[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 11]
[House]
[Pages 15483-15492]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




          TSA OFFICE OF INSPECTION ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2015


                             General Leave

  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend

[[Page 15484]]

their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 719, and that I 
may include tabular material on the same.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Kentucky?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 
448, I call up the bill (H.R. 719) to require the Transportation 
Security Administration to conform to existing Federal law and 
regulations regarding criminal investigator positions, and for other 
purposes, with the Senate amendment to the House amendment to the 
Senate amendment thereto, and ask for its immediate consideration.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the Senate 
amendment to the House amendment to the Senate amendment.
  The text of the Senate amendment to the House amendment to the Senate 
amendment is as follows:

       At the end add the following:
     The following sums are hereby appropriated, out of any money 
     in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, and out of 
     applicable corporate or other revenues, receipts, and funds, 
     for the several departments, agencies, corporations, and 
     other organizational units of Government for fiscal year 
     2016, and for other purposes, namely:
       Sec. 101. (a) Such amounts as may be necessary, at a rate 
     for operations as provided in the applicable appropriations 
     Acts for fiscal year 2015 and under the authority and 
     conditions provided in such Acts, for continuing projects or 
     activities (including the costs of direct loans and loan 
     guarantees) that are not otherwise specifically provided for 
     in this Act, that were conducted in fiscal year 2015, and for 
     which appropriations, funds, or other authority were made 
     available in the following appropriations Acts:
       (1) The Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug 
     Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015 
     (division A of Public Law 113-235), except section 743 and 
     title VIII.
       (2) The Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies 
     Appropriations Act, 2015 (division B of Public Law 113-235).
       (3) The Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2015 
     (division C of Public Law 113-235), except title X.
       (4) The Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies 
     Appropriations Act, 2015 (division D of Public Law 113-235).
       (5) The Financial Services and General Government 
     Appropriations Act, 2015 (division E of Public Law 113-235).
       (6) The Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 
     2015 (Public Law 114-4).
       (7) The Department of the Interior, Environment, and 
     Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015 (division F of 
     Public Law 113-235).
       (8) The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, 
     and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015 
     (division G of Public Law 113-235), except title VI.
       (9) The Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2015 
     (division H of Public Law 113-235).
       (10) The Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and 
     Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015 (division I of 
     Public Law 113-235).
       (11) The Department of State, Foreign Operations, and 
     Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2015 (division J of 
     Public Law 113-235), except title IX.
       (12) The Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and 
     Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015 (division K of 
     Public Law 113-235).
       (13) Section 11 of the Consolidated and Further Continuing 
     Appropriations Act, 2015 (Public Law 113-235).
       (b) The rate for operations provided by subsection (a) is 
     hereby reduced by 0.2108 percent.
       Sec. 102. (a) No appropriation or funds made available or 
     authority granted pursuant to section 101 for the Department 
     of Defense shall be used for: (1) the new production of items 
     not funded for production in fiscal year 2015 or prior years; 
     (2) the increase in production rates above those sustained 
     with fiscal year 2015 funds; or (3) the initiation, 
     resumption, or continuation of any project, activity, 
     operation, or organization (defined as any project, 
     subproject, activity, budget activity, program element, and 
     subprogram within a program element, and for any investment 
     items defined as a P-1 line item in a budget activity within 
     an appropriation account and an R-1 line item that includes a 
     program element and subprogram element within an 
     appropriation account) for which appropriations, funds, or 
     other authority were not available during fiscal year 2015.
       (b) No appropriation or funds made available or authority 
     granted pursuant to section 101 for the Department of Defense 
     shall be used to initiate multi-year procurements utilizing 
     advance procurement funding for economic order quantity 
     procurement unless specifically appropriated later.
       Sec. 103.  Appropriations made by section 101 shall be 
     available to the extent and in the manner that would be 
     provided by the pertinent appropriations Act.
       Sec. 104.  Except as otherwise provided in section 102, no 
     appropriation or funds made available or authority granted 
     pursuant to section 101 shall be used to initiate or resume 
     any project or activity for which appropriations, funds, or 
     other authority were not available during fiscal year 2015.
       Sec. 105.  Appropriations made and authority granted 
     pursuant to this Act shall cover all obligations or 
     expenditures incurred for any project or activity during the 
     period for which funds or authority for such project or 
     activity are available under this Act.
       Sec. 106.  Unless otherwise provided for in this Act or in 
     the applicable appropriations Act for fiscal year 2016, 
     appropriations and funds made available and authority granted 
     pursuant to this Act shall be available until whichever of 
     the following first occurs: (1) the enactment into law of an 
     appropriation for any project or activity provided for in 
     this Act; (2) the enactment into law of the applicable 
     appropriations Act for fiscal year 2016 without any provision 
     for such project or activity; or (3) December 11, 2015.
       Sec. 107.  Expenditures made pursuant to this Act shall be 
     charged to the applicable appropriation, fund, or 
     authorization whenever a bill in which such applicable 
     appropriation, fund, or authorization is contained is enacted 
     into law.
       Sec. 108.  Appropriations made and funds made available by 
     or authority granted pursuant to this Act may be used without 
     regard to the time limitations for submission and approval of 
     apportionments set forth in section 1513 of title 31, United 
     States Code, but nothing in this Act may be construed to 
     waive any other provision of law governing the apportionment 
     of funds.
       Sec. 109.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, 
     except section 106, for those programs that would otherwise 
     have high initial rates of operation or complete distribution 
     of appropriations at the beginning of fiscal year 2016 
     because of distributions of funding to States, foreign 
     countries, grantees, or others, such high initial rates of 
     operation or complete distribution shall not be made, and no 
     grants shall be awarded for such programs funded by this Act 
     that would impinge on final funding prerogatives.
       Sec. 110.  This Act shall be implemented so that only the 
     most limited funding action of that permitted in the Act 
     shall be taken in order to provide for continuation of 
     projects and activities.
       Sec. 111. (a) For entitlements and other mandatory payments 
     whose budget authority was provided in appropriations Acts 
     for fiscal year 2015, and for activities under the Food and 
     Nutrition Act of 2008, activities shall be continued at the 
     rate to maintain program levels under current law, under the 
     authority and conditions provided in the applicable 
     appropriations Act for fiscal year 2015, to be continued 
     through the date specified in section 106(3).
       (b) Notwithstanding section 106, obligations for mandatory 
     payments due on or about the first day of any month that 
     begins after October 2015 but not later than 30 days after 
     the date specified in section 106(3) may continue to be made, 
     and funds shall be available for such payments.
       Sec. 112.  Amounts made available under section 101 for 
     civilian personnel compensation and benefits in each 
     department and agency may be apportioned up to the rate for 
     operations necessary to avoid furloughs within such 
     department or agency, consistent with the applicable 
     appropriations Act for fiscal year 2015, except that such 
     authority provided under this section shall not be used until 
     after the department or agency has taken all necessary 
     actions to reduce or defer non-personnel-related 
     administrative expenses.
       Sec. 113.  Funds appropriated by this Act may be obligated 
     and expended notwithstanding section 10 of Public Law 91-672 
     (22 U.S.C. 2412), section 15 of the State Department Basic 
     Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2680), section 313 of the 
     Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 
     1995 (22 U.S.C. 6212), and section 504(a)(1) of the National 
     Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3094(a)(1)).
       Sec. 114. (a) Each amount incorporated by reference in this 
     Act that was previously designated by the Congress for 
     Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on Terrorism 
     pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced Budget and 
     Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 or as being for 
     disaster relief pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(D) of such Act 
     is designated by the Congress for Overseas Contingency 
     Operations/Global War on Terrorism pursuant to section 
     251(b)(2)(A) of such Act or as being for disaster relief 
     pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(D) of such Act, respectively.
       (b) The reduction in section 101(b) of this Act shall not 
     apply to--
       (1) amounts designated under subsection (a) of this 
     section; or
       (2) amounts made available by section 101(a) by reference 
     to the second paragraph under the heading ``Social Security 
     Administration--Limitation on Administrative Expenses'' in 
     division G of Public Law 113-235; or
       (3) amounts made available by section 101(a) by reference 
     to the paragraph under the heading ``Centers for Medicare and 
     Medicaid Services--Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control 
     Account'' in division G of Public Law 113-235.
       (c) Section 6 of Public Law 113-235 shall apply to amounts 
     designated in subsection (a) for Overseas Contingency 
     Operations/Global War on Terrorism.
       Sec. 115.  During the period covered by this Act, 
     discretionary amounts appropriated for fiscal year 2016 that 
     were provided in advance by appropriations Acts shall be 
     available in the amounts provided in such Acts, reduced by 
     the percentage in section 101(b).

