[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 218 (Monday, December 21, 2020)]
[House]
[Pages H7301-H7315]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             UNITED STATES-MEXICO ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP ACT

  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1271, I call up 
the bill (H.R. 133) to promote economic partnership and cooperation 
between the United States and Mexico, with the Senate amendment 
thereto, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the Senate 
amendment.
  Senate amendment:

       Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``United States-Mexico 
     Economic Partnership Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) The United States and Mexico have benefitted from a 
     bilateral, mutually beneficial partnership focused on 
     advancing the economic interests of both countries.
       (2) In 2013, Mexico adopted major energy reforms that 
     opened its energy sector to private investment, increasing 
     energy cooperation between Mexico and the United States and 
     opening new opportunities for United States energy 
     engagement.
       (3) On January 18, 2018, the Principal Deputy Assistant 
     Secretary for Educational and Cultural Affairs at the 
     Department of State stated, ``Our exchange programs build 
     enduring relationships and networks to advance U.S. national 
     interests and foreign policy goals . . . The role of our 
     exchanges . . . in advancing U.S. national security and 
     economic interests enjoys broad bipartisan support from 
     Congress and other stakeholders, and provides a strong return 
     on investment.''.
       (4) According to the Institute of International Education, 
     in the 2015-2016 academic year, more than 56,000 United 
     States students studied in other countries in the Western 
     Hemisphere region while more than 84,000 non-United States 
     students from the region studied in the United States, but 
     only 5,000 of those United States students studied in Mexico 
     and only 16,000 of those non-United States students were from 
     Mexico.

     SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It is the policy of the United States--
       (1) to continue deepening economic cooperation between the 
     United States and Mexico;
       (2) to seek to prioritize and expand educational and 
     professional exchange programs with Mexico, including through 
     frameworks such as the 100,000 Strong in the Americas 
     Initiative, the Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative, 
     Jovenes en Accion (Youth in Action), the Fulbright Foreign 
     Student Program, and the Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program; 
     and
       (3) to promote positive cross-border relations as a 
     priority for advancing United States foreign policy and 
     programs.

     SEC. 4. STRATEGY TO PRIORITIZE AND EXPAND EDUCATIONAL AND 
                   PROFESSIONAL EXCHANGE PROGRAMS WITH MEXICO.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary of State shall develop a 
     strategy to carry out the policy described in section 3, to 
     include prioritizing and expanding educational and 
     professional exchange programs with Mexico through frameworks 
     such as those referred to in section 3(2).
       (b) Elements.--The strategy required under subsection (a) 
     shall--
       (1) encourage more academic exchanges between the United 
     States and Mexico at the secondary, post-secondary, and post-
     graduate levels;
       (2) encourage United States and Mexican academic 
     institutions and businesses to collaborate to assist 
     prospective and developing entrepreneurs in strengthening 
     their business skills and promoting cooperation and joint 
     business initiatives across the United States and Mexico;
       (3) promote energy infrastructure coordination and 
     cooperation through support of vocational-level education, 
     internships, and exchanges between the United States and 
     Mexico; and
       (4) assess the feasibility of fostering partnerships 
     between universities in the United States and medical school 
     and nursing programs in Mexico to ensure that medical school 
     and nursing programs in Mexico have comparable accreditation 
     standards as medical school and nursing programs in the 
     United States by the Accreditation and Standards in Foreign 
     Medical Education, in addition to the Accreditation 
     Commission For Education in Nursing, so that medical students 
     can pass medical licensing board exams, and nursing students 
     can pass nursing licensing exams, in the United States.
       (c) Briefing.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall brief 
     the appropriate congressional committees regarding the 
     strategy required under subsection (a).

     SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act, the term ``appropriate congressional 
     committees'' means--
       (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; and
       (2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
     Representatives.

     SEC. 6. SUNSET PROVISION.

       This Act shall remain in effect until December 31, 2023.


                            Motion to Concur

  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion at the desk.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the motion.
  The text of the motion is as follows:

       Mrs. Lowey moves that the House concur in the Senate 
     amendment to H.R. 133 with an amendment consisting of the 
     text of Rules Committee Print 116-68.



 =========================== NOTE =========================== 

  
  December 21, 2020, on page H7301, the following appeared: Ms. 
Lowey moves that the House concur in the Senate amendment to H.R. 
133 with an amendment consisting of the text of Rules Committee 
Print 116-68.
  
  The online version has been corrected to read: Mrs. Lowey moves 
that the House concur in the Senate amendment to H.R. 133 with an 
amendment consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 116-68.


 ========================= END NOTE ========================= 

  (For text of the House amendment to the Senate amendment, see Book II 
of this Record.)
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 1271, the 
motion shall be debatable for one hour, equally divided and controlled 
by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on 
Appropriations.
  The gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey) and the gentlewoman from 
Texas (Ms. Granger) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from New York.

                              {time}  1815


                             General Leave

  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on the House amendment to the Senate 
amendment to H.R. 133.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to present legislation that comprises all 12 
fiscal year 2021 appropriations bills, a number of items agreed to on a 
bipartisan basis between authorizing committees, and a coronavirus 
relief package.
  The 12 appropriations bills include a strong increase in nondefense 
discretionary funding, allowing Congress to make important investments 
for the people.
  I am particularly proud that we have been able to fund better 
education for our students; more affordable housing; food security 
initiatives; safer communities, with funding to address America's gun 
violence epidemic; clean air and water; action on the climate crisis; 
and care for our veterans, with a special emphasis on suicide 
prevention and gender-specific care.
  As chairwoman of the Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and 
Related Programs, I am also proud that this legislation bolsters 
international security and stability. In particular, the Middle East 
Partnership for Peace fund will support people-to-people exchanges and 
economic partnerships between Israelis and Palestinians.
  Turning to the coronavirus relief portion of the legislation, the 
bill provides $892 billion to confront the pandemic.
  While Republican intransigence means the legislation doesn't include 
the State and local relief that is desperately needed, the amounts it 
provides for education, public health, and transportation will greatly 
benefit our local communities.
  Of particular importance to me, the $4 billion for GAVI will help 
children

[[Page H7302]]

across the world receive the coronavirus vaccine, though far greater 
investments are needed to support international COVID-19 response.
  President-elect Biden has spoken about the dark winter that we face 
because of this pandemic. It is my hope that this bill will be a source 
of light as we face that winter.
  I am proud that, through the careful use of Federal funds, the 
appropriations in this bill will help set our Nation on a course to 
build back better.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this bill that will provide 
funding for the Federal Government through the end of the fiscal year 
as well as provide another round of desperately needed relief for those 
affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
  The appropriations package we will consider today is critical because 
it will allow us to prevent an unnecessary government shutdown and 
avoid a wasteful continuing resolution that simply straight-lines 
funding until the end of next year.
  The bill makes us safer by ensuring we have the funding and the tools 
necessary to both discourage our enemies and defend ourselves against 
them.
  The funds provided in this bill are also critical to continue the 
fight against public health threats both at home and abroad.
  The bill ensures that longstanding provisions to protect life, reduce 
burdensome regulation, and preserve our way of life are retained.
  I would like to highlight some specific programs in the 
appropriations package.
  This bill supports another significant increase for the National 
Institutes of Health, including funding for vital research on 
Alzheimer's disease and to find cures for cancer.
  It provides more than half a billion dollars for NASA, to help 
maintain our superiority in space. We will need to continue to do more 
in future years to establish a sustainable presence on the Moon.
  The bill also funds the U.S. Space Force so the United States has a 
leading edge against China and Russia.
  The bill keeps us safe by providing the same level of funding as last 
year for the border wall. It also rolls back attempts to limit the 
President's authority to provide additional funds, if needed.
  The bill continues to rebuild our military, modernize our nuclear 
weapons stockpile, and strengthen our allies, such as Israel. This bill 
strongly supports our veterans and our troops by increasing pay for our 
military; addressing the healthcare needs of our brave warfighters and 
their families, as well as those who previously served; and ensuring 
that the United States military has cutting-edge equipment, such as the 
F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and the V-22 Osprey, so that they can 
discourage and take on any fight against our enemies.
  The bill retains longstanding Second Amendment and pro-life 
protections that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle wanted to 
eliminate. In fact, it secures the largest pro-life victory in a 
generation by maintaining the Trump administration's Title X Family 
Planning regulations.
  It drops the dangerous policy provisions my colleagues on the other 
side of the aisle included in the House bills, including riders aimed 
at defunding the police.
  Billions of dollars of unnecessary emergency spending that the 
majority included in their bills is stripped away in this package. Many 
of these provisions are considered poison pills that were opposed by 
Republicans and the White House.
  Also before us today is another round of coronavirus relief. 
Specifically, our package will: ensure the timely distribution of 
vaccines across the country; help small businesses affected by the 
economic downturn; and provide much-needed relief for airports and the 
airline industry, which is so important for thousands of hardworking 
Texans in and around my district.

  I am glad we were able to come together on this agreement today, and 
I want to thank my colleagues, Mrs. Lowey, Senator Shelby, and Senator 
Leahy, for working together in good faith.
  Plain and simple, this package is good for our economic security and 
our national security because it addresses the most pressing threats we 
face as a country. I hope it will be supported.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in voting in favor of 
this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman 
from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the distinguished chairwoman of the 
Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development.
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, America is grateful for Mrs. Lowey's years 
of honorable, dedicated, and enlightened service. We will so miss her 
leadership, bright smile, and affable nature.
  I would also like to thank Ranking Member Simpson, who has been a 
constant and truly valued partner, as well as our wonderful 
subcommittee staff: Jaime Shimek, Scott McKee, Mark Arnone, Farouk 
Ophaso, and Mike Brain, who have labored tirelessly to produce this 
bill.
  The Energy and Water division of this bill captures the American 
spirit of ingenuity and national energy independence. It provides the 
foundation of critical investments to meet the challenge of climate 
change, to which $12 billion, or 24 percent of our overall bill, is 
dedicated. Without question, our Energy and Water bill is this year's 
most important climate change legislation, with our overall bill 
dedicated to sustaining life on Earth.
  Instead of the President's shortsighted and devastating cuts, our 
bill invests in the future to meet serious national priorities: real 
jobs, as we achieve building back better by providing $7.8 billion for 
the tremendous Army Corps of Engineers, $145 million above 2020; real 
innovation to invest into the future in partnership with our 
universities and private-sector innovators; providing $39.6 billion for 
the Department of Energy, $1 billion above 2020; real security within 
the Department of Energy, as we responsibly fund a nuclear deterrent 
while boosting nonproliferation.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the 
gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur).
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, we achieve real impact, as our bill 
increases the Department's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy 
program, ARPA-E, Advanced Energy Research, and the Office of Science.
  In sum, the Energy and Water division of this bill invests in 
innovative programs to yield future opportunities for new-age jobs.
  I don't support the cuts in the ATVM program related to advanced 
technology for vehicles, but I will say that I support the legislation 
overall and believe that our bill is needed more than ever to heal our 
Nation and advance our leadership globally.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Kentucky (Mr. Rogers), the former chairman of the full committee and 
ranking member of the Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and 
Related Programs.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill, 
but I want to first congratulate our committee's chair and ranking 
member for their great work on putting together this enormous and 
enormously important bill.
  First, I want to say how rare this day really is in another way. It 
is the first time that we have had a ranking member who is a female, 
Ms. Granger, and the first female chairman of the committee, Nita 
Lowey. We will miss her enormously on this committee and in the 
Chamber.
  This bill is enormous. It is not perfect, but it reflects a fair 
compromise that includes funding for many important priorities at home 
and abroad and vital assistance for all those negatively impacted by 
the coronavirus pandemic.
  As ranking member of the Committee on State, Foreign Operations, and 
Related Programs, I want to tell you, this bill provides critical 
funding for our national security. This includes $3.3 billion in 
Foreign Military Financing for Israel and robust support to combat 
transnational crime and the flow of illegal drugs.
  The bill is also tough on China, as it commits serious resources 
behind our Indo-Pacific strategy. This includes exposing the censorship 
and propaganda wielded by the Chinese Communist

[[Page H7303]]

Party and countering Beijing's debt-trap diplomacy through well-funded, 
open, and transparent U.S. development by the Development Finance 
Corporation and the Countering Chinese Influence Fund.
  This bill also protects our core values. It maintains all pro-life 
protections from last year and rejects efforts to undo the President's 
historic policies that protect the sanctity of life.
  This bill is also great for my district in Kentucky, if I can be 
parochial. It provides the resources we need to continue to fight the 
opioid epidemic, which is now more important than ever.
  It fully funds my AML pilot program, which is truly breathing life 
back into my southern and eastern Kentucky communities. It helps our 
small businesses and so many Kentuckians who are fighting tooth and 
nail to survive the coronavirus pandemic.
  This package does not have everything that we wanted, but it is a 
good bill, and I think a fair compromise.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues' support.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to wish everyone a merry Christmas.

