justice breyer: the reason you still apply the unconstitutional law to all those people who are in prison is because the reliance in the community on their staying in prison. mr. chiten: the reason you don't -- mr. chaiten: the reason you don't apply it is because the judgment is final, so i think it's a separate question from the underlying merits question and underlying constitutional question. justice alito: -- generaledary we going to get you live now to the u.s. house. they just gaveled back in. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2018] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] objected to under clause 6 of rule 20. the house will resume proceedings on postponed questions at a later time. for what purpose does the gentleman from utah seek recognition? mr. bishop: i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5513 as ameppeded.

the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 778, h.r. 5513, a bill to provide an exchange of land in san bernardino, california, to enhance management of lands within the san bernardino national forest and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah, mr. bishop, and the gentleman from arizona, mr. gallego, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: i ask unanimous 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. bishop: with that, i wish to yield as much time as he may wish to consume to the sponsor of this piece of legislation, congressman from california, mr. cook, to explain why we should actually deal with this particular piece. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. cook: thank you, mr. speaker, and thank you, mr. bishop, for yielding time.

i would like to take a few minutes to talk about my bill, h.l. 5513, the bill bear land exchange act. this bill would authorize a land exchange of approximately 71 acres of land and -- in san bernardino national forest for approximately 73 acres of land currently owned by san bernardino county. this land will be used by the county to build a timber processing facility that would serve the mountain communities. urrently trees and other forest waste is moved to a processing facility down in the valley resulting in increased traffic congestion, significant wear and tear on mountain roads and numerous traffic accidents. this has been exacerbated this week. we had quite a bit of snow and once again, very, very

treacherous and safety is always a problem on these mountain roads. this land exchange would require the relocation of a small portion of the pacific crest trail, and i have worked closely with the pacific crest trail association to include language ensuring that relocation would include environmental review and will occur before the exchange takes place. has virtual ange unanimous local support, including the friends of big bear valuey the big bear valley department, the fire department, the big bear city community services department, the big bear municipal water district, the bear valley community health care district, and the big bear chamber of commerce and the local big bear group chapter of the sierra

club. we haven't heard from the local bear associations at all. it passed -- bad joke. it passed out of the house natural resources committee on a unanimous vote. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? mr. gallego: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gallego: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise in support of h.r. 5513. this bill authorizes an equal value land exchange between the u.s. forest service and san bernardino county. the exchange would allow the county to build a resource conservation and recovery facility adjacent to the current transfer station. the forest service would receive an undeveloped parcel currently surrounded by the san bernardino national forest. this bill, supported by the nearby of city big bear, by the local chapter of the sierra club. i want to thank my colleague, representative cook, for working to address some of our concerns of earlier drafts of

this bill. we ensured this preserve critical and occupy habitat for endangered species and the exchange will have minimal impacts on the pacific crest national scenic trail. h.r. 5513 demonstrates how collaborative process can meet the interest of local stakeholders while protecting the integrity of our environment and public lands. i want to congratulate representative cook and i urge my colleagues to support this piece of legislation. with that, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: i i yield myself such time as i may consume. -- i yield myself such time as i may consume. mr. speaker, this is a perfect example of how to do something well. i commend congressman cook listening to local residents. solving the problem for both the forest service and san bernardino county. not only will the forest service get a small parcel of

land which solves the problem of inholding within their property but san bernardino county gets the ability to solve problems they have in the area of public safety. so this is one of those things that's a win-win situation. a win-win situation which actually provides safety as well as the changing of that trail is absolutely necessary but that has to be worked out before any of this concluded. the bottom line is we realize there is a significant problem, we have realized there is a significant problem, and by working with local communities to get their input trying to come one a locally driven solution to that problem, this is the way government should operate. and unfortunately, it doesn't operate that way all the time, but congressman cook has worked very hard to make sure this is one of the positi efforts. this bill is one of the things that's a win for all of us, and i hardly ask my colleagues to vote in favor of this. i will reserve the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gallego: i reserve the balance of my time, also, mr. speaker. i yield my time, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. mr. beneficiary -- mr. bishop: mr. speaker, i yield my time as well. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the amended. 5513 as those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded 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 utah seek recognition? mr. bishop: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6108, as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6108 a bill to

provide for partnerships among state and local governments, regional entities, and the private sector to preserve, conserve, and enhance the visitor experience at nationally significant battlefields of the american revolution, war of 1812, and civil war, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from utah, mr. bishop, and the gentleman from arizona, mr. gallego, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: again, i ask unanimous consent that all members may 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. bishop: thank you. i also wish to yield as much time as he may consume to the sponsor of this excellent piece of legislation that protects our heritage and battlefields, mr. hice of georgia. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia is recognized. mr. hice: thank you so much, mr. chairman, for the opportunity to speak on behalf of my bill, h.r. 6108, the preserving america's

battlefield act. mr. speaker, the american battlefields protection program was first authorized in 1996 by congress in order to promote and protect significant american battlefield sites as well as to provide an educational platform for current and future generations of americans. since the inception of this rogram, the battlefield land acquisition grants have been used extensively to preserve portions of dozens of battlefield sites that have played a significant role in the american revolution, the war of 1812, and the american civil war. these dollar-for-dollar matching land grants has saved more than 30,000 acres of battlefields across 20 states. just this past year in my own district, this program assisted in securing 180 acres of battleground surrounding the site of kettle creek battlefield, which is a site of the only significant patriot

victory in georgia during the revolutionary war. this bill would re-authorize the successful bipartisan federal grants program and would dedicate a portion of that authorization for educational purposes and for the restoration and sbrpgs of high-priority -- interpretation of high-priority battlefield sites. this will help make these battlefields beautiful, historic and educational tourist destinations. this program has been one of the most successful and efficient land grants programs in our nation's history. continually receiving bipartisan support. both former presidents george w. bush and barack obama supported the program's authorization and subsequent re-authorizations respectfully, and i'm very proud to say this bill has continued in that rich tradition of bipartisan support here in the 115th congress. with the 150th anniversary of

our nation's founding fast approaching, there's no better time to protect our battlefields for the influx of visitors that are expected during that time. so i'd like to thank chairman bishop, the minority, our hardworking natural resources committee staff and the american battlefield trust all for helping us get this bill across the finish line. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gallego: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of h.r. 6108, which authorizes additional funding for the battlefield acquisition grant program. this program has a long track record of efficiently and cost-effectively preserving battlefield sites from the american revolution, civil war and the war of 1812. by utilizing public-private funding matches through which federal contributions are leveraged with private sector

funds, it will have the impact of every dollar spent. it's critical we extend this grant matching program because many of these sites are under threat from encroaching development. if we don't act swiftly we could lose access to sites of historical importance. by extending funding to this program and by allowing it to go to educational and upgrades at these sites, americans will remember the sacrifices made to preserve our nation. unfortunately, i worry this legislation, as important as it is to preserving our nation's history, rings somewhat hallow. we need to recognize that this bill extends -- is funded through the land and water conservation fund which expired this september, the second time. at our committee hearing, our distinguished witness from the american battlefield trust recognized this proposal doesn't hold water unless in is

re-authorized. while i rise in support of h.r. 6108, i also urge my colleagues to support the permanent re-authorization of lwcf. thank you, mr. speaker. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from utah is recognized. mr. bishop: i will yield myself as much time as i may consume as well. this is one of those bills that makes an old history teacher's heart filled with joy. it's one of the right things to do. we are talking about areas that are living memorials, to the heroism, to the sacrifice of those people who made this country what it is. this bill is about preserving our history, helping us know and understand and retain the story of who we are as a nation and also how we arrived there as a nation. all of that is significant. it's significant in that it will re-authorize the program through 2025. it is significant because it also re-authorizes an is in zation level which

plactcalt what we have available to spend on this -- practicality what we have available to spend on this program. and it involves the private sector becoming involved in this. if our history is maintained, we have to involve the private sector to become part of understanding why these areas are significant and what is the lesson to be learned there. not only will this talk about acquisition of areas, but also how we restore this land to the way it was at the time the history was being with made of these properties, but more importantly, it's how do we improve the education resources so the story of what we are as a nation, the story of what this specific site meant as we become a unineed nation, as we move forward -- unineed nation, as we move forward, it's passed from generation to generation. that's a significant issue and it's a significant process and i recommend the gentleman from georgia for his commitment

