the chair: on this vote the yeas are 250. the nays are 159. the amendment is adopted. the committee will be in order.

the committee will be in order. members, please take your seats. the committee will be in order. for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> mr. chairman, i'd like to ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute out of order. the chair: without objection. >> i want to take this opportunity to update my colleagues on a competition that takes place each year between house and democrats and house republicans, it's called the first t congressional

challenge and it's a golf match that is patterned after the ryder cup golf matches you watch on television from time to time. mr. crenshaw: it's sponsored by "roll call" and the winner of the event each year is entitled to keep what has been known as the coveted "roll call" cup for a year. i want to announce for the members this year the republican team won the competition. so we will keep the cup. that's the fourth year in a row that republicans have won the coveted cup. let me just say thank you to all my teammates -- the speaker pro tempore: the committee will be in order. mr. crenshaw: i would like to congratulate the teammates for their fine work, their fine play. congratulate the democrats for their sportsmanship. we had a couple of rookies that played well. it's the spirit of competition, it's a chance for individuals to meet some folks across the aisle

and build friendships and it's made more meaningful by the fact that the money raised each year goes to an organization called the first tee. that's a group active in all 50 of our state it's touched the lives of over 10,000 young people it uses the game of golf to teach about values such as hard work and honesty and integrity. so it's a wonderful organization. over the years, we have raised over $2 million for the first tee. that makes it even more meaningful. now i'd like to yield a moment to my counterpart, the captain of the democratic team, the gentleman from kentucky, mr. yarmuth. mr.iar smuth: i thank my -- mr.iar smuth: i thank -- mr. yarmuth: i thank my friend and congratulate the republicans. elections have repercussions

and we lost some of our good golfers after the elections. again, the republicans have a terrific team made up of truly honorable and wonderful people. i think we all on both sides of the aisle get a great deal of enjoyment from this competition. we have made friends. and as mr. crenshaw said, we have succeeded in raising an awful lot of money for a very, very good cause. so i want to thank the republicans for a great competition, i thank my teammates for their efforts, they need to be practicing for the next year a little more. but i also want to thank the sponsors who actually contribute to this event and make the fundraising possible. so once again congratulations. we won six years in a row you've now won four years in a row. it's interesting how streaks come, along with the majority. so we'll give it another try next year.

once again, congratulations to the republicans and even more importantly, congratulations to the first tee for the work that they do. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. mr. crenshaw: i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. without objection, two-minute voting will continue. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on amendment number 2 printed in part b of house report 114-230 by the gentleman from missouri, mr. smith, on which further proceed wrgs postponed and on which the yeas prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 2 printed in part b of house report 114-230 offered by mr. smith of missouri. the speaker pro tempore: a recorded vote has been requested. those in spoth of the request for a recorded vote will rise and be counted. a sufficient number having risen, 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 speaker pro tempore: on this vote, the yeas are 24 -- the chair: on this vote the yeas are 242, the nays are 167. the amendment is adopted. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on amendment number 4 printed in part b of house report 114-230

by the gentleman from georgia, mr. johnson, on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 4 printed in part b of house report 14-220 offered by mr. johnson of georgia. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of the request for a recorded vote will rise and be counted. a sufficient number having risen a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. this will be 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 163, the nays are 246. the amendment is not adopted. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on amendment number 5 printed in part b of house report 114-230 by the gentlewoman from california, mrs. capps, on which further proceedings were postponed an on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 5 printed in part b of house report 114-220 offered by mrs. capps of california. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of the request

for a recorded vote will rise and be downed. a sufficient number having risen a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. this will be 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 166, the nays are 238.

the chair: on this vote the yeas are 166 and the nays are 244. the amendment is not adopted. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on amendment number 6 printed in part b of house report 114-230

by the gentleman from rhode island mr. cicilline on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the yeas prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 6 printed in part b of house report 114-230 offered by mr. cicilline of rhode island. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of the request for 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 will be 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 166 and the nays are 242. the amendment is not adopted. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on amendment number 7 printed in part b of house report 114-230 by the gentleman from rhode island, mr. cicilline, on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 7 printed in part b of house report 114-230 offered by mr. cicilline of rhode island. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested.