                              {time}  1830

  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from 
South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn), the distinguished majority whip.
  Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, while today's vote to provide relief to 
families who are suffering due to circumstances far beyond their 
control is welcome, it is long overdue and insufficient to fully meet 
their needs.
  Democrats put forth our priorities last May to bring relief to those 
who are sick, unemployed, homeless, and hungry. Republicans instead 
chose to ignore and obfuscate the widespread suffering.
  This short-term package will provide direct payments and unemployment 
benefits extension and some assistance to help families afford rent, 
food, water, and broadband. I applaud our Speaker for negotiating these 
critical provisions and my colleagues who came together in a bipartisan 
way to drive this compromise, but this package must be viewed only as a 
downpayment.
  Most of us can hardly wait to begin the new year with renewed hope. 
Our resolve as we come into 2021 with a new Congress and a new 
administration is to provide the leadership and support Americans need 
and deserve to get us beyond this pandemic. There can be no greater 
pursuit in 2021.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Idaho (Mr. Simpson), the ranking member of the Energy and Water 
Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.
  Mr. SIMPSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the fiscal year 
2021 omnibus appropriations bill, and particularly the Energy and Water 
Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act.
  As ranking member of the subcommittee, I am pleased this bill is 
significantly improved from the House bill in many ways.
  First and foremost, the bill strongly supports our national nuclear 
security programs, providing $15.3 billion for the Weapons Activities 
account, an increase of $2.9 billion above fiscal year 2020. This 
funding supports the maintenance and modernization of our nuclear 
weapons system, which will ensure a credible and reliable nuclear 
deterrent.
  One of my personal priorities is promoting innovation and growth in 
nuclear energy. This bill provides almost $1.4 billion for research, 
development, and demonstration activities, including increased funding 
for the Advanced Small Modular Reactors Program and the Advanced 
Reactors Demonstration Program, both programs focused on building the 
next generation of carbon-free technologies to be deployed here and 
abroad.
  The bill also includes critical water storage projects in the 
drought-prone West, such as the Anderson Ranch Dam raise in my district 
in Idaho.
  Mr. Speaker, before I yield back, I would like to thank the full 
committee ranking member, Kay Granger, who has so ably led our 
Republican Conference on appropriations matters all Congress long. And 
full committee Chairwoman Lowey deserves our thanks for her many years 
of service in this committee and to the Nation. We will miss her.
  Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies Chairwoman Marcy 
Kaptur and I, again, worked well with our Senate partners, Lamar 
Alexander and Dianne Feinstein, to advance national and constituent 
interests throughout the programs that are funded in this bill.
  Finally, I would like to thank staff on both sides of the aisle for 
their hard work--extremely hard work--particularly this last month, 
working to help bring this bill to completion.
  Mr. Speaker, this appropriations package, which includes the Energy 
and Water division, is a strong bill, and I urge my colleagues to 
support it.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the distinguished 
gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Visclosky), the chairman of the 
Subcommittee on Defense, who has spent the last 35 years in the 
Congress.
  Mr. Speaker, we all share his knowledge, which he shares with us so 
willingly, and we appreciate his service, not just to the committee, 
but to the Congress, to the country, and we wish him the very, very 
best. We thank him for his service in the Congress and on this 
committee.
  (Mr. VISCLOSKY asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. VISCLOSKY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairwoman for yielding and 
her kind remarks.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that my colleagues support H.R. 133.
  The Defense portion of this bill continues to focus on the well-being 
and morale of those in uniform. For example, the bill provides an 
additional $116 million for upgrades to childcare facilities and 
directs the military services to present innovative ideas to address 
the serious backlog for childcare.
  However, I must also share my concerns over DOD and its lack of 
compliance with many congressionally directed reporting requirements. 
For example, last year, the committee directed the Department to submit 
a report on its contracts for advertising services with socially and 
economically disadvantaged small businesses. The report was 5 months 
late.
  The Department has also habitually redirected funding in 
contravention of congressional intent. One DOD official referred to 
these transfers of billions of dollars as anomalies. I refer to them as 
habitual abuses. I hope in the future it will recognize Congress' 
constitutional prerogatives.
  Mr. Speaker, finally, since it was mentioned, this will be my last 
floor statement after nearly 44 years of working in the House. I want 
to thank all of the wonderful staff who have made what successes we 
have enjoyed possible.
  I also want to thank my parents, John and Helen Visclosky, and my 
sister, Annamarie Visclosky, who believed in me when I was an 
unemployed, young former staffer and made my incredible life journey 
possible.

  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Calvert), the ranking member of the Defense 
Subcommittee.
  Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this legislation.
  First, I want to thank Chairwoman Lowey for her hard work and her 
dedication to this institution, and I wish her well in her retirement.
  And I certainly want to thank our ranking member for her hard work 
and all the things that went into getting this bill together. I know it 
is difficult. We certainly appreciate it.
  And, finally, Chairman Pete Visclosky, not only my chairman, but my 
close friend, who has worked hard on this bill, and he has done a 
wonderful job over the years and is certainly a patriot who deserves 
the credit in putting this Defense bill together.
  The Constitution grants Congress the explicit and sacred 
responsibility to provide for our Nation's defense. This bill before us 
today does just that. It provides funding for many key programs 
consistent with the National Defense Strategy and its focus on great 
power competition with China and Russia.
  The bill prioritizes and funds programs essential to our continued 
military dominance. It provides our combatant commanders with the 
resources and equipment they need to carry out their missions around 
the world.
  We continue key investments in fifth-generation combat aircraft, 
ships,

[[Page H7304]]

and two Virginia-class submarines, while also continuing to invest in 
the essential research and development of new technologies essential to 
maintaining U.S. military superiority.
  We continue to prioritize the health and welfare of our men and women 
in uniform. The funding in this bill reflects the longstanding concerns 
that so many of our Members have had with Defense health programs, 
sexual assault prevention, suicide prevention, and the long-awaited 
electronic health record, which we need to get fixed.
  We must get this bill signed into law as soon as possible. According 
to the DOD comptroller, a continuing resolution wastes $1.7 billion per 
month and stops many of the modernization priorities that are the 
cornerstone of maintaining our military's superiority over near-peer 
threats such as China and Russia.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that we were able to overcome politically 
charged issues to negotiate this final passage. I urge all the Members 
to vote for it.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to 
the distinguished gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), the chair 
of the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and 
Related Agencies, and now the chair of the full committee, where I know 
she will serve with her great knowledge with distinction.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from New York, and 
I hope to fill her shoes in what she has done to promote the welfare of 
the lives of the people of this country. Thank you.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to support this bill.
  We are at a critical moment. We are not just living through a public 
health crisis, but an economic one; two crises, which have magnified 
existing inequalities.
  Tens of millions of workers are unemployed. Millions of families are 
facing hunger, many for the first time in their lives. Small businesses 
are going under, and over 300,000 Americans have lost their lives.
  The COVID relief package that we are voting on today is a start, and 
I thank my colleagues in the House of Representatives for elevating it 
to provide important relief.
  It brings back the enhanced Federal unemployment insurance, direct 
payments, a second round of PPP loans, $13 billion in emergency food 
assistance, and a temporary boost to the monthly food stamp program. 
And, critically, it includes my Preventing Online Sales of E-Cigarettes 
Act.
  Despite strong Republican opposition, it provides nearly $2 billion 
to maintain the paid leave option. I will fight for paid sick days and 
paid family and medical leave in the new year so that no worker is left 
behind.
  In the Labor-HHS provisions, we were able to secure $155 billion in 
life-or-death funding: $73 billion for the Department of Health and 
Human Services and $82 billion for the Department of Education.
  However, it is only a start, and we must do so much more. We need aid 
to cities and States. We need a child tax credit and much more money 
for childcare.
  Let us act and get the people the help they need.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Oklahoma (Mr. Cole), the ranking member of the Labor, Health and Human 
Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.
  Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased today to have the Labor, Health 
and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies' bill included in 
this important appropriations package. As we have done every year since 
I have served on the subcommittee, we have been able to reach a 
compromise. I want to highlight a few of the many provisions in the 
Labor-HHS section of the bill.
  The agreement boosts funding for the National Institutes of Health by 
$1.25 billion. I am proud to say this increase represents the sixth 
straight year of sustained increases for the NIH, thanks to bipartisan 
and bicameral support.
  And funding resources, expertise, and investments we have made over 
the past 6 years in biomedical research, along with public health 
planning through mechanisms like the Infectious Disease Rapid Response 
Reserve Fund, are helping us come out of this pandemic faster than 
predicted.
  Make no mistake, this is not an accident. It is a result of years of 
quiet investment, planning, and scientific dedication. I am glad this 
conference agreement continues these investments in biomedical 
research. It will benefit the Nation.
  Finally, the bill also funds the President's childhood cancer 
initiative and continues support to end the HIV epidemic.

  This conference agreement before us today also increases funding for 
education and training programs, including $52 million for an increase 
in career and technical education, a $10 million increase for TRIO and 
GEAR UP. We have increased funds for Impact Aid and special education 
and provided funds for veterans to integrate back into the workforce.
  Finally, the bill continues existing funding restrictions, including 
those important to the pro-life community, and drops new controversial 
language.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to conclude by thanking Ranking Member Kay 
Granger and Labor, Health and Human Services Chair Rosa DeLauro. Ms. 
Granger has been a valiant leader navigating our members through some 
difficult decisions to bring us here today.
  Mr. Speaker, I also want to acknowledge the negotiating skills of the 
chair of the Labor-HHS Subcommittee, Ms. DeLauro. I very much look 
forward to serving with her as both the chair of my subcommittee, as 
well as the chair of the full committee in the next Congress.
  Last, but certainly not least, I also want to thank our full 
committee chair, Mrs. Lowey, who has had an outstanding career and 
navigated us to this point.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to 
the distinguished gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz), the 
chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans 
Affairs, and Related Agencies.

                              {time}  1845

  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the combined 
fiscal year 2021 government spending and coronavirus relief package.
  The package before us today does not have everything the American 
people need. It shortchanges key relief programs, like aid to our first 
responders and State and local governments.
  But the American people are suffering and need immediate relief. 
Support from Congress is long overdue.
  The package includes critical Democratic priorities we fought for, 
like money for small businesses, extended unemployment benefits, 
individual stimulus checks, and public health funding to eradicate the 
coronavirus.
  It contains legislation I authored to reauthorize the EARLY Act, 
which educates young and at-risk women with breast cancer.
  The appropriations bills in this package advance key priorities, like 
$250 million for Everglades restoration, fighting child exploitation on 
the internet, and protecting migrants and holding DHS accountable.
  As chair of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs 
Subcommittee, we fund improved healthcare for veterans, modernize the 
VA electronic health record system, and improve military infrastructure 
to ensure readiness.
  And we did not include funding to reimburse the President for his 
theft of military funds for the racist border wall.
  The Democratic House passed our coronavirus relief bill in May and 
our appropriations bills in July. Republicans failed to do their job. 
They have showcased unprecedented incompetence and cruelty this year.
  Why did Republicans block this relief package until now?
  They thought we were too generous with the American people, and they 
wanted to protect corporations who put workers in harm's way, and then 
tried to shackle the Federal Reserve in a last-minute effort to make it 
harder for the Biden administration to help struggling small 
businesses.
  Democrats will keep fighting for additional aid once President-elect 
Biden takes office. That cannot come soon enough.

[[Page H7305]]

  

  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Moolenaar), a member of the Appropriations Committee.
  Mr. MOOLENAAR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, I support the legislation finishing the appropriations 
process for 2021 because it funds important priorities for Michigan 
families. It includes funding for the construction of a new lock at the 
Soo Locks, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, rural broadband 
internet access, and NIH research into cures for cancer and 
Alzheimer's.
  Of course, there is more work to do.
  Many communities have been affected by disasters this year, including 
my district, where two dams failed and communities were flooded.
  Congress should do more to help all communities affected by natural 
disasters this year, and I will be doing everything I can to help those 
in my district apply to receive Federal assistance.
  I am glad we have this bill done for the American people, and I look 
forward to working with my colleagues across the aisle to craft 
bipartisan legislation again in the new year.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
Virginia, (Mr. Scott), the chairman of the Committee on Education and 
Labor.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for 
yielding and for her long career helping working men and women 
throughout the Nation.
  I rise in support of this historic legislation. Under this bill, we 
were able to secure expansion of Pell grants to make it easier for 
students to access aid by streamlining the free application for Federal 
student aid. We were able to eliminate the ban on Pell grants for 
incarcerated students. We were able to discharge debts for many 
historically Black colleges and universities. And we were able to 
invest $82 billion in schools and colleges.
  I am particularly proud that we were able to provide an end to the 
legal prohibition of the use of Federal funds in transportation to 
promote school integration. That is right. It is still illegal until 
this bill passes.
  Finally, I want to praise the inclusion in this legislation of the 
fact that we are finally ending surprise medical bills and the problems 
along those lines.
  Mr. Speaker, I hope we will pass the bill and do a lot for students 
and workers.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Diaz-Balart), the ranking member of the Transportation, 
Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee.
  Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. I 
also thank the chair, Mrs. Lowey, for her long career helping working 
men and women throughout the Nation.
  I thank Chairman Price for working with me on the transportation and 
housing title of this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill includes $230 million for port infrastructure 
programs, which is crucial to coastal States, but also, frankly, to our 
entire freight network.
  I am particularly pleased that this bill includes $390 million to the 
Maritime Academy Training Ship Program.
  This bill also renews housing assistance for millions of Americans in 
need. It is our duty to meet this commitment, especially for our 
elderly; our disabled; and our heroes, our veterans.
  I am also very pleased the bill provides $3 billion for homeless 
assistance grants.
  I have seen the results of those programs firsthand, as we 
effectively eliminated homelessness among veterans in Miami-Dade 
County.
  As a final point on the THUD bill, I would note that this agreement 
drops the controversial riders, allowing us to move forward.

