Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I have a motion at the desk.

Madam Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to extend my warmest congratulations to my good friend Janis Santos on her retirement following 40 years of dedicated public service to the children and families of western Massachusetts.

A pioneer in the field of early education and childhood development, Janis most recently served as CEO of Holyoke Chicopee Springfield Head Start. Through her efforts to expand Head Start's programs across the Commonwealth, Janis has played a prominent role in improving the lives of more than 1,000 young children. Her diligence in directing the only migrant, seasonal Head Start program in Massachusetts only further demonstrates her exceptional commitment to helping the most vulnerable families in our communities.

In 1973, Janis began her lifelong advocacy and action on behalf of children and families by launching one of the first early-childhood centers in Ludlow, Massachusetts. Just six years later, in recognition of her cutting-edge approach to the field, Janis was taken on as Executive Director of Holyoke Chicopee Springfield Head Start, During her expansive and impressive career, Janis has served as Chair of the Massachusetts Head Start Directors Association, the New England Head Start Association, as well as a member of the National Advisory Panel for the Head Start 2010 Project here in our nation's capital. While her myriad of leadership roles is most impressive, what I most admire about Janis is the tireless dedication she has demonstrated throughout her 40-year career to providing our youth the resources they need to succeed in the future.

Madam Speaker, in light of Janis Santos' many achievements and remarkable contributions to the early education of the children of western Massachusetts, as well as her role in shaping conversations on early education throughout the nation, I would like to thank Janis for her steadfast service, and offer my personal best wishes for a long, happy, and healthy retirement.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 4 minutes.

Mr. Speaker, I stand today in strong support of the Build Back Better Act and its implications.

I am proud of the substantive contributions that the Ways and Means Committee, once again, has made to this monumental initiative. With these provisions we will make transformational investments in families, workers, and the fight against climate change.

Getting to this point certainly has not been fast, nor has it been easy. Some might say it has been quite challenging. But that is what democracy looks like, and it frequently is noisy. We have examined these issues; we have had thoughtful, spirited debate in the committee; and we have refined our proposals.

Since 2019, the Ways and Means Committee has held over 40 hearings related to topics addressed by these provisions, and we have heard out the stakeholders from virtually every perspective. Over the course of 40 hours of committee markup, we thoroughly debated this package and considered 60 amendments from the Republican members. And in the 3 months since we passed our historic package out of the committee, we have refined our policies further and made hard compromises in the interest of accomplishing fine things for the American people.

That is how legislation is developed, and it is not based on whim.

There is not enough time to detail every policy in this legislation, but let me highlight just a few that are going to be particularly well received by the American people, and I am proud of these proposals.

First and foremost, we fought hard to include a universal paid family and medical leave provision to finally put an end to workers' impossible choice between providing for their family and caring for them.

We also invest in making healthcare more affordable by extending the enhanced Affordable Care Act premium subsidies that we approved in the American Rescue Plan earlier this year.

We close the Medicaid coverage gap, which will allow four million uninsured Americans to gain access to coverage.

Let me say something, as well, Mr. Speaker. Everybody in Massachusetts has health insurance. Every child is covered, and 98 percent of adults are covered in the State, and it polls really well.

I am proud of these investments we make here in supporting this development and deployment of green energy, and I want to acknowledge two Members in particular, Mr. Thompson and Mr. Blumenauer, for the role that they played. Our green tax policies put us on the path to a sustainable future, they help cut carbon emissions, and create good, well-paying jobs across the country.

This an ambitious package, but it makes major investments--emphasis on the word ``investments''--in our economy, workers, and families, but it also responsibly meets the time in which we live. The Ways and Means Committee, of which I am enormously proud, we fully commit the funds that are necessary to pay for these priorities by asking the most powerful amongst us to pay just a modest amount more. The various wealthy individuals will be asked to contribute, again, just a bit more to our Nation that has provided them with the opportunities to have such substantial success.

I urge our colleagues to support this legislation. We will allow for a stronger and better Nation to build back better and stronger, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Thompson), who had a profound impact on the renewable energy tax credits.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. Clark), a fellow Bay Stater, good friend, terrific leader.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. DelBene), a terrific member of the Committee on Ways and Means.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson), neighbor, friend, and an effective member of the Committee on Ways and Means.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Danny K. Davis), who had a substantive impact on the writing of this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Higgins), author, scholar, and effective member of the Committee on Ways and Means.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Wisconsin (Ms. Moore), the passionate advocate for the people of Milwaukee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Beyer), whose economic advice abounds through this institution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Evans), a highly effective member of the Ways and Means Committee and a terrific gentleman from Philadelphia.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), the chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee and one of the only two Members left from the class of 1988 in Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), the chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, who is an advocate on behalf of the child tax credit.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), who is always quotable.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Schneider). He is a very effective gentleman, and he is always Midwestern nice.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Panetta), who is a very effective member of the Ways and Means Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Gomez), whose negotiating skill on USMCA really impressed me.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Horsford), who is a terrific advocate for all things Nevada.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands (Ms. Plaskett), who is a very effective member of the Ways and Means Committee.

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

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the majority leader and a real champion of this institution.

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

Just before I recognize the distinguished majority whip, I want to take a moment to acknowledge the around-the-clock work of the staff who made this evening possible.

First, my team on the Ways and Means Committee that have helped bring about this evening. They have poured their hearts into developing these policies that will make America a better place. In their pursuit, they have sacrificed holidays, sleep, and time with loved ones, and their service to our country will not be forgotten.

Let me also acknowledge the CBO with a round of applause because of the great work that they have done this evening, as well as legislative counsel--who have not put down their pencils--to make sure that this extraordinary pressure that they have been under has helped to get us here.

Now, it is always a pleasure to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn), the majority whip.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. There are a lot of reasons tonight that this legislation has come forth. We can argue about why income inequality in America happened; globalization, technology, skill set, the decline of unions. But what we can't argue about is it happened. And we have a chance tonight to reverse that course.

We speak frequently in this institution, sometimes in terms of hyperbolic rhetoric about history. Tonight, the vote we cast is about history. And the Committee on Ways and Means, since spring of a year ago, wrote much of this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I call attention to 33 years ago when I joined this institution, to just above the Speaker's rostrum. It is very hard to visualize; it was easier 33 years ago for me to read it than it is now when I walk in. But Daniel Webster said, here in this Chamber, ``Let us develop the resources of our land, call forth its great powers, build up its institutions, promote all of its great interests and see whether we also in our day and generation may not perform something worthy to be remembered.''

Mr. Speaker, tonight, that is what we intend to do. We are going to make transformational changes that are going to lift the people of America to a new sense, born of optimism, as that son of Massachusetts, Mr. Webster, acknowledged. We are going to change the lives and livelihoods of Americans for generations to come; and as he noted, we will do something tonight that truly will be worth remembering.

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

Madam Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Academy Hill School on celebrating their 35th anniversary. This milestone achievement deserves the highest praise for the hard work and dedication of the school's faculty and staff, as well those students whose remarkable commitment to learning has played a pivotal role in the school's success.

Although established in 1986, the Academy Hill School began operating in 1979, offering enrichment classes to gifted students throughout the Greater Springfield community. Two years after opening their full-time day school in 1986, the Academy Hill Center for Gifted Children was incorporated as a non-profit organization. Over the next three decades, Academy Hill would grow and expand their campus, relocating to their current location on Liberty Street in Springfield, and nearly doubling their total enrollment in their K-8 program. This past year has reminded us of the critical role our schools play in our children's lives, with millions of educators across the country taking on the tremendous responsibility of providing our students equitable educational opportunities in a safe and healthy environment. Therefore, I cannot think of a more appropriate occasion to celebrate all that the Academy Hill School has accomplished over the past 35 years.

