[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 216 (Wednesday, December 15, 2021)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D1386-D1388]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
DISASTER RECOVERY ASSISTANCE
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a 
hearing to examine disaster recovery assistance, focusing on 
authorization of the Community Development Block Grant--Disaster 
Recovery Program, including S. 2471, to establish a community disaster 
assistance fund for housing and community development and to authorize 
the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to provide, from the 
fund, assistance through a community development block grant disaster 
recovery program, and S. 2404, to improve Federal activities relating 
to wildfires, after receiving testimony from Michael Sprayberry, 
Hagerty Consulting, Inc., Raleigh, North Carolina; Matt A. Mayer, 
Opportunity Ohio, Columbus; and Carlos E. Martin, Brookings 
Institution, Washington, D.C.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered 
favorably reported the following business items:
  S. 46, to reauthorize the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000 and to 
establish the United States Coral Reef Task Force, with an amendment in 
the nature of a substitute;
  S. 3196, to enhance the policies, procedures, and training for 
midshipmen at the United States Merchant Marine Academy, with an 
amendment in the nature of a substitute;
  S. 3309, to require SelectUSA to coordinate with State-level economic 
development organizations to increase foreign direct investment in 
semiconductor-related manufacturing and production, with an amendment 
in the nature of a substitute;
  S. 3375, to promote travel and tourism in the United States, to 
improve the health safety and security of international flights 
entering the United States, with an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute; and
  The nominations of Alan Davidson, of Maryland, to be Assistant 
Secretary for Communications and Information, Jed David Kolko, of 
California, to be Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, and Viquar 
Ahmad, of Texas, to be an Assistant Secretary, and to be Chief 
Financial Officer, all of the Department of Commerce.
U.S. AIRLINE INDUSTRY
Committee on Commerce: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the 
United States airline industry, after receiving testimony from Doug 
Parker, American Airlines Group, Inc., Fort Worth, Texas; Gary C. 
Kelly, Southwest Airlines Co., Dallas, Texas; Scott Kirby, United 
Airlines Holdings, Inc., Chicago, Illinois; John Laughter, Delta Air 
Lines, Atlanta, Georgia; Sara Nelson, Association of Flight 
Attendants--CWA, AFL-CIO, and Mike Tretheway, InterVISTAS Consulting 
Inc., both of Washington, D.C.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported 
the nominations of Marc R. Stanley, of Texas, to be Ambassador to the 
Argentine Republic, Rashad Hussain, of Virginia, to be Ambassador at 
Large for International Religious Freedom, Ramin Toloui, of Iowa, to be 
an Assistant Secretary (Economic and Business Affairs), Thomas Barrett, 
of Wisconsin, to be Ambassador to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Erik 
D. Ramanathan, of Massachusetts, to be Ambassador to the Kingdom of 
Sweden, Scott Miller, of Colorado, to be Ambassador to the Swiss 
Confederation, and to serve concurrently and

[[Page D1387]]

