[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 63 (Wednesday, April 18, 2018)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D415-D416]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS AND THE BUREAU OF RECLAMATION
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water 
Development concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates 
and justification for fiscal year 2019 for the Army Corps of Engineers 
and the Bureau of Reclamation within the Department of the Interior, 
after receiving testimony from R.D. James, Assistant Secretary of the 
Army (Civil Works), and Lieutenant General Todd Semonite, Commanding 
General and Chief of Engineers, Army Corps of Engineers, both of the 
Department of Defense; and Brenda Burman, Commissioner for the Bureau 
of Reclamation, and Timothy R. Petty, Assistant Secretary for Water and 
Science, both of the Department of the Interior.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing 
and Urban Development, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to 
examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 
2019 for the Department of Housing and Urban Development, after 
receiving testimony from Ben Carson, Secretary of Housing and Urban 
Development.
ACCELERATING NEW TECHNOLOGIES
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and 
Capabilities concluded a hearing to examine accelerating new 
technologies to meet emerging threats, after receiving testimony from 
Michael D. Griffin, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and 
Engineering.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST AND FUTURE YEARS DEFENSE PROGRAM
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Airland concluded a 
hearing to examine Air Force modernization in review of the Defense 
Authorization Request for fiscal year 2019 and the Future Years Defense 
Program, after receiving testimony from Lieutenant General Arnold W. 
Bunch, Jr., USAF, Military Deputy, Office of the Assistant Secretary of 
the Air Force for Acquisition, and Lieutenant General Jerry D. Harris, 
Jr., USAF, Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Plans and Requirements, 
and Brigadier General Brian S. Robinson, USAF, Assistant Deputy Chief 
of Staff, Operations, both of the Headquarters United States Air Force, 
all of the Department of Defense.
ROBOCALLS
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded 
a hearing to examine abusive robocalls and how to stop them, after 
receiving testimony from Rosemary Harold, Chief, Enforcement Bureau, 
Federal Communications Commission; Lois Greisman, Associate Director, 
Marketing Practices Division, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal 
Trade Commission; Kevin Rupy, USTelecom, and Scott Delacourt, Wiley 
Rein LLP, on behalf of the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, 
both of Washington, D.C.; Margot Freeman Saunders, National Consumer 
Law Center, Boston, Massachusetts; and Adrian Abramovich, Miami, 
Florida.
OLYMPIC ABUSE
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on 
Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance, and Data Security 
concluded a hearing to examine Olympic abuse, focusing on the role of 
national governing bodies in protecting our athletes, after receiving 
testimony from Bridie Farrell, NY Loves Kids, Inc., Brooklyn, New York; 
Jordyn Wieber, Los Angeles, California; Jamie Dantzscher, Canyon 
County, California; and Craig Maurizi, Fair Lawn, New Jersey.

[[Page D416]]


PROTECTING GROUNDWATER
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a 
hearing to examine the appropriate role of states and the Federal 
government in protecting groundwater, after receiving testimony from 
Martha Clark Mettler, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, 
Indianapolis, on behalf of the Association of Clean Water 
Administrators; Amanda Waters, National Association of Clean Water 
Agencies, Washington, D.C.; Frank Holleman, Southern Environmental Law 
Center, Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Anthony Brown, aquilogic, Inc., 
Costa Mesa, California; and Joe Guild, Reno, Nevada, on behalf of the 
National Cattlemen's Beef Association and the Public Lands Council.
MARRAKESH TREATY
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to 
examine the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works 
for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print 
Disabled, done at Marrakesh on June 27, 2013 (Marrakesh Treaty) (Treaty 
Doc.114-06), after receiving testimony from Manisha Singh, Assistant 
Secretary of State, Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs; Scott C. 
Labarre, National Federation of the Blind, Baltimore, Maryland; and 
Allan Robert Adler, Association of American Publishers, and Jonathan 
Band, Library Copyright Alliance, both of Washington, D.C.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee 
concluded a hearing to examine the nominations of David Williams, of 
Illinois, Robert M. Duncan, of Kentucky, who was introduced by Senators 
McConnell and Paul, and Calvin R. Tucker, of Pennsylvania, each to be a 
Governor of the United States Postal Service, after the nominees 
testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
TRIBAL SELF-GOVERNANCE
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing 
to examine the 30th anniversary of tribal self-governance, focusing on 
successes in self-governance and an outlook for the next 30 years, 
after receiving testimony from Melanie Benjamin, Mille Lacs Band of 
Ojibwe, Onamia, Minnesota; James R. Floyd, Muscogee (Creek) Nation, 
Okmulgee, Oklahoma; Carlos Hisa, Ysleta del Sur Pueblo, El Paso, Texas; 
and Arthur Blazer, Mescalero Apache Tribe, Mescalero, New Mexico.
PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine 
the Patent and Trademark Office, including S. 2559, to amend title 17, 
United States Code, to implement the Marrakesh Treaty, S. 1390, to 
strengthen the position of the United States as the world's leading 
innovator by amending title 35, United States Code, to protect the 
property rights of the inventors that grow the country's economy, and 
S. 2601, to amend the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act to extend the 
period during which the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual 
Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office 
may set or adjust certain fees, after receiving testimony from Andrei 
Iancu, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and 
Director, Patent and Trademark Office.
IMMIGRATION COURT SYSTEM
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Border Security and 
Immigration concluded a hearing to examine strengthening and reforming 
America's immigration court system, after receiving testimony from 
Rebecca Gambler, Director, Homeland Security and Justice, Government 
Accountability Office; James R. McHenry III, Director, Executive Office 
for Immigration Review, Department of Justice; Hilarie Bass, American 
Bar Association, and Andrew R. Arthur, Center for Immigration Studies, 
both of Washington, D.C.; and A. Ashley Tabaddor, National Association 
of Immigration Judges, Los Angeles, California.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported 
the nominations of Paul R. Lawrence, of Virginia, to be Under Secretary 
for Benefits of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and Joseph L. 
Falvey, Jr., of Michigan, to be a Judge of the United States Court of 
Appeals for Veterans Claims.
EXPLOITATION OF OLDER AMERICANS
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine 
exploitation of older Americans by guardians and others they trust, 
after receiving testimony from David Slayton, Texas Judicial Council, 
Austin; Katherine A. Johnson, Westmoreland County Area Agency on Aging, 
Greensburg, Pennsylvania; Nina A. Kohn, Syracuse University College of 
Law, Syracuse, New York; and Pamela B. Teaster, Virginia Tech Center 
for Gerontology, Blacksburg.