Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, across my district, Michigan families are having to pay more for gas, for groceries, for cars.

You name it, there is sticker shock everywhere you look. In fact, inflation attacks on everyone increased every month since President Biden took office.

As Americans are struggling to pay for skyrocketing costs of daily necessities, we should be doing something to address these pocketbook challenges. Instead, this week, we are considering another round of massive spending bills that will make matters worse on top of massive spending bills that we have already expended.

Unparalleled and unchecked government spending is not the solution. It is a root cause of rising inflation--and did I mention that is a tax on everyone?

Again, this reckless spending and subsequent inflation are effectively attacks on the American people, their families, their workplaces, and, in fact, their livelihoods. We can't afford to continue down this path. It is hurting too many families and their financial security.

It is time we return to proven economic policies that create jobs, increase wages, and do not prolong an inflationary crisis that--did I mention?--is a tax on everyone.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of my amendment to division A, which provides critical funding for the Office of Labor- Management Standards, OLMS, at the Department of Labor.

OLMS is vital to protecting the rights of workers in the workplace and ensuring labor-management transparency and financial integrity in our Nation's labor unions.

Unfortunately, House Democrats have chosen to underfund the agency since taking the majority, resulting in diminished staffing levels and significantly impacting the types of work accomplished in the field and throughout the agency. Sadly, the appropriations package we are considering today continues this trend by once again underfunding the office.

My amendment would simply increase the funding to be in line with President Biden's budget request. In the President's request, the Department noted that funding was necessary to restore OLMS' ability to provide unionized workers with the protections they are entitled under

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I have been working to combat PFAS in the Great Lakes State that, truthfully, led the Nation in PFAS efforts for many years, including with my Michigan colleagues and sponsors of this bill.

Back in 2017, we hosted EPA staff at several contaminated sites in southeast Michigan so they could see firsthand the extent of the problem. We formed the Congressional PFAS Task Force and pushed for essential resources for PFAS research and cleanup efforts.

Many of our efforts have, actually, been enacted into law during the last administration and countless cleanup efforts are currently ongoing at all levels of government. In fact, over half of the provisions in this bill are already underway at EPA.

Unfortunately, other provisions in this bill would require the EPA to take a misguided approach by considering the group of more than 600 PFAS currently on the market, and the thousands of other unknown potential PFAS chemistries as if they were all the same.

Make no mistake, I believe this is a serious problem and it deserves serious solutions, but the bill before us today, although sincerely well-intended, goes too far. H.R. 2467 is so expansive that the CBO was unable to assign it a budgetary score, underscoring the untold cost and liability that it will impose on thousands, if not millions of manufacturers and consumers alike.

H.R. 2467 represents the largest expansion of regulatory authority at the EPA or perhaps any Federal agency in decades. But even more so, this bill will hamstring our small businesses, manufacturers, and water utilities by forcing them to take on so much cost and liability that they will be unable to comply or forced to raise prices and hire armies of attorneys all because Congress decided to substitute its political agenda for objective scientific judgment.

The Great Lakes Water Authority recently wrote to me regarding their concerns about the bill. A leading drinking water and wastewater treatment provider for southeast Michigan communities, Great Lakes Water Authority provides clean drinking water to nearly 40 percent of Michiganders. They told me this bill could likely cause them to be liable for trying to dispose of PFAS even if they are using current best practices.

As many would say, we ought to follow the science by letting the experts at EPA do their jobs and refrain from prejudging outcomes, overhauling existing regulatory structures, and most importantly, crippling our economy. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman, and we are glad that Brady is there. Go blue.

Mr. Speaker, I have long championed bipartisan legislation to increase consumer protections from fraud and scams, particularly for our Nation's seniors and vulnerable populations.

In April, the House passed by an overwhelming majority H.R. 1215, the Fraud and Scam Reduction Act, which I led with my friend and colleague, Representative Lisa Blunt Rochester.

Our bill creates the Senior Scams Prevention Advisory Group and the Senior Fraud Advisory Office within the FTC to better assist the agency and employers with monitoring, identifying, and preventing mail, telephone, and internet fraud.

