accountability -- language will increase government accountability and save time and money. it makes it easier for taxpayers to understand what the federal government is doing and what services its offering. small businesses will see substantial benefits from eliminating federal gobbleygook. often small businesses have to hire lawyers and accountants to help them navigate the maze of federal paperwork and convoluted language. the national federation of independent business estimates that the average per-hour cost of paperwork and record-keeping for small businesses, $48.72. the use of clear, easy-to-understand language in government paperwork will substantially reduce burdens on small businesses and save taxpayers millions of dollars. . millions of dollars. it will require federal government to use plain communications forms and public distributed documents, writing

in a manner that follows the best practices of plain language writing. using these complex forms, letters imposes unnecessary hardships on american citizens and replacing them with plain language will improve service to the public, save time that agencies currently spend answering questions about what documents mean and make it easier to hold agencies accountable for their work. this will make it easier for americans and small businesses to work and understand their government. i thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle who join me today for standing up for plain language and plain writing and standing up for effective communication with our constituents and standing up for small business owners and in standing up for the taxpayers who despite the c.b.o. estimate of the short-term costs, will see substantial savings as we reduce the time that federal agencies spend responding to requests for information.

and with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. his time. the gentleman from utah. mr. chaffetz: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. chaffetz: i have the greatest respect for chairman clay, for congressman braley. i think their goals and intentions, the stated objective is admirable and laudable and something i'm sure we can all agree with. we should be writing in plain, clear language. there are two challenges. the thing that makes me smile about this is that this language was put together, it passed in the house, it goes over to the senate, the senate comes back and says, your definition of plain language is not clear. in fact, they came back and it says right in the bill that they sent back to us, the term, quote, plain writing, end quote, means writing that is clear and continues on, this isn't

necessarily going to solve the problem. this is not going to solve the problem. and yet, in a time of record budget deficits, we are $13 trillion in debt and spending $500 million a day just on interest on that debt. this bill suggests and authorizes that we are going to authorize $50 million over the next 10 years, $50 million to say go write in plain language. let's be plain and let's be clear, we have a debt crisis in this country. that's plain and that's clear. we all understand it. our federal government shouldn't be spending $50 million over 10 years to tell the agencies and say, write in plain language. why they need $5 million to implement this is beyond me. enough is enough. we cannot afford this. insist that every agency in every document instituted in plain, clear language.

and if the head of that agency can't achieve that goal, then they should fire somebody and get someone who can do that. there is no definition in this bill of what clear plain writing is. to say it is clear does not solve the problem. and so the federal government, every time he runs into trouble, what does it do, let's throw more money at it. we can't afford $50 million to write plain language. that's plain. that's clear. and that's why we should oppose this bill. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from missouri. mr. clay: i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from utah. mr. chaffetz: we have no additional speakers. i yield back and thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from utah yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from missouri. mr. clay: madam speaker, again, i encourage all members to support the senate amendments to h.r. 946.

and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri yields back. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and concur in the senate amendment to h.r. 946. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended -- mr. chaffetz: madam chair, i ask for a recorded vote. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman asking for the yeas and nays. the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise, remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, yeas and nays are ordered pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from washington seek recognition? >> i rise to move the house suspend the rules and agree to s. 3397 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title. the clerk: senate 3397, an act to amend the controlled substances act, provide for taskback disposal of controlled substances in certain instances and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from washington, mr.

inslee and the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. pitts, each will control 20 minutes. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from washington. mr. inslee: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. inslee: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman will suspend. the house is not in order. i would appreciate that conversation could be taken to the cloakroom or off of the floor. the gentleman will proceed. mr. inslee: i rise today in strong support of s. 3397 as amended, the secure and responsible drug disposal act of 2010. this bill is our effort to respond to the very rapidly rising rate of prescription drug abuse in our country, where 2,500 teens a day are using prescription drugs illegally for the first time. and this bill will help, we

think significantly, in helping remove prescription drugs from the illicit drug pipeline by giving citizens an ability to get rid of their prescription drugs in a legal fashion so that communities can fashion a way to create drug takeback programs so citizens can get rid of their unnecessary and no longer useful prescription drugs. the house has previously passed a version. we have made some improvements to the bill after it went to the senate. i want to note some of those improvements. today, when people do not have ready access to this disposal program, they often flushing them down and drugs ultimately end up in the waterways. in order to ensure the drug takeback programs are environmentally sound, it's important that the attorney general consider the environmental impacts of takeback programs and work with the environmental protection

agency and communities on appropriate ways to dispose of the collected substance in an environmentally sound manner. we also provided ways to make sure communities are engaged in designing these programs so that they meet the individual needs of specific communities. i want to thank all the people who have worked on this bipartisan legislation, particularly representative stupak, who is ending his congressional career, having done some great work in this regard. with that, i would like to yield to mr. stupak as much time as he would consume. mr. stupak: i thank the gentleman for yielding and i rise in support of s. 3397. millions of americans are prescribed narcotics for post-operative pain each year. most patients do not consume the prescription they are prescribed and remain in drug cabinets, accessible to teens wishing to

experiment with drugs. the failure to dispose of prescription medications properly cause several problems. first, there's the potential for a child to take the drugs accidentally. we know that teen prescription drug abuse is on the rise. unused prescriptions in a house is accessible to teens wishing to experiment with drugs. third, there is the potential for narcotics to be abused by the patient or sold to someone else to abuse. the controlled substance act regulates prescription narcotics through a registration system. currently, there are 1.3 million d.e.a. drug registrants who are allowed to handle narcotics from the manufacturer to the distributor, to the pharmacist to the doctor. the act currently exempts from this registration requirement. this legislation allows individuals to dispose of unused prescription controlled substances to a recipient authorized by the d.e.a., drug enforcement administration.

the bill also authorizes the attorney general to promulgate regulations for the lawful disposal of lawful prescriptions by a long-term care facility. the act also clarifies that the d.e.a. regulation set forth in this legislation may not require any entity to establish a drug-take program. it's a voluntary program. i want to thank my friend and colleague, representative inslee, for his hard work on this legislation. lamar smith on the minority side who worked closely with us and colleagues on both sides of the aisle and their staffs for their hard work and commitment to empower patients to prevent prescription drug abuse, especially amongst young people. i urge my colleagues to vote in support of this legislation. and i yield back to mr. inslee for his time. mr. inslee: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time.

the gentleman from washington reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. pitts: thank you, madam speaker. the act will improve drug takeback programs where farm sighs accept unused drugs and dispose of them safely. prescription drugs provide therapeutic benefits to tens of millions of americans, from treating to disease to improving people's quality of life. however, a segment of our society does not use these medicines for therapy but abuse for a dangerous high. many teenagers get their hands on these medications by stealing them from the family's medicine cabinet. while some pharmacies, states and localities have established prescription drug takeback programs, these programs may not

take back controlled substances due to a technical reading of the controlled substances act. bypassing this legislation, these programs could reduce the likelihood of prescription drugs being diverted to those they were not prescribed. this bill does not require any entity to establish a drug takeback program, but if a drug takeback program currently operates, it only makes sense to allow that facility to take back controlled drugs like oxycotin. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from washington. mr. inslee: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman continues to reserve. the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: i yield to the the gentleman from indiana, mr. buyer. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. buyer: i thank the gentleman for yielding and i want to compliment the authors of the legislation and your work on this. but i would like to point out something before we get too excited about whether we are doing a good thing here today. number one, we are, but what are we leaving on the table? we're trying to address the issue with regard to prescription drugs and making sure that that drug gets in the hands of the right person and if the drug is safe, there's a bigger issue out there. it's called the drug safety issue and whether america's closed system is truly closed. and what we are leaving on the table is an issue for which this congress has not addressed, and it's john dingell's safety bill.

it is a paper ped agree with regard to drug safety, but the biggest one of all, i would say to the clomian drug cartel, you're in the -- clomian drug cartel, you are in the wrong business. we have all the laws to hit you for your cocaine and marijuana but the great threat that is occurring to america are drugs coming into the country that we know are not safe. let's do a quick little math, because i am leaving congress and this is an issue that those of you who are still here, we as a nation, must address this. we have 11 international mail facilities. our ports of entry. you add ups at louisville and member fed ex at memphis. we have 35,000 pharmaceutical

packages every day are coming into the international mail facilities and coming in because people are getting on the internet and going to some drugsave.com out of canada and they think it's safe and it's the same i could get at my local drug store and they order it, and it's coming through illicit bad operators, who are preying on america's sick and elderly. . every time f.d.a. goes out there and checks we're finding that on average 80% of those drugs, 80% of those drugs are either adult rated, knocked off or or they're counterfeit. now let's do the math. 13 international mail facilities, times 35,000 average pressure day, that gives you 455,000 of these pharmaceutical

packages per day. times 365, now we're in excess of 160 million pharmaceutical packages. we're talking boxes of drugs. not just little ones, we're talking boxes of drugs. and if 80% of that number are counterfeit, knocked off drugs, we're in excess of 132 million. now, of a smaller percentage that the fda -- f.d.a. finds and discover, we have a return to sender policy. that's why i wanted to address this. you can believe that? f.d.a. has a return to sender policy. so here we are, i compliment you, we're going to say, ok, if there's drugs aren't good, we want to make sure they don't get in the hands of the people the doctor doesn't want them to, see we're going to say, let's destroy them. but as a nation our f.d.a. has a return to sender policy. so when they discover an international mail facility that the package is a knockoff drug, they don't dest destroy them.

they do not destroy them. they then take that package and send it back to the bad actor. the bad actor must think, america, what a great place. what a great place. i'll steal people's money, i'll prey on the sick and elderly and the american government will send my count fit drugs back to me so i can -- counterfeit drugs back to me so i can do it again. your legislation is absolutely wonderful. but i want to point out, there is a really large problem out there. so before we get too excited about, we're doing something really good, and we are, but at a very smaller level, because if we're going to allow millions of people to gain access to these types of drugs, we know that these drugs do not metastasize in the body in the way the doctors are intending for them to do and people actually think that the drugs they're taking are exactly what they can get at c.v.s. or walgreen's or whatever and it's not happening.

my only point, i appeal to all of you is, number one, congratulations, number two, we have a really large issue that we need to address in the next congress. we really do. and let's get our arms around this. i want to congratulate john dingell on his drug safety bill and it's a shame that we actually weren't able to get this done in the committee. again, i'll end on compliments to you but this is a big issue as a nation that we must address and protect america. i yield to the gentleman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from pennsylvania reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from washington state. mr. inslee: i yield briefly. i just want to thank senator cornyn for his work on this and say, this is a good bipartisan effort. we're not done on this, as mr. buyer pointed out, but this is a good start. i yield back and urge passage. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania yields back.

all time having been yielded back, the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass senate 3397 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass s. 1132. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: senate 1132, an act to amend title 18 united states code to improve the provisions relating to carrying concealed weapons by law enforcement officers and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from virginia, mr. boucher, and the gentleman from texas, mr. poe, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from virginia. mr. boucher: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their

remarks and include extraneous material on the legislation now under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. boucher: mr. speaker, i yield to myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for as much time as he may consume. mr. boucher: and i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. boucher: mr. speaker, i rise this evening in strong support of the law enforcement officers safety act improvements act of 2010. in 2004 the congress approved the bipartisan law enforcement officers safety act which allows qualified, retired and current law enforcement officers to carry a concealed firearm anywhere in the united states. the law requires that retired officers maintain appropriate firearms training and be current in that training. since enactment of the law, qualified retired officers have faced vareying and inconsistent certification procedures from state to state.

