Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2259, the Sam Farr and Nick Castle Peace Corps Reform Act.

To serve in the United States Peace Corps is a worthy mission. The Peace Corps promotes cultural understanding and creates strong ties between volunteers and the communities they serve. I've often heard foreign leaders, particularly in Africa, reflect upon their own interactions with volunteers who taught English or helped establish a fishery in their village. And I've seen many returned volunteers become leaders in industry and government at home--including serving here in Congress. This bill is named after one of them, former Representative and returned Peace Corps volunteer Sam Farr.

But serving in the Peace Corps also involves risk. Volunteers are expected to adapt to unfamiliar areas and customs. They may face political instability or crime. And they are exposed to countless infectious and tropical diseases, often without access to reliable care. Too often, we hear stories of Peace Corps volunteers suffering from debilitating illnesses that could have been prevented, falling victim to sexual assault without justice, or even dying. This is why the bill also is named for Nick Castle, a young Peace Corps volunteer who died while serving in China from a completely treatable illness.

The bill before us today strengthens the transparency, accountability and effectiveness of the Peace Corps by enacting a number of important reforms. It requires disclosures that will enable aspiring volunteers to better understand the risk they will face before they are deployed. The Peace Corps is not for everyone.

This legislation provides assurances to volunteers that qualified medical personnel will be accessible to them while serving overseas and here at home, should they experience a service-related injury or illness. And, importantly, it extends and expands upon a number of the provisions previously included in the Kate Puzey Act, which provides support to volunteers who have been victims of sexual assault.

Earlier this year, the Senate unanimously passed a similar version of the legislation: We have been working closely with the House sponsors, the administration, advocacy groups and our colleagues in the Senate to ensure that this important legislation can be enacted without further delay. I would like to thank the lead sponsor in the House, Judge Poe, for his steadfast commitment throughout this process. I would also like to acknowledge the important work of the Committees on Education and the Workforce and Oversight and Government Reform, without whom we could not consider this bill today.

I urge Members to support this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I very much appreciate the time that has been set aside here, and I appreciate the gentleman yielding.

I have got to say at the outset, one of the great tragedies of the half a million deaths in Syria is that I think it was quite avoidable.

If we think back to 7 years ago and how it started, it began with people marching in the streets of Damascus saying, ``peaceful, peaceful.'' Their goal was to try to get some element of human rights in a country in which people were being abducted and disappeared in these chambers where they were tortured and killed.

We know a lot more now than we did at the time because of a brave military photographer by the name of Caesar, and Caesar brought those pictures out to the West, 55,000 of them.

The way in which the regime conducted itself drove the population in Syria to react. And now, after 7 years of war, brutal war, the atrocities continue in Syria; and in many ways, after listening this morning to Caesar and seeing his photographs again, they are worse than they were.

I say that because, as we speak, despite a ceasefire agreed to by Russia, the Assad regime, backed by Russian war planes and backed by the Iranian militia from neighboring Iran on the ground, is engaged in a brutal assault on southern Syria. They are engaged there, and more than 45,000 civilians have fled as Russian and regime forces have intensified their shelling and their air raids again on civilian populations.

So yesterday alone, three hospitals were bombed. The United Nations has said that more Syrians were displaced in the first few months of this year than at any period in the last 7 years of war--the first few months of this year. This is happening as we speak.

This is one of the children affected by this brutal campaign. The numbers are staggering. As I shared with you, there are over half a million Syrians that have been killed. Think for a minute about the families of those who are on the move trying to escape. Fourteen million Syrians have been displaced; tens of thousands remain in the regime's dungeons.

That, for me, is the most horrifying aspect of this. It is because the regime will not, despite international pressure, change what it does within those dungeons, the same torture that was exposed to the world in the Caesar photos, in the 55,000 photos.

And the horrific part of this--I don't know why totalitarian regimes do this, but they have a habit of taking the picture of every tortured, mangled body that they have killed and then numbering it with a number, and then number after number after number. It is now a process of civil society in Syria trying to figure out and tie these families together.

And the population that was massacred, whether it is Shia or Sunni or Alawites or Christian, it is as though the regime knows no bounds in terms of its suspicions. It is like Joe Stalin's rampage when he decided, in the 1930s, to begin his process of eliminating anyone who could potentially be an opponent: take them in and put them to the torture.

That is what is happening as we speak. And if the regime retakes southern Syria, thousands more will be detained and meet the same fate as those who are in those torture chambers today.

So this morning, we had the honor of welcoming Caesar. Adam Kinzinger and I and other members of our committee had the opportunity once more to speak to the Syrian military defector who took those photos.

Four years ago, he met with our committee in his first public appearance following his defection. Those photos gave us an eyewitness account of the Assad regime's horrific brutality. And today, Caesar provided new, chilling testimony about the Assad regime's attacks against the Syrian people.

Industrial-scale torture, as I have told you, is being committed against thousands of detainees. And I will tell you, one picture that especially moved me showed a young woman. She was an architect in the city. She had had her eyes gouged out. She was tortured to death and her crime was that she had delivered food and humanitarian aid to individuals targeted by the Assad regime.

As you know, the Blue Helmets in Syria who run into collapsing buildings in order to pull out victims, pull out civilians, they are nondenominational. These are people who volunteer, and they are frequently targeted. It is often those who are doing the rescuing who are targeted by that regime.

Mr. Speaker, as I have said before, there can be no real peace in Syria as long as the Assad regime, as long as Assad, himself, remains in power. We need a strategy that, in the name of humanity, moves beyond Assad to achieve a political solution that will secure a lasting peace among all of the parties there.

