[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 5]
[House]
[Pages 6194-6196]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM

  (Mr. HOYER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. 
McCarthy), the majority leader, for the purpose of inquiring of the 
schedule for the week to come.
  Mr. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, on Monday, the House will meet at noon for morning hour 
and 2 p.m. for legislative business. Votes will be postponed until 
6:30.
  On Tuesday and Wednesday, the House will meet at 10 a.m. for morning 
hour and noon for legislative business.
  On Thursday, the House will meet at 9 a.m. for legislative business.
  Mr. Speaker, the House will consider a number of suspensions next 
week, a complete list of which will be announced by close of business 
today.
  One suspension worth highlighting is H.R. 1644, the Korean 
Interdiction and Modernization of Sanctions Act, sponsored by Chairman 
Ed Royce. Mr. Speaker, last year, North Korea conducted two nuclear 
weapons tests and 26 ballistic missile flight tests.
  Congress has long led the charge to impose strict sanctions against 
the Kim Jong-un regime. This bill would continue that effort by 
specifically sanctioning North Korea's shipping industry, as well as 
targeting those who employ North Korean slave labor abroad. It is 
critical we send a clear and bipartisan message that North Korea's 
reckless provocations cannot continue.
  In addition, Mr. Speaker, the House will consider H.R. 1180, the 
Working Families Flexibility Act, sponsored by Representative Martha 
Roby. This bill would give employees the option to convert the overtime 
hours worked into paid time off. Mr. Speaker, hardworking Americans in 
the private sector deserve the same flexibility that

[[Page 6195]]

