iran corporation at $1.4 billion, the wilson center to the tune of $52 million. the atlantic council, center for new american security, the marshall fund, carnegie endowment, brookings institution, and inter-american dialogue. why is the united states government giving money to think tanks? guest: it is a very good question. in some cases the money is going to think tanks because the federal government needs answers to some very hard questions. the top recipient of that funding, ran is known as a federally funded research center. it is really a fancy way of saying these are the government nerds who help the government answer these tough questions that they might have. most of the research funded

never sees the light of day. these are private reports usually going to the department of to suspend the rules on which a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered, or votes objected to under clause 6 of rule 20. the house will resume proceedings on postponed questions at a later time. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 192. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 192. a bill to amend title 49, united states code, to require amtrak to include information on base pay and bonus compensation of certain amtrak executives and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from missouri, mr. graves, and the gentlewoman from oregon, ms. hoyle, each will control 20 minutes. the gentleman from missouri.

mr. graves: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. grace: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. graves: i'm proud to be a co-sponsor on this tbhism bill is spended -- intended to ensure that annual bonuses awarded to amtrak's top executive are made public at the beginning of every calendar year. amtrak relies heavily on government subsidies and has never made a profit. however, amtrak's officers have been award generous bonuses. the disclosure of such huge pay yots outrages the public and members of the transportation committee. this bill is a strong step toward transparency for amtrak executives and amtrak's board of directors. i very much appreciate the gentleman from north carolina, representative rouzer's, work on

this legislation and i urge adoption by the house. with that, i would reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady from oregon is recognized. ms. hoyle: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of the amtrak executive bonus disclosure act. this would require amtrak to post the pecktive leadership team annually on the amtrak website. congress requires the nation's intercity passenger railroads to submit this information to congress. this bill would increase transparency of the information to the public and require it to be posted online as well. as amtrak has now done for the last two years. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation, thank you, and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i would yield five minutes to the gentleman from north carolina, the bill's sponsor, mr. rouzer. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for five

minutes. mr. rouser: i thank my friend. i rise in support of this bill, the amtrak executive bonus disclosure act. mr. rouzer: it requires public disclosure of taxpayer funded bonuses given to its top executive. amtrak was created 55 years ago by congress as a for-profit entity to relieve our nation's vital freight railroads of their obligation under law to provide what had proved to be an unprofitable intercity passenger rail service. since then, amtrak has done no better. they have failed to ever make a profit and struggle to provide adequate service. even with the post-pandemic improvements in ridership, staggering financial losses remain. in 2023, amtrak lost more than $1.7 billion despite collecting $11 billion in taxpayer subsidies and almost $22 billion in advanced funding from the

infrastructure investment and jobs act. amtrak's delays and customer service failures were front and center the day after christmas just a month ago when the northeast corridor train didn't board any passengers at washington's union station. 100 customers were stranded during the busiest travel time of the year when operations should be the most efficient. amtrak is also hampered with project delays. delayed projects lead to cost overruns and significant revenue losses. for example, its new train service for the northeast corridor is more than three years behind schedule with no firm date on when it will enter service. this delay has led to $140 million loss in revenue according to a 2023o.i.g. report. relying on government bailouts to make up for losses must end. despite this track record, and no pun intended, the american board of directors award the company's 15 executives more than $9 million in bonuses

during the last two years. congress, amtrak employees, and the public were shocked and outrage and rightly so to discover such generous and questionable awards paid largely by taxpayers. the transportation workers union which represented 1,500 amenttrack service workers called the bonuses an affront tore amtrak worker an american tack payers which is why the t.w.u. endorsed this bill when it last passed the house. while amtrak has taken steps to be more transparent about bonus they only did so after a hearing before the transportation and infrastructure committee. congressional oversigh and influence should not be necessary for this information to be made public. but unfortunately, it is. and it is why this bill has been brought to the floor today to require amtrak to publish its annual executive bonus awards on its website, providing

passengers, employees, and tax payers with transparency regarding how their tax dollars are being spent. so mr. speaker, i urge support of this legislation, and i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman reserves. mr. graves: i don't have any further speakers. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from oregon. ms. hoyle: i'd like to thank chairman graves, representatives wilson and rouzer for working together to bring this legislation forward to increase transparency for the person people. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation, it's a good bill. should pass. thank you and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman is recognized. mr. graves: h.r. 192 provides the necessary transparency for amtrak. this legislation passed the house last congress under suspension of the rules by voice vote. i look forward to it passing again today.

