[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 200 (Wednesday, November 17, 2021)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D1275-D1277]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded 
a hearing to examine the nominations of Chavonda J. Jacobs-Young, of 
Georgia, to be Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics, 
and Margo Schlanger, of Michigan, to be an Assistant Secretary, both of 
the Department of Agriculture, after the nominees testified and 
answered questions in their own behalf.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered 
favorably reported the following business items:
  S. 594, to double the existing penalties for the provision of 
misleading or inaccurate caller identification information;
  S. 1127, to require the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration to make certain operational models available to the 
public;
  S. 2699, to establish a cybersecurity literacy campaign, with an 
amendment in the nature of a substitute; and
  The nominations of Laurie E. Locascio, of Maryland, to be Under 
Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology, Max Vekich, of 
Washington, to be a Federal Maritime Commissioner, Christopher A. Coes, 
of Georgia, to be an Assistant Secretary of Transportation, and routine 
lists in the Coast Guard
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Commerce: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the 
nominations of Jessica Rosenworcel, of Connecticut, to be a Member of 
the Federal Communications Commission, who was introduced by Senator 
Blumenthal, Alvaro M. Bedoya, of Maryland, to be a Federal Trade 
Commissioner, who was introduced by Senator Lujan, and Jainey Kumar 
Bavishi, of New York, to be Assistant Secretary for Oceans and 
Atmosphere, and Arun Venkataraman, of the District of Columbia, to be 
Assistant Secretary and Director General of the United States and 
Foreign Commercial Service, both of the Department of Commerce, after 
the nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
NOMINATION
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a 
hearing to examine the nomination of Martha Williams, of Montana, to be 
Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of 
the Interior, after the nominee testified and answered questions in her 
own behalf.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported the 
nominations of Maria L. Pagan, of Puerto Rico, to be a Deputy United 
States Trade Representative (Geneva Office), with the rank of 
Ambassador, Brent Neiman, of Illinois, to be a Deputy Under Secretary, 
and Joshua Frost, of New York, to be an Assistant Secretary, both of 
the Department of the Treasury, Christi A. Grimm, of Colorado, to be 
Inspector General, Department of Health and Human Services, and 
Christopher S. Wilson, of the District of Columbia, to be Chief 
Innovation and Intellectual Property Negotiator, Office of the United 
States Trade Representative, with the rank of Ambassador.
AFGHANISTAN
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to 
examine Afghanistan, focusing on United States policy lessons learned, 
after receiving testimony from Laurel E. Miller, International Crisis 
Group, and Ryan Crocker, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 
both of Washington, D.C.
SECURITY, TRADE, AND TRAVEL AT THE SOUTHWEST BORDER
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee 
on Government Operations and Border Management concluded a hearing to 
examine security, trade, and travel flows at the Southwest border ports 
of entry, focusing on the Federal government perspective, after 
receiving testimony from Diane J. Sabatino, Deputy Executive Assistant 
Commissioner, Office of Field Operations, Customs and Border 
Protection, and Jose M. Jeronimo, Deputy Assistant Director, Public 
Safety and Border Security Division, Homeland Security Investigations, 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, both of the Department of Homeland 
Security; and Stuart Burns, Assistant Commissioner, Public Buildings 
Service, General Services Administration.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported S. 
648, to amend the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 to make a 
technical

[[Page D1276]]

