Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1500, a bill that will ensure the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has the necessary tools to defend American consumers.

The CFPB was created in the wake of the financial crisis as consumers fell victim to unfair, deceptive, and abusive practices.

My Republican colleagues have tried to undermine it for nearly a decade since its arrival. The Trump administration has worked to kneecap the CFPB, using a strategy that prioritizes big businesses over individual consumers. As can be seen, enforcement has decreased by 75 percent at the CFPB.

H.R. 1500 will fortify the CFPB's core mission to protect consumers and remedy the Trump administration's harmful anticonsumer tactics.

My home district lies in California's Inland Empire, and the constituents I serve understand the importance of CFPB's mission all too well. At the height of the housing crisis, one in five local households were behind on their mortgages. In 2008 alone, over 30,000 families from Riverside County lost their homes to foreclosure.

This was, however, by Wall Street's design. In no other area of the country did subprime loans aggressively pushed by lenders claim a bigger proportion of the overall mortgage market. This bill ensures the CFPB is equipped and empowered to fight this type of predatory lending and much more.

Simply put, the Consumers First Act ensures that CFPB maintains the authority and resources to do its job and proactively protect consumers from unfair, misleading, and abusive practices.

Let's pass this bill to make crystal clear that the CFPB truly does have the back of every single American consumer. I strongly urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 1500.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2359) to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit to Congress a report on the Department of Veterans Affairs advancing of whole health transformation, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on H.R. 2359.

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

Madam Speaker, before I begin my comments on H.R. 2359, let me acknowledge the centennial year of women's suffrage and the wonderful yellow roses we are wearing in acknowledgment of that centennial year. Happy 100th year to women's suffrage in America.

Madam Speaker, American healthcare systems are grappling with the need to redesign the delivery of care model to better meet the needs of veterans struggling with mental health conditions.

Two decades of increased social isolation, economic inequality, and prohibitive healthcare costs have seen an increased use of complementary and alternative medicine such as health coaching, chiropractic services, acupuncture, yoga, meditation, and equine therapy.

The Veterans Health Administration is one of the first healthcare systems to redesign care with a focus on maintaining patient well-being and early intervention, rather than a system designed to treat conditions and diseases only after they have occurred.

This redesign, VA's whole health transformation, will accommodate the veteran population and their unique needs while empowering veterans to control their health and well-being.

By improving well-being, veterans build resiliency that assists in the early intervention and identification of mental healthcare symptoms that, left untreated, can advance to the point of crisis. In 2017, VA launched the whole health transformation program at 18 flagship sites, with positive early outcomes.

According to a February 2019 memo on VA's whole health transformation, VA plans to expand the full program to an additional 18 sites by summer 2019, and 140 medical centers have elements of this program.

The pace, efficacy, and reach of the whole health program are not known to Congress. H.R. 2359, as amended, offered by Congressman Lamb, requires the delivery of a report on VA's whole health transformation. It will contain an analysis of the accessibility of critical services so that Congress can better inform its efforts to ensure veterans are treated as whole people and not just episodes of care. This is particularly true for socially isolated veterans and veterans living far away from a VA facility.

A two-pronged strategy is needed to effectively address the veteran suicide public health crisis. The second prong is treating those veterans in crisis and making treatment more accessible. The first prong must address the complex set of social determinants that can lead to a crisis.

Early interventions in mental healthcare can prevent veterans from falling into crisis and having suicidal ideations. This legislation falls under the first prong of the strategy, which will support creating opportunities for early, pre-crisis intervention.

Congress must understand how VA has rolled out the initial expansion outcomes and the resources needed to continue the whole health program. This body must do everything in its power to reduce the number of veteran suicides in this country because this is a sustained, prolonged, and frustrating national public health crisis.

Sadly, over the weekend, yet another veteran died by suicide at a VA Hospital.

This bill is the first of five measures we will consider today to address mental healthcare and suicide prevention efforts at VA. Our work, however, does not end today. We will write more legislation. We will hold more bipartisan hearings.

In fact, a hearing right this very moment, this afternoon, with the Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel and our Health Subcommittee brought VA and DOD to the same table to help end this crisis. It is a joint hearing through this joint subcommittee between the Veterans' Affairs Committee and the Armed Services Committee.

We will do whatever it takes to end these tragic incidents of suicide. I am fully committed to this effort. Losing 20 veterans a day is unacceptable.

I will be voting ``yes'' on this critical piece of legislation, and I call on every Member of this body to do the same and help reduce veteran suicide.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Lamb), my good friend, the vice chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and the author of H.R. 2359.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Ryan), my good friend and cosponsor of H.R. 2359.

Madam Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Madam Speaker, I also would like to take this moment to ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2359, as amended.

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

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1812) to amend title 38, United States Code, to furnish Vet Center readjustment counseling and related mental health services to certain individuals, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on H.R. 1812.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, the VA is authorized to provide counseling through Vet Centers to a broad group of veterans and servicemembers. These veterans and servicemembers include National Guard and Reserve members, those who have served on Active Duty in any combat theater or area of hostility, veterans and servicemembers who experienced military sexual trauma, those who provided direct emergent medical care or mortuary services to casualties of war, or servicemembers and veterans who deployed to combat zones or areas of hostility in a direct support role.

