related to the recent uptick in regulations, unrelated to dodd-frank. but they are clearly not seing the bigger picture because even after mergers many branches in rural and other underserved communities are closing, leave manage kentuckians to drive a town or two other just to get -- over just to get to the nearest bank. it's not just about a long-term trend of consolidation, there have been no new charters whereas before the dodd-frank law was enacted there were many, many new charters every year and since the dodd-frank law was enacted no new charters. the consolidation trend has gotten worse since the avalanche of red tape coming out of washington, d.c. that's having a very negative impact on rural and underserved american communities. while new technologies are helping bring banking services to anyone with an internet connection, many people still prefer the personal, one-on 46 one banking style they grew up with and the personal

interaction often that helps the banks themselves understand the exact needs of their customers. he dodd-frank law was almost 2,300 pages and required dozens agencies to acquire new regular laces. as a result they issued hundreds of regulations and placed about 28,000 new restrictions on the banking industry, effectively doubling the numb of regulatory restrictions in title 12 of the code of federal regulation to more than 52,000. although not part of the dodd-frank rush of regulations, a growing number of banks have cited the federal financial institutions examination councils or ffiec consolidated reports of position and income or call reports as they are commonly called as too burdensome. each quarter all national banks, state member banks, insured state nonmember banks and savings associations are required to file these call reports.

the reports contain approximately 50 pages of financial data on each bank including their assets, liabilities, capital accounts, expenses and income. however these reports are very burdensome for community banks with limited resources and often d -- and offer little value to regulators relative to the last quarter's report. thankfully the act is fighting back against the bureaucratic nightmare of complying with these 52,000 restrictions by allowing banks with less than $5 billion in consolidated assets to file their call reports every six months as opposed to every three months. the impact of this regulatory change will be a huge development for banks across the country. now they will spend less time on call reports and more time on actually helping customers. this means more capital will be flowing into our o local economies, spurring job growth and economic development while making a real difference in the lives of americans trying to access affordable capital to buy

a new home or car or start a business. i want to thank my good friend from illinois, congressman randy ultgren, for his leadership and introducing this important legislation. due to his leadership, this great community bank bill is being considered as a suspension on the floor today. that means that there is a great chance that this bill will build unanimous support unanimous su during the house financial services committee markup, and will be a bipartisan provision in the senate banking chairman's economic growth regulatory relief and consumer protection pass ich is expected to very soon.senate in addition to congressman hultgren, i want to thank chairman hensarling and ranking member waters for their hard work on this critical legislation. i urge my colleagues to vote for h.r. very soon. in addition to congressman hultgren, i want to thank the c reporting relief act. 4725, with that i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. michigan.man from

mr. kildee: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such time he may consume. mr. kildee: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise to support h.r. 4725, the community bank reporting relief act, which would reduce reporting requirements through first and third quarter call reports for michigan. mr. kildee: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. depository institutions with less than $5 million in total consolidated assets. this bill provides targeted regulatory relief to many of our smaller financial institutions. as has been desirable, democrats and republicans on the committee and in this congress for some time. under the obama administration, the federal banking agencies began taking a series of steps streamline various bank reporting requirements. many of the requirements have existed for decades, including the consolidated streamline vars -- quarterly consolidated reports of condition and income for bank, which is commonly referred to as a call report. these efforts by regulators have

included creating a simpler call report for most community banks with less than $1 billion. regulators have already been exploring raising the threshold to a comparable level that is proposed by this legislation. the regulators also allow for some data to be reported semiannually as this bill would allow or annually rather that quarterly. i'm pleased that h.r. 4725 would give the regulators discretion to decide on what information should be included in a reduced call report. it's also key that the bill would require a full call report every other quarter for banks under $5 billion, including at the end of the year to make sure public have the sufficient information on the health of financial institutions. furthermore, this bill would permit regulators to limit the regulatory relief as public hav sufficient information on the health of financial appropriate. this would, for example, exclude banks with foreign offices or

one that is are affiliated with much larger banks as they do today. this bill would appropriately maintain robust oversight of our nation's largest banks while providing targeted relief for smaller institutions. as i said, we don't agree on everything, many of us on this side believe that the robust protections built into dodd-frank have strengthened the financial system, but that there are way that is we can improve and re-- ways that we can improve and refine the support ons to particularly smaller institutions. in that step direction. i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 4725. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from kentucky. mr. barr: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield six minutes to the sponsor of the legislation, the gentleman from illinois, the bill's sponsor and vice chairman of the in that direction. i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 4725. i reserve the balance of my time. subcommittee on capital markets, securities, and investment, mr. hultgren. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for six minutes. mr. hultgren: thank you, mr.

speaker. i rise today to speak in support of the community bank reporting relief act. i would like to begin by thanking leader mccarthy and chairman hensarling for their support in getting this legislation to the floor. i also want to thank and express my appreciation to my colleague, andy barr and terri sewell, for serving as original co-sponsors on this legislation. i would also like to oint out this identical language has been included in the bipartisan regulatory relief bill that the senate expected to take up some time this week. by way of background, the federal financial institutions example council requires banks and savings associations to file a quarterly consolidatesed report of condition and income -- consolidated report of condition and income. banking regulators use data in the call report to discover the risk profile of each institution and assess the overall condition of the west bank banking system. we can all agree our regulators should have regular updates on the overall performance health of financial institutions.

for example, this is important to federal banking regulators are going to be a prudent steward of federal deposit insurance. however, this does not mean that the federal banking regulators need regular reports about every single data point on every single financial institution. unfortunately, the reporting burden has grown significantly over the years. which means banks have to spend more time with compliance issues rather than working with families and businesses to meet their financial needs. when i introduced similar legislation last congress, one community banker in illinois with first community bank and trust shared with me, and i quote, the quarterly call report has increased to some 80 pages supported by almost 700 pages of instructions. and it represents a growing banks, end munity quote. according to a survey that the independent community bankers of america conducted of its members in 2014, over 60% of the banks, cost to prepare the call report

goes to personnel salaries. their survey shows this is not a highly automated process for those institutions and that oftentimes senior executives such as the chief financial officer, are responsible for this regulatory burden. we also heard testimony in the financial institution subcommittee hearing from robert fisher, president and c.e.o. of tyoga state bank who stated, i quote, when i first started in banking in the mid 1980's the report was 18 pages long. no change in our basic business model since that time warrants the sharp growth in our quarterly reporting obligations, end quote. the length of the call report has simply gotten out of hand. washington needs to get out of the way so community banks can focus on meeting the needs of their communities. the roethlisberger of smaller financial institutions is especially important in more rural areas such as in my district where larger banks tend to not have as many branches. the community bank reporting relief act would require federal banking regulators to permit for

a short form call report every other quarter for banks with less than $5 billion in assets and that satisfy other criteria determined by bank regulators. federal banking regulators have not demonstrated there are statistically significant variations in this data quarter to quarter, and we heard testimony consistent with that from tyoga stateback in the house financial services committee. this means the banking regulators are collecting too much information too frequently. the federal banking regulators would be required to take input from our neighborhood banks under consideration when making the changes. this cannot be simply check the box exercises but real reform is necessary. however nothing in this legislation would prevent regulators from having access to the information that they need to adequately understand the health of the banking system. regulators will still receive the most important information every quarter. the independent community bankers of america has suggested this short form call report include three schedules. schedule r.i., income statement,

schedule r.i.a., changes in bank exequity capital, and schedule r.c., the balance sheet. furthermore in the event there is any reason for concern about the health of the bank, regulators would maintain their authority to make ad hoc information requests. this legislation is supported by the american bankers association, the independent community bankers of america, the neighborhood banks in all of our districts looking for commonsense regulatory relief. i urge my colleagues to vote in support of this legislation. we must cut regulation for community banks. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from michigan. mr. kildee: reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from kentucky. mr. barr: mr. speaker, let me once again thank the gentleman from illinois for his tireless advocacy on behalf of our community financial institutions and providing some commonsense, basic relief to those institutions so that instead of dealing with paperwork they can actually better serve their customers and grow our local economies.

