programs. and today, monetary subsidies for needy families. first votes just after 1:00 p.m. eastern today. live now to the floor of the u.s. house here on c-span. the speaker: the house will be in order. the prayer will be offered by the guest chaplain, the reverend kevin kitrell ross, unity of sacramento, sacramento, california. the chaplain: may we turn within and look higher to the god of our understanding and pray. loving presence, we invoke from the celestial balconies the witness of the pioneers of our progress whose bloody journeys

marshaled an unprecedented faith and birthed a new nation of radical inclusion. bless these sons and daughters of promise gathered in this, the people's house. let them reach higher for crowns f conscience to exemplify come bags and bring from their districts to their desks sharp pencils that carve on their hearts the faces of freedom that they represent. let this house be an incubator for our best ideas, and not a prison for our poorest politics. let these heroes and sheroes of the people's house summon the intellectual imagination and intuitive navigation to serve bolder together and break through ideological gridlock that arrests the potential of

our great republic. let these innovators of cooperation and builds of the beloved community reunite these states of america and lead the way for a world that works for all. this is enough. in the this is enough in the name of the love supreme and so it is, amen. and amen. the speaker: the chair has examined the journal of the last day's 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 led by the gentleman from minnesota, mr. trott. mr. trott: 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: without objection, the gentleman from california, mr. bera, is recognized for one minute. mr. bera: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i'm pleased to introduce the house to our guest chaplain, reverend kevin kitrell ross, senior minister of unity of sacramento. kevin is regarded as a respected interfaith social justice leader, committed to building bridges of understanding and cooperation across race, culture, class and religious lines. whether in his role leading one of the nation's most diverse and integrated congregations, conducting diversity and complicit bias trainings or being an activist of healing the crisis between law enforcement and communities of color, kevin is dedicated to strengthening communities through dialogue, direct encounter and education. a south side of chicago native, kevin is a morehouse college graduate, a senior fellow of the american leadership forum, a member of the interfaith council of sacramento and a three-time delegate to the parliament of the world's religions. kevin and his wife have three

children and reside in elk grove, california. anita is the founder of women's equality. they are both committed to building a world that works for all. mr. speaker, i ask my colleagues to join me in welcoming reverend kevin ross and thank him for offering today's opening prayer in the u.s. house of representatives. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlelady from florida seek recognition? ms. ros-lehtinen: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i'd like to recognize the nora children's foundation, a nonprofit organization in my home city of miami, working around the clock to serve kids in our community who have been separated from their parents by deportation. i have known nora, the founder of this organization, for so many years, and i have seen firsthand the true passion for ensuring the well-being of these children. through the support of donors

and volunteers, this organization is able to provide assistance in the form of food, clothing, educational programs, legal advice and many other vital services. this week nora will be visiting our nation's capital waddell gation of 50 children -- with a delegation of 50 children to help restructure our immigration policies for the children who she cares, who is as american as you and i, do not have to grow up apart from their parents. mr. speaker, i nation must do right for these children, and i urge my colleagues in congress and the administration to work together so that we can have an immigration system that reflects our nation's compassion and provides a solution that is fair and just to everyone. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will entertain up to 15 further requests for one-minute speeches on each side of the aisle. for what purpose does the

gentleman from maryland seek recognition? mr. brown: mr. speaker, i request 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 minute. mr. brown: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, last year's presidential election was the first in 50 years without the full protections of the voting rights act. what was the result, 14 states had new voting restrictions including strict voter i.d., cuts to same-day registration and early voting and fewer polling places. this suppressed the vote particularly among voters of color and in poor communities and had a major impact in close races in north carolina, virginia and florida, according to the parenan center for justice. the voting -- brennan center for justice. congress should once again to modernize the voting rights act and respond to the supreme court's objections. yet, despite calls to pass legislation for the past four

years, nothing has happened. voting is a right, not a privilege, and there's no debating that point. the founders in philadelphia, women at seneca falls, and marchers in selma all recognize the power of the vote. when we protect the rights of voters to make their choices, whatever they may be, we do our part to build a more perfect union. we can't wait for the next election. congress must restore the full protections of the voting rights act now. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina seek recognition? mr. wilson: mr. speaker, 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 minute. r. wilson: mr. speaker, otto was a shining example of what american families hope for sons and daughters. intellectually curious, interested in the world and bright. sadly, otto was murdered by the north korean dictatorship. by imprisoning him under sham

charges, the communist totalitarian north korean regime is clearly responsible for his death. otto's story highlights the brutality of the north korean murders, one that wrongfully imprisons u.s. citizens and uses them as bargaining chips in an effort to gain attention on the world stage. it's past time we strongly restrict tourist travel to this atrocity. i am grateful to have introduced bipartisan legislation with congressman adam schiff that will ep able the treasury department to regulate travel to north korea through licenses and no licenses would be able to be granted for tourist travel. foreign affairs committee chairman ed royce has been instrumental for legislative success. we will be most successful by defeating brutality by denying the dictatorship any source of income and depriving it of the opportunity to use innocent americans like otto. in conclusion, god bless our troops and we will never forget

september 11 and the global war on terrorism. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i seek unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. kildee: thank you, mr. speaker. yesterday in my hometown of flint, michigan, there was a violent attack on a police officer at flint bishop international airport. and like many in my community, i'm shocked, horrified by this cowardly attack. my thoughts are with this injured officer, lieutenant jeff neville, and his family, and i am relieved he's in stable condition. he's expected to recover. i've known jeff for decades, dating back to our service together in county government. he's a true public servant, and he's deeply committed to the community he serves. his actions to subdue this attacker, even while he was under attack, are truly heroic.

he helped save others from potential harm. i also want to thank those individuals who put themselves in harm's way to help lieutenant neville, including the bishop chief of police chris miller, airport maintenance worker who stepped in, richard cruell. their actions saved lives. i'm thankful that the f.b.i., the michigan state police, flint police, other agencies are investigating this terrible attack as a potential incident of terror. and i just hope all my colleagues will join me in extending their prayers to lieutenant neville and his family in hopes for his speedy recovery. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? sorry. >> i ask unanimous consent, mr. speaker, to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, i rise today to honor the life of patricia

lucille mckenzie of garden city, michigan. patricia passed away on may 31, 2017, and is dearly missed by her many family freands, including her husband of 55 years, doug mckenzie, and her children, pamela, barbara, phil, marsha as well as her 12 grandchildren. in her 78 years, patricia was devoted to her loving family, her faith and to her strong belief in the principles of american democracy. mr. trott: she's also remembered for her love of her dog, petty lou, and of course her passion for the montreal canadians. patricia's story is the story of countless americans, a hard working person, a dedicated wife and mother. i hope during this difficult time you'll find comfort in the knowledge she's been called home in peace and harmony. remember scripture tells us the peace of god, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds.

