[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 174 (Wednesday, December 2, 2015)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D1265-D1267]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




[[Page D1265]]




                        House of Representatives


Chamber Action
Public Bills and Resolutions Introduced: 13 public bills, H.R. 4152-64; 
and 2 resolutions, H. Res. 545, 547 were introduced.     
  Pages H8970-71
Additional Cosponsors:                                   
  Pages H8971-72
Report Filed: A report was filed today as follows:
  H. Res. 546, providing for consideration of the conference report to 
accompany the bill (H.R. 22) to authorize funds for Federal-aid 
highways, highway safety programs, and transit programs, and for other 
purposes (H. Rept. 114-360).                                 
Page H8970
Speaker: Read a letter from the Speaker wherein he appointed 
Representative Palazzo to act as Speaker pro tempore for today. 
                                                             Page H8863
Recess: The House recessed at 10:54 a.m. and reconvened at 12 noon. 
                                                             Page H8869
Motion to Instruct Conferees: The House rejected the Kuster motion to 
instruct conferees on H.R. 644 by a yea-and-nay vote of 193 yeas to 232 
nays, Roll No. 655. The motion was debated yesterday, December 1st. 
                                                             Page H8884
  Subsequently, the Chair appointed the following conferees on H.R. 
644: Representatives Brady (TX), Reichert, Tiberi, Levin, and Linda T. 
Sanchez (CA).                                                
Page H8884
Every Child Achieves Act of 2015: The House agreed to the conference 
report to accompany S. 1177, to reauthorize the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 to ensure that every child achieves, by 
a yea-and-nay vote of 359 yeas to 64 nays, Roll No. 665. 
                                               Pages H8884-94, H8951-52
  H. Res. 542, the rule providing for further consideration of the bill 
(H.R. 8) and the conference report to accompany the bill (S. 1177) was 
agreed to by a recorded vote of 240 ayes to 181 noes, Roll No. 654, 
after the previous question was ordered by a yea-and-nay vote of 243 
yeas to 177 nays, Roll No. 653.                          
Pages H8882-84
  North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act of 2015: The 
House resumed consideration of H.R. 8, to modernize energy 
infrastructure, build a 21st century energy and manufacturing 
workforce, bolster America's energy security and diplomacy, and promote 
energy efficiency and government accountability. Consideration is 
expected to continue tomorrow, December 3rd. 
                                            Pages H8875-84, H8894-H8965
  Pursuant to the Rule, an amendment in the nature of a substitute 
consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 114-36 shall be 
considered as an original bill for the purpose of amendment under the 
five-minute rule, in lieu of the amendment in the nature of a 
substitute recommended by the Committee on Energy and Commerce now 
printed in the bill.                                         
Page H8875
  Agreed to:
  Peters amendment (No. 3 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that includes 
energy storage as a form of energy that DOE should consider to enhance 
emergency preparedness for energy supply disruptions during natural 
disasters;                                               
Pages H8924-25
  Franks (AZ) amendment (No. 4 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that 
secures the most critical components of America's electrical 
infrastructure against the threat posed by a potentially catastrophic 
electromagnetic pulse;                                   
Pages H8925-26
  Poliquin amendment (No. 5 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that clarifies 
that electric plants can be considered reliable without having to enter 
into supply contracts that are greater than one year;    
Pages H8926-27
  Veasey amendment (No. 6 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that requires 
the Department of Energy to submit a report to Congress on the 
potential effects commercial utilization of Carbon Capture and 
Sequestration could have on the economy, energy infrastructure and 
greenhouse gas emission goals;                               
Page H8927
  McKinley amendment (No. 7 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that directs 
the Secretary of Energy and the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation 
with other relevant agencies and stakeholders, to conduct a study on 
the feasibility of establishing an ethane storage and distribution hub 
in the United States;                                    
Pages H8927-28
  Ellmers (NC) amendment (No. 8 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that makes 
a statement of policy on grid modernization;             
Pages H8928-29
  Jackson Lee amendment (No. 9 printed in H. Rept. 114-359), as 
modified, that directs the Secretary of Energy to submit to the 
Congress a report on methods to increase electric grid resilience with 
respect to all threats, including cyber attacks, vandalism, terrorism, 
and severe weather, no later than 120 days after the date of enactment 
of the Act;                                              
Pages H8929-30
  Kildee amendment (No. 10 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that instructs 
the GAO to study ways to improve the National Response Center; 
                                                         Pages H8930-31
  Garamendi amendment (No. 12 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that 
includes energy transportation in the list of considerations for the 
Energy Security Valuation report in Sec. 3002;               
Page H8931

