[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 185 (Thursday, December 10, 2009)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D1443-D1445]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                        House of Representatives


Chamber Action
Public Bills and Resolutions Introduced: 24 public bills, H.R. 4259-
4282; and 1 resolution, H. Con. Res. 220; were introduced. 
                                                        Pages H14742-43
Additional Cosponsors:                                  
  Pages H14743-44
Reports Filed: Reports were filed today as follows:
  H. Res. 964, providing for further consideration of the bill (H.R. 
4173) to provide for financial regulatory reform, to protect consumers 
and investors, to enhance Federal understanding of insurance issues, 
and to regulate the over-the-counter derivatives markets (H. Rept. 111-
370);
  In the matter of Marc Goldberg (H. Rept. 111-371); and
  H.R. 2843, to provide for the joint appointment of the Architect of 
the Capitol by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the 
President pro tempore of the Senate, the Majority and Minority Leaders 
of the House of Representatives and Senate, and the chairs and ranking 
minority members of the committees of Congress with jurisdiction over 
the Office of the Architect of the Capitol (H. Rept. 111-372, Pt. 1). 
                                                            Page H14742
Speaker: Read a letter from the Speaker wherein she appointed 
Representative Blumenauer to act as Speaker Pro Tempore for today. 
                                                            Page H14447
Suspensions--Proceedings Resumed: The House agreed to suspend the rules 
and pass the following measures which were debated on Tuesday, December 
8th:
  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that Congress 
should provide increased Federal funding for continued type 1 diabetes 
research: H. Res. 35, to express the sense of the House of 
Representatives that Congress should provide increased Federal funding 
for continued type 1 diabetes research;                     
  Page H14461
  Ann Marie Blute Post Office Designation Act: H.R. 4017, to designate 
the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 43 Maple 
Avenue in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, as the ``Ann Marie Blute Post 
Office'', by a \2/3\ recorded vote of 419 ayes with none voting ``no'', 
Roll No. 950; and                                           
  Page H14480
  Expressing support for the designation of a National Prader-Willi 
Syndrome Awareness Month to raise awareness of and promote research 
into this challenging disorder: H. Res. 55, to express support for the 
designation of a National Prader-Willi Syndrome Awareness Month to 
raise awareness of and promote research into this challenging disorder.
                                                            Page H14496
  Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2010--Conference Report: The House 
agreed to the conference report to accompany H.R. 3288, making 
appropriations for the Departments of Transportation, and Housing and 
Urban Development, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending 
September 30, 2010, by a yea-and-nay vote of 221 yeas to 202 nays with 
1 voting ``present'', Roll No. 949.                     
  Pages H14450-80
  H. Res. 961, the rule providing for consideration of the conference 
report, was agreed to by a yea-and-nay vote of 221 yeas to 200 nays, 
Roll No. 948, after the previous question was ordered by a yea-and-nay 
vote of 227 yeas to 187 nays, Roll No. 947.             
Pages H14460-61
  A point of order was raised against the consideration of H. Res. 961 
and it was agreed to proceed with consideration of the resolution by 
voice vote.                                             
Pages H14450-51
  Waiving a requirement of clause 6(a) of rule XIII with respect to 
consideration of certain resolutions reported from the Committee on 
Rules: The House agreed to H. Res. 962, waiving a requirement of clause 
6(a) of rule XIII with respect to consideration of certain resolutions 
reported from the Committee on Rules, by a yea-and-nay vote of 239 yeas 
to 183 nays, Roll No. 951, after agreeing to order the previous 
question without objection.                             
  Pages H14480-87
  Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2009: The House 
resumed consideration of H.R. 4173, to provide for financial regulatory 
reform, to protect consumers and investors, to enhance Federal 
understanding of insurance issues, and to regulate the over-the-counter 
derivatives markets.

[[Page D1444]]

