Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, a passionate educator, a change-maker, and a powerhouse of a woman, that is how the community of Riverside would describe my dear friend, Waudieur ``Woodie'' Rucker-Hughes.

As a history teacher at John W. North High School and an administrator for the Riverside Unified School District, Woodie worked to demolish educational barriers and address the needs of all students.

As an activist and leader for the Riverside branch of the NAACP, Woodie challenged injustice and moved our communities forward every single day. As a mother and a friend, she touched my life and the lives of many others with her kindness and her steadfast support and encouragement.

Today, we remember Woodie, her legacy, and everything she stood for. I am going to leave you with Woodie's motto: Good, better, best. Never let them rest until the good becomes better and the better becomes best.

In honor of Woodie, let's keep working to make this country, and the world, an even better place than she left it.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 899, the Veterans Providing Healthcare Transition Improvement Act, which extends paid sick leave benefits for veteran employees with service-connected disabilities in their first year of work at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

As the lead Democrat on this bill, I thank my colleague Representative Steve Stivers from Ohio for his bipartisan leadership on this issue. And let me hasten to add, I do enjoy the work that we do together as founders and co-chairs of the bipartisan Congressional Maker Caucus, bringing to the attention of the Congress advanced manufacturing technologies.

But back to the issue at hand.

Mr. Speaker, I also thank Senator Mazie Hirono for taking the lead on this important issue in the Senate.

Veterans who choose to provide their medical skills and expertise to serve other veterans at the Department of Veterans Affairs should not have to take a leave of absence to receive the care that they need. By improving the Wounded Warrior Federal Leave Act to extend benefits to wounded warriors working at the VA, we will help veterans who need to take time off to get their own medical care.

This will also help in hiring and recruiting what are known as title 38 employees at the VA. This group of employees includes physicians, physician assistants, registered nurses, chiropractors, podiatrists, optometrists, and dentists.

According to 2018 data from the Veterans Health Administration, there are over 14,000 title 38 vacancies nationwide. We must make it a priority to fill these vacancies to ensure that the VA is well staffed and capable of providing veterans with the services that they need. Extending benefits to title 38 employees at the VA can help with the recruitment and hiring of veterans who want to continue helping other veterans.

Veterans working at the VA already make incredible sacrifices to help their fellow veterans. Their paychecks should not be one of them. This is why I urge my colleagues to stand with our veterans and support this legislation.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 299, as amended, the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act. It has taken years of dedicated advocacy and bipartisanship to get us here today. I would especially like to recognize Ranking Member Walz, who could not be here today but was a driving force behind this legislation.

H.R. 299 is an important step toward rectifying a longstanding injustice for veterans who were made sick from exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam more than 50 years ago.

Passage of this legislation will extend eligibility to 90,000 veterans who served in Vietnam and may have been exposed to this dangerous chemical. Some thought this day would never come for the blue water Navy veterans. Finding over $1 billion in the Federal budget is not an easy task. Many people even said it was impossible.

I thank the chairman for sitting down with the veteran service organizations, working with staff, and agreeing to find an alternative funding source to right this wrong. I am proud that this committee was able to, once again, reach a bipartisan agreement to move forward with legislation that does what is right for our Nation's veterans.

While there was disagreement about the pay-for in the past, the solution in this bill is fair. It does not cut benefits for one group of veterans to pay for the benefits of others. It requires all veterans, whether they served on Active Duty, in the Reserves, or as guardsmen and -women, to pay for the same VA home loan funding fee.

With the move to an operational Reserve, reservists and guardsmen and -women are deploying alongside Active Duty servicemembers into harm's way. It is fair for VA to charge the same fee across the board. The funding fee allows the VA to continue guaranteeing home loans to current and future servicemembers and veterans. Disabled veterans are exempt from paying the fee.

Now, we were able to do this by working together, and I want to thank Chairman Roe for identifying the solution. A special measure of credit must also go to the Vietnam Veterans of America for their steadfast advocacy for blue water veterans. Because of VVA's efforts, it is my hope that never again will another group of veterans face the same problems that they did.

I would also like to add that, before we take this historic vote, we must remember toxic exposures continue to occur. Since 9/11, servicemembers have been exposed to burn pits and mefloquine, both of which are likely causing serious health complications.

And we can't forget our servicemembers who have been exposed to atomic radiation and those struggling with Gulf War illnesses. Not every exposure can be avoided, but their risks should be tracked, understood, and mitigated. The servicemember must receive timely healthcare and disability compensation if exposure causes adverse health conditions and disease.

We must build a system that proactively identifies, investigates, diagnoses, treats, and heals toxic exposures, as well as one that also holds the Department of Defense accountable.

My feeling is that, if we are using presumptions, it means that we are already losing the battle. It means we haven't documented who was exposed to what, so we are just going to assume that everyone was exposed.

