[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 5]
[House]
[Pages 7314-7335]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2016


                             General Leave

  Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks 
and to include extraneous material on consideration of H.R. 2250, and 
that I may include tabular material on the same.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Georgia?
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 271 and rule 
XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of the Whole House 
on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill, H.R. 2250.
  The Chair appoints the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Carter) to preside 
over the Committee of the Whole.

                              {time}  1516


                     In the Committee of the Whole

  Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the 
Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill 
(H.R. 2250) making appropriations for the Legislative Branch for the 
fiscal year ending September 30, 2016, and for other purposes, with Mr. 
Carter of Georgia in the chair.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The CHAIR. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the 
first time.
  The gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Graves) and the gentlewoman from 
Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Georgia.
  Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  When I joined the Appropriations Committee a little over 4 years ago, 
I said that I wanted this committee to be known as a place where 
taxpayer money was saved and not spent. In recent years, there has been 
a major change in the perception of this committee.
  Thanks in large part to the leadership of Chairman Rogers and the 
members of the committee, the process is open, and it is transparent, 
and this committee has made a priority of ensuring every taxpayer 
dollar is spent wisely.
  In keeping with that trend, the bill that we are here to debate today 
holds the line on spending. It is a bill that honors and respects the 
taxpayer while preserving the beauty of the Capitol campus, providing 
essential security for visitors and staff, and ensuring that we are 
able to provide the services that our constituents expect and deserve.
  This bill is a total of $3.3 billion for the legislative branch, 
excluding all Senate items. The bill continues the freeze on funding 
for the House of Representatives, including leadership, committees, and 
Member office budgets. It also continues the Member pay freeze that was 
put in place in 2010.
  In all, this represents a 14 percent reduction in funding for the 
House of Representatives since Republicans have gained control of 
Congress in January of 2011.
  Now, more specifically, this bill increases funding for the Capitol 
Police and allows small increases for several other agencies while 
trimming budgets in less critical areas.
  This bill recognizes the continuing challenges faced by our Architect 
of the Capitol. There is a balance that must be struck between 
preserving these historic buildings and funding other critical 
projects, including life-safety projects.
  Overall, the Architect's budget is one that was trimmed. This bill 
puts a new emphasis on transparency and accountability in major 
construction projects under the Architect. That is why this bill 
transitions to direct appropriations for the Cannon restoration 
project, rather than continuing to use the House historic building 
revitalization fund. This change will significantly improve the 
committee's ability to provide oversight for this major project.
  Additionally, this bill includes language that places a 25 percent 
cap on the amount available for larger projects within the legislative 
branch. In order to receive the remaining 75 percent of their 
appropriations, this new oversight feature requires a plan for any 
project over $5 million to be submitted to the GAO and our committee 
for approval.

[[Page 7315]]

  The plan must address any projected changes to the project's schedule 
and cost, and it must include a description of the safeguards taken to 
ensure that the project remains on time and on budget.
  Now, regarding the Library of Congress, this bill includes funding to 
meet the Library's current needs, including an increase for the U.S. 
Copyright Office to reduce claims processing and analyze possible 
process improvements.
  Additionally, the committee will be working with the Library in the 
upcoming months to track its progress in addressing its critical IT 
infrastructure problems which have been identified in a recent GAO 
report.
  In closing, I would like to thank Ranking Member Wasserman Schultz, 
Chairman Rogers, Mrs. Lowey, and the members of our subcommittee and 
full committee and staff for their hard work throughout this entire 
process. This is a product that we can be proud of.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

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  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Chairman, I want to begin by congratulating Chairman Graves on 
his maiden voyage as a chair of an appropriations subcommittee. I know 
that he was diligent and focused, and we found agreement where we 
could, and where we could not agree, I appreciate his willingness to 
discuss it in a congenial and thoughtful manner.
  Today, we consider the smallest of the appropriations bills; and, 
while that is the case, it is one that does fund an entire branch of 
our government. The bill provides, as the chairman mentioned, $3.3 
billion to the legislative branch, without Senate items, and is equal 
to the amount provided in fiscal year 2015.
  Unfortunately, this represents the third year in a row of flat 
funding for the overall legislative branch. Certain agencies--the 
Architect of the Capitol and the Government Publishing Office--are cut 
below fiscal year 2015 to support increases in other agencies.
  I know if there was overall relief in the budget allocation, we would 
see more investment in the staff and facilities in the legislative 
branch, but we are starting to cut into bone in some places, and it is 
truly unwise.
  It is regrettable that this bill is, as are all of the other 
appropriations bills, bound by spending limits set by the Republican 
budget resolution that continues sequestration.
  The President put forward a plan that will avoid sequestration's 
harmful budget cuts and reduce the deficit in a balanced way. 
Unfortunately, the Republican budget does not at least meet the 
President's plan halfway.
  As we look to conference with the Senate later in the year on 
appropriations bills, I am hopeful that both parties and the President 
can come together for another reasonable bargain that gives us more 
room for discretionary programs.
  This bill is being considered under a structured rule, as is 
tradition. Twenty amendments were filed, seven of which were filed by 
Democratic Members. Regrettably, the Rules Committee only made three 
Republican amendments in order, all of which would further erode the 
Legislative Branch bill's funding.
  No Democratic amendments were made in order, even though several were 
aimed at improving the lives of our restaurant workers whose plight was 
played out in very public display in the last several weeks.
  Last night, in the Rules Committee, I asked the committee to attempt 
to find some parity, Mr. Chairman, between the majority and minority 
with regard to amendments made in order; instead of parity, the 
minority was completely shut out of the process.
  As a result of the allocation, several infrastructure projects with 
life and safety elements are not funded in this bill, even though we 
have been committed to funding those in past years.
  Cutting necessary upgrades to our elevators will not get us out of 
debt; what it will do is get people stuck in our elevators. We should 
not be surprised if an accident happens because we didn't address 
important life-safety projects.
  This bill, as I have said many times before, is not the sexiest of 
the 13 appropriations bills, but it is one that is incredibly 
important, and it is important that we keep the people who visit the 
Capitol and work in the Capitol safe, and this bill makes it less 
likely that we will be able to do that.
  There are not many new initiatives in the bill, given the allocation, 
but I am pleased that the bill recognized the importance of the 
Nation's copyright laws by providing some of the requested increase.
  The Copyright Office must improve the backlog of registrations, as 
well as their business processes. Currently, customers can only submit 
documents on paper, which the Copyright Office turns into a digital 
format, which is a glaring inefficiency. It is 2015, the 21st century. 
Our Copyright Office should not be conducting 21st century business in 
a 20th century format.
  The Copyright Office said it best itself in a report released in 
February of this year:

       There is a widespread perception that our licensing system 
     is broken. Songwriters and recording artists are concerned 
     that they cannot make a living under the existing structure, 
     which raises serious and systemic concerns for the future. 
     Music publishers and performance rights organizations are 
     frustrated that so much of their licensing activity is 
     subject to government control, so they are constrained in the 
     marketplace. Record labels and digital services complain that 
     the licensing process is burdensome and inefficient, making 
     it difficult to innovate.

  I am glad to see that this bill is beginning to address necessary 
upgrades.
  Mr. Chairman, I am also concerned with the cut to the Government 
Publishing Office in the underlying bill. This office was formerly 
known as the Government Printing Office. Congress changed the name in 
December to reflect what the agency actually does in this digital 
world. The office publishes information online and plays a vital role 
in Congress' transparency.
  Unfortunately, GPO's request to continue to improve its online site, 
as it has been allowed to do each year before this one, even under full 
sequestration, was denied in the bill. The cut to GPO's online site 
continues to raise the concern from some that GPO could ultimately 
decide to charge the public for access to legislative documents, as was 
recommended to them by the National Academy of Public Administration in 
2013.
  I agree with Representatives Candice Miller and Bob Brady, the chair 
and ranking member of House Administration, who wrote to GPO, stating: 
``Charging the public to access legislative data and documents would be 
a colossal setback to the progress Congress has made to improve 
transparency and access to legislative information.''
  They also said charging the public ``would be a direct assault on our 
ability to engage Americans in a process that is of great consequence 
to their livelihoods.''
  GPO indicated at the time of the Miller-Brady letter that it had no 
plans to charge users for what should be public information; but what 
choice are we leaving them if we don't continue investing in their 
online systems?
  Also included in the bill is a requirement that the Architect seek 
approval, as the chairman described, from the House Committee on 
Appropriations and the Government Accountability Office for any project 
or phase of a project over $5 million.
  I support strong oversight, as I have demonstrated many times over 
the last 8 years, but I do question whether or not the low threshold 
would unnecessarily hold up the progress of essential projects.
  We should require the assistance of GAO to review projects on the 
scale of the Cannon building restoration. I have asked GAO to come in 
and get involved very specifically in a number of things where 
accountability was a concern, but I question the use of GAO's resources 
on projects as small as $5 million. That begins to micromanage beyond 
what is reasonable.
  To end on a more positive note, I am pleased that we were able to 
provide $10 million to add to the House historic buildings 
revitalization trust fund. We have been banking funds for our large 
projects over the last several years, which is imperative to help 
ensure we avoid getting caught flatfooted if we experience unexpected 
costs in the future.
  As I conclude, I want to, again, thank Chairman Graves for an open 
dialogue as he crafted this bill. I did have a lot of opportunity to 
talk with him about the details of this bill and offer suggestions, 
many of which he took. Again, I look forward to continuing to work with 
the chairman as the bill moves to the Senate and then on to conference.
  I particularly want to thank our incredible staff, one of whom is 
sitting next to me, Shalanda Young, and the rest of our staff, Liz 
Dawson, Chuck Turner, on the majority side; and Jenny Panone, as well 
as Jason Murphy, with Chairman Graves' personal office; and Rosalyn 
Kumar, on my personal staff. Thank you so much.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, before I yield to our full 
committee chairman, I do want to thank the ranking member for her work 
on

[[Page 7321]]

this, her input. She worked diligently through the process and was 
supportive in subcommittee and full committee, and I wanted to thank 
her for that publicly.
  Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Kentucky (Mr. Rogers), the chairman of the full Appropriations 
Committee.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Chairman Graves, thank you for yielding the 
time, and thank you for the great work.
  This is the first bill that Chairman Graves has brought to the floor 
of the House. He is the newest cardinal that we have, one of the 12 
subcommittee chairmen--they are called cardinals--and this is his first 
bill.
  I want to congratulate him and Ranking Member Wasserman Schultz for 
putting together what I think is a pretty high standard for fiscal 
responsibility for the House, freezing funding at last year's level, 
$3.3 billion.
  That is the third year in a row, Mr. Chairman, that we have frozen 
the budget of the House of Representatives, making good on our promise 
to rein in spending and do more with less.

                              {time}  1530

  This level maintains the 14 percent reduction in House funding that 
began when Republicans took control of the House 4 years ago.
  In addition, we have continued the freeze on Member pay that has been 
in place since 2010. We believe that in order for us to ask others to 
sacrifice throughout the government, that we have to sacrifice, 
ourselves, first; and that is what this bill does.
  The bill includes numerous provisions designed to guarantee that the 
House and its support agencies are spending their tax dollars 
appropriately and to keep them accountable to the taxpayers. This 
includes enhancing oversight of the Cannon building restoration project 
and making sure that Congress approves any large-scale construction 
project.
  These steps will help ensure that this type of major undertaking 
stays on time and on budget and are especially important given the 
historical significance of our buildings and the importance of their 
use.
  The $3.3 billion this bill provides for the House is directed to 
support the most important functions of our legislative branch: keeping 
our Member and committee offices open for business, protecting the 
safety of those who work in and visit the Capitol complex, and 
improving the way we support our agencies--and the importance of doing 
just that.
  For instance, the Capitol Police budget has been increased by $21 
million to ensure our men in blue have the resources needed to protect 
this hallowed building and its grounds. And where we have seen issues 
in the agencies funded by the bill--for example, IT infrastructure 
challenges at the Library of Congress--we have taken the steps to make 
sure that these will be fixed moving forward.
  Again, I want to thank Chairman Graves, Ranking Member Wasserman 
Schultz, and this great staff that has worked hard on this bill. They 
have demonstrated their love of this institution and these grounds by 
the hard work and devotion they have put into making this bill 
possible. So we want to thank the staff on both sides of the aisle for 
putting together this small but mighty bill. So I thank them for all of 
their work.
  Mr. Chairman, I am proud that the House can lead by example when it 
comes to restoring fiscal discipline to the operations of the Federal 
Government. This bill will allow the House to fulfill its core duties 
within a responsible, realistic budget and preserve the democracy that 
makes this Nation so great.
  I thank the chairman for the time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, at this time, I yield such time 
as she may consume to the distinguished gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. 
Lowey), the ranking member of the full Appropriations Committee as well 
as the ranking member of the State, Foreign Operations, and Related 
Programs Subcommittee.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Chairman, I thank Chairman Graves and Ranking Member 
Wasserman Schultz for their hard work on this bill.
  Today, during what the majority has labeled ``Innovation Week,'' we 
consider the smallest of the appropriation bills, which funds the 
operations of our Nation's legislative branch.
  Mr. Chairman, there is absolutely nothing innovative about this bill. 
Without Senate items, the bill is $3.341 billion. Despite years of 
``tightening our belts,'' the majority has, yet again, kept funding 
flat and further damaged this institution's reputation and ability to 
function at the highest level.
  Member representational allowances, or MRAs, would be frozen for a 
third consecutive year and will continue to strain the House's ability 
to serve the American people due to fewer staff for constituent 
casework, the inability to effectively communicate with our 
constituents, and fewer district offices.
  Furthermore, we will consider amendments to the bill which would 
compound the problems legislative branch agencies face: our buildings 
are crumbling, life and safety projects are postponed, and agencies 
have hit the limits of what they can do with inadequate funding. 
Further cuts proposed today will have even greater implications for the 
operations of the Congress.
  I am concerned that the majority continues funding for a partisan 
lawsuit against the President. At a time when we are putting 
appropriation bills under tight budgetary restrictions, this waste of 
taxpayer dollars only distracts us from the serious work Congress 
should get done.
  Notwithstanding my misgivings, I want to again congratulate the 
chairman for putting forth his first bill and working with the ranking 
member, where possible. We need more cooperation between the majority 
and the minority.
  Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, at this time, I yield 5 minutes 
to the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Farr).
  Mr. FARR. I thank the gentlewoman from Florida for yielding.
  Mr. Chairman, I rise on this bill, as a member of the subcommittee, 
with very mixed emotions. There are some very good things in this bill, 
but there is also some bad stuff. The question is whether the bill is 
51 percent good or 51 percent bad.
  I came to Congress because I believe that government can play a 
positive role in American lives. Government is not the enemy.
  But it makes me wonder then why this body refuses to invest in the 
tools to do the job of government and, by extension, to do the job of 
the American people. This bill contains the same funding levels it did 
last year, and that is $172 million less than the budget request.
  Any good corporation plots its investments so the company can 
prosper. In terms of the House of Representatives, that would mean 
setting spending at a level that would maximize its ability to serve 
the people. By failing to make those investments, we disrespect the 
American people, and we tell them that we are not worth the investment, 
not worth the effort, not worth doing the job well.
  This bill fails to invest in the very institution we depend upon to 
make government function properly. This body is being given short 
shrift.
  I am on the Appropriations Committee. I think it is our 
responsibility to meet the needs of the Nation in every respect, and 
that includes investing in the legislative branch of government so it 
can do its job.
  Those low polling numbers that Congress gets--everybody here talks 
about how low it is--I think they are the self-fulfilled policy of a 
Congress that refuses to provide itself the tools they need to serve 
the public.
  Skimping isn't going to make this place work any better. Using 
taxpayer dollars more wisely will.
  Having said that, I am also supportive of what the committee brought 
to the floor in a program called the Open World Leadership Center. It 
is operated out of funds from Congress with the Library of Congress.

