than 40 year commitment to live coverage of congress. continue watching at-l at c-span.org or our c-span now app. the house is about to gavel in on legislative base. today the lawmakers are debating 12 business. ition? >> i move that the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 6087 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6087, a bill to amend chapper 81 of title 5:00 united states code for purposes of workers compensation under such chapter, services by physician assistants and nurse practitioners provided to injured federal workers and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from connecticut, mr. courtney, and the gentleman from michigan, mr. walberg, each will control 20 minutes. the gentleman from connecticut. mr. courtney: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise

and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on h.r. 6087, improving access to workers compensation for injured federal workers act. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. courtney: i yield myself such time as i may consume. today we are considering a straightforward bill for issues that federal workers face seeking care when they've been injured on the job. right now whether we serve urban or rural district, we hear about the physician shortage. that's why it's important for congress to surgically and intelligently reform outdated, antiquated policies in place that prevent qualified providers from teating -- treating patients who need their care. this bill achieves that goal for those who need treatment for workplace injury or illness and will allow qualified licensed

nurse practitioners and physicians assistants to treat patients safely and competently and be reimbursed under the federal employees compensation act. the bill states in section 2 that such treatment must adhere to the scope of prak it is for nurse paratickers and physician assistants as defined by law. the bill was carefully crafted so it doesn't encroach of the authority of state health licensing boards to determine the scope of practice. that is one of the reasons why the education and labor committee came together on a born irn basis to unanimously endorse passage of this bill. right now injured federal workers who serve our nation at the department of homeland security, the postal service and our national parks, to name a few, can only receive the care they're ensiteled under under the federal workers compensation law if it's provided by a sifi cigs and only a physician can certify a claim, regardless of whether the state allows p.a.'s

and nurse practitioners to practice independently. nurse practitioners and p.a.'s are a growing part of the work force nationwide especially in rural areas. patients are successfully treated by them in these settings every day and having the capability to be treated by a nurse plaque decisioner or physician assistant increases treatment options. the c.b.o. found this would have no direct impact on the spending by the federal government. allowing these providers to be reimbursed for the care they provide within the scope of their practice this is an extremely commonsense improvement. c.b.: o. has stated that this legislation would help injured federal workers return to the job faster. in this labor market anything we can do to improve workers'

healthy recovery and job retention is worthwhile. this bill is endorsed by the american nursing association, the american association of nurse practitioners, the american academy of physician assistants as well as a diverse coalition of unions representing federal employees such as the national treasury union and national mail handlers union. further the workers compensation program which is ad mrs the workers compensation act for federal workers in dwpts as diverse as the pentagon, interior and veterans affairs, found this would help alleviate barriers for such claimants and expand access to treatment. i have the honor to represent the largest military installation in new england, submarine base new london which employs over 1,000 civilian federal workers who perform outstanding work to support the 16 attack submarines that deploy from that base. some of that work is physically

demanding such as firefighters, police and crane operators and injuries do happen. this bill will create health care parity for those patriots by ensuring that they will have their claims handled and treated the same as any other workers who reside in connecticut and rhode island. this is an overdue and important but commonsense way to bring this program in line with the reality of the 21st century health care delivery. i want to thank my republican counterpart, mr. walberg, for his great support and work to bring this issue forward and i want to thank chairman scott and ranking member foxx for their bipartisan work supporting this bill and getting it through committee. i strongly urge a yes vote on this bipartisan and commonsense measure and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from connecticut reserves. the gentleman from michigan, mr. mr. walberg: thank you, madam speaker. h.r. 6087, improving access to workers compensation for injured federal workers act is a commonsense bill to improve

access to care for workers under the federal employees compensation or feca program. i rise in support of this bill that i have co-led with my friend and colleague representative court nay and thank him, his staff, my staff, the staff of the education and labor committee, and the -- for the diligent work on this legislation. the bill simply allows nurse practitioners or physician assistants to care for federal employees under the federal workers' compensation program so long -- and i make this clear, so long as that care is within their scope of practice under state law. under current federal law only a physician can diagnose, certify and oversee the treatment of an injured federal worker receiving compensation benefits. this requirement places an additional burden on federal employees who may have to drive great distances to receive care

from an approved provider. additionally it limits the injured individual's choice, depriving them from receiving health care from the provider with whom they are most comfortable. a majority of states already allow n.p.'s and p.a.'s to night nose -- to diagnose, certify an injury and oversee a patient's treatment and care for the state workers' comp says programs. it's time for the federal government to do the same under the federal disability program. furthermore, our bill will align the feca program with other federal programs. currently the federal government allows care provided or overseen by p.a.'s and n.p.'s in medicare, medicaid, the federal employee health benefits program and tricare. additionally, since 2017, the social security administration has considered p.a.'s and n.p.'s along with physicians as

acceptable sources of information for documenting the existence of an impairment for purpose of determining a disability. madam speaker, across the country, nurse practitioners and physician assistants provide critical care especially in rural communities where there may not be a physician within a reasonable distance. in michigan, there are 5,300 practicing physician assistants and nearly 9,000 nurse practitioners. they are an important part of our primary care work force in our state. our bill represents or updates federal law to grant federal employees more choice in selecting their health care provider. improve access to care and enable better continuity of care. again, i sincerely thank my colleague, representative courtney, and his staff, for their great work on this bipartisan commonsense bill. i urge all members to support it and i reserve my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from connecticut is recognized. mr. courtney: thank you, madam speaker. again i want to applaud mr. walberg for his leadership on this legislation. i now yield three minutes to the chairman of the education and labor committee, representative scott from the great state and commonwealth of virginia. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from the great state of virginia, chair of the ed and labor is recognized for three minutes. mr. scott: thank you, madam speaker. i thank the gentleman from connecticut for yielding. madam speaker, more than two million federal employees provide key services to the public. in fact during the height of the pandemic federal workers were critical in delivering vaccines, personal protective equipment, and other covid relief to the american people. so it stands to reason that when a federal worker gets sick or injured on the job we are obligated to provide them and their families with the resources and medical care that they need. today we can improve that effort by providing expanded health care access for injured federal

workers who are seeking health care covered by federal workers' compensation. we live in a country where people are increasingly turning to nurse practitioners and physicians' assistants as they primary health care provider. this is particularly true in those rural -- in rural america where they are disproportionately impacted by physician shortages. unfortunately, federal law now limits what can be reimbursed under federal workers' compensation, forcing injured workers to seek only a physician to certify injury and disability as work related and to deliver services. after all, core federal health care programs including medicare, veterans affairs system already recognized services delivered by nurse practitioners and physicians' assistants if provided within the scope of practice allowed by state law.

this bill will allow nurse practitioners and physicians' assistants to receive reimbursement for health care services they are providing to injured federal workers if and only if those services are already permissible under their state laws. madam speaker, a yes vote on this bill is a step to expand the group of available health care providers consistent with existing state law so that we can ensure injured federal workers and their families get the support and care they deserve. i want to thank the gentleman from connecticut, mr. courtney, for his leadership on the bill, along with the distinguished member oof the education and labor committee, the gentleman from michigan, mr. walberg and the committee ranking member drf this legislation and i urge my colleagues to support the improving access to workers' compensation for injured federal workers act and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time they feel gentleman from connecticut

reserves. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. walberg: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from maryland, my friend, mr. harris m.d. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. harris: thank you very much. i thank the gentleman for yielding the time. i rise in concern about h.r. 6087. improving access to workmans' comp for federal workers act. it was mentioned that it's fine if people are qualified if health care practitioners are qualified to deliver workman's comp. in some states nurse practitioners and physicians assistants, nurse practitioners' specifically can practice without physician oversight. the question is whether that's appropriate for workman's compensation. workman's compensation includes people who have been injured or claim to have been injured on the job. these individuals, these employees deserve the highest level of care, the highest level

of evaluation, of diagnosis, certification and treatment. what this bill does is turns over the qualifications for who is going treat those injured federal workers to the state to make the decision because it says well if a state decides a physician assistant practicing infeintly is just fine that federal workers won't have the benefit of having a physician involved in that care. madam speaker, this is a madam speaker, this is a serious policy debate. this should be taking place, not on a suspension calendar, but come under a regular rule, and be debated for whether or not this is the way we want to treat federal employees, we want to subject them to a state level of care as opposed to a level of care that we think is appropriate, again, for an injured federal worker. so madam speaker, i ask, without objection, to enter the letter from the american medical association, quote, strongly opposing h.r. 6087.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. harris: thank you very much. they give reasons. they say, look, education matters. patients want physicians involved in their diagnosis and treatment decision. i think that's true. they say that increasing the scope of practice of nurse practitioners and physician assistants can lead to increased health care costs. there are studies now that show that when a nurse practitioner is involved or a physician -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. harris: i'd like to have 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for 30 seconds. mr. harris: they mention, for instance, opioid overprescribing occurs four times as much when a nurse practitioner is involved. in a workers' comp says, this is -- comp case, this is significant. the a.m.a. recognized we're trying to attempt to pass this under suspension of the rules. i thank the gentleman for the

time. i thank the speaker. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from michigan reserves. the gentleman from connecticut is recognized. mr. courtney: thank you, madam speaker. just briefly. i agree with the gentleman from maryland that the goal here should be what's best for federal employees who do critical work for our country. but i think, also, what we want is what's best for people who are protected by the social security disability administration, by the federal employees health benefit plans, programs in which independent practice of nurse practitioners and physician assistants has been well established and, again, subject to scope of practice in the state where the patient resides. so, again, this is just simply conforming federal workers compensation law with existing practice and a whole host of other federal programs involving really important populations that all of us have a duty to protect. it is now my pleasure to yield two minutes to the gentlelady

from the education and labor committee who, again, does outstanding work on the workforce protection subcommittee, subcommittee chair adams from the state of north carolina. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from north carolina is recognized for two minutes. ms. adams: thank you, madam chair. and i want to thank the gentleman for yielding and for his work on this bill. i do rise in support of the improving access to workers' compensation for injured federal workers act of 202, which i -- 2022, which i co-sponsored. north carolina has 445,000 of having people not able to allow a nurse practitioner to oversee their workers' compensation claim. north carolina currently authorizes nurse practitioners to offer this care for nonfederal employees. h.r. 6087 will increase patient choice with the tens of thousands of federal employees in my state by making the

federal employees compensation act consistent with state law. as chairwoman of the workforce protection subcommittee, i am disheartened to hear my colleagues ton the other side o the aisle argue we are rushing this bill. h.r. 6087 has gone through the normal legislative order. my subcommittee held a hearing on this bill in december of 2021, and the education and labor committee held a markup on the bill in march. just a few months ago. of note, the bill passed out of committee with a bipartisan unanimous voice vote. this is a commonsense bill. i urge my colleagues to vote yes on h.r. 6087. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from connecticut reserves. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. walberg: thank you, madam speaker. i would just add to the comments about concerns about the care that's being provided, studies, repeated studies over the decades have shown that n.p.'s

and p.a.'s provide outstanding quality of care, improve health outcomes and increase cost-effectiveness. additionally, these health care professionals have advanced degrees from nationally accredited programs that includes both classroom and clinical rotations and must demonstrate clinical competency. once more, if there were legitimate concerns about the quality of care, whether it's a federal program or state program, provided by n.p.'s and p.a.'s to injured workers, then states would not license them to treat or diagnosis these -- diagnose these workers under state programs. a vast majority of states do recognize nurse practitioners and physician assistants as eligible providers for diagnosing and treating disability claims. madam speaker, i yield one minute to the gentleman from north carolina, my good friend, mr. murphy, m.d. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina is recognized for one minute. mr. murphy: thank you, madam

speaker. and thank you to the gentleman for allowing me to speak today. i rise in opposition to h.r. 6087. i do this as a physician where i understand that diagnosing, treating, and certifying disability claims takes an expert's opinion, not general medicine, an expert's opinion, and physicians have exceedingly more training and experience in dealing with what are truly complex medical issues. let's be very clear. disability is a complex issue. it is a life-long problem that at this particular instance requires diagnosis, treatments continually. there's in many instances we work together well as a team but i think our federal workers really, in this specific avenue, deserve better and i urge them to understand that physicians are the best ones to do this. using the claim that there is a

physician shortage should not be an excuse to lower what i believe are standards for expert care. that said, i urge my colleagues to vote no on this bill. thank you. i yield my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from michigan reserves. the gentleman from connecticut is recognized. mr. courtney: madam speaker, i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman connecticut reserves. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. walberg: madam speaker, i yield time now to the ranking member of the education and labor committee, my good friend and colleague from north carolina, representative foxx for such time as she needs. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from north carolina, the ranking member, is recognized for such time as she may consume. ms. foxx: i thank you, madam speaker. and i thank my colleague from michigan for yielding. i rise in support of this bipartisan legislation to allow nurse practitioners and physician assistants to act as

eligible providers under the federal employees compensation act program within the scope of their practice under state law. under current law, no nurse practitioners -- nurse pra practitioners and physician assistants are not covered by feca even though most state workers' compensation programs authorize them to provide this care for private sector employees. to be clear, h.r. 6087 defers the state -- defers to state law and does not expand the scope of practice. this legislation aligns fica with other federal programs that already include care provided by nurse practictioners and physician assistants such as medicare and the veterans health administration program. h.r. 6087 would increase health care access and choice for

federal employees when many areas of our country are grappling with provider shortages, especially in rural areas. according to the national rural health association, nurse practitioners and physician assistants accounted for a third of all primary care clinicians, treating medicare beneficiaries nationwide, and they're closer to have of the primary care clinicians in rural areas. improving health care access for fica beneficiaries would allow injured federal employees to return to the workforce more quickly, benefitting both employees and taxpayers. i urge my colleagues to support this commonsense, bipartisan improvement to our federal workers' compensation program. i want to thank my colleague committees, representatives walberg and courtney, and chairman scott for advancing this important legislation.

and with that i yield back to the gentleman from michigan. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from michigan reserves. the gentleman from connecticut is recognized. mr. courtney: just briefly, madam speaker, again, i want to thank the ranking member, congresswoman foxx, for her remarks, and mr. walberg, who, again, i think very effectively and specifically addressed some of the issues that we've heard in this brief debate regarding whether or not this is opening the door to practitioners who really aren't qualified to engage in the handling of workers' compensation claims. right now today, there are 26 states -- 27 states that actually allow nurse practitioners and p.a.'s to handle workers' compensation claims under state law, including by the way, north carolina and maryland. again, just going down the list, from all different regions of the country and, again, i think

it has demonstrated that the system functions smoothly and as the congressional budget office indicated that in fact it allows for quicker care because you got more access when you got a broader, larger pool of qualified practitioners. and that's really what this bill is really aimed at is just to make sure that federal workers will have that same opportunity to access care, particularly when they are in underserved parts of the country. to sort of frame it, i mentioned earlier the new london subbase, they have a really sizeable firefighters contingent there. again, fires on submarines and navy ships is a really demanding, highly specialized area of practice. if they get injured on the job, they do not have the same rights that a firefighter who works for the city of new london who gets injured on the job in terms of having access to a nurse practitioners or at that p.a. to

handle that individual's treatment and care and their disability claim. so that's really what this bill is doing is simply establishing parody for federal workers who reside in states, those 28 states that recognize independent practice by p.a.'s and nurse practitioners. we have some letters of support, madam speaker, which i would ask to be admitted to the record. one from the national postal mail handlers union. one from the national treasury employees union. one from the national rural health association. one from the american association of nurse practitioners. and one from the american association of physician assistants. and lastly, sorry, got a couple more. one from the nursing community coalition. again, i'd ask unanimous consent to have these letters of support ent entered in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. courtney: and i'll reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from connecticut reserves. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. walberg: thank you, madam speaker. and i appreciate that

information being shared again. i'd like to address some of the concerns that my good friends from the doc caucus have presented. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. walberg: we have discussed this in committee. representing districts that are rural, urban, suburban. the challenges that are there. but, again, the issue of states' rights and the ability for states to make decisions is -- there's a prim is i that -- primacy there that we ought to consider. a majority of states allows nurse practitioners and physician assistants to certify, oversee an injury to are a patient. furthermore if we're talking about precedent, our bill will align with feca program with other federal programs currently in place. currently the federal government allows care provided or overseen by p.a.'s and n.p.'s and, again,

i state it again, medicare, medicaid, the federal employee health benefits program, and tricare. that's significant. those are textbook studies on how it's working already. and adding to this just seems like it's justified and very, very important to do. going back to the states' concerns as well. if diagnosing or treating particular workplace injury is outside of the scope of practice for a nurse practitioner or physician assistant under their state's law they won't be covered under this bill, plain and simple. the bill preserves states' rights to make those determinations. h.r. 6087 is simply expanding choice. important at this time, especially with inflation and the cost that's going on and coming out of the pandemic and getting in endemic situations,

the congressional budget office, i repeat, note that the bill would not affect direct spending. c.b.o. noted in the score that injured workers can receive treatment faster. as my colleague, representative courtney said, returning to work more quickly and reducing the actual cost for some feca costs in the process. getting workers healthy and back to work is not only getting workers healthy and back to work is not only good for the individual but for the economy. i accept my concerns of the medical doctors. i understand that they've committed themselves to significant training. significant time in the classroom and in the hospital itself. but we also know that we've come of an age where doctors very regularly use the services and need the services of nurse

practitioners and physician assistants and there are communities in my district in rural areas that the doctor, the doctor, is a physician assistant. and the people appreciate them and receive good care as well. having said that, madam speaker, i'm now privileged to yield two minutes to the gentleman from illinois, my friend mr. davis. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from illinois is recognized for two minutes. mr. davis: thank you, madam speaker. thank you to my good friend, mr. appreciate your leadership on this issue and also the bipartisanship that's being shown to the american people today to address an issue that's important to ranking member foxx too. it's important to our communities. i am rising in support of h.r. 6087 because of what's been said. the positive impact that this bill can have within our medical communities, giving americans

access to the health care that they deserve is something that deserves all of our support. this bill would include physicians' assistants and nurse practitioners in the federal workers' compensation prpl and put them in line with the state scope of practice. it's also going to improve access to care for injured federal workers and postal employees, especially those in the areas that i serve, in rural and underserved areas like in central and southwestern illinois. getting people back to work as soon as they can once they recover from an injury is more important than ever given the record inflation we are seeing an the staggering 11.4 million open jobs in this country. again this is a commonsense piece of legislation. i'm glad to support the work of my friend, congressman tim walberg on this bill, and i would to work with you to ensurk with you to ensure injured workers return to the work force quickly. i encourage my colleagues to vote yes on this important bill.