H.R. 299 makes other important reforms, including adjusting the date of the presumption for veterans exposed to Agent Orange and in the Korean DMZ, so that those exposed during a period of testing become eligible. It directs the Secretary to reach out to veterans who have previously been denied to inform them of the new law and how to file a new claim.

The bill also requires that VA use language that is easily understood. H.R. 299 also expands the presumption for Agent Orange exposure to children born with spina bifida to veteran parents exposed in Thailand.

Lastly, the bill mandates that VA report to Congress within 180 days after enactment on the result of the epidemiological study conducted on Gulf War veterans who are suffering from Gulf War illness.

I am proud that we are fixing this broken promise to the blue water veterans today; but there are many others in the making, and we need to address them as soon as possible.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Courtney), my good friend and colleague, who has been with this issue since four Congresses ago. He is the original, first Democratic cosponsor on the current bill before us. It is my honor to yield to him.

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 continue to 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, how much time is remaining on my side?

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

Mr. Speaker, I just want to offer my reflections on the persistence of both Chairman Roe and Ranking Member Walz. I think it is a great injustice that Mr. Walz could not be here today because I know how hard he worked with Chairman Roe to find a pay-for.

Let me say, also, for the folks back in my own district, in Riverside County, Riverside County has the eighth or ninth largest absolute population of veterans in the Nation, depending on what year you are counting. But every year, we have an event known as West Coast Thunder of mostly Harley-Davidson riders who ride from the Harley-Davidson shop to Riverside National Cemetery. Most of those riders are Vietnam veterans. I know back home in my district that the veterans support committee is going to be thrilled that Congress came together on this important legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Correa), my good friend and fellow member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and the former chairman of the California State Assembly Committee on Veterans Affairs.

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

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I again want to thank Chairman Roe for bringing forth this very important legislation. I also want to acknowledge, again, the ranking member, Tim Walz, for working so hard to bring this legislation to the floor. It was a long time coming. It was introduced four Congresses ago.

I believe that this is a shining moment for the Veterans' Affairs Committee and a shining moment for this Congress, for the people of this country to see us come together and do something that has been long overdue for our Vietnam veterans, often who were not welcomed home in the way that they should have been. This is a small gesture of what we can do to make amends for that lack of a proper welcoming home. This is a very proud moment for me.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 299, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend the career of Dom Betro, a resident of my district, who is retiring this month as the president and CEO of the Family Service Association of Western Riverside County.

Over the last 33 years, Dom has overseen phenomenal growth in the impact of this agency, which today helps more than 75,000 people a year. Under Dom's leadership, the FSA developed more than 90 units of senior housing and provided counseling and childcare service to countless individuals.

Dom's record of public service includes volunteer work for organizations such as the Nonprofit Policy Counsel of California. He is a lecturer at California State University San Marcos and served for 4 years on the City of Riverside City Council.

The legacy of Dom's dedication to the Inland Empire will continue long after his retirement. He has made our community a better place to live. On behalf of my constituents, I want to thank him for his service.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to the Securing America's Future Act. It is obscene to bring this deeply flawed bill to the floor when thousands of children have been ripped from their parents.

Americans across the country are outraged over the Trump administration's actions to separate families at the border. And Trump's answer? An executive order that cages families indefinitely and will be immediately challenged in court.

Unfortunately, this bill before us would do nothing to stop any of this. Instead, it criminalizes every undocumented man, woman, and child in this country and subjects them to the same cruel policy being played out at our border. It is shocking we are even considering this bill.

Let's be on the right side of history. Let's stop tearing families apart. Let's stop caging people fleeing violence.

I urge my colleagues to do the right thing and defeat this repugnant bill.

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

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2147, as amended, the Veterans Treatment Court Improvement Act of 2018.

This bill would require VA to expand access to Veterans Justice Outreach specialists in an effort to aid veterans as they interact with the justice system.

Dealing with veterans who break the law can be complicated. While they should be held accountable for their crimes, there are frequently underlying factors, like substance abuse or PTSD, that come into play. Transitioning from the battlefield to civilian life can be tough for many.

These specialists are integral to VHA's efforts to ensure veterans avoid unnecessary criminalization of mental illness and extended incarceration among veterans.

Veterans treatment courts are proven ways to ensure veterans receive the treatment and support necessary to avoid recidivism. I have visited the Riverside County Veterans Treatment Court and witnessed firsthand the stellar services it offers veterans in my community.

That is why I believe this bill is so important, as it would ensure veterans have the assistance and support they need to navigate successfully through the justice system.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Arizona (Ms. Sinema) who, though she is not a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, has had a distinguished record of serving our veterans through very, very significant legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Connolly).