Madam Speaker, I would like to once again congratulate the Academy Hill School on celebrating their 35th anniversary, and thank them for continuing to inspire our students. Academy Hill is a cherished member of Massachusetts' First District, and I wish them many more years of success and prosperity.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 688, I call up the bill (S. 1301) to provide for the publication by the Secretary of Health and Human Services of physical activity recommendations for Americans, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to insert extraneous material on S. 1301.

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

Madam Speaker, one of the essential duties of Congress is to preserve the full faith and credit of the United States. Today, we will once again take action to do precisely that.

A suspension of the debt ceiling will prevent us from defaulting on debt we already owe. This is not about new spending. It is about investments that this Congress has agreed to in the past and previously approved.

This is about what the American family does every day. They don't get to say: ``I am not going to make my credit card payment this month. I am not going to make my mortgage payment this month. Oh, maybe I won't make my car payment this month. And I won't honor the personal loan that I signed up for.''

Our vote today is not a novel exercise. Congress has addressed the debt limit 78 times since 1960 to prevent default, 29 times with a Democrat in the White House and 49 times with a Republican in the White House.

Ensuring that the government can finance its existing obligations is a responsibility that we share jointly in this Chamber. Regrettably, that apparently is not the case this time.

Our Democratic Caucus, with some hope and help, I believe, from the Republicans at the right moment, will meet the moment and prevent a devastating financial catastrophe. We will take the action necessary to protect businesses, workers, and families.

When Americans' jobs and retirement savings are on the line, we are going to make sure we do what is necessary to prevent disaster.

Madam Speaker, I encourage every Member to support this critical measure, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), Speaker of the House, for a firm rebuttal.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Thompson), a very capable member of the Committee on Ways and Means.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer), whose work on infrastructure is a model for the Nation.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Danny K. Davis), a member of the Ways and Means Committee, a champion of the underserved.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Higgins), a very capable member of the Ways and Means Committee.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. DelBene), a member of the Ways and Means Committee, chief architect of the child credit expansion.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Chu), who is a very capable member of the Ways and Means Committee.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Wisconsin (Ms. Moore), who is always the great champion of expanding the earned income tax credit.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Kildee), who is always a champion of the industrial heartland.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Brendan F. Boyle), who is a champion of very complicated issues relating to the debt ceiling.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Evans), who is a very capable gentleman. He is champion of all things Philadelphia, as well as quite knowledgeable about the debt ceiling.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Schneider), who is a member of the Ways and Means Committee and well-known for his midwestern values.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Panetta) again, a very knowledgeable member of the Ways and Means Committee.

Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Gomez), whose work on USMCA was outstanding.

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), the very capable Congresswoman.

Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the majority leader, one of the most capable legislators I have known.

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

Madam Speaker, we keep hearing from our colleagues that somehow we are asking them to cosign a loan. I am prepared here to vote to lift the debt ceiling. That is the responsible position.

We have heard a lot today from the other side about why Democrats should shoulder the responsibility of acting responsibly in terms of governance, but that is not how governing simply works.

We have been given great responsibility and privilege to serve this great country, and that responsibility means making hard decisions and putting the good of the Nation ahead of all else, including day-to-day politics.

So in my hand, Madam Speaker, I have a $1 bill. For anybody in this Chamber or who is watching or who has ever had a chance to travel this great country of ours, you know that wherever you go, you can redeem this dollar. The purchasing power of this dollar is well known to all.

But you know what is even more fascinating about this? No matter where you travel in the world, to any nook or cranny of this globe, you put the dollar on the table and they figure out how to redeem it. This argument today is about the full faith and credit of the United States of America. This is signed by the Secretary of the Treasury and the Treasurer of the United States of America. The basis of redemption is the trust that we might even have in strangers as it relates to the transaction of using this dollar to pay our bills.

We have always come together to pay our bills. In 2017, when the debt ceiling was reached, 183 Democrats, every Democrat present, voted to lift that limit, joining 133 Republicans.

Resist the ill-considered parts of the argument that have been offered today and vote for the responsible position to raise the debt ceiling based upon the full faith and credit of the dollar bill that we know is redeemed everywhere across the globe.

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

Madam Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Joe Grochmal on entering his 68th year as a golf instructor in western Massachusetts. This milestone achievement deserves the highest praise for Joe's hard work and steadfast love for the game, something he has instilled in the hearts of thousands of students.

Sometimes referred to as the ``Godfather of Western Massachusetts Golf,'' Joe began working as a golf instructor in 1953. Although he frequently changed his teaching philosophy, exploring new techniques to bring the most out of every golfer, Joe consistently shared with his students a genuine appreciation for the game of golf. During a career that spanned nearly seven decades, Joe dedicated countless hours to sharing his knowledge and expertise, meeting golfers young and old at local driving ranges after putting in a full day's work. Joe truly represents the best of Massachusetts' First District, and that is why I am proud to join with his family, friends, and the entire western Massachusetts golf community in recognizing this milestone achievement.

Madam Speaker, I would like to once again acknowledge Joe Grochmal. I am proud of his accomplishments and I wish him many more years of health and happiness, along with many more fairways and greens.

Madam Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Pope Francis Preparatory School Boys Ice Hockey Team on winning the 2021 U.S.A. Hockey High School Division I National Championship. This milestone achievement deserves the highest praise for the hard work and dedication of these exemplary athletes and coaches. Despite the countless challenges posed by this unprecedented season, the perseverance and commitment to success demonstrated throughout the year led their team to victory on the biggest stage in high school hockey.

The 2021 U.S.A. Hockey High School Division I Tournament brought twelve of the most elite high school hockey teams from across the country to compete for this year's National Championship. Members of the Pope Francis Boys Ice Hockey Team not only performed with exceptional mental and physical fortitude, but also displayed remarkable sportsmanship and character on their path to victory. They represented the First District of Massachusetts with great honor and distinction, and I am confident that the lessons learned during this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity will serve these young men well in their future endeavors.

The Pope Francis Boys Ice Hockey Team was led by their Head Coach, Brian Foley, who has provided crucial guidance and instrumental mentorship to his young athletes both on and off the ice over the past eighteen seasons. Coach Foley was assisted by Assistant Coaches Steve Ashe, Tim Keeney, and Dan Fenton, and the victorious student athletes are Matt Hanscom, Zach Buffone, Jack Moltenbrey, Jacob Iby, Ryan Hemenway, Ryan Leonard, Brandon Spaulding, Colin Foyle, Evan Phaneuf, Drew Bolduc, Jack Kennedy, Ryan Shaw, Bryce Russ, Joey DiMichele, Stephen Rougeot, Jack Turowsky, Matt Burke, Derek Rhodes, Ryan O'Leary, Ryan Rhodes, Ben Zaranek, and Josh Iby.

Madam Speaker, I would like to once again acknowledge the Pope Francis Preparatory School Boys Ice Hockey Team for their superb achievement. I am proud of this group and I wish them much continued success.

Madam Speaker, I rise to congratulate the Pope Francis Preparatory High School boys' hockey team on winning the 2021 USA Hockey Division 1 National Championship. The Pope Francis Cardinals defeated New Trier, of Illinois, 3-0 in the championship game. This win capped a six day national championship tournament in Omaha, Nebraska, where the Pope Francis Cardinals when 6-0, and outscored opponents 48- 5.

The tremendous amount of dedication and commitment to excellence was led by Head Coach Brian Foley, who has led the Pope Francis Hockey program for eighteen years. The impressive efforts on the ice was led by goalie Ben Zaranek, with 23 saves that ensured the shutout, and by Brandon Spaulding and Ryan Leonard, that scored the three goals to solidify victory and the national title.