However, members of the National Guard, Reserve, or Coast Guard who participated in a drug interdiction or who served in a response to a national emergency, major disaster, or civil disorder are currently not eligible to receive Vet Center care. This is all despite the effects such experiences can have on mental health.

H.R. 1812, as amended, the Vet Center Eligibility Expansion Act, introduced by Ranking Member Roe, would correct this oversight by extending eligibility for Vet Center care to these individuals.

It would also require the VA to submit a plan to Congress for providing Vet Center services to geographical areas in which no Vet Centers are located. These areas include territories of the United States, rural, and insular areas.

By assessing the steps necessary to provide access to Vet Centers for veterans living in these underserved areas, the Vet Center Eligibility Expansion Act is ensuring veterans, servicemembers, reservists, and members of the Coast Guard and National Guard are allowed access to the lifesaving services Vet Centers provide.

This legislation increases access to services that provide early intervention for mental healthcare issues, which can reduce the risks associated with suicide.

The sad statistics show that, of the 20 veterans and military servicemembers who die by suicide, 14 of those 20 have not received VA healthcare. This bill is one step towards changing this tragic number.

Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, Dr. Roe, for his work on this important measure, and I call upon all of our colleagues to join us in voting ``yes'' on this life-changing piece of legislation.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Levin), my good friend and fellow Californian, the chairman of the Economic Opportunity Subcommittee, and also a cosponsor of H.R. 1812.

Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues in the House to support H.R. 1812, as amended, so we can finally pass it into law and get justice for these veterans.

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

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2326) to amend the Social Security Act, to amend the Dignified Burial and Other Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 2012, and to direct the Secretaries of Veterans Affairs, Defense, Labor, and Homeland Security, and the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, to take certain actions to improve transition assistance to members of the Armed Forces who separate, retire, or are discharged from the Armed Forces, and for other purposes, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2326.

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

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2326, as amended, the Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer William ``Bill'' Mulder (Ret.) Transition Improvement Act of 2019.

I would like to recognize the Economic Opportunity Subcommittee chairman and ranking member, Mr. Levin and Mr. Bilirakis, for their bipartisan focus on this issue, and the bipartisan way in which they have crafted this piece of legislation and have moved it forward.

Almost 30 years ago, the National Defense Authorization Act created the first transition policy to assist servicemembers entering civilian life. This law provides that those who are being separated from Active Duty are provided services for counseling, training opportunities, finding employment, and other related information and services.

These services, more commonly known as the Transition Assistance Program, or TAP, were amended recently by the VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011. This legislation called for mandatory participation of all servicemembers and improved transition resources by lengthening the process and lowering the class sizes.

While our veterans have found the TAP program to be highly beneficial, they find the sheer amount of information too overwhelming to absorb. Today, I ask my colleagues to support H.R. 2326, as amended, which aims to solve this problem.

This legislation would do several things to make TAP more effective.

First, this act would create a pilot program offering transition training off military bases, making the transition process easier to access for veterans and spouses. A review by the Government Accountability Office concluded that a program held off base would be beneficial, and the committee believes that such a program is worth examining in further detail.

In my own visits to TAP classes, I heard from servicemembers who felt they needed to attend TAP multiple times before they transition to civilian life because the resources aren't available off base. The legislation would create a grant program for organizations to provide multiple transition assistance services such as resume assistance, interview training, and job recruitment training from one program, location, and source.

Next, this act would give the Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training Service and VA access to the Social Security Administration's resources to track in real time when a participant receives a new job. This is going to help improve programs and provide a better accountability of services provided by the VA.

Lastly, this bill would require a 1-year independent assessment of the effectiveness of TAP, as well as a 5-year longitudinal study of TAP which compares the effectiveness of using the program.

The 1-year independent assessment of the Transition Assistance Program's effectiveness shall be conducted not later than 90 days after the enactment of this act. The legislation requires the VA enter into an agreement with an entity with experience in adult education to carry out an independent assessment of TAP.

It also requires the Secretary of Labor, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and the Small Business Administration to conduct a 5-year longitudinal study of TAP to determine the need for TAP off base and determine if this program

would ease the process of participation for servicemembers, veterans, and spouses who may have had difficulty attending classes on bases.

Upon completion of the respective 1-year and 5-year studies, the Secretary of the VA shall submit the findings to Congress, where we can, again, assess the quality of transition resources provided to veterans and servicemembers.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Levin), my good friend, the chairman of the Economic Opportunity Subcommittee, and also the author of H.R. 2326.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Cunningham), my good friend and member of the Economic Opportunity Subcommittee and cosponsor of H.R. 2326.

Madam Speaker, let me say that I extend my commendations to the work of my colleague from Texas (Mr. Arrington). I thank him also for naming the bill after such a distinguished warrior and someone who exemplifies the need for this legislation. We certainly wish Chief Petty Officer Navy SEAL Bill Mulder all the success in the world.

Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close, so I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Madam Speaker, before I begin my closing comments, I want to correct my remarks. I misunderstood. Chief Petty Officer Bill Mulder is deceased, and so I mean no disrespect to his family. We certainly are honored to have this piece of legislation carry his name in the hopes that it is going to serve many more veterans.

In his memory, I am most honored and privileged to make sure that this legislation passes.

Madam Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Levin and Mr. Bilirakis for these necessary improvements to the Transition Assistance Program. A testament to their work is the broad support they received from committee members on this bill, and I look forward to their future work on this as they continue to focus on and redefine the program.

Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2326, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2333) to direct the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct an assessment of the responsibilities, workload, and vacancy rates of Department of Veterans Affairs suicide prevention coordinators, and for other purposes.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2333.

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

Madam Speaker, according to the National Suicide Data Report for 2005-2016, approximately 20 veterans, Active Duty servicemembers, and members of the National Guard and Reserves die by suicide each day.

This rate is disproportionately higher than that of the civilian population. Of those 20 a day, 14 are not enrolled in the VA healthcare system. Part of the VA's effort to combat veteran suicide is by strengthening the role of the suicide prevention coordinator. The VA is the only healthcare system that has full-time employees dedicated to suicide prevention.

Suicide prevention coordinators identify high-risk veterans and ensure they receive appropriate care, conduct outreach, and promote awareness and best practices within the VA system. As of April 2019, the VA had approximately 444 suicide prevention coordinators stationed at medical centers across the country.

These coordinators manage care for almost 30,000 veterans who are high risk for suicide, in addition to managing their other duties as assigned.

In fiscal year 2018, these coordinators conducted more than 20,000 outreach events, reaching almost 2 million people. During the oversight trips to VA facilities, VA committee staff heard from coordinators who are overworked and struggled to keep up with their casework.

Last week, I visited the Atlanta VA Medical Center and one of three Veterans Crisis Line call centers. Last year, the Atlanta VA crisis line received 3,600 referrals. The Atlanta suicide prevention team is staffed with only eight social workers and one employee for administrative support to respond to all crisis line referrals and approximately 200 veterans identified as high risk for suicide.

Let me repeat that. They have eight social workers to manage 3,600 referrals and 200 high-risk patients a year. This team does all it can to keep up with the staggering number of referrals, but they simply do not have the capacity to conduct outreach to veterans in the community who may need help.

Suicide prevention team staffing shortages in Atlanta and at VA medical facilities across the country is why H.R. 2333, introduced by Congressman Brindisi, is so important.

It would direct the Government Accountability Office to access the workload and vacancy rates of VA suicide prevention coordinators. This report is essential to better informing Congress of the current state of suicide prevention coordinators, the resources at the facilities where they work, and the challenges they face in addressing the needs of our most vulnerable veterans.

The role of these coordinators is vital to combating veteran suicide, and this report will illustrate where the gaps in care delivery exists, especially for the clinicians, social workers, and suicide prevention coordinators working on the front lines.

I fully support this bill and I really want to thank Mr. Brindisi for championing this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 2333.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Brindisi), my good friend and the author of H.R. 2333.

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

As I said in my remarks related to Mr. Brindisi's legislation, I visited the Atlanta VA Medical Center and it receives 3,600 referrals per year from the Veterans Crisis Line, which is the highest number of crisis line referrals any individual veteran medical center receives nationwide.

I know that at the medical center itself that there is a 22 percent vacancy rate among mental health professionals. They have lost eight psychiatrists across their hospital and outpatient clinics since the beginning of the year. Staff who resigned have cited salaries and workload stress as their main reasons for leaving the VA.

Mr. Brindisi's legislation goes to, however, the position of suicide prevention coordinators, and currently, the coordinators at this particular medical center are staffed up, but we are trying to figure out where these staff coordinator positions across the country may be vacant or insufficient because we know these crisis lines are being used. We have to make sure that we have the coordinators to respond to them.

But in addition to that, we need coordinators to do the outreach events to reach those veterans who are not connected with the VA. So the VA medical center in Atlanta is just one example of the staffing shortages in VA hospitals and clinics throughout the country. We know that beyond the stress and strain of our psychiatrists and of our suicide prevention coordinators, which Mr. Brindisi's bill addresses, there are nearly 50,000 vacancies at VA.

If we want to fully address the veteran suicide crisis in this country, we need to make sure that suicide prevention teams are sufficiently staffed and do more to address mental health clinician understaffing.

Mr. Brindisi's legislation is a significant step in making sure all of this happens.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I certainly appreciate the partnership and the spirit of the ranking member of the committee in addressing this national crisis of veteran suicide, and H.R. 2333 is an essential and significant step that we are taking to address this crisis.

Madam Speaker, I ask all my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2333, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2340) to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide to Congress notice of any suicide or attempted suicide of a veteran in a Department of Veterans Affairs facility, and for other purposes, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2340, as amended.

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

Madam Speaker, since the beginning of this year, seven--seven-- veterans have died by suicide in or on the grounds of VA facilities. Sadly, another suicide occurred at a VA hospital in Washington just this weekend.

Currently, VA staff notify both the House and Senate Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the events as a matter of courtesy; however, should the Department's leadership change, there is no assurance this courtesy would continue.

I have made veteran suicide prevention the top priority for the Committee on Veterans' Affairs because 20 suicides a day is far too many. One suicide is far too many. But to address this alarming trend, Congress must be informed when a suicide occurs on a VA campus and must be provided all relevant data.

This information will allow the committee to conduct appropriate oversight, write legislation that will improve outcomes, and, when necessary, hold individuals accountable when there are clear failures that impact the timely and adequate care for veterans.

As such, H.R. 2340, as amended, the FIGHT Veteran Suicides Act, would require the VA Secretary to notify Congress following an attempted or a completed suicide by a veteran in or on the grounds of a VA facility.