[[Page 7322]]

  What Members may not know is that this program was begun as the 
brainchild of the late Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska and the Librarian 
of Congress. It was to expose young and emerging leaders--average age 
about 38--in Russia and former Eastern bloc countries. Some of those 
countries include Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, Kazakhstan.
  I think President Putin would love to see this program go away, the 
way USAID has left the region.
  It makes a difference to those young leaders to visit congressional 
districts, to see how city councils work, to see how school boards 
work, to see the United States, the State legislators, the judges. The 
program belongs in the legislative branch because peer-to-peer 
relationships do work.
  The program reaches out to all 50 States. More than 23,000 rising 
leaders have been hosted by the United States Government since the 
program's inception. Eighty percent of those have met with Members of 
Congress and visited their congressional districts. This is a very 
robust exchange program.
  I had a group in my district out in the central coast of California, 
and one of the visitors had been a member of the Duma, their Congress. 
He told me that he had been invited by our country to be here at least 
about a dozen times. But only in visiting the communities and seeing 
the local government in action did he actually understand what 
democracy was all about, a bottom's-up process in America that is never 
learned just visiting Washington or getting taught in a classroom. The 
value of hands-on, from-the-ground-up democracy is a lesson that can't 
be learned from a book. Open World experiences show these participants 
that democracy is not just a dream. It is actually a working reality, 
one that they can have in their home countries if they work at it. And 
America shows them how.
  There is an amendment coming up, the Ratcliffe amendment, and I hope 
that all the Members of Congress will reject that amendment to delete 
this program.
  Mr. Chairman, I really appreciate the work of the gentleman from 
Georgia, our new chairman. He has done a great job. I hope that we will 
spend, though, a little bit more money investing in this institution so 
that we can get the job done, not just talk about how we can cut, 
squeeze, and trim, sacrificing the ability of Congress to be its best.
  Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume, and thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Farr). He is 
a great member of the subcommittee and a strong advocate for a lot of 
elements within our budget. The truth is, we had tough choices to make. 
It wasn't easy. We are held within the constraints of what current law 
is.
  The President may have submitted a budget that didn't comply with the 
constraints that we have to comply with, but that doesn't mean that we 
can adhere to his budget numbers. So we are $170-something million 
below what the President requested or what the budget request was, but 
we are within the limits that are provided by law that many of the 
Members within this body voted for--excluding myself--and the President 
signed it into law.
  At some point, we have to grapple with that, as a House, and 
understand that is the law. And until that law is changed, tough 
choices we will have to make.
  As the chairman of the full committee so eloquently stated earlier, 
it is up to us to lead by example, and that is who we have elected to 
be our leaders and to represent our districts by example. So these are 
tough choices, no doubt. I agree with the gentleman from California.
  I know we had a goal, as a committee, and it was really bipartisan, 
our objective; and that was to honor and respect taxpayers today and 
preserve the institution for future generations, given the limited 
resources we had to work with.
  With that, Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, let me just point out that the 
chairman is right: we do have to lead by example.
  Leading by example, as we have in the past, like last fiscal year--
after the President submitted his budget, we certainly could have and 
should have, as a Congress, sat down with the President and negotiated 
an adjustment to the sequester, which we were able to successfully do 
last year, and that was to the betterment of making sure that people 
who are simply trying to succeed have the opportunity to do so in this 
country instead of living under the severe cuts and caps that 
sequestration forced us into. That is Congress' job, which we 
abdicated. That was not the choice of the minority; it was the choice 
of the majority.
  With that, Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Price), the ranking member of the Transportation, 
Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations 
Subcommittee.
  Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. I appreciate my colleague from Florida 
yielding, and I appreciate the work that she and colleagues on both 
sides of the aisle have done on this bill. I want to commend them for 
their work.
  Mr. Chairman, I do want to address an amendment yet to come, one that 
I hope this body will reject. This is an amendment that will be offered 
by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Ratcliffe). It will be an amendment to 
undo the bipartisan work of our Appropriations Committee. It would 
terminate the Open World program at the Library of Congress, which is a 
major outreach effort of our legislative branch in Russia and former 
Soviet and Soviet bloc countries.
  At a time when these countries' democracies and sovereignty are under 
threat, the Open World program, I believe, is more important than ever. 
This isn't President Putin's favorite activity, as others have stated. 
That puts it very mildly, believe me. But he has not been able to stop 
it.
  It is now more important than ever, not just in Russia but in fragile 
democracies and would-be democracies, such as Ukraine, Moldova, 
Kyrgyzstan, and Georgia.
  This is the best program of its kind that I have ever seen. And I 
have a lot of personal experience with Open World groups that have come 
to Washington and have come to my district.
  This is a program unique in both scope and concept. Most participants 
aren't the people who typically participate in international exchange 
programs. They are teachers, judges, local officials, young activists, 
people who live in rural areas and small towns. This program penetrates 
deeply, rather than just being another run-of-the-mill exchange 
program.

                              {time}  1545

  I invite any colleague to talk to any of our diplomats in the 
participant countries. You will leave with no doubt about how unique 
and how valuable the network of Open World participants is in the 
struggle for democracy in those countries and for the way our country 
is regarded, and there is a long list of veterans of Open World who are 
now public and private sector leaders in their countries.
  Mr. Chairman, some may question the placement of Open World in the 
Legislative Branch Appropriations bill. In fact, I think that is a huge 
asset. Because the program is not tied to a specific administration 
with its goals and politics, there is no hurdle to participation. There 
is no possibility that it will get lost as the State Department focuses 
on our other regions or on other priorities.
  Now, unlike the other programs in this bill, sure enough, Open World 
is not about us. It is not about our salaries. It is not about our 
staffs. It is not about our operations. It is not about us. But I 
assure you, it is about our country. It is about what we stand for at 
home and around the world. It is about projecting the value of our 
democratic principles to countries with histories of oppressive rule.
  The Appropriations Committee included funding for Open World 
following a bipartisan effort led by Representatives Fortenberry and 
Farr. Hopefully, today that wise decision will be sustained.

[[Page 7323]]

  I strongly encourage this body to stand with the pro-democracy 
advocates, many, many brave and courageous people in a critical part of 
the world. Oppose the Ratcliffe amendment.
  Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Point of clarification because I know these proceedings are 
documented well, and I know the ranking member stated that 
sequestration was a decision of the majority and not the minority. In 
some aspects, she is very correct, because at the time sequestration 
was implemented, the majority of the Senate was held by Democrats, and 
the concept came from Jack Lew, which is heavily documented, from the 
President's administration. So just to make sure there is full clarity 
here of majority and minority perspectives, there was a different 
majority at the time when that was taking place.
  If I could, just for a moment, address the Open World discussion 
here. This is a program that has been ongoing for several years--it has 
been decades, quite frankly--with great intentions in the beginning. 
What hasn't been stated today is that its intention was to be a one-
time program to assist during a transitional phase of the Soviet bloc 
countries at that time, back in the Bill Clinton administration, to 
assist them with some dialogue with free markets and diplomacy and such 
as we were experiencing during that time.
  As we know, with a lot of government programs that have good 
intentions of being one time, singular, they tend to go on into 
perpetuity. Yet we have heard claims today that there is not enough 
money, that we don't have enough to spend on things that are so vital 
and so critical to this body, to the institution, to meeting our 
constituents' needs, to the $1.5 billion in deferred maintenance of 
buildings, to MRAs not being enough, or whatever it might be. Yet there 
is still this clinging to $5 million of training Russian diplomats or 
Russian civic leaders is more important, more important than meeting 
the critical needs that we have here as a body, whether it is the 
Library of Congress, whether it is making sure that there is security 
provided through the Capitol Police, that they are fully funded where 
they need to be, whatever it might be.
  I would claim, Mr. Chairman, that today, if we cannot cut $5 million 
from a program that is duplicative, that there are 95 other programs 
that do very similar things, a program that has not been transparent, a 
program that has outlived its day, that is training Russians at a time 
when Russia is causing aggression against our allies and it is 
assisting our enemies, if we can't cut $5 million today and the 
gentleman from Texas' amendment fails today, God help us, when can we 
cut something from this budget?
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  While I intend to claim time in opposition to the amendment that 
addresses Open World a little bit later, which I know will come as a 
surprise to the chairman, I do want to point out now that what the 
chairman says is not quite accurate, which is why I am going to oppose 
the amendment. Because were we--and there were a number of options 
available to the Rules Committee--taking the $5 million that is going 
to Open World in the Legislative Branch bill now and putting it in to 
some other place in the Legislative Branch bill, life safety programs, 
restoring the cuts to GPO, or doing something that is going to make 
sure that the legislative branch can be competitive and has the ability 
to get our work done, then that would have been fine, because I agree 
that Open World is actually a square peg in a round hole and shouldn't 
be funded out of this bill, and I have made that case for many years.
  Instead, what the majority did is they took an amendment that takes 
that $5 million and puts it into the spending reduction account. We are 
already $106 million below 2010 levels in our MRA, in our office 
accounts. This bill is flat-funded for 3 years in a row. We are doing 
ourselves a disservice and making it difficult for us to do our jobs 
when we had a ripe opportunity to take that $5 million--which I would 
have been for--and put it somewhere in the Legislative Branch bill 
instead of sending it out of here. That is not responsible.
  Additionally, I will point out that perhaps the chairman's comments 
about sequestration demonstrate that he thinks that Congress' hands are 
tied and that we don't have the ability to actually make changes. The 
President has proposed what he believes we should do as an alternative 
to the sequester. That was his proposed budget.
  Like last year, we also have the ability to set aside and work with 
the administration--set aside at least part of the sequester--so we 
could provide improved allocations for each of these appropriations 
bills and make sure that we can make life better for more Americans. 
Unfortunately, the majority continues to act as if somehow we are 
frozen in time and that we are paralyzed by sequestration as the law. 
The last time I checked, the Founding Fathers in the Constitution gave 
Congress the ability to change the law, which we should do.
  Mr. Chairman, I will look forward to discussing some of the 
amendments that we will be debating in a few moments.
  Again, I want to thank the chairman for, really, the opportunity to 
spend some time focusing on the needs of the legislative branch and 
giving us the ability to at least move forward in some ways towards 
addressing our role as a coequal branch of government. I think this 
bill could have been far better. It has made several positive changes, 
but as I have outlined, we have places where we disagree, but we did it 
without being disagreeable.
  Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  I thank the ranking member, and I appreciate her acknowledgment of 
her opposition to the amendment that will arrive earlier. I would point 
out to you, Mr. Chairman, that I am not a member of the Rules 
Committee. I did not make that decision as to what amendment would be 
adopted or not. There were three amendments very similar. They were 
bipartisan. So there was bipartisan opposition to this program. We have 
the amendment before us that is before us, and, for the record, I will 
be supporting that amendment.
  Let me say this has been a process that has been difficult. I 
understand that. We have had some tough choices to make, but we have 
made them. We made them in a bipartisan way in which we had unanimous 
support out of subcommittee; we had no opposition that I recall in full 
committee. And so I expect today that we might maintain some of that 
bipartisanship, some of that ability to get something done here for the 
American people and show them that we have priorities in place that 
honor and respect them and preserve this institution for future 
generations.
  Mr. Chairman, to sum up what this bill does is we are here to hold 
the line on spending. We are keeping it flat-funded, as we have for the 
last year or two. This is a bill that is going to honor and respect our 
taxpayers. It is one that is preserving the beauty of this Capitol 
campus, providing a central security for all visitors and staff, and 
ensuring that we are able to provide the services that our constituents 
expect and deserve.
  Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Chair, I rise in reluctant support of H.R. 2250, 
a bill to fund the operations of the U.S. House of Representatives for 
2016 and for other purposes.
  In these times of needed fiscal discipline, everyone must do their 
part. We are bound by funding caps and, though the president has put 
forward a blueprint to address sequestration, the Republican leadership 
has chosen to disregard the plan. As a result, appropriators have 
produced a bill that makes deep cuts to agencies and programs that 
support the legislative branch when compared to the president's 
request.
  H.R. 2250 provides a total of $3.341 billion for vital House and 
House affiliated functions as well as for greater Congressional 
operations. This is a reduction from the president's

[[Page 7324]]

request of $200 million. Within the total available funding, $492.2 
million is provided for the Architect of the Capitol which oversees 
maintenance and repairs of House and Senate office buildings in 
addition to many other important buildings in the Congressional 
complex. Excluding Senate items, this is an $84 million reduction in 
funding for maintenance of the Capitol Visitor Center, the Capitol 
Grounds, the Library of Congress and the U.S. Botanical Garden. $591.4 
million is provided in the bill to fund Library of Congress (LOC) 
operations. In addition to being the repository of the nation's print 
and recorded media, the LOC serves as the research arm of Congress, 
helping to inform the legislative debate on Capitol Hill. This bill 
cuts its funding by $33 million below the president's request. The bill 
also reduces funding for the Government Accountability Office (GAO). 
The GAO functions as the ``congressional watchdog'' by investigating 
how federal agencies spend American taxpayer dollars. This bill funds 
GAO at $522 million, which is $31 million less than the president's 
request. H.R. 2250 does increase funding for the Capitol Police when 
compared to enacted funding levels, but the increase is actually a $10 
million cut when compared to the president's request.
  I believe spending taxpayer dollars carefully should always be a 
priority of Congress, and seeking ways to reduce government spending 
should also be a priority. There are funding reductions in the bill 
that I support, including the pay freeze for Members of Congress. But 
the American people expect us to make wise cuts. They don't want us 
cutting for the sake of cutting--especially when vital services may be 
impacted. The president's budget contained a strategy to address 
sequestration that would have made many of these cuts unnecessary. I 
regret that my Republican colleagues chose to ignore it.
  The Acting CHAIR (Mr. Hultgren). All time for general debate has 
expired.
  Pursuant to the rule, the bill shall be considered for amendment 
under the 5-minute rule. The bill shall be considered as read.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2250

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the 
     following sums are appropriated, out of any money in the 
     Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the Legislative 
     Branch for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2016, and for 
     other purposes, namely:

                      TITLE I--LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

      Payment to Widows and Heirs of Deceased Members of Congress

       For payment to Tori B. Nunnelee, widow of Alan Nunnelee, 
     late a Representative from the State of Mississippi, 
     $174,000.

