in government. i'm concerned about this amendment. because it seems as if it would apply special freedom of information act requirements on one agency alone. and as with the underlying bill, i'm concerned that this would create confusion and inconsistency. i also question what the problem is that we're addressing here, most frankly. just two weeks ago chairman issa , the head of the -- the chairman of the committee with jurisdiction over foya matters, issued a report in which he gave an a grade for foya compliance relative to the f.c.c. it's also my understanding that the f.c.c. is already publishing on its website logs for tracking and responding to and managing foia requests, so

it's a little confusing combiven what chairman issa -- given what chairman issa and the grades that he issued relative to the f.c.c. and foia requests and the issues that i raised, and i think that perhaps the amendment may be redundant or simply not needed at all. so those are my observations and i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentlelady from california yields back. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from oregon. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it and the amendment is agreed to. it is now in order to consider amendment number 7 printed in house report 112-422. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? mr. owens: i rise in support of

my amendment to h.r. 3309. the chair: the gentleman will suspend. does the gentleman have an amendment at the desk? mr. owens: yes. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 7 printed in house report 112-422 offered by mr. owens of new york. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 595, the gentleman from new york, mr. owens, and a member opposed, each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york. mr. owens: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of my amendment to h.r. 3309, the federal communications commission process reform act. i agree that cost benefit analysis is an important factor that independent agencies should consider before issuing new rules and regulations. to that end i have supported bipartisan legislation that would require other agencies, like the cftc, and s.b.a., to conduct similar analysis. mr. speaker, in our efforts to change the rulemaking process at the f.c.c., it is important that we consider unintended

consequences. my amendment is very simple and limited in scope. it simply expresses that nothing in this act shall impede the f.c.c. from implementing rules to ensure broadband access in rural areas. i'd like to clarify that this amendment is not intended to influence the current debate concerning the f.c.c.'s reforms to the universal service fund. last year i introduced legislation that would direct the department of agriculture to craft a comprehensive plan to expand broadband access to rural america. if such a plan were enacted under the bill we are considering today, the f.c.c. would likely be required to conduct additional market surveys and analysis that could delay its implementation. new york's 23rd congressional district is 14,000 square miles and encompasses a large portion of the state's rural communities. my amendment would simply ensure that development of much-needed broadband in rural areas, like my congressional district in upstate new york,

is not held up by increased requirements imposed by the f.c.c. under this bill. whether it is small or -- small business in watertown or oswego that wants to market its products to canada or hospital that's able to save a life by assessing patient records, access to broadband is critical to creating jobs and growing the economy in rural new york. and in rural regions across the country. in many of these areas there is simply insufficient demand for private industry to justify the cost of building out their networks. congress must be prepared to build this infrastructure, to ensure our economy remains competitive in the global marketplace. i urge my colleagues to support this amendment and yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from oregon seek recognition? mr. walden: mr. chairman, i rise in opposition to the amendment. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. walden: i thank the

chairman. this amendment would exempt any f.c.c. actions with regard to broadband access in rural areas. now, i know the gentleman talked about representing a large rural district. my district in eastern oregon is larger than his state of new york. it is 70,000 square miles. in fact, it's bigger than any state this side of the mississippi river, i'm told. and i'm -- this is my bill. i am an advocate for it because in many respects it's bad process that the f.c.c. harms those least able to afford big high-rise towers of lawyers to come and oversee the f.c.c. that's why we need a more and open and transparent process. this would exempt the f.c.c. from having the universal service fund, for example. i know the gentleman's fairly new here but he may not have caught the part about the f.c.c. doing a data dump in the final hours before they promulgated their rule on universal service fund. which meant it was very difficult if not impossible for anybody who really cared deeply

about buildout of broadband or future u.s.f. to go through the literally thousands of pages. i got the -- i used these earlier today in the debate in the underlying bill. we have binders and binders and binders of the actual documents that they dumped at the last minute. that's just not the way to do the public's business, so i understand what the gentleman's saying. mr. terry, who is the sponsor of this bill, is a longtime advocate of rural broadband buildout as am i. that's what we're hoping to accomplish in other legislation as well that's become law. the national telecommunications cooperatives association, the voice of rural carriers, the very people you're trying to help and genuinely so with your amendment, actually support the underlying bill. surely they don't think it will slow down rural broadband deployment. so i appreciate the gentleman's commitment to rural broadband buildout. i think his amendment actually goes the wrong direction and reduces transparency, accountability, access for the very people we are trying to

help. so, mr. chairman, i oppose the amendment. the chair: the gentleman yields back. mr. owens: mr. chairman, may i reclaim my unused time? the chair: the gentleman has yielded back. is there any objection? the gentleman seeks to -- is there objection? seeing no objection, the gentleman has 2 1/2 minutes remaining. mr. owens: i just want to point out two items. first, this bill is not intended to influence in any way the debate concerning the f.c.c.'s reforms to the universal service fund. mr. walden: mr. chairman, i'm having difficulty hearing the gentleman. mr. owens: i'm sorry. is this mic not working? mr. walden: yes. it's just hard to hear. mr. owens: this amendment is not intended to influence the current debate at the f.c.c. on the universal service fund. so we're not amendmenting to in any way impact that. -- so we're not in any way

trying to impact that. what we're saying is that the f.c.c. take into account in its rulemaking process rural broadband needs. we are not exempting it from the process but simply asking that that be taken into account as they go through the process. there's no exemption intended here. i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from new york. all those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the noes have it and the amendment is not agreed to. mr. owens: mr. chairman, i request the yeas and nays. the chair: does the gentleman request a recorded vote? mr. owens: yes. the chair: ok. pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from new york will be postponed. it is now in order to consider amendment number 8 printed in house report 112-422. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? mr. green: i have an amendment at the desk, mr. chairman. the chair: the clerk will report the amendment.

the clerk: amendment number 8 printed in house report 112-422 offered by mr. green of texas. the chair: without objection, so ordered. pursuant to house resolution 595, the gentleman from texas, mr. green, and a member opposed, will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. mr. green: i say this amendment would simply make it clear that the f.c.c. will not be impeded in any way as it relates to notifying the public about dangerous conditions. we all know about the hurricanes that hit the gulf coast. we have tornadoes in other areas of the country, and this is a very simple, commonsense amendment. i believe my colleague will agree with me, and i don't believe there will be a need for a vote. mr. walden: will the gentleman yield? mr. green: i yield. mr. walden: i thank the gentleman for yielding. you have been terrific and so have your staff. this wasn't a surprise

amendment by any means. we were able to sit down and work through. we share your concern fully and we are supportive of your amendment, and i thank for raising this issue. as a former radio broadcaster been in emergencies, not hurricanes, but tornadoes, and we support it and thank you for working with in the bipartisan spirit. mr. green: thank you. reclaiming my time. i want to be grateful for my colleague and to the staff members that worked with us. and with this said, mr. chairman, i don't believe there will be a request for a recorded vote if it's accepted. the chair: does the gentleman yield back? mr. green: i yield back. the chair: does the gentleman from oregon seek recognition? mr. walden: i do not. the chair: the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from texas. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it and the amendment is agreed to. it is now in order to consider amendment number 9 printed in

house report 112-422. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from california seek recognition? ms. speier: mr. chairman, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 9 printed in house report 112-4 2 offered by ms. speier from california. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 595, the gentlewoman from california, ms. speier, and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california. ms. speier: i want to read you the amendment. this act shall not take effect until the federal communications commission submits to congress a report on the impact of this act on the mandate of the commission to promote competition and innovation. again, who isn't for competition and innovation? among the important mandates of the f.c.c. are the following -- promoting competition, innovation and investment in broadband services and

facilities. supporting the nation's economy by ensuring an appropriate competitive framework, the unfolding of the communications revolution. encouraging the highest and best use of spectrum, domestically and internationally. providing media regulations so that new technologies flourish alongside diversity. strengthening the defense of the nation's communication infrastructure. this bill could disable the agency and stymie the agencies' ability to promote innovation while protecting the public interest. the u.s. has led the world in developing policies to unleash spectrum for mobile investment and innovation. the f.c.c. was the first agency to develop spectrum auctions and also the first to free up so-called junk bands for unlicensed use such as blue tooth, cordless phones and wi-fi, all things we take for

granted today. the economic benefit created by unlicensed spectrum alone is estimated at $37 billion a year. in 2011, the u.s. sector grew at three times faster than the overall economy. this is success and we should do nothing to stymie that success. the u.s. has regained global leadership in mobile innovation. we are ahead of the world in deploying 4-g mobile broadband and those next generation networks are projected to add more than $150 billion in g.d.p. growth over the next four years. internet startups attract $7 billion in venture capital last year. almost double the 2009 level. it has generated more than 500,000 jobs, and many of those are right smack dab in my district. you know them, google , youtube, facebook . ress assured it is considering. jelly radio is a small

