>> once you've gotten that -- >> first you have to get that. so far off all the companies -- >> but after that you don't have to get it again, correct? >> so far 14 have been granted. >> out of how many? >> is that right, 14?

out of everyone in the country wants to fly their drones. >> fourteen? >> right at the process is being improved and they will be coming out a little more frequently. so typical first to get it. 14 out of however many thousands and once you have a section 333 of to get the certificate of authorization to fly a specific area which -- >> what we have here is technology capabilities far sebastia billy of making decisions about standards and rulemaking general rulemaking. that's a we have to catch up with. this isn't the first time this happened in history i'm sure. can anyone here tell me which is more dangerous, a small privately owned airplane flying from here to there, or a drone flying from here to there? >> i've had several friends that event in helicopter crashes actually specifically test coming in, going out the side of

the dork taking pictures of powerlines. so i can't speak to the factual evidence here but in my estimation having a two or three-pound drone flying over a national grid powerline taking photos, if it were to fail in any way, shape, or form it does have to worry about auto rotating down to the ground when they're flying outside the chart. all it does is bounce off the power line folded ground you take another one out of the truck and keep inspecting. my guess that we much more safe and allow us to start saving lives today. >> we have done analysis and it depends on the size of the drone. for a small drone the risk to people on the ground and people in the air is much lower. >> has there ever been anybody heard from the crashing drone on the ground? >> there's been college, he hit me in bed with that drones. >> all right. let me ask you about how the faa is planning to do this testing areas, test sites other than established to help you try to determine whether or not these

pieces of equipment should be approved. could somebody tell me what they do with those test sites because the primary intention for the test sites to provide an opportunity manufacturers to do their developmental test and evaluation in support of moving forward toward -- >> that's what we've spent $11 million on that providing that to you last year, and now that budget has been increased is that right? >> no, sir. it hasn't been any appropriation to the faa to directly support those test sites. we funded it out of our existing appropriations. >> is it possible when we have these companies that are seeking profit, which is a good thing, and think they have technology which is a good technology, to you think in order to facilitate and to move the process along that maybe it would be good to have the companies reimburse the

government for the specific tests, or be able to certify certain people to conduct those tests other than government employees? >> i believe that's the actual content of the test sites. the cost for running a test sites is currently being born by the states who sponsor them and they are getting compensation from the individual the companies who come to them for testing, or the government. in a couple of cases there have been some government testing done. the faa doesn't funded the test operating side speed we of only 14 of these things approved, so i can't imagine we would get much revenue so far but i would hope that -- >> there's a small number of companies covering those costs which is what it is prohibitively expensive to go to sites to test versus point to canada or mexico our neighbors. >> thank you, mr. chairman. by the way just to know, my

family which is catching a plane back to california just happen to be coming in at the time when the drone was lying around and i guess my son got an interesting opinion of what his father does for a living. >> and it kind of shows you how these vehicles action statement the interest of the sort of next-generation. >> the gentleman from connecticut, ms. esty, is recognized for questioned. >> thank you, mr. chairman, and ranking member for having the hearing today. unmanned aircraft systems have already significantly impacted as we discussed it, particularly in the field of agriculture. changing the way farmers to business and increasing yields and decreasing the use of pesticides. this is all a good thing. coming from connecticut where we been longtime leaders in aviation and aerospace we are excited about these opportunities. but we also live in an incredibly congested airspace. some of us that includes mr. lipinski and i serve on the transportation and infrastructure committee where

we are having hearings on the same issue. i'd like to turn to that and get you help us understand how on the r&d side what are the risks we should be looking at? want to be the research priorities to avoid those issues, which are little different than the agricultural setting? those are the what do you do with let guardian to logan issues, and particularly as we follow up on the exciting possibility of improving our infrastructure agreed looking at lines. these are important opportunities but they do pose risks, particularly in the congested airspace. so anyone who wants to jump in and help us guide the research capabilities, what are the risks we face and on the r&d side what should we be prioritizing to address those risks outside of regulation, actually understanding? >> so from a risk standpoint, if you look at the risk of uav operations we don't have the risk to the passengers on board so the to risk areas are ground

impact hazard people being hurt by drones coming out of the sky, or midair collision risks. the ground impact hazard, you can do the analysis. it really scale significantly by vehicle mass. and studies have and imagine you could look can look at the risk versus the reliability required, compare those with manned airplanes and set standards. from the airborne collision with standpoint it also scales with size. so very, very small uavs you design airplanes so they can take bird strikes. interesting research question is what is the threshold mass for a uav for which the existing regulatory guidance on bird strike criteria would allow you to work there. about that size you need some method to separate the airplanes. the easy thing is to desegregation. that's where we are working now. the hard is to come up with as i said before concepts of operation that would allow you

to operate in the same airspace and the coordinated similar. that's where we have to work as a concept. >> and i would completely agree with that. i think that's what many of the countries have said if it's less than two k. g. it's going to be someone to avert strike which plans are already signed to handle. in a worst-case america that were to happen. i think the other thing we need to do like i said before it is by going to add a test sites with a team of ph.d's flying a perfectly a symbol the drone and we are not figure out what the french cases are. when i figure out what the real risks are when you integrate thousands of these systems and the concept of integrating thousands and thousands of systems that are far beyond what would be considered a bird strike is extremely scary. so to me starting with a slight weight system so that we can collect all that data and start figuring out, okay here are the french cases here are the failure point, you are the

