[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 158 (Tuesday, October 3, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H7694-H7698]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          EARLY HEARING DETECTION AND INTERVENTION ACT OF 2017

  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (S. 652) to amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize a 
program for early detection, diagnosis, and treatment regarding deaf 
and hard-of-hearing newborns, infants, and young children.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                 S. 652

       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 ``Early Hearing Detection and 
     Intervention Act of 2017''.

     SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF PROGRAM FOR EARLY DETECTION, 
                   DIAGNOSIS, AND TREATMENT REGARDING DEAF AND 
                   HARD-OF-HEARING NEWBORNS, INFANTS, AND YOUNG 
                   CHILDREN.

       (a) Section Heading.--The section heading of section 399M 
     of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-1) is 
     amended to read as follows:

     ``SEC. 399M. EARLY DETECTION, DIAGNOSIS, AND TREATMENT 
                   REGARDING DEAF AND HARD-OF-HEARING NEWBORNS, 
                   INFANTS, AND YOUNG CHILDREN.''.

       (b) Statewide Systems.--Section 399M(a) of the Public 
     Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-1(a)) is amended--
       (1) in the subsection heading, by striking ``Newborn and 
     Infant'' and inserting ``Newborn, Infant, and Young Child'';

[[Page H7695]]

       (2) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)--
       (A) by striking ``newborn and infant'' and inserting 
     ``newborn, infant, and young child''; and
       (B) by striking ``providers,'' and inserting ``providers 
     (including, as appropriate, education and training of family 
     members),'';
       (3) in paragraph (1)--
       (A) in the first sentence--
       (i) by striking ``newborns and infants'' and inserting 
     ``newborns, infants, and young children (referred to in this 
     section as `children')''; and
       (ii) by striking ``and medical'' and all that follows 
     through the period and inserting ``medical, and communication 
     (or language acquisition) interventions (including family 
     support), for children identified as deaf or hard-of-hearing, 
     consistent with the following:'';
       (B) in the second sentence--
       (i) by striking ``Early'' and inserting the following:
       ``(A) Early'';
       (ii) by striking ``and delivery of'' and inserting ``, and 
     delivery of,'';
       (iii) by striking ``by schools'' and all that follows 
     through ``programs mandated'' and inserting ``by 
     organizations such as schools and agencies (including 
     community, consumer, and family-based agencies), in health 
     care settings (including medical homes for children), and in 
     programs mandated''; and
       (iv) by striking ``hard of hearing'' and all that follows 
     through the period and inserting ``hard-of-hearing 
     children.''; and
       (C) by striking the last sentence and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(B) Information provided to families should be accurate, 
     comprehensive, up-to-date, and evidence-based, as 
     appropriate, to allow families to make important decisions 
     for their children in a timely manner, including decisions 
     with respect to the full range of assistive hearing 
     technologies and communications modalities, as appropriate.
       ``(C) Programs and systems under this paragraph shall offer 
     mechanisms that foster family-to-family and deaf and hard-of-
     hearing consumer-to-family supports.'';
       (4) in paragraph (2), by striking ``To collect'' and all 
     that follows through the period and inserting ``To continue 
     to provide technical support to States, through one or more 
     technical resource centers, to assist in further developing 
     and enhancing State early hearing detection and intervention 
     programs.''; and
       (5) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following:
       ``(3) To identify or develop efficient models (educational 
     and medical) to ensure that children who are identified as 
     deaf or hard-of-hearing through screening receive follow-up 
     by qualified early intervention providers or qualified health 
     care providers (including those at medical homes for 
     children), and referrals, as appropriate, including to early 
     intervention services under part C of the Individuals with 
     Disabilities Education Act. State agencies shall be 
     encouraged to effectively increase the rate of such follow-up 
     and referral.''.
       (c) Technical Assistance, Data Management, and Applied 
     Research.--Section 399M(b)(1) of the Public Health Service 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-1(b)(1)) is amended--
       (1) in the first sentence--
       (A) by striking ``The Secretary'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(A) In general.--The Secretary'';
       (B) by striking ``to complement an intramural program and'' 
     and inserting the following: ``or designated entities of 
     States--
       ``(i) to develop, maintain, and improve data collection 
     systems related to newborn, infant, and young child hearing 
     screening, evaluation (including audiologic, medical, and 
     language acquisition evaluations), diagnosis, and 
     intervention services;'';
       (C) by striking ``to conduct'' and inserting the following:
       ``(ii) to conduct''; and
       (D) by striking ``newborn'' and all that follows through 
     the period and inserting the following: ``newborn, infant, 
     and young child hearing screening, evaluation, and 
     intervention programs and outcomes;
       ``(iii) to ensure quality monitoring of hearing screening, 
     evaluation, and intervention programs and systems for 
     newborns, infants, and young children; and
       ``(iv) to support newborn, infant, and young child hearing 
     screening, evaluation, and intervention programs, and 
     information systems.'';
