close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. lynch: we have no further speakers on our side and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: i urge the adoption of the bill. and i yield. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5384. 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 pon the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? mr. gosar: i ask that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6009. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6009, a bill to ensure the effect i have processing of mail by federal agencies and for other purposes.

the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar, and the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. lynch, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. go sar: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative day foss revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. gosar: i rise in support of h.r. 6009, the federal mail ggetgget -- management act of 2016, introduced by my colleague, representative steve russell of oklahoma. this legislation is intended to make a bipartisan, technical correction to the presidential and federal records acts amendments of 2014 enacted as public law 1113-187. among the provisions of that was language designed to eliminate outdated references to the general services administration

related to records management. these changes updated outdated references from a time period when the national archives was part of g.s.a. since the national archives became independent in 1984, these housekeeping changes were long overdue. however, after the bill was enacted, g.s.a. and the archives realized that g.s.a. relied upon the now altered provision of the oversight and management authority for federal mail processing and management, a function that had not previously been transferred to the archives. it was never the intent of congress to transfer this function. the archives and g.s.a. have been working closely together to assure the lou is being appropriately follow bud both agencies support of clarification that this response sblet properly g.s.a.'s. this bill provides that clarification. the bill makes technical corrections to the 2014 law to carve out responsibility for mail room management to records management to ensure that the

former is properly g.s.a.'s duty and the latter, the archives. i believe this is a common sense, good government bill. i'm pleased to see that my colleague is a co-sponsor. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and hope it will move quickly through the legislative process so we can properly resolve any lingering uncertainty created regarding federal management. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. lynch: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. lynch: i support this bipartisan bill which make aztecny call correction to clarify that the administrator of the general services administration is responsible for managing mail and executive -- mail in the executive brampling. the administrator of the g.s.a. has historically had this responsebility and when the federal records act was updated, changes made to the statute made it unclear whether the administrator's role has

changed. this bill makes clear congress never intended to take away the g.s.a. administrator's authority to manage the executive mail. in closing, i'd like to especially recognize representative steve russell and representative jerry connolly from virginia for their excellent work that they've put into this legislation. i hope that the senate will take it up before the end of this congress. with that, i reserve the balance of our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. i'd like to make sure that the gentleman from massachusetts is aware i have no further speakers and am prepared to close. mr. lynch: having no further speakers on our side, i yield back the balance of our time. the speaker: the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6009. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, fwirds 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 arizona seek recognition? >> i move the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6186, the follow the rules act. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will port the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 660, a bill to amend title 5 united states code to extend certain protections against prohibited personnel practices and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona, mr. go sar and the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. lynch, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the swrelt from arizona. mr. gosar: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gosar: i ask that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under course. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. gosar: i rise in support of h.r. 6186 this efollow the rules act, introduced by representative sean duffy. it reiterates congress' intent that whistleblower protections be broadly construed.

whistleblowers are the best source of information about waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government. we should do all we can to protect them. under the whistle blower protection act of 1989 a whistle blower is protected for disclosing violations of laws, rules and regulations, yet a rule big the u.s. court of appeals would limit the scope of those protections. it held that a federal employee is not protected if they refuse to violate a rule of regulation. that means they could be ordered to violate the same rule or regularlation they were blowing the whistle on and if they refuse they could be demoted or fired. a contracting officer at the department of state wased orered to tell a contractor to rehire a terminated subcontractor. dr. rainey refused on the grounds it would violate the federal acquisitions, government-wide standards in place for 30 years. these are exactly the sort of

thing the government and oversight reform committee oversees. yet in return for his objections, mr. rainey, dr. rainey, was given a negative performance rating. the court of appeals for the federal circuit held that because dr. rainey was refusing to obey an order that would require him to violate a regulation, not a law, he could not be shielded by the whistleblower protection act. we should protect federal workers who work in good faith to abide by the rules of their agency. they shouldn't have to choose between disobeying an order of a supervisor or being disciplined for violating rules or regulations. while nearly all federal laws have regulations, not all regulations have a detailed basis in law. furthermore, agencies do not always train their employees to know what regulations are based in law. this means federal workers may have to conduct extensive legal research for deciding on the safest course of action, in this case whether to apply the

standards put into place. whether the issue is regulations against whistleblowers or whistleblowers trying to uphold other regulations, the ssh is is the same. we should protect those civil servants. the follow the rules act would send a clear, consistent message that they're expected to uphold standards of good government and would ensure they are protected if they refuse to obey an order if it would require to violate a rule or regulation. we are a nation based on the rule of law. we expect agencies to act in transparent fashion, governed by preticket -- predictable rules. we should provide the same predictbility to whistleblowers when they apply what they have been trayed to follow. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation and with that, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. lynch: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. lynch: i rise in strong support of h.r. 6186, the follow

the rules act. i appreciate the hard work done by representative duffy of wisconsin and mr. connolly of virginia in taking the lead in introducing this legislation and then working diligently in a bipartisan manner to achieve its passage. this bill would clarify that an employee who refuses to obey an order that would require the employee to violate the law, a rule or regulation, is protected from retaliation under the whistle blow brother text act. in june, 2016, a u.s. court of appeals for the federal circuit issued a ruling that is contrary to the whistleblower protection act and contrary to congressional intent. as mr. gosar of arizona previously laid out the facts in re nee vs. mspb, the considerate ruled the employee who refused to obey an order is protected only if the order would violate a statute. but that me would not be protected if the order would simply violate a rule or regulation. this ruling is incorrect.

and does not correctly interpret congressional intent. the employee should be protected from retaliation if they do the right thing. that includes refusing to obey orders that would violate agency rules, regulations as well as statutes. it is more critical than ever that we send a message to federal employees that they have the right to do their jobs free from political pressure, to bend or violate the rules. i urge my colleagues to support the passage of this legislation today and i reserve the balance of our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves this egentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: i'm pleased to yield four minutes to the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. duffy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for four minutes. mr. duffy: i want to thank the gentleman from arizona for yielding and i want to thank my friends across the aisle for their support of this commonsense legislation that again rights a wrong perception from the u.s. court of appeals. mr. speaker, mr. of us in this institution do talk about how we are a nation of laws. but unfortunately, on june ,

when the us court of appeals handed down its decision, they ruled that we are not a nation of laws, we are a nation of laws but not a nation of rules and regulations. at least as it applies to federal workers. we've had a good discussion about the case dr. timothy rainey, maybe to summarize again, he's a state department employee who was asked to violate the federal acquisition regulation and he didn't want to do it. so he denied and he invoked his right to disobey under the whistleblower protection act. this was brought to the merit system protection board and they uled against mr. rainey. what this did was expose a glaring inconsistency in the application of the whistle blow brother text act which is inconsistent with the intent of this institution. so we have to ask ourselves, what does this mean? i chair the financial services

subcommittee on oversight. whistleblowers play an important role in exposing mismanagement at federal agencies and supporting the oversight that all of us do in this congress. critical to them is that the whistleblower protection act provides federal workers with certain safeguards to disclose information that an employee reasonably believes evidences gross mismanagement, waste of funds, abuse of authority or violation of the law. this court ruling will take away those protections when federal employees stand up against bad actors but then -- within our federal work force. in fact thsh ruling will give permission to supervisors in positions of authority to force federal workers to violate the rules and regulations that congress, through law, direct agencies to implement. for example, at the treasury department, one of the agencies i have the great privilege of oversee, this would mean that federal workers could be forced

to violate sanctions against russian for violation of ukraine's territorial integrity. many of those sanctions are enforced through the code of federal regulations pursuant to laws that are passed by this congress. so regardless of your opinion about rules and regulations, and if that was the conversation today i'm sure we'd have a far more vigorous debate that was far more disagreeable but that was in the the issue. no matter what you think about rules and regulations we should not leave exposed federal workers who want to follow those rules and regulations. so this bipartisan follow the rules act which again i introduced with my good friend from virginia, mr. connolly, will close the loophole created by the court. what we're doing is ensuring that federal employees aren't just protected under our whistleblower statute for violations of federal law, they'll also be protected as a whistle blow fer there's a violation of a federal rule or

regulation. this makes sense. it closes a loophole, i think that's why we've seen such bipartisan support from the far right of this institution and the far left of this institution and i think this is a great bill and i want to thank my friends for so closely working with me to garner the support. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. lynch: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i would like to yield such time as he may consume to the other champion, along with mr. duffy of wisconsin, the gentleman from virginia, mr. connolly. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from virginia. mr. connolly: i thank my good friend from massachusetts, i thank mr. gosar from arizona, and i thank my friend mr. duffy from wisconsin for his leadership and collaboration on this important bill he and i have introduced and is on the floor today, the follow the rules act, h.r. 6186. i appreciate mr. duffy's efforts to work to advance this

legislation that falls urn the umbrella of good governance -- under the umbrella of good governance which the government and oversight committee promotes. follow the rules act upholds the committee's obligation to protect whistleblowers and help identify mismanagement at federal agencies and support the oversight work of congress. the bill's language was previously adopted by a voice vote, section 1206 of the house-passed financial services and general government appropriations act of 2017, h.r. 5485. the bill closes a loophole in the whistleblower protection act created falsely in my view by the ruling in re nee v. merit systems protection board, a precedent-setting case decided on june 7 in the u.s. court of appeals for the federal circuit.