                         Salaries and Expenses

       For salaries and expenses of the House of Representatives, 
     $1,180,736,000, as follows:

                        House Leadership Offices

       For salaries and expenses, as authorized by law, 
     $22,278,891, including: Office of the Speaker, $6,645,417, 
     including $25,000 for official expenses of the Speaker; 
     Office of the Majority Floor Leader, $2,180,048, including 
     $10,000 for official expenses of the Majority Leader; Office 
     of the Minority Floor Leader, $7,114,471, including $10,000 
     for official expenses of the Minority Leader; Office of the 
     Majority Whip, including the Chief Deputy Majority Whip, 
     $1,886,632, including $5,000 for official expenses of the 
     Majority Whip; Office of the Minority Whip, including the 
     Chief Deputy Minority Whip, $1,459,639, including $5,000 for 
     official expenses of the Minority Whip; Republican 
     Conference, $1,505,426; Democratic Caucus, $1,487,258: 
     Provided, That such amount for salaries and expenses shall 
     remain available from January 3, 2016 until January 2, 2017.

                  Members' Representational Allowances

   Including Members' Clerk Hire, Official Expenses of Members, and 
                             Official Mail

       For Members' representational allowances, including 
     Members' clerk hire, official expenses, and official mail, 
     $554,317,732.

                          Committee Employees

                Standing Committees, Special and Select

       For salaries and expenses of standing committees, special 
     and select, authorized by House resolutions, $123,903,173: 
     Provided, That such amount shall remain available for such 
     salaries and expenses until December 31, 2016.

                      Committee on Appropriations

       For salaries and expenses of the Committee on 
     Appropriations, $23,271,004, including studies and 
     examinations of executive agencies and temporary personal 
     services for such committee, to be expended in accordance 
     with section 202(b) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 
     1946 and to be available for reimbursement to agencies for 
     services performed: Provided, That such amount shall remain 
     available for such salaries and expenses until December 31, 
     2016.

                    Salaries, Officers and Employees

       For compensation and expenses of officers and employees, as 
     authorized by law, $175,713,679, including: for salaries and 
     expenses of the Office of the Clerk, including the positions 
     of the Chaplain and the Historian, and including not more 
     than $25,000, of which not more than $20,000 is for the 
     Family Room and not more than $2,000 is for the Office of the 
     Chaplain, for official representation and reception expenses, 
     $24,980,898; for salaries and expenses of the Office of the 
     Sergeant at Arms, including the position of Superintendent of 
     Garages and the Office of Emergency Management, and including 
     not more than $3,000 for official representation and 
     reception expenses, $14,827,120 of which $4,784,229 shall 
     remain available until expended; for salaries and expenses of 
     the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer including not 
     more than $3,000 for official representation and reception 
     expenses, $115,010,000, of which $1,350,000 shall remain 
     available until expended; for salaries and expenses of the 
     Office of the Inspector General, $4,741,809; for salaries and 
     expenses of the Office of General Counsel, $1,413,450; for 
     salaries and expenses of the Office of the Parliamentarian, 
     including the Parliamentarian, $2,000 for preparing the 
     Digest of Rules, and not more than $1,000 for official 
     representation and reception expenses, $1,974,606; for 
     salaries and expenses of the Office of the Law Revision 
     Counsel of the House, $3,119,766; for salaries and expenses 
     of the Office of the Legislative Counsel of the House, 
     $8,352,975; for salaries and expenses of the Office of 
     Interparliamentary Affairs, $814,069; for other authorized 
     employees, $478,986.

                        Allowances and Expenses

       For allowances and expenses as authorized by House 
     resolution or law, $281,251,521, including: supplies, 
     materials, administrative costs and Federal tort claims, 
     $3,625,236; official mail for committees, leadership offices, 
     and administrative offices of the House, $190,486; Government 
     contributions for health, retirement, Social Security, and 
     other applicable employee benefits, $254,447,514, to remain 
     available until March 31, 2017; Business Continuity and 
     Disaster Recovery, $16,217,008 of which $5,000,000 shall 
     remain available until expended; transition activities for 
     new members and staff, $2,084,000, to remain available until 
     expended; Wounded Warrior Program $2,500,000, to remain 
     available until expended; Office of Congressional Ethics, 
     $1,467,030; and miscellaneous items including purchase, 
     exchange, maintenance, repair and operation of House motor 
     vehicles, interparliamentary receptions, and gratuities to 
     heirs of deceased employees of the House, $720,247.

                       Administrative Provisions

       Sec. 101. (a) Requiring Amounts Remaining in Members' 
     Representational Allowances To Be Used for Deficit Reduction 
     or To Reduce the Federal Debt.--Notwithstanding any other 
     provision of law, any amounts appropriated under this Act for 
     ``HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES--Salaries and Expenses--Members' 
     Representational Allowances'' shall be available only for 
     fiscal year 2016. Any amount remaining after all payments are 
     made under such allowances for fiscal year 2016 shall be 
     deposited in the Treasury and used for deficit reduction (or, 
     if there is no Federal budget deficit after all such payments 
     have been made, for reducing the Federal debt, in such manner 
     as the Secretary of the Treasury considers appropriate).
       (b) Regulations.--The Committee on House Administration of 
     the House of Representatives shall have authority to 
     prescribe regulations to carry out this section.
       (c) Definition.--As used in this section, the term ``Member 
     of the House of Representatives'' means a Representative in, 
     or a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, the Congress.

                   delivery of bills and resolutions

       Sec. 102.  None of the funds made available in this Act may 
     be used to deliver a printed copy of a bill, joint 
     resolution, or resolution to the office of a Member of the 
     House of Representatives (including a Delegate or Resident 
     Commissioner to the Congress) unless the Member requests a 
     copy.

                    delivery of congressional record

       Sec. 103.  None of the funds made available by this Act may 
     be used to deliver a printed copy of any version of the 
     Congressional Record to the office of a Member of the House 
     of Representatives (including a Delegate or Resident 
     Commissioner to the Congress).

            limitation on amount available to lease vehicles

       Sec. 104.  None of the funds made available in this Act may 
     be used by the Chief Administrative Officer of the House of 
     Representatives to make any payments from any Members' 
     Representational Allowance for the leasing of a vehicle, 
     excluding mobile district offices, in an aggregate amount 
     that exceeds $1,000 for the vehicle in any month.

           limitation on printed copies of u.s. code to house

       Sec. 105.  None of the funds made available by this Act may 
     be used to provide an aggregate number of more than 50 
     printed copies of any edition of the United States Code to 
     all offices of the House of Representatives.

[[Page 7325]]



                  delivery of reports of disbursements

       Sec. 106.  None of the funds made available by this Act may 
     be used to deliver a printed copy of the report of 
     disbursements for the operations of the House of 
     Representatives under section 106 of the House of 
     Representatives Administrative Reform Technical Corrections 
     Act (2 U.S.C. 5535) to the office of a Member of the House of 
     Representatives (including a Delegate or Resident 
     Commissioner to the Congress).

                       delivery of daily calendar

       Sec. 107.  None of the funds made available by this Act may 
     be used to deliver to the office of a Member of the House of 
     Representatives (including a Delegate or Resident 
     Commissioner to the Congress) a printed copy of the Daily 
     Calendar of the House of Representatives which is prepared by 
     the Clerk of the House of Representatives.

                              JOINT ITEMS

       For Joint Committees, as follows:

                        Joint Economic Committee

       For salaries and expenses of the Joint Economic Committee, 
     $4,203,000, to be disbursed by the Secretary of the Senate.

                      Joint Committee on Taxation

       For salaries and expenses of the Joint Committee on 
     Taxation, $10,095,000, to be disbursed by the Chief 
     Administrative Officer of the House of Representatives.
       For other joint items, as follows:

                   Office of the Attending Physician

       For medical supplies, equipment, and contingent expenses of 
     the emergency rooms, and for the Attending Physician and his 
     assistants, including:
       (1) an allowance of $2,175 per month to the Attending 
     Physician;
       (2) an allowance of $1,300 per month to the Senior Medical 
     Officer;
       (3) an allowance of $725 per month each to three medical 
     officers while on duty in the Office of the Attending 
     Physician;
       (4) an allowance of $725 per month to 2 assistants and $580 
     per month each not to exceed 11 assistants on the basis 
     heretofore provided for such assistants; and
       (5) $2,692,000 for reimbursement to the Department of the 
     Navy for expenses incurred for staff and equipment assigned 
     to the Office of the Attending Physician, which shall be 
     advanced and credited to the applicable appropriation or 
     appropriations from which such salaries, allowances, and 
     other expenses are payable and shall be available for all the 
     purposes thereof, $3,784,000, to be disbursed by the Chief 
     Administrative Officer of the House of Representatives.

             Office of Congressional Accessibility Services

                         Salaries and Expenses

       For salaries and expenses of the Office of Congressional 
     Accessibility Services, $1,387,000, to be disbursed by the 
     Secretary of the Senate.

                             CAPITOL POLICE

                                Salaries

       For salaries of employees of the Capitol Police, including 
     overtime, hazardous duty pay, and Government contributions 
     for health, retirement, social security, professional 
     liability insurance, and other applicable employee benefits, 
     $300,000,000 of which overtime shall not exceed $30,928,000 
     unless the Committee on Appropriations of the House and 
     Senate are notified, to be disbursed by the Chief of the 
     Capitol Police or his designee.

                            General Expenses

       For necessary expenses of the Capitol Police, including 
     motor vehicles, communications and other equipment, security 
     equipment and installation, uniforms, weapons, supplies, 
     materials, training, medical services, forensic services, 
     stenographic services, personal and professional services, 
     the employee assistance program, the awards program, postage, 
     communication services, travel advances, relocation of 
     instructor and liaison personnel for the Federal Law 
     Enforcement Training Center, and not more than $5,000 to be 
     expended on the certification of the Chief of the Capitol 
     Police in connection with official representation and 
     reception expenses, $69,000,000, to be disbursed by the Chief 
     of the Capitol Police or his designee: Provided, That, 
     notwithstanding any other provision of law, the cost of basic 
     training for the Capitol Police at the Federal Law 
     Enforcement Training Center for fiscal year 2016 shall be 
     paid by the Secretary of Homeland Security from funds 
     available to the Department of Homeland Security.

                        Administrative Provision

        deposit of reimbursements for law enforcement assistance

       Sec. 1001. (a) In General.--Section 2802(a)(1) of the 
     Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2001 (2 U.S.C. 1905(a)(1)) 
     is amended by striking ``District of Columbia)'' and 
     inserting the following: ``District of Columbia), and from 
     any other source in the case of assistance provided in 
     connection with an activity that was not sponsored by 
     Congress''.
       (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 2802(a)(2) of such Act 
     (2 U.S.C. 1905(a)(2)) is amended by striking ``law 
     enforcement assistance to any Federal, State, or local 
     government agency (including any agency of the District of 
     Columbia)'' and inserting ``any law enforcement assistance 
     for which reimbursement described in paragraph (1) is made''.
       (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall apply with respect to any reimbursement received 
     before, on, or after the date of the enactment of this Act.

                          OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE

                         Salaries and Expenses

       For salaries and expenses of the Office of Compliance, as 
     authorized by section 305 of the Congressional Accountability 
     Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1385), $3,959,000, of which $450,000 
     shall remain available until September 30, 2017: Provided, 
     That not more than $500 may be expended on the certification 
     of the Executive Director of the Office of Compliance in 
     connection with official representation and reception 
     expenses.

                      CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE

                         Salaries and Expenses

       For salaries and expenses necessary for operation of the 
     Congressional Budget Office, including not more than $6,000 
     to be expended on the certification of the Director of the 
     Congressional Budget Office in connection with official 
     representation and reception expenses, $47,270,000.

                        ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL

                  Capitol Construction and Operations

       For salaries for the Architect of the Capitol, and other 
     personal services, at rates of pay provided by law; for all 
     necessary expenses for surveys and studies, construction, 
     operation, and general and administrative support in 
     connection with facilities and activities under the care of 
     the Architect of the Capitol including the Botanic Garden; 
     electrical substations of the Capitol, Senate and House 
     office buildings, and other facilities under the jurisdiction 
     of the Architect of the Capitol; including furnishings and 
     office equipment; including not more than $5,000 for official 
     reception and representation expenses, to be expended as the 
     Architect of the Capitol may approve; for purchase or 
     exchange, maintenance, and operation of a passenger motor 
     vehicle, $90,946,000.

                            Capitol Building

       For all necessary expenses for the maintenance, care and 
     operation of the Capitol, $46,737,000, of which $22,737,000 
     shall remain available until September 30, 2020.

                            Capitol Grounds

       For all necessary expenses for care and improvement of 
     grounds surrounding the Capitol, the Senate and House office 
     buildings, and the Capitol Power Plant, $11,880,000, of which 
     $2,000,000 shall remain available until September 30, 2020.

                         House Office Buildings

       For all necessary expenses for the maintenance, care and 
     operation of the House office buildings, $149,962,000, of 
     which $23,886,000 shall remain available until September 30, 
     2020, and of which $62,000,000 shall remain available until 
     expended for the restoration and renovation of the Cannon 
     House Office Building.
       In addition, for a payment to the House Historic Buildings 
     Revitalization Trust Fund, $10,000,000, to remain available 
     until expended.

                          Capitol Power Plant

       For all necessary expenses for the maintenance, care and 
     operation of the Capitol Power Plant; lighting, heating, 
     power (including the purchase of electrical energy) and water 
     and sewer services for the Capitol, Senate and House office 
     buildings, Library of Congress buildings, and the grounds 
     about the same, Botanic Garden, Senate garage, and air 
     conditioning refrigeration not supplied from plants in any of 
     such buildings; heating the Government Printing Office and 
     Washington City Post Office, and heating and chilled water 
     for air conditioning for the Supreme Court Building, the 
     Union Station complex, the Thurgood Marshall Federal 
     Judiciary Building and the Folger Shakespeare Library, 
     expenses for which shall be advanced or reimbursed upon 
     request of the Architect of the Capitol and amounts so 
     received shall be deposited into the Treasury to the credit 
     of this appropriation, $91,549,898, of which $14,408,898 
     shall remain available until September 30, 2020: Provided, 
     That not more than $9,000,000 of the funds credited or to be 
     reimbursed to this appropriation as herein provided shall be 
     available for obligation during fiscal year 2016.

                     Library Buildings and Grounds

       For all necessary expenses for the mechanical and 
     structural maintenance, care and operation of the Library 
     buildings and grounds, $36,589,000, of which $11,646,000 
     shall remain available until September 30, 2020.

             Capitol Police Buildings, Grounds and Security

       For all necessary expenses for the maintenance, care and 
     operation of buildings, grounds and security enhancements of 
     the United States Capitol Police, wherever located, the 
     Alternate Computer Facility, and AOC security operations, 
     $22,058,000, of which $4,525,000 shall remain available until 
     September 30, 2020.