This measure also requires VA to provide Congress with communications guidance to deter the sensationalism of suicide, provide information on identifying the warning signs often exhibited by veterans at risk of suicide, and identify resources offered by the Department for at-risk veterans, including the Veterans Crisis Line and Vet Center readjustment counseling.

It is essential that this information be shared, regardless of leadership at

VA, what party controls Congress, or who occupies the White House.

I thank Congressman Rose, a combat veteran, for leading the fight against this tragic national public health crisis, and I want to commend him for his leadership and for writing this important legislation that will ensure Congress has all the data it needs to truly understand and reduce veteran suicide.

I encourage my colleagues to join me in voting ``yes'' on this bill.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I, too, ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2340, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1200) to increase, effective as of December 1, 2019, the rates of compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for the survivors of certain disabled veterans, and for other purposes.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 1200.

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

Madam Speaker, H.R. 1200, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2019 would require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to increase the rates of disability compensation for service-connected veterans and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for survivors of veterans, effective December 1, 2019.

Now, this bill would also increase these rates by the same percentage as the percentage by which Social Security benefits are increased effective December 1, 2019, and require that VA publish the increased rates in the Federal Register.

To me, the actual cost-of-living adjustment to veterans' benefits, otherwise known as COLA, is much more than a rate adjustment tied to inflation. In reality, it is a quality-of-life guarantee in retirement years, especially for veterans suffering with service-connected disabilities and ailments.

It also comes with the assurance for veterans that their survivors will not see a steady decline in benefits if the economy changes and costs rise after they are gone. This guarantee is a great source of comfort for veterans as they age. I know this because they tell me this everywhere I go.

The yearly COLA increase is a recognition and appreciation of a grateful nation of the service and sacrifice of those who volunteer to wear the uniform of our country.

Participating in this gesture of appreciation is one of the most rewarding responsibilities of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. As chairman, I am honored to be leading this effort to say thank you.

I want to recognize the work of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee chair, Elaine Luria, and ranking member, Mike Bost, for sponsoring H.R. 1200 and for bringing this bill to the floor today.

I am pleased that we are considering this bill early this year so veterans will not be concerned about its passage by the December 1 deadline.

I wholeheartedly support H.R. 1200 and urge all my colleagues to do so as well.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Luria), who is my good friend and the chairwoman of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee and also a cosponsor of H.R. 1200.

Madam Speaker, I, too, join my ranking member in asking all of our colleagues to pass H.R. 1200.

I thank Chairwoman Luria and Ranking Member Bost of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs for their hard work.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1200, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2372) to direct the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct an assessment of all memoranda of understanding and memoranda of agreement between Under Secretary of Health and non- Department of Veterans Affairs entities relating to suicide prevention and mental health services, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2372, as amended.

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

Madam Speaker, to meet the needs of veterans, VA has long relied on community partners to provide outreach and services, particularly to address mental health needs and suicide prevention.

The number of mental health- and suicide prevention-related agreements between VA and these organizations has increased exponentially since 2014. It is anticipated that these relationships will continue to grow in the months following the signing of Executive Order No. 13861 on March 5, 2019.

Now, this executive order seeks to establish grants to local communities to better collaborate and integrate service delivery and resources for veterans. As reliance on outside groups grows, Congress must better understand the effectiveness of the programs and mental health services these private organizations offer. VA must also ensure such partnered organizations are able to provide quality, culturally competent, evidence-based services to veterans.

Congresswoman Underwood's legislation, H.R. 2372, as amended, would require the Government Accountability Office to study the effectiveness of these partnerships between VA and organizations providing services related to suicide prevention and mental healthcare.

When complete, GAO would report their findings to the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees. As part of the assessment, GAO is required to look at several factors, such as the staffing structure of the organization, its accreditations or licensures, the level of oversight and tracking of outcomes by VA, and the secure exchange of data and information.

The GAO would also be required to study the ability of these organizations to serve unique subsets of the veteran population, including, women, minorities, older and younger veteran cohorts, families, and veterans who reside in U.S. insular areas.

I thank Ms. Underwood for introducing this legislation because it will ensure VA is responsibly leveraging its community partnerships to reduce veteran suicide and support VA in its transformation to a public health approach to suicide prevention. This public health approach focuses on prevention and intervention before veterans are in crisis.

As I previously mentioned, a two-pronged strategy is necessary to address the national crisis of veteran suicide. These Federal, State, and local partnerships are integral to the first prong of the strategy of prevention and early intervention.

It is critical that we develop these partnerships as part of an infrastructure to support veterans. This legislation will ensure we are using taxpayer funds effectively to partner with those organizations providing quality, evidence-based programs.

Madam Speaker, I am proud to support this legislation, and I encourage all my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 2372, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Underwood), my good friend, member of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee, and author of H.R. 2372.

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

I want to thank Congresswoman Underwood for introducing H.R. 2372, and the tremendous, tremendous professional background she brings to her role in Congress, and for introducing legislation that will ensure that we hold private organizations to the same standard of care that we impose internally on the VA.

So I do urge all of my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2372, as amended.

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

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2045) to amend title 38, United States Code, to establish the Veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition Administration and the Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2045, as amended.