[[Page 15485]]

       Sec. 116.  Notwithstanding section 101, amounts are 
     provided for ``Department of Agriculture--Domestic Food 
     Programs--Food and Nutrition Service--Commodity Assistance 
     Program'' at a rate for operations of $288,317,000, of which 
     $221,298,000 shall be for the Commodity Supplemental Food 
     Program.
       Sec. 117.  Amounts made available by section 101 for 
     ``Department of Agriculture--Rural Housing Service--Rental 
     Assistance Program'' may be apportioned up to the rate for 
     operations necessary to pay ongoing debt service for the 
     multi-family direct loan programs under sections 514 and 515 
     of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1484 and 1485):  
     Provided, That the Secretary may waive the prohibition in the 
     second proviso under such heading in division A of Public Law 
     113-235 with respect to rental assistance contracts entered 
     into or renewed during fiscal year 2015.
       Sec. 118.  Amounts made available by section 101 for 
     ``Department of Commerce--National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
     Administration--Procurement, Acquisition and Construction'' 
     may be apportioned up to the rate for operations necessary to 
     maintain the planned launch schedules for the Joint Polar 
     Satellite System.
       Sec. 119. (a) The first proviso under the heading ``United 
     States Marshals Service--Federal Prisoner Detention'' in 
     title II of division B of Public Law 113-235 shall not apply 
     during the period covered by this Act.
       (b) The limitation in section 217(c) of division B of 
     Public Law 113-235 on the amount of excess unobligated 
     balances available under section 524(c)(8)(E) of title 28, 
     United States Code, shall not apply under this Act to the use 
     of such funds for ``United States Marshals Service--Federal 
     Prisoner Detention''.
       Sec. 120. (a) The authority regarding closeout of Space 
     Shuttle contracts and associated programs provided by 
     language under the heading ``National Aeronautics and Space 
     Administration--Administrative Provisions'' in the Omnibus 
     Appropriations Act, 2009 (Public Law 111-8) shall continue in 
     effect through fiscal year 2021.
       (b) This section shall be applied as if it were in effect 
     on September 30, 2015.
       Sec. 121. (a) Notwithstanding section 1552 of title 31, 
     United States Code, funds made available, including funds 
     that have expired but have not been cancelled, and identified 
     by Treasury Appropriation Fund Symbol 13-09/10-0554 shall 
     remain available for expenditure through fiscal year 2020 for 
     the purpose of liquidating valid obligations of active 
     grants.
       (b) For the purpose of subsection (a), grants for which the 
     period of performance has expired but are not finally closed 
     out shall be considered active grants.
       (c) This section shall be applied as if it were in effect 
     on September 30, 2015.
       Sec. 122.  The following provisions shall be applied by 
     substituting ``2016'' for ``2015'' through the earlier of the 
     date specified in section 106(3) of this Act or the date of 
     the enactment of an Act authorizing appropriations for fiscal 
     year 2016 for military activities of the Department of 
     Defense:
       (1) Section 1215(f)(1) of the National Defense 
     Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (Public Law 112-81; 10 
     U.S.C. 113 note), as most recently amended by section 1237 of 
     the Carl Levin and Howard P. ``Buck'' McKeon National Defense 
     Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015 (Public Law 113-291).
       (2) Section 127b(c)(3)(C) of title 10, United States Code.
       Sec. 123. (a) Funds made available by section 101 for 
     ``Department of Energy--Energy Programs--Uranium Enrichment 
     Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund'' may be apportioned 
     up to the rate for operations necessary to avoid disruption 
     of continuing projects or activities funded in this 
     appropriation.
       (b) The Secretary of Energy shall notify the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate 
     not later than 3 days after each use of the authority 
     provided in subsection (a).
       Sec. 124.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, 
     except section 106, the District of Columbia may expend local 
     funds under the heading ``District of Columbia Funds'' for 
     such programs and activities under the District of Columbia 
     Appropriations Act, 2015 (title IV of division E of Public 
     Law 113-235) at the rate set forth under ``District of 
     Columbia Funds--Summary of Expenses'' as included in the 
     Fiscal Year 2016 Budget Request Act of 2015 (D.C. Act 21-99), 
     as modified as of the date of the enactment of this Act.
       Sec. 125.  Notwithstanding section 101, no funds are 
     provided by this Act for ``Recovery Accountability and 
     Transparency Board--Salaries and Expenses''.
       Sec. 126.  Amounts made available by section 101 for 
     ``Small Business Administration--Business Loans Program 
     Account'' may be apportioned up to the rate for operations 
     necessary to accommodate increased demand for commitments for 
     general business loans authorized under section 7(a) of the 
     Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)).
       Sec. 127.  Sections 1101(a) and 1104(a)(2)(A) of the 
     Internet Tax Freedom Act (title XI of division C of Public 
     Law 105-277; 47 U.S.C. 151 note) shall be applied by 
     substituting the date specified in section 106(3) of this Act 
     for ``October 1, 2015''.
       Sec. 128.  Section 101 shall be applied by assuming that 
     section 7 of Public Law 113-235 was enacted as part of title 
     VII of division E of Public Law 113-235.
       Sec. 129.  The authority provided by section 831 of the 
     Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 391) shall continue 
     in effect through the date specified in section 106(3) of 
     this Act.
       Sec. 130.  Section 401(b) of the Illegal Immigration Reform 
     and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a 
     note) shall be applied by substituting the date specified in 
     section 106(3) of this Act for ``September 30, 2015''.
       Sec. 131.  Section 610(b) of the Departments of Commerce, 
     Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies 
     Appropriations Act, 1993 (8 U.S.C. 1153 note) shall be 
     applied by substituting the date specified in section 106(3) 
     of this Act for ``September 30, 2015''.
       Sec. 132.  Subclauses 101(a)(27)(C)(ii)(II) and (III) of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1101(a)(27)(C)(ii)(II) and (III)) shall be applied by 
     substituting the date specified in section 106(3) of this Act 
     for ``September 30, 2015''.
       Sec. 133.  Section 220(c) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Technical Corrections Act of 1994 (8 U.S.C. 1182 
     note) shall be applied by substituting the date specified in 
     section 106(3) of this Act for ``September 30, 2015''.
       Sec. 134.  Section 810 of the Federal Lands Recreation 
     Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6809) is amended by striking all 
     that follows after ``shall terminate'' and inserting 
     ``September 30, 2017.''.
       Sec. 135.  In addition to the amount otherwise provided by 
     section 101 for ``Department of Agriculture--Forest Service--
     Wildland Fire Management'', there is appropriated 
     $700,000,000 for an additional amount for fiscal year 2016, 
     to remain available until expended, for urgent wildland fire 
     suppression activities:  Provided, That such funds shall only 
     become available if funds previously provided for wildland 
     fire suppression will be exhausted imminently and the 
     Secretary of Agriculture notifies the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate 
     in writing of the need for these additional funds:  Provided 
     further, That such funds are also available for transfer to 
     other appropriations accounts to repay amounts previously 
     transferred for wildfire suppression: Provided further, That 
     such amount is designated by the Congress as an emergency 
     requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the 
     Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, 
     except that such amount shall be available only if the 
     President subsequently so designates such amount and 
     transmits such designation to the Congress.
       Sec. 136.  The authorities provided by sections 117 and 123 
     of division G of Public Law 113-76 shall continue in effect 
     through the date specified in section 106(3) of this Act.
       Sec. 137. (a) The authority provided by subsection (m)(3) 
     of section 8162 of the Department of Defense Appropriations 
     Act, 2000 (40 U.S.C. 8903 note; Public Law 106-79) shall 
     continue in effect through the date specified in section 
     106(3) of this Act.
       (b) For the period covered by this Act, the authority 
     provided by the provisos under the heading ``Dwight D. 
     Eisenhower Memorial Commission--Capital Construction'' in 
     division E of Public Law 112-74 shall not be in effect.
       Sec. 138.  Section 3096(2) of the Carl Levin and Howard P. 
     ``Buck'' McKeon National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 
     Year 2015 is amended by inserting ``for fiscal year 2015'' 
     after ``$37,000,000''.
       Sec. 139.  Funds made available in prior appropriations 
     Acts for construction and renovation of facilities for the 
     Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may also be used 
     for construction on leased land.
       Sec. 140.  Subsection (b) of section 163 of Public Law 111-
     242, as amended, is further amended by striking ``2015-2016'' 
     and inserting ``2016-2017''.
       Sec. 141.  Section 101 shall be applied by assuming that 
     section 139 of Public Law 113-164 was enacted as part of 
     division G of Public Law 113-235, and section 139 of Public 
     Law 113-164 shall be applied by adding at the end the 
     following: ``and of the unobligated balance of amounts 
     deposited or available in the Child Enrollment Contingency 
     Fund from appropriations to the Fund under section 
     2104(n)(2)(A)(i) of the Social Security Act and the income 
     derived from investment of those funds pursuant to 
     2104(n)(2)(C) of that Act, $1,664,000,000 is rescinded''.
       Sec. 142.  Section 114(f) of the Higher Education Act of 
     1965 (20 U.S.C. 1011c(f)) shall be applied by substituting 
     the date specified in section 106(3) of this Act for 
     ``September 30, 2015''.
       Sec. 143.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, 
     there is appropriated for payment to Tori B. Nunnelee, widow 
     of Alan Nunnelee, late a Representative from the State of 
     Mississippi, $174,000.
       Sec. 144.  Of the discretionary unobligated balances of the 
     Department of Veterans Affairs from fiscal year 2015 or prior 
     fiscal years, or discretionary amounts appropriated in 
     advance for fiscal year 2016, the Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs may transfer up to $625,000,000 to ``Department of 
     Veterans Affairs--Departmental Administration--Construction, 
     Major Projects'', to be merged with the amounts available in 
     such account:  Provided, That no amounts may be transferred 
     from amounts that were designated by the Congress as an 
     emergency requirement pursuant to the Concurrent Resolution 
     on the Budget, the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 
     Control Act of 1985, or the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 
     2010:  Provided further, That no amounts may be transferred 
     until the Secretary submits to the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate 
     a request for, and receives from the Committees written 
     approval of, such transfers:  Provided further, That the 
     Secretary shall specify in such request the donor account and 
     amount of each proposed transfer, the fiscal