those in support of the request for 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 will be 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 167. the nays are 243. the amendment is not adopted. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on amendment number 9 printed in part b of house report 114-230 by the gentleman from new york, mr. nadler, on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the nays prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 9 printed in part b of house report 114-230 offered by mr. nadler of new york. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of the request for 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 will be 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 167. the nays are 241. the amendment is not adopted. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on amendment number 10 printed in part b of house report 114-230

by the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. pocan, on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 10 printed in part b of house report 114-230 offered by mr. pocan of wisconsin. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of the request for 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 will be 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 167 the nays are 239. the amendment is not adopted. the question is on the 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. 42 and pursuant to house resolution 380, i report the bill back to the house with the amendments adopted in the committee of the

whole. the speaker pro tempore: the chairman of the committee of the whole house on the state of the union reports the bill has -- the committee has had under consideration h.r. 427 and reports it back to the house with an amendment adopted by 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 adoption of the amendment in the nature of a substitute as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. ayes have it. the amendment is agreed to. the question is on engrossment and third reading of the bill. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. ayes have it. third reading. the clerk: a bill to amend chapter 8 of title 5 to provide that major rules of the executive branch shall have no effect unless a joint resolution of approval is enacted into law. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from minnesota seek recognition? >> i have a megs to recommit at the desk. the speaker pro tempore: is the gentleman opposed to the bill? >> i am opposed in its current

form. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman qualifies. the clerk will report the motion. the clerk: mr. nolan of minnesota moves to recommit the bill back to the committee with the following amendment. add at the end of the bill, the following, section 6 protecting guaranteed social security and medicare. the rules for certain classes of such rules -- the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the house will be in order. would members remove their conversation from the floor. clear the well. clear the ales. -- the aisles.

mr. nolan: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman will suspend. the house will be in order. once again members are advised to clear the aisles and the well, take your seats. the gentleman deserves to be heard. the gentleman from minnesota is recognized for five minutes. mr. nolan: mr. speaker, members of the house, my amendment would see to it that nothing in this legislation does any harm to social security or medicare. why? because first of all, they're not entitlements. they're earned benefits. the people started paying for the -- that people started paying for the first day, the first hour they ever went to work. our seniors rely on their social security. and medicare.

nothing has done more to lift more people out of poverty and give them health and life expectancy than social security and medicare. thank you. mr. speaker, the underlying legislation that we're looking at here proposes to provide relief, but in fact, it proposes to emasculate and do away with the regulatory process and in the process do great harm and great damage to the things, the many things that have made this country the great nation that it is. i've got to tell you, i look around this room here and the age of this congress, make no

mistake about it. many of you are there -- were there when i was there, when our rivers were running sewers. when our lakes were catching on fire. when our coal miners and boat workers were dying young in life from fiberglass lungs and coal dust in their lugs. i've spent time in the saw mills. i owned one. you couldn't find anyone that could count to five on their hands because they were either missing fingers hands, arms, or legs or had lost their lives. for want of a little ventilation, for want of a safety switch or a guard of some sort. the simple truth is that these laws these regulations turned

all that around. that's right. they turned all that around. guess what? they doubled our life expectancy. maybe one of the greatest accomplishments of all time. we went from our grandparents with life expectancy of 47 to darn near 80. what an incredible accomplishment. and now, now the question is now the question is do we want to protect that progress? i hope so. do we. thank you. do we want to pay it forward? do we want to turn it back. i should hope not. do we really want to paralyze these laws and do away with the rules and regulations that gave us clean water that we can drink and clean air that we can breathe without getting sick? i should hope not.