with that, mr. speaker, i urge support of the bill and yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 192. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- mr. graves: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman rise? mr. graves: i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri seek recognition? mr. graves: i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 152. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 152. a bill to amend the disaster recovery reform act of 2018 to develop a study regarding streamlining and consolidating

information collection, preliminary damage asaysments and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from missouri, mr. graves, and the gentlewoman from oregon, ms. ohio, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on h.r. 152. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. graves: i yield myself such time as i may consume. h.r. 152 is a commonsense bill that's going to streamline and consolidate the collection of information following a disaster. while the federal emergency management agency is the lead federal agency on disasters, there are often many federal agencies involved in disaster response and recovery. i have experienced firsthand how frustrating it can be with these federal agencies fail to work together following a natural disaster. that's why i'm proud oto support h.r. 152 which would address this concern by amending that

fema-led working group created in the das rerecovery act of 2018, specifically the working group is going to make a plan to make collection of data from disaster less burdensome and time consuming. this will coordinate with the council of inspectors general on integrity and efficiency to identifies to reduce duplication and streamline the process. i want to thank the gentleman from mississippi, mr. ezell, for his leadership on this legislation. i urge support and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker: the gentlelady from oregon is recognized. ms. ohio: i rise in support of h.r. 15 -- ms. hoyle: i rise in support of h.r. 152. this legislation amends the disaster recovery reform act to help federal agencies streamline and consolidate information collection and preliminary damage assessments following disasters. after a major disaster, there's no time to wait for bureaucracy.

however, federal recovery assistance following disasters is currently hampered by inefficient information collection and assessments conducted by multiple agencies. this bill will remove information collection barriers that currently impede disaster aid. it creates a working group to identify due public tiff assessments and propose their elimination. further, it would streamline federal disaster recovery efforts by concluding that a single agency is sufficient to conduct damage assessments to account for the needs of disaster victims. the federal government can and should be doing this smarter. i support this bill and urge my colleagues to do the same. thank you and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman is recognized. mr. graves: at this time i would yield five minutes to the bill's sponsor, the gentleman from mississippi, mr. ezell. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. ezell: thank you, mr. speaker. rise in support of my

legislation which aims to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of disaster assistance. unfortunately, none of us are strangers to the effect of natural disasters and we've all had these problems in our hometowns. right now, we receive such evens threatening lives, daniel property and strain local and federal resources. in the aftermath, millions of americans are left seeking help to rebuild their lives and communities. however, when seeking necessary federal relief, applying for disaster assistance can be frustrating and confusing process. this leads to delays, frustration and even disqualifiation from receiving the aid. this is where my bill comes in. h.r. 152 works to eliminate inefficiencies and expedite the application process by ensuring only one information submission is needed. survivors are already facing difficult circumstances in the application process -- and the application process shouldn't add to their stress.

h.r. 152 represents a crucial step forward toward achieving a more effective disaster recovery system that prioritizes the needs of american and ensures they receive the help in a himly manner. i urge my colleagues to support it. thank you, mr. speaker, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from missouri reserves. mr. graves: i reserve and i'm prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from oregon is recognize. ms. hoyle: as stewards of taxpayer dollars we need to ensure we're spending our money as efficiently as possible. government should work. as we've seen in fires in oregon, hurricanes in north carolina, and florida, and currently the horrific fires in los angeles, when people suffer from a natural disaster, it is imperative that they get the help they need. they've lost everything. and the last thing we should be doing is dragging them through duplicative bureaucracy. that's why this bill is so important. this bipartisan bill passed the