[[Page 15486]]

     year of each appropriation to be transferred, the amount of 
     unobligated balances remaining in the account after the 
     transfer, and the project or program impact of the transfer.
       Sec. 145.  Notwithstanding section 101, amounts are 
     provided for ``Department of Veterans Affairs--Departmental 
     Administration--General Operating Expenses, Veterans Benefits 
     Administration'' at a rate for operations of $2,697,734,000.
       Sec. 146.  Notwithstanding section 101, section 226(a) of 
     division I of Public Law 113-235 shall be applied to amounts 
     made available by this Act by substituting ``division I of 
     Public Law 113-235'' for ``division J of Public Law 113-76'' 
     and by substituting ``2015'' for ``2014''.
       Sec. 147.  Section 209 of the International Religious 
     Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6436) shall be applied by 
     substituting the date specified in section 106(3) of this Act 
     for ``September 30, 2015''.
       Sec. 148.  Amounts made available by section 101 for 
     ``Broadcasting Board of Governors--International Broadcasting 
     Operations'', ``Bilateral Economic Assistance--Funds 
     Appropriated to the President--Economic Support Fund'', 
     ``International Security Assistance--Department of State--
     International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement'', 
     ``International Security Assistance--Department of State--
     Nonproliferation, Anti-terrorism, Demining and Related 
     Programs'', and ``International Security Assistance--Funds 
     Appropriated to the President--Foreign Military Financing 
     Program'' shall be obligated at a rate for operations as 
     necessary to sustain assistance for Ukraine to counter 
     external, regional aggression and influence, including for 
     the costs of authorized loan guarantees.
       Sec. 149.  Section 1334 of the Foreign Affairs Reform and 
     Restructuring Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6553) shall be applied 
     by substituting the date specified in section 106(3) of this 
     Act for ``October 1, 2015''.
       Sec. 150. (a) Funds made available by section 101 for 
     ``Department of Housing and Urban Development--Management and 
     Administration--Administrative Support Offices'' may be 
     apportioned up to the rate for operations necessary to 
     maintain the planned schedule for the New Core Shared 
     Services Project.
       (b) Not later than 3 days before the first use of the 
     apportionment authority in subsection (a), each 30 days 
     thereafter, and 3 days after the authority expires under this 
     Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall 
     submit to the Committees on Appropriations of the House of 
     Representatives and the Senate a report specifying each use 
     of the authority through the date of the report.
       This Act may be cited as the ``Continuing Appropriations 
     Act, 2016''.


