buckeye broadband support c-span as a publicervice on with these otr television providers , giving you a front row seat to democracy. by a vote of two to 2-2 01, the house approved a bill that would ensure the tax retnsf sitting presidents are audited the i and made available to the blic. the legislation was considered after an investigation by e house ways and means committee. the irs failed to rform a required audit of former president donald trump's tax returns while he was in office. the measure now goes to the senate but is not expected to b considered with just a few days remaining in the 117 congress. , we are here this

morning to affirm that in america we are a nation of equal citizens. no person is above the law. by doing that we honor the acknowledgement of congressional oversight and responsibility. congress has a responsibility that dates to magna charta and be prepared to go back to the battle of hastings in 1066 to make the argument that i just offered. the ways and means committee is entrusted with the oversight of our revenue system. the ways and means committee and staff members all honor that very profound tradition. but at the root of it all this morning is our federal tax system that funds the democracy that we all love and cherish. we rely on voluntary tax compliance from all americans and perhaps especially the president. who always should model the highest order of compliance. on december 13, 49 years ago

this month, president richard nixon asked the ways and means committee wairm through letter to -- chairman through letter to have the joint committee on taxation review his tax returns. let me say something about the joint committee on taxation. both political parties hold the jct in the highest personal and professional esteem. this examination established the precedent for congressional oversight of a presidential tax compliance. four years ago, our committee began reviewing the mandatory audit of presidential tax returns to see how the i.r.s. was handling the stress of a president with complex finances. the committee expected to find that mandatory examinations were conducted promptly and more staff had been dedicated to the program to meet the more rigorous demands. i would remind you will this morning's "new york times" in the last evening i red online

highlights the fact that barack obama and joe biden both had their tax forms four federal court decisions from three courts, our committee found for all practical purposes the mandatory audit program was dormant. it wasn't functioning at all. the i.r.s. did not start its mandatory audits until they received a letter from us requesting tax f the i.r.s. has failed. so the best available for recourse is elimination that he limb natures the i.r.s. discretion. i can't imagine anybody giving the controversy in recent days would be opposed to this

legislation. we would require the i.r.s. to audit tax returns in a timely manner and keep the american public updated on the results because the president is not an ordinary taxpayer. it's about and presidency and not about a president. no one holds this power or influence as the leader of our executive branch. we arrived at this legislation through a deliberate and carbous process as always, as always. they will that our tax code applies evenly to all of us. the ways and means committee pursued the father about p mandatory audits. i emphasize there with were no leaks by the committee leading up to this decision to reach our report. imagine that in washington for something this complex, no

leaks. we adhered carefully to the law and resisted the fringe of both political parties as we proceed with great deliberation. no leaks as to how we were to move forward. this bill combined with investments in the i.r.s. we made as part of the inflation reduction act will preserve the integrity of the executive and our system of tax and ensthur that no one is above the law. today's legislation is not about a president, it's about the presidency. it is not about being punitive and malicious and those who have worked with me and they know what i have said is entirely accurate. the bill we consider today is about the integrity of the presidency and integrity of our tax system. i ask unanimous consent to

include in the record a technical explanation of the bill pred by the staff on the joint committee on taxation and i urge my colleagues to pass this legislation. and for the moment, i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman from massachusetts reserves. the chair will receive a message. the messenger: madam speaker, messages from the senate. the secretary: i have been directed by the senate to inform the house that the senate has passed s.1541 to amend the communications act to require the f.c.c. to ensure reasonable charges for telephone and advanced communication services in correctional facilities in which the concurrence of the house is requested. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is reek nighed. mr. brady: i yield myself such time as i may consume. i thank chairman neal for his u cati andhip.