It gives me great pleasure to extend my sincere congratulations to the entire team, which also includes Matt Hanscom, Jack Moltenbrey, Jake Iby, Ryan Hemenway, Colin Foyle, Evan Phaneuf, Andrew Bolduc, Jack Kennedy, Ryan Shaw, Bryce Russ, Joseph DiMichele, Stephen Rougeot, Jack Turowsky, Matthew Burke, Christopher Calvanese, Ryan O'Leary, Ryan Rhodes, Ben Zaranek, Josh Iby, and Gage Sperlonga. All should be proud of their contribution to this victorious season that furthers the legacy of Pope Francis athletics.

Madam Speaker, the players, coaches, and entire school community should be very proud of their accomplishments. I wish the graduating seniors all the best in their future endeavors and good luck to those who will return for a chance to make another run at the national championship.

Madam Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral on their celebration of this, the Bicentennial of Greek Independence. Their continued efforts to support, preserve and promote their Greek culture, as well as honor the heroes of 1821 and the sacrifices they made in pursuit of Greek independence, are truly remarkable and deserving of the highest praise.

The parishioners of St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral are stewards of their culture's rich history, celebrating and honoring the sacrifices made by their forefathers during their fight for freedom. With the signing of the Treaty of Edirne in 1829, eight years after the inception of the War of Greek Independence, the independent state of Greece was finally established. St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral has been a vital member of the Greater Springfield community since 1907, and generations of parishioners have faithfully commemorated Greek independence for more than a century.

Madam Speaker, I would like to once again acknowledge St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral for their extraordinary efforts and superb achievement. Their dedication to preserving the traditions of their religion and their culture is admirable, and I wish them many more years of health and prosperity.

Madam Speaker, as the Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, I rise today along with Ranking Member Kevin Brady, to commemorate the successful federal career of Brenda Smith, Executive Assistant Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Office of Trade. Ms. Smith is retiring after 33 years of government service, including 27 years with CBP and the legacy U.S. Customs Service.

Ms. Smith's leadership at CBP is marked by significant advancements in the agency's trade mission. She spearheaded unprecedented automation and modernization of the U.S. government's import/export system, a renewed focus on preventing duty evasion, intellectual property rights infringement, and importation of goods derived from forced labor, as well as efforts to adapt the agency's trade and revenue workforce for the new pace and challenges of the 21st century trade environment. Ms. Smith also led the development of global e-commerce standards and focus on new technologies like blockchain and advanced analytics.

Under Ms. Smith's leadership, CBP modernized the international trade process, completing development and deployment of the U.S. Single Window and the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE)--the electronic portal for exporters and importers to clear shipments across the U.S. border. Ms. Smith took command of the Single Window project, organizing the efforts of 49 federal agencies and partnering with thousands of importers, exports, brokers, and technology developers to successfully deploy the modem, automated system. The Single Window is now a global model, and it has revolutionized the international trade process for U.S. businesses and consumers. In recognition of her leadership on this project, Ms. Smith was a 2017 finalist in the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America award for management excellence.

She also implemented key components of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act (TFTEA) of 2015, the first comprehensive authorization of CBP since the agency's creation in 2003. Ms. Smith led CBP's implementation of the Enforce and Protect Act of 2015, increasing the transparency and effectiveness of CBP's enforcement of antidumping/ countervailing duty orders, and, following the repeal of a critical loophole, CBP's increased focus on enforcement of the import prohibition on goods produced using forced, prison, and forced child labor.

Ms. Smith also led U.S. delegations to several partner nations to strengthen relationships with customs and human rights officials, industry leaders, and non-governmental organizations and bolster international safeguards against forced labor. For this work and for her focus on strengthening CBP's trade enforcement mission, Ms. Smith was honored with a 2017 Distinguished Executive Presidential Rank Award, the highest award in civil service. In addition to leading a number of U.S. delegations, Ms. Smith represented the United States on the World Customs Organization Council in 2007 and 2017.

Ms. Smith also led CBP's implementation of the landmark U.S.-Mexico- Canada Agreement (USMCA), working with the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and other federal agencies, as well as the U.S. international trade community, to ensure effective and timely delivery of key customs provisions of the USMCA.

Throughout her tenure at CBP and its predecessor, Ms. Smith always took the time to be responsive to Member questions and concerns, making herself available for regular briefings.

Prior to joining Customs, Ms. Smith worked at the Department of the Treasury. She also served on the staff of the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment and subsequently in the personal office of Congressman Bernard J. Dwyer of New Jersey. Over the course of her career, Ms. Smith received numerous accolades, including a National Performance Review ``Hammer Award'' and countless agency awards.

We wish to congratulate Ms. Smith on her retirement and express our sincere appreciation for the many years of service, leadership, and accomplishment she has devoted to the U.S. government and the American people. We wish her the best of luck in her future endeavors.

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

Mr. Speaker, this pandemic has been ruthless. With over half a million lives lost, we are a nation in a constant state of mourning. Sadly, we cannot take away the pain and the suffering of our friends, neighbors, and loved ones. But with this seismic legislation, we are delivering much-needed help and relief to millions of our fellow Americans.

In a few minutes, this Chamber will pass and then send to President Biden a monumental piece of legislation that will begin to turn the tide of an unprecedented health and economic crisis.

I want to thank Speaker Pelosi for the confidence that she offered to the Ways and Means Committee as we wrote most of this legislation.

In the 33 years that I have served in this House, I don't know that I will ever cast a more important vote than what we are about to do and of such great consequence in but a few minutes.

I am immensely proud of the work that the Ways and Means Committee members did to make this legislation a reality. We heard the American people, and we went big. We proudly contributed substantial solutions that will strengthen our recovery from this virus and rebuild our economy to work better for all Americans. The Ways and Means Committee was responsible for $1 trillion of this expenditure.

To contain the public health crisis and make health coverage more accessible, we are making the largest expansion of the Affordable Care Act since it was enacted and which the Ways and Means Committee helped to write. We are bringing down costs for jobless Americans saving them thousands of dollars in health insurance costs and more. We will also include assistance for nursing homes that are desperate to contain this virus.

We are going to help those struggling to stay afloat by putting cash in their pockets and simultaneously creating liquidity and demand. For the jobless, we extend Federal unemployment benefits to keep them afloat for the better days that lie ahead.

We have made three key tax credits for low- and middle-income workers and families more generous, more flexible, and more capable of tackling the inequality and concentrated wealth that exists in our country. We already know that a key to our recovery will be giving parents the tools to go back to work even though their previous childcare may have been upended. We will ease their worries by making childcare more accessible and indeed more affordable.

The child tax credit will lift millions out of poverty, and the expanded earned-income tax credit will put money into the pockets of the lowest-income workers.

Mr. Speaker, listen to this following statistic: All in all, there will be an increase in aftertax income for the poorest 20 percent of Americans by increasing their income by 20 percent. That is a staggering achievement. It is a life-changing achievement.

Lastly, we also made a long overdue fix to multiemployer pension programs that will protect hard-earned savings of workers, many of whom have been on the front lines of this crisis. These

are people who have played by the rules, served our country in the military, and worked day in and day out with the promise of a secure retirement not to have it pulled from under them. I would remind all that 30 Republicans on two separate occasions have voted for this bill as a standalone measure.

I heard a previous speaker say: This is a bailout. It is a backstop.

In addition, perhaps that individual didn't understand the PBGC, because if we didn't come to the support of these pensions, it would take down the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation which insures all pensions for Americans in the private sector.

I cannot stress enough--these provisions are going to change lives. We are not creating a narrative talking about changing lives, we are going to do it with this legislation.

We are doing the right thing, not only because of what we have been saying that we would do for years--this is the moment--but this legislation has the support of economists from the left, the right, and the center. This is about the power of ideas. But because it is what the American people want also, let me be clear: the American people, regardless of political affiliation, overwhelmingly support this package because they know what is in it is badly needed to get to the other side of the crisis.