public sector workers have enjoyed for decades. By passing this bill, 
we will give American families greater choice in how they spend their 
most important resource, their time.
  Finally, Mr. Speaker, the House will consider legislation providing 
further appropriations for the 2017 fiscal year. I am encouraged by the 
reports I have received from our Appropriations Committee regarding 
these negotiations, and I look forward to a strong vote on this 
agreement next week.
  Mr. Speaker, additional legislative items are possible. If any items 
are added, I will relay scheduling information to Members as soon as 
possible.
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the majority leader for the 
information on the schedule for next week.
  I would ask him, with respect to Korea, that being on the floor--
also, as I understand it, the committee has been working on a Syria 
sanctions bill. Obviously both of those areas are critically important.
  Does the gentleman have any information when we might anticipate the 
Syria resolution coming forward as well?
  I yield to the gentleman.
  Mr. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman is correct. This is a 
critical area and one that we do want to make sure we speak with one 
voice and a bipartisan voice.
  I have spoken to the committee chairman. He is continuing to work on 
this. And I anticipate, not next week but in the future, that coming to 
the floor.
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his focus on that 
issue because we agree, of course, that that is a serious and volatile 
matter with which we need to deal in a hopefully effective way.
  Two items, one that the gentleman mentioned. We just passed a 
continuing resolution, as the gentleman noted. And pursuant to our 
discussions, Democrats and Republicans both overwhelmingly voted for 
that, and it passed handily.
  I don't know whether the gentleman heard my remarks on the floor, but 
what I had indicated is--and I have indicated to him privately--that we 
Democrats are in a position of not supporting an additional continuing 
resolution.
  In my discussions with Mrs. Lowey, our ranking member on the 
Appropriations Committee, she believes that there is a possibility to 
get an agreement between the two parties, but it appears that the 
committees themselves have reached a point where they think they will 
need additional assistance from leadership, I presume, on both sides of 
the aisle to resolve some of the thorniest issues that are still 
outstanding.
  I want to thank the majority leader and the Speaker. In our 
discussions yesterday on the floor in private--they weren't, I don't 
think, private discussions because there were other people around. Both 
the Speaker and yourself are desirous of getting this done before the 
end of the weekend, posting something either as early perhaps as Sunday 
night or as late as Monday night on an omnibus, which would fund 
government between next week and the end of the fiscal year September 
30.
  So the first question would be: We share that objective in common, I 
presume; is that accurate?
  I yield to the gentleman.
  Mr. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Maryland for 
yielding.
  That is true. I want to thank the gentleman even for his comments 
earlier in the week. I know they might not have been the same comments 
as the rest on the other side of the aisle. It was our anticipation 
that we would not have to do a continuing resolution.
  I do believe that the committee is very close. It is the intention of 
the committee to get to an agreement. I hoped to get to an agreement as 
early as today, knowing that we do want to provide to the Members the 3 
days so they can read through the entire bill and that we can vote on 
this before the end of this short-term CR.
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for that, and I would 
urge the Speaker and the majority leader to engage with others because 
I think that would be useful in facilitating the reaching of an 
agreement. I know that Leader Pelosi and I will also be available to 
the extent that we could facilitate that.
  I know there are some thorny, tough issues still outstanding, but I 
know the majority leader agrees with me that the funding of government 
on a sporadic basis on a continuing resolution is very bad for morale 
of the Federal service, very bad for anybody who wants to plan on how 
to execute their obligations and responsibilities, and frankly very 
disconcerting not only to the American people but to people around the 
world who contemplate the shutdown of the Government of the United 
States of America on which so much of the world relies for some degree 
of stability. It is simply not a thing that we ought to be doing. So I 
would urge the leader and myself to be as engaged as we need to be to 
get us to that objective next week.
  Secondly, Mr. Majority Leader, I know we had some discussion about a 
healthcare bill. The Affordable Care Act, as you know, we think is 
working. We think, working together, we can make it better. I know the 
majority leader and his party disagree with that and want to see it 
repealed and that there is legislation to do that.
  The majority leader did not mention it in his comments, but does he 
anticipate the American Health Care Act, with or without amendments, 
being considered next week?
  I yield to the gentleman.
  Mr. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. I know 
we have had many discussions in regards to this, and we have a very 
strong difference of opinion.
  I would believe those individuals that have lost their doctors and 
that have lost their health care entirely, that they do not have 
someone providing it. If you look within Tennessee and one-third of the 
entire country, they only have one provider. There are challenges. We 
cannot continue to sit back and just watch ObamaCare fail. We have to 
do something about it.
  We had committees work through a bill. We have made great progress 
over the Easter break. Members have been talking to one another. 
Members have seen a new amendment to add to the bill. They have been 
looking at it this week, and I anticipate as soon as Members have 
looked through that that we will bring that bill to the floor.
  I don't have anything scheduled for next week. But as soon as a bill 
is scheduled, we will notify you. I anticipate the Members reading 
through it this weekend, and, as soon as possible, we will bring that 
bill to the floor.
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for that comment. The 
gentleman is certainly correct, we have very substantial disagreements. 
We believe the Affordable Care Act is working.
  I was pleased to see the administration, at least in the short-term, 
indicate that they will not take actions to undermine it or sabotage it 
without passing a replacement, without having the ability to give to 
the American people an option. I think the administration did the right 
thing. I hope they will continue to do the right thing in making 
payments consistent with the law.
  We will have a very significant debate on that bill. Therefore, I 
would urge the majority leader if, in fact, the majority leader is 
going to bring that bill to the floor at some point in time, that 
significant notice be given so that not only Members of Congress, but 
that the American people can have the opportunity to assess the 
ramifications--in our perspective, the very serious adverse 
ramifications--that the passage of the American Health Care Act would 
have on the health care and the cost to every American of health 
insurance.
  The President, as you know, has indicated that he wants to make 
sure--and he said he would support a program where every American has 
insurance, not access to insurance. He has made comments numerous times 
during the course of the campaign and since he has been President of 
the United States that his program would provide for every American to 
have health insurance at a lower cost with better quality.

[[Page 6196]]

  I have told the people that, if he sends such a bill down, I would be 
inclined to support such a bill. He has not, of course, sent such a 
bill down.
  So, Mr. Leader, the bottom line is I am simply saying that this will 
be a very controversial item and deserving of very significant debate, 
discussion. Hopefully, we will get significant notice as to when the 
majority leader expects to bring it to the floor so that we could be 
prepared for that debate.
  I yield to the gentleman.

                              {time}  1145

  Mr. McCARTHY. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  And yes, we have had a lot, ample debate already, through committee 
and part of the floor, but it is our anticipation that we will give you 
plenty of notification.
  We have already posted the amendment to make sure everybody has the 
ability to read it, and it has already been there 3 days. It is just 8 
pages long, and we have provided the 3 days already. But we will give 
you, as soon as it is scheduled for the floor, notice of it coming.
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.

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