  This omnibus itself continues strong investments also into our 
national defense. It funds Everglades restoration and prioritizes 
school safety initiatives.
  Once again, Chairman Lowey and Ranking Member Granger led the way 
through these very difficult times by working day and night and never 
giving up.
  A final word to Chairwoman Lowey as she manages her final bill. You 
know, you can agree or disagree with this honorable Member from New 
York, but she is always honorable, straightforward, a true gentlewoman, 
and she has been a huge asset to this institution and to our country. 
Godspeed, Madam Chairwoman.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from 
New Jersey (Mr. Pallone). We came to Congress together, and he is the 
chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  I rise in strong support of this final omnibus package that includes 
critical legislation from the Energy and Commerce Committee.
  First, this agreement includes $69 billion to crush the coronavirus 
by supporting the rapid and equitable distribution of COVID-19 
vaccines, as well as critical testing and contact tracing.
  Second, this package finally ends surprise medical bills for American 
consumers. These surprise bills have burdened millions of patients with 
crushing medical debts. It saves money, which pays for a 3-year 
extension to fund community health centers and other vital healthcare 
programs.
  Third, the bill phases down HFCs. This is a big win in the fight 
against climate change, along with the reauthorization of the Pipeline 
Safety Act, which reduces methane leaks.
  And, fourth, we provide major assistance for struggling families to 
better afford their internet service.
  These are just a few of the key provisions from the Energy and 
Commerce Committee.
  But I want to end by thanking the chair, Nita Lowey. As she 
mentioned, she and Eliot Engel, myself, and Rich Neal are the last in 
our class. I hate to say it that way. She has been an outstanding 
legislator and a great friend. My only regret is that she is going to 
just leave Richie Neal and myself to carry on here. So I really wish 
she would not leave, but I know she wants to, and I wish her the best. 
I love you, Nita.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry), the ranking member of the Agriculture, 
Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies 
Subcommittee.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member for 
yielding.
  I also add my thanks to my good friend, Chair Lowey, upon her 
retirement from Congress. Thank you so much for your grace-filled 
leadership all these years. I am very happy for you in this new phase 
of life.
  Also, Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman of the Agricultural, Rural 
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies 
Subcommittee publicly here, Chair Sanford Bishop. He has such a 
professionalism and courtesy and a working, friendly bipartisan spirit. 
I really think it is important that America hears that.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill underwrites the stabilization policies for our 
farmers and ranchers, the protection of our drug supply, and what I 
call the farm of the future.
  Now, these elongated deliberations have created extra time for us 
here in Congress. I know you would probably prefer to be in Maryland. I 
certainly would prefer to be in Nebraska. But we have had important 
work to do here.
  Given the extra amount of time, I took some liberties and I visited 
with a young farmer near here, Mr. Speaker. He lives in the Shenandoah 
Valley. And on a cold Virginia night, I actually sanitized my own shoes 
and walked with him in his poultry house, and we talked. We talked 
about costs, fertilizer reuse, mechanical versus digital monitors, and 
options for integrating renewable energy into his operations.
  Checking his birds is a routine he dutifully performs. And that is 
what America's farmers are about: constancy, vigilance, hard work. And 
whether it is in the field or among livestock, the day in and day out 
life of the farmer in Nebraska or Virginia or Georgia is what keeps 
America strong and helps feed the world.
  This bill supports our production agricultural system in many 
traditional ways, while we also witness an opportunity to expand the 
farm family. New forms of small-scale niche agriculture marry high-tech 
with high-touch, connecting the rural to the urban, the farmer to the 
family, and the farm to the table. This is the future of farming.

[[Page H7306]]

  Of particular importance, the bill supports rural broadband, as well 
as protecting our drug supply. It is an important bill from the 
constructs of the most basic systems in America.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the 
gentleman from Nebraska.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY: Mr. Speaker, the bill supports rural broadband. And 
that is more than wires laid. It is about creating an ecosystem of 
livability so that the benefits of telehealth and tele-education and 
telework, along with precision agriculture, can be distributed 
equitably throughout the country.
  The inspiring COVID vaccine approvals by the FDA have shown us what 
we can do together, and this bill also protects our drug supply while 
keeping unsafe drugs out.
  Mr. Speaker, it is important that these provisions make it into law. 
That is why I am happy to support this bill.
  Again, Chair Lowey, thank you for your leadership.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman 
from California (Ms. Waters), the chairwoman of the Committee on 
Financial Services.
  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  The relief in this bill is desperately needed, as families struggle 
during the pandemic crisis. The negotiations were difficult. They were 
tough. I wish we could have done even more, but I am pleased we have 
done as well as we could have done to provide relief for so many in 
desperate need for their government to come to their aid.
  As chairwoman of the Financial Services Committee, I am proud to have 
secured $25 billion in emergency rental assistance. We need much more. 
We also got an extension of the eviction moratorium and $12 billion in 
low-cost, long-term capital and grants to the minority depository 
institutions and the credit unions and the community development 
financial institutions.
  I thank Ranking Member McHenry, Chairman Crapo, and Ranking Member 
Brown for working with me on these provisions.
  I am so pleased that the legislation includes stimulus payments for 
families and individuals. Not enough, but I am pleased.
  I am also pleased it includes new funding for unemployment insurance. 
Not enough, but I am pleased.
  I am also pleased we have support for Los Angeles International 
Airport in my district and small business forgivable PPP loans. This 
bill will also expand the amount of PPP loans for which restaurants are 
eligible by a considerable amount.
  Let me be clear: Much more is needed, but this bill is a most 
important first step, and I am very pleased that we are able to come to 
the aid of all of our constituents.
  I thank Nancy Pelosi for the tremendous job that she did in 
negotiating to get us to this point.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee 
(Mr. Fleischmann), the ranking member of the Homeland Security 
Subcommittee.
  Mr. FLEISCHMANN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  Before I begin, I wish to convey my warm thoughts and sentiments to 
Mrs. Lowey from New York, who is chairman of this committee. It has 
been a privilege to work with you for almost a decade in my capacity, 
and I wish you the best in your future. And I thank you for your 
service to this great House.

                              {time}  1900

  Mr. Speaker, tonight, I rise in support of the bill we have before 
us, which is the result of months of negotiations on how best to manage 
our government's resources in fiscal year 2021 and respond to the COVID 
pandemic that has gripped so many of our communities.
  Mr. Speaker, as the ranking member of the Homeland Security 
Subcommittee, I thank my full committee leader, Ms. Granger, for her 
great leadership in pulling this omnibus together. I also thank 
Subcommittee Chairwoman Ms. Roybal-Allard from California, along with 
Senators Capito and Tester across the hall, for their work and comity 
in resolving these difficult and challenging issues. It is a pleasure 
to have served with Chairwoman Roybal-Allard in this role.
  Mr. Speaker, I think we have a very balanced agreement. We continue 
to provide $1.375 billion for border security and funds flexibility for 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement to respond to detention needs.
  Further, we have significant investments in many of our Nation's 
security components, including the great United States Coast Guard, 
cybersecurity and infrastructure, and FEMA grants to our States and 
localities to respond to disasters.
  Further, the bill before us eliminates the riders and policy 
provisions contained in the House-reported bill that would have 
inhibited the Department of Homeland Security from fulfilling its law 
enforcement responsibilities at our borders and in the interior of our 
country.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on this package. It is time for 
the fiscal year to get underway.
  Mr. Speaker, I wish all a happy and healthy new year.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Lee), a senior member of the Appropriations Committee.
  Ms. LEE of California. Mr. Speaker, first, let me thank Chairwoman 
Nita Lowey for once again doing such a phenomenal job. I am going to 
miss her tremendously.
  Let me just say how much I support this survival bill, which provides 
a few months of relief for those suffering from the severe impacts of 
COVID.
  Mr. Speaker, I also thank Congresswoman Chair DeLauro and Chairman 
Pallone for their work with our Tri-Caucus to include $2.8 billion for 
testing and vaccine support in the communities of color hardest hit by 
COVID.
  Mr. Speaker, I also thank our subcommittee chairs and staff for 
including so many of our priorities and for their diligent work on 
this.
  It is really shameful that it has taken Republicans so long to 
realize that their constituents are desperate for help and need their 
government to give them a lifeline during this terrible time, also.
  Eight million people have slipped into poverty since the start of 
this pandemic, and one in four adults are suffering from hunger during 
COVID-19. 318,000 people have died from the Trump administration's 
scandalous mismanagement.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 15 seconds to the 
gentlewoman.
  Ms. LEE of California. Mr. Speaker, I support this bill. Let's give 
this lifeline to people. Let's move forward and build on this 
downpayment.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Arrington).
  Mr. ARRINGTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this legislation to 
provide relief to our fellow Americans, accelerate our Nation's 
economic recovery, and ensure our great Nation comes back better, 
stronger, and healthier than ever.
  I don't want to belabor my deep concerns with the process except to 
say, Mr. Speaker, that it is fundamentally broken and that it was 
unnecessarily prolonged for purely political reasons. The American 
people waited, and waited for months. They deserve better, Mr. Speaker.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank my dear friend, fellow Texan and ranking member, 
Kay Granger; our leader, Kevin McCarthy; Kevin Brady; and many others 
who helped finalize this agreement.
  It is far from perfect. I haven't met perfect legislation since 
coming to Washington. But it does a good job of supporting our 
struggling families, small businesses, healthcare professionals, 
teachers, and other frontline workers at a time when many desperately 
need it, and all of this at a fraction of Speaker Pelosi's $3.3 
trillion bailout bonanza, which included cash for illegals, legalizing 
marijuana, and a host of other unnecessary and irresponsible 
provisions.
  Mr. Speaker, it is no small feat to keep our annual spending below 
the budget cap, and I commend my colleagues, including Chairwoman 
Lowey, for that.
  To do that and prevail in protecting troops and including their pay 
raise, funding for the border wall, preserving

[[Page H7307]]

the sacred protections for our unborn, I have got to tell you, that is 
pretty darn good.
  It is hard for me to stand for some of this stuff in this bill, this 
omnibus. But on balance, it is good for the country, and I am standing 
with Chairwoman Lowey, and I am standing with my fellow Texan, Kay 
Granger.
  God bless America.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Pelosi), my friend for 32 years in the House, the 
outstanding Speaker of the House.
  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for bringing this 
important legislation to the floor. I thank her and Ranking Member Kay 
Granger for bringing this in a very strong bipartisan way.
  I spoke this morning at some length, so it is on the record as to my 
attitude here. I salute the legislation that is here and urge passage, 
but I do want to take a minute to thank the Madam Chair.
  She has served in the Congress for a long time. We have sat side by 
side over the years with Rosa DeLauro, Steny Hoyer, and Mr. Clyburn as 
appropriators. I have seen her writings-based astute political 
knowledge, her strategic thinking, her encyclopedic knowledge of the 
legislation produce the results, understanding what the process will 
bear and what the country needs first and foremost.