                             Botanic Garden

       For all necessary expenses for the maintenance, care and 
     operation of the Botanic Garden and the nurseries, buildings, 
     grounds,

[[Page 7326]]

     and collections; and purchase and exchange, maintenance, 
     repair, and operation of a passenger motor vehicle; all under 
     the direction of the Joint Committee on the Library, 
     $11,892,000; of which $2,100,000 shall remain available until 
     September 30, 2020: Provided, That of the amount made 
     available under this heading, the Architect of the Capitol 
     may obligate and expend such sums as may be necessary for the 
     maintenance, care and operation of the National Garden 
     established under section 307E of the Legislative Branch 
     Appropriations Act, 1989 (2 U.S.C. 2146), upon vouchers 
     approved by the Architect of the Capitol or a duly authorized 
     designee.

                         Capitol Visitor Center

       For all necessary expenses for the operation of the Capitol 
     Visitor Center, $20,557,000.

                       Administrative Provisions

       no bonuses for contractors behind schedule or over budget

       Sec. 1101.  None of the funds made available in this Act 
     for the Architect of the Capitol may be used to make 
     incentive or award payments to contractors for work on 
     contracts or programs for which the contractor is behind 
     schedule or over budget, unless the Architect of the Capitol, 
     or agency-employed designee, determines that any such 
     deviations are due to unforeseeable events, government-driven 
     scope changes, or are not significant within the overall 
     scope of the project and/or program.

                                 scrims

       Sec. 1102.  None of the funds made available by this Act 
     may be used for scrims containing photographs of building 
     facades during restoration or construction projects performed 
     by the Architect of the Capitol.

                  acquisition of parcel at fort meade

       Sec. 1103. (a) Acquisition.--The Architect of the Capitol 
     is authorized to acquire from the Maryland State Highway 
     Administration, at no cost to the United States, a parcel of 
     real property (including improvements thereon) consisting of 
     approximately 7.34 acres located within the portion of Fort 
     George G. Meade in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, that was 
     transferred to the Architect of the Capitol by the Secretary 
     of the Army pursuant to section 122 of the Military 
     Construction Appropriations Act, 1994 (2 U.S.C. 141 note).
       (b) Terms and Conditions.--The terms and conditions 
     applicable under subsections (b) and (d) of section 122 of 
     the Military Construction Appropriations Act, 1994 (2 U.S.C. 
     141 note) to the property acquired by the Architect of the 
     Capitol pursuant to such section shall apply to the real 
     property acquired by the Architect pursuant to the authority 
     of this section.

       oversight plan for funds provided for large scale projects

       Sec. 1104. (a) The Architect of the Capitol may not 
     obligate more than 25 percent of the amount made available to 
     the Architect under this Act for any project for which 
     $5,000,000 or more is appropriated under this Act until--
       (1) the Architect submits to the Comptroller General and 
     the Committee on Appropriations of House of Representatives a 
     plan for the use of the funds provided for the project which 
     includes a description of any changes to the project's 
     schedule (including benchmarks for the timing of the 
     completion of various stages of the project) or the project's 
     costs (including estimates of the total costs of the project 
     or the total life cycle costs of the project), as well as a 
     description of the accounting and other safeguards the 
     Architect will implement to ensure that the project will be 
     carried out in a timely and cost-effective manner; and
       (2) the Comptroller General and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the House of Representatives approves such 
     plan.

                          LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

                         Salaries and Expenses

       For necessary expenses of the Library of Congress not 
     otherwise provided for, including development and maintenance 
     of the Library's catalogs; custody and custodial care of the 
     Library buildings; special clothing; cleaning, laundering and 
     repair of uniforms; preservation of motion pictures in the 
     custody of the Library; operation and maintenance of the 
     American Folklife Center in the Library; preparation and 
     distribution of catalog records and other publications of the 
     Library; hire or purchase of one passenger motor vehicle; and 
     expenses of the Library of Congress Trust Fund Board not 
     properly chargeable to the income of any trust fund held by 
     the Board, $419,357,000, of which not more than $6,000,000 
     shall be derived from collections credited to this 
     appropriation during fiscal year 2016, and shall remain 
     available until expended, under the Act of June 28, 1902 
     (chapter 1301; 32 Stat. 480; 2 U.S.C. 150) and not more than 
     $350,000 shall be derived from collections during fiscal year 
     2016 and shall remain available until expended for the 
     development and maintenance of an international legal 
     information database and activities related thereto: 
     Provided, That the Library of Congress may not obligate or 
     expend any funds derived from collections under the Act of 
     June 28, 1902, in excess of the amount authorized for 
     obligation or expenditure in appropriations Acts: Provided 
     further, That the total amount available for obligation shall 
     be reduced by the amount by which collections are less than 
     $6,350,000: Provided further, That of the total amount 
     appropriated, not more than $12,000 may be expended, on the 
     certification of the Librarian of Congress, in connection 
     with official representation and reception expenses for the 
     Overseas Field Offices: Provided further, That of the total 
     amount appropriated, $8,231,000 shall remain available until 
     expended for the digital collections and educational 
     curricula program.

                            Copyright Office

                         salaries and expenses

       For all necessary expenses of the Copyright Office, 
     $57,008,000, of which not more than $30,000,000, to remain 
     available until expended, shall be derived from collections 
     credited to this appropriation during fiscal year 2016 under 
     section 708(d) of title 17, United States Code: Provided, 
     That the Copyright Office may not obligate or expend any 
     funds derived from collections under such section, in excess 
     of the amount authorized for obligation or expenditure in 
     appropriations Acts: Provided further, That not more than 
     $5,777,000 shall be derived from collections during fiscal 
     year 2016 under sections 111(d)(2), 119(b)(3), 803(e), 1005, 
     and 1316 of such title: Provided further, That the total 
     amount available for obligation shall be reduced by the 
     amount by which collections are less than $35,777,000: 
     Provided further, That not more than $100,000 of the amount 
     appropriated is available for the maintenance of an 
     ``International Copyright Institute'' in the Copyright Office 
     of the Library of Congress for the purpose of training 
     nationals of developing countries in intellectual property 
     laws and policies: Provided further, That not more than 
     $6,500 may be expended, on the certification of the Librarian 
     of Congress, in connection with official representation and 
     reception expenses for activities of the International 
     Copyright Institute and for copyright delegations, visitors, 
     and seminars: Provided further, That notwithstanding any 
     provision of chapter 8 of title 17, United States Code, any 
     amounts made available under this heading which are 
     attributable to royalty fees and payments received by the 
     Copyright Office pursuant to sections 111, 119, and chapter 
     10 of such title may be used for the costs incurred in the 
     administration of the Copyright Royalty Judges program, with 
     the exception of the costs of salaries and benefits for the 
     Copyright Royalty Judges and staff under section 802(e).

                     Congressional Research Service

                         salaries and expenses

       For necessary expenses to carry out the provisions of 
     section 203 of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (2 
     U.S.C. 166) and to revise and extend the Annotated 
     Constitution of the United States of America, $106,945,000: 
     Provided, That no part of such amount may be used to pay any 
     salary or expense in connection with any publication, or 
     preparation of material therefor (except the Digest of Public 
     General Bills), to be issued by the Library of Congress 
     unless such publication has obtained prior approval of either 
     the Committee on House Administration of the House of 
     Representatives or the Committee on Rules and Administration 
     of the Senate.

             Books for the Blind and Physically Handicapped

                         salaries and expenses

       For salaries and expenses to carry out the Act of March 3, 
     1931 (chapter 400; 46 Stat. 1487; 2 U.S.C. 135a), 
     $50,248,000: Provided, That of the total amount appropriated, 
     not more than $650,000 shall be available to contract to 
     provide newspapers to blind and physically handicapped 
     residents at no cost to the individual.

                        Administrative Provision

               reimbursable and revolving fund activities

       Sec. 1201. (a) In General.--For fiscal year 2016, the 
     obligational authority of the Library of Congress for the 
     activities described in subsection (b) may not exceed 
     $186,015,000.
       (b) Activities.--The activities referred to in subsection 
     (a) are reimbursable and revolving fund activities that are 
     funded from sources other than appropriations to the Library 
     in appropriations Acts for the legislative branch.

                      GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE

                        Congressional Publishing

                     (including transfer of funds)

       For authorized publishing of congressional information and 
     the distribution of congressional information in any format; 
     expenses necessary for preparing the semimonthly and session 
     index to the Congressional Record, as authorized by law 
     (section 902 of title 44, United States Code); publishing of 
     Government publications authorized by law to be distributed 
     to Members of Congress; and publishing, and distribution of 
     Government publications authorized by law to be distributed 
     without charge to the recipient, $79,736,000: Provided, That 
     this appropriation shall not be available for paper copies of 
     the permanent edition of the Congressional Record for 
     individual Representatives, Resident Commissioners or 
     Delegates authorized under section 906 of title 44, United 
     States Code:

[[Page 7327]]

     Provided further, That this appropriation shall be available 
     for the payment of obligations incurred under the 
     appropriations for similar purposes for preceding fiscal 
     years: Provided further, That notwithstanding the 2-year 
     limitation under section 718 of title 44, United States Code, 
     none of the funds appropriated or made available under this 
     Act or any other Act for printing and binding and related 
     services provided to Congress under chapter 7 of title 44, 
     United States Code, may be expended to print a document, 
     report, or publication after the 27-month period beginning on 
     the date that such document, report, or publication is 
     authorized by Congress to be printed, unless Congress 
     reauthorizes such printing in accordance with section 718 of 
     title 44, United States Code: Provided further, That any 
     unobligated or unexpended balances in this account or 
     accounts for similar purposes for preceding fiscal years may 
     be transferred to the Government Publishing Office business 
     operations revolving fund for carrying out the purposes of 
     this heading, subject to the approval of the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the House of Representatives and Senate: 
     Provided further, That notwithstanding sections 901, 902, and 
     906 of title 44, United States Code, this appropriation may 
     be used to prepare indexes to the Congressional Record on 
     only a monthly and session basis.

     Public Information Programs of the Superintendent of Documents

                         salaries and expenses

                     (including transfer of funds)

       For expenses of the public information programs of the 
     Office of Superintendent of Documents necessary to provide 
     for the cataloging and indexing of Government publications 
     and their distribution to the public, Members of Congress, 
     other Government agencies, and designated depository and 
     international exchange libraries as authorized by law, 
     $30,500,000: Provided, That amounts of not more than 
     $2,000,000 from current year appropriations are authorized 
     for producing and disseminating Congressional serial sets and 
     other related publications for fiscal years 2014 and 2015 to 
     depository and other designated libraries: Provided further, 
     That any unobligated or unexpended balances in this account 
     or accounts for similar purposes for preceding fiscal years 
     may be transferred to the Government Publishing Office 
     business operations revolving fund for carrying out the 
     purposes of this heading, subject to the approval of the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives 
     and Senate.

    Government Publishing Office Business Operations Revolving Fund

        The Government Publishing Office is hereby authorized to 
     make such expenditures, within the limits of funds available 
     and in accordance with law, and to make such contracts and 
     commitments without regard to fiscal year limitations as 
     provided by section 9104 of title 31, United States Code, as 
     may be necessary in carrying out the programs and purposes 
     set forth in the budget for the current fiscal year for the 
     Government Publishing Office business operations revolving 
     fund: Provided, That not more than $7,500 may be expended on 
     the certification of the Director of the Government 
     Publishing Office in connection with official representation 
     and reception expenses: Provided further, That the business 
     operations revolving fund shall be available for the hire or 
     purchase of not more than 12 passenger motor vehicles: 
     Provided further, That expenditures in connection with travel 
     expenses of the advisory councils to the Director of the 
     Government Publishing Office shall be deemed necessary to 
     carry out the provisions of title 44, United States Code: 
     Provided further, That the business operations revolving fund 
     shall be available for temporary or intermittent services 
     under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, but at 
     rates for individuals not more than the daily equivalent of 
     the annual rate of basic pay for level V of the Executive 
     Schedule under section 5316 of such title: Provided further, 
     That activities financed through the business operations 
     revolving fund may provide information in any format: 
     Provided further, That the business operations revolving fund 
     and the funds provided under the heading ``Public Information 
     Programs of the Superintendent of Documents'' may not be used 
     for contracted security services at GPO's passport facility 
     in the District of Columbia.

                    GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE

                         Salaries and Expenses

       For necessary expenses of the Government Accountability 
     Office, including not more than $12,500 to be expended on the 
     certification of the Comptroller General of the United States 
     in connection with official representation and reception 
     expenses; temporary or intermittent services under section 
     3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, but at rates for 
     individuals not more than the daily equivalent of the annual 
     rate of basic pay for level IV of the Executive Schedule 
     under section 5315 of such title; hire of one passenger motor 
     vehicle; advance payments in foreign countries in accordance 
     with section 3324 of title 31, United States Code; benefits 
     comparable to those payable under sections 901(5), (6), and 
     (8) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4081(5), 
     (6), and (8)); and under regulations prescribed by the 
     Comptroller General of the United States, rental of living 
     quarters in foreign countries, $522,000,000:  Provided, That, 
     in addition, $25,450,000 of payments received under sections 
     782, 791, 3521, and 9105 of title 31, United States Code, 
     shall be available without fiscal year limitation: Provided 
     further, That this appropriation and appropriations for 
     administrative expenses of any other department or agency 
     which is a member of the National Intergovernmental Audit 
     Forum or a Regional Intergovernmental Audit Forum shall be 
     available to finance an appropriate share of either Forum's 
     costs as determined by the respective Forum, including 
     necessary travel expenses of non-Federal participants: 
     Provided further, That payments hereunder to the Forum may be 
     credited as reimbursements to any appropriation from which 
     costs involved are initially financed.

                        Administrative Provision

                       Federal Government Details

       Sec. 1301. (a) Permitting Details From Other Federal 
     Offices.--Section 731 of title 31, United States Code, is 
     amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(k) Federal Government Details.--The activities of the 
     Government Accountability Office may, in the reasonable 
     discretion of the Comptroller General, be carried out by 
     receiving details of personnel from other offices of the 
     Federal Government on a reimbursable, partially-reimbursable, 
     or nonreimbursable basis.''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) 
     shall apply with respect to fiscal year 2016 and each 
     succeeding fiscal year.

                OPEN WORLD LEADERSHIP CENTER TRUST FUND

       For a payment to the Open World Leadership Center Trust 
     Fund for financing activities of the Open World Leadership 
     Center under section 313 of the Legislative Branch 
     Appropriations Act, 2001 (2 U.S.C. 1151), $5,700,000, except 
     that any funds made available under this heading to support 
     Russian participants shall only be used for those engaging in 
     free market development, humanitarian activities, and civic 
     engagement, and shall not be used for officials of the 
     central government of Russia.