technology company with about 15 employees and it's located right across the street from my district office. it's already received $ million in angel and venture capital. it -- you vote for what you want to hear and the band with the most votes gets played. they just received a local business award for small technology company of the year. another is storm 8, the creator of the number one role playing games on iphone, ipad, ipod touch and android devices and team lava, started in 2009, storm 8 quickly shot to the top of the mobile gaming industry celebrating its first $1 million day in june of last year. these are examples of what we must protect in our f.c.c. operation. we must ensure that innovators like these have the opportunity to grow and thrive. the f.c.c. has a critical role

to play in moving us forward technologically and with the jobs that it brings. broadband has unlocked new opportunities to transform health care, education, energy and public safety. cloud computing is the next wave. a $68 billion global industry that is growing 17% annually. in fact, my son is now working for one of those companies. the undoing 60 years of court precedent, creating uncertainty, confusion for the f.c.c. and innovative businesses that interact with the agency. it also severely undermines the f.c.c.'s ability to protect consumers and ensure competition. i'm a strong proponent of

congressional oversight over agencies within our jurisdiction, that's part of our job. but we have to make sure that the f.c.c. has the tools to do its job as well. so before we risk millions of jobs affected by the important work of the f.c.c., let's be sure we know how this bill will affect our innovative economy. i urge support of this amendment. mr. walden: if you actually support the current system where the f.c.c. can go outside of its legislative jurisdiction and in effect force entities before it to -- the chair: the gentlelady's time has expired. >> i rise in opposition. the chair: the gentleman from illinois is recognized. >> in essence what this does is implement a study on the idea of these reforms. these reforms are very basic.

it says a lot of these are already in place and opens up the process in the american public. we believe in an open and transparent government and system. this puts a study on the bill that simply has no time line to it. the f.c.c. is already behind on completing its reports. it didn't finish its satellite competition report from 2008 until 2011 and hasn't finished the 2010 report on media ownership. this is an attempt to kill this bill and put a study on it and allows the f.c.c. to in definitely the reforms that i think the american people are demanding of congress, demanding of washington, which is just open up government, let us know what's going on. that's basic and that's what we stand for and i yield back. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is now on the amendment offered by the gentlelady from california. those in favor say aye.

those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the noes have it and the amendment is not agreed to. the committee will rise informally. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. the chair lays before the house an enrolled bill. the clerk: h.r. 3606, an act to increase american job creation and economic growth by improving access to the public capital markets for emerging growth companies. the speaker pro tempore: the committee will resume its sitting.

the chair: it is now in order to consider amendment number 10 printed in house report 112-422.

the chair: for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? >> i rise to offer an amendment that is actually ms. clarke's of new york that i'm offering on her behalf. and i ask unanimous consent to -- the clerk: amendment number 10 printed in house report 112-422,

offered by ms. eshoo of california. the chair: does the gentlelady ask for unanimous consent to modify the amendment? ms. eshoo: i do, mr. chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the modification. the clerk: modification to amendment number 10 offered by ms. eshoo of california, page 22 after line 24, insert the following and redesignate the subsequent section accordingly. section 4, communications of first responders, nothing in subsection a of section 13 of the communications act of 1934 is added by section 2 of this act shall be construed to apiece the federal communications commission acting in times of emergency to ensure the availability of efficient and communication systems for state and local first responders. the chair: is there objection to the modification? without objection, the amendment is modified. punt to house resolution 595,

the gentlewoman from california, ms. eshoo and a member opposed each will control five minutes. the chair reckthieses the gentlelady from california. ms. eshoo: i don't have any debating points on this amendment. we simply have presented it on behalf of ms. clarke and i hope that the majority will accept it. and with that, i would yield back. the chair: the gentlelady yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from oregon rise? mr. walden: i appreciate the work we have done with people involved in this and we agree with it and accept the amendment as well. and i yield back. the chair: the question is on the amendment as modified offered by the gentlewoman from california, those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it and the amendment as modified is agreed to.

the chair: pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, proceedings will now resume on those amendments printed in house report 112-422 on which further proceedings were postponed in the following order. amendment number 1 by mr. crowley of new york. amendment number 5, by ms. eshoo of california, amendment number 7 of mr. owens of new york. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on amendment number 1ed in house report 112-422 on which further proceedings were postponed and the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 1 printed in house report 112-422 offered by mr. crowley of new york. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of the recorded vote will rise.

a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is in order. members will record their votes by electronic device. this will be a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the chair: on this vote, the yeas are 196, the nays are 219 and the amendment is not adopted. the unfinished business is

request for a recorded vote on amendment number 5 printed in house report 112-422 by the the gentlewoman from california, ms. eshoo on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 5 printed in house report 112-422 offered by ms. eshoo of california. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of a recorded vote will rise and be counted. a sufficient number having arisen, members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a two-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the chair: the yeas are 1779, the nays are 238 and the amendment is not adopted. the unfinished business is request for a recorded vote on amendment number 7, printed in house report 112-422 offered which the gentleman from new york, mr. owens on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 7 printed in house report 112-422 offered by mr. owens of new york. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of a recorded vote will rise and be counted. a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a two-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of

representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the chair: on this vote the yeas are 194, the nays are 2 22. the amendment is not adopted. the question is on the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute. as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the amendment is adopted. accordingly under the rule the committee rises. the speaker pro tempore: mr. chairman. the chair: mr. speaker, the committee of the whole house on the state of the union has had

under consideration h.r. 3301 and pursuant to house resolution 595 i report the bill back to the house with an amendment adopted in the committee of the whole. the speaker pro tempore: the chair of the committee of the whole house on the state of the union reports that the committee has had under consideration the bill h.r. 33 ot and pursuant to the house res. -- 3309 and reports the bill back to the house with an amendment adopt -- an amendment adopted in the committee of the whole. under the rule the previous question is ordered. is a separate vote demanded on any amendment to the amendment reported from the committee of the whole? if not, the question is on the adoption of the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the amendment is agreed to. the question is on engrossment and the third reading of the bill. those in favor say aye.

those opposed, no. the ayes have it. third reading. the clerk: a bill to amend the communications act of 1934, to provide for greater transparency and efficiency and procedures followed by the federal commissions -- communications. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado rise? >> mr. speaker, i have a motion to recommit at the desk. the chair: is -- the speaker pro tempore: is the gentleman opposed to the bill? >> its furnt form i do. the clerk: mr. perlmutter of colorado moves to recommit the bill, h.r. 3309, to the committee on energy and commerce, with instructions to

report the same back to the house forthwith with the following amendment. page 23, after line 5, insert the following. section 5, protecting the passwords of online users. nothing in this act or any amendment made by this act shall be construed to limit or restrict the ability of the federal communications commission, to adopt a rule or to amend an existing rule, to protect online privacy. including requirements in such rule that prohibit licensees or regulated entities from mandating that job applicants or employees disclose confidential passwords to social networking websites. mr. perlmutter: mr. speaker, the house is not in order. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. members will please take their conversations off the floor. the gentleman deserves to be

heard. the gentleman from colorado is recognized for five minutes. mr. perlmutter: thank you, mr. speaker. and what i'd like to do is to read again this amendment because once i've read it, i imagine that everyone in this house of representatives will embrace this amendment, this final amendment to the bill, and will vote in favor of this amendment. says nothing in this act or any -- >> mr. speaker, the house is not in order. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman will suspend. members please take your conversations off the floor. the gentleman from colorado. mr. perlmutter: thank you. nothing in this act or any amendment made by this act shall be con stroo strewed to limit or re-- shall be construed to limit or restrict thele ability of the

f.c.c. to adopt a rule or amend an existing rule to protect online privacy. including requirements in such rule that prohibit licensees or regulated entities from mandating that job applicants or employees disclose confidential passwords to social networking websites. what this amendment does is it says, you cannot demand as a condition of employment that somebody reveal a confidential password to their facebook, to their flicker, to their twitter, to whatever their account may be. and it only makes sense because those that are using these kinds of social media have an expectation of privacy. they have an expectation that their right to free speech or their right to free religion will be respected when they use

these social media outlets. now, if an employer wants to pose or impersonate the individual who's had to turn over their confidential password, that employer i think will be able to reach into personal, private information of the user, of the facebook user, for instance, or the facebook member, or of the person who's communicating with them, the friend of the facebook user. so there are two sides to this. both the user of the facebook as well as those people who correspondent with them that have an expectation of privacy. now, these kinds of communications are going to be very personal and facebook itself, in an original post dated march 23, 2012, says, in recent months we've seen a

