[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 135 (Friday, September 18, 2015)]
[House]
[Pages H6152-H6167]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 DEFUND PLANNED PARENTHOOD ACT OF 2015

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 421, I 
call up the bill (H.R. 3134) to provide for a moratorium on Federal 
funding to Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., and ask for 
its immediate consideration in the House.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 421, the 
amendment printed in House Report 114-262 is adopted and the bill, as 
amended, is considered read.
  The text of the bill, as amended, is as follows:

                               H.R. 3134

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Defund Planned Parenthood 
     Act of 2015''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) State and county health departments, community health 
     centers, hospitals, physicians offices, and other entities 
     currently provide, and will continue to provide, health 
     services to women. Such health services include relevant 
     diagnostic laboratory and radiology services, well-child 
     care, prenatal and postpartum care, immunization, family 
     planning services (including contraception), cervical and 
     breast cancer screenings and referrals, and sexually 
     transmitted disease testing.
       (2) Many such entities provide services to all persons, 
     regardless of the person's ability to pay, and provide 
     services in medically underserved areas and to medically 
     underserved populations.
       (3) All funds that are no longer available to Planned 
     Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. and its affiliates and 
     clinics pursuant to this Act will continue to be made 
     available to other eligible entities to provide women's 
     health care services.
       (4) Funds authorized to be appropriated, and appropriated, 
     by section 4 are offset by the funding limitation under 
     section 3(a).

     SEC. 3. MORATORIUM ON FEDERAL FUNDING TO PLANNED PARENTHOOD 
                   FEDERATION OF AMERICA, INC.

       (a) In General.--For the one-year period beginning on the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, subject to subsection (b), 
     no funds authorized or appropriated by Federal law may be 
     made available for any purpose to Planned Parenthood 
     Federation of America, Inc., or any affiliate or clinic of 
     Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., unless such 
     entities certify that Planned Parenthood Federation of 
     America affiliates and clinics will not perform, and will not 
     provide any funds to any other entity that performs, an 
     abortion during such period.
       (b) Exception.--Subsection (a) shall not apply to an 
     abortion--
       (1) if the pregnancy is the result of an act of rape or 
     incest; or
       (2) in the case where a woman suffers from a physical 
     disorder, physical injury, or physical illness that would, as 
     certified by a physician, place the woman in danger of death 
     unless an abortion is performed, including a life-endangering 
     physical condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy 
     itself.
       (c) Repayment.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services 
     and the Secretary of Agriculture shall seek repayment of any 
     Federal assistance received by Planned Parenthood Federation 
     of America, Inc., or any affiliate or clinic of Planned 
     Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., if it violates the 
     terms of the certification required by subsection (a) during 
     the period specified in subsection (a).

     SEC. 4. FUNDING FOR COMMUNITY HEALTH PROGRAM.

       (a) In General.--There is authorized to be appropriated, 
     and appropriated, $235,000,000 for the community health 
     center program under section 330 of the Public Health Service 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 254b), in addition to any other funds made 
     available to such program, for the period for which the 
     funding limitation under section 3(a) applies.
       (b) Limitation.--None of the funds authorized or 
     appropriated pursuant to subsection (a) may be expended for 
     an abortion other than as described in section 3(b).

     SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

       Nothing in this Act shall be construed to reduce overall 
     Federal funding available in support of women's health.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The bill shall be debatable for 1 hour 
equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member 
of the Committee on Energy and Commerce or their designee.
  The gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn) and the gentlewoman 
from Florida (Ms. Castor) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Tennessee.


                             General Leave

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks 
and to include extraneous material on H.R. 3134.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Tennessee?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I rise in strong support of H.R. 3134, the Defund Planned Parenthood 
Act of 2015.
  Madam Speaker, we all remember the images of Kermit Gosnell killing 
babies who were born alive after a botched abortion.
  We know that those are sickening, and we know that they have renewed 
the demand for accountability from the American people. That is why we 
come before you today with H.R. 3134, the Defund Planned Parenthood Act 
of 2015.
  New documentation of these heinous practices that we have seen in 
videos, videos that have come out of Planned Parenthood abortion 
clinics of harvesting the body parts of babies as part of the abortion 
process, have raised serious questions about the possible systematic 
and repeated violation of State and Federal laws.
  H.R. 3134 provides a 1-year moratorium, a freezing--a freezing--on 
the Federal funding to Planned Parenthood Federation of America and all 
of its affiliates while investigations are ongoing regarding the 
practices of the abortion industry.
  Madam Speaker, most people think that is common sense. If there is 
reason to investigate, then there is reason to withhold taxpayer 
dollars during that period of time. Those dollars would be given to 
other facilities that provide women's health services.
  The American taxpayer has been very clear for a long time that they 
do not want taxpayer money spent on abortion; 68 percent of Americans 
oppose it. What is so interesting to me is that we know that 71 percent 
of all millennials oppose this.
  I would remind my colleagues, Madam Speaker, there is no difference 
between men and women on this. There is bipartisan opposition from men 
and women to this practice. Additionally, the majority of Americans are 
opposed to the sale of body parts of babies obtained after abortion.
  So the discussion today is not about videos or women's health access. 
We know there are other ways to get that access. It is about our most 
basic right. It is about the right to life.
  It is also about doing what the taxpayers sent us to D.C. to do. It 
is also about continuing the process to protect our most vulnerable 
citizens, innocent little babies.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to the ``Deny Women Health 
Care Act.''
  Madam Speaker, congressional approval ratings are at an all-time low, 
and here is another example of why:
  Republicans in Congress have failed to fulfill their fundamental 
responsibility to our great Nation again.
  Republicans have pushed America to the brink of another government 
shutdown, and we are a mere 5 legislative days away.

[[Page H6153]]

  Republicans in Congress have refused to sit down and negotiate a 
bipartisan appropriations plan despite the urging of Democrats, 
business leaders, military servicemembers, and citizens all across 
America.
  The bill brought to the floor today is an attempt by Republican 
leaders to distract the American public from their failure to do their 
job.
  Last spring, we urged Republicans in Congress to sit down and hammer 
out an appropriations plan. They refused.
  Instead, the Congress adjourned at the end of July. Nothing happened 
in August. Nothing has happened since the Congress has returned after 
Labor Day.
  Now the Republican dysfunction in this House will have very serious 
consequences for our neighbors back home.
  A Republican shutdown would hurt thousands of disabled veterans, 
disadvantaged children, small businesses, working families, and 
taxpayers.
  The last time Republicans shut down the government for 16 days, the 
economy lost $24 billion and 120,000 private sector jobs.
  Here is what happened: The Republican shutdown stalled veterans 
disability claims, creating additional needless delays for our heroes 
seeking help.
  Hundreds of critically sick Americans were prevented from enrolling 
in the NIH clinical trials, with 98 percent of the National Science 
Foundation, nearly three-quarters of NIH, and two-thirds of CDC 
employees furloughed.
  Head Start grantees, serving thousands of children, were forced to 
close. American entrepreneurs and small businesses were cut off from 
millions of dollars in SBA loans.
  Small businesses with government contracts faced abrupt payment 
delays and cutbacks. Almost $4 billion in IRS refunds were delayed.
  The Republican Congress' continuing dysfunction and inability to 
govern are having real impacts on hard-working Americans. The American 
people are tired of their relentless failure to govern and the culture 
of crisis.
  Again and again Republicans have chosen to put their radical special 
interest agenda ahead of the priorities of hard-working Americans.
  The American people deserve better, especially in this case, because 
the Deny Women Health Care Act is a cynical attack on the ability of 
women across America to receive the health services that they need at 
trusted Planned Parenthood clinics.

                              {time}  1045

  I know many are passionate about these personal issues. That is why 
the Republicans advance this bill on this topic. They know it is sure 
to inflame passions. But to date, despite congressional inquiries into 
these false videotapes, there has been no wrongdoing uncovered 
whatsoever, no evidence to substantiate the allegations. What has 
emerged since the false videos were posted on YouTube is a coordinated, 
broad-based smear campaign based upon false, manufactured videos that 
are full of distortions and misinformation.
  The bill is one more assault in the long list of Republican assaults 
on women's health care over the last two decades because simply 
defunding Planned Parenthood would leave millions of American women 
without key preventative services, including birth control, family 
planning, lifesaving cancer screenings, testing and treatment of 
infections, well-women exams, and advice on family planning.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I was beginning to think that we were 
off on a different bill there for just a moment.
  Madam Speaker, I yield 15 seconds to myself to respond.
  Madam Speaker, we are not on a bill about a government shutdown. We 
are on a bill that will make certain that women have access to health 
care, H.R. 3134. I will remind my colleagues that it does remove the 
funds from Planned Parenthood, and it does enable them to go to women's 
health clinics.
  Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Tennessee 
(Mrs. Black), who is the author of this legislation and has been such 
an advocate for addressing women's healthcare needs.
  Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, as a nurse for more than 40 years and a 
believer in the God-given purpose of every human being, I am 
passionately pro-life. But do you know what? You don't have to agree 
with me to support this bill. No matter our views on abortion or the 
party label beside our name, we should all have an interest in ensuring 
that laws are followed and that the taxpayer dollars are spent 
responsibly. If a law is broken, particularly by those receiving 
government money, that should be remedied. That is not a political 
statement. That, quite literally, is our job here in Congress.
  Two months ago, Madam Speaker, a series of undercover videos were 
released implicating Planned Parenthood in the illegal trafficking of 
aborted baby tissue and organs. Now, some of my colleagues have tried 
to dismiss these videos even without ever watching them. I get it. It 
is easier to try to discredit the source than to defend what is 
happening on these tapes.
  Well, Madam Speaker, I did watch these videos, and I saw full 
conversations of Planned Parenthood employees in their own words 
discussing potentially lawbreaking activities. Congressional 
investigations are underway, but there are more than enough lingering 
questions to stop the flow of money--taxpayer dollars--to this abortion 
giant until our work is complete.
  For this reason, I have introduced the Defund Planned Parenthood Act 
of 2015. This legislation enacts a 1-year moratorium on all Federal 
money going to Planned Parenthood. It does not reduce women's health 
funding by a single dime. As a matter of fact, we actually increase 
women's healthcare funding by over $200 million. Instead, this 
legislation reallocates the funding to more than 13,500 facilities 
nationwide that provide true preventative care to those who need it the 
most, and they do not perform abortions.
  What is more, Planned Parenthood can get their money back. Read the 
bill. They can get their money back if they fully commit to what they 
talk about in doing women's health care and stop performing abortions 
for this year.
  Madam Speaker, if there exists even a possibility that Planned 
Parenthood violated our laws, as I believe they did, then pro-life and 
pro-choice Members of Congress alike must act to reallocate the funds 
now so that we are not trying to chase down the taxpayer dollars that 
already went out the door later on. This is ensuring that our laws are 
followed, that Americans know how their money is being spent, and that 
the conscience rights of taxpayers are respected.
  Madam Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on H.R. 3134.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I will reiterate again, there 
is no evidence whatsoever of any wrongdoing, and I maintain that this 
is a distraction from the Republican's fundamental failure to pass a 
budget 5 legislative days before a government shutdown.
  Madam Speaker, I am honored to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), the ranking member of the Energy and Commerce 
Committee.
  Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I listened to the previous Republican 
speaker, and the deception that she poses to this Congress is 
unbelievable in my opinion.
  First of all, she talks about these videos which we know have been 
misleading--edited, all kinds of changes have been made to them. The 
accuracy of them is totally unacceptable. They are not accurate. Then 
she says, well, just because they may be accurate that we should pass 
this bill defunding Planned Parenthood.
  Well, when did this Congress get into the business of saying, well, 
before we decided whether you have actually broken the law and before 
we have any evidence that you have done so, we are just going to shut 
you down? That is not the way we operate. That is not due process. That 
is not the American way.
  Then, Madam Speaker, she suggests that somehow this money is going to 
be given to other providers. I think she is probably talking about 
community health centers. Well, I will tell you, from my own experience 
with community health centers, that they don't have the ability to 
provide the women's health needs that are being proposed here that are 
actually provided