I have also championed legislation that cracks down on robocall scams and Medicaid patient abuse and fraud. These efforts are particularly important, as we saw scams increase at an alarming rate during the COVID-19 pandemic.

But I cannot support H.R. 2668, the deceptively mis-advertised bill before us today. This bill was rushed through an entirely partisan process without addressing significant concerns from Republicans to protect fundamental due process rights and prevent the FTC from operating unchecked, as it did in the 1970s.

I hoped the Energy and Commerce Committee would have had the opportunity to hear from the full slate of FTC commissioners on this bill, the same commissioners who testified in the Senate one week prior to our legislative hearing and commented on what should be included in any legislative fix to 13(b).

Make no mistake, I fully support giving the FTC necessary tools to bring just enforcement actions against fraudsters and scammers, including restitution for harmed consumers. However, H.R. 2668 gives the FTC these new expansive tools without much-needed guardrails, all under the guise of protecting our constituents.

Just this past April, in a rare 9-0 unanimous decision, the Supreme Court ruled that section 13(b) of the FTC Act does not authorize the Commission to seek, or the Court to award, monetary relief including disgorgement or restitution.

The Court stated that the Commission grossly misused its authority and encouraged Congress to address the issue with a bipartisan--and that was their term--bipartisan legislative solution.

But the bill before us today is anything but bipartisan. This bill would grant the FTC a 10-year statute of limitations for this newfound authority, allowing the FTC the ability to go after conduct that is no longer occurring in the marketplace.

There is a reason that a 5-year statute of limitations or less is standard in many Federal and State statutes. As the committee learned from the former head of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, shorter statutes protect against surprises through the assertion of claims long after the conduct, when evidence may be stale or no longer available, and encourage the timely filing of claims by regulatory agencies.

Republicans on the Energy and Commerce Committee tried countless times to work with Democrats on a compromise solution to these issues, all to no avail.

My good friend, the Republican leader of the Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee, Representative Bilirakis, proposed a compromise amendment that would allow the FTC to go after bad actors while also respecting due process rights. His amendment even addressed the concern raised from my friends in the majority on the statute of limitations.

This was a sincere offer from Republicans to address Democrats' concerns and meet them halfway, and it even received bipartisan support in committee.

But instead of coming to the floor with a bipartisan bill, Democrats rejected our efforts and jammed through this partisan bill without consideration for its consequences.

I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on H.R. 2668. Come back to the table and work with Republicans to find a compromise solution that provides the FTC the tools to actually protect our constituents. That is what we must ask and that is what I ask.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of taxpayers and, importantly, in support of life, an unalienable right endowed by our Creator.

For over 40 years, Democrats and Republicans have come together to include the commonsense prohibition on taxpayer-funded abortions, better known as the Hyde amendment.

President Biden himself was a vocal backer of the Hyde amendment during his decades in the Senate.

Because of Hyde, 2.5 million lives have been saved and afforded the chance to reach their God-given potential.

Yet, as we stand here today, House Democrats are advancing an annual funding bill that shockingly abandons the longstanding Hyde amendment.

It shouldn't be controversial to spare precious babies and give taxpayers the assurance that their hard-earned money is not used for abortions.

Therefore, Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committees on Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means, and the Judiciary be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 18, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend for yielding and allowing me the opportunity to speak.

I rise today in support of H.R. 3119, the Energy Emergency Leadership Act. I thank my good friend from Illinois, Mr. Bobby Rush, for continuing to work with me to get this bill across the finish line.

This is the third Congress in a row that we have introduced this bill, each time passing the Committee on Energy and Commerce with unanimous, bipartisan support.

And frankly, given what we have seen just over the last few months in disruptions to our energy supply--including the Colonial Pipeline attack--it is well past due for this important energy security measure to be enacted in law.

Mr. Speaker, our Nation's economy and the health and safety of the American public depend upon the reliable and uninterrupted supply of fuels and electricity.

Hazards of all forms--including natural disasters, digital, and cyberattacks--are no longer just threats. They are occurring at an alarming and continuing rate.

