, h. Con. Res. 54 will reestablish the Congressional Joint Select Committee<\/a> to address the multiemployer pension crisis. Bringing together Nonpartisan Group<\/a> to take this problem headon. Pension plans for nearly half a million americans are in jeopardy. Roughly 130 union managed Pension Funds<\/a> covering over 1. 3 million workers are severely underfunded. This accounts for more than 23,000 workers in the Central States<\/a> plan in wisconsin alone. In just 5 1 2 years, their pension fund may become insolvent. Unfortunately, the actions of a few have resulted in uncertainty for many. We all know the Central States<\/a> and other Pension Plans<\/a> are in crisis. These underfunded plans pose a threat to workers, to retirees, and to our economy. We need to address this now. I have offered h. Con. Res. 54 as a real solution to this problem. This is a good faith effort to protect pensions. This is an opportunity to make real change in americans lives. This is a path for democrats and republicans to protect pension benefits for thousands of americans. The joint select committee will be required to come to a legislative solution no later than april 30, 2020. This holds members accountable and gives the issue the urgency it requires. Like many federal programs, we should look to the states. For example, wisconsin, the states Public Employee<\/a> Pension System<\/a>, is designed to avoid the challenges that we see in todays multiemployer pensions. Contributions to the States Pension Fund<\/a> are recalculated yearly to ensure the pension fund continues to be funded. Wisconsins retirement system is fully funded. It isnt reliant on the plit whims and has a formula that protects retirees bay making proactive not reactive changes. This is one of Many Possible Solutions<\/a> that should be on the table. H. R. 397 does not solve the actual problem. Why . Because it does not prevent this crisis from happening again in five years. In 10 years. In 20 years. We owe it to workers to provide them with the certainty that they will have a Retirement Living<\/a> in dignity. H. R. 397 does not do that. Democrats and republicans agree, the retirees and future retirees are the victims here. We need to protect them. These are men and women who have or are currently working and supportling their families. Supporting their families. They plan for retirement and through no fault of their own, their financial future is at risk. Are we capable of working together in the house . We must. However, throughout this process the majority did not allow other voices to be heard. H. R. 397 did not even receive a public hearing. We can do better. We must do better. My bill would require us to Work Together<\/a>. As my bill says, we should establish the select committee focused solely on this issue. We should support hardworking americans who are vested in the system. Democrats and republicans should protect workers and retirees and ensure new benefits are adequately funded. Reform the broken system to prevent this from occurring again. And use this as an opportunity to Work Together<\/a>. Just like the Pension System<\/a> is broken, so is our political system. We can do better. We must do better. The clock is ticking. This is an opportunity to protect retirees and workers. They deserve it. I urge my colleagues to vote against the previous question so that we can immediately consider my resolution and reconstitute the joint committee and fix this problem for the long term. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from wisconsin yields back. The gentleman from texas reserves. The gentlewoman from california is recognized. The torres mr. Speaker, joint select Committee Held<\/a> five hearings. Enough with the talk. These hardworking american retirees are demanding action. They Want Congress<\/a> to act. And we are here because of failed i. R. S. Regulations in the 1980s and 1990s from increasing contributions in times of surplus. We are here because when a contributing employer went bankrupt, the remaining employers got saddled up with the unfunded liability. Most importantly, we are not here because of the millions of americans participating in these plans. They did nothing wrong. In t to point to one plan wisconsins first district. , and toe 3,285 retirees them i want to repeat and say, democrats in congress have your back. Mr. Speaker, id like to inquire from the other side if they have any additional speakers. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from california yields to the gentleman from texas. Mr. Burgess thank you, mr. Speaker. Let me yield myself three minutes. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from california mrs. Torres reclaiming my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from california reclaims her time. Does the gentleman have any more speakers . Mr. Burgess myself, and then ill close. Mrs. Torres im prepared to close. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from california reserves. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Burgess myself for three minutes. I do want to talk about the reconstituting the select committee that mr. Steil just spoke on the issue on the previous question. I want to bring, mr. Speaker, i want to bring the houses attention to an editorial in the Washington Post<\/a> from april 25, before we initiated this discussion today, they wrote that the retirement livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of working class americans are in jeopardy. So, too, are many businesses for which pension obligations have become a growth stifling burden. Quoting the Washington Post<\/a>, a meltdown must be avoided, but so, too, must a massive federal bailout that would soak the rest of society including taxpayers who do not have pensions. Between these polls lies inevitable shared sacrifices, a significant but finite injection of