independent line. caller: good morning. what i would like to see the press cover more is, how do i articulate this? i watched 24 hour new coverage of r. kelly purs >> going to break away from this and get you live to the floor of the house. d. or votes 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 new york seek recognition? mr. tonko: mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass the bill, h.r. 583, the preventing illegal radio abuse through enforcement or pirate act. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 583. a bill to amend the communications act of 1934, to provide for enhanced penalties for pirate radio and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the

gentleman from new york, mr. tonko, and the gentleman from ohio, mr. latta, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york. mr. tonko: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. tonko: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. tonko: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise to support h.r. 583, the preventing illegal radio abuse through enforcement act or pirate act, a bill sponsored by myself and mr. bilirakis. this measure is a bipartisan, commonsense bill which passed the house last congress. mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. tonko: first, a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has worked on this measure. representative bilirakis, thank you for agreeing to lead this effort with me in this

congress. my thanks to our former colleague, congressman lend lance, for all of his -- leonard lance, for all of his work on this bill in the past. and a special thank you to the new york state broadcasters for their dedication. for years i along with many members of the new york and new jersey delegations have voiced our concern that pirate radio operators are a threat to americans' public health and safety. yet these law breakers are as prevalent as ever and their actions have been met with few consequences. this legislation responds directly to that threat. the f.c.c. has taken some positive steps to remedy this issue, but more needs to be done. in short, the pirate act would increase penalties and restrictions on pirate radio. whether a radio frequency is being used by first responders, coordinating to save lives, or parents who just want to keep obscenity and bigotry away from their children, for example, our communities are better served when broadcasters respect the rule of law.

previous drafts of the pirate act included provisions creating liability for those who facilitate illegal pirate radio operations. these provisions were removed as being duplicative with existing law. for example, under current law, the f.c.c. can hold a property owner liable for allowing a pirate radio operator access or other assistance. cutting these provisions should not be taken as limiting the commission's authority to assess fines against those who assist illegal pirate operations. on the contrary, the consequences established in this act would also apply in these contexts. the text of the bill before us today includes changes that were requested in the senate last congress. each of the 50 state broadcast associations have drafted a letter of support for h.r. 583. and i ask, mr. speaker, that it be included in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered.

mr. tonko: i appreciate that. thank you. h.r. 583 is a bipartisan, commonsense advance in the laws that support our first responders and protect our communities. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation so it can be taken up in the senate and signed into law. with that, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from ohio, mr. latta. mr. latta: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. latta: thank you, mr. speaker. i also rise in support of h.r. 583, the preventing illegal radio use through enforcement or pirate act. i thank mr. tonko and mr. bilirakis for their bipartisan efforts to combat illegal pirate radio operations. this bill gives the federal commune egs -- communications commission, along with state and local law enforcement more tools to go after pirate radio operators. without the ability to

effectively go after illegal transmitters, the f.c.c. and other entities cannot protect the over 240 million americans who rely on radio broadcastings for vital news and entertainment. furthermore, stopping bad actors from pirating our airwaves improves public safety by preventing unlawful broadcasts from interfering with first responders' life saving communications and public safety officials' transmission of critical information -- information in an emergency. i urge pass afpblgt pirate act and i reserve the balance of my time -- act, -- i urge passage of the pirate act and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york. mr. tonko: mr. speaker, we have no further members who choose to speak. so i will further reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. latta: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i yield my friend, mr. walberg, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan is recognized for two minutes. mr. walberg: thank you, mr.

speaker. i rise today in support of h.r. 583, the pirate act, led by chairman tonko and representative bilirakis. the bipartisan bill takes an important step to protect the vital public safety announcements, news and educational benefits local broadcasters serve to their communities. when illegal pirate radio operators interfere with important public safety communications, it can be detrimental to the public. these illegal pirate operators also interfere with critical aviation frequencies. potentially putting lives at risk. legitimate licensed broadcasters who provide the foundation of our nation's emergency alert system must be protected from this type of harmful interference. h.r. 583 would give the f.c.c. stronger tools to continue their enforcement sweeps and find violators in order to better protect americans. i thank my colleagues on the energy and commerce committee for their leadership on this

bipartisan legislation, and i urge its passage today. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from ohio. mr. latta: -- mr. latta: thank you, mr. speaker. we have no other speakers on our side and i'm ready to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. mr. tonko: mr. speaker, we have no further members choosing to speak. so if the gentleman is ready to close, we will do so. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. latta: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i again, for all the matter distribute reasons that we've stated here today -- the reasons that we've stated here today on the pirate act, i believe this bill is going to get passed today and i ask the house to pass h.r. 583 and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from new york. mr. tonko: thank you, mr. speaker. to close, i believe that this measure, 583, moves us forward in a way that better protects public health and safety, it has the endorsement of many in the field, and including 50

state broadcast associations. so i encourage our colleagues to support h.r. 583, and with that, i yield back, mr. speaker. 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. 583. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek

recognition? mr. tonko: mr. speaker, i -- mr. engel: mr. speaker, i move to swent rules and pass h.r. -- to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 501. the clerk: a bill to amend the public health service act to re-authorize and enhance the poison center national toll free number, national media campaign, and grant program and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from new york, mr. engel, and the gentleman from ohio, mr. latta, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york. mr. engel: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h.r. 501. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. engel: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. engel: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in strong support of h.r. 501, the poison center network enhancement act. this bill, which i've co-authored, with the gentlewoman from indiana, congresswoman susan brooks,

re-authorizes for an additional five years the national network of poison control centers known as p.c.c.'s, which are playing a critical role in the fight to end the opioid crisis. our country's 55 poison centers are staffed by trained toxicologists, pharmacists, physicians and nurses who are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, to provide real-time, life-saving assistance via a national toll-free number, which is 1-800-222-1222. some 330 million people are served by these critical centers while handling 2.6 million cases. in 2017, someone called a poison center roughly every 12 seconds in our country. more than 90% of those calls were due to a poison exposure in someone's home and more than

half of all cases involved children under the age of 12. that's why speedy access to poison centers is such an invaluable resource, especially for parents. poison centers are also saving hundreds of millions in federal dollars by helping to avoid the unnecessary use of medical services and shortening the amount of time a person spends in the hospital if hospitalization is due to poisoning -- is necessary. it's clear these centers are a smart public health investment, but they're also an integral part of our response to the opioid epidemic. since 2011, poison centers have handled nearly 200 cases per day involving opioid misuse. data from poison centers has helped to detect trends in the epidemic and experts have helped educate americans about the crisis and ways they can potentially save lives of their loved ones. the upstate new york poison center, for instance, used the new york state fair to educate

new yorkers are proper use of the overdose reversal drug. this bill would make sure that activists like this -- activities like this can continue. mr. speaker, i had the privilege of co-authoring the last poison center re-authorization signed into law in 2014 and i am pleased to have worked on this important bill. i want to thank congresswoman brooks for partnering with me on this legislation, as well as congresswoman degette and congresswoman herrera beutler, for being original co-sponsors. and let me also thank chairman pallone and ranking member walden for their assistance in bringing this bill to the floor today. as i mentioned earlier in westchester county, much of which i respect, in new york, 124 people died due to opioids in 2016. and in the bronx part of my district, which i also represent, more new yorkers died of overdoses than in any other borough in new york city.

we must do more to end this epidemic and i am pleased to see this legislation moving forward as part of that effort. so i urge all of my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york. ohio. mr. latta: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. latta: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to express my strong support of h.r. 501, the poison center network enhancement act of 2019, introduced by representative brooks and engel. i thank my energy and commerce colleagues for their bipartisan work on this important initiative. this legislation will re-authorize the national toll-free number, public awareness campaign, and grant program that supports the nation's 55 poison centers. these centers are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to provide free and confidential assistance with emergencies and other

information to help prevent poisoning. as of january, 2019, poison control centers have managed over 4,000 opioid exposure cases alone. at a time when our nation is still fighting to overcome an opioid crisis, these centers are on the frontlines helping to save individuals who overdose. furthermore, these centers collect real-time data, enhancing public health surveillance, and aiding in the detection of public health emergencies. i urge passage of this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman has the only time remaining. the gentleman from ohio. r. latta: mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: does the gentleman wish to yield back? mr. latta: 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. 501, as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no.

in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the -- the bill is passed and, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? mr. tonko: i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 525. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: a bill to amend title 11 of the social security act to direct the secretary of health and human services to establish a public-private partnership for purposes of identifying health care waste, fraud, and abuse. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york, mr. engel, and the gentleman from ohio, mr. latta, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york. mr. engel: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on .r. 525.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. engel: i rise today, mr. speaker, in support of h.r. 525, the strengthening health care fraud prevention task force of 2018. this bipartisan bill would authorize the health care fraud prevention partnership and improve and expand the task force's ability to fight, waste, fraud, an abuse throughout our health care system. the health care fraud prevention partnership a public-private partnership between the department of health and human services, insurance companies, federal and state law enforcement agencies and state health care agencies. the partnership aims to improve the detection and prevention of health care fraud by facilitating the exchange of data and information between the public and private sectors on fraud trends and successful anti-fraud practices. the legislation we are

considering today would authorize think partnership, require the partnership to report legly -- regularly to congress and give the agency new tools to enhance and expand its capabilities. we must continue to work on a bipartisan basis to enhance our fraud detection capabilities so our -- soy support this legislation, i urge my colleagues to continue to work together to find meaningful sloughs to root out fraud, waste, and abuse, in our health care system. i yield -- i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the chair recognizes the gentleman from ohio. mr. latta: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. latta: i rise in support of h.r. 525, the strengthening health care fraud prevention task force act introduced by energy and commerce committee republican leader walden and chairman pallone. this will codify the health care partnership currently operated