Whether it is power outages in Texas and California due to weather events, or foreign adversaries hacking into our pipelines or grid, it is critical that we better equip our Federal agencies to prevent and respond to attacks in a way that fully protects the public.

Presidential administrations of both parties have recognized this by providing the Department of Energy with the responsibilities, expertise, and tools to ensure the reliable supply of energy.

It is time Congress does its part by requiring the energy emergency and cybersecurity functions at DOE to be organized under the leadership of an assistant secretary confirmed by the Senate. This will ensure the Department has focused and accountable leadership with high-level continuity throughout future administrations.

H.R. 3119 will encourage more effective and seamless information- sharing with Federal and industry stakeholders on energy security threats, risks, and incidents, as well as recovery and response.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 3119 in order to protect our Nation's electric infrastructure from foreign adversaries who are attempting to disrupt our energy system and cause untold harm to our economy, our daily lives, and our national security.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3003, the Promoting United States Wireless Leadership Act of 2021.

I want to thank my colleague from Michigan, Representative Dingell, as well as my fellow 5G Caucus co-chairs, Congressman Bill Johnson and Congresswoman Ann Kuster, for working with me on this important legislation to enhance United States' leadership in the development of wireless standards.

H.R. 3003 directs the NTIA to assist and encourage participation by trusted companies, both large and small, in international telecommunications standards-setting bodies like 3GPP and IEEE. These independent business-led entities determine the standards by which 5G operators, equipment manufacturers, software providers, and others build to.

Not surprisingly, countries like China are increasingly asserting their influence in these bodies in order to skew tech standards toward Chinese-controlled companies and their technologies.

We need a unified approach to push back against international competitors like Russia and China in order to protect U.S. national security, global competitiveness, and cost-effectiveness of wireless communications. Our bill does just that.

H.R. 3003 will undoubtedly help ensure the U.S. remains a leader in the future of tech.

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman, and I wouldn't have missed this.

We have an Energy and Commerce markup that continues on.

I guess through the chair to Paul, I wouldn't miss the opportunity to encourage you, and express through the chair, Paul, my deep appreciation for you as a friend, as a colleague, as a fighter.

Though I have not heard all the comments of my colleagues, I am sure that they have said to you: We love you. We are pulling for you, for Sherry, for the

family. We are in your corner. But we also know that you are the one who has to fight this; and friends sometimes feel that, in a very unique way, it is a helpless feeling.

As we think about you and pray for you, and as a co-chairman of the Congressional Prayer Caucus, you probably ought to expect that I am praying for you, and I will. I am praying that God will give you strength, patience, endurance, and even a joy in the process of what you are modeling to your family as you go through this.

I know you are a tough guy. We have had our verbal battles together all the time, and I am not even going to admit today that you may have won on a few occasions. I know that you race cars, and you race cars not to lose, and you race cars to take that victory lap after you went through the checker flag. And right now we are expecting you to race, to give it your absolute best, to use all the resources necessary to continue on because your life is important to your family, to your friends, and to those of us who look on.

If we admit, though you are going through a physical challenge that none of us are going through right now, but in the reality of life, none of us on the floor right here now have any more certainty about any longer time given to us than you have. I might not make it tomorrow. So it is important that we buy up the day that we have. And my prayers are that you are doing that in the challenges that you face, Paul, in the disappointments, in the discouragements that come, and the dark hours at night.

Yet there is someone. And I am not saying this to you simply because I am a preacher, even though I have gone to the dark side. I am saying it to you because my relationship with the Savior makes it possible for me to look to the future, whatever that future means, with hope, with certainty. The Jesus who I hope is a spirit I exude to my colleagues, my friends, my neighbors, and to you tonight, Paul, is the same one who said: I come that you might have life and have it abundantly.

He is the same one who came to die for each of us and understands our needs. He is the same one who said: I am the resurrection and the life. He that believes in me, though he die--and we all will--yet shall he live. For whosoever lives and believes in me shall never abide in death.

That is an eternal thing. And, Paul, you and I have talked about those spiritual things as well. Pull on to your faith. You and Sherry pull on that faith. Let it strengthen you. Let it encourage you. Let the loving, loving Savior who gave himself for you and me and everyone give you the strength to battle on, to go on that racetrack of challenge and whatever, to find a certainty that in Him there is an eternity, there is an eternity that begins here and now.