The House has twice passed legislation named after Caesar, sponsored by Ranking Member Eliot Engel and me, to impose sanctions on supporters of Syria's Assad regime, including sanctions on Iran and Russia, because that is where the materiel comes from. That is where the bombs come from. This legislation will help cut off funding that fuels Assad's war machine, and it gives our diplomats much-needed leverage in the political process.

Additionally, the Caesar bill will support the prosecution of the regime's war criminals. This includes U.S. assistance for cases being tried around the world, many based on evidence in the Caesar file, such as the one recently filed by prosecutors in Germany.

Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, the Senate still has not acted on this critical legislation. It is time to sanction Assad. It is time to sanction his backers. It is time to hold war criminals accountable and give justice to victims.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues in the Senate to quickly move forward. Please move this legislation to help protect Syrian civilians.

Again, I want to thank my colleague not only for his efforts and for his service to this country, including on the battlefield, but also for his service here today in the interest of humanity.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5841) to modernize and strengthen the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to more effectively guard against the risk to the national security of the United States posed by certain types of foreign investment, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include any extraneous material in the Record.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 10 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr Hensarling), chairman of the Financial Services Committee,

and I ask unanimous consent that he be allowed to control that time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, over the past decade, we have seen rapid technological advances. We have seen an increase in foreign investment in the United States, but we have seen it especially from countries like China and Russia that pose national security concerns to us.

Of great alarm, our regulatory system has not kept pace. Mr. Pittenger's bill before us today seeks to change that.

The Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018 represents a broad bipartisan agreement to reform our regulatory systems to protect both our national security and to protect our economic prosperity. Specifically, this bill strengthens national security reviews of certain commercial transactions conducted by CFIUS, as well as reforms and modernizations in order to bring up to date outdated U.S. export control systems.

That regime is reformed here.

I want to thank the chairman of the Financial Services Committee, Mr. Hensarling, for his leadership on this issue.

The Committees on Armed Services, on Intelligence, Energy and Commerce, Budget, and Oversight and Government Reform also played important roles in shaping this legislation. This has been a truly collaborative process.

Mr. Speaker, this body has not addressed exports of dual-use items-- products and services that have both commercial and military application--since the Export Administration Act of 1979.

Since that lapse, nearly 25 years ago, successive administrations have relied on emergency authorities that have not kept pace with technological advances.

Today, we are acting to fix that problematic lapse because the United States' position as the world's largest exporter of goods and services is at risk. We will lose many good-paying jobs if we don't better secure advanced technology and if we don't better secure intellectual property.

That is why, this spring, the Foreign Affairs Committee passed the Export Control Reform Act of 2018. We passed this legislation. And under this approach, reflected in title VIII of the bill before us, modernized U.S. export control laws and regulations will continue to have broad authority governing the transfer of dual-use items and technology to foreign persons, whether that transfer takes place abroad or if that transfer takes place here in the United States.

Let me just highlight a few critical features of the export control provisions of the legislation.

This title of the bill requires that export controls be calibrated and continually updated to ensure lasting U.S. leadership in these fields: science, technology, engineering, manufacturing, and other sectors critical to the industrial base.

It ensures that sensitive manufacturing know-how, which may include such items as written or oral communications, blueprints, engineering designs, specifications, are subject to appropriate export controls regardless of the nature of the underlying transaction.

And lastly, it establishes a new authority for the U.S. export control agencies and the Department of Defense to identify and appropriately control emerging and foundational technologies that may be critical to U.S. national security.

This includes artificial intelligence, robotics, augmented and virtual reality, new biotechnologies, new financial technologies, and advanced materials.

Ten years ago, Mr. Sherman and I held a series of hearings to examine China's increasingly aggressive policies in the wake of the EAA'S expiration. I appreciate his passion for these issues and his understanding of the need to balance our economic and national security interests.

We do need a nimble, adaptable system that protects but doesn't unduly burden our world-class industries.

Modernized U.S. export controls and CFIUS reforms are both critical to the challenges posed by China and by Russia and by others.

This bill will help keep America safe, help keep us strong.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

House of Representatives, Committee on Oversight and

Government Reform

Washington, DC, June 26, 2018.

Hon. Edward R. Royce,

Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,

House of Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: I write concerning H.R. 5841, the

Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018.

This bill contains provisions within the jurisdiction of the

Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. As a result of

your having consulted with me concerning the provisions of

the bill that fall within our Rule X jurisdiction, I agree to

forgo consideration of the bill, so the bill may proceed

expeditiously to the House floor.

The Committee takes this action with our mutual

understanding that by foregoing consideration of H.R. 5841 we

do not waive any jurisdiction over the subject matter

contained in this or similar legislation, and we will be

appropriately consulted and involved as the bill or similar

legislation moves forward so we may address any remaining

issues within our Rule X jurisdiction. Further, I request

your support for the appointment of conferees from the

Committee on Oversight and Government Reform during any

House-Senate conference on this or related legislation.

Finally, I would appreciate a response confirming this

understanding and ask that a copy of our exchange of letters

on this matter be included in the bill report filed by the

Committee on Armed Services, as well as in the Congressional

Record during floor consideration thereof.

Sincerely,

Trey Gowdy.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas, and I ask unanimous consent that he may control that time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would like to thank several of my colleagues, the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Mr. Engel, as well as, of course, Chairman Hensarling, Ranking Member Waters, and Mr. Pittenger.