house on suspension in the 116th, 117th, and 118th congresses. this bill will help disaster viverrors by taking a step forward streamlining -- toward streamlining the federal government's approach to disaster assistance. i urge my colleagues to support it and hopefully the senate will move it through. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back they have gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. in closing, h.r. 152 is a good government bill that will help improve disaster recovery efforts. it has previously passed the house in the 116th, 117th, 118th congress and i urge support for the bill and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 152. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended -- for what purpose does the gentleman seek recognition? mr. graves: i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the

yeas and nays are requested. those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedingsing on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri seek recognition? mr. graves: mr. speaker, i move the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 153. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 153, a bill to provide for an online repository for certain reporting requirements for recipients of federal disaster assistance and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuan t to the rule, the gentleman from missouri, mr. graves, and the gentlelady from oregon, ms. hoyle, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material in the record on h.r. 153. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. graves: thank you.

i i yield myself as much time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. graves: h.r. 153, the post disaster assistance online accountability act will increase accountability for assistance. it will do this by requiring agencies who provide disaster assistance to provide a central website quarterly with information on their disaster assistance programs. that way the american taxpayer can see exactly where their hard-earned dollars are going. h.r. 153 passed the house in the 115th, 116th, and 118th congress and urge continued support for this commonsense legislation. i want to thank mr. ezell for his important leadership. i reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady from oregon is recognized. ms. hoyle: i rise in support of h.r. 153. this bill will create a new online system for tracking federal disaster projects and assistance. people should know how and where their disaster funds are being

spent without reading through reams of government paperwork. it simplifies the data collection process for federal disaster recovery projects. to increase transparency, this bill creates a page on usaspending.gov where anyone can track activities and the amount of money expended by the agency on a quarterly basis. federal agencies need to be accountable to the victims of disasters and to the taxpayers that fund these agencies' really important work. we need to allow federal disaster victims the peace of mind when they're at their most vulnerable. i urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in supporting this legislation and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady deserves. the chair recognizes the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: i yield five minutes to the sponsor of the legislation, mr. ezell.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. ezell: i rise to speak on my bill h.r. 153, the post disaster assistance online accountability act which aims to improve transparency in the federal disaster assistance. when disaster strikes the priority is to save lives and help communities recover. however, in doing so, one of the biggest challenges in the aftermath of a disaster is to ensure aid is distributed timely to those who need it most. transparency bills trust in the government, and without clear information communities may feel left in the dark how aid is being allocated. this is where the post disaster assistance online accountability act comes in. this bill requires fema to publicly share key information about the damage caused by disasters and how assistance is being distributed. it ensures the public can track recovery efforts in real time

and understand how resources are being allocated. this helps communities, local governments, and organizations involved in recovery to make more informed decisions. the bill mandates fema provide detailed, easy to access data such as the extent of the damage, the areas affected, and the estimated cost of recovery. ultimately, this bill holds fema and the government accountable to the american people. by strengthening trust, the h.r. 153 is a vital step in building a more transparent response disaster recovery system. i urge my colleagues to support this bill. and mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from missouri reserves. mr. graves: i have no more speakers and am prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from oregon is recognized. ms. hoyle: thank you, mr. speaker. the house passed this bipartisan bill on suspension in the 116th, 117th, and 118th congresses. i look forward to the senate

taking this bill up given how important it is with the massive natural disasters that we're seeing and certainly hope that we in congress fund the i.t. infrastructure so we can get this done and get this done quickly. thank you and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: in closing i hope we can show support for this commonsense measure to help improve transparency for federal disaster spending. with that i urge support of the bill and yield my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 153. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- for what purpose does the gentleman seek recognition? mr. graves: i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. favor. those opposed, no. a sufficient number having arisen, pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed.