and that complicates their ability to carry a firearm and be properly certified to do so. the bill that is before the house tonight was introduced in the other body by the judiciary committee chairman, senator leahy, and it was introduced here in the house by my virginia colleague, mr. forbes. it modernizes the existing law in these very necessary respects. it will reduce from 15 to 10 the number of years the law enforcement officer must serve to be eligible to carry a firearm as a retiree with full privileges under the existing law. the 15-year requirement in current law inappropriately excludes many qualified retirees who go into law enforcement as a second career, often following their first career in the armed forces. it will give retired officers more flexibility in obtaining

certification to carry a firearm while still maintaining rigorous standards for retirees who apply for this benefit. our measure will clarify that a retiree can meet the qualification requirement using either the standards of the agency at which the retiree formerly served or those of the state in which the retiree currently resides. it will also allow a certified firearms instructor qualified under state law to conduct the firearms qualification test for retired law enforcement officers. it ensures that law enforcement officers of the amtrak police department, the federal reserve and the executive branch of the federal government are authorized to carry firearms under the law and it also eliminates the requirement that retirees have nonfor fittable retirement benefits in order to qualify. that requirement unfairly

excludes retirees from many of the smaller law enforcement agencies around the country which do not offer these retirement benefits. allowing the trained, active and retired law enforcement officers to carry firearms on a nationwide basis enhances public safety by ensuring that officers have not only the means to defend themselves but also the means to defend innocent victims from acts of violence. it also appropriately honors the men and women who so well protect our neighborhoods and protect our communities and our way of life. the measure before us this evening was approved unanimously by the senate in july. it is a commonsense bipartisan measure that will ensure that retired law enforcement officers who have served honorably will be able to obtain the benefits conferred by the 2004 law. i urge approval of the measure and i reserve the balance of my

time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. poe: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. poe: mr. speaker, today the house considered s. 1132, the law enforcement officers safety act im-- improvements act of 2009. this bill was introduced as the senate companion to h.r. 3752, a bill of the same name introduced by mr. forbes of virginia, a distinguished member of the judiciary committee. s. 1132 makes improvements to the federal law that authorizes law enforcement officers who are currently serving, who are retired or who are separated in good standing to carry a concealed weapon anywhere in the country, notwithstanding state or local laws to the contrary. this bill reduces the period of -- the period an officer must serve for eligibility. under current law, only officers with 15 years of service are,

quote, qualified. this requirement prevents some officers who entered into law enforcement as a second career, for example, those that have served nobly in our military from realizing the law's benefits. today's legislation reduces the service requirement from 15 years to 10 years. s. 1132 also clarifies firearms training requirement and allows them a lot more flexible. this bill enables a retirees to meet the mandatory firearms requalification standard either through the agency he or she formerly served with or through the state where he or she currently resides. most importantly this legislation provides additional current and retired officers the means to defend themselves and their families from the hard and often vengeful criminals they have previously arrested somewhere in this country. the legislation is supported by law enforcement associations including the order of the police and the national riffle association.

i urge my colleagues to support the bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from virginia. mr. boucher: i'd like to inquire of the gentleman from texas if he has other speakers? mr. poe: i have one other speaker. mr. boucher: i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from texas. mr. poe: i yield to mr. forbes of virginia, a member of the judiciary committee, who has introduced a similar bill in the house. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from virginia voiced for as much time as he may consume. mr. forbes: thank you, mr. speaker, and i'd like to thank the gentleman for yielding to me. like the other two members, i rise in strong support of senate bill 1132, the law enforcement officers safety improvements act of 2009. as has been mentioned, the senate companion to -- the senate bill is a companion to legislation i sponsored in the house. s. 1132 improves the current federal law that authorizes active and retired police officers to carry firearms throughout the united states. the premise that have law was

simple. allowing trained, active duty and retired law enforcement officers to carry firearms worked to enhance public safety. further, the law provides clear, nationwide uniform rules to go over the current laws as to whether an officer may carry a firearm when he or she is off deity -- duty. this expands the definition of qualified law enforcement officers to include current and retired officers of the amtrak police department, the federal reserve system and other agencies of the executive branch. s. 1132 further expands the categories of law enforcement officers authorized to possess a firearm in a school zone to include retired law enforcement officers. mr. speaker in a time when homeland security is paramount, this authority provides the country with additional trained and armed first responders at no additional cost to the taxpayers. there's a long history of armed offduty officers coming to the rescue in life-threatening

situations. this expands the areas where these officers can be equipped for the emergencies they are trained to respond to. in passing, this legislation -- in passing this legislation, congress acknowledges the need for retired officers to have the opportunity to protect themselves and their families. the oath to serve and protect our communities is not nullified when officers retire. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from texas reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from virginia. mr. boucher: i would inquire if the gentleman from texas at this point has other speakers or would yield back his time. mr. poe: we have no other speakers. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from virginia. mr. boucher: mr. speaker, i urge approval of this measure and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: all time having been yielded back the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass senate 1132. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on

the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and concur in the senate amendments to h.r. 3219. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 3219, an act to amend title 38 united states code to make certain improvements in the laws administered by the secretary of veterans affairs, relating to insurance and health care, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from california, mr. filner, and the gentleman from indiana, mr. buyer, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california. .6 c1 the chair recognizes the gentleman from california. mr. filner: i yield myself such time as may be consumed and i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to include extraneous

remarks notwithstanding the fact that it exceeds two pages and is stemented by the public $329 value. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. notwithstanding the cost. mr. filner: i rise in strong support of what is now entitled the veterans been filth act of 2010, h.r. 3219. the title being amended in the senate. this is an omnibus benefits bill assembled by the house committee on veterans affairs. it is comprehensive, bipartisan and it is bicameral. in fact, and we can really say this, mr. speaker, it is already been approved by the senate by unanimous consent. the critical bill would enhance expand and modernize many of the benefits afforded our veterans particularly disabled veterans.

there were numerous productive hearings, mark ups and compromise to ensure those who are willing to lay down their lives receive meaningful, world class 20th century benefits from their nation. i thank john hall of new york, representative herseth sandlin and respective ranking members for many of these provisions through their committees and will do a great deal of good for our veterans and family survivors. section 101 including language sponsored by swam herseth sandlin would authorize the v.a. work study program and expand the type of work available for veterans participating in the program. in the last fiscal year of 2009, a little over 17,000 veterans

participate nd this important program. the next section, 102 incorporates legislation championed by ms. kirkpatrick of arizona which would reauthorize the veterans committee on education and provide experts to give feedback on benefits and ways to improve current programs. section 106 includes language championed by our active member, congressman teague of new mexico. congressman teague's bipartisan work in advancing this pilot program seeks to employ our nation's veterans while addressing the growing need for an energy-related work force and is to be strongly commended. mr. teague championed sectioned 204 to provide injured service members a waiver for the home loan fees keeping in mind the intent of the waiver which is to assist our service members and

veterans. i applaud congressman teague for his leadership. sections 201 and 202 have provisions championed by congressman boozman and focuses on homeless women veterans and women with children. section 301 to 303 incorporate provisions that i have worked on. these sections seek to strengthen the service relief act by permitting the cancellation of leases and allow service members the option to cancel certain phone and service contracts. sections 401, 402, 405 and 407 represent the great work of congressman donnelly and mr. buyer, mrs. kirkpatrick and mr. perriello. these provisions increase the policy amounts for our veterans,

many of whom are disabled but have suffered traumatic injury. there are burial and cemetery matters put forth by mrs. berkley and mr. salazar of colorado. they both former members of our committee on veterans affairs and ms. berkley has been a long time champion of increasing funeral benefits to reflect the modern costs. mr. salazar has worked to ensure that the veterans in the southern colorado region would be served by a national cemetery and now both of these goals are set for enactment. mr. franks' provision is known as the shay act and would allow parents to be laid to rest with their son or daughter if there are no eligible survivors. the bill contains a host of upgraded benefits, including section 604 championed by mr.

higgins of new york which would allow them to receive $5,000 without offsets. section 803, greater automobile and adaptive aquipt. section 804, increase the automobile allowance from $11,000 to almost $19,000 and sections 805 would allow the institute of medicine to look at those veterans who suffer from illnesses suffered from the persian gulf war. it enjoys support from the veteran service organizations, including gold star wives, paralyzed veterans, a.m. vets, blinded veterans association, american legion and military order of the purple heart. i ask unanimous consent that all these letters be included in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. filner: i thank all the members of the house who have worked on this bill. on behalf of our 24 million veterans and survivors i thank

all of you for your input and none of this would have come to fruition without the hard work of our committee staff. i thank those on both sides of the aisle and i thank the staff from the house legislative counsel, the congressional budget office and thank our staff director, malcolm, staff director for disability, kimberly and her colleague, juan, for her tireless work to see this great work through to finality. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from indiana. mr. buyer: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for as much time as he may consume. mr. buyer: i rise in support of h.r. 3219 as amended, vet rarns benefit act of 2010. this omnibus benefit and health bill contains many provisions to help veterans and their

families. i'm glad we were able to work this out with the senate and really pass many of the provisions that the house had passed previously in the summer of 2009. this bill contains many provisions authored by my republican colleagues and the pat tillman scholarship that would give opportunities for veterans on this website. this grew from a meeting that my staff had with the family with the former nfl star pat tillman. his death in after, his family and friends founded the pat tillman foundation. they informed my staff they were having problems educating and reaching potential veterans for college scholarships they were awarding. this provision will assist groups like the pat tillman foundation informing veterans and placing them on their website. we had the reauthorization of the homeless veteran reintegration program. this is run by the department of

labor employment and training service and provides grants to homeless veteran providers for job skill training and counseling. this program has been lauded as one of the most successful programs in the federal government in combating homelessness. i'm pleased that we were able to include an expansion of this program to local homeless providers that offered job skill training for homeless women veterans and homeless veterans with children. this is an initiative i worked on and i appreciate the cooperation of the majority to make this a reality. i took up a cause with regard to this in addressing this in the 1990's, when then the clinton administration went into a lot of the inner cities and wanted to recruit women and bring them into the military so they joined the military and they also brought their children. when they left the military, some actually returned to welfare. and some became homeless. and the thought that we have

women in america with children who are homeless, i could not stand that thought. and so i want to thank the majority for working with us in making these provisions a reality. this expansion was originally drafted in h.r. 293 and was part of the nobel warrior initiatives that i introduced in january of 2009. unfortunately, this program is needed, as i said, because recent reports by the v.a. indicate 9% of the homeless veteran population, they are women and many of whom have children. these individuals obviously require a safe and supportive environment in a private setting in which they can regain footing and acquire skills that will lead them to meaningful employment. once that occurs, they become self-enriched and become bettermentors to their children. i hope that this expansion, more providers will expand beyond their normal male-dominated services and assist women as

well as homeless veterans with children. another one of my provisions in h.r. 3219 as amended would allow veterans to purchase additional amounts of group life insurance coverage. currently, the amount of coverage that a veteran can have cannot be changed because the level of coverage must be made within the first year of a service member's discharge and because most of the separating service members are young and single, many select levels that become insufficient as they age and have families. the provision would allow veterans to purchase up to $400,000 of coverage in $25,000 increments until age 60. the cost of increases would be offset by premiums, so there would be no direct costs to taxpayers. this provision would allow veterans to get their life insurance coverage to fit their current needs and provide greater security for their families and i'm glad it was

included. the final provision was introduced by the ranking member of the subcommittee on economic opportunity, john boozman and would establish a program to make grants up to $200,000 to encourage the development of new assistance technologies for specifically adaptive housing. the goal of this provision is to encourage the development of teblingnoling to provide the maximum -- technology to provide the maximum level. this includes voice command operations, integrated computer managed functions, fall prevention devices and this measure will authorize much of the needed funding for this goal. i'm pleased this bill includes many other improvements for veterans and their families such as creating a new veterans' energy-related employment program, increasing training for veteran employment specialists, increasing protections for deployed service members under the relief act in regard to cell