I want to thank them for incorporating as title VIII the text that I authored as H.R. 5040, this is the Export Control Reform Act of 2018. This is the measure we put out of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

This title modernizes and reforms outdated export controls designed to impose trade controls on the old Soviet bloc. It was long past due that we update these controls to reflect the realities of modern international commerce and the national security threats of the century we are in right now.

I would urge my colleagues to join us in modernizing both the CFIUS and export controls process which we do now in this combined bill. A ``yes'' vote will ensure continued U.S. leadership in high technology industries essential to the health of our economy and essential to our national security.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, let me start by just thanking the chairman of this committee, and I thank his committee for working with me on my proposed changes and for including an additional amendment in the manager's package.

The amendment before us expands the number of projects eligible under the non-Federal implementation pilot program, and, as you know, the pilot program was established by WRDA in 2014. What it does is, it allows projects that can demonstrate greater cost effectiveness, greater efficiency to receive direct funding. Savings from this program then go toward either deficit reduction and other Corps projects.

So the original pilot allowed for 15 projects. This expands the program to allow for a total of 32 projects. These projects will need to be authorized and meet the criteria under the program, and if more projects qualify under this pilot, it has the potential to save taxpayers more money.

Mr. Chairman, I urge support, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I rise as the designee of Mr. Keating to offer amendment No. 5.

Mr. Chairman, this particular amendment would expand the Army Corps of Engineers' authorization to permit cooperation with regional coalitions who are seeking to create or improve water infrastructure in their areas.

The amendment today would help achieve the goal by encouraging towns and counties to create partnerships with the Army Corps so they can pursue creative solutions to local infrastructure needs and they can do this together.

The reason for it is because watersheds do not follow municipal or even State boundaries, as we know, so it is regional approaches like the project in Mr. Keating's district that provide effective and efficient solutions.

So I thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, it was 5:39 a.m. on June 25, 2010 when we passed the Dodd-Frank Conference Committee Report. At that early morning hour--other than a need for sleep--there was little we agreed upon. But one thing stood out, Republicans and Democrats openly discussed that there were problems in the bill that would need fixing. We knew some of the unintended (and intended) consequences that community banks and credit unions would face when looking to lend to homeowners and small businesses.

Sadly, Mr. Speaker, it has taken nearly 8 years for us to pass into law any meaningful changes of those sweeping reforms. Smaller institutions have suffered; they have fewer assets over which to spread ever-increasing compliance costs. That's what leads to this conundrum where we have fewer banks today than we did during the Great Depression.

Today, we take a step in rewriting these wrongs. I'm particular proud that the bill before us includes many provisions I authored on a bipartisan basis. S. 2155 provides potential homeownership for the so- called ``credit invisibles,'' increases small business lending from credit unions, and improves access to capital for companies looking to go public and hire more workers.

I urge my colleagues to pass these overdue reforms.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Affairs be discharged from further consideration of the resolution (H. Res. 835) supporting robust relations with the State of Israel bilaterally and in multilateral fora upon seventy years of statehood, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

I have an amendment to the text at the desk.

I have an amendment to the preamble at the desk.

Mr. Speaker, I was here during the debates that we had on Dodd-Frank and involved in much of the discussion. On the Democratic side and on the Republican side, there were a number of things we debated, but through all of that debate, there was a bipartisan belief that auto dealers and lenders were certainly not at the heart of the crisis and should not be the focus of new regulation.

With that in mind, as the chairman has noted, section 1029 of Dodd- Frank explicitly exempted auto dealers from CFPB supervision and regulation. If that is the case, Mr. Speaker, why are we here today?

We are here because the auto dealers are the focus of a CFPB action that ends the consumers' ability to receive discounted car loans.

Why are consumers facing higher, not lower, costs when going to buy a car? The answer is regulatory overreach.

CFPB ignored the will of Congress, ignored the law as written. As The Wall Street Journal noted, Congress' explicit exemption ``didn't stop former CFPB chief Richard Cordray, who used the back door of auto financing to regulate dealers.''

And while Mr. Cordray may have been able to suspend this belief, we do not have the same luxury here. We are not here by choice, frankly. We must act to pass this resolution today.

And, Mr. Speaker, I would like to share the bipartisan call for enforcement of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and make this point: let's work together to tackle discrimination where it exists--where it exists--not where regulators ignore the law and employ algorithms to guess that it might exist.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, let me thank the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros- Lehtinen), the chairman emeritus of our committee, for her tireless work advocating on behalf of Holocaust survivors. Let me say at the outset here that no one in Congress, no one in this Congress, has done more to advocate on behalf of survivors than Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and I believe that to be true through her entire tenure in this body.

Let me also explain the thoughts, as explained to us, behind our Senate colleagues that put together the JUST Act.

From their standpoint, from their vantage point, the JUST Act is a simple reporting requirement to assess the progress of signatories to the 2009 Terezin Declaration on Holocaust era assets and related issues. The goal there, of course, was to fulfill the principles in that declaration. A lot of time and effort went into trying to leverage that agreement out of 46 countries that agreed to these principles.

Now, here is the point; here is where we have a difference of opinion: of those 46 countries, some of them are falling woefully short of their commitments.

Here are the conflict divisions. Some are saying, many are saying: Look, we need to put pressure on them.

The Senate unanimously came to the conclusion that a way to do that is with this bill, because what the legislation does is to ensure that there is an accountability mechanism of checking adherence to the declaration principles and to making sure that it doesn't fall by the wayside by bringing accountability to those countries that don't.