  So, Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Lowey. I don't know how many more 
times we will thank her, but hopefully, when the coronavirus goes away, 
we can all join in embracing her great leadership and expressing 
gratitude.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to just again take a moment in recognition of the 
other chairs who worked to make this legislation so, so effective with 
direct payments through the employee retention tax credit, the 
unemployment insurance, to name a few.
  Congresswoman Velazquez with Small Business, under her leadership and 
working in a bipartisan way, small businesses, which are the heart of 
our economy, have received almost $1 trillion in these coronavirus 
bills, almost $1 trillion. We support that, but I also would hope there 
would be some commensurate recognition of the jobs of small business, 
the jobs of State and local government. They have received only $160 
billion in all of these bills, $160 billion.
  Does that sound familiar? That is exactly the amount of money that 
the Republicans put in the CARES bill to give to the wealthiest in our 
country, yet for all the States and localities, and it was retroactive, 
having nothing to do with coronavirus, $160 billion. They thought that 
was commensurate with the responsibilities of our healthcare workers, 
our State and local police and fire, first responders, transportation, 
sanitation, food workers, our teachers, our teachers, our teachers.
  So, yes, there is more work to do, and it will cost some money, but 
it will protect jobs. Most importantly, it will meet the needs of the 
American people to crush the virus and to do so in a way that brings us 
all into the future in a very safe way.
  I thank Congresswoman Velazquez for her extraordinary leadership in 
that regard.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Maxine Waters for coming to the need of people, 
renters, landlords, et cetera, with her important legislation--of 
course, we want more, but for now, this will see us through--her 
Community Development Financial Institutions legislation, her MDIs, 
making all that available in the small business piece, available to so 
many more people.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Scott from Virginia. Student loans, 
childcare, I thank him for making it right.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Pallone for his leadership again and again. 
Vaccines, the vaccine issue is so important, how it is delivered, how 
it is produced, distributed. Going from vaccine to vaccination, from 
lab to arm, so much is required, and much of it is in this bill. 
Testing and tracing are still needed. We still need to provide a relief 
fund that goes along with that. I thank him for the personal interest 
he took in broadband.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. DeFazio on transportation and WRDA. 
Yesterday morning, we didn't even have WRDA in the bill. That is why 
this all has taken longer to do. So, I thank him for the important role 
that he played. We all know about the airlines and the rest, but there 
is so much more.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Peterson for his work on nutrition. People 
are hungry in our country, and we had to fight for nutrition money, but 
I thank him for his persistence.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. McGovern for his advocacy in the Congress 
for children and hunger, as well as Rosa DeLauro. But Mr. McGovern has 
gone on hunger strikes and the rest. He really values what is in this 
bill on nutrition to feed the hungry in our country.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Mrs. Maloney for saving our Postal Service.
  Just a brief reference to say thank you. This has been a long, 
difficult negotiation. These chairs, their members of the committees, 
and their staffs have been invaluable. Shalanda and Chris, I thank them 
so much for making all this happen.
  Mr. Speaker, I reference the statement I made this morning about one 
thing and another, about the attitude we have to this and the need for 
us to recognize this as a first step and the need for us to address the 
important contribution of our health workers, police and fire first 
responders, sanitation, transportation, food workers, our teachers, our 
teachers, our teachers.
  If we are going to safely reenter the economy and our schools, we 
must crush the virus.
  I have hope to crush the virus. That is why we could support this 
bill. It doesn't go all the way, but it takes us down the path, a first 
step.
  I have hope of crushing the virus, and I have hope because of the 
election of Joe Biden as President of the United States, a President 
who will follow science. He will follow science, and he will recognize 
that we have to meet the needs of all the American people wherever they 
live in our country, especially addressing Barbara Lee's concerns about 
the communities of color that have been underserved in so much of what 
we have done.
  Mr. Speaker, I have great appreciation for Madam Chair Nita Lowey.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from 
Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the majority leader.
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank Madam Chair for yielding, and I thank 
Ranking Member Kay Granger for her work.
  Mr. Speaker, I had the opportunity to do a video, as we all are 
communicating with one another virtually, about my colleague and friend 
with whom I have served for over three decades, Nita Lowey.
  I went to school in Nita Lowey's district many, many years ago. When 
she came here, we became friends. Shortly thereafter, she came on the 
Appropriations Committee, and we served together, as Speaker Pelosi 
said, on the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related 
Agencies Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee. I served on that 
committee for 23 years. I have great affection for that committee.
  We served under a gentleman named Bill Natcher from the State of 
Kentucky. He used to stand when he presented that bill to the floor and 
say: ``This is the people's bill.''
  Mr. Speaker, this is the people's bill.

                              {time}  1915

  This is a bill that must pass. They say that good things come to 
those who wait. They have waited too long, had too much pain, 
physically; too many deaths; too much psychological damage; too many 
lost jobs. This is, however, a good thing that will come to those who 
need it so badly.
  I want to thank Chairwoman Lowey, who has performed such 
extraordinary service on the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human 
Services, Education, and Related Agencies for a long time; and the 
Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs for a 
long time; and for the Appropriations Committee.
  I want to thank my friend, Kay Granger. We are perceived as being 
awfully partisan, and this has been a partisan project as well. It took 
us from May 15 until today to get this done. We passed, in the interim, 
October 1, another bill of substantially lesser sum than the one we 
passed in May, and a little more than what we are passing--actually, 
twice what we are passing today. All of it was needed.

[[Page H7308]]

  The American people have been waiting and watching and hoping that 
Congress would not only be able to avert a shutdown but also to provide 
much-needed COVID-19 relief.
  Mr. Speaker, we now have a bipartisan agreement, and the legislation 
will achieve both of those aims.
  Kay Granger, as I said, is somebody who was a mayor in Texas, and 
mayors know they have to get things done, and Congresswoman Granger has 
been somebody who wants to get things done. She and Nita Lowey have 
been a team in getting things done. I thank both of them.
  This bill completes the appropriations process by investing in the 
American people, in our national defense, in economic opportunity, in 
strengthening safety net programs that keep Americans out of poverty.
  As I said, I thank both Nita Lowey and Kay Granger.
  I particularly want to thank an extraordinary Member of this body. 
She is not called a Congresswoman. She is not a Member of this body, 
but she is a person without whom we would not be nearly as successful 
as we have been over this last year. She has made this year less 
painful for millions and millions and millions of Americans.
  Her name is Shalanda Young. She sits right behind me, an 
extraordinary talent whose leadership makes seminal contributions to 
all the sections of this bill and to previous bills dealing with 
appropriations and the COVID-19 pandemic.
  She is, in many ways, an indispensable person when we come to dealing 
with bills of this magnitude. She works for Mrs. Lowey, as does Chris 
Bigelow. Both have done extraordinary service.
  Shalanda Young, Mr. Speaker, represents the best of us. I say that 
because she represents a lot of the staff we have here. She is 
extraordinarily talented, extraordinarily patriotic, and 
extraordinarily dedicated to the work of the American people, and 
extraordinarily underpaid.
  Members are going to be underpaid in this bill, too. We beat our 
chest, and we have money in there that says we don't get a COLA one 
more time. Aren't we so courageous. I am disgusted by that, Mr. 
Speaker, and I want all of America to know; I want all of my 
constituents to know. Every Member in this place, whether I agree with 
them or not, is worth a COLA, at least trying to keep them even with 
the cost of living in this country. We struck it one more time, as we 
pretend that we think the COLA is unjust.
  However, that is de minimis to this bill, but, certainly, will not 
dissuade me or ought not to dissuade anybody from voting 
enthusiastically, energetically, and proudly for this bill.
  As a result of this omnibus, the next President will be able to start 
his administration focusing on immediate challenges instead of trying 
to finish the previous year's work.
  I want to say something on that one more time. I have talked to Ms. 
Granger, who is going to be here. There is no reason, Mr. Speaker, why 
we can't pass appropriation bills by September 30, the ending of the 
fiscal year, October 1 being the beginning of the new fiscal year.
  I am frustrated, as the majority leader who is supposed to be able to 
make things work here, with my colleagues. We did make it work here, 
but our Senate colleagues did not pass a single bill prior to the 
election, so here we are.
  In addition, this end-of-the-year package includes critical clean-
energy legislation passed by the House earlier this year that makes 
important progress toward addressing the climate crisis while ensuring 
that America can create good jobs by leading the clean-energy economy.
  We were also able, in this bill, Mr. Speaker, to include legislation 
that protects patients from surprise bills by removing them from the 
fight between insurers and providers and implementing a fairer process 
for resolving disputes.
  On COVID-19 relief, while we were unable to secure agreement on every 
priority that Democrats and some Republicans wanted--we don't always 
get everything we want. So be it. That is the process.
  We were able, however, to include many of the provisions we included 
in previous bills on May 15 and October 1, which I referred to earlier, 
for which Democrats have been fighting for months and that Americans 
desperately need.
  These include resumption of expanded unemployment benefits, another 
round of direct payments, relief for renters, and assistance to make 
sure that Americans can put food on the table. In the richest country 
on the face of the Earth, we have people in food lines who can't feed 
themselves. That is not only wrong, but it is immoral and inconsistent 
with my faith and, I think, the faith of most.
  There is additional help for small business--appropriate--and 
resources to help schools reopen safely.
  In addition, we secured another $3.36 billion for GAVI, and I thank 
the chair. It is a small program, relatively speaking, but it is about 
keeping people healthy around the world.

  We are a shrinking globe, and this COVID crisis came from abroad--
wherever it came from, Europe, contrary to the President saying it came 
only from China. It came from Europe; it came from China. We have a 
moral responsibility to make sure that it doesn't keep coming and that 
we help our brothers and sisters abroad as well so that we, too, can be 
healthy.
  In the new year, we will continue to work to ensure that our country 
can meet the challenges of COVID-19, including help for State, local, 
Tribal, and territorial governments that are on the front line. Who is 
delivering the shot in the arm? States and local governments.
  No compromise is perfect, of course, and this is not perfect. So many 
people have said that, but that goes without saying. We don't do 
perfect. We are human beings. If we do the right thing, we do the best 
we can. It is essential that we move forward and do our jobs for the 
American people.
  That is why the House did its job by passing the Heroes Act in May 
and again in October and why we passed appropriation bills to fund 
nearly all of government by July 26.
  It is disappointing, as I have said, that the Senate waited until 
November to begin serious consideration of appropriation bills. I don't 
mean the subcommittees didn't work; they just didn't report anything 
out.
  Thankfully, though, we are taking action together. America, we are 
taking action together. And you can be pleased when you see the board 
light up, mostly overwhelmingly green.
  I urge the President to sign this legislation without delay, just, 
Mr. Speaker, as I urge him to sign the National Defense Authorization 
Act in which you played such a critical role, Mr. Speaker, and we 
passed earlier this month. I fear that he will veto this bill for an 
unrelated, totally nongermane issue, and we may be back here on the 
28th.
  If we are not here on the 28th, again, Nita Lowey, I want to say to 
you: Thank you. How much we appreciate your contribution, and how much 
we appreciate the contribution of all of those who might be leaving 
either voluntarily or involuntarily. We thank them for their service.
  Mr. Speaker, let's finish the work of the 116th Congress.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Brady), the ranking member on the Ways and Means Committee.
  Mr. BRADY. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Ranking Member Granger for 
her terrific leadership on this bill and throughout this session.
  This agreement is a big, important win for American workers, 
healthcare providers, Main Street businesses, and families.
  In this agreement, we have Republican tax relief for American 
families. We permanently make it easier to deduct high medical costs 
and lifetime learning costs. We extend for 5 years the tax credit for 
paid family and medical leave, plus we take it one step further by 
helping businesses pay off student loans for workers.
  We have big wins for patients and families together. We end surprise 
medical bills when you visit the ER or have scheduled medical 
procedures. We require that patients be given a true and honest bill 
ahead of a scheduled procedure, and we make it easier to find in-
network doctors and providers.
  In addition to helping patients, we also help our doctors. We 
increase their pay and stop two-thirds of planned Medicare cuts for 
certain providers. We also increase doctor pay by over $3 billion and 
add 1,000 new graduate medical education slots to help train more 
doctors.

[[Page H7309]]

  We took needed action to improve healthcare in rural areas.
  It also contains strong antifraud safeguards for unemployment.
  We offer crucial tax help for millions of Americans and small 
businesses with another round of stimulus checks, more funds and 
flexibility for PPP loans.
  We also include important technical corrections to the new U.S.-
Mexico-Canada Agreement, which will help our economy rebuild from this 
pandemic.
  Maybe most importantly, we have big wins in this package to help us 
defeat the virus once and for all with billions more in funding for 
vaccines, testing, distribution, and more.
  This bipartisan solution is so important to the American people. This 
is a strong and needed package. Its benefits will be felt for years to 
come.
  I also want to finish by thanking our committee chairman, Richie 
Neal, who worked so closely with me and all of our committee members on 
these wins for the American people. It has been an honor to work with 
him this Congress.
  I am also very proud of the work and leadership that Republicans have 
exemplified throughout this Congress, especially among the Ways and 
Means Committee. I will gladly and strongly vote in support of this 
bill, and I encourage all of my colleagues to do the same.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Before I close, I want to take a moment to recognize my good friend 
and our full committee chairman, Nita Lowey, as this will be the last 
bill that she will take to the floor.
  She is the first woman to hold the gavel of the Appropriations 
Committee, and her retirement is a huge loss to our country, to our 
committee, and to me personally.
  When I was named as ranking member and she was named as chair, she 
called me into her office. We really had never worked together. We were 
on different committees. I will never forget what she said. She said: 
We are going to do it on time and on budget, and we will become best 
friends.