[[Page D1266]]


  McKinley amendment (No. 13 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that ensures 
that no permit for the construction, operation, or maintenance of an 
export facility can be denied until all reviews required under the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 are complete;      
Page H8932
  Takano amendment (No. 16 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that requires a 
GAO Report to be submitted to Congress on the potential of battery 
energy storage;                                          
Pages H8934-35
  Peters amendment (No. 18 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that requires 
the Secretary of Energy to report on energy savings and greenhouse gas 
emissions reduction from conversion of captured methane to energy; 
                                                             Page H8936
  Brooks (IN) amendment (No. 20 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that calls 
on the Department of Energy to review and update the data used for a 9 
year old federal study on re-refined oil, and requires the development 
of a strategy to increase its collections and sustainability; 
                                                         Pages H8937-38
  Upton amendment (No. 21 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that makes a 
technical fix to DOE's External Power Supply Rule;           
Page H8938
  Upton amendment (No. 1 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that strikes a 
number of provisions, some of which have already been enacted into law, 
and makes technical and conforming changes to the reported text of H.R. 
8, H.R. 2295, and H.R. 2358 (by a recorded vote of 246 ayes to 177 
noes, Roll No. 656);                           
Pages H8919-23, H8945-46
  Gene Green (TX) amendment (No. 14 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that 
creates a permitting process through the Department of Energy, FERC, 
and Department of State for cross-border infrastructure projects (by a 
recorded vote of 263 ayes to 158 noes, Roll No. 658); 
                                                  Pages H8932-34, H8947
  Barton amendment (No. 25 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that repeals 
restrictions on the export of crude oil and includes provisions of H.R. 
702 as passed by the House (by a recorded vote of 255 ayes to 168 noes, 
Roll No. 664);                                    
Pages H8943-45, H8951
  Duffy amendment (No. 27 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that requires 
the EPA to satisfy regulatory planning and review requirements 
established by the Clinton and Obama Administrations;    
Pages H8953-54
  Gosar amendment (No. 28 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that ensures 
timely review for legal challenges of energy projects on federal land 
and limits attorney fees in order to discourage frivolous lawsuits and 
foster energy production;                                
Pages H8954-56
  Upton amendment (No. 29 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that requires 
the Department of Energy and Department of Commerce to conduct a study 
regarding the legal and regulatory barriers that delay, prohibit, or 
impede the export of natural energy resources;               
Page H8956
  Castor (FL) amendment (No. 31 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that 
allows community solar projects to be connected to their power 
distribution system and allows the electricity produced by the 
community solar facility to be credited directly to each of the 
consumers that owns a share of the system;               
Pages H8957-58
  DeSaulnier amendment (No. 32 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that 
requires the Department of Energy to study the maximum level of 
volatility that is consistent with the safest practicable shipment of 
crude oil;                                               
Pages H8958-59
  Deutch amendment (No. 33 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that promotes 
the research, development, and demonstration of marine hydrokinetic 
energy technologies and improves the regulatory process for such 
programs;                                                
Pages H8959-60
  Grayson amendment (No. 34 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that 
establishes minimum privacy standards for ``Smart Meters'' and their 
use in the smart grid;                                   
Pages H8960-61
  Jackson Lee amendment (No. 35 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that 
directs the Secretaries of Energy and Commerce to jointly establish an 
energy enterprise competition to encourage youth to propose solutions 
to the energy challenges of the United States and to promote youth 
interest in careers in science, technology, engineering, and math, 
especially as those fields relate to energy;             
Pages H8961-63
  Meng amendment (No. 36 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that strikes 
terms such as ``Oriental'' and ``Negro'' from two sections of title 42 
of the U.S. Code, and replaces them with culturally appropriate terms; 
and                                                          
Page H8963
  Norcross amendment (No. 38 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that directs 
the Secretary of Energy to study weaknesses in the security 
architecture of certain smart meters currently available. 
                                                         Pages H8964-65
Rejected:
  Tonko amendment (No. 2 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that sought to 
strike Section 1101 (by a recorded vote of 179 ayes to 244 noes, Roll 
No. 657);                                         
Pages H8923-24, H8946
  Beyer amendment (No. 17 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that sought to 
strike the repeal of Section 433 of the Energy Independence and 
Security Act which establishes targets for reducing energy from fossil 
fuels in federal buildings (by a recorded vote of 172 ayes to 246 noes, 
Roll No. 659);                                 
Pages H8935-36, H8947-48
  Schakowsky amendment (No. 19 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that sought 
to strip Section 4125 from the bill; Section 4125 eliminates an 
existing consumer right to recover costs due to manufacturer