mr. speaker, i would also ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and includeheir remarks and extraneous material on this bill. i reserve my time and wish to inform my colleague that i'm prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. chair recognizes the gentleman from michigan. mr. kildee: thank you, mr. speaker. i close by reiterating what i said earlier. from time to time, it's clear that we can come together on solutions to problems that we come across in any regulation, aspect of the federal government, and even in areas where we might find broad disagreement on the importance of many of the protection that is were put in place after the financial crisis, across the aisle we can often find common ground around particular solutions and when we do that, we should act. and i think that's why so many of us were pleased to see this legislation come forward to give us a chance to demonstrate that. this is a step in the right direction. particularly supporting some of our smaller institutions.

i support this legislation, urge my colleagues to do the same, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the -- the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from kentucky. mr. barr: i have no further requests for time and yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 4725. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid pon the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from kentucky seek recognition. mr. barr: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 4768, as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 415, h.r. 4768, a bill to require the president to develop a national strategic to -- strategy to combat the financial networks of transnational

organized criminals, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule the gentleman from kentucky, mr. barr, and the gentleman from michigan, mr. kildee, each will control 20 minutes. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from kentucky. mr. barr: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and and include remarks extraneous material on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. barr: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. barr: i rise today in support of h.r. 4768, the national strategy for combating the financing of transnational criminal organizations act. i want to at the outset applaud and thank my colleague, mr. custoff, from tennessee, for his leadership on this important legislation. and for bringing this solution to the congress and solution to the american people. as members of congress, our number one responsibility is the national security and the well-being of the american people.

unfortunately, transnational organizations threaten the safety of americans and we must do everything in our power to stop them. transnational criminal organizations, organizations th they are called for short, are engaged in illegal business ventures around the world. such as money laundering. cyber crime. and the trafficking of drugs, weapons, endangered species, and human beings. while t.c.o.'s may not be motivated by a particular radical can political or religious ideology, they are motivated by money. and they will stop at nothing to get it. according to a 2011 report published by the obama administration entitled strategy to combat transnational organized crime, t.c.o.'s have dramatically ramped up their size, scope, and influence and even teaming up with terrorist organizations and corrupt foreign officials to expand their networks and conceal their illicit financial assets. these t.c.o.'s cost the western

hemisphere about 3.5% of gross annually, and they generate for themselves around $870 billion, which is roughly the value of the world's largest company, apple. president trump on february 9, 2017, issued executive order 13773, on enforcing federal law with respect to transnational criminal organizations, and preventing international trafficking. it states that t.c.o.'s in the form of transnational drug cartels have a stronghold in america and threaten the safety of the american people. from former president obama to current president trump, t.c.o.'s are recognized as a major risk to national security. to t's why i'm pleased see that my friend, david kustoff, has introduced h.r. 4768, the national strategy for combating the financing of transnational criminal organizations act. this legislation requires the

president, treasury secretary, financial regulators, and other appropriate officials to create a national central gee to combat tks and their -- ational strategy to combat t.c.o.'s and to identify the largest threats to the united states. it include the identification the people or groups that facilitate access for the t.c.o.'s such as smuggling bulk cash, exploitation of shell companies and the use of covert crip toe currencies -- cryptocurrencies. and include long-term and short-term goals, how goals will be integrated into existing national security apparatuses and if needed suggest legislative and regulate changes to better fight against t.c.o.'s. this bill passed the committee

in january and it's my hope it passes with unanimous support today on the house floor. in addition to congressman kustoff, i want to thank chairman hensarling and ranking member waters for their hard work on this issue. together we can in a bipartisan way empower our government to better fight transnational criminal organizations, making the american people safer and our economy stronger. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to vote for h.r. 4768, the national strategy for combating the financing of transnational criminal act, and with that i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. kildee: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. kildee: thank you, mr. speaker. if ever there is a time for democrats and republicans to come together in a bipartisan fashion, it would be around this issue, around an issue to combat the financing of

transnational criminal organizations. that's what h.r. 4768 would do. specifically, it would require the secretary of treasury to lead the effort in consultation with other key agencies and departments and update the strategy to fight these organizations at least every two years. additionally, the legislation requires the administration to assess the key threats, financial support networks and methods used by criminal groups to launder the proceeds of illicit activities. in passing this legislation, we will not only build upon but also cement the importance of the interagency approach taken by the prior administration in combating the impact of global criminal enterprises. indeed, in 2010, the obama administration conducted a comprehensive assessment of organized crime, the first such review that had taken place since the mid 1990's. the assessment came to the

alarming conclusion that the threat of global criminal networks had become more complex, volatile and destabilizing and that such groups were proliferating, striking new and powerful alliances and engaging in a growing range of illicit activities such as we've never seen before. to combat this growing threat and lessen its impact both domestically and on our foreign partners, the obama administration in 2011 issued a comprehensive interagency strategy that identified 56 priority actions across five strategic objectives. one of these key objectives included breaking the economic power of transnational criminal networks and protecting strategic markets and the u.s. financial system from penetration and abuse by transnational organized crime. this strategic objective in particular resonates with me as i've always believed strongly that following the money and

using our economic leverage is the best way to counter illicit activity. this is especially true in countering transnational criminal organizations whose primary objective is economic gain. in a number of ways, this legislation before us will ensure that treasury as well as the intelligence and broader u.s. national security apparatus remains focused on some of the emerging threats posed by transnational organized crime groups, including human traffickers, drug traffickers and cybercriminals. additionally, the legislation explicitly requires the administration to examine how such groups exploit the use of shell companies, misuse digital currencies and other cybertechnologies. i'm also pleased with the concurrence of the chairman and the gentleman from tennessee, mr. kustoff, the committee agreed to adopt an amendment offered by ranking member

waters that sharpens the bill's focus on the methods by which transnational organized crime groups launder illicit funds using real estate and other tangible goods such as art and antiquities. these significant vulnerabilities have been identified as major threats to our national security and the sbeg rift our financial -- integrity of our financial system by a broad range of bipartisan experts including the financial crimes enforcement network and the financial action task force. r example, just last year, fincen said that real estate transactions and the real estate market have certain characteristics that make them vulnerable to abuse by illicit actors. for these reasons and others, drug traffickers, corrupt officials, and other criminals can and have used real estate to conceal the existence and origin of their illicit funds,

end quote. the entities and individuals that have sought to exploit real estate to conceal illicit funds includes iranian banks subject to u.s. sanctions, russian oligarchs and russian organized crime rings as well as venezuelan officials found to be engaged in narcotics trafficking. the fact that these vulnerabilities are not merely theoretical and have been used by a wide range of criminal groups should disturb all of us. we also know that money laundering through the global art and an tech wits market is -- antiquities market is another key method for washing illicit funds that's undoubtedly being exploited by transnational criminal groups. indeed, we know the looting and trafficking in cultural heritage is a source of revenue that has funded isis' heinous activities and we know the opaque characteristics of the

high end art market and the basic anti-money laundering requirements make it a target for illicit funds. so i'm pleased that the members of this committee were able to agree that real estate and art market vulnerabilities should be given due consideration when it comes to transnational organized crime. again, this is one of those subjects around which bipartisanship should be assumed. i urge all members to join in this bipartisan effort and support this legislation. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. barr: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield five minutes to the gentleman from tennessee, the former united states attorney from the western district of tennessee, who has brought considerable prosecutorial experience in drafting and authoring this legislation, a member of the house financial services committee, mr. kustoff. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee is recognized for five minutes. mr. kustoff: thank you, mr. speaker. and thank you, mr. chairman. i rise today in support of my bill, the national strategy for combating the financing of transnational criminal act.izations

on february 9, 2017, last year, president trump issued an executive order directing the federal government to combat international drug trafficking. now, before i go any further, i want to take note this executive order was issued in the third week of the trump administration. this early action gives us an idea how seriously we must take this issue. the executive order recognizes the illegal drugs are pouring into our country and they're threatening american safety primarily at the hands of cartels and other transnational criminal organizations. these criminal organizations are responsible in large part for the rising opioid epidemic sweeping across our nation. take my district of west tennessee where we continue to see a rise in the deaths caused