a employee reasonably blobes is gross mismanagement of a contract or grant, gross waste of funds, abuse of authority regarding the contract or grant or violation of law or rule regarding a contract or grant. that language ought to be fairly clear, but apparently it -- t to the apell ate apellate court. it was determined to only provide protection to federal workers who refuse to obey an order that would require the individual to violate a law. but not to federal workers who refuse to violate rules or regulations. god knowth why. the distinction leaves a gap in protections originally clearly intended for federal employees by this congress. in effect, the ruling exposes whistleblowers who refuses to violate the rules and regulations that were promulgated as a result of rules passed by congress and

signed by the president. that's how it flows. this is a gap in coverage that might be addressed by congress and clarified in the statute, approved the court it wouldn't be necessary. rules and regulations are overed by the right to disobey the -- i ask my colleagues to vote in the affirmative for the follows the rules act. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. >> i'd like to tell my good friend, mr. lynch, we have no further speakers. mr. lynch: having no further speakers, i yield back. mr. gosar: i ask the house pass the bill. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: 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 arizona seek recognition? mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i ask the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6304. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6304, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 501 north main street in florence, arizona, as the adolfo "harpo" celaya post office. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar, and the gentlewoman from the virgin islands, ms. plaskett, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gosar: 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. gosar: mr. speaker, i rise today in support of my bill, h.r. 6304, a bill that designates the post office in florence, arizona, as the

adolfo "harpo" celaya post office. this honors a great man and arizona hero. he served his nation in both of combat and with a lifetime of community service. at man is adolfo "harpo" celea. the bill would designate the united states postal service facility in florence, arizona, and the adolfo "harpo" celaya post office. this is a small gesture to honor a man that's given so much to this nation and to his community. by way of background, harpo celaya was born in florence, arizona, on may 16, 1927. he worked numerous jobs including picking cotton and working at the local dairy from the time he was only 8 years old. hearing the nickname harpo because he had thick black curls that reminded his friends of harpo marx. when he was just 17 years old he read a recruitment poster

that said "join the navy, see the world" and he begged his father to let him join. he was assigned to the u.s.s. indianapolis, the flagship of the fifth fleet. he saw many battles during world war ii and harpo was there with the ship at the battle of ue woe jeema and witnessed the hiss tore flag iwo ng on the island in -- jima and witnessed the historic flag raising on the island. his experience on the indy would change his life fore every. on july 30, 1945, the indiana was on its way back to the fill -- the indy was on its way back to the philippines. harpo and many of his meats were sleeping on the deck because it was too hot to sleep in their bunks below. despite his heat, harpo covered which with a blanket, he did for many years.

rocket hit his ship and he was saved from being burn more severely. he was en route to retrieve his life jacket when he saw his friend. the u.s.s. indianapolis sank within two minutes. the two friends separated after jumping in the water and three days passed before they found each other again. they continued to endure excruciating conditions with their sailors with the choppy open seas, mostly slowly is he cumming to dehydration -- succumbing to dehydration and shark attacks. they spent almost five harrowing days in the water. of the 1,196 men aboard, only 317 survived. after this incident, harpo was medically discharged from the navy and awarded the purple

heart. still, only 17 years of age, he went back to high school in his hometown of florence, arizona, and was recruited to play in the florence goffers basketball team. even though none of the players were over six feet tall, harpo led his team to the arizona state basketball championship and was named captain of the first string all-state team. harpo continued his winning streak by playing for and eventually coaching the basketball team at palo verde community college in blyth, california. harpo went on to become a cowboy for a few years and eventually ran his own small business providing heating and air conditioning to people in san jose, california. throughout his life harpo could be found coaching or refereing games for local youth. he knew the value of sports and exercise as means to keep young boys out of trouble. harpo's laws are adorned by many plaques and awards honoring his efforts. he's honored in the arizona basketball hall of fame at

arizona state university, the florence high school athletic hall of fame and served as grand marshall in the junior parade in 2009. harpo celaya is a true hero, beloved his his -- by his hometown of florence. i want to thank those of the u.s.s. indianapolis. of the 23 still alive today, harpo is the only native american. we are humbled to honor him today. i would like to thank the town of florence for their support of this bill and for proposing this great honor for mr. celaya. thank you to the oversight and government reform committee for their expertise and patience in bringing this bill forward. i urge members to support this bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. e gentlelady from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. plaskett: i rise in strong support of 6304, to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 501 north main street in

florence, arizona, the adolfo "harpo" celaya post office. born in 1927, mr. celaya overcome a childhood of poverty, neglect and abuse. at 17 he joined the navy and signed to the u.s.s. indianapolis during world war ii. harpo fought in the battles of iwo jima and okinawa and was aboard the u.s.s. indianapolis during its secret mission to deliver the ingredients of the atomic bomb little boy to the island of pinine. it was hit with two torpedos from a japanese submarine. despite being badly burned, harpo jumped from a sinking ship into the water where he remained for five days until rescuers arrived. of the 1,196 men aboard the ship that day, harpo was only one of 317 survivors. he received the purple heart and returned to high school in his hometown of florence, arizona. there he led the basketball

team to the arizona state basketball championship and was named captain of the all-state team in spite of his combat injuries. harpo celaya attendo palo verde community college and again led the basketball team to a championship. he was inducted into the arizona basketball hall of fame in 1972 and the florence high school athletic hall of fame in 2008. outside of basketball, harpo led a successful career as a cowboy and then as a small business owner but always made time to mentor local youth by coaching or refereing athletic sports. mr. speaker, we should pass this bill to honor harpo celaya for both his valiant military service and his ability to overcome hardship and having a lasting positive impact on his community. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves the balance of her time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: i want to inform my

friend from the other side we have no further speakers. ms. plaskett: mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6304. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative -- the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i object to the vote on the grounds that a quorum is not present and i make a point of order that a quorum is not present. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this uestion will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i move the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5948. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 5948, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 830 kuhn drive in chula vista, california, as the jonathan "j.d." de guzman post office building. the speaker pro tempore:

pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar, and the gentlewoman from the virgin islands, ms. plaskett, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gosar: 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. gosar: mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 5948, introduced by my colleague representative susan davis of california. the bill designates a post office in chula vista, california, and the jonathan "j.d." de guzman post office being. he was born in the philippines in 1972. he later traveled to the united states and became an american citizen and served as an officer with the san diego police department. officer de guzman received the purple heart of bravery for the san diego police department in 2003 after being stabbed in the line of duty. he returned to work but tragically was killed in the line of doubty in july of this

year. i join my colleague, -- line of duty in july of this year. i join my colleague, representative davis, to pass this bill and honor mr. de guzman. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: mr. speaker, i rise today in strong support of h.r. 5948, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 830 kuhn drive in chula visa, california, and the jonathan "j.d." de guzman post office building. jonathan emigrated to the u.s. from the philippines with a strong desire to become a contributor to his new community. his selflessness led him to join the san diego police department where he served for 16 years. officer de guzman was awarded the san diego police department purple heart in 2003 after surviving a stabbing while on

duty. officer de guzman was again attacked while on duty in july of 2016. this time, however, he was shot multiple times at point blank range and tragically did not survive. mr. speaker, we should pass this bill to honor officer jonathan de guzman's courageous life of public service and ensure that the ultimate sacrifice he made is never forgotten. i urge my colleagues to support .r. 49 -- i'm sorry -- 5948, and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves the balance of her time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i have no further speakers and with that i yield -- no -- i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: mr. speaker, i yield to my colleague from california, mrs. davis. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from california is recognized. mrs. davis: thank you, mr. speaker i ask for support of h.r. 5948 in commemorating the life of a humble role model and a courageous american hero.