you care about us and we haone good things on banning surprised medical bill an r to r with you. i intend to peel the bark off bill in front of us right now. so, madam speaker, this bill is a charade, a interimsy excuse that has been used to justify the political targeting of former president trump and democrats in congress accomplished their goal for the firs time, actual tax returns of a private citizen. this unprecedented action jeopardizees the right of every american to be protected by political targeting by congress. we are controlled president trump's tax returns must be released in order to conduct audits. that's absurd saying that your

medical records must be released in order to be examine. none has nothing to do with the other. you just realized that someone wants to release your medical records. our concerns is not whether the president has been making the accuracy of the tax returns. that's for the i.r.s. motivated action set a terrible precedent that unleashes a new dangerous political weapon reaching far beyond any president. it overturns decades of privacy protections for average americans that existed since the watergate reforms. our current law was put in place specifically to prevent members of congress targeting polal enemies through tax returns. unfortunately the supreme court chose not to intervene to stop

interimsy democrat efforts to target the former president. as a result of this week's action, longstanding privacy protections for all taxpayers have been gutted. going forward, the mity chairmanl hanl to target and mac the tax returns of private citizens or political enemies or business and labor leaders or even the supreme court justices themselves. no party in congress should hold that party, no individual should hold that power to embarrass, harris a private citizen through disclosure of their tax returns. the political enemies' list is back in washington d.c. and it will unleash a cycle of political retribution in congress. many of us in congress believe the current law was strong enough to protect private

citizens against this political targeting, but it is no longer and that is frightening. republicans will continue to fight to protect american taxpayers from this abuse of power and will have consequences for taxpayers and deems disems for years to come. we have urged them to turn back because making information public will be a regrettable stain and will make american politics more ugly and divisive. in the long run, we believe every member of congress will address this. we strongly oppose this bill not because portions of it doesn't have merit, they do, but it has serious flaws because it wasn't existing 48 hours ago and i'm convinced we could have found common ground with no need to

expose private tax returns of anyone. but not now, not this bill and not this way. republicans will not support any measure whose only purpose is to provide cover for the political targeting of a private citizen. with that, i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized. mr. neal: i still will say nice things about my colleague. i yield one minute to the gentleman from michigan, a leader on this issue of tax compliance, mr. kildee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. kildee: i rise in support of this legislation, legislation that ensures it will protect our tax system and ensures that it is fair and transparent for all americans. as we have heard the purpose of the ways and means committee investigation and the purpose of this legislation is to ensure

that no american is above the law, even the president of the united states. shockingly, under the former president, the i.r.s. was not examining the president's tax returns as required by their own policy, as it had for other presidents before and since. it did not follow its own rules. because of this, there are glaring questions whether the former president was abiding by our tax laws. and that's why we needed the information and that is why we need this legislation to require the i.r.s. to examine presidential returns in a timely and complete manner. the american people must have confidence that our tax laws apply evenly and justly to everyone. thank you, chairman neal, for your leadership. bypassing this we will ensure integrity in our tax system. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. brady: i ask unanimous consent to enter this article from yesterday's "l.a. times" that the release of tax returns does nothing to advance any legitimate oversight. i am proud to yield two minutes to the gentleman from nebraska, mr. smith. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr.smith: thank you, madam speaker and i might also with this -- i thank the gentleman for yielding me time and i thank him for his diligence and dedication as ranking member. probably his last time managing a bill and i want to thank my colleagues for his dedication and diligence. i rise today in strong opposition to this bill. i think one of the most unnecessarily divisive efforts in modern history. it has been rushed to the floor with no hearing, no markup and no opportunity to amend it. we are only here as an excuse

for democrats' last-minute rush to weaponnize taxpayer information against their opponents. much of the oversight democrats are seeking could have been conducting without accessing or releasing anyone's tax information. the inspector general and the joint committee on taxation could have provided an analysis of the start and completion dates without democrats releasing information. they could have given presidential audits without democrats releasing the private tax returns. we are debating a bill which will never be considered in the senate or become law solely to overcome the bad decision democrats made two nights ago. let's start in january with a bipartisan effort to ensure that the presidential audit program

