Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the following staff members from my staff and from Senator Sanders' staff be given all-access floor passes for consideration of the budget resolution, H. Con. Res. 71: Eric Ueland, Paul Vinovich, Landon Stropko, Tom Bork, Mike Jones, Joshua Smith, Alexander Beaton, and Jill Harrelson; and that the following staff members be given floor privileges for the remainder of the debate on the measure: Natalie Rico, Catherine Konieczy, Jake Whitaker, and Max Pfeiffer.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 a.m., Wednesday, October 18; further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; finally, that following leader remarks, the Senate resume consideration of H. Con. Res. 71.

Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

On October 13, 2017, under the authority of the order of the Senate of October 5, 2017, the following concurrent resolutions and Senate resolutions were read, and referred (or acted upon), as indicated:

Mr. President, I would like to take this time today to honor the life of one of our former colleagues and my friend, Pete Domenici of New Mexico. Pete had a long and memorable career and left an important legacy on this institution, of which his family can be proud.

Pete dedicated the majority of his life to advocating for the betterment of his home State and this Nation he loved so much. He started his career in public service after his election to the Albuquerque City Commission in 1968. He then took up the challenge to serve the people of his home State in Congress and was elected to the Senate in 1972. Pete served the people of New Mexico for 36 years, becoming the longest serving Senator in New Mexico history in the process.

During his career, Pete was chairman of the Senate Energy Committee and twice the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee. His adherence to fiscal responsibility eventually led to the passing of a balanced budget during his chairmanship.

He accomplished a great deal over the years in the Senate. His heartfelt concern and his dedication to his principles guided his work on every issue that came before him. Through it all, his core values served as his inner compass and kept him in tune with the thinking of the people of New Mexico, who elected him to the Senate six separate times. I was fortunate enough to serve with Pete and, through our 12 shared years in the Senate together, came to admire his commitment to serving our great Nation.

During my time as ranking member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions--HELP--Committee, I was able to see up close Pete and his wife Nancy's lifelong commitment to mental health. Through his hard work and determination, the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 was enacted into law.

His pragmatism was one of the many qualities Pete displayed everyday while working to improve the lives of all Americans. Pete's ability to form meaningful relationships with every person he met was why he was so trusted by Members on both sides of the aisle.

Among Pete's reasons to not seek a seventh term was his diagnosis of frontotemporal lobar degeneration. Through his fight against his debilitating disease, he was an inspiration to many. He did not let this slow him down. After his retirement from the Senate, Pete continued to work tirelessly for the advancement of the causes he cared so dearly about.

We now celebrate the life of Pete Domenici. Pete was many things in his life: a college baseball player, a Senator, an author, a husband, a father, a grandfather, and even a great-grandfather.

Diana joins in sending our heartfelt sympathy to the Domenici family. Pete has been a role model to so many for so many years, including me. He loved life, and he loved sharing it with his family and friends. Those who knew him will always remember his dedication, his selflessness, and his ability to solve problems. He will never be forgotten. God bless.

Mr. President, I wish to honor retired LTC Barry Gasdek of Laramie, WY, for his decades of past and present service to our country, the sacrifices he has made, and to commemorate his recent naming as commander of Region III of the Military Order of the Purple Heart.

A man of distinction, heroism, and continuous achievement, Mr. Gasdek is a supremely decorated veteran, having been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star, five Bronze Stars, the Soldier's Medal, 17 Air Medals, and two Purple Hearts, among other awards. Mr. Gasdek earned these Purple Hearts during his service in Vietnam for wounds he sustained under heavy enemy fire and explosives. It was once said by his commander that Mr. Gasdek was a ``magnet'' for enemy fire, but this didn't stop him from charging forward to protect his men and give them the leadership they needed when they found themselves right in the thick of it.

It is clear to anyone who knows Mr. Gasdek that he is an outstanding American veteran, and his valor has not gone unnoticed. I congratulate Mr. Gasdek for his achievement with the Military Order of the Purple Heart and wish him the very best with his continued work helping Wyoming veterans in need.

Thank you.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, today I wish to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, WY. On January 10, 1917, William F. ``Buffalo Bill'' Cody passed away, resulting in the creation of the Buffalo Bill Memorial Association on March 1, 1917. This association became known as the Buffalo Bill Center of the West on February 8, 2013, and has since performed the task of preserving the great legacy and historical significance of Buffalo Bill Cody. He came to symbolize the American West and lived the tale like no other as an explorer, frontiersman, soldier, scout, actor, entrepreneur, and civic leader.

In 1867, Cody received his nickname of ``Buffalo Bill'' as he hunted buffalo for the Kansas Pacific Railroad, where he became known as an expert shot. He soon became a civilian scout for the U.S. Army, and in that capacity, he was awarded the U.S Congressional Medal of Honor. In 1883, Cody created Buffalo Bill's Wild West show, in which he gained fame and notoriety for the show's dramatic recreations of life on the frontier. The performances highlighted Cody's knowledge of the American West. Cody was an important source of information regarding the West for American Presidents from Ulysses S. Grant to Woodrow Wilson.