officer jonathan de guzman, or j.d. as he was better known by family and friends, dedicated his life to protecting and serving the san diego community that he loved. born in the philippines, j.d. traveled to the united states at the age of 20 with high hopes of achieving the american dream. through hard work an perseverance he acheed his dream as a san diego law enforcement officer, serving in many different roles in the san diego police department. a devoted public servant, j.d. felt most rewarded by the bonds he create through the community engagement. j.d.'s family, his friends and fellow officers, characterized him as a selfless, honorable, and caring warrior. san diego police chief shelly zimmerman praised j.d. saying, uote, he always raised the bar

and cared deeply for his community. in 2003, he survived a brutal stabbing from a suspect he had stopped for speeding. a true warrior indeed, upon recovery he quickly returned to the force to defend the people of san diego that same year he was awarded the san diego police department's purple heart for bravery in the line of duty. though he appreciated the gesture, the accolades were not what motivated him to serve. the are -- the reactions of the community brought j.d. full -- fulfillment. tragically, on june 28, 2016, officer de guzman was shot multiple times at point-blank range and killed. prosecutors on the case say the attack happened so quickly that j.d. never had the opportunity to pull his service weapon. on august 5, thousands, i mean, thousands, of fellow officers and private citizens lined the streets of san diego for j.d.'s neral procession, throwing

flowers along the path, holding signs and waving flags. i can assure you it was a moving experience. the amount of love and admiration i wngsed that day showed how deeply -- i witnessed that day showed how deeply he touched the lives of those he encountered in a life cut much too short. he was only 43 years old. he was a beloved son his proud parents, an adoring husband to proud e mary jane, and a father of his two children. ed they opportunity to have meeting with some of his family and friends to offer my deepest condolences. saw the wound left behind but through loving memories of their time together, combined with support of the community, his strong family will endure the pain. while nothing ever fill the void, we can take action today to ensure that his legacy will never be forgotten.

j.d. made the ultimate sacrifice in protecting our community and this will will mean that future generations will know and understand the commitment that officer de guzman made and that our law enforcement officers continue to make every day. i urge you to vote yes on h.r. 5948 to designate the facility of the united states postal service, located at 830 kuhn drive in chula vista, california, as the jonathan j.d. de guzman post office building. this is right in the community officer de fwuseman called home and will stand as a lasting remembrance of a true hero. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: i urge adoption of the bill and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the

bill h.r. 5948. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona rise? mr. gosar: i ask that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6138. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will designate the bill. the clerk: a bill to ezz dig nate the facility of the united states postal service located at 0 east pleasant valley road, port hueneme, california a these u.s. naval construction battalion "seabees" fallen heroes post office building. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona and the gentlelady from the virgin islands each have 10 minutes. mr. gosar: i ask that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection.

mr. gosar: this bill designates a post office in port hueneme, california, as the u.s. naval construction battalion "seabees" fallen heroes post office building. the seabees were founded in world war ii to help complete construction projects such as air sfrips and bridges necessary to help u.s. servicemen when the war. these brave men and women have since risked their lives to build airstrips and other projects, often in combat zones while under fire. i look forward to hearing more about the achievements of the seabees from my colleague, ms. brownlee of california. with that, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. plaskett: i rise in support of h.r. 6138, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 560 east pleasant

valley road, port hueneme, california, as the u.s. naval con instruction battalion "seabees" fallen heroes post office building. for over 70 years, seabees have provided critical construction capabilities in times of war. they assisted in the normandy invasion in world war ii, cut a mountain in half and carve through the a jungle to build a runway during the korean war, constructed facilities in the vietnam and gulf wars and supported combat forces in iraq. today they continue to build and maintain bases and infrastructures for coalition forces in the global war on terror. in addition to their military support, the seabees have also provided vital humanitarian assistance around the world in times of peace. they have helped rebuild after devastating earthquakes such as the one in haiti in 2010 and they have led various construction projects in a number of underdeveloped countries.

mr. speaker, we should pass this bill to hon nor the brave men and women who played such an important role in both our military and humanitarian efforts around the globe. i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 6138 and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: i yield such time as he she may consume to my colleague from california, ms. brownlee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. brownlee: as the proud representative of the west coast hope ol -- home of the navy seabees, i rise in support of h.r. 6138 which would designate the united states postal office as the u.s. naval condition instruction ba tallon "seabees" fallen heroes post office building. my bill is intended to honor the many brave men and women of the

u.s. navy construction battalion, also known as the seabees, who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. in their more than 70 year history, the seabees have diligently and honorably served in times of war and peace with their renowned can-do spirit. difficult ote, the we immediately, the impossible takes a little longer. end quote. first established after the attack on pearl harbor, the seabees were created to meet the demand for capable builders who could also fight their motto is, we build, we fight. during world war ii, over 250,000 seabees passed through the naval construction battalion center at port hueneme on their way to or from the pacific theater this eseabees also played vital roles in the korean war, the vietnam war, the persian gulf war, the iraq war d in afghanistan, moving the

immovable and taping the untapeable -- untameable to build bases, roadways, airstrips and other critical infrastructure necessary for our troops to succeed in their mission. although primarily known as builders, many seabees fought tenaciously throughout these conflicts, side-by-side with other service members. for instance, construction mechanic third class marvin glen shields who trained at port hueneme battled bravely alongside u.s. special forces in the battle of -- in a bat until vietnam despite being badly wounded. ignoring his wounds, he helped return a wounded special forces second lieutenant back to safety while destroying a vote congress machine gun emplacement. his bravery and heroism cost him his life. for his conspicuous gallantry,

he was awarded the medal of honor after his death. my bill would honor the contributions of all of our fallen seabees to our nation. i am both honored and proud to lead this effort to recognize the heroism of many brave seabees like martin shields, who pay sod dearly for our freedom. we are forever indebted to them for their immense service to our nation. finally, i'd like to thank the chair and ranking member on the committee on government and oversight reform for supporting my bill as well as my colleagues from california who are all co-sponsors of the bill. i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 6138 and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the gentlelady from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: i urge adoption of the bill and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house

suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6138. 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 arizona seek recognition? >> i move the house -- mr. gosar: i move the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6282. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will designate the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6282, to designate the facility of the united states postal service , cate at 2024 jerome avenue bronx, new york, as the dr. roscoe c. brown jr. post office building. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gosar: 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. gosar: i rise in support of designates ae bill post office in the bronx, new

york, as the dr. roscoe c. brown jr. post office building. as a member 240e6 -- member of the tuskegee airmen, he was the first african-american fighter pilot to shoot down a german jet. he earned his ph.d. at new york university where he later taught and served as president of bronx community college. his service to the nation is admirable and i look forward to learning more about his extraordinary life from my colleague, representative serrano of new york. for now, i urge members to support the bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlewoman from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. plaskett: i rise in strong support of h.r. 6282, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 2024 jerome avenue in bronx, new york, as the dr. roscoe c. brown jr. post office

building. born in 1922, dr. roscoe brown jr. fell in love with aviation after visiting the smithsonian institution. during world war ii, dr. brown joined the tuskegee airmen, conducting 6 missions and becoming the first african-american fighter pilot to shoot down a german fighter jet. he earned the distinguished flying cross for his service and in fwevpb, dr. brun and his fellow remaining tuskegee airmen were awarded the congressional gold medal by president george w. bush. follow his honorable military service, dr. brown earned his ph.d. at n.y. -- at new york university and served as president of the bronx community college for 17 years he also served as an informal advisor to many political leaders in new york city and founded 100 black men, an organization dedicated to improving conditions for african-americans. mr. speaker, we should pass h.r. 62 2 to commemorate the

selflessness exhibited by dr. roscoe brown jr.'s military and community service. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: i yield such time as he may consume to my colleague from new york, mr. serrano. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such time -- for such time as he may consume. mr. serrano: i thank the entlewoman for the time. thank you. mr. speaker, i rise today to urge my colleagues to pass h.r. 6282. this legislation will rename the morris heights post office in the bronx, new york, after a legend. dr. roscoe brown was a giant among men and revered figure in the bronx, new york city, and the nation. i had the privilege of knowing

dr. brown for decades and considered him a dear friend he faced the horrors of segregation early in his life but he never let that stop him from achieving what he wanted and set out to do. tusskegee arless airman in world war 2, becoming one of the first fighters to shoot down a german fighter jet. the heroism he displayed paved the way for the desegregation of the armed forces and decades later earned him and his fellow airmen a congressional gold medal. after the war, he went on to further his studies at new york university where he eventually served as a professor and academic of the highest caliber. for 17 years, dr. brown served as president of bronx community college, which is located in my district. it was an institution that gai hope of better life through

education to predominantly minority and nontraditional student population. throughout his life, dr. brown was a quiet yet fierce advocate and leader that many turned to during racial discord that plagued the city of new york in he 1960's and 1970's. his act visit started 100 black men, a civic organization that promoted the treatment of african-americans in new york. dr. brown was also an avid runner and participated in nine new york city marathons. during his tenure at bronx community college, he established the annual hall of fame five kilometer and 10 kilometer races to help benefit the scoofment his invitation for me to participate in one of those races started me being part of them and i now run that particular race for more than 30 years. while his contributions are far

too numerous to list, it's fair to say that dr. brown left the world around him a much better place which he founded. he was a unique individual with a great smile, a great sense of humor and a great sense of history. above all, he was a, mr. speaker, a coalition builder. no one was too far for him to speak to or bring close to him. we will miss him, and i know that he's looking on us today and realizing that this is a small tribute for a very important tribute for a great man, dr. roscoe brown. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentlelady from the virgin islands. ms. plaskett: mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i urge adoption of the bill and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6282. 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 michigan seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 2992. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 2992, a bill to award a congressional gold medal, collectively, to the u.s. merchant marine of world war ii, in recognition of their dedicated and vital service during world war ii. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from michigan, mr. huizenga, and the gentleman from illinois, mr. foster, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, merchant mariners act as an auxiliary to the u.s. navy and are recognized as an integral link between domestic production and forces overseas, delivering combat equipment, fuel, commodities to those stationed abroad. military success in the world

war ii hinged on the merchant marine delivering those services. sailing while exposed to enemy combatants by both air and by sea. during world war ii, they suffered the highest per capita rate than any other branch in the armed forces. it's estimated that hundreds of mariner ships and thousands of mariners were lost to enemy combatants as a result of their service during world war ii. yet, mr. speaker, the merchant marine is rarely mentioned when people list the military branches of service during the war. i rise today to help remedy that oversight by supporting h.r. 2992, the merchant marine of world war ii congressional gold medal act, introduced by our colleague, representative susan brooks. this bill, which has 312 house co-sponsors, would award a single congressional gold medal to the american merchant marine of world war ii, and the recognition of their dedicated and vital service.