                              {time}  1930

  I wasn't sure she wasn't crazy, but I said: I will do that.
  We became good friends, and we did things on time and on budget. 
Everything was a joy working with her because she always knew what she 
wanted and what she wanted to do. She was inclusive, and we did turn 
and have a friendship that I will always cherish.
  So I wanted to make sure that you knew that I realized I had a unique 
opportunity in working with you. I learned a lot, and we had a good 
time, didn't we?
  I also want to take a minute to thank the members of our committee 
and our staff for their hard work this year. This really is a must-pass 
bill that I look forward to getting signed into law.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in voting in favor of 
these bills, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time, and I 
rise to address this House for the final time.
  For 32 years, it has been my privilege to serve as United States 
Representative from New York; and in the 116th Congress, it has been my 
distinct honor to be the first chairwoman of the House Appropriations 
Committee.
  By wielding the power of the purse, this bill will make a profound 
difference in the lives of millions of Americans and people around the 
world.
  I am proud to have worked with so many of my colleagues on both sides 
of the aisle to assemble this bill and other legislative successes. You 
have challenged and inspired me, and I treasure the friendships that we 
have made.
  My dear friend, Kay Granger, it has been such an honor getting to 
know you. Texas values, New York values, no matter what they say, we 
became good friends and worked so well together. Thank you, thank you, 
thank you.
  I would be remiss if I did not thank the talented staff who have 
worked so hard to put this bill together, led by Clerk and Staff 
Director Shalanda Young, the extraordinary Shalanda Young, who is way 
back there.
  Thank you, Shalanda Young.
  And also the extraordinary deputy staff director, Chris Bigelow. What 
a team. They manage. No matter how much paper and no matter what the 
challenge, they seem to be able to put it all together and get it 
right.
  Shalanda and Chris, I thank you--and always with an assist by my 
chief of staff, Elizabeth Stanley.
  I do want to thank the staff director of the State, Foreign 
Operations, and Related Programs Subcommittee, which I chair, Steve 
Marchese.
  There is one principle that has guided my 32 years in public service: 
When you see a problem, whether it is here or in the district or in 
another community, do something about it.
  Too many people see a problem. They are good people, but they will 
all go off to this personal activity or another personal activity. 
Members of Congress know, when they see a problem, we have a 
responsibility to address it and do something about it to make life 
better for our community, the Nation, and the world. This bill does 
something to crush this virus and set us on the course for a strong and 
equitable recovery.
  Mr. Speaker, for the last time and with a deep sense of gratitude for 
the honor of serving in this House, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Ms. ESHOO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the 
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 that funds our government and 
provides desperately needed relief to American families. I'm proud to 
support many of the provisions in this legislation, understanding that 
no compromise is perfect. Frontline workers, including public health 
workers, firefighters, and other essential workers employed by state 
and local governments continue to need our support.
  The bill before us today provides a lifeline to those who are 
struggling from the COVID-19 pandemic and the recession it has caused. 
It extends critical programs first authorized by the CARES Act 
including $300 per week in additional unemployment benefits, a second 
round of direct payments of up to $600, $284 billion for additional 
small business loans under the Paycheck Protection Program, and $13 
billion in nutrition assistance for Americans facing hunger. It also 
provides $25 billion to help renters pay their rent and stay in their 
homes. I'm deeply disappointed that the Administration and the Senate 
Majority Leader would not allow restaurants and their workers to 
receive our help. With over 300 bipartisan cosponsors on the RESTAURANT 
Act, these businesses and their workers should have been in this 
legislation.
  In addition to pandemic relief, the bill funds the government through 
the remainder of the fiscal year, avoiding a costly government shutdown 
before the holidays, and invests in critical priorities, including 
clean energy, affordable housing, public schools, and broadband. I'm 
proud to have secured $100 million for the electrification of Caltrain, 
$8.9 million for environmental conservation of the San Francisco Bay, 
$33 million for construction of the Linac Coherent Light Source upgrade 
(LCLS-II) at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, and $85.2 million 
for the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) at 
NASA Ames.
  Our country is in the midst of the worst public health crisis in a 
century, and I'm proud to say that the Democrats on the Energy and 
Commerce Health Subcommittee, which I have had the privilege to lead, 
have stepped up to the challenge by securing provisions that include 
the following:
  Provide billions to ensure the free, timely, and equitable 
distribution of safe, effective vaccines and more resources for a 
national testing strategy:
  End surprise medical billing. No patient will face an unexpected, 
expensive bill just because they are caught in a web of providers.
  Assist doctors and public and rural hospitals survive the pandemic by 
stopping planned Medicare and Medicaid cuts.
  Provide three years of funding for critical public health programs 
including Community Health Centers, Teaching Health Centers, the 
National Health Service Corps, and the special diabetes programs.
  Restore Medicaid coverage for the citizens of the freely associated 
states living in the U.S., to whom America has for too long abandoned 
its commitments to.
  Improve Medicare coverage for beneficiaries across the country by 
simplifying Part B enrollment; permanently authorizing the use of 
telehealth for mental health care; eliminating cost-sharing for 
colorectal cancer screenings; and extending coverage for 
immunosuppressive drugs for kidney transplant patients. I'm especially 
proud to have co-led and championed the immunosuppressive drug coverage 
legislation to correct a short-sighted coverage policy

[[Page H7310]]

which will save 375 kidney transplants each year. This provision 
appears in Section 402 of Division CC and is based on H.R. 5534, the 
Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant 
Patients Act of 2019.
  Improve the Medicaid program by expanding access to certified 
community behavioral health clinics; eliminate spousal impoverishment 
for partners of Medicaid beneficiaries receiving home and community-
based services; and continuing the Money Follows the Person rebalancing 
demonstration which makes it possible for people on Medicaid to 
transition to a safer home or community-based environment and still 
maintain Medicaid funding.
  Lower health care costs by strengthening parity in mental health and 
substance use disorder benefits; removing gag clauses on health price 
and quality information; ending a loophole that allowed drugs for 
opioid use disorder to benefit from the orphan drug designation; and 
making it easier for biosimilar products to come to market by 
increasing patent and exclusivity transparency. This final provision 
appears in Section 325 of Division BB, and it is a bill I'm proud to 
have sponsored, H.R. 1520, the Purple Book Continuity Act. It requires 
patent information for biologics to be submitted to the FDA and 
published in the publicly-available ``Purple Book.'' By creating a 
single, searchable list of licensed biologics, manufacturers will be 
able to plan a pipeline of lower-cost biosimilar products for years to 
come.
  I'm also proud to have several health appropriations which I 
requested included in today's agreement. These items represent the 
critical advancement of life-saving research and care, including: $15 
million for the Pancreatic Cancer Research Program at the DOD, which 
I've long championed and which comes as the world continues to mourn 
the deaths this year of several iconic Americans from this very 
aggressive cancer, including Congressman John Lewis and Supreme Court 
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg; $42.9 billion for the NIH for forward 
thinking investments in medical research; $597 million for critical 
biodefense and public health emergency preparedness at BARDA, which my 
legislation created. Another $19.7 billion is in the COVID-19 relief 
agreement for BARDA to manufacture and procure vaccines; $350 million 
for the Children's Hospitals Graduate Medical Education Program to 
support pediatric medical residents' training; and $5.4 million for 
research on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome at the CDC to better understand 
this terrible disease.
  There's still so much more the American people need. We must increase 
federal funding for the Medicaid program during this health and 
economic crisis, including home-and-community-based services, improve 
infection control and quality in our nation's nursing homes, and 
address the public health crises that continue during the COVID-19 
pandemic, such as America's unacceptable rates of maternal mortality, 
suicides, and overdoses. I'm proud of what we've accomplished in the 
Health Subcommittee this year and energized to continue the fight in 
2021.
  Today's agreement includes important clean energy provisions, 
including my legislation, H.R. 1420, the Energy Efficient Government 
Technology Act, which appears as Sections 1003 and 1004 of Division Z. 
The bill requires government agencies to develop plans to implement 
best practices for energy management, purchase more energy efficient 
information and communications technologies, and submit to periodic 
evaluation of their data centers for energy efficiency.
  Data centers are a critical part of our national infrastructure and 
are found in nearly every sector of our economy. The federal government 
alone has more than 2,000 data centers which store everything from 
Social Security and tax records, toe-books at the Library of Congress. 
Despite their importance to our government and our economy, many are 
extremely inefficient when it comes to energy use.
  The good news is many data centers can significantly reduce their 
energy use using existing technology and best practices. This will 
reduce not only the government's carbon footprint but also its energy 
bills. My bipartisan legislation has the potential to save taxpayers 
hundreds of millions of dollars in reduced energy costs in the future, 
while setting an example for the private sector to reduce energy usage 
at data centers.
  We must ensure students in need can continue their studies during the 
pandemic as colleges begin another semester of remote learning, and I'm 
proud that our agreement includes funding for these students. Section 
902 of Division N is modeled on H.R. 6814, the Supporting Connectivity 
for Higher Education Students in Need Act, bicameral legislation I 
introduced on May 13, 2020.
  The provision provides $285 million to expand connectivity for 
historically Black colleges and universities, Tribal colleges and 
universities, Hispanic-serving institutions and other minority-serving 
institutions, their students, and minority-owned businesses near those 
colleges. The funding can be used to purchase routers, modems, wi-fi 
hotspots, tablets, and laptops. Funding recipients must prioritize low-
income students. The legislation also establishes the Office of 
Minority Broadband Initiatives within the NTIA to carry out programs 
expand access to broadband at and in communities around HBCUs, TCUs, 
HSis and other MSis.
  Between 2012 and 2018, over $1.2 billion in 9-1-1 fees were diverted 
to uses other than 9-1-1. While most states curtailed this horrific 
practice, four states continue diverting 9-1-1 fees: New Jersey, New 
York, Rhode Island, and Nevada. I first co-led the bipartisan 9-1-1 Fee 
Integrity Act to require by statute that 9-1-1 fees can only be used 
for 9-1-1 purposes on September 14, 2018. I'm pleased that the 
legislation appears in Section 902 of Division FF.
  I'm pleased that today's agreement includes funding for AI R&D. The 
Joint Explanatory Statement for Division B includes direction for AI 
R&D to expand at NSF and NIST, including with a focus on increasing AI 
workforce diversity and developing a framework for ethical and safe AI. 
I've twice written to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on 
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies requesting robust AI 
R&D funding, and I thank them for their leadership in taking an 
important step to increase AI funding.
  I'm pleased that this legislation includes funding for several 
technology and telecommunications matters that are priorities for me 
and for our country, including $3.2 billion for a $50 per month 
emergency broadband benefit for low income families, Pell Grant 
recipients, students eligible for free or reduced lunch, and recently 
unemployed individuals; $1.9 billion to `rip and replace' 
telecommunications equipment made by insecure supplies, like Huawei and 
ZTE, which I first asked the FCC to investigate in 2010; $250 million 
for the FCC's COVID-19 Telehealth Program; and $65 million to develop 
reliable broadband maps which are critical for the federal government 
and all states to know where broadband support funding would be most 
effective.
  Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise to emphasize the appropriate 
application and interpretation of Section 404 of the Intelligence 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, which has been included as 
Division W of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021.
  Section 404 was authored by Chairman Bennie Thompson of the Committee 
on Homeland Security. Its essence is to establish a specialized 
fellowship program related to cybersecurity and intelligence within the 
Department of Homeland Security. The program is meant for certain 
undergraduate students from diverse racial, ethnic, cultural, and other 
backgrounds. And the Secretary of Homeland Security--who shall 
administer Section 404--also will have authority to hire successful 
fellowship participants as Department employees, and into positions 
involving cyber or intelligence.
  The broader and most compelling goal being, of course, to ensure that 
the Department and the Federal government are doing their utmost to 
recruit, hire and retain a highly diverse workforce. The language of 
Section 404 must be interpreted and implemented by the Department 
broadly, with a mind towards attainment of this lawful objective; under 
no circumstances should it be read in an inappropriately narrow or 
needlessly restrictive fashion.
  Although Section 404 does not require that students attend 
Historically Black Colleges or Universities or Minority-Serving 
Institutions in order to participate in the fellowship program, the 
Secretary of Homeland Security--who will administer this authority--
should make extensive efforts to promote the fellowship among students 
from HBCUs and MSIs.
  Together with the other Members of the Homeland Security and 
Intelligence Committees, I will look forward to receiving the report 
required by Section 404, which will permit Congress to confirm that, in 
fact, the Department is conducting the necessary outreach to HBCUs, 
MSIs, and other Institutions of Higher Education; and, consistent with 
the approach I have set forth here, reading and applying Section 404's 
language in a manner that fulfills the initiative's overarching goal.
  Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Speaker, I would like to lend my support of this 
fiscal year 2021 appropriations package.
  I thank the Chair of the Appropriations Committee, Mrs. Lowey, and my 
friend, Chairman Serrano, as they prepare to retire for their many 
years of dedication and hard work to this institution and I wish them 
both well.
  I also want to thank Ranking Member Granger for her outstanding 
leadership this year.
  I'm pleased that this bill supports the Trump Administration's Moon 
to Mars Artemis initiative and rejects radical demands to defund the 
police. It also restores long-standing Second Amendment protections 
that have enjoyed historical, bipartisan support yet were excluded