mr. speaker, our friend, patricia lucille mckenzie, will be dearly missed but we go on to remember and honor her legacy just as she would want us to do. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. higgins: mr. speaker, the senate bill that was unveiled this morning, much like the house republican health care bill, is a repulsive scam perpetrated against the american people. section 0 of the bill, 120 under executive compensation tax cut, united health care will get a tax cut under this bill representing $15.5 million. if that's not egregious enough, the fact is that united health

care is under investigation today by the united states department of justice for defrauding the medicare program of billions of dollars over the last seven years. this should be rejected today and decisively by all decent members of this congress who believe there is a moral responsibility to ensure that the legislation passed here is fair and just. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? mr. bilirakis: 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 minute. mr. bilirakis: thank you, mr. speaker. last weekend i had the honor of attending the centennial commemoration of rose historic cemetery in tarpon springs, florida. rose is the oldest african-american cemetery in pinellas county and is listed in the national register of

historic places. it was especially meaningful ceremony because it was held on juneteenth, the anniversary marking the end of slavery in the u.s. those who have been laid to rest at rose represent a major part of tarpon springs history and culture. civil rights pioneers, veterans and many others, including friends i grew up with are buried there. i'd like to especially take the mayor, chris, andy dabs and members of the cemetery's board and dozens of volunteers who work tirelessly year round to protect the legacy of rose cemetery. because of their dedication, rose continues to be a beautiful historical site for our community. i yield back. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, 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 minute. >> mr. speaker, i rise in honor of most charlotte's exemplary industry, babcock and willcaulk. boilers made by backcaulk and bill caulk powered thomas edison's laboratories and new york's first subway. durled world war 2, much was powered by their boilers and they were vital in the manhattan project. mr. pittenger: they fabricated for the u.s. -- the world's first nuclear powered submarine. more recently, bob caulk and wilcox has -- bobcaulk and wilcox has helped protect our air, water and land by controlling emissions from hundreds of power plants and industrial facilities around the world. in 2010, babcock and wilcox moved to charlotte and became

part of charlotte's region and economy, cloge growing with a cluster of leading energy firms. congratulations today to babcock and wilcox's 5,000 employees and on this wonderful anniversary. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognize snigs -- recognition? without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> i rise today to celebrate the ireless dedication of one of new jersey's tireless advocates. she served as congressional am wassdor for the alzheimer's association since 2014 meeting with members of congress here on capitol hill, holding educational events in which i have participated in congressional district 7 and organizing fundraisers like the walk to end alzheimer's. her ance: unfortunately,

advocacy doesn't come without tragedy, because the disease has claimed the lives of her mother and her husband. alzheimer's is the nation's sixth leading cause of death. more than five million americans are living with it and 16 million are estimated to have alzheimer's by 2050. that's why in june, alzheimer's awareness month, i urge advocates around the world like jea nee to continue to fight for alzheimer's research funding. we are on the verge of a breakthrough and with your help we will certainly find one. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee 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. for 7 1/2 years before coming to congress i was a judge in tennessee trying felony criminal cases. i tried the attempted murder of james earl ray and many other high profile cases.

robert mueller work his close friendship with james comey, should never have been appointed as special prosecutor in a case in which mr. comey is such a central player. mr. duncan: mr. mueller never should have accepted such a -- an appointment. to make matters worse, he's hired several lawyers who were big contributors to and active campaigners for hillary clinton and other democrats. most people believe there are conflicts of interest here. there are hundreds of thousands of lawyers who could have been hired who have not been involved in any way for the president or mrs. clinton this investigation has been tainted and any action now will look like a partisan witch hunt. former speaker gingrich said what we now need is a special counsel to investigate the special counsel. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from alaska is recognized for one inute.

without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute -- for one minute. mr. young: i rise today to speak on behalf of the technical and career education act. it will improve the carl perkins technical education program. it is my firm belief that school is not just and cannot be one size fits all. the carl perkins funding has allowed school districts and school boards from across the country to develop inknow vative programs to educate our nation's youth. i've always supported alternative forms of education. education not only trains the mind but train ours nation's youth with valuable skills to succeed outside the classroom and into is the work force. many students in my state and across the nation rely on nontraditional opportunities to achieve success. carl perkins grants have

provided additional funding for opportunities for our youth. they have allowed for certificates and credentials in many industries. they include certification in welding and carpentry, pre-apprentices for eelect triss -- electrician, heavy machinery and iron workers. certification of osha and hazmat agencies. culinary arts and building maintenance. these are vocational programs, mr. speaker, that help the working person, the young person come prepared, to become one owho can contribute to the good of the state and the nation. i stand proudly in support of h.r. 2353. again, mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition? without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in honor of two georgia

state corrections officers, sergeant curtis blue and crimb monica who were killed in the line of duty on june 13 in putnam county, georgia. i share with their families the deep sorrow, and i pray god comforts the families in their time of grief. described as hardworking, kind and devoted, the sergeants will be remembered for their service and sacrifice for their loyality as public servants, and for their love and dedication to fair families. mr. hice: i am glad the two perpetrators of this crime have been brought into custody and i'm confident justice will be served. law enforcement officers make a promise to keep our country safe and in return we must return the respect and honor that is due all who serve our community on the front lines. in addition, governor nathan

deal ordered the flags of georgia to fly at half-staff on july 17 and july 20678 i ask my colleagues to join me in reck nicing their lives and service and to say thank you to every brother and sister in uniform who stand on that thin but line and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from kentucky seek recognition? without objection the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i rise to pay special recognition to army specialist michael martini for an incredible act of heroism. while off duty, specialist martini displayed remarkable selflessness and courage in the rescue and treatment of a fatally wounded civilian. on may 27, 2017 a motor home traveling in oak grofe, kentucky, collided with -- oak grove, kentucky, collided with a civil ab building. michael pulled over to the side of the accident and rushed to the seaven. the front of the motor home was

crushed and michael saw the driver had life threatening injuries to his head and leg. with gasoline rapidly spilling from the vehicle, michael was able to gain access to the passenger side of the motor home and fashion a makeshift tourniquet. handed e police officer michael a tourniquet which he applied. michael went into the back of the motor home to locate a first aid kit he provided information to emergency services that prompted the call for emergency medical flight from the scene. if not for his action the wounded driver would not survived the trauma sustained. i'm honored to recognize specialist martini's life-saving actions and inspiring -- an inspiring illustration of the bravery and good deeds.