by the centers for medicare and dicaid services and is a public-private partnership between the government, health care anti-fraud associations and others. it was established by the obama administration and the trump administration recommended codifying it so lid fiing the bipartisan nature of revealing and halting scams that cut across public and private payers. h.r. 525 will continue the partnership to prevent and detect health care fraud through streamlining analytical tool and data and providing a form for government and industry experts to exchange successful anti-fraud practices. this bill before us today is the product of bipartisan cooperation as well as engagement with the department of health and human services in industry stake holders. originally introduced in the 115th congress this legislation worked its way through the

committee on energy and commerce in a transparent manner and currently enjoys the support of the chairman and republican leads of the eboth the committees on energy and commerce and ways and means. i urge passage of this bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york. mr. engel: mr. speaker, i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from ohio. mr. latta: we're ready to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. latta: mr. speaker, for the - sorry. mr. engel: i ask unanimous consent to include in the record an exchange of letters -- of letters between the chairman on energy and commerce and the chairman of the committee on ways and means on the bill h.r. 525.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. engel: i include in the record this exchange of letters. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. latta: i urge passage of the legislation and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from new york. mr. engel: mr. speaker, again i urge my colleagues to work together to find meaningful solutions to root out waste, fraud, and abuse in our health care system and 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 the bill h.r. 525. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 539, the innovators to entrepreneurs act of 2019. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: a bill to require the director of the national science foundation to develop and icorps course to support commercialization ready innovation companies and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from illinois, mr. lipinski, and the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. lucas, each will

control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. mr. lipinski: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h.r. 539, the bill now under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. the gentleman from illinois. mr. lipinski: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. lipinski: it is my pleasure to put before the house today h.r. 539. the house passed a nearly identical bill, h.r. 5086 in the 115th congress and unfortunately that's as far as the bill got. hopefully we can get more movement on it this time around, get it through the senate, and to the president's desk for signature. mr. speaker, the innovators to entrepreneurs act is a bill i introduced to spur internewspaper -- entrepreneur shim and turn american

innovation into american jobs. it expands the highly successful innovation corps or i-corps program, a program i'm proud to have championed since its inception in 2011. icorps teaches scientists and engineers, include manage women and underrepresented minorities, how to turn their federally funded laboratory research into successful products and services. the program has educated more than 1,300 teens, representing 271 universities in 47 states, the district of columbia, and puerto rico. it has been linked to almost 650 startup companies that raised er $300 million in follow-on funding. in the 114th congress i led the effort to authorize icorps and expand its reach to other agencies including the national institutes of health, nasa, and the department of energy. the federal government invests billions in research and

development annually. government facilities such as national labs and at universities and research institutions. icorps is a modest investment. it leads to higher return on research spend big significantly increasing rates of commercialization, economic activity and job creation. our economy is drive by the ingenuity of our scientist and engineers, developing innovations today that become tomorrow's great products. and yet, still only a small minority of federally funded research with commercial potential ever makes it to the marketplace. the icorps program helps to change that. this bill expands icorps to meet some pressing needs. first, it helps more people participate in the program. right now, unless you're a grantee of n.s.f. or another agency with an icorps program, the training can be difficult to

access. this bill will give recipients a small business grant from any agency to flexibility to pay for icorps with grant funds and allow other entrepreneurs to apply and pay out of pocket to participate. second, the bill directs n.s.f. to establish a new course as part of the icorps program to teach scientist entrepreneurs how to start and grow a company. while the current icorps course does a great job of helping scientists and engineers determine who the customers are and whether their innovation is suitable for custmyization it offers only limited guidance on what to do after a scientist makes the decision to become an entrepreneur. skills like how to write a business plan, hire a team and attract investment are taught in business schools, but in the in ph.d. programs. n.s.f. recognizes this need and has been a pie -- pilot program

to test curriculum for this new course. this will make sure the new course is fully developed and made available around the country. finally, this bill requires a g.a.o. assessment of the icorps program. its first comprehensive, independent evaluation since it was created. although the program's success to date speaks for itself, it's important to continuously improve it by developing metrics to measure its performance and ensure that federal funds are well spent. this bill has been endorsed by a wide range of stake holders including the father of modern entrepreneurship who twhopedcrimlum that icorps is based on, steve blank, the former n.s.f. program officer who funeded the program, dr. arco lembings tte and several direct yoffers icorps nodes around the country. the bill is also endorsed by the information technology and

innovation fundation they can national venture capital association, the association of american universities, the counsel on government relations, and the association of public and land grant universities. i want to thank my co-sponsor, daniel webster of florida, anthony gonzalez of ohio, science committee chairwoman eddie bernice johnson of texas, and ranking member frank lucas of oklahoma. also want to thank senators kuhns and young who are co-sponsors of the senate companion bill. i believe that helping our scientists, engineer, and academics not only vantses our knowledge and understanding of the world but also creates jobs and products that fuel our economy is a goal we all can share. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i reserve the balance my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the chair recognizes the gentleman from oklahoma.