                Motion Offered by Mr. Rogers of Kentucky

  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. 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:

       Mr. Rogers of Kentucky moves that the House concur in the 
     Senate amendment to the House amendment to the Senate 
     amendment to H.R. 719.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 448, the motion 
shall be debatable for 1 hour equally divided and controlled by the 
chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Appropriations.
  The gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Rogers) and the gentlewoman from New 
York (Mrs. Lowey) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Kentucky.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present H.R. 719, a short-term 
continuing resolution to keep the government open and operating after 
the end of the fiscal year on September 30.
  This necessary measure funds government and services at the current 
rate through December 11 of this year. As in previous years, the CR 
also includes a small across-the-board reduction to keep within the 
fiscal year 2016 cap level set by the Budget Control Act.
  Mr. Speaker, this is a responsible measure that prevents a harmful 
government shutdown, while allowing time for a larger budget agreement 
to be reached, and time to complete the full year appropriations work 
for 2016.
  It also includes a few responsible provisions to prevent disastrous, 
irreversible damage to government programs or to address current urgent 
needs. These changes are limited in scope and noncontroversial. For 
instance, these provisions extend the authority for critical Department 
of Defense activities that fight terrorism, increase funding for the 
Department of Veterans Affairs to help address the disability claims 
backlog, and provide emergency funding to the Forest Service to help 
respond to the disastrous wildfires that are devastating our Western 
States.
  While I firmly believe this legislation is the best path forward at 
this time, it is also my strong opinion that Congress should do its job 
and enact actual, line-by-line, separate appropriations bills ahead of 
our September 30 deadline. Clearly, this is not an option at this time, 
so we must resort to a temporary measure like this CR.
  A CR doesn't reflect our most current budgetary needs. It creates 
uncertainty across the whole government and does not adequately address 
our national security obligations, and it causes needless waste when 
taxpayer dollars are spent inefficiently and ineffectively.
  So it is to my great dismay, Mr. Speaker, that we have arrived at 
this point once again requiring a temporary Band-aid to buy us time to 
do our constitutionally mandated duty.
  The House this year got off to a great start--beginning our 
appropriations work at the earliest date since 1974--the current Budget 
Control Act's anniversary--and passing six of our 12 bills by July of 
this year. My committee reported out all 12 bills for the first time 
since 2009. And yet, the Senate refuses to act, giving us no choice but 
to try a continuing resolution.

                              {time}  1515

  But now, with progress stalled, it is clear that all sides must come 
together to find some sort of agreement that addresses our current 
fiscal situation in a comprehensive way. This CR, while not ideal, is 
the next step toward that end, keeping the government's lights on as we 
work to find a solution.
  With current funding set to expire just hours from now, I urge my 
colleagues to do the responsible and reasonable thing and support this 
continuing resolution today.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, we may temporarily avert this most recent crisis if we 
can get this bill to the President tonight, just hours before the 
entire Federal Government shuts down, but it is certainly not a cause 
for celebration.
  This very short-term continuing resolution avoids the most immediate 
crisis. But what is step two? After we enact this stopgap measure, are 
there any firm plans to begin negotiating the full-year appropriations 
bills we should be passing today? I remain deeply concerned about the 
potential of finding ourselves facing a government shutdown again in 
December.
  The stakes are very high. We have an economy that is genuinely 
recovering. Unemployment is down. Economic growth is up. But we still 
have progress to make. The uncertainty and unnecessary tumult of 
playing games right up to the brink of a government shutdown is not 
helpful to our fragile economy. The last shutdown cost the economy $24 
billion in GDP, according to Standard & Poor's.
  This continuing resolution buys us 10 weeks and takes care of only a 
handful of the most pressing Federal responsibilities: Provides 
desperately needed emergency firefighting funds to address the 
cataclysmic fires raging in the West; provides additional resources for 
processing disability claims at the Veterans Administration; increases 
the authorization in the Small Business Loan Guarantee Program to 
ensure new loans can be administered to help small businesses across 
the country; and extends several expiring authorizations for programs 
within the Department of Homeland Security.
  Notably, the continuing resolution does not address other key 
priorities that could bolster our economy, such as the expired 
authority of the Export-Import Bank, which has created or sustained 1.5 
million private sector jobs at no cost to the taxpayer since 2007 and 
supported billions in American economic activity.
  By settling on this short-term extension, we fail to provide proposed 
increases for medical research at the National Institutes of Health and 
the Nation's aging transportation system and infrastructure. The 
President's request for defense funding is shortchanged, which would 
put our national security at risk in a long-term CR.

[[Page 15487]]

  Leaving our Federal agencies on autopilot without the line-by-line, 
year-by-year adjustments that should come from this committee and this 
Congress is irresponsible and hurts our ability to grow our economy, 
create jobs, and give hard-working families the services they need.
  Yet, with the Republican dysfunction that has driven a change in the 
majority's leadership on the brink of a government shutdown, the 
prospects for forging a reasonable, responsible solution by December 
are not good.
  One more indication of the dire outlook is the cynical gimmick--an 
``enrollment correction''--the majority has put forward today to 
supposedly defund Planned Parenthood. Fortunately, it will have no 
practical effect on the CR for two reasons. First, the Senate will 
ignore it. Second, there is no need for a correction since, as my 
friend Mr. Cole noted this weekend, ``there is no money'' in the CR for 
Planned Parenthood. PolitiFact even confirmed this claim.
  I will strongly oppose this attack on women's health today as I 
support the temporary continuing resolution and urge all of my 
colleagues to do the same so we can at least avoid a worst-case 
scenario.
  But I again implore outgoing and incoming Republican leadership to 
please engage with the President and House Democrats immediately on an 
agreement to replace the sequester-level caps, avert the next crisis 
just weeks away, stop playing political games with women's health, and 
invest in American economic growth and security.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole), a very valued member 
of my committee who happens also to be the chairman of the Labor-HHS 
Subcommittee.
  Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, first, I want to begin by congratulating both 
my chairman and my ranking member for the exceptional job they have 
done this year in getting all 12 appropriations bills through the full 
committee for the first time since 2009. So we really have on the 
Appropriations Committee done our work. Six of those bills have come 
across the floor.
  And, frankly, I think we would have had more across the floor if our 
friends in the Senate, who are blocked by the Democratic minority, had 
an opportunity to bring their bills to the floor. I think we are here, 
in part, because the inaction by the minority in the United States 
Senate has ground the whole process to a halt.
  But I am very pleased to see both my chairman and my ranking member 
here making the argument to keep the government funded. I think we all 
know that shutting down the government is always a mistake. It is a 
political mistake, frankly, for people that want to use it to achieve 
some political tactic.
  But, more importantly, it is simply the wrong thing to do for the 
American people. They send us here expecting us to get our work done. 
The fact that some amongst us has kept that from happening is 
regrettable and I think a disservice to all of our constituents.
  I also believe, in this particular case, that we have an opportunity, 
if we pass this continuing resolution for those that are, as I like to 
say appropriately, above our pay grade--that is, the President, the 
Speaker, the majority leader, and the two minority leaders--to have 
time to negotiate the framework for a larger deal, for a larger 
understanding, that would allow us to move ahead and actually have an 
omnibus bill where we actually--not as good as moving it across the 
floor--but had a large bill where we looked at every line, we made 
concessions to one another, we made agreements, we moved the ball 
forward, and it could open up a possibility for a normal appropriations 
process next year.
  In that regard, I was very heartened by Majority Leader McConnell's 
recent remarks that he is interested in a 2-year deal, somewhat similar 
to Ryan-Murray in terms of its duration. Again, that would allow this 
House next year to move appropriations bills across the floor one at a 
time in a give-and-take bipartisan manner. I think that is 
extraordinarily important.
  If you look at where this committee was at in terms of frozen 
activity before my good friend, the chairman, became the chairman, he 
and, again, with my good friend, the gentlewoman from New York, have 
brought us back a long, long way. If we don't finish that journey in 
the next 2\1/2\ months, we have got several things that are going to 
happen, the worst of which will be a sequester of $40 billion, roughly, 
on the American military.
  That is an unacceptable outcome. And, frankly, that is something that 
the Commander in Chief and the respective leaders on both sides of the 
aisle in this body need to make sure doesn't happen.
  I promise you, if the administration, the Senate, and the House can 
get to a larger agreement, I have no doubt that my chairman and my 
ranking member and their counterparts in the United States Senate will 
then introduce a normal negotiating process and we will get to the 
right place.
  So we have a moment, an opening, a little bit of bipartisanship here. 
I would expect, when this bill is actually voted on, we will have large 
majorities on both sides of the aisle that actually support it.
  So I urge the other Members--again, both Democrat and Republican--to 
seize this opportunity, to not just focus on where there are 
differences, but focus here where we have come together, bought the 
time, and then, frankly, where they can use their influence on both 
sides of the aisle in both Chambers and with the President to make sure 
that an adequate deal is arrived at and that we spare the country and 
certainly the men and women in uniform that defend us each and every 
day from the agony of dealing with a second sequester.
  This is not the time for that to happen. It is a dangerous world. We 
have not Russia relitigating the borders of Eastern Europe. We have got 
China building islands in the South China Sea. We have got ISIL having 
established a caliphate of sorts in the Middle East. We have a 
dangerous Iran.
  The worst thing in the world would be to not do this CR and then not 
carry it through to a fuller agreement and undercut our military. So I 
think the stakes of what we are doing are very, very high here.
  I want to conclude again by commending my chairman and commending our 
ranking member for working together, as they have this entire year, so 
we could get our bills across, as they are doing now in this process, 
to buy our leaders time, and, frankly, as I know they will do in normal 
negotiation on an omnibus bill at the end of this process and then, 
hopefully, on a regular appropriations process next year.
  Again, I urge my fellow Members on both sides of the aisle to pass 
this very important piece of legislation.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 5 minutes to the 
gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), a distinguished member of 
the committee.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I am disappointed in this bill. We are 
faced with this continuing resolution in order to avert a government 
shutdown. This is no way to govern. America deserves better than a 
month-to-month government, forever on the brink of a shutdown and held 
back by needless budget constraints.
  Those who call this a clean continuing resolution are mistaken. In 
fact, it puts in place yet more indiscriminate cuts. It cuts .2 percent 
across the board for most discretionary programs. Apparently, we have 
not learned our lesson about mindless austerity.
  Instead of fighting over women's health care, we should use the next 
month to negotiate a budget agreement that addresses the single biggest 
economic issue that we face in this country. Today working men and 
women in the United States are in jobs that don't pay them enough 
money. Real wages have been stagnant for 30 years.
  We need to stop spending hundreds of billions of dollars every year 
on tax loopholes for the wealthy and for big