is that really what we want to do? do we want to do away with he healthy, safe, working conditions that extended life for people who worked hard to build a life for themselves and their family it is? is that what we really want to do? we want to do away with food safety that protected us from the drugs and the chemicals that ended our lives prematurely? is that what we want to do? i should hope not. no. no. do we want to do away with wall street regulations? the billionaires who play so fast and loose with other people's money? well, we sure as heck don't want to turn social security and medicare over to them, to we? imagine what they would do with social security and medicare. it's devastating and it's

frightening. mr. speaker, my amendment protects both. that's the least we can do. my amendment protects social security, it protects medicare, and that's the least that we can do for a generation that gave us so much. and last but not least, had it not been for these regulations, had it not been for social security and medicare, half of us wouldn't be here. that's right. because we increased the life expectancy from 47 to 80. so show some gratitude. show some -- be grateful. and protect social security and medicare. thank you.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i rise to claim time in opposition to the motion to recommit. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. goodlatte: on the floor of this house in 2011, the president of the united states

promised to reduce barriers to growth and investment when we find rules that put unnecessary burden on businesses we will fix them. but mr. speaker those were just the president's words. his actions have been starkly different. throughout the entire six-plus years of the president's administration, a flood of new major regulations has been burying america's job creators and households at record levels. and to make matters worse, when congress declines to legislate, the president's misfwided policies for him, he takes his pen and his cell phone and he increasingly resorts to unilateral regulatory actions to legislate by executive fiat. the reins act in one fell swoop

puts a stop to that and assures that congress, the body which the constitution assigns the power to legislate, will possess an additional check on the most ledge -- most significant legislative decisions imposed on the american people through regulation. the moigs to recommit seek -- the motion to recommit seeks only to distract if the urgent needs to reform our regulatory system and reduce unnecessary burdens on the public. i think americans are tired of the other party telling them that their bureaucrats know better than their own elected officials. i urge my colleagues to support this bill, reject this motion to recommit, and show america that congress can act for the good of american job creators and americans who desperately want and need jobs. and i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the previous question is ordered. the question is on the motion to recommit. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the noes have it. mr. nolan: i ask for a recorded vote. the speaker pro tempore: a recorded vote is requested. those in favor of a recorded vote will rise. a sufficient number having risen a recorded vote is ordered. pursuant to clause 9 of rule 20, this five manufacture minute vote will be followed by a five-minute vote on passage of the bill if ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a five-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 speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 167, the nays are 241. 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 gentleman from georgia. mr. johnson: i ask for a recorded vote. the speaker pro tempore: a recorded vote is requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a five-minute vote. five-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 speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 243, the nays are 165. the bill is passed, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition? >> by direction of the democratic caw kiss, i offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the resolution. the clerk: house resolution 387, resolved that the following named member be and is hereby elected to the following standing the committee of the house of representatives. one, committee on natural resources, mr. clay. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the resolution is agreed to and the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

on behalf of the majority-minority leaderships, the chair announces that the official objecters for the private calendar for the 114th congress are as follows. the clerk: for the majority, mr. goodlatte of virginia, mr. sensenbrenner of wisconsin, mr. gowdy of south carolina, for the minority, mr. serrano of new york, mr. nadler of new york ms. bass of california. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will now entertain requests for one-minute speeches. for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition?

mr. thompson: mr. speaker, request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized. for one minute. the gentleman is recognized. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. in 1831, a tradition was started in huntington county, pennsylvania, which would go on to become a staple of the summer time agricultural expos. this august 9, the huntington county fair sell brating its 125th -- fair, celebrating its 125th fair devotes hundreds of agricultural exhibits ranging from equine shows to wine tasting. the huntington county fair provides areas of interest for almost everyone. mr. speaker, as a member of the house committee on agriculture, i am proud to rise today to congratulate the people of huntington county and those countless volunteers and

community members who have made this time-honored event a pennsylvania tradition. including the parents and friends of 4-h, f f.f.a. youth members and the huntington county agricultural association. here's to wishing them 125 more successful fairs for the next generation and generations to come. thank you, mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? without objection, the gentleman from texas is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, members, i rise today to highlight the 50th anniversary of the medicare and medicaid programs. since 1965, these landmark programs have provided affordable health insurance coverage and access to care for our nation's seniors and the most vulnerable populations. few programs have improved the lives of americans as significantly as medicaid and medicare. 50 years ago almost half of elderly americans lacked health insurance. today medicare provides life-saving insurance to nearly 100% of adults over 65.