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

Let me just say that I have personally witnessed the effectiveness of these courts in my own community. They have saved lives; they have fixed lives; they have repaired lives; and they have afforded our veterans a measure of dignity as they heal from their experiences in battle.

So I ask all my colleagues to please join me in passing H.R. 2147, as amended.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4635, as amended, to increase the number of peer-to-peer counselors available to women veterans.

Peer-to-peer counseling is meant to be sensitive to the specific culture of the military and how that culture affects veterans. It can be incredibly helpful to veterans who may not feel comfortable entering a more formal form of treatment, and for many women veterans, their most relatable peer will be a fellow woman.

This bill would require VA to increase women veterans' access to peer-to-peer counselors, thus ensuring all veterans can enjoy the benefit of this incredible form of therapy.

Between this legislation and the other peer support measure recently passed in the VA MISSION Act, this body continues to underscore its commitment to expanding peer support at VA. I appreciate the hard work Mr. Coffman has put into this issue and look forward to supporting his efforts.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. Esty), my good friend and the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that my colleagues join me in passing H.R. 4635, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

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

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of my amendment, which would restore funding to the Office of Technology Assessment, or OTA.

I would like to thank Representatives Foster, Esty, Delaney, Langevin, Lieu, and Lujan for offering this amendment with me.

The foundation for good policy is accurate and objective analysis, and for more than two decades, the OTA set that foundation by providing relevant and unbiased technical and scientific assessments for Members of Congress and staff. In 1995, the OTA was defunded, stripping Congress of a valuable resource.

Many of the issues OTA studied 20 years ago, like antibiotic- resistant bacteria and electronic surveillance in the digital age, are even more pressing today.

Mr. Chair, Congress needs access to unbiased technological expertise to weigh the pros and cons of policy questions surrounding cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and so many more matters. The recent Facebook hearings made it clear that many Members of Congress struggle to grasp the policy issues surrounding social media and data security.

I applaud the chairman and ranking member for including a study in the underlying bill to look into the technological expertise available to Congress. It is an important first step, but it is not enough.

Our amendment restores a modest $2.5 million to the OTA account for salaries and expenses to begin rebuilding the office. The cost is offset by a reduction to the AOC's capital construction and operations account. This administrative account will not take resources from specific construction projects.

Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the amendment to restore funding to the Office of Technology Assessment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chair, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Foster).

Mr. Chairman, I yield to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Ryan), the ranking member of the committee.

Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the majority for including the report.

I just want to remind the majority also that the OTA was never eliminated; it just was defunded. I believe it is time to fund it again.

I refer back to the Facebook hearings in the Senate. I think people on both sides of the aisle, liberal and conservative, and think tanks observed that the first branch of government, which is the legislative branch of government, needs to have the resources and the capacity to do its own independent analysis.

That is why I believe so many of my Republican colleagues will support this tomorrow. I hope everyone on both sides of the aisle supports this amendment.

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

Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor our Nation's emergency medical service workers.

When crisis strikes, we turn to EMS workers. They are first on the scene to provide vital medical care when we need it most. Their lifesaving work requires skill, is often dangerous, and takes a great deal of courage.

We rely on people like Lisa La Russo, a paramedic with American Medical Response in Riverside County and proud member of AFSCME Local 4911. Lisa has been saving lives for nearly three decades and, like many in her field, goes above and beyond in service to her community. Her work responding to emergencies compelled her to start Splash Medics, a nonprofit dedicated to the prevention of drowning injuries and deaths through education about water safety.

I salute Lisa La Russo, her fellow union members, and all of the EMS workers across the Nation. They are the reason Americans rest assured that help is just a phone call away.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of my amendment, which would create a demonstration program in the Air Force for 15 to 20 deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals to serve their country.

This amendment is inspired by a young deaf man I met a few years ago named Keith Nolan. He excelled at the first two levels of Army ROTC and was prepared to take the next step when he was told that he could not continue because he is deaf. Including this amendment is an incredible tribute to Keith's advocacy, and I urge my colleagues in the Senate to maintain this provision.

I want to thank the chairman and ranking member for including this amendment. I am excited that we are taking this step forward to give the deaf community a chance to defend the country that they love and that we love.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Walz for yielding me

the time and his steadfast leadership on the Veterans' Affairs Committee. He has been tireless in his support of veterans and their families. I am, likewise, inspired by the gentleman from Texas' service to our country. I thank him for his service.

Mr. Speaker, the bill before us today is the culmination of years of ongoing discussion about how to guarantee veterans have timely access to quality care. It streamlines existing programs that allow veterans to get care in the community, creates a process for aligning VA facilities to meet the changing needs of the veteran population, and it expands the Caregiver Support Program to all veterans.

It should come as no surprise that I have serious concerns with this bill. I voted against it when it was reported out of committee to signal that it is not a perfect bill and that there are still improvements to be made.