for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? mr. graves: i move to suspend the rules and report h.r. 164. the clerk: a bill to amend the robert t. stafford disaster relief and emergency assistance act to authorize federal agencies to provide certain assistance for hazard assistance and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuan t to the rule, the gentleman from missouri, mr. graves, and the gentlewoman from oregon, ms. hoyle, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: i ask unanimous consent members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material into the record on h.r. 164. the speaker pro tempore: as ordered. without objection. mr. graves: ■withthat consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized.

mr. graves: because of fema's problematic interpretation of section 403 of the stafford act, once power is restored even with temporary measures electric utilities are deemed ineligible for work and mitigation efforts. electric utilities are treated differently than any other infrastructure. even though building mitigation into our power systems reduces costs for future disasters. h.r. 164 will clarify that electric utilities mld in mitigation measures that provide essential assistance and does not disqualify electric assistance for work later in the disaster recovery process. with that i would urge support and reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady from oregon is recognized. ms. hoyle: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of h.r. 164, my legislation with representative ezell. this bill empowers publicly owned electrical utilities to implement hazard mitigation

improvements during disaster recovery. when disasters mr. speaker, they leave a trail of destruction including damaged energy infrastructure that needs to be immediately repaired to restore power. at the same time, this can present an opportunity to improve the resilience of power infrastructure to reduce the risk of outages or fires in the future. i've spoken with many fema employees and they feel like they have their hands tied because of rules that are in place that prevent them from being able to fund investments in resilience and infrastructure. and as we're seeing more extreme weather because of climate change, we need to step up and spend taxpayer dollars more efficiently and better. and that means that we have to change this law because the current law prevents fema from reimbursing utilities for hazard mitigation as they make temporary disaster repairs. this leads to wasted

opportunity, more frequent power outages and higher costs passed on to ratepayers. common sense solutions like h.r. 164 are more critical than ever to keep energy costs low for american families. this bill maximizes fema's resources and helps communities protect critical infrastructure leading to lower costs for utilities and families in the wake of future disasters, and more importantly, it allows us to use taxpayer dollars to invest in resiliency as we're seeing more extreme weather coming at us every single day. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: i want to thank publicly representative hoyle for her work on this bill, it's a great bill. with that i'll recognize five minutes to the gentleman from mississippi, mr. ezell. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes.

mr. ezell: i rise in favor of h.r. 164, the power act which would allow public utilities to implement cost-effective hazardous activities as part of power restoration. public power utilities are essential in ensuring our communities have access to reliable and resilient electricity especially in the aftermath of major disasters. current law said if states and localities get costs for reimbursement from fema from activities like restoring power, it can make them ineligible for future hazard mitigation funds. our community should not have to make either/or decisions when it comes to restoring critical infrastructure in the wake of natural disasters. i'm proud to co-lead this bill besides representatives hoyle and urge my colleagues to support this legislation and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri reserves. the gentlewoman from oregon is recognized. ms. hoyle: thank you, mr. speaker. the cost of recovering from

increasingly frequent severe weather events often raise the price of americans' electric bills. this bill will help public power make their systems more resilient at the time of repair, increasing efficiency and cutting overall costs. i can't think of a more important set of bills to be passing at this time as the first bill is coming up on suspension as these bills, investing in our infrastructure and helping fema be more transparent and utilizing taxpayer dollars more efficiently. again, i want to thank my colleague, representative ezell, for prioritizing and moving this bill forward. i thank you. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you. in closing this legislation will provide a lot of needed clarity to ensure electric utilities are not penalized for acting quickly to restore power to those

impacted by natural disasters. this legislation passed the chamber under suspension of the rules by voice vote last december and look forward to the house approving it again. i'd urge support for the bill and yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 164. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- the gentleman from missouri? mr. graves: i would the yeas and nays are requested. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested p. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri seek recognition? mr. graves: i move the house

suspend the rules and pass h.r. 189. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 189. a bill to amend title 40 united states code to eliminate the leasing authority of the securities and exchange commission and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuan t to the rule, the gentleman from missouri, mr. graves, and the gentlewoman from oregon will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: i ask all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material into the record on h.r. 189. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself as much time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. graves: they cost taxpayers over $560 million. investigations enacted by the s.e.c.'s inspector general find the s.e.c. had exceeded their authority with the lease.