distressing increase in reports of employers or others seeking to gain inappropriate access to people's facebook profiles or private information. this practice undermines the privacy expectations and the security of both the user and the user's friends. it also potentially exposes the employer who seeks this access to unanticipated legal liability. they continue, the most alarming of these practices is the reported incidences of employers asking prospective or actual employees to reveal their passwords. if you are a facebook user, you should never have to share your password, let anyone access your account or do anything that might jeopardize the security of your account or violate the privacy of your friends. this is a very simple, straightforward amendment. it is one that everybody ought to embrace. now, some people might say,

well, shouldn't an employer have this right? well, employers can always do what they've done for years, which is to check references, to do background checks, but to do it as themselves, not as an imposter. not as an imposter. they can do it directly so if my reference is being checked, somebody knows that they're keeling with my employer, not -- dealing with my employer, not some imposter. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from colorado. mr. perlmutter: thank you, mr. speaker. it's just that simple. people have an expectation of privacy, both the user and their friend. there's clearly the potential for liability to an employer or somebody who comes in and misuses the confidential password and there's already plenty available to employers to do the background checks that

they may need, without posing and using the confidential password. this amendment is simple, it's straightforward. i urge its passage. it is the final amendment that we will present to this bill. >> will the gentleman yield? will the gentleman yield? mr. perlmutter: i would yield to my friend. >> i certainly appreciate it. i have been working on legislation similar to this and if the gentleman would withdraw, i would be happy to work with him to craft fine legislative language that could be acceptable to all sides, including national security interests. mr. perlmutter: taking back my time from my friend from north carolina, i'd love to work with you but this is the amendment that we're preparing -- proposing to this bill at this time. and i am asking for a vote on this bill at this time and with that, mr. speaker, again, this is a straightforward amendment, it's one everybody should vote for. with that i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from oregon seek recognition? mr. walden: mr. speaker, i rise in opposition to the motion to recommit. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. walden: i thank the gentleman and i would just like to draw your attention to several points. first of all, we had a very open process with hearings in the energy and commerce, communications and technology subcommittee. this issue didn't come up. we had markup in the subcommittee, it -- no amendments offered to this nature. we had a markup in the full committee, no amendments offered. we had an opportunity for all members to offer amendments on the floor where they could be thoughtfully debated and this amendment was not put in this context and now it suddenly appears before us at the last minute of this day. so it would have been helpful to have been able to have this discussion because many of us share the concern that the gentleman is talking about. i think it's awful that employers think they can demand our passwords and go snoop around. there's no disagreement with that. here's the flaw. here's the flaw.

your amendment doesn't protect them. it doesn't do that. actually what this amendment does is say, all of the reforms that we're trying to put in place at the federal communications commission, to have them have an open and transparent process, where they are required to publish their rules in advance, so you can see what they're proposing, that basically would be shut aside, shoved aside, and they do whatever they wanted on privacy if they wanted to and you wouldn't know until they published their text ar with -- afterwards and there's no protect hee -- protection here. there's nothing to enforce. what this amendment, this motion to instruct does here at the last minute, if we could add time to work this out ahead of time we might have -- mr. perlmutter: would the gentleman yield? mr. walden: no, i won't. what we have here is a problem that you exempt from the process. you don't protect the consumer. and there are many of us who after this debate concludes and moves on would be happy to work with you on legislation because i think this is a real issue that we all share and that is

protecting privacy. this doesn't do that and in fact you could open the door where they could allow employers and licensees to go after your stuff and you wouldn't know until they published the rule. so i urge a no vote on this motion to i instruct and i return return -- i return the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. without objection, the previous question is ordered. the question is on the motion to recommit. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the noes have it. mr. perlmutter: i'd like a recorded vote. the speaker pro tempore: a recorded vote is requested. those favoring a recorded vote will rise. a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. pursuant to clause 9 of rule 20, the chair will reduce to five minutes the minimum time for any electronic vote on the question of passage.

[captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: the yeas are 184, the nays are 236,

the motion is not adopted. the question is on passage of the bill. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the ayes have it. >> mr. speaker, i ask for a recorded vote on the bill. the speaker pro tempore: a recorded vote is requested. those favoring a recorded vote will rise. a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 247, the nays are 174. the bill is passed. without objection, a motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia rise? mr. woodall: mr. speaker, i send to the desk a privileged report for committee on rules for filing under the rule. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title. the clerk: report to accompany house resolution 597, resolution providing for consideration of the concurrent resolution, house concurrent resolution 112. establishing the budget for the united states government for fiscal year 2013 and setting forth appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2014 through 2022 and providing for consideration of motions to suspend the rules. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the house calendar and ordered printed.

for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? mr. bishop: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to remove the name of mr. pitts of pennsylvania as a co-sponsor of h.r. 3596. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. bishop: thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlelady from texas seek recognition? ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, today i was unavoidably detained on the following votes and i ask unanimous consent that i can place my appropriate votes for roll call number 134, for the crowley amendment, to vote aye. roll call vote 135 for the eshoo amendment to vote aye.

and roll call vote number 136 for the owens of new york amendment to vote aye. i ask unanimous consent they may be placed appropriately in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the statements will appear in the record. ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, additionally i was unavoidably detained yesterday evening on business and that was h.r. 2779, that was roll call vote number 1 27. i would have voted aye. roll call vote number 128, h.r. 2682, i would have voted aye. and then roll call vote number 129, i would have voted no and i ask unanimous consent that that be placed appropriately in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the statement will appear in the record. ms. jackson lee: i thank the speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will entertain requests for one-minute speeches.

for what purpose does the gentlelady from illinois seek recognition? without objection, the speaker is recognized for one minute. mrs. biggert: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to commend the phenomenal efforts of the illinois patriot guard and gold star families who joined together to launch a traveling tribute to honor our state's fallen heroes. i had the opportunity to view the illinois patriot guard fallen heroes traveling memorial wall during its stop at the kendall v.f.w. post number 3873 in naperville, illinois, this past week. it was moving beyond words to see the photos of the 272 brave men and women from illinois who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country during operations enduring freedom and iraqi freedom. to date this memorial has traveled more than 30,000 miles through at least 60 communities throughout the state of

illinois. it paints a powerful portrait of sacrifices made by our troops. as the 30th president, calvin coolidge, said, and i quote, a nation which forgets its defenders will itself be forgotten. end quote. our fallen soldiers will be remembered forever and thanks to the families and veterans who put this traveling memorial together, communities across our state have a very special opportunity to gather together in tribute to these heroes. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. for what purpose does the gentlelady from nevada seek recognition? ms. berkley: to address the house for one minute, to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, recognized for one minute. ms. berkley: thank you, mr. speaker. this week washington republicans are showing nevada families exactly who their priority is. unfortunately it's not nevada middle class families. this week republicans are reiterating their support for taxpayer giveaways for big oil, despite the fact that gas prices

are soaring and the oil industry made $137 billion in profits last year. nevadans are hurting every time they go to the pump. the republicans' answer to higher gas prices is more government handouts to big oil. this is a wrong priority. but wait, there's more. on thursday they'll bring up a new but not improved ryan budget that once again kills medicare by turning it over to private insurance companies. the plan is bad. instead of improving care for nevada's seniors, seniors would be forced to pay thousands more for out-of-pocket for their health care. nevada is suffering with the highest unemployment rate and highest foreclosure rate in the nation. republicans, get your priorities straight. we must put nevada middle class families and seniors first, not big oil and profit-hungry insurance companies. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? mr. poe: request unanimous

consent to address the house for one minute, to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. poe: mr. speaker, vietnam citizen was convicted of armed robbery of a chinese restaurant in california in 1996. he received 10 years in prison. he was also ordered by an immigration judge to be deported back to vietnam. but vietnam has never taken back the lawfully deported criminal. u.s. law does not allow indefinite incarceration so after an additional 180 days, he was released on american streets. but last weekend he struck again. this time he murdered five people in san francisco. mr. speaker, there should be consequences for countries like vietnam who failed to take back their lawfully deported criminals. there are several thousand criminals ordered deported back to their native lands where their nations just don't ever get around to taking them back. so i have introduced the deport

foreign convicted criminals act to prohibit the issuance of diplomatic visas to nations who do not take back their outlaws in a timely manner. the blood of those five murder victims is not only the fault of the murderer but it's also on the hands of the vietnamese government. and that's just the way it is. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. are there further requests for one-minute speeches? for what purpose does the gentlelady from texas seek recognition? without objection, the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, today a number of post masters from the united states postal service were in my office and they had a very good idea about how important the u.s. posal service is, the -- postal service is, the jobs that it creates and how we should find solutions. in my own community, heavily