thank you, madam speaker and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan reserves. the gentleman from connecticut is recognized. mr. courtney: a quick piece of housekeeping, the six letters which i submitted to the clerk's office exceeded the rule in terms of only five can be submitted at a given time so i would ask to now get a second bite of the apple and ask to submit the sixth letter independently which is from the nursing community coalition which represents 63 national nursing organization cross america and again ask that this be submitted for the record in support of this legislation without objection. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. courtney: i'm prefiredt close and will reserve. the speaker pro tempore: -- i'm prepared to close and will reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. walberg: i have no additional speakers and am prefiredt close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. walberg: we have all heard of the physician shortage in

america. nurse practitioners and phi sages assistants are an important component to gilling -- filling that gap. there are more than 150,000 physician assistants and hundreds of nurse practitioners across the country. they have degrees from nationally accredited programs and include both classroom and clinical rotations and must demonstrate clinical competency. allowing nurse practitioners and physician assistants to diagnose, certify and treat injured federal workers to the full extent of their state license is not only commonsense but is smart economic policy to ensure workers get back to work more quickly and off government-supported programs. the bill will not remove physicians from providing care to an injured worker if that is who the patient chooses. the bill is simply giving injured workers more choice to get the timely care they need. the c.b.o. scored the bill as

having insignificant impact on direct spending and noted many may result in fact in injured workers receiving treatment faster, thereby returning to work more quickly and reduced costs for the feca program. last lie the feca program is virtually the last remaining federal health program that does not recognize the role of p.a.'s and n.p.'s and the role they play in modern health care delivery. they can already provide and oversee care in medicare, medicaid, federal employee health benefits program, the v.a., d.: d., indian health service and the bureau of prisons and are recognized by the social security administration. furthermore, the bill aligns with the majority of state which is already authorize n.p.'s and p.a.'s to certify and oversee health care for patients in their state's workers compensation programs. this is a commonsense,

bipartisan bill that will make the federal workers' compensation program more efficient and ensure workers have access to health provider of their choice. i thank chairman scott, ranking member fox, my colleague representative courtney for their support of this bill. i urge the rest of my colleagues to support the bill as well and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the the gentleman from michigan yields back. the gentleman from connecticut is recognized. mr. courtney: thank you, madam speaker. mr. walberg's eloquence and comprehensive closing statement said it all. i want to tip my hat to him, to ranking member foxx, mr. davis from the minority side of the aisle and the speakers on on this side that represent a bipartisan message that we are prepared to get our federal employee workers compensation act modernized so that the -- the hard work of nurse practitioners and phi sages assistants they do every single day around the country is now extended to a critical part of

our health care system and also our federal disability benefits system. again, this is really about giving patients choice. there's nothing in this bill that mandates that they can't go to physicians or that they don't have that option. but in some areas people just don't have that choice. if it's the -- if you're in a place where the only real access is to a physician assistant or nurse practitioners, sometimes for even a life-threatening injury, we need to open the door to give people that opportunity and that's precisely what this bill does. again, it came out of committee with a unanimous vote and i strongly urge all my colleagues from both sides of the aisle to follow the lead of the education and labor committee and pass this bill with an overwhelming majority and with that, i 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. 6087 as amended.

those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- for what purpose does the gentlelady from georgia rise? mrs. greene: i ask for the recorded votes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to section 3-s of house resolution 8, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? ms. velazquez: i move that the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7352. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 246, h.r. 735, a bill to amend the small business act to extend the statute of limitations for

fraud by boarers under the paycheck protection program and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velazquez, and the gentleman from missouri, mr. luetkemeyer, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from new york for as much time as she may consume. ms. velazquez: thank you, madam speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. velazquez: thank you, madam speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized for such time as she may consume. ms. velazquez: first of all, i want to thank all the members on the small business committee for the work and support of the bills before us. the legislation we are considering is once again a product of our committee's bipartisanship and shows that we're committed to our nation's entrepreneurs.

the seven bills, the seven bipartisan bills we are considering will promote economic growth on our main streets in numerous ways. the first to reaffirm our commitment to being good stewards of taxpayers' dollars and importance of holding pandemic fraudsters accountable for their crimes. the second pair of bills under consideration will help small firms attract and retain qualified employees by boosting apprenticeships and career and technical education programs. finally, we will consider three bills to improve the federal procurement process and promote opportunities for small businesses to secure contracts from the federal government. the first bill under consideration today is h.r. 7352, the p.p.p. and bank fraud enforcement harmonization act of 2022, introduced by myself and

our ranking member, mr. luetkemeyer of missouri. h.r. 7352 sets the statute of limitations for all cases of p.p.p. fraud at 10 years, consistent with the statute of limitations for bank fraud. under current law, bank originated p.p.p. fraud is being prosecuted as bank fraud which has a 10-year statute of limitations. at the same time, p.p.p. loans originated by nonbank lenders including fin tech companies are often prosecuted as wire fraud which carries a five year statute of limitations. to address this difference, this bill extends the time for prosecutors to bring charges to 10 years for all cases of p.p.p. fraud, regardless of whether the lender was a bank or a fintech

company. s.b.a. office of inspector general identified over 70,000 p.p.p. loans totaling over $4.6 billion in potentially fraudulent p.p.p. loans, many of which originated be fintechs. according to researchers at the university of texas at austin, fintech companies handle 75% of p.p.p. loans connected to fraud by d.o.j., despite originating only 15% of the loans overall. as of march 10, the d.o.j.'s efforts have resulted in criminal charges against over 1,000 defendants with alleged losses exceeding $1.1 billion and over 240 civil investigations into more than 1,800 individuals and entities for alleged misconduct in

connection with pandemic relief loans, totaling more than $6 billion. given the extent of potential fraud especially among the subseth of p.p.p. loans -- subset of p.p.p. loans originated by nonbank lenders, we must ensure prosecutors have enough time to fully investigate and bring fraud charges. as of now, the statute of limitations for nonbank p.p.p. loans secured in april, 2020, will expire in 2025 in most cases less than three years away. and that is not enough time given the complexity of this fraud -- of these fraud schemes. as chair of the small business committee i take my role over the s.b.a. and its programs very seriously. this is -- that is why i sponsor this bill to give the d.o.j., f.b.i. and state and local law

enforcement the resources and time they need to bring this -- these bad actors to justice. i thank the ranking member, mr. luetkemeyer, for joining me in leading this effort and to the members of the small business committee for their support. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velazquez reserves. i now recognize the gentleman from missouri, mr. luetkemeyer, for such time as he may utilize. mr. luetkemeyer: thank you. i mr. luetkemeyer: thank you. i yield myself such time as i may consume. and i rise in support -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. luetkemeyer: h.r. 7352, the p.p.p. and bank fraud enforcement harmonization act of 2022. prices at the pump and prices on the shelves rattle the metal of the nation's job creators.

month after month, companies face price increases that hamper recovery. we must get a firm grip on reckless spending coming out of washington. similarly, we must take on a st stronger oversight role when it comes to investigating fraudulent covid-19 behavior. when america's small businesses faced shutdown orders, congress moved quickly and set up the paycheck protection program. to ensure they received p.p.p. relief in an efficient and speedy manner, we required private sector lenders to be the drivers of the program. $800 billion were disbursed to small businesses. i often hear about how important the program was for small businesses across our great nation. it was the lifeline that many of them needed to survive. while most lenders fraud defenses were strong due to

federal financial rules such as know your customer, fraudulent behavior did take place. investigations are under way. more time will be needed and required will bring justice to those who defrauded the program. the current statute of limitations ranges from five years for wire fraud that categorizes men fin tech lenders who have been associate -- many fin tech lenders who have been associated with problematic loans and 10 years for those that fall under bank fraud. h.r. 7352, the p.p.p. and bank fraud enforcement harmonization act of 2022 takes important steps to create an across-the-board 10 years statute of limitations for all loans handed out through the p.p.p. program. this will ensure all law enforcement and inspectors general have the time to track down the wrongdoing, no matter the type of lender. h.r. 7352 was reported favorably by a voice vote earlier in the spring. i wto thank -- i want to thank

the chair for working with me on the bills before us today. this is a step in the right direction. i urge colleagues to support it. with that, madam speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri reserves the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i reserve and i am prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york reserves. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. luetkemeyer: thank you, madam speaker. i'm prepared to close as well. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. luetkemeyer: thank you, madam speaker. when congress raced to save america's small businesses, criminal actors lurked in the shadows. although one of the most popular covid-19 relief measures, the p.p.p. program, has firmly moved into the loan forgiveness period, the investigations surrounded illicit behavior have just begun. h.r. 7352 will wisely ensure all loans handed out through the program, no matter the type of lender, have a statute of limitations window of 10ers into. according to -- 10 years. according to some of the most

inspector generals report, n nearly $4.6 billion of the $8 billion could be potentially fraudulent. it's pair mount we a -- paramount we investigate the fraudulent behavior. i urge passage of the bill. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri yields back. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: thank you, madam speaker. madam speaker, we must continue supporting the federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies as they investigate pandemic loan fraud. it appears the bulk of p.p.p. loan fraud was originated by nonbank lenders and fin tech companies, which may not be prosecuted as bank fraud and is, therefore, subject to a much shorter statute of limitations. this presents the possibility that pandemic loan fraudsters

may get off the hook because the statute of limitations expired. we simply cannot let this happen. this bill will give law enforcement agencies the time needed to hold fraudsters accountable and bring them to justice. once again, i want to thank our ranking member, mr. luetkemeyer, for working with me to lead this important effort, and all the members of the small business committee for their bipartisan work on this bill. i urge my colleagues to vote yes and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york yields back the balance of her time. all time having been yielded back, the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7352. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative -- for what purpose does the gentlewoman from georgia rise? mrs. greene: madam speaker, i ask for a recorded vote. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to section 3-s of house

resolution 8, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed -- suspended. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? ms. velazquez: madam speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7334. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 245. h.r. 7334, a bill to extend the statute of limitations for fraud by borrowers under certain covid-19 economic injury disaster loan programs of the small business administration, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velazquez, and the gentleman from more missouri -- from missouri, mr. luetkemeyer, will each control 20 minutes. the chair now recognizes the gentlewoman from new york for such time as she may consume. ms. velazquez: thank you, madam 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 measure under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. velazquez: thank you. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized for such time as she may consume. ms. velazquez: madam speaker, i rise in support of h.r. 7334, the covid-19 eidl fraud statute of limitations act of 2022, introduced by the ranking member, mr. luetkemeyer, and co-sponsored by myself. as with the p.p.p. and bank fraud enforcement harmonization act, this bill will extend the statute of limitations for covid-19 eidl fraud cases to 10 years to allow prosecutors more time to do their jobs. the bills are companion pieces of legislation and much needed to help law enforcement investigate and bring fraud charges. congress amended the s.b.a. disaster loan program at the

start of the pandemic to allow sm small businesses facing economic injury due to covid to apply for s.b.a. disaster loans which were originally designed for natural disasters. at the same time, s.b.a. lowered the guardrails and disbursed funds quickly to provide stability to smthe small busine economy, which as we all know, was facing unprecedented uncertainty in 2020. in a short time, the program went from one, a -- depending on the nature of the disaster to one that was responding to a nationwide crisis almost overnight. overall, the covid eidl program approved almost four million loans totaling over $378

billion. the s.b.a. administrator transitioned the program to the office of capital access to litigate additional management capacity. since that transition, the office closed out a backlog of nearly one million applicants and increased loan officer productivity while improving the customer service experience and solidifying robust fraud controls. nevertheless, throughout the pandemic, our committee held numerous oversight hearings with s.b.a. inspector generals who testified there is a great deal of potential fraud in this program and it will be a decades long effort to fully investigate. the i.g.'s office identified $78 billion in potentially fraudulent activity in the eidl program as well as over $6 billion in loans and grants related to identity theft

allegations. given the degree of potential fraud, we need to give prosecutors more time to bring fraudsters to justice. this bill will give law enforcement the time needed to conduct their investigation of covid-19 eidl fraud. that's why i co-sponsored this bill, which will go a long way towards enhancing oversight and accountability. i thank the ranking member, mr. luetkemeyer, for introducing this important measure and to the members of the small business committee for unanimously approving this important piece of legislation. i urge all members to support this bill, and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york reserves the balance of her time. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. luetkemeyer: thank you, madam speaker. and i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such time as he may consume. mr. luetkemeyer: i rise in support of h.r. 7334, the

covid-19 eidl fraud statute of limitations act of 2022. similar to the previous bill, the paycheck protection program -- similar to the paycheck protection program, the small business administration's economic injury disaster loan program which is known as eidl was also activated as the nation's small businesses were being shut down due to covid-19. however, unlike p.p.p., eidl was a direct loan and grant program through the s.b.a. unfortunately, the s.b.a. acting as a grant and lender has been problematic and resulted in billions of potentially fraudulent dollars flowing to criminals. in fact, the s.b.a.'s inspector general reported as much as $84.4 billion within the $400 billion program could be fraudulent. moreover, over one million applications have been flagged for identity theft concerns. this is unacceptable and must be addressed. h.r. 7334, the covid-19 eidl

fraud statute of limitations act of 2022 takes the first step and establishes a 10-year statute of limitations window to ensure law enforcement and the s.b.a.'s inspector general has the time to investigate all wrongdoing. this changes even more important as the s.b.a. continues to defer all eidl payments thus clouding the truex tent of fraud -- true extent of fraud within the program. i want to thank the chair for working with me on this measure and passed out of committee unanimously earlier in may. in order to take covid fraud seriously, we need to have law enforcement to catch and prosecute all criminals. h.r. 7334 provides them the time to act. i wholeheartedly believe this bill is instrumental when it comes to fraud recoupment and urge my colleagues to support it. with that, madam speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri reserves the balance of his time. the gentlelady from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york

reserves, continues to reserve. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. luetkemeyer: thank you, madam speaker. at this time i'd like to yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. meuser, the ranking member of the subcommittee on growth, tax, capital access. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york -- pennsylvania is recognized for such time as he may consume. mr. meuser: thank you, madam speaker. i thank the ranking member luetkemeyer for his leadership on this bill and in committee. the eidl program, madam speaker, was established to deliver relief to struggling small businesses during the pandemic. this is why i rise today in support of h.r. 7334. unlike the public-private partnership that the p.p.p. program, the eidl program was a direct loan program administered by the s.b.a. not in partnership with private lenders. the s.b.a. inspector general has estimated there is approximately $84.4 billion in potential fraudulent eidl activity. over 20% of all eidl loans

extended. with this massive level of potential fraud, it is imperative this house passes ranking member luetkemeyer's bill to extend the current five-year statute of limitations for s.b.a. grants and loans to 10 years. in doing so, we can allow for authorities to investigate the egregious amount of potential fraud in the eidl program and ensure accountability for those who took advantage of the eidl program to defraud the american people. this -- i note this bill had strong bipartisan and passed out of the small business committee by voice vote last month. i urge my colleagues to support this important legislation, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from missouri reserves. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york reserves. and the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. luetkemeyer: thank you, madam speaker. at this time i'd like to yield as much time as she may consume to ms. tenney from new york, ranking member of the

subcommittee on underserved agriculture and rural business development. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york is recognized for such the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. tenney: since the on set of the pandemic, congress has passed several relief bills totaling an unprecedented $5.3 billion. while some of the spending us onize -- unwise, some programs like the paycheck protection program provide red leaf to those who needed it. one concern is the disaster loan program, eidl. this program unlike others was direct lending by the s.b.a., the small business administration. this means the agency did not partner with our local banks and credit unions and instead approved and administered these loans directly. since the covid-19 eidl funding passed we have learned of countless case of fraud, waste

and abuse. the federal government is not set up to be a direct lender. this is one reason i introduced the house version of the transparency in covid-19 expenditures act which would require an audit of all federal covid-19 relief spending. there is obviously room for improvement in providing additional oversight and returning fraudulently awarded funds back to the taxpayers. in response, ranking member luetkemeyer has done a -- has done great work introducing the covid-19 economic industry disaster loans fraud statute of limitations act of 2022 that will help fix part of these shortcomings by expanding the statute of limitations for eidl loans and fraud from six to 10 years, the same as bank fraud. this will give officials a greater window to track down fraudulent activity and hold back -- hold bad actors accountable. no one should be wrongly profiting if the need to distribute aid in the pandemic. the american taxpayers deserve

better and i applaud the ranking member's efforts on this and urge my colleagues to support this. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yield back. the gentleman from missouri reserves. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velez cause: i have no further speakers -- ms. velazquez: i have to further speakers and am prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri. mr. luetkemeyer: i'm prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognize. mr. luetkemeyer: fraud is a serious management. due to mismanagement and poor oversight capabilities, the eidl program has been overwhelmed with fraud. the inspector general found more than $80 billion within the $400 billion program that could potentially be fraudulent. this represents a double digit fraud rate. however recouping these dollars has just begun and the current statute of limitations is limited. my bill, h.r. 7334 will extend

the statute of limitations to 10 years. this will allow congress to correct all wrongdoing in the program i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 7334 and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the jerusalem gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: our federal, state and local law enforcement agencies are diligently investigating and prosecuting pandemic loan fraud and we must continue to support those efforts whether in the covid eidl program or the paycheck protection program. we all agree that anyone who took advantage of this once in a lifetime crisis to commit fraud and enrich themselves at the expend of hardworking main street businesses must be held accountable. it is unaccept to believe allow anyone to get off the look for defrauding a government relief

program simply because the statute of limitations expired. we cannot let this happen and we must pass this bill. once again, i want to thank our ranking member, mr. luetkemeyer, for introducing this important measure and i'm pleased to support it. i also want to thank all the members of the small business committee for their bipartisan work on this bill and i urge my colleagues to vote yes and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: all time being expired, the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7334. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair 2/3 being in the affirmative -- for what purpose does the gentlewoman from georgia rise? mrs. greene: madam speaker, i ask for the recorded votes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to section 3-s of house resolution 8, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20,

further proceedings on this question are postponed. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? ms. velazquez: i move that the house suspend the rules and pass pee bill h.r. 5879. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar 244, h.r. 5879. a bill to amend the small business act to clarify the application they have price evaluation preference for qualified hubzone small business concerns to certain contracts and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velez -- ms. velazquez and the gentleman from missouri, mrl control 20 minutes. this chair recognizes the gentlewoman from new york. ms. velazquez: thank you, madam speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks

and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. so ordered. ms. velazquez: thank you. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized for such time as she may consume. ms. velazquez: i rise in support of h.r. 5879, the hubzone price evaluation preference clarification act of 2021. the hubzone program is a program based on locality. it helps small businesses in urban and rural communities gain preferential access to federal procurement opportunities by ensuring that small businesses in disadvantaged communities participate in the federal marketplace, it in turn boosts job creation and economic growth. one they have main incentives of the hub zone program is the price evaluation preference. this tool gives a slight competitive advantage to hubzone

firms competing against large companies. in doing so, it makes -- meets the objectives of the program because every contract awarded to a qualified hubzone firm is an opportunity for developing and uplifting america's most distressed communities. unfortunately, this tool is not being used as often as it should be due to agencies misinterpreting that it does not apply to orders. there's nothing in the small business act that excludes the price evaluation preference from being used at the ordering level and it is our intention that it be used at that level. given the prevalence of government-wide and agency-wide vehicles, it is now necessary to state in clear and unequivocal terms that the price evaluation preference does apply to orders.