after the medal is awarded, it will be given to the american merchant marine museum which is housed within the united states merchant marine academy at kings point, new york. the treasury secretary's authorized to make an offer for sale bronze replicas of the medal for a price that help fray the design. senate 2989 which has been introduced by lowsa murkowski. mr. speaker, the mempant marine has contributed to every war which this country has been involved, beginning with the revolutionary war and continuing right up until day. its efforts during peace time helps deliver tons of cargo and countless passengers but the merchant marine's efforts in lightly guarded ship in the dangerous waters of the atlantic and pacific during world war ii were invaluable to the overall war effort. president franklin rows as a result summed it succinctly. they deliver the goods.

now, mr. speaker, it's our time to deliver the goods for those heroes who have so often gone unnoticed. i urge immediate passage of the bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. foster: i rise in support of h.r. 2992, legislation to honor the dedicated and unwavering service provided by the u.s. merchant marine during world war ii. a bill that i am proud to co-sponsor. i hope that upon its passage in the house the senate will move quickly to take it up and pass this bill before the 114th congress adjourns. while many are familiar with the sacrifices made by those who served in the armed forces during world war ii, less often do we stop and take time to recognize the members of the u.s. merchant marine who played an essential role in supplying our troops overseas with the equipment, the food, the materials necessary to sustain the fight against the axis powers.

despite the unrelenting threat of attack and the risk to their lives, the u.s. merchant marine provided to be -- proved to be an invaluable asset on innew mexico rabble occasions, participating in every landing operation by the united states marine corps during the war. in speaking of the brave contributions made by the u.s. merchant marine, president franklin roosevelt said that merchant marine, quote, delivered the goods when and where needed in every theater of operations, across every ocean, in the biggest, most difficult and dangerous transportation job ever undertaken, end quote. president roosevelt also said that, quote, as time goes on, there will be greater public understanding of our merchant fleets' record during this war, unquote. in fact, during a recent visit to the national world war ii museum in new orleans, louisiana, i was pleased and proud to see the proper and impressive display dedicated to the role of the merchant marine

in that war. indeed, more than 70 years after president roosevelt spoke those words, the house is taking an important step today to honor and to shed light on the contributions of the merchant marines that they made during world war ii. to further the public's understanding of the role of the merchant marines, that the role the merchant marines played in defeating the axis powers, the legislation will make sure that the gold medal will give it to the merchant marine museum where it will be viewed by the public. so i urge my colleagues to support the legislation before us, and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, at this time i'd like to yield as much time as she may consume to the gentlelady from indiana, mrs. brooks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from indiana is recognized for such time as he may consume. mrs. brooks: mr. speaker, i rise in support of h.r. 2992, the merchant marine of world war ii congressional gold medal

act. it is in appreciation of their dedicated and vital service to our nation. i also want to thank my colleague from across the aisle, congresswoman janice hahn of california's 44th district who worked with me and other members here in the house to secure so many co-sponsorships of this bill. the congressional gold medal is the highest honor congress can bestow upon an individual or group and these brave service men deserve such an honor. the merchant marine was the linchpin connecting the fighting forces overseas with the production forces at home. in the face of certain peril, these brave mariners provided efficient and reliable transport of combat equipment, fuel, food, commodities, personnel and raw materials that were pivotal in the allied victory. oftentimes forgotten, merchant mariners took part in every invasion from normandy to okinawa. never before had maritime power of americans have been so effectively utilized.

the total cargo lift transported by the mariners totaled over 300 million tons. they transported the great majority of the thousands of military personnel and civilians who traveled overseas during the war, and those returning to america after triumphant victories. risking their lives to provide the needed supplies for the war, merchant ships faced danger from submarines, mines, armed raiders and destroy yors, aircraft kamikazes and elements from mother nature. with an estimated 9,300 casualties, the merchant marines had a higher death per capita than any other armed forces during world war ii. about 11,000 merchant mariners were wounded in action and 663 were taken prisoners of war. yet, despite these heroic efforts, they were not recognized as veterans until 1988. and they never received the benefits that other world war ii veterans received under the

g.i. bill. they came home from the war without the recognition for their service and still to this day their service is often overlooked. today, there are less than 5,000 surviving world war ii mariners, and with nearly 500 world war ii veterans dying each day, it is so very important more than ever to recognize these brave achievements today. mr. speaker, the merchant mariners provided the greatest sea lift in history and became the difference between victory and defeat. these loyal and brave men put their lives on the line for the cause of freedom and selflessly answered their nation's call to duty. it's time we give these courageous mariners the recognize they've earned with the congressional gold medal, and i'm proud that 312 of my colleagues agreed and are co-sponsors of this bill. now it's time to get it across the finish line, pay respect to these deserving veterans and recognize the sacrifices and contributions of this brave group. i urge passage and yield back. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: mr. speaker, i have no further questions for time. i -- requests for time. i urge support and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, i, too, also have no further speakers at this time and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 299 2. 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 michigan seek recognition? mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass senate bill 1555, to award a congressional gold medal collectively to the filipino veterans of world war ii in recognition to -- of the veterans during world war 2. the clerk: senate 1555, an act to award a congressional gold medal, collectively, to the filipino veterans during world

war ii in recognition of their dedicated service during world war ii. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from michigan, mr. huizenga, and the gentleman from illinois, mr. foster, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. huizenga: and mr. speaker, i also ask unanimous consent that the exchange of letters between the committees of jurisdiction be included in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. huizenga: and at this time, mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, this is a special one for me personally. i rise today in support of senate bill 1555, the filipino veterans of world war ii congressional gold medal act of 2015, introduced by senator hirono. this bill, which was passed in the senate on july 13, has companion legislation here in the house, h.r. 2737,

introduced by our colleague, representative gabbard, which was -- has 312 house co-sponsors. the reason why it's a special one to me is i've spent a significant time in the philippines and have many close filipino friends and know the dedication of the philippines collectively and those families who paid the ultimate sacrifice during world war ii, and i've actually visited our world war ii cemetery in manila and have seen the headstones and gravestones of many filipinos who were there fighting alongside of us as well. and that's why it's a special opportunity for me as chair of the subcommittee that has jurisdiction over this to be involved. so this bill awards the striking and awarding of a single congressional gold medal to the

filipino veterans of world war ii in recognition of their heroic and dedicated service. following the award, the medal will be given to the smithsonian institute where it will be available for display as appropriate or valuable to display elsewhere, particularly at other locations associated with the filipino veterans of world war ii. the treasury secretary's authorized to make an offer for sale bronze replicas of the medal at a price that will help to fray the design and production costs of the actual medal. mr. speaker, japanese imperial forces attacked the philippines the day after bombing the u.s. base at pearl harbor, almost exactly 75 years ago on december 7, 1941. at that point, the philippines still were a united states colony. through -- though the process that led to its independence in 1946 actually began in 1934. fortunately the philippines formed its own armed forces. four months before the pearl harbor attack, president roosevelt brought the 136,000

members of the force into a full state of readiness to defend the u.s. and its territories and colonies. i will leave it to the house sponsor of the companion bill to describe the heroism of those soldiers and the sacrifices that they made in defense of the united states and their homeland, but suffice it to say it was a difficult and costly defense that they waged. and i'll note that our embassy sits right on the bay in manila today and overlooks so many places there in the philippines that witnessed those battles, including my own uncle, who at the time served in the navy and helped deliver goods and services throughout the pacific and into the philippines as well. so, mr. speaker, congress has altogether ritesed congressional gold medals -- authorized congressional gold medals for jatch niece americans -- japanese americans, native americans and others in conflicts. this this recognition of filipino veterans of world war