   John C. Stennis Center for Public Service Training and Development

       For payment to the John C. Stennis Center for Public 
     Service Development Trust Fund established under section 116 
     of the John C. Stennis Center for Public Service Training and 
     Development Act (2 U.S.C. 1105), $430,000.

                      TITLE II--GENERAL PROVISIONS

                maintenance and care of private vehicles

       Sec. 201.  No part of the funds appropriated in this Act 
     shall be used for the maintenance or care of private 
     vehicles, except for emergency assistance and cleaning as may 
     be provided under regulations relating to parking facilities 
     for the House of Representatives issued by the Committee on 
     House Administration and for the Senate issued by the 
     Committee on Rules and Administration.

                         fiscal year limitation

       Sec. 202.  No part of the funds appropriated in this Act 
     shall remain available for obligation beyond fiscal year 2016 
     unless expressly so provided in this Act.

                 rates of compensation and designation

       Sec. 203.  Whenever in this Act any office or position not 
     specifically established by the Legislative Pay Act of 1929 
     (46 Stat. 32 et seq.) is appropriated for or the rate of 
     compensation or designation of any office or position 
     appropriated for is different from that specifically 
     established by such Act, the rate of compensation and the 
     designation in this Act shall be the permanent law with 
     respect thereto: Provided, That the provisions in this Act 
     for the various items of official expenses of Members, 
     officers, and committees of the Senate and House of 
     Representatives, and clerk hire for Senators and Members of 
     the House of Representatives shall be the permanent law with 
     respect thereto.

                          consulting services

       Sec. 204.  The expenditure of any appropriation under this 
     Act for any consulting service through procurement contract, 
     under section 3109 of title 5, United States Code, shall be 
     limited to those contracts where such expenditures are a 
     matter of public record and available for public inspection, 
     except where otherwise provided under existing law, or under 
     existing Executive order issued under existing law.

                             costs of lbfmc

       Sec. 205.  Amounts available for administrative expenses of 
     any legislative branch entity which participates in the 
     Legislative Branch Financial Managers Council (LBFMC) 
     established by charter on March 26, 1996, shall be available 
     to finance an appropriate share of LBFMC costs as determined 
     by the LBFMC, except that the total LBFMC costs to be shared 
     among all participating legislative branch entities (in such 
     allocations among the entities as the entities may determine) 
     may not exceed $2,000.

                         landscape maintenance

       Sec. 206.  For fiscal year 2016 and each fiscal year 
     thereafter, the Architect of the Capitol,

[[Page 7328]]

     in consultation with the District of Columbia, is authorized 
     to maintain and improve the landscape features, excluding 
     streets, in Square 580 up to the beginning of I-395.

                        limitation on transfers

       Sec. 207.  None of the funds made available in this Act may 
     be transferred to any department, agency, or instrumentality 
     of the United States Government, except pursuant to a 
     transfer made by, or transfer authority provided in, this Act 
     or any other appropriation Act.

                      guided tours of the capitol

       Sec. 208. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), none of 
     the funds made available to the Architect of the Capitol in 
     this Act may be used to eliminate or restrict guided tours of 
     the United States Capitol which are led by employees and 
     interns of offices of Members of Congress and other offices 
     of the House of Representatives and Senate
       (b) At the direction of the Capitol Police Board, or at the 
     direction of the Architect of the Capitol with the approval 
     of the Capitol Police Board, guided tours of the United 
     States Capitol which are led by employees and interns 
     described in subsection (a) may be suspended temporarily or 
     otherwise subject to restriction for security or related 
     reasons to the same extent as guided tours of the United 
     States Capitol which are led by the Architect of the Capitol.

  battery recharging stations for privately owned vehicles in parking 
  areas under the jurisdiction of the librarian of congress at no net 
                     cost to the federal government

       Sec. 209. (a) Definition.--In this section, the term 
     ``covered employee'' means--
       (1) an employee of the Library of Congress; or
       (2) any other individual who is authorized to park in any 
     parking area under the jurisdiction of the Library of 
     Congress on the Library of Congress buildings and grounds.
       (b) Authority.--
       (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (3), funds 
     appropriated to the Architect of the Capitol under the 
     heading ``Capitol Power Plant'' under the heading ``ARCHITECT 
     OF THE CAPITOL'' in any fiscal year are available to 
     construct, operate, and maintain on a reimbursable basis 
     battery recharging stations in parking areas under the 
     jurisdiction of the Library of Congress on Library of 
     Congress buildings and grounds for use by privately owned 
     vehicles used by covered employees.
       (2) Vendors authorized.--In carrying out paragraph (1), the 
     Architect of the Capitol may use 1 or more vendors on a 
     commission basis.
       (3) Approval of construction.--The Architect of the Capitol 
     may construct or direct the construction of battery 
     recharging stations described under paragraph (1) after--
       (A) submission of written notice detailing the numbers and 
     locations of the battery recharging stations to the Joint 
     Committee on the Library; and
       (B) approval by that Committee.
       (c) Fees and Charges.--
       (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Architect of 
     the Capitol shall charge fees or charges for electricity 
     provided to covered employees sufficient to cover the costs 
     to the Architect of the Capitol to carry out this section, 
     including costs to any vendors or other costs associated with 
     maintaining the battery recharging stations.
       (2) Approval of fees or charges.--The Architect of the 
     Capitol may establish and adjust fees or charges under 
     paragraph (1) after--
       (A) submission of written notice detailing the amount of 
     the fee or charge to be established or adjusted to the Joint 
     Committee on the Library; and
       (B) approval by that Committee.
       (d) Deposit and Availability of Fees, Charges, and 
     Commissions.--Any fees, charges, or commissions collected by 
     the Architect of the Capitol under this section shall be--
       (1) deposited in the Treasury to the credit of the 
     appropriations account described under subsection (b); and
       (2) available for obligation without further appropriation 
     during the fiscal year collected.
       (e) Reports.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 30 days after the end of 
     each fiscal year, the Architect of the Capitol shall submit a 
     report on the financial administration and cost recovery of 
     activities under this section with respect to that fiscal 
     year to the Joint Committee on the Library and the Committees 
     on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and Senate.
       (2) Avoiding subsidy.--
       (A) Determination.--Not later than 3 years after the date 
     of enactment of this Act and every 3 years thereafter, the 
     Architect of the Capitol shall submit a report to the Joint 
     Committee on the Library determining whether covered 
     employees using battery charging stations as authorized by 
     this section are receiving a subsidy from the taxpayers.
       (B) Modification of rates and fees.--If a determination is 
     made under subparagraph (A) that a subsidy is being received, 
     the Architect of the Capitol shall submit a plan to the Joint 
     Committee on the Library on how to update the program to 
     ensure no subsidy is being received. If the Joint Committee 
     does not act on the plan within 60 days, the Architect of the 
     Capitol shall take appropriate steps to increase rates or 
     fees to ensure reimbursement for the cost of the program 
     consistent with an appropriate schedule for amortization, to 
     be charged to those using the charging stations.
       (f) Effective Date.--This section shall apply with respect 
     to fiscal year 2016 and each fiscal year thereafter.

                       cost of living adjustment

       Sec. 210.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no 
     adjustment shall be made under section 601(a) of the 
     Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (2 U.S.C. 4501) 
     (relating to cost of living adjustments for Members of 
     Congress) during fiscal year 2016.

                       spending reduction account

       Sec. 211.  The amount by which the applicable allocation of 
     new budget authority made by the Committee on Appropriations 
     of the House of Representatives under section 302(b) of the 
     Congressional Budget Act of 1974, excluding Senate items, 
     exceeds the amount of proposed new budget authority is $0.
       This Act may be cited as the ``Legislative Branch 
     Appropriations Act, 2016''.

  The Acting CHAIR. No amendment to the bill shall be in order except 
those printed in part B of House Report 114-120. Each such amendment 
may be offered only in the order printed in the report, by a Member 
designated in the report, shall be considered read, shall be debatable 
for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by 
the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment, and 
shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question.


                Amendment No. 1 Offered by Mr. Ratcliffe

  The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 1 
printed in part B of House Report 114-120.
  Mr. RATCLIFFE. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       Page 29, line 18, after the dollar amount, insert 
     ``(reduced by $5,700,000)''.
       Page 37, line 15, after the dollar amount, insert 
     ``(increased by $5,700,000)''.

  The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 271, the gentleman 
from Texas (Mr. Ratcliffe) and a Member opposed each will control 5 
minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
  Mr. RATCLIFFE. Mr. Chairman, I thank Chairman Graves and Ranking 
Member Wasserman Schultz for their hard work in crafting this bill.
  Mr. Chairman, in this fiscal environment, we have to be better 
stewards of taxpayer dollars, and we have to scrutinize every program 
that we allocate money towards. We can't ever forget that every dollar 
that we spend is a dollar taken from our constituents' hard-earned 
paychecks. It is for that reason, Mr. Chairman, that I have offered 
this amendment to eliminate funding for the Open World Leadership 
Center--a program started in 1999 and housed in the Library of Congress 
with the purpose of bringing leaders from post-Soviet countries to the 
United States to learn about our legislative process.
  The gentleman from California spoke passionately a few minutes ago 
about his belief that we need to have programs like this, but his 
comments ignore the fact that there are nearly 90 other similar or 
nearly identical programs throughout the government aimed at achieving 
this same goal. At the same time, this program has now spent more than 
$150 million towards that duplicative purpose.
  So when you consider that duplicative purpose alongside a national 
debt of $18.2 trillion, we have got to honestly examine and reconsider 
whether this is the best use of taxpayer money. This is especially true 
when accounts and programs across the legislative branch have seen 
reductions in recent years, but yet not a single dollar has been cut 
from the Open World program despite the fact that, after this 
subcommittee's examination of this program, Chairman Graves reported 
that, ``In light of both the lack of quantifiable results from the Open 
World Leadership Center and its duplications of programs more 
appropriately offered by the State Department, the program

[[Page 7329]]

has long outlived its short-term intent.''
  Mr. Chairman, I agree with the chairman's assessment, which is, by 
the way, not a partisan one. In fact, this is the all-too-rare 
situation and opportunity where Republicans and Democrats, alike, agree 
that we can cut spending without hurting American citizens.
  The American people have entrusted us with the responsibility of 
seeing that their tax dollars don't go to waste. And while Mr. Graves' 
bill allocates funds to the legislative branch to do the important work 
that we need to on behalf of the American people, the Open World 
program is one area where we can and should make this spending cut.
  Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Georgia (Mr. Graves), the chairman.
  Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for 
bringing this forward. He has done a lot of work on this topic. He is 
new to the body--I think everybody knows that--and with haste he has 
moved to find an area in which we can continue to provide savings for 
taxpayers.
  Mr. Chairman, I support the gentleman's amendment here, and I 
appreciate his bringing it forward.
  Mr. RATCLIFFE. I thank the chairman.
  Mr. Chairman, I yield the balance of my time to the gentleman from 
Louisiana (Mr. Scalise), the majority whip.
  Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank my colleague for bringing 
this amendment and for focusing in on areas where we can actually 
eliminate spending here in Washington. Again, you have to recognize 
that about 35 cents of every dollar spent is money borrowed from 
countries like China, so we ought to be combing every different piece 
of this budget and finding areas where we can say that this isn't 
something that the Federal Government should be doing.
  It might be a noble program to have exchanges with other countries, 
but to be spending millions of dollars at a time when our country has 
needs that aren't being met and that we are borrowing money from other 
countries and sending that bill to our children, this is a time where 
we have got to be combing through these kinds of programs, and I want 
to thank him for his leadership.

                              {time}  1600

  This is a time where we have got to be combing through these kind of 
programs, and I want to thank him for his leadership. This is something 
that should be eliminated. We shouldn't be spending millions of dollars 
of taxpayer money to bring people over to this country. If they want to 
come, we welcome them.
  Many countries do send people over here to observe how democracy 
works; we send people on occasion to other countries to spread 
democracy, but there are duplications in so many other areas of our 
budget where this is already being done, and this is just one more area 
where we ought to be saving taxpayers' money and being fiscally 
responsible.
  This isn't something we can afford to do; it isn't something we 
should be doing. I am glad the gentleman is bringing the amendment to 
eliminate this spending. I support it and hope the House approves it.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I claim the time in opposition.
  The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I want to note for the Members 
that this would be the first time that I am actually opposing an 
amendment that cuts the Open World program.
  Initially, when I became chair of the Legislative Branch Subcommittee 
8 years ago, this program was at $14 million. I have consistently tried 
to cut this program and move its funding to the State Department bill 
for every single year since then. We have not been successful, but we 
are only at $5.7 million now, which is a more appropriate amount.
  We are, as I said, in general debate. This funding going somewhere 
else in the Legislative Branch Appropriations bill would be more 
appropriate. Since we are sending it out of the bill in a bill that is 
already inadequately funded, it is not an amendment I can support.
  At this time, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. 
Fortenberry), who wishes to speak in opposition to the amendment.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Mr. Chairman, I thank the ranking member for the 
time. I also want to thank the subcommittee chairman, Mr. Graves, for 
the gentlemanly way in which we have conducted this debate.
  This is a transpartisan issue. We have got Democrats and Republicans 
divided on each side of the aisle, which is a bit unusual, but 
nonetheless, this is important.
  I support the Open World Leadership Center. I am on its board. It has 
been mentioned that this is better nested within the State Department. 
The State Department does have a myriad of programs. However, this is a 
legislative branch program, and we should not outsource our 
responsibility there.
  This program was formed in the wake of the fall of the Soviet Union 
in order to give a chance for the development of legal structures, 
stabilized civil society, and the opportunity for democracy to evolve. 
While the primary focus was on Russia, that component has been 
suspended, and this program has taken a very substantial cut down from 
$10 million to about $6 million now.
  To jettison it gets rid of very important deliverables. Over 23,000 
judges, politicians, emerging civil society leaders, and young people 
have participated in this program, including 15 members of Ukraine's 
parliament, 15 members of Moldova's parliament, 8 Russian governors; 51 
percent of the participants are women.
  Mr. Chairman, the military tells me: Send us in last.
  We will send billions and billions of dollars of lethal military aid 
to a country, but the military says: Do everything you can to build up 
good will and trust and relationships in stable societies so that we do 
not have to resort to what none of us wants to resort to.
  The Open World Leadership Center fulfills that role in an effective 
way. There are changes that I hope will be forthcoming to make it more 
effective in the future. I hope we will preserve this important 
legislative priority which cannot be replicated, essentially, by the 
State Department.
  Mr. RATCLIFFE. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. At this time, I yield 30 seconds to the 
gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Aderholt).
  Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank the gentlewoman for 
yielding, and as someone who served as ranking member for this 
subcommittee back several years ago, I just want to express my support 
and the work for the Open World Leadership Center than the opposed 
amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas.
  I am sure it is well intended, but I do want to say that I think that 
this amendment is not going in the right direction. We do need to keep 
this partnership. It is a partnership. It is a relationship that has 
developed with these former Soviet countries.
  I think it is very important. It has served us well. It is a program 
that a lot of people say is duplicated in other agencies of government, 
but I will say it is unique. It is a unique approach to working across 
borders to highlight the critical role of the legislative branch in 
emerging democracies.
  I just want to say that I support this bill as it currently is and 
would oppose the gentleman's amendment.
  Mr. RATCLIFFE. Mr. Chairman, I continue to reserve the balance of my 
time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, can you tell me how much time we 
have remaining?
  The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida has 1\1/2\ minutes 
remaining. The gentleman from Texas has 30 seconds remaining.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, at this time, I yield 1