this is precisely the goal of h.r. 5879. with this clarification, this legislation incentivizes the use of this important tool so that one day we can finally meet the 3% hubzone contracting goal and ultimately bring economic development to those communities that need it the most. i want to thank representatives newman and salazar for leading this effort which will bolster the hubzone program. madam speaker, i urge members to support this legislation and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york reserves. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. luetkemeyer: i ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, be allowed to manage the remainder of the time for the minority. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas will

control the rest of the time. mr. luetkemeyer: thank you, madam speaker. mr. williams: i yield myself such time as i may consume and rise in support of h.r. 5879, the hubzone price evaluation preference clarification act of 2021. this program delivers for the nation's smallest businesses and the smallest contractors. unfortunately consolidation with all the federal government's contracting programs continues to be problematic. our committee has examined many of these programs and have offered solutions that would deliver change. h.r. 5879 takes important steps within the hubzone program, one program, and ensures that the 10% price preferences available on all task orders within large multiple award contracts. i would like to thank ms. newman from illinois and ms. salazar, the ranking member of the subcommittee on contracting and infrastructure for the state of

florida, for working in a collaborative minnesotaer to address the hubzone program. bills like this have the ability to make a difference with -- in federal contracting and i commend the chair for bringing this bill forward. i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 5879 and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, reserves the balance of his time they have gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from illinois, ms. newman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized for two minutes. ms. newman: thank you, madam speaker. thank you, chairwoman devie laz chez for all your great work on -- chairwoman velazquez for all your great work on the subcommittee. i rise in support of the hubzone price evaluation preference clarification act. this is designed to give opportunities to millions of small businesses located in historically underutilized business zones. it would clarify the price

evaluation language to ensure adequate spending toward hubzone small businesses giving more communities the resources they need to build vibrantly. we must ensure that small business in every community is and can benefit from federal contracting. by passing this legislation we will take a crucial step toward a more equitable dis bugs of resources to small businesses throughout our country. i urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this legislation and thank you, madam speaker, i yield back the remainder of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the remaining of her time and the gentlewoman, ms. velazquez, of new york, reserves. mr. williams of texas. mr. williams: we reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i have no further speakers and i'm prepared to close. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves. the gentleman from texas, mr. williams is recognized. mr. williams: we are prepared to

close also. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. williams: madam speaker, i have no further speakers and i'm prepared to close as we said. i would also say federal contracting remains a significant endeavor for many of the nation's smallest businesses. h.r. 5879 ensures one of these flarydges hubzone one program, is ready to assist small business contractors. this legislation, which passed favorably out of economy by voice vote will level the playing field within the program. i want to thank the chair for bringing this legislation through regular order and thank the sponsor and co-sponsor for working to address these issues. i urge my colleagues to support the bill and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, yields back. the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velazquez is recognized. ms. velazquez: madam speaker, the statutory goal of awarding 3% of all prime federal contracts to hubzone firms has never been met. h.r. 5879 will enable agencies

to better meet this goal by eliminating all ambiguity and clarifying this the hubzone price evaluation preference applies to orders. i would like to commend representative mary newman of illinois, the sponsor of the bill, and maria salazar of florida, the co-sponsor, for working together on this sensible piece of legislation. h.r. 5879 will undoubtedly strengthen the hubzone program which in turn will ray ate jobs and stimulate local economies across the nation. i urge my colleagues to vote yes and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york yields back the balance of her time. all time having been yielded back, the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 5879. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no.

in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? >> i seek the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to section 3-s of house resolution 8, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? ms. velazquez: i move that the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7622. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar 247, h.r. 7622, a bill to amend the small business act to include requirements relating to apprenticeship program assistance for small business development centers and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velazquez and the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from new york.

ms. velazquez: thank you, madam speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. velazquez: i yield myself such time as i may consume. i rise in support of h.r. 7622, the small business work force pipeline act of 2022 introduced by mr. crow and co-sponsored mr. h.r. 7622 allows small business development centers to disseminate information from the department of labor regarding job training programs like apprenticeships and preapprenticeships and work-based learning opportunities. throughout the past year, small businesses have been hit hard by

tightening labor markets struggling to compete with the larger counterparts. as 9 recovery continues, unemployment drops and job openings grow to record highs. the smaller firms in our economy have found it ever to recruit and retain qualified workers. one of the most effective work force training methods used in the u.s. today is the registered apprenticeship program that combines classroom instruction with on the job training. according to the department of labor, the average starting salary for graduates of apprenticeship programs is $72,000 and businesses retain these employees at a rate of 92%. not only do apprenticeships provide a reliable pathway for

workers, but they also provide top quality talent to the business that trained them with the system provided by the network. more small firms will have access to resources to attract and retain high-quality talent helping them establish and improve these programs for the businesses while providing training opportunities and job security to workers. i want to thank mr. crow for leading on this issue with a variety of hearings on the topic and for listening to witnesses as he worked to craft this legislation with mr. fitzgerald. ms. houlahan. these bipartisan efforts will have a lasting impact on our main street firms. i urge members to support this bill. and i reserve the balance of my

time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york reserves. the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, is recognized. mr. williams: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. williams: i rise in support of h.r. # 7622 small business work force pipeline act. small businesses are facing skill gaps as our nation remains with 82,000 jobs short compared to prior to the pandemic. the nfib reported that small businesses have unfilled job openings and this has almost doubled to 23%. owners are trying to hire and reported no qualified applicants for the positions they were trying to fulfill. the small business administration offers resources to small businesses do face economic headwinds and labor

challenges. the small business development centers have served to be a valuable tool for entrepreneurs and offers free training, counseling and support for small businesses. this legislation will further improve the dbic to establish workplace opportunities. this legislation supports all work-based learning opportunities. i would like to thank congressman crow and congressman fitzgerald and congresswoman houlahan and congressman garbarino who make sure this bill reaches the house floor and thank the chair for advancing the bill. i support my colleagues to support h.r. 7622. and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentlewoman from new york is

recognized. ms. velazquez: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from colorado plrks crow. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. crow: i rise in h.r. 76212 small business work force pipeline act. as we help small businesses to and-a-half dpait the labor shortage, it is important to help small businesses. i'm a huge proponent of apprenticeships that help small businesses and help the workers get the skills they need to support their families. this is a great way to attract quality candidates who can't attend traditional models. this aims to empower involvement like the aurora sbd in my district. to improve apprenticeships, workers will gain skills to help small businesses grow their

businesses. i thank the chair woman and ranking member for bringing this ball to the floor and representatives houlahan and gash evenna and i urge my colleagues to join me and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentlelady from new york reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. williams: i would like to yield as much time as he may consume to mr. fitzgerald from wisconsin. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from wisconsin is recognized for two minutes or much time as he pay consume. mr. fitzpatrick: -- mr. fitzgerald: i want to thank you, my colleagues and specifically mr. crow for koa lating h.r. 7622. the bill would allow small business development centers to

provide information and assistance to some of the small businesses on how to establish and improve work-based learning opportunities. it also would enhance apresence tiesship programs, preapprenticeship and other job training programs that many of us are familiar with. i hear all the time from wisconsin small businesses back in the district about how the country's labor shortage is affecting not only the recruitment of skilled employees, but in particular manufacturing. and in my district, light manufacturing. the latest national federation for economic businesses' trend report shows while optimism and recovery to the prepandemic employment levels is increasing, we still are very much behind the eight-ball. 60% of manufacturing firms report unfilled job openings.

job training programs have a solution to address the needs of the manufacturing sector. apprenticeships are among the most successful forms of work force development and through paid and on the job training programs along side classroom education, we can make significant strides. this bill will directly benefit manufacturers and other businesses in wisconsin's 5th district by having job training materials readily available to them. i support the passage of this bill. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i will continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. williams: i have no further speakers and prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized.

mr. williams: this program has delivered for small businesses for many years. this will help combat labor shortages by supporting apprenticeships and learning opportunities through the sbdc's. this will help small businesses grow and help businesses with new skills. i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 7622 and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: there is no question that small firms are facing the most dire consequences of a tight labor market. at a time when economy is recovering and businesses are seeking to expand their operations, lack of access to a highly skilled work force can be frustrating to business owners and harmful to their recovery. maintaining economic competitiveness on the world stage means investing in our work force. and nobody is better equipped to

do that than the small businesses fueling our economic recovery. h.r. 7622 empowers sbdc's to expand work force training resources to small employers struggling to find workers, which will in turn grow the skill set of workers and work force of businesses. i urge my colleagues to vote yes. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york yields back. all time having been yielded back, the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7622. those in favor, say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. roy: i seek the yeas and nays. pursuant to section 3-s of rule

8. further proceedings on this question are postponed. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? ms. velazquez: i move that the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7664. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 248, h.r. 7664, a bill to amend the small business act to include requirements rethe -- related for small business development centers and women business centers and for other purposes pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velazquez and the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the the gentlewoman from new york. ms. velazquez: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under

consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection soy ordered. ms. velazquez: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. velazquez: i rise today in h.r. 7664 and supporting small business and career and technical education act of 2022. after seeing massive layoffs in the response to the pandemic, businesses are starting to expand their operations and grow their work force. unfortunately, this has created one of the tightest labor markets in u.s. history and small firms are feeling this acutely. oftentimes, small businesses are not only faced with a shortage of applicants, but within that pool, they are seeing a shortage of applicants with the skill set they need. one of the best strategies tore

attracting students with skills needed to enter a market is career and technical education or c.t.e.'s aimed at secondary and post-secondary students, these programs don't replace academic training but rather expand opportunities to give young people the practical skills they can use whether they enter the work force or continue in their studies. c.t.e. programs can train students with a wide variety of skills in nearly every industry and this program works with local businesses to understand what skills are in demand to guide the curriculum. this legislation directs small business development centers and women business centers to assist small businesses in hiring graduates of c.t.e. programs while helping program graduates

start their own business. it takes a two-fold approach of one creating a more adequate pipeline of trained young people for small businesses, and two, supporting those students who help to launch their own enterprise. they can help fill the gap and training programs and small firms by building awareness and fostering relationships between the private sector and our educational community. i want to thank mr. williams and ms. newman for their work on this bill. i urge members to support this bipartisan piece of legislation. and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york reserves the balance of her time. the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, is recognized. mr. williams: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized mr. williams: i rise today in support of h.r. 7664 the

supporting small business and career and technical education act. this important piece of legislation will encourage younger generation to pursue c.t.e. careers knowing they will have support to find a job. and it is important that individuals have atlantatives such at c.t.e. programs when wanting to find meaningful careers at a fraction of the cost. skilled labor has become a high demand market and is in need of plumbers, electricians and other skilled professionals who are the life blood of our economy. this skills gap is hurting small this skill gap is affecting the country. this bill will help students find ways to provide for their family. additionally it provides

valuable assistance so c.t.e. graduates can turn their skill into starting their own business. i have been a small business owner over 50 years. i can tell you that leading sales meetings, signing the fronts of checks and giving other people an opportunity to make a living is one of the most rewarding, if in the the most rewarding, things i have ever done. the american dream is built on innovation and entrepreneurship and this only continues when the next generation is willing to bet on themselves, be empowered to take risks and understand risk-reward is the dream. it is our responsibility to unlock the potential of our next generation so we can keep america the greatest nation in the world and keep it strong. i want to thank chairwoman velazquez, ranking member luetkemeyer for helping get this bill to the floor and urge all my colleagues to vote in support of h.r. 7664. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, reserves the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized.

ms. velazquez: i have no further speakers, i'm prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves. the gentleman from texas -- mr. williams: i have no further speakers and am prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. williams: madam speaker, small businesses and the american worker are the backbone of our economy. by empow the s.b.a.'s resource partners including small business development centers and women's business centers to engage with a career in technical education community we'll replenish our skilled work force and grow our economy. i encourage my colleagues to support h.r. 7664 and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas yields back the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: while our economy continues to recover and job openings increase, it is important that we ensure there is an adequate pipeline of skilled workers in our small

firms. fueling our economy recovery relies on them having the resources they need to thrive including an adequate work force. h.r. 7664 will go go a long way in connecting small employers in need of workers to these programs and connect students with opportunities of launching their own firms. i want to thank mr. williams and ms. newman for their hard work on this bill. i urge my colleagues to vote yes and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york yields back the balance of her time. all time having been yielded back, the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7664. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? >> request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to section 3-s of the

house resolution 8, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? ms. velazquez: i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 7670. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 7670, a bill to amend the small business act to require a report on small business concerns owned and controlled by women and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velazquez and the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velazquez, for such time as she may consume. ms. velazquez: thank you, madam speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. velazquez: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. velazquez: i rise in support of h.r. 7670, the women-owned small business program transparency act. the women owned small business program levels the playing field for female entrepreneurs who compete for federal contracts. additionally it assists agencies in meeting the goal of awarding 5% of all contracts to women owned small businesses. while the program has steadily improved it has faced its fair share of delays and challenges. for example, the program started operating 10 years ago after its enactment and since its implementation 12 years ago, the 5% goal has finally been met twice. the small business administration implemented a formal certification process for

the program in 2020, more than five years after being required to do so by congress. as a result while the agency is making great strides, it still has a substantial backlog of applications and implementation of corresponding regulations, especially when it comes to program examinations, remains to be seen. the importance of the program to elevating women-owned small businesses in the federal procurement arena makes it imperative to conduct oversight to ensure the program is meeting its legislative intent. h.r. 7670 willed acongress in this endeavor by establishing reporting requirements to better assess the effectiveness of the program. in particular, h.r. 7670 requires the s.b.a. to report on

multiple facets of the women-owned small business program including the amount of contracting dollars awarded through the program, the numbers of certifications issued, the amount of program examinations conducted, and much more. i want to thank representatives houlahan of pennsylvania and tenney of new york for their bipartisan work on this bill. h.r. 7670 is a commonsense piece of legislation that will bring transparency and accountability to the women-owned small business program. madam speaker, i urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the jerusalem from new york reserves the balance of her time. the -- for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. williams: i yield myself as much time as i may consume and rise in support of h.r. 7670, the women-owned small business program transparency act. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such

time as he may consume. mr. williams: federal programs and especially federal contracting programs require comprehensive and complete reporting requirements from executive branch agencies. this information ensures that not only the programs are meeting congressional intent but also to ensure that safeguards and oversight capabilities are intact. h.r. 7670 bolsters the women-owned small business program by enhancing the program's reporting requirements. having more information on how many whip- women-owned small businesses are certify and the amount of fees charged by third party certifiers will only strengthen the program. i would like to thank ms. houlahan of pennsylvania and ms. tenney from new york for working in a bipartisan manner to address the women-owned small business program. i also again would like to thank the chair for advancing this bill. h.r. 7670 is a good government bill that will provide more information about more -- about one of the s.b.a.'s federal

contracting programs and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas reserves the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i yield as much time as she may consume to the gentlelady from pennsylvania, ms. houlahan. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized for as much time as she may consume. ms. houlahan: thank you, madam speaker. i rise today to urge my colleagues to vote for my straightforward, bipartisan bill that supports our nation's female entrepreneurs. it's called the women-owned small business program transparency act. as an engineer myself and an entrepreneur and operator i know very much firsthand that data can help us to address and understand some of our most pressing issues in business. here's what the data says. year after year, women-owned small businesses continue to be underrepresented when it comes to federal contract funding. in other words, the playing field isn't nearly level. the good news is that there is already an initiative that is designed to address this.

it's called the women-owned small business contracting program. this program is popular and necessary to bridge the disparity in federal contracts but it needs some additional improvement. my bill will do just that by increasing transparency, by increasing oversight and accountability. through this program, the s.b.a. aids other federal agencies in meeting the statutory goal of awarding 5% of federal contracts to women-owned businesses. a goal which the chairwoman mentioned has only been met twice in history. the program has experienced challenges, including a significant backlog of applications and poor visible of the approval numbers by national certifying entities. so our bipartisan bill will address these concerns by requiring the s.b.a. to share six critical pieces of information. one, the amount of contracting dollars that are awarded. two, the number of certifications that are issued. three, the amount of program examinations that are conducted. four, the number of companies

that are de-certified. and five, the number of contracts that are incorrectly awarded. simply put this bill will allow congress and the s.b.a. to work together to help women secure government contracts. especially those in underrepresented industries which include the signature krp of our region, the mushroom industry, and also include underrepresented industries such as the dairy product manufacturing industry which is represented by the fifth and only baby formula manufacturer that's been started in the last 15 years that also happens to be in my district. the time is now to act both as our female business owners continue to recover from the pandemic and as additional contracts are issued through the historic implementation of the bipartisan infrastructure and investment in jobs about. i would like to thank my colleague and fellow entrepreneur from across the aisle, representative claudia tenney, for her partnership on this bill that will help level the playing field for all female

entrepreneurs across the country and i also want to thank and extend my thanks to chair velazquez and ranking member luetkemeyer. with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from pennsylvania yields back. the gentlewoman from new york reserves. the gentleman from texas, mr. williams is recognized. mr. williams: thank you, madam speaker. at this time i would like to yield as much time as she may consume to ms. tenney from new york, the ranking member of the subcommittee on underserved agriculture and rural business development. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york is recognized for such time as she may consume. ms. tenney: thank you, madam speaker. i'm honored to partner with representative houlahan to introduce the bipartisan women-owned small business program transparency act. in 2014 and 2019 the government accountability office found that women-owned small business program has several oversight deficiencies and needs to release more in depth performance metrics to ensure it addresses the needs of women-owned small businesses and the taxpayer. this legislation today addresses

these concerns requiring the small business administration to annually disclose the total number of businesses that are certified as women-owned by the s.b.a. the numbers certified by thirty paryd certifiers and fees charged by third party certifiers, the dollar amount and percent of contracts to women-own small businesses and information on contracts incorrectly awarded. for over two decades, the women-owned small business program has set aside at least 5% of federal contracting dollars for certified women-ownle small businesses. this plays a small part but important part of ensuring that the federal government does in the leave our nation's small businesses behind and that we continue to have a robust and competitive contractor ecosystem to pull from. in new york's 22nd congressional district small businesses make up 94% of all employers. and i have witnessed firsthand the tremendous impact of women-owned small businesses, in

fact, my own family business is a women-owned business. whether it's cursio printing in the southern tier or aerod me technologies in utica our communities and taxpayers benefit when women-owned businesses thrive. with these additional met ribs available to policymakers it will pave the way for future improvements to the women-owned small business program. only through transparency can we ensure that this program works effectively and efficiency -- efficiently for small businesses and for taxpayers. i thank again my partner and colleague, representative houlahan, for co-sponsoring this great piece of bipartisan legislation. i urge my colleagues to join us in supporting this and i yield back. thank you so much. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york yields back. the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i have no further speakers and i'm prepared to close. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized.