public funds, offset by limited benefit reductions conditioned on longterm reforms to stabilize the system. And they go on to say, Congress Actually<\/a> adopted such a proposal on a bipartisan basis in 2014, but the Obama Administration<\/a> bawlinged at implementing the required haircut for central state retirees on the eve of the 2016 election. Which sent congress back to the drawing board. Lawmakers from both parties in both chambers formed a committee to write a new bill which would have gotten expedited consideration on the floors of both chambers. Unfortunately, the committee missed a selfimposed deadline of november 30, 2018. Leaving the Washington Post<\/a> for a moment, now we are talking about reconstituting that select committee. In fact, that is what the Editorial Board<\/a> of the Washington Post<\/a> was suggesting last april. We find ourselves at that juncture now. Again, i urge colleagues to vote against the previous question, defeat the previous question so we can consider the amendment brought by mr. Steil. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas reserves the balance of his time. The gentlewoman from california is recognized. Mr. Speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from illinois, mr. Lipinski. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from illinois is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Speaker, i rise in strong support of the rehabilitation for multiemployer pensions act, also known as the butchlewis act. Without this bill millions of retired workers, including truck drivers, electricians, steel workers, locomotive engineers, boilermakers, machinists, and others will lose their earned pension benefits. We should all agree that these pensions should not be cut. This is about basic fairness. These are hardworking people who agree to exchange some of their pay during their working years for the promise of a secure retirement. This bill will provide loans to Pension Plans<\/a> in need of help to pay these benefits. These are loans. Many of us remember the dark days of the financial crisis. During this crisis, Pension Plans<\/a> took a big hit. Back then, congress bailed out wall street. Although i did not support that bill, i think we should all agree now that we should help support pensions for retirees. Lets do right by the everyday families who count on these plans. Lets pass this rule and pass the rehabilitation for multiemployer pensions act. Its the right thing to do. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from illinois yields back. The gentlewoman from california reserves. And the gentleman from texas. Mr. Burgess mr. Speaker, i am prepared to close if the gentlelady has no more speakers. I yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Burgess both bills under consideration as part of this rule provide mandates to what are much more systemic problems. We simply cannot keep placing bandaid on open wounds. Republicans agree that there is a multiemployer pension crisis. But as my republican colleagues on the committees of jurisdiction have stated many times before, it has to be addressed through reforms to the financial structure of these plans to ensure that the plans will not be underfunded in the future. The security and humanitarian crisis at the southern border, it continues, at least we are to a point now we admit there is a crisis. Republicans will keep working on solutions to secure the border and help stabilize Central American<\/a> countries in order to eliminate the surge and migration. These are not problems that can be solved on a partisan basis alone. I hope our democratic colleagues would join us in finding long lasting solutions. With that i urge a no vote on the previous question and no on the underlying measure. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas yields back the balance of his time. The gentlewoman from california is recognized. Mrs. Torres mr. Speaker, at the core how we choose to vote on these bills reflects our values. This this morning i read a report that a School District<\/a> in pennsylvania tried to create a Family Separation Program<\/a> in order to collect school lunch debt. Imagine that. Family separation because children are too poor to pay for their lunch. This maltreatment at our southern border is spreading across our nation. Dehumanizing people. Because they are poor. This is how we want to treat the eakest among us . While wellock children in cages and allow babies to sit in dirty diapers for days and give asylees toothbrushes but in toothpaste, deny children regular showers and proper medical care, will we turn a blind eye when children are die ing . At the hands of c. B. P. Officers . And will we watch as retirees are forced to choose between paying for rent, paying for groceries, or paying for their medication . Will we stand by and watch as our neighbors, our parents, are forced to stretch their medication because they are being denied the pension that they were promised. That they worked for. We are a country where immigrants and asylees can come for a better life. We are a nation where you can work hard and retire with the peace of mind that you have earned your keep. Democrats are fighting to protect the promise of the American Dream<\/a> for everyone. Mr. Speaker, i can only speak for myself when i say this, but i refuse to be a party to breaking that promise. Because it means that much to me. I urge my colleagues to vote yes on the rule and to pass these critical pieces of legislation. Mr. Speaker, i yield back the balance of my time and i move the previous question on the resolution. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The question isen ordering the previous question on the resolution. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. Mr. Burgess im going to ask for the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas. Mr. Burgess i demand the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. The yeas andort of nays will rise. A sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause of rule 20, further proceedings on this uestion will be postponed. The speaker pro tempore the chair will postpone further proceedings today on motions to suspend the rules on which the yeas and nays are ordered or votes objected to under clause 6 of rule 20. The house will resume proceedings on those questions at a later time. For what purpose does the gentleman from oregon seek recognition . Mr. Defazio i move that the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 3409, the coast guard authorization act of 2019, as amended. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 3409, a bill to authorize appropriations for the coast guard and for other urposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from oregon, mr. Defazio, and the gentleman from ohio, mr. Gibbs, each will criminal 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from yerg. Mr. Defazio i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h. R. 3409 as amended. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Defazio i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognize. Mr. Defazio im pleased to rise today and speak in strong support of h. R. 3409. The coast guard reauthorization act of 2019. This is genuinely Bipartisan Legislation<\/a> which will reauthorize funding for the United States<\/a> coast guard Federal Maritime Commission<\/a> for fiscal years 2020 and 2021. The bill also advances other important provisions to help both the economic competitiveness and regulation of the u. S. Maritime industry. Its the latest in a long line of major legislation from this committee reported to the house on a bipartisan basis and underpinning essential functions of government as in this case the United States<\/a> coast forward and Federal Maritime Commission<\/a>. Couldnt have better partners than i had, my Ranking Member<\/a>, sam graves, and the chair, Patrick Maloney<\/a> i mean, seann Patrick Maloney<\/a> and the ranking subcommittee member, representative been gibbs. Representative bob gibbs. They worked hard on this legislation. Many of their concerns were included in the final product. And each of them has joined as an original cosponsor, which i appreciate. We have also worked with other members of the committee on both sides of the aisle and the house to include provisions that address concerned raised by them or their constituents. We all know that over the last few years this ecoast guard budgets have been inadequate. Mostly a byproduct of mandatory cuts imposed by the socalled budget control act. This inadequate funding has left the coast guard as admiral schultz has said at a tipping point. Legislation at long last begins to reverse that downward spiral. 11 billion for the coast guard discretionary budget for fiscal years 2020 and 2021. This tracks the recently increased appropriations of the last two fiscal years, builds in a 2 inflation adjustment, arrive at the highest authorized funding levels for the coast guard in recent memory. Is that totally adequate . It isnt. But it is at least incremental progress in a town where were not seeing a lot of progress on a lot of things these days. Im particularly pleased that the top line numbers for procurement, acquisitions improvement have been pushed up to 2. 7 and and 2. Billion. That means the coast guard should be able to maintain its ongoing recapt sy recapitalization programs, including the critically important offshore patrol cutter, the new fleet of polar security cutters which will be absolutely vital to deal particularly with the opening of the northwest passage, and also to continue critical support to activities in antarctica. It wasnt a great year for the coast guard. When we had the stupid government shutdown. They were continuing to carry out their critical Homeland Security<\/a> duties in addition to their daily lifesaving duties, heir drug interdiction duties, all high risk profession yet they werent being paid. They were escorting the subs out of bremerton, the sailorsing with be being paid on the sub the coast guard, providing critical Surface Support<\/a> and protection, were not being paid. I had originally included in this legislation a provision to be assured that the coast guard would be paid in case of another government shutdown. Unfortunately, the very stupid budget rules we have around here say that we will pretend theyll never be paid, if thats the case we wont have a coast guard anymore, therefore to mandatoryly pay them during a shutdown would count as new deficit. Like were never going to pay them. Pretty dumb rule. But those concerns were raised by people above my pay grade and i reluctantly removed the provision from the bill. But i am going to continue to push for that provision as we move forward through the appropriations process and elsewhere. Ill look for any opportunity i can to recognize the service of the coast guard. Theres also in this bill a modest 1. 