I regret that the overwhelming support that I have just described has not been translated into unity in this Chamber. This is bipartisan in America even if it is not bipartisan in this Chamber.

Our colleagues on the other side have deemed workers who saw their entire industries evaporate perhaps unworthy of this moment. They have deemed working parents perhaps unworthy of this moment, and they have deemed the working- and middle-class American family perhaps at this moment unworthy.

I don't understand it.

Instead, there has been a lot of talk about this package being too large and too expensive. But if there was ever a time to go big, this should be it.

Shouldn't helping struggling American families be worth the size of this bill?

I seem to recall that my colleagues found that wealthy Americans and big corporations were worth the size of their tax cut. So why not working- and middle-class families who are facing a health and economic crisis unlike anything the Nation has experienced in more than a century?

I actually have some charts that I think highlight the difference today. We have two comparisons of who benefits from the American Rescue Plan and who benefited in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. This is pretty apparent and pretty obvious to all who might discern in this moment.

As you can see, Mr. Speaker, the benefits that my colleagues across the aisle will oppose today go directly to working-class Americans.

However, with the next chart, Mr. Speaker, you can look at their package, and it was nearly the same size. By the way, they borrowed $2.3 trillion for it. It had overwhelming support from their side of the aisle. But look who the benefits went to. The evidence is overwhelming as to who the benefits went to.

This package is nearly the same size as what they did, but the impact of what we are about to do will be extraordinary.

Multiple reports have highlighted how the tax cuts bill did not, as proponents claimed, grow the economy or indeed--the great hoax--pay for itself. That never happened. Yet they continue to stand behind a law that put the powerful and the wealthy first, and they dismiss what we are about to do today.

Hardworking Americans have been for too long left behind, and that ends today. This bill will save lives and livelihoods. We will help families stay housed, put food on the table, and access affordable healthcare. Most importantly, this package will help families avoid impossible choices.

Mr. Speaker, I urge our colleagues to rise to this moment and support this important legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Thompson), who is the chairman of the Select Revenue Measures Subcommittee, which plays a central role in tax policy. And repeatedly, he assures me that he is of modest income and from California.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. David Scott), my friend and chairman of the Agriculture Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 10 seconds to the gentleman from Georgia.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Trade and a valued senior member of the Ways and Means Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson), chairman of the Subcommittee on Social Security and tireless champion of ensuring the delivery of stimulus checks to low-income retirees.

Mr. Speaker, the gentleman from New York, my friend, knows that that decision was rendered by a federal judge, not by this Chamber.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight, who has led on a number of provisions, including extending the earned income tax credit to Puerto Rico.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the distinguished majority leader of our House.

Mr. Speaker, I am glad Mr. Hoyer also pointed out that many of us did support President Bush's rescue package. I voted for it twice.

We met with Hank Paulson, the Secretary of the Treasury, in the Ways and Means Committee library, and he said, ``You have to do this.'' We followed suit and supported it.

It has come to my attention that there is some uncertainty about the effective date of one of the provisions in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. In section 9706 of the bill, we allow single-employer pension plans to measure their liabilities by using interest rates that are closer to historical norms, rather than the low interest rates that are in effect today in part because of the pandemic. This provision will enable both plans and participants to weather this crisis far better. I'd like to clarify an issue relating to the effective date of this provision. Plans can choose to have the provision apply starting in 2020. In addition, plans can elect to have the provision apply starting in 2022, so that it does not apply until 2022. It also is our intent that plans can elect for the provision to apply starting in 2021. We believe that is the right interpretation of the language of the bill. We want to give plans the maximum flexibility in this regard so that tomorrow's retirees can achieve a secure retirement. My staff has run this interpretation by the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation and they also agree that an election to have the interest rate smoothing apply starting in 2021 is permitted by the language in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Danny K. Davis), the chair of the Worker and Family Support Subcommittee, who has been a champion for the expanded childcare credit in this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), the chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Sanchez), who was a lead supporter of expanding the child tax credit and a longstanding advocate for helping laid-off workers through COBRA.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Alabama (Ms. Sewell), a member of the Ways and Means Committee, who has been a powerful voice for home-visiting programs and the help they provide to pregnant women and children.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. DelBene), a member of the Ways and Means Committee, who has been a tireless champion for this legislation's historic expansion of the child tax credit.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. Clark), a champion of all things Massachusetts.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Beyer), a valued member of the Ways and Means Committee, who played a central role in shepherding this legislation through 2 days of Ways and Means consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Evans), a member of the Ways and Means Committee, who has been a leader on expanding the earned income tax credit.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Panetta), a member of the Ways and Means Committee, who was one of the loudest voices for expanding the employee retention tax credit and a leader on all provisions that will improve care for nursing home residents.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Gomez), a valued member of the Ways and Means Committee, who fought hard to ensure that all mixed-status families are eligible to receive the economic impact payments and emergency assistance under this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Suozzi), a member of the Ways and Means Committee, who has been a champion for provisions to shore up the multiemployer pensions.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the distinguished gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. Lawrence).

Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms. Leger Fernandez).

Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time is remaining on both sides.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2 minutes of my time.

Mr. Speaker, this is a most significant day, and this legislation meets the challenge of history and calls Americans to act upon this crisis. This is the opportunity now, and we should act.

This is not about self-correction. Far too much is at stake.

Mr. Speaker, I thank our colleagues and, particularly, the Committee on Ways and Means' staff, who wore many hats through this, from crafting this package to the brutal negotiations with the Senate. They worked long hours while facing the same challenges presented by remote school, lack of childcare, and concern for family members that Americans face every moment through this crisis. There are too many names to include, but I know that their counsel has been unparalleled and their expertise always unmatched.

Mr. Speaker, over the Speaker's rostrum is a magnificent admonition from a son of Massachusetts, Mr. Webster: ``Let us develop the resources of our land, call forth its powers, build up its institutions, promote all its great interests, and see whether we also in our day and generation may not perform something worthy to be remembered.'' That is what we are going to do in the next few minutes.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the Speaker of the House, whose attention to legislative detail is extraordinary.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, more than a year has passed since the coronavirus was first detected in the United States. In that time, we have lost over half a million people to this relentless virus. We are a nation in mourning for our lost loved ones, our neighbors, and, indeed, our colleagues.

As we mourn, much of American life is unrecognizable. Millions of Americans have lost their jobs, their safety, and their security, and 10 million jobs that were lost have not been returned.

This is the hard reality across this Nation and in every single congressional district across our country.

Through all this pain, our care for one another is still recognizable. We have seen this in the countless hours our health heroes have spent caring for the sick. We have seen other essential workers who have kept our grocery aisles stocked and our mail delivered. We have seen the care of neighbors, indeed, helping neighbors.

Today, Congress acts in the same spirit of care for our fellow Americans by delivering on the relief our constituents, always with humility, have been asking for.

This is not about dollars and cents. This is about lives that are at stake. We can save them by passing this bill. We will get shots into arms faster. We will help families stay housed and, indeed, put food on their tables. Most importantly, this package will help families avoid impossible choices.

The Ways and Means Committee, which has written half of this legislation--and I must tell you, in all my years, I am really proud of what we did, and a reminder that it was the CARES Act that saved the American economy 1 year ago. Full of proven policies, it will fight both for public health and, simultaneously, the economic crisis.

We will not get back to economic recovery until we defeat this virus.

We are balancing immediate relief and sustained support to keep Americans afloat and ready to bounce back stronger than ever. We will make good on our promise of an additional $2,000 from the $1,400 that we promised. We will enhance and expand the refundable tax credits for low- and middle-income workers and their families.