townsing how important battlefields are to the history of this country and how important it is that history be passed on to future generations. and that's why this is a significant program that needs to go forward and once again, i would urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this particular legislation as well. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gallego: i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: i yield back as well. the speaker pro tempore: the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6108 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. 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 utah seek

recognition? mr. bishop: i move to suspend he rules and pass h.r. 3008. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 470, h.r. 3008 a bill to authorize the secretary of the interior to conduct a special resource study of the george w. bush childhood home located at 1412 west ohio avenue, midland, texas, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah, mr. bishop, and the gentleman from utah, mr. -- from arizona, mr. gallego, each are recognized for 15 minutes. mr. bishop: i ask unanimous 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: weather. -- without objection. mr. bishop: i would yield as much time heas may consume to the sponsor of this resolution, mr. conway, explain the

significance of this study resolution. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. conway: i thank you for yielding time -- mr. conaway: thank you for yielding time to bring this forward. this will study the feasibility of maintaining the george w. bush childhood home. it's undergone a reconnaissance inspection which says they do think it would meet the criteria, this would would be the final step. mr. speaker, we -- last week we honored and mourned the life of george h.w. bush as we should and i think it's timely that this week we have the ability to further that memorialization of the bush family, pushing the national park service forward nits responsibilities to maintain this home. we're reminded as of last week the importance of preserving the visual imprint os our past for

the imprint of our future. the bush family is the epitome of the mesh dream. they not only worked hard and achiefed success but built on their accomplishments an devoted their lives to public service. success means nothing without the ability to give back. the george w. bush home serves to educate visitors. it tells the story of two president two governor, and a remarkable first lady. it was in this home that george h.w. bush and barbara jump started their life in west texas and raised george w. bush. it was the back drop of a young family who found themselves moving west, like so many families before them, seeking their own opportunities and a path through life. there are currently no national park service units related to

the george w. bush career or presidency in the lower panhandle region of texas. i can think of no with ther first addition to the system than a structure that celebrates the bush family and pride of west texas. though it's currently open to the public, oversight by the national parks service will ensure it's maintain and give many more americans to the site to be inspired by one of america's and midland's premier families. with that, i yield become. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gallego: this bill authorizes a special resource -- source study of the childhood home of george w. bush, to designate it as a unit of the national park service. the shome where george w. bush lived from the ages of 5 to 9 and it's where george h.w. bush lived at the beginning of his political career. the structure is listed in the

national register of historic places and currently operates as a museum. i support the proposed study designating this site a unit of the national park system. thank you, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: i yield myself such time as i may consume. once again we have a situation where there's already a museum run by a nonprofit entity in this area. what's being asked is for a study to be done by the national park service to find the significance of including this as part of the park service portfolio of properties. it is fitting that we try and do this. for indeed, in american history, there's only been two times when there's been both a father and a son who served as president of the united states. once with the adams and now with the bushes. having the home where they as well as future governor of florida actually resided is one

of those things that clearly is a unique sense of history a unique property, that provides that sense of history and so for a study to be done on whether it should be added to the national park service repertoire of sites is a proper thing to d. i commend congressman conaway's efforts to recognize and honor our -- two of our country's presidents and i urge my colleagues once again to adopt this resolution. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gallego: i yield back my time, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. mr. bishop: i yield back as well. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 3008. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- mr. bishop: i ask for the yeas

and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having risen trk eyeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 further pr seedings on this uestion will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from utah seek recognition? mr. bishop: i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6118 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6118 a bill to direct the secretary of the interior to annually designate at least one city in the united states as an american world war ii heritage city and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from utah, mr. bishop, and the gentleman from arizona, mr. gallego, each will control

20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: 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. bishop: with that, i would like to yield as much time as he may consume to the sponsor of this piece of legislation, the gentleman from north carolina, mr. rouzer. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. rouzer: thank you, mr. chairman. mr. speaker, our country has been and continues to be the greatest force for good known to mankind. and the men and women of our military have played a central role in this virtuous effort. there was no greater time of difficulty and challenge that tested this notion more, though, than during world war ii. h.r. 6118 provides a way to honor the major contributions made by our cities during world war ii bhi granting the secretary of the interior the ability to designate one city

each year as a world war ii heritage city. provided that city meets the criteria for recognition outlined in the legislation. as many from the greatest generation know, world war ii required a nationwide effort to assist with the many components of war production. yet there are many all across this great land who do not know that cities from across the nation stepped up in a major way to assist with defense manufacturing, the production of food, clothing, and other necessary goods. no one can attest to these efforts better than captain wilber d. jones of wilmington, north carolina. captain jones is retired from the u.s. navy aties ting wished author, active veteran, and a war historian who has been working to preserve our states' world war ii history for the past two decades. i want to thank captain jones for his hard work and steadfast

dedication to this cause. without his leadership, the idea , introduction, and passage of this bill would have never come to fruition. this legislation will provide every city that contributed to the many heroic world war ii efforts an incentive to preserve that history. a great and noble undertaking so that all citizens will have a better understanding of our history and even more pride in our great heritage. i want to thank the chairman of the committee and the ranking member for their help with and accommodation of this bill. i'd also like to thank our state legislature for their very active support and endorsement, the wilmington city council and mayor bill saffo. also should mention the great work of senators burr and till liss on the other side of the capitol for their help in addition to passage in this body that this legislation will eventually hopefully here in the next couple of weeks be signed

into law by the president. mr. speaker, i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gayay go: this bill authorizes the secretary of the interior to honor the contributions and war efforts made by cities in world war ii including work by these cities to preserve this history. this bill honors the history of our nation and enshrines the efforts made by americans that are integral to our success in world war ii. for example, wilmington, north carolina, constructed 243 cargo vessels, served as a base for all five military bases and hosted german prison noferse war and dispatched thousands of soldiers to fight. current efforts to preserve this history include landmarks such as the battleship north carolina and the u.s.o. building. this will give the secretary the authority to validate these cricks along with countless

other cities that contributed to the war effort. i thank representative rouzer for his work on this bill and i'm happy to voice my support of it. i urge a yes vote on the bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: i yield myself such time as i may consume. mr. chairman, during world war ii, our cities built armaments, they had war bond drive they grew victory garden they did what they could to support our troops that were fighting abroad in a two-front war. it is significant and important that we recognize the efforts that went into that part of our history and also that we reward in some way the efforts to protect that history so that we will always remember the sacrifice that was made by the greatest generation and that their efforts as well on the field of battle as well as back home to preserve that and support that will not be forgotten and the past will not

be forgotten. but this part of our american history will be remembered going forward. so this is a wonderful effort to do that, to actually provide once again for the history of this country, for the symbols of this country, for the future of this country, to remember how we got to the position in which we are. be thill -- this bill authorizes the secretary of the interior to designate at least one city a year each year as american world war ii heritage city. and it's appropriate that we go forward with this and i fully support its efforts and i urge the adoption of that by my colleagues as well. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gallego: i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: i yield as well. the question is -- the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6118 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 amended. for what purpose does the gentleman from utah rise? mr. bishop: i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6665 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of he bill. the speaker pro tempore: the text of the bill h.r. 6665 at the desk. mr. bishop: is that not what i

said? that is accurate, h.r. 6665 and any other numbers you want to add on to it. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will read the bill. he clerk: h.r. 6665, establish wind lease sale requirements for to the provide dedicated funding for coral leaf conservation an for orpurposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from utah, mr. bishop, and the gentleman from arizona, mr. gallego, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: i ask unanimous 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. bishop: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. bishop: i'm going to read this part. from the whooshing in the western pacific to the wind swept waters of the atlantic, a wonderful wealth of offshore wind exists. while this wonderful resource

weapon withstood the tests of time in europe we have waffled in our worldview on wind power. but worry not, with this worthy bill we will warrant our nation's territories from guam to puerto rico will no longer be wasting their over water reward and will be powered with waterproof windmills. all right, now now i have to stop because i did that for the staffer who wrote it. obviously i don't do this kind of stuff, and i lost the bet. however, despite the literation that went there, this is a good bill that will move us forward in energy production, especially in our territories of the united states, and with that i obviously urge my colleagues to support it and move us forward. and, you got it -- and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: mr. speaker, i yield myself -- i yield the gentleman from new jersey such