ii is long overdue. and i urge immediate passage of the bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois. >> mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> i rise today in strong support of s. 1555, legislation to award a congressional quold medal collectively to the filipino veterans of world war ii. in recognition of their service and sacrifice and their role in defeating the imperial japanese army. mr. foster: while we are taking up the senate-passed version of the filipino veterans of world war ii congressional medal act today, i want to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of the gentlewoman from hawaii, representative tulsi gabbard, who has led the effort to move this same legislation across the finish line here in the house. since introducing the legislation, representative gabbard has garner the support of more than 300 house co-sponsors and i am proud to be among them. in 1934, the united states began a 10-year period of bringing its

colonial rule to an end. during that time, the u.s. retained control over philippine foreign policy and maintained the right to call filipinos into the service of the united states armed forces. as tensions with japan began to rise in 1941, president franklin roosevelt invoked his authority to call all organized military forces of the government of the philippines into the service of the united states. responding to his call for arms, more than 200,000 filipinos fought on behalf of the u.s. as part of the united states armed forces in the far east. the force included the philippine scouts, the philippine commonwealth army, the new philippine scouts, philippine civilians who served on a voluntary basis, and the guerrilla services who fought behind enemy lines throughout the war. over the course of the war, an estimated 57,000 filipinos in uniform perished and many more

filipino civilians' lives were lost. despite this loyalty and tremendous sacrifice and the u.s. commitment to provide filipinos who served as part of the allied struggle with full veterans benefits, this promise was shamefully withdrawn by the rescission acts of 1946 at the close of the war. while a number of benefits have since been made available to the filipino veterans, we must continue to work to ensure that those who risk their lives to defend the united states and the free world are provided with the full benefits, honor and respect that they deserve. this legislation has the support of the veterans of foreign wars, the disabled american veterans, the american legion, the national federation of filipino american associations, and many other distinguished organizations. and i urge members to pass this legislation, which makes a modest but welcomed step to recognizing the contributions of filipino veterans of world war ii. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: at this time, mr. speaker, i would like to recognize for such time as he may consume the chairman of the foreign affairs committee, mr. royce of california. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such time as he may consume. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in strong support here for the filipino veterans of world war ii congressional gold medal act. and i'm one of the proud co-sponsors, along with my colleagues here, of this act. i've had an opportunity over the last couple of years to travel twice to the philippines. one of them was right after the cyclone hit there and we took a delegation. as you travel across the islands of the philippines, it is a constant reminder of the enormity of the sacrifice, as you see those battle sites, the enormity of the sacrifice made by this unsung group of heroes

who fought so courageously for the defense of our country, of thewhat is really one most perilous moments of american history. and their valor and their patriotism is deserving of this recognition from congress. i don't think many americans derstand how quickly the reaction across the philippines, in terms of pearl harbor, more an 250,000 filipino soldiers responded to president roosevelt's call to arms, to fight under the american flag. but in addition to that, just in my state of california, we had 16,000 filipinos, filipino americans, that went forward and u.s. army here the then formed the first and second

filipino american infantry regiments. that's where those regiments were organized. on december 8, 1941, and this was not 24 hours after the bombing of pearl harbor, it was at that moment in time that japanese imperial forces attacked the u.s. bases in the philippines. filipinos and filipino americans fought valiantly in the push to regain the philippines from imperial japanese forces, and, mr. speaker, 57,000 filipinos in uniform died in the war effort. more than that, among the casualties of those who struggled, the japanese -- against japan, but 50,000 filipinos in uniform. and they gave their lives in battles and their sacrifice was absolutely instrumental in disrupting the enemies -- enemy's advancement in the

pacific. as president harry truman made clear, they fought as american nationals under the american flag and under the direction of our military leaders, they fought with gallantry and courage, under the most difficult conditions. so i'm honored to rise today in support of recognizing these great heroes, the contributions of the filipino world war ii veterans are a very important part of american military history, and their accomplishments deserve the recognition of the congressional gold medal and i yield back the balance of my time, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: i now yield five minutes to the lead sponsor of the house version of this bill, the gentlelady from hawaii, ms. gabbard. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from hawaii is recognized for five minutes. ms. gabbard: thank you, thank you, mr. speaker. i have the privilege of representing the second congressional district in hawaii, a state that has deep cultural roots and ties to the contributions that filipino

americans have made to our nation throughout history. from driving hawaii's plantation-based economy in the earliest 20th century, serving in our armed forces, to becoming leaders in every industry and sector in our state and across the country. it's an honor to stand here today as a voice for the more than 200,000 filipino and filipino american soldiers that served our country during world war ii. these loyal and courageous soldiers suffered, sacrificed, fought and gave their lives alongside their american counterparts throughout the war. we've waited far too long to recognize these heroes who deserve this honor, in standing alongside units like hawaii's own infantry battalion, with being awarded the congressional gold medal, our nation's highist set ofian honor. with just 18,000 of these -- highest civilian honor with just

18,000 of these fighters still with us today, we cannot wait any longer. i would like to thank the 312 house members, republicans and democrats, and 71 senators that co-sponsored this bipartisan legislation, representing nearly every state and territory in our country. i also want to say a special thanks to my colleague, congressman joe heck, who is the republican lead on this legislation. congressman --woman judy chu and congressman mike -- congresswoman judy chu and congressman mike honda, and my colleague, senator hirono, who is here today, as well as senator heller for championing this bill in the senate, all of our staff and both democrat and republican leadership for their efforts, commitment and support to passing this legislation. i'd also like to recognize major general antonio taguva who joins and the in the gallery

filipino veterans' recognition and education project, for their years of commitment to this historic effort and for continuing to fight to ensure we remember and and the recognize legacy of our filipino world war ii veterans as a critical part of our american history. major general taguva's father, staff sergeant thomas taguva, was a soldier in the 45th infantry regiment philippine division that served alongside the u.s. army during the war, where he fought in the battle. he survived the death march. this legislation is a testament to staff sergeant thomas taguva and the hundreds of thousands of filipino world war ii veterans who deserve a place of recognition amongst our greatest generation. to all of them -- [speaking foreign language] i urge my colleagues to join me in voting to pass this long overdue legislation today. time is of the essence. we must honor these courageous men while they are still among us and recognize their dedicated

service to our nation and our history. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. members are reprinald -- are remindsed not to reference guests in the gallery -- reminded not to reference guests in the gallery. the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: thank you, mr. speaker with that abondishment, i won't say welcome to our filipino friends in the gallery but i would like to recognize at this point the lead sponsor on the republican side, congressman joe heck of nevada, for as much time as he may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. heck: thank you, mr. speaker. during my time here in the house of representatives, each congressional session i have introduced the world war ii filipino veteran rengnition act. in an attempt to re-- recognition act. in an attempt to restore the benefits that were promised to these brave soldiers by franklin roosevelt, when they were incorporated into the united states armed forces during world war ii. but then, had those benefits denied by the rescission act of 1946. these soldiers served side by

side with american troops. they served under american officers. they bled, fought and died to protect their homeland and on behalf of the united states. i've had the honor to get to know six of these gentlemen who lived in southern nevada. francisco sedula, romeo barreras jelsy, and s, alberto. unfortunately over the last six years, five of them have passed on. never receiving the recognition that they justly deserve. that's why this bill is so important. while it does not justly compensate these brave soldiers for the service that they gave to this country, this bill, senate 155, and the companion, introduced by my good friend,

the gentlelady from hawaii, ms. gabbard, and of which i am the lead co-sponsor, is in some small way a recognition of the service rendered by these brave patriots. it is for that reason that i rise in strong support and urge all of my colleagues to vote in support of senate bill 1555, so that we can finally pay some level of recognition to those who served side by side with american soldiers under american command. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: i now yield two minutes to the gentleman from virginia, the ranking member of the committee on education and work force, mr. bobby scott. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from virginia is recognized for two minutes. . mr. scott: i rise in support of s. 1555. filipino americans have contributed to american life and culture in countless ways. one of the most noble of which is through military service.