risks. how do we mitigate those for the next set of heavier aircraft. >> i might add, if i may, one of the four high priority most difficult research projects we identified in our study had to do with these very issues to the question of verification validation and certification, and how you go about setting the appropriate standards of risks that apply to these light small uas systems in a world that was basically great to do with manned aircraft systems of much larger mass. it's a very different world and demands for high priority in our view. >> as dr. hansman issued, a harder problem interoperability, particularly with a larger aircraft. said something that nasa has taken on and we're doing that research. so the sense and avoid work but also as the sense and avoid systems were counted the display that information to the pilots so that they can make informed

decisions and read and research in both of those areas in support of the faa's standards development. >> thank you. that's all very helpful helpful and those are thoughts of how this might integrate with the nextgen situation and their issues on uhf the we should be think about as we are addressing nextgen as part of the faa authorization, i would love to follow up with you. >> we need to leverage off our investment. >> thank you very much. >> the gentleman from california, is tonight, is recognized for his questions. >> thank you, mr. chairman, and thank you for having this esteemed panel. i have just a couple of statements, maybe a quick question. the uas systems have helped quite a bit. i know that these aren't something you. they've been around for 50 or 60 years. i can remember the high map program which help us get into the fourth and fifth generation fighters that we have today.

and also i appreciate what they do to help pilots have a safer flight. the gts system that we're working on right now deny states air force and the navy we put that on the uas system because flying an airplane into the ground was not what i wanted to do. you put that on the uas and hopefully the software worked, which it did in the plane didn't crash and then you might get a test pilot to do that. but my questions are more in line privacy and how congress is going forward in the next 20 years, special it comes to law enforcement. law enforcement and part of uas discussion over the last 10 years especially if you have a helicopter that is chasing a bad guy andy goes down in the area we decided that's okay. but if you use a uhf we decide that that is probably not okay. and so the discussion is going

to go out i can already see, mr. gwynne, and i want to add to this come is how do we go about that? how is the lawmaking, the rulemaking when the woman talk about uas in law enforcement arena? >> i think that's a great question. thank you. i think for law enforcement is probably the easiest to so because you just listed these are the rules for whether you can engage with the uas and whether not that evidence can be admitted into a hearing because the point of law enforcement is to stop crime and going to stop crime is to convict and use admissible evidence that i think that one is simple to say this is what is allowed, what's not allowed. you have notice of proposed rulemaking. i think the sticky your point is a guy that's not being regulated, the hobbyist, is using the system to begin to somebody's window. that a lot of people who have those concerns. i would hearken this back to win phone manufacturers start

putting cameras in cell phones. people were very concerned about this. samsung, as a matter of fact, it was a rule you could not have a camera equipped phones on the campus of samsung. now obviously every single employee has a camera in their pocket. i think people realize with this new tech noted that there's probably not tens of thousands of would be criminals just waiting for the perfect technology to build a spy on each other. it's a matter of education. what can you get at the apple store, wireless baby monitors and things like that that could be set up silently and small and not noticeable in somebody's house versus a loud blankety lit up the drone flying out the window. i think it's a matter of education and a matter of saying let's leverage existing anti-invasion of privacy laws and make sure those laws are applied to whatever technologies

are used to invade someone's privacy. >> i guess what i would fall up on his we have an existing technologtechnolog y that does this, the chases bad guys from the air. i guess mr. william fugate into this. with the faa decided they would follow the same exact rules as maybe an air unit does in today's law enforcement? with they follow the same rules or would they be able to do different things because a helicopter can fly like a your desk in the a helicopter can't do things that are small uas can do. that i think will be a question for congress is, are we going to relax those rules to make it more available for the troops on the ground, the cops on the ground to use in a different manner? >> one of the initiatives we took back in 2012 was to set up a special process called for in our reauthorization of 2012 for law enforcement. we have been working directly with individual law enforcement agencies around the country.

there some better that spectacular success with their aircraft. it is a priority for my office to continue to support law enforcement use of unmanned aircraft and find ways to improve their operations. and i have to individuals who do that as their full-time jobs. so we very much support finding ways for law enforcement to use unmanned aircraft safely. >> thank you. >> congressman, i just wanted to point out that agsi in an earlier effort we did work with the international association of chiefs of police to develop guidelines but i'd be happy to put those for the record. >> thank you. thank you, mr. chair. >> the gentleman from washington is recognized for his questions. >> thank you very much, mr. chairman, and thank all of you for being here today to enlighten us about this very exciting and important subject of being in agriculture to share the vision for the future and how we can produce our crops more efficiently and effectively.

a couple of questions and i think dr. lauber if i might start with you. i put a couple of things at least two today that talks about the potential of the unmanned industry as far as both public and privately. and then also the importance of safety of integrating these unmanned systems into the national airspace. speaking about that and realizing the speed some of these innovations are happening it seems that safety should be a primary focus of what we are talking about. i'm curious about the investment of harmonizing these systems with demand platforms specifically talking about collision avoidance systems in general, perhaps specifically. if you could talk a little bit about that it would be appreciated spent i think you've

already addressed several of the key considerations that we took up in our report. clearly in order to achieve success in integrating the systems into the airspace, and in realizing the potential benefits of these systems, we have to do it in such a way that safety is not adversely impacted. it will not fly, so to speak, to produce these things in such a way that imposes or adds risk to the system. dr. hansman has already outlined a couple of the key risks that have to be understood, collision with other aircraft and collision with the ground. and trying to systematically understand those things is very important and the faa's effort to undertake a systematic analysis of risk as it applies to the systems isn't equally vital part of this.