mr. williams: i have no further speakers and i'm prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such time as he may consume. mr. williams: it is important for congress to study all of the small business administration's federal contracting programs regularly. h.r. 7660 will enhance our research and assist us as we examine this program. the more information we have at our fingertips, simply, the better. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: madam speaker, long after the enactment of this legislation to create the women-owned small business program women still face inequities when it koments to contracting. the women i've owned small

business program tries to address these inequities and we have the opportunity to further this mission through 7670 and there is a reporting requirement to which to measure the program is working as intended. i'm certain this will lead to increased account belt and transparency. that is why i want to thank our committee members for advancing this piece of legislation. i urge my colleagues to vote yes. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from new york yields back. all time having been yielded back, the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7670. those in favor, say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- for what purpose

does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. roy: request the yeas and nays. pursuant to section 3-s of house resolution 8, the yeas and nays are ordered pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? ms. velazquez: i move that the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7694. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union call ep dar number 250, h.r. 7694 a bill to amend the small business act to modify the reretirementments of the subtracting plan of certain offerers and for other purposes pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from new york, ms. velazquez, and the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the

gentlewoman from new york. ms. velazquez: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered ms. velazquez: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. velazquez: i rise in support of h.r. 7694, strengthening subcontracting for small businesses act of 2022. subject stracting plans are important mechanisms for small businesses. in fact, for many small businesses subcontracting plans is the only way to participate. that is why the small business act requires contractors to have subcontracting plans in certain situations. for example, subcontracting plans are required for contracts

that have certain thresholds and have are awarded using negotiated procedures. while this is an important first step, it will not make a difference if the plan does not. there is a provision that allows agencies to liquidate damages if they do not employ good faith efforts. however, the standard is ambiguous and not always enforced. as a result, they face consequences for failing to meet the subcontracting plans. that is unacceptable. we must do more that planned contractors comply with their subcontracting plans. this is precisely h.r. 7694 does. it requires agencies to evaluate

past performance in meeting subcontracting plans when considering offers for new contract awards. in other words, by making sure that previous compliance with these plans is taken into consideration when making new awards. it will encourage nor compliance with subcontracting plans. i want to thank representative stauber and representative mfume for leading this effort which represents an innovative solution to a longstanding problem. i urge members to support this legislation. and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york reserves. the gentleman from texas, mr. williams, is recognized. mr. williams: i yield myself such time as i may consume and rise in support of h.r. 7694. all contractors know the

importance of subcontractors. their work and response bits are crucial to completing jobs on budget and on time. it translates the importance of subcontracting to federal contracting and especially those who participate within the s.b.a.'s contracting programs. past performance should acknowledge on all future dealings. i thank mr. stauber who is one of the biggest advocates for small businesses and subcontractors and mr. mfume to highlight this issue. i would like to thank the chair for bringing this bill forward and i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 7694 and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from particulars as reserves. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is rereserving.

the gentleman from texas. mr. williams: i would like to yield as much time as he may consume to mr. stauber from minnesota, one of the biggest advocates for small businesses and subcontractors. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized mr. stauber: thanks to this administration's bad policies, small businesses are struggling with skyrocketing inflation, record gas prices. it is imperative that congress help our small businesses find success despite this economic landscape. one way we can do this is improving the federal contract marketplace, a common theme we have heard is that prime contracting opportunities for small businesses are dwindling at an alarming rate. this means that subcontracting opportunities are more important than ever for our small

businesses. while large prime contractors are required to have plans, there is little incentive for them to comply with their own goals. further, there is no that a contractor take into consideration a past performance when deliberating new awards. while it is laudible that prime contractors have subcontracting plans, they have minimumal influence to award work to small businesses. this bill strengthens subcontracting for small businesses and addresses this problem in a few ways. first, the legislation will require the consideration of a contractor's proposed utilization of small businesses in its subcontracting plans. second, the legislation will require the consideration of the contractor's past performance in meeting its previous goals.

in short, this bill creates a strong incentive for large prime contractors to comply with their own goals since it will now impact their ability to win new work. i would like to thank my colleagues, congressman mfume for his collaboration. together, we have created a meaningful piece of legislation that will make a real and significant impact on small businesses and i look forward to continuing our relationship. thank you. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentleman from texas reserves and the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i yield three minutes to the gentleman from maryland. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from maryland is recognized. mr. mfume: i want to thank the chair for yielding this time and

her very important leadership on the small business committee and for the excellence of her example getting all of us to the point where we are today. as has been said, small businesses are at risk of being pushed out of the federal procurement space due to forces outside of their control, it is imperative we unite to stand up for those small business concerns and help grow their presence in the federal contracting space where possible. i am very pleased to work with representative stauber, the gentleman from minnesota, who on committee and at this time, jointly share an interest in this legislation because of what it does. i look forward to working with mr. stauber in the future on other joint endeavors. i thank the small business committee staff who worked very hard to put this commonsense bill by incentivizing large

prime contractors to adhere to their contracting plans. some might say why do you have to do that? if we don't do that, they will continue as they have done, not adhere to those plans and hurts the small business community. currently prime contractors have very little economic incentive to abide by their subcontracting plans and these are the plans that they themselves have negotiated. so when prime contractors disregard these prenegotiated terms, the only recourse that we have is to make sure that we find a way to involve ourselves before they are left with their only alternative, which is to file a lawsuit. given the nature of the courts any small business relief that may come to them may prove to be too little, too late. i want to thank the gentleman

from minnesota. this bill creates an economic incentive for prime contractors to follow the subcontracting plans by requiring any agency of the government to assess those plans and offer advice and an opinion on whether or not they comply -- would the gentlelady yield for an additional 30 seconds? by amending the language of the small business act and by spappedding its scope, this legislation will give contractors that treat small businesses the right way and fairway a greater chance of winning federal contracts and will hopefully incentivize those contractors that are not to do the right thing. i respectfully ask that my colleagues vote in support of h.r. 7694 strengthening subcontracting small businesses act of 2022 and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the

balance of his time the gentlewoman from new york reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. williams: i have no further speakers and am prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman -- the gentlelady is recognize -- the gentleman is reserved. ms. velazquez: i reserve. i have no further speakers. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. williams: as contract consolidation continues to build momentum, opportunities will continue to falter. the headline is headed in the wrong direction. the importance should be placed on subcontracting. this takes an important step requiring that past performance is required and congress will need to study this issue and h.r. 7694 will assist us along the way. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation and i yield

back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas yields back. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. velazquez: i just want to say thank you to both gentlemen, mr. stauber, and mr. mfume for their hard work and i urge my colleagues to support this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york yields back her time. all time having been expired and yielded back, the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 7694. those in favor, say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. roy: request the yeas and nays pursuant to section 3-s of house resolution 8, yeas and nays are

ordered pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass s. 3823, the bankruptcy threshold adjustment and technical corrections act. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will port the title of the

bill. the clerk: senate 3823, a bill to amean title 11 united states code to modify eligibility requirements for a debtor under chapter 13 and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from colorado, mr. neguse and the gentleman from oregon, mr. bentz each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from colorado. mr. neguse: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on s. 3823. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. neguse: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. neguse: thank you, mr. speaker, for the recognition. let me first say thank you to senator durbin, chairman durbin, and senator grass lee for their work on this bill. i want to thank my colleague on the other side of the aisle, representative klein for being the republican lead on the -- representative kline for being the republican load on the bill.

this bill shows we can come together in a bipartisan way and maybe changes to the law to help small businesses on main street and everyday americans. before the covid-19 pandemic many sole proprietors and middle class families were ineligible to receive chapter 13 bankruptcy protections because the debt limb were far too low. for many families they were forced into bankruptcy who waned to keep their homes, vehicles or any other essential property and were willing to pay off their debts under court supervision. chapter 13 is their only lifeline. the alternative for these families can be devastated. many have lost everything including their homes. the story is similar for small businesses. in 2019, the american bankruptcy commission found that the artificially low chapter 13 limits were driving people away from the relief they needed and they called on this congress to act. sole proprietors who could

otherwise save their businesses and protect their families have been forced to liquidate everything because they exceed the limits of chapter 13. the small business reorganization act of 2013, the sbra, created subchapter 5 and chapter 11 bankruptcy, a voluntary option for small businesses in need of expedited bankruptcy relief. but that low debt limit meant that many small businesses simply could not take advantage of the program. the travesty of the pandemic brought the need to increase these debt limit into stark rethree cares act raised the debt limit threshold under the sbra that was done on a bipartisan basis by this house and it provided important protections to families and homeowners but those provisions were temporary. my office has been contacted by the countless professionals from all over the bankruptcy community expresses the need for this legislation, the national conference of bankruptcy judges, and associate of the bankruptcy judges they have united states

have said that the sbra was one of the best modifications to the bankruptcy code in recent years. it assisted nearly 3,000, 3,000 small businesses across the country that were in need of expedited relief through the pandemic. the office of the united states trustee also reported that more than half of these small business debtors obtained successful outcomes through a confirmed reorganization plan in six months or less. despite the success of this program the debt limit increase under the sbra expired earlier this year, just a few months ago, on march 27, 2022, which created an environment of uncertainty and unpredictability within the bankruptcy arena. today's legislation rhett are actively restores the highest debt limit and extends it another two years to allow more businesses to take advantage of these protections under court supervision. the bill passed the senate by unanimous consent and i hope we

get a similar level of bipartisan support here in the house. the bill will make a big difference by allowing families to keep their homes, vehicles and livelihoods intact while they repay their debt. with that, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. bentz: thank you, mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. bentz: senate 3823 would make a change to the bankruptcy code. it temporarily increases debt limits for small business debtors under subchapper 5 of chapter 11 and for individual debtors reorganizing under chapter 13. subchapter 5 of the bankruptcy code is a lower cost rereorganization bankruptcy option for small businesses. these businesses don't have deep pockets and traditional expensive chapter 11 reorganizations may not be feasible.

subchaper 5 is a more affordable, streamlined approach which can lead to more successful reorganizations meaning both creditors and debtors should be better office because hopefullyless of the bankrupt estate will go toward professional fees and more will be left for the creditor's business and ultimately -- the debtor's business and allot plate the creditors. subchapter 5 took effect in february of 2020. at that time the debt limit for those wishing to utilize the more streamlined law was just over $.7 million due in part to expected trouble for small businesses the cares act and later legislation temporarily increased the debt limit for chapter 5 filers to $7.5 million. that temporary increase sunsetted in march of this year. this bill again extends the $7.5 million debt limit for another two years. likewise the bill also changes the bankruptcy debt limits for chapter 13 which is a way for eligible individuals including sole proprietors to reorganize their debts. the bill removes the distinction

between see cured and unsecured debt limits under chapter 3 and increases overall debt limit for those who wish to file for individual protection from about $1.9 million, to $2.75 million. like the adjustment to subchapter 5, these apply for only two years. put simply, americans are having a harder time making ends meet due to what i would we agree are mistakes made under the biden administration and democrats in control of congress. raising the debt limit will allow those suffering from these failed policies to adjust their debts to fit the new realities of our economy, skyrocketing energy and input costs, not enough workers and others. a successful reorganization can leave both debtors and creditors better off. at the same time we don't have certain data about some of these bankruptcy policy changes. or their likely long-term effects. that's why the changes to our bankruptcy code should be temporary.

an additional two years of normal postpandemic bankruptcy activity will give us a better understand og they have issues and help guide the future design of our bankruptcy system. it's also worth noting that the bill did not go through regular order in in the judiciary committee so it did not benefit from robust oversight or legislative hearings. americans are best served when federal policy is made after careful and focused congressional deliberation, something that would have occurred in regular order. the bill makes clarifications to small business bankruptcies that relate to eligibility, trustee responsibilities and bankruptcy plan requirements. these would be permanent. the bill also makes accounting related clarifications that will operate to improve the u.s. trustee system fund. thank you, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. the gentleman from colorado is recognized. mr. neguse: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i yield three

minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from texas, ms. jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. jackson lee: let me thank the distinguished member of our committee, mr. neguse, for his leadership, joining with the senate and thank you for recognizing, mr. speaker, this is a fresh start. this is a new opportunity in a important, bipartisan, bicameral legislation that mr. neguse has nurtured and introduced and will ensure under his leadership that our bankruptcy system works for the entrepreneurs, small businesses, homeowners and american families who are the backbone of this country and of the communities where they live and work. having the privilege of serving on the jew yish -- judiciary committee for some time, i'm reminded of the work we have done almost like a puzzle. putting together a better matrix for the american people to be

table renew their lives, even as they may have the necessity of filing for bankruptcy. if there's a one fundamental principle of american bankruptcy law it's the promise of a fresh start. the frern start is quintessentially an american idea. it is a promise that even when your best efforts have failed, you are not a failure. you will have a chance to get back up and try again. it is the promise that our debts will not destroy you. your debts will not destroy you. so by increasing the debt limit for small businesses electing to file for bankruptcy under subchapter 5 of chapter 11 to $7.5 million, long overdue and mr. neguse i want to particularly thank you because really small businesses across america have been raising this question. making the point that it is impossible for them to survive with the previous cap. so -- and for individual chapter

11 filers to $2.75 million. this legislation will provide much-needed certainty that the bankruptcy system will be responsive to hard working americans and their families traying to stay afloat in a world that can be turned upside down by global economic shocks. just as i started, again, just as i started, the filing of bankruptcy should not cause one to never renew again. this bill, with the leadership of mr. neguse, gives people a fwresh start and i ask my -- fresh start and i ask my colleagues to support his legislation. i'd also ask, by unanimous consent, to place the chair's record into the record, the honorable david cicilline. i ask unanimous consent to place this in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. jackson lee: i yield back. mr. neguse: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from colorado reserves. the gentlewoman from oregon is

recognized. mr. bentz: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon reserves. the gentleman from colorado is recognized. mr. neguse: thank you, mr. speaker. we are prepared to close if our colleagues are. mr. bentz: we are prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from oregon is recognized. mr. bentz: thank you, mr. speaker. with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from colorado is recognized. mr. neguse: thank you, mr. speaker. i will simply close by saying thank you to the distinguished chairwoman from texas who is always so articulate and we're grateful for her leadership and grateful for her kind remarks. also to chairman cicilline, the chairman of the subcommittee of jurisdiction, whose leadership was pivotal and, of course, as i mentioned earlier, my senate partners and representative cline. at the end of the day, i think we have a real opportunity today to honor american ingenuity, entrepreneurship, and innovation by providing our small businesses across the united states, in main street after

main street, with the opportunity and the tools that they need to be able to survive. i think this bill is a small step in that direction. it is bipartisan. it passed the senate unanimously. and i certainly hope that it will pass this chamber unanimously as well. with that, mr. speaker, i'd urge my colleagues to support the bill and i'd 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 senate 3823. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative -- for what purpose does the gentleman seek recognition? >> request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to section 3-s of house resolution 8, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed.

the chair lays before the house an enrolled bill. the clerk: h.r. 3525, an act to establish the commission to study the potential creation of a national museum of the asian pacific museum and culture and for other purposes.

for what purpose does the gentleman from soerg -- the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from oregon seek recognition? mr. defazio: i ask unanimous consent that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 7776 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 7776, a bill to provide for improvements to the rivers and harbors of the united states, to provide for the conservation and development of water and related resources, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from oregon, mr. defazio, and the gentleman from missouri, mr. graves, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from oregon. mr. defazio: 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 h.r. 7776, as amended.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. defazio: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. defazio: mr. speaker, this will be the fifth consecutive two-year authorization of the water resources development act since 2014. tradition revised by our former -- revived by our former chair, bill shuster, and i'm grateful for the partnership of sam graves, the subcommittee ranking member -- the committee ranking member, subcommittee grace napolitano, chair, and subcommittee ranking member dave rouzer for all their work in developing this historic water resources development act. this legislation builds on the successes of previous wrda bills, moving projects from feasibility to construction. two-year cycle is critical to addressing future water resource needs of our nation. it authorizes construction of 18 reports of the chief of engineers who studied and transmitted to congress since the last wrda bill signed into

law. these chiefs' reports represent thoroughly vetted, locally driven projects, highly engaged in cost share projects that cover a myriad of purposes, navigation, flood control, levees, ecosystem restoration, that will benefits communities across the united states of america. the bill also authorizes 72 new feasibility studies and direct the corps to expedite the completion of 14 ongoing studies. you know, the -- it is critical that we keep our infrastructure in this nation up to date with new challenges with severe weather events, sea level rise, and other things and deal with the challenges that communities across this country endure. for two decades, i spent two decades -- actually started longer than that. bud shuster. 1996. trying to free up the harbor maintenance trust fund. that's a tax paid by shippers which ultimately is passed onto

consumers on the value of imported goods which have been empounded for years, totaling nearly $10 billion while our harbors needed dredging, jetties needed rebuilding. we finally got that done in 2020. that was historic. it gives the corps more resources on the harbor side which means they can devote a little bit of their allocation to the inland waterways and to their other 40 some odd billion dollars of backlog of critical projects across the country. it will meet the challenge of climate change by rebuilding these navigation jetties and break waters to new heights, dimensions necessary for sea level rise, extreme weather, studying the impacts of coastal stores on inland flooding, a particular concern to the ranking member, address future water supplies in the arid west, of particular concern -- well, all of us in the west but particularly those further south

and the chair of the subcommittee. a 21st century challenges should have 21st century solutions. the corps has been hamstrung in their ability. we worked with other members who heard similar concerns. this will allow the corps to be the innovation export they need to be to address our nation's ongoing new challenges. i'm also proud it will continue building upon efforts to provide equitable project outcomes, flexibility for communities with affordability concerns. it will address the needs of economically minority, tribal communities in an affordable manner. in particular, the bill creates a tribal liaison position within each corps office. the corps often fails to meet meaningfully with the tribes. tribal leaders will have a direct line of communication now into the regional office, back to the national office to get consultation, technical assistance, and information to

them. and i'd really like to thank subcommittee chair napolitano and representative stanton for their tireless work advocating for our tribal communities. first time in a decade significantly expands the corps environmental infrastructure authorities and insists more communities in addressing drinking water, wastewater needs. we need major, major work in these areas. all these communities, red, blue, whatever, are suffering. we need these tools to help them. so, again, you know, i'd like to thank chair napolitano for her effort to help the corps flexibility additional authorities, help them meet future water supply needs of the arid regions of this nation. we're rationing the colorado river for the first time in history this year. her input and advocacy brought many of the environmental justices in this bill. support tribal communities. she's been a tireless advocate for meeting the needs of her district, her state, and the nation.