over 200,000 filipino soldiers and guerrilla fighters served in world war ii. their invaluable service help provide the necessary support to defeat the japanese in the pacific. for over 60 years filipino veterans and community advocates have fought to obtain benefits and recognition that they were promised. in 2009, congress created the filipino veterans compensation fund where they could receive a one-time payment of $15,000, eligible veterans who are not u.s. citizens could receive a one-time payment of $1,000. many of them received some compensation. in congress we're still working to make sure they get all the benefits they erpped, deserved and were promised. another way we can recognize these heroes is by awarding them the congressional gold medal. the senate unanimously passed the filipino world war ii

congressional gold medal act in july. mr. speaker, as a co-sponsor of the house version of the bill and a co-chair of the u.s. philippines friendship caucus, i urge my colleagues to support the legislation so that approximately 18,000 surviving filipino veterans of world war ii may be recognized for their service to our nation. we're forever indebted to these brave soldiers and it's important that we appropriately express our gratitude for that service. mr. speaker, i therefore urge my colleagues to support the bill, and i urge -- 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 michigan. mr. huizenga: i yield at this time, mr. speaker -- sorry. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: i now yield two minutes to the gentlelady from california, a member of the jirke and the chair of the congressional asia pacific caucus, ms. chu. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. chu: over 70 years ago, more than 200,000 brave filipino and filipino american

soldiers answered the call to fight alongside american service members during world war ii. these soldiers served on the front lines and played a critical role in ultimately helping the united states to achieve victory in the pacific. it is because of their courage that we were able to protect americans at home while defending drauks abroad. many of -- democracy abroad. many of these veterans are in their twilight years and it's time we honor them for their sacrifice to our nation. while we can never fully repay the debt we owe these veterans, today we have the opportunity to award them with our nation's highest civilian honor by passing the filipino veterans of world war ii congressional gold medal act. i urge my colleagues to join me in voting to pass this critical legislation to honor our filipino world war ii veterans with the recognition they have earned.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: i will continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: i now yield four minutes to the gentleman from california, a member of the appropriations committee and chair emeritus of the congressional asia pacific american caucus, mr. honda. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for four minutes. mr. honda: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to thank my colleague, mr. foster, and on the other side, congressman huizenga, for bringing this up. it's an issue that has been a long time coming forward. and to mr. heck, thank you for your comments also regarding the filipino veterans history in world war ii. prior to this, we talked about the merchant marines, and i think that the merchant marines

, a long time being past -- a long time past being recognized. and bringing materials and artillery to fight fascism in europe. today we stand here in 2016 to ask for support for the bravery and patriotism and sacrifice of if ly 250,000 filipinos and i peeno americans to whom our nation owes much. i will ask this chamber to show its commitment to those who ve -- at a time of great adversery to honor these brave souls with the congressional gold medal. it is a symbol of our recognition of the service, but it does very little to recognize the sacrifice and the patience they had to endure since world war ii when it was

mentioned earlier that this congress had passed two recision bills in the appropriations in 1946, removing the filipino veterans the veterans' benefits and kinds of promises that president roosevelt and mckart you are had given to the -- mcarthur had given to the filipino veterans. the story begins more than 70 years old when president roosevelt did ask the filipinos and filipino americans who served during world war ii under our flag. we drafted them and we asked for volunteers and we goth -- got both from them. the people of the philippines stood up to this challenge and secured a victory for the u.s. and its allies in the pacific theater. historians have long since concluded these valiant efforts the filipino and filipino

american soldiers to keep the islands during the crucial hand during world war ii. over 60,000 filipino soldiers alongside 15,000 american brothers in arms were captured and forced to walk over 65 which o the prison camps was called the infamous baton march, the infamous bataan death march to the chips that would take them to japan where they would become p.o.w.'s. several thousand filipino americans died along the way making the ultimate sacrifice in our mutual struggle against fascism and promise of democracy and self-determination. a lot of the filipinos had interceded during the march to he ships endangering themselves of being beheaded or

losing their arms or lives because they're going to offer water and sustenance to our p.o.w.'s who are being marched to the ships. we have forgotten that and hopefully today this congressional medal of honor will help us remember the kinds of things that they have sacrificed. congress shamefully passed a recision act of 1946 which was mentioned earlier, betraying the promise of full eligibility of rights to filipino soldiers, turning their backs on these valiant souls. we did this consciously twice. in february, 2009, we were here in congress at long last passed legislation -- may i ask for 30 more seconds? mr. foster: i will yield the member an additional 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. honda: thank you. in february of 2009, we were here in congress that long last passed legislation that included benefits for filipino

world war ii veterans. this comes at the end of a 15-year legislative battle which has seen thousands of veterans lose their lives to the passage of time. this year we must send a clear message to the surviving 18,000 filipino and filipino american world war ii veterans that we are honored bir their spirit and moved by their heroism and patience. the spirit that remained hopeful through many, many years that the representatives in this congress would do the right thing. this is the right thing to do. join me in honoring all the filipino world war ii veterans with the congressional gold medal. and i yield back. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: i will continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: i now yield three minutes to the gentlelady from hawaii and a member of the armed services committee, ms. hanabusa. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized hawaii is recognized for three minutes.

ms. hanabusa: thank you, mr. speaker. i have just returned to the congress, the 114th congress, and i'd like to have everyone remember that when i first came here in the 112th congress is when we had the congressional gold medals to the japanese americans who fought in world war ii. i remember how much pride they all had to receive that gold medal and that is why i introduced in the subsequent congress the first attempt to get the gold medal for the filipino war veterans. in seven days, mr. speaker, we will be commemorating in hawaii the attack on pearl harbor, the 75th anniversary. imagine 75 years and we have still not kept our promise to the filipino war veterans. many of them are in both

congresswoman gabbard and my districts and i must tell you. all that they have asked for is the recognition by this country that they will keep the promises to them. mr. speaker, i'd like to say that it is such pride that i stand here to see that across the aisle we have been able to have this piece of legislation hopefully pass and to also know the hard work of my colleagues, especially senator hirono in the senate and, of course, congresswoman gabbard. but there are two gentlemen that i also want us all to remember and that is former senator daniel k. inouye and senator daniel k. akaka. the reason why is because they both said that the greatest

regret they had was that we could not and they could not change that act in 1946 and keep their word to the filipino veterans that they would have full benefits, that they could not reunite them with their families as they had all promised. but mr. speaker, this act, the act of this gold medal will make things somewhat right. it will at least say that this great country recognizes the promises that we have made and this great country will not forget the sacrifices that they have made for us. mr. speaker, i ask that all my colleagues vote in favor of this matter, this bill, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: i will continue to zverev. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: mr. speaker, i have

no further requests for-time. i urge my closing to support this -- further requests for time. i urge my colleagues to support this bill. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, i, too, urge passage for this bill and thank the filipino people for their support and friendship for the many, many years. with that 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 1555. 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 shes and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill senate bill 2234, to award a congressional gold medal, collectively, to the members of the office of strenalic services in recognition of their superior service and major contributions during world war ii. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: senate 2234, an act

to award the congressional gold medal, collectively, to the members of office of strategic services, o.s.s., in recognition of their superior service and major contributions during world war ii. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from michigan, mr. huizenga, and the gentleman from illinois, mr. foster, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include torle materiels on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, i also ask unanimous consent that the exchange of letters between the committees of jurisdiction be included in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. huizenga: at this time, mr. speaker, i'd like to recognize myself for as much time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, every wartime president of the united states and probably every wartime leader in history has had some clandestine help from men and women who risk life and limb to report on and sometimes to disrupt the actions of the enemy. no leader of such clandestine

forces was as uniformerly successful as visionary or ultimately had as much impact on both his country's affairs nd those of the entire world as colonel william j. "wild bill" done von. he streamlined the previously ad hoc u.s. efforts at intelligence gathering. the unit he founded, the office of strategic services, was the foundation upon which the postwar government billed the central intelligence agency. each branch of the armed services contributed members to the o.s.s. which trained, equipped and fought with resistance forces in the atlantic and the pacific theaters. its various operations were the forerunners of many of today's special operations forces. four directors, alan, william casey, william colby and richard helms, were all o.c.c. operatives and at least a third of the operatives were women,

including the favorite tv chef, julia child, of all speaker. mr. speaker, i rise in support of senate bill 2234, the office of strategic services congressional gold medal medal act, introduced by senator blunt of missouri. it has companion legislation to house bill h.r. 3929, introduced by our republican colleague, representative latta, which has 320 house co-sponsors. . the bill authorizes the striking and awarding of a single gold medal of appropriate design to commemorate the members of the office of strategic services in recognition of their superior service and major contributions during world war ii. after awarding the medal, it will be given to the smithsonian museum where it will be available for display there or elsewhere as appropriate. the treasury secretary's authorized then to make an offer for sale bronze replicas of the

medal at a price that will help depray the -- the defray and -- help defray the design production of the cost. we probably still do not know all the hair-raising sales that might be told. one thing is -- tales that might be told. one thing is not secret. we owe these men and women an enormous debt of graltgrathtude, not only for their work during the war, but for the groundwork that they laid toward what is clearly the best intelligence service in the world today. we should recognize those contributions by awarding the congressional gold medal to these heroes. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. foster: i rise today in support of s. 2234, legislation to award a congressional gold medal to members of the office of strategic services in recognition of their significant service and contributions against the axis powers during world war ii. i'm pleased to note that the