[[Page H7311]]

from the House-passed Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Act.
  I am also pleased that this bill rejects issues which previously held 
up a COVID relief agreement. This bill provides individuals, families, 
health care providers, and businesses the assistance which we can agree 
on, to help everyone get through this pandemic. It also looks to the 
future by providing additional funding to expand internet access in 
rural areas.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, The House amendment to the Senate 
amendment to H.R. 133, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, 
includes many important provisions. Among them is Section 203 of Title 
II, Division BB, based on H.R. 7539, the Strengthening Behavioral 
Health Parity Act--an important step forward in improving the effective 
enforcement of mental health parity laws that govern group and 
individual health plans and coverage. I am pleased to see this 
legislation advance as part of our continuing efforts to ensure the 
promise of parity is realized for all.
  As Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, which has 
legislative jurisdiction over employee health benefit plans (including 
provisions of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act and the 
Employee Retirement Income Security Act or ERISA) as well as oversight 
jurisdiction over the United States Department of Labor, I would like 
to provide additional clarification for the record regarding the 
interactions between this legislation and existing enforcement and 
compliance efforts by the Secretary of Labor.
  First, no provision of Section 203 in any way restricts, alters, or 
otherwise interferes with the existing enforcement and oversight 
authority of the Secretary of Labor, including the Secretary's 
authority to investigate, audit, and seek equitable or other relief to 
enforce any requirements of federal law. The requirement that the 
Secretary examine the comparative analyses of at least 20 plans 
annually serves as a floor, not a ceiling, on the Department's 
enforcement actions, and the Department remains authorized to continue 
to utilize its broad authority under Sections 502, 504, 506 of ERISA 
and other laws to enforce all requirements of this bill, Part 7 of 
ERISA, and any other requirements of federal law.
  Second, no provision of Section 203 in any way restricts, alters, or 
otherwise interferes with the rights of group health plan participants 
to bring an action to enforce their rights under Section 502 of ERISA, 
nor does it impact judicial review of any statutory violations. This 
bill also should not be interpreted to create any additional 
presumption in favor of health plans and issuers during judicial review 
of nonquantitative treatment limitation (NQTL) determinations, and the 
Secretary remains authorized to seek equitable or other relief, 
including relief regarding the re-adjudication of claims. All 
provisions should be interpreted to ensure the broadest access to 
relief for plan participants.
  Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support 
of the 900 billion dollar economic relief package which has been agreed 
to by Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle. While this 
package is far from what is actually needed, it is necessary to act 
right now and we do not have any additional time to wait. This bill 
will direct billions of dollars in aid to unemployed individuals who 
are suffering with no other hope or help in sight.
  It will provide up to $600 in stimulus checks, it will extend 
unemployment benefit checks, extend a moratorium on evictions for 1 
month, 325 billion for business relief with 275 billion going to 
paycheck protection, 82 billion for schools, 20 billion for vaccine 
distribution. While this is not quite exactly what I was looking for, 
it will hold us until President Biden takes the reins and leads us on.
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, the American people are 
incredibly frustrated, and rightly so. This relief package, while a 
step forward, should have been passed months ago. House Democrats first 
passed the Heroes Act in May; at the same time, Majority Leader Mitch 
McConnell called for a `pause' and Senate Republicans refused to act 
until now.
  More than 315,000 Americans have died from COVID-19. Experts have 
said if we had made a larger investment in testing and tracing, many of 
these deaths could have been prevented. Millions of Americans are 
unemployed and many are facing food insecurity. Our state and local 
governments, including first responders, have been on the frontlines of 
this pandemic but are being left out of this relief package. We can and 
we must do more.
  As I have said before, we cannot get the economy up and running until 
we conquer the virus.
  Today's relief package makes significant investments in testing and 
tracing efforts, vaccines, therapeutics, and medical supplies and 
funding for underserved communities, all of which are critical to 
crushing this pandemic.
  This package provides help for the millions of Americans who are 
struggling right now. It strengthens critical programs for those who 
are unemployed by extending and enhancing unemployment insurance and 
rental assistance. It also offers $600 in direct payments to low- and 
moderate-income Americans and includes a $13 billion increase in food 
assistance programs to help the millions of families facing food 
insecurity.
  This bill also includes vital funding for small businesses, including 
specific funding for arts and cultural programs and smaller businesses 
who weren't able to access the initial relief funding.
  These are welcome steps forward, but they are just a down payment on 
what needs to be done.
  Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act, which includes my bipartisan Water Power Research 
and Development Act.
  As we work to mitigate the climate crisis and transition to a 100 
percent clean energy economy, we cannot ignore our ocean. It covers 
more than 70 percent of the surface of our planet, and we can capture 
the power of its waves, currents, and tides to power our homes, 
buildings, and communities.
  Marine energy has tremendous potential as one of the last untapped 
renewable energy sources, and federal investment can help unlock it. 
Earlier this year, I was pleased to work with my House Oceans Caucus 
CoChair, Congressman Don Young, and another marine energy enthusiast 
from the east coast, Congressman Ted Deutch, to introduce the 
bipartisan Water Power Research and Development Act. The bill would 
reauthorize funding for research, development, demonstration, and 
commercialization of marine energy within the Department of Energy's 
Water Power Technologies Office. Importantly, the bill authorizes 
funding for existing and new National Marine Energy Centers, including 
the Pacific Marine Energy Center--operated by Oregon State University, 
the University of Washington, and the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
  Researchers at Oregon State University are leading the way on this 
innovative work. Through the Pacific Marine Energy Center, OSU is 
currently in the process of developing PacWave, the first of its kind 
wave energy test facility off the Oregon Coast. Their leadership 
scaling up the PacWave testing facility will catalyze this nascent 
industry. Additionally, we are fortunate to have the advanced 
manufacturing capacity of companies like Vigor, which recently 
constructed an 826-ton wave energy device that was deployed off the 
shores of Hawaii. It was not until I visited Vigor to see the device 
that I grasped the scale of this resource and what we can gain from it.
  I appreciate the support of Chairwoman Johnson in helping to secure 
the inclusion of the Water Power Research and Development Act in 
today's comprehensive energy package and end of year spending bill, and 
I am thrilled that it will soon be signed into law. I urge all of my 
colleagues to support this bill, which is an important step forward in 
advancing ocean climate action.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this relief 
bill because the American people cannot wait another day.
  Over 315,000 Americans are dead. Three out of every 4 small 
businesses have seen their revenues fall, and thousands have shut their 
doors for good.
  Food insecurity has doubled for families with children, and millions 
of Americans are turning to food banks for the first time.
  In most states, 1 in 5 households are behind on rent. More than 10 
million people are unemployed.
  But it's been over six months since the House passed the Heroes Act, 
comprehensive legislation to address these issues months ago.
  And all this time, Republicans have refused to lift a finger to 
provide relief to struggling families. It is shameful that it took this 
long for my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to come to the 
table.
  And let me be clear--$600 in direct payments and an additional $300 
per week in unemployment is not enough--in fact, it's just half of the 
aid that we passed in the CARES Act.
  So, while I am disappointed in my Republican colleagues and recognize 
this bill is not ideal or as comprehensive as the Heroes Act-it will 
provide some much-needed relief to the American people until we can 
pass a more robust stimulus under the Biden Administration.
  I'd particularly like to thank all the staff from member offices, to 
committee offices, to leadership and floor staff, who worked long hours 
and through the weekend to help put this package together.
  For small businesses, this bill takes action to authorize a second 
round of PPP loans to the hardest hit businesses. Importantly, it will 
set aside funding reserved for small businesses with 10 or fewer 
employees and those in underserved communities. It also utilizes small 
banks and mission-based community lenders to guarantee fair access to 
small employers.
  And finally, this bill provides for what we have been hearing on the 
ground from small

[[Page H7312]]

businesses--the need for cash infusions through grants. By establishing 
new guardrails and allocating $20 billion to the EIDL grant program, we 
are targeting the hardest hit small businesses to receive these grants.
  Meanwhile, as shuttered entertainment venues, including our cultural 
institutions and movie theaters, that depend on large crowds to survive 
have been closed by the pandemic and faced difficulties accessing PPP 
and other SBA programs, this bill creates a new $15 billion dollar 
grant program to target these establishments that have experienced a 
dramatic decline in revenue.
  But our efforts do not end here. We will continue to seek more 
assistance next year because Main Street, especially our independent 
restaurants, and working families deserve for us to come back to the 
table to provide a lifeline while we await vaccine distributions.
  So today, I'm voting yes but I urge my fellow members, let's not stop 
here. Let's come back in January and pass more relief for the American 
people.
  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call attention to one of 
the many important provisions of today's legislation. In particular, I 
rise to discuss Section 1109 of Title XI of Division FF, relating to 
aquatic ecosystem protection, which comes from the FUTURE Western Water 
Infrastructure and Drought Resiliency title that I authored in H.R. 2 
earlier this year.
  Today's provision is an improved version of that legislation, and it 
is the result of the ongoing bicameral water infrastructure 
negotiations between the committees of jurisdiction. I am grateful for 
the work done on both sides of the Capitol and both sides of the aisle 
to bring this to fruition. This aquatic ecosystem protection provision 
is designed to fund broadly-supported fish passage projects in the 
western states, and the specific intent is to help projects like the 
one in the Eel and Russian River basins in California, where we have a 
chance to significantly improve fish passage and habitat on the Eel 
River while providing long term certainty and reliability for Russian 
River water users.
  The Potter Valley Project Ad Hoc Committee has been refining this 
effort for several years, and we now have a Two-Basin Partnership that 
is taking the next steps. The intent of this new aquatic ecosystem 
protection statute is to support the important work of the Two-Basin 
Partnership, as well as other community-supported restoration projects 
like it around the west.
  I am including in the Record letters of support from the Round Valley 
Indian Tribes, Humboldt County, Sonoma County Water Agency, Mendocino 
County Inland Water and Power Commission, and California Trout--
collectively known as the Two-Basin Partnership--as well as from the 
Nature Conservancy, Trout Unlimited, and California Trout--collectively 
known as the California Salmon and Steelhead Coalition.
  I thank my colleagues for working with me to bring this legislation 
to fruition, and thank the staff in both the House and Senate who have 
helped in this effort, especially Matthew Muirragui from the House 
Natural Resources Committee and John Driscoll, Logan Ferree, and Ben 
Miller on my personal staff. I look forward to working with the next 
administration to support this win-win outcome for the North Coast and 
North Bay.

       Dear Chairman Huffman: The Round Valley Indian Tribes, 
     Humboldt County, Sonoma County Water Agency, Mendocino County 
     Inland Water and Power Commission, and California Trout, 
     collectively known as the Two-Basin Partnership, write in 
     strong support of the aquatic ecosystem restoration provision 
     included in H.R. 2, which we understand you and your staff 
     have negotiated for inclusion in the omnibus appropriations 
     bill.
       The Potter Valley Project is a hydroelectric facility that, 
     in addition to generating a small amount of electricity, 
     diverts water from the Eel River into the Russian River 
     basin. The Project's main facilities include two dams on the 
     Eel River, a diversion tunnel and a hydroelectric plant. 
     Citing economic concerns, current Project owner Pacific Gas & 
     Electric announced in January 2019 that it would not seek a 
     new license from Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to 
     continue operating the facilities. PG&E's decision to not re-
     license the Project left an uncertain future for both Eel and 
     Russian River interests. Instead of leaving it up to the 
     utility and federal regulators to determine the region's 
     water future, local leaders decided to work together to 
     protect the interests of both river basins. The Two-Basin 
     Partnership is a direct outgrowth of that collaborative 
     effort, which brought together diverse stakeholders to 
     develop a compromise solution for the future of this aging 
     and non-economically viable hydroelectric project.
       The Partners have joined together as the applicant for the 
     Project, with the collective goal of restoring 288 linear 
     river miles of spawning habitat at the headwaters of the Eel 
     through the removal of Scott Dam, while ensuring water supply 
     reliability on the Russian River. Additional components of 
     the proposed Project Plan include improving a water diversion 
     infrastructure at Cape Horn Dam and developing infrastructure 
     to provide water to meet summer irrigation needs for farmers 
     and ranchers in Potter Valley.
       As you know, this legislation would directly support the 
     Two-Basin Solution's shared objectives, which include: 
     minimizing or avoiding adverse impacts to water supply 
     reliability, fisheries, water quality and recreation in the 
     Russian River and Eel River basins; improving fish passage 
     and habitat on the Eel River sufficient to support recovery 
     of naturally reproducing, self-sustaining and harvestable 
     native anadromous fish populations including migratory access 
     upstream and downstream at current project dam locations; and 
     protecting tribal cultural, economic, and other interests in 
     both the Eel and Russian River basins.
       On behalf of the Two-Basin Partners, we strongly support 
     this inclusion and your continued support of our efforts on 
     the Eel and Russian Rivers.
           Sincerely,
     Kathleen Willits,
       Councilmember, Round Valley Indian Tribes.
     Grant Davis,
       General Manager, Sonoma Water.
     Hank Seemann,
       Deputy Director-Environmental Services, Humboldt County 
     Public Works Department.
     Janet Pauli,
       Chair, Mendocino County Inland Water and Power Commission.
     Curtis Knight,
       California Trout.
                                  ____
                                  