without additional compensation as Ambassador to the Principality of 
Liechtenstein, Jamie L. Harpootlian, of South Carolina, to be 
Ambassador to the Republic of Slovenia, John R. Bass, of New York, to 
be an Under Secretary (Management), Mark Brzezinski, of Virginia, to be 
Ambassador to the Republic of Poland, and Michael M. Adler, of Florida, 
to be Ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium, all of the Department of 
State, Adriana Debora Kugler, of Maryland, to be United States 
Executive Director of the International Bank for Reconstruction and 
Development, Scott A. Nathan, of Massachusetts, to be Chief Executive 
Officer of the United States International Development Finance 
Corporation, Chantale Yokmin Wong, of the District of Columbia, to be 
United States Director of the Asian Development Bank, with the rank of 
Ambassador, and routine lists in the Foreign Service.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee 
ordered favorably reported the following business items:
  S. 3099, to amend title 44, United States Code, to establish the 
Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program within the General 
Services Administration, with an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute;
  S. 2932, to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 430 South Knowles Avenue in New Richmond, Wisconsin, 
as the ``Captain Robert C. Harmon and Private John R. Peirson Post 
Office Building'';
  H.R. 767, to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 40 Fulton Street in Middletown, New York, as the 
``Benjamin A. Gilman Post Office Building'';
  H.R. 1170, to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 1 League in Irvine, California, as the ``Tuskegee 
Airman Lieutenant Colonel Robert J. Friend Memorial Post Office 
Building'';
  H.R. 1444, to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 132 North Loudoun Street, Suite 1 in Winchester, 
Virginia, as the ``Patsy Cline Post Office'';
  H.R. 3210, to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 1905 15th Street in Boulder, Colorado, as the 
``Officer Eric H. Talley Post Office Building''; and
  The nominations of Loren L. AliKhan, and John P. Howard III, both to 
be an Associate Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, and 
Adrienne Jennings Noti, to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court 
of the District of Columbia.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine 
the nominations of Alison J. Nathan, of New York, to be United States 
Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit, who was introduced by Senator 
Schumer, Georgette Castner, to be United States District Judge for the 
District of New Jersey, who was introduced by Senators Booker and 
Menendez, Ruth Bermudez Montenegro, to be United States District Judge 
for the Southern District of California, who was introduced by Senator 
Padilla, Julie Rebecca Rubin, to be United States District Judge for 
the District of Maryland, who was introduced by Senator Cardin, and 
Cristina D. Silva, and Anne Rachel Traum, both to be a United States 
District Judge for the District of Nevada, who were introduced by 
Senators Rosen and Cortez Masto, after the nominees testified and 
answered questions in their own behalf.
AMERICAN INNOVATION
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Competition Policy, 
Antitrust, and Consumer Rights concluded a hearing to examine the 
impact of consolidation and monopoly power on American innovation, 
after receiving testimony from Diana Moss, American Antitrust 
Institute, Denver, Colorado; Alex Harman, Public Citizen, Washington, 
D.C.; Eric Migicovsky, Beeper Inc., Palo Alto, California; Bettina 
Hein, Juli, Boston, Massachusetts; and Roger P. Alford, Notre Dame Law 
School, Notre Dame, Indiana.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported 
the following business items:
  S. 731, to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the 
management of information technology projects and investments of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs;
  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;

[[Page D1388]]


  S. 1850, to preserve the memorials to chaplains at Arlington National 
Cemetery;
  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. 1944, to improve Vet Centers of the Department of Veterans 
Affairs;
  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. 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. 2514, to rename the Provo Veterans Center in Orem, Utah, as the 
``Col. Gail S. Halvorsen `Candy Bomber' Veterans Center'';
  S. 2533, to improve mammography services furnished by the Department 
of Veterans Affairs;
  S. 2624, to authorize major medical facility projects for the 
Department of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2022;
  S. 2627, to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve assistance 
for veterans with travel necessary for counseling, mental health 
services, health care, and others services furnished by the Department 
of Veterans Affairs;
  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. 2720, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a 
national clinical pathway for prostate cancer;
  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. 2787, to amend title 38, United States Code, to clarify the role 
of doctors of podiatric medicine in 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. 2852, to amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter into contracts and agreements 
for the payment of care in non-Department of Veterans Affairs medical 
foster homes for certain veterans who are unable to live independently;
  S. 3025, to amend title 38, United States Code, to expand health care 
and benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs for military 
sexual trauma;
  S. 3094, to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve 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;
  S. 3293, to expand access of veterans to mental health care from the 
Department of Veterans Affairs;
  An original bill entitled, ``Veterans Benefits Improvement Act''; and
  The nomination of Kurt D. DelBene, of Washington, to be an Assistant 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Information and Technology).
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee ordered favorably reported 
the nomination of Shannon Corless, of the District of Columbia, to be 
Assistant Secretary for Intelligence and Analysis, Department of the 
Treasury.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee met in closed session to 
receive a briefing on certain intelligence matters from officials of 
the intelligence community.