also thank sam graves. you know, i couldn't ask for a better partner on this bill. his steadfast support has made this possible. the gentleman from north carolina, mr. rouzer, for his support and wise input on the bill before us today. their input brought in critical perspectives. and we also had subcommittee vice chair representative bourdeaux of georgia who brought recreational safety concerns at local dams to our attention. representative williams of georgia supported a watershedwide study the chat huchy -- chattahoochee river. and representative kahele. i thank the gentlemen. representative newman of illinois for the glaiks. representative carter came to the table with fresh water policy ideas to help louisiana to deal with natural disaster, sea level rise and severe weather events. mr. speaker, this is essential

legislation and i urge my colleagues to support it. with that i reclaim -- reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. graves: i rise in support of the -- of h.r. 7776, the wrda act of 2022. we advanced this bipartisan legislation out of committee by voice vote and i'm proud to consider the bipartisan tradition of passing the wrda bill every two years, as the chairman pointed out, something we have done since 2014. i want to thank chairman defazio and the water resources environment chair napolitano and ranking member rouzer for all their hard work and support in getting this legislation across the finish line here in the house. wrda 2022 authorizes water infrastructure projects and policies that are critical to local communities but also

provides far-reaching benefits to both the region and our national economy. with the current supply chain crisis and surging inflation our country faces, it is more important than ever that congress continues to support our nation's water infrastructure that keeps our economy moving and protects our communities. wrda 2022 supports american competitiveness and our economy by ensuring the reliability and the effectiveness of our nation's ports and inland waterways to move american goods and products to those who need them. this legislation also boasts flood protection for our local communities such as those in missouri's sixth district which is my own district. in missouri, we are at a crossroads of the largest rivers in the country, the missouri river and the mississippi river. these rivers are an invaluable natural resource that provides drinking water and irrigation and transportation.

however, it can also be the source of some very devastating flooding. my constituents are still working to recover and rebuild their homes and their farms and businesses in their communities after devastating flooding that occurred in 2019. i know all too well the consequences when water resources are mismanaged. which is why wrda 2022 is going to ensure the corps remains focused on its core missions and priorities and activities like flood control and navigation. to do this, this bill contains assistance for meeting levee inspection requirements. it examines ways to control erosion on our rivers and supports missouri flood control projects. these and other provisions in wrda 2022 will provide benefits not only to missourians but citizens all across the country who depend on water resources and infrastructure in their daily lives. i want to, again, thank everybody for their support and developing -- in developing this legislation that includes staff on both sides of the aisle,

specifically on my team. i do want to acknowledge my staff director, paul, for his leadership. the republican staff on this bill. many other important bills for that matter over the last 3 1/2 years. at the end of this week, paul's going to be leaving the committee after more than 20 years of public service on capitol hill and all of that time working for me and my personal office or on my committee staff. i want to thank him for his dedication and his guidance and friendship over the last two decades. he's a lot to be proud of. as he moves forward in the next chapter of his career, he can look back and, again, be proud of all that he's done. i wish him and his family nothing but the best. with that i urge my colleagues to support today's legislation, wrda 2022, and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri reserves. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. defazio: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to enter into the congressional record a list of organizations that support h.r. 7776, totaling 51 very

diverse organizations. i'm certain there are more. without objection. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. defazio: i yield to the chair of the subcommittee, grace napolitano, five minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from california is recognized. mrs. napolitano: thank you, mr. speaker. thank you, mr. defazio. . i'm pleased to join my chair, peter defazio, mr. grace, mr. rouser to bring to the floor h.r. 7776, the water resources development act of 2022. the water resources development act is our legislative commitment to investing in and protecting our communities from flooding event, restoring environment and ecosystems and keeping our nation's competitiveness by supporting our ports andujar boars. through the biennial enactment of water legislation, the transportation and infraschuk truer committee has addressed local, regional and national needs through authorization of the u.s. army corps of engineers

project studies and benefit -- that benefit every corner of the nation. we held four hearings in preparation for this bill including a members day hearing. we had a formal process to receive legislate process and policy ideas from members resulting in other 1,500 ideas. 1,500. submitted to us from members. so that is quite an accomplishment for our staff to go through. i thank all members for engaging in the committee, with the committee on this bill and advocating for the needs of the district. we are able to incorporate most of the requests from the members into the bill. i am particularly thankful that we were able to make a commitment to this wrda, to address the needs of triple communities. this bill improves outreach to these communities by creating liaison programs in each district rejob across the

country. that's new. wrda includes providing guidance to tribal communities on water resources project, identify opportunities and challenges on existing core projects and providing assistance for future projects. the bill gives core personnel the training and tools to effectively address issues on tribal lands on historic and cultural differences including burl grounds. wrda also includes water supply at the core dams by addressing aquifer replacements so the dams hold recharge water for ground water basins. it acrests buildup and removal of sediment to improve the operation and capacity of dams. the bill requires the courts to take a particular focus on infrastructure in the west, to evaluate opportunities to improve water management, water supply and address the impoosks climate change.

section 116 of the bill continues congress' goal of improving dam safety by determining the needs for rehabilitation, retrofit and removal. section 128 of the intil a bipartisan legislation, my good friend ranking rouser and i introduced h.r. 7762, the army oarp of engineers military personnel augmentation act, an outdated 1956 law which prohibited soldiers who have technical skills to provide engineering support to the civil works mission of the army corps. in 1956, there were not a lot of n.c.o.'s with advanced degrees so it was presumed that only commissioned officers would be properly trained to handle sieve work responsibilities. since that time in the development of the professional army, there are many n.c.o.'s, national guard officers and warrant officers with advanced

engineering and technical skills and no longer makes sense to exclude them for civil works. the change is supported by the chief engineer and national guard of the united states. the bill also provides for havens local concerns throughout the country and i'm proud this bill transfers the authorization of 31 debris basins in my region in los angeles county flood control district. these are locally owned and have been successfully operated and maintained by the county of los angeles for decades. the provision will formalize the current operation of debris basin. wrda includes authorizations for edevelopment of storm water, sewer and restoration projects in the greater los angeles county. it will improve flood protection and treatment operations. mr. speaker, i would like to thank the many people who helped this pill become a reality.

thank you to the leadership at the u.s. army corps of engineers, secretary connor and other critical staff who worked through over a thousand submissions we received on wrda 2022. i'm best to have some of the best water leaders in the clint in my district who provided valuable input for this, including colonel julie ballton, the los angeles county supervisor. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. mrs. napolitano: i urge my colleagues to support 2022. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i yield two minutes to the gentleman from north carolina, the ranking member of the water resources committee, david rouser. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. rouser: i'd like to thank chairman defazio, ranking member graves for their leadership and work to ensure the water

resources acts, wrdas, for short, continue to be bipartisan and biennial. because of this commitment, before the house today is h.r. 7776, the water resources development act of 2022. i'm pleased to be part of this continuing bipartisan tradition of passing a wrda bill every two years. just three weeks ago this bill passed out of the committee by voice vote. the legislation is a product resulting from the input of many members of congress. it is an example of what can be achieved when congress comes together to fund solutions for their constituents and the american public. wrda bills provide congressional direction on the allocation of dollars for rotter resource prompts and policy across the nation. this legislation authorizes a number of chiefs reports and studies as well as new environmental infrastructure projects for the first time since 2007. in my home state of north carolina, we real rely on a

significant amount of coastal and inland waterway infrastructure and resources. these bring us many benefits but our communities can also face devastating consequencesser from severe storms and the flooding of inland waterways vols. wrda 2022 will help address the risks by directing the corps to improve management of our nation's coastal mapping projects which provide information to states and local communities so they can better respend to extreme weather events. this program an other provisions in this year's legislation will provide improved flood control and storm damage reduction for constituents and stake holders across the country. i'm pleased to be a part of this bipartisan effort and again, i want to thank chairman defazio, chair napolitano for working across the aisle with us on this critical, commonsense legislation. i also want to take a quick moment to thank toll sasse, staff director for the minority on the committee, who will soon

be leaving for other opportunities. he has provided many years service and hard work for the people of missouri, ranking member graves, myself and all the noaives t.n.i. committee. thank you, paul, for your great counsel and all the work you have done. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. defazio: can i ask how much time remains on either side? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon has nine minutes remaining. mr. defazio: i yield two and a half minutes to the gentlelady from georgia. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. >> today i rise in support of the water resources development act of 2022. i'm grateful for chairs defazio and napolitano and ranking member graves and rouzer as well as the committee staff for working with my staff and me to enshower some key needs are

meet. my district is home to lake lanier and the buford dam which are critical water resources. the river supplies 70% of atlanta's drinking water and it is hard to overstate how important the lake and river are to the metro area. it's also a key source of water for farmersen throughout the state. more than 1,000 miles of waterwaywithin the watershed don't meet water quality standards. this bill would authorize a watershed base studier if chattahoochee river basin to allow them to assess the needs of the basin including ecosystem protection, restoration, flood risk management, watershed protection, and drought preparedness. this bill also includes important legislation, my lake lanier and upper chat hue chi river -- chattahoochee river safety act to study threats to human life and safety from the

river. there are parts of the river that are extremely dangerous and during release of watter from the dam the chattahoochee can rise as much as 11 feet many mines. ms. bourdeaux: the bill would authorize the corps to take measures necessary to make the river safer and minimize or eliminate some of the hazards. finally, i am proud to see lake lanier included as a focus area in the previously authorized harmful algal bloom demonstration program which will allow the corps to work with stake holders to research tools for fresh water h.a.b. detection. the bill before us today delivers for my constituents and the people of georgia and delivers for the people this country. i urge my colleagues to vote yes. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized. the gentleman from missouri has 14 minutes remaining. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i yield 1 1/2 minutes to the gentleman from

arkansas, the ranking member of the subcommittee, mr. crawford. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. crawford: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of water resources development act. wrda authorizes projects designed to improve the nation's water resources infrastructure, including ports, harbors, and flood and storm protection. i'm thankful to chairman defazio for working with me to ensure prior toifs my district made it into the final language and for the leadership of ranking member graves as we fought for community driven water solutions. wrda is a testament to our ability to pass critical legislation and work in a bipartisan fashion to deliver results to the american people. i encourage my colleagues to vote in favor of h.r. 7776. and finally let me add my voice to those recognizing paul sasse who is ending his 20-year career on capitol hill as at the end of the week. since coming to the t.n.i., he's

been a great asset to the staff and been a resource to my staff as well and helped lead the committee's commitment to safe transportation systems. thanks for your years public service and wish you the best in your next chapter. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon. mr. defazio: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. garamendi. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. garamendi: thank you, mr. speaker. a big thank you to defazio, napolitano, graves, rouzer and their incredible staff they put together. the water resources development act of 2022. there's always talk about congressional dysfunction and that's certainly true in the senate but not here in the house of representatives. this is the fifth consecutive biennial wrda the house has brought to the floor since 2014. the resources development act provides key provisions for solano and yolo county, the bay

area san joaquin delta and all of california's third congressional district. specifically the water resources development act directs the army corps of engineers to direct the economic and national security benefits of drenling the strait channel which has not been studied since 1999. this is the first step in my ongoing efforts to increase federal investment at the island and ship facile nirs u.s. navy and coast guard including the private investment announced by the dry dock company. it authorizes $50 million for environmentally friendly infrastructure projects in the five counties comprising the california delta. furthermore, it provides construction and authorizes construction for the lower cash creek flood risk management brojt the city of woodland. doubles the federal funding to $50 million to support restoration efforts in the lake tahoe basin. requires the army corps of engineers to use more dredge

settlement for beneficial use. and to restore the san francisco bay area wetlands instead of dumping the dredging sediment in the open ocean. authorizes the army corps national levee safety initiative to help manage flood risks across the entire nation including more than 200 miles of the sacramento river which i currently represent. it makes the sacramento san joaquin delta a new focus area for the core in its effort to combat invasive species and directs the karym corps to make long overdue changes to make water supply and with that, my time having expired, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i yield one and a half minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. babin. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. babin: i thank my friend from missouri, ranking member

graves, for yielding me time to speak on the 2022 water resources development act. as someone who has seen the impact wrda has had on americans i'm greatly honored to have worked on this year's legislation. a major priority for southeast texas, the texas coastal spine is authorized in this legislation. this must-do prog to protect our home state from hurricanes, storm surge, and flooding will make millions of texans as well as our state's most important economic hubs, where a huge percentage of our nation's gasoline and strategic fuels are manufactured, much safer. additionally this bill ex-p diets vial projects a at the port of houston and the sabine-neches waterway, the bussiest port in the nation and where more military equipment is shipped than any other waterway. we need to get the bill across the finish line and i want to thank chairman defazio, ranking member graves, mrs. napolitano,

rouser and your staff for the work on this bill. i want to thank paul sasse the departing republican staff director for his many years of service on the transportation and infrastructure committee. his commitment to mission and dd case to public service have improved not only our committee but congress as a whole. i wish him the best of luck with all of his future endeavors. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. defazio: i'd yield one minute to the gentleman from hawaii, kai kahele. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from hawaii is recognized. mr. kahele: mahalo and thank you for yielding. i rise in support of the 2022 water resources and development act, legislation which will invest in america's ports, harbors and inland waterways as well as build more climate resilient communities. for the first time ever wrda includes section 219, environmental infrastructure projects for the state of hawaii, which will ensure that

maui, can wayy, hawaii community are able to confront these challenges head on today because the cost of waiting is too great. this wrda will also for the first time ever include a provision that will enable n.h.o.'s or native hawaiian organizations, to waive local cost sharing requirements of up to $200,000 for critical environmental projects which will open the doors to new environmental restoration projects and career opportunities in every county. this provision will help to provide more parody between indigenous communities and i applaud its inclusion in this bill. i want to support our indigenous brothers and sisters across the country and with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from missouri is now recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i'd yield one

minute to the gentleman from florida, mr. mast. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. mast: i want to thank the chair and ranking member for their work on this piece of legislation and helping combat some injustices and justice number one is this bill works to prohibit once and for all finally getting rid of all of the toxic discharges out of lake okeechobee into what we call our northern estuaries in florida. that's fixing injustice number one. injustice number two, this bill specifics addresses is with those toxic, poisonous waters, there are corps of engineer personnel that are working on top of those sometimes for eight or 10 hours a day for weeks or months on end and it actually requires that a letter be put in the file of those military personnel denoting their exposure to this so if something happens to them down the road they don't have to fight like so many of our service members have to fight to get the appropriate care. so i want to thank their work and helping to fix injustices in this specific piece of legislation. with that i yield the remainder

of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is now recognized. mr. defazio: i'd like to again inquire as to the remaining time to see if we're tight on time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon has four minutes. the gentleman from missouri has 10 1/2 minutes. mr. defazio: i yield to the gentleman from louisiana one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from louisiana is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker. and thank you, mr. chairman. in louisiana, we know the awesome power of the water. we also know that it is the lifeblood of our nation's economy and environment. the army corps of engineer is the federal department that supports water, ecosystem, flood control, critical issues in my region. this is the mechanism congress uses for its authorizations and critical policy for my district. as a member of t.n.i., i'm proud to work to include important

updates from my district in wrda such as instructing the corps of engineers to continue, pause ecosystem restoration in the mississippi-gulf outlet, authorizing $136 million for st. john's, st. bernard's, st. charles, plaqueman parishes and it including my amendment to improve safety features along the banks of the mississippi river. mr. carter: an important move after the recent tragic drowning of three children in algiers in my district. as we work to untangle supply chain and navigate climate change, we can't delay water management -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. carter: i urge favorable passage of wrda act h.r. 7776. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is now recognized. mr. graves: i yield one minute to the gentlewoman from puerto rico, miss gonzalez-colon. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from puerto rico is

recognized. miss gonzalez-colon: i want to thank you for including all the amendments and language in this bill. wrda has been a key for infrastructure projects in our states and territories and this bill will not be an exception. this has been the cornerstone of puerto rico's recovery and this legislation's enabling it to continue to do so. this bill includes the re-authorization of three major flood risk management projects in puerto rico, in maya west, rio grande luisa that have waiting for funding in some cases over a decade to the point that the original authorizations had to be withdrawn and new validation studies required. we received later for funding for the initial stages after passage of the bipartisan budget act of 2018. but needed this re-authorization so development can continue with the planning and design, the allocating funding is projected from laws and updated projects needs to be addressed in the future so they can move on

construction. by passing this legislation, this house demonstrates its commitments to our communities. i look approval to this bill. thank you for all the staff and leadership of the ranking member for allowing this. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. the gentleman from oregon is recognized. f mr. defazio: i'd yield one lady -- one minute to the gentlelady from florida, who's done some extraordinary work for her district in florida in this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida is recognized. dr. walensky: i thank the gentleman -- ms. wasserman schultz: i thank the gentleman for yielding and i thank him for this incredible work product and incredible bipartisan. i rise in support of h.r. 7776, the water resources development act. this bill will advance the economic interests of south florida. after more than 20 years of work, the port everglades deepening and widening project will allow safe passage of next generation cruise and cargo ships and estimated to create 1,500 good permanent jobs when it's finished and additional $200 million in federal funding

for port everglades to protect our coral reefs from disruption and begin construction on an overdue new coast guard station. i came to congress as a young wo mom and i remember telling my children about the potential effects of climate change. now in 2022 we know that the perils of a warming planet are no longer just predictions. we have over 1,000 miles of levees and canals, 16 major pump stations providing flood protection for 11 million residents in central and south florida alone. a 2009 study identified 18 water control structures in miami-dade and broward counties alone that within six inches of failure. this bill would authorize the -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. ms. wasserman schultz: i urge passage of this important bill and thank you for allowing me to speak in favor of it. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from missouri is recognized. -- the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you. i yield to the gentleman from texas, mr. nehls. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. nehls: hurricane harvey showed how unprepared our flood mitigation efforts were for one

of the most important regions in the nation. aside from the emotional and psychological toll harvey inflicted on my community, it's estimated that harvey costs $125 billion in damages. instead of continually spending money on the back end of tragedies that experts agree costs infin italy more, i'm proud the federal government is authorizing investments in flood mitigation and prevention that will help deter another harvey-like scenario. i'm also pleased the language in section 325 authorizes the secretary to provide technical assistance related to nonfederal interests on the removal of sediment obstructing channels to reservoirs. in addition to the statutory changes for sediment removal, i'm proud to support the authorization of $19.2 billion for the texas coastal protection and restoration project. the port of houston is home to the largest petro chemical manufacturing complex in the americas. 42% of the specialty chemical

food stocks, 20% of the gas, and 60% of the jet aviation fuel are all produced in the region. it is good to see government working for the people. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. defazio: i yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from oregon, representative kurt schrader. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. schrader: this bill includes funding for several critical priorities for my state and my district. very proud to share this bill authorizes funding to help the city of newport replace its woefully outdated big creek dam. it sits right above the city. it could completely wipe out the city in an earthquake. funding is designated for waste water treatment anding along the oregon coast, particular -- water treatment and along the oregon coast. really proud to present on this report and urge its passage. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i yield one minute to the gentlelady from new york, ms. malliotakis.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from new york is recognized. ms. malliotakis: i rise to support this legislation that includes my language to secure additional funds for the staten island sea wall to protect my constituents from a future hurricane. in october it will be 10 years since hurricane sandy devastated parts of new york city. particularly hard hit was my borough of staten island where 24 lives were lost, hundreds of families were displaced, and thousands of homes were damaged. since the projects approval in 2013, bureaucratic red tape resulted in costly redesigns and repeated delays. this vital flood mitigation project is long overdue. i made a commitment when i came to congress i would get it back on track. the city and federal government came to be a agreement for construction on the project's leftry, flood wall and tide gate. this fall, the contract for the first phase is expected to be issued so we can break ground on the drainage portion in south beach and finally begin this long-awaited project that's critical to the livelihoods of my constituents and will help

reduce flood insurance costs. today, we'll ensure the project will be fully funded through this bill and i thank my colleagues for their support of this legislation. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. defazio: i yield 30 seconds to the gentlelady from texas, sheila jackson lee. ms. jackson lee: great accolades to the chairman for his years of service. this bill, 7776, deals with water resources, infrastructure, makes communities more resilient, and helps inthe distinguished gentleman from news minority communities, but urban areas as well. the first long standing impact that we have had in texas over the years, one of the big ones was hurricane ike. 195 dead. $38 billion. it was in fact the seventh most expensive hurricane. we have continued with the devastation through hurricane harvey. this helps us with the ike dike and the coastal spine. we are saving lives and helping people. i support this bill because we can live on the gulf coast.