one of the top four and most difficult research projects that we identified was what we called continuous operation without human intervention. and in order for uass to do this, basically a uas must have the capability of doing what any man the aviation system does in the present environment. so you've got to make up for all of the missing sensors, taking people's eyeballs out of the vehicle, you have to somehow substitute for the. the ability of humans to make decisions in real time based on unexpected or unanticipated situations. you have to be able to build that into the technology in order to maintain the levels of risk that we have now. so these are fundamental importance is as far as our study is concerned. >> thank you.

just another question. i can't let the faa's off the hook totally. in a recent interview on business insider magazine ceo of amazon jeff b. cells was asked a question about when he might possibly be delivering packages using the systems. maybe you have read that article but it highlights perhaps some of like a term overregulation in the r&d in the u.s. he answered a longer answer that i have time for but the technology is not going to be a long pole. the long pole of the regulation. so as was already talked about with a dozen or 14 approvals already for commercial uass could you explain why there may be hundreds or even thousands in other countries that have been approved and here we lag behind so to speak?

>> well, i'm not sure i agree that we have lagged behind. yes, we don't have a specific rule for small unmanned aircraft but we also have the most complex there space in order to the largest number of general aviation operators in the world. it's a different regulatory and legal framework here than in some of the other countries. part of my job is to interact with my counterparts from around the world and understand what they're doing and benefit from their experience. so we are taking those things in consideration as we move forward. there are multiple paths for commercial operations. we have two operators approved up in alaska who are using certificated aircraft that have gone through the manned certification process, adapted for use by the unmanned aircraft. all the rules for unmanned aircraft didn't apply to them

but there are commercial operations available that way in addition to this new way we found to the section 333 process that's designed to bridge as through the regulatory environment we are trying to cheat with a small unmanned aircraft rule. >> thank you. >> thank you, mr. nunes. the gentleman from texas is recognized. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i don't know where to start. are the permits issued -- let me understand this but i came in late. there's been 14 permits approved come is that right? >> 4 small civil aircraft operate come you speak we have to certificated aircraft operating commercially in alaska and the are a tremendous number

of come over 700 public aircraft operators, in other words government operate that we've approved. >> are they based on the size, category one might be that you could fly up to something that's 200 pounds, 500 pounds, or is there a way to limit the? >> the faa in general takes a risk based approach to all our approvals. the reason there are different levels of approval is vegetable levels of risk. >> so what is is a small way to? >> under 55 pounds was legislated in our 2012 reauthorization was defined as small and that legislation. >> are the approved operators above 55 pounds? >> yes, sir.

on the public aircraft operations side they go up to the global hawk aircraft that both nasa and dod flies is approximate the same size as the 727. >> on the able to cross into mexico and canada without violating airspace issues? >> i believe the dod flies around the world with unmanned aircraft, and they are following the icao rules for manned aircraft the same way they do speed is what about private companies, is across from the united states into canada? >> we currently don't have any approved private companies that operate across the borders. and there is a committee, or what they call the panel has been formed at icao to develop the international standards and recommended practices for unmanned aircraft crossing between countries. so that regulatory framework

internationally is being developed. >> so when a company gets approval, it is permitted or licensed, what do you call that? >> we call the pilots getting certificated i guess would be the -- >> okay. does the process of certification get reviewed after one year two years? >> from the standpoint of it the aircraft is approved through a type certificate, and definite. there's no restriction on that. for the processes were doing to the exemptions, those are good for two years. >> okay. so if one of these units falls out of the sky and hit a car on the ground, liability insurance? two people market insurance for these things and? >> yes, sir. there is insurance available through the multiple different insurance companies. >> okay, the little cameras, i know mr. guinn you talked talk about high definition cameras. are they able to transmit video back on the ground?

is that pretty much standard? >> yes absolutely. even what bob was flying today spend does it capture a little black box, does it record its own? >> there's a mood of ways to do. we can actually record on the ground at the same time we are recording a much higher bit rate stream on the cam in the air. so for later review if you need to zoom in to the image and check powerline or something like that spent you said at a computer on a. doesn't have the capably capable of strong that right onboard? >> absolutely. most cameras onboard have the own memory card slots and your stored right on the memory card spin this is getting way out there but are people able, you think about people hacking in two different things but are they going to be able to hack into these and commandeer these? >> that's a good question. i think you know probably for dr. lauber a very better speed i would add the cybersecurity is

one of the key issues that we identified in our report but it is a concern and it needs to be addressed on the outset spent how many drones manufacturers are there? 10, 20? >> hundreds. >> in the u.s.a.? >> much less than anywhere else in the world. 3d robotics, our company is the largest. >> you see planes fly over with a number on the bottom you can identify the number. are the drones numbered, identified? >> they are not today but that is one of the considerations to have a tail number. >> one more question if i may, mr. chairman. so google has a car that can drive they say were ever -- a new program one of these drones to go summer and back and basically never touched? >> absolutely. just right from your smart phone if you need to. >> thank you. i yield back spin the gentleman from florida is recognized. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i would like to thank all the witnesses for showing up today

and for your great test with the i had opportunity read the written testimony. this is one of the days where another committee meeting with the votes required conflict it would be a part of the schedule so some of us didn't get to see the demonstration of your vehicle. if the chairman would and told as i would be interested at some of the others would be -- spent do we still have the vehicle and the pilot? >> i have the video's been we can back up in the air in just about one minute. >> that will work. spin let's have another brief, quick demonstration that perhaps can use more airspace this time. >> you said gets saucy with it. spent and we will define habitats within tv if someone said. so if you can stay above that -- -- defying haircuts within two feet of someone.