mr. lucas: i yield myself such time as i might consume. i rise in support of h.r. 539, the innovators to entrepreneurs act. this extends the outreach of the national science foundation innovation course program, i-corps. icorps trains scientists and engineers to take their knowledge from the lab and turn it into products. this will continue to transform our lives and the world we live in. many scientists and engineers are not trained for commercializing these discoveries and did not go to business school or take any business development classes. icorps gives researchers the tools to maximize the taxpayer investment in basic research and spur innovation. h.r. 539 expands the eligible pool for icorps' courses and allows a portion of the federal small business grants to be used

to cover icorps training expenses. the bill also allows any private citizen to apply for and participate and pay out of pocket. finally, h.r. 539 authorizes a new icorps boot camp course that teaches valuable skills like structuring a company, attracting investors and hiring staff. in my district, oklahoma state university has a successful support system for business startups, both on and off campus. icorps is a key part of that system, helping students and faculty learn to commercialize their ideas and build a business. h.r. 539 will help programs like the one at o.s.u. grow and become self-sustaining. i want to thank representative lipinski and representative webster for their work on this legislation. i also want to thank our friend and new chairwoman of the science committee, eddie bernice johnson, for her work in advancing the bipartisan bill. i urge my colleagues to support the bill and i reserve the

balance of my time, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. mr. lipinski: i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from oklahoma. mr. lucas: i would like to yield two minutes to the gentleman from florida, mr. webster. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to support and ask my colleagues, house colleagues to pass h.r. 539 innovators to entrepreneurs act. i thank danley opinions ki who introduced this legislation and continues to serve as a choob for the time-proven icorps program. it was created by national science foundation in 2011 to teach scientists and engineers how to turn their laboratory

innovations into successful commercial products and services. i know engineers are lacking in that area. i am one. i invented before i was 21 years old, three, four, maybe five things, which will -- were awesome. this program assists scientists and engineers in developing their academic research and equips to bring research into a private market where jobs can be created and money can be won through that. we witnessed the program in my home state, university of central florida, h.r. 539 expands the program to create new -- a new course in commercial-ready companies. individuals who have completed an existing course would be eligible for this new course, which will help help them create

market and create their private sector company. this breaks down barriers by current scientists when attempting to bring their product to market. by attracting scientists, these participants can have a better shot at no only success but also increasing dramatically their business. h.r. 539 expands the number of groups eligible to apply to the icorps program and offers new options on how to initially pay -- mr. lucas: i yield the gentleman 30 seconds. mr. webster: i thank mr. lipinski for their work on this bill and i encourage my house colleagues to pass this commonsense legislation. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oklahoma reserves. the gentleman from illinois.

mr. lipinski: i reserve. mr. lucas: just to note, i have one more speaker and i will have the right to close. i yield three minutes to the gentleman from ohio. mr. gonzalez: i rise in support of h.r. 539. and mr. . lipinski webster for the hard work they put into this legislation. entrepreneurship is hard, risky and the road less traveled and all-encompassing journey that tests strength and skill that those bold enough to practice has to offer. the bill we are considering today takes the break-through lessons of customer development first codified by steve plank.

and forms the basis of the n.s.f. icorps program and turning break-through research into successful enterprise. since this program was created n 2011, 600 startups have been formed including in my home state of ohio, at the university of akron, university of ohio o.s.u. and the university of toledo. university of akron startup provides decision making software that helps water treatment plants to produce slept drinking water. it is used by 25 plants in u.s. brazil.canada and it opens up grantees and private individuals. this bill allows small business innovation research grants and

the small business technology grants to be used to access icorps training. it would have ready teams to attract investors and build a brand. as we confront the challenges, it will be our innovators and ntrepreneurs who will create spirit and will that has driven our country to our greatest heights. this safeguards our economy by safeguarding entrepreneurs in all corners of our country to rn their wildest dreams into reality. i support this legislation and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from oklahoma. mr. lucas: i yield myself the balance of the remaining time to thank the gentleman from illinois. i think we will be better off for it.

i know those folks that utilize the program and will have greater opportunity and will benefit us. i have no further requests for time and i yield back the balance. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. mr. lipinski: i yield myself the remaining time. mr. speaker, i want to thank full committee chairwoman johnson and thank ranking member lucas, mr. gonzalez and mr. webster for co-upon soaring as mr. webster is the lead republican co-sponsor now and in the previous congress. mr. webster talked about being an engineer. i was an engineer and then an academic, although, i wasn't academic as an engineer as a political scientist, but political scientists have a lot of great ideas and great

research. we as taxpayers put a lot of money to this research. there is a lot of great ideas that come out of it. the possibility for great innovation. when i first hit with steve blank and saw him teaching the course that was the basis for icorps out of stanford university and i thought this made complete sense to me to be able to teach scientists, engineers, teach them how to be entrepreneurs, teach them how to develop ideas into new products, new services and hopefully new american jobs. the icorps program has been one of the most successful programs i have seen during my time in washington, d.c., this bill will help to advance that and in doing so, help advance american

innovation. i think that's a goal that we can all embrace. i ask my colleagues to support this bill. and hopefully, we will get it through the senate and to the president's desk because i think this will be a debate victory for our country and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house success pipped the rules and pass the bill h.r. 539. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 in the affirmative -- the gentleman from illinois. mr. lipinski: i ask for the yapes. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote will rise and remain standing. pursuant to rule 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? mr. lipinski: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and

pass h.r. 425 the supporting veterans in stem careers act. the clerk: h.r. 425, a bill to promote veteran involvement in stem education, computer science and scientific research and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from illinois, mr. lipinski and the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. lucas, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois. mr. lipinski: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and tend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. so ordered. the gentleman is recognized. mr. lipinski: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. lipinski: i rise in support of h.r. 425. i want to thank mr. dup and mr. lamb for introducing this important legislation.