time as he may need to discuss this wonderful water bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is ecognized. mr. gallego: mr. speaker, i retract that. i apologize. we're running the shotgun here. mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gallego: this bill provides a number of benefits for the territories of the united states, port roik, the virgin islands, guam -- puerto ricoo, virgin islands, guam, and the northern mariana islands to allow them to develop off-shore wind in their waters, potential source of new clean energy for their residents. it sets up a system by which the territories receive a share of the revenue generated by any new off-shore wind development. currently, our territories rely primarily on imported diesel for generated electricity,

putting them at high risk of upply disruptions as we saw in puerto rico, and forcing them to pay one of the highest prices for electricity, especially when disasters strikes. developing off-shore wind will make for resilient communities, decreased dependency on fossil fuels, and potentially bring electricity prices down significantly. however, because the territories are currently not covered by the outer continental shelf lands act, there is no legal mechanism for putting wind turbines in the waters off their coastlines. his bill fix this is unfairness, protects their coastlines by leaving them out of the off-shore oil and gas leasing process. additionally, some of the revenue generated by this bill are allocated to the coral reef conservation program, preserving, sustaining, and restoring the condition of

court reef ecosystems that in many cases are crucial for the tourism. h.r. 6665 is a commonsense bill for the growth and success of u.s. territories and environment while providing new sources of clean, carbon-free energy. mr. speaker, i urge a yes vote on this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah is recognized. mr. bishop: you could have put some rhyme in there. mr. speaker, i yield five minutes to the gentlewoman on the territory of puerto rico, to speak on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. miss gonzalez-colon: thank you, mr. chairman, mr. speaker. i want to thank the honorable member from guam, congresswoman bordallo, for taking this initiative to present h.r. 6665 , and chairman bishop and ranking member grijalva, for having moved this legislation to continue to extend equal treatment to the american community citizens in the

territories. it's been a privilege to join in a bipartisan proposal for applying uniformerly the federal law for the benefit of the people of our territories. equal treatment for all american communities is a goal that should be shared by all in this congress, and we will continue to seek it. america's continued prosperity requires a modernized energy system that makes the best of all the domestic resources available, including expanded use of wind in our domestic waters. puerto rico has directly experienced the need to have a better energy infrastructure in place. today, only 2% of our energy in puerto rico comes just from renewable sources. our plans for long-term recovery of our electric grid include a much higher reliance on renewable energy to reduce environmental impact and increase efficiency. many of the territories rely on expensive diesel or fuel oil generation systems. an integration of greater

diversity of generating sources will provide them greater flexibility in had their development plans. at the same time, however, this upgrade on our generation sources should be conducted in each jurisdiction based on its technical, environmental reliability and rely on private participation instead of taxpayer funding. this will allow the department of interior to discover the outer continental shelf land act. the department of interior will initiate the process of auction, the leasing rights for such projects on the same basis as for the waters outside the states. if such development proceeds 2.5% of the revenues collected will be reserved for court reef protection and 37.5% for the respective territory for environmental mitigation uses.

this way is the better way to develop energy resources and provide also funding for the territories to take their own measures for securing better environmental conditions. i expect the house will support this effort to bring uniformed treatment under the jurisdiction of the american flag, an important area policy, which is energy, and open up investment and development opportunities to all of us. i want -- i once again want to thank my colleague from guam, ms. dore balanceo, and chairman of the -- ms. bordallo, and the chairman of the committee for having this support and have equal treatment for puerto rico and the territories. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah is recognized. mr. bishop: mr. speaker, i yield the gentleman from louisiana, mr. graves, four

minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from louisiana is recognized. thank you, mr. speaker. i appreciate the opportunity to come speak in support of this legislation. i think this is important legislation to ensure that our territories can share in the revenues from off-shore energy production. i believe that states, i believe that territories should share in that revenue production. mr. speaker, i think there's an important discussion for us to be having here, though. yes, as the gentleman from arizona noted, this will be contributing to our nation's energy production, which is a good thing. it is generating a revenue stream based on market forces which is a good thing, and it does, mr. speaker, return a portion of the revenues back to the territories or thed a jaysent host entity -- or the adjacent host entity of this production and it invests in

this. the majority of the energy in the united states is derived from oil and gas. that's how the majority of this nation's economy is powered. and there are a handful of states that provide that energy. for example, in the off-shore, as this bill pertains only to off-shore in federal waters -- in the off-shore you have the states of alaska represented by our dean. you have the state of alabama, mississippi, louisiana, my home state, texas, and, mr. speaker, the state of california. those are all states that produce off-shore energy. a lot of states producing on-shore revolution in texas, in the dakotas, in pennsylvania, in ohio, in louisiana, and other areas, we're producing on-shore production as well. once again, this is fueling our nation's economy and all 50 states are benefiting from this. mr. speaker, going back to the off-shore, we provided about

$200 billion from energy production in the off-shore to the united states treasury. this bill on the first dollar, on the first dollar of energy produced in the federal off-shore from wind energy in the territories, a portion of it will be shared with the territory and going to be shared for conservation activity. yet, the disparity or the opposite happens for on-shore. for on-shore energy, what they do is they take the initial dollars and they put it toward conservation, land conservation in other states. not where this energy's produced, but in other states. the gentleman from arizona even noted that there are impacts from off-shore energy production, and i agree with him, there are impacts. most of them have been historic impacts. but for us to take this revenue stream and put it toward other states and not where this energy is produced, when you're talking about $200 billion, mr. speaker, that's wrong. that's why we've introduced h.r. 6771.

and mr. speaker, that bill passed the house resources committee unanimously by a voice vote. i want to thank the gentleman from arizona and many other members for working with us on this legislation. it was a bipartisan bill. mr. speaker, i want to engage the chairman in a colloquy here. mr. speaker, h.r. 6771 shares revenues from off-shore energy production with states. it increases the revenue sharing. those dollars have to be used for coastal restoration, hurricane protection, for community resiliency projects. i want to ask the chairman if he supports that policy and he will continue to work with us to advance that legislation just like this legislation is eing advanced today. mr. bishop: yep. mr. graves: i couldn't have said it better myself, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, with that i'll again say, i support this legislation. i think the policy concept of

revenue sharing from energy production is a solid one, but we got to make sure we don't have conflicting policies when we talk about fossil fuels versus alternative energy streams. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah is recognized. mr. bishop: mr. speaker, i appreciate those who have spoken on this particular piece of legislation. mr. graves, i didn't want to be flippant although i was, does raise a major point of concern on federal lands and federal waters, how we deal with the resources that are there are significant and they play a role in the entire nation. but we also have to recognize the role those states and territories play where you find those particular resources. whether it be off-shore in federal waters or on-shore on federal lands. and for us to review that policy is a wise thing we should do. i am also appreciative of the representative from puerto rico, the resident commissioner

from puerto rico for explaining the significance this has for all those areas that have not yet been considered as we deal with a new kind of alternative energy, in this case, wind power, and that is significant and it plays a significant role in the future development of those territories that are using -- in which the energy and the cost of energy is more significant than you find on the mainland and we need to find a way to build their economies by having an affordable and reliable energy source coming in the future. and because of that, i find this to be a significant piece of legislation and i urge adoption and with that, mr. speaker, i will yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the entleman yields. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6665, as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no.