is following the law without rushing to cancel 6103 protection. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized. mr. neal: nine of the last 10 presidents of the united states have offered their tax returns. let me yield one minute to the gentleman from illinois, mr. davis. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. davis: thank you, mr. chairman. we live in a country that is governed by constitution, laws, rules, regulations, there are no exemptions. there are no people who could be let off because of a position that they hold. tradition has it that we have seen the public is desirous of information and they want to know and i think it is our

responsibility to ensure that they do. i strongly support this legislation and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts reserves. the gentleman from texas. mr. brady: i yield two minutes to the republican leader of the tax policy subcommittee, the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. kelly. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. kelly: i thank the gentleman. so this phrase keeps coming up that no person is above the law. and that's true. but also no person is denied protection under the law. why would we wait four years and why would this come up at this time that we have to check the former president of the united states' tax returns and the answer is because we want to make them public. and why do we want to make them

public? because we need to have every single citizen understand just who this person is and what's in their tax returns with no regard to protections that are already in place that these kind of things don't happen, that they do not become a political weapon. and yet now, in the very last days of this session, we have decided that this is the most important thing this congress can do. no other president has ever gone through this type of a scrutiny. and we keep saying he is not above the law, he is not above the law and the truth is he is not protected by the law because we are going to change the law. they're going to make it a weapon we go after. tell you this. the

the miles per hour people continue to lose faith, trust, and confidence in a system that cherry picks what it decides to go after and go after in a way that is detrimental to the very form of government that we have. to be here today talking about this in the last hours of this session has nothing to do with what's good for the american people. it's a political hit job. it's sad, especially in this -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. kelly: in this for the ways and means to do this at the end of the year, horrible. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized. mr. neal: thank you, madam speaker. we were not granted this information until the supreme court ruled on november 23. we did not pursue this legislation at the last minute. we went through the regular order here. indeed with the gentlelady from california who did a great job on this, she represented the committee at the rules session

yesterday, i want to thank her and recognize her for one minute. ms. chu. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. chu: i rise today in strong support of h.r. 9640, the presidential tax filings and audit transparency act of 2022. this week i was shocked to find that the i.r.s. did not comply with its own mandate to conduct annual audits of the president's tax returns. this mandatory presidential audit has been in place since 1977. yet during trump's four years in office only one mandatory audit was even started. and none of the audits were completed. the majority of the audits weren't even started until trump left office. the american people deserve transparency and checks and balance for the president, the most powerful person in the world. the bill before us would ensure the integrity of this audit in federal statute and show the american public that no one is above the law. i urge my colleagues to vote

yes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. brady: thank you, madam speaker. i ask unanimous consent for the record one page from the democrats' own report showing that contrary to what we just heard, every single year tax returns at issue are under audit. debunking this claim the i.r.s. hasn't examined the tax return. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. brady: i'm proud to yield five minutes to the republican leader of the budget committee, the gentleman from missouri, mr. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. smith: thank you. i thank the gentleman from texas. we are 12 days, 12 days until the democrat majority does not exist. in 13 days the republican majority will be in charge. americans are facing the highest spike in prices in 40 years because of the one-party democrat rule in washington.

because of their reckless spending. the ways and means committee is the committee that effects the economy more than any committee in all of congress. what does the house democrats feel like their last 12 days, their biggest priority is, is not solving issues affecting working class americas, but issues in targeting their main political opponents. this legislation is only cover for what they have been campaigning on for years. and that is to get trump's tax returns. let me tell you, if you don't believe me now, this is called the mandatory audit program. it's about auditing all current and former presidents to make sure their tax returns are audited. but the chairman of this committee only requested how the

mandatory audit program has worked for one president. one. it was a republican president. his name was donald trump. i asked on tuesday, did you request a mandatory audit review process on joe biden? no. did you request one on obama? no. clinton? no. bush? no. carter? no. but yes, only trump. this is a cover for their political objective. that is to target their political opponents. we have heard over and over that no one's above the law. that includes everyone in this chamber. on tuesday when we sat in this markup i raised the point how can you release the full tax returns with all the private