now more than ever, u.s. global competitiveness depends on our ability to grow and sustain a stem-capable work force poised to meet the needs of the private sector. with an economy that is evolving and reliant on big data, automation and advanced technologies, the work force is struggling to keep up. although stem careers offer good pay and job security, companies across all sectors have difficulty recruiting workers with the skills that they need. e good news is that veterans represent a group of skill sets that employers need. the question of how to get more veteran to pursue stem degrees enjoy this work force. h.r. 425 supports research to identify and lower barriers for veterans trangsing from military

to civilian work environment. we need to develop a comprehensive plan with the goal of increasing veteran participation in stem education and research program. it requires n.s.f. in its report to publish available data on stem studies and careers. t adds veterans for outreach reach including the robert noise teacher scholarship program. h.r. 425 creates a committee on veterans in stem and directs the reation for transing and training military veterans and spouses in stem careers. h.r. 425 will help us cement our global leadership by ensuring

veterans with the stem skills we need are able to translate their talents. i urge my colleagues to support this bill. and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from oklahoma. mr. lucas: i yield myself such time as i might consume. i want to thank dr. neal dunn and congressman lamb to support our nation's veterans. it will help our veterans to put their training to new and important uses and help america stay competitive on a global scale. in the last decade, jobs requiring some level of stem expertise has grown by more than 30% including jobs that do not require a bachelor's degree. many in stem and related fields. in my state of oklahoma, we have 2,000 open engineering jobs.

at the same time, veterans and transing service members a valuable skilled talent pool from which to meet this critical need. h.r. 425 will improve outreach to veterans to the nation's science programs to support and train stem workers. we can serve our vet raps and help them translate their experience in meaningful stem work. i urge my colleagues to support the bill and i resevere the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois. mr. lipinski: mr. speaker, i yield five minutes to the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. lamb. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized. mr. lamborn: i rise to support veterans in stem careers. first, i would like to thank dr. dunn for his leadership in helping connect veterans to these good jobs. veterans are working today. most americans are working today. the unemployment rate is low. and yet, everywhere i go, i meet

business people hotel me that they can't find the right workers for the right jobs at the right time. if we could fix this, we would stop being held back by the shortage of work force that we face and most importantly, our families would not be held back by lower paychecks. but these new jobs in cybersecurity, many medical technology and advanced technology, they are hard jobs and require training and we need to make the training available to people where they live in a cost and time they can afford. we have no time to waste. our businesses are competing on a global stage against countries that will use the full machinery of their government to make sure their work force is ready and we need to meet our needs. we have a work force that will go anywhere and do anything and when it comes to hard work, these folks are fearless and that is the veteran population here in the united states.

marine officers are trained that if we are given an order to move that mountain over there, no sooner is the order completed that we are leading the ma evens down the hill with a shovel. we need hundreds of thousands of all veterans who can 3-d print hose shovels and descend the entire network. these are the jobs of today and tomorrow. these are the jobs that will support our families and most importantly, these are the jobs that will grow the new middle class. . the national science foundation was born out of world war ii so we lead the world in math and science. we knew if we did that we could make our country safe, healthy and strong and if we're going to continue that mission in the

new generation we will need the veterans to lead the way. we do have a global competition on our hands, mr. speaker, and i know we can win it if we have the veterans with us. this bill will help them, and i urge all my colleagues to come together to pass it. thank you very much. tyson: the gentleman yields. -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. the gentleman from oklahoma. the ucas: i yield to gentleman from florida, dr. dunn, three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. mr. dunn: thank you to the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. lucas. the supporting veterans in stem careers act is about helping expand veterans' job and education opportunities in the sciences. the bill directs the national science foundation to develop a veterans outreach program and publish data on veterans' participation in mathematics, science, technology in its

annual indicators report. the bill also updates the n.s.f. teacher scholarship programs, cybergrant programs to include outreach to veterans. additionally, the white house office of science and technology policy is tasked with overseeing an interagency working group to examine how to increase veterans' participation in the stem career fields. including addressing any barrier to service to both members and their spouses. in the next five years between one million and 1.5 million of the armed services will separate from the military according to the department of defense. many of these veterans will be seeking new careers and by a great margin veterans finding employment as their number one need when separating from active duty. according to the u.s. bureau of labor and statistics, occupations in stem fields are projected to grow over nine million jobs by 2022.