they found the s.e.c. had a history of mismanaging its lease authority. recent actions taken by the s.e.c. seem to under indicate the agency has not learned from the past and this is why i would urge support of h.r. 189, which would revoke the s.e.c.'s leasing authority for the general office space and bring them in line with current leasing practices through the general services administration. i'd urge support for the bill and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady from oregon is recognized. ms. hoyle: i rise in support of the securities and exchange commission real estate leasing authority revocation act. this bill revokes the independent real estate leasing authority of the executes and exchange commission, or s.e.c. congress granted the s.e.c. independent leasing authority in 1990, which means the s.e.c. does not use the g.s.a., the general services administration, for its real estate needs as

many government agencies do. while some federal agencies have used their independent real estate leasing authority successfully, since securing their own authority, the s.e.c. has wasted time and taxpayer dollars with failed procurements. for example, in 2010, after the s.e.c. leased 900,000 square feet of space in the constitution center building in washington, d.c., the s.e.c.'s own inspector general found that the s.e.c. had overestimated the amount of space needed, attempted to eliminate competition among building owners, and violated the anti-deficiency act. after this incident, the s.e.c. pledged to congress that the agency would use the g.s.a. to handle its real estate procurements but the s.e.c. has yet to follow through on that pledge and has since canceled procurements, had lawsuits, and wasted taxpayer dollars. . that bill, h.r. 388, passed both

the committee on transportation and infrastructure, and the house of representatives on a voice vote. unfortunately h.r. 388 was not even considered by the senate. it's time for congress to return the s.e.c.'s leasing authority to the g.s.a. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from oregon is recognized. ms. hoyle: mr. speaker, i wish to yield six minutes to the gentlewoman from the district of columbia, ms. norton. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for six minutes. ms. norton: thank you very much. i rise in strong support of this bill, which the house passed in the 117th and 118th congresses. i thank chairman graves and ranking member larson for bringing this bill to the floor again. this bill would revoke the

independent real estate leasing authority of the securities and exchange commission and direct the government accounting office to update its 2016 report on independent real estate leasing authority in the federal government. while a number of federal agencies have independent real estate leasing authority, the s.e.c. has a history of egregious real estate leasing practices. in 2005 the s.e.c. disclosed that it had underbudgeted costs of approximately $48 million for the construction of its headquarters near union station. in 2007, after moving its headquarters, the s.e.c. scuffled its employees to different office space at a cost of over $3 million, without any cost-benefit analysis or

justifiable explanation. in 2010 the s.e.c. conducted a deeply flawed analysis to justify the need to lease $900,000 square feet and to commit over $500 million over 0 years, -- 10 years, overestimating its space needs by over 300%. in addition, the s.e.c. failed to provide complete and accurate information and prepared a faulty and back-dated justification and approval after it had already signed the lease. in august, 2016, the general services administration and the s.e.c. entered into an occupancy agreement to authorize g.s.a. to secure a new 15-year lease. in december, 2016, g.s.a., with

the approval of the s.e.c., submitted a prospeck tus to congress for approximately 1.3 million square feet which congress approved in 2018. in 2019, g.s.a. had received final bills, resolved all protests and even selected a finalled bier -- final bidder. a month later the s.e.c. canceled the occupancy agreement, citing concerns about the value of the purchase option, which the s.e.c. refused to document to congress. the s.e.c. effectively vetoed the entire three-year procurement process, despite not having the authority or funding to exercise the purchase option without g.s.a.'s involvement. finally, after much back and forth between the two agencies, g.s.a. entered into a lease for