in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded 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 utah seek recognition? mr. bishop: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass house resolution 792, as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the resolution. the clerk: house resolution 792, resolution urging the secretary of the interior to recognize the historical significance of roberto clementes place of death near piñones in loíza, puerto rico, by adding it to the national register of historic places. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from utah, mr. bishop, and the gentleman from arizona, mr. gallego, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: 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. bishop: and with that, mr. speaker, i'd also like to yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. bishop: this has been for me an exciting day as we talked about bells that provide history of this country and move it forward, we talked about energy that i find significant, especially from my state which has so much federal land and energy available to it, and now you coming in to one of the heros of my childhood with roberto clemente. mr. clemente, he won 12 golden globes -- golden gloves. was an actor or two on the side. four national league batting titles, 123 all-star league selections, the 1961 champion pains me to no end but had two world championships and 3,000 hits. first player in latin america to be induggetted in the national hall of fame and awarded the

congressional gold medal. his baseball cards, i still have and i cherish them because he was a special person not necessarily on the field. he was unique and wonderful on the field. but off the field, he was an even greater individual. his accomplishments off the field speak to the quality of man he was. he spent his time in the off-season in charity work. he helped the game of baseball at his home in puerto rico. he made people's lives better and he ended his life once again trying to head up a relief effort for nicaragua. he gave his life. he is definitely somebody who is worthy of being remembered on what he did on the ball field was spectacular, but what he did at home with real people was even better. i'm proud to be here and wish to

support -- add my support to this resolution to recognize a great, great american hero. with that, i resevere the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: jarts. the gentleman is recognized. arizona arizona i yield to the representative from new york, mr. serrano. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. serrano: i thank the chairman and ranking member for bringing this bill to the floor. i rise today to ask my colleagues to support resolution 792 which would urge the secretary of the interior to recognize the historical significance of roberto clementy's death in opinion knownes, loy isa, puerto rico. formalizing the site of his untimely death will create a place for our nation to honor his career and legacy. he was a trailblazer in and out

of baseball. puerto orn in 1934 in rico. roberto clemente walker had such provided and humane ways that seriesal admiration. he got hits on the last day of the season, the last season before he passed. he won four batting titles in right field at one of the most incredible arms. i still remember a day in new york where he threw a ball from the right field fence to third base without a bounce. and for a person of my age who could not throw the ball maybe 100 feet perhaps, that was quite a sight to see.

there was clemente, the other person, the person who was always trying to buildup people of color, always trying to buildup a relationship between latin america, knowing how important baseball was in latin america and how important baseball was to latin america and to the people in puerto rico. he played a role in being that ambassador, to the point when nicaragua suffered a hurricane which had about 7,000 people killed, were the estimates and thousands of people without food a ater, he decided to lead couple of plane loads of relief efforts to nicaragua. too, rhaps in these days, some, if not all the supplies he was sending of food and water to

nicaragua were being stolen and sold on the black market. so he decided on the next trip, he was going to go himself because he was respected in nicaragua that nobody would dare touch anything if he was on the ground. and so he went and left on that plane on december 31, 1972. the plane after taking off went into the water. roberto's body was never found. i'm not a psychologist or psychiatrist, but i still believe that puerto ricans, whether from new york, new jersey, puerto rico, born or not born in puerto rico, still hold a certain need to have found him and have given him the proper burial. but that never happened. so when we do what we do today hopefully, we will continue to honor this man. not only the first latino in the

only got me and not 3,000 hits and had a rifle for an arm and two world series and only player to get a hit in every single world series' game, 14. to this day, i can tell you there are there are more puerto ricans to use 21. there are more kids in puerto rico and throughout the states and the other territories who when joining a team ask for number 21 for roberto. that's what he means to us and the country. and as the people would tell you, it's not just puerto ricans but americans in general. this is a great thing we are doing. i applaud the efforts of the chairman and ranking member. and i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman is recognized. mr. gallego: i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah is recognized. mr. bishop: i yield to the the gentlewoman from puerto rico. miss gonzalez-colon: thank you for allowing me to speak on behalf of this resolution. i believe this is important. puerto ricans feel very proud of the legacy of roberto clemente. he was not just a local hero, but a national hero, both in the arena and in his life -- actually, that's the reason that will be the recommendation for this is a figure that united puerto rico all over. i rise to express my strongest support to house resolution 792 introduced by my good friend,

jose serrano. this resolution will urge the secretary of interior to recognize the significance of the place of death of puerto rico baseball star roberto clemente. it will be added to the national register of historic places. he was a hero and a role model still to puerto rico and across the nation. throughout his distinguished career, he won two major league awards. his championship was named world series most valuable player and was an all-star for 12 seasons. he served this nation as a united states marine corps reserveist. clemente was committed to caring and helping those in need. and in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake in 1972, he decided to travel to nicaragua to provide

humanitarian aid. his plane crashed after leaving puerto rico and he passed at the age of 38. that's the reason his family is still in puerto rico. many schools got his name on it. and the legacy of supporting young people to play baseball. and commit to their communities and be better in society. clemente was a great humanitarian and a great athlete. he was the embodyyment that contributed to the betterment of society. i am glad that this house is honoring his legacy by considering house resolution 792 and i urge my colleagues to support this resolution and thank you, congressman serrano, for allowing this recognition that recognizes sports all over and chairman bishop for supporting this but i expected the number of his baseball

career. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah. mr. bishop: mr. speaker, this is a good piece of legislation. just wish in 1955 when the cubeys had picked him up instead of the pirates. with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the question is, will the house suspend the rules and gee to house resolution 792 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion -- mr. bishop: i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: >> tirds in the affirmative -- mr. bishop: i can for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, yeas and nays are

ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this uestion will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from utah seek recognition? mr. bishop: i on move to suspend he rules pass senate bill 245. the speaker pro tempore: the clearing will report the title of the bill. the clerk: an act to amend the indian tribal energy development and self-determination act. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the entleman from bishop, mr. -- you faw, mr. bishop and the gentleman from arizona, will each stroll 20 minutes. mr. bishop: mr. speaker, this significant piece of legislation, i yield myself -- to the gentleman from alaska, mr. young. much of his bill is

incorporated. he is a supporter of this effort. i yield my time to him. mr. young: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. young: i thank the chairman for bringing this legislation to the floor. it is a senate bill, very much like the bill i introduced and came out of the committee. it promotes energy products in critical areas throughout indian country. the native communities face obstacles in developing energy on their land. ultimately the lack of affordable energy undermines social and economic well-being in these community. i have always said the natives are the best caretakers of their lands. this is what self-determination is all about empowering communities to manage their resources. this makes important progress in this effort. the bill incorporates a variety

of policy changes to enhance indian energy development. this includes the department of energy to provide technical assistance to tribes on energy projects. improving the department of energy's process for approving resource geements and requiring ferc to give tribal lands for licensing. e bill includes the tribal biomass demonstration program that mirrors my act. i appreciate chairman from these willingness to continue to work on energy, indian energy and commitment to hold a hearing in 2019. my bill can serve as a foundation for the next step in promoting indian energy. i urge my colleagues to support passage of this bill and i yield back the remapeder of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona is

recognized. mr. gallego: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gallego: we talk a lot about leveling the playing field when it comes to economic development on tribal lands. senate 245 will help us get that goal in the area of energy development. tribes have stated for years the federal laws regarding development of energy resources are complex and realizing in cost delays. and this will drive development investments to private or tribal lands. senate 245 has control and flexibility in managing the fuel resources. this is just the start. in the next congress, i hope we can work together to pass lemmings that addresses the other disparities that hinder

tribal economic development and incentivizing renewable energy development on tribal lands. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from utah is recognized. mr. bishop: i wanted to do two motions at the same time. -- four recognize minutes to the the gentlewoman from washington, ms. mcmorris rodgers and i ask unanimous consent that the rest of the time be managed by the gentleman from alaska. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. mrs. mcmorris rodgers: thank you. thank you, mr. speaker.

i rise in support of the indian tribal energy development and the self-determination act. and in the northwest we rely on base load renewables like biomass. in recent years we've seen catastrophic fires in the pacific northwest devastating our natural resources. when we expand these biomass options we can reduce forest fire risk by keeping our forests healthier while creating a stable energy source. i believe our tribes can and should be taking a leading role in this effort. in 2015, eastern washington was devastated by the wildfires burning, more than a million acres in our state, and devastating the reservation. following that i joined jim boyd and authored an op-ed in "the seattle times" advocating for the tribes to have more tools to manage their lands. this legislation will allow them to take a more active role as it relates to biomass.

this new authority allows tribes to secure agreements with federal land managers, with terms up to 30 years, to enable long-term investment in infrastructure and local communities. tribal land management practices are widely acknowledged as more flexible and effective more often on other federal lands. i look forward to working with the u.s. forest service and the tribes to make sure this authority is implemented quickly, and i urge my colleagues to pass this legislation, to provide flexibility in how we effectively manage our land for the benefit of so many within our local communities and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gallego: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, based on recent conversations with energy and commerce democratic staff, i'd like to note the senate included an amendment to the federal power act in this bill

that has the definition of the term quote-unquote indian tribe. the intent of the senate is to ensure alaskan natives are included in that term. federal energy regulatory commission has interpreted the term indian tribe in the federal power act to include alaskan native villages or region or village cooperations -- corporations. including this reference in the amended section 7-a should in no way to exclude alaska native villages or regional orvilleage corporations within the meaning of the term indian tribe elsewhere in this act. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from alaska is recognized. mr. young: i 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 senate bill 245. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no.