research shows that many military veterans already have skills that align with stem careers, particularly in the area of information technology. however, it also shows that veterans face many barriers as they re-enter the workforce, including a lack of formal certified stem education, career guidance and the difficult task of transferring military credits to civilian college credits. our nation's veterans deserve every opportunity to transition to a rewarding and successful civilian life. this bill will help our service members to continue to serve our nation in new ways by fulfilling 21st century jobs and keeping america on the cutting edge of innovation. i thank congressman lamb for -- a fellow member of the science ommittee, and a marine corps teran, for co-authoring this

bill. last year the house passed this legislation by an overwhelming margin but we did not make it across the finish line in the senate. this year we have a bipartisan companion bill in the senate introdeuced by marco rubio and senator klobuchar. i believe now is the time to get this done to help our nation's veterans and i urge my colleagues to pass this bill, the senate to act on it and send 425 to the president's desk and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from illinois is recognized. mr. lipinski: i have no further speakers so i will reserve until the gentleman closes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oklahoma. mr. lucas: dr. dunn very eloquently summed it up, veterans deserve every opportunity to transition back and to utilize those skills. with that i yield back the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields,. the gentleman from illinois. mr. lipinski: mr. speaker, i yield myself the balance of the time. i want to thank dr. dunn for introducing this bill, again, and we will work hard to see this through to the end. i thank mr. lamb for his -- for his comments. certainly something i've experienced is employers needing to find more workers and the men and women who are coming out of our armed services have those skills that are needed and we just need to give them a little more help to get them connected. this bill does that. so i want to urge my colleagues to support this bill and i will yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house uspend the rules

and pass the bill h.r. 425. those in favor say aye. thopeds. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from nevada seek recognition? mrs. lee: i ask unanimous consent that the house suspend bill.les and pass the the clerk: a bill to direct the secretary of education to

establish the recognizing inspiring school employees, rise, award programming recognizing excellence exemplified by classified school employees, providing services to students in prekindergarten through high school. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from nevada, mrs. lee, and the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson, each will control 20 minutes. the chair now recognizes the gentlewoman from nevada. mrs. lee: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and . tend their remarks the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mrs. lee: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. mrs. lee: despite being under the weather i decided to come down here and thank our this gue, dina titus, for measure.

this would recognize the achievement and contributions of classified school employees to student education in schools across the country. classified school employees are critical members of the education workforce, making up one out of every three public school employees. assisting students in our nation's public schools. classified school employees provide essential services such as transportation, facilities, maintenance and operations, food service, safety, and health care. it's past time that the u.s. department of education recognize the tireless efforts of our nation's outstanding classified school employees. the stature of the secretary of education and recognizing the rise award will provide national leadership and partnership to encourage broad participation in the development, selection, and recognition process. classified school employees across the country do extraordinary and inspirational things in their schools and communities to promote quality

education, foster positive learning environments and ensure student success. the rise award will recognize the contributions of classified school employees to that student's success. i support this bipartisan bill and urge my colleagues to vote yes and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the reserves. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. thompson: mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 276. i want to thank my colleagues across the aisle, the gentlelady from nevada, and also the original co-sponsors in support of this bill -- excuse me. it's not uncommon for a school employee to make a lasting impression on a student or even on an entire generation of students. front office attendance, school

custodians, school safety personnel, food service workers and others all interface directly with countless students every day. and many of these school employees make lifelong impacts on the students they serve. ask about any student and they'll probably tell you about a particular school employee who may not have been their teacher but nevertheless imparted crucial life lessons upon them or inspired joy and confidence in students who struggled to find either. schools are made better by these leaders and students -- and students benefit from their kindness, thoughtfulness, compassion and respect they show to others around them. mr. speaker, these employees truly go above and beyond the call of duty to serve american students and their steadfast devotion deserves our appreciation and recognition. h.r. 276, the recognizing spiring school employees act will direct the secretary of education to establish the

recognizing inspiring school employees award, otherwise known as the rise award. the rise award will be presented each year to a classified school employee in a nonteaching position and recognition of their invaluable contribution to the lives of students at the schools they serve. the award will be nonmonetary. it will go to most who demonstrate excellent work, performance, school and community involvement, commitment and exemplify the very best what it means to be a classified school employee. h.r. 276 is just one small way to honor the men and women in our communities who demonstrate to students what it means to be an outstanding citizen and civic leader. and their tireless efforts deserve our recognition and thanks. i urge my colleagues in the house to support this commonsense legislation and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from nevada. mrs. lee: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield to the gentlelady from nevada, the lead sponsor of h.r. 276, ms.

titus, for five minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from nevada, ms. titus, is recognized for five minutes. ms. titus: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank my friend for yielding and for her support of the bill that creates the rise award. i'd like to tell you the story of miss virginia mills. she started her career as a security guard at william orr middle school in district one in las vegas over two decades ago. almost immediately upon getting to the school she saw children were going to class without backpacks on their shoulders to carry their books and equipment. she saw athletes trying out for the basketball team without having the proper shoes on their feet. and she saw children who didn't have enough clothes to make it through the whole week without changing. so in her very first month on the job, taking old items from her own daughter's closet, she started a clothes closet for middle school students in need.