i thank him for his bravery and all others in oak grove involved in the rescue. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? >> unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speakering today i rise to recognize the 50th anniversary to have grand valley state university's pioneer class. in june of 1967, in a tent on its allendale, michigan, campus, they held their first commencement ceremony. on that day, 138 seniors, including 86 member theefs pioneer class that started in 1963, received their diplomas from michigan's newest college. mr. huizenga: the first graduates laid the foundation of a university that would grow to offer 124 degrees, enroll students from 82 different countries, and boast a 94% pliment rate for its graduates.

always a good thing. after that first graduation 138 ny in 1967, gbsu had alumni. today the university has over 110,000 proud alumni throughout michigan and frankly around the globe. under the leadership of its first president, james um behr, followed by continued guidance of other presidents including current president thomas haase they've become a renowned institution and one of the 100 largest universities in this nation. during the very first commencement address, a speaker noted, quote, no one could ever possibly chart your course through these years, end yet, and it's hard to imagine that the pioneer class could have dreamed of the role they would be playing in helping grand valley state university achieve such great heights. i ask my colleagues to join me in honoring grand valley state university's pioneer class of 1967, the original lakers for a lifetime.

i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, by direction of the committee on rules i call up house resolution 396 and ask for its immediate consideration. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the resolution. the clerk: house calendar number 59, house resolution 396. resolved, that at any time after adoption of this resolution the speaker may, pursuant to clause 2-b of rule 18, declare the house resolved into the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for consideration of the bill, h.r. 2842, to provide for the conduct of demonstration projects to test the effectiveness of subsidized employment for tanf recipients. the first reading 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 on ways and means.

after general debate the bill shall be considered for amendment under the five-minute rule. in lieu of the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on ways and means now printed in the bill, it shall be in order to consider as an original bill for the purpose of amendment under the five-minute rule an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of rules committee print 115-22. 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 the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution. 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 a 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 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 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 2, it shall be in order at any time on the legislative day of june 22, 2017, for the speaker to entertain motions that the house suspend the rules, as though under clause 1 of rule 15, relating to the bill, h.r. 2353, to reauthorize the carl d. perkins career and technical education act of 006. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman from oklahoma is recognized for one hour. >> mr. speaker, for the purposes of debate only i yield the customary 30 minutes to my good friend, the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, pending which i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. cole: during consideration of this resolution, all time is yielded for the purposes of debate only. i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. cole: on wednesday, the rules committee met and reported a rule for consideration of a very important measure. the resolution provides for consideration of h.r. 2842, the accelerating individuals into the work force act. the rule provides for one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking member of the ways and means committee. mr. speaker, h.r. 2842 is a commonsense proposal to help transition welfare recipient

into steady paying jobs. moving welfare recipients into work is a central goal of tanf, the temporary assistance for needy families program. this bipartisan bill would incentivize employers to hire tanf recipients and help subsidize these new employees' salaries for up to a year to allow them to transition into the work force. the policy idea behind h.r. 2842 is simple. under this bill, states can establish partnerships with employers to hire recipients of tanf dollars. through these partnerships, employers would receive a subsidy of up to 50% of the wage for a tanf recipient, while the other 50% would be paid by the employer. beneficiaries would have to meet three requirements. they must be a tanf recipient, must be unemployed, and they must have an income of 20% or less of the federal poverty level. .

this bill would direct these welfare recipients back in the work force. mr. speaker, president ronald reagan once noted, quote, we should measure welfare success by how many people leave welfare, not by how many people are added. the legislation under consideration in today's rule is a fulfillment of that promise. under h.r. 2842, state and local governments will be able to better utilize their tanf dollars to help moving individuals into work and help them transition out of the welfare system altogether. helping people get back to work is a great deal for the individuals who will be helped under the program, for the employers, for the economy and for the american people. this bill at its core is about helping americans get back to work. mr. speaker, we are a nation filled with hardworking people and i've seen over and over again how badly many of the

unemployed want to return to work. many, if not most recipients of tanf are in the program not because they want to be, but because they've been forced to be by circumstances. these unemployment americans want nothing more than to return to the dignity of the work force as quickly as they're able to do so. this bill will help remove barriers to employment and will incentivize employers to hire current tanf recipients. workers re-entering the work force is a good thing for society. not only will workers who receive jobs under this program be taken off the welfare rolls, thus ensuring the continued success of that program, but these new workers will be better able to contribute to better lives for themselves, for their families and for their communities. here in washington, d.c., we too often describe policy solutions as being, quote, common sense, or, quote, win-win. but in this case, it's actually true. h.r. 2842 is a commonsense

solution and a win-win for everyone involved. the workers, the employers, the community and the country. that's why this legislation will receive a substantial bipartisan vote tomorrow. whatever their differences, republicans and democrats alike want to put unemployed people back to work. this bill will actually succeed in doing that. mr. speaker, i urge support of the rule and the underlying legislation and with that, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. hastings: thank you and i thank my good friend, the gentleman from oklahoma, for yielding me the customary 30 minutes for debate. this measure is a bipartisan bill that will help americans receiving support from the temporary assistance for needy families program, help them to find good-paying jobs. according to the bureau of

labor statistics, there are more than six million job openings in our country. that is the highest level recorded since we started tracking this data. and yet the share of americans participating in the work force is at a four decade low. clearly there are underlying issues that need to be addressed to get more people plugged into the work force. for people looking for jobs, tanf serves as a lifeline. tanf is administrative by the department of health and human services and is designed to elp families achieve self-sufficiency. under the program, states receive block grants to design and operate their own programs to fulfill the goals of the tanf program. it's important to note that