[[Page H6154]]

by Planned Parenthood. That is not going to happen. Those women are 
going to be deprived of health care.
  So let's not continue with this deception about what is actually 
going on here. The Republicans just want to shut the government down if 
we don't defund Planned Parenthood. That is what they are all about.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie), a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee 
and vice chair of the Health Subcommittee.
  Mr. GUTHRIE. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3134.
  This bill would defund Planned Parenthood and its clinics for 1 full 
year. This summer, a series of disturbing videos shined a light on the 
gruesome practice being done in clinics across the country. No one has 
ever disputed that the employees of Planned Parenthood said what they 
said in the video. These videos have shocked and appalled countless 
Americans.
  Federal dollars should not be going to an agency that is involved in 
such a horrific and disturbing practice. I have voted in the past to 
defund Planned Parenthood, and I will do so again today.
  Madam Speaker, life is a precious gift, and I firmly believe we 
should do all we can to advance and support it. Today, I urge my 
colleagues to support this legislation to stop Planned Parenthood from 
continuing these practices.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel).
  Mr. ENGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to this bill. We are 
here because some have again chosen to reignite the same tired battles 
of years past--and bring our government to the brink of shutdown--to 
restrict women's control over their own health and bodies. I should not 
be deciding what is best for a woman's health. She should, and her 
doctor should.
  That we are even having this debate--based on contrived, 
unsubstantiated allegations--about an organization that provides 
critical care to more than 2 million Americans is not only outrageous, 
it is downright irresponsible.
  More than half of Planned Parenthood centers are in rural or 
medically underserved areas where access to health care is already too 
limited. Yet my colleagues want to make it even harder for women and 
men there to access HIV and STI tests, breast cancer screenings, 
cervical cancer screenings, and other lifesaving services.
  Madam Speaker, this attempt to demonize Planned Parenthood is 
disgraceful.
  Again, it is important to underscore that Federal insurance coverage 
of abortion is already restricted, so to defund Planned Parenthood is 
to defund the preventative services that keep our constituents healthy. 
I urge a ``no'' vote.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 10 seconds to myself to 
respond.
  Again, Madam Speaker, refocusing us on the bill, we are talking about 
being certain that there is access to health care. Cancer screenings 
and prevention services from Planned Parenthood have been cut in half 
over the past 7 years. They do not perform mammograms. They perform 
over 300,000 abortions annually.
  Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. 
Bilirakis), the vice chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee and a 
member of the Energy and Commerce Committee.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the Defund 
Planned Parenthood Act, a bill I am proud to cosponsor.
  Madam Speaker, as the Energy and Commerce Committee continues its 
investigation into the troubling Planned Parenthood videos, it is 
crucial we do everything in our power to protect human life and hold 
organizations such as Planned Parenthood accountable.
  With this legislation, we have the opportunity to both save lives and 
respect the rights of the American people. Taxpayers should not be 
forced to financially support organizations whose behavior is at best 
unethical and possibly illegal.
  When it comes to defunding Planned Parenthood, the issue should not 
be partisan. This is about protecting the rights of taxpayers, but 
also, more importantly, protecting the basic right of human life.
  Madam Speaker, I will continue to give a voice to our most fragile 
Americans who cannot speak for themselves. I thank Representative Black 
for her efforts on this important piece of legislation, and I urge my 
colleagues to support it.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the 
gentlewoman from Colorado (Ms. DeGette).
  Ms. DeGETTE. Madam Speaker, Planned Parenthood provides basic health 
services to millions of Americans: Pap smears, breast cancer 
screenings, family planning, and birth control. In fact, there were 
over 4 million visits to Planned Parenthood clinics last year, and over 
90 percent of this was basic women's health care and not abortions.
  So why are we talking about this today? Why are we talking about this 
legislation?
  Planned Parenthood does these services and no Federal funds are spent 
on abortion services that Planned Parenthood does provide, but yet the 
majority will take the radical step of denying women the basic health 
care they need. This radical agenda is wrong. It is wrong for American 
women, and it is wrong for us when the Federal budget expires in just 
13 days.
  Madam Speaker, I, too, have reviewed the videotapes. Our committee 
reviewed the videotapes, and, as Ms. Castor said--and it bears 
repeating--no wrongdoing was shown. There are no criminal charges. 
There are no charges at all that are pending whatsoever against Planned 
Parenthood.
  Madam Speaker, yesterday in the Energy and Commerce Committee, my 
Republican colleagues in their radical effort went so far as to show a 
photo of a stillborn baby, implying that that baby was a fetus being 
used for fetal tissue development. What is worse, that photo was shown 
without the woman's consent. It had no relation to Planned Parenthood. 
It was used without the mother's consent.
  What I want to know from the majority: Is this the evidence that you 
are using to decide that you are going to deny funding for Planned 
Parenthood and all the well-women visits women use?
  Madam Speaker, my colleagues ought to be ashamed of showing this, and 
my colleagues ought to be ashamed of putting this bill on the floor 
today. We are seeing shamelessness right here on the floor today.
  My colleagues on the other side are trying to do everything they can 
to insert themselves between American women and their right to make 
their own healthcare decisions. It is wrong, and I urge a ``no'' vote 
on this legislation.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I will never be ashamed of standing up 
and defending life--ever--and I find it so interesting that our efforts 
to protect life are termed ``radical.'' That is an interesting turn of 
events, if I say so myself.
  Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. 
Bucshon), a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

                              {time}  1100

  Mr. BUCSHON. Madam Speaker, with all due respect, a radical agenda is 
protecting an organization that dismembers body parts and sells them 
for profit.
  For the record, I am probably the only Member of this body to have 
operated on babies as young as 23 weeks' gestation. In fact, the 
smallest baby I operated on weighed only 650 grams.
  As a physician, I spent my career caring for patients regardless of 
their situations. So I take access to health care very seriously.
  I find it troubling that those on the other side, most of whom have 
never spent a day caring for patients, continue to mislead the American 
people about the facts of Planned Parenthood.
  Here are a few: By its own statistics, Planned Parenthood only treats 
2 percent of the Nation's women for any reason.
  Planned Parenthood doesn't offer women some of the most basic primary 
care. It doesn't provide services like mammograms, cardiovascular blood 
tests, or bone mass measurements.

[[Page H6155]]

  Over the past 10 years, Planned Parenthood cut cancer screenings by 
half while it increased abortion services by 40 percent.
  Across the country, we have 13,000 federally qualified or rural 
health centers that can provide basic health services compared to only 
700 Planned Parenthood facilities that really don't provide these 
services at all.
  Madam Speaker, taxpayers should not be forced to fund this 
organization when we have so many other alternatives.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the 
gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky).
  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Madam Speaker, the previous speaker said something 
completely false. Planned Parenthood does not sell fetal tissue.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. I object.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from Illinois will suspend.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I withdraw.
  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Madam Speaker, a complete falsehood was just stated. 
Planned Parenthood does not sell any body parts for profit. That is a 
fact.
  So here we go again: Republicans threatening to shut down the 
government in order to deny women access to health care. When the 
Republicans took control of the House in 2011, the first thing they did 
was nearly shut down the government over funding for Planned 
Parenthood, and 4 years later, Republicans are once again seriously 
considering shutting down the government over the exact same thing.
  This time, they have manufactured a witch hunt based on heavily 
edited videos that were clearly intended to mislead the public and the 
Congress. They have wasted time and resources on futile investigations 
that have produced absolutely no evidence of wrongdoing on behalf of 
Planned Parenthood. In contrast, there is growing evidence that The 
Center for Medical Progress broke several laws.
  I recently sent a letter to the Department of Justice and to the 
California Attorney General, asking them to investigate the practices 
of this organization.
  My letter raises concerns about fake identification that was used to 
gain access to Planned Parenthood facilities, fraudulent tax documents 
that were filed to create a fake corporate entity, and violations of 
California's Invasion of Privacy Act.
  In response, the California Attorney General has initiated an 
investigation. There are also several legal actions pending against The 
Center for Medical Progress.
  Enough is enough. I urge my colleagues to oppose this harmful bill 
for women's health.
  Here we go again--Republicans threatening to shut down the government 
to deny women access to health care.
  When the Republicans took control of the House in 2011, the first 
thing they did was nearly shut down the government over funding for 
Planned Parenthood.
  Four years later, Republicans are once again seriously considering 
shutting down the government over the exact same thing.
  This time, they've manufactured a witch hunt based on heavily edited 
videos that were clearly intended to misled the public and Congress.
  They've wasted time and resources on futile investigations that have 
produced absolutely no evidence of wrongdoing on behalf of Planned 
Parenthood.
  In contrast, there is growing evidence that the Center for Medical 
Progress broke several laws.
  I recently sent a letter to the Department of Justice and the 
California Attorney General asking them to investigate the potentially 
illegal practices of this organization.
  My letter raises concerns about fake identification that was used to 
gain access to Planned Parenthood facilities, fraudulent tax documents 
that were filed to create a fake corporate entity, and violations of 
California's Invasion of Privacy Act.
  In response, the California AG has initiated an investigation. There 
are also several legal actions pending against the Center for Medical 
Progress.
  But we all know that Republicans are not really interested in the 
truth here. This entire charade is a thinly veiled attempt to erode a 
woman's ability to make decisions about her own body.
  For proof, look no further than their budget proposal.
  Their budget eliminated Title X, the only federal grant program 
dedicated to providing women with family planning services, and cuts 
the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program by over 80 percent--programs that 
would reduce the need for abortion.
  Republicans have made it clear that women are fair game. They can't 
even pass a continuing resolution without interfering in the personal 
lives of American women.
  Republicans can't overturn Roe v. Wade so they try every other way 
possible to erode this fundamental right.
  They try to cut off funding to the clinics that provide abortions, 
they try to criminalize doctors who perform abortions, and they 
restrict access for millions of women every year through the Hyde 
Amendment.
  Enough is enough. I strongly urge my colleagues to oppose this 
terrible bill and to stop interfering in the personal lives of American 
women.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman 
from North Carolina (Mrs. Ellmers), a member of the Energy and Commerce 
Committee and the chairman of the Republican Women's Policy Committee.
  Mrs. ELLMERS of North Carolina. I thank the gentlewoman from 
Tennessee for holding this important discussion today.
  I would like to thank Chairman Upton, Chairman Pitts, and the full 
committee and staff of Energy and Commerce for their hard work.
  Madam Speaker, I support H.R. 3134, and I proposed an amendment to be 
included within that bill, which redirects $235 million to health 
centers across this country.
  I am a nurse, and my husband is a general surgeon. One of our 
favorite places in the world is our back porch in Dunn, North Carolina, 
where we sip scuppernong wine and have a wonderful time, and we discuss 
good health care in this country. Let me tell you and the American 
people that Planned Parenthood is not good health care.
  You can see that this chart clearly shows that the 13,000 federally 
qualified healthcare centers in this country provide comprehensive 
health care for women.
  You can see this chart is just a mere example of 17 provided basic 
healthcare services for women to Planned Parenthood's 6.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. I yield the gentlewoman an additional 30 seconds.
  Mrs. ELLMERS of North Carolina. I thank the gentlewoman.
  Basically, what you have been told and what women in this country 
have been told is a false choice for American women from Planned 
Parenthood.
  That false choice says that, if one Planned Parenthood facility is 
defunded, thousands of women and children who are in need will go 
without health care.
  Let me tell you, if that false logic follows in Dunn, North Carolina, 
it basically says, if there are 18 grocery stores and 1 closes its 
doors, thousands of families, including my own, will starve.
  This is absolutely untrue. We need to support everything we can in 
this country for good women's health care. This chart provides the 
actual truth--the truth. Good health care takes care of the whole 
woman, not just parts.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has established that not 
all services currently provided by Planned Parenthood could be 
furnished by other health clinics and medical practitioners if Planned 
Parenthood were defunded.
  A George Washington University professor confirmed this in a column 
this week. The reason is that so many of the services provided relate 
to gynecological services and personal female healthcare needs.
  Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. Kennedy).
  Mr. KENNEDY. I thank my colleague from Florida for the recognition.
  Madam Speaker, it is important that we do get our facts straight.
  This year, over 2 million babies will be born to women on Medicaid. 
That is nearly half of all of the births in this country.
  At the same time, more than half of the Medicaid providers in our 
country are not accepting new patients. That leaves hundreds of 
thousands of expectant mothers without access to essential prenatal 
care and treatment, and

[[Page H6156]]

that is where Planned Parenthood comes in.
  Beyond just prenatal care, they provide life-saving cancer 
screenings, STD tests, and compassionate counseling to millions of 
women, men, and families who often have nowhere else to turn for their 
basic health needs.
  Eighty percent of the patients that Planned Parenthood serves have 
incomes at or below 150 percent of the poverty line.
  Those patients are sitting inside waiting rooms at Planned Parenthood 
centers across the Nation at this very moment who are facing some of 
the most emotional decisions and challenging tests of their entire 
lives.
  The practitioners and nurses who will treat them won't just tend to 
their immediate medical needs. They will make sure that the patient 
knows that he or she is not alone.
  If we pass this bill, we are turning our backs on those patients. We 
are telling low-income families in every corner of this country that we 
count their health and happiness less.
  I urge my colleagues to consider those patients and the impact of 
this legislation.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 5 seconds to respond.
  For 98.5 percent of the pregnant women who received a pregnancy-
related service at Planned Parenthood, that service was an abortion.
  I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from North Dakota (Mr. Cramer), a 
member of the Energy and Commerce Committee.
  Mr. CRAMER. Madam Speaker, North Dakotans affirm life every day 
through strong, stable family structures and a culture that values life 
and that, frankly, values ending the circumstances that cause a woman 
to believe that her best option is an abortion.
  We have over 70,000 square miles and thousands of women who need 
healthcare services, but we don't have a Planned Parenthood clinic 
because North Dakota women somehow don't meet its business model.
  There are, however, compassionate providers offering more 
comprehensive services across my State. This map shows the localities 
of 71 federally qualified health centers that provide quality care to 
underserved and low-income women in rural and urban communities 
throughout my State.
  The patients who go through the doors of these clinics are treated as 
valued community members, not as a fee for service and certainly not as 
a $45 specimen.
  This Congress and its relevant committees must complete a thorough 
investigation of the disturbing accusations evidenced--yes, evidenced--
in the Planned Parenthood videos that we all have seen before another 
taxpayer dollar goes to this controversial organization. These funds 
can be better used to provide legitimate health services for women in 
places like North Dakota.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Matsui).
  Ms. MATSUI. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this bill, 
the Defund Planned Parenthood Act, but we should call it the 
``Depriving Women of their Health Care Act.''
  This bill is just the latest political attack on millions of American 
women. This bill is a step backward for our Nation's healthcare system.
  Defunding Planned Parenthood would deprive American women and their 
families of access to preventative services like cancer screenings and 
access to contraception and to prenatal counseling that helps women 
maintain healthy pregnancies.
  Sadly, I am not surprised that my Republican colleagues continue this 
relentless attack on the autonomy of women. We have seen it countless 
times before: Congress telling this country that a politician's 
judgment is superior to that of an American woman's.