phone contracts, life insurance program imentprofments, increasing the plot and burial benefits. and increasing the number of veterans who can begin receiving independent living services, expanding eligibility for adaptive auto grants for service members with severe burn injuries, and require the national academy of studies best treatments for chronic multisymptom illness in persian gulf veterans and authorizing the funding for construction of medical facilities and/or community outpatient clinics, long beach, california, san diego, california, boston, massachusetts, san francisco, california, and san juan, puerto rico. we have an increase in here with regard to the hospital in new orleans. now under section 902, title nine under construction, the modification for the amount of medical facility construction project previously authorized

for the department of veterans affairs in new orleans, louisiana, increases from $625 million to $995 million. the reason i stopped to highlight that is i'm exercising disappointment because we were never able to achieve an agreement to actually save money by having some jointness here between tulane and l.s.u. and another one of the hospitals. this is a lost opportunity. and it's really unfortunate and we will be building another one of these big state-of-the-art and costs about $1 billion and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from indiana reserves. the gentleman from california. mr. filner: mr. speaker, i would yield five minutes to the gentlelady from nevada who was a former member of our committee and whom we miss very, very,

very much. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for five minutes. ms. berkley: thank you, mr. speaker. and i want to thank chairman filner for bringing this very important piece of legislation. i know it wasn't easy, but it was an important task and he did it very well. i rise in support of senate amendment to h.r. 3219, veterans insurance and health care improvements act. it is this nation's responsibility, indeed, it is our honor, to provide care to the brave men and women who have served this nation so well and have sacrificed much on behalf of the rest of us. the legislation goes a long way to address many of the needs of our veterans. . i met with a group of veterans and then i met with another group and another group all within the las vegas area and i wasn't particularly surprised when they told me that they didn't think they got the quality of care that was due

them through the v.a. and i wasn't surprised when they told me we didn't have a v.a. hospital in the southern nevada area or that we had a large number of momentless veterans but what surprised me -- number of homeless veterans. but what surprised me was when families told me how difficult it was for them to bury their family member quhoffs a veteran, that they had a difficult time finding the money to -- that they could make a decent burial for this veteran. so i couldn't understand exactly why that was. i knew that we were providing veteran benefits in order to bury our veterans and to give them grave markers and then i came to congress and started serving on the veterans' affairs committee and i learned that the original bill that provided this funding was not indexed to inflation and consequently the value continued to diminish with every passing year.

we have not changed the amount of money that we provided families for bureauying their veteran family members since the early 70 -- 1970's. this bill finally, after introducing legislation year after year that i've been here in congress, finally this piece of legislation provides the funding and moves us in the right direction so that families don't have a tremendous hardship when they bury their family members who were veterans and had fought authorize this nation. i could not be happier that we are doing this. it is an important piece of legislation. people don't realize it until you are in that position yourself. i'm glad that the veterans committee committee and the house and the senate have all recognized the importance of increasing these benefits. we've included these provisions today in the bill before us. our veterans deserve to be laid in rest with the full recognition of their military

service. this bill is a step in the right direction. we always talk about supporting our veterans. you hear it here, each one of us talks about supporting our veterans. this is a piece of legislation that we can actually demonstrate our support of our veterans and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. ms. berkley: excuse me. i do not yield back to you. i yield back to the chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from california reserves the balance of his time. mr. filner: no. i want to yield to myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from indiana. mr. filner: i want to yield to myself. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from indiana. mr. buyer: i reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. filner: i thank the gentleman. i just wanted to thank the gentlelady for her persistence -- not only her persistence in this particular benefit that is so important, but as i understand it, the las vegas veterans hospital is under

construction. you fought for that for more than a decade and it is finally going to be built. when does it open? ms. berkley: it will be open -- completed at the end of 2011 and open in 2012. mr. filner: we applaud again your persistence for that. we know the veterans in las vegas and the surroundings -- ms. berkley: i hope you join us for the opening. mr. filner: thank you. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from indiana. mr. buyer: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for as much time as he may consume. mr. buyer: how much time do i have left, mr. speaker? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from has -- the gentleman has 13 minutes remaining. the gentleman from california has 10 1/2 minutes remaining. the gentleman from indiana. mr. buyer: i would like to take the opportunity to thank the highly capable staffs of both the house -- actually the house veterans' affairs committee, not only the full committee but also the subcommittees. it seems that each session of

congress both bodies pass so many different individual pieces of legislation that we have picked up as a now regular course of doing business, creating an omnibus bill. and so we do puts and takes back and forth between the house and the senate and we actually then create a much larger bill that we then bring to the floor that can best serve the interests of america's veterans. that's in fact what we have here. this is a really very good bill. i couldn't even begin to tell you, mr. speaker, how many hours have gone into the development of this bill and it is a bipartisan bill. and i really appreciate the work of not only my colleagues in the senate, but also their staff and at this time i'd specifically like to mention the leadership of colonel malcolm shorter.

i'd like to thank you for your leadership, sir, on the committee. i recognize it and it's appreciated. and to your counterpart, your pilot, air force colonel himself , kasem smith, the republican house staff director, both staff directors worked very well together, having both worn the uniform. you don't get caught down in the fights between political parties. you think about serving the men and women in uniform and for that i want to congratulate both of you for keeping everyone focused. i also want to thank david tucker. david is someone that i've known for a lot of years on the committee and i find him to be a man of distinct honor and integrity. and you have always been a very straight shooter, david. and it's also your one whereby if in fact you raise an issue of law or i have raised an issue of

law, we have diligently -- both have dived into it and we get our interpretations and we also get kingston smith for his read, but i had had a distinct pleasure working with you over the years and i want to recognize your valuable contribution not only to this bill but what you've done over the years. i consider you -- i consider your talent valuable but i consider your friendship even more. duane law, the staff director, thank you very much. and your work with mike brink on the subcommittee on economic opportunity. you also take the leads of stephanie herseth sandlin and dr. bozeman. as i've said many times this subcommittee sets the pace, not only for the house veterans' affairs committee itself, i think you set the pace for the entire congress. this little subcommittee, how you work together,

interoperabley, you can't even really tell who is a republican and who is a democrat. for that i congratulate you. i think america would rejoice and actually maybe even be surprised that somebody in the town thinks about being an american first. so i want to thank you for your leadership and being a pacesetter. kimberly ross, the subcommittee on disability assistance and memorial affairs, along with brian laurence, republican staff director, both are also pacesetters and don't always get all the attention that they should. brian, along with mike brink, these are two individuals that are also incredibly talented and, mike, i really appreciate all the years i've had the opportunity to work with you. and, john, i would say for you, you're an individual from whom much is expected. i truly believe that. i guess i'm that the point in my career, mr. speaker, that i'm being a little nostalgic.

because i recognize individuals, their diligence, their hard work, it's invaluable to the committee, it's invaluable to congress. there's a reason we call them professional staff. because that's exactly what they are. they are very professional in their work. both committees can actually go to a professional staffer and they're going to tell them exactly the read or the recommendation for the best interest on how to serve the nation. and so these individuals of whom i have read truly live up to the status of being a professional staffer here in congress. i also recognize that this is probably the last markup i will have with the house veterans' affairs committee. i'll say -- i want to share this. it has truly been a distinct honor to serve the nation's veterans, mr. speaker. i served the men and women who

wear the military uniform, i helped take care of their families, the spouses, the children, the widows, the orphans, the consequences of war, the consequences of their service and it's been a distinct honor to work with loot of very talented people -- a lot of very talented people to do. that i get upset sometimes in the committee and i can have disagreements, wean my friends in the veterans service organizations when individuals play either politics or they don't follow the rules or they don't follow the process. and we're meant to be a bipartisan committee. when that doesn't happen then i can get really upset pretty quick. so i'll end with saying that, mr. speaker, it's been a distinct honor and i'd also enjoy -- i've also enjoyed serving with you, jesse with that, i yield back my time -- jesse. with that i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from indiana yields back the balance of his time. the chair will receive a

message. the messenger: mr. speaker, a message from the senate. the secretary: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: ms. secretary. the secretary: i have been directed by the senate to inform the house that the senate has agreed to h.con.res. 321, provided for congressional adjournment of the house of representatives, on a conditional recess or adjournment of the senate. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. mr. filner: i would yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for as much time as he may consume. mr. filner: mr. speaker, i don't know that we'll be in session again before veterans day on november 11. this then is a bill that will really raise the level of standards for awful our nation's veterans -- all of our nation's veterans and we request look, i think, as a perfect gift that can be delivered on veterans day. so i ask my colleagues to unanimously support h.r. 3219. i have no further requests for time and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the

balance of his time. all time having been yielded back, the question is will the house suspend the rules and concur on senate amendment to h.r. 3219. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the senate amendments are agreed to and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio seek recognition? >> thank you, mr. speaker, i'd like to withdraw my mopings to suspend the rules and pass the bill, a bill to designate facility of the united states postal service located at 212 main street in hartmann, arkansas, as the m.r. "bucky"

walters post office. the speaker pro tempore: the motion is withdrawn. for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass s. 3729, the national aeronautics and space administration authorization act of 2010. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: senate 3729, an act to authorize the programs of national arrow nat astronautics and space administration for fiscal years 2011 through 2013. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee and texas each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from tennessee. mr. gordon: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill now under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. gordon: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized for as much time as he may consume. mr. gordon: mr. speaker, in this fiscal 2011 budget request, the president proposed a number of initiatives for nasa in the coming years. many of which i and my colleagues support. however, after extensive hearings and oversight, we reluctantly came to the conclusion that both the current constellation program and president's proposed human space flight plan are unexecuteble under the current and projected budgets. for too long the mission hasn't matched the money at nasa. and i am unwilling to let that practice continue. as a result, an alternative approach was needed that would be executeble and affordable in both the house and the senate authorizing committees have spent the major part of this last year working on a nasa re-authorization bill. the bill before us today represents the results of the senate's efforts. the house science and technology committee marked up its version

in late july and we have spent the last several months in discussions with the senate to come up with a compromise language that would incorporate the best of both bills. last week i released a bipartisan compromise language that refleblingts those discusses -- discussions as well as constructive input from colleagues here in the house. i have a number of concerns about the senate bill which i have innumerated. it has now, though, become clear that there is not time remaining to pass the bill incorporating the compromised language through the house and senate before the start of election recess. . c1 for the sake of providing a degree of certainty, stability and clarity to the nasa work force and the larger space community, i felt it was better to consider a flawed bill than no bill at all. thus, despite its flaws i will vote to suspend the rules and pass the senate bill. i see today's floor consideration to be only one

more step in crafting a substantial, affordable and productive future path for nasa. to that end, i plan to continue to advocate to the appropriators for the provisions in the compromised language. i believe the compromised language provides a solid basis for nasa's future activities. mr. speaker, it has been a difficult year for nasa, its work force and its contractors. we are in tough economic times and sacrifices will have to be made and nasa is an investment in our future. the united states has been a global leader in space exploration and technology and innovation and our efforts over the remainder of the congress should be aimed at preserving that leadership position. with that, i encourage the house to pass the suspension and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from texas. mr. hall: mr. speaker, i rise in support of 3729 and i yield

myself such time as i may require. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. hall: let me begin by commending bart gordon and representative giffords and representative olesen. in the 111th congress, they held 13 hearings before either the subcommittee or full committee that examined nasa. then in the second session and they helped our committee better understand the full impact of the administration's proposal to revamp our human space flight programs. the bill we are about to vote on is a three-year nasa authorization that was reported by the senate in early august. in many respects, this bill shares features similar to h.r. 5781 introduced by chairman gordon and co-sponsored by the

committee's leadership. both bills are similar in their treatment in area nautics research and space science program and authorized the same top line names. nasa's human space flight program. the house bill passed out of the science technology committee with almost bipartisan support. this was a good bill that keeps nasa on course to develop a new crew exploration vehicle with safety a top priority. unfortunately, this bill never made it to the floor for a vote. so in the past few weeks, chairman gordon sought to reach an agreement with the senate that would bridge the differences. it is now clear that time has run out and have few days remaining to advance the nasa authorization bill through this congress. i see no relate particular choice but to take the senate bill because doing so would be preferable than taking no action at all. as many of you, this administration has taken

unprecedented steps and created a great deal of uncertainty within the agency and many of our communities. without congressional approval, our authorization, though reversed the direction given by the two preceding congresses and proposed throwing over $10 billion and five years of design and investment. the administration offered instead no substantive plan to provide a system that would be capable of taking astronauts to the international space station and putting off -- they put off even planning to go beyond the international space station until the year 2015. in short, the administration's proposal would have added several years of development and unknown costs before the u.s. would be able to fly astronauts. we find this unacceptable. the bill before us today seeks to remedy many of the problems created by the administration.