[[Page 15488]]

corporations. We need to invest once more in education and job training 
and health and all the other priorities that American families hold 
dear.
  Right now we cannot meet their needs. Poor children are struggling. 
Their vocabularies are, on average, one-third those of their middle 
income peers. But since 2010, we have cut over $1 billion in real terms 
from education.
  Workers need help learning the right skills, finding work in a tough 
economy, so that they can support their families, but we have cut more 
than $1 billion from job training programs.
  Millions of Americans depend upon lifesaving medical research to cure 
disease and to improve the quality of life. I stand here as a survivor 
of ovarian cancer. I am here because of the grace of God and biomedical 
research. Yet, we will continue to cut biomedical research. We have cut 
more than $3.5 billion from the National Institutes of Health.
  The list of failures goes on and on. We are failing our workers. We 
are failing working families. We are failing students and medical 
researchers and first responders and veterans and families and millions 
of others.
  Our job in this body is to provide opportunity for people. During 
this economic struggle that we have, we ought to be focused like a 
laser on the issues that work to better the economic situation of 
working families in this country.

                              {time}  1530

  What we do here is to continue to hold a cap on what we need to move 
forward, and, more importantly than that, what we do from the other 
side of the aisle is to threaten the government shutdown over the issue 
of women's health.
  Who are we? What are we about? Where are the great values of this 
Nation that helped to provide an opportunity so that families could 
join the middle class of this country and continue to make it strong?
  That is what our job is today to do, not to be involved in these 
mindless exercises that the other side of the aisle continues to move 
forward on.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Dent), a hardworking member of the 
Appropriations Committee, the chairman of the Military Construction, 
Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, and, coincidently, 
the chairman of the House Ethics Committee.
  Mr. DENT. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of passing a clean 
continuing resolution, the one the Senate sent over to us. We should do 
that immediately.
  It would be utterly reckless to let the government shut down for any 
reason, regardless of one's feelings about Planned Parenthood. Whether 
you like them or not isn't the point. We should never shut the 
government down over that or, frankly, any other issue at this time.
  It is imperative that we pass this CR so that it will give us the 
time and space we need to enter into a broader budget agreement, 
hopefully, for this fiscal year and the next and so that we can then, 
also, pass the appropriations bills.
  As our very fine Chairman Rogers mentioned, I am the chair of the 
Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related 
Agencies. This CR is essential to making sure that veterans' services 
go uninterrupted. It also makes sure that we can continue moving 
forward on many of the projects that are ongoing within the VA system 
through the anomalies. Nevertheless, we need to move forward on this 
for that reason.
  Also, I want to make a point that we need to stop lurching from one 
budget crisis to the next. The events of the last few weeks have been 
very dismaying to me, personally. That said, we are not going to have a 
government shutdown, and that is good news, but we need to get on with 
the business of this budget agreement.
  Also, I wanted to point out--I heard my friend and colleague from 
Connecticut made a comment about biomedical research--in the bill that 
we had passed out of the Labor, Health, and Human Services 
Subcommittee, we actually did increase funding for the National 
Institutes of Health by $1.1 billion. I do hope that, in the event that 
we do come to a budget agreement and move the appropriations bills, we 
will be able to see an increase in funding for the NIH. We will be able 
to provide for our veterans and, in my case, also the military 
construction projects.
  Also, our friends who are serving overseas, our men and women serving 
overseas in the Armed Forces, are very much depending on us to do the 
right thing, to pass appropriations bills, a long-term continuing 
resolution, not the one we are voting on today. If we are to do one 
after December 11, it would have real impacts on our force readiness 
and the ability for our troops and our men and women overseas to do the 
jobs that we have asked them to do.
  So for all these reasons, I am urging people to vote for this CR 
today, keep the government functioning, do our duty, and then set up a 
process where we can complete the appropriations process in December 
and take care of the responsibilities that have been entrusted to us.
  I want to thank Chairman Rogers and, also, Ranking Member Lowey for 
their strong leadership on the Appropriations Committee. They are doing 
all that they are doing to try to help us work together and make sure 
that Congress maintains its power of the purse and does exactly what we 
promised the American people we would do, and that would be to govern.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Israel).
  Mr. ISRAEL. Mr. Speaker, I thank my very good friend and colleague 
from New York, Ranking Member Lowey.
  Mr. Speaker, I have a tremendous amount of respect for the chairman, 
the gentleman from Kentucky. I have great personal admiration for him 
and his leadership, and I thank him for his earnest, hard work; but 
what we are doing today is a disappointment to the American people, and 
it is a disappointment to those of us who are on the Appropriations 
Committee. Success can't be defined as avoid catastrophe, and all we 
are doing today is avoiding catastrophe. The majority's triumph today 
is not shutting down the government.
  Mr. Speaker, there is not a small-business owner anywhere in America 
who would say ``had a good day because I am not shutting down,'' ``had 
a good day because I am not throwing my employees out of work,'' ``had 
a good day because I am not telling my customers they can't come for 
services.'' That is not success. That is failure. That is, by itself, a 
catastrophe.
  Mr. Speaker, the managers of those small businesses are judged by 
their performance and success. The managers of this Congress, the 
majority, are judged in the same way. They are judged by their ability, 
as the majority, to produce bills, to pass budgets, to do the work of 
the American people.
  It is time for them to do their jobs, to stop the gimmicks, to pass a 
long-term budget that invests in the education of our children, that 
supports job skills for people and careers, that protects our veterans 
and our national security. It is time to do their jobs, Mr. Speaker.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my 
time.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
Minnesota (Ms. McCollum), a distinguished member of the Appropriations 
Committee.
  Ms. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, this Republican majority has driven the 
expectations of the American people so low that the very act of funding 
government operations has become a significant achievement. 
Unfortunately, the cost extraction by the Republican extremists for 
this 3-month clean CR was the resignation of Speaker Boehner, a good 
man who has served this House honorably.
  Passing this CR, however, will keep the government working, which is 
critical to American families, their economy, and the safety and 
security of our Nation, and it continues to protect by