After his death, the Buffalo Bill museum opened on July 4, 1927, to tell the story of Col. William F. ``Buffalo Bill'' Cody. Since this opening, the Buffalo Bill Center has expanded and become known as one of America's finest Western museums. The center actually features four museums: the Whitney Gallery of Western Art, the Buffalo Bill Museum, the Plains Indian museum, and the Cody Firearms Museum.

Thanks to the overwhelming support and dedicated staff and board of trustees, there is always something new to see and explore from the days of the Wild West. It represents a story of a time when people who were larger than life dominated the national stage, and thanks to the historical center, they will never be forgotten. I encourage folks to come to Wyoming and explore the Buffalo Bill Center of the West. It will be an experience they will never forget. It is an opportunity to see firsthand what inspired Buffalo Bill to take the story of the West and tell it all over the world. I am pleased to be a part of this tradition and express my continuing support for the Buffalo Bill Center of the West and its inspiring education of the American West. Congratulations on 100 years and my best wishes for the next 100.

Thank you.

Mr. President, I wish to submit to the Senate the budget scorekeeping report for September 2017. The report compares current-law levels of spending and revenues with the amounts the Senate agreed to in the budget resolution for fiscal year 2017, S. Con. Res. 3. This information is necessary for the Senate Budget Committee to determine whether budget points of order lie against pending legislation. The Republican staff of the Senate Budget Committee and the Congressional Budget Office, CBO, prepared this report pursuant to section 308(b) of the Congressional Budget Act, CBA.

My last filing can be found in the Record on July 12, 2017. The information contained in this report captures legislative activity since that filing through September 5, 2017.

Republican Budget Committee staff prepared tables 1-3 of this report.

Table 1 gives the amount by which each Senate authorizing committee exceeds or is below its allocation for budget authority and outlays under the most recently adopted budget resolution. This information is used for enforcing committee allocations pursuant to section 302 of the CBA. For this reporting period, 11 of the 16 authorizing committees are in compliance with their allocations, two fewer than my last report. Legislative activity during this reporting period brought both the Committee on the Judiciary, for a State compact relating to the Washington Metrorail Safety Commission, P.L. 1l5-54, and the Committee on Foreign Relations, for the Countering America's Adversaries through Sanctions Act, P.L. 115-44, out of compliance.

In total, authorizing committees are estimated to increase outlays by nearly $2 billion more than they were allocated over the fiscal year 2017-2026 period. The largest spending violation since the passage of the current budget resolution occurred during this reporting period. The VA Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017, P.L. 115-46, increased budget authority by $2 billion and outlays by $1.9 billion over the fiscal year 2017-2026 window.

Tables 2-3 of this report, related to activities of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, remain unchanged from my previous report.

In addition to the tables provided by Budget Committee Republican staff, I am submitting CBO tables, which I will use to enforce budget totals approved by the Congress.

CBO provided a spending and revenue report for fiscal year 2017, which helps

enforce aggregate spending levels in budget resolutions under CBA section 311. CBO's estimates show that current law levels of spending for fiscal year 2017 exceed the amounts assumed in the budget resolution for budget authority by $1.8 billion. However, levels for outlays remain nearly $6.4 billion below assumed levels. CBO also estimates that revenues are $1 million above assumed levels for fiscal year 2017 and $8 million above assumed levels over the fiscal year 2017-2026 period. Two pieces of legislation, the FDA Reauthorization Act of 2017, P.L. 115-52, and the Countering America's Adversaries through Sanctions Act, increased revenues this reporting period. The former increased revenues by $7 million over 10 years and the latter by $22 million over the same period.

Social Security levels are consistent with the budget resolution's fiscal year 2017 figures.

CBO's report also provides information needed to enforce the Senate pay-as-you-go, PAYGO, rule. The Senate's PAYGO scorecard currently shows increased deficits of $2.5 billion over the fiscal year 2016-2021 and $1.9 billion over fiscal year 2016-2026 periods. Over the fiscal year 2016-2021 period, legislation has been enacted that CBO estimates will increase outlays by $2.5 billion and reduce revenues by $20 million. Over the fiscal year 2016-2026 period, legislation has been enacted that CBO estimates will increase outlays by $1.9 billion and increase revenues by $3 million. The Senate's PAYGO rule is enforced by section 201 of S. Con. Res. 21, the fiscal year 2008 budget resolution.

Finally, included in this submission is a table tracking the Senate's budget enforcement activity on the floor. Three budget points of order have been raised since my last filing, and each was successful. All of these points of order occurred during the Senate's consideration of H.R. 1628, the American Health Care Act of 2017.

All years in the accompanying tables are fiscal years.

I ask unanimous consent that the accompanying tables be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, section 251 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, BBEDCA, establishes statutory limits on discretionary spending and allows for various adjustments to those limits, while sections 302 and 3141(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 allow the chairman of the Budget Committee to establish and make revisions to allocations, aggregates, and levels consistent with those adjustments The Senate is considering S. Amdt. 808, which provides emergency funding for disaster relief.