>> didn't give you much advance notice. >> it will take about 30 seconds or 45 seconds to connect to the wi-fi network. >> did you have any quick questions anytime? >> silence is golden on this committee, to. >> sounds good. >> another fun fact is that he will be piloting this a drone from his iphone as well as seeing allied hd feed right on his phone that is being digitally stabilized, so pretty cool for 500 bucks. spin we've all have one by the next time you come in. spent well my kids that them for christmas. >> and national worst-case scenario oh, my gosh.

drone crashed last night. >> maybe we won't fly over people. >> do this, just in case. >> a french case and you're asked to drive -- when you're asked to fly a drone in 60 seconds in front of congress. >> we need to make allowances for this. >> tell you what just to take the pressure off of you may be we ought --

[inaudible] spend all right, here we go. >> there we go okay. and can you head towards mr. posey? [laughter] keep it right at -- there we go. leaf blower mode. here we go. can i push it around a little bit to show its stability, or do you want to? [inaudible]

>> a very french and a stylish way, thank you. [laughter] >> thanks again for that. mr. posey, anything of? >> thank you, mr. chairman. >> the gentleman from illinois is recognized. >> thank you all for being here. this is important and interesting come and really do appreciate the work you're doing and we do want to be helpful and make sure we do this well. the development and use of uas is expanding so is crucial we understand the research our government is doing, especially the research that will affect the rulemaking process. from a competitive standpoint it's also crucial we do this right so we're not encouraging businesses to move elsewhere or denying access to to researchers for the most cost effective tool that they need to do the work. to be frank, sometimes i find at that is processed to be confusing and i agreed shortly with the need for public safety that should always be our top

goal but right now my fear is in the name of safety. i'm afraid we're stifling innovation and research opportunities by keeping pretty harmless uass out of the sky. the same time on an unrelated topic one that's importantly i've been trying to get answers from the faa and other air traffic going for hiring practices which have changed and could jeopardize the safety of airline passengers across the country. we will continue to try to get answers from the faa. getting to questions, mr. williams, in early december 2014 the association of american universities and the association of public land-grant universities wrote a letter to faa stating quote there is no time the workable mechanism for both public and private universities to secure faa approval to conduct important research utilizing small unmanned aerial systems or uass technology. has added a concert issue a rule to make it easier for universities to research such as on universities to research best

uass on their own property below 400 feet? >> well, we believe that our small role will address the needs of the universities. we also believe, and that that discussion with several universities about this, that they can move forward using our section 333 process to conduct its training, research, et cetera. i've had discussions with several universities about the possibility of doing that. i think they are interested spent so there is some opportunities but also you expect that the rule would give him of his ability to do some of the research they are looking to do. mr. williams, roughly how much interest is there in the faa test sites in terms of calls, meetings and website visits, how many organizations have used the test sites? >> i don't have that data with me. we can get back -- >> that would be great and get that back to his or the committee, terrific.

mr. wynne and mr. guinn how would you organize the faa uas test sites to best accommodate are indeed needs? >> -- r&d needs. we want to get this word out. i think it's early days for the test sites so we've got to make i think the more accessible. we've discussed earlier the need for greater transparency, getting the costs down et cetera. i think there's also a need to focus the research on the specific areas we have all been the green needs to be advanced. so i think those are the primary elements that we've been looking at. >> anything to add? >> i would take the six faa test sites that exist in remote locations and expand that to assess sites that might render companies private property have strict revelations which are allowed to do geophysical the drones with the jill fans will

not cross that barrier. they have that level of intelligence today. so 400 feet across the fence, remain line of sight another test site can be ongoing companies property. have you heard if they're open to that, looking into that? >> are you guys open it to that? >> mr. williams because? >> i believe we have the expendable process that could accommodate that type of operation but we have experimental air the week issued for development research, et cetera, that have been taking advantage of by other companies to do exactly that. that process does remain available to anyone who chooses to use it state and i get that a lot, and that's the same thing is that the same certificate that there's been 14 total granted so for and the country of all the people who want to fly drove? >> no. we have issued quite a few more experiments of certificates. >> so section 333 that is

required for private drone operator to build operate? >> that is for commercial use. of me, the experimental process is for the developmental years. >> i guess i'm talking more for private sector versus government spent let me ask you this will quick. how d.c. other countries openness depends versus the united states your members, have you seen similar openness here argues the greater challenge? >> there's a huge disparity. and other countries the use of simple proportional risk-based system to say if the term is for a lightweight and being flown low altitude line of sight, lot less resolution than a heavy drone being flown out of line of sight at higher altitudes. >> hopefully we can sit other countries have been doing, doing safe and we can do the same thing. thank you, chairman, for your indulgence. yield back. >> the gentleman from alabama mr. palmer, is recognized for