occupied by seniors, they cried out when post offices were closed that were close to their community, where they were able to walk and secure their checks, some of them like to come directly or to handle their business. we are better than closing down post offices in rural and urban america and we are better than not finding a solution to employ hardworking americans in an efficient and effective manner. i look forward to working with our postal family, those hardworking americans all across america who have been the good samaritans to determine whether our seniors were in need, bringing medicine to home-bound patients, bringing information and helping small businesses. we can work to solve this problem efficiently and effectively. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. are there further requests for

one-minute speeches? the speaker pro tempore: under the speaker's announced policy of january 5, 2011, the gentleman from ohio is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee for the majority leader. all time yielded to mr. dingell will be yielded to mr. latourette. mr. latourette: i can't ask unanimous consent to give half, but we are going to work that out and hopefully we will get a favorable ruling on the distribution of time. i'm going to be joined by the democratic side by the dean of the house, mr. dingell of michigan, and a number of members from both sides of the aisle will talk about what some

of us and that is the announced retirement of our parliamentarian, john sullivan. i'm going to yield to other members who have time commitments and they can express . with that, mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield two minutes to mr. thornberry of texas. mr. thornberry: i thank the gentleman from ohio for yielding. mr. speaker, every person elected to the house believes that we're here to do important work on behalf of our district. of course, the house is bigger than any one issue or any one person and yet, there are a relatively small number of persons who are central to the functioning of this house. too often, i'm afraid members

get wrapped up in trying to do our work but the institution is listed in the constitution and institution that provides the continuity of government as political majorities come and go and it's the institution that provides the legitimacy and the respect for what we do here. i say all that to make the point that i think in many ways the parliamentarian is the central figure for the institution of the house. since 1927, there have only been four of them. and in my time here, we have been incredibly privileged to have had two outstanding servants, and it is with some regret, but even more with respect to respect and gratitude that we honor the service, but i would say just as much the character and the intellectual integrity of john sullivan as he leaves the house to begin a new

chapter in his life. as one of those who has benefited from john's steady guidance while i was in the chair, i can testify to his even temper. he guides our proceedings with intellect and logic based on the constitution, rules of the house and our precedents, but at the same time, he is able to factor in the human dimension and taking account the personality of the person in the chair as well as the persons in the microphone and it is as much art as well as science to keep the house running smoothly. many of the work he has done is done off the house floor advising members and staff as to how to accomplish their goals within the rules and precedents of the house. i have respect for john's ability and his professionalism, but i have even greater appreciation for his commitment to and his love for this institution, for that portion of his heart that he has given to the house for the past 25 years.

he has elevated each of us who have worked with him, but more importantly, he has elevated the institution of the house of representatives through which government by the people's representatives is possible. he is among our best and brightest and all of us here and the institution will miss him greatly. i yield back. mr. dingell: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and to extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on the matter of this special order referring very specifically to our dear friend, the parliamentarian, mr. sullivan. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. without objection, so ordered. mr. dingell: i want to thank the chair for the kindness you have

shown me and express my thanks and good wishes to my friend, mr. latourette. and now through the distinguished gentleman from ohio, i yield to the distinguished minority leader, my friend, mr. hoyer, two minutes. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentleman for yielding. maybe he has another minute that we could get to, if possible, but i want to thank the gentleman from michigan, but certainly also my friend from ohio, but of whom i have served here for a long period of time and love this institution and know how critical the functions are of the parliamentarian. i want to thank them both. mr. dingell has had the privilege serving alongside all four men who have been the parliamentarians of this house.

when the framers of the constitution wrote article 1, section 5, clause 2, they probably had little idea of the volume of precedents that would accumulate in the 224 years since the house convened and adopted its first rules. today the job of parliamentarian is probably one of the most difficult in washington. a thorough understanding of the rules and precedents is a prerequisite to be an accomplished parliamentarian. john sullivan has that. one must also, however, the respect of every member of this house. john sullivan has that. that is what john sullivan achieved over the course of his 17 years in the parliamentarian's office. as our parliamentarian for the last eight of those years, john has sat beside the speaker during some of the most heated floor debates i have ever seen.

indeed perhaps in which i have participated. throughout, he preserved the impartiality of and high regard for his office in the eyes of both democrats and republicans. when democrats were in charge, and when republicans were in charge. a he demonstrated his keen and incisive command of precedents in issuing of rulings. in hearing of his decision to retire, i was among the many of the members who felt we were losing a colleague and friend. after his tenure here, john sullivan has left his mark on the house no less of any of us who are elected to serve our constituents. he has served the american people well. as we wish him the best in retirement, we also welcome as our new parliamentarian, a man who is qualified to succeed him in office.

tom has been at john's side throughout his tenure in the parliamentarian's office and john is leaving us in very capable hands. mr. speaker, i join you and my colleagues like everyone else who has come to the floor this evening in celebrating john's service to this house and to our nation. i wish him well. and thank him for all he has done to preserve the order and with it, the honor of the people's house. john, you have been a great public servant and the best traditions of that term. you have been someone, as i said earlier, who has been respected by every leader of both parties. an individual who has listened intently, who has judged fairly and whose judgments have made this house better. so john sullivan, well done.

and the house is good and faithful servant. well done, as a friend, colleague and adviser. many of us are better members of this house because of john's counsel through the years and this house is certainly a better place for his service. and i congratulate him and wish him god speed and i thank the gentleman from michigan and the gentleman from ohio for leading this special order to praise and give testimony to the outstanding service of our friend john sullivan. mr. latourette: i thank the distinguished minority whip for those observations. it's my pleasure to yield to the distinguished chairman of the rules committee, mr. dreier, who sadly like mr. sullivan has decided to move into retirement and like mr. sullivan will be missed for his institutional knowledge in the house of representatives, the gentleman from california. mr. dreier: i join the

distinguished the gentleman from maryland in expressing appreciation to my friends mr. latourette and mr. dingell for taking time out to talk about john sullivan. i decided to follow the sullivan lead and i, too, will be leaving the congress. i'm going to stay a little longer than john has. i'm going to stay until january, but i will tell you that this place is much better institution for the service of john sullivan. i would like to, mr. speaker, begin by associating myself with the remarks from my friend of maryland with one correction. it is 27 years that john sullivan has served in the parliamentarian's office, so i offer that one minor correction, but very important correction to my friend from maryland, and i take the well to do something that i don't often do and that is to read, but the reason i'm

doing it is i'm trying to show off the rules committee. we are proud of the fact that the house committee on rules i would say to my friend from michigan and friend from ohio, however eloquent you will be in talking about john sullivan, you will not do what the rules committee did last night and that is passed out an enrolled resolution commemorating the great service of john sullivan. i would like to share it with my colleagues. whereas the honorable john b. sullivan has been a committed government servant for over 40 years and worked in the house of representatives for 27 years, whereas, mr. sullivan was appointed to the office of the parliamentarian in 1987 and over the 25 years has served under six successive speakers, the past eight years as parliamentarian under the appointments of three successive speakers. whereas mr. sullivan has

displayed extraordinary rigor in the application of pertinent precedent to every parliamentary question and provided sage counsel and advice in matters critical to the institution. whereas the committee on rules constantly relies on the advice, counsel and expertise of mr. sullivan to meet the committee's obligations to the house, whereas, mr. sullivan has cultivated and led a team of dedicated and nonpartisan deputies, assistants and clerks ensuring that the operation of the chair are regarded by all as fair, accurate and professional, whereas mr. sullivan has served the house during a period of ongoing transition, with shifting majorities and has done so to the same standard of nonpartisan excellence expected from the parliamentarian, whereas he participated in numerous programs of the house democracy partnership, providing

advice and counsel to legislators from new and emerging democracies around the globe as they work to strengthen their legislative institutions reform their rules of procedure and amend their constitution. whereas mr. sullivan as endeavored to update the practices and procedures of the house to reflect developments in technology, while remaining faithful to the constitution's underpinnings and has informed the speaker that he will be beginning a well-deserved retirement, those are our words -- on the last day of march, 2012, now therefore be it resolved that the committee on rules on behalf of the committee and the house expresses its profound gratitude to the honorable john b. sullivan for his record of service and steady, partial visas the parliamentarian of the house of representatives and the clerk of the committee is hereby directed

to prepare this resolution in a manner suitable for presentation to mr. sullivan and i signed this as did the ranking member, my good friend, mrs. slaughter. i would like to say, this is suitable for framing and mr. sullivan will be able to have this. i would like to take a moment, if i might, since everyone will be talking about john's work here. i mentioned the work up in the rules committee and we did have one whereas clause where we talked about the house democracy partnership. i would like to share with our colleague the work of the house democracy partnership, because not everyone is aware of the projects that the house democracy partnership has taken on. it's an extraordinarily bipartisan organization that in the post-september 11 world was designed to focus on strengthening the legislative branches -- and i see my good friend from texas, who is a member of our partnership, is designed to strengthen the