The injustices of the Holocaust, frankly, here today, those injustices are too many to name. Many are unaddressed in that declaration, and I concur from that standpoint. But, at the same time, we need to continue pushing to right the full spectrum of these wrongs.

Before us we have a bill which will bring much leverage. We cannot lose the headway that we have made toward compensating survivors and families for what was rightfully theirs.

Our partners have already agreed to the restitution principles in the declaration. A formal report that shows who has fallen short and how, it is argued by our colleagues in the Senate, would be a powerful instrument for the U.S. Government to push for changes.

From my standpoint, I understand the arguments being made by the Senate. It does not mean that we should not go forward to make other points. But the argument they make to us is let's give the State Department the tools it needs to ensure accountability. This is an argument that, on both sides of the aisle, the preponderance of Members here, I think, concur with.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, we have been contacted on behalf of the JUST Act by a number of organizations in support of the Senate bill. The major American Jewish organizations supporting this measure are the American Jewish Committee, the Anti-Defamation League, the Jewish Federations of North America, the B'nai B'rith, the HIAS refugee assistance organization, Union for Reform Judaism, Orthodox Union, World Jewish Restitution Organization, and others; and they have argued that the Justice for Uncompensated Survivors Today Act, or JUST Act, as the Senate calls it, is a measure that will have an outsized impact in encouraging countries to continue working to make amends for the evils of the Holocaust. That is what drove the Senate to pass this bill.

Now, just to go into the details again a little bit: it was in 2009 that representatives of this country and 40 other countries agreed to a set of principles to address the welfare of survivors, to address Holocaust education, and to address issues related to restitution for seized property, among other issues.

Now, that is what these 40 nations committed to. So 10 years have passed, approximately, and it is time that we take stock of the work under way because, while a number of these partner countries have made great strides to uphold their commitments under the agreement, you and I know--everybody here knows--that some countries have fallen short.

And this legislation, which charges the State Department with the responsibility for this important report--and let's call it naming and shaming; that is basically what is intended here--gives the United States another tool to seek justice for Holocaust survivors, to seek justice for the families of Holocaust victims. And it is our hope that passing this bill will motivate improvements even before the report is penned. Already we have seen some of these countries overseas renew their engagement on this issue, and that is the leverage that we want to deploy.

It is a devastating issue to even begin a discussion because we can never compensate Holocaust survivors truly for the unbelievable horror and devastation that they suffered. But from the perspective of most of the organizations that have talked to us about the bill, their point would be: We can try. We can try to restore what is rightfully theirs. And part of the trying, from their standpoint, is to shed light on the efforts, or lack thereof, that other countries are making. And this bill does that. It unanimously passed the Senate for that reason.

Mr. Speaker, I thank all the Members here who participated today in the debate over this very difficult issue, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4744) to impose additional sanctions with respect to serious human rights abuses of the Government of Iran, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include any extraneous material on H.R. 4744, currently under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, in January this body came together. It was a near unanimous vote to support the Iranian people, who were engaged in legitimate protests against a very oppressive regime. I want to thank Mr. Mike McCaul here, chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, and Mr. Eliot Engel, the ranking member of our Committee on Foreign Affairs, for their engagement in this issue.

At the time, we were witnessing tens of thousands of Iranians who had taken to the streets in the largest demonstration that we had seen since the Green Revolution of 2009. The protests, aimed at economic stagnation, aimed at widespread corruption--and people were talking about that all the time--aimed at the Revolutionary Guard Corps' control over that economy because they had nationalized, seized, so much of that economy. And quickly we saw that spread across Iran, as Persians sought to exercise the fundamental right of freedom of expression, as people across that country, of every ethnicity and every religion, began to speak out.

Many demonstrators shouted slogans aimed at Iran's costly support for Syria's Bashar al-Assad, if you recall, from reading the press accounts. And they attacked, they argued about the cost, the support that went to the terrorist groups such as Hezbollah. Predictably, the Iranian regime moved swiftly to quash the demonstrations and throttle social media.

More than 1,000 Iranians were jailed, dozens were killed. H. Res. 676 condemned this brutal violence back in January, called for targeted sanctions to hold the regime to account. But today we act to make good on that call, because the bill before us today, Chairman McCaul's H.R. 4744, requires the administration to determine whether senior Iranian officials should be sanctioned for human rights abuses. And it also requires determinations on whether Iranian businesses should be sanctioned for public corruption with respect to those who are involved in corruption. And it mandates sanctions on those officials responsible for Iran's wrongful, politically motivated jailing of U.S. citizens.

Mr. Speaker, for years the regime in Tehran has systematically beat down all opposition inside Iran. It regularly uses brutal tactics back in Iran, including torture and mass executions, as it seeks to export violence and radical ideology abroad as well. I think all of us can think back to that 1979 revolution and contemplate how much better Iran would have been had it not went off onto a path of becoming a rogue state.

As this legislation details, today the regime flagrantly disregards commitments it has made to respect the fundamental rights of the Iranian people. Many of us recall the barbaric mass executions carried out over a 4-month period in 1988. And I dare say, if you know any Persians, if you know people who escaped from Iran, you know that, during that period of time leading up to 1988, there were over 30,000 students and young professionals who lost their lives as a consequence.

We know that the political prisoners there went through a grueling experience, in Evin Prison and other prisons. Many were executed by hanging, many by firing squad. They refused to renounce their political affiliations, and that was the fate that was handed out to them.

