nadler: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, i rise in strong support of h.r. 1695. this legislation would strengthen the copyright office and make it more accountable to congress by turning the register of copyrights into a senate-confirmed position. since 2013, under the bipartisan leadership of chairman goodlatte and ranking member conyers, the judiciary committee has undertaken a comprehensive review of the copyright laws and the copyright office. over the course of 20 hearings with 100 witnesses as well as listening sessions across the country and individual meetings with a broad range of stakeholders, we have heard one consistent message, that the copyright office must be modernized to meet the needs of the public and the copyright community. this bill is an important first step in that process, and it is appropriate that we consider it today on world i.p. day when we recognize the tremendous contribution that intellectual property laws, including of copyright, make to our economy and our creativity. but maintaining this vibrant ecosystem -- copyright ecosystem

nadler. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. mr. nadler: thank you. i rise in support of the underlying ligs which i view is a great step -- legislation which i view is a great step forward. mr. speaker, we have heard about the misdeeds alleged of the prior librarian -- prior register of copyrights, we heard what a wonderful librarian. i agree carla haden is a wonderful librarian. this is not whether the last register is a good or bad register. it is not whether she knew she knew about modernization. this bill is against politicizing. this bill is for strengthening and enhancing the stature of the office of register of copyrights. the committee held four years of hearings on the copyright act. many -- there are many contentious issues that we will be bringing to the floor on that. this is not one of them. this issue had broad support. everybody agrees that the office of the -- excuse me -- copyright must be modernized. what this bill does is to take it, give it a little more independence from the library of congress. the librarian o

chairman graves: mr. nadler. rep. nadler: thank you, mr. chairman. mr. patterson, your written testimony suggests that the f.a.s.t. act rises faster for -- this committee has stood by the 80/20 highway trust fund split for decades. does oklahoma support this 80/20 split as we did in the f.a.s.t. act? mr. patterson: we do. we believe -- nadler: the mic please? mr. patterson: we do believe that the 80/20 split is appropriate and should be maintained. nadler: thank you. and also your testimony makes a compelling argument that direct funding is essential for highway and bridge projects. you say that the funding is helpful but will not preplace real dollars. can you explain why they won't generate significant return on investment? mr. patterson: when you typically look at a transportation project across this country, when you're talking about rural or urban situations, there is no opportunity in most cases to additionally, there's no toll tha additionally, there's no economic -- economic way to capture the dollars that are generated along a route. an example

nadler: thank you. mr. patterson? mr. patterson: i agree with the other two. rep. nadler: thank you. so in summary -- all our witnesses think the proposal that i outlined which is what you heard would be the administration's proposal would not generate a trillion dollars for infrastructure investment or anything near it? is that correct? mr. patterson: yes. rep. nadler: thank you very much. my time is well expired, and thank you, mr. chairman, for indulgence chairman graves: mr. in the time. chairman graves: mr. ferguson, five minutes. ferguson: thanks -- good to have a fellow georgian. -- thank you, mr. chairman. mayor reed, right over here. glad to have a fellow georgian in and thank you for taking your time. i know the new mantra is if i can get there. it's been tough. but want to thank you on behalf of the rest of the state for your diligence and working of course with the governor to help mitigate what is a very, very difficult situation for not only atlanta but the southeast, and i think it goes to show just how important transportation is, the one break down

. >> mr. nadler, in. >> thank you, mr. chairman. mr. patterson, your written testimony implies that the f.a.s.t. act authorization levels rise faster for transit than for highways. in fact, transit and highway funding increased 3% per year over the five years of the f.a.s.t. act. this many committee has stood by the 80/20 split for decades. does ash to maintain staying with this in future transtransportation bills as we did in the f.a.s.t. act? >> talk to the micah, please. >> sorry. >> we do believe that the 80/20 split is the appropriate and should be maintained. >> thank you. and also, your testimony makes a compelling argument that direct funding is essential for highway and bridge projects. you have made the case the public/private partnerships state infrastructure banks,tivia credit assistance and local bonding issues are helpful but will not replace real direct dollars. can you please explain why most transfor oportation methods can not troy enough for private sector investors? >> when you typically look at a transportation proje