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

Madam Speaker, when our servicemembers conclude their military service, they are taxed with returning to civilian life after putting their lives on hold for years. This is the sacrifice they make for our security.

In exchange, we owe them more than a thank you and well wishes. We owe them a commitment that their transition to civilian life will go smoothly, and a VA that responds to their needs.

That is why we passed the first GI Bill nearly 75 years ago, and why we continue today to make improvements to provide veterans with the benefits they have earned.

Unfortunately, VA has struggled to track the effectiveness of education and employment programs and, consequently, Congress has struggled to determine the Department's resource needs. We have identified a contributing factor through hearings and discussions with our Veterans Service Organizations that the Veterans Benefits Administration is simply asked to do too much.

With the focus on managing countless compensation claims, the responsibility of managing transition education, and housing benefits often takes a back seat.

To put it in perspective, the Veterans Benefit Administration's structure has not significantly changed since the creation of the Department of Veterans Affairs in 1930.

During the last 89 years, the services needed by veterans have drastically changed, and that is why our committee has an Economic Opportunity Subcommittee. It is time for the VA to understand this as well.

The VET OPP Act, as amended, would create a new administration within the department to manage educational assistance, vocational rehabilitation and employment, education and career counseling programs, and broadly defined transition assistance programs that are shared across agencies.

Now, that means veterans' education, housing, and economic programs will have a dedicated Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition. The Veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition Administration will solely focus on fulfilling these promises to veterans, so that they get the education that that they want, the housing they need, and the careers they deserve.

During our April 9 Economic Opportunity legislative hearing, this proposal received support from the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Enterprise Institute, and the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors.

Now these organizations know firsthand how hard it is to navigate the process of using benefits, so I want to thank the hard work of our Economic Opportunity Subcommittee for holding hearings on H.R. 2045, as amended, where this legislation received universal acclaim from our VSO community.

I also want to thank our VSO community, and the American Federation of Government Employees, who worked with us to make this legislation work for all veterans and all employees currently employed at the VA.

This is a bipartisan bill because we are not trying to make a political point or attack the VA. Instead, we simply want to make the VA run more effectively for the veterans it serves.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Levin), my good friend, chairman of the Economic Opportunity Subcommittee, and also a cosponsor of H.R. 2045.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), my good friend.

Madam Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman an additional 30 seconds.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I might consume.

Madam Speaker, if anyone thinks that business as usual is working at the VA, I would only ask you to look at the implementation of the Forever GI Bill. My good friend the ranking member knows that there were definite issues with the implementation. It did not go well. We are still months away from implementation, which should have happened last year.

When the IG and others evaluated what went wrong, one thing was very clear: There was no accountable leader.

That is what happens when programs are buried in layers of bureaucracy, and that is why I urge my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2045, as amended, the VET OPP Act, which will establish an accountable leader at VA for all of those programs that we have under the purview of our Economic Opportunity Subcommittee.

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

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1947) to amend title 38, United States Code, to exempt transfers of funds from Federal agencies to the Department of Veterans Affairs for nonprofit corporations established under subchapter IV of chapter 73 of such title from certain provisions of the Economy Act, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 1947, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be authorized to file a supplemental report on the bill, H.R. 1947, as amended.

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

Madam Speaker, this comprehensive legislation addresses funding for VA research and gives the VA authority to work with grieving families to memorialize their loved ones. It also closes a loophole that has allowed contracted flight schools to charge public schools unlimited tuition and fees to train veterans using the GI Bill.

The first section of the measure addresses VA research. VA's Office of Research and Development improves the lives of veterans, contributes to the national public health, and develops lifesaving biomedical breakthroughs that change the world.

In its 90-year history, the VA's medical and prosthetic research has produced some of the world's greatest advances. The VA developed the pacemaker in 1960 and the shingles vaccine in 2005. It created an effective smoking cessation program and increased life expectancy for people with spinal cord injuries.

VA researchers were responsible for beginning the first international antiretroviral drug therapy trial to find the optimal treatment for patients with AIDS, for whom all therapy had failed.

These research efforts usually aren't performed alone. They are often in collaboration with nonprofits, universities, other Federal agencies, and international bodies.

When research is funded from non-VA grants, it is managed by a for- profit corporation, otherwise known as an NPC, established at a VA Medical Center, which allows flexible research funding.

Last year, the VA's Office of General Counsel uncovered an appropriations law limitation that prevents funding transfers to these nonprofit research corporations for longer than 1 fiscal year. This has negatively affected several ongoing multiyear projects across the country.

Dr. Roe's legislation, H.R. 1947, as amended, would provide explicit authority for NPCs to administer research funding without regard to fiscal year limitations.

To ensure this legislation does not raise spending, section 2 addresses a loophole in GI Bill flight school benefits.

This loophole had been exploited by flight schools that had contracted with public institutions of higher learning to offer flight- related degrees. In some cases, bad actors were exploiting GI benefits that resulted in the VA paying out over $500,000 in tuition and flight payments to one student.

H.R. 1947 fixes this loophole by marrying the cap on tuition at private institutions with a cap on flight school tuition at public institutions.

In addition, to ensure that the fewest possible students are impacted, the legislation also includes a provision to allow flight school students to accelerate their GI Bill benefits. This will allow them to be better used for flight school, which is regularly more expensive but takes fewer months to complete.

