[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 59 (Wednesday, April 22, 2015)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D425-D427]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                                          Wednesday, April 22, 2015

[[Page D425]]

                              Daily Digest


HIGHLIGHTS

      Senate passed S. 178, Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, as 
      amended.


                                 Senate


Chamber Action
Routine Proceedings, pages S2311-S2359
Measures Introduced: Twenty-eight bills and four resolutions were 
introduced, as follows: S. 1036-1063, and S. Res. 144-147. 
                                                         Pages S2351-52
Measures Passed:
  Medicare Independence at Home Medical Practice Demonstration 
Improvement Act: Committee on Finance was discharged from further 
consideration of S. 971, to amend title XVIII of the Social Security 
Act to provide for an increase in the limit on the length of an 
agreement under the Medicare independence at home medical practice 
demonstration program, and the bill was then passed, after agreeing to 
the following amendment proposed thereto:                
  Pages S2318-19
  Cornyn (for Wyden) Amendment No. 1129, to make a technical 
correction.                                                  
Page S2319
  Steve Gleason Act: Senate passed S. 984, to amend title XVIII of the 
Social Security Act to provide Medicare beneficiary access to eye 
tracking accessories for speech generating devices and to remove the 
rental cap for durable medical equipment under the Medicare Program 
with respect to speech generating devices.                   
  Page S2319
  2015 National Crime Victims' Rights Week: Senate agreed to S. Res. 
144, supporting the mission and goals of 2015 National Crime Victims' 
Rights Week, which include increasing public awareness of the rights, 
needs, and concerns of, and services available to assist, victims and 
survivors of crime in the United States.                     
  Page S2319
  Parkinson's Awareness Month: Senate agreed to S. Res. 145, supporting 
the designation of April 2015, as ``Parkinson's Awareness Month''. 
                                                             Page S2319
  National Assistant Principals Week: Senate agreed to S. Res. 146, 
expressing support for the designation of the week of April 13 through 
April 17, 2015, as ``National Assistant Principals Week''.   
  Page S2319
  Historian Emeritus Donald A. Ritchie: Senate agreed to S. Res. 147, 
designating Donald A. Ritchie as Historian Emeritus of the United 
States Senate.                                               
  Page S2319
  Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act: By a unanimous vote of 99 
yeas (Vote No. 163), Senate passed S. 178, to provide justice for the 
victims of trafficking, after agreeing to the committee amendment in 
the nature of a substitute, and taking action on the following 
amendments proposed thereto:                   
  Pages S2312-18, S2319-48
Adopted:
  By a unanimous vote of 98 yeas (Vote No. 157), Cornyn/Murray 
Amendment No. 1124, to strengthen the Justice for Victims of 
Trafficking Act by incorporating additional bipartisan amendments. 
(Pursuant to the order of Tuesday, April 21, 2015, the amendment having 
achieved 60 affirmative votes, was agreed to.)    
Pages S2313-16, S2320
  By a unanimous vote of 99 yeas (Vote No. 160), Brown Amendment No. 
311, to direct the Attorney General to increase the amount provided 
under certain formula grants to States that have in place laws that 
terminate the parental rights of men who father children through rape. 
(Pursuant to the order of Tuesday, April 21, 2015, the amendment having 
achieved 60 affirmative votes, was agreed to.)           
Pages S2331-32
  By a unanimous vote of 98 yeas (Vote No. 161), Burr Amendment No. 
1121, to require the Secretary of Defense to inform the Attorney 
General of persons required to register as sex offenders. (Pursuant to 
the order of Tuesday, April 21, 2015, the amendment having achieved 60 
affirmative votes, was agreed to.)                
Pages S2320-26, S2332
  By 97 yeas to 2 nays (Vote No. 162), Grassley (for Kirk) Modified 
Amendment No. 273, to amend title 18, United States Code, to provide a 
penalty for

[[Page D426]]