Consideration is expected to resume tomorrow, December 11th. 
                                                    Pages H14487-H14738
Agreed to:
  Peterson amendment (No. 3 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that makes 
sundry changes to the bill;                         
Pages H14682-H14709
  Peterson amendment (No. 4 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that provides 
that the CFTC would define the terms ``Commercial Risk'', ``operating 
risk'', and ``balance sheet risk'' for purposes of the Commodity 
Exchange Act;                                           
Pages H14709-10
  Matsui amendment (No. 10 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that requires 
any mortgage servicer or lender participating in the Making Home 
Affordable Program, to report to the Department of Treasury on a 
monthly basis. The Department shall make such a report available on 
their website within two weeks of receiving such information for public 
viewing. The report to Treasury shall include, but not limited to the 
following, with respect to the Making Home Affordable Plan: (A) the 
number of loan modification requests received; (B) number of loan 
modification requests being processed; (C) the number of loan 
modification requests that have been approved; (D) the number of loan 
modification requests that have been denied. The amendment gives the 
Secretary of Treasury authority to publicly release any other relevant 
data the Secretary deems necessary;                     
Pages H14721-23
  Frank (MA) manager's amendment (No. 1 printed in H. Rept. 111-370), 
as modified, that makes sundry changes to the bill (by a recorded vote 
of 240 ayes to 182 noes, Roll No. 953);                     
Page H14729
  Lynch amendment (No. 5 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that provides 
rules toward the equitable governance of clearing houses and swap 
exchange facilities (by a recorded vote of 228 ayes to 202 noes, Roll 
No. 955);                                    
Pages H14710-12, H14730-31
  Murphy (NY) amendment (No. 6 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that 
replaces the current definition of Major Swap Participant with the 
definition that was reported out of the House Agriculture Committee (by 
a recorded vote of 304 ayes to 124 noes, Roll No. 956); and 
                                                Pages H14712-14, H14731
  Frank (MA) en bloc amendment consisting of the following amendments 
printed in H. Rept. 111-370: Paulsen amendment (No. 11) that clarifies 
that the non-voting members of the systemic risk council shall not be 
excluded from participating in any of the Council's proceedings, 
meetings, discussions, and deliberations; Burgess amendment (No. 20) 
that strikes the word ``orderliness'' from the list of items the 
Financial Services Oversight Council must advise Congress on how to 
improve financial regulatory developments; Burgess amendment (No. 21) 
that indexes to inflation any mitigatory action imposed by the 
Financial Services Oversight Council involving the sale, divestiture or 
transfer of more than $10 billion in total assets by a financial 
holding company subject to stricter standards; Burgess amendment (No. 
22) that requires the Federal Reserve to define by rule or regulation 
the term ``significantly undercapitalized'' at a threshold the Fed 
determines to be prudent for the effective monitoring, management and 
oversight of the financial system; Burgess amendment (No. 23) that sets 
an outer time limit of two years to the amount of time the GAO can use 
to audit the Federal Reserve; Burgess amendment (No. 24) that removes 
from the GAO study of the SEC's ``revolving door'' the requirement to 
determine if employees of the SEC who are later employed by financial 
institutions ``have engaged in information sharing''; Dent amendment 
(No. 27) that states a sense of Congress that mortgage lenders should 
provide loan applicants with a simplified summary of their loan 
contracts, including an easy-to-read list of the basic loan terms, 
payment information, the existence of prepayment penalties or balloon 
payments, and escrow information; Moore (KS) amendment (No. 28) that 
specifies only the tax policies, licensing and other regulatory 
requirements of the home state of the policyholder govern a surplus 
lines transaction, as well as allows sophisticated commercial entities 
direct access to the surplus lines market; the amendment also prohibits 
states from voiding established, contractual arbitration agreements 
between reinsurers and primary companies; Murphy (NY) amendment (No. 
34) that repeals a prohibition on the payment of interest on business 
checking accounts; and Herseth Sandlin amendment (No. 25) that directs 
the SEC to take into account the relative risk profile of different 
classes of funds when it is developing the new registration regime for 
private funds.                                          
Pages H14734-38
Rejected:
  Sessions amendment (No. 2 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that sought to 
strike provisions which create a new private right of action against 
credit rating agencies; the amendment contains enforcement of credit 
rating agencies to the SEC (current practice) (by a recorded vote of 
172 ayes to 257 noes, Roll No. 954);                    
Pages H14729-30
  Frank (MA) amendment (No. 7 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that sought 
to create authority for the prudential regulators, the CFTC and the 
SEC, to set margin in swap and security-based swap transactions 
involving end users (by a recorded vote of 150 ayes to 280 noes, Roll 
No. 957);                                    
Pages H14714-16, H14731-32
  Stupak amendment (No. 8 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that sought to 
require transparency in swaps contracts by requiring all non-cleared 
swaps

[[Page D1445]]

be executed on a registered swap execution facility (by a recorded vote 
of 98 ayes to 330 noes, Roll No. 958); and   
Pages H14716-18, H14732-33
  Stupak amendment (No. 9 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that sought to 
allow the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and 
Exchange Commission the authority to ban abusive swaps, amends any 
proposed commercial risk definition to disregard balance sheet risk, 
and maintains any illegal swap entered into after enactment of this Act 
will not be valid (by a recorded vote of 150 ayes to 279 noes, Roll No. 
959).                                           
Pages H14718-21, H14733
Proceedings Postponed:
  Kanjorski amendment (No. 12 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that seeks 
to strike the provisions exempting public companies with less than $75 
million in market capitalization from the requirements of the Sarbanes-
Oxley Act related to the external audit of internal controls and 
                                                        Pages H14723-26
  McCarthy (CA) amendment (No. 14 printed in H. Rept. 111-370) that 
seeks to strike section 6012 (relating to ``Effect of Rule 436(G)''). 
The amendment would strike increased liability language that would be a 
barrier to entry, inhibiting increased competition in the rating agency 
market.                                                 
Pages H14726-28
  H. Res. 964, the rule providing for further consideration of the 
bill, was agreed to by a yea-and-nay vote of 238 yeas to 186 nays, Roll 
No. 952, after the previous question was ordered without objection. 
                                                        Pages H14495-96
United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission--
Reappointment: Read a letter from Representative Boehner, Minority 
Leader, in which he reappointed Mr. Peter T. R. Brookes of Virginia and 
Mr. Daniel M. Slane of Ohio to the United States-China Economic and 
Security Review Commission, effective January 1, 2010.      
  Page H14738
Quorum Calls--Votes: Five yea-and-nay votes and eight recorded votes 
developed during the proceedings of today and appear on pages H14460-
61, H14461, H14479-80, H14480, H14487, H14495-96, H14729, H14730, 
H14730-31, H14731, H14732, H14732-33 and H14733. There were no quorum 
calls.
Adjournment: The House met at 10 a.m. and adjourned at 10:30 p.m.