medicaid continues to be a life line for millions of children, pregnant women, people with disabilities seniors and low-income families. mr. green: over 70 million americans currently rely on medicaid for affordable health insurance. medicaid covers more than one in three children, pays for nearly half of all births, accounts for more than 40% of all long-term care. on the anniversary of this historic law, we celebrate the successes of medicaid and medicare. we must renew our commitment to further strengthening them so they remain available in perpetuityy for generations to come -- perpetuity for generations to come. thank you and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlelady from florida seek recognition? ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady from florida is recognized for one minute. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you so much, mr. speaker. i rise today to recognize jewish community services of south florida and its upcoming

annual milk and honey event, which will take place on august 30 and starts at the great ever miami jewish federation. this tremendous faith-based nonprofit organization has worked to improve the lives of south florida residents since 1920. it is one of our state's largest and most reliable social service organizations. among the many important services that the j.c.s. of south florida provides -- j.c.f. of south florida provides is supporting our elderly. this year's milk and-event will again bring together hundreds of volunteers to assemble food baskets and hurricane preparedness kits for vulnerable south florida seniors. my community liaison and i have participated in many events of the j.c.f. of south florida and i thank all of the volunteers who will make this event a smarning success. thank you, mr. speaker -- smashing success. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the

gentlelady from florida seek recognition. -- recognition? does the gentlelady seek unanimous consent? the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. . ms. brown: thank you mr. speaker. i participated in a laying a wreath in memory of veterans. we need to do more for veterans by passing the v.a. budget legislation. i support this draft legislation because it addresses the $3 billion shortfall for fiscal year 2015 that veterans have and it keeps hospital and medical facilities open for our veterans through the end of the fiscal year this legislation provides the v.a. to use the dollars for health care providers to veterans and family members under the program provided by the nond.h. provision. this bill allows them access to this money in addition $50

million to be used for pharmaceutical expenses related to treatment of hepatitis c at the v.a. s that cure many of the veterans need especially those who served in vietnam. and i urge my colleagues to pass this legislation before we go home. as the -- as they say this is one team, one fight. we need to work on behalf of our veterans. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from montana seek reck snigs >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> i rise in support of jobs and against this administration's war on coal. in montana, coal means jobs, blue collar, union jobs. it means affordable utilities and coal means montana. mr. sinnkey: in the words of

chairman -- mr. zinke: in the words of the old chief, coal jobs means crow jobs. montana could lead the nation in coal production but unfortunately, president obama and his e.p.a. are wage a more afwressive war on coal than they are against isis. montana alone and our coal produces $1.7 billion in royalty payments which pays for schools, bridges and infrastructure. the e.p.a.'s clean power plan will kill montana jobs. those are real jobs, like in the rose bud mine and colstrip and across our state. mr. chairman i ask my colleagues to support montana and support our nation's energy independence through coal. with that, i yield. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek reck snigs -- recognition?

without objection the gentleman from new jersey is recognized for one minute. >> thank you mr. speaker. nearly 50 years after the voting rights act was signed into law, we still see efforts to weaken voter protection and suppress votes. mr. payne: discriminatory voting laws such as strict photo i.d. requirements and reduced early voting disproportionately impacts minority voters in the name of preventing widespread voter fraud, a problem that simply does not exist. clearly, since the supreme court's decision two years ago to ered some of the v.r.a.'s most critical protections, including preclearance requirement that protect against disenfranchising law the voting rights act is still needed more now than ever before. yet, republicans have refused to allow renewed and strengthened

voting rights act to come to the floor. this should concern everyone who believes in the right to vote as one of the most fundamental to our democracy. it is time we renew and strengthen the voting rights act. mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from illinois is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today because it's pastime we call human trafficking what it really is mr. dold: modern day slavery. every year up to 300,000 children are at risk of being sex trafficked here in our country. on average, they are first sold so sex slavery before their 13th birthday. as a father, i can't fathom anything more disgusting. earlier this year, i supported legislation that we successfully passed aimed at stopping sex trafficking. but the fight is far from over.