[[Page 15489]]

providing healthcare coverage for women.
  In 2013, when the Republicans shut down the government for 16 days, 
the U.S. economy lost $24 billion, and more than 100,000 Americans lost 
their jobs. The American people cannot afford another Republican 
shutdown. Passing this 3-month CR is the first step toward responsibly 
meeting the needs of the American people.
  As a ranking Democrat on the Interior, Environment, and Related 
Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, I am pleased that this bill 
includes $700 million in emergency funds for Forest Service to fight 
wildland fires in Western States. This is critical funding.
  The CR will keep our national parks open to the public, keep Native 
American healthcare and education programs operating, and prevent the 
furloughing of tens of thousands of Federal employees in the Department 
of the Interior and EPA.
  I am going to vote to pass this continuing resolution, and I applaud 
all the Democrats and Republicans who will vote to pass the CR, but we 
need to work to find a bipartisan path forward to fund the government 
for the coming year. Our job is to serve the American people. The 
American people expect Congress to do their job. Today, I hope all 
Members will do their job and vote to pass this CR.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my 
time.
  I have no further requests for time. I am prepared to close if the 
gentlewoman is prepared.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, 
and I was thinking about that, except, I believe, we have some 
distinguished members of our committee who are running a little late.
  So I would just like to say, Mr. Speaker, that I am very pleased that 
we are here today, and I do hope that there will be strong bipartisan 
support for the continuing resolution.
  This has been a difficult year. I know how hard our distinguished 
chairman has worked, trying to put together a bipartisan appropriations 
bill. Although I am very pleased that we are passing a continuing 
resolution today, it is really amazing that we should be celebrating in 
the United States of America, the most distinguished country, 
supposedly representative of our great democracy, that we are keeping 
the government open.
  I feel very confident, Mr. Speaker, that if members of the 
Appropriations Committee, both Democrats and Republicans, would sit 
down very seriously, we could work out an arrangement whereby we would 
lift the sequester, just as we did with Ryan-Murray.
  I was on that committee with some distinguished members of the party, 
and we had some good discussions. We had some differences of opinion; 
we had some lively debates; but at the end of the day, we came up with 
a product that we could be proud of.
  So, Mr. Chairman, I do hope that after this continuing resolution has 
passed--and I think you have another speaker who would like to speak 
while we are waiting for our speaker.
  In closing, I would just like to say that I am cautiously optimistic 
that, after the CR is passed, we can really do our work and come up 
with a good, strong omnibus bill that reflects our values.
  I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), our 
distinguished leader.
  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding, and I 
thank her for her leadership, as well as that of our distinguished 
chairman, Mr. Rogers, to bring us to the floor today where we can vote 
in a bipartisan way to keep government open without doing harm to 
women's health in our country.
  To shut government down is a really bad decision for this Congress to 
make. The last time we did that, we lost $24 billion. The last time 
this Congress voted to shut down government, we lost $24 billion to our 
economy, 120,000 jobs in our workforce. Our Federal workforce, which 
contains more than 30 percent of veterans in its composition, was 
furloughed or worse. The American people deserve better.
  So as we go forward from this continuing resolution, which is a good 
outcome of the conversations that have gone back and forth--a strong 
bipartisan vote in the Senate, and I hope a strong bipartisan vote in 
the House--let us take heed of the words of Pope Francis, who just, not 
even 1 week ago, spoke to us in this Chamber.
  Pope Francis asked us to work together for the common good of the 
people. He urged and said a good leader would have a spirit of openness 
and pragmatism, again, to get the job done for the American people.

                              {time}  1545

  As we go forward, we will have some difficult choices to make. We all 
share the values of strengthening our national security, investing in 
our children's future, reducing the deficit as we go forward, but as we 
do so, there are some important differences that we share.
  Let's hope that we recognize a good idea, wherever it springs from. 
Let us also recognize what our responsibilities are to the American 
people first and foremost.
  I consider this a very positive action we are taking today. I wish 
that we were finished with all of our appropriations work. As an 
appropriator, I know that that is always the goal of our chairman and 
ranking member.
  I thank our ranking member, Congresswoman Lowey, for her leadership, 
but also for the optimism she just expressed, that, as we go forward, 
we will do so in a timely fashion, maybe long before December 11, so we 
will have removed all doubt in the public's mind that government will 
work, that it will function, as the Pope had asked us, for the good of 
the American people.
  There are important decisions ahead, though, in terms of what our 
priorities are in a budget. A budget should be a statement of our 
national values, and what is important to us should be reflected on how 
we allocate those resources. We have the omnibus bill to deal with.
  We also have investments in the infrastructure of our country and our 
transportation. That will be an important bill that we will be debating 
at the same time, but has a relationship in terms of how we offset, how 
we pay for that.
  We have the issue of the Ex-Im Bank, a great job creator for our 
country and, yet, still unauthorized, long overdue for us to authorize 
it.
  Before Thanksgiving probably we will have the issue of a vote on 
honoring the full faith and credit of the United States of America. The 
last time that was put into doubt, it was unfortunate because it 
lowered our credit rating, even though we didn't follow through with 
it. Even though the full faith and credit ended up being honored, just 
the threat, the suspicion, that it could be undermined lowered our 
credit rating.
  We have really important work to do for the good of the people. 
Again, let us honor our responsibilities in the beautiful spirit of 
Saint--Pope Francis. I say Saint Francis because that is the patron 
saint of my city, of San Francisco, and the namesake also of Pope 
Francis.
  But Pope Francis instructed us as to what good leaders do, and good 
leaders have a sense of humility to respect the views of other people 
and not be condescending in terms of our views are the only ones that 
matter.
  In that spirit, I look forward to working with you, Mr. Chairman, 
with the Speaker, with others, and certainly under the leadership of 
our distinguished ranking member, Congresswoman Lowey.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Jolly), a member of our 
committee.
  Mr. JOLLY. Mr. Speaker, my compliments to the chairman and to the 
ranking member for shepherding us thus far into this year.
  I often say the first job of Congress is to govern, and that means 
keeping the government open. I think what we are doing today is 
honoring the responsibility we have, our article I responsibilities to 
keep the government open.
  We talk a lot about Congress having the power of the purse, but with 
the