questions. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i was called away to another meeting but i missed a lot of this. thank you for the demonstration. i might ask one of those for christmas myself. couple of things. i don't know if this has been asked but has anyone done investment of economic impact in the context of what it be worth to use economy if we had the design and engineering done here in the united states, if we do the construction here, manufacture i should say, well if you're doing uas, tedious as large as a 727? is that what you said? so you would be doing design engineering and construction. has anyone looked at what the economic impact of what that might be? >> yes, sir. the numbers my organization put

together in 2013 suggest that after we have access to the national airspace system, the economic impact amounts to about $82 billion, and 100,000 plus jobs. those numbers were put together in 2013. we think we will update those numbers and they probably understate the opportunity. >> that is just the design engineering and construction. that's my question. >> and ancillary. >> that would be the commercial use of? >> no. that does not include commercial use. possibility for other business. >> are we losing any technological advantage by the delays and approval for testing? in other words if this goes offshore. >> for the design and test them in those numbers i think yes sir, that's an important distinction.

the markets the end-user committee such as the insurance community, agriculture committee, they will still want to use the technology. the question is whether they will be using american-built technology. >> if i may add to that, during the course of our study we heard presentations on meaning in the industry, many of them told us that they could not conduct the kind of research and development that needed to do in the u.s. and that they were taking the operations offshore. and if i may briefly add in november i participated in a meeting sponsored by the national air and space academy in france. and one of the key things that came out of that conference was the fact that the french faa in 2012 issued a risk-based set of

regulations covering very small uass. i think two and a half kilos. they put those in place as of the time of the conference which was in november there were over 1000 certified operators, more than 1600 vehicles in french airspace alone. and there were multiple manufacturers and other participate in this. it was really quite interesting to see the industry taking off. >> and those numbers for france france is approximate 90% upon bush of texas, right? we could practice some pretty amazing economic benefit for the whole country. >> went back to the size of these things. you said at 727. do you foresee a company like federal express or one of the big commercial materials carriers utilizing these for high-capacity transport? >> there's interest on the part of federal express explicitly

and several other particularly cargo operators to this will be a long time in the future. these capabilities would first come through in the military, demonstrate and risk issues will be demonstrated. but 50 years, six years from now there will be uavs. we can do it technically today, issue, work out all the operational issues and details. >> one of those details i assume would be ensuring that the guidance system cannot be hacked? >> exactly. that's a common dr. lauber talk about. one of the key research areas are the cybersecurity issues, to associate with the uplink, command uplink. >> last question has to do with utilizing these for high altitude subspace maybe you know, launch and return capabilities, high altitude subspace for say whether evaluation, things like that.

is that something that is on the drawing board? >> one of the biggest potential markets is actually the use of these vehicles for high altitude relay for basically internet on the surface. so you can have long persistence of vehicles at high altitude that can act effectively as satellites in the doing broadband redistribution to the ground. >> i guess might be part of last question would be, for instance, an unmanned flight to the international space station. do you for see everything capability for launch in return for a mission like this because we do it today. we have unmanned giggles that are flying cargo missions to the space station today. >> all right. thank you, mr. chairman. >> thank you mr. palmer. let me thank all of our

witnesses today. this been a particularly interesting and informative panel. we wish mr. williams, however, the faa had told us when they might have the roles ready but with the possible exception of pre-shoot all your contributions and the social been helpful i think to members of the science committee and we look for during from you will in the future and to waiting and watching to see of the development goes with integration with use of drones both in the private sector and in a commercial sector as well. so thank you all again for being here. [inaudible conversations] >> house speaker john bennett announced that israeli prime minister and benjamin netanyahu will address a joint meeting of congress on tuesday march 3. speaker boehner extend the invitation without speaking first to the white house which

press secretary josh earnest called a breach of protocol. the white house says the president will not meet with mr. netanyahu during the visit in keeping with a long-standing practice did not meet with world leaders in close proximity to elections. israel holds elections on march march 17. >> senate minority leader harry reid held a news conference thursday to discuss a set democratic agenda, homeland security funding and iran nuclear negotiations. he also gave an update on the injuries he sustained an exercise accident on january 1, and his upcoming treatment. this is 15 minutes. >> glad to be back. i will take a look question. the first thing i want to say is this. all we have to do is look around the world. cyberattacks, north korea, the deaths in belgium, in france, and we now are facing a

questionnaire in the united states as to whether we are going to fund homeland security. i just think this is so out of line. we should put a bill on the president's desk as soon as possible. we don't need any wires on. we need to get it done now. countries around the world, in fact as we speak there were a number of announcements in europe yesterday how their increasing funding for homeland security. and we are trying to level fund it. this is outrageous, for lack of a better word. okay questions? >> can you talk about your recovery and specifically the surgery you're going to have a mind they? >> sure. i know a lot of rumors as to what happened, but it's very civil. my wife and i were in our new home. i was doing exercises that i've been doing for many years. one of those large rubber bands

and one of them broke and it spun me around. i crashed into these cabinets and injured my arm. didn't knock me out but it sure hurt. and i was taken to the hospital, and came back here after a couple of days. i have some bones broken around my i. and on monday, as i understand it, they are going to fix that. they're going to reconstruct the bones here. the bone that is broken is this one right here. it's been pushed into against my i and they're going to move that back out because of the injury there is blood in the front and back part of my i and they're going to do reconstruction of