she first enlisted the help of friends, then teachers, then community members. eventually the closet grew to include school supplies and even food for children to take home on the weekends when they might otherwise go hungry. ms. mills has watched these students grow over the years to become assembly men and women in the legislature, business leaders, and community organizers. she said, giving a helping hand to these students has inspired them to become better adults. they now understand the importance of paying it forward. virginia mills has improved the lives of so many middle school students in my district and she's filled a gap that too many young people are in danger of falling into. she wanted me to tell you she didn't do it alone. there are countless people in our schools who include security guards who do more than keep students safe. they keep them motivated. they are bus drivers who

provide more than just a ride. they offer friendship. they are counselors and nurses and cafeteria workers who strive tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure the success of our students and our schools. yet, too often their contributions go unrecognized. that's why i introduced this bipartisan legislation to celebrate the critical role that school staff plays in helping our students learn and enabling our teachers to teach. the contributions of these vital school employees can't really be measured, but they can and should be recognized. it's in our children's interests and certainly in our national interests for the department of education to present these rise awards to people like virginia mills who've made such a profound impact on our nation's youth. so for those who work so hard to help our students become the best versions of themselves, i would urge my colleagues to vote yes. i thank you and reserve the balance of the time.

the speaker pro tempore: does the gentlelady yield back? ms. titus: i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from nevada reserves. the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. i appreciate the story that was shared about the woman working in that school district. we probably have all those stories when we think back to our school experiences, elementary or high school about individuals who weren't necessarily teachers but were very ininfluential and setting a very example to be followed in so many different ways. that's why i'm so pleased to be able to support this piece of legislation. i have had the privilege and honor to be in our schools that are recognized with blue ribbon schools, schools to watch. and those are wonderful.

they are wonderful not because of what has been accomplished, but they become an inspiration to other schools to strive for and to achieve. what this piece of legislation does, mr. speaker, is to take it down to the staff level. because we know the most valuable resource and asset that we have in our schools are people. not necessarily the classroom or anything that's physical like that, but it's the teachers, the faculty, the staff and being staff thatognize the works so hard each and every day there, that are not necessarily teachers, i think this is a great opportunity. so i certainly am very excited about supporting this piece of legislation, h.r. 276. and i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from nevada is

recognized. ms. titus: are you prepared to close? mr. speaker.k you, the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognize dollars. ms. lee: in closing, i would like to thank representative tight tuesday in bringing forth this bipartisan piece of legislation. when it comes to delivering the promise of a great public school for every child, it's a team effort. classified employees keep the lights on and students fed. this past year we have seen unprecedented action from teachers demanding better support for public schools across the country. while the media speaks first about the contributions and working conditions for classroom teachers, it is important to recognize behind every teacher is an army of classified school employees. passing this bill will recognize

the chiropractics as an important first step. but i urge this body to do more the. we must continue to work across the aisle to invest in public education and invest in the staff that support our public schools and students who count on public schools. i hope with swift passage of h.r. 276 is just the beginning and i look forward to future action in this cham beer in support of public schools. i urge my colleagues to vote yes. and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. thompson: i urge passage, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from nevada. ms. lee: mr. speaker, i urge a yes vote, and i yield back the ball aps of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the question is will the house success pnd the rules and pass the bill h.r. 276.

those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended and the bill is passed and -- ms. lee: i ask for a recorded vote, the yeas and nays, please. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote will rise. 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.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman rom virginia seek recognition? >> i rise that the house suspend the rules and agree to the bill h.r. 1235 as amended. the clerk: h.r. 1235 a bill to provide that certain members of the protection board shall be extended to limit such members from concurrently holding positions within the federal government and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: purn to the rule, the gentleman from virginia, mr. connolly and the gentleman from georgia, mr. hice, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from virginia. concxds con concxds con i ask unanimous consent that -- mr. connolly: i ask that members

may include extraneous material on this measure. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. connolly: i thank house leadership for bringing up h.r. extension act mp so quickly to the floor. chairman cummings and i introduced this bill to precept he potential crisis at the merit protection board without any members. acting chairman has and has been the sole member on the board since january of 2017. his holdover term expires at the end of this month, 28th of february and cannot be extended without legislation. we plan to address this issue through regular order but circumstances arose that prevented us from doing so. the subcommittee i'm going to

chair originally scheduled a hearing to examine the problem on february 14, but the hearing was postponed until the end of this month so we could attend the funerals of john dingell and walter jones. we would hope we could address the problem at the business meeting on february 20. the senate committee was able to approve two members, chairman johnson he would withhold those nominations from the senate floor pending the naming of a third nominee from the white house. the senate committee was working on language to extend mr. robins ' holdover term but no legislation was considered by the markup. thus our action today. given these events, it appears less and less likely that the senate will likely be able to confirm new board members before