by opioid overdoses from heroin to fentanyl and the more potent synthetic opioid known as carfentanil. we must continue to use every available resource to prevent the further destruction of our communities. we got to say enough is enough. the important legislation that we're discussing today will create a plan to track illicit money channels and cut them off at the source. specifically, it directs the united states treasury department to develop a national strategy aimed at disrupting these financial crimes. the treasury department will work hand in hand with the department of defense, the department of homeland security , the department of justice, the state department, and the office of the director of national intelligence to produce a yearly report

outlining a strategy and dealing ways that the united states -- detailing ways that the united states government can continue to prevent these financial crimes. for far too long, these criminal organizations have used illillis business ventures to -- illicit business ventures to further finance themselves from money laundering to the trafficking of drugs and human trafficking and weapons trafficking and endangered species. the united nations office on drugs and crimes estimate that these cartels and transnational criminal organizations generate . arly $870 billion a year this money is used to directly threaten the security and the prosperity of the united states of america and other countries in the western hemisphere. our legislation is a critical step in disrupting this illicit

finance and putting an end to the needless crimes committed by cartels. as we've seen, these organizations have evolved in a continued effort to evade law enforcement. therefore, in an effort to stay one step ahead of these bad actors, we've also got to evolve. these transnational criminal organizations have developed interstate networks to and from the border in which drugs come up from central america and the cash returns back to the country of origin. we simply cannot stand idly by as these activities continue. we must keep money out of the hands of those who intend to cause harm to our nation, and i think this legislation does exactly that. i greatly appreciate the hard work done by my colleagues from the financial services committee on this very important legislation.

i urge all my colleagues to support this passage, and i thank you very much and at this time i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee yields back. the gentleman from kentucky reserves. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. kildee: thank you, mr. speaker. i now yield three minutes to the gentlewoman from arizona, co-sponsor of this legislation, the distinguished member of the financial services committee, my classmate, ms. sinema. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from arizona is recognized for three minutes. ms. sinema: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of h.r. 4768, the national strategy for combating the financing of transnational criminal organizations act. mr. speaker, according to the drug enforcement administration's phoenix division, the sinaloa cartel is the biggest, most violent and nastiest organization threatening arizonans, even bigger than ms-13. it's a dangerous and highly sophisticated organization.

sinaloa smuggles heroin and methamphetamine across the border into arizona and with it a pattern of crime, intimidation and addiction that rips at the very fabric of our communities. arizonans know we need to be tough, smart, and aggressive to confront sinaloa and other cartels. our bill cracks down on drug cartels and other crime syndicates that threaten arizonan families and other qualities of life that hits them where it counts, their bank accounts. they obtain wealth and power through money laundering, cybercrime, and human, drugs and weapons smuggling. to stop the drug cartels and protect arizona families, we need a comprehensive approach to cut off the money that fuels their operations. that's why congressman kustoff of tennessee and i introduced h.r. 4768. this bill requires the

administration to develop and execute a strategy that cuts off funding and other resources for transnational criminal organizations and to routinely report to congress and the american people on the strategies process. our bill is a commonsense solution that protects arizona families, communities, and businesses from the threats of transnational organized crime. by focusing on the money, we take a meaningful step in combating cybercrime, money laundering, and drug trafficking and human trafficking as well as other issues that transnational criminals bring to our communities. i thank chairman hensarling and ranking member waters for supporting this important legislation, and i'll continue working with my colleagues across the aisle to keep arizona families safe. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. barr: i'm pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from pennsylvania, the vice

chairman of the financial services subcommittee on financial institutions, mr. rothfus. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. rothfus: i thank the speaker. i thank chairman barr for yielding. i rise today to express my support for the national strategy for combating the financing of transnational criminal organizations act. i want to thank my colleague for his important work on this issue. they have been examining global criminal organizations and the threat they pose to the united states financial system. these sophisticated and dangerous organizations like drug cartels increasingly pose a direct threat to the safety and security of all americans. they have fueled the opioid crisis that continues to kill tens of thousands of americans each year, including the spread of human trafficking among a host of other illicit activities. i want to remind my colleagues entire communities are still plagued by this crisis including

hard-hit communities in western pennsylvania. beyond the opioid crisis i want to highlight an exceptionally dangerous situation in which the united states finds itself. some of the cartels are now working directly with organizations like hezbollah, a terrorist organization. as reflected in the recent "politico" article. fortunately, the new administration is taking a tougher stance now with the announcement of a newly created hezbollah financing and narcoterrorism team. mr. speaker, it's about time america fought back against this growing international threat and this bill will help ensure the government has a strategy to stay in this fight. lives depend on it. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. kildee: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from kentucky virginia tech. mr. barr: -- the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. barr: i'm pleased to yield

-- three minutes to the gentleman from north carolina, a member of the financial services committee, mr. budd. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina is recognized. mr. budd: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today in strong support of mr. kustoff's bill, the national strategy for combating the financing of transactionable -- transnational criminal organizations act. i want to thank my friend for his leadership on this important issue, even if it does have a really, really long name. i have seen firsthand how these transnational drug cartels can disrupt civil society. in my own district, the opioid epidemic has destroyed innocent people's lives, including kids, while transnational criminal organizations or t.c.o.'s profit on people's misery and their death. t.c.o.'s have brought heroin to our streets and along with it increased crime, placing additional burdens on law enforcement and local communities. we're in crisis mode and targeted steps need to be taken

to address this epidemic at all hases. we have to crack down on the pusher on the street. we have to crack down on the drug cartels. we have to crack down on the drug companies that have made a profit from overprescription and filling suspect orders. most of all, we have to crack down on the intry kate, faceless, and we have to crack down unbelieva complex criminal organization that is allows the profits from these activities into our economy. we must eradicate the international illicit financing networks that are the linchpin of any criminal organizations -- organization's operations but we don't have a unified national plan. this committee has an opportunity to make a difference by coming up with a national strategy and plan to attack transnational criminal organizations's finances. mr. kustoff's bill would direct the secretary of treasury to provide that plan, a vital first addressing the clet

posed by the growing fix -- sophisticateation of illicit networks. passing this bill is an addresst posed effective step toward a sustained national strategy. therefore, it is critical that we continue to maximize cooperation among federal departments to keep our policies ahead of these transnational criminals. i urge adoption of mr. kustoff's timely and important piece of legislation. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. kildee: i have no further mr. speakerers and prepared to close. -- mr. speaker, and prepared to close. i reserve the balance of my time. serve the gentleman from kentucky is recognized plcht barr: thank you, mr. speaker. aim pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from florida, mr. gaetz. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. gaetz: i thank the gentleman for yielding. i also thank the gentleman from tennessee for introducing this responsible legislation. mr. speaker, i am looking forward to circumstances where this administration will have additional tools to deal with transnational criminal organizations, and i hope that we will use those tools to

threat posed threat posed by hezbollah. hezbollah is not a political party, not a quaint reflection of history, it's a web of terrorists and criminals, and that web extends here to our hemisphere. in fact, in 2009, there was an arrest made in philadelphia where hezbollah operative were looking to move machines guns nto syria. this important legislation will help us build a plan to leverage our allies, to leverage the organization of american states and other assets so that we recognize the threat that hezbollah and other terrorist organizations pose and so we head-on. threat i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. kildee: thank you, mr. speaker. i'm prepared to close. obviously as i said head-on.