states are at risk of financial penalty if tanf participants receive more than a year of education or if states have ore than 30% of the state tanf caseload in education and training programs. due to these limits, states have largely abandoned efforts to promote or support work in their tanf programs. and this is important to understand because one of the most effective ways to get more ople employed is through employer-driven on-the-job training. research has shown that properly structured these programs result in better and more stable employment, especially for individuals who are otherwise unlikely to find work. although the measure we are debating today does not address

this issue, this bill will help tip the scale back toward job training programs. h.r. 2842 establishes demonstration projects that combine work, training and support for hard-to-employ tanf recipients. this bill provides a one-time appropriation of $100 million to subsidize these programs. after the 12-month period, states are going to be required to report to congress on the effectiveness of subsidizing wages in moving individuals receiving tanf into full-time jobs. since we are talking about jobs, we need to recognize that we as an institution haven't provided the necessary resources to get people back to work. if you would ask any member of this body to outline his or her

top priorities, i guarantee you job creation would be mentioned every single time. we all agree on the need, but from there the conversation stops. there are lots of proposals in congress to create jobs, but we've been unable to pass a large-scale bipartisan bill for quite sometime. this really needs to change. given the legislation we are debating today, it is interesting to me that president donald john trump's budget proposal cut work force training programs by 39%. rather than present a jobs bill, he's presented a plan that would actually stop helping people looking for jobs. that, in my judgment, is penny-wise and pound foolish.

in bringing forward this legislation, i think it's being made clear that this body does not share that approach, but we need to do more than a single targeted bill. five months into the trump administration, republican leadership still has not put forward a single large-scale piece of legislation to create good-paying jobs or raise the wages of hardworking americans, but its leadership has rejected democratic proposals out of hand. we should be working every day on creating jobs and raising wages for everyone everywhere in america, but instead of focusing on job creation, donald john trump's budget request would destroy approximately 1.4 million jobs. his budget would eviscerate

billions of dollars from critical job-creating investments in infrastructure and innovation, dismantle skills training programs like the one we are discussing here today and ransack education benefits and leave our country in a weakened state. instead of bringing jobs back to communities that have fallen on hard times, the budget walks away from them. and so, mr. speaker, i'll leave it at this. the underlying measure we are debating today is a good step forward, but one step is not nearly enough. we need to do more, not less, to strengthen our communities and help working families. just as i urged donald john trump to move past the campaign rhetoric and get serious, i also urge this body to lead

with more bipartisan measures that will provide for necessary resources for those who need them most, and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. the gentleman from oklahoma. mr. cole: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. cole: i want to begin by agreeing with my good friend on many of the points that he made. i was particularly struck by the point he made about the low participation rate in the labor force. that's been a problem that has been with us, frankly, for as he pointed out several decades and it's one that's gotten worse and that's attributable to a large point that another point my friend made, a thing around here we call the skills gap. we have literally millions of jobs available in this country that employers are ready to hire people that simply don't have the training. i couldn't agree more with my good friend that on-the-job training is sometimes the best training. you actually acquire the skill you need to be successful and

the situation of this legislation will actually, again, offset the cost of that to the employer, and by the way, not add any cost to the taxpayer. that's something we ought to talk about as well. we are just taking money that we would have been spending anyway and spending it a lot more productively. my friend's right, this is a new program, a new approach. trying out for a year, spending $100 million -- a lot of money -- but obviously we would spend more this way if we know this is successful. but i can't help but think it will be successful. it's important to note this bill is actually, again, exceptionally bipartisan. i was struck, as i hope my friend was yesterday, when we were in the rules committee considering this legislation, we're used to seeing the members of the ways and means committee come up and sort of fight in front of us. instead they actually came up arm in arm with a bipartisan proposal that they had agreed to that, again, is an excellent, excellent work. it's exactly the way that

congress should work, quite frankly. find common ground, advance commonsense solutions that makes life better for the american people. in this case, at least, i think we succeeded in doing that. it's also important to note that the rule authorizes the consideration of h.r. 2353, the so-called perkins grant program. perkins grant is something we're pretty familiar with in oklahoma. this is federal money that moves into a career tech system and helps actually, again, workers acquire the necessary skills to be productive. quite often, again, working with an employer who's already got the jobs available, we then train the worker at a career tech system partly funded with federal dollars and that person's assured a job the day they walk out. i suspect that bill like this bill when it finally reaches the floor will also have substantial bipartisan support. so i want to pledge to my good friend that we are going to

continue to work together on things like this. i don't think anybody disagrees about putting americans back to work. i don't think workers, you know, would -- they would rather be at work than frankly just receiving government assistance and not able to go to work. so this bill does that, and i want to urge support of the rule and, again, the underlying legislation and with that, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. the gentleman from florida. mr. hastings: mr. speaker, i'm very pleased at this time to yield 2 1/2 minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from washington, my friend, ms. delbene, a distinguished member of the committee on ways and means. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. delbene: i thank you, mr. speaker. i rise to express my support for the underlying legislation which includes my amendment, expanding apprenticeship for american workers. i'd like to thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for supporting this important effort in the ways and means committee and i look forward to

its passage. we can all agree that helping people find long-term employment in a high-demand industry is one of the best ways to ensure that everyone has economic security. but technological advancements like automation and artificial intelligence are dramatically shifting the way our economy works. and these changes are only going to accelerate. we cannot allow american workers to be left behind. congress needs to be forward looking, not reactive, in crafting policies that help workers who are displaced from the work force. i believe that means we need a national commitment to addressing the skills gap and mitigating disruption in an evolving 21st century economy. apprenticeships and on-the-job training are an important part of that equation. apprenticeships can be an incredible opportunity for businesses and workers alike. they allow employers to build a pipeline of qualified workers

while equipping job seekers with the specific skills they need to find and keep good-paying jobs. oftentimes they provide skills that are portable and meaningful anywhere in the country, giving workers more freedom to transfer between companies and industries. in my home state of washington, investments in apprenticeships have been shown to give a higher return on investment than any other job training program, returning $23 for each dollar that's invested. it's important to remember these investments not only have an incredible impact on our economy but also on people's lives by helping them become more self-sufficient through specialized training and increased earning potential. i appreciate my colleagues' bipartisan support for this amendment, and i urge its passage in the underlying legislation. thank you and i yield back. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida reserves. the gentleman from oklahoma. mr. cole: decades of experience