personal information of the private citizens? their social security number, children's, children's social security numbers. and i said we need an amendment to redact that information. i was told we are not going to vote on amendment. but everyone says that no one's above the law. we were told good faith, good faith would redact the full transcripts. it would be decided by the majority staff. has the minority staff been able to participate in it? no. we don't even know what the final documents of the tax returns that's going to be released, what they are going to look at. this was another example where you to pass something before you know what's in it. that's what pelosi's done this entire congress. that is exactly what the ways and means democrats did. they have charted a new territory for the ways and means committee. it's the oldest committee in congress.

supposed to be the most bipartisan committee in congress. but they ignite add new political tool -- ignited a new political tool that future congresses will now utilize. i have traveled all over the country, 42 states just this year alone, and one thing that constantly kept coming up to me is congressman, look into president biden's family and how they have been enriched by his position. in fact, banks have flagged over 150, over 150 red flags to treasury. these are suspicious activity reports. usually it's because they believe there is fraud or money laundering. and that's the biden family bank accounts.

what about, what about the fact that foreign governments are paying to have their principals in the same room as joe biden? or the sale of u.s. natural gas to china of which the bidens held a 10% equity stake? or business plans to sell one of the largest sources of cobalt for electric vehicles to china, and $11 million made from hunter biden's, quote, work with a ukraine firm and a chinese businessman. like i said, over 150 red flags or suspicious activity reports filed by banks -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities towards the president or vice president. the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized. mr. neal: thank you, madam speaker. i did indicate i think perhaps

earlier, maybe the gentleman was not here, mr. obama and mr. biden both have had their tax forms audited. the majority staff has offered the minority staff who we have great regard for the opportunity to participate in the redaction process. they chose not to. with that let me recognize the gentleman from pennsylvania, another leader on the issue of tax compliance, mr. evans, for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. evans: mr. speaker, i rise today to strongly support this legislation. i'm proud to serve on the ways and means committee which under your leadership, strong leadership oversees and protects our nation's tax code. tax fairness is a top priority for me in the democratic members of the ways and means. mr. chairman, your legislation sends a real message of fairness, something we haven't seen before. i said to you, i encouraged you and all my colleagues to support this legislation. i yield back the balance of my

time. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. brady: thank you, madam speaker. i would note that our professional staff was ready to join in redaction. however we were forced to prepare for this floor action and offered to do that together after we were done this morning. i ask unanimous consent for the record recent law review journat notes that because ways and means democrats did not pursuit the presidential audits of any of the other eight presidents in that system, that the committee undermines their own credibility by releasing the terms outside of a comprehensive review of the presidential audit program. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. brady: thank you, madam speaker. proud to yield three minutes to the gentleman from kansas, mr. east it's -- mr. estes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. estes: madam speaker, what a

shameful way for the majority to end their reckless tenure in house leadership. today we are debating and voting on rushed bills that will cost americans trillions of dollars, expand the federal government, and eviscerate personal privacy. the timing of this atrocious bill is an assault on the institution and further undermines the public trust in the united states house of representatives and federal agencies. let us be clear, this bill has one purpose, to help the majority party justify their prejudiced release of personal and private data of the former president, his wife, and his 16-year-old son. the supporters of this bill claim that releasing personal tax returns is needed to prove the presidential mandatory audit process works. it does not. congress should oversee the presidential mandatory audit process to ensure it does work correctly, but this invasion of privacy does not do that. another point, the presidential