it authorizes the immediate yacht development of a launch vehicle. it advances development of commercial cargo capabilities to service the i.s.s. and congress has supported it since 2005 and provides $1.3 billion to begin the development of commercial crew systems and through the development of heavy lunch lifter, it provides a backup system in case the commercial providers or our international partners do not meet stated goals. one thing the house bill called was a crew escape system and will need to exercise extensive oversight of nasa to ensure that such vitally important aspects are not overlooked or neglected by nasa. it's important to note that the annual authorizations in this bill are below the amount authorized for fy 2009 and our last nasa bill. given our nation is in the tough economic climate, it is important we are mindful of our

spending. there are hearings this spring before the house science committee, three formera polo astronauts implord congress to maintain united states' leadership in space and nasa's role as manager of our space exploration program. all three opposed the administration's efforts and supportive of advancing a bill. the bill before us today is far from perfect, it offers clear direction to an agency that is floundering and sets us on a path of maintaining america's leadership in space. i urge a vote on this bill. a yes vote on this bill. and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from tennessee is recognized. mr. gordon: i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from houston, texas, ms. jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. jackson lee: i thank the chairman very much. i served 12 years on the science committee and i want to add my appreciation to chairman gordon for his service to the nation, for his service and hard work for providing for america's competitive edge, not only in space, but technology. thank you, mr. chairman. thank you to the ranking member. thank you to ralph hall for his leadership. thank you to the subcommittee chair for her great leadership and friendship to this agency. i rise today as reluctant as my friends on the floor, the chairman and ranking member, to support this particular bill. but i'm glad to be able to be here to say to the nasa family that we are saving jobs, 10,000 potentially in the state of florida, many others in the other states and 6,000 in johnston. i'm delighted to say this bill, the senate bill, though i don't like the process, provides for

immediate yacht development for a heavy lunch vehicle, stop the determination of technical work force, provides funding to support the development of commercial crew services and funds additional technology development to lower costs of long-term space exploration. in addition, nasa johnson will continue to provide the astronauts for the space station. we will be looking for the robotic research work that will address the question of space exploration and will be doing the work for commercial and cargo and commercial exploration, if you will, on the commercial side, commercial cargo and crew, excuse me, on the commercial side. and then as it relates to the issue of minorities, i want to ensure that as we hire or as we fire, if we have to, that those who are minorities who are last in, are not the first out. i'm delight todd work with senator nelson and john rockefeller on programs. these cuts are unacceptable for

the minority research education and stem program. i'm delighted we will be working with senator nelson and senator rockefeller to ensure that this is included in the america competes and funding for the stem program. we have to save jobs in america but save the cutting edge of science and this bill will make it one step. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. hall: i yield five minutes to the the gentleman from texas, congressman olson. mr. olson: mr. speaker, we take on great endeavors. it's important to have a workable plan and to stick to it, not doing so leaves us with uncertainty, like the uncertainty that has gripped nasa for most of this year. no where, no where have i felt and seen the effects of this uncertainty more than when i'm

home talking to the men and women of the johnson space center. it's been especially difficult for these men and women and their families, because their lives and careers have been centered on uncertainty. they want to be part of america's space program. and how do we reward that commitment? by providing unsufficient funds and constantly changing goals and second-guessing the path instead of embracing a clear path to the future. meanwhile, thousands of workers have watched, waited and most of all, safely worked throughout these seemly difficult ups and downs. the whole point in this debate came in february with the release of the president's budget for nasa. and nasa's history of bloated ventures, this was one of the boldest. unfortunately, not in a manner that the agency is used to. the proposal neglected to build

on our path. this carved the present and lacks a vision for our future. the plan was so bad, so misguided that it did something unheard of in washington, d.c., it united congress in opposition. and along these lines, i would like to thank chairman gordon and ranking member hall for the partnership put forth these past several months. it has been an honor to work with each of you. our partnership has produced a great piece of legislation. our nasa authorization bill, which tasks out of the -- which passed out of the science technology committee in july. i believed then and i believe now that our bill was the right approach to sustain a robust exploration program. but we are running out of time. and must send a message that

opposed the administration and it's not the direction our country is going to go. if we fail to pass an authorization bill, we will witness the continued dismentling of america's space flight infrastructure with no guarantee it will be replaced and will lose our most precious assets, our people. this bill contains critical elements for the future, funding for the crew capsule. the ability to fly on the space shuttle, expanding the international space station through 2020 and a robust technology development program. we agree that nasa should focus on the development of a heavy lunch vehicle. our future in space is not, not in lower orbit and have to go beyond a heavy lift vehicle which will achieve the true mission of the agency to

explore. this bill reaffirms war earlier congressmen have supported, particularly an increased role for commercial providers to fly cargo and eventually crew to the international space station. and i will be vigilant in working with my colleagues, the agency and those in the private sector who will conduct these cargo and crew flights. we need them to succeed, but we need to develop standard practices and an understanding of how fundamentally different way of doing business will work. it's just for nasa and one, i know, they will meet. i grew up in clear lake, texas, where the men and women who walked on the moon, those people and the people who got them there and back weren't just my heroes, they were my neighbors. i saw a community and nation unite around a grand goal and accomplish it. today, we take a step towards restoring the goals worthy of a

great nation. and in doing so, we are saying to the men and women of nasa, currently and those to come, that this nation still chooses to explore. i ask my colleagues to support s. 3720. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas yields back. the gentleman from texas reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. gordon: i yield one minute to the the gentleman from florida, mr. meeks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. meeks: i would like to revise my remarks here -- extend my remarks. i strongly urge my colleagues to support the nasa authorization act of 2010. as the chairman mentioned, there are issues in this authorization bill that could be better, but i could tell you right now, there are a number of individuals who are involved in the space industry and also those hard working men and women working on subcontracts are looking for

some direction from this congress. i want to commend senator nelson for being a leader and taking the best of the administration's proposal and putting it to work so we can pass it in time to promote not only commercial and crew cargo as it relates to the space exploration, but save the kennedy space center and other nasa assets throughout the country. i think it's important, this makes our country very strong, and if not now, then when. i stand in full support of this bill and i ask all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in making sure we pass this very important authorization bill. americans are counting on our leadership, thank you. the gentleman from i yield back the balance of my time. the gentleman from tennessee reserves. the gentleman from texas. mr. hall: i yield two minutes to mr. rohrabacher, a very valuable member of the science committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes.

. mr. rohrabacher: the nasa authorization before us is a step in the right direction. it provides for an initial shift in human space flight from being an ex-clicive endeavor run by and controlled by bureaucrats or other government employees and moves us toward entrepreneurial, cost-effective and commercial-based alternatives. this legislation stimulates efforts within the private sector to develop and demonstrate safe, reare liable, less costly and more capable space transportation to and from low-earth orbit. at the same time, it enables nasa to focus on discovery and sending humans to explore the far reaches of the space frontier. and this bill increases nasa research and technology development and should be viewed as enabling legislation because it will enaible america

in the decades ahead to be the world's leading space faring nation. to achieve this, nasa must not be just a government program but a catalyst for scientific research and technological development and the exploration of the solar system and the universe beyond. finally, i'd like to take this opportunity to express my appreciation and administration for ranking leader ralph hall and yes, for the great leadership we've seen in this endeavor by chairman bart gordon. this bill is a workable compromise for those of us in the committee who had different ideas of what direction the space program should go. this compromise does justice to the various opinions from people involved in this debate. the fairness and of course this is the type of fairness that chairman gordon is known for. and thus we have been able to get together and put forth a

piece of legislation that is the best possible legislation that we could have actually enacted. that is due to the leadership of chairman gordon and we thank him for his long career of leadership of this kind. thank you very much. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california's time has expired. the gentleman from texas reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. gordon: i thank my friend from california and i yield two minutes to the gentleman from houston, mr. green. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. green: thank you, mr. speaker. like my colleagues, both republican and democrat, oppose the president's budget for nasa and i thank chairman gordon and ranking member hall and the whole science committee for their hard work to provide a way for nasa to do their job in space exploration. today, america has a profound choice. the house will be voting on the

senate version of the nasa re-authorization act this bill, while imperfect, is critical to the future of our nation's space flight and exploration program will greatly benefit our scientific research and development capabilities. we share the concerns among some of you worried about certain provisions of the legislation but i'm pleased that this moves nasa in the correct direction. this is a good bill and could be stronger but is still a success for all of us who support nasa and understand what it means for our country, our economy, our national security and our ability to maintain our edge in science and technology research and development. simply said, if this bill fails today, it profound lil -- it will profoundly undermine our space program. i urge all members to pass this bill and commit to working with us and others interested in the future of nasa to improve this bill going down the road. if we fail to pass the bill, we not only lose the to opportunity but we may lose the

opportunity to keep nasa. thank you again for the -- to the chairman of the committee and thank you for the time. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas yields back. the gentleman from tennessee reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from texas. mr. hall: mr. speaker, i yield one minute to the gentleman from louisiana, mr. scalise. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is are recognized for one minute. mr. scalise: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank the gentleman from texas for yielding. i rise in support of the nasa re-authorization bill. too often, people use the term, this isn't rocket science. well in my state of louisiana, we've got the meshew assembly facility and they do rocket science. right now, there's tremendous uncertainty over the future of nasa because of the president's budget and the fact that it actually cedes our superiority in space exploration.

we can't let that happen. with this legislation tonight, we can present a clear future for nasa that involves maintaining the united states of america's superiority in the space exploration program and i don't think any of us can sit by and allow a country like troush take that superiority lead that we currently have today. if we don't take action, that's exactly what will happen. we need to make sure we not only preserve the jobs that are so important but that we preserve the technological superiority that america enjoys today and america needs to enjoy in space exploration for the future and we can do that with this vote. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from louisiana's time has expired. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. gordon: i yield two minutes to ms. johnson, a valued member of the science committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. johnson: thank you very much.

let me thank the committee chair and ranking member for handling this bill and thank all those staff who put it together and support it. i rise to support the senate bill 3729, the national err naughtics and space ad-- national air naughtics and space administration -- national aeronautics and space administration bill. decades ago, children all over america saw neil armstrong step on the moon, and there was an outpouring of interest in science as children dreamed they too could be the next man or woman on the moon. i'd like to see increased investment in these, particularly in minority university research programs, which have been highly successful. but sometimes we can't get all we want. this is that time.

but we can continue with our -- without stopping. now is not the time for us to cede leadership of our international competitors. the research has been the most successful research in the history of our country for both commercial products and medical treatment. i believe that nasa has a unique ability to touch the imagination of children like no other federal agency. when mother is short -- when money is short, however, we must adjust, not stop. a concerted effort to inspiring our nation's future scientist and careers is valuable to the national and texas economy. recent census data indicates that texas ranks first in high tech manufacturing and certain engineering industries. space flight, aeronautics and scientific research and education are are top priorities for texas.