human trafficking generates $9.5 billion worldwide each and every year and the criminals that profit off sex trafficking aren't going too give in that easy. for example, right now in my district back page -- backpage.com a disgusting website that promotes online sex trafficking, is suing illinois because our officials stood up to the exploitation of minors. we must do everything we can to put an to end this atrocity. i pledge to work with my colleagues here in this house on both sides of the aisle to stop this abhorrent crime. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection the gentleman from texas is recognized for one minute. mr. poe: mr. speaker, amanda jones was kidnapped in dallas,

texas. she was 15 years of age. then she was sold for sex at the hands of human traffickers. children right here in the united states are bought and sold for sexual exploitation. in urban suburban, and rural areas. their souls are stolen from them and no community is immune. amanda was in slayry for nine years. she eventually escaped with her daughter and thankfully found services through a new wonderful organization in dallas, new friends, in uh life. new friends, new life is primarily funded by dallas daughters and provides services to victims to address their unique needs. it helps them rebuild their lives. amanda now helps other trafficking victims become survivors instead of victims. we need more programs like this one for survivors -- where survivors help each other. now through funding in the victims for trafficking act, more services will be available to victims like amanda. we can stop traffickers in their tracks because our children are

not for sale in our town new york our state, or in our country. and that's just the way it is. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio seek recognition? without objection the gentleman from ohio is recognized for one minute. >> thank you mr. speaker. i'd like to take a moment this evening to offer my appreciation and sincere best wishing to mark wellman, my chief of staff for the last four years, who is leaving us at the end of this week to accept an appointment as professor of constitutional law at the united states military academy at west point. mr. chabot: mark has specially served as -- as superbly served as a congressional staffer for more than two decades, first with our late colleague, paul gillmor of ohio, and then following an earlier tour at west point, in my office. during all those years he served with distinction in the national guard, including a tour in iraq, and has risen to the rank of

colonel. he's an outstanding individual. a gentleman of the first order. the world's most loyal chicago cubs fan and a great american. he will be truly missed. good luck, mark, and god bless you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you mr. speaker. for allowing me to come to the floor and recognize several unsung heroes in the fourth congressional district of texas. several counties in my district are just now beginning to recover from recent flooding at historic level soice appreciate the opportunity to thank all of the -- levels. so i appreciate the opportunity to thank all of the people across my district in grayson fannin, lamar, red river bowie hopkins, delta and cass counties.

those like steven higgins, robert flowers in grayson county jim roberts debra land, and james carlow in bowie county as well as so many others are deserving of our gratitude. while our first responders' efforts have been vital and in some cases heroic, many folks back home are still suffering. so mr. speaker i want my constituents to know that they can still reach out to my office if they need any assistance or help with any issues related to flooding. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the chair lays before the house the following communication. the clerk: the honorable the speaker, house of representatives, sir, this is to notify you formally, pursuant to rule 8 of the rules of the house of representatives, that i have been served with a nonparty subpoena issued by the madera county superior court, madera county qaem, for documents in a civil case. after consultation with the office of general counsel i

have determined this is consistent with the privileges of the house. the honorable the speaker house of representatives, sir, pursuant to section 202-a of the veterans access, choice, and accountability act of 2014, public law 113-146 i am pleased to appoint the following individual to the commission on care. mr. michael blecker of san francisco, california. thank you for your consideration of this appointment. signed sincerely, nancy pelosi, democratic leader. the speaker pro tempore: the chair lays before the house the following personal requests. the clerk: eve of absence requested for mr. graves of georgia for today ms. jackson lee of texas for monday, july 27 and tuesday july 28, mr. levin of michigan for 4:30 today until the balance of the week. the speaker pro tempore: without objection the requests are granted.