tell us the most effective anti-poverty program is a job, and this bill helps low-income americans earn success through the dignity of work. states actually spend little of their tanf funding on moving people into jobs. today half of all tanf recipients are neither working nor preparing for work this bill ensures that money only goes to those who are working, providing individuals with paychecks in lieu of benefit checks this pilot only provides funding for one fiscal year. repurposing money that has already been appropriated and frankly using it in a better way than it was originally appropriated to achieve. the bill requires states report on outcome measures and provide high quality evaluations for the -- so that congress can make appropriation decisions after we've seen the results yielded by the program. finally, as we've been pointing out but i think around here it's

always worth pointing out multiple times, we're actually, c.b.o. estimates the bill has no cost. we're doing something good without increasing expenditures for the taxpayers and indeed we're probably in the process creating new taxpayers, people that can contribute to the wealth and activity and prosperity of the country and people that want to contribute to the wealth and activity and employers that want to provide people with an opportunity to improve themselves and become more productive. so good bill all the way around and again, i will be urging the passage of the rule and the underlying legislation. with that, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman reserves his time. the gentleman from florida. mr. hastings: mr. speaker, president donald john trump campaigned on the promise of job creation. however, his budget paints a very different picture. it cuts jobs training programs by 39%.

and its radical spending cuts would lead to massive job losses. in this body, we talk a lot about jobs. but we're six month into this congress and have failed to pass any major job creation bills. while the bipartisan legislation before us today is indeed as my good friend points out a step in the right direction, but we can and we must do more. well, mr. speaker, i'm happy to say that i have an amendment in my hand that will generate thousands of american jobs. if we defeat the previous question, i'm going to offer an amendment to the rule to bring up representative defazio's bipartisan bill, h.r. 2510, the water quality protection and job

creation act. this bill will create thousands of new american jobs through increased investment in our nation's wastewater infrastructure. here's a chance to take today's momentum a step further and consider mr. defazio's bill in addition to the bipartisan tanf bill. mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the record along with extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. hastings: to discuss our proposal, i yield four minutes to my very good friend, the gentleman from oregon, the distinguished ranking member of the transportation and infrastructure committee, mr. defazio. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. defazio: i thank the gentleman for this opportunity.

as he noted, the president has talked and tweeted incessantly about creating jobs and infrastructure investment but unfortunately the only substantive proposal to come out of the white house that relates to infrastructure and infrastructure investment and jobs is in his budget and it actually reduces federal investment in infrastructure, which would basically eliminate jobs. so the bill before us today, bipartisan bill, apprenticeship is great. but you've got to apprentice for something that's real. a job in the end. construction. america is falling apart and right now we have nothing but rhetoric coming out of the white house and now ideology. they're talking about privatizing all the infrastructure in the united states. so you pay tolls everywhere you go. they call it asset recycling. they've come up with a catchy new name. that's been floated but they haven't put any substance behind

it. so this amendment would allow the house to debate and pass h.r. 2510, water quality protection and job creation act, 2017. this bill would provide $25 billion in direct infrastructure investment over the next five years to address america's crumbles wastewater infrastructure and local water quality challenges. report card of 2017 is a d-plus. meanwhile, municipalities across the country have a back willing of more than $40 billion, b, billion, dollars in clean water infrastructure projects and according to the e.p.a. communities need close to $300 billion over the next few years to bring their systems into a state of repair. it's clear we can't continue to neglect the serious needs of our aging watter infrastructure. these systems fail and degrade

and pose a risk to the health and safety of our citizens and obviously the environment. 24e president promised in his campaign to make a clean water a priority. agree with that he promised to help state and local governments upgrade critical wastewater and drinking water infrafruck you are -- infrastructure. here's a chance to deliver on that promise. h.r. 2510 does exactly that. it triples investment in america's crumbling water infrastructure. i was county commissioner at a time when the federal government was a good partner. in those days they put up 85% of the cost of our wastewater system. we put up the other 15%. this could -- by renewing this legislation and a commitment to the state revolving loan fund programs and adding in a grant component for lower income areas, that could, you know, be a great step in terms of federal partnership and creating actual jobs for the apprentices that this bill wants to create.

there's a widespread support for this legislation. i have here enforcement from 30 separate groups and i would ask unanimous consent to insert these letters into the record. and according to the national utility contractors association every billion dollars invested in our nation's water infrastructure creates or sustained 27,000 real jobs in the private sector that means that the $20 billion in federal investment in the clean water state revolving fund, including h r. 2550, would create or sustain approximately 540,000 jobs. this is real. it's real. real jobs for real people and real improvements in the infrastructure of this country this would be a great step forward and i urge that my colleagues adopt the amendment. with that, i yield back the

balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: weather, the gentleman's request is granted. the gentleman from florida reserves. the gentleman from oklahoma. mr. cole: thank you, mr. speaker. we've been having such a wonderful bipartisan moment here, my good friend from oregon inappropriately wants to change the the nor a little bit. let me begin by congratulating my good friend from oregon, he's a serious legislator, does serious things. i'll probably find myself on the same side as him on air traffic controllers. on this particular piece of legislation, i have not had the opportunity, i don't sit on my friend's committee, but i suspect the committee hasn't picked it up and dealt with it either. just from a process standpoint, i think the appropriate thing to do would be for the committee to review it. it could be amended in committee as indeed this bill was. and then we'd have the opportunity to consider on the floor. but to bring it to the floor immediately to me is premature

legislatively. also want to take issue with my friends on the record of the president of the united states in terms of job creation. i suspect president trump in his private life created more jobs than just about anybody in the congress of the united states. and i think he's laid forward some incredibly important proposals to continue and build on his personal record now that he's president of the united states. one of those proposal -- proposals, as my friends are surely aware because i think they largely agree with it, is to enhancement the apprenticeship program. another one my friends may not be in agreement with is this e's laid out his plans for tax reform. the greatest engine for job growth is never going to be the federal government, it's always going to be the private sector. if we could as the president suggested lower tax rates and incentivize profits, take those that are overseas and bring them back here, i think we create a lot more jobs a lot manufacturer