And today the regime still persecutes ethnic and religious minority groups; such as, the Baha'i; Christians, of course; Sufi; Sunni; dissenting Shia Muslims. And we all remember the way the ayatollah brutally suppressed the peaceful political dissent during the Green Revolution, during which the previous administration remained embarrassingly silent, in my view. And many of us here on this floor today spoke up often at that time about that dissent during the Green Revolution, because I think this was a real opportunity missed by the United States.

So again, Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Chairman McCaul and I want to thank Ranking Member Engel for their leadership on this legislation. I am glad we have strong bipartisan support for this measure. Regardless of how one views the Iran nuclear agreement, it is critical that the United States and our allies continue to press Iran for its dangerous and threatening acts that fall outside of the JCPOA.

This is an area where officials from both the Trump and Obama administrations agree, and they agree for good reason here. Remember, this is the same regime that is holding American citizens, including one who is in very poor health, on sham charges in one of the largest ransom schemes, from my standpoint, that was ever devised.

This regime, of course, held its first American hostages in 1979, when it overran our U.S. Embassy. The regime's MO remains the same. It is far past time the regime faced consequences for its attacks on Iranians and Americans alike.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

House of Representatives,

Committee on Ways and Means,

Washington, DC, April 13, 2018.

Hon. Edward R. Royce,

Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,

Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Royce: I am writing with respect to H.R.

4744, the ``Iran Human Rights and Hostage-Taking

Accountability Act,'' on which Ways and Means was granted an

additional referral.

As a result of your having consulted with us on provisions

in H.R. 4744 that fall within the Rule X jurisdiction of the

Committee on Ways and Means, I agree to waive formal

consideration of this bill so that it may move expeditiously

to the floor. The Committee on Ways and Means takes this

action with the mutual understanding that we do not waive any

jurisdiction over the subject matter contained in this or

similar legislation, and the Committee will be appropriately

consulted and involved as the bill or similar legislation

moves forward so that we may address any remaining issues

that fall within our jurisdiction. The Committee also

reserves the right to seek appointment of an appropriate

number of conferees to any House-Senate conference involving

this or similar legislation, and requests your support for

such request.

Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter

confirming this understanding, and would ask that a copy of

our exchange of letters on this matter be included in the

Congressional Record during floor consideration of H.R. 4744.

Sincerely,

Kevin Brady,

Chairman.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. McCaul), chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security and the author of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), who chairs the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe), chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

In closing, I would again like to thank my colleagues, Chairman McCaul and Ranking Member Engel, for their bipartisan leadership to hold Iran accountable, to hold them accountable for their brutality: their brutality in the 1988 massacres, and their brutality in terms of the way they are treating their religious minorities today.

We know that Americans formerly imprisoned by Iran describe being subjected to electric shock and whippings. We have heard that before our committee. We have heard them say that they were denied medical care.

Today, U.S. citizens, such as Siamak and Baqer Namazi, Xiyue Wang, and U.S. permanent resident Nazar Zaka, are all sitting in Iranian jails on bogus accusations of collaborating with a hostile government for espionage. And U.S. citizen Robert Levinson is still missing, and that is more than 10 years after he disappeared in Iran. Our hearts go out to these victims and our hearts go out to their families as we renew our call for the immediate release of all U.S. citizens and permanent residents held in Iran.

With this legislation, we will impose tough sanctions on the regime. And we do that for its corruption, for its attacks on innocent Americans, and for its attacks on Iranians alike.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4681) to limit assistance for areas of Syria controlled by the Government of Syria or associated forces, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material in the Record.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, this bill comes at a very critical time. After 7 years of devastating civil war, the destruction inflicted on the Syrian people by the Assad regime and its allies is catastrophic. By catastrophic, we mean a half million dead and we mean 14 million souls pushed out of their homes in that civil war.

Even now, Iranian-backed militias are engaged in sectarian cleansing. Ethnic cleansing was supposed to be something of the past. They are forcing people from their homes, and Russian warplanes continue to drop bombs on hospitals. Just 2 weeks ago, the regime again used chemical weapons outside of Damascus as part of an operation that has displaced 55,000 people in this latest operation.

Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the ranking member of our committee, Mr. Eliot Engel, because during this period of time--and we have assisted in this effort--but during this period of time, he has tried to lead in getting a solution to the problem of that civil unrest in Syria, which began with people on the streets in Damascus marching, saying: ``Peaceful, peaceful.'' From day one, he has led an effort to try to focus us on trying to resolve this crisis.

Unfortunately, as the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum noted in a recent report, the situation on the ground is getting even worse in Syria, and the worst, they say, is probably yet to come.

At the same time as this carnage is going on, representatives of Syria, Iran, and Russia have spread out across the international community trying to gin up reconstruction money. They will not find it here.

It would be unconscionable for U.S. Government function to be used for stabilization or reconstruction in the areas under control of the illegitimate Assad regime and its proxies, and I will tell you why: because the people in those areas that they have taken over are being pushed out. And the militia that are being brought in are militia-- whether it is Hezbollah or other militia--that are not indigenous to those communities. We are not going to support the building of infrastructure that is going to benefit Hezbollah, Iran's revolutionary guards, or foreign militias recruited and paid for by the Iranian regime.

If or when the day comes that the Government of Syria is no longer led by Bashar al-Assad and his proxies, then the U.S. can once again look at the prospect for assistance, if the day comes when people are allowed to return to their homes. We do have an interest in seeing a stable and secure--and not hostile--Syria one day.