new s.e.c. headquarters in september, 2001, which g.s.a. -- 2021, which g.s.a. terminated in 2024. while the s.e.c. has said it will continue to have g.s.a. do its leasing in the future, the s.e.c.'s history of egregious leasing misconduct, squandering millions of dollars, makes this bill necessary. the s.e.c.'s conduct risks undermining the reputation of g.s.a. and the federal government, among developers and building owners who participate in federal lease procurements, the threat of uncertainty ultimately drives up the cost of all g.s.a. real estate procurements. it is time for congress to return the s.e.c.'s leading

authority to g.s.a., the federal government's civilian real estate arm. as the s.e.c. has demonstrated over three decades, it is incredibly inefficient, wasteful and redundant to have the s.e.c. do real estate procurements when g.s.a. exists for that very reason. like other federal agencies, the s.e.c. will continue to have input in the g.s.a.'s real estate decision making process. but g.s.a. would have the ultimate authority. again, i urge my colleagues to support this bill. ms. hoyle: mr. speaker, i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady from oregon is recognized. ms. hoyle: since securing its own real estate security authority, the s.e.c. has wasted time and money with failed

procurements. and it's past time for the s.e.c. to cede that authority back to the g.s.a. my colleague, congresswoman holmes norton, has explained this very thoroughly and clearly. i support h.r. 189. i urge my colleagues to do the same. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields the balance of her time. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. in closing, by ensuring that the s.e.c. continues to use g.s.a. for its space needs, h.r. 189 is going to help reduce costs and protect taxpayers against wasteful spending. and i want to thank the gentlelady from the district of columbia, her work on this bill, and with that, the legislation was agreed to in the house last congress. so understand -- under suspension of the rules. so i look forward to seeing that happen again. and with that, mr. speaker, i'd urge support of the bill and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill, h.r. 189.

those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri seek recognition? mr. graves: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 144. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 144. a bill to provide that the federal reports elimination and sunset act of 1995 does not apply to certain reports required to be submitted by the tennessee valley authority and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from missouri, mr. graves, and the gentleman from tennessee, mr. cohen, each will control 20 minutes. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from missouri. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material into the record on h.r. 144.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. graves: mr. speaker, i'd yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. graves: thank you. i rise today in support of h.r. 144, the tennessee valley authority salary transparency act. this legislation simply reinstates an annual reporting requirement for the tennessee valley authority to disclose to congress the salaries for upper level management. i want to thank representatives cohen and burchett for their bipartisan work on this legislation which passed this chamber in march of last year under suspension of the rules by voice vote. this bill continues years of work to make the t.v.a. more transparent for its customers and the communities that it serves. mr. speaker, i'd urge support for h.r. 144 and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from tennessee is recognized. mr. cohen: thank you, mr. speaker. and chairman graves, i appreciate your remarks and you are certainly an embodiment of the virtue of waivers. mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 144, bipartisan legislation to promote

additional transparency over the salary structure of the tennessee valley authority. otherwise known as the t.v.a. as was said, the bill passed the house last congress on suspension. voice vote. it v.a. is the nation's largest -- t.v.a. is the nation's largest power producer across tennessee, mississippi, alabama, north carolina, virginia and kentucky. this legislation corrects a change that was enacted in 1995 that removed a requirement for t.v.a. to ex close the management structure and salaries of its executives. today t.v.a. has approximately 13,000 employees and the median salary is $160,000. they've in essence got 6,500 congresspeople on salary. doing t.v.a.'s work. that's absurd. and they've got the head of the t.v.a. whose salary has been reported, makes $10 million a year. he's a fine fellow.