i live back. -- i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. can i inquire as to the time left? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman has 7 1/2 minutes remaining. mr. graves: time for the other side. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon has one minute remaining. mr. defazio: a minuscule amount of time which i will reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i yield one minute to the gentleman from florida, mr. gimenez. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. gimenez: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of the water resources development act to improve our ports and harbors and land waterway navigation, flood, and storm protection and other pieces of water resources and infrastructure all with the focus on locally driven projects rather than a wish list. this bill will support real infrastructure and goes to improve real infrastructure congress can come together in a

bipartisan manner. this legislation has a lot of wins for south florida and we get provisions to expedite projects to protect miami-dade county and monroe county from future storm damage. the flooding this past weekend in miami underscored the need for these projects, particularly as we begin hurricane season. we doubled for the florida keys water quality management project to expand sanitary sewer systems in the keys. overall, this legislation will be greatly beneficial to south florida. it's incredible what we can accomplish when we put political hackery to the side and focus on the real needs of the american people. i urge my colleagues to support this year's wrda. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is -- the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. defazio: reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield 1 1/2 minutes to the gentleman from louisiana, mr. graves. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from louisiana is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, this bill is very important and includes important hurricane protection for the upper area which is going to

help jefferson, st. charles parishes all the way up to ascension parish. if this had been in place when hurricane ida made landfall it will be different conditions. it will make higher levees in the new orleans areas. $3 billion. we worked with congressman carter and congressman scalise. it clarifies the cost share of the gulf area, something that should never have been in contention. it helps ex-at the died the comey project and makes tens of billions of dollars for water and waste water in the capital river and bayou region. people helped and one of them is paul sasse. i want to thank him for his nearly 20 years of service to this house and committee. had he not been here for working on these bills, it would not have happened. i appreciate it. and having worked with the ranking member for some period of time, i can't imagine working with him for i thank sam graves and chairman

defazio on this important legislation. this is about making investments, millions of dollars before disasters happen. and loss of life. lastly, i thank subcommittee chair mrs.napolitano: and ranking member rouser and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon. mr. defazio: reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: i yield 1 1/2 minutes to mr. weber. mr. weber: we are maintaining and improving our ports and water infrastructure is important to the 14th district and our great state and nation, our families and businesses and the critical infrastructure will benefit in 2022. of particular importance to

texas is the coastal spine. and it will mitigate the impact of major hurricanes and other water events south of houston ship channel and the chemical industry that surrounds it. in september of 2008. texas # was slammed the storm of galveston that cost lives and billions. the damage from ike and hurricane harvey could have been reduced significantly. after years and years of pushing for this vital barrier system, i am proud it is included in wrda 2022. and does not reflect and i urge my colleagues to support this bill and this is a great staff and i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is recognized. mr. defazio: reserved. >> i yield one minute to the gentleman from california, mr. lamalfa. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized is recognized. mr. lamalfa: i rise in support of this. while it may not be apparent, the threat of storm damage and flood damage is front and center. and in the wake of wildfires, mudslides will bring vegetation. with fewer but more intense storms, the risk of flash floods has increased. as many bipartisan bills that are missing. that work is not done. i will push for more control over project control to be given to local water agencies and we can avoid the burial sites

crushing skulls while working on levees and this is about basic respect and army corps to work with our constituents such aspenialities. we need to keep this ongoing conversation and i appreciate the legislation and the direction we are going. mr. defazio: reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: i'm prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized mr. graves: in closing, h.r. 7776 wrda 2022 is a very good bipartisan piece of legislation that will improve flood control and improve morts and harbors and inland waterways and provides the investment needed in our country's waterways and

improve the american economy. this bill is a projects' bill that was pulled together based on request for members based on all across the country in the house on poaght sides of the highly. and there isn't a single line in this bill that cannot be attributed to an individual member request and i thank my colleagues and the members of the committee for coming together to develop this bipartisan legislation and i thank the chairman for his work and i would urge support on this important piece of legislation and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentleman from oregon. mr. defazio: i yield myself such time as i may consume. most of what we do here would not be possible without the hard work of staff and i would like to thank the staff of the subcommittee of water resource environment that took the lead and ensuring that members'

priorities were included, brian, and worked to enact, alexa, logan, michael. on the minority side, leslie, melissa. without them and their work, we would not be here today and paul has been ranked a number of times and i congratulate him for his 20 years on the hill and wish him well in his next endeavor. with that, i urge support 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 the bill h.r. 7776 as amended. those in favor, say aye. those opposed, no. no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, for

what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? mr. roy: request the yeas and nays pursuant to section 3-s of house resolution 8, yeas and nays are ordered pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings of this question are postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from oregon seek recognition? mr. defazio: i move to suspend the rules than pass house concurrent resolution 88. the clerk: house concurrent resolution 88 authorizing the use of the capitol grounds for the greater washington soap box derby pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from oregon, mr. defazio and the gentleman from missouri, mr. dpraifs, each will control 20 minutes. mr. defazio: i ask unanimous consent that may have five legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks

and include material on house resolution 88. the speaker pro tempore: without objection mr. defazio: i yield myself such time as i may consume. today we are considering legislation, house concurrent resolution 88 to authorize the use of the capital grounds for the greater washington soap box derby. i thank majority leader hoyer for introducing this resolution. the greater washington soap box derby and is an annual event and encourages boys and girls to construct and race their vehicles. it has become a great tradition over the last quarter of a century and terrific opportunity to appreciate the workmanship to enjoy the thrill of competition. and the organizers will work with the architect of the

capitol to ensure rules and regulations are in place and it is safe for all those involved. i support this legislation and urge my colleagues to join me and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: i yield myself such time as i may consume. this resolution authorizes the use of the capitol grounds for the soap box derby. this is a time-honored tradition with the exception of world war ii has run every year since 1934 and provides children in the area to build knowledge. this is one of the many regional to qualify children to compete. this is a program that i participated some 40 odd years ago and it's a good program and

i fully endorse it. i would urge support 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 oregon is recognized. mr. defazio: i yield majority leader one minute to speak on this for which he is the sponsor. the speaker pro tempore: jargd. mr. hoyer: i thank the chair and the ranking member for bringing this bill to the floor. i'm honored to bring this resolution to the floor. every year, it authorizes as you told and i am proud to support every year, this will be the first time it is held since 2019 because of the pandemic. the greater washington soap box derby, one of my favorite events. it brings families together from across the greater washington area encouraging family members to compete in a fun and

educational race. this is my 29th year sponsoring the soap box derby resolution. i don't know if that is a record on the soap box event. but this is the 79 tf year and will be held on june 18th and see racers from 8-17 compete in three division, stock, superstock and masters. the winner will have a chance to compete in the all-american soap box derby which is held in ac roup, ohio. much of the fun takes place. participants spend weeks and months building and testing their racers at home. a wonderful bonding experience for kids, parents and grandparents and other family members and those dpaijed in mentorship. soap box derby is the greatest

amateur racing event in the world and staple in the american experience. it teaches sportsman ship, engineering and leadership. racers and are sponsored by local civic groups and members coming out to cheer on their hometown participants. i am proud to sponsor this resolution. today, this will authorize the grounds of the u.s. capitol for this year's soap pox derby. i thank my co-sponsors and members of the regional and don buyer, gerry colony, jennifer wexton and jamie raskin. i'm proud that several greater champions have come from maryland's 5th district. the winners from 2007, 2008,

2009, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2018. my guys do pretty well in this race and some of them are gals by the way. and some won national championship in twemp and 2008. i'm looking forward to seeing colorful and creative soap box designs. i thank the organizers of the greater washington soap box derby and chairman defazio and the committee on transportation and infrastructure for their support and i hope every member will join in supporting this resolution and i invite them to join me in on june 18 and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is

recognized. mr. defazio: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: in closing, this resolution authorizes the use of the capitol grounds for a long standing tradition for the children of the greater washington dd area and once in a while we do fun stuff on the floor and this is one of those things. i urge support of this legislation and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time the gentleman from oregon. mr. defazio: i yield myself such time as i may consume. i thank the majority leader for bringing this legislation. i misspoke earlier, i thought it was a quarter of a century, but 29 years that is extraordinary and this is a wonderful event for youth and does bring a little something to capitol hill other than the day-to-day business which sometimes can be suffocating. with that, i urge my colleagues to support this legislation unanimously and i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and agree to house concurrent resolution 88. those in favor, say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- the rules are suspended and concurrent resolution is agreed to and observation, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 7667, the food and drug amendments of 2022, as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 7667, a bill to amend the federal food, drug and cosmetic act, to revise and extend the user fee programs for prescription drugs, medical devices, generic drugs -- the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will suspend momentarily.

the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will continue. the clerk: medical devices, generic drugs and biosimilar biological products and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone, and the gentleman from kentucky, mr. guthrie, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material

on h.r. 7667. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i rise today -- well, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. pallone: i rise today in strong support of the food and drug amendments act of 2022, a bill that rently -- recently passed out of the energy and commerce committee with unanimous support. this bill will provide the f.d.a. the funding it needs to ensure drugs and devices are safe and effective. it also promotes development of new medical products to treat every american, reduces the cost of prescription drugs, and strengthens program integrity at the agency. primarily the user fee re-authorization's main purpose is to give the agency funding to conduct product reviews, facilitate the development of new products to treat rare diseases, inspect facilities to ensure they are compliant, and monitor medical products on the market for continued safety and effectiveness. it's essential that the house pass this legislation today because funding that comes from

these user fees expires in september. at hearings earlier this year, senior f.d.a. officials told us failure to pass this legislation well before the september deadline could be catastrophic to the agency's operations and, more importantly, to limit the ability to get patients the medical products they and their doctors remain lie on. so, mr. speaker, i'm very pleased that in addition to -- rely on. so, mr. speaker, i'm very pleased that in addition to coming together on this funding, we've worked on a wide ranging package of programs to improve biomedical research and developments, give f.d.a. more tools to conduct quality inspections, improve the medical product supply chain, improve generic drug competition and access, and bring greater transparency and product integrity to f.d.a.'s operations. while i do not have time to discuss all the provisions in f.d.a. 2022, i want to highlight a few. first, the bill includes reforms to the accelerated approval program which i first introduced

in congress earlier this year. under the accelerated approval pathway, drugs may be approved based on a surrogate end point such as an improved lab measurement or visualization on an m.r.i. even though additional evidence is still needed to show a clear clinical benefit for the patient. if a drug is approved under this pathway, the sponsor must conduct studies after the product is on the market to show that the drug actually provides a benefit to patients. so this approval pathway has led to patients having access to groundbreaking treatments for cancer, h.i.v. and other illnesses faster than they otherwise would have. however, in recent years it's become clear that some drug sponsors have failed to conduct their postapproval studies in a timely manner. while others have conducted studies that indicate that the drug is not effective but are able to keep the product on the market for years afterwards. i think patients deserve to know the drugs they're taking are safe and effective. f.d.a. 2022 ensures that the

products patients are taking are providing a benefit by allowing f.d.a. to require the sponsors begin adequate and well controlled postapproval studies before the drug goes on the market. the legislation will provide greater transparency and drug labeling, and it streamlines the process for f.d.a. to remove products from the market when the sponsors have failed to act with due diligence to conduct studies or where studies have failed to show a benefit to the patient. the second thing is this legislation ensures that clinical trials for drugs and medical devices are representative of the people who will use the product. the lack of diversity in clinical trials is an urgent problem. it kro price -- -- it compromises our ability to understands how drugs and diseases effect populations differently, compounds health disparities and can hinder innovation and add cost burdens into the health system. so f.d.a. 2022 for the first time will require drug and device sponsors to develop a clinical trial diversity action plan early in the development

process and submit the plan to f.d.a. this will help improve our understanding of these products and lead to better outcomes for all americans. but f.d.a. 2022 also helps lower drug costs by making it easier for generic products to come to market. under current law, generic drug sponsors sometimes need to play a guessing game of the ingredients in brand drugs. and this can add months onto the generic drug development process. under f.d.a. 2022, we're making it easier for f.d.a. to communicate this information to drug sponsors, thereby speeding up development times for generics. the bill will also make it easier for generics to come to market when a brand drug changes its label at the last second in an attempt to limit competition. so together these provisions will produce millions of dollars in savings for american families and the overall health care system. i also want to say that this legislation takes concrete action to address the infant formula crisis which so many of us are concerned about.

the american families are currently facing and will prevent future problems related to food safety and supply, so it's not just about infant formula, but about food safety in general. currently f.d.a.'s operating its food safety and other divisions with one hand tied behind its back when it comes to hiring and retaining highly qualified scientific and regulatory staff. today f.d.a. can hire technical staff in its drug and medical device centers under streamlined processes and compete with the private sector in terms of salary. but those same flexibilities do not extend to other centers, including those overseeing food at the f.d.a. so. our bill would extend -- f.d.a. so our bill would ex tend to the oversight -- extend to the oversight of food, to tobacco and others related to the agency. i'm please we're able to move forward on a bipartisan basis here today. i think it's going make a difference, mr. speaker, not only with infant formula, but with so many other food products. lastly, mr. speaker, i want to

thank my colleagues on the energy and commerce committee for their cooperation and bipartisan work on this package. as i said, it passed unanimously out of the committee last month thanks to the leadership of the health subcommittee chairwoman eshoo, ranking member guthrie and the full committee ranking member rogers and i want to say, when you bring a bill to the floor on suspension and it's bipartisan and it was voted out of committee unanimously, it might kind of belie the amount of work that the staff that are here with me today and others put into this. this was a lot of work. it wasn't easy to get it done in a timely fashion. so even though it has unanimous support and i hope today everyone will vote for it, i don't want anyone to get the impression that this was not an easy thing to accomplish. because it certainly was. i encourage all members to support the bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. guthrie: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself as much time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. guthrie: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today in support of the

f.d.a. act of 2022 introduced by chair eshoo and myself. this legislation recently passed the full energy and commerce committee unanimously. the bill will protect access to life saving cures proarks mote innovation -- cure, promotion innovation, and lower costs for patients. it would also re-authorize the food and drug administration's medical product user fee products through 2027. user fees allow the f.d.a. to collect fees from industry in exchange for timely review of their drug or device applications. importantly, these fees not only permit the f.d.a. to carry out drug or device application reviews, but also represents significant percentages of f.d.a.'s total operating budget without costing the taxpayer. additionally, according to the congressional budget office, sections of the bill will save close to $600 million by promoting increased access to generic drugs. some of these savings will be used for deficit reduction and other amounts can be put toward preserving access to critical

services in the medicaid program such as telehealth. not only do these agreements help save taxpayer dollars but they're also -- but they also yield significant returns on investment since they were originally authorized by congress decades ago. for example, in 2021 alone, 38 of 50 of the world's novel drugs were first approved in the united states. this was made possible by the food and drug administration amendments of 2017. i'm proud to say that the legislation includes two of my bills, the pre-approval information exchange act, which will help reduce the time in which patients wait for a drug or device to be covered by their insurer after it's approved by the f.d.a. the bill before us today also includes legislation that chair pallone and i have been championing for several years, to help facilitate the transformation of drug manufacturing processes so they are more efficient, less costly and result in improved drug quality. the use of continuous manufacturing technology will not only serve as an incentive

for u.s. drug manufacturers to bring production back to american soil, but will also help reduce drug shortages. other important components of the f.d.a. act require guidance on the collection of real world evidence for companies with products authorized under emergency use authorization during the public health emergency. this can serve as a strong foundation for the regulatory community in addition to drug or device companies to best understand how products can get approved more quickly and safely in the future. finally, the f.d.a. act of 2022 preserves access to life saving therapies approved under the accelerate aid profl pathway -- accelerated approval pathway. by preserving the pathway, we're giving patients hope to one day find cures to currently incurable diseases such as alzheimer's or terminal cancers. and as the chair said, usually when you come to the floor on suspension bills, they're ones that have just great unanimous consent with congress.