[[Page 15490]]

power also comes responsibility. So as we have hard conversations as a 
country and as a Congress about whether we fund certain programs, 
whether we fund certain entities, that is an appropriate conversation 
to have, and I think we have handled that appropriately thus far.
  You sometimes would not know that based on comments on the other side 
of the aisle because they continue to try to score political points and 
use political capital to suggest we are on the brink of a shutdown. The 
simple fact is we are not.
  Our colleagues on the other side of the aisle have acknowledged today 
that they intend to vote for what is a responsible continuing 
resolution that will ensure that our government remains funded.
  The irony of some of the criticisms that often come--and this comes 
from colleagues on our committee--is that, to finally reach a deal, to 
finally have responsible governance, it takes a willing partner on the 
other side of the aisle and it takes intellectual honesty on both sides 
of the aisle of every member of our committee.
  I would respectfully point out to those on the other side of the 
aisle who serve on the committee that we had a debate over and over and 
over with each markup about the Budget Control Act and the caps that 
are in place by statute. There were very good suggestions from both 
sides of the aisle about where taxpayer dollars should be invested, 
which programs they should be invested in, from defense to 
transportation, to education, to healthcare research, and so forth.
  The irony is that, for each good idea on the other side of the aisle 
about where to invest money, there was a willful ignorance of the fact 
that any additional investment must come with an offset under the 
Budget Control Act. There were good amendments in the committee, and, 
frankly, many of them would have passed if they had included 
responsible offsets. But there were no offsets.
  I point that out only for this, not to relitigate all the markups we 
had in committee, but to suggest that somehow it is the Republicans' 
issue that somehow we have to resolve this. We have not had a willing 
partner throughout the markup of all of these bills.
  Just as the spirit of cooperation is here on the floor--and 
rightfully so--and we are going to pass the CR that funds the 
government and keeps it open--that highway of goodwill has to go both 
ways. Rather than just talk about what is not funded, let's talk about 
how we are going to operate under what is a statute, what is the law of 
the land that was signed by this President and, frankly, recommended by 
this President.
  As we talk about where spending comes between now and December 11, we 
have to recognize and be honest with the American people that we 
operate under a budget agreement that has statutory caps signed by this 
President. There are great ideas on both sides of the aisle about where 
to spend money, but if we ignore the fact that they are required to be 
offset, then we have not advanced this conversation one day.
  It is important that we keep the government open. I am glad that my 
colleagues on the other side of the aisle and enough colleagues on this 
side of the aisle are saying: Yes, we have to keep the government open. 
We have to keep the Department of Defense funded. Our men and women in 
uniform who carry the flag for us every day, we have to ensure that 
they are funded. Our first responders, DHS, coastguardsmen, 
coastguardswomen, our transportation programs, education, critical 
healthcare research is all that we will continue to fund through this 
responsible continuing resolution.
  We all wish we had a full-year bill that we were considering today, 
but we do not have that. The responsible action by this body is to pass 
this bill with sufficient numbers on both sides of the aisle. I would 
charge those on my side of the aisle who care deeply about certain 
extraneous issues involved in the debate this week, we have responsible 
ways to continue to address how we provide critical nonabortion-related 
women's healthcare service in underserved communities, while we still 
act today to keep the government open. It is a responsible path 
forward.
  Mr. Chairman, I thank you for bringing this forward.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I just want to reiterate again to my 
colleagues that I look forward to working in a bipartisan way with the 
distinguished chairman of the Committee on Appropriations to move the 
process forward.
  I particularly think, because it was just mentioned by the previous 
speaker, that for us not to increase the appropriations to the National 
Institutes of Health--this is just one area of the bill that came 
through the committee in the committee process. This means research for 
a whole range of illnesses, whether it is autism or diabetes or heart.
  We have a responsibility to lift these caps, negotiate a really good 
bill, and provide adequate funding for the American people. This is 
important for their health, for their work life. We have to be sure we 
are investing so we are creating jobs and keep the economy moving. I 
look forward to that process.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume. I shall be brief.
  I appreciate the work of my colleague, Mrs. Lowey, ranking member on 
the committee, and all of the people on her side of the aisle and, of 
course, on our side of the aisle as well. This is a good bill. It is a 
responsible bill. It does not do anything controversial.
  It does do one important thing, and that is keep the government 
operating. We can't afford to abandon our soldiers, particularly those 
overseas in harm's way. We can't abandon the people that depend upon 
the programs that our Federal Government provides.
  I urge Members to vote ``yes'' on this bill. It is a good bill, and 
it keeps the government operating.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of 
this continuing resolution, which will allow us to avoid another 
completely unnecessary and potentially devastating government shutdown. 
My vote in favor of the CR does not mean I support the irresponsible 
sequestration-level budget resolution that has made it impossible to 
pass FY 2016 appropriations bills, much less the reckless manner in 
which the majority continues to manage the budget process.
  The Republican budget announced this spring made no room for the 
critical investments in infrastructure, housing, research, health care, 
and education that our country needs to thrive. In fact, it made deeply 
damaging reductions.
  Defense appropriators were able to avoid sequestration levels only by 
using the so-called OCO gimmick, amounting to a $38 billion sleight of 
hand.
  It was evident from the beginning that we would have to negotiate new 
budget numbers--if not a comprehensive agreement of the sort that 
balanced the budget in the 1990s, then at least a more modest deal like 
the Ryan-Murray agreement of the last two years--in order to pass our 
appropriations bills. I and other Democratic colleagues took to the 
floor again and again to decry these unacceptable budget numbers that 
simply set us up for failure. Our leaders have been offering to 
negotiate for months, knowing full well that President Obama would be 
forced to veto any appropriations bills passed under the Republican 
budget. Will it take a government shutdown, we asked, to make us do our 
job?
  Apparently the answer is ``yes''. The Senate couldn't pass a single 
appropriations bill. The House passed a few with Republican votes 
alone, and then the process collapsed under the weight of the 
Confederate battle flag debate. That was a particularly disgraceful 
episode, but the process was already on life support. It was never 
going to work, and Republican leaders have known that all year.
  Despite the failure of the appropriations process, as represented by 
this short-term CR, all hope is not lost. We can still salvage the hard 
bipartisan work of my and other appropriations subcommittees, if, when 
this CR expires, we can stitch together an omnibus appropriations bill 
for the balance of the year.
  The Appropriations Committee still avoids some of the ideological 
battles that divide this body, and I have been able to work closely 
with Chairman Diaz-Balart to negotiate a framework for transportation 
and housing