in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded 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 alaska seek recognition? mr. young: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass s. 825. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: senate 825, an act to provide for the conveyance of certain property to the southeast alaska regional health consortium located in sitka, alaska, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from alaska, mr. young, and the gentleman from arizona, mr. gallego, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from alaska. mr. young: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may 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. young: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from alaska is recognized. mr. young: mr. speaker, i rise

today in support of s. 825, southeast alaska regional health consortium land transfer. the consortium provides comprehensive health care to native communities throughout alaska's panhandle. it also delivers health care on behalf of the federal government through self-determination compacting. the consortium operates the hospital in sitka, 25-bed hospital facility. it was constructed toward the end of world war ii and is in dire need for update. to update, the conditions of the facilities, they need land on the hospital campus which is currently held by i.h.s., conveyed by warrant deed. s. 825 is a companion bill to my h.r. 1901. simply would transfer 19 acres of federal land to the consortium, allowing them to update and improve health care services for alaska natives.

from the 112th to 114th congress, three of my bills that offered similar federal land transfers were signed into law. these bills are nearly identical to s. 825. i'd like to thank chairman bishop and his staff for moving this bill through committee. i'd also like to thank ranking member grijalva and his staff for their bipartisan work on this legislation. i urge my colleagues to support the passage of this bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gallego: thank you, mr. speaker. the southeast alaska regional heart consortium composes of 18 communities is one of the oldest and largest native run health care organizations in the nation. the consortium operates the sitka.gcom hospital in i was ears old, the --

to -- at 67 years old, the hospital is the oldest facility in alaska and one of the oldest in the nation. as such, it's in dire need of update and repairs. however, the title to the hospital is currently held by the indian health service. in order to get the financing needed, it is necessary for the consortium to held warrant title to the land. s. 825 will convey the land to the consortium by warrant title to ensure the renovation process moves forward. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from alaska is recognized. mr. young: i have no more speakers. yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass

senate bill 825. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative -- mr. young: mr. speaker, i demand the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 , further proceedings on this uestion will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from alaska seek recognition? mr. young: i ask unanimous consent that the house suspend the rules and pass s. 2511 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: senate 2511, an act to require the undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere to carry out a program for coordinate nating the assessment and acquisition by the national aeronautics and space administration of unmanned mayor -- national oceanic and atmospheric administration of unmanned

maritime systems, to make available to the public data collected by the administration using such systems, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from arizona, mr. young, and the gentleman from arizona, mr. gallego, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from alaska. mr. young: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extemporaneous materials on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. young: and i yield myself such time as i may consume. and i rise in strong support of the legislation and yield to my three iend, mr. palazzo, minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from mississippi is recognized for three minutes. mr. palazzo: thank you, mr. speaker. and i rise today in support of s. 2511, the commercial engagement through ocean technology act, as amended. also known as crembingsnote. this bicameral, bicoastal legislation advances the

national oceanic and atmospheric administration's use of unmanned maritime systems by coordinating the private and academic sectors with the navy on evaluating unmanned maritime systems and technology and their utility, science and management. the legislation highlights the unique role that nondefense interests such as noaa, academia and the private sector play in the advancement of unmanned systems which can gather a wide range of ocean data with fishery management, 2 gation and economic ben -- navigation and economic benefit. it can -- and the evolution of unmanned systems continues to present opportunities to replace, enhance, reinforce traditional tools and infrastructure. such as morrings and manned research vessels while minimizing operational costs. demand greatly outpaces supply in the field of these assets. specifically, noaa is charged

with the difficult task of mapping, observing, and exploring our oceans which cover over 70% of our earth's surface. it is no surprise, then, that 80% of our ocean is unmapped, unobserved and unexplored. because of the limitations of funding and fielding, noaa continues to slow -- continues the slow process of mapping. however, legislation like this can assist in the process. this legislation would require noaa to leverage the technical and procurement expertise of the navy and other partners to assess existing capabilities and initiate acquisition strategies. ultimately cenote is a win for defense, commerce, fisheries, environmental monitoring and research and disaster planning and recovery. i encourage my colleagues to support this bill and finally, i want to thank chairman beneficiary om and his professional staff, bill ball, for assisting my office and bringing this bill to the floor. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gallego: thank you, mr.

speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gallego: thank you, mr. speaker. thank you, mr. palazzo. 2511 directs - s. noaa to collect unmanned maritime system including with the navy. in addition, this directs noaa to support its missions. unmanned maritime systems remotely operated or autonomous vehicles to collect data for sea floor mapping, wave heights, water temperatures, salinity and carbon dioxide content and study marine mammals and help with fishery manage scombrment. this embraces 21st century technology to help our oceans. this is a good bill. i urge my colleagues to join me in supporting passage of this bill. thank you and i reserve the

balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from alaska is recognized. mr. young: mr. speaker, at this time i'd like to thank chairman smith of the science, space, and technology committee, chairman thornberry of the armed serviceses committee and congressman steven palazzo who sponsored the house courpt part of this legislation for their -- counterpart of this legislation for getting this bill to the floor today. at this point i'd like to insert in the record an exchange of letters from chairman thornberry on this bill. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. young: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. mr. gallego: mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. mr. young: mr. speaker, i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass enate bill 2511, as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative, the rules are

suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition? >> i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6893 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6893, a bill to amend the overtime pay of protective services act of 2016 to extend the exemption -- exception through 2019 and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from georgia, mr. hice, and the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. lynch, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia. mr. hice: 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. hice: i yield myself such time as i may consume.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. hice: mr. speaker, the u.s. secret service is the premier protective agency in the world. secret service agents and officers play a vital role in protecting the president and other officials and events. protection is around-the-clock job and secret service often work extensive overtime to fulfill their zero-fail mission. under law, they may not be paid above an annual premium cap. it includes locality pay and premium pay such as overtime. the cap is in place to ensure a hirke arcy of pay so frontline employees do not earn more than their supervisors who are ineligible for overtime pay and helps control agency spending on

compensation. the cap has led to issues at the secret service. due to staffing shortage and increased protecttive responsibilities, the secret service are expected to work increasing amounts of overtime causing them to hit the premium pay cap well in advance at the end of the year. secret service personnel are expected to continue working once they hit the cap, but they receive no extra compensation for this work. this phenomenon is known as maxing out at the agency and could cause morale and attrition problems. committee staff recently traveled to observe secret service operations in europe. during that trip, the topic of maxing out came up as an issue consistently on the minds of personnel in the field. the maxing out issue is expected to get worse in 2020 and the

burdenen in the presidential cycle has increased hours worked by the secret service. in the previous cycle, congress raised the premium pay cap to the executive schedule level two, ensuring secret service personnel receive additional compensation commensurate with the amount of time they must work. this waiver of the government-wide premium pay cap was extended to the end of 2018 by the secret service recruitment and retention act. without a further extension, secret service personnel will once again be subject to the lower pay cap. h.r. 6893 extends the premium pay cap waiver to the end of 2020. between 700 and 900 personnel will be eligible for extra pay will be hile prl 1,150

eligible in 2020. the bill continues a series of reports due to congress on the premium pay cap to ensure its appropriate use. extending the premium pay cap waiver gives time for the government accountability office to complete ongoing review of the secret service's staffing issues and ensures that the agency doesn't back track on staffing progress made to date. the oversight and government reform committee continues to maintain the premium pay cap waiver, cannot be a permanent change, but the secret service must make its own staffing issues and problems. for now, i do urge my colleagues to support this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized. mr. lynch: good afternoon, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized. mr. lynch: i want to thank and acknowledge the remarks of the the gentleman from georgia on this bill. as ranking member of the subcommittee on national security, i would like to express my strong support for h.r. 6893 secret service overtime extension act introduced by steve russell who is the chairman of our subcommittee. in light of previous legislation reported out of the committee on oversight and government reform on a bipartisan basis, this bill would ensure that the united states secret service retains the ability to provide overtime pay to its dedicated work fork force that agents will be required to perform in 2019 and through the 2020 presidential election process. the bipartisan investigation conducted by our committee during the 114th congress examined how best to strengthen the core protected mission of the secret service. the secret service is our