  What does surprise me, however, is that now Republicans are willing 
to shut down our government and put our economy at risk in order to 
deny women access to the healthcare providers of their choosing.
  We can't allow Members of Congress to substitute their judgment for a 
woman's right to make decisions about her own body.
  This bill does nothing more than take away healthcare options for 
low-income women because of a difference in beliefs over just 3 percent 
of the many vital services that Planned Parenthood provides.
  Congress needs to get back to work on the real issues facing American 
women and their families.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the chairman of the Pro-Life Caucus.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  Madam Speaker, undercover videos show and expose Planned Parenthood 
directors cheerfully talking about dismemberment and crushing babies to 
death all while altering abortion methods in a way that preserves 
organs and body parts for sale.
  Watch the videos.
  One senior director who talks about preserving a liver says they use 
ultrasound guidance because that is where they will know where to put 
the forceps. Of course, forceps are used to literally rip the child to 
pieces in what is called a dismemberment abortion.
  One technician, Holly O'Donnell, talks about getting brain tissue. 
She said her supervisor ``gave me the scissors and told me that I had 
to cut down the middle of the face. I can't even describe,'' she says, 
``what that feels like.''
  Some of our colleagues on the other side have said that there is no 
evidence. Watch the videos. There is ample evidence.
  I would suggest and I would ask Congresswoman Castor to join us in a 
letter that asks the Attorney General of the United States to 
investigate this. Will you?
  I yield to the gentlewoman.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, the repeated reference to these 
false videos is a true disservice to this Congress and to the people 
all across America. These false claims against Planned Parenthood have 
been widely discredited.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Again, the repeated references to these false videos do a real 
disservice to this Congress and to people all across America. The false 
claims against Planned Parenthood have been widely discredited.
  The videos that so many have referenced are heavily edited. They have 
edited content out, and they have edited false images in.
  Politicians who are latching onto this smear campaign do so to 
further their personal agendas to the detriment of women's health care 
across America.
  What has happened here since these videos were released in July is a 
coordinated smear campaign against trusted Planned Parenthood clinics. 
Let me give you some evidence directly from my home State of Florida.

                              {time}  1115

  In July, with absolutely no evidence of wrongdoing, Florida 
Republican Governor Rick Scott ordered investigations of Planned 
Parenthood clinics. It had all the trappings of a witch hunt.
  In August, after the Agency for Health Care Administration had 
determined and written a draft press release that said: ``However, 
there is no evidence of the mishandling of fetal remains at any of the 
16 clinics we investigated across the State.''
  That didn't fit Governor Scott's political narrative, so his office 
scrubbed the press release of that language.
  I submit for the Record a copy of the press release that was drafted 
by the Agency for Health Care Administration for Florida before 
Governor Scott's office scrubbed the language on the finding.

                 [For Immediate Release--Aug. 5, 2015]

      Original Proposed Release From AHCA to the Governor's Office


      Planned Parenthood Inspections Find Deficiencies at Clinics

Agency findings include issues with the record keeping of fetal remains 
   at one clinic and unlicensed procedures being performed at three 
                                clinics

       Tallahassee, FL.--Our investigations last week into Planned 
     Parenthood clinics found three facilities performing 
     procedures beyond their licensing authority, as well as one 
     facility not keeping proper logs relating to fetal remains. 
     However, there is no evidence of the mishandling of fetal 
     remains at any of the 16 clinics we investigated across the 
     state.

[[Page H6157]]

     
                                  ____
                 [For Immediate Release--Aug. 5, 2015]

             Final Versions That Was Released to the Media


      Planned Parenthood Inspections Find Deficiencies at Clinics

Agency findings include issues with the record keeping of fetal remains 
   at one clinic and unlicensed procedures being performed at three 
                                clinics

       Tallahassee, FL.--Our investigations last week into Planned 
     Parenthood clinics found three facilities performing 
     procedures beyond their licensing authority, as well as one 
     facility not keeping proper logs relating to fetal remains.

  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. In fact, the press secretary for the agency 
said: ``I would have thought a line on no handling of fetal remains 
would be included, as that is what questions will be on.''
  The agency's secretary wrote back, and she said she agreed.
  Reporters subsequently obtained the scrubbed press release. 
Apparently, these had to go to the Governor's office to be purified and 
sanctified.
  What happened earlier this week is that the communications director 
for the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration resigned. This is 
another example of the coordinated smear campaign based upon the false 
videos that have captured attention. They are outrageous, but they are 
false, and they have been proven to be false.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 10 seconds to respond.
  We are hearing words such as ``denied,'' ``deprived,'' ``detriment'' 
to women's healthcare. We are increasing women's health care. Tennessee 
has four Planned Parenthood clinics and 26 federally qualified health 
clinics.
  Also, I would remind my colleagues the investigation is ongoing. It 
is ongoing. It started yesterday at Energy and Commerce. We will 
continue through this to get to the bottom of it.
  I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hensarling), the 
chairman of the Financial Services Committee.
  Mr. HENSARLING. Madam Speaker, life, liberty, the pursuit of 
happiness, as a people, we have no more sacred values; and the right to 
life is foremost among these.
  Recently, shocking, appalling, horrific videos have come to light 
that show senior employees at Planned Parenthood casually discussing 
the harvesting and selling of organs of aborted children in ways to 
alter their procedures in order to ``obtain intact fetal cadavers,'' 
which they refer to as ``line items.''
  In perhaps the most chilling video, we see one of these so-called 
intact fetal cadavers with its heart still beating. Madam Speaker, its 
heart was still beating.
  Madam Speaker, whether one considers themselves pro-life or pro-
choice, can we not agree that the harvesting and trafficking of baby 
organs violates the sanctity with which every child created in the 
image of God is entitled to? How can a fair, civilized, and 
compassionate society come to any other conclusion?
  Madam Speaker, today I rise to plead with my colleagues to speak up 
for the voiceless and the defenseless by voting to deny Planned 
Parenthood further taxpayer subsidies for the harvesting of baby body 
parts.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the 
gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Capps).
  Ms. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, I rise today in staunch opposition to this 
dangerous bill. Planned Parenthood provides exactly the types of 
interventions that prevent unintended pregnancies and the need for an 
abortion in the first place, like birth control options and medically 
accurate sexual health education.
  If this bill becomes law, these important services Planned Parenthood 
brings to our communities will disappear, and the health of our 
communities will pay the price.
  We keep hearing that the work of Planned Parenthood would be done by 
other healthcare providers, mostly community health centers, and while 
that might sound like an easy shift, it doesn't work that way.
  Madam Speaker, I have a letter here from the California Primary Care 
Association. In it, they write: ``Eliminating Planned Parenthood from 
our State's comprehensive network of care would put untenable stress on 
remaining providers. We do not have the capacity for such an increase 
in care.''
  This is the direct quote from the health centers that the majority 
expects to pick up the slack if Planned Parenthood is defunded. It 
would be untenable.
  Supporters of this bill are willfully putting their heads in the 
sand. They think it is no big deal to shut down hundreds of clinics 
offering essential services that are not available anywhere else. They 
think it is worth shutting down the government to achieve this goal. 
This political theater has to stop.
  We need to trust women and their healthcare providers to make their 
own medical decisions. It is not the government's business.
  I strongly urge a ``no'' vote on this dangerous bill.
  I insert the letter from the California Primary Care Association into 
the Record.

                                                California Primary


                                             Care Association,

                               Sacramento, CA, September 17, 2015.
     Hon. Lois Capps,
     House of Representatives,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Congresswoman Capps: The California Primary Care 
     Association has recently become aware of new legislation, 
     H.R. 3134 combined with the Ellmers amendment, by 
     Congresswoman Diane Black that would redirect federal funding 
     from Planned Parenthood to federally qualified health 
     centers. The purported goal of such legislation is to prevent 
     a decrease in federal funding for women's health services, 
     while putting a moratorium on Planned Parenthood as a 
     healthcare provider for a year while Congress conducts a full 
     investigation of the organization's activities.
       As the state-wide representatives of community clinics and 
     health centers in California, who serve 5.6 million patients 
     annually, we believe this action would negatively impact the 
     health of our community.
       Planned Parenthood currently operates 115 health centers in 
     California and serves nearly 800,000 patients through 1.5 
     million encounters annually. Eliminating Planned Parenthood 
     from our state's comprehensive network of care would put 
     untenable stress on remaining health centers. We do not have 
     the capacity for such an increase in care, even for a year, 
     and should Congress seek to extend the moratorium building 
     such capacity would require significant capital investment on 
     par with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 
     expansion.
       Even then, the legislation would still eliminate patient's 
     ability to choose the provider with which they feel most 
     comfortable. Planned Parenthood is seen by many as women's 
     health centric, which provides their patients with a level of 
     comfort that cannot be easily replicated. The women's health 
     focus allows them to be a provider of choice to hundreds of 
     thousands of women who seek out a variety of services that 
     include well woman exams, breast exams, birth control and 
     sexually transmitted disease testing.
       In 2013 alone, Planned Parenthood conducted 733,641 tests 
     for Chlamydia--the leading cause of preventable infertility--
     that resulted in 37,014 positive results and follow-up 
     treatment.
       Planned Parenthood is a vital component of the health care 
     system in California and for that reason, we are opposed to 
     legislation that will diminish their capacity to provide care 
     in our state. We respectfully request that you oppose this 
     legislation.
           Sincerely,

                              Carmela Castellano Garcia, Esq.,

                                                President and CEO,
                              California Primary Care Association.

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. 
Boustany), who chairs the Subcommittee on Human Resources at Ways and 
Means.
  Mr. BOUSTANY. Madam Speaker, as a newly minted physician fresh out of 
medical school, I took an oath to protect life. As a cardiovascular 
surgeon, I worked day and night performing thousands of cardiovascular 
operations on premature infants, all the way up to the elderly. Now, in 
Congress, I intend to uphold that oath that I took to save life.
  The practices we have seen described recently released in the 
undercover videos of top Planned Parenthood executives detailing the 
methods they employ to harvest tissues and organs during abortions 
performed at these clinics is nothing short of atrocious.
  After the release of the first video in July, I joined my pro-life 
colleagues to call immediately for thorough investigations into this 
activity, and now, these investigations are underway. The American 
people deserve and they need to know the truth. While these 
investigations are ongoing, it is important that we take action to 
prevent taxpayer dollars from going to this type of activity.