Combined, these benefits will provide an average income boost of 33 percent for the poorest 20 percent of American households. This will be life-changing, and it will lift millions of children in this Nation out of poverty.

For families, this bill offers massive savings in childcare expenses, which have been a major barrier to returning to the workforce, particularly for women.

For millions of jobless Americans, we are ensuring that they can afford life's necessities until this economy rebounds by extending pandemic-related unemployment benefits and increasing that benefit.

Access to affordable, comprehensive healthcare is critical, so we have included provisions to contain costs, particularly for unemployed workers. We will include help for nursing homes to crush the virus.

Mr. Speaker, we shored up the multiemployer pension plans, and you should know I am really proud of that as well. Thirty Republicans in this House have voted for this legislation on two different occasions. Those plans were jeopardized by COVID, and we intend to correct that.

Delaying is not an option. This is an opportunity to take bold action that will keep struggling Americans afloat and give them the peace of mind that better days are still to come.

For those who ask, Is this too much?

The answer is, No.

Economists left, right, and center have agreed with what we are about to do. They know that too little is not enough as we fight the pandemic. We will continue to fight the virus like the grave enemy that it is and give people a fighting chance to make it through the pandemic. And we must give them a chance for opportunity as we get to the other side, and that is what we intend to do with this legislation.

I remind my colleagues that this is not the time for partisan rancor. And I

must say that the debate in the Ways and Means Committee was superb. We must go big. We must be bold. And we must rise to this challenge because the American people this evening are counting on us.

Mr. Speaker, I support this plan, and I urge the rest of our colleagues to support it as well, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a letter from the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation providing a technical explanation of section 9674 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, and request that the Joint Committee post the letter on their website as well.

Congress of the United States,

Joint Committee on Taxation,

Washington, DC, February 26, 2021.

Hon. Richard E. Neal,

Committee on Ways and Means,

Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Neal: You asked the staff of the Joint

Committee on Taxation to prepare a technical explanation of a

provision to modify the exceptions for reporting third party

network transactions provided by Internal Revenue Code

section 6050W. The specific legislative text is new section

9674 of subtitle G of title IX of the American Rescue Plan

Act of 2021, as amended by the proposed manager's amendment.

Enclosed please find the Joint Committee staff's

description of present law and technical explanation of this

proposal.

Sincerely,

Thomas A. Barthold,

Chief of Staff.

Enclosure.

Technical Explanation of the Modification of Exceptions of Reporting Third Party Network Transactions in New Section 9674 of Subtitle IX of

the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, as Amended by the Proposed

Manager's Amendment

(Prepared by the Staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation, Feb. 26,

2021)

Modifications of Exceptions for Reporting Third Party Network

Transactions

Present Law

Present law requires persons to file an information return

concerning certain transactions with other persons. The

person filing an information return is also required to

provide the recipient of the payment with a written statement

showing the aggregate payments made and the contact

information for the payor. These returns are intended to

assist taxpayers in preparing their income tax returns and to

help the IRS determine whether such income tax returns are

correct and complete.

Returns relating to payments made in settlement of payment

card and third party network transactions:

Starting in 2012 (for payments received in 2011), payment

settlement entities are required to report the gross amount

of payments made in settlement of payment card transactions

and third party network transactions to the IRS and to

businesses that receive these payments.

Specifically, the statute requires any payment settlement

entity making a payment to a participating payee in

settlement of reportable payment transactions to report

annually to the IRS and to the participating payee the gross

amount of such reportable payment transactions, as well as

the name, address, and TIN of the participating payees. A

``reportable payment transaction'' means any payment card

transaction and any third party network transaction.

A ``payment settlement entity'' means, in the case of a

payment card transaction, a merchant acquiring entity and, in

the case of a third party network transaction, a third party

settlement organization. A ``participating payee'' means, in

the case of a payment card transaction, any person who

accepts a payment card as payment and, in the case of a third

party network transaction, any person who accepts payment

from a third party settlement organization in settlement of

such transaction.

For purposes of the reporting requirement, the term

``merchant acquiring entity'' means a bank or other

organization with the contractual obligation to make payment

to participating payees in settlement of payment card

transactions. A ``payment card transaction'' means any

transaction in which a payment card is accepted as payment? A

``payment card'' is defined as any card (e.g., a credit card

or debit card) which is issued pursuant to an agreement or

arrangement which provides for: (1) one or more issuers of

such cards; (2) a network of persons purpose, unrelated to

each other, and to the issuer, who agree to accept such cards

as payment; and (3) standards and mechanisms for settling the

transactions between the merchant acquiring entities and the

persons who agree to accept such cards as payment. Thus,

under the provision, a bank that enrolls a business to accept

credit cards and contracts with the business to make payment

on credit card transactions is required to report to the IRS

the business's gross credit card transactions for each

calendar year on a Form 1099-K, Payment Card and Third Party

Network Transactions. The bank also is required to provide a

copy of the information report to the business.

The statute also requires reporting on a third party

network transaction. The term

``third party network transaction'' means any transaction

which is settled through a third party payment network. A

``third party payment network'' is defined as any agreement

or arrangement: (1) that involves the establishment of

accounts with a central organization by a substantial number

of persons (e.g., more than 50) who are unrelated to such

organization, provide goods or services, and have agreed to

settle transactions for the provision of such goods or

services pursuant to such agreement or arrangement; (2) that

provides for standards and mechanisms for settling such

transactions; and (3) that guarantees persons providing goods

or services pursuant to such agreement or arrangement that

such persons will be paid for providing such goods or

services. In the case of a third party network transaction,

the payment settlement entity is the third party settlement

organization, which is defined as the central organization

which has the contractual obligation to make payment to

participating payees of third party network transactions.

Thus, an organization generally is required to report if it

provides a network enabling buyers to transfer funds to

sellers who have established accounts with the organization

and have a contractual obligation to accept payment through

the network. However, an organization operating a network

which merely processes electronic payments (such as wire

transfers, electronic checks, and direct deposit payments)

between buyers and sellers, but does not have contractual

agreements with sellers to use such network, is not required

to report. Similarly, an agreement to transfer funds between

two demand deposit accounts will not, by itself, constitute a

third party network transaction.

A third party payment network does not include any

agreement or arrangement that provides for the issuance of

payment cards as defined by the provision. In addition, there

is an exception for de minimis payments that applies to

payments made by third party settlement organizations but not

to payments made by merchant acquiring entities. A third

party settlement organization is not required to report

unless the aggregate value of third party network

transactions with respect to a taxpayer for the year exceeds

$20,000 and the aggregate number of such transactions with

respect to a taxpayer exceeds 200. If a payment of funds is

made to a third party settlement organization by means of a

payment card (i.e., as part of a payment card transaction),

the $20,000 and 200 transaction de minimis rule continues to

apply to any reporting obi igation with respect to payment of

such funds to a participating payee by the third party

settlement organization made as part of a third party network

transaction.

So, for example, if a business that provides a web-based

rental platform for short-term travelers is considered a

third party settlement organization, it does not have to

provide a Form 1099-K to property owners participating on

their web-based site who have received payments of $20,000

or less. On the other hand, if that company is considered

a merchant acquiring entity, it would have to issue a Form

1099-K to all payees participating on its platform who

have received payments of any amount starting with the

first dollar.

There are also reporting requirements on intermediaries who

receive payments from a payment settlement entity and

distribute such payments to one or more participating payees.

Such intermediaries are treated as participating payees with

respect to the payment settlement entity and as payment

settlement entities with respect to the participating payees

to whom the intermediary distributes payments. Thus, for

example, in the case of a corporation that receives payment

from a bank for credit card sales effectuated at the

corporation's independently-owned franchise stores, the bank

is required to report the gross amount of reportable payment

transactions settled through the corporation (notwithstanding

the fact that the corporation does not accept payment cards

and would not otherwise be treated as a participating payee).