this has gone through the regular process. and the gone through a lot of hard work -- and it's gone through a lot of hard work. a lot of hard work by members, but a lot of hard work and significant hard work by the men and women who work with us here on the committee and we really appreciate the staff's hard work. so this, although we're here on a suspension moment on the floor, i want to emphasize to my colleagues, there's been a lot of work, a lot of committee work, a lot of subcommittee work, a lot of member work, and a really lot of staff work to make this move forward. so i really appreciate that. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation today and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i have no additional speakers at this time but i'll continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. guthrie: mr. speaker, i'd like to yield three minutes to my good friend from indiana, mr.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from indiana is recognized. mr. buchanan: i rise in support -- beuk beuk i rise in -- mr. bucshon: i rise in support of this act. it's necessary to help drive innovation and make sure patients have continued access to critical treatments and cures. i'm pleased to see the continued focus on innovation. innovations agreement brings as well as policies like the diverse trials act which will help increase diverse participation in clinical trials. more can be done to protect patients. one example being diagnostic testing, specifically lab-developed tests. for well over five years, i've been working on the bipartisan valid act, h.r. 412, with my colleague, dina degette, which establishes a risk-balesed regulatory -- risk-based regulatory framework for tests. this legislation allows for leading-edge development and innovation to thrive, while

ensuring doctors and patients have the certainty that their test results are valid. the draft version of the user fee agreements introduced in the senate addresses the issue by including a version of the valid act. mr. speaker, i again want to express my strong support for the food and drug amendments act of 2022 and i urge my colleagues to vote yes on this legislation. i yield back the balance of my time. mr. pallone: i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ken tuck question is recognized. mr.guthrie: his words are very important to all of us, i would like to yield four minutes to the republican leader, my good friend from washington. mrs. rodgers: i rise in support

of the food and drug amendments act. they plowed the hard grouped to legislate in a strong bipartisan way. we held three hearings in february and march, in april, we introduced legislation and over the next week, the subcommittee voted. h.r. 7667 passed out of the committee by a vote of 55-0 and at each step, members' ideas were included to improve the legislation. today we consider a suspension print with improvements. and providing the regulatory clarity needed and training to exercise manufacturing technologies. the f.d.a. act will re-authorize four user fee programs to review critical medical products that people depend on to live longer.

in addition to delivering drugs to people, the f.d.a. includes policies to spur more life-saving innovation and provide hope top patients in need of break-through drugs and therapy. they won't make it to patients if d.f.d.a. doesn't have the tools. we have different veerings but we focused. we streamlined the process. and impose market studies and made sure that real-world evidence can be used and rare diseases aren't left out because of lack of knowledge in developing the biomarkers necessary. lastly is this legislation

necessary, it is ensuring medical products at a reduced cost to the taxpayer and reduces the deficit and others included in this legislation. mr. buchanan makes sure that we are moving away from animal models where alternatives. mr. griffith, carter and hudson will hold f.d.a. responsible to give companies with technologies more certainty. mr. guthrie has a solution to help ensure that plans for future treatment and will avoid sticker shock and provide earlier access. there are -- these are just some of the more dozen examples.

i strongly urge support of this legislation and i environs counseling all of my colleagues to vote yes. this is for patients and families in every district and every corner of america who are relying on a medical device, like a pacemaker or novel cancer treatment and relying on congress. i think about all the advocates, the hundreds of rare disease groups tay come to the peoples' house to share their house and have an extraordinary amount of hope in american innovation for new cureses. for them, i'm supporting this legislation and i'm committed to work to get it signed into law on time.

mr.guthrie: through the years since this medical device fee has been put into place has congress taken action? that it does its job to make sure that our drugs and medical devices have efficacy and also are safe. and so we make them more efficient and we have drug companies and generic companies trying to get their devices or pharmaceuticals approved that are safe and efficient. this is a real example of congress working together to move this process forward and the innovations and what has gone on in the diabetes' world with artificial pancreas through heap tay tight is and so much more. and what is going to happen in

the next five years as we continue to move this process forward. we had a hearing on a.l.s. and a patient wants hope. all of that is accounted for in this process. we as members of the committee have worked together to make the process streamlined and we have efficient efficacy and safe products and our hope and prayers is that science will come into place so those who testified with rare diseases who have the rare opportunity who have hope to be healed. and a lot of hard work went into it and a lot of lives can be affected by it and i encourage everyone to vote for it. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky yields back.

mr. pallone: i couldn't agree more with representative guthrie said and our full committee. this is a product of a lot of hard work on behalf of members and staff and others. and it's really great we are able to do it in a timely fashion and we have not to put up pink slips because the authorization expires in september. but this is a re-authorization that does a lot more. it is going to make a difference in terms of our ability to innovate and affect access to generic drugs. i urge members to support the bill and we will get it to pass in the senate. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the

bill. those in favor, say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- for what purpose does -- >> request the yeas and nays pursuant to section 3-s of house resolution 8. pursuant to rule 8 clause 20. further proceedings on this question are postponed. proceedings will resume on questions. votes will be tape. motions to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6807. the first electronic vote will be conducted as a vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 the vote on the motion of the

the gentleman from connecticut, mr. courtney to suspend the rules. on which the yeas and nays are ordered the clerk will report the title. the clerk: h.r. 1687, a bill to amend the united states to cover for purposes of workers' compensation under such chapter and nurse practitioners provided to injured federal workers and for other purposes. i have the question is will the house pass the bill. members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey rise? mr. pallone: as the member designated by mr. sires,

mr. payne, plz kirkpatrick and mr. gottheimer and mr. welch, these members will vote yes on h.r. 67. >> as the member designated by dr. joyce of pennsylvania, i inform the house that dr. joyce will vote no on h.r. 8067. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida rise? >> as the member designated by mrs. castor and mr. cardenas, these members will vote on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from texas rise? >> as the member designated by mr. gomez and chairwoman waters of california, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 6087.

thank you, madam speaker.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan rise? >> as the member designated by mr. katko from new york, i inform the house that mr. katko is going to vote yes on h.r. 60887. -- 6087.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama rise? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. cawthorn of north carolina, i inform the house that mr. cawthorn will vote yes on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? >> as the member designated by mr. swalwell of california, i inform the house that mr. swalwell will vote yea on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida rise? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by ms. mace of south carolina, i inform the house that ms. mace will vote yea on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> as the member designated by ms. sewell of alabama, i inform the house that ms. sewell will vote yes on h.r. 6087.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from north carolina seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. price, pursuant to house resolution 8, i inform the house that representative price will vote yea on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee seek recognition?

>> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. loudermilk of georgia, i inform the house that mr. louder milllike vote yea on h.r. 6087. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from delaware seek recognition? ms. blunt rochester: madam speaker, as the member designated by ms. bass of california, mr. jones of new york, mr. brown of maryland and mr. lamb of pennsylvania, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 6087.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek recognition? ms. wasserman schultz: madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. crist and ms. frankel of florida, i inform the house that both members will vote yea on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? mr. takano: madam speaker, as the member designated by

representatives ocasio-cortez, vargas, schiff and strickland, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition?

>> thank you, madam speaker. as the member designated by mr. calvert of california, pursuant to house resolution 8, i inform the house that mr. calvert will vote yes on h.r. 6087.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. thompson of mississippi, pursuant to house resolution 8, i inform the house that mr. thompson will vote yes on h.r. 6087.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia seek recognition? mr. beyer: madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. ryan of ohio, mr. sherman of california, mr. evans of pennsylvania, ms. moore of wisconsin, ms. barragan of california, mr. suozzi of new york, mr. mceachin of virginia, mr. kind of wisconsin, and

mr. desaulnier of california, i inform the house that these nine members will vote yes on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? mr. jeffries: as the member designated by ms. johnson and mr. meeks, i inform the house that these members will vote yea on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition? mr. neguse: madam speaker, as the member designated by ms. leger fernandez, ms. williams, mr. moulton and ms. wilson, i inform the house that these four members will vote yea on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek

recognition? >> madam speaker, as the member designated by mr. castro, mr. ruiz, ms. jacobs, i inform the house that these members will vote yes on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. smith of new jersey, mr. smith will vote yea on the resolution. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio seek recognition? mrs. beatty: as the member designated by ms. brown, i inform the house that she will vote yea on h.r. 6087.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. johnson of south dakota, i inform the house that mr. johnson will vote yes on h.r. 60887. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman

from indiana seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mrs. walorski she will vote know. as the member designated by mrs. spartz, she will vote yes. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. grijalva of arizona, he will vote yes on h.r. 6087.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from west virginia seek recognition? >> as the member designated by ms. kim of california, pursuant to house resolution 8, i inform the house that ms. kim will vote yes on h.r. 6087.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. taylor, he will be voting aye on house resolution 60887. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mrs. murphy of florida, that mrs. murphy will vote yes on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. rogers of kentucky, mr.

rogers will vote yes on h.r. 6087. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia seek recognition? mr.connolly: as the member designated by ms. titus of nevada and mr. lynch and ms. strahan of massachusetts, these members will vote yes on h.r. 60887.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from kansas. >> as the member designated by mr. laturner, i inform the house that mr. laturner will vote yes

on h.r. 60887. -- 6087 .

the speaker pro tempore: the yeas are 325. and the nays are 83.

2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended and the bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. the house will be in order. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> permission to address the house for one minute.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection the gentleman from texas is recognized. >> on may 24, 2022, 19 children and two teachers were killed by a gunman at robb elementary. my district is a reflection of every small town in america. as i raise to honor the victims i'm reminded of matthew 5::4. bless those. i mourn with the community and pray for healing and comfort tore the loss of the following. alexandria rubio, alithia ramirez, and bell rodriguez, aleah garcia, jacqueline cazares, ellie garcia, and laya

salazar, march kenna elrod, mat yes rod rig yeas, more ander. and rough heel yeoh torres, test matta, and xavier lopez, irma garcia. these were our daughters, sisters, sundays who have been become victims. please join us in a moment of silence. may they rest in peace and may they always be remembered. the speaker pro tempore: ask all members in the chamber and members throughout the capitol to rise for a moment of silence

in remembrance of the victims of the robb elementary school in uvalde, texas.

the speaker: pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the scran finished business is vote on the motion of the the gentleman from colorado, mr. neguse, to pass senate bill 3823 on which the the yeas and nays are ordered are ordered. the clerk will report the title. the clerk: an act to amend title 11 united statescode to modify for chapter 13 and for other purposes. . >> mr. thompson will vote yes.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. katko of new york state, mr. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? .

>> they will vote yes. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? >> mrs. murphy will vote yes. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition. 7:30. 7:0

>> madam speaker as the member designated by mr. loudermilk of georgia, he will vote yes.

mr. takano: as as the member designated by ms. or cast yeoh cortez, and i inform the house that these members will vote yes

on s.2833. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas. >> as the member designated by mr. van taylor, i inform the house that mr. van taylor will be voting yes. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> as the member designated by following members, mr. castro, mr. ruiz, ms. sarah jacobs, these peoples will vote yes. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. hall rogers of kentucky, mr. rogers will vote yes. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio seek recognition? where are as the member designated by member brown, i inform the house that she will vote yes on s.3823.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. johnson of south dakota, i inform the house that mr. johnson will vote yes. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from illinois seek recognition? >> as the member designated by ms. sewell of alabama, i inform the house that ms. sewell will vote yes. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. smith of new jersey, mr. smith will vote yes on s.3823. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. swalwell of california, i inform the house that mr. swalwell will vote yes on s.3823. >> as the member designated by ms. young kim, i inform the house that the member will vote yes on senate 3823.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek recognition? ms. wasserman schultz: as the member designated by ms. frankel and mr. crist, these members will vote yes.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. ryan of ohio, mr. desaulnier of california and mr. kind of wisconsin, mr. suozzi of new york, ms. bar began and ms. moore and mr. sherman and mr. evans of pennsylvania, these members will vote yes on s.3823. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition? >> as the member designated by mr. molton, ms. williams, ms. leger fernandez and i i inform the house -- and ms. wilson, these four members will vote yes on s.3823.

the speaker pro tempore: on this vote, the yeas are 392, the nays are 21.

2/3 being in the affirmative, the bill is passed and without objection is laid on the table. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. the chair will entertain requests for one-minute speeches. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from louisiana seek

recognition? >> i request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentlewoman is recognized. >> we lost john cooksey and outstanding american who improved the lives of others. john cooksey was born in louisiana in 1941 and grew up near his father's saw mill and attended l.s. u. and his love for practicing medicine ran so deep that he continued to treat patients for nearly 50 years. i heard the story of a world war ii veteran whose vision had

become distorted. the entire surgery was free of charge. dr. sook shy -- cooksey treated those in need of medical care and he was so moved by his experiences and returned home and led the fund raising drive to build an eye clinic and he had a dedication others. he was a pilot in the air force and flew missions during the vietnam war. in 1996, he was elected to serve the people of louisiana's 5th congressional district here in the house of representatives. he was known for delivering results that were transformational for our region and going above and beyond. on a personal level, i will be grateful for giving my late

husband his start in politics and fulfilling the work and eager young voice. for me, he was more than a predecessor and trusted mentor, a friend. we have lost a dedicated public servant who was an outstanding member of this body and i would like to ask all members to join me in observing a moment of silence as we honor the life and accomplishments of congressman john cooksey. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek recognition? >> i would like to address the

house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection >> i rise today to extend our aterm gratitude to ms. luna for her dedication to our nation's children as an educator in our south florida community and has supported struggling children and provide everyone from every back ground with a quality education. education is one of the field that makes all others possible. every one of us has been shaped by someone who has inspired our curiosity and find our confidence. we are inspired by ms. luna and thankful to her success and dedicate occasion to the broward county school district. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition snr mr. thompson: i request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection the gentleman is recognized for one minute.

mr. thompson: i rise today to congratulate path pacorra, wrestling coach on the wrestling coach of the year award. this award is presented to those who elevated the program on campus and in the community. he received this award in 1995, 1999 and two 19. this season he led the mountain cats to a dual meet record in the regional title. this year's team won a share of the p krmp ac for the sixth straight championship. he is the all-time winningest coach. and 46 years, he has recorded

631 victories. path is an incredible coach and role model. congratulations on this recognition. go mountain cats. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> i seek unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> i rise today to honor the life of paul lynno and long time city worker and loving father and a pmp inch lson resident and children in his neighborhood and holding supply drives to help them. the west side of chicago is all about, hard work and huh milt. he left us with an important

lesson. the people we help, the helping hand we stepped is the legacy we leave behind. family and friends will remember him for his love of life and love of the cowboys and handle music. he will be remembered for his generosity and love of service and i express my condolences to his family. rest in peace, my friend. i yield pack. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee seek recognition? >> i request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> the average price of gasoline has more than doubled since president biden was sworn into office. that is not a coincidence. he told us he would quote, end fossil fuel, end quote. now americans are finding out the hard way what happens when

we elect air president that wants to end fossil fuels. the cost of living rises faster because everything we wear, eat and use is transported using fossil fuels. the president announced he will be invoking the defense production act to make more solar panels. give me a break. he needs to concede his war against energy companies. it's that easy and he refuses. president biden simply must do better. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio seek recognition snr ms. kaptur: i request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute? ms. kaptur: i call out china for its long history of predatory dumping and we have seen china

cheat from everything from steel to autos tore solar and hurts american workers and american companies that i represent in ohio. china is a nation that does not abide by global trading rules. fair trading nations must apply strict scrutiny and appropriate penalties. i welcome on boosting manufacturing and solar components here in america. and whose trade practices have crushed. ohio's workers make and build the products. our nation must respect them as well as the innovative companies that, working to deliver america's energy independence. let's champion free trade among free people. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition?

>> the buck stops here and it seems to be pass the buck and the president passes the plame and taps the petroleum reserve to provide petroleum, americans continue to pay historic price at the pump and sticker shock at the supermarket. we have got to be an energy independent nation with consequences that are rattling the world economy and the president said this is the most robust. time to do what works. lower taxes to rev and stop the

reckless spending and reduce the economic burdens on americans. we need the courage to change course. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from wisconsin is recognized. mr. grothman: i make my weekly statement regarding vitamin d. in the most week, 1600 americans and call america's attention and the subcommittee dealing with covid to the fantastic benefits of vitamin d and people who have inadequate and 11 times more likely. and we have known about this for two years now. i big the public health establishment to talk about talking about vitamin dmp and

check for vitamin d levels. i found people as low as 16 while taking vitamin d supplements and i point out to the medical establishment and when i talk to people back home, they believe there is no money to be made in giving a supplement that can cost 12 or 13 bucks at walgreens and it's a sad state of affairs when the america cap public believes they haven't been educated on this life-saving supplement. thank you very much. the speaker pro tempore: under the speaker's announced policy

of january 4, 2021, ms. spanberger is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. ms. spanberger: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to exclude -- include extraneous material on the subject of this special order. the speaker pro tempore: without objection ms. spanberger: i rise today to speak about the 340-b program. i rise to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the 340-b drug program to care for the most vulnerable and low-income patients in our communities all at no additional cost to the taxpayer. tonight, the house will hear stories from democrats and

republicans how 340-b supports districts across the country including in virginia's 7th district. there was a simple goal. it has helped hospitals and community centers stretch their resources. helping them reach reach morelle gibel patients and provide more comprehensive services. the way it works is simple. 340b for vulnerable communities and low-income patients. by discounting the drugs, these providers can stretch their resources further and reach even more patients. it is important for providers in rural america. in these areas, lower hire rates and disproportionate number of

patients with meed care and medicaid. hospitals struggle to maintain costly services such asthma ternt wards and patients at federally qualified health centers and lack of resources to access to drugs for heme feel yeah and debts. 16 companies have implemented restrictions and the current biden station and the previous trump administration have found these restrictions to be unlawful and h.h.s. has taken no action to prevent or peoplize. let me be very clear. every time a pharmaceutical company withholds a discount from from an pharmacy that company is overcharging and withholding resources from the most vulnerable patients and in

response we need to defend 340-bmp. i commend h.h.s. and i urge the agency to penalize the companies that refuse to comply and it is the right thing and i yield to my colleague from tennessee. >> i thank the gentlelady from virginia for yielding me time to speak on this important and life-saving program as we commemorate the 30th anniversary of the creation of the 340-b program. i applaud the gentlelady for her leadership on this issue and organizing this opportunity tore members on both sides to speak about how important this issue is to each of our districts. i would like to thank the other members here tonight and those who support the 340-b program. more than 220 members of the

house joined a letter to health and human services urging the department to track down on companies denying 340-b discounts. having a large group to which i lent my name, we demonstrated the broad bipartisan support that the 340-b program enjoys across the entire country. i seek unanimous consent to insert the text of the letter into the record. .this is a lifeline of support

for the rural hospitals in rural tennessee. these very same hospitals are the only source of care for communities in expansive geographic areas. i have no other word to describe it other than con shonable and providing lifesaving medication deliberately a law to increase affordable access to life saving medications and truly disgraceful. we are going to hear about this malpractice. i hope by highlighting this issue here on the floor of the house of representatives we will

encourage other members of the house and the senate to take decisive action to protect the 340-b program. ms. spanberger: i thank the gentleman and his comments are focused on the 340-b program, rural hospitals are the lifeblood and serve as the largest employer in the town and attract young people to that community. rural hospitals are in crisis and more than 180 rural hospitals have closed their doors and one reason that number is not higher is the 340-b program. savings from discounts in community pharmacy are half of the all of the savings. if these losses are allowed to stand, we will face a real crisis across rural america.