that bone. they're going to drain the blood off the front part of the eye the back part of the icon and they're confident they will be quite good after that spent senator, are you worried about your vision? have you talked to senator paul? is there any situation related to this that would cause you not to seek reelection? >> no, not at this stage. the doctors have been very supportive of my plans. nothing was changed during the time that i was in the first couple weeks of recovery. my staff continued to be reviewed for my new campaign to the really everything is online. we've had quite an operation in nevada that hasn't lost a step. we are off and running. [inaudible] >> pardon me? >> are you fearful about losing sight state was i'm looking forward to monday, that's for sure. >> the support the menendez

bill, that would bring more sanctions on iran? >> right now we have a moving target. i personally am doing everything in my thoughts and wishes that negotiations succeed. but into we have something definite on the floor i'm not going to be speculating on what i'm going to do. right now we have not had a markup, we've not had a hearing. i'm going to wait until that happens. there's a number of different proposals from a number of different senators. i'm going to be very cautious, deliberate of those that i look at. >> republicans got 14 amendments on bills. the democrats authority had nine amendments. [inaudible] >> let's understand this. the success of the congress is

not determined on how many amendments people vote on the the success of this congress will be determined on what happens to the middle class. the republicans are very cynical during the six years, first six years of the obama administration. very cynical. they opposed everything we did. and the middle class has been hurt hurt hurt. so i believe that this congress will be determined whether a success or failure on what happens to the middle class. and right now with expected claymont is foreign oil coming across america, being shipped to other places to that does not help the middle class. >> when have the doctors told you that you might be back to 100% of? >> i met with one of the doctors yesterday and he felt it should be confident i would be fine. i hope, you know they told me i will be done several days next week for obvious reasons.

but there was a reason i can't come back to work a week from monday. >> you've been critical in the past on trade promotion authority. what is your view -- [inaudible] spent i have always been suspect my entire career in congress of this trade agreement. i don't support it. why? because i've not been shown that these trade agreements have helped the middle class but i would be happy to keep my eyes wide open if something changes, i would change. but until it's shown to be a trade agreements help the middle-class, i'm not going to be jumping on the bandwagon. >> short one of. >> i was wondering if you would tell us a little bit about how you're spending your day? and also what's going through your mind as you watch the senate from afar?

>> as some of you know i am an avid reader. i read lots and lots of books during the break. so because i have not been able to read they have told me that if you have an eye that is healing and you tried to overwork your good eye, it puts pressure on. i am now -- last night i was able to read. but i've been listening to audio books. i have quite enjoyed it to be honest i never thought i would. i finished a couple of books that way. i spent a lot of time with my staff on the telephone. i have staff meetings at my home. i've had a good, my daughter has been visiting with me. i have a son coming this weekend so i'm doing fine.

>> what about what is happening on the for? >> i think they have done a good job. we have been in touch almost on a daily basis, and i think, i hope you have been able to say i've been heavily involved in everything that's gone on the floor. there been no surprises for me. [inaudible] >> i'm not going to give him a great. he is doing fine. i think mitch mcconnell will make that decision spent can you talk about what concussion symptoms you experienced? >> to my knowledge i'm not getting any treatment for concussion. although i do have a better understanding of football players and baseball players who have concussions. nobody told me i have one but perhaps i have. spent are you looking at a liability lawsuit?

>> if i were, i wouldn't be broadcasting it here. [inaudible] on a personal matter do you have any thought -- [inaudible] >> no. at this stage i am fully intending to run. >> were you consulted by speaker boehner or leader mcconnell on the netanyahu address was that bipartisan? >> no. i mean, i wasn't consulted. here's how i feel about that. i have a good relationship with netanyahu. he called me as a matter fact about my injury, which i appreciated. but he's the lead of of the country. is going to come, give a speech in front congress in we will

listen to what he has to say. >> you said at this stage i'm going to continue to run. is there a circumstance which i actually changed your decision to? >> this was asked before the break. i have the same answer now. i plan to run. >> your predecessor in the democratic whip role, if understanding centered afford passed away this morning to give any comments on his passing and any stories you would like to tell? >> sharper wendall ford was a very unique man. i senior senator, i met with him. only those who know wendell ford would appreciate what i'm paraphrasing. he said, i'm from kentucky. i drink kentucky bourbon.

i smoke kentucky cigarettes all the time. i was his successor. he was a fine man, great background. people in kentucky love him. >> you have come back the following week, we come back 100% or will it be a part-time phase of? >> i hope i'm back full time. i may not be doing everything as i did before, but as of this morning i'm doing pretty well. one of the things i'm exercising again. there are things i can't do dealing with strength and stuff because i can't strain, but i am walking a long time. i've worked up now to what i'm walking for an hour. so i'm still doing my best.