                                                December 18, 2020.
       Dear Chairman Huffman: The Nature Conservancy, Trout 
     Unlimited, and California Trout, collectively known as the 
     California Salmon and Steelhead Coalition, write in strong 
     support of the aquatic ecosystem restoration provision 
     included in H.R. 2, which we understand you and your staff 
     have negotiated for inclusion in the omnibus appropriations 
     bill.
       The Coalition is a strategic partnership founded to 
     increase streamflows in California's North and Central Coast 
     watersheds, with the goal of restoring and protecting wild 
     salmon and steelhead and creating water reliability for 
     people. We are working toward a California where water use 
     management harmonizes and meets the needs of people, needs of 
     fish and ecosystems. It is for these reasons that the 
     Coalition is working together to support the Potter Valley 
     Project relicensing effort as a major restoration 
     opportunity.
       The current Potter Valley Project Plan is built around a 
     unique collaboration among conservationists, county 
     governments, tribes, farmers and other water interests to 
     shape a new future for the Project, a set of obsolete 
     hydroelectric facilities in the upper Eel River and Russian 
     River Watersheds. This effort, if successful, will implement 
     one of the largest dam removals in the history of the United 
     States while strengthening the security of local water 
     supplies.
       The project consists of two dams on the upper Eel River--
     Scott and Cape Horn--as well as a system of trans-basin 
     tunnels that divert approximately 60,000 acre-feet of water 
     per year from the Eel to the Russian to generate 
     hydroelectric power. This water ultimately flows to 
     agricultural and municipal users in the Russian River 
     Watershed. But, perhaps more importantly, the project blocks 
     fish from reaching 288 linear stream miles above Scott Dam 
     that were once the spawning grounds for some of the largest 
     salmon and steelhead runs in California.
       In January 2019, PG&E chose to discontinue its efforts to 
     renew the project's license, which expires in 2022, from the 
     Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). This left the 
     door open for a different entity to license the project. 
     Seeing this as an opportunity to remove the dams blocking the 
     headwaters of the Eel River, California Trout joined with a 
     diverse coalition--Sonoma Water, Mendocino County Inland 
     Water and Power Commission, and Humboldt County--to notify 
     FERC that they would explore taking over the re-licensing of 
     the project. Over the subsequent year, those parties--joined 
     by the Round Valley Tribe--worked with a team of technical 
     consultants to develop a proposed plan to take over the 
     project and implement a ``Two-Basin Solution'' that would 
     remove Scott Dam, improve fish passage at Cape Horn Dam and 
     build new infrastructure to deliver secure water supplies to 
     farmers who currently rely on the project.
       In the spring of 2020, the three Coalition groups helped 
     negotiate an initial plan proposing the removal of Scott Dam 
     and the implementation of a Two-Basin Solution to modernize 
     this project to improve water supply reliability for farms 
     and communities in the Russian and Eel River Basins; the plan 
     will also help to restore struggling salmon and steelhead 
     runs by reconnecting the river to its headwaters. In April 
     the Coalition secured a $1.1 million CDFW grant that will be 
     used to develop that proposal into a complete re-licensing 
     plan. We have also made inroads with the communities that 
     would be most affected by dam removal and lobbied for state 
     and federal funding that will be needed to further develop 
     and implement the plan.

[[Page H7313]]

       We strongly support the inclusion of aquatic ecosystem 
     restoration funding in the omnibus that could facilitate the 
     watershed-level restoration of a key salmon river in 
     California. Thank you for your leadership and support.
           Sincerely,
     Curtis Knight,
       Executive Director, California Trout.
     Matt Clifford,
       Staff Attorney, California Water Project, Trout Unlimited.
     Jay Ziegler,
       California Director of External Affairs and Policy, The 
     Nature Conservancy.

  Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, the first wave of stimulus spending proved 
frustrating for a lot of small and medium sized business.
  Many mom and pop businesses ran in to loan processing problems 
because there were problems with their applications.
  Many applicants did not know that their applications needed to be 
cured from any defects or that there were defects with their 
application.
  Some other small businesses were rejected because their lender ran 
out of allocation because the lenders were focused on larger loans.
  That is why, Democrats were able to secure $325 billion in small 
business aid this time around.
  Democrats secured critical funding and policy changes to help small 
businesses, including minority-owned businesses, and nonprofits recover 
from the pandemic.
  This deal includes over $284 billion for first and second forgivable 
PPP loans, dedicated set-asides for very small businesses and lending 
through community-based lenders like Community Development Financial 
Institutions and Minority Depository Institutions, and expanded PPP 
eligibility for 501(c)(6) nonprofits, including destination marketing 
organizations, and local newspapers, TV and radio broadcasters. $20 
billion is included for new EIDL Grants for businesses in low-income 
communities, $3.5 billion for continued SBA debt relief payments, and 
$2 billion for enhancements to SBA lending.
  This deal also includes $15 billion in dedicated funding for live 
venues, independent movie theaters, and cultural institutions.
  Small businesses that took a PPP loan and saw their revenues fall by 
25% will be eligible for a second loan.
  Congress will also allow PPP borrowers to take tax deductions for 
covered business expenses.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. All time for debate has expired.
  Pursuant to House Resolution 1271, the previous question is ordered.
  The question of adoption of the motion is divided.
  The first portion of the divided question is: Will the House concur 
in the Senate amendment with the matter proposed to be inserted as 
Divisions B, C, E, and F of the amendment of the House?
  The question is on the first portion of the divided question.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3 of House Resolution 
965, the yeas and nays are ordered.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 327, 
nays 85, not voting 18, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 250]

                               YEAS--327

     Adams
     Aderholt
     Aguilar
     Allen
     Allred
     Amodei
     Arrington
     Axne
     Bacon
     Baird
     Balderson
     Barr
     Barragan
     Bass
     Beatty
     Bera
     Bergman
     Beyer
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (GA)
     Blunt Rochester
     Bonamici
     Bost
     Brady
     Brindisi
     Brooks (AL)
     Brown (MD)
     Brownley (CA)
     Buchanan
     Bucshon
     Burgess
     Bustos
     Butterfield
     Byrne
     Calvert
     Carbajal
     Cardenas
     Carson (IN)
     Carter (GA)
     Cartwright
     Case
     Casten (IL)
     Castor (FL)
     Chabot
     Cheney
     Chu, Judy
     Cicilline
     Cisneros
     Clark (MA)
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Cline
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Cole
     Collins (GA)
     Conaway
     Connolly
     Cooper
     Costa
     Courtney
     Cox (CA)
     Craig
     Crawford
     Crenshaw
     Crist
     Crow
     Cunningham
     Davids (KS)
     Davis (CA)
     Davis, Danny K.
     Davis, Rodney
     Dean
     DeGette
     DeLauro
     DelBene
     Delgado
     Demings
     Deutch
     Diaz-Balart
     Dingell
     Doyle, Michael F.
     Emmer
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Estes
     Evans
     Ferguson
     Finkenauer
     Fitzpatrick
     Fleischmann
     Fletcher
     Flores
     Fortenberry
     Foster
     Foxx (NC)
     Frankel
     Fudge
     Fulcher
     Gaetz
     Gallego
     Garamendi
     Garcia (CA)
     Garcia (TX)
     Gianforte
     Gibbs
     Golden
     Gonzalez (OH)
     Gottheimer
     Granger
     Graves (LA)
     Graves (MO)
     Green, Al (TX)
     Griffith
     Grothman
     Guest
     Haaland
     Hagedorn
     Hall
     Harder (CA)
     Harris
     Hartzler
     Hastings
     Hayes
     Heck
     Hern, Kevin
     Herrera Beutler
     Higgins (NY)
     Hill (AR)
     Himes
     Holding
     Horn, Kendra S.
     Horsford
     Houlahan
     Hoyer
     Hudson
     Huizenga
     Hurd (TX)
     Jackson Lee
     Jacobs
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson (LA)
     Johnson (OH)
     Johnson (SD)
     Johnson (TX)
     Joyce (OH)
     Joyce (PA)
     Kaptur
     Katko
     Keating
     Kelly (IL)
     Kelly (PA)
     Kildee
     Kilmer
     Kim
     Kind
     King (NY)
     Kinzinger
     Kirkpatrick
     Krishnamoorthi
     Kuster (NH)
     Kustoff (TN)
     LaHood
     LaMalfa
     Lamb
     Lamborn
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Latta
     Lawrence
     Lawson (FL)
     Lee (NV)
     Lesko
     Levin (CA)
     Lieu, Ted
     Lipinski
     Loebsack
     Lowenthal
     Lowey
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Lujan
     Luria
     Lynch
     Malinowski
     Maloney, Sean
     Marshall
     Matsui
     McAdams
     McBath
     McCarthy
     McCaul
     McCollum
     McEachin
     McHenry
     McKinley
     McNerney
     Meeks
     Meuser
     Mfume
     Miller
     Mitchell
     Moolenaar
     Morelle
     Moulton
     Mucarsel-Powell
     Murphy (FL)
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Neguse
     Newhouse
     Norcross
     Nunes
     O'Halleran
     Olson
     Palazzo
     Pallone
     Palmer
     Panetta
     Pappas
     Pascrell
     Payne
     Pelosi
     Pence
     Perlmutter
     Peters
     Peterson
     Phillips
     Pingree
     Porter
     Price (NC)
     Quigley
     Reed
     Reschenthaler
     Rice (NY)
     Richmond
     Riggleman
     Roby
     Rodgers (WA)
     Roe, David P.
     Rogers (KY)
     Rooney (FL)
     Rose (NY)
     Rouda
     Rouzer
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruiz
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Rutherford
     Ryan
     Sanchez
     Sarbanes
     Scalise
     Scanlon
     Schiff
     Schneider
     Schrader
     Schrier
     Scott (VA)
     Scott, Austin
     Scott, David
     Serrano
     Sewell (AL)
     Shalala
     Sherman
     Sherrill
     Shimkus
     Simpson
     Sires
     Slotkin
     Smith (MO)
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (WA)
     Smucker
     Soto
     Spanberger
     Speier
     Stanton
     Stauber
     Stefanik
     Steil
     Stevens
     Stewart
     Stivers
     Suozzi
     Swalwell (CA)
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Thompson (PA)
     Thornberry
     Tipton
     Titus
     Tonko
     Torres (CA)
     Torres Small (NM)
     Trahan
     Trone
     Turner
     Underwood
     Upton
     Van Drew
     Veasey
     Visclosky
     Wagner
     Walberg
     Walden
     Walorski
     Waltz
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters
     Watkins
     Wenstrup
     Westerman
     Wexton
     Wild
     Williams
     Wilson (FL)
     Wittman
     Womack
     Woodall
     Yarmuth
     Young
     Zeldin

                                NAYS--85

     Amash
     Armstrong
     Babin
     Banks
     Biggs
     Bishop (NC)
     Blumenauer
     Boyle, Brendan F.
     Buck
     Budd
     Burchett
     Castro (TX)
     Clarke (NY)
     Cloud
     Comer
     Correa
     Cuellar
     Curtis
     Davidson (OH)
     DeFazio
     DeSaulnier
     DesJarlais
     Doggett
     Escobar
     Espaillat
     Gabbard
     Gallagher
     Garcia (IL)
     Gohmert
     Gomez
     Gonzalez (TX)
     Gooden
     Gosar
     Green (TN)
     Grijalva
     Hice (GA)
     Higgins (LA)
     Hollingsworth
     Huffman
     Jayapal
     Jeffries
     Jordan
     Keller
     Kelly (MS)
     Kennedy
     Khanna
     Lee (CA)
     Levin (MI)
     Lofgren
     Long
     Maloney, Carolyn B.
     Massie
     Mast
     McClintock
     McGovern
     Meng
     Mooney (WV)
     Moore
     Mullin
     Norman
     Ocasio-Cortez
     Omar
     Perry
     Pocan
     Posey
     Pressley
     Raskin
     Rice (SC)
     Rose, John W.
     Roy
     Schakowsky
     Schweikert
     Sensenbrenner
     Steube
     Takano
     Taylor
     Tiffany
     Timmons
     Tlaib
     Vargas
     Vela
     Velazquez
     Watson Coleman
     Weber (TX)
     Welch

                             NOT VOTING--18

     Abraham
     Bishop (UT)
     Brooks (IN)
     Carter (TX)
     Duncan
     Dunn
     Guthrie
     King (IA)
     Loudermilk
     Marchant
     Murphy (NC)
     Rogers (AL)
     Spano
     Walker
     Webster (FL)
     Wilson (SC)
     Wright
     Yoho

                              {time}  2025

  Messrs. GRIJALVA, JEFFRIES, and WEBER of Texas changed their vote 
from ``yea'' to ``nay.''
  Mr. McCARTHY changed his vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
  So the first portion of the divided question was adopted.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.


   members recorded pursuant to house resolution 965, 116th congress

     Allred (Wexton)
     Axne (Davids (KS))
     Barragan (Beyer)
     Bera (Aguilar)
     Bishop (GA) (Butterfield)
     Blumenauer (Beyer)
     Bonamici (Clark (MA))
     Boyle, Brendan F. (Jeffries)
     Brownley (CA) (Clark (MA))
     Bustos (Kuster (NH))
     Cardenas (Carbajal)
     Carson (IN) (Butterfield)
     Case (Cartwright)
     Castor (FL) (Demings)
     Cisneros (Carbajal)
     Cleaver (Davids (KS))
     Cohen (Beyer)
     Costa (Correa)
     Davis (CA) (Scanlon)
     Dean (Scanlon)
     DeFazio (Davids (KS))
     DeGette (Blunt Rochester)
     DelBene (Cicilline)
     DeSaulnier (Matsui)
     Deutch (Rice (NY))
     Doggett (Raskin)
     Escobar (Garcia (TX))
     Eshoo (Thompson (CA))
     Finkenauer (Underwood)
     Fletcher (Raskin)
     Frankel (Clark (MA))

[[Page H7314]]