[[Page H6158]]

  I have long supported legislation to end funding for Planned 
Parenthood and am proud to be an original cosponsor of this bill. It is 
a very important bill.
  I urge my colleagues to defend the culture of life in this country, 
and let's vote in favor of this bill.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Speier).
  Ms. SPEIER. Madam Speaker, Planned Parenthood provides 865,000 pap 
smears and breast exams a year. That is more than the entire population 
of States like Wyoming, South Dakota, North Dakota.
  I want to introduce you, Members on the other side of the aisle, to 
Colleen from Albany, New York, who is 27 years old. I want you to look 
into her eyes, and I want you to tell me that you would rather see her 
dead because Colleen went to Planned Parenthood because she was in 
between jobs and sought health care.
  She received a breast cancer exam at Planned Parenthood. She had 
stage II breast cancer, and she is alive today because it was 
identified at a Planned Parenthood clinic. They operated, and she is 
healthy.
  She is not the only one. There are 86,000 men and women who seek 
services at Planned Parenthood every year for breast cancer or for pap 
smears for cervical cancer who are identified as having a positive test 
result. As a result, they get care--86,000. What you are saying is that 
it is okay for 86,000 people to die because that is how they were 
accessing their health care.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 10 seconds to respond 
to some of the comments and to remind my colleagues this investigation 
that we are conducting is ongoing.
  Cancer screenings and prevention services have been cut in half at 
Planned Parenthood over the past 7 years. They do not perform 
mammograms; they outsource it. They perform over 300,000 abortions 
annually; that is their own number.
  Madam Speaker, 98.5 percent of the pregnant women who go there go for 
an abortion.
  At this time, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Pennsylvania 
(Mr. Pitts), the chairman of the Health Subcommittee.
  Mr. PITTS. Madam Speaker, this morning we are debating, actually, two 
bills. One is the delay of funds to Planned Parenthood until the 
investigation is over and redistributing that money to the rural and 
federally qualified community health clinics of which there are over 
13,000--only 656 Planned Parenthood clinics--and they actually do 
women's health, like mammograms, as we have heard, and other issues, 
not just refer. I would urge support for that.
  The other bill we are debating, which is sometimes infants are born 
alive after an abortion. We had two witnesses last week before the 
Judiciary Committee who were survivors. One of them said she was in 
contact with 203 other abortion survivors.
  All we are doing is putting enforcement language, some penalties in 
there because born alive is the law, but it is not enforced, and this 
would permit that to be enforced.
  Finally, with Pope Francis coming next week, he said: ``The defense 
of the unborn life is closely linked to the defense of each and every 
other human right. It involves the conviction that a human being is 
always sacred and inviolable in any situation, every stage of 
development.''
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, while the investigation may be 
ongoing, there have been no cases of born alive. The one case from some 
time ago, a doctor is in prison for that. This simply is not accurate. 
Now, what we know from ongoing investigations here currently is there 
has been no substantiated allegation against Planned Parenthood.
  What we have seen is this Center for Medical Progress that posted 
these YouTube video. They have made a number of misrepresentations that 
may have broken several Federal and State laws, including violating 
Federal tax laws, violating criminal laws, violating the Invasion of 
Privacy Act out of California, violating California's penal code by 
making false charitable solicitations.
  Now, we have heard that the attorneys for the director, Mr. Daleiden, 
for CMP, his attorneys have advised a Federal district court that he 
intends to invoke his Fifth Amendment in the investigation of him for 
his violation of Federal and State laws.
  At this time, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. 
Wasserman Schultz).
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong 
opposition to the Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015. This bill is 
possibly the most dangerous bill for women's health to come to the 
House floor of this Congress.
  State and Federal investigations of Planned Parenthood have produced 
no evidence of violations of laws or medical standards, and independent 
auditors confirm the videos referenced were heavily altered.
  What really happens in Planned Parenthood clinics every year is this: 
2.7 million Americans receive critical health services, 78 percent of 
which live below the poverty level; doctors deliver approximately 
400,000 pap smear exams; and women receive nearly half a million breast 
exams, including screenings to 88,000 women whose cancer was detected 
early.
  This legislation threatens those services and the health of patients, 
including 7,000 women in my district annually who rely on Planned 
Parenthood for health care.
  As a woman, mother, and breast cancer survivor, I refuse to take that 
threat lying down. Republicans' own investigations turned up nothing; 
yet some of their Members are willing to risk women's lives just to 
score political points. Enough is enough.
  I urge all Members who truly value women's health to vote against 
this outrageous witch hunt.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
Colorado (Mr. Lamborn).
  Mr. LAMBORN. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in 
supporting H.R. 3134, the Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015.
  Recent videos released by brave whistleblowers have definitively 
shown that it is well past time to defund Planned Parenthood. For far 
too long and to the tune of one-half billion dollars a year, taxpayers 
have been forced to subsidize Planned Parenthood's abortion on demand.
  Thanks to these unsettling revelations, we now know that taxpayers 
have also been subsidizing the trafficking of aborted baby body parts. 
This is not health care, Madam Speaker.
  There are over 13,000 publicly supported health centers in our 
country that do provide excellent women's health care. In my home State 
of Colorado, there are 240 such healthcare alternatives versus 21 
Planned Parenthood locations.
  This important legislation will not remove funds from women's health 
care, but shift it to responsible providers. Taxpayers won't have to 
fund Planned Parenthood's deplorable barbarism.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

                              {time}  1130

  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the 
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Van Hollen).
  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Madam Speaker, this legislation is the latest attempt 
to take essential healthcare services away from women.
  Our Republican colleagues know that none of the Planned Parenthood 
Federal funds are used for abortion, per the Hyde amendment. They know 
there is no evidence that Planned Parenthood has violated any Federal 
laws. They know that 90 percent of Planned Parenthood services go to 
essential cancer screenings, family planning counseling, pregnancy 
tests, contraceptive care, and other things.
  This bill will deny women those services. When this bill fails in the 
Senate, our Republican colleagues are apparently prepared to shut down 
the government in order to shut down those women's health services.
  Madam Speaker, our Republican colleagues are entitled to their views, 
but they should not harm our economy; they should not harm America's 
women; they should not shut down the government to try to impose their 
views on the country.
  Madam Speaker, I rise to raise my opposition to H.R. 3134, Defund 
Planned Parenthood

[[Page H6159]]

Act of 2015. This bill would prohibit all federal funding for Planned 
Parenthood health centers for one year.
  Instead of using their majority to pass a clean budget and govern 
responsibly, the Republicans are willing to hold our country hostage to 
further their harmful agenda against women.
  The Defund Planned Parenthood Act is just another shameful attempt to 
take essential healthcare services away from women. Republicans are so 
focused on defunding Planned Parenthood that they are willing to shut 
down the government again, and cause billions of dollars of damage to 
our economy.
  Planned Parenthood has been investigated multiple times and each 
investigation has shown that Planned Parenthood has not violated any 
federal laws. Moreover none of Planned Parenthood's federal funds are 
used to perform abortions, in accordance with the Hyde Amendment. 
Republicans are ignoring facts and relying on doctored footage to 
continue their crusade against women's healthcare.
  This bill will have a devastating impact on women. Approximately one 
in five American women, in her lifetime, has relied on a Planned 
Parenthood center for care. It serves a total of 2.7 million patients 
per year--women and men.
  More than ninety percent of their much-needed services go toward 
providing essential health services that includes contraceptive care, 
family planning counseling, pregnancy tests, prenatal care, and 
essential cancer screenings.
  There are not enough community health centers to care for all of 
those who would lose access to healthcare if this bill is passed. A 
direct threat would be posed to seventy-eight percent of Planned 
Parenthood patients who earn incomes of 150 percent of the federal 
poverty level or less.
  It is time to focus on this country's real concerns and stop trying 
to deprive women of essential health services. I strongly oppose this 
bill and any other efforts to defund Planned Parenthood.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 10 seconds to respond.
  Madam Speaker, they sure want that government shutdown. I do want to 
remind them that we have over 13,000 community health centers in the 
country. Planned Parenthood has cut their cancer screening and 
prevention services in half in the past 7 years, and they do not 
perform mammograms, but they do over 300,000 abortions.
  Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. 
Roe).
  Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 
3134, the Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015.
  As an OB/GYN physician who has delivered close to 5,000 babies, I was 
sickened and disturbed by the release of several videos showing Planned 
Parenthood executives casually discussing the dismemberment of babies 
to sell body parts.
  Madam Speaker, this bill isn't about whether you are pro-life or pro-
choice, though I am proud to say that I will always be a defender of 
the right to life. This is about the gruesome practices of an 
organization that receives over $500 million a year from the Federal 
Government. As legislators, we carry the responsibility and the 
privilege to protect those who do not have a voice and to ensure that 
tax dollars are supporting organizations that truly provide health care 
for women.
  I have seen the videos, and I can tell you, that is not health care. 
I have spent my entire life caring for patients, and it is important to 
note that there are alternatives for women to receive care besides 
Planned Parenthood. I strongly support withholding tax dollars from 
Planned Parenthood until congressional investigators have had a chance 
to review the matter. I am proud to encourage my colleagues to support 
this important bill.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, may I please inquire how much 
time is left on each side.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from Florida has 8\1/2\ 
minutes remaining. The gentlewoman from Tennessee has 11\1/4\ minutes 
remaining.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Again, the videos keep being referenced here on the floor. I want 
Members to understand, I want the American public to understand that 
the first four short videos released on YouTube have 40 separate 
splices and edits that remove crucial context. They remove exculpatory 
statements like, ``Nobody should be selling tissue; that is not the 
goal here,'' and, ``This is not a service they should be making money 
from. It is something they should be able to offer to their patients in 
a way that doesn't impact them,'' or, ``We are not looking to make 
money from this. Our goal is to keep access available.'' In one of the 
videos there are at least 16 substantial unexplained edits, including 
the removal of nine instances where Planned Parenthood staff said there 
is no profit related to tissue donation.
  Doesn't that seem misleading and fundamentally dishonest to remove 
statements like that, and then base a smear campaign and bring it to 
the floor of the United States Congress for policymaking? I think so.
  That is why these videos have been denounced across the country by 
independent editorial writers. They have called them distorted and 
unfair, dishonest, grossly misleading, and politically irresponsible 
and swift boating.
  Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. 
Payne), my friend
  Mr. PAYNE. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to H.R. 
3134, the Defund Planned Parenthood Act.
  There is nothing thoughtful about this legislation. This is a 
shameful and shocking sham. This has always been about Republicans 
wanting to restrict the right of women to make their own healthcare 
decisions.
  Let me say, you know, these doctored videos on YouTube, my children 
watch YouTube, and you can see whatever you want on YouTube. You can 
see a man punt a basketball through a basket from 500 feet. You can see 
whatever you want. So I am not surprised that these doctored videos are 
on YouTube.
  Mammograms are done in imaging centers, so no health center does an 
actual mammogram. So let's stop trying to mislead the American people 
with this sham.
  If you like YouTube so much, and that is where you are going to get 
your information, I have another video you can watch right now on 
YouTube. It is called, ``Dumb and Dumber.''
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Walberg).
  Mr. WALBERG. Madam Speaker, it has been said that none are so blind 
as those who will not see, and so I rise today on behalf of the unborn 
babies who can't stand up for themselves.
  Many of my colleagues have already described the horrifying videos 
that shock the conscience and have sparked several congressional 
investigations.
  No matter what party you belong to, we should all agree that taxpayer 
dollars should not be used for harvesting baby parts for profit. The 
debate today is about more than these barbaric practices. It is about 
the very character of our Nation. Will we turn a blind eye to this 
callous disregard for human life? Is this the country we want to be?
  Two weeks ago today, my newest granddaughter, Naomi Gail, was born 
after an emergency C-section from a doctor who understood the need for 
life for both the mother and the child. Holding her in my arms was a 
vivid reminder that all life is sacred, and every child deserves 
dignity, respect, and a chance for a full life.
  America was founded on the values of life, liberty, and the pursuit 
of happiness. Madam Speaker, it all begins with life.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee).
  Ms. LEE. Madam Speaker, I want to thank Representative Castor for her 
tremendous leadership.
  I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 3134, which is nothing more than 
yet another ideological attack on women's health care. It would defund 
Planned Parenthood for a year, leaving millions of women across the 
country without access to critical healthcare services.
  Planned Parenthood centers often serve as a primary care health 
facility for women seeking birth control, cancer and STI screenings, 
and other critical preventive care. In 2013 alone, Planned Parenthood 
provided healthcare services to more than 800,000 Californians and 
provided more than 93,000 Pap tests and 97,000 breast exams.
  Denying access to the healthcare services such as Planned Parenthood 
provides will harm those who most need these services, including low-
income women and women of color. This

[[Page H6160]]

bill is shameful. It is disrespectful. It is wrong. Politicians 
shouldn't be interfering, anyway, in a woman's personal healthcare 
decisions.
  It is past time Republicans stop their war on women and stop these 
ideological attacks and stop using women's health care to divert 
attention from a looming government shutdown because Republicans refuse 
to pass a budget.
  Vote ``no'' on this deceptive and dishonest bill.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 20 seconds to respond 
to something.
  Our colleagues across the aisle have a colleague from New Jersey who 
previously spoke. I want to reference a press release that was sent out 
August 15 from his office on community health centers:

       Community health centers attend to hard-to-reach 
     populations and are a vital resource that have a significant 
     impact in improving health in New Jersey.