[inaudible] >> how are my ribs? they are still meaningless. i broke for ribs. spent what was the brand of the exercise band that snapped? >> well, we haven't and we will find out. >> have you been paying attention to the controversy around -- >> honestly, my first opportunity to read, i started doing what i did before i got hurt. i read the sports page first. i do that because it's good news in the sports page. i've been fascinated in recent days with the new member of the team. so yeah, i'm back. i can what's going on. i did miss my sports activities. as far as how much weight on football, as far as i know i

can't believe the national football league with the billions of dollars they make couldn't at least determine how much air should be in a football. why it should be left up to the teams. [inaudible] spent i haven't talked to about that. we've talked a lot of times about a lot of things. but i haven't talked to him. >> on how to confuse about the degree of you into. as you alluded to what really happened? how do you react to the fact that people are questioning the circumstances? >> well, we didn't phil mudd but that's what happened to this nothing more i can say spend is your left eye, what is the vision and your left i? >> 2020. >> has it been impaired at all? >> no. every time i go in for my right eye, it is still 2020. >> are you in anything? >> well, you know it's not

it's not like a spinal injury but i was hurting. i took tylenol once in a while. >> thanks everybody. [inaudible] >> what is that? [inaudible] >> said majority leader mitch mcconnell pay tribute to former kentucky senator wendell ford who died thursday at 90. following senator mcconnell's remarks will have centered afford farewell speech when he retired from the senate in 1998. >> mr. president, many have now

heard the sad news that one of the giants of kentucky polimr. president, many have now heard the sad news that one of the giants of kentucky politics passed away last night. wendell ford first came to the senate in the 1970s calling himself just a dumb country boy with the dirt between his toes. but over a distinguished two decade career, this workhorse of the senate would prove he was anything but. i had the opportunity to watch my senate colleagues up close as he ascended to his leadership in his party, and establish himself as a leader on issues of importance to my state. a proud kentuckian who rose from page in the statehouse to governor of the state ford shape the history of the commonwealth in ways few others had before him. he never forgot the lessons about hard work he learned while milking cows or attending chores on the family farm.

this world war ii veteran never back down from a fight either. we imagine he approached his final battle with the same spirit. elaine and i and i'm certain i speak for the entire senate, send our condolences to his wife, mrs. ford as wendell often called her and the rest of the ford family at this difficult time. mr. president, i suggest the absence of a quorum. >> mr. president, as the 105th congress comes to a close i want to take a moment to say thank you to my fellow colleagues who, like me will be retiring this year. i came to the senate in 1974 with senators glenn and mom first. it was a different time. campaigns were still run by going door to door when the senate itself was much more open to compromise and bipartisanship

bipartisanship. despite the changes in the senate senator bumpers has continued to be a voice for his state, never giving up the fight for something he believed in the. and when the senate itself began to listen, they began to respond. ..operations, he finally won approval of the legislation on last thursday. while it's true the senate long ago lost its reputation as a place of eloquent debate, my colleague from arkansas has proven time and again the power of words with his skillful oratory, whether the issue was arms control, education or balancing the budget. in all my years here in

washington, i was never so moved as i was by a speech he gave on preserving manassas, virginia, civil war battlefield. he not only changed votes, but he reminded his colleagues and the american people that our greatest strength lies in our ability to give voice to our beliefs and to our then our greatest strength lies in our ability to kid points to our police into her constituents concerns. like mark twain who came into this world and left this world with its return senator clinton came into the public guy with an historic orbit around the earth and who close out his public career with another historic flight into space. in between is demonstrated over and over that is truly made of the right stuff. as the almanac of american politics wrote, and i quote, he is the embodiment of a

small-town virtues of family. god-fearing religious and public, patriotism and hard work. over the years he's brought this he's brought this same fight and determination that made him a brilliant fighter pilot. his efforts to expand educational opportunities increase funding for scientific research, the nuclear waste sites, promote civil rights and to make our government or efficient. despite their long list of contributions in the senate, perhaps their greatest contributions to this nation are still took home. senator mumford has talked about going back to arkansas and senator kline has said once he gets back, he'll work to steer young people towards public service. i can't think of a greater honor than to say i served alongside these two men shared their vision of a better america.

i also want to take me to retiring colleagues on the other side of the aisle. we may not have always agreed on which road to take, but i believe we always shared a deep commitment to our country and its betterment. whether you agree or not with senator crowe's position on the issues everyone in this chamber will agree he's willing to role up their sleeves and do the hard work necessary to accomplish its goals. he brought the same tenacity to the senate that bound him at 3% in the polls when he began his first congressional bid and had him winning by 58% on election day. he thought that when the old-fashioned way organizing pressing his case one-on-one. senator kip thorne has only been a part of these institutions for

just one term. but he is already proven that he can work with his colleagues to pass laws. like the unfunded mandates fail, in a place where it's often easier to move mountains than a piece of legislation. the safe drinking water act of 1996 was the perfect example of his ability to bring together scientists, activists on both sides of the issue and with public health experts that craft legislation to permit each one had a stake in seeing him succeed. so while you may have spent just a short time in these halls, he demonstrated that is honest or compromised to reply away, that we can achieve solutions to the best interest of the nation. let me tell my fellow retirees with a privilege it has been to serve with you over the years and how grateful i am for your

commitment to public service and to the american people. mr. president, i want to make a few brief remarks, share a few thoughts and express my heartfelt tanks to a number of individuals who admit i life in the senate a little bit easier, a little bit more enjoyable than it would otherwise have been. i have been privileged to serve in this body since december 28 1974. i pilot back it is amazing how much progress we've made as a country during that period. the average life expectancy in this country has increased by four years. the average per capita income after adjusting for inflation has risen 40% during this time. good proportion of adults with at least a high school diploma has risen from two thirds of adult to more than four fifths. the percentage of adults with at

least a bachelor's degree risen from 14% to 25%. so we are living longer and healthier lives. we are wealthier and we are better educated. the quality of life has improved in many other ways as well. we have an almost unlimited ability to communicate. the developments in computers in recent years has been almost right taking. children understand computers at an early age, often before they even start to school. percentage of homes with computers keeps rising. cell phone from my talks and cable tv and satellite dishes and fax machine. our access to information is better and faster than ever. we have opportunities to travel more, live in bigger homes and eat more nutritious meals.