Paul, we love you. I love you. I will be praying for you. I am counting on you to do everything you can. I am counting on your family to be blessed because of the example you are setting. But I am also saying to you that we are going to keep on supporting you. God bless you, brother.

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

H.R. 1374 is a bipartisan bill that has long-time support in the House. We passed it by voice vote on suspension in the 115th Congress and again in the 116th Congress. The legislation reauthorizes the State Energy Program and strengthens our energy emergency planning and preparedness efforts.

This is an important bill, and we are reminded why every year when we witness how States must respond to a variety of hazards, including hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, fuel supply disruptions, and physical and cyber threats.

We have had harmful hurricanes and will continue to do so. Consequently, there is an ongoing urgency for State energy planning and action.

The electricity crises in Texas and surrounding States this past winter provides a vivid example for State responses to energy emergencies; and, of course, the Colonial Pipeline incident last month had State energy officials working with Federal authorities to make sure people had fuel when they needed it.

This legislation provides States with the flexibility they need to address local energy challenges.

It also ensures that State energy security planning efforts address fuel supply issues, assess State energy profiles, address potential hazards to each energy sector, mitigate risk to enhance reliability, and incorporate regional planning efforts.

H.R. 1374 also helps States protect fuel and electric infrastructure from physical and cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities. It makes sure we are thinking ahead, not just about an actual threat, but how our energy and electric systems might be vulnerable in a broader sense.

The bill also encourages mutual assistance, an essential part of responding and restoring in the event of an energy emergency.

Prioritizing and elevating energy security planning and emergency preparedness is an important step in the face of increased threats, vulnerabilities, and interdependencies of energy infrastructure and end-use systems.

Protecting energy security requires defense in depth, which means a strong energy sector, strong State capabilities, and ensuring sector agencies like the Department of Energy have the tools they need to respond to energy emergencies. This ensures we can help people in energy emergencies, whether caused by weather or cyberattack, and help them when they need it most.

I urge support of H.R. 1374, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I would state in conclusion that I urge strong support for H.R. 1374, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Florida for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1215, Fraud and Scam Reduction Act, and thank my colleague and friend, Representative Blunt Rochester, as well as the Committee on Energy and Commerce staff for their hard work in bringing the bill to the floor today.

Sadly, in today's digital age, scams targeting seniors and their hard-earned money are growing in number and sophistication.

Every year, scammers steal billions of dollars from unsuspecting consumers. The effect on victims can be financially and emotionally devastating, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only made things worse. Safeguarding seniors in Michigan and across the country needs to be a top priority.

Retailers have diligently worked to combat these crimes. Their ability to educate their employees with best practices and training to recognize the signs of a scam can make a huge difference in stopping criminals.

Our bipartisan bill builds upon the work retailers are doing by creating a Federal advisory council at the FTC to create a unified front against criminals who target our most vulnerable citizens and stop this fraud before it is too late.

Mr. Speaker, I urge the House to pass H.R. 1215 so we can help stop scammers from perpetrating a fraud and taking advantage of our loved ones and our neighbors.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the upcoming retirement of a legend in Michigan broadcasting, Frank Beckmann.

For the past 48 years, Frank has been a pillar of the WJR airwaves. Frank has been inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame and Michigan Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame, and he has a list of professional accolades longer than the time we have today.

The Maize and Blue faithful know him as the voice of Michigan football for over three decades. His weekly listeners, the best informed in all of talk radio, know him as a clear and compelling proponent of commonsense values. Nonprofits and charities across the State know his generosity in using his microphone to support many worthy causes. I am blessed to know him as a friend.

Congratulations, Frank, on a long and storied career.

I ask my colleagues to join me in wishing Frank Beckmann a wonderful retirement filled with family, lots of golf, and coolers full of fresh Lake Erie walleye.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Ohio for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, there is no gun violence problem from legal gun owners. And this bill, as well as the prior bill, will do nothing to stop gun violence because it unnecessarily regulates law-abiding citizens. And we don't have to define that term, I would think, because they are not criminals.