Finally, section 3 of H.R. 1947, as amended, authorizes VA to replace a veteran's headstone or marker in a private cemetery so that an inscription may be added to remember a deceased spouse or a child following their deaths.

Madam Speaker, I thank Representative LaMalfa for introducing the original legislation and Ranking Member Roe for offering the legislation as an amendment during markup.

This bill is another example of our committee working on a bipartisan basis to get it right for all veterans.

This legislation allows veterans to memorialize their loved ones in the way they want and where they want. Every veteran deserves to know that their wish to be remembered in perpetuity alongside spouses and their children will be granted. The same is true for surviving spouses and children who want reassurance that they, too, will be memorialized with their veteran spouse or parent.

Madam Speaker, I thank Dr. Roe for his tireless efforts to care for veterans, and I commend him on this bill. I look forward to joining him in voting ``yes'' on this legislation.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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

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

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

Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 1947.

Before I close, let me say that I appreciate the kind words of the ranking member, Dr. Roe of Tennessee, and I associate myself with his eloquent tributes to his classmates and the people who did not get to live the full lives that he, himself, has been able to live.

I, myself, have also known people who have served our country and who have also paid the ultimate price. I certainly do share his sentiments as we enter this Memorial Day weekend, as all Americans reflect on the ultimate sacrifice of all the people buried in our national cemeteries and cemeteries that aren't national cemeteries that are marked by VA grave markers.

It is always a poignant moment to walk through my national cemetery and to watch the Girl Scouts and the Cub Scouts planting American flags on each and every grave and to see it all happen within 20 minutes because there are so many Americans who want to come to my cemetery to make sure that every grave is honored.

To my colleague from Tennessee, I wish him a pleasant Memorial Day weekend, but, also, to all Americans, let us reflect on what Memorial Day weekend does mean to our Nation.

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

Madam Speaker, ``We the People'' is a bold opening statement enshrined in our Constitution. Yet, the truth is that in most parts of our country, LGBTQ Americans are not included in ``We the People.''

Students in Arizona should go to school free from fear and bullying. Workers in Texas should not be afraid of being fired because of who they are. Renters in Mississippi should not be evicted because of who they love.

No person, no matter where they live in America, should face discrimination. Equality should not depend on the ZIP Code where you live. It is time to make equality for LGBTQ people the law of the land and to ensure that we, too, are part of ``We the People.''

I urge my colleagues to be on the right side of history and to vote ``yes'' on the Equality Act.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to insert extraneous material on H.R. 299, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 299) to amend title 38, United States Code, to clarify presumptions relating to the exposure of certain veterans who served in the vicinity of the Republic of Vietnam, and for other purposes, as amended.

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

Mr. Speaker, for the second time in 2 years, this House has arrived at a turning point in the journey to adjust VA compensation policy and finally recognize U.S. Navy sailors who were exposed to toxic herbicides during the Vietnam war.

Congress has failed our blue water Navy veterans, plain and simple. Those who have advocated for and participated in the process to bring this legislation to the House floor know this history is deeply tragic. By not granting the benefits these veterans earned more than 40 years ago, these veterans and their survivors continue to experience immeasurable pain, death, and grief caused by the spraying of 12.1 million gallons of highly toxic Agent Orange during the Vietnam war. It was unjust then, and it is unjust now. But today, we have an opportunity to right this wrong.

For Members of Congress, this fraught history comes with a responsibility to provide compensation and care for the injury Agent Orange exposure has caused. Though the exposures occurred primarily in the 1960s, Congress didn't find the resolve to act until 1991, and it left out key groups of veterans exposed to Agent Orange, effectively denying their suffering that was a direct result of their military service.

Today, we will right this wrong by including three additional categories of veterans injured by Agent Orange: the blue water Navy Vietnam veterans; the veterans who served in the Korean DMZ; and children with spina bifida born to parents exposed during their service in Thailand.

The Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019 is the quickest and surest way to deliver benefits to these veterans. It is the direct result of bipartisan efforts by Ranking Member Phil Roe and myself to bring this to the House floor for consideration.

The 2019 version of H.R. 299 is an updated version of the act this House passed unanimously last Congress. It follows the Federal circuit court decision in Procopio. That case reversed VA's 1997 decision to deny the presumption of Agent Orange exposure to veterans that served off the shores of Vietnam.

The Procopio decision was a huge step forward, but we need more. We need to ensure blue water Navy veterans are protected in the event Procopio is appealed to the Supreme Court and overturned.

That is why we have worked together with veteran service organizations to establish, without doubt, that blue water Navy veterans are entitled to this presumption.

Our current proposal is very similar to the bill passed in the last Congress. It includes crucial geo-coordinates that require VA to recognize service off the shore of Vietnam when deciding claims for disability compensation for herbicide-related diseases.

Let me repeat: This proposal is the quickest and clearest route to delivering benefits to those deserving veterans. They have waited long enough.

H.R. 299 has the full support of the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Disabled American Veterans, the Vietnam Veterans of America, the Paralyzed Veterans of America, and many other veteran service organizations.

I have two letters signed by 25 of these organizations, and I included them in the Record.

May 13, 2019.

Hon. Mark Takano,

Chairman, House Veterans' Affairs Committee, Washington, DC.