legislations that already passed the senate with unanimous consent, and that companion legislation introduced here in the house has already received the endorsement of 320 co-sponsors. upon passage here in the house, the legislation will be cleared for the president's signature. created at the start of world war ii, the office of strategic services was the nation's first effort to implement a coordinated intelligence system, laying the foundation for our modern day intelligence and special operation as capabilities. in addition to honoring and recognizing the meaningful and personal sacrifice of the thousands of americans who served as part of the office of strategic services, the legacy of the o.s.s. offers a number of lessons that continue to hold value to this day. importantly, the legacy of the o.s.s. serves as a reminder of the -- that effective coordination across our nation's intelligence agencies continues to play a foundational role in promoting our national security

interests. the o.s.s. also serves to remind us of the importance of working strategically and in concert with our long standing allies to prevail against those who seek to do our nation harm. indeed, during world war ii, the o.s.s. played a critical role in organizing, training, supplying and fighting alongside resistance organizations throughout europe and asia. moreover, throughout the war, the o.s.s. demonstrated that our government is at its best when it brings together a wide range of individuals with diverse backgrounds. at its height in late 1944, the office of strategic services employed nearly 13,000 individuals, nearly 1/3 of whom were women. the service also drew its personnel not only from the military, but also from civilians of all walks of life, including economists, psychologists, geographies -- geographiers and a wide range of other fields -- jogereafers and

a wide range of other fields. the man who headed the o.s.s. stated that, quote, we have come to the end of an unusual experiment. this experiment was to determine whether a group of americans constituting a cross section of racial origins, of abilities, of temperaments and talents, could meet and risk an encounter with the long-established and well-trained enemy organizations, unquote. he went on to conclude that, quote, you can go with the assurance that you have made a beginning and showing the people of america that only by decisions of national policy, based on accurate information, can we have the chance of a peace that will endure. so, i am pleased that we are honoring the thousands of men and women who made the sacrifice to serve as part of the office of strategic services, whose contribution was so crucial to america's ultimate triumph over the axis powers. i am also pleased that the legislation will allow future

generations to appreciate these contributions to our nation and the world. by designating the smithsonian institution as the custodian of the medal, and by allowing for its display at other locations associated with the office of strategic services, the legislation will endure -- will ensure that the legacy and the lessons that can be drawn from the contributions made by members of the office of strategic services will not be forgotten. so as we enter into uncharted waters with the incoming administration, i hope that we will all take pause and heed the less obs of the o.s.s. and -- lessons of the o.s.s. and remember that america is at its best when we work together with our londstanding allies and when we -- longstanding allies and when recruit diverse person tolzien serve our government. i hope it also serves as an important of taking care of our veterans once their service has ended and they return to civilian life. with that, i urge adoption of the legislation and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance

of his time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i would like to yield such time as he may consume to the author of the house bill, representative latta of ohio. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio is recognized for such time as he may consume. mr. latta: thank you very much. i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, i rise today in support of senate bill 2234, the office of strategic services congressional gold medal act. companion legislation to the legislation i introduced earlier this congress as h.r. 3929, to honor and recognize these brave veterans for their superior service and major contributions made during world war ii. the office of strategic services, the o.s.s., was america's first strategic intelligence service during world war ii and provides the basis for the modern day american intelligence and special operations communities. under the leadership of o.s.s. founder, general bill donovan,

the o.s.s. conducted acts of great bravery during the war and their efforts were another factor to the allied victory in world war ii. let me name a few. these efforts included organizing, training, supplying and fighting with resistance organizations throughout europe and asia, engaging in successful guerrilla warfare deep in enemy territory, establishing intelligent networks before the successful allied invasion of french north africa known aspiration torch, rescuing more than 500 downed airmen behind enemy lines in yugoslavia during operation hell yard, one of the most daring and successful missions of world war ii. conducting mercy missions at the end of the war that saved the lives of thousands of allied prisoners of war and inventing and utilizing new technology, weapons and revolutionary communications equipment never before seen. general eisenhower said that if

it did nothing else, the photo graphic reconnaissance conducted by the o.s.s. before the d-day invasion in june of 1944 justified its creation. i am truly proud to be here today to honor these men and women who truly embody the greatest generation. several members of the o.s.s. came from northwestern ohio, including arthur, who took part in operation hell yard in yugoslavia, captain stephanie raider, and another veteran who flew o.s.s. missions in b-24's behind enemy lines into occupied france. they have earned and deserve this recognition. congress and our nation are proud of you and we are grateful for your dedicated service. this congressional gold medal is one way we can extend our gratitude. mr. speaker, i'm going to thank speaker ryan, leader mccarthy and all the leadership team, senators blunt and warner,

chairmen nunes and ranking member smith, chairman royce, marcy kaptur and all the other colleagues, including the 320 members that co-sponsored this legislation for their time, hard work and support. i'd also be remiss if i did not also thank the o.s.s. society, and all those involved for their time and hard work in keeping the legacy of these o.s.s. veterans forever alive. with that, mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to join me in supporting passage of senate 2234 and bestow upon the o.s.s. the congressional gold medal. i thank the gentleman for yielding and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: i now yield four minutes to the gentlelady from ohio, a member of the appropriations committee, ms. kaptur. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from ohio is recognized for four minutes. ms. kaptur: thank you very much, congressman foster, for yielding the time and i'm deeply honored to rise today in official capacity, but also personally,

to pay tribute to the patriotic and fearless soldiers, heroes and her wins of the o.s.s. their worthiness to be awarded this congressional gold medal by our nation foreheroism in battle is long overdue. doctor for heroism in battle is long overdue. over 13,000 exceptional americans comprised the office of strategic services formed clandestinely during world war ii by president roosevelt. roosevelt aimed to create a corps of especially trained intelligence warriors to help win that harrowing conflict. for these many decades, since the end of world war ii, the secrecy of the o.s.s. and its member shold solders have been maintained -- solders have been maintained. i can attest to this. our families' beloved uncle tony, full name, anthony r egowski, our mother's brother, was selected as one of its members. he's buried in a simple grave in toledo, ohio, with a grave stone marker provided by the u.s. department of veterans affairs.

yes, there's an army crest on its facing. but there is nothing there or in any other location that would tell his family or those who will inherit our nation in the years ahead what a brilliant man and brave soldier he was. after his death, it was my particular privilege to present his precious leather flight jacket to his daughter and his son of toledo. uncle tony was part of the elite o.s.s., trained rigorously as war fighters. we still do not know where he was trained. we know he was dispatched to the pacific front, flown over the hump in the china-burma-india campaign. he parachuted at night behind enemy lines under fire, as he hit the ground to gather intelligence. he drove jeeps, filled with dynamite, to the front, along the burma road, fighting to cut off the supply of oil to the japanese military. our bill recognizes o.s.s.

detachment 101, that operated in burma and pioneered the art of unconventional warfare. it was the first united states unit to deploy a large guerrilla army deep in enemy territory and it has been credited with the highest kill-loss racial yeah for any infantry-type unit in american military history and was awarded a presidential unite citation. our uncle was knifed in a fox hole in burma by a soldier from the imperial japanese army, wounded badly, and he suffered throughout his life with terrible malaria bouts and flashbacks contracted in theater. he passed away in his mid 50's, far too young, of poor health, all due to war injuries. he was never recognized or acknowledged for his heroism, the other men and women who value yanltly fought as members of the o.s.s. i loved uncle tony. he was a complicated man, with a rare and devilish sents of humes -- sense of humor and a hearty laugh and grin.

you just knew on meeting him there was depth as well as honor. he was war-wise, sharing gripping stories about the war when i was a child, peppered with his own conclusions about the merits of the conflicts in which he participated. his letters sent home during the war to our mother, which she kept banded in a special corner of our parents' cedar chest, were unusual. parts of the letters had been cut out by his superiors. others, headlines that were blackened out, so as not to reveal his location or any aspect of what he was doing. as a child, that fascinated me, though i did not completely understand what it meant. his family never really knew where he was deployed, nor how he arrived where he was sent. he never revealed the specific details of what he actually did. and now through this legislation, sponsored by my dear friend and colleague, ohio congressman bob latta, and 320 other members, on a bipartisan basis, we now make america's military history more whole and complete.

frankly, it is the highest honor to pay just tribute to the o.s.s. members, the long overdue. as i participate in passage of this legislation, i am reminded of how america's greatest strength is the weaving together of intergenerational experience from one era to another. might i have an additional 30 seconds? mr. foster: additional one minute. ms. kaptur: i thank the gentleman. then extended to the american family and so today in the gallery we have noble veterans of the o.s.s. we know our nation stands on your broad shoulders. through their patriotism and sacrifice, america still is a young nation but growing and keeping what we have learned close to our hearts. in paying gold medal tribute to the members of the o.s.s., america honors those who bequeath liberty to us and we

must carry that torch forward as it was carried by our forbearers. i want to acknowledge one for his commitment to educate the public about this valiant group. may god bless the members of the o.s.s., their families and friends and may our efforts here award them the gold they o nobly, royaly and selflessly earned and may god continue to bless america. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, i'd like to recognize the representative from pennsylvania, mr. rothfus, for as much time as he may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such time as he may consume. mr. rothfus: i rise in strong support of senate 2234, to award the conled gold meldal to the members of the office of strategic services and their major contributions during world war ii.