       (2) in the second sentence--
       (A) by striking the matter that precedes subparagraph (A) 
     and all that follows through subparagraph (C) and inserting 
     the following:
       ``(B) Use of awards.--The awards made under subparagraph 
     (A) may be used--
       ``(i) to provide technical assistance on data collection 
     and management, including to coordinate and develop 
     standardized procedures for data management;
       ``(ii) to assess and report on the cost and program 
     effectiveness of newborn, infant, and young child hearing 
     screening, evaluation, and intervention programs and systems;
       ``(iii) to collect data and report on newborn, infant, and 
     young child hearing screening, evaluation, diagnosis, and 
     intervention programs and systems for applied research, 
     program evaluation, and policy improvement;'';
       (B) by redesignating subparagraphs (D), (E), and (F) as 
     clauses (iv), (v), and (vi), respectively, and aligning the 
     margins of those clauses with the margins of clause (i) of 
     subparagraph (B) (as inserted by subparagraph (A) of this 
     paragraph);
       (C) in clause (v) (as redesignated by subparagraph (B) of 
     this paragraph)--
       (i) by striking ``newborn and infant'' and inserting 
     ``newborn, infant, and young child''; and
       (ii) by striking ``language status'' and inserting 
     ``hearing status''; and
       (D) in clause (vi) (as redesignated by subparagraph (B) of 
     this paragraph)--
       (i) by striking ``sharing'' and inserting ``integration and 
     interoperability''; and
       (ii) by striking ``with State-based'' and all that follows 
     through the period and inserting ``across multiple sources to 
     increase the flow of information between clinical care and 
     public health settings, including the ability of States and 
     territories to exchange and share data.''.
       (d) Coordination and Collaboration.--Section 399M(c) of the 
     Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-1(c)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1)--
       (A) by striking ``consult with'' and inserting ``consult 
     with--'';
       (B) by striking ``other Federal'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(A) other Federal'';
       (C) by striking ``State and local agencies, including 
     those'' and inserting the following:
       ``(B) State and local agencies, including agencies'';
       (D) by striking ``consumer groups of and that serve'' and 
     inserting the following:
       ``(C) consumer groups of, and that serve,'';
       (E) by striking ``appropriate national'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(D) appropriate national'';
       (F) by striking ``persons who are deaf and'' and inserting 
     the following:
       ``(E) individuals who are deaf or'';
       (G) by striking ``other qualified'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(F) other qualified'';
       (H) by striking ``newborns, infants, toddlers, children,'' 
     and inserting ``children,'';
       (I) by striking ``third-party'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(G) third-party''; and
       (J) by striking ``related commercial'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(H) related commercial''; and
       (2) in paragraph (3)--
       (A) by striking ``States to establish newborn and infant'' 
     and inserting the following: ``States--
       ``(A) to establish newborn, infant, and young child'';
       (B) by inserting a semicolon after ``subsection (a)''; and
       (C) by striking ``to develop'' and inserting the following:
       ``(B) to develop''.
       (e) Rule of Construction; Religious Accommodation.--Section 
     399M(d) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-
     1(d)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``which'' and inserting ``that'';
       (2) by striking ``newborn infants or young''; and
       (3) by striking ``parents' '' and inserting ``parent's''.
       (f) Definitions.--Section 399M(e) of the Public Health 
     Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-1(e)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1)--
       (A) by striking ``(1)'' and all that follows through ``to 
     procedures'' and inserting the following:
       ``(1) The term `audiologic', when used in connection with 
     evaluation, means procedures--'';
       (B) by striking ``to assess'' and inserting the following:
       ``(A) to assess'';
       (C) by striking ``to establish'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(B) to establish'';
       (D) by striking ``auditory disorder;'' and inserting 
     ``auditory disorder,'';
       (E) by striking ``to identify'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(C) to identify'';
       (F) by striking ``options.'' and all that follows through 
     ``linkage'' and inserting the following: ``options, 
     including--
       ``(i) linkage'';
       (G) by striking ``appropriate agencies,'' and all that 
     follows through ``national'' and inserting the following: 
     ``appropriate agencies;
       ``(ii) medical evaluation;
       ``(iii) assessment for the full range of assistive hearing 
     technologies appropriate for newborns, infants, and young 
     children;
       ``(iv) audiologic rehabilitation treatment; and
       ``(v) referral to national''; and
       (H) by striking ``parent, and education'' and inserting 
     ``parent, family, and education'';
       (2) by striking paragraph (2);
       (3) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (6) as 
     paragraphs (2) through (5);
       (4) in paragraph (2) (as redesignated by paragraph (3) of 
     this subsection)--
       (A) by striking ``refers to providing'' and inserting the 
     following: ``means--
       ``(A) providing'';
       (B) by striking ``with hearing loss, including nonmedical 
     services,'' and inserting ``who is deaf or hard-of-hearing, 
     including nonmedical services;'';
       (C) by striking ``ensuring that families of the child are 
     provided'' and inserting the following:
       ``(B) ensuring that the family of the child is--
       ``(i) provided'';