Hon. Phil Roe,

Ranking Member, House Veterans' Affairs Committee,

Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Takano and Ranking Member Dr. Roe: As leaders

of major veterans' organizations, and on behalf of our more

than 5 million combined members, we write to offer our

strongest support for H.R. 299, the Blue Water Navy Vietnam

Veterans

Act and to encourage all Members of Congress to vote to

approve this legislation.

As you know, during the 115th Congress, Blue Water Navy

legislation passed the House by a vote of 382 to 0; however,

the bill was not successful in the Senate. We thank you both

for reintroducing Blue Water Navy veteran legislation in the

116th Congress and we are grateful that with your leadership

H.R. 299 was unanimously reported out of the House Veterans'

Affairs Committee on May 8, 2019.

When VA implemented the Agent Orange Act of 1991, it

determined that veterans who received the Vietnam Service

Medal, to include those who served in the waters offshore,

were exposed to Agent Orange. In 1993, a VA General Counsel

opinion held that veterans with service in the waters

offshore were exposed to Agent Orange. However, in 1997, VA

General Counsel opined that the 1996 Veterans Benefits

Improvements Act determined only veterans who physically

served in Vietnam were exposed to Agent Orange, although that

was not stated in the law.

To clarify, from 1991 to 1997 veterans with service in the

waters offshore of Vietnam were considered to have been

exposed to Agent Orange, as Congress intended. The 1997

decision to exclude Blue Water Navy veterans was not based on

medical or scientific evidence, law, or Congressional intent;

it was based on a misinterpretation.

On January 29th, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal

Circuit in Procopio v. Wilkie, overruled VA's previous

misinterpretations and determined that service in the

Republic of Vietnam includes the territorial waters within 12

nautical miles of the baseline.

H.R. 299 would fully protect Procopio's holdings that

service in the Republic of Vietnam includes the territorial

waters. The bill would use the same grid coordinates in the

legislation approved by the House last year, which would

extend beyond 12 nautical miles in some locations,

particularly the Mekong Delta.

H.R. 299 will also expand benefits for Korean DMZ veterans

who suffer from diseases and illnesses directly linked to

Agent Orange. The bill would provide an earlier date of

exposure for Vietnam Era veterans who served on the DMZ.

This legislation would also expand coverage for those

children suffering from spina bifida because of their

parents' exposure to Agent Orange while serving in Thailand

during the Vietnam War. This change would provide these

children benefits on par with those received by children of

Vietnam veterans.

For decades, tens of thousands of veterans, their families,

and survivors have been denied their earned benefits. While

it is long past due, it is time that we correct the injustice

done to Blue Water Navy veterans and provide protection of

the Procopio decision by passing H.R. 299.

We thank you for your unwavering commitment and dedication

to Blue Water Navy Vietnam veterans. We look forward to the

day when we will finally pay a long overdue debt to tens of

thousands of Blue Water Navy Vietnam veterans, their families

and survivors.

Respectfully,

Edward R. Reese, Jr.,

Executive Director, Washington Headquarters, DAV (Disabled

American Veterans).

Louis Celli, Jr.,

Executive Director, Government & Veterans Affairs, The

American Legion.

Rick Weidman,

Executive Director for Policy, Vietnam Veterans of America.

Dana T. Atkins,

Lieutenant General, U.S. Air Force (Ret.), President,

Military Officers Association of America.

Robert E. Wallace,

Executive Director, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United

States.

Carl Blake,

Executive Director, Paralyzed Veterans of America.

Joseph R. Chenelly,

Executive Director, AMVETS.

Douglas Greenlaw,

National Commander, Military Order of the Purple Heart.

Mr. Speaker, I also want to mention the efforts we made to pay for this bill, so it can pass the Senate this Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the Congressional Budget Office scores.

Congressional Budget Office,

U.S. Congress,

Washington, DC, May 13, 2019.

Hon. Mark Takano,

Chairman, Committee on Veterans' Affairs,

House of Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has

prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 299, the Blue

Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019.

If you wish further details on this estimate, we wil1 be

pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Logan

Smith.

Sincerely,

Keith Hall.

Enclosure.

[By fiscal year, millions of dollars] ------------------------------------------------------------------------

2019 2019-2024 2019-2029 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Direct Spending (Outlays).............. 0 135 -75 Revenues............................... 0 0 0 Deficit Effect......................... 0 135 -75 Spending Subject to Appropriation 0 70 191 (Outlays)............................. ------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pay-as-you-go procedures apply? Yes.

Increases on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive

10-year periods beginning in 2030? $5 billion.

Mandate Effects:

Contains intergovernmental mandate? No.

Contains private-sector mandate? No.

The bill would:

Modify home loan programs administered by the Department of

Veterans Affairs (VA).

Increase disability compensation and expand health care for

more veterans who

served in the seas near Vietnam during the Vietnam War.

Provide disability compensation to certain veterans who

served near the Korea Demilitarized Zone.

Provide payments, vocational training, rehabilitation

services, and health care to the biological children of

certain veterans who served in Thailand during the Vietnam

War if those children have been diagnosed with Spina Bifida.

Estimated budgetary effects would primarily stem from:

Changes to VA's home loan programs.

Increased disability compensation and health care benefits

for certain veterans.

Areas of significant uncertainty include:

The number of veterans affected by the bill and the change

in their disability ratings.