nasa has always conducted important educational programs. could i have 30 seconds? mr. green: i yield the gentlelady 30 more seconds. ms. johnson: nasa should be congratulated for the great research it's supported and the fearless missions carried out by its astronauts, scientists and engineers. i support the agency and am interested to know how congress can continue to partner with it for the benefit of the american people. we cannot let america cede its leadership in human space flight. we need a strong nasa and nasa needs an authorization bill. i strongly encourage my colleagues to support this legislation. i thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from tennessee reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from texas. mr. hall: could you tell me how much time i have left and how much mr. gordon has.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman has eight minutes remaining, the gentleman from tennessee has 10 minutes remaining. mr. hall: i yield three minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. culberson. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. mr. culberson: inc. it's important here in september that we're discussing the future of the space program. it was in late september that america's first explorers, lewis and clark, are returned from their expedition to find the overland route and when they returned, they lit up the couldn't arery and something america has always been built on, dreams and thinking big, it's always been part of our spirit, our nature, to explore the unknown and nasa more than any other function of the federal government has the ability to inspire people, to encourage young people to become scientists and engineers and astronauts. in fact today, mr. speaker, it was just reported by scientists at the university of california that they have discovered what appears to be an earth-like planet with water in the

habitable zone of a star only 20 light years away. if we do not act and do not pass the nasa authorization bill tonight, the obama administration will succeed in shutting down america's manned space program by the end of the year. let me make it clear, that's what's going on here, why all of us are working together, arm in arm, to save america's manned space program from being shut down by the obama administration and the bureaucrats at nasa. i asked, isn't what you're proposing to totally privatize nasa? we're all for some privatization, but to totally privatize it, isn't that like privatizing the navy? imagine if we were to let the contractor who built an aircraft carrier, excuse me, can we rent the aircraft carrier to go to the persian gulf and defend america's interests?

what obama's administration has proposed is to ensure the ability we will maintain the ability to build rockets in the civilian work force, which keeps the cost for rockets for the military considerably less, to maintain that technological and frankly spiritual edge america has always had to make dreams come true to think about the exploration of the unknown. nasa is the one entity that can combine the best of americans, what makes us great as a nation, inspiring young people, allowing -- making dreams come true, exploring the unknown with very tangible technological spinoffs. if we don't pass the bill tonight, by the end of this year, there will be no more manned space program because the obama administration is systematically and aggressively shutting it down. we all have disagreement with this bill, we would like to see a different bill. i thank chairman gordon and mr. hall for bringing it to the floor. all of us working together to

bring it -- to pass it tonight will ensure our ability to make rockets in the civilian work force of enge years and -- engineers and scientists who will be gone, we will lose those jobs and we'll lose the tremendous edge we had as a nation to build rockets and explore outer space. mr. speaker, i thank you for the time and urge all members to support this vital legislation. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas yields back. the gentleman from texas reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. gordon: mr. speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from florida, ms. kosmas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is are recognized for two minutes. ms. kosmas: mr. speaker, tonight we consider legislation of great importance to florida's space coast and to our nation, the nasa authorization act. i want to echo the sentiments of my colleagues who have

suggested that the uncertainty surrounding nasa and our manned space exploration has caused a great deal of anguish and difficult times for my stilts, literally, thousands of individuals, families and businesses. this legislation will define nasa's future by building on its past. the legislation mandates one additional shuttle flight next year to ensure jobs for workers and ensure the long-term viability of the international space station only now complete after 10 years of construction which has endless are research and education opportunities. it also directs the use of heavy left vehicles utilizing shuttle and constellation work to make our ast rah in and outs -- astronauts have greater ability to get to asteroids and to mars sooner than the current program. this will drive technological innovation as we strive to address the challenges as well as to inspire our students to

become engineers and astro-- ast roe naughts. and it provides funding to update the infrastructure at kennedy space station so it will truly be america's 21st severage arery gateway to space. it includes new entrepreneurial small businesses along with the giants of space sending astronauts and cargo to space. this will provide new job opportunities for our skilled work force and opportunities for researchers and tourists to experience space flight. in friday, on my -- in my district, 400 workers will lose their job as the shuttle program winds down. we must do everything we can to preserve the unique work force referred to by my colleague earlier. we cannot afford to lose our technological supremacy because of failure to act. failure is not an option. please vote yes. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman from tennessee reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from texas. mr. hall: i reserve the balance of my time. .ves. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. gordon: i yield seven minutes to the chair of the aviation subcommittee, gentlelady from arizona who had 18 subcommittee meetings on. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for seven minutes. ms. giffords: i recognize chairman gordon for your leadership. we are going to miss you mr. chairman. it has been an experience for me and as well to ranking member hall and ranking member olson for your leadership. i rise in strong opposition of s. 3729, the senate nasa authorization bill. as chair of the house space and aviation or space and area nautics subcommittee, we care deeply about the future of nasa and future of our nasa's civil

space program. nasa defines us as a nation, who wer our defense, our innovation, our inspiration, our ability to explore. we care about the role that congress plays and the need to ensure that nasa will embark on an executeable and sustainable path for the future. in contrast to the supporters of the senate bill who say that today they reluctantly support the senate bill because it's better than doing nothing, i have no reluctance in telling you that this is a bad bill. it will do damage to nasa and should be voted down tonight. i know that members have a lot of different issues on their minds today and certainly most members didn't know that nasa authorization bill was coming up today. i would like you to offer a couple of reasons why you should oppose it. if you are a member of the blue dog coalition or republican study committee because it lacks serious budgetary discipline. it contains an unfunded mandate

to keep the program going through all fiscal year 2011 after the shuttle is retired, which by nasa estimates will cost the agency more than half a billion dalors for 2011 and doesn't have that money and will bust that and jeopardize nasa's technology programs. it contains a rocket designed not by our best engineers but by our colleagues over on the senate side. by nasa's own internal analysis they estimate it will cost billions more than the senate provides ffment you are a blue dog or member of the republican study committee, you should oppose a $58 billion funding bill that is brought up on the last day before adjourning, with no house input on its creation and no opportunity for amendment by members of the house. this is not a functioning bicameral legislature that our founding fathers sought to create. if you care deeply about stem education or minority education

programs you need to know this bill is written a certain way that nasa stem education programs and minority university research and education programs will be cut in excess of 30%. what does this mean? it means if you represent a historically black college or university or hispanic-serving institution, tribal college, this sort of institution, you will be affected by these cuts. in addition, if you care about the future of nasa's human space flight program, you should oppose this bill. this bill contains provisions that will force nasa to build a rocket designed by senators and not by engineers. contrary to assertions that this bill, the bill supporters talk about, this bill will be too large to economically serve as a backup for transport to the space station and may prove to be small to effectively undertake missions. not only do nasa's own internal studies indicate it will cost significantly more than the senate is budgeting, they

estimate it will become operational years later than the budget assumes. we are looking at this gap. the senate bill forces nasa to build a rocket that doesn't meet its needs with a budget that's not adequate to do a job and on a schedule that nasa says is unrealistic. that is not my idea of a sustainable space flight program that we desire. if you care about corporate responsibility, you care about safety and want to prevent from this position a few years down the road of having to choose more money to russia or bailing out the cargo and crew providers that failed to perform on budget and on schedule you should oppose this bill. the senate bill gives an additional $1.6 billion to would-be commercial cargo and transport companies who have yet to demonstrate that they can do either. there is no obligation that these commercial companies put any skin in the game on their own and the safety requirements on their rockets are vague at

best. since the senate bill provides no credible backup capability to the would-be commercial providers, approving the senate bill today would put nasa in the position of relying on these companies that will become too big to fail. the american taxpayers will have to bear the responsibility and the burden of bad public policy if we vote on this bill tonight. i think that the public deserves better. i know that in the senate, there is a lot of debate and some members will fall back on this argument they have to approve this because the contractors are facing layoffs and no one has more sympathy about the work force, but the reality is different, different than the rhetoric. these jobs are tied to funding and funding for nasa for the balance of this year will be set by the continuing resolution that we vote on tonight not this authorization bill. funding for the remainder of fiscal year 2011 will be determined by the appropriations bill after we return for the lame duck session, not by this

authorization. the bill before us today cannot change the fact that the funding levels for nasa's work force and any layoff that will result will be the result of a continuing resolution and subsequent appropriation bills and not this authorization. members should not be fooled by this red herring argument. the truth is you will not be doing anything to stop layoffs tonight by voting for the senate bill today because the aerospace industry needs absolute certainty and it needs an affordable program which the senate bill does not provide. could the problems in the senate still be fixed? of course they could, but that's what the legislative process is about, not under suspension of the rules with no amendments allowed. the fact of the matter is, there was a compromise that science and technology chairman bart gordon proposed were as a direct result of negotiations with the senate and house members. of course that wasn't perfect

and no bill is but laws can be fixed with discussion of the chambers. if you vote positively on this senate bill, the democratic process that has been the cornstone of our democracy will be undermined and that will not occur. so let's take the time to get this job done and done the right way let's vote down the senate bill tonight so we can work with chairman gordon and ranking member hall on a compromised bill so we can have a responsible bill that can be acted upon when we return in our lame duck session. if you care about minority education programs and care about nasa's human space flight program, vote no on the senate authorization bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentleman from tennessee is reserved. the gentleman from texas. mr. culberson: if i could point out and remind the people here that this -- if we don't pass

this bill tonight there is no more manned space program. the administration is shutting down america's manned space program by bureaucratic order, by executive order. it's all being done right now as we speak. if we don't pass this bill, there will not be another one before the end of the year and by the end of the year, there will be no more manned space program. any concerns about this bill can be fixed next year in the process. but it's essential to super sede and stop the obama administration cold and shutting down the space program so we have a program for our kids in the future. >> will the gentleman yield? >> minority institutions in the stem program are to be protected as we come back and able to work through the appropriations process with the senate on protecting these programs that are very important to historically black colleges. mr. culberson: all the problems

can be solved. we will take care of them. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from texas reserves. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. gordon: how much time do i have left? the speaker pro tempore: one minute remaining. mr. gordon: i yield one minute to the the gentleman from california, mr. schiff. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. schiff: mr. speaker, i rise in support of the nasa authorization act to provide direction and stability for our nation's space program. tens of thousands of workers in communities across the country are looking to congress to set a sustainable path for human space flight that will minimize the space flight gap and ensure that nasa is able to accomplish its mission. this bill fully funds nasa science mission to continue earth observing satellites, space telescopes and other missions that provide valuable insight into our planet, solar system and universe and revitalizes dormant technology program which will put the tools

to new heights and new destinations. it authorizes a nasa launch vehicle. it provides for an additional shuttle flight in brige vital tools and supplies to the space staying. i want to express any sincere appreciation to our chairman for his extraordinary leadership for many years and his unwavering support of nasa and urge my colleagues to support the bill. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from tennessee's time has expired. the gentleman from texas. mr. hall: i yield one minute to the the gentleman from from houston, texas, mr. green. mr. green: i thank the ranking member on the science committee for allowing me this one-minute of time. i thank the chairperson, mr. gordon for his outstanding years of commitment. this bill is about science. it is about technology. it's about education. but it's also about jobs. and it's about jobs at a time of high unemployment.

it's about jobs and families that will benefit from having stability within the family unit. i concede there is more i would like to see in the bill, but i'm in a position where i must now stand for what is attainable and we need to go after the jobs in this bill. i'm begging my colleagues to please understand that in this time of high unemployment, let's keep americans working and let's make sure that every family has an opportunity to have a bread winner. let's vote for this bill and let's improve upon it with other legislation that may follow. i thank you, mr. hall. and i thank you, mr. gordon and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from texas. mr. hall: mr. speaker, i yield one minute to the the gentleman from florida, mr. posey. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized for one minute. mr. posey: thank you, mr. speaker.

certainly no one in this chamber wants to yield the military high ground to countries who are not friendly to us and without the passage of this legislation unfortunately, we will do that. the legislation before us asks nasa to do too much with too little. there's something in here for everybody to hate, sure enough. but there is no other alternative if we at least pass this legislation, we will keep the dream alive through the first of the year and hopefully the appropriations process we can move this country back on the right path to maintaining the economic and national military security that is necessary for this generation and future generations to prosper. i yield back. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida yields back. the gentleman from texas. mr. hall: mr. speaker, i yield

myself such time at i have. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for the remaining time. mr. hall: mr. speaker, with my appreciation to the chairman and everybody here that has spoken, i just want to summit up real quickly, the senate bill is providing action. we simply can't let anybody to shut down our human space program. failure to reauthorize nasa provides uncertainty to an agency and limbo effort's once the shuttle is retired next year and could result in a loss of thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide. i could vote for either of these bills. i'm not in love of either of these bills. i feel like the coach's wife who was crying and he said what's wrong. you like football better than you do me and i like you better than basketball. we have to have one go and i

urge the acceptance of this bill today and passage of s. 3729 and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. all time having been yielded back. will the house suspend the rules and pass senate 3729. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. >> i'd like to record a vote. the speaker pro tempore: does the gentlelady ask for a yeas an nays? >> i do. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays have been requested. those in favor of taking the vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. for what purpose does the gentleman rise?