  Talking about reaching hard-to-serve populations, this is what we are 
doing. Let's put the money where it meets the most needs.
  I now yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Duffy), who 
is the author of H.R. 3495, the Women's Public Health and Safety Act, 
and commend him for his commitment in those efforts.
  Mr. DUFFY. ``It is a boy,'' or, ``it is a girl''; any parent knows 
that phrase. It is one of the most memorable moments that they will 
ever have in their lives.
  Recently, we heard that same phrase, but it was said by an abortion 
provider at Planned Parenthood, and it was as that provider--we will 
use that term loosely--was siphoning through the body parts of a little 
baby, taking hearts and lungs for sale, but noticed it is a boy.
  What a perversion. What a perversion of who we are as a people. I 
think it calls into question this debate. This is not a debate about 
women's health. We are providing the same amount of money for women's 
health to great clinics that provide great care. It is about Planned 
Parenthood.
  Why is it about Planned Parenthood? If you watch this debate, you 
have to ask, how could anybody defend the practices at Planned 
Parenthood, harvesting body parts? How could anyone defend that? It is 
an easy answer. Look in political season. Millions of dollars--millions 
of dollars--are spent by Planned Parenthood to elect Democrats to the 
House of Representatives and to the Senate. This isn't about babies. 
This is about money.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the 
gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. DelBene).
  Ms. DelBENE. Madam Speaker, this feels like deja vu. Once again, the 
House is ignoring the challenges facing our Nation in order to attack 
women's health. Already this year, the House has voted to restrict 
reproductive health care in private insurance, enact a sweeping 20-week 
abortion ban, and allow employers to discriminate against their workers 
for using birth control.
  Now, with just 5 legislative days before a shutdown, we are wasting 
our time on a bill the President has said he will veto. It is past time 
for Congress to stop focusing on ideology and start focusing on the 
facts. The fact is defunding Planned Parenthood would have a 
devastating effect on women's access to health care. That care includes 
cancer screenings, immunizations, and birth control.
  As my colleagues are well aware, current law already prevents Federal 
funding for abortion services. It is shameful that the House is 
allowing the reckless actions of a few extremists to jeopardize the 
critical safety net provided by Planned Parenthood. We can't let that 
happen.
  I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. Gibbs).
  Mr. GIBBS. Madam Speaker, we have seen in the videos released this 
summer the horrific practices of harvesting the body parts of aborted 
children for profit. We have also known that Planned Parenthood 
provides abortion procedures, and the pro-life movement has for years 
worked very hard to ensure that no taxpayer dollars will be used to 
fund the procedure of abortion.
  Planned Parenthood is not about women's health care. We know this 
because not one clinic performs mammograms. The despicable actions that 
were uncovered in these videos show the true nature of Planned 
Parenthood. It shows their complete disregard for life. It shows how 
careless they are with the responsibility to treat our most vulnerable 
and innocent with respect.
  We cannot give taxpayer dollars to an organization that profits from 
the sale of organs from aborted children. Planned Parenthood officials 
have been caught haggling over the price of body parts from aborted 
children, and they have been recorded on camera fearing the 
consequences if their actions were revealed to the world. We have two 
House committee investigations. We have an obligation to suspend 
Federal funding to Planned Parenthood while the investigations are 
being conducted.
  Now is the time for all Americans to reflect on the fragile nature of 
life and how we treat the unborn. I want to thank Congresswoman Black 
for leading the efforts to defund Planned Parenthood. I urge my 
colleagues to support this bill.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, how much time is remaining?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from Florida has 4\1/2\ 
minutes remaining. The gentlewoman from Tennessee has 8 minutes 
remaining.

                              {time}  1145

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Pennsylvania 
(Mr. Kelly).
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. I stand before you today not as a 
Republican and not as a Member of this House, but as a fellow human 
being, and I wonder: How did we get to this point? How do we somehow 
compromise in our mind what it is that we are talking about today?
  I want you to disconnect from any organization or agency and 
concentrate on the act of what is taking place.
  This is not a blob of tissue. This is one of America's sons or 
daughters waiting to be born. They are taken from the safety of their 
mother's womb and they are taken out very carefully so they can harvest 
certain body parts: hearts, lungs, heads.
  You can sit here and try to make it something about an agency and 
turn a blind eye to the act that is taking place in a country that will 
go to any length to protect life, in a people that believes in the 
sanctity of life from its very conception to its natural death.
  And somehow harvesting the parts from these little baby boys and 
girls has become a political issue?
  This is an issue human being to human being. This is an issue of 
conscience and conviction. Please, do not make it a political battle.
  This is about our sons and daughters. This is about a horrific act 
that is repulsive and repugnant and has no place in America. America's 
taxpayers refuse to pay for that type of act. Wake up.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Rodney Davis).
  Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. I thank the many colleagues who stood 
here and stand with me now to rise in support of ensuring that hard-
earned taxpayer dollars do not go to private entities that are 
trafficking in fetal baby parts.
  We have to put a stop to this heinous practice. We have to ensure 
that this problem is investigated. We have to ensure that the Federal 
Government is not condoning these actions.
  I believe that we need to ensure that Planned Parenthood understands 
that the money that they have access to from the Federal Treasury is 
not mandatory money that is given to that agency.
  We need to ensure that women's health is a priority, but let's put 
the tax dollars into the agencies and the community health centers that 
are providing access to women's health care every day throughout this 
great Nation. We can do that.
  Let's stand together. Let's ban this heinous practice. Let's make 
sure we move forward.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from 
Florida (Ms. Frankel).

[[Page H6161]]

  

  Ms. FRANKEL of Florida. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to the 
Defund Planned Parenthood Act. I want to say this as respectfully as 
possible, but this bill is dumb, it is foolish, and it is mean-
spirited, with only one purpose, and that is to punish one of our 
country's premier health organizations because it provides women access 
to an array of services that we need to lead healthy lives. The bill is 
based upon lies and exaggerations.
  Now, if you want to have a truthful debate, then let's talk about the 
400,000 Pap smears, the 500,000 breast exams, and the 4.5 million STD 
and HIV tests that Planned Parenthood does each year. Now, that is 
saving lives. That is the truth.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Pittenger).
  Mr. PITTENGER. Madam Speaker, many years ago, I was in London with my 
family at the British Museum and watched a little movie about the 
development and growth of a baby inside a mother's womb. The video was 
all about life, tracking the baby's development week by week.
  Recently, we have all watched videos where Planned Parenthood 
executives candidly talked about death. How can anyone defend the sale 
of a little baby's body parts? Why should Federal taxpayers support 
organizations that rob little ones of their right to life, liberty, and 
the pursuit of happiness?
  Planned Parenthood has betrayed the rights and life of America's most 
defenseless. Today I am asking that you join me in supporting the 
Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015, which effectively halts Federal 
funding of Planned Parenthood for 1 year or until they can certify that 
their affiliates and clinics are not and will not perform abortions.
  I thank Congresswoman Diane Black for her leadership on this issue. 
The character of our Nation is at stake. We must restore the value and 
sanctity of every life and fight back against those unfathomable acts. 
Life is precious. Let's cherish each and every one.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Pennsylvania 
(Mr. Rothfus).
  Mr. ROTHFUS. Madam Speaker, what we have learned about Planned 
Parenthood through these videos is appalling, barbaric, and 
indefensible. Here are some of the quotes:

       We've been very good at getting heart, lung, liver . . . so 
     I'm not gonna crush that part.
       Using a ``less crunchy'' technique to get more whole 
     specimens.
       We're going to procure brain . . . so what you do is you go 
     through the face . . .

  And when discussing the sale of body parts, a Planned Parenthood 
official asks:

       Well, why don't you start by telling me what you're used to 
     paying?

  Madam Speaker, our Nation is so much better than this. The cold 
indifference shown in these videos is the inevitable result for an 
organization that does hundreds of thousands of abortions every year.
  Federally funded clinics that serve women's health and do not perform 
abortions outnumber Planned Parenthood clinics by between two to one. 
Let's send the funds to those clinics.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Ms. CASTRO of Florida. I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Farr).
  Mr. FARR. I don't think anybody on your side has read the bill. It 
doesn't do anything that you have talked about.
  It doesn't stop abortions. It doesn't stop any of those other issues 
that are already illegal. It does one thing: It shuts down Planned 
Parenthood clinics.
  I represent the largest affiliate of Planned Parenthood in the United 
States. And guess what. Twenty-two percent of the patients are men. So 
you are going to deny access not only to women, but to men.
  You say: ``Oh, we will shift the money somewhere else.'' There is 
nowhere else. These are the only clinics around in many of the 
communities.
  So what you are doing is taking this angry white man's caucus on the 
Republican side that have been for years trying to use this as a 
political issue, using a bill that says you are going to do all these 
things. It only does one thing: it penalizes Planned Parenthood.
  Penalizing Planned Parenthood penalizes us all. It is about access to 
health care, particularly, access to health care for women.
  Stop beating up on women. Stop trying to make this a political issue. 
The reason we haven't been able to legislate against abortion is 
because you can't find a law that can enforce it.
  This is really a moral issue and a medical issue that ought to be 
discussed with women and their doctors. Congress Members ought to stay 
out of this.
  We haven't been successful in solving these problems. This only hurts 
people, particularly in rural areas, because the majority of Planned 
Parenthood clinics are in rural areas.
  Stop being so mean. Solve problems, not create them.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to address their 
remarks to the Chair and not to other Members.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself 15 seconds.
  I would encourage all Members to read the bill. It is very short. It 
is about three pages. What it will do is freeze this funding for a year 
so we can do the investigation, and it sends it to some of the 13,000 
community health centers that are in the country.
  We have even got a press release from one of their colleagues 
extolling the values of these community health centers.
  I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Allen).
  Mr. ALLEN. I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  The appalling videos that have been released revealing Planned 
Parenthood's horrific activities should spur deep concern in every 
American.
  In a recent hearing with Secretary Burwell, I asked her whether the 
Department of Health and Human Services would probe into these 
allegations, but she refused to commit to an investigation.
  We have a moral responsibility to act to investigate this 
organization's actions and hold them accountable.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, may I inquire how much time is 
remaining?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from Florida has 2\1/2\ 
minutes remaining. The gentlewoman from Tennessee has 3\3/4\ minutes 
remaining.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. 
Jody B. Hice).
  Mr. JODY B. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, the recent allegations 
and videos that have come forth have literally shocked the world by 
showcasing the morally bankrupt practices of Planned Parenthood.
  I am honored to stand with my colleagues to try to prevent tax 
dollars from going to this organization that has now stooped to the 
practice of trafficking innocent baby parts, they say, for the purpose 
of advancing medical research, but we all know that there is no excuse 
that can possibly be given to provide for the moral bankruptcy of 
Planned Parenthood.
  It is time to defund this while the investigation occurs. The blood 
and body parts of children should be looked at as a sacred entity 
rather than an industry.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Maine 
(Ms. Pingree).
  Ms. PINGREE. I thank my friend for yielding and for her excellent 
remarks on the floor this morning.
  Madam Speaker, defunding Planned Parenthood would have a real, 
profound, negative impact on the 10,000 people in Maine who get health 
care from Planned Parenthood every year, many of whom have no other 
access to care.
  Planned Parenthood provides basic health care like cancer screenings, 
vaccinations, wellness exams, and STD testing, basic care that will 
mean the difference between health and sickness, prosperity and 
poverty, or even life and death for women in my State.
  Let's be clear. Who is really behind the attempts to defund Planned 
Parenthood? Radical antiabortion groups who want to shut down Planned 
Parenthood and deny women access to safe and legal abortions. These are 
groups who want to deny women the right to make a private, personal 
medical decision.
  In the process, they want to take away the access to birth control, 
family planning services, and even basic

[[Page H6162]]

health care. They have orchestrated a false, misleading smear campaign 
to try and accomplish their goal, a campaign we have heard a lot today 
about here on the floor of the House of Representatives.
  I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' and stand up for women's rights 
to make their own decisions about health care and protect their access 
to basic medical services.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman 
from Texas (Mr. Farenthold).
  Mr. FARENTHOLD. Madam Speaker, during the recent Presidential debates 
Carly Fiorina called and dared President Obama and Hillary Clinton to 
watch these appalling videos.
  I realize we only have a few minutes left, but I want to dare Members 
on the other side to watch these videos, too. There are computers in 
the cloakroom where they can watch them.
  If they want to send one taxpayer dime to Planned Parenthood after 
watching it, shame on them. There are much better places to send it, 
like these community health centers created under President Obama's 
bill. There are lots of places women can go for health care, not just 
Planned Parenthood.
  Go watch the videos.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. I am pleased to yield 30 seconds to the 
gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer).
  (Mr. BLUMENAUER asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. It is bizarre to watch the manufactured controversy 
surrounding ambush-type, heavily edited filming used to discredit 
Planned Parenthood.
  These attacks do not reflect my experience and knowledge of the 
amazing, dedicated, civic-minded men and women--pillars of our 
community--who have built, supported, and led Planned Parenthood in my 
community.
  There is no question that, because of their efforts, tens of 
thousands of abortions never occurred. Because of their efforts, 70,000 
women in Oregon last year received services.
  They are people who know their communities, Planned Parenthood 
leadership understands that this heated rhetoric, outrageous claims, 
and attack against service to low-income women is not just false, it is 
wrong.
  It is bizarre to watch the manufactured controversy surrounding 
ambush-type, heavily-edited journalism used to discredit Planned 
Parenthood.
  It's not just the blatantly manipulative and misleading tactics that 
are being used, which should be enough for most people to reject the 
allegations on their face. These attacks do not reflect my experience 
and knowledge of the amazing, dedicated, civic-minded men and women who 
have built, supported, and led Planned Parenthood in my community.
  For decades, I have admired these pillars of community, leaders in 
education, religion, business, and other civic affairs that provided 
the vision, the volunteer effort, and personal contributions to women's 
health and reproductive freedom. There is no question that because of 
their efforts, tens of thousands of abortions never occurred in our 
community and those that did occur, did not result in harm to women.
  Because of their efforts, Oregon's 11 Planned Parenthood centers 
provided care to over 70,000 women in 2013, including over 25,000 
breast and cervical cancer screenings. Nationally, Planned Parenthood 
services over 2.5 million women annually. Planned Parenthood centers 
serve a greater share of safety-net clients than any other type of 
safety-net providers. Nearly 80 percent of women using Planned 
Parenthood have incomes at or below 150 percent of poverty--these 
clinics offer affordable health care options for women who may have no 
alternate source of care.
  The fact that we are engaged in a concerted assault against the 
provision of essential services to women, especially women of color and 
low-income status is appalling. If people would take the time, as I 
have, to visit these facilities, meet the employees, and most 
importantly, know these community leaders that have made it possible to 
protect women's health, to prevent countless abortions, and to promote 
wellbeing and education, they would see the lies behind this heated 
rhetoric and misguided attacks.