legislative branches in new and re-emerging democracies wrooned the -- around the world. we just established our 17th partner in central asia, the country there and at the end of the week we will be continuing our mission and going to two of our partner countries and will be in libya and egypt as well talking about the importance of strong, vibrant parliaments. but i have to say the house democracy partnership and these countries have been the great beneficiaries of john sullivan's expertise, specifically in kenya. we had an opportunity to visit liberia and kenya, two of our partner countries and mali as well on this particular trip. but following the very, very tragic aftermath of the 2007 elections in kenya, there was a

huge change that took place, lots of disruption, to put it mildly, and kenya has just gone through a whole constitution reform process. when we were in kenya, john sullivan spent time looking at the proposed constitution, meeting with the staff members and members of parliament in kenya and he was virtually immediately able to cite a number of discrepancies that took place in the constitution. and so his very, very shrewd skill and expertise has not only been utilized to the benefit of the united states house of representatives, but in kenya and other countries that we have visited, john sullivan has been able to use his expertise for the expansion of democracies around the world. he has met with a number of our incoming delegations and it has been again extraordinarily important work.

. i'd like to express best wishes. we all know that w.i.c. has big shoes to fill but he's going to do a stellar job in this very, very important position as parliamentarian and ister interest -- i have to say that i hope very much as john sullivan goes into retirement, he will continue as his predecessor, charlie johnson, has, to focus on this institution and also on the imperative of doing what we can to expand self-determination, political pluralism and the development of democratic institutions around the world as well. so i say congratulations, i'm now going to present this to our friend, mr. sullivan, mr. speaker, and i thank my friends for yielding. >> mr. speaker, at this time i yield two minutes to my dear friend from california, mr. schiff.

to my distinguished friend from ohio. >> i thank the gentleman for yielding and i rise to thank our house parliamentarian, john sullivan, for his years of service to this nation and to the house of representatives. john has been a trusted advisor and an honest broker of the rules of the house. he has served at a time when partisan ran chore has unfortunately been prevalent in this body but his integrity and impartiality have remained beyond question and beyond reproach. john joined the office of the parliamentarian 25 years ago, rising to his current role in 2004 when he was appointed by speaker hastert. before joining the office of parliamentarian, he a distinguished career as an active duty member of the u.s. armed -- u.s. air force, he also served as respected council on the house armed services committee. as parliamentarian, john's keen legal mind and passion for the constitution has always been apparent. mr. schiff: i remember with great fondness, working with the parliamentarian on some very

difficult issues, involving the armenian genocide, one of the most challenging parliamentary issues, i think we -- issues i think we faced in terms of how to navigate questions of germaneness. through that process and every other that i have come to work with the parliamentarian, i have respected his insights, his intellect, his integrity and his dedication to his job. he has been a phenomenal asset to this institution and i know that his successor who currently serves as deputy parliamentarian will continue in john's legacy of professionalism. john, i want to thank you for your service to this body and i know that my colleagues join me in wishing you -- wishing you the best of luck in future endeavors. thank you and i yield back. mr. hastings: mr. speaker, you'll notice a theme here. there's -- mr. latourette: mr. speaker, you'll notice a theme here. there's nothing greater an honor than being asked by the speaker to be the speaker pro tempore

and reside over the house. seeing a theme of those from both sides, one of our best presiding officers, the gentlelady from illinois, mrs. biggert, i'm pleased to yield to her. mrs. biggert: i thank the gentleman for yielding and, you know, mr. speaker, it's not every day that we get to speak on the house floor about friends and colleagues that are not constituents or other members of congress. and tonight we have the distinct privilege to recognize a friend and fixture of congress, behind the scenes -- scenes, mr. john sullivan. most of you will probably remember that john was appointed parliamentarian by our former colleague, speaker dennis hastert, in 2004. and he stood for 25 years. those that have worked with him will tell you he is an excellent parliamentarian, an

institutionalist, a man of integrity, that truly cares about the house of representatives and he would never bend the rules to pursue a certain outcome and how you play the game is more important to him than whether you win or lose. just wanted to tell a couple of things. when i first came to congress, at that time freshmen always had a week to chair the floor at night and so i guess because i had a b for a last name, biggert, that i got to do it first. now the only problem with that was that it was the training was the next week. so i went to the floor and i stood up there and i had this microphone sitting there and i looked out and i said, what am i doing here? i didn't think i was -- and i think i was kind of frozen. john said, this is what you do. so i proceded on. another time i was in the chair and suddenly there was a lapse

of decorum by two of our members, one on each side of the aisle, i won't name the names. but suddenly they started moving towards each other and i said, what do i do? he said, bang the gavel hard. and multiple times. so suddenly they stopped in their tracks and they did retreat back to the desk to continue after we got things under control. so, i really appreciate, you know, that we had -- have in this opportunity. it's really an honor to stand and chair this floor and i think that the parliamentarian, john sullivan, made it easy. but i have a few other things that you may not know about john. that he went to the air force academy and is a graduate of indiana university's law school. he is a huge hoosier fan and i can only imagine how proud he was of the indiana elite eight

basketball performance against kentucky last friday. the home thing that -- wrong was that kentucky beat indiana by a vote of -- by one point, 73-72. so that kind of ended indiana in the march madness. another part of the behind-the-scenes function of the house that john's strategic wisdom and advice was critical to the continuity of the house function was in the days and weeks following the tragic events of september 11, 2001. and he performed there admirably. so john has led the parliamentarian's office in a collegial and a very profession al-manar, to the benefit of the office, the members and the house and we are fortunate for his service and wish him well in retirement and we will miss him. i yield back.

mr. dingell: mr. speaker, at this time i yield two minutes to my distinguished friend from virginia, through my good friend from ohio, to the gentleman from virginia. >> thank you for yielding time. i'm not from virginia. that happens to me and bobby scott all the time. we get confused with each other's states and personalities because we sit beside each other in judiciary and we're good friends. so i'm never insulted when anybody does that to me. i dare say that folks are watching this proceeding on c-span or at home, they're wondering, who in the world is john sullivan? and i think that's probably the

highest commendation that we can give to john sullivan as a parliamentarian. because if he had been involved in any kind of controversy or one side or the other in this institution had accused him of misinterpreting rules, then people would know that there's a parliamentarian that's basically the referee in this institution. mr. watt: that both sides have to respect in order for the institution to work effectively. there have been no controversies -- i mean, that the people

outside know about. we know inside our institution that the parliamentarians are dealing with controversial rulings, close rulings, trying to figure out what the precedence are for what we can do and cannot do, what has been done this way in the past and therefore represents a precedent for us to be able to do it in the future. but outside nobody has ever heard of john sullivan because there's been no controversy and that's a great thing to have said about him. he's been absolutely even-handed. you've heard the words nonpartisan because this is a

position that you cannot be -- you cannot be or take the republic side or the democratic side, you've got to call the rules as you see them. there's nothing worse than at the end of march madness, at the end of the game, one team saying that the referees influenced the outcome of the game. and so that's a high mark for john sullivan. when he replaced the prior parliamentarian, mr. johnson, i thought surely we would go into some level of chaos, but the only difference i've ever been able to distinguish between him and mr. johnson is that he can't

throw a baseball like our prior parliamentarian did. if he can, he hadn't told me about it. so i just wanted to take this moment to express our gratitude. you've been a tremendous mentor and, well, you can't call him a mentor, teacher of those of us who have been in this institution who have tried to abide by the rules and go to the edge and not violate the rule. but knowing full well that we'll get absolutely nonpartisan advice and council -- counsel from the parliamentarian about how to do things when we don't know how to bring them to the floor and about how to maintain

the decorum and respect of every single member in this house. i thank him for his friendship and the role that he has played in making our institution a much, much better place to live and work. thank you. i yield back. mr. latourette: i thank the gentleman from north carolina for those remarks and i'm glad that mrs. biggert talked about her experiences in the chair because i think all of us have memories of that going back a number of years or a few years and just before i yield to my next colleague, i just -- the very first speech i gave on the floor i had brought in the american humorous dave barry to be my guest press secretary and some folks in my party said i should have my head examined. i'm sorry to report that's not the first or last time that's