he's really a nice guy. and he does a good job. but he was working for a canadian firm before he got hired to run t.v.a. where he was making $2 million or $2.5 million. i don't know if he's four times better than he was in the state of canada. but he's making that. and the executives whose salaries they have to disclose are making $2 million to $6 million each annually. the public should know about these salaries and know what they're getting and the salaries that are spent at t.v.a. last congress a fair compromise was reached over t.v.a. and the need of t.v.a. to retain and maintain a pool of talented and diverse effective management staff and executives. this bill will help ensure that congress has the ability to provide effective oversight of the t.v.a. and its management and executives. my prime co-sponsor is tim burchett, representative burchett's been a friend of mine since we served in the tennessee general assembly together and we

raised the speed limit to 70. it had been put down to 60. i thank him for his co-sponsorship and urge passage of h.r. 144 and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee reserves. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i would yield five minutes to the gentleman from tennessee, mr. burchett. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee is recognized for five minutes. mr. burchett: thank you, mr. chairman. mr. speaker, i want to thank my very good friend, steve cohen, from memphis, tennessee. the home of al green. and we had a lot of good times in the state senate. we brought some famous people to the floor, our dear friend steve crawford, in the rock 'n roll hall of fame. some of his guitars are in thing smithsonian -- are in the smithsonian. many others. isaac hayes. we sang the theme from "shaft" on the senate floor. i'm sure someone will dig for that and hopefully that's been erased from history. when we brought isaac hays, i --

hey, i almost forgot about -- hayes, i almost forgot about him. we had a great relationship with those folks and people often ask me why i'm friends with congressman cohen. he's probably my oldest friend up here, truth be known. he's correct, we did sponsor a bill to raise the speed limit. i think i asked for 85. knowing we'd take 07 in the house -- 70 in the house. the week prior to that i'd brought peyton manning to the house floor and i think i could have probably passed communism and gotten 100 miles per hour if i wanted to that week. actually. because that was probably the most popular i've ever been in the legislature. but truth be known, why i'm so good friends with steve cohen is, i lost my daddy years ago and my dad was -- he was my hero. he really was. he and my mama were exceptional people. and steve was the first person to call my mom up and offer his condolences and i remember we were at the graveyard trying to get the sites at veterans cemetery and my mama said, oh, steve, you shouldn't have called. this is costing you money. i'll never forget that.

that was my sweet mama. and she loved steve. she prayed for steve. i don't know if it did any good, mr. speaker. but i know it doesn't have anything to do about the bill but i think america needs to know these things. mr. cohen: i'm still here. mr. burchett: yes, you are. i rise in support of the act. the tennessee valley authority is an american public power company providing electricity to over 10 million people in tennessee and six surrounding states. it v.a. employs -- t.v.a. employs over 10,000 people, some whom make millions of dollars per year. and this is in tennessee. tennesseans deserve to know how t.v.a. operates and compensates their executives. especially when t.v.a. covers a region that's 65,000 square miles and the compensation is to the tune of millions of dollars. there's no such thing as too much transparency. and i hope our friends in the media cover this. the t.v.a. salary transparency act requires t.v.a. to report to congress on the salaries of employees making more than $123,000 annually or the highest pay rate available for federal

employees. specifically, t.v.a. must report on those employees' names, salaries and job responsibilities. i have continuously advocated for greater transparency from t.v.a. and other areas -- in other areas. as a state legislature and as mayor and now as a congressman and passing this bill is a step in the right direction. once again i'd like to thank representative cohen and ask my colleagues to support this bill. it will provide transparency to the millions of folks who rely on the tennessee valley authority. thank you, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee who is not allowed to sing on this floor yields back. and the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: i'm prepared to close. so i would reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from tennessee is recognized. mr. cohen: thank you, mr. speaker. the bill has been well explained. it's an important and a good bill and all of what representative burchett said about his father, dean burchett, and mrs. burchett is true, they were wonderful people. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee yields back. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. graves: thank you, mr. speaker.

h.r. 144, it's a commonsense bill, it's going to increase transparency at the t.v.a. and it's going to ensure that the transportation committee conduct appropriate oversight over the agency's actions. i'd urge support for the bill and with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill, h.l.144. th those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. ... in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- for what purpose does the gentleman seek recognition? mr. graves: i ask the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: yeas and nays are ordered. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. a sufficient number having arisen, further proceedings will be postponed. pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess until approximate 6:30 p.m. today.

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