[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 210 (Friday, December 22, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1757]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  MOTION TO CONCUR IN THE SENATE AMENDMENT WITH AN AMENDMENT TO H.R. 
 1370--FURTHER CONTINUING RESOLUTION FOR FY2018 AND H.R. 4667--MAKING 
    FURTHER SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING 
  SEPTEMBER 30, 2018, FOR DISASTER ASSISTANCE FOR HURRICANES HARVEY, 
           IRMA, AND MARIA, AND CALENDAR YEAR 2017 WILDFIRES

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. BETTY McCOLLUM

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, December 22, 2017

  Ms. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, it is no secret that the Republican 
majority has utterly failed to govern responsibly and has neglected the 
needs of the American people. The federal government's fiscal year 
started three months ago, and since then House Republicans have 
accomplished nothing except to pass their deficit busting tax-scam for 
big corporations and billionaires. In the meantime, they have held 
hostage a full year of funding for our government and failed to extend 
critical healthcare programs like the Children's Health Insurance 
Program (CHIP). So here we are debating H.R. 1370, a third continuing 
resolution that attempts to paper over the failures of this Republican 
Congress. Mr. Speaker, this is simply intolerable to my constituents.
  H.R. 1370 contains billions in defense ``anomalies'' that are not 
subject to the discretionary spending caps and have not had a single 
hearing in the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. Democrats 
have been ready for months to strike a bipartisan agreement to raise 
the caps for defense and nondefense spending with parity. Bypassing the 
defense cap with new spending in H.R. 1370 is unacceptable.
  H.R. 1370 fails to include a bipartisan reauthorization of the 
Children's Health Insurance Program, continuing the uncertainty and 
fear that 9 million children and their families who depend on the 
program face. The funding provided for CHIP in this bill would only 
fund the program through March, 2018, and would be offset with cuts to 
other critical healthcare programs like the Prevention and Public 
Health Fund. Every American should be offended that Republicans have 
spent their time passing tax cuts for the rich while the medical needs 
of children are cast aside.
  H.R. 1370 also temporarily extends surveillance authorities under the 
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, including FISA Section 702. In 
2012, I did not vote to extend these authorities when they were 
reauthorized out of a concern for how the privacy of the American 
people would be impacted. Since 2012, there has been no effort to 
address my concerns, so I cannot support an extension of FISA in the 
current form.
  Finally, while I am glad to see that a serious conversation has begun 
on separate legislation that would provide additional emergency 
disaster relief for areas impacted by this year's hurricane season 
(H.R. 4667), I am deeply concerned that the bill fails to fix a 
Medicaid funding shortfall in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. 
If this is not addressed early in the next session of Congress, 
thousands of Americans will be at risk of losing access to critical 
healthcare programs in 2018. The federal government has a 
responsibility to provide the same standard of federal assistance to 
the American citizens living in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands 
as it does to states. As we debate this today, the Senate has already 
indicated they will not take up H.R. 4667 due to these same concerns.
  Mr. Speaker, Republicans need to stop lurching from crisis to crisis. 
These problems require bipartisan solutions, and we know from history 
that the only way appropriations bills are enacted into law is when 
Republicans and Democrats reach an agreement on funding levels. So I 
urge my Republican colleagues to put forward appropriate funding levels 
for all twelve appropriations bills and finally work with Democrats to 
meet the challenges our nation faces.

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