happened to me over the last 18 years. but he wrote my speech and it was all about the warning labels that need to be on step ladders and mr. johnson was the parliamentarian but john was his deputy at the time. dave barry wrote in my speech that, he said, now i'm not saying that all lawyers are scum sucking toads, and we had to go to the parliamentarian's office to get it checked out, to see if i could call lawyers scum sucking toads and i'm pleased to report to the house that 18 years later that's not a violation of the rule. so i intend to use it in future speeches. it's now ply pleasure to yield to someone who -- it's now my pleasure to yield to someone who during his champions of eliminating pork and earmarks wore a path out between him and the desk, mr. flake. mr. flake: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, it's a bittersweet honor to take the podium during this altogether appropriate recognition of house parliamentarian john sullivan. upon his retirement. i recognize that it is

bittersweet because it's truly sad for me and all of us to see him go, but i'm sure he'll enjoy the break from all of us. i'm certain that tonight we'll hear and have already heard his praises sung for his esteemed career that spanned 2 1/2 decades, from assistant to deputy to full-fledged parliamentarian to this house. members in the -- few few members have had quite as much experience with him as my office has had. it would appear that during his tenure heading up the left side of the speaker's dais, i have brought up hundreds of bills and amendments and filed countless more. so i and my staff have found

the office of parliamentarian under mr. sullivan to be fair, open, honest and consistent. we've come to rely on it. i would be remiss if i didn't mention that what i miss most about john is his irrepresence -- irrepressible respect for the house of representatives as an institution. politics, finger pointing and wagging, are as common around here as, well, as common as flake amendments. whether vetting germaneness issues or being given a few pointers about surviving on a desert island somewhere, i've darkened the door of john's office more than a few times. i can tell you this, when you spend time with john sullivan, it's easy for your thoughts to turn to the genius of the founding fathers, the intention of the framers of the constitution, and the beacon of freedom and democracy that the congress represents.

the venn ration of this institution just rubs off when you spend any time with john sullivan. as james madison noted in the federalist papers, stability in government is essential to national character. i can think of no higher compliment to pay jonathan to say his stable influence in this chamber has been a credit to our national character. as a member of congress, i thank him both for his service and for assuring that the house will be more than ably served by those who assume the same responsibility. as a fren, i wish him the best in his next adventure and may it involve a deserted island somewhere in the south pacific. i yield back. mr. dingell: i yield to my good friend from ohio, the two minutes. >> i thank the gentleman from

michigan. mr. grijalva: i had the opportunity to preside and several years i clocked over 100 thundershowers -- hours on the chair. so i had an opportunity to be with john and see john's work as the parliamentarian and i associate myself with all the remarks given by the previous speakers. john is very knowledgeable, well-read about the rules of the house, as my colleague jeff flake said, john was fair and john was respected, an is respected, by the leadership on both sides as well as his staff. mr. pastor: i have to tell you, his staff was always well-prepared. they anticipated, especially in debates that we had

controversial bills, they anticipated some of the areas that would hit some rocky roads and they were always prepared. so his staff was prepared an they were always kind of caring to the person who was up on the chair and many times assisted me to make sure that i rae the paper right or gave the right response. so i have to tell you that john as the parliamentarian did bring stability and respect and i thank him for that. but during some of the debate that was pretty boring or during votes, we had a chance to talk to each other about more social things. we talked about vacations he took, when his daughter margaret was in town, restaurants, movies that we had seen, and so during those times, i had the opportunity to

be -- to know john as a person and i found him in those conversations to know him as a caring husband, to -- caring husband to his wife nancy because he talked about some of the trips they went on and some of the things they did over the weekend an obviously he was a caring father to his three children. and so for me it was a great joy to be presiding over the debate here at the house knowing that the people that were going to be assisting me as parliamentarians were well prepared and were fair and respected the house. but more than that, i knew that i was dealing with a person, john sullivan, who truly loved this house and wanted to make sure that this house was able to function well and there would be order.

and so, jeff flake is correct when jeff sometimes would get up, john would say, oh, no, here comes another flake amendment. but we got through them and in each case we did the best we could and i know that his professionalism will always stand out. i congratulate tom for succeeding him. but to my friend, john sullivan, i wish you the best, may you have a great retirement and continue to care for this house as you care for your family. best wishes. i yield back my time. mr. latourette: i am surprised that the gentleman, mr. pastor -- -- i am surprised that the gentleman, mr. pastor, thought that our debates were boring when he presided.

i now yield to the distinguished gentleman from alabama, mr. bonner. mr. bonner: i thank the gentleman and join the comments that have already been made in expressing our deep gratitude to a young man who by many standards is still a young man and who obviously has a very bright future in front of him. but has decided to embark on a new chapter in his already storied career. so tonight, democrats and republicans, north and south, the dean of congress to someone with with -- who has been here longer than many of us have been alive and others who are coming tonight are expressing our gratitude to a man named john sullivan, we are all here to offer our heart felt thanks for the example you have set. for the inspiration you have

provided. and for the legacy that you are leaving behind. many a young lawyer in this country, and john is an attorney, as has already been noted, when asked who inspired them to go into law, into that profession, cite a fictional character, someone who i'm proud the author of "to kill a mocking bird" is from my home in monroeville, alabama and the story is of atticus finch and the example he set at a difficult time in our nation's history. one of my favorite lines out of "to kill a mocking bird" is, the one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience. i believe we can all agree that while we have rules in this

house and no one more than the parliamentarian helps us abide by those rules and to follow the spirit of them, that john sullivan has set the example of being an outstanding parol. tarian by using the rule but also by using his heart and his conscience. his rulings have sometimes been questioned but never disputed. in a real sense. because his rulings and the rulings of the men and women who work with him have been seen by those of us who have been given the privilege of serving as members of congress as the gold standard. truly it's the good housekeeping seal of approval. if the ruling were appealed to the chair and the chair turned to the parliamentarian, as was often the case, we knew the answer was as good as gold.

he is truly the unbiased umpire who calls the balls, balls, strikes, strikes, and often times has to tell us, sometimes what we don't want to hear but what we need to know. and so, i am so honored to stand here tonight along with my colleagues and to say thank you to someone who represents an army of professionals who over the years and throughout the decades, men and women whose names have never been on the ballot, but who have made a lasting mark of love and support for this institution. some, like myself, served on a personal staff. others have served in committee, on committee staffs. still a few others have had the privilege of wearing the title of sergeant at arms or chaplain

or in this case parliamentarian. a man that we truly respect, someone who has truly made this place a better place, and as mr. watts said earlier tonight, the people back home who are watching this discussion tonight are hearing this debate, there is no debate. on sullivan may not be a household name in some parts of america, but john sullivan has made the house of representatives a better place by his service and by his example. mr. latourette, i appreciate you and mr. dingell hosting this special order for one hour for all of us to have a chance to say thank you for a job well done. may god continue to bless you, your wife, and your family. i yield back.

mr. dingell: with thanks to my good friend for his kind comments, i yield to the distinguished gentlewoman from maryland two minutes through the distinguished gentleman from ohio. ms. edwards: mr. speaker, i rise to pay tribute to our parliamentarian, our friend, for his service to this nation and to the united states house of representatives. his departure as parialial -- parliamentarian comes as a sad note to those of us who have depended on his wise counsel. i'm happy that john is leaving on his own terms and i wish him every happiness as he moves to the next phase of his life. as has been said, john was born in chicago, illinois. he graduated from the air force academy, received a law degree from indiana school of law and served honorably in the united states air force. john has dedicated his life to the noble calling of public

service. whether as an office in the air force, as counsel of the house armed services committee or member of the parliamentarian's office, for the past quarter century, he's abeably served this house for 27 years, some of my colleagues say 28 year, others say 25 years, it's opinion a long time. and he's served the people of this country, this nation, for nearly 40 years. the job of house parliamentarian is an exceedingly difficult one. we members would no doubt be a rather unruly lot without the office. one must have a grasp of the procedures and rules governing this constitution, p an arbiter at all times and be able to work with those of both sides of the aisle at contentious moments. i have seen john exist these

time an time again. he is respected by both republicans and democrats which speaks volumes about how well he's done his job. i thoroughly enjoyed getting to know john and learning about the rules and precedents in this institution that he so clearly loves and respects. i tried mightily to imitate his calm and tempered demeanor. i spent quite a bit of time in the 111th congress doing just that and it helped in a big miami when i presided, under john's guidance, during the passing of the patient and affordable care act. our parliamentarian allowed us to stay in session without disrupting winter holiday plans. he uses sports almost as michigan as i do.