correction to the water rights settlement for Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of 
the Duck Valley Reservation, with an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute.
LEGISLATION
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine 
S. 1364, to provide for the recognition of the Lumbee Tribe of North 
Carolina, H.R. 1975, to take certain land located in San Diego County, 
California, into trust for the benefit of the Pala Band of Mission 
Indians, H.R. 2088, to take certain Federal lands in Tennessee into 
trust for the benefit of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and H.R. 
4881, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to take into trust for 
the Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona certain land in Pima County, Arizona, 
after receiving testimony from Senators Burr and Tillis; 
Representatives Butterfield and Issa; Bryan Newland, Assistant 
Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs; Harvey Godwin, Lumbee 
Tribe of North Carolina, Pembroke; Robert Smith, Pala Band of Mission 
Indians, Pala, California; Richard G. Sneed, Eastern Band of Cherokee 
Indians, Cherokee, North Carolina; and Peter Yucupicio, Pascua Yaqui 
Tribe, Tucson, Arizona.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine 
the nominations of Bridget Meehan Brennan, Charles Esque Fleming, and 
David Augustin Ruiz, each to be a United States District Judge for the 
Northern District of Ohio, who were all introduced by Senators Brown 
and Portman, and John H. Chun, to be United States District Judge for 
the Western District of Washington, who was introduced by Senator 
Murray, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their 
own behalf.
VETERANS LEGISLATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to 
examine S. 1296, to require a pilot program on activities under the 
Transition Assistance Program for a reduction in suicide among 
veterans, S. 1564, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to 
provide support to university law school programs that are designed to 
provide legal assistance to veterans, S. 1607, to require the Secretary 
of Veterans Affairs to improve how the Department of Veterans Affairs 
discloses to individuals entitled to educational assistance from the 
Department risks associated with using such assistance at particular 
educational institutions and to restore entitlement of students to such 
assistance who are pursuing programs of education at educational 
institutions that are subject to Federal or State civil enforcement 
action, S. 1664, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to take 
certain actions to improve the processing by the Department of Veterans 
Affairs of claims for disability compensation for post-traumatic stress 
disorder, S. 1838, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to 
carry out a pilot program on using alternative credit scoring 
information for veterans and members of the Armed Forces, S. 1850, to 
preserve the memorials to chaplains at Arlington National Cemetery, S. 
1881, to reauthorize and improve a grant program to assist institutions 
of higher education in establishing, maintaining, improving, and 
operating Student Veteran Centers, S. 1936, to amend title 38, United 
States Code, to provide for extensions of the time limitations for use 
of entitlement under Department of Veterans Affairs educational 
assistance programs by reason of school closures due to emergency and 
other situations, S. 2089, to amend title 38, United States Code, to 
ensure that grants provided by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for 
State veterans' cemeteries do not restrict States from authorizing the 
interment of certain deceased members of the reserve components of the 
Armed Forces in such cemeteries, S. 2329, to ensure that only licensed 
health care professionals furnish disability examinations under a 
certain Department of Veterans Affairs pilot program for use of 
contract physicians for disability examinations, S. 2405, to amend 
title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs to award grants to States to improve outreach to veterans, S. 
2431, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to require the 
employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs to receive training 
developed by the Inspector General of the Department on reporting 
wrongdoing to, responding to requests from, and cooperating with the 
Office of Inspector General, S. 2513, to amend title 38, United States 
Code, to improve the application and review process of the Department 
of Veterans Affairs for clothing allowance claims submitted by 
veterans, S. 2644, to amend title 38, United States Code, to expand 
eligibility for Post-9/11 Educational Assistance to members of the 
National Guard who perform certain full-time duty, S. 2687, to provide 
the Inspector General of the Department of Veterans Affairs testimonial 
subpoena authority, S. 2761, to amend title 38, United States Code, to 
direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to maintain demographic 
information regarding veterans and publish such information on a 
website of the Department of Veterans Affairs, S. 2794, to amend title 
38, United States Code, to increase automatic maximum coverage under 
the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance program and the Veterans' 
Group Life Insurance program, S. 3047, to establish a pilot program to 
support medical residency and fellowship programs that assist veterans, 
S. 3094, to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve

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homeless veterans reintegration programs, S. 3163, to improve access to 
medical examinations required by veterans to obtain disability 
compensation or pension under laws administered by the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs, and an original bill entitled, ``Veterans Benefits 
Improvement Act'', after receiving testimony from Brianne Ogilvie, 
Assistant Deputy Undersecretary for Policy and Oversight, Veterans 
Benefits Administration, Jill DeBord, Executive Director, Care 
Management and Social Work, Veterans Health Administration, and 
Marjorie Bowman, Chief Academic Affiliations Officer, Office of 
Academic Affiliations, both of the Veterans Health Administration, and 
Christopher A. Wilber, Counselor to the Inspector General, Office of 
Inspector General, all of the Department of Veterans Affairs; and 
Jeremy M. Villanueva, Disabled American Veterans, and Patrick Murray, 
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, both of Washington, D.C.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee met in closed session to 
receive a briefing on certain intelligence matters from officials of 
the intelligence community.
ILLICIT DRUG TRADE AND CORRUPTION
United States Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control: Caucus 
concluded a hearing to examine the nexus between the illicit drug trade 
and corruption, after receiving testimony from Todd D. Robinson, 
Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law 
Enforcement Affairs; Bruce C. Swartz, Deputy Assistant Attorney General 
and Counselor for International Affairs, Department of Justice; Shannon 
N. Green, Executive Director of the Anti-Corruption Task Force and 
Senior Advisor to the Administrator, U.S. Agency for International 
Development; John Brandolino, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 
Vienna, Austria; Vanda Felbab-Brown, Brookings Institution, Washington, 
D.C.; and Clay R. Fuller, University of South Carolina Walker 
Institute, Columbia.