nation's primary security force for the protection of the president, first family, presidential candidates and when necessary other elected officials and world leaders. the secret service faces serious administrative challenges. according to the bipartisan report adopted by our committee in 2016, chief among those challenges is a staffing crisis that poses the greatest threat to the agency and which has allowed a loud security breaches during the obama and trump administrations. the safety and security demands that the congress provide levels. t staffing the agency needs to retain the basic ability to compensate its agents with the overtime pay they have earned and that they deserve. in 2017, we passed legislation

on a bipartisan basis to retroactively authorize overtime pay worked by secret service employees in the midst of an extraordinary taxing and extended 2016 presidential campaign season. recognizing that the agency now provides security details with a larger first family and multiple and extensive travel schedules, we subsequently passed legislation stippeding that in 2018. as underscored by the federal union, the 2020 presidential campaign season is expected to involve the participation of multiple candidates who may require earlier secret service protection and include an extended presidential primary cycle. that is why our committee

approved representative steve russell's legislation to fund overtime pay for the secret service as well as an amendment introduced by our committee ranking member, the gentleman from maryland, representative cummings, to extend this authorization through the 2020 campaign year. the two-year authorization request was specifically supported by the secret service. the hard working men and women of the secret service put their lives on the line every day and make sacrifices for our country. congress has the responsibility to provide the resources they need to do their jobs safely and successfully. while congress should also spend some time working on a permanent fix to this problem, i stand proud to join my colleagues to support the secret service in this effort. i urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support

this bill. and i reserve the balance of our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from georgia is recognized. mr. hice: i would like to take a moment to give a huge thank you to the sponsor of this bill, mr. steve russell from oklahoma. his flight was delayed. i know he would have loved to speak on this bill. but we want to give out a shoutout and thanking him for his leadership here and the gentleman from massachusetts mentioned other co-sponsors, mr. cummings, ms. watson coleman and i would like the gentleman from massachusetts be aware i have no further speakers and i'm prepared to close. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. mr. lynch: we have no further speakers on our side, mr. speaker. and i would urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this bill and i yield

the rest of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from georgia. mr. hice: i also urge adoption of this bill and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6893 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 tennessee seek recognition? mr. roe: i move to suspend the rules and pass s. 2248 as amended. the clerk: senate 2248, an act to amend title 38 united states code to authorize the secretary of veterans affairs to provide certain burial benefits for spouses and children of veterans who are buried in tribal cemeteries and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from tennessee, mr. roe, and the gentleman from california, mr. takano, each will control 20 minutes.

the chair recognizes the gentleman from tennessee. mr. roe: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days in which to resize and extend their remarks and add extraneous material. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. roe: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. roe: i rise today in support of s. 2248 as amend tsdz, the veterans benefit and transition act of 2018. this is a negotiation package of bills that we have worked out with the senate committee on veteran affairs. the amended version of the bill contains 23 sections, many of which originated in the 80-plus veteran bills that the house passed in the 115th congress. s. 2248 reflects just a fraction of our collective efforts as we were unable to come to an agreement with the senate on several outstanding issues, it contains important provisions

that we can all be pleased to support. for example, one provision of the bill would make schools ineligible for the g.i. tuition payments if they place penalties or burdens on students due to the department of veterans' affairs to pay the g.i. payments to the school on time. this provision was championed by chairman bilirakis. there are several provisions in the bill that make improvements to the civil relief act that protect deployed service members from commercial penalties that can occur as a result of their service. the bill also includes provisions that would improve burial benefits for service veterans and their families and expand eligibility for homeless veterans job training program and authorize funding for v.a. construction projects and provide oversight in the

development of v.a.'s new health records. before yielding back, i want to say serving as chairman of the veterans affairs committee has been an honor and i'm grateful for those who put their faith and trust in me. i want to thank a number of individuals who have been instrumental during the 115th congress. i thank ranking member walz, newly elected governor of the very cold state of minnesota and my subcommittee chairmen and ranking members and members of the committee. without their continued hard work and involvement, none of this congressional success in the veterans' area would have been realized. many members had other duties but never leg neglected the v.a. committee. i thank senator isakson and ranking member jon tester for their hard work and look forward

to working with them in the next congress. i'm grateful to the house leadership on both sides of the aisle, speaker paul ryan and kathleen scalise and mrs. mcmorris rodgers. finally i want to thank all members of the house of representatives who strive day in and day out to do right by america's veterans. with members' support we have enacted landmark legislation including the v.a. mission act, the forever g.i. bill, v.a. accountability act, appeals reform and many other smaller but yet impactful pieces of legislation which americans and especially veterans can be proud of. the bipartisan nature of this committee is unique in congress and nothing less than what our veterans deserve. i look forward to serving as the

ranking republican member in the next congress and to continue our work with soon-to-be chairman takano. i urge my colleagues to support this and i reserve. . mr. takano: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for as much time as he wishes to use. mr. takano: i rise in strong support of the house amendment to s. 2248, the veterans' benefits and transition act of 2018. this bipartisan measure contains legislation championed by my house and senate colleagues on both sides of the is a testament of the bipartisan relationships we cultivate on both the house and senate veterans' affairs committees. i thank chairman roe and all members of the house and senate veterans' affairs committees, both democrats and republicans, for their hard work putting

together this legislative package that will improve the benefits and support our country -- and support our country owes america's veterans. i want to specifically acknowledge my democratic colleagues, ranking member walz, now governor-elect of minnesota and, yes, chairman roe, it is very cold there, congressman scott peters, congressman correa, congresswoman pingree, congressman himes and congresswoman bustos who made valuable contributions to this legislation. i'd also like to take this time to thank dr. roe for his leadership as chairman of this committee in this congress. i look forward to working with dr. roe as ranking member of the 116th congress so that we can continue to function as a productive committee in the 116th. free from partisan gridlock, on behalf of the veterans we represent. now, as a former teacher -- actually, a current teacher and advocate for improving

educational and training opportunities for veterans, i am pleased this legislation contains several provisions written by my colleagues that will improve the lives of our student veterans and those of our gold star spouses. this package also includes a provision that helps our reservists and national guard members access the valuable help that the vocational rehabilitation program can provide. i would first like to highlight legislation written by mr. peters, our colleague on this committee. this measure contains his bill, h.r. 5538, that would provide parody to our national guard and: -- parity to our national guard and service members involuntarily mobilized under 1234-b of title 10 in support of commands that conduct combat missions. as our country continues to utilize our guard and reserve

members as an operational reserve force, it is critically important that we modernize our statutes to treat our guard and reserve members who have served shoulder-to-shoulder with active duty service members on multiple deployments with parity while they serve in uniform. this bill allows guard and reserve members to stop the clock on the 12-year limit to use vocational rehabilitation programs while they are supporting active combat missions. currently, the clock is stopped for most other inyou stances in which national guard and reserve are mobilized but this particular authority was overlooked. this is an important fix because the department of defense continues to increase the use of its 12304-b authority. while this provision -- with this program, congress has the authority to be proactive in addressing the needs of our service members.

now, let me turn to congressman himes' bill, h.r. 3634, the securing electronic records for veterans ease act of 2017. it is included in this measure as well. for student veterans, the v.a. does not currently provide sufficient information about the exact amount of housing stipend that a beneficiary will receive under the g.i. bill benefits. but many veterans rely on their housing stipend to pay for it while attending school to show proof of housing allowance for proof of income. without this income, they are unable to secure housing before the start of school. now, this is a commonsense piece of documentation that v.a. can electronically provide to allow our veterans to easily use their earned benefits and i am pleased this great idea by congressman himes was included

in this package. congresswoman bustos' legislation, h.r. 5882, the gold star spouses leasing act, would allow a spouse of a deceased service member to terminate a housing lease following the death of his or her loved one. service members and their families are often stationed far from home due to the needs of the service. in the sad and difficult time after the passing of a service member, spouses should not be locked in a rental lease far away from their support and support network and face an additional financial burden to return home. this small detail can make a life a lot easier for a grieving spouse. and i am pleased to see my colleague's bill included in this package. congresswoman lou correa, our colleague on this committee, introduced h.r. 4335, the