we spend more and entertainments than ever before. mr. president, our challenges are probably greater than ever also. i entered the senate in a period of deep cynicism and distrust of government. having just come through the vietnam war and watergate we've always had a very healthy distrust of government in this country, but in 1974 was especially troublesome time. i have witnessed a fascinating national debate on the role of government during the period since. the cynicism from watergate involved into the crisis of confidence in our country and a growing feeling by sun in the night she made is that government was a major source of many problems in our society not the solution. the debate at the role of government has continued to

evolve. we are at the point today where there is a fairly broad consensus among americans about certain aspects of government. there's a consensus about certain things that americans want from the government. a strong defense, the best educational system in the world managing the economy in an efficient way including allen's budgets, low inflation, low interest rates, low one of women and the least amount of taxation and regulation possible. americans want fair rules in the work place in the market place from family lead to fair trade to basic consumer protection. they want an adequate infrastructure to sustain a successful and growing economy and they expect minimal safety and health protections for law

enforcement to food and drug safety to providing health care for the elderly and the poor. i have found that almost all of my colleagues want these things as well. we often differ on the best of both and the philosophy for meeting these goals providing what our constituents want them we are all basically after the same things. some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle still use the rhetoric from the 1980s for lower taxes and smaller government. who could be against that? most of the same colleagues also fall the things i just mentioned. they would agree with me that these are all things that are constituents demand and expect us to address. we all want the smallest government possible, but we won a government to deliver all of these things. so it is a challenge for all of

us. the future challenges for the next congress and beyond will be even more complex. i mentioned earlier that we are living longer. the standard retirement age has not brought up since senate. the entire eight issues gone down but we live longer. the percentage of population age 65 and older is that the pope 13% today and it's continued to grow. i've seen federal spending of social security grow from 64 billion to 380 billion. i've seen medicare spending increase for 13 billion to 220 billion. half of medicaid spending which has gone from 7 billion to 100 billion in the budget is attributable to their nursing home care. these areas alone social

security, medicare and medicaid have gone from 25% of the total budget when i first came. the total budget today. without question, the major budget issue in the next few years is how we deal with the cost associated with the elderly. and it is the equality issue as well. many of the same trends, which are currently affect the managed care in the private sector will certainly affect the quality of medical care received by the elderly. i wish we had made more progress than these areas before my time in the senate had expired. i wish my colleagues well and addressing these issues. urge them to do so earlier rather than later. i know my colleagues share my sentiments. the other area i would urge my colleagues to address is the

financing and operation of campaigns. now here is an area that has changed dramatically during my 24 years. when i announced my retirement from the senate, i mentioned money and meanness as major reasons i chose not to run again. now that we are in the midst of the current campaigns descend i feel even stronger about this issue. reported in the paper yesterday, pacs have elected almost $360 million in the last 18 months. we all like to say that money does not influence how we vote and how wiki but truthfully it's a matter of degree. their has to be a stronger at stake of avoiding even the appearance of a conflict of interest. we need more of that in

politics, much more of it. senators to solicit campaign contributions within a very short period of time are casting votes in making decisions on matters which greatly affect both the contributor and the senator's constituents, please themselves in a very difficult situation. that goes to the heart of our system of our democracy and whether it works or continues to work, there's got to be a better way. there's a lot of ideas around here on how to make a better way. i can only hope that some of these ideas are translated into law in the very near future. while mr. president i wish my colleagues well. i will miss this institution dearly. i will miss the daily interaction with my colleagues many of whom have become such dear friends to me.

let me thank you for your friendship. lastly, let me thank the staff. my personal office staff, both here and in the states have been like family to me. i try to treat them that way and it has been mutual. the committee staff in the floor staff have the privilege to work with over the years have all been great to me as well. teammate fifth-place run and make us all look good from time to time. i want to thank them all for their support and service to this century. this country would not be nearly the country days were it not for the floor staff in our committee staff and our office staff. as i leave the senate, please note that i will keep you all in my thoughts and prayers anguish shall live you good luck and happiness in the years to come.

mr. president, for perhaps the last time, i yield the floor.

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♪ ♪ ♪ >> once again, awaiting works from french president francois hollande at the world economic forum and davos, switzerland should begin momentarily. we'll have more at 10:40 eastern.

secretary of state john kerry will introduce on trade talk live at 10:40 eastern. evil google to watch it on c-span. ♪ ♪

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♪ ♪ ♪ [inaudible conversations] >> were alive at the world economic forum and davos,

switzerland where we expect to hear from the president of france, francois hollande. this comes as the country continues to commit terror attacks in paris should get underway shortly. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations]

[inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations]

[applause] >> good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. before having the great honor to introduce the president of the french republic, i would like on behalf of allah bless, express our condolences to the saudi oil family and to the saudi people.