[[Page 7330]]

minute to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur).
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Chairman, I thank Ranking Member Wasserman Schultz 
for the time.
  I rise in strong opposition to the Ratcliffe amendment.
  If anyone has been watching, you have seen Russia's invasion of 
Ukraine. Now, more than ever, it is critical to engage with rising 
stars in the former Soviet Union because the old tactics of Soviet 
Russia are still being employed.
  This program belongs to Congress. Yes, it is a legislative branch 
program, so it is small; it is efficient; it is ours. It is our one 
tool to reach out to these countries to their rising leaders to expand 
accountable governance and the rule of law. Who better to teach it than 
those engaged, those of us who communicate with citizens in these 
countries that so very much want to be free?
  Open World directly connects us with changemakers in this very, very 
fluid region of the world. It reaches beyond the big cities, into the 
country side. I personally have greeted some of the leaders that have 
come from several countries, including Moldova and Ukraine.
  Let me tell you, it will be our generation and the next that will pay 
the price if this amendment is passed. We simply must engage with this 
part of the world. We cannot leave her in the hands of the Russian 
bear.
  I urge very strong opposition to the Ratcliffe amendment.
  Mr. RATCLIFFE. Mr. Chairman, how much time is remaining on both 
sides?
  The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from Texas has 30 seconds remaining. 
The gentlewoman from Florida has 30 seconds remaining.
  Mr. RATCLIFFE. Mr. Chairman, I continue to reserve the balance of my 
time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. At this time, I yield 10 seconds to the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Farr).
  Mr. FARR. Mr. Chairman, I would just like to respond that there is no 
legislative program in the State Department like this. You can't 
transfer it there. They are not operative in these countries, so to say 
that this could be moved over--look, you were in professional 
organizations.
  This is legislator to legislator, judge to judge, and we need to keep 
it that way.
  Mr. RATCLIFFE. Mr. Chairman, my constituents sent me to Washington to 
cut wasteful spending. The Open World program is one of many, many 
programs that have the same purpose throughout the Federal Government. 
This is a chance to cut $5 million in spending for a duplicative 
program that we simply don't need.
  I urge my colleagues to vote in support of passage of the Ratcliffe 
amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, unfortunately, what this 
amendment is, is a missed opportunity to be fiscally responsible.
  I also support not spending money on the Open World program any 
longer and moving it to the State Department. Unfortunately, the 
majority has chosen to make a rule in order that focuses on an 
amendment to shift the $5.7 million completely out of the legislative 
branch when we have plaster falling off buildings, elevators badly in 
need of repair, we have cuts to our MRA--our office accounts--our staff 
that isn't well paid enough; and is just not responsible.
  This is a missed opportunity. I urge the Members, unfortunately, to 
oppose the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Ratcliffe).
  The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes 
appeared to have it.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.
  The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further 
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas will 
be postponed.


                 Amendment No. 2 Offered by Mr. Flores

  The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 2 
printed in part B of House Report 114-120.
  Mr. FLORES. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       At the end of the bill (before the short title), insert the 
     following:
       Sec. __.  None of the funds made available by this Act may 
     be used to deliver a printed copy of the Congressional 
     Pictorial Directory to the office of a Member of the House of 
     Representatives (including a Delegate or Resident 
     Commissioner to the Congress).

  The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 271, the gentleman 
from Texas (Mr. Flores) and a Member opposed each will control 5 
minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
  Mr. FLORES. Mr. Chairman, I rise to offer a simple amendment to 
prohibit funds for delivering printed copies of the Congressional 
Pictorial Directory in the House of Representatives.
  The pictorial directory is a book with pictures of Members of 
Congress printed by the Government Publishing Office. The most recent 
edition cost over $200,000 to print and distribute. While I realize 
this is not much money, I think with an $18 trillion debt, that we need 
to be looking for the pennies, as well as the $100 bills.
  The most important thing is this book is no longer necessary to print 
in hard copy. We are almost 6 months into the 114th Congress, and the 
GPO has still not published the book. During the 113th Congress, it 
took the GPO 9 months, until September, to release the pictorial 
directory. Here is what one of them looks like.
  Private groups make similar directories that are actually more useful 
and include contact information and biographies of Members, in addition 
to their pictures. I have a copy of the directory that was dropped off 
at my office by a trade association in the last few days, and unlike 
the GPO directory, it is up to date, and they keep it up to date.
  Of course, pictures of Members of Congress are readily available for 
free online. If needed, the Clerk could ensure that appropriate 
photographs of current Members are available to create an online 
pictorial directory.
  The language of this amendment mirrors several riders already in the 
bill that prohibit funds for the delivery of printed copies of bills 
and resolutions, printed copies of the Congressional Record, printed 
copies of the statements of disbursements, and printed copies of the 
daily calendar.
  Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support my commonsense 
amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the 
amendment.
  The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I think it is worth stating for 
the Record that this amendment would maybe save somewhere between 
$9,000 and $29,000. I mean, let's bear the full impact of that weighty 
sum, depending on how it is interpreted.
  This is an amendment that would prevent the delivery of a printed 
copy that I have in my hand of the Congressional Pictorial Directory--
which, by the way, Mr. Flores, no offense, but some of us used this 
directory to identify you during the course of this discussion.
  This is a book that is actually necessary and one that we shouldn't 
be farming out or relying on lobbyists to print for us.
  Every year, we seem to get an amendment that stops some sort of 
printing or delivery of a paper copy of some document to Member 
offices.
  Just so Members know, we have actually made real savings in this bill 
in the past--in the Legislative Branch Appropriations bill--by no 
longer delivering a printed copy of a bill unless a Member requests a 
copy; we no longer deliver the Congressional Record to Member offices; 
we no longer allow more than 50 printed copies of the Code to go to 
House offices; we no longer deliver a printed copy of the statements of 
disbursement to Member offices; we

[[Page 7331]]

no longer deliver a printed copy of the daily calendar to Member 
offices--all of which cost far more than stopping the printing of these 
books.
  It isn't really realistic to expect Members to print out a piece of 
paper--or staff--and carry around a whole bunch of printed faded copies 
of paper to help identify Members. We have new Members every 2 years.
  My point is we are about out of low-hanging fruit here. I hope this 
is the last of this type of amendment because, if we want to change 
printing, the Members have an opportunity to take their grievances up 
with the Joint Committee on Printing.
  The distribution of the Congressional Pictorial Directory is actually 
set by the Joint Committee on Printing. Maybe the gentleman is unaware 
of that, and it doesn't need to be legislated through this bill. We 
don't need to be creating a false impression that we are actually 
saving taxpayer dollars that would not have been saved through another 
means.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FLORES. Mr. Chairman, I think the gentlewoman from Florida made a 
great case for putting this book in the same stack of dinosaurs that 
she was talking about when it comes to eliminating all other waste in 
terms of government printing.
  I have an app that cost me $1.99 that gives me current pictures of 
Members of Congress. I don't have to carry any paper around. I don't 
have to carry this book around. I don't have to carry this book around. 
I just have to have an app.
  Look, we are a 21st century Congress. Why don't we act like a 21st 
century Congress and get rid of the dinosaurs like this?

                              {time}  1615

  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Will the gentleman yield for a question?
  Mr. FLORES. I yield to the gentlewoman from Florida.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. I am wondering whether that app was privately 
produced or was produced by taxpayers. As for the $1.99 that you spent 
on it, were those taxpayer dollars you used to pay for it or from your 
own personal funds?
  Mr. FLORES. That was my personal money.
  Mr. Chairman, reclaiming my time, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, my point is that it would be one 
thing if a congressional tutorial directory were unnecessary, but that 
is not the case. It is necessary. What isn't necessary is for us to be 
wasting time in debate on the House floor over something that could 
actually be handled differently. If the gentleman or any other Member 
thought that the Joint Committee on Printing should handle it 
differently, just go talk to them.
  Instead, what we are doing is pretending that we are actually saving 
taxpayer dollars. This is about $9,000, and what we shouldn't be doing 
is outsourcing the things that we need in terms of the materials to do 
a better job serving the public to lobbyists and the private sector. 
That does not make sense, and it isn't necessary, and the majority 
should not leave the impression that they are actually doing something 
fiscally responsible here.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FLORES. Mr. Chairman, this has been a fascinating discussion. The 
gentlewoman from Florida claims that the savings are between $9,000 and 
$29,000 while the numbers that we have are $200,000. If you ask your 
typical hard-working family if $9,000 is a lot of money, they will say, 
yes, it is. Is $29,000 a lot of money? They will say yes. Is $200,000 a 
lot of money? They will say yes. If you say, ``You are paying for that. 
Would you like the government to stop wasting that money?'' then they 
would say, absolutely, yes.
  If the gentlewoman does not want to waste any time on this and vote 
``aye,'' then let's stop.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I will point out that the 
gentleman's amendment does not actually stop the printing of the 
pictorial directory. It simply stops the delivery of the directory to 
Members' offices. So it does not provide the savings that the gentleman 
is talking about. It provides between $9,000 and $29,000 because the 
only cost that he is saving is on the delivery and not on the printing.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FLORES. Mr. Chairman, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. 
Graves), the chairman of the subcommittee.
  Mr. GRAVES of Georgia. I thank the gentleman from Texas.
  Mr. Chairman, I read the amendment's intent as well. As the ranking 
member just stated and as the argument seems to go around in a circle 
here, it doesn't stop the printing of these items, of these 
directories. It just says that Members of Congress shouldn't have 
somebody privately deliver them to their offices. If they want one, go 
get one. If they want to look it up online, look it up online. If they 
want to spend $1.99 and get an app, they can get an app. This just says 
that the Congressional Pictorial Directory is just not going to be 
delivered to a Member's office. I don't know how controversial that can 
be.
  I thank the gentleman for his amendment.
  Mr. FLORES. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to vote for this 
commonsense amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I conclude by pointing out that 
the offerer of the amendment, and the chairman, are suggesting that now 
we should print things that we don't use. If that isn't an example of a 
waste of taxpayer dollars in suggesting that we should print this 
document but not make sure that it is delivered to Members' offices for 
their utilization, that pretty much sounds like government waste under 
the classic definition.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Flores).
  The amendment was agreed to.


               Amendment No. 3 Offered by Mrs. Blackburn

  The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 3 
printed in part B of House Report 114-120.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       At the end of the bill (before the short title), insert the 
     following:
       Sec. __. (a) Each amount made available by this Act is 
     hereby reduced by 1 percent.
       (b) The reduction in subsection (a) shall not apply with 
     respect to--
       (1) accounts under the heading ``Capitol Police'';
       (2) ``Architect of the Capitol--Capitol Police Buildings, 
     Grounds and Security''; or
       (3) the amount provided for salaries and expenses of the 
     Office of the Sergeant at Arms under the heading ``House of 
     Representatives--Salaries, Officers and Employees''.

  The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 271, the gentlewoman 
from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn) and a Member opposed each will control 
5 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Tennessee.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Chairman, first, I want to begin by thanking the 
subcommittee chairman for his hard work on this effort that is in front 
of us and for the committee's identifying ways to reduce what the 
Federal Government spends, especially in the leg branch.
  The fiscal year 2016 proposed funding level is $3.3 billion. That is 
$173 billion below the President's request. I think there is more work 
that we could do, and my 1 percent across-the-board spending reduction 
will save taxpayers an additional $29 million in budget authority and 
$25 million in outlays for fiscal year 2016. It is a targeted cut in 
discretionary spending that exempts the Capitol Police, the Sergeant at 
Arms, and security maintained by the Architect of the Capitol.
  Again, as I said, I want to recognize the work of Chairman Graves and 
his committee. They have done several very important things that, I 
think, we ought to highlight.
  First, this measure continues to freeze Member pay in place, where it 
has been since 2010. Second, it continues a 14 percent reduction in 
funding for the House of Representatives,

[[Page 7332]]