                              {time}  1200

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman 
from Ohio (Mr. Wenstrup).
  Mr. WENSTRUP. Madam Speaker, I serve on the board of health in 
Cincinnati, Ohio, and I am very familiar with FQHCs. I might say that 
FQHCs provide services, expansive services, not only to women, but men 
and children as well.
  My wife and I are currently in the process of adoption, and it 
sickens me to see these parts of young children sitting there, knowing 
that we could take them, love them, and nurture them into a wonderful 
life. I don't know how people look at themselves in the mirror and 
think that this is okay.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of 
my time.
  The Republican Congress has fundamentally failed to fulfill its basic 
responsibility to work out an appropriations plan that will keep this 
government open. This bill, to inflame the passion that is based on 
false videos, distorted clips that was part of a coordinated smear 
campaign all across the country, is being used as the foundation to 
close the government.
  I hope it doesn't happen, but it appears that the dysfunction in the 
Republican Congress is going to lead us down that path, at the expense 
of women's health care, their basic fundamental services all across 
this country.
  Last spring, we asked the Republicans in Congress to sit down and 
hammer out an appropriations plan. They refused. They adjourned at the 
end of July. Nothing happened in August. Nothing has happened here in 
September, except for these inflammatory bills based upon false YouTube 
videos.
  This Republican Congress' continuing dysfunction and inability to 
govern are having real effects on hard-working Americans. This ``Deny 
Women Health Care Act'' is a cynical attack on the ability of women to 
receive the health services they need.
  I urge a ``no'' vote, and I urge my Republican colleagues to keep the 
government open for hard-working Americans.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman 
from Texas (Mr. Poe).
  Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, where have we gone? Where is the 
moral compass of the United States? Do we want to continue the issue of 
taking body parts of babies and selling them on the open market and 
protecting that enterprise? Or do we want to back up and say, if that 
is occurring, we are not funding it?
  All this legislation does is say: Wait a minute, if that is occurring 
in America, we are not going to tolerate it. Until we find out, no more 
money, and it should go to other agencies that don't harvest the body 
parts of babies.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  I am going to close and draw to an end this debate. I do want to 
remind all my colleagues that we are not discussing government 
shutdown. What we are talking about is a bill that would withhold funds 
from Planned Parenthood for a period of a year, while we have an 
investigation.
  Now, I know they have called this a smear campaign. We are 
investigating the operations of Planned Parenthood.
  Why are we doing this? Planned Parenthood is big abortion in this 
country--300,000 abortions a year, as opposed to 1,800 adoption 
services; 98.5 percent of all women who go there for a prenatal 
service, it is an abortion. Think about that, 98.5 percent.
  There is reason to review how they use taxpayer funding, and we are 
justified in withholding taxpayer funds until we finish that.
  Now, our colleagues have chosen to say that we are radical, dumb, 
shameful, disrespectful, foolish, extremists, deniers, deprivers, mean-
spirited, and beating up on women. Think about that. All because we 
stand for life, for liberty. We stand for life rights, a first right, 
and these are the names that you attach to people who defend those 
rights.
  Saturday, I went to a baby shower. An excited grandmother said, Meet 
my granddaughter. It was an ultrasound, a 3-D ultrasound. Her name is 
Jessica. That is a baby with a life, and Planned Parenthood is aborting 
300,000 of those lives each year.
  It is time for taxpayer money to be withheld. I support the bill.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. WAGNER. Madam Speaker, today I speak in support of H.R. 3134, 
the Defund

[[Page H6163]]

Planned Parenthood Act of 2015, to terminate taxpayer support of this 
deplorable organization.
  I'd like to thank my good friend, Congresswoman Diane Black for her 
leadership on this issue and her unwavering support for the lives of 
the unborn.
  This summer, we have learned of the shocking nature of Planned 
Parenthood's practice of selling babies' hearts, lungs, livers, brains 
and other organs, often for a profit, to the highest bidder.
  We were disturbed by what we learned about these practices, but 
perhaps even more so by the cold indifference in which countless 
employees dehumanized unborn children, effectively turning them into 
line item revenue sources, rather than human life in its most precious 
form.
  After discovering the grotesque nature of these practices, the U.S. 
House of Representatives responded to these abhorrent activities by 
launching investigative hearings, the first of which began in the House 
Judiciary Committee last week.
  Yet the very same week we began investigating the extent of the 
wrongdoing, the Executive Branch, through the Centers for Medicare and 
Medicaid Services, awarded Planned Parenthood of Missouri, Iowa and 
Montana with over $1 million in taxpayer support.
  The only response to this unthinkable action is for the U.S. House of 
Representatives, the legislative body with constitutional authority 
over federal funds, to pass legislation expressly prohibiting the 
federal government from supporting Planned Parenthood.
  Madam Speaker, it is not enough for the U.S. House of Representatives 
to deny funds from a single continuing resolution or omnibus spending 
package.
  Instead we must do so permanently and Congresswoman Black's 
legislation gives Congress an opportunity to continue our 
investigations into Planned Parenthood and work toward the day when we 
are no longer funding this abhorrent organization.
  In the short term, there is much work to be done.
  The U.S. House of Representatives is responsible for acting on behalf 
of the American people and investigating the extent to which Planned 
Parenthood's has profited from this activity.
  Furthermore we must make sure that Planned Parenthood has not been 
engaging in illegal partial birth abortions.
  We must determine whether or not Planned Parenthood has been breaking 
the law by altering abortion procedures to preserve certain organs for 
sale.
  We must protect women and unborn children from these dangerous 
procedures that are designed to increase revenue for this group and 
profit from the destruction innocent life.
  And perhaps most importantly, we must provide funding for other 
organizations that provide women's health care support and services--
without also offering abortions.
  And we must not continue taxpayer funding for groups like Planned 
Parenthood that believe they are above the laws of the United States.
  We have a duty, as elected Representatives to stand up for the most 
vulnerable among us, to lend a voice to the voiceless, and fight back 
against injustice.
  And so I lend my full support to H.R. 3134, so that we may defund 
Planned Parenthood and provide vulnerable women with better options for 
their health care needs.
  Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today in 
strong opposition to H.R. 3134, the Defund Planned Parenthood Act.
  This bill is partisan politics at its worst. The attacks on Planned 
Parenthood are nothing more than political witch-hunts led by anti-
abortion extremists. Their efforts to mislead the public and tarnish 
the reputation of Planned Parenthood are downright shameful.
  Here are the facts: millions of American families, particularly in 
underserved areas, rely on Planned Parenthood for family planning 
services and basic women's healthcare. Seventy-eight percent of Planned 
Parenthood patients live with incomes at 150 percent of the federal 
poverty level or less, and almost half a million of their patients are 
Latinos. Were it not for Planned Parenthood, these families, including 
over 25 thousand in my district, would have nowhere to turn for basic 
health care needs.
  Defunding Planned Parenthood has implications for the 2.7 million 
Americans across the country who count on Planned Parenthood for STD 
and STI testing, cancer screenings, contraceptive care, and other 
health services. These basic and critical healthcare services which 
account for 97% of those provided at Planned Parenthood, are what is 
really being defunded here.
  It's been 42 years since the United States Supreme Court ruled that a 
woman has the constitutional right to choose what is best for her 
health and her body. Since then, anti-abortion extremists have been 
working tirelessly to chip away at this constitutional protection. This 
time, Madam Speaker, the ramifications of their efforts extend far 
beyond abortion. They threaten the health and well-being of millions of 
hard-working American families in my district and across the country.
  The majority always argues for small government. I guess this time 
they want a government small enough to fit inside the exam room with a 
woman and her doctor.
  Madam Speaker, I'd like to submit a letter signed by 13 Latino 
advocacy groups in opposition to defunding Planned Parenthood.

                                                   August 3, 2015.
     U.S. Senate,
     Washington, DC.
     House of Representatives,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Members of Congress: As organizations committed to the 
     civil and human rights, health equity, and well-being of 
     Latino/as, our families, and our communities, we the thirteen 
     undersigned organizations urge you to oppose all efforts to 
     defund Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) or 
     other healthcare providers that Latinos/as rely on for high 
     quality care.
       The recent manipulated and misleading attacks on PPFA are 
     yet another political attempt to target providers of 
     reproductive health services. The real agenda behind these 
     attacks is to block access to basic health services, 
     particularly for low-income communities, women of color, and 
     young people. These tactics also create an atmosphere of fear 
     and shame intended to intimidate women who seek abortion and 
     those who provide the much needed care.
       Such attacks on PPFA, a critical provider of vital health 
     services to low-income women and women of color, threatens to 
     unravel the reproductive health safety net that our Latino/a 
     community relies on. We have already seen such efforts as in 
     Texas when the state legislature authorized the ``affiliate 
     rule'' that barred all Planned Parenthood health centers from 
     receiving state funds. In 2012, the first full year following 
     the devastating cuts to family planning funding and 
     implementation of the ``affiliate rule,'' Texas met only 13 
     percent of the need for publicly funded contraception--less 
     than half of national totals for the same year.
       Furthermore, defunding PPFA would have a devastating impact 
     on the Latino/a community which experiences higher rates of 
     reproductive cancers, unintended pregnancy, and sexually 
     transmitted infections than most other groups of people in 
     the U.S. In fact, according to the latest statistics from the 
     Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Latinas have the 
     highest cervical cancer incidence rates. Latinos/as, 
     including LGBTQ Latinos/as, immigrant women, and women of 
     color experience system barriers such as cost, lack of 
     available clinics, insufficient culturally and linguistically 
     competent health systems, and discriminatory immigration 
     policies that make it difficult for individuals and 
     communities to access routine healthcare. For decades, 
     Latinos/as have been the most uninsured racial and ethnic 
     group.
       That is why our communities rely on Planned Parenthood for 
     quality healthcare. In 2013, PPFA's clinics served 575,000 
     Latinos/as, which was 22 percent of their overall patients. 
     We will not tolerate any attempts to cut Latinos/as off from 
     this care.
       We strongly urge you to oppose all proposals to defund PPFA 
     and stand with the undersigned organizations to protect the 
     right to health care for Latinos/as and other persons of 
     color. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to 
     contact Ann Marie Benitez, Senior Director of Government 
     Relations, at National Latina Institute for Reproductive 
     Health.
           Signed,
         Casa de Esperanza, Farmworker Justice, Hispanic 
           Federation, Labor Council for Latin American 
           Advancement, LatinoJustice PRLDEF, League of United 
           Latin American Citizens, Mexican American Legal Defense 
           and Educational Fund, National Alliance of Latin 
           American and Caribbean Communities, National Hispanic 
           Media Coalition, National Latina Institute for 
           Reproductive Health, Presente, U.S.-Mexico Foundation, 
           VotoLatino.