In turn, the corporation, as an intermediary, would be

required to report the gross amount of reportable payment

transactions allocable to each franchise store. The bank

would have no reporting obligation with respect to payments

made by the corporation to its franchise stores.

Another rule provides that if a payment settlement entity

contracts with a third party to settle reportable payment

transactions on behalf of the payment settlement entity, the

third party is required to file the annual information return

in lieu of the payment settlement entity.

The payment settlement entity is required to file the

information return to the IRS on or before February 28th

(March 31st if filing electronically) of the year following

the calendar year for which the return must be filed. The

statements are required to be furnished to the participating

payees on or before January 31st of the year following the

calendar year for which the return was required to be made.

The Secretary has exercised authority under these rules to

issue guidance to implement the reporting requirement,

including rules to prevent the reporting of the same

transaction more than once.

The reportable payment transactions subject to information

reporting generally are subject to backup withholding

requirements. In addition, the information reporting

penalties apply for any failure to file a correct information

return or furnish a correct payee statement with respect to

the reportable payment transactions. Any person who is

required to file an information return or furnish a payee

statement but who fails to do so on or before the prescribed

due date is subject to a penalty that varies based on when,

if at all, the correct information return is filed or

furnished. There are penalties imposed for failure to file

the information return, furnish payee statements, or comply

with other various reporting requirements. No penalty is

imposed if the failure is due to reasonable cause. Both the

failure to file and failure to furnish penalties are adjusted

annually to account for inflation.

Explanation of Provision

This provision lowers and modifies the threshold below

which a third party settlement organization is not required

to report payments to participants in its network. Under the

provision, for any calendar year, a third party settlement

organization is required to report third party network

transactions with any participating payee that exceed a

minimum threshold of $600 in aggregate payments, regardless

of the aggregate number of such transactions.

Third party network transactions include any commercial

transactions settled through a third party payment network.

The provision also clarifies that third party network

transactions only include transactions for the provision of

goods or services (e.g., personal gifts, charitable

contributions, and reimbursements are not included).

For example, an individual who has registered for a mobile

payment service and uses such a service to reimburse friends

or relatives for expenses, or on occasion sells a used item

to another person, would not be engaging in transactions that

are subject to reporting requirements. However, if that

individual were to register with such mobile payment service

for the purposes of engaging in commercial transactions, such

as regularly carrying on a trade or business through use of

that service, the mobile payment service would be required to

report under the provision.

Effective Date

The part of the provision that lowers and modifies the

reporting threshold is effective for returns for calendar

years beginning after December 31, 2021.

The part of the provision that clarifies that reporting is

not required on transactions which are not for goods or

services is effective for transactions after the date of

enactment.

Mr. Speaker, let me also note on this proud day that it happens to be the 95th anniversary of the creation of the Joint Committee on Taxation, and throughout its history it has provided the Committee on Ways and Means with invaluable advice, and I suspect that is something we can all agree on.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Thompson).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer), a member of the Ways and Means Committee.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Danny K. Davis), who is a member of the Ways and Means Committee.

Mr. Speaker, the residents of my district and of districts all over America are jumping for joy. They are jumping because they see this bill like manna from heaven. There is money for COVID testing; money for vaccines; money for their pockets; money to help reopen schools; unemployment checks; tax credits for children; money for hospitals, health centers, nursing homes, daycare centers, State, county, and local governments; money for poor families, poor children, homeless youth, small businesses, restaurants, rental assistance and mortgage payments so they can stay in their homes. You name it, Mr. Speaker, it is in this bill.

Joe Biden to the rescue. Thank God for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, and especially the people in Georgia. I will vote for this bill. I will vote ``yes.'' Yes, Mr. Speaker, I will vote to rescue and save America.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Sanchez), who is a member of the Ways and Means Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentlewoman from California.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. DelBene), a member of the Ways and Means Committee who has had a profound influence on the child credits in this legislation.

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

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

Let me begin by recognizing the extraordinary work that has gone into this legislation by the Ways and Means Committee staff, the Office of Legislative Counsel, the Joint Committee on Taxation, and many others: Morna Miller, Amy Hall, Kara Getz, Andrew Grossman, Melanie Egorin, and Alice Lin, to name but a few of the superb staff members that we have.

They have worked long hours under immense pressure, all while facing the same challenges of remote school, lack of child care, and concern for family members that Americans everywhere face. There are too many names to include here, but let it be known that your counsel is unparalleled and your expertise is unmatched.

Mr. Speaker, tonight, we recognize that a half a million people have died. Millions have been affected by this dreadful disease. Ten million jobs that were lost have not been returned, and 18 million members of our family are receiving unemployment benefits. People who never imagined that they might be relying on a food bank are lining up weekly, and they are part of the unthinkable number of children that still go hungry as we meet.

With this legislation, we are taking bold action, and, yes, it is sweeping. I want to thank Joe Biden for his courage and vision in helping to bring us to this moment. Yes, it will be costly, but if crushing this virus and ending the suffering that Americans are currently facing, if it is not worth this investment, then I ask: What is?

Over the Speaker's rostrum there is an extraordinary quote by a son of Massachusetts, and I think that it compels us to this moment. Mr. Webster asked, ``Let us develop the resources of our land and call forth its powers and build up its institutions, promote all of its great interests, and see whether we also in our day and generation may not perform something worthy to be remembered.''

Tonight, as we vote for this legislation, we are going to achieve something that will be worthy to be remembered.

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a letter listing business leaders in support of this bill

180 Business Leaders Sign in Support of the American Rescue Plan

(By Jana Plat, Feb. 24, 2021)

Washington, DC--Today, 180 CEOs issued a public letter to

leaders of Congress, urging rapid, bipartisan adoption of a

stimulus package on the model of the American Rescue Plan.

The following is the text of the letter and the full list of

signatories.

Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Speaker Pelosi, Minority

Leader McConnell and Minority Leader McCarthy: We write to

urge immediate and large-scale federal legislation to address

the health and economic crises brought on by the COVID-19

pandemic. More than a year after the first coronavirus case

was reported in the United States, our nation is still

struggling to combat the spread and reverse its economic

fallout.

Previous federal relief measures have been essential, but

more must be done to put the country on a trajectory for a

strong, durable recovery. Congress should act swiftly and on

a bipartisan basis to authorize a stimulus and relief package

along the lines of the Biden-Harris administration's proposed

American Rescue Plan.

Strengthening the public health response to coronavirus is

the first step toward economic restoration. The American

Rescue Plan mobilizes a national vaccination program,

delivers economic relief to struggling families, and supports

communities that were most damaged by the pandemic.

More than 10 million fewer Americans are working today than

when the pandemic began, small businesses across the country

are facing bankruptcy, and schools are struggling to reopen.

The most vulnerable Americans--including women, people of

color and low wage workers--are experiencing the worst of the

pandemic, with unprecedented job loss, childcare burdens and

food insecurity. States and cities have been crushed by

pandemic-related expenses and revenue losses.

The American Rescue Plan provides a framework for

coordinated public-private efforts to overcome COVID-19 and

to move forward with a new era of inclusive growth. The

country's business community is prepared to work with you to

achieve these critical objectives.