But until then, murder, industrial level torture, starvation, deliberate targeting of schools, hospitals, and markets, and the shameless use of chemical weapons cannot be in the remotest way possible supported by U.S. funding.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that Members join with us to ensure no U.S. funding makes it into the hands of the Assad regime and his proxies.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

House of Representatives,

Committee on Financial Services,

Washington, DC, April 16, 2018.

Hon. Ed Royce,

Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,

Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Royce: I am writing concerning H.R. 4681, the

No Assistance for Assad Act.

As a result of your having consulted with the Committee on

Financial Services concerning provisions in the bill that

fall within our Rule X jurisdiction, I agree to forgo action

on the bill so that it may proceed expeditiously to the House

Floor. The Committee on Financial Services takes this action

with our mutual understanding that, by foregoing

consideration of H.R. 4681, at this time, we do not waive any

jurisdiction over the subject matter contained in this or

similar legislation, and that our Committee will be

appropriately consulted and involved as this or similar

legislation moves forward so that we may address any

remaining issues that fall within our Rule X jurisdiction.

Our Committee also reserves the right to seek appointment of

an appropriate number of conferees to any House-Senate

conference involving this or similar legislation, and

requests your support for any such request.

Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter

confirming this understanding with respect to H.R. 4681 and

would ask that a copy of our exchange of letters on this

matter be included in the Congressional Record during floor

consideration thereof.

Sincerely,

Jeb Hensarling,

Chairman.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kinzinger), the primary Republican cosponsor of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe), the chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

In closing, I would like to thank Ranking Member Engel and Representative Kinzinger for their exceptional work on this important bill. This bill will keep taxpayer dollars out of the hands of a murderous regime and its proxies.

Time and again, Mr. Eliot Engel has been this body's conscience on the issue of Syria. We have acted many times, passing the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act twice; adopting H. Con. Res. 121, which expressed the sense of the Congress supporting the establishment of a tribunal in Syria to try Assad's war crimes, another measure we had passed.

While we have made important progress in the military campaign against ISIS, there is no end in sight to the misery inflicted on the people of Syria by Assad and his proxies. Now is not the time to turn away. As we engage, we cannot allow U.S. taxpayer money to reward war crimes.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 111) recognizing and supporting the efforts of the United Bid Committee to bring the 2026 Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup competition to Canada, Mexico, and the United States, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on this measure.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood).

I thank him for introducing a resolution which expresses the broad bipartisan agreement that the United States supports the United Bid Committee's effort to jointly host the 2026 FIFA World Cup competition.

Soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world, and the World Cup is its most important competition. Hosting the tournament would be a win for the United States and for our neighbors in Canada and Mexico as well.

The United States has not hosted a FIFA World Cup since 1994, but 24 years later, we still hold the all-time attendance record. Over 3\1/2\ million people attended those matches. I remember. I was there in the stands for the games in L.A. The economic revenue generated by the 1994 tournament generated more than double what was expected.

The 2026 tournament is expected to break revenue and attendance records. FIFA has already announced that it will be the first time in tournament history that 48 teams, instead of 32, are going to compete in the World Cup. The addition of more teams will mean more economic opportunities for American cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco to host and entertain visitors from around the country and around the world.

The FIFA World Cup, much like the Olympics, has a long tradition of bringing countries together in a competitive but peaceful environment.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood), the author of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

In closing, I would like to, once again, thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood), and I also thank the 40 cosponsors who have been pushing this important, bipartisan resolution. By passing this resolution, we show our support for the efforts of the United Bid Committee to bring the excitement of the World Cup tournament to the United States once again, for the first time since 1994.

Mr. Speaker, I urge unanimous support for this measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2219) to increase the role of the financial industry in combating human trafficking, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include any extraneous material on this bill in the Record.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, this legislation is on human trafficking, which, put another way, is modern-day slavery. It continues to devastate the lives of millions of people; and whether we are talking about trafficking, labor trafficking, which is indentured servitude or, basically, slavery, or whether we are talking about underage children that are frequently trafficked for sexual exploitation by these criminal syndicates, the results are the same.

The results to these broken lives, due to these perpetrators of these disgusting acts who prey on these vulnerable and defenseless people, leave in their wake the broken lives of these children and of those who are trafficked for labor.

These are not faraway crimes, as the Members here know from their own districts. These are crimes in the United States; and if you go to Los Angeles and ask the District Attorney, or you ask the District Attorney in Orange County, what is the average age that children are trafficked into these brothels or into these syndicates, they will tell you the average age now is 14.

When you ask them why, they will tell you because a 14-year-old or 15-year-old is much less likely to put up resistance once she has been kidnapped or enticed by some Romeo into this kind of conduct.

I think of the survivors when I think about this, the ones that many of us have met who share their stories with us, and I think of Angela Guanzon. She was labor-trafficked, working in an abusive workplace day- in, day-out, 16 hours, 18 hours, never seeing the light of day, sleeping on the hallway floor. Survivors have taught me that the horror of trafficking lies not in the statistics that we talk about here, but in the stolen lives of these people.

Why is this so common? How can it be that we have so many instances of this?

It is common because it is profitable and because these people, these children and others who are trafficked, have very little resistance. That is why.

The International Labor Organization estimates that it is a $150 billion business in illegal profit made from forced labor each year, making human trafficking the third most valuable criminal enterprise in the world.

And guess what? If your gang is involved in this instead of in drug crimes, they are much less likely to experience violence themselves because their victims cannot really fight back. They are in a line of work where they can lord their violence over their victims.