and recent actions threaten the a built of rural hospitals to stay opened costing them on average $229,000. i would like to yield time to the gentleman from arizona. importance of rural health outcomes and the programs. together our bipartisan group rise eases to speak in support of the 340-b drug pricing program it enables community

health centers to purchase outpatient drugs at reduced prices allowing them to ensure low-income patients have affordable prescription drugs. the dollars this program saves must be re-invested directly into the health centers themselves and creating an influx of funding that our rural institutions so often lack, way too often lack. there are 340-b in arizona's drights. more than any other district. and studies that 340-b programs hospitals accounted for 84% of all hospital care provided on medicaid patients, from casa grandee all the way up to page,

these hospitals need our help now. that's pause several drug manufacturers are unlawfully with holding or limiting discounts from 340-b-covered entities of the i personally do not understand this at all and safety net hospitals and community health centers. anybody that lives in rural arizona knows the critical need for hospitals and community health care centers and they are suffering. today, i am standing with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this program and support of the protect 340-b act. our legislation would prohibit pharmaceutical entities from discriminatory practices against 340-b health care centers and hospitals. last year we sent a letter that

h.h.s. take action that refuse to comply. their octobers and rural hospital providers with discounted drugs and require manufacturers. today, we are speaking in support yet again. in my district, the families that receive care at casa grande medical center and cobra valley, flagstaff medical center and mount graham regional medical center, page hospital and white mount regional hospital are counting on us to get this done. c.m.s. should understand that this is required to get done. i'm confident we can work together. thank you. and i yield back to my coll

colleague. ms. spanberger: and i yield to mr. thompson. mr. thompson: i thank my colleague for hosting and coordinating this time tonight on an incredible issue for rural america and i appreciate her for yielding. this career marks the 30th anniversary of the federal drug pricing program and i'm familiar with this program having worked with 28 years in rural hospitals that where this 340-b program is important for consumers and patients to get access to the

medications that they require and important as a lifeline for our rural hospitals. rural hospitals today in my experience having worked there are, worked. most hospitals are lucky to break even and it is very challenging but we know how important they are. these are the source of great jobs. but this is access to quality health care and when these rural hospitals close, the economic impact, health care impacts are significant and all negative on these communities. and the 340-b program the difference between a red losing

year where you bleed money and lose money and only do it for so long until the hospital shutters its door. and perhaps breaking off or a slight margin. rural health care, rural hospital, 1% to 2% margin is a banner year and that is hardly enough to invest in modern-life saving technology or your staff to retain those providers that are the key part. and that is the difference to keep the lights on and invest in life saving advances and quite frankly retaining and recruiting

the best and brightest. this was naughted in 1992. the 340-b requires pharmaceutical companies like qualified health centers and hurl centers discounts on drugs to have their drugs covered by medicaid. it was created with the purpose to quote, stretch federal resources to reach morelle gibel patients. a worthy cause. and as the member representing 15th congressional district and 25% of the land mass of the commonwealth, i'm a strong advocate of the program. as i said before, i have worked within the systems and seen firsthand and the 340-b program is under attack and some drug

manufacturers stopped honoring the discounts. if a health center received a savings, it is usually unable to keep them because they have found creative ways to pick the savings out of the center's pockets. this is unacceptable and hurts those who truly need these medications and i'm proud to be a co-sponsor the protect 340-b act which prohibits these types of practices and savings remain where congress met them to go. and madam speaker, i will continue to support policies to strengthen the 340-b program and any developments that threaten the ability of safety net including the many in my congressional district are stopped in their tracks and i

appreciate the gentlelady from virginia for her leadership and my colleagues who have come together to defend the program that is about access for health care consumers and access to health care in rural america. and with that, i yield back. ms. spanberger: i thank my colleague from pennsylvania and they are so important and talking about the impacts that we see when pharmaceutical companies do not abide by the 340-b program. hospitals report they have lost nearly a quarter of the 340-b resources they have received from partnership and that is a median loss of $1 million and this loss is nearly 40% in the median loss is $220,000. these losses of millions of dollars are harmful to hospitals

with razor-thin operating margins and those that operate in the red. echoing and illustrating the point made by my colleague. these losses are going to drug companies that continue to report excellent reports and double profit margins and that impacts hospitals across their ability to serve patients and provide care. i am pleased to yield time to the gentleman from new hampshire. >> thank you for your leadership in organizing this bipartisan special order hour. it's important for us to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the 340-b program and we know it has helped to ensure that low-income individuals have access to the prescription drugs

that they need. i'm here in strong opposition to what these drug companies. they are undermining the 340-b. there are 13 pharmaceutical companies that are unlawfully withholding or limiting discounts under the program and impacts providers and patients in new hampshire and our hospitals and community health centers who serve our most vulnerable neighbors and i have heard from this from our constituents and i think the words say air in rockingham county one of my constituents requires daily meed education and without 340-b, she would be forced to choose between affording her home or her own health. in my district uses insulin for

and instead of $400 for one vial. according to them, everything would get turned upside down for me if it ended.

ms. spanberger: they serve patients throughout new hampshire and throughout the country. and i would like to yield time

to my colleague from illinois. >> thank you for organizing this is special order. and i'm pleased to join with all of my colleagues who have spoken strongly in favor of revitalizing, re-energizing and making sure that the 340-b program is implemented in a very serious way. i welcomed a young intern to my office this afternoon and he was coming from tufts university. and i shared with him that it

was tuforts university that started the first of the federally qualified health centers and he was in a good place. i worked with two of them personally and only 10 in the country at the time. now we have more than 2,000 and they are practically in every state, every community wherever they are. i represent a large urban, low-income community with 23 hospitals, many of which are safety net. i think i may have more hospitals than any single area. and so a a discount for the individual to use these institutions will be more than helpful to them.

so i urge that we continue the program. but i really urge that we enforce and make sure that they do what they were designed to do. and so i thank you, madam speaker, and i yield back the balance of my time. span span i thank mr. davis for his comments and bringing up the important role that federally qualified health centers raise in providing care and we know that they stretch their scares resources. in fact, one of the federally qualified health centers in my district has shared with us some stories about the impact of this program. it is one of the most rural in my district and the wellness center is a qualified health center and it is an invaluable resource. discounts through the 340-b program allows the central

virginia health services and the health and wellness center to offset the cost of providing nonprofitable services such as dental and behavioral health. 340-b savings allows virginia health services to have a strong team that provides support with meed care wellness visits and complex patients and managing its programs and overseeing and the savings allows central virginia health services and other health services to offer discounts to patients regardless of whether or not they have insurance. the federal grant covers 40% of the costing. and it's the

>> thank you for organizing this special hour. i like the previous speakers rise in support of the 340-b drug pricing pam.

d.m. anand: it is one of the most far-reaching health programs especially for folks in my district. let me share a story of an story. one woman had no insurance and struggled to afford her diabetes medication and this is far too common in my district. the price jumped to 200 and says couldn't access her pharmacy during the crisis. this patient now pays $9 for her medication and delivered for free straight to her home. this patient is not alone. many patients would not be able to obtain their insulin without the 340-b discount.

this program is under assault on several fronts. we have to stand up and we must protect it. community health centers are under tremendous pressure to keep their doors open while caring for the most impact. the timing could not be worse for pharmaceutical manufacturers to undermine such a critical program. the 340-b program provides lifesaving medication for nearly 1.5 million patients of illinois community health centers as well as housing, transportation, care management and more. i yield back.

ms. spanberger: it's great to hear those stories, they exist across the country. i now yield time to the gentleman from tennessee as we continue our discussion about the value of this program. >> i thank the gentlelady for yielding time. i want to talk a little more about the importance of h.r. 4390 to protect this. it is co-led by representatives spanberger, virginia, the lead organizer of this special order hour. passage of the protect 340-b act of 2021 is essential this bill would prohibit pharmacy benefiting mores from

discriminating against 340-b providers. the protect 340-b act is supported by america's essential hospitals. 340-b health, national association of community health centers and ryan white clinics for 340-b access. 20 ensure p.b.m.'s are held accountable, it allows the h.h.s. secretary to impose civil monetary penalties. it even has an enforcement mechanism that hits the bad actors where it hurts them most. their pocketbooks. thank you, and i yield back to the gentlelady from virginia. ms. spanberger: thank you so much, to my colleague from tennessee. i appreciate you talking about the protect 340-b program. i was so proud to lead this effort and certainly as we've heard today, congress' intention

for the 340-b program is to support safety net providers and their ability to stretch their scarce resources and provide more comprehensive services to vulnerable patients. congress certainly did not intend for the 340-b program and those discounts to subsidize the profits of fortune 100 pharmacy benefit managers. and i thank mr. rose for recognizing that. i was proud to work with our colleagues across the aisle to introduce protect 340-b, to stop p.b.m.'s from frankly pick pocketing 340-b discounts so that we can ensure that the benefits of 340-b reach the community health centers, the h.i.v. and aids clinics, and the rural hospitals that congress intended to support. and i want to thank congressman mckinley of west virginia who has been an absolute champion of this issue. i have been so grateful to work with him and his team every step

along the way. his commitment to west virginia, the safety net hospitals, the rural hospitals and the communities that rely on 340-b is apparent through his dedication to this. and our bill is in response to the stories that we have heard from pharmacists across our districts. p.b.m.'s have established two tiers of payment for pharmacy disbursed drugs. one for chain and retail pharmacies unassociated with 340-b providers, and another significantly lower rate for 340-b pharmacies. years of market consolidation have given the leading, the three leading p.b.m.'s incredible market power and they can effectively dictate terms to smaller 340-b pharmacies. so what that means is p.b.m.'s are see lengthily -- are essentially pick pocketing 340-b savings from safety net providers and instead of helping the health care safety net reach more patients, the 340-b savings

are subsidizing the profits of some of the largest, most profitable companies in america. and that means that those safety net hospitals, those rural hospitals, those federally qualified health centers, are not able to put those savings towards care to patients. and our protect 340-b act would hold p.b.m.'s accountable and prevent them from applying these predatory business practices to the local health centers, the rural hospitals, and other federal grantees. it would also create a national clearinghouse to track 340-b discounts and make sure 340-b drugs are not included in states' medicaid rebate requests. together these changes would restore the integrity of the program and protect the health care safety net so many of our constituents rely on. i am proud that for over the past two years many states, including virginia, have passed laws to protect the health care safety net from these predatory

business practices. but it's not enough. a federal standard is necessary to ensure consistent and broad protections for health care providers and, importantly, to actually ensure that we are enforcing the law and we're seeing momentum toward that moment. currently our bill has more than 90 co-sponsors and i welcome the rest of our colleagues to join our efforts. certainly from tonight people should be able to see that this is an issue that many people from across the country and across the aisle certainly can get behind. and i urge my colleagues to consider joining us in this legislation. i'm nop what you -- i'm now happy to yield time back to the gentleman from tennessee to to continue this conversation. >> i thank the gentlelady for yielding and join her in calling on our colleagues to join us in this effort to preserve and protect the 340-b program. i'd like to share a success story that highlights how

members worked in a bipartisan way to solve a major issue within the 340-b program. because of the covid-19 pandemic, some hospitals lost their 340-b eligibility due to the influx of covid-19 patients that overwhelmed some hospitals and diminished their ability to meet the requirements of the 340-b program. two of those hospitals were in my district in rural tennessee. however the gentlelady from california, representative matsui, introduced h.r. 4203, which was designed to restore eligibility to hospitals that lost their 340-b status due to the pandemic. i was proud to lend my name as a co-sponsor to this bipartisan bill and i'm happy to report that because of this bipartisan support and the leadership of members like representative matsui, this issue was fixed in section 121 of the c consolidatd appropriations act of 2022.

because of this bipartisan effort, i am pleased to report back that both hospitals in my district in tennessee have since regained their 340-b eligibility. i hope this story shows that members are capable of protecting and strengthening the 340-b program in a bipartisan way. i yield back to the gentlelady from virginia. ms. spanberger: thank you, mr. rose. i appreciate it. we have been joining together to recognize the importance of this program, ensuring that it is there to serve our communities, i'll give an example. virginia commonwealth university, v.c.u., is the largest safety net hospital in virginia. it serves the greatest number of uninsured and medicaid patients in our commonwealth. nearly three quarters of v.c.u.'s payer mix is public or uninsured and i'm proud that v.c.u. has been a good steward of the discounts it receives

through the 340-b program. consistent with congressional intent that the 340-b program be used to ensure these discounts can stretch federal resources. the 340-b program supports v.c.u.'s health system commitment to serving all noaives community regardless of their ability to pay. and in 2020 alone, the program's savings helped v.c.u. health provide nearly 2,100 patients with 27,300 discounted or free medications and over $64 million in uncompensated care in fiscal year 2021. i'm going to repeat that. the program savings, the savings that v.c.u. was able to get through the 340-b program allowed them to provide $64 million in uncompensated care.

v.c.u. used its 340-b program to stretch its resources and expand access to care. in just one year, one patient visited v.c.u.'s emergency department nearly 50 times. he was homeless and he had multiple chronic conditions. so the emergency department referred him to v.c.u.'s health complex care clinic. there, thanks to 340-b program discounts, the patient received significantly discounted medication from the hospital pharmacy. meanwhile, the clinic staff helped the patient find transitional housing and apply for medicaid coverage. over the next three years, the patient only had four emergency department visits. in one year, this man visited the emergency room 50 times

because it was how he was able to get the health care he needed. but thanks to the 340-b program and how well it is utilized by hospitals like v.c.u. and hospitals across the country, this man was able to get the medicine he needed through this program at a discounted rate and the hospital was able to invest its resources in providing care and ensuring that this gentleman could get the medication he needed for his chronic illness and also find his way into transitional housing. apply for medicaid coverage. and over three year he had four emergency department visits. that is investing in the community, in better health outcomes, and this is exactly why this program was created. the discounts available through 340-b help providers like v.c.u. meet the needs of their patients and certainly uphold the intent

of 340-b and the program as it was created 30 years ago. i'd like to yield time to my colleague from tennessee. mr. rose: again, i thank the gentlelady from virginia. she's done a commendable job putting tonight's special order together, gathering support from both sides of the aisle and to come speak here tonight about the 340-b program. and being one of the members, leading the fight to protect the life-saving 340-b program, madam speaker, by their presence on the house floor tonight and the persuasive and powerful words they have spoken, these members have sent the unmistakable signal that we are all resolutely prepared to fight on behalf of our constituents who benefit from the 340-b program. even if it ruffles some powerful feathers. in big pharma, if big pharm

would play by the rules and abide by the law we wouldn't be in the position we are in today. however the big pharmaceutical companies aren't playing by the rules and they are showing no signs that they have an interest in doing so. all we're asking is that they, too, are held accountable to the law. that's it. nothing more. nothing less. in the meantime, we will continue to push back on their brazen attempts to undermine the law because i know we're on the right side of this fight. i encourage all members to reach out to the federally qualified health centers, the ryan white clinics, medicare, medicaid disproportionate share hospitals, rural hospitals, and children's hospitals in your districts that are 340-b participants. you'll find that the 340-b program has an enormous impact on communities all across this country. lastly, i want to reiterate my support for h.r. 4390, the

protect 340-b act. i sincerely beseech house leadership to bring the bill to the floor for a vote. thank you, madam speaker, and i yield back to the gentlelady from virginia. ms. spanberger: thank you, mr. rose. thank you for your commitment to this issue. thank you for joining me in this special order hour. it has been a wonderful experience to hear from our colleagues across the country and across the aisle talk about the value of this program. certainly we heard mr. thompson of pennsylvania talked about the impact the 340-b, the program, has on hospitals. their ability to operate, their ability to provide service and their ability to be there for their patients. the importance that this program has to the operation of our health care system here in the united states. we heard from mr. pappas of new hampshire stories about particular people's experience, that thanks to the 340-b program patients with a need in

communities -- and communities wanting to serb their constituents have been able to ensure that people who need medication can get it through the 340-b program. mr. o'halloran of arizona highlighted the value of this program in rural communities across the united states and mrd about the creation of federally qualified health centers and how vital the 340-b program is to their ability to serve their patients, their communities, and our communities. mr. garcia of illinois told a really specific story about the impact of 340-b on a patient with diabetes and what he's hearing directly from constituents and certainly mr. rose, in our comments back and forth, my colleague and i have talked about the value of this program, the intent of this program and our efforts to ensure that pharmaceutical

companies and pharmacy benefiting mores are not breaking the law and are not raiding the coffers of the 340-b discount program. so i want to close out tonight by just thanking all of the members who came to the floor, all of the members who support legislation to support this vital program and all the members who recognize the value of the 340-b program within their district. i thank the gentleman from tennessee for helping manager the -- for helping manage the floor during the special order hour. since its introduction, 340-b has helped serve thousands of communities and millions of patients. it's been a lifeline for hospitals, health centers and those who serve patients with low-incomes especially those uninsured, on medicaid and in rural areas.

it's done so with bipartisan support and without costing any taxpayer dollars. again these savings allow hospitals to stretch the federal dollar, save those federal dollars. this program does not cost a single taxpayer dollar. if in the 340- and the 340-b drug pricing program is a success story for patient access to care. we should celebrate it, we should protect it and we should defend 340-b. with that, madam speaker, i yield back the remainder of my time. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to section 11-b of house resolution 188, the house stands adjourned until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow for morning hour debate and noon for legislative business.

announcer: another bill is expected to come up later this week that would create a -- would create a federal red flag law. as always, live coverage of the house. , on c-span. . -- of the house, on c-span. ♪ announcer: c-span's shop dot org is the latest virtual store. there's something for every c-span fan. every purchase helps support our nonprofit operations. shop now or anytime at cspanshop.org. ♪

announcer: after months of closed-door investigations, the house january 6 committee is set to go public. tune in, as committee members question key witnesses about what transpired and why during the assault on the u.s. capitol. watch live coverage beginning thursday at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span, c-span now, our free mobile video app, or anytime online at c-span.org. c-span, your unfiltered view of government. announcer: actor and gun policy advocate matthew mcconaughey joined white house press secretary karine jean-pierre for the biden administration's daily briefing. he paid tribute to some victims of the recent mass shooting at uvalde, texas, where the actor was born, and recommended solutions to gun violence. this is about 40 minutes.