i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: we nee national strategy to combat the financing of transnational criminal organizations. this legislation requires such a strategy be put together. it's an issue that crosses virtually every partisan or ideological line. it's a legislation we can embrace and support. i encourage my colleagues to do so and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. barr: thank you, mr. speaker. i am prepared to close as well and as i close i want to once again thank my colleagues for supporting this legislation and in particular i'd like to thank the gentleman from tennessee, mr. kustoff, for his leadership on this issue. i would note also in addition to all of the many sound and persuasive arguments that have been offered for why we need this legislation, this national strategy for combating the financing of transnational criminal organizations act, that the national fraternal order of police has endorsed this legislation. as a member of congress

representing a state that has been ravaged by heroin and opioid addiction, i can't think of a more important thing for this congress to do than to develop a national strategy for combating these transnational gangs that are preying on our communities. once again i commend mr. kustoff for his leadership in this area and in this effort and in this fight. i applaud my colleagues for supporting the legislation on both sides of the aisle. and at this time we have no further requests for time and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 4768, as amended. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, 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. walden: i move the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 4986, as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 4986, a bill to amend the communications act of 1934 to re-authorization appropriations for the federal communications commission to provide for certain procedural changes to the rules of the commission, to maximize opportunities for public participation, and efficient decisionmaking, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from oregon, mr. walden, and the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from oregon. mr. walden: thank you, sir. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert

extraneous materials into the record on the bill, including exchange of letters between the energy and commerce committee and the oversight and government reform and the transportation and infrastructure committee the. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. walden: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. speaker, i'm pleased today that the house of representatives is taking up an important bill from the house energy and commerce committee. it's titled the repacked airwaves, yielding bert access for users of modern services act, or ray balm's act. i thank our subcommittee chairman, marshall blackburn, for her hard work in introducing and moving this legislation forward. before i get into the policy side, i want to touch on the meaning behind this bill's title. h.r. 4986 is a nod to our dear it friend and mine of 30 years

and the former staff director of energy and commerce committee, who recently lost his battle with cancer. just a testament of not ray's dedication to telecom policy. he served as a public utility commissioner, chaired the joint board with the f.c.c. on communications just ray's dedication to issues, and such a policy brain for our committee. but also his ability to work across the aisle and with all levels of government officials to get good things done for america. years ago when i became chairman what was then called the subcommittee on telecommunications and internet, ray at my invitation, finally agreed to come back to washington and work on the committee. he had served as a state representative, as majority leader of the oregon house. had he been chairman of the public utility commission in oregon, and brought a lot to our process as senior policy advisor. in the years that followed, these issues remain both a priority and passion for ray and i believe and hope our

bipartisan work today reflects admirably the kind of commitment he wanted all of us to share in making good public policy. by the way, that's ray right there. didn't know. the ray balm's act re-authorizes the federal communications commission. it includes efficiency and transparency didn't know. refor f.c.c., and it spurs the development of next generation 5-g technologies. it's good for consumers and good for our nation's critical telecommunications services. importantly, the bill before us today is the product of a bipartisan and bicameral agreement, house and senate, republicans and democrats, clearly my friend there new jersey, mr. pallone, senate commerce chairman, mr. thune, and the ranking member in the senate, bill nelson. mr. speaker, we bring you a good product today of sound policy named for a wonderful individual. with that i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. pallone: thank you. i rise also in support of h.r. 498 , the ray balm's act. this bill is the product of extensive bipartisan collaboration after exhaustive negotiations we were able to reach a deal that includes bills introduced by democrats and republicans in both the house and senate. that does not happen often. and would like to thank my colleagues for working with me so closely. this bill is a real trib bought butte to its namesake, ray balm. had he a passion for telecommunications policy and special place for broadcasting. he was also an eternal optimist. he never faltered his belief we could find a way to work together to find a solution, he was right. we were able to incorporate proposals from members on both sides of the aisle just the way ray would have liked it, and we were able to produce this legislation that will re-authorize the f.c.c. for the first time in 28 years. i would like to briefly mention some aspects of this bill that

i'm most proud of. first, we were able to include the sandy act, which is named to honor those affected by superstorm sandy, a storm that ripped through the northeast, including my district, over five ago. during that superstorm, we saw firsthand how important communications were for survival. from television and radio broadcasters to wireless ago. during that providers and cable networks, each played its own role in making sure people knew how to find help, look for loved ones, and stay out of harm's way. i used the lessons we learned from sandy in writing this legislation whether this bill is signed into law our networks will be stronger, more resilient, and capable to serve in an messagecy. this f.c.c. re-authorization -- messagecy. this f.c.c. re-authorization bill includes the viewer protection act. i introduced this act to make sure no viewer loses signal as a result of the f.c.c.'s incentive auction. access to local information has become even more important as the number of natural disasters

has increased. not only does this bill help ensure consirmse' broadcast stations don't go dark as part of this deal, we have agreed to provide $50 million in funding to help educate consumers about the transition. and this fund something critical to ensure that people have access to information about how to get their televisions to work. i'd like to point out two important provisions that we include as part of the re-authorization. first, we included a provision that makes the f.c.c.'s inspector general independent of the commission's chairman. the idea is currently conducting -- the i.g. is currently conducting investigations, including, one, whether the chairman is favoring sinclaire broadcasting. under current law these investigations are being conducted under a cloud. the very chairman who is under investigation can restrict the review by firing the inspector general or his or her staff at any time. so by passing this bill we're ensuring these important

investigations can conclude without any interference. and finally, i do not normally support unnecessarily cutting the budget of our agencies, but in this case i'd like to thank my colleagues for agreeing to limit this cut to the length of this administration. the current leadership of the s.e.c. in my opinion has proven -- f.c.c. in the my opinion has proven it can't e trusted. by limiting the resources we provide for the next three years, this re-authorization will limit this commission's power, in my opinion, to do more harm. and for these reasons and many more i urge my colleagues to support the bipartisan and bicameral agreement embodied by the ray baum act. i'd also like to thank the democratic committee staff for all of their hard work in getting this bill to the floor today.

and with that, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. walden: thank you, mr. speaker. and now it's my privilege to recognize the gentlelady from tennessee, who has been an incredible leader on our communications issues at the energy and commerce committee for some time, mrs. blackburn, for three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. blackburn: thank you, mr. chairman, for the recognition. and thank you for your efforts on this. mr. speaker, it really is a pleasure to come here today to talk about the ray baum act. we have for so long talked about the need to push this through to completion andray served as our staff director -- and ray served as our staff director and really helped our committee and subcommittee push this forward to the point we could say, yes, we have the f.c.c. re-authorization done. as mr. pallone said, 28 years since this agency has been

re-authorized, and it is certainly an honor to say we have done this in ray's name and we have done it in a bipartisan way. there are so many things that are included in this bill. and one of the provisions that is in here is chairman walden's provision of f.c.c. process reform. many times you will hear us talk about needing to bring sunlight to these agencies and bringing order and the ability for constituents and citizens to know what is happening. we have that included in this bill. also have provisions that our whip, steve scalise, the consolidated reporting act, is included in this bill. we have provisions from ms. eshoo and from representative engel, and these are all bipartisan provisions that you

will see included in this legislation. mr. johnson has a provision that is included that will change the way the inspector general works in this agency so that he truly is an inspector general who is independent. so we've worked together in a bipartisan way to do our repack which deals with our broadcasters and our spectrum to handle mobile now which has been a priority of the senate that could not get it finished. we have finished that process, and then also the f.c.c. re-authorization. so i express my gratitude to the committee members, both democrats and republicans, and he staff members from both sides of the dieas to say thank you -- dais to say thank you for re-authorizing this agency to deal with our spectrum

repack and to address the mobile now concerns. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i would now yield two minutes to the ranking member of the telecommunications subcommittee, mr. doil of pennsylvania. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized. mr. doyle: i thank the gentleman for yielding. i'd like to take a moment to speak in memorial to the late ray baum. he was a dedicated husband and father, the staff director for the majority on energy and commerce committee and a trusted advisor and friend to chairman walden. we were all saddened by his passing and i'd like to express our condolences to his friends and family. the legislation before us today is the product of bipartisan and bicameral compromise. while it's not perfect, it represents a good-faith effort by ranking member pallone, chairman walden, senator nelson and senator thune. this compromise incorporates a

number of democratic priorities including ranking member pallone's burrow protection act and congressman eshoo's dig once bill and a number of provision fathers other members of our committee on cybersecurity, tribal broadband, broadband access for veterans and others. like ranking member pallone, i'm also happy to see bipartisan language included in the bill which makes the f.c.c.'s inspector general an independent entity. this sends a strong bipartisan, bicameral message to chairman pai that he cannot end the f.c.c. i.g.'s investigation into collusion between his office and sinclaire broadcasting simply by firing the current i.g. this requires congressional oversight and investigation. i'm also happy to see we have an agreement to provide the remainder of the funds necessary to transition broadcasters as part of the

f.c.c.'s incentive auction, keeping the promise we made to them they would be held harmless. the agreement also includes funds for consumer education about the transition. it's critical the public be educated about the upcoming repack and understand what, when, and where and how it will work. i look forward to continuing to work on this legislation with my colleagues as it moves forward and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. walden: mr. speaker, it's now my privilege to recognize the gentleman from new jersey, a talented member of our committee, mr. lance, for a minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. lance: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in strong support of the ray baum act which re-authorizes the federal communications commission for the first time in 28 years. how appropriate this critical legislation is named for ray who dedicated his tremendous public service to these issues and whom we all admired. this committee puts more bipartisan bills on the president's desk than any

committee on capitol hill. this strengthens the f.c.c., protects consumers and expands the information channels our lives and the economy needs. i'm pleased this includes the anti-spoofing act, a bill i worked on with chairwoman meng and chairman barton. scammers call consumers using a fake phone number often pretending to be a bank or governmental agencies. many get to be defrauded by con artists and scam artists. this disgraceful practice must end and it will be ended in large part due to this legislation. i'm pleased this enacts consumer protections like those he in the anti-spoofing act. i urge a yes vote and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman is recognized. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from california, ms. matsui. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from california is recognized. ms. matsui: thank you, mr.