Traffickers are laundering their money through financial institutions that they can access with the click of a keyboard; and cutting off their access to the banking system is critical to putting an end to these illegal operations once and for all.

The End Banking for Human Traffickers Act of 2018 will help law enforcement and financial institutions identify and report suspected human traffickers so that they can be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

In California, by the way, we had, a few years ago, put a new law on the books that allows us, if we can catch them, to put them away for over 20 years.

I want to thank my colleagues on the Financial Services Committee, especially Chairman Hensarling and Ranking Member Maxine Waters, for their important contributions to this legislation.

This legislation will not only bolster our efforts to combat human traffickers' use of our domestic financial institutions, but it is going to encourage other countries to cut off traffickers from their global financial system.

This bill is going to update the State Department's annual Trafficking in Persons Report to require a country-by-country assessment of whether foreign governments have a framework in place to prevent financial transactions involving the proceeds of severe forms of human trafficking.

Now, these annual reports, as we know, which the State Department uses to rank countries' efforts to combat trafficking, are taken very seriously in foreign capitals. They have helped to reinforce global norms of responsible behavior.

I say that because when we first introduced this some years ago, we have seen 120 governments now enact national anti-trafficking laws in order to try to comply with the reports that we do through our audits through our State Department in these other countries. They do not want to be shamed. When we name them, we shame them, and so we get compliance. This will assist on that as well. It is a critical first step for enforcement.

So, as the center of the global financial system and the leading country in terms of combating human trafficking in the world, the United States must take all possible steps to address this crime and, for this reason, this bill, H.R. 2219, deserves our unanimous support.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I would just begin here by recognizing Representative Bill Keating, who brings to this issue--I just want to acknowledge this. We don't have that many District Attorneys, former District Attorneys in this body who have the experience of law enforcement in terms of dealing with the types of criminals that go into this line of work, and he brings that expertise and has assisted greatly in this. I just wanted to acknowledge that before the body today.

I acknowledge also the contribution of Congressman Chris Smith, who, I think it was in 2000, as I recall, originally brought before us this very idea of how to combat human trafficking internationally. He has worked on many, many issues, the International Megan's Law, and many others.

But this idea of how we could hold governments around the world to account, this idea of the TIP Report, and then, on top of it, the enforcement, so that it meant something; the idea that he would get on a plane and go and make certain that our consulates and our embassies overseas were carrying out that audit, and that the victims had someone to explain this to; that NGOs had someone to talk to about what was going on in-country, so that, country by country by country, he could identify situations where underaged children were being trafficked or being exploited.

I just wanted to acknowledge that the gentleman has really been dogged all of these years in moving this issue, and thank him again for what he has done for humanity, frankly.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, with Chairman Smith present, I want to speak on the legislation which he previously brought up, the legislation prior to this bill. I want to join him--I am a cosponsor of his legislation--in support of H. Res. 128.

He and Karen Bass and other Members have worked together as cosponsors of this legislation, and I want to say the Ethiopians are a very proud people. They have a very rich heritage and a very rich history.

Ethiopia is a very important partner for the United States. It has asserted regional influence through rapid economic growth, as we know, and strong cooperation with us on our security initiatives in the region. It has that commitment that it constantly shows towards combating radical jihadist extremism, and it has made notable strides to address domestic challenges of health and child survival and food security.

We have both made trips out there to see that progress, and we celebrate these accomplishments. Ethiopia has come a long way from the devastating famines of the 1980s, and it has achieved much of the benchmarks. Most of the benchmarks that the Millennium Development Goals have set out for it to date have been met.

This resolution recognizes the need to continue a close partnership between the United States and Ethiopia to continue that momentum. But it is because of these important bilateral ties that we must ensure that Ethiopia is respecting good governance and democratic values.

Deeply ingrained ethnic divisions, marginalization, and years of conflict provide unique governance challenges for the country. Advancing democratic values is never easy, but they are the best way to further Ethiopia's progress and to further our robust bilateral relationship.

Reports of widespread human rights abuses and crackdowns on freedom of expression and excessive force against peaceful protestors are unacceptable.

The Government of Ethiopia has released thousands of political prisoners in the last few months, and this is a welcome development. However, the recently reimposed state of emergency criminalizes peaceful assembly and allows state security forces to arrest citizens without charge. This state of emergency must be lifted immediately, which is what this resolution also calls for.

The United States must hold the Government of Ethiopia accountable to the peaceful voices of their citizens, while allowing for inclusive political participation and respecting human rights and freedom of expression.

All parties must come to the table in order to advance democratic principles and chart the course for a prosperous, inclusive, and peaceful Ethiopia; otherwise, stability and economic progress will suffer over the long term.

There is cause for hope, and I commend Dr. Abiy Ahmed for his recent appointment as Prime Minister. I am so encouraged by his call for increased political competition and in defense of fundamental human rights. We hope that, under his leadership, the government will enact meaningful political and social reforms.

Mr. Speaker, I would also like to thank my colleague Representative Coffman for his work on this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, returning to the End Banking for Human Traffickers Act, I want to again thank my colleagues, the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Mr. Engel, Chairman Hensarling, Ranking Member Waters of the Financial Services Committee, and, of course, Bill Keating for their support of this important legislation. And I thank Mr. Chris Smith again.

I have seen some real reasons for hope that I think, when we are talking about a topic that is this grim, it is good to remind ourselves of how awareness can lead to coordinated action and how that, then, can lead to freeing people from this bondage, especially freeing children from this bondage.