under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2015 the gentleman from west virginia, mr. mckinley is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. mr. mckinley: mr. chairman, before i begin, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the topics of this special order. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. mckinley: thank you. thank you, mr. chairman. or mr. speaker. tonight, we want to talk about these three judgets -- subjects as it relates to coal. you've heard recent remarks made a few minutes ago about the war on coal. we want to talk about the impacts of coal. the regulations. and the clean power plan. that's what we're going to be talking about tonight these three primary subjects. but i want to put things in

perspective. we want to talk about the -- how does -- how does this -- you hear us, many of us, that come from coal country. we've been fighting about coal. fighting for coal. why do we do that? look at the impact, for those of you who aren't coming from a coal community, we mine coal in 27 states but just look at this. the impact it has. coal mining, $58 billion a year and then the generation of power from coal, totals $142 billion. now that -- maybe that doesn't mean a lot to a lot of folks but $142 billion. put that in context with the automobile industry. all of us are familiar with cars. we all -- we hear the commercials on television. we know about the discussion about how you've got to have the

latest car. this is bigger than the car industry. the automobile industry is $130 billion. that's why many of us all across this country are concerned about this future of the coal industry. it's larger than the automobile industry. i want you to understand that. everyone should make sure they grasp the impact of that. but this war on coal that many of us have been talking about for some time, i want to make sure that people understand how it affects us. individually and affects a state like west virginia. just seven years ago, the unemployment rate in west virginia was the seventh best in the country. seventh best in the country.

but after seven years of a war on coal, after regulation after regulation after regulation, west virginia's unemployment rate now has dropped, we're the last place in the nation. think about that impact for all of us. you go from number seven to 50th in just seven years. combine that with families, the families of our coal miners. and just in the past three years, just in three years 45% of the coal miners in west virginia have lost their job. 45%. these are people. these are real people. they're not statistics. shimkus from illinois uses this chart. i want to give -- he's shown this over the years. my five years in congress, he's

somehowed -- showed it. these are the people we're talking about all over this country, are losing their job. in west virginia it's 45% of them lost. just in the coal fields of west virginia, the unemployment rate is staggering. and that hasn't stopped the administration. we're talking about unemployment rates two and three times the rate of the national figures. 13.5%, 13% 12% 10%. that's tough. for a family, a community, a state, all to be ave to -- all to be able to survive for that. we keep talk being mines shutting down -- talking about mines shutting down. i want people to understand that when you shut down coal mines, you really affect a community. these people have families. when these men lose their job, it affects other.

people you can shut down -- the administration and the e.p.a. can shut down the coal mining industry. yes, they can, and they're doing a pretty good job of it. if that was their intent, was to shut down and people lose their jobs. but think about it. when these men lose their jobs, it's not just the coal meyinssers -- coal miners that are losing their jobs. it's the other individuals in the community. we're talking about the railroad workers, the barge operators, the trucking industry all that come to pick up the coal at the mine. to take it to the power plant. the machinists, the concrete suppliers, the people that put the conveyer belts in, all of them lose their jobs. the timber industry. then go outside. talk to the school board, when the school boards are struggling to make ends meet because so many of their employers are gone.

their tax base is eroded with it. but also go to the grocery store and find out, grocery stores pharmacy, restaurants apartment buildings. we have a map to show the impact of this we've got several speakers here tonight to talk more about it. this is a location of all the power plants across america. over 500 coal-fired plants operating today around this country. but just in the last month, the sierra club, bloomberg, earth justice and all have been touting the fact they want, by the year, 20 -- by the year 2017, to take 1/3 of those red dots off the map. to take off almost 1/3 of our capacity to generate electricity, could be gone. because of the rules and the way some of the environmental groups are pursuing this. 1/3 of it.