[[Page D1267]]

misrepresentation of Energy Star products (by a recorded vote of 183 
ayes to 239 noes, Roll No. 660);               
Pages H8936-37, H8948-49
  Tonko amendment (No. 22 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that sought to 
reauthorize the Weatherization Assistance Program and the State Energy 
Program through Fiscal Year 2020 (by a recorded vote of 198 ayes to 224 
noes, Roll No. 661);                           
Pages H8938-40, H8949-50
  Castor (FL) amendment (No. 23 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that 
sought to strengthen energy infrastructure resiliency and improves 
energy efficiency by incentivizing local renewable thermal (heating and 
cooling) energy and waste heat such as combined heat and power and by 
providing technical assistance to eligible entities to establish 
distributed energy systems (by a recorded vote of 175 ayes to 247 noes, 
Roll No. 662); and                                
Pages H8940-42, H8949
  Polis amendment (No. 24 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that sought to 
require the Secretary of the Interior to notify landowners, and any 
adjacent landholders, when federally owned minerals beneath their land 
have been leased for oil and gas development (by a recorded vote of 206 
ayes to 216 noes, Roll No. 663).                  
Pages H8942-43, H8950
Proceedings Postponed:
  Cramer amendment (No. 26 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that seeks to 
authorize voluntary vegetation management within 150 feet of the 
exterior boundary of the right-of-way near structures; prevents sale of 
vegetation and limits legal liability;                       
Page H8953
  Rouzer amendment (No. 30 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that seeks to 
repeal the March 2015 EPA final rule establishing federal standards for 
residential wood heaters; and                            
Pages H8956-57
  Pallone amendment (No. 37 printed in H. Rept. 114-359) that seeks to 
prohibit the Act from taking effect until after the Energy Information 
Administration analyzed and published a report on the carbon impacts of 
the Act's provisions.                                    
Pages H8963-64
  H. Res. 542, the rule providing for further consideration of the bill 
(H.R. 8) and the conference report to accompany the bill (S. 1177) was 
agreed to by a recorded vote of 240 ayes to 181 noes, Roll No. 654, 
after the previous question was ordered by a yea-and-nay vote of 243 
yeas to 177 nays, Roll No. 653.                          
Pages H8882-84
Meeting Hour: Agreed by unanimous consent that when the House adjourns 
today, it adjourn to meet at 9 a.m. tomorrow, December 3.    
  Page H8952
Quorum Calls--Votes: Three yea-and-nay votes and ten recorded votes 
developed during the proceedings of today and appear on pages H8882-83, 
H8883-84, H8884, H8945-46, H8946, H8947, H8947-48, H8948, H8949, H8949-
50, H8950, H8951 and H8951-52. There were no quorum calls.
Adjournment: The House met at 10 a.m. and adjourned at 9:20 p.m.