quickly, in a lot more sustainable fashion than we would do through additional public spending. i think we ought to give the president a little bit of credit for emphasizing and bringing home american companies. something that actually american jobs. something he actually began once he was president-elect. we saw it in indiana with carrier air-conditioning. we've seen it in other cases where he's promoted the sale of american arms in the middle east, where we've got substantial things. i think this is a president that actually gets up each and every day and thinks profoundly about what can we do to create an overall ecosystem and environment, if you will that will incentivize private investment, prives employment, american jobs and bringing american companies back to this country. i think he's actually off to an exceptionally good start in those areas. i look forward to working with him on that. i suspect we'll see a tax proposal on this floor in the not too distant future. our friends in ways and means are working on it now, that will

mirror many of the principles the president laid out in his initial draft discussion of what e thinks we ought to do. that one change, changing the tax code, i think will do more than all the programs that we would work on. many of them worthy programs, many of them things i think where the federal government does have a role. i will agree with my friend from florida, i am disturbed about some of the cuts in training programs. i've seen those programs work and work well. i suspect president will find out, as other presidents have found out, we used to routinely place president obama's budget on the floor, it rarely got very many vote, i don't think got democratic vote, presidentses proposes, as they she should -- presidents propose, as they should, but at the end of the day we make the decision. i want to assure my friends they're not going to disappear. and we may have to make some

tough choices, you always have to do in appropriating dollars. but many of the programs that i know my friend cares about has championed in his distinguished career are going to be protected. we're going to try to work in a bipartisan fashion in those areas and keep those things going. but at the end of the day, i think the president's record on job creation will be outstanding and i think the actions that he's taken in the opening part of his administration are a testament to how seriously he takes the challenge of making sure that every american has a decent job, a job that pays a good wage a job that will provide for his or her family, and a job that will give them an opportunity to live a life of dignity and prosperity, something we want every american to have a chance at. so with that, mr. speaker, i'm going to reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. the gentleman from florida. mr. hastings: mr. speaker, i would sgrad vise through you my good friend that i have no

further speakers and i'm prepared to when he. is mr. cole: i'm prepared to close whenever my friend is. mr. hastings: thank you very much, i yield myself the remaining time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. hastings: i want to address my good friend about the priest question and the fact that it has not gone through the process. i will just remind him that the chat for the washington today is about a health care measure that hasn't begun through the process , at least to the extent that most of us would want. i also, having great respect for my good friend from oklahoma, i know he will see and get a chance to talk with president donald john trump, i'm not likely to do that. but i would ask him to tell him when he sees him for me that i

came here in 1993 and there were 14,000 bridges in need of repair in america. and last year, the statistics are from the society that does that analysis, showed that there are 54,000 bridges in need of repair in this country. the point i wish to make is we need a serious, substantial infrastructure measure. mr. speaker, we talk a lot about jobs in this chamber, i was at a forum on saturday and someone mentioned by governor's mantra is jobs, jobs, jobs. and that person said, well he must mean that you have to have three jobs in order to get by. . i'm glad we're considering a bill that will help americans in search of work to find a good-paying position that will

help them support themselves and their families. we have a lot of issues facing us and this bipartisan legislation is just one tiny step forward in the right direction. i hope this measure translates into more bipartisan bills. too often from health care reform, tax reform, footnote right there, my friend mentions that we will likely see a tax reform measure sometime soon, i hope that it doesn't revert to trickle down. we have seen trickle down. it did not work. and i hope we don't do that again. we have an opportunity on other issues and in many respects the majority has shut out the minority from the process just like what has happened until today at least on -- in the

other body with reference to health care. the bills we have debated and even passed are projected to eliminate millions of jobs. even as we talk about job creation, my friends across the aisle too frequently turn around and champion measures that would do just the opposite. there's so much loom for cooperation in this area, yet -- room for cooperation in this area, yet time and time again we're kept out of the process. and the results speak for themselves. for the sake of our country this needs to change. even though this is a bipartisan bill, it also serves as an example of what i mean. i was disappointed that my republican colleagues in the rules committee blocked yesterday six germane amendments to this bill. it's a symptom of the closed process.

when we prevent germane amendments from even being debated by the house, it does us all a disservice. and yet my friends across the identical do -- aisle do it again and again. i'll close with this, mr. speaker. president obama is credited for creating 11.3 million jobs in our country. 75 economy added jobs for straight months. very fortunately that carryover for the last five months has continued. and while president donald john trump makes untenable pledge after pledge, i watched every word of his speech last night in iowa, and all i heard was platitudes. i didn't hear anything about substance. it seemed like a road test for some new ideas. he makes these untenable pledges, including a very humble

promise to be, and i quote him, the greatest jobs producer that god ever created, unquote. the record is clear the democratic party is, has been, job ll be the party of creation and is ready to work with my republican colleagues to continue significant job creation in this country. so i'll ask my friends across the aisle, let us continue the trend of the past few years and work together to produce bipartisan measures that will benefit the american people. i urge a no vote on the rule and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida closes. the gentleman from oklahoma. mr. cole: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. mr. speaker, waints to begin by addressing a couple of the

points that my friend made. there will be places we agree. there will be places we disagree. i think too often around here we talk about how nothing gets done when this is this has actually been an extraordinarily productive period in terms of passing legislation. and we're going to have differences on some of that legislation. there's no question, there is a reason why god create add democratic party and republican party. it probably wasn't to always agree all the time. but it was to challenge one another and try to work together when they could or define alternative paths when they felt they must and let the american people make the decision. fortunately we're blessed to live in a country they get to make that decision on a regular basis like clockwork. they have been making some decisions recently, i think the president has had a good run in special elections. we're pleased with the decisions they are making. at some point they'll change their mind and decide somebody else has a better way. in the interim we ought to stress occasionally so the american people know when we do

work together. actually was home after we managed to pass health care through this particular body, and that bill moved through multiple committees, had multiple amendments, lots of negotiation. obviously it's in the senate now. i think that process will start over there. but the day before we passed it, actually we came together in a really quite remarkable way. we passed an omnibus spending bill of over $1 trillion. that bill had worked through the appropriations committees of each house, 12 different bills put together to fund the federal government. and that particular bill gave us the largest increase in defense spending in about a decade. the largest increase in border security money in about a decade. gave us a substantial increase in money at the national institute of health. and at the center for disease control. areas that democrats and republicans alike have been working together on and feel very strongly about.