mandatory audit process is completely separate from the voluntary release of tax returns done by seven of the last nine presidents. democrats have supercharged the i.r.s. weapon to not only go after political enemies but their spouses and minor children, too. minor children aren't even exempt from the democrats' desire to take down their opponents. regardless of one's political preferences or attitudes towards the former president, every american should be developmentally opposed to -- vehemently opposed to this un-american attack on privacy and i urge my colleagues to vote no. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized. mr. neal: thank you, madam speaker. the former commissioner of the i.r.s. has indicated in the last 24 hours he had no idea as to how the actual audit of a president's forms played out. that's not for me. that's from the public record. with that let me recognize the gentleman from california, who has a profound interest in this

issue, mr. panetta. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized mr. panetta: thank you, madam speaker. let me start off by expressing my gratitude for chairman richie neal for his seriousness, his sincerity, and his solemnity in his leadership in the ways and means committee and in the way he conducted this request and release of the former president's tax returns and the writing of this legislation before us. because of him throughout this odyssey the members of the ways and means committee always knew and felt the gravity, the implications of what it meant to release an individual's tax returns. in fact, prior to this weekend, which was prior to my review of the former president's tax returns, i admit hi no intent on voting to release them. however, that changed. that changed once we were able to obtain the returns based on a valid legislative purpose and confirmed by the supreme court, go through the returns, and see the complete failure of the

i.r.s. when it comes to the presidential audit program. a program that is absolutely necessary to ensure the world's most important public servant is abiding by the law, paying his or her taxes like you and me, and free from any conflicts of interest. but clearly the i.r.s. doesn't appreciate nor does it prioritize the importance of this program, especially during the last administration. because as applied to the former president, not one audit was completed, despite what the president said to the american public. that's why i support this legislation. so that any president's personal and business tax returns are audited and made public and we are aware of those returns that are audited. i'm proud to say under the leadership and seriousness of chairman neal -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. panetta: pass h.r. 9640. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. brady: thank you, madam speaker. i yield myself 20 seconds to

note that every year of president trump's tax returns are under audit. i ask unanimous consent to submit for the record an article explaining the purpose of the taxpayer privacy law the democrats have dismantled this week, exposing all americans to political attack via tax information. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized. mr. neal: the real leader on this issue who gave one of the most moving addresses as the caucus ensued was the gentleman from nevada, steve hoarse forward -- horsford. i recognize him for 1 1/2 minutes. mr. horsford: i want to thank the distinguished chairman, mr. neal, for yielding time and for leading this important legislation. and also thank him for the opportunity to serve on i thank the ranking member for showing respect and all the best

to you in your future. i rise in support of the h.r. 9640, presidential tax filings and audit transparency act of 2022. as the chair has said since 1977, the i.r.s. adopted a policy of conducting audits on the president while in office as a check on their power. disturbingly our committee had all but given up and c emp ased this will program under the previous administration. as our colleagues have chipped away at the funding for the i.r.s., their talent pool has shrunk and has been unable to retain tax experts that are needed to review the complex tax returns of some of the wealthiest. meanwhile, those on the lower

income spectrum especially those with children who get the earned income tax credit are more likely to be audited, five times more likely to be awedded, those individuals on the low-income spectrum than the most wealthy. congress must step in. now is why this legislation must be passed. i urge my colleagues to vote yes on this measure and put confidence of the american people in our tax system. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts reserves. mr. brady: i would like to put in a blog post the new schumer-mamp chin will champion i.r.s. abuses. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts is

recognized. mr. neal: i yield to mr. green. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized grown green still i rise and i rise today because i believe we have a duty, a responsibility and obligation to protect the great and noble american ideals that are the foundation of this country. we have a duty to protect what john adams, second president, brought to our attention. we are a country of laws, not men. what the 26th president brought to our attention, teddy roosevelt, no one is above the law. the president has awesome authority. the i.r.s. is under the executive branch. we must pus in place laws to ensure there are no conflicts of interests perpetrated by a