time runs out this thursday. that's why chairman cummings and introduced this to ensure some work by the ms pmp b will continue. it will provide a one-time one-year introduced this extens to give the senate more time to give them more time. this version of the bill before us eliminates the provision prohibiting dual appointments because mr. robins said he would requse himself from matters relating to o.p.m. and votes he had taken at mspb if this bill is enacted. this amendment is in response raised in response. we need to pass this bill because we need to ensure that mspb company continue ilingts

operations. if mr. robins' term expires without new members, confirmed, it will be the first time in the agency's history that the board has no members at all. we will be entering unchartered new territory and not good territory. if there is no principal officer to lead the agency, not only is it unclear which agency functions may be continued but whether the entire agency must shut down completely. i urge my colleagues not to risk that shutdown. there is a lot at stake here. ms pmp b protects whistleblowers from retaliation and veterans and federal employees from prohibited personnel practices. the agency ensures that the federal civil service is nonpartisan and complies. since 2017, ms pmp b has been

operating under certain constraints. it has prevented the board from hearing appeals from adverse actions. the absence of a quorum has prevented the board of conducting studies and reviews of o.p.m. rules and regulations. this has resulted in a backlog of 2,000 final appeals which will take more than three years to process and eight merit study systems peppedings by the board. the current situation is certainly less than ideal and let's not make it worse in creating a complete vacancy on the board. this will cause decisions made by mr. robins to be voided, exacerbating the backlog and any new board members would have to start again from square one. we should not and cannot allow

that to happen. addressing the problem should be primary concern. we cannot let politics to prevent m smp pb from doing its job. it is supported by the national treasury employees union. national federation of employees, national accountability public profit. and make it safe coalition, the senior executives association and the national taxpayers' union. i would like to enter into the record letter of support and the coalition of other stakeholders. i thank the chair. i urge i would like my colleagu n supporting h.r. 1235, a stop gap measure to prevent serious measure from hardworking americans who expects the board

to present serve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. and the gentleman from georgia is recognized. mr. hice: i rise today to speak on h.r. 1235, the m smp pb temporary term extension act. my colleagues on the other side of the aisle know that i am committed to ensuring the successful operation of the merit systems protection board known as mspb. last congress i introduced h.r. 6391, the re-authorization act of 2018. my bill would have re-authorized the board and made other vital reforms and the committee of oversight and government reform reported the bill favorably but without a single vote from my colleagues from the other side of the aisle. we all know an effective and functional mspb is important to the health of our federal work force.

mspb's primary responsibility is to adjudicate appeals of federal personnel actions. mspb plays a vital role in whistleblower protections. to be effective and issue decisions, mspb needs a two-member quorum, but the board has not had a quorum in over two years. in january of 2017, mark robins, as my friend mentioned, he became the sole remaining member of mspb. and his term came to an end and he was granted a one-year extension as authorized by law, but that extension ends this week. starting friday. ms pmp b without a single board member. my colleagues claim this bill is an emergency measure to prevent the ms pmp b from extending this crisis of leadership, but i

disagree. the real problem is a lack of a quorum. without a quorum for the last two years, a backlog of undecided appeals has grown to over 1,700 cases. mr. robbins cannot fix that rob problem on his own. his continued tenure will not resolve those cases. in december, the president selected mr. robbins to serve as the general counsel at the office of personnel management. for the last 10 weeks, he has served at o.p.m. and mspb. he is planning to serve at o.p.m. in his full capacity beginning this friday. he has stated as long as he has as a sense of duty to mspb and its mission. my colleagues do not intend to use this bill to coerce mr. robbins staying longer than he

wants to. and i urge my colleagues to join me in applauding mr. robbins, the federal work force, the president and our country. i urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the senate's confirmation of president trump's nominees. we owe it to our federal workers give them a quorum so the quorum can do its important job. i hope we can work together to rovide certain -- certainty. i would like to inform my good friend from virginia that i have no further speakers and with that, i would yield the balance of my time. . . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from virginia. mr. connolly: in just responding, i agree with him. i think we need a full board. and our problem is the senate.

they didn't get around to acting in a timely fashion and so we're faced with this. i think it's also important to note that although a quorum is necessary for most work of mspb, it isn't necessary for all of it, so mr. robins, in a caretaker interim position, can still do some of the work of the board, including issuing stays and reviewing some of the work and helping to avoid adding to the backlog. he can't substitute himself, obviously, for a quorum on the board. my colleague is quite right about that. what we're trying to do here is not compel him or coerce him to stay against his wishes, is to try to buy some time and have the board at least do some of its basic functions so we don't come to a complete stand still. that would not be necessary, frankly, had the senate acted.

i think my friend is right in suggesting that's the ultimate answer and i would join him in calling on the senate to act as swiftly as possible. but i think we have no choice but act on this bill now and with that, mr. chairman, i urge passage of the bill and 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 the bill h.r. 1235, 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. without objection, the title is amended. pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess until approximately 6:30 p.m.