that bill also broke the one to one relationship, pretty artificial relationship in my view, that president obama laid down that if you increase defense spending, you have to automatically increase domestic spending, whether you need to or not or whether you can afford to or not. and frankly that bill actually passed with a majority of my friends on the democratic side in both the house and senate, and a majority of republicans in the house and the senate voting for the same bill. and donald trump signing a bill. when i go home and explain that to people, they look at me with a blank stare? what? that really happened? $1 trillion with all those different -- -- different elements in there and majority of democrats voted for it and majority of republicans voted for it and donald trump signed it? i say yes. they are amazed. they never heard about t i think that's because sometimes we present a false narrative of constant conflict. there's certainly plenty of

conflict here. i have some sympathy with the minority having been in the minority myself, you always feel shut out. but this is occasion, this legislation, and frankly that spending bill, my friends certainly weren't shut out. they participated, participated vigorously and contributed in the process. i'm with my friend. we need to do more of that. i think you'll see it's happening right now. if you go to the defense committee, they are working on their authorization bill. that committee's the most bipartisan committee probably in congress. every time they report something out on an authorization, i think they have 63 or 64 members, the vote's always like 60-3. they clearly put aside their partisan differences to work nofplgt this bill we have done exactly the same thing. so while we're going to have some points where we disagree, we're going to have some opportunities to agree and come together. i pledge to my friend i'll continue to work with him to try and see that we find more of

them. mr. speaker, in closing, i want to encourage all the members obviously to support the rule, but i'm sure my good friends on the other side probably won't accept invitation. that's ok. this is a process vote and they have other matters they want on the floor and i certainly understand that they will be opposing our rule and trying to offer an alternative. but when the matter counts, when the actual legislation reaches 2842 or, i think h.r. will draw broad bipartisan support. this house is taking steps to help workers leave welfare rolls and return to the work force. under this bill employers will be incentivized to hire tanf recipients and help bring the unemployed back into the work force and the economy. this bill is a commonsense, bipartisan solution that will benefit everyone. the workers, the employers, the community, the economy, and the nation. i want to applaud my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for the work on this important piece of legislation. i think if we get it through this house and the senate, i'm

sure that mr. trump will be more than happy to sign it. with that, i yield back the balance of my time and i move the previous question on the resolution. the speaker pro tempore: the uestion is on ordering the previous question on the resolution. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. mr. hastings: mr. speaker. i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those favoring a vote on the yeas and nays will rise. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. members will record their votes y electronic device. pursuant to clause 9 of rule 20, the chair will reduce to five minutes the minimum time for any electronic vote on the question of adoption of the resolution. this is a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house

proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 226. he nays are 184. the previous question is ordered. he house will be in order. he house will be in order.

he house will be in order. for what purpose does the gentlelady from connecticut seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to speak out of order for one minute to address the house. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. esty: mr. speaker, earlier this week the u.s.s. fitzgerald collided with a container ship off the coast of japan. seven of our brave service members were killed in the collision. i ask my colleagues to join me in a moment of silence to hono the brave sailors who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection, five-minute voting will continue. the question is on adoption of the resolution. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. mr. hastings: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida. mr. hastings: mr. speaker, i ask for a recorded vote. the speaker pro tempore: a recorded vote is requested. recorded vote will rise. a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. recorded will [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 233. the nays are 179. the resolution is adopted, without objection the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table.

for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i present a privileged report for printing under the rule. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: report to accompany h.r. 2998, a bill making appropriations for military construction, the department of veterans affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2018, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the union calendar and ordered printed. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 21, oints of order are reserved. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the chair will postpone further proceedings today on the motion

to suspend the rules if a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered, or if the vote is objected to under clause 6 of rule 20. the house will resume proceedings on the postponed uestions as a later time.

the house will be in order. for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 2353 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bull. the clerk: union calendar 109, amend the bill to carl e. perkins act. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson and the gentleman from illinois, mr. murphy, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the

gentleman from pennsylvania, but will withhold. he house will be in order. mr. thompson. mr. thompson: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h.r. 2353. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today in support of the strengthening career and technical education for the 21st century act. i yield myself as much time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. for years, americans have urged congress to work together and have -- and advance policies that promote good-paying jobs. we've heard the voices of those struggling to find the opportunities they need. they've been frustrated that the committee has taken so long to recover. many feel stuck in a job market that has transformed

dramatically due to advances in technology and an increasingly competitive global economy. it's time to deliver the results hardworking men and women desperately need and restore rungs on the ladder of opportunity. that's exactly why we are here today. this legislation is about jobs. along with my colleague, representative christopher murphy, introduced h.r. 2353 to help more americans succeed in the work force by improving career and technical education. today, far too many americans lack the skills and education they need to build a promising career and many jobs are going unfilled as employers face a shortage of skilled workers. paul tomchuck, president of r.h. marcom and a constituent of mine education is the biggest

problem facing roofers today. as co-chair of the career and technical education caucus i worked hard to to combat this by raising awareness of how c.t.e. programs can raise awareness. too often to be successful in life you have to get a bachelor's degree but that's not the reality of today's diverse economy. i have met people who have gone into debt from attending a four-year college or university only to enroll in a c.t.e. program after graduation to get that good-paying job. attending a more traditional college and university simply isn't the right fit for everyone. there are countless individuals who learn best in innovative workplace programming where they can acquire hands on experience aimed at a certain career. c.t.e. programs are preparing state of the unioners in jobs of the future. including technology, engineering, health care, agriculture and more. however, there's more that can

be done to ensure these programs are successful. the strengthening career and technical education for the 21st century act will rein in the government's role in c.t.e. and empower state and local leaders to tailor programs to meet the unique needs of the students and their communities. it will give students and parents the tools they need to hold programs accountable. most importantly, this legislation encourages local education leaders to collaborate with local employers. it improves alinement with c.t.e. programs and in-demand jobs. this legislation is a win for american workers. by working together, we developed a set of bipartisan reforms that will help address our nation's skills gap, break the cycle of poverty and help more individuals climb the ladder of opportunity. want to thank representative -- i want to thank all my colleagues who worked to move

h.r. 2353 forward. i urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. kris. -- mr. krishnamoorthi. mr. krishnamoorthi: h.r. 2353 is a bill introduced by marylandmy good friend congressman thompson and myself to modernize and take career and technical education to the 21st century. a persistent complaint i hear from employers throughout the state of illinois is that c.t.e. programs have not kept pace with the changing demands of industry. this bill would address the skills gap by aligning c.t.e. programs to meet the needs of the labor market, giving stake holders more autonomy in developing curricula while ensuring robust accountability standards. i hope everybody will support passage of h.r. 2353 and i reserve the balance of my time,

mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. thompson: mr. speaker, at this time i'm pleased to recognize the distinguished chair william m -- chairwoman of the house education and work orce committee who has had a commitment to skills-based education for many years. and i recognize the gentlelady for two and a half minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker, i thank my colleague, mr. thompson, for his leadership on this issue. i've been a strong supporter of this for a long, long time. i rise today in strong support of h.r. 2353, the strengthening career and technical education for the 21st century act. mr. speaker, when many americans think of higher education, they think of a traditional college or university on a sprawling green campus.