in terms of grid reliability with this, you have to deal with -- they talked about -- if we continue to shut down coal-fired power plants and don't replace them whether that's with wind, solar or gas, our grid reliability is going to be in question. how many times are we going to lose our power? ferc has already said that if we don't do something by 2017 they're saying the midwest is going to start experiencing rolling blackouts. so let's be careful with this. i want to stop now and try to frame some of the argument about this history of how we've got to this point that you're seeing the frustration in congress. but i wanted to put that again in context. this industry is bigger than the automobile industry. but we don't have the big communities, we don't have the detroits and the grand rapids. we just have farmington,

lumberport, small towns that make up the backbone of rural america. that's what we're trying to fight for. so let me hear from, if we can, we've got -- i want to yield to the congressman from ohio, bill johnson, your comments. mr. johnson: thank you, thank you to my colleague for yielding. you know you made a comment just a minute ago about, you know, we don't have the detroits, we don't have the new yorkers, we don't have the big cities. in coaltry -- in coal country. we may not have those big cities in coal country but i guarantee you those big cities get some of their electricity from the coal that's produced by the coal miners that live in our region. you know, over the past five years, the office of surface mining and reclamation has spent more than 10 million -- $10 million of its budget to pursue a wholesale rewrite of one of its agencies' regulatory programs -- one of its agency's

regulatory programs. this massive regulatory undertaking has little to do with protecting streams and much more to do with writing -- riding rough shod over state regulatory programs. this rule rewrite means more americans will be out of work. and that electricity bills of hardworking families could increase. as o.s.m.'s related draft environmental impact statement indicates, the appalachian basin, home to thousands of ohioans who depend on the coal industry for their livelihood, to put food on their table, to put clothes on their children, to send their children to school the appalachian basin could see as many as 450 production-related jobs lost per year, with potential adverse impacts of $37 million annually. and this appears to be of little concern to the administration as interior

secretary was recently quoted as characterizing the job loss in coal country associated with this rule rewrite as minor. now, i invite the secretary to join me on a trip to any coal mine in ohio and directly tell the hardworking minors -- miners, look them in the eye, and tell them that this new rule has only minor impacts. i'll clear my schedule and i'll be available n'diaye, any time to go with her, that she wants to come there. furthermore, this regulation omits and ignores the relevant input from those stakeholders with the most expertise in regulating mining. the states who have been doing it for years. in fact, nine of the 10 states originally involved in the rules development have withdrawn their support due to o.s.m.'s exclusionary tactics.

this is unacceptable. and it's why i urge the house to consider h.r. 1644, the stream act, as soon as possible. introduced by my colleague from west virginia the stream act would direct the administration to conduct a comprehensive study of the effectiveness of the stream buffer zone rule that's been in place since 1983. we've been doing this for a long time. and protecting streams in the process. now, while this study occurs, a prohibition on the promulgation of new rules addressing the stream protection or stream buffers would be implemented to ensure that the secretary incorporates the findings of the study into any future rulemaking. this is just one example, mr. mckinley of the regulatory overreach of this administration and its devastating impacts on coal miners, on families that depend on the coal industry for their

livelihood, and the businesses that depend on cost affordable, reliable electricity across our country. i appreciate you giving me a few minutes to share that. mr. mckinley: thank you. you've been one of our stalwarts in pushing this legislation for all five years you've been here. i know people across this country recognize the work that you're doing on behalf of the coal miners. mr. johnson: i'm proud to be on your team. mr. mckinley: we also have a host of the other folks here to address -- we've got this chart up, eventually we're going to get to that in the next part of it. but what we're talking about here, here are all the regulations, these are all the regulations that are affecting the coal industry. the manufacturing industry, all promulgated from the clean air act. we'll get to that in a minute. in the meantime, let's hear from some of the more -- let's hear from more of the

individuals. i'd like to provide congressman jenkins from the third district of west virginia for two two minutes. mr. jenkins: thank you congressman mckinley. thank you for your leadership as chair of the coal caucus. it does great work, i'm honored to be a part of it and i'm honored to work with you. as you well know and as the people of america need to know, we are at a critical point in this war on coal and it truly is a war on coal. coal vital to the people of west virginia and to west virginia's economy and to this country. coal supports many crucial investments in southern west virginia in my congressional district. its revenues help support tourism, roads and infrastructure. it will make king coal highway a reality and make sure we do not have a bridge to nowhere. like we already have in southern west virginia. coal puts food on the table. coal pays the bills.