4 million increase in the budget Federal Maritime Commission<\/a>. This will help implement the most extensive package of amendments to the ocean ship regular form act since 1998. Particularly looking at antitrust oversight of foreign flagged commercial carrier alliances that transportation more than more than 98 of u. S. Foreign commerce. Our overreliance on foreign flight carriers to move the commerce of the United States<\/a> is a growing liability and yet unintended consequence of our trade policy. Only now are we beginning to recognize and grapple with the implications of this dependence on our national and Economic Security<\/a>. The increased authorized funding for the operating budget should provide them with the Additional Resources<\/a> they need to actually be a cop on the beat, ensure foreign carriers comply with the fair shipping practices and compliance with all u. S. Antitrust requirements. Im also pleased with provisions and ould boost trade potentially our shipbuilding industry. Were reaffirming yet again longterm support for the jones act, including clarification as to how the jones act applies to Maritime Transportation<\/a> and heavy left activities that occur offshore. I believe the language in this bill strikes a sensible path forward. I look forward to resolving any outstanding questions and concerns in conference with the United States<\/a> senate. Just as important, the bill prvidse new authorities to address new emerging ocean technologies, unmanned system, ensure the coast guard has enough competence to use or regulate the use of such systems. Amendments to progress on changes made last congress, sexual en standards for harassment at the u. S. Merchant Marine Academy<\/a> and across the maritime industry, this is vital legislation, vital to the coast guard and Shipyard Workers<\/a> adelose country. I urge an aye vote and reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oregon reserves. The gentleman from ohio is recognized. Mr. Gibbs i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Gibbs h. R. 3409 presents the committee on transportation and infrastructures commitment to the men and women serving the ast guard and lays the groundwork. T often shows the bipartisan spirit that often falls below the radar in washington, d. C. It is refreshing to work with colleagues from both sides of the aisle. H. R. 3409 recognizes the port and Coastal Security<\/a> drug interdiction and Maritime Safety<\/a> and commonsense issues, not republican or democrat issues. This coast guard authorization addresses priorities important to both east and west coast, inland waterway system and the great lakes. All these regions are well represented by the chairs and Ranking Member<\/a>s of the committee and subcommittee. Coast guard plays an important and unique role in National Security<\/a> and Maritime Safety<\/a>. It is critical component in carry ought drug interdiction effort, keeping our ports an coasts safe, and conducting ice breaking operations. H. R. 3409, the coast forward authorization act of 2019, helps the coast guard better perform their missions and encourages the use of Cutting Edge Technology<\/a> to improve operations. Utilizing Drone Technology<\/a> and upgrading Computer Systems<\/a> will help the coast guard personnel complete their missions. Im also proud of the commitment made to the great lakes in this bill. Working with congressman Mike Gallagher<\/a> of wisconsin we emphasize the economic importance of the great lakes and the necessity of for new, dedicated ibreak thornse lakes to keep commerce moving. It is unfortunate that this provision of the bill shares with the coast guardsmen were paid in lapses of appropriation were strip fled bill. Nonetheless, i commend chairman defazio and the 186 cosponsors for the pay our coast guard act for pursuing this prnt initiative. Thank you to chairman defazio, Ranking Member<\/a> graves, and subcommittee chairman maloney, for working in a bipartisan fashion to give the coast guard the resources it needs to accomplish its missions. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and i reserve the balance of the time. The speaker pro tempore the speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oregon is recognized. Mr. Defazio mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to enter into the congressional record a letter from my friend, chairman Bennie Thompson<\/a> of the House Committee<\/a> on Homeland Security<\/a>, agreeing to waive consideration of h. R. 3409, as amended. As well as my response to chairman thompson which i expressed my appreciation for his willingness to work cooperatively on this legislation. I also ask unanimous consent to enter into the congressional record a statement in support of h. R. 3409 as amended by the chair of the subcommittee, sean Patrick Maloney<\/a>, who had to be at the Intelligence Committee<\/a> and cant be here for this debate. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans request will be covered under general leave. Mr. Defazio with that i yield one minute to the gentlelady from florida, ms. Mucarselpowell. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from florida is recognized for one minute. Ms. Mucarselpowell mr. Speaker, i rise in support of this bill which incorporates the coast guard shore Infrastructure Improvement<\/a> act that i introduced with representative graves of louisiana. It directs the commandant of the coast guard to tackle the maintenance backlog of the shore infrastructure. The coast guard currently has 2. 6 billion project backlogs and 25 of its assets have exceeded their service lives. We must rebuild our coast guard in a strategic way. One that accounts for stronger storms that will only worsen with climate change. This bill will ensure that the coast guard has the processes in place to carry out crucial shore infrastructure repairs. Coasties often spend their personal time working on Infrastructure Improvement<\/a>s. It is unacceptable that they have to sacrifice their rest time and family time to repair crumbling buildings. Passing this bill will ensure americas security, the success of our coast guard, and the wellbeing of our Service Members<\/a>. I yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentleman from oregon reserves. The gentleman from ohio is recognized. Mr. Gibbs at this time i yield as much time as he may consume, the Ranking Member<\/a> of the full transportation and Infrastructure Committee<\/a>, the gentleman from missouri, sam graves. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Graves thank you, mr. Gibbs. Thank you, mr. Speaker. Coast guard is one of the nations five Armed Services<\/a> and this bipartisan bill is going to provide them the resources to carry out their Vital Mission<\/a> more effectively. These missions are critical to ensuring Maritime Safety<\/a>, to stopping the flow of Illegal Drugs<\/a> and migrants into this country, and forcing the u. S. Laws at sea and protecting our nations borders. In order to carry out the tens of thousands of operations each year, the coast guard has to replace and modernize its assets. From cutters to ice breakers, to helicopters this bill is going to help them do that. This legislation also takes steps necessary to provide the men and women of the coast guard as has been pointed out, parity with other Service Members<\/a> in the department of defense. The coast guard is the only one of the Armed Service<\/a> that is isnt in the department of defense and only Armed Service<\/a> with Law Enforcement<\/a> authority. I agree with the chairman on the bipartisan nature of this bill. How it was put together. I commend chairman defazio an subcommittee chairman maloney, subcommittee Ranking Member<\/a> gibbs for working diligently and coming up with a very good piece of legislation, very good bipartisan agreement that we have here today. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation. With that i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from ohio reserves. The gentleman from oregon is recognized. Mr. Defazio mr. Speaker, i would yield such time as he might consume to the chairman of the committee on Homeland Security<\/a>, representative thompson, from mississippi. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from mississippi is recognized. Mr. Thompson thank you, mr. Speaker. I thank the gentleman from oregon for the time. Mr. Speaker, i rise today in strong support of h. R. 3409. Im glad to have worked with chairman defazio to integrate major provisions from legislation i authored to drive long overdue reforms at the Coast Guard Academy<\/a>. Our Armed Services<\/a> should reflect the diverse fabric of this nation. Unfortunately, the Coast Guard Academy<\/a> has struggled to attack and retain a diverse student body and faculty. The absence of diverse forces at the Coast Guard Academy<\/a> has contributed to what many acknowledge as a hostile environment for cadets and faculty with diverse backgrounds, punctuated by hateful incidents. I have engaged with the commandant regarding conditions at the academy, and to his credit he is open to change. To that end, h. R. 3409, directs the commandant to secure the services of outside experts to carry out an independent, top to bottom review of conditions at the academy with an eye to issuing recommendations to foster a more inclusive and supportive environment. Additionally, the independent body would be directed to assess the academys admission processes and consider the potential benefits of congressional nominations to increase diversity. The true test of the coast guard will come when recommendations are issued. At that point it will be clear if, as an organization, the coast guard is willing to abandon its historically insular ways and embrace real reform. Other noteworthy provisions of my legislation that are reflected here include acquiring a coast guard strategy to increase the representation of cadets, faculty, and staff from diverse backgrounds. And authorizing both the academic minority Outreach Team<\/a> program and the student precommissioning initiative. Im pleased the bill also includes language authored by congressman richmond to enhance the coast guards capacity to combat and defend against cyber threats. Before i close, id like to thank chairman defazio, chairman cummings, and their staffs, particularly dave of the transportation and Infrastructure Committee<\/a> staff for partnering with me and my staff to put the academy on a positive trajectory. With that, i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from mississippi yields back. The gentleman from oregon reserves. The gentleman from ohio is recognized. Mr. Gibbs at this time i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from puerto rico, representative gonzalez colon. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from puerto rico is recognized for two minutes. Miss gonzalezcolon i thank chairman defazio and Ranking Member<\/a> gibbs for working this bill. This is an important one. Im really proud about the work during the rd did hurricane. I am proud to be a cosponsor of this bill. The coast guard reauthorization act of 2019, which authorize the service for the next two years and gives the coast guard parity, parity with the other military branches in the department of defense and address a backlog of infrastructure and reauthorize the Federal Maritime Commission<\/a>. I work with representative velazquez from the Virgin Islands<\/a> plaskett from the Virgin Islands<\/a>le to use the hours used for drug interdictions in the caribbean basin meet mission requirements. The u. S. Coast guard has been a vital in addressing these threats and securing our maritime region as well. For example, during the first half of fiscal year 2019, the coast guard removed over nine metric tons of cocaine on interdicted 722 migrants around the puerto rico area of operations. Thats the reason i also was able to include a provision in his bill which ensures recruitment activities in all the territories and we are proud to answer the call of service in our Nation Service<\/a> and the coast guard is no exception. I support this bill and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentleman from ohio reserves. The gentleman from oregon is recognized. Mr. Defazio may i ask on the remaining time . The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oregon has 9 1 2 minutes remaining. Mr. Defazio i would then yield two minutes to the gentleman from new jersey, representative van drew. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from new jersey is recognized for two minutes. I thank the gentleman from oregon and chairman of the transportation and Infrastructure Committee<\/a>. Mr. Speaker, i rise today in support of h. R. 3409, the coast guard authorization act. Bipartisan legislation and it authorizes programs even funding of over 11 billion in the United States<\/a> coast guard through fiscal year 2021. I am proud to represent new jerseys second Congressional District<\/a> home to the United States<\/a> Coast Guard Training Center<\/a> in cape may. Air station atlantic city, and thousands of more brave men and brave women who protect our shores and our coastal communities. This comprehensive bill authorizes critical funding to upgrade and modernize our fleets. Improve offshore navigation safety. Require a report on the effects of climate change. And the vulnerabilities of our coast guard installations. It directs the use of Drone Technology<\/a> for potential use to support missions and operations and order the commandant of the coast guard to brief congress on the conditions and needs for coast guard housing. I thank chairman defazio and Ranking Member<\/a> graves for bringing this important bill to the floor. I urge my colleagues to support h. R. 3409, the coast guard authorization act. These are our brave men and women who protect our seas. I yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from oregon reserves. The gentleman from ohio is recognized. Mr. Gibbs i yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from louisiana, mr. Graves. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from louisiana is recognized. Mr. Graves thank you, mr. Speaker. I want to thank the gentleman from ohio, our Ranking Member<\/a> of the subcommittee, for all of his work on this. I want to thank congressman sean Patrick Maloney<\/a> from new york, our chairman. Chair defazio. And Ranking Member<\/a> of the full committee, sam graves, for all their work on this. Mr. Speaker, this is a bill that is a bipartisan bill. I do appreciate everyone working together to make sure that we are doing the right thing. The coast guard in many cases is not held to the level of regard and respect they deserve. Lets think about all of the things that the coast guard is responsible for. They are in charge of drug interdiction on our seas. They are in charge of alien interdiction on our seas. They are in charge of enforcing all u. S. Laws on our waterways. Securing our maritime borders. Defense readiness. Port and Coastal Security<\/a> issues. Search and rescue, marine safety, maintaining aids to navigation, ice breaking, marine, environmental protection, Oil Spill Prevention<\/a> and response, and many other things. Mr. Speaker, i often refer to them as the Swiss Army Knife<\/a> of the federal government. They have an incredibly broad jurisdiction. These are men and women that are serving our nation on a daily basis. I want to thank all of the leaders of this committee for the work in the committee where we took the coast guard parity act and added it to this bill. The coast guard parity act recognized that the men and women of the coast guard were treated differently than all of the other Armed Services<\/a> whatever the federal government possibly goes into a shutdown. Mr. Speaker, when the government shuts down, its because congress failed to do its job together with an administration. The men and women of the coast guard do not deserve, do not deserve to be punished. And something thats really important to point out, the men and women of the coast guard cant just go say, hey, im going to go work for another job, leave this one because im not being paid because the governments shut down. Ill do this other job. They are contractually obligated to continue doing their work, their service for our nation. And so coast guard parity act was added to this bill in committee and im very disappointed that it was pulled out. I know the chairman and Ranking Member<\/a> were both very supportive of this. We need to address this issue. The men and women of the coast guard are not responsible for when the government shuts down. And they should not be penalized for it, either. And i hope that we can continue to Work Together<\/a> to solve this. Going back, mr. Speaker, the coast guard does an incredible job and incredibly broad mission. This bill helps to recapitalize n antiquated network or system of equipment, antiquated vessels that have lasted well beyond their intended service life, helping to ensure that we can authorize the appropriate vessels, whether its the National Security<\/a> cutter, the offshore patrol cutter, the fast esponse cutter, the helos and winged craft that they depend on on a daily basis. We know the other side that the drug traffickers, that the alien smugglers and others are using new and updated technology. We need to make sure that we continue to provide the men and women of the coast guard with an upper hand, with the best technology, with the best equipment to deal with their Daily Mission<\/a> of protecting our nation and enforcing all laws on the seas of the United States<\/a>. So, mr. Speaker, i again i want to thank mr. Defazio, mr. Graves, mr. Gibbs, and mr. Maloney for all of the work that they have done to ensure this bill moves forward. Its a bipartisan bill. And i urge adoption. Yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The gentleman from ohio reserves. The gentleman from oregon is recognized. Mr. Defazio im prepared to close. Mr. Gibbs we dont have any more speakers. I would just say the speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Gibbs the men and women out there are doing the work to protect this country. I urge the my colleagues to support this bill. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The gentleman from oregon is recognized. Mr. The cause mr. Defazio i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Defazio exup and downing on the state of mr. Graves of louisiana, i would recommend to people the video that became available last week of the coast guard boarding a semi submersible smuggling drugs. Its an extraordinary video. An extraordinary and precarious undertaking by the coast guard, jumping from a zodiac into or onto the top of this vessel, pounding on the hatch to get the people to open the hatch and surrender. And again, reiterating what i said earlier, what they do with drug interdiction, it far exceeds all the other federal agencies combined. And you know, yet, they werent paid during the shutdown, doing these dangerous activities. What they do for Homeland Security<\/a> what they do on a daily basis to provide serge and rescue activities, keep our mariners safe and Maritime Safety<\/a> inspections. So again, i regret that the technicalities around here didnt allow us to move forward at this time but im determined that we will do that. I also want to raise another issue. And i would hope that the coast guard is listening. Im very concerned. The largest Acquisition Program<\/a> i mentioned earlier that about the acquisition budget for reap tallization is the offcher the for recapitalization is the offshore control cutter. Twice they have tried to enround the control process. They have a shipyard that claims because of the hurricane they didnt undered by the contract, no, no, no, they didnt. But they need hundreds of millions of dollars more to do the contract without going through a bidding process, without any scrutiny and without any information being provided to this committee. Ustifying those increases. Theyre saying we cant get workers because of the hurricane, thats impossible. Tyndale air ng force base, havent heard anything about that they say its going to take 1. 3 million more man hours. What does that have to do with not being able to get Skilled Labor<\/a> . The allegations by some others in the industry are that they undered by the contract and now theyre trying to come up with a rationale. Its further disturbing that a former commandant of the coast guard run this is organization. Im very concerned that the coast forward is now contemplating asking Homeland Security<\/a> to invoke a law that never used before, claiming National Security<\/a> to renegotiate between the current commandant of the coast guard and the past commandant of the coast guard running the shipyard the terms of this contract. Thats not right. It doesnt protect the taxpayers. It doesnt protect the contracting process. And i am going to be pushing verying very hard on this issue. That said, there are many meritorious things in bill and i will yield back the balance of my time after recommending a unanimous vote by the house of representatives. Hopefully the senate wont take a year and a half to get the bill done this time so it will be a twoyear authorization instead of a goyear, oneyear authorization. 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. 3409 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, the bill is assed. Does the gentleman request the yeas and nays . Withdraw that. The speaker pro tempore the request is withdrawn. 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 pon the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from oregon seek recognition . Mr. Defaws yoke i move that the house suspend the rules and pass disclosing 1984, aid spent to ensure relief, disaster, act. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title. The clerk h. R. 1984, a bill to amend chapter 11 United States<\/a> code to require the director of the office of budget to submit a report to congress on all assistance provide by the federal government. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from oregon, mr. Defazio, the gentleman from missouri, mr. Graves, each will control 20 minutes. Mr. The cause mr. Defazio i ask that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on h. R. 1984. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Defazio i rise in support of h. R. 1984, the disclosing aid spent to ensure relief or disaster act, introduced by the gentleman from california, mr. Peters. In 2018 alone, there were 14 Natural Disaster<\/a>s that each resulted in more than 1 billion in losses. Already in 2019, the president has granted over 50 major disaster emergency or Fire Management<\/a> declarations under the authorities of the stafford act. While insurance partially covers the cost of disaster recovery, the federal government along with state, local, tribal and territorial partners is spending billions of dollars annually to respond to and recover from these events across more than three dozen departments and agencies. And that results in the fact that there is no clear and consolidated information regarding federal spending on disasters. The disaster act would change that by thriring office of management and budget to annually compile and release a report on spending across the federal government. I thank the gentleman from california for introducing this bill. So that we can obtain in the future this vital consolidated information and also be available to taxpayers of the United States<\/a>. I urge all members to support this commonsense measure. Itll do more to shed light on how limited taxpayer resources are being spent. Doing so will help better inform how we prioritize spending to more effectively provide relief. I strongly support this bill and urge my colleagues to join me in support of it. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from oregon reserves. E gentleman from missouri is recognized. Mr. Graves thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Graves h. R. 1984, the disaster act is a bipartisan piece of legislation that requires the federal agencies across the government to report on how much they simply spend on disasters. I want to thank the gentleman from california, mr. Peters, and the gentleman from north carolina, mr. Meadows, for their work on this legislation. Mr. Speaker, youd think that we would know how much the federal government spends, actually spends, on disasters. We have estimates but we simply dont know what the actual costs are across the federal government. This bill is going to help us get some real numbers. Its going to help us increase transparency for the taxpayer. Its going to help Congress Make<\/a> much better informed decisions. I do support this legislation and i encourage my colleagues to do the same and with that, i reserve the balance. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from missouri reserves. The gentleman from oregon is recognized. Mr. Defazio i yield the gentleman from california, the author of this excellent legislation, two minutes. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Peeters thank you, mr. Speaker. Thank you for yielding. As we in california prepare for re wildfires, the east is in hurricane center, Natural Disaster<\/a>s have taken the lives of loved ones and destroyed communities an businesses. Disasters are becoming larger, more dangerous, and frequent and significantly more expensive. According to the federal Emergency Management<\/a> agency, there have been more than 2,400 federally declared disasters since 2000 totaling hundreds of billions of dollars in relief aid. However when the federal government helps commun recover from these disasters, it does not calculate one comprehensive number of how much we spend on disasters per year. Those funds could come from 29 different accounts across 11 Different Agency<\/a> which is exacerbates disaster recovery, hinners future planning and future accountability. Thats why i introduced the bipartisan disclosing aid spent relief. Ring it requires the office of management and budget to publish an annual total of disaster related assistance categorized by disaster type, location and purpose. With this and other smart Reforms Congress<\/a> is confering today, taxpayers with ill know where their dollars are going and the federal government can be a better steward of those resources and will be et better able to plan for the next disaster. I urge my colleagues to pass this legislation today before the next big Natural Disaster<\/a> hits. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from california yields back. The gentleman pr oregon reserves. The gentleman from missouri is recognized. Mr. Graves thank you, mr. Speaker. At this time i yield three minutes to the gentlelady from puerto rico, miss gonzalezcolon. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized for three minutes. Miss gonzalezcolon thank you, mr. Speaker. Thank you, Ranking Member<\/a>. I want to thank representative peters and Ranking Member<\/a> meth meadow os of Economic Development<\/a> bill and Emergency Management<\/a> for working on this critical legislation. Coming from one of those places that actually was impacted by a hurricane, i think this is one of the best ways to be accountable for the money that has been approved. Im a cospon or of h. R. 1988 1984, the disaster act, which requires the office of management and budget to submit an annual report to congress on all disaster related assistance provided by the federal government. The report must include all federal obligations related to disaster response, recovery, mitt fwation and administrative costs as stated with the activities for specified agencies and programs. A lot has been said about how much money has been allocated to many jurisdictions across the different federal agencies. Having this tool will help us understand how much funds are being approved and where that money is going. To this date, puerto rico has been allocated 42 billion in disaster funding. 0. 6 billion has been obligated has ly 13. 6 billion reached the island. Having this information in a single report will help congress and the public better understand the real cost of Natural Disaster<\/a>s, the benefits of investing in mitigation, and other efforts, and this legislation will also provide transparency and accountability when it comes to Disaster Relief<\/a> costs. Im a proud cosponsor and i thank representative peters and Ranking Member<\/a> meadows and yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentleman from missouri reserves the balance of his time. The gentleman from oregon. Mr. Defazio i have no further speakers. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from missouri is recognized. Mr. Graves thank you, mr. Speaker. Does the gentleman from oregon have anymore speakers . Were prepared to close. Thank you, mr. Speaker. With that, again, this is, you would think wed have a better estimate for or better idea of what we actually spend on dasters. We obviously dont. This legislation is going to provide the transparency. I think its a good piece of legislation. I would urge my colleagues to support it. With that, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from missouri yields back. The gentleman from oregon is recognized. Mr. Defazio i yield myself such time as i may consume. I urge my colleagues to support this excellent legislation. With that, i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The question is, will the house","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"archive.org","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","width":"800","height":"600","url":"\/\/ia803005.us.archive.org\/24\/items\/CSPAN_20190724_155900_U.S._House_of_Representatives_U.S._House\/CSPAN_20190724_155900_U.S._House_of_Representatives_U.S._House.thumbs\/CSPAN_20190724_155900_U.S._House_of_Representatives_U.S._House_000001.jpg"}},"autauthor":{"@type":"Organization"},"author":{"sameAs":"archive.org","name":"archive.org"}}],"coverageEndTime":"20240716T12:35:10+00:00"}