  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to this brazen 
assault on women's health, which would harm lower income women around 
this nation.
  The legislation we are debating today would mean that women with 
limited health options will find it harder to secure lifesaving 
services--like breast exams and pap tests. In New York alone, cutting 
Planned Parenthood funding would mean that nearly 50,000 fewer breast 
exams would occur. 37,000 women would no longer receive pap tests. 
Millions of women nationwide would no longer have access to STI 
screenings and treatments, to say nothing of additional unplanned 
pregnancies.
  These are just some of the critical treatments and procedures Planned 
Parenthood provides--some of which save women's lives. If you want to 
proclaim yourself ``pro-life'' then you should care about women's 
lives--not focus on depriving them of health care services and 
contraception.
  Today, we have just a few legislative days left before another 
Republican-fueled government shutdown. We know this misguided bill

[[Page H6164]]

we are debating is going nowhere. It will not pass the Senate. If it 
did, the President would veto it.
  Yet, House Republicans remain obsessed with attacking Planned 
Parenthood and reducing women's healthcare options--to the point where 
they are ready to engender another government shutdown.
  We need to reject this legislation so we get back to the serious 
business of governing. Support women's health care, vote no on the 
bill.
  Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I stand in strong 
opposition to H.R. 3134, Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015.
  This debate and vote are another attempt to deny women basic health 
care, including reproductive health services. 2.7 million patients--
both men and women--all across America depend on Planned Parenthood for 
critical medical services every year. In my district, if you go to a 
Planned Parenthood clinic at the end of the day, women, many of modest 
means, will be lined up through the waiting room and, often, down the 
street, waiting to be seen.
  While supporters of this bill claim women will have other comparable 
options, the experts tell us that is simply not the case. The non-
partisan Congressional Budget Office found that if this bill is passed, 
as many as 630,000 Planned Parenthood patients could lose access to 
birth control, STD screening, and other reproductive health services. 
And researchers at the Guttmacher Institute estimate that in 103 of 
America's 491 counties, Planned Parenthood is the only safety-net 
family planning clinic.
  I am outraged by this attempt to use a heavily edited and thoroughly 
discredited video to vilify an organization that plays a vital role in 
communities across the nation. Planned Parenthood should be celebrated, 
not demonized, and I hope my colleagues reject this dangerous and 
disingenuous piece of legislation.
  Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I come to the House floor to stand 
up for women's health.
  Republicans are using a heavily edited, agenda-driven series of 
videos that falsely portray Planned Parenthood's participation in 
tissue donation programs that support lifesaving scientific research. 
These outrageous and false claims about Planned Parenthood have been 
discredited. Edited and distorted video should not undermine the 
incredible work that Planned Parenthood does across this country in 
providing critical health care to millions of women.
  This bill to defund Planned Parenthood would not defund abortion. 
Only three percent of all health services provided by Planned 
Parenthood are abortion services, and these services already cannot be 
paid for with federal funding. What this bill would defund is basic 
health services for millions of women. Planned Parenthood provides 
family planning counseling and contraception to 2.1 million patients, 
400,000 lifesaving screenings for cervical cancer, nearly 500,000 
breast exams, and nearly 4.5 million tests and treatments for sexually 
transmitted infections, including HIV.
  Despite news this week that the number of uninsured Americans 
decreased by 8.8 million last year thanks to the Affordable Care Act, 
33 million Americans still have no health insurance. Perhaps hardest 
hit by this defunding effort will be the women who live in one of the 
20 states that have declined the Medicaid expansion provided by the 
Affordable Care Act and who rely on Planned Parenthood for lifesaving 
health care.
  Defunding Planned Parenthood would also be devastating for low-income 
communities, women of color, and young people. It would unravel our 
nation's reproductive health safety net. Planned Parenthood health 
centers comprise 10% of all publicly funded family planning centers, 
and serve 36% of all clients who obtain care from the nation's network 
of family planning providers. The view of some Republicans that federal 
funding could simply be redistributed to other health care centers and 
providers ignores where Planned Parenthood health centers are located. 
They are not typically on Main Street, but rather in areas and 
neighborhoods where they are most needed. For example, a new Planned 
Parenthood center currently under construction here in D.C. is located 
in a underserved area in Ward 5 whose population greatly needs access 
to the health services that Planned Parenthood provides.
  Unfortunately, we in the District of Columbia know all too well this 
type of assault on women's reproductive health and Planned Parenthood. 
Whenever Republicans have controlled the House, they have imposed a 
devastating rider on the District that prevents us from spending our 
locally raised taxes on abortion services for low-income women, 
singling us out as the only jurisdiction in the country that cannot 
spend its local tax dollars for such purposes. We were successful in 
getting that rider removed from the Senate's fiscal year 2016 D.C. 
Appropriations bill, and we will continue to fight to have the rider 
removed from any final spending bill.
  I urge my colleagues to vote no on this hyper-partisan bill, which 
would devastate women's access to health services, most drastically in 
low-income and minority communities.
  Mr. KING of Iowa. Madam Speaker, I rise to express several serious 
concerns with the flawed process that led to a flawed product, H.R. 
3134, the ``Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015.''
  Ten shocking videos released over the last few months document what 
many already knew was happening at Planned Parenthood facilities around 
our nation--the selling and trafficking of fetal organs for a profit. 
For the vast majority of Americans who view human life as sacred, these 
videos halve caused righteous anger and disgust that the taxpayer-
subsidized ``non-profit organization'' is not only extinguishing human 
life but also making money off of human parts--at the taxpayers' 
expense.
  This is the moment for the pro-life movement to hold this evil 
organization accountable by completely and unequivocally defunding 
Planned Parenthood.
  Rather than fighting to protect life and actually defunding Planned 
Parenthood, we are voting today on a weak bill, without teeth, that 
does not defund Planned Parenthood.
  H.R. 3134 only places a one-year moratorium on federal funding of 
Planned Parenthood. Furthermore, it includes exceptions to continue to 
allow taxpayer dollars to go to Planned Parenthood and its abortion 
factories.
  With all we know about what goes on at Planned Parenthood's abortion 
factories, why are we voting on a bill to ``defund'' Planned Parenthood 
for one year?
  What's worse, H.R. 3134 does not defund Planned Parenthood. The 
exceptions included in this bill allow taxpayer dollars to be used to 
fund abortions performed at Planned Parenthood. In effect, this bill is 
a proactive vote by the GOP-controlled House of Representatives to 
affirmatively fund abortions at Planned Parentlgd facilities. The very 
bill leadership has promoted as the solution to this grisly problem--
the taxpayer funded mutilation of fully formed children--actually 
rubber stamps the existing situation.
  Furthermore, the certification process in this bill is ripe for fraud 
and abuse. All Planned Parenthood needs to do is certify it is already 
following federal law and the Hyde Amendment to continue to receive 
funding. Who ensures this certification? Once Planned Parenthood 
receives federal funding and is found to violate this Act, what is the 
process for the executive branch to seek repayment of this money? H.R. 
3134 does not go far enough to address concerns for fraud and abuse.
  Because of my serious concerns with the substance of H.R. 3134, I 
offered an amendment to the Rules Committee on Wednesday, September 16, 
2015. My amendment states:
  ``No funds authorized or appropriated by Federal law may be made 
available for any purpose to--(1) Planned Parenthood Federation of 
America, Inc.; (2) any affiliate or clinic of Planned Parenthood 
Federation of America, Inc.; or (3) any successor of Planned Parenthood 
Federation of America, Inc. or any such affiliate or clinic.''
  My amendment is simple: no federal funds to Planned Parenthood. 
Period. No one-year moratorium. No exceptions. That should be the goal 
of this debate and any legislation to defund Planned Parenthood.
  Unfortunately, the Rules Committee did not approve my amendment for 
debate on the floor or adopt it as part of the underlying bill. If my 
amendment was considered on the floor, I am confident that my 
colleagues would have overwhelming support and adopted my amendment 
into the underlying bill.
  The funding fight starts now--this is our marker--H.R. 3134 is not a 
sufficient vote to defund Planned Parenthood. I expect much stronger 
language than this in the CR coming up in the next few weeks. Innocent, 
unborn babies deserve more than just a show vote.
  For these reasons, I will cast a present vote.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. All time for debate has expired.
  Pursuant to House Resolution 421, the previous question is ordered on 
the bill, as amended.
  The question is on the engrossment and third reading of the bill.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was 
read the third time.

[[Page H6165]]

  



                           Motion to Recommit

  Ms. ESTY. Madam Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is the gentlewoman opposed to the bill?
  Ms. ESTY. I am, in its current form.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I reserve a point of order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. A point of order is reserved.
  The Clerk will report the motion to recommit.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Ms. Esty moves to recommit the bill, H.R. 3134, to the 
     Committee on Energy and Commerce with instructions to report 
     the same back to the House forthwith with the following 
     amendment:
       At the end of the bill, add the following:

     SEC. 6. NO IMPACT ON FUNDING FOR ORGANIZATIONS PROVIDING 
                   WOMEN'S HEALTH SERVICES.

       Notwithstanding section 3, nothing in this Act shall impact 
     the amount of funding available for any organization that 
     provides women's health services, such as preventive care and 
     cancer screenings, in appropriations legislation for fiscal 
     year 2016, including any continuing resolution.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Connecticut is recognized for 5 minutes in support of her motion.
  Ms. ESTY. Madam Speaker, this is the final amendment to the bill 
which will not stop the bill or send it back to committee. If adopted, 
this bill will immediately proceed to final passage, as amended.
  I rise today as a mother, as a woman, and as a Representative to 
offer this straightforward amendment to protect women's access to vital 
health care.
  Contrary to what many Americans have been led to believe, the bill 
before us today is not about abortion. This bill would, however, 
restrict women's access to health care all across the country by 
entirely eliminating all Federal funding for Planned Parenthood.
  Let's be very clear. No Federal tax dollars go towards abortions, and 
none have since 1976. That is not what this bill is about.
  We all know a woman who has been diagnosed with cancer--cervical 
cancer, breast cancer, ovarian cancer. It may be your mother, your 
neighbor, or your wife who sought preventive care or cancer screening 
from a doctor of her choice.
  Yes, we all know a woman who has received quality medical care at 
Planned Parenthood. In fact, one in five American women have sought 
medical care from Planned Parenthood. It may be your daughter. It may 
be your boss. It may be your colleague.
  My amendment will ensure that any qualified organization that 
provides women's health services can receive funding. It is simple, and 
it is fair.
  We need more access to quality health care, not less. We need to stop 
trying to restrict access to lifesaving cancer screenings, birth 
control, and well-woman exams. We need to stop fighting 40-year-old 
battles on women's rights.
  Defunding Planned Parenthood would have a devastating impact on 
women, especially low-income women, women in rural communities, and 
women of color.
  It is not only women who receive health care at Planned Parenthood. 
Men receive health care at Planned Parenthood, too.
  Here are some facts about Planned Parenthood's critical role in 
providing health services to Americans every year.
  Planned Parenthood provides family planning counseling and 
contraceptive care to 2.1 million Americans, more than 1.1 million 
pregnancy tests, nearly 400,000 Pap smear tests, and nearly 500,000 
lifesaving breast exams.
  Let's remember that, in many areas, Planned Parenthood is the only 
source of family planning services. That is why, in 1976, as a college 
freshman, I volunteered for Planned Parenthood because I had seen the 
impact on young women in my rural high school who had no access to 
family planning services. Too many got pregnant, dropped out of school, 
and never pursued their dreams.
  Today, with only 5 legislative days left, we should be focusing on 
avoiding a reckless and unnecessary government shutdown.
  Do you remember the last government shutdown, the one that cost us 
$24 billion? No wonder some don't think America is great right now. 
Dysfunction in this Congress is undermining the American people's faith 
in democracy.
  We, in Congress, have the power to act. We have the opportunity, and 
we have the duty to set aside ideological battles and, instead, take up 
the urgent business of the American people.
  We should reauthorize the Export-Import Bank and pass a long-term, 
well-funded highway trust fund bill, investing in America's 
infrastructure, to ensure that America will continue to be great 
throughout the 21st century.
  I urge my colleagues to support my amendment to ensure that American 
women have access to vital health care, no matter where they live and 
no matter how much they earn.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of a point 
of order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The reservation of the point of order is 
withdrawn.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, I claim the time in opposition to the 
motion.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from Tennessee is recognized 
for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, we all know that Planned Parenthood 
receives hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars. For them to get that 
money, while they are under investigation for profiting off the sale of 
body parts, baby body parts, is just absolutely abhorrent.
  What this bill does is to put a 1-year moratorium while we conduct 
the investigation. Let's be real clear about that, a 1-year moratorium 
while we do our due diligence. That is what you call smart business, 
doing your due diligence, being a steward of the taxpayers' money.
  Now, I have found it so interesting that they continue to say this 
will cut access to women's health care. No, it will not.
  Do you know Planned Parenthood sees less than 2 percent of all 
American women in a given year? There is an amendment on this 
legislation by Mrs. Ellmers, it redirects $235 million to the FQHCs, 
the federally qualified health centers.
  It will increase access because we have more of those centers in more 
underserved areas, and they are required to provide services which 
include diagnostic lab and radiological services.
  Planned Parenthood has cut those screenings and cancer screenings and 
those services in half over the last few years, while they have 
increased their abortions to 300,000 a year.

                              {time}  1215

  We are right in restricting these funds to Planned Parenthood while 
we conduct this investigation. We are right to be a steward of the 
taxpayer money.
  Madam Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote on the motion to recommit and a 
``yes'' vote on the passage of H.R. 3134.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the previous question is 
ordered on the motion to recommit.
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to recommit.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the noes appeared to have it.
  Ms. ESTY. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 and clause 9 of rule 
XX, this 15-minute vote on the motion to recommit will be followed by 
5-minute votes on passage of the bill, if ordered, and passage of H.R. 
3504.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 183, 
nays 245, not voting 6, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 504]

                               YEAS--183

     Adams
     Aguilar
     Ashford
     Bass
     Beatty
     Becerra
     Bera
     Beyer
     Bishop (GA)
     Blumenauer
     Bonamici
     Boyle, Brendan F.
     Brady (PA)
     Brown (FL)
     Brownley (CA)
     Bustos
     Butterfield
     Capps
     Capuano
     Carney
     Carson (IN)
     Cartwright
     Castor (FL)
     Castro (TX)
     Chu, Judy
     Cicilline
     Clark (MA)
     Clarke (NY)
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Connolly
     Conyers
     Cooper
     Costa
     Courtney
     Crowley
     Cuellar
     Cummings
     Davis (CA)
     Davis, Danny
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     Delaney
     DeLauro
     DelBene
     DeSaulnier
     Deutch
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Doyle, Michael F.