coal supports families. coal generates the revenue that provides for our roads and our schools, our police and our fire departments. coal keeps the lights on. but sadly this administration doesn't recognize the value of coal or of the people who work to mine it. they are proposing regulation after regulation to make it harder to mine coal, harder to burn coal and harder to produce affordable energy from coal. we've lost an estimated 45% of our coal jobs in just the last six years. while that's a sobering number, it's more than a statistic. each one of those employees has responsibilities. they have bills, they have families they have rent or house payments. how will they provide for themselves and others without their coal jobs? we must stand up for west virginia jobs, west virginia energy west virginia coal. and that's exactly what i'm doing in congress, as a member

of the house appropriations committee. at one hearing i did ask e.p.a. administrator to come to west virginia and listen to us and she declined. so i brought logan county coal miners to washington to testify before congress. they shared how coal provides good paychecks to support their families and how their worried overregulations will will -- they're would -- they're worried overregulations will put them out of work. i'm working in congress to make sure our miners will be able to provide for their families and that our state still has access to affordable domestic energy. i will continue to fight each and every day. thank you for your leadership. i yield back. mr. mckinley: thank you for your comments. let me add before we go to congressman kely, i just want to add because you talked about education, you know the duke energy plant over in new richmond, ohio cost him $1.5 million out of their school system, out of property taxes, with that closure. you're absolutely right. when we talk about the impact

it's going to have on schools and what -- when we start depriving it. then you have first energy's albright plant. they lost $380,000 and the a.e.p. plant $406,000. these are real money that's hurting the community it's depriving our scooling system of money -- school system of money, all pushing an ideology. so thank you, thank you for joining in this fight. i'd like to yield now some time to congressman kelly from pennsylvania. mr. kelly: i thank the gentleman. mr. mckinley: two minutes? three minutes? mr. kelly: maybe three. it is about time. time is running out. and i think right now we look at what's happening at coal country and nothing could be more alarbling -- alarming than what is happening. this is one promise the president kept. when he ran, he said, you can continue to make coal or make electric power by burning coal. but if you decide to go that way, we will bankrupt you. that is one promise he's kept.

in pennsylvania alone, coal is responsible for over 40,000 jobs. and 40% of our electric power. associated press calls it the workhorse of america's power system. but the extreme overreach by the e.p.a. is threatening jobs and forcing energy costs for families and manufacturers to skyrocket. which hurts every single american. this is something i think the general public has to understand. while maybe they don't go down in those meyinsse, while maybe they don't bring that precious product out from underneath the ground and while maybe they don't work in a coal -- in a power-producing -- coal-fired power plant, one thing they do know is when they turn on the switch to turn on the power, it's reliable because of coal. coal has always been the standard. coal has always driven. the fact that we not only have coal that's abundant, we have coal that's accessible and we have coal that's very affordable, why in the world would we go away from this workhorse of america's power system? that's one of the reasons we

introduced -- re-introduced the coal country protection act. that's h.r. 2637. it's just a commonsense bill that would stop any new e.p.a. regulations from affecting america's power plants until four outcomes are achieved. number one, no job losses. number two, no loss in g.d.p. or economic growth. number three, no higher electric rates. and number four, no interruption in the reliable delivery of electrical energy. these are pretty commonsense goals. . who would verify that? who would certify that? the energy secretary could do it. the federal energy regulatory commission could do it. the north american electric reliability corporation could do it. we said at the time, it is time not just for coal country, time for people to stand up and fight for coal, it's time for the whole