speaker. i'm pleased that today we're re-authorizing the federal communications commission, the ray baum act, which among other things ensures our local broadcasters have the resources they need and will deliver additional spectrum into the commercial marketplace. spectrum is the invisible infrastructure that supports our wireless economy. as a way we do business continues to depend on connectivity and mobility, spectrum will be part of everything from remote health monitoring to precision agriculture to public safety communications and connected devices. that is why i'm pleased that this package includes several of my priorities, including my spectrum auctions deposits act, which i co-authored with congressman guthrie. this legislation will enable the f.c.c. to continue to conduct auctions that will unlock the spectrum necessary to deploy next generation broadband networks. without this fix, auctions to deliver more spectrum into the commercial marketplace may be put on hold indefinitely.

this package also includes my legislation to create a federal spectrum challenge prize which would accelerate the development and commercialization of innovative technologies to make spectrum use more efficient. it could also facilitate the application of existing technologies, such one to develop spectrum sharing mechanisms that will allow them to get spectrum on a real-time basis. this will promote the expansion of current and next generation broadband networks across america. it is an important step forward, and i'm proud to support its passage. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. walden: mr. speaker, i'm delighted to yield a minute to the gentleman from illinois, another great member of our committee, mr. kinzinger. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from illinois is recognized. mr. kinzinger: i thank the gentleman for yielding. i support ray baum act and it's

in ing this bill be named his honor. this re-authorizes the f.c.c. for the first time in 28 years eye' proud of the inclusion of two -- 28 years. i'm proud of the inclusion of two of my bills. expanding access in rural communities by allowing censed unused spectrum to be sed to serve rural communities. and the other to require veterans' access to broadband and provide recommendations to increase access, especially for rural and low-income veterans. again, this legislation is one more example to show the majority of the work done in congress is bipartisan and sometimes even bicameral. i thank the chairman and everybody for working together to get this done. i urge my colleagues to support y baum's act and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman yields. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield two minutes now to the gentleman from california, mr. mcnerney. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. mcnerney: i thank my colleagues on the other side of the aisle for a bipartisan effort here. i rise in support of h.r. 4986, the ray baum act. this bill will help ensure the incentive auction repack can move forward in a timely fashion and that americans have access to the local broadcasting stations during this period of time. on the other hand, i'm very proud this bill includes a bipartisan provision that congressman kinzinger and i worked on. this provision will move us forward in closing the digital divide for our nation's veterans. access to broadband, internet access service is critical for the more than 20 million veterans across our country with the highest population of veterans residing in california. having a broadband internet connection helps veterans. it helps them apply for jobs more easily, to obtain necessary vocational training, to communicate with tamly and

friends, to keep up with current events, to access health care services and to get important information about their benefits and military records. without broadband internet access, it's difficult to fully participate in today's society. veterans face many challenges when they return home, and not having internet access makes what is already an incredibly tough transition process even harder. this is particularly likely to be the case for low-income veterans and veterans living in rural areas. although we lack specific data on the number of veterans with broadband internet access, we know that americans who live in rural areas are less likely to be connected. this is also the case for americans who live at or below the federal poverty level. we must find ways to ensure that veterans, especially the more than 1.4 million veterans living below the federal poverty level, and the 5.3 million residing in rural

areas, we don't want them to be left behind. this is why my provision directs the federal communications commission to examine the current state of broadband access for veterans and what can be done to increase access with a focus on low-income veterans and veterans residing in rural areas. the findings and recommendations from this report will be important for paving the way to get more veterans connected. i urge my colleagues to vote for this bill. i thank my chairman and my ranking member, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. walden: thank you, mr. speaker. i now yield the gentleman from florida a minute to speak on this important legislation, mr. bilirakis. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. bilirakis: thank you, mr. speaker. thank you, mr. chairman. i appreciate it very much. named in memory of a hardworking and honorable man, the ray baum act re-authorizes the federal communications commission for the first time in 28 years, mr. speaker.

this bill is the result of a wholly bipartisan process that includes important provisions that will benefit all of our communities. this includes further prohibitions on spoofing calls, reports on promoting internet access for low-income veterans, and improving 911 caller information. the bill also provides additional funding for the repack process and fosters technology growth by authorizing studies on spectrum available for future auctions. i applaud the work of the subcommittee on getting this done. this bill will truly benefit the innovation and our constituents and i support its passage. i yield back. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized.

>> i yield two minutes to the gentleman from iowa. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker, i thank the chair and ranking member for bringing this to the floor today. this is a good example of compromise. no one got everything they want bud we worked together to find common ground and i think it represents what we need to be doing more of in washington and in this body and what people in iowa want to see happen more often, namely that members of congress come together in a bipartisan manner to reach a commonsense agreement. but today i come to the floor to talk about a piece of legislation, the world wireless access act, which i was pleased to help introduce and incorporate into the larger f.c.c. re-authorization act and i want to thank in particular my friend mr. costello for working with me on this bipartisan bill. i also want to thank mrs. blackburn the chair of the telecommunications subcommittee for helping to move this forward.

this bill which i introduced last year would require the f.c.c. to establish standards for collecting wireless coverage day tafment mr. loebsack: everyone at some point has been driving through places in rural america that don't get wireless coverage. unfortunately, the maps at the f.c.c. uses to try to fix coverage gaps are often inadequate. currently the standards that define how wireless coverage is determined just are not sufficient. meaning that coverage maps can be incomplete or inaccurate. without accurate coverage maps, resources needed to improve wireless access will not be directed to the areas that need the most help, including rural areas. i'm pleased that the energy an commerce committee agreed to include this legislation, the rural wireless act, as part of the larger proage so we can improve wireless voice and mobile internet services and ensure the resources go to the areas that need it most. in order to fix the problem, we have to get the data right.

i'm hopeful that passage of the f.c.c. re-authorization act will help folks in rural areas get the wireless coverage they need. i thank the ranking member for the time, i thank the chair of the committee and ranking member of the committee, and with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. walden: with this i'm now pleased to recognize the gentleman from ohio, mr. johnson, who has been a real leader on our telecommunications issues for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. johnson: thank you, mr. chairman. i, too, want to add my strongest, deepest sympathies and condolences toray baum's family in his passing and i rise -- condolences to ray balm's familiened n his passing. i rise to support this legislation, it provides transparency and efficiency reforms including language from my bill, h r. 2636 to create an

independent inspector general for the f.c.c. currently the i.g. is not only apointed by the chairman but also reports to and is under general supervision of the chairman of the commission. this legislation would require the president with the advice and con sthovente senate to appoint the inspector general. it's simply good governance and a matter of transparency and accountability to have an independent i.g. importantly this legislation also creates and authorizes a broadcast repack found address e anticipated shortfall in relocating broadcast whors displaced in the most recent spectrum auction. it is important to successfully relocate broadcasters and ensure an efficient and timely transition. i urge my colleagues to support this transition to re-authorize the f.c.c. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the chair recognize this is the

gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. louise tissue mr. ruiz. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. ruiz: i want to thank chairman walden and ranking member pallone and the committee for their hard work on this bipartisan bill. this legislation includes my bill, h.r. 5007, the tribal broadband deployment act which will direct the f.c.c. to improve broadband act sones tribal lands within 30 months. for the communities in my congressional california 36th district and throughout our nation, will be a game changer. throughout the valley, the san jacinto mountain communities and regions of california, rural, underdeveloped tribal lands are spread out among nontribal communities, both of which are often lacking broadband internet. both of which will benefit.