which Republicans began in 2011. I appreciate that Chairman Rogers 
brought attention to that as general debate began. Third, the bill cuts 
funding for programs such as the Government Publishing Office, which we 
have just been discussing--many programs that have outlived their 
usefulness.
  We can cut more, and a penny on a dollar is worth the effort. We are 
a country that has over $18 trillion in debt. Financial security has 
become an issue of national security. Admiral Mullen said the greatest 
threat to our Nation's security is our growing national debt. That is a 
reason for our getting our fiscal house in order and looking to future 
generations and saying, let's go in and cut one more penny out of a 
dollar. This effort that I bring before you would do just that--one 
more cent--and do it for future generations.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I claim time in opposition to 
the amendment.
  The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to 
this amendment.
  It takes a meat-ax approach to cutting this bill by over $29 million 
with an across-the-board cut of 1 percent. I want to point out that it 
also exempts the Capitol Police and its buildings, as well as the 
Sergeant at Arms.
  If the gentlewoman, who I know offers these amendments over and over 
again, were truly committed to an across-the-board cut, then she would 
just simply offer an across-the-board cut.
  Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. 
Hoyer), the minority whip.
  Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to this.
  This is a mindless but easy cut. Tough words. By the way, this is 
sequester, which is a Republican proposal. It started in about 2011 
but, really, before that with all of these across-the-board cuts 
because you don't have to make any choices, and you don't have to make 
priorities. You just say, Oh, let's save money.
  Frankly, so many of the people in this country want this Congress to 
have vigorous oversight of the executive department, which has expanded 
very substantially while the legislature has continued to undermine its 
ability to function as an effective oversight agency of the American 
people. The legislative branch is underfunded. We do not have the 
capacity to do the effective oversight as we ought to be doing. The 
Department of Veterans Affairs is a perfect example of that where we 
were not vigorous enough in oversight to ensure that money was being 
applied properly.
  If you want to cut and if you want to say something--this is not 
good; that is not good; we are wasting money there--then specify it. 
Debate that issue up or down. That is why sequester is so abysmally 
wrong and why the chairman of the committee called it unrealistic and 
ill-conceived. This is not Obama's proposal of a sequester. I am not 
talking about this amendment, but to say, as you repeatedly say on your 
side of the aisle, that this is Obama's proposal is baloney. In fact, 
the only reason Jack Lew suggested that to Reid as an option was 
because you--and I refer to the Republican friends on the other side of 
the aisle--were threatening not to honor the Nation's debt.
  The Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. I yield the gentleman an additional 30 
seconds.
  Mr. HOYER. That is the only reason we passed sequester, and nobody 
intended sequester to go into effect. It was always a backup. Because 
we have failed to come to an agreement on a fiscally responsible, 
sustainable path, we have repaired to this ill-conceived, unrealistic 
concept of sequester. This 1 percent across the board is exactly that. 
It puts intellect on hold and judgment on hold. That is not why the 
American people sent us here.
  Reject this amendment. Respect this institution, and respect our 
responsibility to the American people.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, how much time do I have 
remaining?
  The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida has 2 minutes 
remaining.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute and 15 seconds 
to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Bishop).
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  Mr. Chairman, I want to say a few words about one part of the bill 
that I find very troubling. This is a cut that is a penny-wise and 
pound-foolish.
  Last year, we named the GPO as the Government Publishing Office, and 
that is because of the range of digital services that it provides. This 
year, the Legislative Branch Subcommittee voted to cut those operations 
by eliminating the appropriated funding for the GPO's Federal digital 
system, which provides free digital access to more than a million 
congressional and other government document titles that have been 
downloaded by the public more than 1 billion times over the past 5 
years. It does not make sense. Cutting this will severely eliminate 
money to upgrade the GPO's Federal digital system and the new search 
and retrieval system.
  In recognition of the fiscal pressures we all face, the GPO came in 
with a flat budget request this year, asking only that we support the 
commitment to their digital transformation. We said ``yes'' to it last 
year, and I am hopeful that we can restore that funding this year. It 
makes no sense to cut this. There are millions of people in local 
libraries all across this country who depend on this digital system, 
and we do not need to cut it. This is penny-wise and pound-foolish.
  Mr. Chair, as a former Member of the House Legislative Branch 
Appropriations Subcommittee, I wanted to say a few words about one part 
of this year's spending bill which I find very troubling.
  A year ago, Congress and the President agreed to rename GPO as the 
Government Publishing Office, based on the broad range of digital 
services the agency now provides. The Subcommittee supported this 
legislative change.
  This year, the House Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee 
voted to cut those operations by eliminating appropriated funding for 
GPO's Federal Digital System, which provides free digital access to 
more than 1 million congressional and other Government document titles 
that have been downloaded by the public more than 1 billion times over 
the past five years. This cut just doesn't make sense.
  It will severely curtail GPO's ability to add new digital documents 
to its Federal Digital System. It will zero out the funding for 
initiatives that support the missions of congressional and legislative 
branch organizations such as the Clerk of the House of Representatives, 
the Secretary of the Senate, and the Library of Congress who rely on 
information from the Federal Digital System to feed websites such as 
Congress.gov and Docs.House.gov.
  GPO's Federal Digital System, though just 5 years old, is already 
beginning to show its age. The rapid changes in today's digital 
technical environment remind us why it's essential for GPO to keep up 
with the times.
  But this funding cut will eliminate money to upgrade GPO's Federal 
Digital System with a new search and retrieval system, an improved user 
interface, and other needed hardware and software improvements, 
including migrating the system to the cloud. Due to the critical role 
the Federal Digital System plays in making our legislative information 
transparent and available online, we need to make this investment.
  In recognition of the fiscal pressures we all face, GPO came in with 
a flat budget request this year, asking only that we support their 
commitment to their digital transformation. We said yes to that 
transformation last year, and I am hopeful that we can restore this 
funding in the final legislation.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Chairman, I find it so interesting that this is 
called a ``meat-ax approach.'' Yes, I do come regularly to offer these 
amendments, because I care what happens with our Nation. I care about 
our future, and I want to make certain that we are on solid financial 
footing. We have a responsibility to be good stewards of the taxpayers' 
money. It is their money.

[[Page 7333]]

  To say this is mindless and easy, how interesting that is. Go tell 
all of the Governors from coast to coast--Democrat and Republican--who 
use across-the-board spending cuts to get budgets in balance. Tell that 
to mayors who use this same process. The reason it is done is it works. 
It helps the bureaucracy hold itself accountable, and that is 
absolutely what we ought to be doing at this point in time.
  As you can see, cutting is a very emotional issue. Cutting brings 
forward a lot of emotions. Talking about doing more with less, being 
resourceful, that is what we should do every single day. In order to be 
a good steward of the taxpayers' money, we should want to do more with 
less. We should do it in the name of freedom, for freedom's sake--for 
the sovereignty of this Nation.
  Ill-conceived and unrealistic? When is operating by a balanced budget 
and spending and living within the means the taxpayers have said they 
are going to have for this Federal Government ever considered ill-
conceived? When would it be considered unrealistic? It is what we ought 
to be doing. Indeed, if every department did what the legislative 
branch did of cutting 14 percent, we would be getting close to budget.
  To say that we are suspending intellect and judgment, do you know 
that is almost frivolous and almost silly to say.

                              {time}  1630

  We spend less and should be spending less and should try to continue 
to spend less and reform this government and hold it accountable to the 
taxpayer who is footing the bill because, yes, the Nation's future 
depends on it; our national security, yes, depends on it; and respect, 
it is respecting future generations and the taxpayer to be a wise 
steward.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. I yield 30 seconds of my remaining time to the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Farr).
  Mr. FARR. Mr. Chair, I wish the gentlewoman had made that same speech 
when we were discussing defense, the biggest spending bill we have, but 
she didn't offer this amendment at all.
  I happen to come from a State where the legislators didn't have 
enough guts to raise taxes, so the people went out and did it because 
they want their government to run wisely and smartly, and they knew 
they didn't have enough money to do it.
  Look, we are cutting this budget; yet the Senate, which we don't vote 
on their bit, is increasing their budget by 12 percent. They are going 
to be able to give cost-of-living adjustments to every one of their 
Members. Nobody sitting in this room who works for us is going to get a 
cost-of-living adjustment because of cuts like this. This is 
ridiculous. We are penalizing our whole House, not the Senate. This is 
not a smart way to make legislative business.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, may I inquire how much time I 
have remaining?
  The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida has 15 seconds 
remaining.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. To close, Mr. Chairman, the bottom line is 
that what would be fiscally responsible and responsible in general is 
to not further take a meat ax to a bill that has already been flat-
funded for the last 3 years. Our employees deserve a raise. We deserve 
to be able to be a coequal branch of government, funded well enough to 
be able to hold the administration accountable and make sure we can do 
our jobs. This bill does not allow us to achieve that.
  I urge the Members to oppose this irresponsible amendment.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the 
gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn).
  The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes 
appeared to have it.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.
  The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further 
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from Tennessee 
will be postponed.


                    announcement by the acting chair

  The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, proceedings 
will now resume on those amendments printed in part B of House Report 
114-120 on which further proceedings were postponed, in the following 
order:
  Amendment No. 1 by Mr. Ratcliffe of Texas.
  Amendment No. 3 by Mrs. Blackburn of Tennessee.
  The Chair will reduce to 2 minutes the time for any electronic vote 
after the first vote in this series.


                Amendment No. 1 Offered by Mr. Ratcliffe

  The Acting CHAIR. The unfinished business is the demand for a 
recorded vote on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
Ratcliffe) on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the 
ayes prevailed by voice vote.
  The Clerk will redesignate the amendment.
  The Clerk redesignated the amendment.


                             Recorded Vote

  The Acting CHAIR. A recorded vote has been demanded.
  A recorded vote was ordered.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 224, 
noes 199, not voting 9, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 245]

                               AYES--224

     Abraham
     Allen
     Amash
     Amodei
     Babin
     Barletta
     Barr
     Barton
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (MI)
     Bishop (UT)
     Black
     Blackburn
     Blum
     Bost
     Boustany
     Brady (TX)
     Brat
     Bridenstine
     Brooks (AL)
     Brooks (IN)
     Buchanan
     Buck
     Bucshon
     Burgess
     Byrne
     Calvert
     Carter (GA)
     Carter (TX)
     Chabot
     Clawson (FL)
     Coffman
     Collins (GA)
     Collins (NY)
     Comstock
     Conaway
     Cook
     Costello (PA)
     Cramer
     Crawford
     Crenshaw
     Cuellar
     Culberson
     Curbelo (FL)
     Davis, Rodney
     Denham
     DeSantis
     DesJarlais
     Diaz-Balart
     Duffy
     Duncan (SC)
     Duncan (TN)
     Ellmers (NC)
     Emmer (MN)
     Farenthold
     Fincher
     Fitzpatrick
     Fleischmann
     Fleming
     Flores
     Forbes
     Foxx
     Franks (AZ)
     Garrett
     Gibbs
     Gohmert
     Goodlatte
     Gosar
     Gowdy
     Granger
     Graves (GA)
     Graves (LA)
     Graves (MO)
     Griffith
     Grothman
     Guinta
     Guthrie
     Hardy
     Harper
     Harris
     Hartzler
     Heck (NV)
     Hensarling
     Herrera Beutler
     Hice, Jody B.
     Hill
     Holding
     Hudson
     Huelskamp
     Huizenga (MI)
     Hultgren
     Hunter
     Hurd (TX)
     Hurt (VA)
     Issa
     Jenkins (KS)
     Jenkins (WV)
     Johnson (OH)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jolly
     Jones
     Jordan
     Joyce
     Katko
     Kelly (PA)
     King (IA)
     King (NY)
     Kirkpatrick
     Kline
     Knight
     Labrador
     LaMalfa
     Lamborn
     Lance
     Latta
     LoBiondo
     Long
     Loudermilk
     Love
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Lummis
     Marchant
     Marino
     Massie
     McCarthy
     McCaul
     McClintock
     McHenry
     McKinley
     McMorris Rodgers
     Meadows
     Messer
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Miller (MI)
     Moolenaar
     Mooney (WV)
     Mullin
     Mulvaney
     Murphy (FL)
     Murphy (PA)
     Neugebauer
     Newhouse
     Noem
     Nugent
     Nunes
     Olson
     Palazzo
     Palmer
     Paulsen
     Pearce
     Perry
     Pittenger
     Pitts
     Poe (TX)
     Poliquin
     Polis
     Pompeo
     Posey
     Price, Tom
     Ratcliffe
     Reed
     Reichert
     Renacci
     Ribble
     Rice (SC)
     Rigell
     Roby
     Roe (TN)
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rohrabacher
     Rokita
     Rooney (FL)
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Rothfus
     Rouzer
     Royce
     Russell
     Ryan (WI)
     Salmon
     Sanford
     Scalise
     Schrader
     Scott, Austin
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shuster
     Simpson
     Smith (MO)
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Stewart
     Stivers
     Stutzman
     Thornberry
     Tiberi
     Tipton
     Trott
     Upton
     Valadao
     Wagner
     Walberg
     Walden
     Walker
     Walorski
     Walters, Mimi
     Weber (TX)
     Webster (FL)
     Wenstrup
     Westerman
     Westmoreland
     Williams
     Wilson (SC)
     Wittman
     Womack
     Woodall
     Yoho
     Young (IA)
     Young (IN)
     Zeldin
     Zinke

                               NOES--199

     Adams
     Aderholt
     Aguilar
     Ashford
     Bass
     Beatty
     Becerra
     Benishek
     Bera
     Beyer
     Bishop (GA)
     Blumenauer
     Bonamici
     Boyle, Brendan F.
     Brown (FL)
     Brownley (CA)
     Bustos
     Butterfield
     Capuano
     Cardenas
     Carney
     Carson (IN)
     Cartwright
     Castor (FL)
     Castro (TX)
     Chu, Judy
     Cicilline
     Clark (MA)
     Clarke (NY)
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Cole
     Connolly
     Conyers
     Cooper
     Costa
     Courtney
     Crowley
     Cummings
     Davis (CA)
     Davis, Danny
     DeFazio

[[Page 7334]]


     DeGette
     Delaney
     DeLauro
     DelBene
     Dent
     DeSaulnier
     Deutch
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Dold
     Doyle, Michael F.
     Duckworth
     Edwards
     Ellison
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Esty
     Farr
     Fortenberry
     Foster
     Frankel (FL)
     Frelinghuysen
     Fudge
     Gabbard
     Gallego
     Gibson
     Graham
     Grayson
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hahn
     Hanna
     Hastings
     Heck (WA)
     Higgins
     Himes
     Hinojosa
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Huffman
     Israel
     Jackson Lee
     Jeffries
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Kaptur
     Keating
     Kelly (IL)
     Kennedy
     Kildee
     Kilmer
     Kind
     Kinzinger (IL)
     Kuster
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lawrence
     Lee
     Levin
     Lewis
     Lieu, Ted
     Lipinski
     Loebsack
     Lofgren
     Lowenthal
     Lowey
     Lujan Grisham (NM)
     Lujan, Ben Ray (NM)
     Lynch
     MacArthur
     Maloney, Carolyn
     Maloney, Sean
     Matsui
     McCollum
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McNerney
     McSally
     Meehan
     Meeks
     Meng
     Moulton
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Nolan
     Norcross
     O'Rourke
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Payne
     Pelosi
     Perlmutter
     Peters
     Peterson
     Pingree
     Pocan
     Price (NC)
     Quigley
     Rangel
     Rice (NY)
     Richmond
     Roskam
     Ross
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruiz
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Ryan (OH)
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sarbanes
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Schweikert
     Scott (VA)
     Scott, David
     Serrano
     Sewell (AL)
     Sherman
     Shimkus
     Sinema
     Sires
     Slaughter
     Smith (WA)
     Speier
     Stefanik
     Swalwell (CA)
     Takai
     Takano
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Thompson (PA)
     Titus
     Tonko
     Torres
     Turner
     Van Hollen
     Vargas
     Veasey
     Vela
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Walz
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters, Maxine
     Watson Coleman
     Welch
     Whitfield
     Wilson (FL)
     Yarmuth
     Yoder
     Young (AK)

                             NOT VOTING--9

     Brady (PA)
     Capps
     Chaffetz
     Donovan
     Fattah
     Garamendi
     Moore
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Tsongas

                              {time}  1700

  Ms. KUSTER, Ms. BROWNLEY of California, Messrs. HANNA, SCHWEIKERT, 
Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Messrs. YODER, HIMES, and DENT 
changed their vote from ``aye'' to ``no.''
  Messrs. WESTMORELAND, GRAVES of Missouri, SHUSTER, CRAWFORD, and 
SMITH of Texas changed their vote from ``no'' to ``aye.''
  So the amendment was agreed to.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.


               Amendment No. 3 Offered by Mrs. Blackburn

  The Acting CHAIR. The unfinished business is the demand for a 
recorded vote on the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from 
Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn) on which further proceedings were postponed 
and on which the ayes prevailed by voice vote.
  The Clerk will redesignate the amendment.
  The Clerk redesignated the amendment.