>> i send to the desk a privilege red port for filing under the rule from the committee on rules. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title. the clerk: report to accompany house resolution 168 2, providing for the consideration of the senate amendment to the bill making appropriations for the department of state, foreign operations and related programs for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2010 and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the house calendar and ordered printed. the chair lays before the house an enrolled bill. the clerk: h.r. 36 9, an act to provide for an extension of the legislative authority of the vietnam veterans memorial fund incorporated to establish a vietnam veterans memorial visitor center and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> i move that the house suspend the rules and concur in the senate amendment to h.r. 3940. the speaker pro tempore: the

clerk will report the title. the clerk: h.r. 3940, a bill to prevent public law 36-497 to declare the authority of the sec are retear of the interior to extent land grants for the people of the nonself-governing territory of the united states. senate amendment. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from california, mr. miller and the gentleman from washington, mr. hastings, each will control 20 minutes. the chair are recognizes the gentleman from california. mr. miller: i request five legislative days in which members may revise and extend and insert extraneous material into the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. miller: i yield myself such time as i may -- i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman will suspend. the house will be in order. the house will be in order. the gentleman from california. mr. miller: mr. speaker, i rise

in support of senate amendment to h.r. 3940, amendment addresses two issues, the political status, education, in guam and to adjustment of the minimum wage schedules for two other pacific territories, the american samoa and the commonwealth of the northern mariana islands. current law increases the minimum wage by 50 cents per year until they reach the current minimum wage. it also requires the g.a.o. report on the minimum wage for both of these territories. these reports are intended to give congress information that if necessary congress can adjust the minimum wage schedules in these territories. the adjustments in these bills are -- in this bill are the result of the latest g.a.o. report. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. mr. miller: i are reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from washington state. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such time as he may consume. mr. hastings: as we wind down this session of this congress, it's probably fitting that this bill is in front of us. the bill before us today is intended to provide economic relief to the territories of american samoa and the northern marianas. these territories, each home to approximately 70,000 people, are appealing to us, to congress, to forestall congressionally mandated increases in the minimum wage in their territory. it was the speaker pelosi-led congress in 2007 that imposed this job-killing policy.

the impact in these territories have been very real and very severe. especially in american samoa, which has seen one of its two primary employers, tuna packing plant, shut down after the minimum wage policy went into effect. the next increase in the minimum wage in these territories is slated to take effect at the end of this month, mr. speaker. that's tomorrow. thursday, september 30. it is indeed an urgent need to act right now. while i agree with the need to spare these territories from the economic havoc that this democrat congress has inflicted on them, there are other laws that this democrat congress has imposed over the objections and against the will of the american people. the most obvious one has been talked about for nearly a year, and that, of course, is the big

government health care takeover that is threatening, among others, small businesses. it's always causing seniors to lose their medicare coverage and we are seeing costs in health care insurance premiums rising higher and higher. and the 2001 and 2003 tax relief slated to expire at the end of this year, of course, has not been addressed. thousands of small businesses will be hit with this massive tax increase. rates will rise on all individual taxpayers, the child tax credit would be cut in half, the marriage penalty return ared and the death tax would revert back to its high rate. and yet, mr. speaker, this congress has voted to adjourn and leave town without addressing these tax increases. this uncertainty we have seen across the couldn't arery

inflicts a terrible toll on our economy. however, always a silver lining, mr. speaker. with this bill, the democrat congress admits they were wrong. that the policies they imposed are costing real people their jobs. i am glad that they admit here tonight what they have done. but i should say this, as again we're winding down, mr. speaker. relief shouldn't just come from american snow -- for american samoa. americans across the 50 states are losing jobs and hurts from the actions of this democrat congress. they, too, mr. speaker, need relief. with that, i reserve they balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. mr. miller: i recognize the gentlewoman from guam, ms. bordallo, for three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for three minutes. ms. bordallo: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank the gentleman from california. i rise in support of h.r. 3940, which clarifies the authority

of the secretary of the interior to extend assistance to guam for the purpose of public education regarding political status options available to the territory of guam. i introduced h.r. 3940 in october of last year and the house passed this bill last year by voice vote. the senate recently made some changes to the bill, given the administration's testimony on the bill before the senate energy and commerce committee on may 19 of this year. h.r. 3940 represents an opportunity for congress to fulfill its responsibilities to guam under the united states constitution. the territorial clause in article 4 of the united states constitution vests with this body the power to dispose of and make all rules and regulations respecting the territories of the united states. guam has been part of the united states now for over 111

years as an unincorporated territory and at the moment, remains listed by the united nations as one of several nonself-governing territories. ceded to the united states by spain along with our sister territory puerto rico at the end of the spanish-american war, the people of guam are ready to exercise their aspirations toward self-determination of their political status. this bill is not meant to favor any particular political status option. nor is it meant to assert direct congressional involvement in this process. ultimately, it is the sole responsibility of congress to respond to the desires of the people of guam on the question of status. the bill is supported by the governor of guam, the speaker of the guam legislature and several indigenous rights organizations on guam. further, the administration supports the enactment of h.r. 3940.

i would also add that section two of the bill before us would make an adjustment to the implementation of public law 110-28 to american samoa and the northern marianas islands this adjustment comes based on the thorough analysis of the government accountability office at the request of american samoa and the northern marianas. the gentleman from american samoa, mr. faleomavaega, has worked steadfastly on this matter to ensure an appropriate balance is struck. i, too, want to thank him for his diligence. as chairwoman on the subcommittee of insular afires, mr. speaker, oceans and wildlife, and on behalf of my constituents, i ask that my colleagues support this bill and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from california reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from washington state. mr. hastings: thank you, mr. speaker. i'm pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from iowa, mr. king. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. king: i thank the gentleman from washington for yielding. i came down here to the floor out of support for guam, where america's day begin the first cup of coffee in america is there on guam. i support the educational components of this legislation and i also come here, mr. speaker, and it's, i think, a bit unusual, but i support the balance of this underlying legislation that was amended to the gentlelady from guam's bill in the senate. and i do that, but i also support the words of mr. hastings of washington, who says that democrats have admitted they were wrong. we have to look at this legislation and see that the minimum wage was imposed upon the northern marianas and american samoa in 2007. two tuna canning fact areries in the american samoas, one has

closed as a direct result of the minimum wage and the sole garment factory in the area has closed inst at least in part because of the imposition of the minimum wage. it's a microcomed economy that anybody that understands free enterprise should know that when the government artificially raises the cost of wages, businesses have to stay in profit can't stay open unless they can operate from a profit. labor is, mr. speaker, a commodity. it's a commodity like gold or oil or corn or beans. labor. it's a precious commodity and the value of it needs to be determined by supply and demand in the marketplace, not by the united states government. so here we are with a damaged economy, and the -- out in the pacific and -- in america's territories, an example for all of this congress that if we continue to increase government-imposed are

regulations, government-imposed minimum wage, for example, and all the burden put on the free enterprise system with the over-management and keynesian economics on steroids, the president's economic policy, we're going to pay the price as america the same way they're paying the price in american samoa and the northern marianas islands. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. miller: i yield two minutes to mr. faleomavaega. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. faleomavaega: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. faleomavaega: i thank the gentleman from california, the distinguished chairman of the education and labor committee and i also want to thank my good friend the distinguished ranking member of our resources committee on the other side of the aisle for their fgget of this bill. mr. speaker, this legislation is of critical importance to the people of american samoa. how ironic, mr. speaker, that last year, on this very day,

september 29, mr. speaker, i don't have the floor. mr. faleomavaega: how ironic that last year on this very day, september 29, american samoa was hit by the most powerful earthquake which struck below the ocean at about 140 miles south of the samoan islands. the earthquake set off a massive tsunami which ended up with 20-foot waves, causing a lot of villages to be severely damaged, people died, sweeping cars out into the ocean, it was a terrible experience for the people. one day after, mr. speaker, one day after this, one of our two major tuna processes companies closed its operations in american samoa, displacing well over 2,000 workers whose jobs were outsourced basically to

thailand where workers are paid 75 cents per hour or even less at that time. mr. speaker, today i'm asking my colleagues in the house to support this legislation. i'm fully aware that some of my friends on the other side of the aisle who represent rural communities and have similar challenges, i'm deeply appreciative of the support i have received from the other side of the aisle, my republican friends. i also want to say that -- to thank majority leader reid and the senators from arizona, senator mccain, senator demint and senator coburn for their support of this legislation on the other side and especially my dear colleague from the territory of guam and her chairmanship and not only that, but her sponsorship of this legislation, congresswoman bordallo. i thank majority leader hoyer, chairman of the education and labor committee, and chairman rahall and i also want to say that i need the support of my

colleagues in this legislation and i want to say to my friend -- 30 seconds? mr. miller: i yield to the gentleman 30 seconds. mr. faleomavaega: i i want to say to my friend from washington, i deeply, deeply appreciate his support in helping get this legislation and make it for the consideration of the members of this body. with that, i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back. back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from american samoa yields back. the gentleman from california reserves. the gentleman from washington state. mr. hastings: does my friend have any further speakers? mr. miller: i have no further speakers. mr. hastings: i urge my colleagues to support this legislation. this corrects actions that was done to these territories three years ago and i think this is very good policy and i wish we could have addressed this

earlier rather than one day before the law goes into effect. so i urge my colleagues to support this legislation and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. miller: i yield myself such time as i may consume. as i mentioned in my opening statement the adjustment proposed by this bill is as a result of the g.a.o.'s report. it lays out in great detail the economic difficulties confronting these ter. they rise from a variety of factors including recent global economic conditions and ongoing economic diversification issues within the territories. the report justifies the adjustments to the minimum wage schedule. it will forego the increase and 2011 in american samoa and then in 2012 the normal schedule will be resumed.