The problem is with criminals. And because criminals could care less about the bills we are talking about today, innocent people will die.

I can think of neighbors of mine out in the country where I live, who have an ex who would want to cause violence to them. That lady could come to me and say: I can't get a gun because I have got to wait 10 days, but he could come this weekend. Would you loan me a gun?

Mr. Speaker, what we are doing today wouldn't allow that. This lady is put at severe risk.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to consider what they are doing. This will not work. Vote against H.R. 1446 and support the Second Amendment made by people sometimes wiser than us.

Madam Speaker, I sit here and listen to my colleagues, and that is what I want to do; but I become more frustrated with the fact that I think, Madam Speaker, we are in parallel universes.

We are talking about gun crime. We all agree that gun crime is wrong. We all agree that the murders that go on with gun crime are horrendous and we don't want them to continue. But they are not happening as a result of law-abiding gun owners.

We have background checks now that work. I have gone through those myself. We have dealt with them.

I grew up on the south side of Chicago. I love Chicago. It pains me to see that become the murder center that it has become. And now I hear the report that the reason it is this is because people from Chicago can come to Michigan, buy illegal guns, and bring them back, that is the fault.

No, it is a heart problem.

It is a problem of criminals who are not being prosecuted.

We have FBI who don't follow the background checks and don't do it in a timely fashion. We have a Justice Department that doesn't prosecute gun crimes. And we blame it on law-abiding citizens.

What we will do today--as we have attempted other times--is to put law-abiding citizens under the gun--and I use that word specifically-- further who will not commit a crime, but have to go through onerous legislation that allegedly makes more transparent gun laws that stomp on the Second Amendment liberties that we have.

Madam Speaker, that is wrong. That is wrong, and it will not end the gun problem. We have had a War on Poverty for years and poverty has increased. Government programs don't work.

Madam Speaker, I appeal to my friends on the other side of the aisle: I know your hearts are right, but this won't do the job.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to H.R. 842, the prounion bosses' act.

First off, Americans have the right to organize and join a union if they choose to do so, and United States law has protected this freedom for over 80 years.

My father was a machinist and a union organizer for part of his career, and I worked for a time at U.S. Steel South Works on the south side of Chicago, a union steelworker.

Unions have and can still play a valuable role in our Nation's workforce. However, any reforms we make to our labor laws should put workers first. Unfortunately, the radical, partisan legislation we are considering today grants unprecedented power to union leaders at the expense of workers.

We have seen what can happen when union leaders abuse the trust of their rank-and-file members. Most recently, a Federal investigation into the United Autoworkers revealed an extensive and long-lasting effort by two former UAW presidents and their subordinates to embezzle over $1.5 million in UAW money for their personal benefit.

Sadly, the sweeping proposals of this bill will only increase the likelihood of abuse similar.

Mr. Speaker, the hardworking families we represent deserve better than the legislation before us. Let's elevate and protect the rights of workers with a union that serves them instead of tipping the scales against them in favor of special interests and union leaders who serve themselves.

Mr. Speaker, I urge opposition to H.R. 842.

Madam Speaker, H.R. 842 codifies the one-sided Obama-era ambush election rule, which deprives employees of the necessary time to learn about the potential implications of refraining from or joining a union.

My amendment ensures workers have appropriate time to learn the pros and cons of an enormously important decision affecting their careers, their families, and their livelihoods.

Unions often begin organizing campaigns weeks or even months before employers are made aware of this activity, creating a scenario in which workers are only hearing one side of the issue, like the other side of the Chamber today is trying to get across.

Additionally, H.R. 842 imposes a complex scheme of new regulations and penalties on employers of all sizes. Small businesses lacking internal human resources or legal departments would be most harmed by this ambush election.

Providing appropriate time for workers to hear both sides and inform themselves does not substantially change the organizing process. It merely creates a more informed electorate.

Madam Speaker, I urge support for my amendment.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to call up H.R.

682, the Reopen Schools Act, to get our kids out from behind screens and back in the classroom.