[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 154 (Tuesday, September 24, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H7874-H7875]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 FIRST RESPONDERS PASSPORT ACT OF 2019

  Mr. LEVIN of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 2229) to waive the passport fees for first 
responders proceeding abroad to aid a foreign country suffering from a 
natural disaster, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2229

       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 ``First Responders Passport 
     Act of 2019''.

     SEC. 2. PASSPORTS FOR FIRST RESPONDERS.

       (a) In General.--Subsection (a) of section 1 of the Act of 
     June 4, 1920 (22 U.S.C. 214; 41 Stat. 750; commonly referred 
     to as the ``Passport Act of 1920''), is amended, in the third 
     sentence, by inserting after ``to attend a funeral or 
     memorial service for such member;'' the following: ``at the 
     discretion of the Secretary, from an individual, including a 
     volunteer, who is operating under a contract, grant, or 
     cooperative agreement with the United States Government to 
     proceed abroad within the first seven days after a natural 
     disaster to aid a foreign country suffering from such natural 
     disaster;''.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the end of the 
     first full fiscal year after the date of the enactment of 
     this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit to the 
     Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives 
     and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report 
     on the number of waivers of fees for the execution and 
     issuance of passports to first responders under section 1 of 
     the Act of June 4, 1920, as amended by subsection (a) of this 
     section, for such fiscal year.

     SEC. 3. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.

       The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 
     complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall 
     be determined by reference to the latest statement titled 
     ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, 
     submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the 
     Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such 
     statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Levin) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. McCaul) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan.


                             General Leave

  Mr. LEVIN of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include in the Record extraneous material on H.R. 2229.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Michigan?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. LEVIN of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, let me start by thanking the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. 
Chabot) for his hard work on this legislation. This is a good bill that 
passed the House in the 114th Congress, and I am glad we are 
considering an updated version of it now.
  USAID-supported search and rescue teams have played an essential role 
in the aftermath of many overseas natural disasters, including 
earthquakes in Nepal, Haiti, Japan, and New Zealand. Just this past 
month, search and rescue units from Virginia were deployed to the 
Bahamas to assist the victims of Hurricane Dorian.
  These first responders provide specialized capabilities and 
demonstrate our commitment to international partners during their times 
of need. They put their lives on the line to help people around the 
world who are in need, and by doing so, they demonstrate the compassion 
of the American people.
  This bill would authorize the Secretary of State, at their 
discretion, to waive passport fees for the brave Americans who mobilize 
quickly as part of a U.S. Government-supported team to help other 
countries when a natural disaster strikes.
  This is a commonsense fix to help ensure the rapid deployment of 
Americans who risk life and limb to help other countries in their times 
of need. It is a good bill that I am proud to support.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in doing so, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the First Responders Passport 
Act, and I thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Chabot) for introducing 
this bill.
  Americans who answer the call to service in response to disasters 
abroad are some of the best that America has to offer. Often first on 
the scene when calamity strikes, our fire and rescue teams are the 
embodiment of the generosity of the American people. Their commitment 
and sacrifice earn immense goodwill toward our Nation.
  This bill will help our first responders obtain the overseas travel 
documentation that they need in a quick and cost-effective way.
  For these reasons, it deserves our unanimous support, and I reserve 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. LEVIN of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio 
(Mr. Chabot), a senior member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the 
author of the First Responders Passport Act.
  Mr. CHABOT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
McCaul) for yielding, and I rise today in support of H.R. 2229, the 
First Responders Passport Act, legislation I introduced along with 
Congressman Boyle to exempt first responders operating on behalf of the 
U.S. Government from passport fees. This legislation is especially 
timely as we just witnessed Hurricane Dorian's destruction in the 
Bahamas.
  Currently, USAID contracts with first responders to deploy them 
abroad for natural disasters, like Hurricane Dorian. For example, every 
5 years, USAID awards contracts to local fire departments that have 
highly trained, internationally certified urban search and rescue 
teams, allowing USAID to have these specialists on call. A team of 
these first responders deployed to the Bahamas as part of our recent 
relief efforts there.
  To arrive at disaster zones in time, these teams are required to be 
able to deploy the day a disaster strikes. Consequently, they must 
maintain an active passport while they are under contract.
  Unfortunately, volunteers or other members of these teams that are 
not deployed by a local or State government have to do so at their own 
expense, even though they could potentially be traveling on government 
business. My legislation allows the Secretary of State to waive 
passport fees for them and other similarly situated individuals.
  Brave first responders sacrifice time away from their families to go 
to disaster zones on behalf of the U.S. Government and represent our 
Nation to people who have lost everything. As part of an official U.S. 
response, the Federal Government ought to cover the first responders' 
costs.
  That is why I am pleased that we have been able to work in a 
bipartisan manner, Democrats and Republicans working together to bring 
this legislation to the House floor, and I urge my colleagues to 
support it.
  Mr. Speaker, I now turn to the BURMA Act, legislation that Chairman 
Engel and I introduced to sanction the Burmese military for its gross 
human rights violations against the Rohingya.
  This legislation has already passed the House twice as part of this 
year's and last year's NDAA, the National Defense Authorization Act. I 
am pleased that we can consider it by itself today.
  Mr. Speaker, 2 years ago, the Burmese military drove over 700,000 
Rohingya, many of them children, out of Rakhine State and into 
Bangladesh. This brutal, systematic, premeditated campaign inflicted 
unspeakable horrors on the Rohingya, including barbaric killings, gang 
rapes, and the burning of hundreds and hundreds of villages.
  As a clearer picture emerged over time, the mounting evidence led the

[[Page H7875]]

House to pass legislation that I authored to call these atrocities what 
they were--genocide.
  It is extremely frustrating that, after 2 years, the Burmese military 
has faced very few consequences for these crimes.
  That is why we must pass the BURMA Act today. It would provide needed 
tools to ensure greater accountability on the Burmese military for 
these atrocities.
  Lastly, I would like to address any concern that if we, the United 
States, stand up for human rights in Asia, dictators will go scurrying, 
go running to China. This entirely misses the point.
  Our competition with China is over whose values will shape the world. 
If we have to look the other way on genocide, China has already won.
  It is well past time that the BURMA Act became law, either this 
version or the version that this House passed under the NDAA. Either 
version is very good.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support them, and we hope that 
it is done in a very timely manner. I support passage of this 
legislation.
  Mr. LEVIN of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close.
  Mr. Speaker, America's first responders represent to the world the 
humanity at the heart of our Nation.
  I, again, thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Chabot) for his 
expression of support for their overseas activities, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. LEVIN of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume for purposes of closing.
  Mr. Speaker, the First Responders Passport Act is a good measure that 
passed the House in the 114th Congress. I am glad we are considering it 
again today.
  This is a straightforward and commonsense measure to make sure we can 
rapidly deploy American search and rescue teams to other countries when 
disaster strikes.
  I urge all Members to join me in supporting this measure, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 2229, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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