[[Page H6166]]


     Duckworth
     Edwards
     Ellison
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Esty
     Farr
     Fattah
     Foster
     Frankel (FL)
     Fudge
     Gabbard
     Gallego
     Garamendi
     Graham
     Grayson
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hahn
     Hastings
     Heck (WA)
     Higgins
     Himes
     Hinojosa
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Huffman
     Israel
     Jackson Lee
     Jeffries
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Kaptur
     Keating
     Kelly (IL)
     Kennedy
     Kildee
     Kilmer
     Kind
     Kirkpatrick
     Kuster
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lawrence
     Lee
     Levin
     Lewis
     Lieu, Ted
     Loebsack
     Lofgren
     Lowenthal
     Lowey
     Lujan Grisham (NM)
     Lujan, Ben Ray (NM)
     Lynch
     Maloney, Carolyn
     Maloney, Sean
     Matsui
     McCollum
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McNerney
     Meeks
     Meng
     Moore
     Moulton
     Murphy (FL)
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Nolan
     Norcross
     O'Rourke
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Payne
     Pelosi
     Perlmutter
     Peters
     Pingree
     Pocan
     Polis
     Price (NC)
     Quigley
     Rangel
     Rice (NY)
     Richmond
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruiz
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Ryan (OH)
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Sarbanes
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Schrader
     Scott (VA)
     Scott, David
     Serrano
     Sewell (AL)
     Sherman
     Sinema
     Sires
     Slaughter
     Speier
     Swalwell (CA)
     Takai
     Takano
     Thompson (MS)
     Titus
     Tonko
     Torres
     Tsongas
     Van Hollen
     Vargas
     Veasey
     Vela
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Walz
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters, Maxine
     Watson Coleman
     Welch
     Wilson (FL)
     Yarmuth

                               NAYS--245

     Abraham
     Aderholt
     Allen
     Amash
     Amodei
     Babin
     Barletta
     Barr
     Barton
     Benishek
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (MI)
     Bishop (UT)
     Black
     Blackburn
     Blum
     Bost
     Boustany
     Brady (TX)
     Brat
     Bridenstine
     Brooks (AL)
     Brooks (IN)
     Buchanan
     Buck
     Bucshon
     Burgess
     Byrne
     Calvert
     Carter (GA)
     Carter (TX)
     Chabot
     Chaffetz
     Clawson (FL)
     Coffman
     Cole
     Collins (GA)
     Collins (NY)
     Comstock
     Conaway
     Cook
     Costello (PA)
     Cramer
     Crawford
     Crenshaw
     Culberson
     Curbelo (FL)
     Davis, Rodney
     Denham
     Dent
     DeSantis
     DesJarlais
     Diaz-Balart
     Dold
     Donovan
     Duffy
     Duncan (SC)
     Duncan (TN)
     Ellmers (NC)
     Emmer (MN)
     Farenthold
     Fitzpatrick
     Fleischmann
     Fleming
     Flores
     Forbes
     Foxx
     Franks (AZ)
     Frelinghuysen
     Garrett
     Gibbs
     Gibson
     Gohmert
     Goodlatte
     Gosar
     Gowdy
     Granger
     Graves (GA)
     Graves (LA)
     Graves (MO)
     Griffith
     Grothman
     Guinta
     Guthrie
     Hanna
     Hardy
     Harper
     Harris
     Hartzler
     Heck (NV)
     Hensarling
     Herrera Beutler
     Hice, Jody B.
     Hill
     Holding
     Hudson
     Huelskamp
     Huizenga (MI)
     Hultgren
     Hunter
     Hurd (TX)
     Hurt (VA)
     Issa
     Jenkins (KS)
     Jenkins (WV)
     Johnson (OH)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jolly
     Jones
     Jordan
     Joyce
     Katko
     Kelly (MS)
     Kelly (PA)
     King (IA)
     King (NY)
     Kinzinger (IL)
     Kline
     Knight
     Labrador
     LaHood
     LaMalfa
     Lamborn
     Lance
     Latta
     Lipinski
     LoBiondo
     Long
     Loudermilk
     Love
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Lummis
     MacArthur
     Marchant
     Marino
     Massie
     McCarthy
     McCaul
     McClintock
     McHenry
     McKinley
     McMorris Rodgers
     McSally
     Meadows
     Meehan
     Messer
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Miller (MI)
     Moolenaar
     Mooney (WV)
     Mullin
     Mulvaney
     Murphy (PA)
     Neugebauer
     Newhouse
     Noem
     Nugent
     Nunes
     Olson
     Palazzo
     Palmer
     Paulsen
     Pearce
     Perry
     Peterson
     Pittenger
     Pitts
     Poe (TX)
     Poliquin
     Pompeo
     Posey
     Price, Tom
     Ratcliffe
     Reed
     Reichert
     Renacci
     Ribble
     Rice (SC)
     Rigell
     Roby
     Roe (TN)
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rohrabacher
     Rokita
     Rooney (FL)
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roskam
     Ross
     Rothfus
     Rouzer
     Royce
     Russell
     Ryan (WI)
     Salmon
     Sanford
     Scalise
     Schweikert
     Scott, Austin
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shimkus
     Shuster
     Simpson
     Smith (MO)
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Stefanik
     Stewart
     Stivers
     Stutzman
     Thompson (PA)
     Thornberry
     Tiberi
     Tipton
     Trott
     Turner
     Upton
     Valadao
     Walberg
     Walden
     Walker
     Walorski
     Walters, Mimi
     Weber (TX)
     Webster (FL)
     Wenstrup
     Westerman
     Westmoreland
     Whitfield
     Williams
     Wilson (SC)
     Wittman
     Womack
     Woodall
     Yoder
     Yoho
     Young (AK)
     Young (IA)
     Young (IN)
     Zeldin
     Zinke

                             NOT VOTING--6

     Cardenas
     Fincher
     Fortenberry
     Smith (WA)
     Thompson (CA)
     Wagner

                              {time}  1239

  Messrs. COFFMAN, MULVANEY, and ROGERS of Alabama changed their vote 
from ``yea'' to ``nay.''
  Ms. McCOLLUM, Mr. McDERMOTT, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, and 
Mr. VAN HOLLEN changed their vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
  So the motion to recommit was rejected.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the passage of the bill.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.


                             Recorded Vote

  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.
  A recorded vote was ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. This will be a 5-minute vote.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 241, 
noes 187, answered ``present'' 1, not voting 5, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 505]

                               AYES--241

     Abraham
     Aderholt
     Allen
     Amash
     Amodei
     Babin
     Barletta
     Barr
     Barton
     Benishek
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (MI)
     Bishop (UT)
     Black
     Blackburn
     Blum
     Bost
     Boustany
     Brady (TX)
     Brat
     Bridenstine
     Brooks (AL)
     Brooks (IN)
     Buchanan
     Buck
     Bucshon
     Burgess
     Byrne
     Calvert
     Carter (GA)
     Carter (TX)
     Chabot
     Chaffetz
     Clawson (FL)
     Coffman
     Cole
     Collins (GA)
     Collins (NY)
     Comstock
     Conaway
     Cook
     Costello (PA)
     Cramer
     Crawford
     Crenshaw
     Culberson
     Curbelo (FL)
     Davis, Rodney
     Denham
     DeSantis
     DesJarlais
     Diaz-Balart
     Donovan
     Duffy
     Duncan (SC)
     Duncan (TN)
     Ellmers (NC)
     Emmer (MN)
     Farenthold
     Fitzpatrick
     Fleischmann
     Fleming
     Flores
     Forbes
     Foxx
     Franks (AZ)
     Frelinghuysen
     Garrett
     Gibbs
     Gibson
     Gohmert
     Goodlatte
     Gosar
     Gowdy
     Granger
     Graves (GA)
     Graves (LA)
     Graves (MO)
     Griffith
     Grothman
     Guinta
     Guthrie
     Hardy
     Harper
     Harris
     Hartzler
     Heck (NV)
     Hensarling
     Herrera Beutler
     Hice, Jody B.
     Hill
     Holding
     Hudson
     Huelskamp
     Huizenga (MI)
     Hultgren
     Hunter
     Hurd (TX)
     Hurt (VA)
     Issa
     Jenkins (KS)
     Jenkins (WV)
     Johnson (OH)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jolly
     Jones
     Jordan
     Joyce
     Katko
     Kelly (MS)
     Kelly (PA)
     King (NY)
     Kinzinger (IL)
     Kline
     Knight
     Labrador
     LaHood
     LaMalfa
     Lamborn
     Lance
     Latta
     Lipinski
     LoBiondo
     Long
     Loudermilk
     Love
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Lummis
     MacArthur
     Marchant
     Marino
     Massie
     McCarthy
     McCaul
     McClintock
     McHenry
     McKinley
     McMorris Rodgers
     McSally
     Meadows
     Meehan
     Messer
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Miller (MI)
     Moolenaar
     Mooney (WV)
     Mullin
     Mulvaney
     Murphy (PA)
     Neugebauer
     Newhouse
     Noem
     Nugent
     Nunes
     Olson
     Palazzo
     Palmer
     Paulsen
     Pearce
     Perry
     Peterson
     Pittenger
     Pitts
     Poe (TX)
     Poliquin
     Pompeo
     Posey
     Price, Tom
     Ratcliffe
     Reed
     Reichert
     Renacci
     Ribble
     Rice (SC)
     Rigell
     Roby
     Roe (TN)
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rohrabacher
     Rokita
     Rooney (FL)
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roskam
     Ross
     Rothfus
     Rouzer
     Royce
     Russell
     Ryan (WI)
     Salmon
     Sanford
     Scalise
     Schweikert
     Scott, Austin
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shimkus
     Shuster
     Simpson
     Smith (MO)
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Stefanik
     Stewart
     Stivers
     Stutzman
     Thompson (PA)
     Thornberry
     Tiberi
     Tipton
     Trott
     Turner
     Upton
     Valadao
     Walberg
     Walden
     Walker
     Walorski
     Walters, Mimi
     Weber (TX)
     Webster (FL)
     Wenstrup
     Westerman
     Westmoreland
     Whitfield
     Williams
     Wilson (SC)
     Wittman
     Womack
     Woodall
     Yoder
     Yoho
     Young (AK)
     Young (IA)
     Young (IN)
     Zeldin
     Zinke

                               NOES--187

     Adams
     Aguilar
     Ashford
     Bass
     Beatty
     Becerra
     Bera
     Beyer
     Bishop (GA)
     Blumenauer
     Bonamici
     Boyle, Brendan F.
     Brady (PA)
     Brown (FL)
     Brownley (CA)
     Bustos
     Butterfield
     Capps
     Capuano
     Cardenas
     Carney
     Carson (IN)
     Cartwright
     Castor (FL)
     Castro (TX)
     Chu, Judy
     Cicilline
     Clark (MA)
     Clarke (NY)
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Connolly
     Conyers
     Cooper
     Costa
     Courtney
     Crowley
     Cuellar
     Cummings
     Davis (CA)
     Davis, Danny
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     Delaney
     DeLauro
     DelBene
     Dent
     DeSaulnier
     Deutch
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Dold
     Doyle, Michael F.
     Duckworth
     Edwards
     Ellison
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Esty
     Farr
     Fattah
     Foster
     Frankel (FL)
     Fudge
     Gabbard
     Gallego
     Garamendi
     Graham
     Grayson
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hahn
     Hanna
     Hastings
     Heck (WA)
     Higgins
     Himes
     Hinojosa
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Huffman
     Israel
     Jackson Lee
     Jeffries
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Kaptur
     Keating
     Kelly (IL)
     Kennedy
     Kildee
     Kilmer
     Kind
     Kirkpatrick
     Kuster
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lawrence
     Lee
     Levin
     Lewis
     Lieu, Ted
     Loebsack
     Lofgren
     Lowenthal
     Lowey
     Lujan Grisham (NM)
     Lujan, Ben Ray (NM)
     Lynch
     Maloney, Carolyn
     Maloney, Sean
     Matsui
     McCollum

[[Page H6167]]


     McDermott
     McGovern
     McNerney
     Meeks
     Meng
     Moore
     Moulton
     Murphy (FL)
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Nolan
     Norcross
     O'Rourke
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Payne
     Pelosi
     Perlmutter
     Peters
     Pingree
     Pocan
     Polis
     Price (NC)
     Quigley
     Rangel
     Rice (NY)
     Richmond
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruiz
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Ryan (OH)
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Sarbanes
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Schrader
     Scott (VA)
     Scott, David
     Serrano
     Sewell (AL)
     Sherman
     Sinema
     Sires
     Slaughter
     Speier
     Swalwell (CA)
     Takai
     Takano
     Thompson (MS)
     Titus
     Tonko
     Torres
     Tsongas
     Van Hollen
     Vargas
     Veasey
     Vela
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Walz
     Wasserman
       Schultz
     Waters, Maxine
     Watson Coleman
     Welch
     Wilson (FL)
     Yarmuth

                        ANSWERED ``PRESENT''--1

       
     King (IA)
       

                             NOT VOTING--5

     Fincher
     Fortenberry
     Smith (WA)
     Thompson (CA)
     Wagner


                Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (during the vote). There are 2 minutes 
remaining.

                              {time}  1247

  So the bill was passed.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________