service member financial burial act which makes -- excuse me -- the service member family burial act which makes permanent v.a.'s practice of providing burial and headstones for the family of service members who predecease them. when enacted, duty service loses a spouse or a child, it is always in tragic and difficult circumstances. v.a. should seamlessly provide this benefit with dignity, sensitivity, and compassion. i want to thank congressman correa for sponsoring this legislation, and i am pleased to see it included in this measure. i also wish to highlight legislation written by congresswoman pingree, the veterans fair debt notice act of 2017, which is included in this legislative package. the american legion, the disabled american veterans, the

paralyzed veterans of america, the tragedy assistance program for survivors, and the veterans of foreign wars, testified before our committee that the debt collection letters v.a. sends veterans are confusing, do not clearly explain the reason for the debt, or clearly describe the steps a veteran must take to dispute or mitigate the net. this legislation would require v.a. to explain the reason the veteran incurred a debt in plain language and clearly explained the steps they can take to dispute our repay the debt. it would also require v.a. to give veterans the option to opt in to electronic note anycation and require v.a. to determine the number of veterans who are not receiving debt notification letters due to incorrect addresses on file which prevents veterans from taking action because they've not been notified. this legislation forces v.a. to make these changes within 90 days of enactment. finally, i wish to thank my

good friend, ranking member tim walz, for his leadership on this committee during the 115th congress. the governor-elect of minnesota leaves the united states house of representatives with a legacy of bipartisan legislative accomplishments that will undoubtedly improve the lives of veterans for years to come. i want to thank chairman roe and our senate colleagues for including his bill, h.r. 4245, the veterans electronic health records modernization oversight act of 2017, in this measure, enabling this committee to continue its oversight of the $16 billion electronic health record modernization, or ehrm, program over the next 10 years. and, yes, chairman roe, we are going to do intensive oversight of this project. i guarantee you that. this legislation requires the v.a. to submit contract, technical and other

developments to congress and to provide updated documents on a quarterly basis. the legislation also requires v.a. to notify congress about program challenges, including incidents affecting patient's safety, cost overruns over $1 million, and a milestone delay of 30 days or morbid protests or a data -- more bid protests or a data or security breach. now, we know we will likely expand these reporting requirements in the future to include other contract and technical documents as the program matures and additional technical capabilities are achieved. i look forward to working with my colleagues in the next congress to ensure that we maintain close oversight of this program and hold v.a. accountable, if necessary. i urge my colleagues to support the house amendment to s. 2248, and i reserve the balance of my time, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california reserves his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from tennessee.

mr. roe: thanks very much, mr. speaker. at this time i'd like to yield three minutes to the vice chairman of the veterans' acares committee, the most fierce advocates for our veterans in this congress, gus bilirakis of florida. mr. bilirakis: thanks, mr. chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from florida, mr. bilirakis. mr. bilirakis: thank you. i rise in strong support of the veteran benefit and transition act. i'm proud of the work chairman roe and the rest of our committee did to pass the multiple historic pieces of legislation over the course of this congress, including the forever g.i. bill and the v.a. mission act. despite all the progress we made, there's still more work to be done. i look forward to working on these issues for our heroes. this legislative package contains many commonsense, zero cost bills we passed in the house over the past year but

have stalled in the senate. but i know there's agreement in the senate. we are going to get this done before the end of the year. i'm especially proud that this package contains a provision that includes my bill, h.r. 4830, the -- which will hold student veterans harmless from bureaucratic red tape and delays at high education institutions and at the v.a. this legislation prevents educational institutions from imposing a fee on student veterans or denying their access to education when tuition payments are delayed by bureaucracy. no fault of the veteran. in our subcommittee hearings on the implementation of the forever g.i. bill, we heard many concerns about delays in processing of tuition payments between the schools and the v.a. i also had roundtables in my district and heard those same concerns, mr. speaker.

this fall semester, i.t. failures and delay at the v.a. led to an artificially created backlog, adding a significant amount of stress to our heroes who rely on their monthly stipends and tuition benefits. in some cases, delays meant schools putting a hold on a student's account, forcing the student to begin payment of tuition and fees on a payment plan until they received the money from the v.a. it's unacceptable. we cannot allow this type of uncertainty for our nation's heroes, mr. speaker, and my bill protects these veterans from additional penalties from schools. it is not the veteran's fault and they should not be punished for the actions of others. it's as simple as that. i urge my colleagues to join me in support of this commonsense bipartisan package which ntains many additional

programs that helps transition programs and report on the feasibility of expanding access to dental care for veterans at the v.a., and expansion of eligibility under the homeless veterans reintegration program. i hope the senate takes this up quickly, and i know they will, and i want them to pass the veterans benefit and transition act so we can send it to the president's desk before the year's end. thank you, again, mr. speaker. mr. chairman, you did an outstanding job as chairman. my friend, chairman -- excuse me -- ranking member walz did as well on behalf of our heroes. i thank mr. takano, too. congratulations on being the next chairman of the committee. look forward to working with you. thank you and i yield back, mr. chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from tennessee -- mr. roe: reserves. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. takano: may i inquire how

much time i have left remaining? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman has 10 1/2 minutes remaining. mr. takano: thank you. i yield three minutes to my colleague, fellow californian, and member of the house committee on veterans' affairs, the gentleman from california, mr. correa, i'd like to yield three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california, mr. correa, is recognized for three minutes. . mr. correa: mr. speaker, i rise in support of the amendment. first of all, thank you, chairman roe, for your service and leadership in the committee. as well as thanking ranking member walz, as well as the committee staff for their efforts on this legislation. and for including my bipartisan bill, the service member family burial act, as a provision of this larger bill. when the department of veterans affairs provides burial and headstone markers for eligible family members who pre-decease active service members, it's always under very difficult situations. the loss of a spouse or a child is a very painful occurrence.

and we want to make sure that the burial benefits and the whole process is as easy as possible for active duty service members during these very difficult times. this bill codifies existing current practice, to ensure the v.a.'s process occurs with dignity, sensitivity and compassion. in summary, this is a simple change that allows for the burial and provisions of headstones for eligible spouses and depends of children of active duty service members in a timely manner. i appreciate the inclusion of my legislation within the larger bill, which contains a range of notable measures aimed at assisting our nation's veterans. mr. speaker, i urge passage of this legislation and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. takano: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: reserves. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. roe: thank you, mr. speaker.

at this time i'd like to yield two minutes to my good friend and chairman of the u.n. is committee on yofe sight -- on the subcommittee of oversight and investigation. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. bergman: thank you, chairman roe, and thanks to you and chairman isaacson for your leadership throughout the 115th congress. in a bipartisan, bicameral way, for putting together one last package of veterans priorities bills. to be able to sponsor any bill is a privilege. but to be able to sponsor a veteran-related bill is both an honor and a privilege. you know, to talk just very quickly about a couple of bills that i was proud to sponsor, the been title of the bill use purchase cards for up to $10,000 using government cards. this act basically allows them to continue to do that, but also

allows the secretary of the v.a. to revoke purchase card approval authority for many employees who have found to have been misusing that card. as chairman of the subcommittee, transparency and accountability have been my priorities and this bill will keep bad acters in check while making the v.a. more efficient. the second bill i was proud to sponsor was the v.a. medical surgical purchasing stabilization act. in pure and simple terms, going to a prime vendor program is a good idea to control costs and increase patient outcomes. however, we need to ensure that the providers, the doctors and the nurses who are actually using those instruments in surgery or in the clinic have a say in what is being purchased. because the goal is to provide outcomes for the veteran and

those health care providers know which instruments are the best to use. lastly, the veterans' electronic record modernization act, which we already talked about here, this is key to providing seamless care from the veterans, beginning of their service, to the end of their service. this is overdue. and it needs to be monitored. it needs to be assessed so that we as the committee in a bipartisan way can make it happen. in closing, i'm extremely proud of the bipartisan work and i'm looking forward to the 116th congress and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from tennessee reserves. the gentleman from california. mr. takano: mr. speaker, i'd like to yield two minutes to my good friend, the gentlewoman from maine, ms. pingree. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from maine is recognized for two minutes. ms. pingree: thank you, mr. speaker. and thank you to my good friend

from california for yielding the time. i rise in support of the veterans benefit and transition act of 2018. frankly, it's always a good feeling to be able to speak for commonsense legislation put together in a bipartisan fashion for the good of america's veterans. in particular, i welcome the inclusion of section 504, the veterans' fair debt notice act. i introduced this last year in response to frustrations veterans have been experiencing with the v.a.'s debt management system. it incorporates some refinements made in the senate companion bill introduced by senator deb fisher which demonstrates the bipartisan nature of this effort. the legislation improves the way that veterans are notified about debts that they may owe from the v.a. benefits program. because of the v.a.'s failure to notify or due to confusingly worded letters, or letters that actually just never reach the vet, many veterans in maine and elsewhere are shocked to learn that they owe debts.