In southern California, we have had great involvement from concerned citizens, certainly from our NGO community, the local law enforcement. I have a trafficking task force that I put together some years ago to bring all of these forces together and work also with victims-- survivors, as they refer to themselves--working together to drive these forms of exploitation out of our community; and I have seen some of the effectiveness, especially last October, with the good work of the FBI shutting down, across this Nation, so many of these rings.

But if we are going to be successful in ending this horrific trade, not just here but worldwide, we have got to cut traffickers off from the financial system. These criminals are laundering profits through that financial system far too easily. This bill will help end that easy access, and it is certainly going to strengthen the tools for law enforcement to fight these crimes against human dignity.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate my good friend from Ohio, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur.

On this historic occasion--as Marcy becomes the longest-serving woman in the history of this House--I am honored to stand by her side.

As Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, I have seen firsthand the personal passion Marcy brings to protecting democracy and freedom around the globe.

Nowhere is this more evident than in her work on behalf of the people of Ukraine and the diaspora here in America.

As co-chair of the Congressional Ukrainian Caucus, she has been a tireless advocate for the democratic transition in Ukraine--and especially championing the rights of Ukrainian women. She has sponsored legislation supporting freedom and human rights in Ukraine, in addition to promoting the important role that women play in Ukraine's economy.

This is because Marcy understands the critical role that Ukrainian women can and must play in their country's future--as educators, leaders, entrepreneurs, and peacemakers.

Likewise, she wants to see more opportunity for women all around the world. I am particularly grateful for her support for my Committee's efforts to ensure that women and girls are empowered by, and included in, U.S. diplomatic efforts abroad, including legislation to promote the inclusion of women in peace negotiations and peacekeeping efforts. Marcy has also long been supportive of the Committee's efforts to promote girls' access to education.

Here in the United States, of course, Marcy has proven her commitment to promoting women's rights. I am proud to join her in sponsoring the Smithsonian Women's History Museum Act, aptly numbered, H.R. 19. Alongside our good friend from New York, Carolyn Maloney, we are, as Marcy put it, seeking ``to record the history of over half of our citizenry in a way that brings them into full view.''

I have no doubt that when we succeed in building the first National Women's History Museum, Marcy Kaptur will be prominently represented.

Marcy is an inspiration to women and girls across the country who aspire to lead--who aspire to participate in their democracy.

I am proud to have partnered with her on these and so many other issues, and am thankful for her years of service.

Mr. Speaker, I am rising in strong support of the rule on the underlying bill.

Included in this package of bills before us today is the National Securities Exchange Regulatory Parity Act. This is a bipartisan bill, and it is to ensure that future regulation can keep pace with--and not stifle--innovation in our equity markets.

The SEC's interpretation of the current law has created a two-tiered playing field by giving unintended preferential treatment to three named exchanges. Now, one of those three no longer exists.

Enactment of the National Securities Exchange Parity Act would strike references to particular stock exchanges in the 1933 Securities Act, and the bill would make it clear that the blue sky exemption from State-by-State registration is extended to all national securities exchanges registered with the SEC.

So why is that particular exemption important? If you were to ask anyone from Massachusetts, for example, who tried to invest in Apple during its IPO, State regulators banned the stock for being ``too risky'' under rules ``aimed at weeding out highfliers that didn't have solid earnings foundations.''

Today, Apple is up 43,000 percent and is flirting with a $1 trillion market cap.

The bill before us today increases the number of securities that will not be forced to register on a State-by-State basis, while maintaining important investor protections.

The SEC is and will remain the primary enforcement agency of securities fraud. This bill in no way impacts the SEC's oversight or enforcement authority. The SEC must also still approve individual exchange listing standards; they simply won't be allowed to preset the standards.

State-by-State securities registration not only potentially locks out investors from promising opportunities like Apple, but it can have significant negative economic consequences by chilling public offerings and, obviously, innovation.

The National Securities Exchange Parity Act encourages new exchanges to become listing venues and a source of capital for companies looking to go public, to expand, and to hire more workers.

The bill is identical to language included in the larger regulatory reform package already passed by the Senate Banking Committee, and I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this commonsense, technical fix. It is good for market competition. It is good for capital formation. I urge passage of the rule and the underlying bill.

Mr. Speaker, international law of armed conflict prohibits the use of innocent men, women and children to deter an attack. This cowardly and disgraceful strategy is known as using human shields. And it's rightly deemed a war crime.

Yet since the violent takeover of Gaza in 2007, Hamas has repeatedly put the lives of Palestinian civilians at risk by brutally using them as human shields. Hamas also terrorizes Palestinians--the very people they claim to represent--with summary executions and torture in Gaza.

Hamas regularly launches indiscriminate attacks on civilian populations in Israel from densely populated positions in Gaza, often in or near schools, mosques or hospitals. Hamas also routinely forces Palestinian civilians to gather on the roofs of their homes to act as human shields.

This means that every time Hamas fires a rocket, it is committing not one, but two, war crimes: targeting civilians in Israel while shamelessly using human shields in Gaza. Today, the Gaza Strip is a terrorist sanctuary on Israel's borders.

The legislation we are considering today, H.R. 3542, appropriately holds Hamas responsible for its repeated use of human shields--as well as their enablers, like the Iranian regime. It imposes targeted sanctions and calls for action at the United Nations Security Council to put an end to this heinous practice.

The world cannot let terrorists embed forces among civilian populations, using them as human shields, without taking action.

I thank the gentleman from South Carolina, Representative Wilson, for authoring this legislation and urge my colleagues to support it.