     Garamendi (Sherman)
     Gianforte (Suozzi)
     Gonzalez (TX) (Gomez)
     Grijalva (Garcia (IL))
     Haaland (Davids (KS))
     Hastings (Wasserman Schultz)
     Heck (Kildee)
     Jayapal (Raskin)
     Johnson (TX) (Jeffries)
     Kelly (IL) (Clarke (NY))
     Kennedy (McGovern)
     Khanna (Sherman)
     Kilmer (Kildee)
     Kim (Davids (KS))
     Kirkpatrick (Stanton)
     Lamb (Sherrill)
     Langevin (Lynch)
     Larson (CT) (Cicilline)
     Lawrence (Kildee)
     Lawson (FL) (Demings)
     Lieu, Ted (Beyer)
     Lipinski (Schrader)
     Lofgren (Jeffries)
     Lowenthal (Beyer)
     McEachin (Wexton)
     McNerney (Raskin)
     Meng (Clark (MA))
     Mitchell (Spanberger)
     Moore (Beyer)
     Moulton (McGovern)
     Mucarsel-Powell (Wasserman Schultz)
     Nadler (Jeffries)
     Napolitano (Correa)
     Neal (Lynch)
     Neguse (Perlmutter)
     Pascrell (Pallone)
     Payne (Wasserman Schultz)
     Peters (Kildee)
     Peterson (McCollum)
     Pingree (Cicilline)
     Pocan (Raskin)
     Porter (Wexton)
     Price (NC) (Butterfield)
     Richmond (Butterfield)
     Rooney (FL) (Beyer)
     Rouda (Aguilar)
     Roybal-Allard (Garcia (TX))
     Ruiz (Dingell)
     Rush (Underwood)
     Ryan (Kildee)
     Schakowsky (Underwood)
     Schneider (Casten (IL))
     Schrier (Spanberger)
     Serrano (Jeffries)
     Sewell (AL) (Cicilline)
     Shimkus (Pallone)
     Sires (Pallone)
     Smith (WA) (Courtney)
     Speier (Scanlon)
     Thompson (MS) (Fudge)
     Titus (Connolly)
     Vargas (Correa)
     Veasey (Beyer)
     Velazquez (Clarke (NY))
     Watson Coleman (Pallone)
     Welch (McGovern)
     Wilson (FL) (Hayes)
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Mfume). The Chair will now put the 
question on the second portion of the divided question.
  The question is: Will the House concur in the Senate amendment with 
all of the matter proposed to be inserted by the amendment of the House 
other than Divisions B, C, E, and F?
  The question is on the second portion of the divided question.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3 of House Resolution 
965, the yeas and nays are ordered.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 359, 
nays 53, not voting 17, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 251]

                               YEAS--359

     Adams
     Aderholt
     Aguilar
     Allen
     Allred
     Amodei
     Arrington
     Axne
     Bacon
     Baird
     Balderson
     Barr
     Barragan
     Bass
     Beatty
     Bera
     Bergman
     Beyer
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (GA)
     Blumenauer
     Blunt Rochester
     Bonamici
     Bost
     Boyle, Brendan F.
     Brady
     Brindisi
     Brown (MD)
     Brownley (CA)
     Buchanan
     Bucshon
     Bustos
     Butterfield
     Byrne
     Calvert
     Carbajal
     Cardenas
     Carson (IN)
     Carter (GA)
     Cartwright
     Case
     Casten (IL)
     Castor (FL)
     Castro (TX)
     Chabot
     Cheney
     Chu, Judy
     Cicilline
     Cisneros
     Clark (MA)
     Clarke (NY)
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Cline
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Cole
     Collins (GA)
     Comer
     Connolly
     Cooper
     Correa
     Costa
     Courtney
     Cox (CA)
     Craig
     Crawford
     Crenshaw
     Crist
     Crow
     Cuellar
     Cunningham
     Davids (KS)
     Davis (CA)
     Davis, Danny K.
     Davis, Rodney
     Dean
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     DeLauro
     DelBene
     Delgado
     Demings
     DeSaulnier
     Deutch
     Diaz-Balart
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Doyle, Michael F.
     Emmer
     Engel
     Escobar
     Eshoo
     Espaillat
     Estes
     Evans
     Ferguson
     Finkenauer
     Fitzpatrick
     Fleischmann
     Fletcher
     Flores
     Fortenberry
     Foster
     Foxx (NC)
     Frankel
     Fudge
     Fulcher
     Gallego
     Garamendi
     Garcia (CA)
     Garcia (IL)
     Garcia (TX)
     Gianforte
     Gibbs
     Golden
     Gomez
     Gonzalez (OH)
     Gonzalez (TX)
     Gottheimer
     Granger
     Graves (LA)
     Graves (MO)
     Green, Al (TX)
     Grijalva
     Guest
     Guthrie
     Haaland
     Hagedorn
     Hall
     Harder (CA)
     Harris
     Hartzler
     Hastings
     Hayes
     Heck
     Hern, Kevin
     Herrera Beutler
     Higgins (NY)
     Hill (AR)
     Himes
     Holding
     Horn, Kendra S.
     Horsford
     Houlahan
     Hoyer
     Hudson
     Huffman
     Huizenga
     Hurd (TX)
     Jackson Lee
     Jacobs
     Jayapal
     Jeffries
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson (LA)
     Johnson (OH)
     Johnson (SD)
     Johnson (TX)
     Joyce (OH)
     Joyce (PA)
     Kaptur
     Katko
     Keating
     Kelly (IL)
     Kelly (PA)
     Kennedy
     Khanna
     Kildee
     Kilmer
     Kim
     Kind
     King (NY)
     Kinzinger
     Kirkpatrick
     Krishnamoorthi
     Kuster (NH)
     Kustoff (TN)
     LaHood
     LaMalfa
     Lamb
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Latta
     Lawrence
     Lawson (FL)
     Lee (CA)
     Lee (NV)
     Lesko
     Levin (CA)
     Levin (MI)
     Lieu, Ted
     Lipinski
     Loebsack
     Lofgren
     Long
     Lowenthal
     Lowey
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Lujan
     Luria
     Lynch
     Malinowski
     Maloney, Carolyn B.
     Maloney, Sean
     Marshall
     Mast
     Matsui
     McAdams
     McBath
     McCarthy
     McCaul
     McCollum
     McEachin
     McGovern
     McHenry
     McKinley
     McNerney
     Meeks
     Meng
     Meuser
     Mfume
     Miller
     Mitchell
     Moolenaar
     Moore
     Morelle
     Moulton
     Mucarsel-Powell
     Murphy (FL)
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Neguse
     Newhouse
     Norcross
     Nunes
     O'Halleran
     Ocasio-Cortez
     Olson
     Omar
     Palazzo
     Pallone
     Palmer
     Panetta
     Pappas
     Pascrell
     Payne
     Pence
     Perlmutter
     Peters
     Peterson
     Phillips
     Pingree
     Pocan
     Porter
     Pressley
     Price (NC)
     Quigley
     Raskin
     Reed
     Reschenthaler
     Rice (NY)
     Rice (SC)
     Richmond
     Riggleman
     Roby
     Rodgers (WA)
     Roe, David P.
     Rogers (KY)
     Rooney (FL)
     Rose (NY)
     Rouda
     Rouzer
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruiz
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Rutherford
     Ryan
     Sanchez
     Sarbanes
     Scalise
     Scanlon
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Schneider
     Schrader
     Schrier
     Scott (VA)
     Scott, Austin
     Scott, David
     Serrano
     Sewell (AL)
     Shalala
     Sherman
     Sherrill
     Shimkus
     Simpson
     Sires
     Slotkin
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (WA)
     Smucker
     Soto
     Spanberger
     Speier
     Stanton
     Stauber
     Stefanik
     Stevens
     Stivers
     Suozzi
     Swalwell (CA)
     Takano
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Thompson (PA)
     Thornberry
     Titus
     Tonko
     Torres (CA)
     Torres Small (NM)
     Trahan
     Trone
     Turner
     Underwood
     Upton
     Van Drew
     Vargas
     Veasey
     Vela
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Wagner
     Walberg
     Walden
     Walorski
     Waltz
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters
     Watkins
     Watson Coleman
     Welch
     Wenstrup
     Westerman
     Wexton
     Wild
     Williams
     Wilson (FL)
     Wittman
     Womack
     Woodall
     Yarmuth
     Young
     Zeldin

                                NAYS--53

     Amash
     Armstrong
     Babin
     Banks
     Biggs
     Bishop (NC)
     Brooks (AL)
     Buck
     Budd
     Burchett
     Burgess
     Cloud
     Conaway
     Curtis
     Davidson (OH)
     DesJarlais
     Gabbard
     Gaetz
     Gallagher
     Gohmert
     Gooden
     Gosar
     Green (TN)
     Griffith
     Grothman
     Hice (GA)
     Higgins (LA)
     Hollingsworth
     Jordan
     Keller
     Kelly (MS)
     Lamborn
     Massie
     McClintock
     Mooney (WV)
     Mullin
     Norman
     Perry
     Posey
     Rose, John W.
     Roy
     Schweikert
     Sensenbrenner
     Smith (MO)
     Steil
     Steube
     Stewart
     Taylor
     Tiffany
     Timmons
     Tipton
     Tlaib
     Weber (TX)

                             NOT VOTING--17

     Abraham
     Bishop (UT)
     Brooks (IN)
     Carter (TX)
     Duncan
     Dunn
     King (IA)
     Loudermilk
     Marchant
     Murphy (NC)
     Rogers (AL)
     Spano
     Walker
     Webster (FL)
     Wilson (SC)
     Wright
     Yoho

                              {time}  2108

  Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ changed her vote from ``present'' to ``yea.''
  So the second portion of the divided question was adopted.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.


                          Personal explanation

  Mr. KING of Iowa. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to vote on December 20, 
2020 and December 21, 2020 due to not being in DC. Had I been present, 
I would have voted as follows: ``no'' on rollcall No. 248; ``no'' on 
rollcall No. 249; ``no'' on rollcall No. 250; and ``no'' on rollcall 
No. 251.


   members recorded pursuant to house resolution 965, 116th congress

     Allred (Wexton)
     Axne (Davids (KS))
     Barragan (Beyer)
     Bera (Aguilar)
     Bishop (GA) (Butterfield)
     Blumenauer (Beyer)
     Bonamici (Clark (MA))
     Boyle, Brendan F. (Jeffries)
     Brownley (CA) (Clark (MA))
     Bustos (Kuster (NH))
     Cardenas (Carbajal)
     Carson (IN) (Butterfield)
     Case (Cartwright)
     Castor (FL) (Demings)
     Cisneros (Carbajal)
     Cleaver (Davids (KS))
     Cohen (Beyer)
     Costa (Correa)
     Davis (CA) (Scanlon)
     Dean (Scanlon)
     DeFazio (Davids (KS))
     DeGette (Blunt Rochester)
     DelBene (Cicilline)
     DeSaulnier (Matsui)
     Deutch (Rice (NY))
     Doggett (Raskin)
     Escobar (Garcia (TX))
     Eshoo (Thompson (CA))
     Finkenauer (Underwood)
     Fletcher (Raskin)
     Frankel (Clark (MA))
     Garamendi (Sherman)
     Gianforte (Suozzi)
     Gonzalez (TX) (Gomez)
     Grijalva (Garcia (IL))
     Haaland (Davids (KS))
     Hastings (Wasserman Schultz)
     Heck (Kildee)
     Jayapal (Raskin)
     Johnson (TX) (Jeffries)
     Kelly (IL) (Clarke (NY))
     Kennedy (McGovern)
     Khanna (Sherman)
     Kilmer (Kildee)
     Kim (Davids (KS))
     Kirkpatrick (Stanton)
     Lamb (Sherrill)
     Langevin (Lynch)
     Larson (CT) (Cicilline)
     Lawrence (Kildee)
     Lawson (FL) (Demings)
     Lieu, Ted (Beyer)
     Lipinski (Schrader)
     Lofgren (Jeffries)
     Lowenthal (Beyer)
     McEachin (Wexton)
     McNerney (Raskin)
     Meng (Clark (MA))
     Mitchell (Spanberger)
     Moore (Beyer)
     Moulton (McGovern)
     Mucarsel-Powell (Wasserman Schultz)
     Nadler (Jeffries)
     Napolitano (Correa)
     Neal (Lynch)
     Neguse (Perlmutter)
     Pascrell (Pallone)
     Payne (Wasserman Schultz)
     Peters (Kildee)
     Peterson (McCollum)
     Pingree (Cicilline)
     Pocan (Raskin)
     Porter (Wexton)
     Price (NC) (Butterfield)
     Richmond (Butterfield)
     Rooney (FL) (Beyer)
     Rouda (Aguilar)
     Roybal-Allard (Garcia (TX))
     Ruiz (Dingell)
     Rush (Underwood)
     Ryan (Kildee)

[[Page H7315]]


     Schakowsky (Underwood)
     Schneider (Casten (IL))
     Schrier (Spanberger)
     Serrano (Jeffries)
     Sewell (AL) (Cicilline)
     Shimkus (Pallone)
     Sires (Pallone)
     Smith (WA) (Courtney)
     Speier (Scanlon)
     Thompson (MS) (Fudge)
     Titus (Connolly)
     Vargas (Correa)
     Veasey (Beyer)
     Velazquez (Clarke (NY))
     Watson Coleman (Pallone)
     Welch (McGovern)
     Wilson (FL) (Hayes)

                          ____________________