my bill would bring real resources and opportunities to these areas, improving connectivity and helping to close the digital divide in these historically underserved communities. with expanding access to the internet, families, students, workers and businesses will be able to harness the power of their ideas and information to achieve their dreams and grow our local economies. i want to thank chairman blackburn for honoring her commitment to work with me on this issue. i urge the house to pass this important bipartisan bill and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. i mean from oregon, is recognized. mr. walden: thank you, mr. speaker. now it's a pleasure to recognize the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. costello a very important member of the committee, for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. costello: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of h.r. 4986,

ray baum's act of 2018, named after the late ray baum who dedicated his life to public service this bill includes important provisions to modernize telecommunications agencies and to fuel next generation services like gig ba -- gigabit services and 5g networks. we're geng to increase access for millions of americans with this. 5g networks means doctors can more effectively treat patients who live hours away from the closest hospital. s more ed vehicles mean people have act to service by passing this bill we can fully realize the benefits of an interconnect and increasingly wireless world. i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 4986 and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized.

mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield two minutes to the gentleman from oregon, mr. blumenauer. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. pll blumenauer: i appreciate the gentleman's courptcy in permitting me to speak on this. this bill is, i think, an example of the politics and legislation that ray baum would be particularly proud of. characterizing his work as a policymaker and a policy advisor. i had a chance to work with ray in his other hats, chairing the public utility commission as a a distinguished legislator and majority leader and of course in his role here in congress. i appreciate the product we have before us today. i've enjoyed listening to people reaffirm areas that they're proud of, making a difference for people. i appreciate in particular the

authorization of new spending to help broadcasters expenses related to spectrum reallocation. this is very important. especially for public broadcasting stations. but i wanted to raise one item of concern and i hope that the chairman and ranking member would work with us to look at the bill's study of spectrum for commercial uses dealing with the mid band, the c-band. to consider public broadcasting. if -- i fear that if we're thrust into a competitive bidding with public broadcasting, they are likely to not be able to compete effectively but it will affect millions of people across the country. i applaud the community's bipartisanship and work with the senate but i hope that future consideration of the impact of reallocation on public

broadcasting could be something that the committee could look at to make sure we're protecting those vital interests. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. walden: thank you, i appreciate the gentleman's comments, i appreciate his thoughts on spectrum, there are multiple uses around and we want to make sure those using them are not disadvantaged. i now yield to the distinguished member of the energy and commerce committee who also has an important title around this house, the whip of the house, the gentleman from louisiana who has been very involved in telecommunications policy since he first came on the energy and commerce committee, mr. scalise, for two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. scalise: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to thank the chairman for yielding and for his leadership at working together in a very bipartisan way to bring forward the ray baum act. not only is this piece of

legislation important to rethors the f.c.c. and important work they do but it also is a fitting tribute toray baum himself and -- in so many ways to all the work our great staffs do to allow this capital to work properly, to allow congress to work for the american people. it doesn't just take members of congress but it takes an incredibly dedicated, talented staff and each of us are blessed to have wonderful staff, i'm surely no exception that allow us to do our job so well. the fact that we are using this legislation to pay tribute toray baum and all the staff of the capitol i think is equally mportant that we do just this. mr. speaker, president trump challenged congress to make the federal government more accountable to the american people. to eliminate red tape that hurts job creation and economic growth. and the ray baum act does just

that. first of all, we meet those two goals by doing a number of things. the legislation will re-authorize the federal communications commission for the first time in 28 years. the f.c.c. does important work for our country especially in the telecommunications arena and i'm proud to continue to serve on the telecommunications subcommittee which is one of the great examples of united states dominance. america is the dominant force in the world in technology and it's important that we have fair rules of the game and the f.c.c. is that arbiter and the fact that they haven't been re-authorized for 28 years i think it's long past due we get this done. we also make critical reforms that will modernize the agencies with tools that it needs to meet the demands of consumers for the 21st century. the legislation creates an important backstop for local radio and tv broadcasters who have been pleating the final stage of the incentive auction. this keeps america on track to

be the global leader on fe 5g communications by implementing new spectrum policy. this is something our committee has led on. the country needs more spectrum. we've been able to find creative ways to free up more spectrum so that more investment, billions of dollars of private sector investment, can be used to build up these great networks, 3g, 4g, and now 5g so we can continue to advance technology. mr. walden: i yield the gentleman another minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. scalise: i thank chairwoman blackburn for reporting the reporting act i work sod closely on with senator heller for years to try to get this passed, this is included as part of this legislation. this will provide relief to so many job creators and the f.c.c. by consolidating and eliminating so many outdated reporting requirements. what do i mean by eliminating outdated reporting requirements,

mr. speaker? how often do we hear about things on the books, laws on the books that are so outdated and so unnecessary, this is one of the reports that we're updating in this bill. right now they're still on the books, a requirement that the f.c.c. reports on the annual competition within the telegraph industry. mr. speaker, that's right, samuel morse invented the telegraph back in the 1830's. that might have been important in the 1800's, even in the early 1900's, but the fact that today in 2018 there's still a requirement the f.c.c. issues a report on competition within the telegraph industry is a glaring example of why it's so important to update laws an eliminate outdated laws. we are getting roifed this ridiculous requirement and a number of other unnecessary and ridiculous requirements like this so that we can free the f.c.c. up to do the important work they need to do.

so again i commend the chairman for the work he's done in a very bipartisan way to bring forth the ray baum act and i urge my colleagues to support this legislation and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i have no mr. pallone: i have no additional speakers. so i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. walden: at this time, i would recognize the gentleman from michigan, mr. walberg who is active on these issues and had a provision in this legislation as well, for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. walberg: thank you, mr. speaker. and i thank the chairman as well. i would first like to start off by remembering ray baum, whom this legislation is named after very appropriately. and thank you for sharing him with us. as correctly stated by the whip,

we appreciate the staff. he will be missed but we will carry on in his memory. and in the quality of service that he supplied. the ray baum act does something that hasn't been done in over 28 years. it re-authorized the federal communications commission. amazing to think that we have a commission as important as that and it hasn't been authorized or re-authorized. it's time to do it and bring it up to this century as well and beyond. this bipartisan bill is good forward-thinking policy that modernizes the f.c.c. to ensure it is more prpt, efficient and able to tackle the issues of the 231st century and maintains the credibility of spectrum auctions and the promise the fcc made to michigan broadcasters and paves the way that will allow for the united states to maintain its leadership in developing and deploying technologies such as 5

g and win the race. it requires the fcc to report to congress on its efforts to promote broadband internet access for veterans, especially low-income mr. walden: i yield to the gentleman, 30 seconds. mr. walberg: it requires the fcc to report to congress in its efforts to promote brond bad access to veterans. i would love to have broadband to my home as well. this bill is critical for consumers and our nation's telecommunications infrastructure. and i urge its passage today. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: i would reserve and am prepared to close. mr. walden: we have no further speakers other than myself to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to say again that this

bill is a bipartisan bill, a lot of work done on both sides of the aisle and i appreciate the fact that we are able to accomplish this and also include a lot of initiatives from members on both sides of the aisle. and again as a tribute to ray baum and all that he did for us over the many years, we urge its passage and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. walden: i yield myself such time as i may consume. i thank my friend from new jersey. i think it would be appropriate as well to thank the staff who put so much work into this, utting robin, tim, sean, uren, evan and elena and david, gerald and dan.