One of my biggest concerns has to do with funding. In that regard, I share the concern of the ranking member. While previous funding for Choice came from emergency mandatory funding, moving forward, the program will receive discretionary funding and could break the budget caps that trigger sequestration.

That is why I offered an amendment at the Rules Committee last night that guaranteed that moving community care funding to the discretionary side wouldn't count against the bipartisan budget caps we agreed to just a few short months ago. It would help guarantee that we continue to keep our promises to veterans by funding the full range of supports and benefits that they are owed.

Unfortunately, that amendment was not made in order for us to consider on the floor today. Without this critical amendment, I am concerned we will be facing difficult choices, and I fear that veterans will ultimately pay the price, and I mean that in a literal sense.

I have concerns about the process that brought us here today. I think this bill needs a greater emphasis on building the VA's capacity, its internal capacity, to provide veterans the specialized care that many of them need. We need to do more to recruit and retain the best providers to care for our veterans.

I wish that there were more guardrails in place as we begin asset realignment, and I wish that we had a strong VA leadership in place before moving forward with sweeping reforms. But, at the end of the day, Mr. Speaker, I realize we can't keep doing emergency patches to fund community care. We can't continue to look veterans in the eye when we don't offer caregiver support services just because they served in an era before 9/11. That is why I will reluctantly vote in favor of this bill today.

I will reluctantly vote for this bill today.

Mr. Speaker, on Roll Call vote 178, I inadvertently voted No. I had intended to vote Aye.

Mr. Speaker, Keith Nolan's dream was to be a military officer. He excelled at the first two levels of Army ROTC and was preparing to take the next step when he was told that he could not continue because he failed the hearing portion of a military medical exam.

This is not at all surprising, because Keith Nolan is deaf. The United States does not allow the deaf community to serve in the military, unlike other nations that allow deaf citizens to serve.

Despite Keith's passion and despite our attempts to establish a demonstration program to prove that the deaf community is entirely capable of contributing to our military, Keith does not have the opportunity to serve his country.

Today, I am mourning for Keith and for the country, which lost out on his service. But I want to celebrate his passion and his dedication to expanding civil rights for the deaf community.

He has taken this rejection in stride, creating an ROTC program at the Maryland School for the Deaf. I am once again calling for a demonstration program that gives the deaf community a chance to defend the country they love.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Waters for her leadership on the floor on this issue.

I rise in opposition to S.J. Res. 57 because it erases measures established a half-decade ago to prevent auto dealers from using discriminatory data tactics.

I also rise because it signals the majority's intention to contort the Congressional Review Act to allow it to be used on a dramatically increased scale in ways never intended.

Let me start with the policy.

When auto dealers provide financing through a third-party lender, they can increase the rate offered to the consumer and pocket the difference. Evidence suggests these dealer markups are frequently higher for minority borrowers than for similarly qualified White borrowers.

In 2013, the CFPB sought to address this problem. The agency produced guidance that clarified the fair lending requirements of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act applied to auto loans. The CFPB's action simply spelled out that dealer markups were indeed illegal if they led to discriminatory outcomes, intentional or otherwise.

It also listed some useful steps that auto dealers could take to ensure fair lending compliance. In recent years, the CFPB has fined auto dealers more than $150 million for discriminating against minority borrowers.

A resolution of disapproval is not the way to change policy in this area. Instead, we should be going through regular order with public hearings, committee consideration, and amendments to achieve a bipartisan compromise, not just throwing out words like ``junk science.'' We can settle that in regular order through a process.

In bringing this resolution to the floor, the majority is setting a dangerous new standard for the use of the Congressional Review Act, which only grants Congress the power to rescind regulations within a 60-legislative-day window. The CFPB guidance on auto lending was established in 2013, well outside the CRA's window.

Make no mistake: Using the CRA to repeal guidance from more than 5 years ago is an unprecedented expansion of the law's scope, and it will imperil thousands of Federal decisions going back decades. Let's not make it easier for minority car buyers to be exploited and discriminated against. Let's not open the door to an even more extreme and unprecedented use of the CRA.

I strongly urge my colleagues to vote against S.J. Res. 57.

Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing a resolution to recognize April 26 as International Chart Day, a celebration of charts, data visualization, and infographics of all types.

An American public that is better equipped to understand what goes in a good chart will be better equipped to spot and discard fake news. In news reporting and academia, the use of properly sourced and formatted charts help explain complex issues. Charts help the brain discern patterns and trends that large amounts of data often hide.

The goal of International Chart Day is to study the history of data visualization, celebrate innovations in infographics, and encourage wider adoption of their use across society. My colleagues and I in Congress are prolific creators of charts, many of which are archived on the excellent blog ``Floor Charts,'' curated by William Gray. If you are interested in joining in on the celebration, please share your favorite charts online and use #chartday.