they think of students leaving colleges and universities with their degree in hand, ready for a career and set for life. while many americans choose this path, there's a misconception that this is the only pathway to success. for many hardworking americans, the pathways to success does not require a baccalaureate degree. in fact, skills-focused education has helped countless americans gain the specialized knowledge and skills they need to enter the work force and build fulfilling lives. so many men and women have found success through work force development programs. however, we have come to a critical juncture with the future of these programs. and our educational institutions have not caught up. as a result, american businesses large and small are having a hard time finding enough workers with the skills and talent they need. mr. speaker, the house is not in order. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order.

members and staff will take conversations from the floor. the gentlelady may resume. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker. the bipartisan strengthening career and technical education for the 21st century act, which unanimously passed the house committee on education and the work force provides critical reforms to our nation's education programs and prepares students to compete in our competitive global economy. mr. speaker, all education is truly career education. and we must give our students every opportunity to attain the skills they need to succeed. when students, parent, employer, and yes, lawmakers, understand that, we'll be on the right track to closing the skills gap that exists in our country. i want to thank my colleagues, especially representative thompson, for his leadership on this issue as the co-chair of the c.t.e. caucus , he spent years championing this issue. i also want to thank ranking member scott and representative krishnamoorthi as well as all committee members for the

bipartisan work that's reflected in this bill. expanding opportunity through c.t.e. is vital to closing the nation's skills gap, ending the psych 068 poverty and creating a better tomorrow for hardworking americans. i urge all members to support h.r. 2353 and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania reserves his time. the gentleman from illinois. mr. krishnamoorthi: i now yield two minutes to the gentleman from virginia, the ranking member of the committee on education and work force, someone who is -- who has dedicated his career in part to this issue. i yield two minutes to mr. scott. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. scott: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank the gentleman from illinois for his leadership on this legislation. i rise in support of h.r. 2353, the strengthening c.t.e. for the 21st century act which will re-authorize the perkins career and technical education program, h.r. 2353, bills on the --

builds on the house's bipartisan effort in the last congress when this chamber passed c.t.e. re-authorization by a vote of 405-5. the research is career, the united states work force is suffering a skills gap, according to georgetown university center on education and the work force. by 2020, 65% of all jobs in the united states will require at least some post-secondary education or skills acquisition. yet, if the current trend holds, by 2020, our nation will have more than five million fewer skilled workers than necessary to fill the high-skilled job which will be available in virginia alone, that's 30,000 open jobs, 17,000 are in the area of psycher security and those jobs have salaries starting at 88,000 -- starting at $88,000. this bipartisan comprehensive re-authorization will improve program quality and services for students most in need of skills. it will also update the federal

investment in c.t.e. to provide increased state and local flexibility while ensuring greater accountability for program quality. it ensures that there remains in place a federal focus on equity of opportunity and the role of the u.s. department of education to protect and promote the civil rights of all students in compliance with federal laws. the bill also strengthens the federal commitment to support delivery of high quality c.t.e. programs by retaining the department of education's full authority to approve or disapprove state and local plans. the bill also requires federal oversight, monitor, and technical assistance to support program improvement, maintain full authority to maintain compliance with statutory requirements and federal civil rights laws. i'd like to thank the gentleman from illinois, mr. krishnamoorthi, and the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson, for their bipartisan leadership and the gentleman from rhode island, mr. langevin

vep, for his leadership as chair of the c.t.e. caucus and for his dedication to realizing a comprehensive reauthorization. mr. speaker -- mr. krishnamoorthi: i'd like to yield mr. scott 30 seconds more. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. scott: this bill was unanimously reported by the committee as nearly -- and has nearly unanimous support from business leader, community stake holders, so i urge my colleagues to support the bill and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from illinois reserves, the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. thompson: i'm pleased at this time to recognize the subcommittee chairman for worker protections on the education and work force committee, the gentleman from alabama, mr. burns, for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. burns: i thank the gentleman for yielding, i'm proud to rise in support of this strong, bipartisan legislation. improving career and technical education programs is the most important thing congress can do to help close the skills gap, combat poverty, and help put

americans back to work. studies clearly show that there are unfilled, high-wage jobs out there that remain open because people lack the skills to fill the jobs. that's where c.t.e. comes in. when i was chancellor of alabama's two-year college system i saw firsthand how important these programs are. they work like magic, taking an untrained worker and getting him the skill he is needs to fill an unfilled job. it's a win-win for everyone. i'm prud to be an original co-sponsor of this legislation. i encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting this reform oriented bill that heps bill the 1st century work force and -- work force and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: mr. thompson reserves. the gentleman from illinois. mr. krishnamoorthi: i yield one minute to the gentleman from rhode island, the chair of the c.t.e. caucus, mr. langevin. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized.

mr. langevin: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, as co-chair of the career and techny -- technical education caucus, i rise in strong support of the strengthening career and tech nidal education for the 21st century act. this bill is long overdue. the carl e. perkins c.t.e. act has not been re-authorized now in over a decade. i want to thank my colleagues, particularly chairwoman foxx, ranking member scott, representative thompson, and representative krishnamoorthi for their leadership and collaboration on this important bill and particular thanks to my co-chair of the c.t.e. caucus, mr. thompson, for his outstanding leadership and partnership on this issue other the years. c.t.e. provides students of all ages with the skills they need succeed in a high demand, high paying, high skilled jobs. at a time when hundreds of thousands of jobs in manufacturing, i.t. and other skilled trades remain unfilled, congress has hhe