                             Recorded Vote

  The Acting CHAIR. A recorded vote has been demanded.
  A recorded vote was ordered.
  The Acting CHAIR. This will be a 2-minute vote.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 172, 
noes 250, not voting 10, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 246]

                               AYES--172

     Allen
     Amash
     Ashford
     Babin
     Barton
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (MI)
     Black
     Blackburn
     Blum
     Bost
     Brady (TX)
     Brat
     Bridenstine
     Brooks (AL)
     Brooks (IN)
     Buchanan
     Buck
     Bucshon
     Burgess
     Byrne
     Carter (GA)
     Carter (TX)
     Chabot
     Clawson (FL)
     Coffman
     Collins (GA)
     Collins (NY)
     Conaway
     Cook
     Cooper
     Crawford
     Curbelo (FL)
     DeSantis
     DesJarlais
     Duffy
     Duncan (SC)
     Duncan (TN)
     Farenthold
     Fincher
     Fitzpatrick
     Fleischmann
     Fleming
     Flores
     Forbes
     Foxx
     Franks (AZ)
     Garrett
     Gibbs
     Gohmert
     Goodlatte
     Gosar
     Gowdy
     Granger
     Graves (GA)
     Graves (LA)
     Graves (MO)
     Griffith
     Grothman
     Guinta
     Guthrie
     Hardy
     Harper
     Harris
     Hartzler
     Hensarling
     Hice, Jody B.
     Hill
     Holding
     Hudson
     Huelskamp
     Huizenga (MI)
     Hultgren
     Hunter
     Hurd (TX)
     Hurt (VA)
     Jenkins (KS)
     Johnson (OH)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones
     Jordan
     Katko
     King (IA)
     Knight
     Labrador
     LaMalfa
     Lamborn
     Lance
     Latta
     Long
     Loudermilk
     Love
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Lummis
     Marchant
     Massie
     McCarthy
     McCaul
     McClintock
     McHenry
     McMorris Rodgers
     McSally
     Meadows
     Messer
     Miller (FL)
     Miller (MI)
     Moolenaar
     Mooney (WV)
     Mullin
     Mulvaney
     Murphy (PA)
     Neugebauer
     Noem
     Olson
     Palmer
     Perry
     Pittenger
     Pitts
     Poe (TX)
     Poliquin
     Pompeo
     Posey
     Price, Tom
     Ratcliffe
     Ribble
     Rice (SC)
     Roe (TN)
     Rohrabacher
     Rokita
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Rothfus
     Rouzer
     Royce
     Russell
     Ryan (WI)
     Salmon
     Sanford
     Scalise
     Schweikert
     Scott, Austin
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shuster
     Sinema
     Smith (MO)
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (TX)
     Stutzman
     Tiberi
     Tipton
     Trott
     Upton
     Valadao
     Wagner
     Walberg
     Walker
     Walorski
     Walters, Mimi
     Weber (TX)
     Wenstrup
     Westerman
     Westmoreland
     Williams
     Wilson (SC)
     Wittman
     Woodall
     Yoder
     Young (IA)
     Young (IN)
     Zeldin
     Zinke

                               NOES--250

     Abraham
     Adams
     Aderholt
     Aguilar
     Amodei
     Barletta
     Barr
     Bass
     Beatty
     Becerra
     Benishek
     Bera
     Beyer
     Bishop (GA)
     Bishop (UT)
     Blumenauer
     Bonamici
     Boustany
     Boyle, Brendan F.
     Brown (FL)
     Brownley (CA)
     Bustos
     Butterfield
     Calvert
     Capuano
     Cardenas
     Carney
     Carson (IN)
     Cartwright
     Castor (FL)
     Castro (TX)
     Chu, Judy
     Cicilline
     Clark (MA)
     Clarke (NY)
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Cole
     Comstock
     Connolly
     Conyers
     Costa
     Costello (PA)
     Courtney
     Cramer
     Crenshaw
     Crowley
     Cuellar
     Culberson
     Cummings
     Davis (CA)
     Davis, Danny
     Davis, Rodney
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     Delaney
     DeLauro
     DelBene
     Denham
     Dent
     DeSaulnier
     Deutch
     Diaz-Balart
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Dold
     Doyle, Michael F.
     Duckworth
     Edwards
     Ellison
     Ellmers (NC)
     Emmer (MN)
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Esty
     Farr
     Fortenberry
     Foster
     Frankel (FL)
     Frelinghuysen
     Fudge
     Gabbard
     Gallego
     Garamendi
     Gibson
     Graham
     Grayson
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hahn
     Hanna
     Hastings
     Heck (NV)
     Heck (WA)
     Herrera Beutler
     Higgins
     Himes
     Hinojosa
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Huffman
     Israel
     Issa
     Jackson Lee
     Jeffries
     Jenkins (WV)
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Jolly
     Joyce
     Kaptur
     Keating
     Kelly (IL)
     Kelly (PA)
     Kennedy
     Kildee
     Kilmer
     Kind
     King (NY)
     Kinzinger (IL)
     Kirkpatrick
     Kline
     Kuster
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lawrence
     Lee
     Levin
     Lewis
     Lieu, Ted
     Lipinski
     LoBiondo
     Loebsack
     Lofgren
     Lowenthal
     Lowey
     Lujan Grisham (NM)
     Lujan, Ben Ray (NM)
     Lynch
     MacArthur
     Maloney, Carolyn
     Maloney, Sean
     Marino
     Matsui
     McCollum
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McKinley
     McNerney
     Meehan
     Meng
     Moulton
     Murphy (FL)
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Newhouse
     Nolan
     Norcross
     Nugent
     Nunes
     O'Rourke
     Palazzo
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Paulsen
     Payne
     Pearce
     Pelosi
     Perlmutter
     Peters
     Peterson
     Pingree
     Pocan
     Polis
     Price (NC)
     Quigley
     Rangel
     Reed
     Reichert
     Renacci
     Rice (NY)
     Richmond
     Rigell
     Roby
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rooney (FL)
     Roskam
     Ross
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruiz
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Ryan (OH)
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sarbanes
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Schrader
     Scott (VA)
     Scott, David
     Serrano
     Sewell (AL)
     Sherman
     Shimkus
     Simpson
     Sires
     Slaughter
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (WA)
     Speier
     Stefanik
     Stewart
     Stivers
     Swalwell (CA)
     Takai
     Takano
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Thompson (PA)
     Thornberry
     Titus
     Tonko
     Torres
     Turner
     Van Hollen
     Vargas
     Veasey
     Vela
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Walden
     Walz
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters, Maxine
     Watson Coleman
     Webster (FL)
     Welch
     Whitfield
     Wilson (FL)
     Womack
     Yarmuth
     Yoho
     Young (AK)

                             NOT VOTING--10

     Brady (PA)
     Capps
     Chaffetz
     Donovan
     Fattah
     Meeks
     Mica
     Moore
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Tsongas


                    Announcement by the Acting Chair

  The Acting CHAIR (during the vote). There is 1 minute remaining.

                              {time}  1707

  Mr. GARAMENDI changed his vote from ``aye'' to ``no.''
  So the amendment was rejected.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  Stated for:
  Mr. MICA. Mr. Chair, on rollcall No. 246 my voting card did not 
record and if it had recorded, it would be a ``yes.'' I would have 
recorded my vote as ``yes.''
  The Acting CHAIR (Mr. Rodney Davis of Illinois). There being no 
further amendments, under the rule, the Committee rises.

[[Page 7335]]

  Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr. 
Hultgren) having assumed the chair, Mr. Rodney Davis of Illinois, 
Acting Chair of the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the 
Union, reported that that Committee, having had under consideration the 
bill (H.R. 2250) making appropriations for the Legislative Branch for 
the fiscal year ending September 30, 2016, and for other purposes, and, 
pursuant to House Resolution 271, he reported the bill back to the 
House with sundry amendments adopted in the Committee of the Whole.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the rule, the previous question is 
ordered.
  Is a separate vote demanded on any amendment reported from the 
Committee of the Whole? If not, the Chair will put them en gros.
  The amendments were agreed to.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the engrossment and third 
reading of the bill.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was 
read the third time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the passage of the bill.
  Pursuant to clause 10 of rule XX, the yeas and nays are ordered.
  Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the order of the House of today, 
this 5-minute vote on passage of H.R. 2250 will be followed by 5-minute 
votes on the motion to recommit on H.R. 2353, and passage of H.R. 2353, 
if ordered.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 357, 
nays 67, not voting 8, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 247]

                               YEAS--357

     Abraham
     Adams
     Aderholt
     Aguilar
     Allen
     Amodei
     Ashford
     Babin
     Barletta
     Barr
     Barton
     Beatty
     Becerra
     Benishek
     Bera
     Beyer
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (GA)
     Bishop (MI)
     Bishop (UT)
     Black
     Blackburn
     Blum
     Bonamici
     Bost
     Boustany
     Brady (TX)
     Brat
     Bridenstine
     Brooks (IN)
     Brownley (CA)
     Buchanan
     Buck
     Bucshon
     Burgess
     Bustos
     Butterfield
     Byrne
     Calvert
     Carney
     Carson (IN)
     Carter (GA)
     Carter (TX)
     Cartwright
     Castor (FL)
     Castro (TX)
     Chabot
     Chu, Judy
     Cicilline
     Clawson (FL)
     Coffman
     Cole
     Collins (GA)
     Collins (NY)
     Comstock
     Conaway
     Connolly
     Cook
     Cooper
     Costa
     Costello (PA)
     Courtney
     Cramer
     Crawford
     Crenshaw
     Crowley
     Cuellar
     Culberson
     Curbelo (FL)
     Davis (CA)
     Davis, Danny
     Davis, Rodney
     DeFazio
     Delaney
     DeLauro
     DelBene
     Denham
     Dent
     DeSantis
     DeSaulnier
     DesJarlais
     Diaz-Balart
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Dold
     Duckworth
     Duffy
     Duncan (SC)
     Duncan (TN)
     Edwards
     Ellison
     Ellmers (NC)
     Emmer (MN)
     Esty
     Farenthold
     Fincher
     Fitzpatrick
     Fleischmann
     Fleming
     Flores
     Forbes
     Fortenberry
     Foster
     Foxx
     Frankel (FL)
     Frelinghuysen
     Fudge
     Gabbard
     Gallego
     Garamendi
     Garrett
     Gibbs
     Gibson
     Gohmert
     Goodlatte
     Gosar
     Gowdy
     Graham
     Granger
     Graves (GA)
     Graves (LA)
     Graves (MO)
     Grayson
     Griffith
     Grothman
     Guinta
     Guthrie
     Gutierrez
     Hahn
     Hanna
     Hardy
     Harper
     Harris
     Hartzler
     Heck (NV)
     Heck (WA)
     Hensarling
     Herrera Beutler
     Hice, Jody B.
     Higgins
     Hill
     Himes
     Hinojosa
     Holding
     Hudson
     Huelskamp
     Huffman
     Huizenga (MI)
     Hultgren
     Hunter
     Hurd (TX)
     Hurt (VA)
     Issa
     Jenkins (KS)
     Jenkins (WV)
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson (OH)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jolly
     Jones
     Jordan
     Joyce
     Kaptur
     Katko
     Kelly (IL)
     Kelly (PA)
     Kildee
     Kilmer
     King (IA)
     King (NY)
     Kinzinger (IL)
     Kirkpatrick
     Kline
     Knight
     Kuster
     Labrador
     LaMalfa
     Lamborn
     Lance
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Latta
     Lawrence
     Lieu, Ted
     Lipinski
     LoBiondo
     Loebsack
     Long
     Loudermilk
     Love
     Lowenthal
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Lujan Grisham (NM)
     Lujan, Ben Ray (NM)
     Lummis
     Lynch
     MacArthur
     Maloney, Carolyn
     Maloney, Sean
     Marchant
     Marino
     Matsui
     McCarthy
     McCaul
     McClintock
     McCollum
     McHenry
     McKinley
     McMorris Rodgers
     McNerney
     McSally
     Meadows
     Meehan
     Messer
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Miller (MI)
     Moolenaar
     Mooney (WV)
     Mullin
     Mulvaney
     Murphy (FL)
     Murphy (PA)
     Nadler
     Neugebauer
     Newhouse
     Noem
     Nolan
     Norcross
     Nugent
     Nunes
     O'Rourke
     Olson
     Palazzo
     Pallone
     Palmer
     Paulsen
     Pearce
     Perlmutter
     Perry
     Peters
     Peterson
     Pingree
     Pittenger
     Pitts
     Poe (TX)
     Poliquin
     Polis
     Pompeo
     Posey
     Price, Tom
     Quigley
     Rangel
     Ratcliffe
     Reed
     Reichert
     Renacci
     Ribble
     Rice (SC)
     Richmond
     Rigell
     Roby
     Roe (TN)
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rohrabacher
     Rokita
     Rooney (FL)
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roskam
     Ross
     Rothfus
     Rouzer
     Royce
     Ruiz
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Russell
     Ryan (WI)
     Salmon
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sanford
     Sarbanes
     Scalise
     Schiff
     Schrader
     Schweikert
     Scott (VA)
     Scott, Austin
     Scott, David
     Sensenbrenner
     Serrano
     Sessions
     Sewell (AL)
     Sherman
     Shimkus
     Shuster
     Simpson
     Sinema
     Sires
     Slaughter
     Smith (MO)
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Speier
     Stefanik
     Stewart
     Stivers
     Stutzman
     Swalwell (CA)
     Takai
     Takano
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (PA)
     Thornberry
     Tiberi
     Tipton
     Titus
     Tonko
     Torres
     Trott
     Turner
     Upton
     Valadao
     Van Hollen
     Vargas
     Veasey
     Vela
     Velazquez
     Wagner
     Walberg
     Walden
     Walker
     Walorski
     Walters, Mimi
     Walz
     Watson Coleman
     Weber (TX)
     Webster (FL)
     Welch
     Wenstrup
     Westerman
     Westmoreland
     Whitfield
     Williams
     Wilson (SC)
     Womack
     Woodall
     Yoder
     Yoho
     Young (AK)
     Young (IA)
     Young (IN)
     Zeldin
     Zinke

                                NAYS--67

     Amash
     Bass
     Blumenauer
     Boyle, Brendan F.
     Brooks (AL)
     Brown (FL)
     Capuano
     Cardenas
     Clark (MA)
     Clarke (NY)
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Conyers
     Cummings
     DeGette
     Deutch
     Doyle, Michael F.
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Farr
     Franks (AZ)
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Grijalva
     Hastings
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Israel
     Jackson Lee
     Jeffries
     Johnson, E. B.
     Keating
     Kennedy
     Kind
     Larson (CT)
     Lee
     Levin
     Lewis
     Lofgren
     Lowey
     Massie
     McDermott
     McGovern
     Meeks
     Meng
     Moulton
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Pascrell
     Payne
     Pelosi
     Pocan
     Price (NC)
     Rice (NY)
     Roybal-Allard
     Ryan (OH)
     Schakowsky
     Smith (WA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Visclosky
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters, Maxine
     Wilson (FL)
     Wittman
     Yarmuth

                             NOT VOTING--8

     Brady (PA)
     Capps
     Chaffetz
     Donovan
     Fattah
     Moore
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Tsongas

                              {time}  1716

  Mr. CUMMINGS changed his vote from ``yea'' to ``nay.''
  Mr. DOGGETT changed his vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
  So the bill was passed.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________