Mr. Speaker, the decision in Procopio removed much of the cost issues both Chambers struggled with in the last Congress. Because we are covering more veterans than the Procopio decision, the ranking member and I included a mechanism in the bill to cover both the mandatory and discretionary costs. As was the case with the bill that passed last Congress, the pay-for results from raising the current rate of the filing fee veterans pay when applying for a home loan under the VA mortgage guarantee program.

We are running out of time to do what is right for the blue water Navy veterans and the survivors of those veterans we have already lost. It is time for Congress to make our intention clear. The evidence supports granting this presumption in favor of these veterans.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Luria). She is my good friend and the chairwoman of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee and also a cosponsor of H.R. 299.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume to say that my good friend, Congressman Courtney from Connecticut, is, unfortunately, unable to join us to speak in support of the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act due to an illness. The gentleman from Connecticut has been a steadfast advocate for the blue water Navy veterans and the veterans in his district, and I want to express my gratitude to him for pushing the Veterans' Affairs Committee and the House to right this wrong and ensure veterans receive the benefits they are owed.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume to pay tribute to the late Congressman Walter B. Jones, Jr., from North Carolina, who cosponsored H.R. 299 at the very beginning of this Congress. It saddens me that we weren't able to pass this bipartisan bill into law before his passing. As a former member of the North Carolina National Guard, he would be proud to know that this bill was being considered on the House floor today and that we will continue to push to get this legislation passed into law.

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

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

I want to take a moment on this historic day to recognize the effort of former Veterans' Affairs Committee Ranking Member Tim Walz. He was a primary mover of the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act for 12 years while he was in Congress, and I know this effort was very important to him.

He said many times that compensating and providing care for toxic exposures is one of the greatest challenges the Veterans' Affairs Committee faces but that no veteran should ever have to wait more than 40 years again.

When he left, he challenged us to make sure that this pattern of denying benefits does not continue. As chairman of this committee, I will do what I can to meet Tim Walz's challenge.

Mr. Speaker, I know that Tim has a big smile on his face in the Governor's mansion back in Minnesota, and I just want him to know that he has had a big part in today's victory.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, passage of this legislation is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to right an injustice. I urge all my colleagues to champion this legislation, H.R. 299, as amended, so we can finally pass it into law and get justice for these veterans.

I associate myself with the challenge that the ranking member has made to the Senate. I would have rather they got it done by the end of the week, but I would be perfectly happy if we get the Blue Water Navy bill done by Memorial Day.

I, too, want to congratulate the hard work of my staff and your staff, for their working together. The solidarity that our staffs had in getting this bill to the floor, done, and tied with a ribbon and bow was really important. I appreciate the bipartisan spirit that not only exists between me and the gentleman, and the members of our committee, but also the spirit of cooperation that exists with our respective staffs.

Mr. Speaker, the Veterans' Affairs Committee is that corner of Congress that still works. It is with great pride today that I close out these remarks and urge my colleagues to support H.R. 299, as amended.

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

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

On Mother's Day, I have a message for all the mothers who were separated from their children at our border after enduring a long and dangerous journey to provide their children with a better life:

The American people and I are with you.

Thousands of children were separated from their parents. And hundreds are still separated from their families.

That's unacceptable.

The President's anti-immigrant actions are cruel, inhumane, and a violation of the human rights of families escaping violence.

We are not a country that closes its doors on immigrants and families seeking asylum.

We must reunite all the mothers with their children and fight for comprehensive immigration reform.

Este dia de las madres, tengo un mensaje para todas las mamas que fueron separadas de sus hijos en nuestra frontera despues de hacer un viaje largo y peligroso con la esperanza de darles una mejor vida a sus hijos:

El pueblo americano y yo estamos con ustedes.

Miles de ninos fueron separados de sus padres. Y cientos de ninos siguen separados de sus familias.

Eso es inaceptable.

Las acciones antiinmigrantes de este presidente son crueles, son inhumanas, y son una violacion de los derechos humanos de las familias que estan escapando violencia.

No somos un pais que cierra sus puertas a los inmigrantes ya a las familias pidiendo asilo.

Tenemos que reunir a todas las madres con sus hijos y luchar por una ref orma migratoria.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to welcome the 492nd Attack Squadron Activation Unit to March Air Reserve Base (ARB). The Activation of the 492nd Attack Squadron and the Assumption of Command ceremony will be held on Friday, May 10th, on March Air Reserve Base. While I will be unable to attend, I want to send a special welcome to the new unit.

The introduction of the 492nd Attack Squadron will provide an additional 14 instructor sensor operators, 17 maintenance positions, 21 instructor pilots, and 61 positions with the Commander, Director of Operations, and the First Sergeant. This expansion will bring added capabilities to March ARB, and will enable the Air Force Reserve Command's Fourth Air Force to attract and retain incredible new talent as it fulfills its various missions in the region. The expansion sends a strong message to our community that March ARB serves a vital strategic role, not only for California but also the Air Force Reserve at large.

Again, I want to welcome to the new 492nd Attack Squadron Activation Unit to March Air Reserve Base. I am continually humbled by the dedication and hard work that the men and women at March ARB perform each day, and I am excited to see our capacity at March ARB expand even further.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged from further consideration of the bill (S. 863) to amend title 38, United States Code, to clarify the grade and pay of podiatrists of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.