knowingly selling advertising that offers certain commercial sex acts. 
(Pursuant to the order of Tuesday, April 21, 2015, the amendment having 
achieved 60 affirmative votes, was agreed to.) 
                                               Pages S2326-29, S2332-33
  Cornyn (for Klobuchar) Amendment No. 296, to stop exploitation 
through trafficking.                                     
Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Hoeven) Modified Amendment No. 299, to ensure that 
eligible entities that have only recently begun collecting data on 
child human trafficking are not precluded from being awarded certain 
grants.                                                  
Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Sullivan) Amendment No. 279, to require the Attorney 
General of the United States to grant certain requests by State 
attorneys general to cross designate State and local attorneys to 
prosecute individuals for sex trafficking.               
Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Wicker) Amendment No. 1126, to direct the Attorney 
General to create a publicly accessible database for trafficking 
victims advocates that contains information about services for 
trafficking survivors.                                   
Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Flake) Amendment No. 294, to require a GAO study on the 
programs authorized by the bill.                         
Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Cassidy/Peters) Amendment No. 308, to provide for the 
development and dissemination of evidence-based best practices for 
health care professionals to recognize victims of a severe form of 
trafficking and respond to such individuals appropriately. 
                                                         Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Portman) Amendment No. 1128, to amend the Child Abuse 
Prevention and Treatment Act to enable State child protective services 
systems to improve the identification and assessment of child victims 
of sex trafficking.                                      
Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Brown) Amendment No. 310, to allow grants under the 
victim-centered child human trafficking deterrence block grant program 
to be used for assisting law enforcement agencies in finding homeless 
and runaway youth.                                       
Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Brown) Amendment No. 312, to amend the Trafficking 
Victims Protection Act of 2000 to expand the training for Federal 
Government personnel related to trafficking in persons. 
                                                         Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Heller) Amendment No. 1122, to direct the Secretary of 
Homeland Security to train Department of Homeland Security personnel 
how to effectively deter, detect, disrupt, and prevent human 
trafficking during the course of their primary roles and 
responsibilities.                                        
Pages S2333-37
  Cornyn (for Shaheen) Amendment No. 303, to aid human trafficking 
victims' recovery and rehabilitation.                    
Pages S2333-37
Rejected:
  By 43 yeas to 55 nays (Vote No. 156), Leahy Amendment No. 301, 
relating to justice for victims of human trafficking. (Pursuant to the 
order of Tuesday, April 21, 2015, the amendment having failed to 
achieve 60 affirmative votes, was not agreed to.) 
                                               Pages S2316-18, S2319-20
  By 45 yeas to 53 nays (Vote No. 158), Cornyn Amendment No. 1127, to 
reauthorize the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act. (Pursuant to the order 
of Tuesday, April 21, 2015, the amendment having failed to achieve 60 
affirmative votes, was not agreed to.)                       
Page S2330
  By 56 yeas to 43 nays (Vote No. 159), Leahy Amendment No. 290, to 
reauthorize the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act. (Pursuant to the order 
of Tuesday, April 21, 2015, the amendment having failed to achieve 60 
affirmative votes, was not agreed to.)         
Pages S2329-30, S2330-31
Withdrawn:
  McConnell (for Cornyn) Amendment No. 1120, to strengthen the Justice 
for Victims of Trafficking Act by incorporating additional bipartisan 
amendments.                                              
Pages S2312-13
Essential Transportation Worker Identification Credential Assessment 
Act--Referral Agreement: A unanimous-consent agreement was reached 
providing that H.R. 710, to require the Secretary of Homeland Security 
to prepare a comprehensive security assessment of the transportation 
security card program, be discharged from the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs and be referred to the Committee on 
Commerce, Science and Transportation.                        
  Page S2319
Grand Canyon Bison Management Act--Referral Agreement: A unanimous-
consent agreement was reached providing that S. 782, to direct the 
Secretary of the Interior to establish a bison management plan for 
Grand Canyon National Park, be discharged from the Committee on 
Environment and Public Works and be referred to the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources.                                       
  Page S2319
Lynch Nomination--Agreement: A unanimous-consent-time agreement was 
reached providing that at approximately 9:30 a.m., on Thursday, April 
23, 2015, notwithstanding Rule XXII, Senate resume consideration of the 
nomination of Loretta E. Lynch, of New York, to be Attorney General; 
that there be 2 hours of debate, equally divided in the usual form, 
prior to the vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the nomination; 
that if cloture is invoked, there be up to 2 hours of post-cloture 
debate equally divided between the two Leaders, and that following the 
use or yielding back of that time, Senate vote on confirmation of the 
nomination.                                                  
  Page S2359

[[Page D427]]

Messages from the House:                                     
  Page S2351
Measures Referred:                                           
  Page S2351
Measures Placed on the Calendar:                             
  Page S2351
Additional Cosponsors:                                   
  Pages S2352-53
Statements on Introduced Bills/Resolutions:              
  Pages S2353-58
Additional Statements:                                       
  Page S2351
Amendments Submitted:                                        
  Page S2358
Authorities for Committees to Meet:                      
  Pages S2358-59
Record Votes: Eight record votes were taken today. (Total--163) 
                                        Pages S2319-20, S2330-33, S2338
Adjournment: Senate convened at 9:30 a.m. and adjourned at 4:34 p.m., 
until 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, April 23, 2015. (For Senate's program, see 
the remarks of the Majority Leader in today's Record on page S2359.)
Motion to Adjourn: Senate agreed to the motion to adjourn.   
  Page S2359