[[Page H7696]]

       (D) by striking ``language and communication options and 
     are given'' and inserting the following: ``language 
     acquisition in oral and visual modalities; and
       ``(ii) given''; and
       (E) by striking ``their child'' and inserting ``the 
     child'';
       (5) in paragraph (3) (as redesignated by paragraph (3) of 
     this subsection), by striking ``(3)'' and all that follows 
     through ``decision making'' and inserting ``The term `medical 
     evaluation' means key components performed by a physician 
     including history, examination, and medical decisionmaking'';
       (6) in paragraph (4) (as redesignated by paragraph (3) of 
     this subsection)--
       (A) by striking ``refers to'' and inserting ``means'';
       (B) by striking ``and/or surgical'' and inserting ``or 
     surgical''; and
       (C) by striking ``of hearing'' and all that follows through 
     ``disorder'' and inserting ``for hearing loss or other 
     medical disorders''; and
       (7) in paragraph (5) (as redesignated by paragraph (3) of 
     this subsection)--
       (A) by striking ``(5)'' and all that follows through 
     ``refers to'' and inserting ``(5) The term `newborn, infant, 
     and young child hearing screening' means''; and
       (B) by striking ``and infants'' and inserting ``, infants, 
     and young children under 3 years of age''.
       (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 399M(f) of 
     the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-1(f)) is 
     amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``such sums'' and all 
     that follows through the period and inserting ``$17,818,000 
     for fiscal year 2018, $18,173,800 for fiscal year 2019, 
     $18,628,145 for fiscal year 2020, $19,056,592 for fiscal year 
     2021, and $19,522,758 for fiscal year 2022.''; and
       (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``such sums'' and all 
     that follows through the period and inserting ``$10,800,000 
     for fiscal year 2018, $11,026,800 for fiscal year 2019, 
     $11,302,470 for fiscal year 2020, $11,562,427 for fiscal year 
     2021, and $11,851,488 for fiscal year 2022.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Womack). Pursuant to the rule, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess) and the gentlewoman from Florida 
(Ms. Castor) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert 
extraneous material into the Record on the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. Walden), chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee.
  Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I really want to thank our Members on both 
sides of the aisle, and especially the gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
Burgess) and the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie), who has an 
identical bill, the House companion bill to this one.
  S. 652 revises the Public Health Service Act's expanding access to 
critical resources for the deaf and hard-of-hearing newborns and young 
children. It will boost training of healthcare professionals in helping 
these young parents and ensure that, in turn, they can help educate the 
patient's family members.
  This bill will also deliver relief to parents and caretakers of young 
children that have hearing loss, granting them important resources to 
aid in their care.
  Again, the Health Subcommittee vice chair, Brett Guthrie, is the 
author of the House companion. When the House today approves this 
legislation, which I assume it will, that means this bill will go to 
the President's desk and be signed into law. This is really important 
work that the Energy and Commerce Committee is doing, once again, in a 
big and bipartisan way. It is an important bill that will expand access 
to critical resources for deaf and hard-of-hearing newborns and young 
children.
  By updating and reauthorizing HRSA and CDC grants to help States 
treat children with hearing loss, we are doing our work to achieve 
better outcomes for patients.
  I am particularly pleased about the potential to harness new and 
improved data collection systems to improve access. You know, if we can 
better understand what is happening with patients on the ground, we can 
make better decisions about where to allocate resources to help recruit 
more providers and improve coordination of care for children with 
hearing loss.
  Mr. Speaker, I am delighted with the work of the Health Subcommittee 
and the Members who have put so much into this legislation, and I look 
forward to the House passing it.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Early Hearing Detection and 
Intervention Act authored by two of my Energy and Commerce Committee 
colleagues, Mr. Brett Guthrie from Kentucky and Ms. Doris Matsui from 
California. I thank Chairman Walden and Chairman Burgess for their 
help. I also thank Senators Portman and Kaine from the Senate.
  It is vital that the House reauthorize the early hearing detection 
and intervention initiative for an additional 5 years because it 
provides the all-important newborn and infant hearing screening, 
evaluation, and intervention.
  The bill will provide vital resources to the Health Resources and 
Services Administration to run a grant initiative and allow the Centers 
for Disease Control to conduct hearing loss research.
  According to data from the CDC, 1.4 babies out of every--I don't know 
how you get 1.4--but 1.4 babies out of 1,000 that were screened were 
found to have a prevalence of hearing loss. And as a mother, I know how 
important it is to determine if your child has any level of hearing 
loss as early as possible so that a parent can determine the best 
treatment to allow their child to live a full and happy life.
  My home State of Florida has required newborn screening since October 
1, 2000. We need to keep this going. According to the most recent State 
data in Florida, 98 percent of all newborns in Florida will be screened 
within the first month. That is absolutely vital to detect any problem 
early in their lives.
  So let's work together. Extending this newborn screening initiative 
for another 5 years ensures that babies will continue to have access to 
this vital hearing screening, and we can make sure that kids across 
America get the healthcare that they need.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to again thank my colleagues, 
Representatives Guthrie and Matsui and Senators Portman and Kaine, for 
leading the charge on this important effort. I encourage my colleagues 
to support this bipartisan S. 652.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I also want to be in strong support of S. 652, the Early 
Hearing Detection and Intervention Act of 2017, sponsored by Senator 
Portman from Ohio. This legislation has been championed in the House by 
my friend, the vice chair of the Health Subcommittee, Representative 
Brett Guthrie, as H.R. 1539.
  The bill does have strong bipartisan support and, in fact, passed 
this House unanimously in the last Congress. Federal support for early 
hearing detection and intervention programs across the country help 
identify children with hearing loss and directs them to early 
intervention services.
  This program is a model of how government at different levels and 
public and private agencies can and should work together. In addition 
to improving upon current programs, this legislation improves the 
recruitment, retention, education, and training of qualified personnel 
and health providers to identify and assist young children with hearing 
loss.
  This bill emphasizes the importance of the Health Resources and 
Services Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 
and the National Institutes of Health partnering together to improve 
outcomes and strengthen the early hearing detection intervention 
program. I commend Representative Guthrie for spearheading this 
initiative on the House side.