[[Page 15491]]

funding. I know that many of the other subcommittee Chairs and Ranking 
Members have made similar progress. Given realistic funding levels, 
these bills can relatively quickly be converted into acceptable 
appropriations legislation.
  So I once again join my colleagues in urging Speaker Boehner to 
resume bipartisan budget negotiations and produce reasonable, 
responsible funding levels that can allow the appropriations process to 
move forward. Today, we're buying ourselves a couple of months. Instead 
of lurching toward another crisis in December, let's actually come to a 
consensus on the kind of investments in our future that a great country 
must make.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to stop the government 
from shutting down.
  What we are doing today is budgeting or appropriating but a desperate 
Hail Mary to save thousands of jobs and prevent another waste of $24 
billion in lost economic productivity like we saw the last time House 
Republicans succeeded in shutting down the government.
  Today I will vote for H.R. 719 even though it goes against sound 
fiscal practice by including the budget gimmickry known as 
sequestration, a fiscal bludgeon that makes across the board cuts in 
funding for the valuable services depended upon by American children, 
seniors, workers, veterans, students, and small businesses.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 719, ``Continuing Appropriations for Fiscal Year 
2016,'' which extends current Fiscal Year 2015 government funding for 
nearly all agencies through December 11, 2015, at a rate equal to an 
annual level of $1.017 trillion, a level consistent with the combined 
top-line post-sequester discretionary spending caps for Fiscal Year 
2016 set by the Budget Control Act.
  H.R. 719 also provides funding for Overseas Contingency Operations, 
which are exempt from the BCA caps, at a rate of $74.8 billion, an 
amount roughly equal to a continuation of the Fiscal Year 2015 level.
  Mr. Speaker, I am disappointed that we have again been placed in the 
position of having to fund the government through the device of a 
continuing resolution rather than through the normal appropriations 
process of considering and voting on the twelve separate spending bills 
reported by the Committee on Appropriations.
  Although the House considered and passed several of the annual 
spending bills, none of them received consideration in the Senate 
because of the refusal of the House leadership to reach agreement with 
the Senate on an appropriate framework for all appropriations bills 
that does not harm our economy or require draconian cuts to middle-
class priorities.
  Without such an agreement, House Republican appropriation bills will 
result in:
  1. hundreds of thousands of low-income children losing access to Head 
Start programs,
  2. tens of thousands of children with disabilities losing federal 
funding for their special education teachers and aides,
  3. thousands of federal agents who will not be able to secure the 
border, enforce drug laws, combat violent crime or apprehend fugitives; 
and
  4. thousands of scientists without medical grants to conduct research 
to find new treatments and cures for diseases like breast cancer and 
Alzheimer's.
  As a result of the failure to reach a budget agreement, we now find 
ourselves facing the Hobson's choice of rejecting the Continuing 
Resolution now pending which likely will result in a cessation of 
government operations or approving the Continuing Resolution and 
continuing adherence to the draconian spending limits imposed by the 
Budget Control Act of 2011.
  Faced with this dilemma, I reluctantly will vote for H.R. 719 because 
in the circumstances it would be irresponsible to do otherwise.
  H.R. 719 is not perfect--far from it--but it is a modest and positive 
step toward preventing Republicans from shutting down the government 
again and manufacturing crises that only harm our economy, destroy 
jobs, and weaken our middle class.
  The government shutdown of 2013, which was manufactured by the 
Republican majority lasted 16 days and cost taxpayers $24 billion.
  The cost to federal employees and the people they serve cannot be 
calculated.
  Mr. Speaker, as with any compromise there are some things in the 
agreement that I support and some things that I strongly oppose.
  For example, I support the provisions in the Continuing Resolution 
ensuring that funding for appropriated entitlements continue at a rate 
maintaining program levels under current law.
  I also support the provisions allowing the State Department, USAID, 
BBG, and related agencies to expend funds in the absence of an 
authorization, and authorizing continuation of certain intelligence 
activities.
  I support the provisions in H.R. 719 that provide $700 million in 
emergency funding for government efforts to fight wildfires in Western 
states and that give the VA budget flexibility to finish construction 
of a facility in Denver.
  Finally, I am very pleased that House Republicans have jettisoned any 
serious efforts to shut down the government over the obsession with 
defunding Planned Parenthood and opposition to women's reproductive 
rights.
  On the other hand, I am very disappointed that the Continuing 
Resolution again misses the opportunity to reauthorize two critical 
programs: the Export-Import Bank and the Land and Water Conservation 
Fund.
  The Export-Import Bank provides critical financing assistance--at no 
cost to taxpayers--to small, medium, and large-sized U.S. businesses, 
helping them to create jobs at home and sell products overseas.
  The Land and Water Conservation Fund is a bipartisan, popular, 50-
year program that uses royalties from federal oil and gas leases for 
land acquisition and parks across the country.
  The LWCF program supports more than 6 million U.S. jobs connected 
with outdoor recreation at no cost to taxpayers.
  Without action by Congress, LWCF will expire on September 30, 
authorization for the Ex-Im Bank expired June 30, 2015, and has been 
hurting U.S. exporters and workers daily ever since.
  I also strongly disapprove of the rescission of $1.7 billion from the 
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and the across the board 
reduction in funding levels for most programs and activities from their 
FY 2015 levels by 0.21%.
  Nevertheless, the agreement allows Congress to keep the federal 
government open to serve the American people and gives the Congress and 
the Administration ten weeks to reach agreement on a fair and balanced 
budget that provides the funds for the investments in human capital and 
physical infrastructure needed to maintain American competitiveness in 
the global economy of the 21st century.
  And one of the most important things we can do is end the draconian 
sequestration that has been in effect since 2011.
  Mr. Speaker, to illustrate how strongly I feel about the need to end 
sequestration, let me chronicle the severity of the suffering and pain 
inflicted by sequestration on the most vulnerable residents of Texas 
and the constituents that I serve.
  Head Start and Early Head Start services were eliminated or severely 
impacted with approximately 4,800 children being impacted throughout 
the state of Texas.
  Families in my district who rely on Federal Government programs like 
Head Start are hurting.
  The pain did not start with the 2013 shutdown, but with sequestration 
which hit Head Start programs for 3 to 4 year olds in the Houston area 
hard: $5,341 million cut; 109 Employees cut; 699 Slots for children 
cut.
  Head Start and Early Head Start Programs were further stressed by the 
federal government shutdown.
  My support of Head Start and Early Head Start is based on what I have 
seen and heard about programs like the AVANCE-Houston Early Head Start 
program serving parents and children in the 18th Congressional 
District.
  The AVANCE-Houston Early Head Start is a program serving low income 
families in my Houston Texas District.
  I have visited with AVANCE-Houston administrators many times to get 
an update on how low-income families with infants and toddlers and 
pregnant women served by the program were doing.
  The AVANCE-Houston Early Head Start's mission is simple: AVANCE-
Houston works for healthy prenatal outcomes for pregnant women, 
enhances the development of very young children, and promotes healthy 
family functioning.
  AVANCE-Houston serves nearly 1,800 children city wide; each of these 
families and their children are suffering the effects of the 
sequestration.
  Sequestration has cost AVANCE-Houston over $842,518 Head Start and 
Early Head Start in lost funding and put on hold the head start on the 
future our children deserve.
  As I stated, Mr. Speaker, this Continuing Resolution is not perfect 
and it only funds the government until December 11, 2015, but it is 
better than the alternative we faced in 2013 when House Republicans 
shut down the government for 16 days and cost our economy $24 billion 
in lost economic productivity.
  For that reason, I will vote for H.R. 719 and renew my call that all 
members of the House and Senate work together and with the President to 
reach agreement on an appropriate

[[Page 15492]]

budget framework that ends sequestration but does not harm our economy 
or require draconian cuts to middle-class priorities.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. All time for debate has expired.
  Pursuant to House Resolution 448, the previous question is ordered on 
the motion to concur.
  The question is on the motion to concur by the gentleman from 
Kentucky (Mr. Rogers).
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and 
nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of today, 
further proceedings on this question will be postponed.

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