[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 165 (Thursday, November 5, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1601-E1602]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HIRE MORE HEROES ACT OF 2015

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                       HON. LUCILLE ROYBAL-ALLARD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 3, 2015

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under

[[Page E1602]]

     consideration the bill (H.R. 22) to amend the Internal 
     Revenue Code of 1986 to exempt employees with health coverage 
     under TRICARE or the Veterans Administration from being taken 
     into account for purposes of determining the employers to 
     which the employer mandate applies under the Patient 
     Protection and Affordable Care Act:

  Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of the House 
amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 22, the DRIVE Act. I believe 
many areas of this legislation still need improvement, and I am hopeful 
this will occur in conference. I will support the legislation in order 
to move the process forward and help provide greater certainty for the 
delivery of current and pending transportation projects across the 
country.
  The legislation only provides $325 billion over the course of six 
years. The funding level proposed in this legislation will not be 
sufficient if we truly want to improve our infrastructure and keep our 
country competitive in the years to come. In addition, this six-year 
legislation is only paid for through the first three years. Congress 
needs to pay for all six years to ensure that the federal government 
can engage in new transportation projects with the states during the 
final three years of the legislation. As the legislation goes to 
conference, I will keep fighting to increase its funding.
  While I am concerned about several elements in the legislation, I am 
glad that it includes the reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank, 
which passed the House with bipartisan support last week. The Export-
Import Bank supports millions of dollars in exports by businesses in my 
district, and helps them to better compete in the global market. The 
reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank will strengthen American 
businesses and create American jobs.
  I look forward to continuing to work with my House colleagues to 
resolve the issues of concern in the Surface Transportation 
Reauthorization. I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation 
and help to move the process forward, for the sake of our economy and 
our national infrastructure.

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