  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield the balance of my time to 
the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Matsui), the primary cosponsor of 
the bill. And I thank her for championing the healthcare of children 
across America.
  Ms. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1539, the Early 
Hearing Detection and Intervention Act of 2017, which I coauthored with 
my colleague, Congressman Guthrie.

[[Page H7697]]

  The Newborn Hearing Screening and Intervention Program established 
almost 2 decades ago has been life-changing for those born deaf or hard 
of hearing. A member of my staff in Sacramento, Devin, was born hard of 
hearing but didn't receive a screening at birth. For the first few 
years of her life, she appeared to be struggling to keep up with her 
peers.
  It wasn't until Devin reached the middle of kindergarten that her 
teacher suggested she get her hearing tested. After receiving her 
diagnosis, Devin's family was able to seek out tools and resources to 
help her catch up to her classmates in school.
  Devin's story illustrates the importance of early detection and 
intervention. We know that a child's development in the first few years 
of their life can have a major impact on their well-being later on.
  By extending this program through our legislation, we are ensuring 
that infants continue to have access to hearing screenings at birth so 
their parents can make informed choices about their care and management 
early on.
  We have come so far in increasing the number of babies who are 
screened every year. By passing this legislation, we are continuing 
that progress.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, Congressman Guthrie, for his 
leadership on this issue, and I ask for everyone's support.
  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie), the author of the bill and 
the vice chairman of the Health Subcommittee.
  Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  The gentlewoman from California (Ms. Matsui) and I have worked on a 
lot of issues together, and it is always a pleasure to work with her 
and to move important things forward. I know a lot of times you see a 
lot of big issues need to be addressed, but a lot of things are getting 
done here in the House.
  Today, once we pass this bill, it goes to the President. It is coming 
back from the Senate, so it goes to the President.
  My interest in this is when I was in the General Assembly of 
Kentucky, the Governor had a big proposal dealing with children in the 
first 3 years of their life and was looking at a lot of money to be 
spent. And I remember doing research on a site. I found a report from a 
doctor from Vanderbilt, and I went down and met with her. So there has 
been a lot of debate on the research of some of the things that we were 
looking at moving forward.
  She said: In normal stimulation, a child is going to rise to their 
ability.
  But she did say this: If you took a healthy baby and put it into a 
closet with no light, and it couldn't hear, and pull it out 3 years 
later--which obviously you couldn't do that--it wouldn't be able to see 
and it would never be able to develop its hearing because the brain 
does start adjusting at a young age.
  That is why you can learn a language far better as a child than you 
can as an adult.