and we thank all of them for working for both here and on the senate side. mr. speaker, i just want to quickly go through the provisions again, because this really is important for more than a quarter of century, the fcc has not been re-authorized. we do it thanks to chairman blackburn's legislation. we take care of broadcasters, both public and private and translators and fm translators. mr. pallone has been a champion of the repack effort and sandy legislation. you heard from mr. scalise and it will consolidate outdated reports. streamline the rest. bring efficiency. mr. squonson's legislation established that independent inspector general at the fcc. this is good government we can embrace. give the chief information office the fcc to play a significant role in budgeting, planning and programming.

prohibit spoofing calls or texts originating out of the u.s. and i think we are getting tired of those spoofs we get on our phones. looks like it is coming from our hometowns and turns out it is not. he fcc has to work to do that. a spectrum auction fix. it will allow auctions to go forward legally and couldn't do it because of an interpretation. we fixed that. congressman mcnerney's legislation require the fcc to report to congress to promote to congress on veterans and low-income veterans in our rural communities. improving methodology for mobile coverage. we need numbers that we can trust. and broadband in tribal areas

and carrying out rulemaking to address unserved tribal areas. a lot lack service. and provide further improvements 911 caller information that builds on car yi's law and really important and elliott engel's legislation, how the agency can coordinate cyber incidents. it goes on and on, and senator thune's mobile now act. so as you can see, this is comprehensive, thoughtful, well written, comprehensive legislation on telecommunications and re-authorizes the fcc and fitting tribute to my friend and policy leader, mr. baum, ray baum from oregon. and with that, i would encourage my colleagues to support this legislation. and i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 4986 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 passed. and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. without objection, the title is amended.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from iowa seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 1132, with an amendment. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 1132 a bill to amend title 5 united states code to provide for a two year prohibition on employment in a career civil service position for any former political appointee and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from iowa, mr. blum and the gentleman from virginia, mr. connolly, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from iowa. mr. blum: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. blum: i yield myself such time as i may consume.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. blum: i rise in support of h.r. 1132 the political appointee burrowing prevention act introduced by representative buck. this important bill will protect the integrity of the civil service and ensure that the people are served by a competent nonpolitical work force. under current law, each administration appoints a political staff to advance the administration's political goals. these political employees leave at the end of the administration to make way for the next administration's appointees. the career civil service carries over from administration to administration. they should be base hired based on their qualifications and performance. despite the significant differences, political appointees are allowed to convert to career positions. this is known as burrowing. as the government accountability office explained, quote,

circumstances surrounding conversions can raise questions as to whether the individuals selected experience favoritism or enjoyed an unfair advantage in the selection process, end quote. g.a.o. said, any appearance of this could compromise the merit system's integrity, end quote. law the will enact in requirement for o.p.m. to review political conversions and the bill raises the bar for political conversions requiring an agency certify the conversion is necessary to meet its mission. to ensure congress can monitor for abuse, the certification must be provided to congress before it is approved. finally, the bill prohibits political conversions within two years of leaving a political appointment. this ensures sufficient time has passed between when appointees finish their appointment and when they can become a career employee. this bill protects the integrity

of the merit-based system so career politicians stay free of politics. the american deserve nothing less. i urge my colleagues to support the bill. and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from virginia is recognized. mr. connolly: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the bill before us, h.r. 1132, the political appointee burrowing prevention act as amended, i thank my friend for working with us to improve this bill. because of the improvements we have been able to make, i support moving this bill forward in the legislative process. however, i continue to believe that some further changes may be needed. the bill would make it very difficult to hire former political appointees in the career positions in the federal government. it would prohibit hiring of a former political appointee into a career position for two years

after that individual held the political position. it would also add significant hurdles for agencies seeking to hire an applicant to a career position, who separated from a political appointment in the last five years. the agency would be required to certify to the office of personnel management the appointment is necessary to the agency's ability to meet its mission. there are several controls already in place to ensure that the process used to hire former political appointees into career positions is fair, open and based on merit. for example, the office of personnel management must ensure right now that the appointment process was free from political influence and report the results f its reviews to congress. a february, 2017 report found that o.p.m. reviewed 16 requests by agencies to hire former political appointees from october 1, 2016 through january

20 of 2017 and did not find any reason to deny any of those requests. we all want the best people in the federal service. nd there should be no undo favoritism in the hiring process. in comments on this bill, o.p.m. suggested certain provisions macon flict with the merit system principles that forms the basis of the federal civil service. that issue should be clarified before this bill becomes enacted into law. nonetheless, we support the spirit with which the bill is offered to us today and we have no objections to the legislation. with that, i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from iowa is recognized. mr. blum: mr. speaker, i yield five minutes to the gentleman from colorado, and sponsor of the bill, my esteemed colleague, mr. buck. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. buck: thank you, mr. speaker and the gentleman from iowa for

the time today to talk about this important legislation. mr. speaker, on -- i want to speak on behalf of this. this important legislation addresses a problem affecting our federal work force. our federal service -- civil service hiring process is supposed to be a competitive merit-based system where the best and brightest individuals are considered based on their qualifications to do their job, not their political connections. we are seeing a trend where employees, specifically political appointees are appointed into high paying positions bypassing the normal hiring process. this process known as burrowing defeats the purpose of having a nonpartisan civil service. the obama administration converted 78 political appointments into career positions while the bush administration allowed 135

political appointees to burrow into positions. individuals who were not chosen based solely on their merits may at best not be the most qualified candidate for the job or at worst may not be willing to properly execute the law under a new administration. political appointees are supposed to serve their administration's agenda for a temporary point of time. he they need to know when it's time to step down. congress must act to ensure the principle is upheld and protect the independence of our merit-based civil service. to is why i and ted lieu make sure this problem is stopped. our bill places a two-year ban on political appointees being hired for any job in the service service after they depart a political position.

the bill ensures after the two-year ban is completed, the head of the agency seeking to employ the individual must submit a written request to o.p.m. detailing why hiring a former appointee is necessary. p.m. is directed to deny the politics -- application. this commonsense bill ensures our federal work force is filled with career civil servants who are the most qualified. i urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation that ensures our federal work force is being selected by merit party. political i yield back. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from iowa is recognized. >> i would like to make the gentleman from virginia aware i

have no further speakers and am prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from virginia is recognized. >> i do support the bill and the spirit in which this bill is offered, it's important we preserve the integrity of the civil service system we have work sod hard to build in this system where we build in integrity and reject nepotism and favoritism over merit. mr. connolly: one caveat, once in a while there may be a political appointee who is the best thing since sliced bread who brings a level of expertise that we need. we don't want to make it harder to look at the merits. i know that's not the intention of the bill but it may be an unintended consequence. with that, we support the bill and yield back the balance of our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from iowa is recognized. >> i urge adoption of the bill

and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 1132 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 passed, and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid n the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from iowa seek recognition? >> i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 3737. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar 382, h.r. 3737, a bill to provide for a study on the use of social media and security clearance investigation. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from iowa, mr. blum and the gentleman from virginia, mr. connolly, will each control

20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from iowa. >> i ask unanimous consent to -- consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. blum: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. blum: i rise in support of h.r. 3737, the social media use in clearance investigations act of 2017, introduced by the gentleman from florida, representative desantis. according to the pew research center, snevpb 10 americans use social media today. a significant portion of those americans' personal and professional interactions occur online. it's commonsense that the government should check the social media of individuals who apply for security clearances. but it doesn't. h.r. 3737 will move the government toward implementing checks of social media for individuals we trust with our country's most sensitive

information. the bill requires a study of the use of social media in clearance investigations, inform government-wide implementation of social media checks. it will provide comprehensive information on pilot programs, lessons learned, and costs. we must begin the process of strengthening the system now and that startings with determining best practices moving forward. h.r. 3737 will help ensure the government checks social media before issuing security clearances. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and reserve the alance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. connolly: i think this bill is long overdue and recognizes the internet world in which we live and operate this bill would require the director of the office of management and budget to issue a report to congress on the use of social media checks

in background investigations for security clearances. in recent year a number of agencies have begun pilot programs to help develop the best methods of incorporating social media into those background checks. for example, the army initiated a pilot program that found that while checking social media is a valuable tool it can be costly and may raise some legal issues. this bill would require that o.m.b. conduct a comprehensive study on those issues and report back to congress this one-time report would describe the current uses of social media postings for investigative purposes and any legal concerns or impediments that may arise. in addition, the report would summarize the results of any pilot programs on the use of social media conducted to date and provide cost estimates for implementing their widespread use and background investigative process. the report would greatly assist