last year, we took similar action and i would hope that everybody would support this bill. woy have to say we have to correct some history here. the gentleman from washington, i thank him for support of this legislation, indicated that the hardship has fallen on american samoa. he pointed out that some of that was due to the tsunami. but the gentleman said it was covered by mr. kirk who insisted that the original legislation apply to american samoa. that was not the original intent of the bill when we introduced it. secondly, the jobs have been in decline for some years because of the changes in the agreement and those jobs started migrating to china and they started pulling the machinery out of those plants and moving the machinery to china and that was hastened because of the scandals and many of the labels that were

having clothing made in those plants, did not want that association and they left those plants in haste and now they have no further garment industry but that has been migrating. the problem is as we know, they were using the labels made in the u.s.a. when they were not and they were not -- they were made with what turned out to be in many instances slave labor from some of the poorest countries around the world. and many labels pulled out because they didn't want to be society wd those labor practices and had their clothing in indonesia, mexico or wherever and then things started getting worse and then the final tier came along and like so many other places in the pacific,

that textile industry migrated to china and vietnam and left the snmi. mr. hastings: i appreciate the gentleman giving some background on this. however, it seems to me that the mere evidence of the remedy we are proposing here is aimed at the minimum wage, which was passed in 2007 and the remedy is addressing the minimum wage would indicate to me that at least in the real near term, the reason for this is the minimum wage. and so i know there is always more to it. mr. miller: the delegate continues to support the increases in the minimum wage. we are just trying to time it. mr. hastings: i would simply say i find it remarkable that the remedy that we are trying to pursue is prolonging an increase in the minimum wage. mr. miller: we could have gone

the other route. we could have lowered the wages to 3070 cents an hour but i don't think they could support themselves its in those territories. mr. hastings: i don't recall during the debate that there was a discussion of any level of minimum wage as the gentleman was referring to. mr. miller: it was suggested -- mr. hastings: as was pointed out by the the gentleman from iowa it is supply and demand and we need to be cognizant of that. mr. miller: with that, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: all time being yielded back, will the house suspend the rules and concur in the senate amendment. all those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair 2/3 in the affirmative, the rules are suspended and the senate amendments are goode to and the motion to reconsider is laid

upon the table. mr. miller: i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: all those in favor of taking the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8, rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. the chair lays before the house a communication. the clerk: pursuant to section 214-a of the help america vote act 42 u.s.c. 15344, wrime please todd reappoint mr. tomorrow as fuentes to be the election commission board of advisers. he has expressed interest in continuing to serve in this capacity and i'm pleased to fulfill his request. john a. boehner, republican leet leader. the speaker pro tempore: in the

order of the house of january 6, 2009, the chair announces the appoint of the following member on the part of the house to the board of directors of the national urban air toxic research center. the clerk: pursuant to section 703 of the social security act and order of the house january 6 2009 and upon the recommendation of the minority leader the chair announces the speaker of the appointment of the following member on the part of the house to the social security advisory board to a term of six years. >> mrs. doris of virginia. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does gentlelady from new york rise? ms. slaughter: i call up house resolution 1682 and ask for its immediate skrgs. the clerk: house calendar number

243, house resolution 1682, resolve that upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to take from the speaker's table the bill h.r. 3081 making appropriations for the department of state, foreign operations and related programs for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2010 and for other purposes with the senate amendments thereto and to consider in the house without intervention of any point of order except arising of clause 10 rule 21 a single motion on the committee of the chair of appropriations or his designee that the house concur in the senate amendments. the senate amendments and the motion shall be considered as read. the motion shall be debatable for one hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member on the committee of appropriations. the previous question shall be considered without intervening motion or demand for division of the question. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york is

recognized for one hour. ms. slaughter: for the purposes of debate only, i yield the customary 30 minutes to the the gentleman from california, mr. dreier. all time yielded during consideration of this rule is for debate only. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. slaughter: i ask unanimous consent that all members be given five legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on house resolution 1682. house resolution 1682 provides for consideration of the senate amendment to h.r. 3081, the continuing appropriations act, 2011. the rule makes in order a motion offered by the chair of the committee on appropriations or his designee with the house concur in the senate amendment to h.r. 3081. the rule provides for one hour of debate equally controlled and divided by the chair and ranking minority member on the committee of appropriations. the rule waives all points of

order against consideration of the motion except those arising under clause 10 of rule 21 and finally the rule provides senate amendments and the motion shall be considered as read. mr. speaker, we are here tonight to approve the continuing resolution to maintain a level and consistent funding stream for the government. it's an easy issue to demagog and it's my hope everybody will work together and quickly move this bill to passage and the president's desk. the senate voted earlier on the same straightforward bill to continue funding on the fiscal year that begins on friday. as you know, the c.r. before us will fund government agencies until december 3 and congress will revisit the issue in november. there are some on the other side who are questioning why we are considering the c.r. and wants us to stay in washington instead of heading back to our

districts. we have been here long enough. it has been a historic groundbreaking session of congress that will improve the quality of life for millions of americans and compete exceeded all expectations. speaker pelosi and our majority helped in usher health care reform that has been tried for 100 years and curbing insurance company and reform student aid, increased small business assistance, added new regulations on tobacco, curbed credit card abuses and protected social security. it's been one of the most productive members of congress that i have ever been associated with and i'm proud of all the work we have behind us. but now it's time to approve the c.r. and go home. no one should be surprised with the c.r. with the exception of fiscal years 1989, 1995 and 1997, one continuing resolution at least has been enacted for

each fiscal year since 1955. in the 12 years that republicans controlled the house, they were enacted 84 separate times. as in previous years extending funding making no changes in policy and i hope my colleagues will join me voting yes on this rule. before we spend more time on conversations on budgets and currency, i want to pay tribute to a very special person who is retiring from congress in november. so faree is more than a dedicated member of the rules committee staff, she is an ico in the house and at try beauties of the staff that keeps this place humming. she is aeser voir of institutional knowledge and to say she will be missed is an understate. she is one of those rare people in congress that has been content to work quietly and

professionally in the background. she never sought or wanted attention. her pride was in being prepared for any scenario that could unfold in the hearing room or on the house floor. and someone with more than experience on the rules committee, i can vouch for that. as things happen every day, that's one of the things that makes the place so wonderful to work in. it's common knowledge to those of us on rules that the tiny shelves behind her desk have more yellow and dog-eared records than the national archives and more paper and reports than the presidential library. sophie saved everything. when the members were on the floor, she was waiting with a binder filled with house precedents, statistics, talking points and calls from the blogs and web sites she devoured.

my first email came between 5:45 and 6:00 a.m. she is much more than a research factory. she had a smile for everyone and provided cookies, almonds, chips and doughnuts on a regular basis to our staff. she did it on her own because she knew it was needed and appreciated. she baked cakes out of deference to our staff. her birthday celebration. before we had the privilege of working with her, she worked in the office of joe moakley, who was a friend to all of us. she spent 10 years on congressman moakley's staff before coming to the rules committee in 1986, the year i was elected to congress and some of my staff had not yet been born. she discovered the pleasures of paris and discovering new sights

and as she prepares to leave the hill and spend more time with brad, her talented husband, it is time to say good-bye to sophie and thank you for all these many years and i reserve the balance of my time. . mr. dreier: would the gentlewoman yield? ms. slaughter: i would. mr. dreier: i want to also thank sophie for her dedicated years of service to this institution. i've never analyzed the national archives hidden behind her desk. i have been able to benefit from some of the wonderful things she has cooked, but i will say, mr. speaker, the most important thing from my perspective is that sophie hayford has always, always, always offered a smile and

encouragement, which doesn't always take place from side to side in this institution, and that's the thing i will miss the most and i just want to wish her well, i know that her first action is going to be to jet off to paris and i will say, mine is going to be to yet off to los angeles, california, and while i'm looking forward enthusiastically to that, i will say that the idea of going to paris is very appealing so after 34 years of great service, having worked with our rules committee colleague mr. mcgovern on the staff of mr. moke lee and having worked -- mr. smoke lee and having -- mr. moakley and having worked with that staff, that's something that taught sophie a great deal because joe moakley was a man from whom i learned a lot and i know others in this body who had the opportunity to serb with him and staff members who

had the opportunity to work for and with him learned as well and so i would say that those 10 years of service in mr. moakley's personal office played a big role in creating the kind of spectacular public servant that sophie has been. i want to join in wishing her well, mr. speaker. i thank my friend for yielding. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves her time. the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. dreier: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i might consume. i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks and i want to begin by expressing appreciation to my good friend from rochester for yielding me the customary 30 minutes and to say that, not surprisingly, i, and i believe that based on the facts, the american people, have a slightly different take on what it is that's gotten us to where

we are and what it is that we're doing here this evening. apparently the house is wrapping up its business tonight, adjourning early for the campaign season. our final act will be the passage of this continuing resolution made necessary by this majority's many, many failures. our friends on the other side of the aisle like to remind us over and over again that they have completed their agenda. we heard that from the distinguished chairwoman that completed agenda is, mr. speaker, the failed stimulus bill, the unsuccessful cap and trade legislation, and the ever more unpopular government takeover of our health care system. what they will not mention, mr. speaker, what they will not mention is the work that they did not do. they did not pass a budget for the first time since the implementation of the 1974 budget and act.

they did not complete work on a single appropriations bill. and to make matters worse, they're leaving town with a tax hike looming for the american people. mr. speaker, this is not a record of which to be proud. but that's not all. the 111th congress is departing with another dubious distinction. not a single bill was considered under an open amendment process. not one. not a single bill in this entire congress considered under an open amendment process. this fact alone makes this congress the most closed congress in history. let me say that again. sadly for the american people, who have been denied the opportunity to be heard in this institution, the action of not allowing one bill to be considered under an open rule has made this the single most

closed congress in the 221-year history of our republic. how did we end up here? wasn't it just four short years ago that we were promised a new direction? didn't speaker pelosi assure the american people that their business would be conducted in the most open, honest, ethical way possible? those promises are still available on the speaker's website. it's almost' reas we look -- it's almost eerie as we look, welcome, it's almost eerie to read the words that appear on the speaker's website. they raid in part, with integrity, civility, and fiscal discipline, our new direction for america will use common sense principles to address the aspirations and fulfill the hopes and dreams of all americans. that is our promise to the american people. mr. speaker, those are the

words that at this moment are still on the speaker's website. with integrity, civility, and fiscal discipline, our new direction for america will use common sense principles to address the aspirations and fulfill the hopes and dreams of all americans. that is our promise to the american people. mr. speaker, four years later, the hopes and dreams of the american people are being crushed by a tragically high unemployment rate and rising debt. they're clamoring to understand how legislation they pleaded with the congress not to pass could be forced through with procedural games. they're wondering why, when they're being forced to tighten their own belts, congress refused to consider a budget for our nation's spending priorities. the american people know that this is not the new direction they were promised. they know that this majority has led our country the wrong way.

today, my republican colleagues on the rules committee and i released the new report i have right here and i would commend to my colleagues and our colleagues who don't have a hard copy of it can get it by going to our site, which is house-rules republicans.house.gov. i commend this to my colleagues. "the wrong way congress: how democrats took america in the wrong direction with the wrong bills at the wrong time." we have here, symbolic of what it is that we've gotten, the sign that many people across this country have seen, quitting -- putting america to work, project funded by the american recovery and reinvestment act. that's what we have right here. we all know that this sign in and of itself is an indication of the failure this report outlines the procedural abuses

and failures of the 11th -- of the 111th congress and the role this house has played in executing them. rather than focusing on job creation, the democratic majority pursued a job-killing agenda based on reckless spending, overregulation and tragically, tax increases. the details are all too familiar by now. it all started, mr. speaker, with the failed stimulus bill. there were no hearings, and well after midnight, the bill was rushed through the rules committee at warp speed. we continue to hear that everything is done in the light of day, the stimulus bill was passed out of the rules committee after midnight. we were told that this lack of are regular order, mr. speaker, was necessary to keep the unemployment rate below 8%. that's why we had to rush the stimulus through, so we can make sure that the unemployment

rate that at that point was at 7.7% would not exceed 8%. we all know today how painful it is that we across the country are suffering with a 9.6% unemployment rate and in my state of california, nearly 12.5%. next up was the unsuccessful cap and trade legislation. i don't need to remind any of my rules committee colleagues about our meeting on that bill. think back to the cap and trade legislation. it wasn't considered in the light of day. mr. speaker, it was 3:00 in the morning. not 10:00, 11:00, 12:00. 3:00 in the morning. just hours before we voted here on the house floor. my friend mr. mcgovern was in the process of reading the motion to report out the special rule. he'd already begun reading the

motion to move this bill to the floor. and at that time, at 3:00 in the morning, we had dumped into our places a very warm, 300-page amendment a 300-page amendment that completely rewrote the bill. it was that hearing and that manager's amendment that launched the hue and cry across this country when the american people said, read the bill. and the next day, republican leader john boehner stood right where i am and he took his privilege as leader to explain to our colleagues and the american people what was in that 300-page amendment. then, next up, was the health care reform legislation. who could forget the town hall meetings, the public outrage, the long, hard slog that they