                              {time}  1415

  So I was driving back, and part of what Governor Patton of Kentucky 
had proposed was screening, eyesight screening, and early childhood 
hearing detection as part of the bill. So a lot of us were saying: 
``What do you do with mandates?''
  I was driving back, and I remember thinking, well, if you were born 
and you can't see well, if you were born and you can't hear well, then 
isn't that the same thing as being put in a dark closet? Because if you 
don't figure out till you show up to school that you can't hear well, 
then you have lost those first 3 to 5 years of ability and lost 
language ability for a lifetime.
  So for the small amount of money that it actually costs, we passed 
and authorized, in Kentucky, mandated screenings. One is for eyesight, 
which my son got caught in going into kindergarten. That is the first 
time you can really test them, when we gather them, but you can test 
newborns at birth. If you can find a newborn at birth that has a 
hearing impairment and get it corrected, it will develop just like all 
the other healthy children, so why not do it?
  So I got to Washington, D.C. It is a national program. It is not 
something I came up with. It was authored before, so we are here today 
to reauthorize it.
  I just want to point out this program is a success. In 2000, 40 
percent of newborns were screened for hearing loss. That number rose to 
over 86 percent in 2011. In 2015, CDC has reported that roughly 97 
percent of infants are screened for hearing loss. Think of the 
difference that makes in these children's lives when we catch them.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Congresswoman Matsui. I want to thank 
Senator Kaine from Virginia and Senator Portman from Ohio for taking 
the bipartisan lead in the Senate. I thank them for their hard work.
  I am proud to say, when we take this vote today, it doesn't go back 
to the Senate. It goes to the President, and we look forward to his 
signature and continuing this in moving forward. I have been honored to 
be part of this.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Burgess for yielding.
  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Speaker, once again, I would like to thank 
my Energy and Commerce colleagues, especially Mr. Guthrie and Ms. 
Matsui. I urge approval of this bipartisan bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Bilirakis).
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas for 
yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this bipartisan bill to 
reauthorize the Newborn Hearing Screening and Intervention Program.
  If this law were around when I was a newborn, we might have caught my 
hearing loss at a younger age. I don't want kids to go through what I 
have gone through. Representative Guthrie said it about his child. I 
had vision problems, too.
  We want to give these children an opportunity to succeed. That is why 
we are here in this Congress. That is why it makes it worthwhile to 
make a difference in a person's life. All they are asking for is an 
opportunity to succeed. So now as a user of hearing aids myself, I was 
proud to cosponsor the bipartisan bill, the House version introduced by 
my colleagues, Mr. Guthrie and Ms. Matsui.
  Studies have shown that important language development skills are 
learned prior to a child's third birthday, as hearing and language are 
closely linked. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, 33 
children are born every day with hearing impairment, making it the most 
common congenital condition in the United States. If left undiagnosed, 
a child can risk developmental challenges and setbacks.
  Since its inception in 1999, the Newborn Hearing Screening and 
Intervention Program has improved the lives of numerous children. Over 
its first 15 years, the percentage of newborn babies screened every 
year increased from 40 percent in 2000 to approximately 96 percent of 
infants in 2015.
  The bill builds on this legacy of success, allowing for vital 
screenings and monitoring to continue, while improving timely follow-up 
for infants to receive the care they need--key to healthy development.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 30 
seconds.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, all these children are asking for is an opportunity to 
succeed.
  I had difficulty hearing in the classroom. I don't know how I got 
through, but I did. I had a hard time seeing the blackboard. I don't 
know how I got through my math, but I did.
  Again, this is why we are here: to make a difference.
  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to vote in favor of this 
important legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, S. 652.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.

[[Page H7698]]

  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________