This legislation includes language that increases nonsecurity discretionary budget authority by $15,250 million this year and designates it as emergency funding pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of BBEDCA. CBO estimates that this budget authority will not outlay in 2017.

As a result of the aforementioned designations, I am revising the allocation to the Committee on Appropriations by increasing the revised nonsecurity budget authority by $15,250 million Further, I am increasing the budgetary aggregate for fiscal year 2017 by $15,250 million in budget authority.

I ask unanimous consent that the accompanying tables, which provide details about the adjustment, be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I wish to express concern with section 709 of H.R. 2430, concerning over-the-counter, OTC, hearing aids.

I have a daughter who has worn hearing aids since she was a toddler. I have firsthand experience with the kind of expertise needed by providers to ensure that those who require a hearing aid have their specific and unique medical needs met.

I believe that everyone on all sides of this issue desire the same thing, and I appreciate Chairman Alexander working with me to get a study relating to this matter. I believe that we are all working, in sincerity, towards a goal of providing those who would benefit from hearing aids with access to safe and effective products that will help them live the kinds of lives which they choose and desire. That being said, I am concerned about a policy which will create a division between a healthcare provider and a patient who needs that provider's expertise.

Thank you.

Mr. President, I yield back all time.

Mr. President, for the information of my colleagues, the Congressional Budget Office released its estimate of H.R. 2430, the FDA Reauthorization Act of 2017, in July 2017. Information related to this House-passed bill can be found at the Congressional Budget Office's website with the following link: https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/ 115th-congress-2017-2018/costestimate/hr2430.pdf

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Mr. President, the Senate Budget Committee wishes to honor and recognize Marion Curry on her retirement from the Congressional Budget Office. Marion has worked in the budget analysis division of the Congressional Budget Office in various capacities for more than 38 years and has been a full-time employee at CBO since 1987. During that time, she served as the administrative assistant for the projections unit, and over the past several years, she expanded her responsibilities to also encompass the health systems and Medicare unit, as well as the low-income health programs and prescription drugs unit.

During her long tenure at CBO, Marion has skillfully carried out a variety of tasks--carefully checking cost estimates as she produced drafts, ensuring that timesheets were done correctly, directing callers to the appropriate person, and in general assuring that administrative matters were taken care of without a hitch. Such duties have undergone many changes over the years--from using telephones as the primary method of contact, typing tables by hand, and sending paper copies of documents, to the current approach of using email as the primary method of contact, transferring spreadsheets to the editorial staff for producing tables, and sending PDFs of documents with supplemental data posted on the web. Through all of those changes, Marion readily adapted to new technology and procedures and carried out her responsibilities with good humor, professionalism, a giving spirit, and a dedication to serving the Congress and the public.

Marion contributed to CBO's work in ways that went well beyond her administrative responsibilities. She routinely took the lead to make sure that key life events of staff--such as birthdays, weddings, and births--were celebrated, and she was often the first person others in the organization consulted when they needed assistance with planning and organizing events. In addition, her contributions to the charitable works of the agency were well-known and appreciated. Marion is extremely warm, generous, and giving--she was always there to provide support, encouragement, and someone to talk to. Her contribution to the working environment at CBO was beyond measure, and she will be greatly missed.

Mr. President, the Senate Budget Committee wishes to honor and recognize Jeffrey Holland on his retirement after 26 years of distinguished service to the Congress with the Congressional Budget Office. Jeff is highly regarded by Republicans and Democrats on both sides of the Capitol for his deep knowledge of the budget process and his commitment to the nonpartisan role that CBO plays in the budget process.

Jeff arrived at CBO in 1991 soon after graduation from Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz School of Public Policy with a master's degree in public policy and management. He joined the projections unit in the budget analysis division, which is responsible for preparing projections of Federal spending, deficit, debt, and other data related to the Federal budget, as well as providing ongoing support to Congress.

In 1999, Jeff became chief of the projections unit, and for the past 18 years, he has successfully overseen the production of multiple reports on the Budget and Economic Outlook, annual analyses of the President's budget request, and also several reports on sequestration, the debt ceiling, national income, and product accounts, and the Troubled Asset Relief Program. Through all of these tasks, he has been the steady hand of the projections unit, generous with his time and knowledge, and highly responsive to questions and requests for data or information from the staff of the Budget Committee. His persistence, attention to detail, and reliably clear thinking have been vital to the smooth functioning of the budget analysis division. Senate staff and CBO colleagues have come to depend on him for his sage advice and deep understanding of the budget laws.

In addition, Jeff has often lent his expertise to legislative branches of other countries as they seek to develop their own capacity for nonpartisan budget analysis. He is a sought-after explainer of the Federal budget process to students visiting our Nation's Capital. In short, Jeff's expertise, knowledge, and generosity of time and spirit will be sorely missed. We wish him well as he

moves on after years of outstanding service to the Congress. We are grateful for that service, and we wish him the best in the years to come.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.