Sincerely,

Yo Akatsuka, President & CEO, Nomura Holding America Inc.;

Ellen Alemany, Chairman & CEO, CIT Group Inc.; Simon Allen,

Chief Executive Officer, McGraw-Hill Education, Inc.; Jeffrey

H. Aronson, Managing Principal, Centerbridge Partners; Neil

Barr, Managing Partner, Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP; Rich

Barton, Co-Founder & CEO, Zillow; Candace K. Beinecke, Senior

Partner, Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP; Charles R. Bendit, Co-

Chief Executive Officer, Taconic Investment Partners LLC;

Stephen Berger, Chairman, Odyssey Investment Partners, LLC;

William H. Berkman, Co-Chairman & CEO, Radius Global

Infrastructure, Inc.; Frank J. Bisignano, Chief Executive

Officer, Fiserv; Jeff T. Blau, Chief Executive Officer, The

Related Companies, L.P.; Kathy Bloomgarden, Chief Executive

Officer, Ruder Finn, Inc.; Lora Blum, Chief Legal Officer &

Secretary, Survey Monkey; Adam M. Blumenthal, Managing

Partner, Blue Wolf Capital Partners; John Borthwick, Founder

& CEO, Betaworks; Ari Buchalter, President & CEO,

Intersection.

Martin S. Burger, Chief Executive Officer, Silverstein

Properties. Inc.; Chris Cartwright, President & CEO,

TransUnion; Anthony Casalena, Founder & CEO, Squarespace,

Inc.; Timothy Cawley, President & CEO, Con Edison, Inc.;

Guillaume Cerutti, Chief Executive Officer, Christie's; Brian

Chesky, Co-founder & CEO, Airbnb,

Inc.; H. Rodgin Cohen, Senior Chairman, Sullivan & Cromwell

LLP; Maria Colacurcio, Chief Executive Officer, Syndio

Solutions; Richard A.C. Coles. Founder & Managing Partner,

Vanbarton Group LLC; Marc Cooper, Chief Executive Officer, PJ

Solomon, L.P.; R. Cromwell Coulson, President & CEO, OTC

Markets Group; Linda Darr. CEO of the American Council of

Engineering Companies; Todd C. DeGarmo, Chief Executive

Officer, STUDIOS Architecture; Annemarie DiCola, Chief

Executive Officer, Trepp, LLC; William R. Dougherty,

Chairman, Executive Committee, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett

LLP; Russell Dubner, President & CEO, Edelman US; Douglas

Durst, Chairman, Durst Organization Inc.; Blair W. Effron,

Co-Founder, Centerview Partners; Joel S. Ehrenkranz, Partner

& Co-Founder, Ehrenkranz Partners L.P.; Douglas F. Eisenberg,

Founder & CEO, A&E Real Estate, LLC; Steven M. Ellis,

Chairman of the Firm, Proskauer.

Helmy Eltoukhy PhD, Chief Executive Officer, Guardant

Health; Alexander Farman-Farmaian, Vice Chairman, Portfolio

Manager, Edgewood Management LLC; Ziel Feldman, Chairman &

Founder, HFZ Capital Group; Laurence D. Fink, Chairman & CEO,

BlackRock; Peter Finn, Founding Partner, Finn Partners; John

Fish, Chairman & CEO, Suffolk; Winston C. Fisher, Partner,

Fisher Brothers; William E. Ford, Chairman & CEO, General

Atlantic LLC; Lynne Fox, Board Chair, Amalgamated Bank; Paul

Fribourg, Chairman & CEO, Continental Grain Company; Ryan

Gellert, CEO, Patagonia; Pat Gelsinger, Chief Executive

Officer, Intel Corporation; Dexter Goei, Chief Executive

Officer, Altice USA; Timothy Gokey, Chief Executive Officer,

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.; Perry Golkin, Chief

Executive Officer, PPC Enterprises LLC; James P. Gorman,

Chairman & CEO, Morgan Stanley; Barry M. Gosin, Chief

Executive Officer, Newmark; Jonathan N. Grayer, Chairman &

CEO, Weld North LLC; David J. Greenwald, Chairman, Fried,

Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP; Efraim Grinberg,

Chairman & CEO, Movado Group, Inc.

Stewart KP Gross, Managing Director, Lightyear Capital;

Robin Hayes, Chief Executive Officer, JetBlue Airways

Corporation; Leslie W. Himmel, Managing Partner, Himmel &

Meringoff Properties, Inc.; Linh Hoang, Chief Executive

Officer, Boston Microfluidics; Barbara Humpton, President &

CEO, Siemens USA; Frederick J. Iseman, Chairman & CEO, CI

Capital Partners LLC; Kenneth M. Jacobs, Chairman & CEO,

Lazard; Jerry Jacobs, Chief Executive Officer, Delaware North

Companies, Inc.; John Josephson, Chairman & CEO, Sesac; Jared

Kaplan, Chief Executive Officer, OppFi; Brad S. Karp, Chair,

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP; Charles R.

Kaye, Chief Executive Officer, Warburg Pincus LLC; Jason

Kelly, Founder & CEO, Gingko Bioworks; Alfred F. Kelly, Jr.,

Chairman & CEO, Visa Inc.; Anthony S. Kendall, Chairman &

CEO, Mitchell & Titus, LLP; Richard A. Kennedy, President &

CEO, Skanska USA Inc.; Michel A. Khalaf, President & CEO,

MetLife, Inc.; Brian Kingston, CEO of Real Estate, Brookfield

Asset Management; Scott Kirby, Chief Executive Officer,

United Airlines.

Kip Kirkpatrick, Co-Chief Executive Officer, The Vistria

Group; Philip Krim, Co-Founder & CEO, Casper; Barbara Armand

Kushner, President, Armand Corporation; Christopher Larsen,

Chief Executive Officer, Halmar International, LLC; Michael

Lastoria, Founder & CEO, &pizza; William P. Lauder, Executive

Chairman, The Estee Lauder Companies, Inc.; Rochelle B.

Lazarus, Chairman Emeritus, Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide;

Richard S. LeFrak, Chairman & CEO, The LeFrak Organization;

Rich Lesser, President & CEO, Boston Consulting Group; Max

Levchin, Founder & CEO, Affirm, Inc.; Aaron Levie, Chief

Executive Officer. Box; Jeffrey E. Levine, Chairman,

Douglaston Development; Pamela Liebman, President & CEO, The

Corcoran Group, Inc.; Martin Lipton, Senior Partner,

Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz; Robert P. LoCascio, Founder &

CEO, LivePerson, Inc.; Charles Lowrey, Chairman & CEO,

Prudential Financial; Roger Lynch, Chief Executive Officer,

Conde Nast.

Mehdi Mahmud, CEO & President, First Eagle Investment

Management, LLC; Anthony Malkin, Chairman, President & CEO,

Empire State Realty Trust; Anthony E. Mann, President & CEO,

E-J Electric Installation Co.; Sandeep Mathrani, Chief

Executive Officer, WeWork; Peter W. May, President & Founding

Partner, Trian Partners; Bill McDermott, President & CEO,

ServiceNow; Tom McGee, President & CEO, International Council

of Shopping Centers; Andrew McMahon, President & CEO, The

Guardian Life Insurance Company of America; Anish Melwani,

Chairman & CEO, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton Inc.; Avner

Mendelson, President & CEO, Bank Leumi USA; Heidi Messer, Co-

Founder & Chairperson, Collective[i]; Marc Metrick, President

& CEO, Saks Fifth Avenue; Danny Meyer, Chief Executive

Officer, Union Square Hospitality Group; Michael Miebach,

Chief Executive Officer, Mastercard; Edward J. Minskoff,

Chairman & CEO, Edward J. Minskoff Equities, Inc.; Steve

Mollenkopf, Chief Executive Officer, Qualcomm; Linda Moore,

President & CEO, TechNet; Tyler Morse, Chief Executive

Officer & Managing Partner, MCR Development LLC; Deanna M.

Mulligan, Chief Executive Officer, DM Mulligan, LLC.