we cannot imagine what the world would look like today had evil forces prevailed over good in world war ii, but thanks to the invaluable contribution of the brave service members of the o.s.s., we do not have to. the u.s.s. fought, trained and fought those in europe and asia that played a role in the victory during world war ii. they were pioneers in counterintelligence, technology and unconventional warfare. it was the prototype for modern day intelligence. the outstanding americans who save today as navy seals, u.s. army special forces, our air force special operations command, marine special operations command can trace heir roots to the o.s.s. authorize for those reasons we must recognize them and that future generations of americans learn about the crucial role they played in keeping america

safe. while so many of the o.s.s. service members have already gone to their eternal rest, including my own father-in-law, edgar lewis, it's fitting and good we pass this legislation while we continue to have o.s. members among us today. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from illinois. mr. foster: mr. speaker, i have no further requests for time. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. huizenga: mr. speaker, i, too, have no further speakers but would like to say i appreciate the personal touches and discussions from representative latta and representative kaptur as they talk about their family members in this very important organization. with that i urge passage and 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 2234. 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 chair would remind members of the gallery it's against house rules to show approval or .isapproval for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6393, the intelligence authorization act for fiscal year 2017. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6393, a bill to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2017 for intelligence and intelligence-related activities of the united states government, the community management account, and the

central intelligence agency retirement and disability system, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from california, mr. nunes, and the gentleman from california, mr. schiff, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. nunes. mr. nunes: mr. speaker, 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, h.r. 6393. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. nunes: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that my full statement be entered into the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. nunes: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. nunes: mr. speaker, passing an annual intelligence authorization bill is the most important bill that congress can do. today, ranking member schiff and i are bringing a fiscal year 2017 intelligence authorization bill to the floor for the second time this year. when enacted it will mark the seventh consecutive intelligence authorization act. in may, h.r. 5077 passed the

house with a strong bipartisan vote. i am pleased to say this bill, h.r. 6393, is likewise a bipartisan product that reflects the contributions of all committee members. the bill contains provisions from h.r. 5077 that won wide bipartisan support in may, and after extensive negotiations with the senate, incorporates numerous provisions from senate bill 3017 which was reported by the senate select committee on intelligence in june. because most of the intelligence budget involves highly classified programs, the committee's schedule of authorizations and the bulk of the committee's direction is found in the classified annex to the bill. this classified annex has been available in 304 for all members to review since yesterday. at the unclassified level i can report the total funding authorized by h.r. 6393 balances fiscal discipline and national security. this bill will keep the intelligence base funding at the same share of the

bipartisan budget act, discretionary cap as in fiscal year 2016, and is consistent with the administration's amended budget request for overseas contingency operations. furthermore, the bill funds military intelligence program in line with the levels of the conference version of the national defense authorization act for fiscal year 2017. the agreed text preserves key committee house and senate funding initiatives that are vital to national security. the bill funds high priority initiatives not included in the president's request and trims requested increases that lack clear justification. it reflects careful judgments as to which programs represent the best value for intelligence dollars in a changing budget environment. the bill will ensure that men and women of our intelligence community have the funding authorities and support they need to carry out their mission and to keep us safe. before closing, i want to take a moment to thank the men and women of this country who serve in our intelligence community

and the families of those who have lost their lives serving in silence. i'm honored to get to know so many dedicated intelligence personnel in the course of the committee's oversight work. i would also like to thank all the committee's members, majority and minority, for their contributions to this bill. many hearings, briefings and oversight visits by our members carried out during the year provided the inputs for authorization and direction in this annual bill to ensure the intelligence community remains accountable to the robust oversight of the people's elected representatives. i'd like to thank my staff, including our staff director, damon nelson, george papas, jeff, shannon, michael ellis, cott, jack, nick, mersa, bill, lisa, chelsea, doug, andrew, steve and angel. i'd also like to thank our two fellows from lows alamos national laboratory, scott and

philip. i'd also like to thank the committee shared staff, brandon, kimberly. in closing, finally, mr. speaker, i'd like to thank mr. schiff, my ranking member who has been just a pleasure to work with over the last couple of years. and without his work and his staff's hard work we would not be in a position today where we could stand up here with a strong bipartisan product. and with that i'll reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california, mr. schiff. mr. schiff: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. schiff: today we're voting on the fiscal year 2017 intelligence authorization act, the fourth major piece of legislation i've had the privilege of working on with chairman nunes and the membership of our committee, and i want to just return the compliment from the chairman. it's a great pleasure to work with him. one of the things i love about our committee is it's truly a refuge from a lot of the

partisanship of this institution. to be able to grapple with some of the enormous challenges of this country and to do so in a nonpartisan way is a real, i think, honor and privilege for all of us on the committee. i thank the chairman for his leadership in making it so. he continues to be just an invaluable partner on the committee. each bill we work on together provides a new -- proves what can be done when people work together constructively in a nonpartisan manner to solve real problems. in this iteration of the bill which the house first passed in the spring by an overwhelming 371 votes to 35, we also had the privilege of working closely with our colleagues in the senate, particularly chairman burr and vice chairman feinstein. as always they've been invaluable partners. 98% of this bill represents agreements forged bipartisan and bicameral, behind the scenes efforts over the past few months. we should be very proud of this bill and believe it's an even better bill than the one we passed in the spring.

it preserves in some case -- and in some case furthers the priorities of the members, including the initiatives of our democratic members, in particular, i want to highlight some of their contributions. the bill includes representative himes' provisions to improve the timeliness and fairness of prepublication review processes throughout the i.c. it includes representative sule's language on investment in -- sewell's language in investments on academic programs, hoping that students can take part in i.c. partnerships. and collect data to evaluate the i.c.'s federally funded academic programs. the bill also includes representative carson's provision to assist public and private entities in swiftly removing terrorist condepartment online. his provision on cooperation and deconfelix between the departments of homeland security and state regarding countering violent extremism programs and his requirement to have the committee receive information on the operational impacts of foreign investment

in the united states. representative speier's four provisions are included which would standardize declassification, photo copying fees across the i.c. to increase availability of information and enhance transparency. her provision to expand access to graduate education programs at the defense intelligence agency. her language on obtaining information on mental health resilience programs available to i.c. members returning from combat zones and reprisals taken against i.c. contractors who make disclosures that will be legally protected if made by i.c. employees. the bill also includes representative quigley's language to continue support the security services in ukraine. it includes representative swalwell's three provisions, including one to track foreign fighters. another to analyze the status of loan forgiveness and debt counseling programs within the i. crrment and it a pro-- i.c. and to better understand how the department of security and

energy take advantage of the expertise resident at our national labs. it also includes representative murphy's three provisions to provide a report dealing cyberthreats to or vulnerabilities in systems employed by sea ports and transshipment hubs including efforts to improve our preparedness in response to a cyberattack. it has language with respect to iran's compliance with the joint comprehensive plan of action. and it requires a report on security threats emanating from maritime smuggling routes and ways to better cooperate with other nations to mitigate these threats. let me also say that patrick will be dearly missed when he leaves our committee at the end of this session. he's been a tremendously valuable member of the committee. the i.a.a. also furthers important privacy and transparency goals, including by fully authorizing the privacy and civil liberties oversight board. the bill does not contain legislative restrictions on the scope of the authority to review the impact of i.c. programs on the privacy and

civil liberties of americans and non-u.s. persons. thanks to senate provisions we incorporated, it also advances declassification efforts potentially getting much more information to the public. there are no gitmo transfer restrictions in the bill and it aims at countering russia's destabilizing efforts and resolves the vast majority of the administration's objections which were laid out earlier this year. critically, this i.a.a. also continues to address the key strategic questions we must continue to ask now and in the next administration in congress. first, are we focusing too much on the threats of the day at the expense of the threats of tomorrow? it's easy to get distracted by nonstop crises, harder to remain focused on the long term even when the future can be more dangerous than the present. we have spent significant resources on counterterrorism priorities in the middle east and south asia, and we have to continue to focus on c.t. and the threat posed by isis and

its followers, but we must not disregard the growing threat posed by russia, whose global efforts of disruption must be checked, particularly against our allies and our alliances. and which must not turn away from threats posed by china, whose naval adventurism, infiltration of the supply chain and efforts to get around processes in the united states and to undermine data security, more generally, challenge our security and business interests abroad and threaten our asian partners. second, are we sufficiently protecting what we currently have, whether in space, at sea or in the cyber realm? third, are we leveraging commercial products and services while at the same time making investments in revolutionary technologies that do not yet have commercial application? fourth, are we recruiting and training and developing the most effective and diverse work force as well as leveraging foreign intelligence relationships and building foreign partner capacity? the u.s. has unquestionably the most advanced capable