went through, mr. speaker to find the votes for its passage. things got so bad that the majority searched for ways to pass the bill without actually voting on it. it was dubbed the slaughter solution, named for our distinguished committee chair. the public outrage was so intense that they eventually abandoned the so-called slaughter solution strategy. again, mr. speaker, that bill was reported from the rules committee in the middle of the night, not in the light of day, but in the middle of the night. the bill was unpopular when it was passed and as we all know from public opinion polls today that we see from virtually every source, democrat and republican a alike, that health care bill is even more unpopular now than it was then. mr. speaker, as they pursued this job-killing agenda, the wrong-way congress abandoned their constitutional

responsibilities of budgeting and appropriations work. as i said earlier, for the first time since 1974, when the budget act was put into place, the house did not even consider a budget are resolution. this failure was part and parcel of their strategy to shut down the appropriations process and restrict the amendment debate. it began in the summer of 2009. a year ago this past summer. and it became complete this year. we considered only two of the 12 spending bills and both with a hand-picked list of amendments. mr. speaker, this crackdown was not without consequences. listen to this number, mr. speaker. as the number of amendments declined, the rate of nondefense discretionary spending actually increased an

astounding 91%. nondefense discretionary -- nondefense discretionary spending since we put into place the crackdown on the opportunity for 435 members, democrat and republican alike, we've seen that increase take place since we saw the process, for the first time ever, completely shut down. this was not a coincidence. so here we are, on the final day of the legislative session before the election. the house is operating under unare restricted martial law authority. giving the majority the ability to call up any bill at any time with just an hour's notice. in the event that any of my colleagues are wondering when that happened, let me remind them that they voted for it last week when the house approved a rule providing for consideration of small business legislation. it's not surprising that most members wouldn't notice.

it was tucked into the rule just as it has been for every single week that we've been in session but one since the month of may. this is the new normal. the majority can do whatever it wants, whenever they want to do it. let's remember, mr. speaker, what they won't do. they won't pass a budget. they won't vote to prevent the coming tax hikes that are crippling our economy with uncertainty. they won't allow a vote to get spending under control. they won't allow the house to debate a bill under an open rule. mr. speaker, i am an eternal optimist. i was privileged to be elected the day ronald reagan was elected president. i believe in that reagan sense of optimism. i believe there's still a chance for the majority to do what was promised in a new direction for america and that is to truly offer a new direction. i believe that the wrong-way

congress can in fact make a u-turn and remove the unstern -- uncertainty that's hurting our economy.6 c1 economy. we can have a vote to prevent tax hikes on all americans, including small businesses and job creators. we can have a vote on a responsible level of spending, sending a powerful signal that we will work together to get our fiscal house in order, as was promised and as can still be read on the speaker's web page. i believe, mr. speaker, that would be the right thing for all of us and most important for the american people who have entrusted us with dealing with these very, very serious challenges and problems that we, as a nation face. i urge my colleagues to defeat this rule and i'm going to urge my colleagues also to defeat the previous question first. and if we are successful in defeating the previous question,

we will offer a motion to go to the spending levels that were before the failed stimulus and before the bailouts to the 2008 spending levels. so, mr. speaker, with that, i'm going to urge a no vote on the previous question. and if we're not successful, a no vote on the rule. and i will say let's work together in a bipartisan way to deal with these very important issues. with that, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california reserves. the gentlewoman from new york. ms. slaughter: let me yield myself 30 seconds. i want to say to my friend, i served here for 22 years. i served in the state legislature in albanny and county legislature. i have been a student of the legislature and i never heard of or even seen any legislature anywhere where one party simply

opted out and voted no on every single thing. they had opportunity at the committee hearings to make their input and had a lot of effect -- no, i won't. but we had to pass it, mr. speaker, the hard way. i yield -- pleased to yield two minutes. the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. mcglonch. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. mcgovern: mr. speaker, i support the rule and i support the c.r. and i hope that we will promptly act on it. mr. speaker, rather than talking my time to talk about how the disgraceful policies of my republican friends drove our economy into a ditch and how we have had to spend this time trying to clean up this mess and rather than talk about the republicans new pledge that they all just took that would drive this economy deeper into debt

bypassing tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires, not about middle-class tax cuts and that will be debt on the back of our kids and have to borrow that money from china and other countries and mr. speaker, rather than talking about how my republican friends oppose all of our democratic efforts to try to close corporate tax loopholes that eliminated tax incentives that allowed companies to ship jobs overseas losing american jobs and rather than talking about a number of the policies that they have stood for that i think have brought this country right to the edge of a cliff, i want to take my time instead to join with the distinguished chairwoman to praise my colleague and my friend sophie who i'm going to miss because

she represents the civility that needs to come back to this house, but because she has been an incredible public servant and at a time when we hear people denigrate people who work for the government, she is someone who dead indicates her entire life to try to make the lives of others in this country better. i have learned an awful lot from sophie and i met her back in sophie and i met her back in 1982 when i came to work for joe moakley and she was a seasonned staffer. may i ask for an additional one minute. ms. slaughter: i yield one minute. mr. dreier: i would like to yield my friend an additional 30 seconds. mr. mcgovern: and i learned a great deal from sophie and i admired her dedication and loyalty to joe moakley and he treasured her as one of his most

valued staff members and he truly loved her because sophie gave that job her all. and i got to work with her in a new capacity when i got elected to congress and she was on the rules committee and she taught me about the rules committee even more than i knew. and i think she is an incredible human being and everybody who has had the honor and the privilege of working with her, i think knows what i'm talking about. and so, mr. speaker, i would like to just say that i think sophie is a model for all of us, not just members of the staff, but members of congress, about what public service is all about. she has had her fingerprints on every major piece of legislation that has impacted the lives of millions of people and i will admire her for that. but most importantly and most

personally, i admire her for being an incredible friend and she has been a wonderful friend for many, many years and i'm going to miss her a lot and i speak for everyone when i say i love her a lot. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. who seeks recognition? the gentlewoman from new york. the gentleman from california. the gentlewoman from new york. the gentleman from california. mr. dreier: may i inquire of my friend how many speakers she has? ms. slaughter: i have one speaker remaining, unless some others on the floor decide to speak. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california reserves. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from ohio, ms. sutton. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. sutton: i speak to the underlying legislation and i rise in strong support of the provision that extends the period for filing stop loss compensation claims to december

3 of this year. under the stop loss measure that i originally introduced in 2008, servicemen and women, including members of the reserve who had their service extended after stop loss of december 11, 2001 are eligible for stop loss pay. our brave servicemen and women must know we honor and respect their dedication and sacrifices to protect us and our country. i have received emails describing the effects of stop loss on their lives and lives of their families. they share the stories and some of the things that it has caused, financial problems and depression, family strife and even divorce. i'm pleased this bill will give our soldiers to file for the stop loss compensation they deserve for their extended service in iraq and afghanistan. and i want my colleagues to know that these payments do not go unappreciated and urge all of you to help us get the word out

about the stop loss pay that some may be eligible for. yesterday, a posting online on vetvoice illustrates the importance of getting the word out about this pay. a vietnam veteran tells us of an account of telling a few veterans about the stop loss pay and he says, one, the big guy, i'm over six feet and 200 pounds, if i call him a big guy, he is a big guy, had tears streaming down his face. i was stop lott 11 months ago and i used up all of my unemployment. you mean i can get $5,000 500, he sputtered through the tears. sure, i answered. it's as easy as going to the web site and following the links. he grabbed me in a bearing hug as he told me his wife hadn't had a new thing in months and no

supplies for kids. his gratitude was more crushing. ms. slaughter: i yield 30 seconds more to ms. sutton. ms. sutton: the other set ran said, he hadn't quite sunk quite that low financially but he sure could use the money. they offered me their thanks and we parted ways. that's what this vietnam veteran relayed in relation to an account he had to share the news about stop loss pay that they were potentially entitled to. i hope that we will all get the word out. i'm glad we are extending the deadline. our service members have deserved it and earned it. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. mr. dreier: i ask if my friend is prepared to close. ms. slaughter: i am. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. dreier: i yield the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized.

mr. dreier: it is very troubling that we are here at this late hour having not passed a budget for the first time since the budget act was put into place in 1974, having not completed a single appropriations bill and having passed legislation, which has dramatically exacerbated the debt that is going to be shouldered by future generations. we can do better, mr. speaker. i have no doubt that we can do better. we can do better right now. my colleagues and i are prepared to stay here so we can ensure that americans don't face the uncertainty of a tax increase, which will clearly impinge the potential for economic growth as we are struggling to get out of this recession. i'm convinced that if we stay here, we can, in fact, get that done.

i'm convinced if we stay, we could complete a budget and i'm convinced we could even complete the appropriations work. now, i know the writing is on the wall. we have passed the adjournment resolution and it's up to the majority leader. things have moved so quickly. i think that we should make an attempt to try and address our constitutionally mandated items, like passing a budget, like completing our appropriations work. and so i urge my colleagues to do that. it's very sad that this has become the wrong way congress, but as i said, i believe, mr. speaker, that we do have the chance to turn things around. make a u-turn. this is not -- this wrong-way congress document is not filled with hyperbole but a lot of sad

facts what we have seen over the past four years and i would commend it to my colleagues. i'm going to ask my colleagues to join me now in defeating the previous question. if the previous question is defeated, i will offer an amendment to the rule that will change the budget enforcement resolution to reduce our discretionary spending levels to pre-bailout and pre-stimulus levels, 2008 levels. now, mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that the text of the amendment appear in the congressional record immediately prior to the vote on the previous question and mr. speaker, this house, as i said, has failed to budget and failed to appropriate. the majority leadership of this house has actively denied democrats and republicans the opportunity to make spending decisions, particularly when it comes to cutting the federal deficit. we can see the results as i have

been saying a 91% increase in nondefense discretionary spending. this amendment we have would restore some sanity to our fiscal outlook and i urge my colleagues to join me in voting no on the previous question. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from new york is recognized. ms. slaughter: thank you, mr. speaker. the gentleman's suggestion that we talk about some of the consequences and i pray we do not. vote yes on the previous question. my colleagues say they are going to extend the bush tax cuts permanently with a price tag of $4 trillion while cutting the designationary budget back to 2008 levels which they save $340 billion choosing to disinvest in america would save less than 10% of the increased deficits their

policy would cause. it would result in significant reductions through existing state and law enforcement and slash and burn grants, help communities to fight crime by $260 million, would gut the stop grant funding and respond to violent crimes against women. overall, the department of justice would be cut by $2.4 billion and result in thousands of law enforcement personnel being laid off. the plan would slash $700 million from new law enforcement initiatives including $210 million from d.o.j. and fibe and counterterrorism programs and 137 members from d.e.a., a.t.f. and other agencies all trying to fight the mexican drug cartels who are threatening our communities along our borders.

the price is much too great, mr. speaker. i urge a no vote -- yes vote on the previous question and i call the previous question. the speaker pro tempore: the question is on ordering the previous question. the gentlelady yields back. the question is on ordering the previous question on the resolution. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. mr mr. dreier: i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. pursuant to clause 1c of rule 19, proceedings will resume on h.r. 2701, which the clerk will report by title.

the clerk: h.r. 2701, an act to authorize appropriations for 2010 for intelligence activities of the united states government, the community management account and the c.i.a. -- the central intelligence agency retirement and disability account and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the question is on the bill. -- on the motion. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. >> i ask for the yeas and nays on that the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. a sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, this 15-minute vote on the motion to condition cur will be followed by five-minute votes on house resolution 1682 the adoption of house resolution 1682 if ordered and motions to suspend the rules on s. 2739, senate amendment to h.r. 936,

this shall be a 15-minute vote followed by a series of five-minute votes.