he stressed to me and other member the importance that when serving as speaker pro tem, we become umpires and have to make rulings irrespective of partisan consideration. as important as it is to celebrate and honor john's professionalism, we honor him also as a person. since john's an avid basketball fan, i wonder if it's a mere coincidence or if there's some deeper meaning in his resignation taking effect this saturday, march 31, the date of the final four of the 2012 ncaa men's college basketball tournament. though i'm not certain for whom john is cheering in this year's tournament, i do know that he's closely followed former indiana and texas tech coach bobby knight's career so coach knight was at west point decades ago. they met on numerous occasions and john has a couple of basketballs sign by coach knight so i wish him an uninterrupted time through the finals and here, john, i would just say through the speaker that it's ok

to choose sides. as we say goodbye to john i'd also like to take this opportunity to welcome his respected successor, tom, the deputy parliamentarian. whom john has mentored and i know tom and the rest of the team will continue to guard the principles and rules that keep our democracy, our republic and this chamber functioning with the level of dedication and integrity we witnessed from his predecessor. my first four years in the house of representatives and our country are better off thanks to -- and our country are better off thank to john sullivan's public service. i wish you and your wife and your children continued success. john sullivan has made me a better member, more willing to heed the gavel, more respectful of the chair and more able to value this institution as he does. more competent as a member of congress. i wish you every happiness, i know that your family's been a tremendous support to you and your service in this house and

our nation. and to john sullivan, you leave behind a legacy of service that others can and should aspire to. and we thank you. with that i yield. mr. latourette: i want to thank the gentlelady from maryland for her remarks. it's now my pleasure to yield to another frequent presiding officer and accountant by training and trade, a man who has served in the house of representatives, the gentleman from texas, mr. conaway. mr. conaway: i thank the gentleman for yielding and i will not attempt the eloquence of all the previous speakers, i just simply want to say thanks to john sullivan. he's the only parliamentarian that i know, that i've served under. his -- i hate to call it the rain, but his service as -- reign, but his service began when i got here so it's been my privilege to serve with john. he's been even-handed throughout -- from my perspective, both four years in the minority and now in our fourth year back in

the majority and you can't tell with john's conduct which side you belong to. because he really does call them evenhandedly. when you love the institution the way i do and other members do, it's easy to recognize that love of institution in others. and there is no one that i know of that that evidence of loving this institution is greater than was demonstrated by john sullivan. the long-term -- the precedence of the house, the -- all of the things that go -- they're apart of, this institution that may give one of the most valuable legacies of our founding fathers, john has upheld those traditions and those long precedence in a very admirable way. so, john, thank you for the many chapters of your life that you have spent in service to this house of representatives. thank you for that and god speed in the many chapters of your life to follow this one.

this institution is better for your long service. i'm a better member of congress for your service. thank you, john. i yield back. mr. dingell: mr. speaker, again, through the kindness of my good friend from ohio, i yield two minutes to the distinguished gentleman from massachusetts. >> i thank the gentleman and i thank the gentleman from ohio. mr. speaker, i thank both of the chairs here today for the opportunity to praise our departing house parliamentarian in john sullivan. as he prepares to leave the house of representatives after 27 years of distinguished service. i represent the ninth district of massachusetts where in my new district i have 727,514 people. most of them named sullivan. so this seems like an irish wake here. but it is certainly not.

as we all know, john has served in the office of the house parliamentarian for most of his distinguished career, certainly the last eight as the house parliamentarian. mr. lynch: and serving as parliamentarian in this body takes a fair amount of skill and an enormous amount of patience. it is a time -- at times challenging and it is that skill and ability and patience that john provides us as members and that we rely on to also allow the house to function in an orderly manner and i thank all the members here today -- and i think all the members here today know that the advice we receive and the guidance we receive from john sullivan as our parliamentarian has given an unbiased and nonpartisan manner. following in the footsteps of his mentor, former house parliamentarian charlie johnson, john has served as the parliamentarian to both democrat and republican houses. and i think it's a tribute to john's integrity and trustworthyness that he was

appointed by three speakers of the house, speaker dennis hastert, a republican, speaker nancy pelosi, a democrat, and now speaker john boehner, again a republican. and a time period when we can just about agree on nothing between us, we agree on the great service of john sullivan. and he has received the support and admiration from both sides of the aisle and that is on display in the house tonight as both republican and democratic members pay tribute to a true man of the house. and while as members we are allowed to publicly pay tribute to john, i know that john's fellow workers and co-workers, former co-workers also wish him the best as he prepares for his next challenge. john has not let us know what his future professional plans will be. but we as a body know it will not be golf. we have seen john golf. and john sullivan and the sport

of golf are nongermane. but we all do know that he is enormously dedicated and devoted to his wife nancy and their three kids, michael, margaret and matthew. and we wish him the best as he leaves his professional family and begins to enjoy his true family. in closing, mr. speaker, i want to personally thank john for his friendship and guidance to me during my time in congress. john, you know that on many occasions the passions of this house have threatened to overtake proper decorum and i think it's been your integrity and your ability to reason and your reputation for nonpartisanship that has pulled us back from a brink on many occasions. you have certainly raise the bar in terms of dedicated service to this institution. i thank you and i wish you and your family god speed and good luck. god bless you and thank you for your service to this house of

representatives and i yield back the balance of my time. mr. latourette: i thank the gentleman from massachusetts for his observations and i would simply say that if you or mr. dingell or others were in charge, we'd get a lot more done around here. with that, you know, every support needs to have an -- sport needs to have an anchorman, if you're in baseball you need to have a closer. and when trouble is arubaing on the house floor, our side turns to our next speaker as a distinguished gentleman from utah, mr. bishop, and i would like to yield to him. mr. bishop: i think i thank you the gentleman from ohio for that introduction. since 1857, if i count correctly, john sullivan is the 19th parliamentarian we have had in the house of representatives. even though the term actually wasn't used officially until 1927. but of those parliamentarians in the 20th century, one served for

46 years as parliamentarian and i believe his replacement, williams brown, served for 20 years. so, john, in all sincerity, serving only eight years as the parliamentarian here makes you a parliamentarian slacker. and i think a couple more years would be appropriate if you'd like to reconsider your -- and stay with us. but through those years, those almost eight years as the parliamentarian, 20-plus years working in that office, your ability to help the majority meet its goals while at the same time respecting the minority is not an easy task. but john sullivan did do it with aplomb. former senator mccarthy said the senate have rules but none of them over there care about it. in the house, the house rules are too complex. don't learn them, just ask the parliamentarian. and i think for all of us, we do that. i do know from my time in the chair, parliamentarians do not like ad libbing. there is one time i simply turned to john and said, why

don't we just mike you and i will move my lips. i still think that would be far more appropriate but i don't think anyone in his office found that funny. george will once wrote that the only thick he remembers about his we had -- thing he remembers about his wedding day was the cubs lost a double header. i say that because john's grandfather pitched for the 1919 chicago black sox and john is still a fan of the white sox and closely associated with that franchise. his replacement, tom wickum, is a fan of the cardinals. for a cubs deb day like myself, there's just no hope in this world but i do want to know, even though both of you are on the wrong side of the baseball sphere, i want you to know that i thank you so very much, mr. sullivan, for your personal friendship, i also thank you for your two-plus decades of loyal service to this house and i also thank you for your lifetime of

service, dedication to this country. we wish you well, we are a better place for having worked with you here. i yield back. mr. dingell: mr. speaker, at this time i yield to my good friend from ohio, to my friend from indiana, mrs. mcclossky, five minutes. closscloss mr. dingell, i appreciate -- mr. visclosky: mr. speaker, it is with fond admiration and profound respect that i take this time to recognize a very dear friend and one of indiana's most distinguished citizens, the honorable john vincent sullivan. who i will always claim as a resident of the first congressional district, having graduated from munster high

school in munster, indiana. it has been mentioned though that he has served at this country in the united states air force. in fact, for 20 years. nine years active service, 11 years in the reserve, retiring with a designation of lieutenant colonel. what has not been mentioned, i don't think, this evening is that for some inexplicable reason, john also wanted to jump out of airplanes and became a qualified par trooper -- paratrooper but ultimately found himself at indiana university law school, that has been mentioned by mrs. biggert, but which was qualified by the gentlewoman from maryland who indicated that in fact, i don't think that john is so much an i.u. fan, as he is an avid bobby knight fan. but i do think that the mark of the man is the recognition of

his legal ac men, his grace -- accumen, his grace under pressure and his scrupulous fairness. when it was requested he join the parliamentarian's office in 1987 and seven years later his leadership skills and his ability to make nimble and wise decisions in very stressful and momentous situations was recognized by republican speaker dennis hastert who asked that he become parliamentarian of the house. mr. speaker, john comes from a strong family of nine children and his siblings love him deeply and know him better than any of us. and i am happy to share some of their thoughts with my colleagues. margaret mentions that as a teacher i know about the incredible power of a good model. john has provided the best model of a good brother, husband, public servant, son and man