and for many, they have missed the deadlines to dispute or seek forgivenesses -- forgiveness for thaled debt. this bill directs -- for the alleged vet. this bill directs the v.a. to develop standard notification notices that are written in plain language, that anyone can understand. and it also allows veterans to receive notices electronically. to promote accountability, the bill requires the v.a. to report to congress on the new standard, and on the v.a.'s efforts to reduce the number of errors in its debt notification system. i want to thank chairman roe and ranking member walz for their work and support and i urge passage. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from california reserves. the gentleman from tennessee is recognized. mr. roe: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i'd like to yield three minutes to my good friend, dr. brad wenstrup, who currently serves and has served on house veterans' affairs committee as the health subcommittee chair, also serves on the house armed

services committee, intel committee, and is a colonel in the reserves. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. mr. owens: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise -- mr. wenstrup: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of this legislation. and i'd like to thank chairman roe and ranking member walz and all the members of the committee and staff who worked so hard on behalf of our veterans. i'd like to congratulate mr. takano as chairman-elect. this legislation we're talking about today includes reforms to ensure america's heroes receive the benefits and recognition that they so richly deserve. it includes several provisions that i was honored to support during my time on the veterans' affairs committee, including updates to our educational assistance programs at the department of veterans affairs, and additional emphasis on transition services provided to our service members. that one is very near and dear to me. importantly, it includes provisions to help the most vulnerable in the veteran

community, includes the homeless veterans reintegration program re-authorization act, which is a bipartisan bill i introduced with congresswoman brownley. this legislation ensures those eligible for the department of housing and urban development's veterans affairs supportive housing program and other housing assistance programs are also eligible for the homeless veterans reintegration program. by prioritizing the reintegration of homeless and recently homeless veterans, we will empower our veterans to reent -- re-enter the work force and help them regain self-sufficiency. this legislation also includes the gold star spouse leasing relief act, which i introduced along with congresswoman bustos. it recognizes that after the loss of a military spouse, gold stan -- gold star families may need flexibility to relocate to fit their family's needs. it would help spouses like cindy southern, a native of ohio in my district. jind lost her husband while he was serving -- cindy lost her

husband while he was serving the navy overseas in operation desert storm. as she grieved all she wanted to do was move home. but she had signed a one-year lease on a home in north carolina. her landlord refused to waive her lease without massive termination fees. this bill wean sure gold star families are not trapped into a jointly held residential lease after the death of a service member. mr. speaker, our veterans have given so much to our nation. this legislation before us today makes sure we provide the benefits they deserve, properly support their families, and prepare them for success in civilian life. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. roe: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: reserves. the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. takano: mr. speaker, i'd like to yield two minutes to my good friend and also a member of the house intelligence committee, the gentleman from connecticut, mr. himes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from connecticut is recognized for minutes. mr. himes: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of this bill and want to start by thanking

mr. takano, governor-elect walz, and dr. roe for their work on this bill. as i've sat here and listened to not so much a debate but a celebration of the bipartisan work that was done to create this bill, including so many things that i know will assist our veterans, it's great to see the parties working together as we close out this congress. mr. takano was very kind in saying that the serve act, which is included in this legislation, was my idea. it wasn't actually my idea. it was better than that. because it grew out of a conversation i had with a retired marine at sacred heart university in fairfield, connecticut, in which i simply asked nicholas quincy of the marine corps, what can we do to make your life a little easier? he said, you know, the problem i have, like so many of my fellow veterans, i have g.i. -- post-9/11 g.i. bill benefits, but there's no way for me when i go to a landlord to rent an apartment to be here at school,

there's no way for me to verify that income. as a result i've had a rough time getting housing, even though i've got this stipend from the federal government. which comes to me as a result of my service. so there it was. a problem with an easy solution. the serve act, which is now incorporated into the amendment, senate 2248, will simply require the v.a. to provide proof of that stipend so that landlords and other housing organizations can see that our veterans have a steady source of income to help them pay that rent. a small thing, but something that matters an awful lot to nicholas quincy and the roughly 1.1 million other veterans who are getting this kind of benefit. so, this is an example of what happens when you listen to your constituents. it wasn't my idea, but i'm just so thrilled that republicans and democrats were able to come together around this small, good thing for a lot of young veterans who are postservice, trying to get educated, trying to get the tools they'll need to succeed. i thank dr. roe for his hard

work. i thank tim walz and wish him well as he goes off to other things and chairman-elect takano, thank you for your good work on this bill. with that, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california reserves. and the gentleman from tennessee. mr. roe: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time lide tyke -- i'd like to yield two minutes to my good friend from new york and fellow mevet education and work force committee, -- fellow member of the education and work force committee, ms. stefanik. ms. stefanik: mr. speaker, my legislation included in this package gives all military spouses, rarledless of which state they married in, -- regardless of which state they married in, an option. as a proud representative of fort drum and the navy nuclear site, i understand the challenges military families face and the sacrifices these families make to help protect our nation and safeguard our freedoms. military families are constantly relocating to meet the neats --

the needs of the military. they sacrifice so much during these relocations, uprooting their lives and disrupting their families. this is often a very difficult and trying time, with the heaviest burden falling upon military spouses who serve as a critical support system for their loved ones. current law allows active duty service members to maintain one state of legal residence for tax and voting purposes. even when those service members receive military orders requiring them to relocate. but this does not apply evenly to spouses. spouses are forced to establish residency every time the service member receives a new assignment, adding additional stress to families as they manage these relocations and seek new employment. my legislation, the military residency choice act, fixes this inconsistency to better ease these trying transitions. i want to thank dr. roe for his leadership, ranking member walz, as well as chairman-elect takano, and i urge my colleagues to support this bill in a bipartisan basis. i yield back the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. roe: reserve. and i have no further speakers and am prepared to close, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee is prepared to close. the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. takano: mr. speaker, i have no further speakers. i want to urge all my colleagues to join me in passing this important legislation, s. 2248. i want to announce my intention dr. roe, my colleague from tennessee, in the next congress, that we will preserve the sacred space that we have here, the sacred bipartisan space that we have for america's veterans in the veterans' affairs committee. and we have so much more to do and i hope it lays the groundwork for this congress to continue to heal and reach out to each other and serve america, as well as our veterans. so i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from tennessee is recognized for the remainder of

his time. mr. roe: thank you mr. speaker,. i too want to encourage -- thank you, mr. speaker. i too want taupe courage all members to support -- to encourage all members to support this bill. as i close, i want to thank the members of both the republican and democratic members of the committee and of the full house for the incredible work they've done. this committee is an example of how congress should work. we put our partisanship aside at the door and we think about one thing and that's what's good for america's veterans and their families. and you heard today how members on both sides of the aisle have gone home and listened to their constituents and come back with great ideas, often great ideas don't emanate from here. they emanate from the people, the citizens of this country. i want to thank them and the 20 million or so surviving veterans in this country, for their incredible service. we will never get it all straight up here, but i can assure you that we are trying our very best to do what's right and i want to congratulate mr. takano and his elevation to the

chairmanship and i know we work very closely together through the last several years, not just last two years, but several years. he'll do a great job as chairman and i look forward to serbing -- serving. with that, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee yields back. both sides have yielded back. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass senate 2248 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. . . in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded 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 tennessee seek recognition? mr. roe: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent to take from the speaker's table the bill h.r. 3946 with the senate amendments thereto and concur in the senate amendments. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill and the senate amendments. the clerk: h.r. 3946, an act to

name the department of veterans affairs community-based outpatient clinic -- mr. roe: i ask unanimous consent to dispense with the reading. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the reading is dispensed with. is there objection to the original request of the gentleman from tennessee? without objection, the senate amendments are agreed to. the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the chair lays before the house the following enrolled bill. the clerk: h.r. 1861, an act to award a congressional gold medal in recognition of doby with his contributions to american athletics, civil rights and armed forces during world war ii. the speaker pro tempore:

pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess

and the republic of ireland. northern ireland is currently part