congress in determining whether further legislative action is needed in determining social media use and background investigations. this bill is approved without opposition, the committee on government and oversight reform last year. i commend it to our colleagues today and i want to thank mr. desantis and mr. lynch for their leadership on what i think is a commonsense measure that will actually improve the process. i urge every member to support the bill and i reserve the balance of our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from iowa is recognized. mr. blum: i yield five minutes to the gentleman from florida and sponsor of this bill, mr. desantis. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. desantis: mr. speaker in the private sector if an employer is going to hire somebody a lot of times they'll do a google search, check social media posting to see, learn a little more about this prospective employee. it may be hard to believe that the federal government often fails to conduct a simple internet search on individuals before they entrust -- before

they are entrusted with a security clearance. publicly available social media is one of the best ways to understand an individual's interests and intention but our investigatory process focuses on interviewing the applicant's family, friends and neighbors. for over a decade, various agencies have conducted studies and pilot programs to assess the effectiveness of social media checks and security clearance investigations. congress has not been provided those results. with this bill will require those agencies to identify best practices so we can use this going forward to make sure that the people who are employed by this government, armed with a security clearance that have access to sense tifftive information that puts the security of the country at risk, that these are people that we want to have there and they're not folks who have ulterior designs. a lot of times it's going to be much more informative to look at

their publically available writings than to talk to somebody who may live next door to them in an apartment 10 years ago. thing this bill is overdue. i think my -- i thank my colleague from massachusetts, mr. lynch, for co-sponsoring it for me. i'm proud to be here today as a sponsor. i think they should have bipartisan support and i think it'll give us a some good answers and we can move forward and modernize this process. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from virginia is recognized. mr. connolly: may i inquire, mr. speaker, whether my republican friend has any other speakers? mr. blum: i do not. mr. connolly: i thank my friend. mr. speaker, let me close. we think this is a commonsense bill. i agree with the sentiments expressed by our friend from florida that in today's day and age we can't not take cognizance of social media and it can be a useful tool in evaluating someone's security clearance

application. we also understand it could be a tool that's used to invade people's privacy and we want to avoid that. that's why what this bill suzzzus call for a report. looking a at the legal ramifications and practicality of using this tool to get to a better outcome and the process of security clearances and support the bill, commend it to our colleagues, i yield back the balance of our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from iowa is recognized. mr. blum: i urge adoption of the bill and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 3737. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from iowa seek

recognition? mr. blum: i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 4043. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk will suspend. does the gentleman call up the bill as amended? mr. blum: there's no amendment. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of he bill. the speaker pro tempore: h.r. 4043, a bill to amend the

inspector general act to re-authorize the whistleblower protection program and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: purr sune to the rule, the gentleman from iowa, mr. wlum, and the gentleman from virginia, mr. connolly, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from iowa. mr. blum: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. blum: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. blum: i rise today, mr. speaker , in support of h.r. 4043, the whistleblower protection enhancement act, a bill i introduced with ranking member elijah cummings. the whistleblower protection extension act re-authorizes the whistle bler ombudsman program. whistleblowers are the frontline defense against waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government. too many federal employees are unaware of the laws that protect them and the options available

for dealing with retaliation and other actions intended to silence them. to address this program, congress created the ombudsman program in 2012. the program directs agency inspector general to designate an ombudsman for whistleblower protections at the agency. they provide information to employees on whistleblower protections and remedies in the event of retaliation this program was originally a component of the 2012 whistle blow brother text enhancement act and was set to expire after five years. over the past five year the ombudsman program has received high marks from the inspector general community. this benefits the country as a whole and makes the federal government more efficient. for that reason, it is imperative we pass h.r. 4043 and make the ombudsman program permanent. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from viverage is recognized. mr. connolly: i yield myself

such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. connolly: the need for this bill comes into focus just today with reports, maybe unconfirmed, that one of the trump cabinet members is engaged in a witch hunt against a whistleblower. we need this kind of protection. rye i rise in strong support of h.r. 4043, the whistleblower protection extension act. representative blum and oversight committee ranking member elijah cummings introduced be thill to extend the pilot program that requires every inspector general's office to have a liaison dedicated to assisting whistleblowers. under this legislation, the whistleblower protection coordinator would help educate agency employees about whistle blow brother text laws. this bill would help employees who want to blow the whistle know their rights and would put agency management on notice that it's against the law to retaliate against whistleblowers. this bill would require whistleblower protection coordinators to provide

whistleblowers who have suffered retaliation about options available to them to have their allegations evaluated. no matter how strong we make our whistle blow brother text laws that i will not help if whistleblowers do not know how to exercise their rights under those laws. i urge my colleagues to pass this bipartisan measure, to strengthen whistleblower protections, and i reserve the alance of my time. mr. blum: i have no further speakers and am prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from virginia is recognized. mr. connolly: mr. speaker, i just urge this bill, commonsense bill, good government coming out of our committee. thank my friend from iowa for collaborating on this commonsense piece of legislation and i urge its adoption. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. blum: i urge adoption and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: will

the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 4043 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 passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid n the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from iowa seek recognition? mr. blum: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill s. 118 with an amendment. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the bill. the clerk: an act to prohibit the use of federal funds for the cost of painting portraits of officers and employees of the federal government. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from iowa, mr. plum and the gentleman from virginia, mr. connolly, each will control 20 minutes. mr. blum: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their

remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration including an exchange of letters on the house companion bill between the committee on government yield t reform and i myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. blum: i rise today in support of the eliminating government-funded oil painting act, a bill introduced by senator cassidy. in years past, the federal government spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on government first. taxpayer funds should be going o agencies not oil painting of cabinet members. eliminating government funded oil painting act. the ego act makes clear once and for all that government agencies cannot spend taxpayer dollars on

oil paintings. support this bipartisan legislation. and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from virginia is recognized. mr. connolly: i thank the speaker, and i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. connolly: this is a sad day in the swamp. to eliminate oil paintings of men and women who consider themselves very important to make sure the taxpayer funds is never used for such a thing, sad day for the swamp in washington. one can come to the capitol and look at oil paintings that are on every corridor and wall, in hearing rooms, here in the capitol and not know most of these people. we haven't got a clue whom most of them are.

we recognize john adams. but when we go to committee hearing rooms, one or two chairmen past, we don't know who they are. i guess it was an attempt to achieve immortality. but it is an act of ego that is a little embarrassing even for washington, d.c. this is an important bill, commonsense bill, that brings us all back to earth that none of us is inexpendable and that frankly, we make our contribution and we move on. this bill strikes at the uncontrolled egos and i hope sends a message to those among us, that they can stay that way if they wish, but the taxpayer isn't going to pay for their oil painting. i support the bill and urge its passage. and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from iowa is

recognized. mr. blum: i would like to make the gentleman aware i have no further speakers and am prepared my ose and i enjoyed my ol's eeg rather dry sense of witt. mr. connolly: and i will remind im, being irish that leprechauns are always on my shoulder. i like this bill. i think most taxpayers are going to like this bill and high time that we acted on this kind of improvement and injected a sense of humility and humidity into our enterprise here in the united states col. i urge passage and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from iowa is recognized. mr. blum: i urge passage and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house pass

senate 188 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 passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. without objection, the title is amended. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, proceedings will resume on questions previously postponed. votes will be taken in the following order. motion to recommit on h.r. 4607 and passage of h.r. 4607 if ordered. the first electronic vote will be conducted as a 15-minute vote. remaining electronic votes will be conducted as five-minute votes. the unfinished business is the question on agreeing to the motion to recommit on h.r. 4607

offered by the gentlewoman from massachusetts, ms. clarke, on which the yeas and nays were ordered. the clerk will redesignate the motion. the clerk: motion to recommit on h.r. 4607 offered by ms. clarke of massachusetts. the speaker pro tempore: the question is on agreeing to the motion to recommit. members will record their votes by electronic device. 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.]