throughout my life and i adore him. sister anne said, as a little sister, i chose john as my role model for integrity. later i chose him as my role model for word choice too. patty remarks that my heart is so full i do not know where to start. you know how i feel about my magnificent september big brother. gary for himself and for mary fran, a sister they lost, he said, i speak for myself and mary fran in thanking john for his service to our country. and timely -- and i would like to share my appreciation of my

brother. michael said, we got in trouble together, walked to school together and talked to each other about everything. that is where i learned all the important things about life. that is where i learned what it took to be a good man. john was my big brother but he was always bush he has always been my confidant and mentor. he's my number one phone call when i need advice. he has to discipline and -- he has the discipline and fairness that i look so it is good to have him to lean on. i love you, john, an i look forward to enjoying a piece of your retirement with you. jerry observed that john went to take his physical qualification test for the air force academy and tole dad he didn't seem to do as well as he expected. he did well enough and graduated from the air force

academy. but it turned out there was a reason for him not feeling full strength in the test he had a case of mo no knew cleo sis which has not -- mononucleosis that had not been diagnosed. only he as his own harrest critic knew anything wasn't right. the rest of the world saw those things that aed up to make him the best sort of guy. his brother jim said, i am four years older than john, and i would like to state for the record that john looks older than jim, but have looked up to him since i can remember. he is simply the finest man i know. he's as tough as they come and he is as gentle as a lamb with the innocent and those less strong than he. he is fearless and i have seen

him risk much to speak for the right regardless of the risk to himself. i have seen him operate in the right with all the advantages, yet let the vanquished go up and off the hook time and again. he embodied the c.d. of following the harder right rather than the easier wrong and of being humble and gentle in victory, stern and unyielding in defeat. his goodness and strength are clear from the moment you meet him. i would add that i witnessed the opportunity every time i had young people in the gallery since 1987 for the opportunity to point him out with pride as being from back home and emphasizing that he was someone they could emulate. that by studying hard, by using

the talents god had given them, they too could achieve a position of great responsibility and great opportunity to be of service to others and to their country. we will all miss you, john, a man who has dedicated and devoted his life to serving his country. this institution and each of us have become more effective and judicious stewards of the public trust because of john sullivan's example, his wisdom, and yes, his good humor. so i would conclude by saying, mr. speaker, that despite all the disparaging remarks john has made over these many years about the quality of the football team in south bend, indiana, called notre dame, i do sincerely wish him, his wife nancy, and their family every blessing an happiness that life has to offer and i yield back my time and i thank the

gentleman for the time. mr. latourette: i thank the gentleman from indiana. it's my understanding that mr. dingell has the -- mr. dingell: we have no further demands for time. but i have a few yords. mr. latourette: you go first. mr. dingell: i'm prepared to accede to the gentleman's leadership. mr. latourette: i think we need to hear from you, mr. dingell. mr. dingell: i begin by thanking my good friend for his leadership in this matter and ex-ten to him my highest esteem. aim pleased we have been able to have these few brief remarks from his friends, colleagues, and co-workers about our good friend mr. sullivan, our co-worker, and the parliamentarian of the house. i've known all parliament irn

-- parliamentarians in their sitting back to mr. deshler, mr. brown, mr. terry johnson an now of course our good friend, mr. sullivan and before them, i had the privilege of knowing the distinguished gentleman from missouri, a member of this body and also a prior parliamentarian of this body. i'm sure that this has been an evening that's opinion somewhat painful to our friend, the parliamentarian, because he has heard all kinds of nice things about him at a time when that is rather an unacut tomed practice. but i would like to tell him how proud we are that we've had such a dedicated public servant to work for and on behalf of the house of representatives and on behalf of all of us. as he repyres -- retires at the enof this week as parliamentarian of the house, i hope he knows his work would be approved and enthusiastically so, by all the gentlemen i have

mentioned earlier. i also hope that he understands that he has seen the greatest respect and afeck from his colleagues here in the house for his fairness, impartiality, and decency, his integrity and for the fair and nonpartisan, and you will not say -- note i did not say bipartisan, i said nonpartisan way he has conducted his responsibilities as the parliamentarian of the house. each and every one of us cowl count on mr. sullivan to take our calls on even the smallest question about motions and procedures. and all of us, with our any question -- without any question or doubt, knew the advice we were getting was completely honest. we also knew he would help us work out our problems so we could be functioning and effective members of this body and we also knew he would take a firm stand for the protection of the traditions and the institutional values of this body and would ensure that the

rule were always interpreted properly. he was a true institutionalist. he loved and revered the house of representatives. and he knew something that was very important that many of us have not yet learned and that is that this body as an institution is more important to all of us and to this nation than is any single issue oring a gation or congregation of issues or any individual or any group of individuals. because without the trust and affection and respect of the american people, this institution cannot function, cannot lead, cannot govern, and cannot carry out the trusts that we have been given back to the days of the founders of the country. i want, mr. speaker -- i want mr. sullivan to know, that he will always be missed but we know that he has left us in capable hands because he's built a fine office and tom

wickham, like mr. sullivan, has already proven to be discreet and well read in the procedures of the house and he will have the same decency and honesty that his predecessor has characterized his work with. all of us are going to miss him. he has been a distinguished public servant in the house since the term. all of us will wish him well as he goes off to do his business, whatever it may be, and we will hope that he has tremendous success, long life, great happiness, and a chance to come back here from time to time to see his old friends and to join in talking about the memories that we share together the great things we have done, the small thins we have done and all the wonderful stories that we have to tell and share about the privilege of serving in this, the greatest legislate i

body in the world. and i am going to express to him the wish that he will have happiness in his retirement. i know that that wish is shared and honored by all his colleagues an all our colleagues and i know that the very fine group of parliamentarians who are here to show their appreciation to him and for his wonderful leadership share in the thoughts that you have heard. this has been an extraordinary bipartisan expression of the affection and respect that we have for our parliamentarian which he has earned. we have not praised him, we simply told the truth about him. and that's something he can be proud that we are able to do and willing to do. i would note dollar some who might live in mortal and desperate fear of having others telling the truth about him system of in any event, we express to him our thanks and

our admiration but also that of the entire membership of the house of representatives who have been honored by your service, your guidance, your friendship, your dignity and your great appreciation of this body and the responsibilities we have and now i thank my good friend from ohio for being so generous and for his leadership in this matter. mr. latourette: mr. speaker, i want to thank you for your indulgence and i thank the dean of the house for organizing this special order. the house of representatives is building, it's a nice place, but it's really the people. and john dingell is the house of representatives, as his father was before him. pete visclosky is the house of representatives. when i got here pete was the parliamentarian and he was the house of representatives. i don't want to break the mood here but in my opinion, the jury is still out on wickham,

we'll see how he does, but i think things have the opportunity to be ok. i just want to tell two quick stories that to me told the measure of the man. the first was a number of years ago when we had a member who was going to be expelled from the house of representatives. only the third time in modern history that that occurred, the last one was in the 1970's, nobody had really had a chance to study the precedents and things of that nature. i was kind of surprised that that process only took an hour of floor time. an hour to basically end somebody's political life. so i went to john and he gave me advice and told me to file something to postpone it to a date certain, which i had never heard of and i bet most members never heard of but that gave members of the house an additional hour to discuss the case and i think at the end of that, because of john's

stewardship and knowledge of the rule the house as a body felt better at the conclusion of that two-hour debate. in ohio, it happened to be a member of ohio, we're celebrating in ohio, that ohio state is in the final four, our guy, john boehner is speaker of the house an it marks the first time in eight years we haven't had a member of our delegation in prison so we're pleased about that as well. but i will tell you it was john's council -- counsel that got us through that. and this other one was more recently. on our side we call it the day of the stolen vote. i think the distinguished minority whip called it a procedural hiccup but regardless, if you were here that night, it was wild. people were screaming and yelling and crying and i had the opportunity to watch the videotape about 300 times because we then had a special committee look into it an always in all the frames there

was one rock, like the rock of gibraltar standing there above the fray saying, we need to be calm. reminded me, i don't know if you saw kevin bacon in "animal house," but he says stay calm, stay calm, and the crowd runs him over and he's nothing but a uniform at the en. that's what was going on around john. the place could have devolved into a very serious problem. it looked messy, it was messy, but the measure of john's stewardship of the rules of the house, i would say that there was pressure on he and the rest of the parliamentarian staff to do what one side or the other wanted him to do or to -- for his opinion to come out one way or the other and the republicans, you know, we wanted him to say, hey, they stole the vote. it was 215-213, the gavel came down, you know, you hoodwinked us. and from the democratic side the pressure was, well, these things happen. stuff en