president who has control to audit his taxes. we have a duty and obligation. i thank you for living up to the duty and responsibility and obligation. and i respect my friend from the other side from texas. we disagree. i wish him the best and the country needs this legislation. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. brady: i ask unanimous consent 2017 house report what the chairman said committee democrats remain steadfast in our pursuit to have president trump's personal tax returns disclosed. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. neal: i yield to the gentlewoman from texas a, for

one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. jackson lee: it is good in this season to be surrounded by truth. let me rise to support h.r. 9640, presidential tax filings and audit transparency act of 2022. because this is a necessity. the ways and means committee executed the mandate and the trump administration, the i.r.s. is in dereliction of duty to audit the president's tax returns. one time he paid zero. i don't want to focus on donald trump but he is at the core issue that are we an equal society, the ways and means committee has emphasized it is

and eds us to the obvious question, did they forget do it, did they displace his tax returns? i think this lemmings is imperative because it must be a general perspective that transportation is for everyone. let me be very clear there are hardworking members of the i.r.s. mr. neal: additional 30 seconds. ms. jackson lee: we see them all the time. but, mr. chairman, in addition to the dereliction regarding the audit of donald trump, we have heard if you are a school teacher, you are audited. i want to say the i.r.s. commissioner you are deer like that in your duties and to constituents and you are deer like that in your duty and what you are to do to the president of the united states, not only because he was president but he was an individual who continued

to ignore the laws of the land. today is a day of truth. this legislation will bring truth and respect. let's see those tax returns and let the i.r.s. do its job on behalf of the american people. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. brady: every year president thrum's tax returns are under audit, the tradition of making tax returns public is a tradition not a law. i would note very first members of congress to introduce impeachment resolutions in the very first year of his presidency, revealing that this

is political taferghting. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from texas rereserves. mr. neal: could we have an indication as to how many other speakers. we were close to -- mr. neal: we have no more speakers. before i finish my time here, i want to thank kevin brady. and we had an excellent relationship in the committee and i can speak for all the democrats, they have high regard when he was in the majority and minority and allowed the minority to use the time that was allocated to us and i never thought during that time that mr. brady did anything mean or malicious. in addition what is important to point out here as he did in his comments, we did big things during that time.

when you consider what we did the cares act, health, retirement savings and usmca, all of that was done in a bipartisan manner and that is a reflection of his personality. and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. brady: i yield myself such time as i may consume, i ask unanimous consent to enter into the record october 18 article from ""san francisco chronicle" quote expect democrats to immediately force president trump to release his tax returns if we take back the house exposing the true purpose of this effort. madam speaker, nancy pelosi is not alone.

democrat after democrat on this committee and in this congress made it clear years ago that they were targeting president trump to to try to force his tax returns to be made public. the law doesn't require it. and that has nothing, as was revealed in our committee hearing, has nothing to do with presidential audits. in fact, in our markup again and again we heard from members who said we must force these private tax returns to be made public so we can see his dealings, see his taxes, so we can criticize. nothing to do with the presidential audit process. and this is our concern today, that under the standard that has been set and the supreme court has affirmed two individuals in congress, chairman of the ways and means committee and senate

finance will attain and make public those tax returns. we are not alone, other scholars have made the point that we have a sole unitary tax system and if americans don't believe and can't trust that their tax returns won't be kept private if they have to worry that if they end up on the enemies' list in congress, that they, too, can be a target. under this new process and this new standard, the privacy protections of the last half a century are gone. i think every republican here and i hope some of our democrat friends are worried as well that this will provide a dangerous new political weapon, that invites political retribution, where that cycle will continue and continue and continue. and our politics will be worse.