Daniel Neal, CEO & Founder, Kajeet; Martin Nesbitt, Co-

Chief Executive Officer, The Vistria Group; Suzanne Neufang,

Chief Executive Officer, Global Business Travel Association;

Liz Neumark, Chair & Founder, Great Performances; Jon

Oringer, Founder & Executive Chairman, Shutterstock, Inc.;

Doug Parker, Chief Executive Officer, American Airlines;

Douglas L. Peterson, President & CEO, S&P Global; Michael

Phillips, President, Jamestown Properties LLC; Sundar Pichai,

Chief Executive Officer, Google; Patricia ``Patti'' Poppe,

Chief Executive Officer, PG&E; Penny Pritzker, Chairman, PSP

Partners; Deirdre Quinn, Co-Founder & CEO, Lafayette 148 New

York; Daniel Ramot, Co-Founder & CEO, Via; Scott H. Rechler,

Chairman & CEO, RXR Realty LLC; Jack Remondi, President and

CEO, Navient; Christiana Riley, Chief Executive Officer,

Deutsche Bank Americas; Brian L. Roberts, Chairman & CEO,

Comcast Corporation; Michael Roberts, President & CEO, HSBC

Bank USA; James D. Robinson, II, Co-Founder & General

Partner, RRE Ventures; Robert Roche, Founder & President,

Roche Enterprise.

James A. Rosenthal, Chief Executive Officer, BlueVoyant;

Michael I. Roth, Chairman & CEO, Interpublic Group; Steven

Roth, Chairman & CEO, Vornado Realty Trust; Steven

Rubenstein, President, Rubenstein Communications, Inc.;

William C. Rudin, Co-Chairman & CEO, Rudin Management

Company, Inc.; Kevin P. Ryan, Founder & CEO, AlleyCorp; Scott

Salmirs, President & CEO, ABM Industries Inc.; Charles

Scharf, President & CEO, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.; Ralph

Schlosstein, Co-Chairman & Co-CEO, Evercore Partners Inc.;

Michael Schmidtberger, Partner & Chair of the Executive

Committee, Sidley Austin LLP; Alan D. Schnitzer, Chairman &

CEO, The Travelers Companies, Inc.; Dan Schulman, President &

CEO, PayPal Holdings, Inc.; Alan D. Schwartz, Executive

Chairman, Guggenheim Partners, LLC; Stephen A. Schwarzman,

Chairman, CEO & Co-Founder, Blackstone.

Frank J. Sciame, Chairman & CEO, Sciame Construction, LLC;

Suzanne Shank, President & CEO, Siebert Williams Shank & Co.

LLC; Tarek Sherif, Co-Founder & CEO, Medidata Solutions,

Inc.; Stanley S. Shuman, Senior Advisor, Allen & Company LLC;

Mike Sievert, Chief Executive Officer, T-Mobile US, Inc.;

Jonathan Silvan, Chief Executive Officer, Global Strategy

Group, LLC; Jacob Silverman, Chief Executive Officer, Kroll;

Joshua Silverman, Chief Executive Officer, Etsy, Inc.; David

M. Solomon, Chairman & CEO, Goldman Sachs; Jeffrey M.

Solomon, Chair & CEO, Cowen; Rob Speyer, President & CEO,

Tishman Speyer; John Stankey, Chief Executive Officer, AT&T;

Robert K. Steel, Chairman, Perella Weinberg Partners; Alan

Suna, Chief Executive Officer, Silvercup Studios; Steven R.

Swartz, President & CEO, Hearst.

Paul J. Taubman, Chairman & CEO, PJT Partners Inc.; Owen D.

Thomas, Chief Executive Officer, Boston Properties; Jonathan

Tisch, Chairman & CEO, Loews Hotels & Co.; Daniel R. Tishman,

Vice Chairman, AECOM & Principal, Tishman Realty; Jean-Marie

Tritant, Chief Executive Officer, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield;

Bridget van Kralingen, Senior Vice President, Global Markets,

IBM Corporation; Ellis Verdi, President, DeVito/Verdi; Hans

Vestberg, CEO, Verizon; Pamela S. Wasserstein, President, Vox

Media; Philip Waterman II, Managing Partner, WatermanClark;

Charles Weinstein, Chief Executive Officer, EisnerAmper LLP;

David Winter, Co-Chief Executive Officer, Standard Industries

Inc.; Kathryn S. Wylde, President & CEO, Partnership for New

York City; Rudolph M. Wynter, President-Elect, NY, National

Grid; Tony Xu, Chief Executive Officer, DoorDash; Eric Yuan,

Chief Executive Officer, Zoom; Strauss Zelnick, Partner, ZMC;

John Zimmer, Co-Founder & President, Lyft, Inc.

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

Madam Speaker, too many workers in this nation reach retirement age without the savings they need. The retirement crisis in America is real and will only worsen unless we make saving easier and do more to encourage workers to begin planning for retirement earlier. And that's why I've committed as the

Chairman of the Ways & Means Committee to addressing this crisis.

For example, about 50 percent of American workers work for an employer that does not offer a retirement plan at work. To make a significant dent in this coverage gap, it's critical that we enact legislation that requires employers that don't currently offer a retirement plan to at a minimum provide their employees with an auto IRA option.

I'm also pleased that the American Rescue Plan Act includes the Butch Lewis Emergency Pension Plan Relief Act of 2021, which would create a special financial assistance program under which cash payments would be made by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation to financially troubled multiemployer pension plans to ensure that such plans can continue paying retirees' benefits for the next 30 years.

What we have here is a national emergency that we need to address immediately. If Congress doesn't act, the multiemployer pension system could collapse entirely, leaving retirees in poverty, businesses in bankruptcy, and communities in crisis.

Reform for both the multiemployer and single employer retirement plan system is a priority for the Ways and Means committee and we plan on addressing these issues this year.

I commit to working with Ms. Davids on this as we move forward.

Mr. Speaker, I want to acknowledge Mr. Yarmuth here for the clarity and the speed with which he has proceeded.

A reminder in support of this resolution here to the previous speaker, the gentleman from Missouri: this is the opening salvo in a process. This is not the conclusion. To talk to the President of the United States this morning without any incendiary rhetoric and no divisive tone, but for him to reiterate good suggestions will be entertained as good suggestions as the process goes forward.

The COVID-19 crisis is far from over. Record numbers of deaths--look at the numbers in front of us, Mr. Speaker.

What has happened?

The number of people who are projected to die by the next quarter, 500,000 Americans dead, 25 million infected, 19 million Americans receiving unemployment insurance.

And we are going too fast in this process?

President Biden and his American rescue plan contains the kind of bold policies that we have sought to advance here for months. We understand that the economy will not recover without first crushing the virus. Mr. Speaker, we will not get the economy back up and running until we defeat the virus and restore safe working conditions, as previously noted.

This public health emergency requires aggressive, science-based action, and it is going to take time. In addition to passing measures to eradicate the pandemic, we must ensure that families and jobless workers are able to afford life's basic necessities, or, as we might say, liquidity and cash flow in the system.

Accomplishing these goals requires us to go big. Economists left, right, and center have all said the same thing in this chorus: Go big.

The Ways and Means Committee is ready to meet this challenge. We are going to beat this virus and we are going to put money into the hands and pockets of the people in America who really need it, extending unemployment assistance, combating child poverty, supporting hard-hit families, the retention tax credit, and the earned income tax credit. We are going to give some help to people in America who, again, really are in harm's way. Passage of this resolution will provide us with an additional pathway to swiftly advance these priorities.

By the way, as of this morning, 76 percent of the American people agree with what we are doing.

In times as desperate as these, we need to prepare our mechanisms so they are ready at our disposal to get the American people the relief they need.

Mr. Speaker, for millions of lives and livelihoods that are at stake, I urge all of my colleagues today, regardless of their party, to support this critical measure.