they will be harsher and uglier and more divisive because of this action. at the end of the day whether the president makes their tax returns public or not, today is not the law. and while i would recommend it for all, truth of the matter is at the end of the day, this is political targeting. it can be applied not to just the president but to every american. and i'm worried it is not public officials at risk, it is private citizens, could be supporters, labor or business leaders, could be supreme court that some have sought to delegitimize. that is our concern that is why we are fighting this fight to protect the privacy of every american to make sure they are not targeted by partisans in congress. i am very worried that every chairman of those two committees

will face incredible pressure to target americans, political enemies and opponents and i don't think we should ever go down that road, but regrettably we are and that is why we are here. i have respected chairman neal. i will treasure our working relationship and i'll miss you, friend. before we conclude today, i want to say a special thank you to several ways and means republican staff, sean, derrick, caroline jones, molly, brittney, j.p. and the remarkable staff director of the ways and means committee, gary. you have done a great job. with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlemanyields back the balance of his time.

the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. neal: i have no further speakers. the constant theme we have heard today from the republican colleagues is that this is about targeting an individual. this is a chance to clarify the law that they suggest is currently in a convoluted stage which means there is sufficient confusion as to whether or not the process should play out. what this legislation argues is the following. and that is that we should codify the system that we have discovered in recent days is not only dysfunctional, it's not existent. nine of the last 10 presidents of the united states have voluntarily, dates from richard nixon former chairman, wilbur mills. barack obama and joe biden have indicated they have been fully

audited. what we are suggesting today that this is an opportunity to clear up the question of how the mandatory audit that is highlighted in regulations at the i.r.s. plays out. when we say it is not in law, we function on rules as well as law. the rules in the i.r.s. manual say the audit ought to take place. the audit didn't take place nor even completed. reminder, this is not about a president but about the presidency going forward. this was not done with malicious intent, not done in a clandestine manner but a chance to say if there is a legitimate argument how the mandatory audit system plays out, let's do it. paying no taxes and paying taxes is a core responsibility and reflection of our faith in

common citizenship. despite the idea, treasure the 87% of the american people pay their taxes on time. that speaks to the intent and sincerity they feel about a functioning government. all of us are expected to fulfill that respond. in, change for voluntary compliance, we have to be assured that a fair and well functioning system ensures that everyone else is cooperating, too. this shouldn't be the kind of country that allows those with power and privilege to be held above the law that applies to everyone else. that's not part of our national character. that's not our ethic as a people. here, no one, no matter how powerful, should be out of the reach of the tax system. least of all not in compliance with our tax laws. the i.r.s. failed its own policy to audit a president in an

affront to our shared sense of justice and fairness. everybody on this occasion acknowledges that. the audit did not take place. no audit has been completed three years later. the legislation before us, h.r. 9640, rectifies the situation. it offers great clarity. i awrnlg all of >> the house approved a bill that wou ensure the tax returns of sitting presidents are audited by the irs and made availae the public. the legislation was considered after an investigation by the house ways and means cmittee. the irs failed to perform a required audit of former president donald trump tax returns while he was in office. representative cheney, cat co., kissing her, rice, and upton were the only republicans to vote in favor. the measure now goes to the

sena b is not expected to be considered with just a few days remaining in the 117th congress. [speaking non-english language] -- ♪ we are funded by these television companies and more including conch cast. -- comcast. >> is it just a community center? no. it is way more than that. >> students from low income families can get the skills they need to be ready for athing. >> comcast support c-span as a public service along with these other television providers, giving you a front row seat to democracy. >> the house returns friday at 9:00 eastern to consider the $1.7 trillion spending bill that was passed by the senate to fund the government through september of next year. the legislation includes disaster assistance for states affected by natural disasters

and military and humanitarian aid for ukraine. this current government funding expires friday at midnight. the house will take up a short-term spending bill as a stopgap measure to avoid a temporary government shutdown. follow the house live on c-span, on our free mobile video app c-span now, or online at c-span.org. >> preorder your copy of the congressional directory for the 118th congress. it's your access to the federal government with bio and contact information for every house and senate member, important information on congressional committees, the president's cabinet, federal agencies and state governors. scan the code to preorder your copy today for deliveryn march. every purchase helps support our nonprofit operations. >> next, a discussion about the sign