mr. turner of ohio, chair. mr. dunn of florida. mrs. wagner of missouri. mr. fitzpatrick of pennsylvania. mr. guthrie of kentucky. ms. van duyne of texas. mr. connolly of virginia. the speaker pro tempore: the chair announces the speaker's appointment pursuant to section 2-1, natural culture center act 20 u.s.c. 76-ha amended by public law 107-117 and the order of the house of january 3, 2025, of the following members on the part of the house to the board of trustees of the john f. kennedy center for performing arts. the clerk: mr. mccaul of texas. ms. letlow of louisiana. mrs. beatty of ohio. the speaker pro tempore: the chair announces the speaker's appointment pursuant to sections 5580 and 5518 of the revised statutes 20 u.s.c. 42-43 and the order of the house of january 3, 2025, of the following members on the part of the house to the board of regionents of the smithsonian institute. the clerk: mr. smith of nebraska. mr. gimenez of florida. ms. matsui of california. the speaker pro tempore: the chair announces the speaker's appointment pursuant to section

mr. perry of pennsylvania. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 53, the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. perry, and a member opposed each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. perry: thank you, mr. chairman. i want to begin by thanking my good friend, the chairman of the committee, for his hard work to try and save one of our country's greatest assets that we cbrning to the ground -- that we see burning to the ground on an annual basis and we're always shocked like we're surprised that it happens. and seems like my good friend, the chairman, continues to work on this issue while some of my -- i don't know if my colleagues on the other side of the aisle but certainly the states, maybe the state governments and their local governments don't seem to get that policies produce these outcomes. now, we've got a great chairman here who is prioritizing the solutions here and managing the risks so that we do better. this amendment, which i think the chairman agrees with, strikes th

chair rouzer: mr. pappas. rep. pappas: well, thank you to the chair and ranking member for holding this session as we begin to prepare for reauthorization of surface transportation and think about how iija has been working and some of the priorities that we have that we're seeing from our district level. i really appreciate the testimony of this panel, mr. dellinger, if i could start with you and just sort of building off that conversation, you kind of beat me to the punch in bringing up the fet issue, which is something that i think we've got to take a look at if we want to achieve fairness and sustainability with respect to how we fund surface transportation. you mentioned the fet issue. this was a tax initially introduced during the world war i era to support wartime mobilization. more than 100 years ago, the federal levy is 12%, which is the highest excise tax on any product in the country. tax is only collected when trucks are newly purchased, so there's a disincentive for the procurement of newer, more efficie

mr. newman? chair mcclintock: has h.r. 2 -- pass -- mr. newman: pass h.r. 2. mr. moore: we passed it in the house. we'll bring it back. chair mcclintock: the gentleman's time has expired. ms. crockett. ms. crockett: i am going to try to get through a lot quickly. as one of the few people sitting on the dais who actually practiced criminal law in the state of texas as well as licensed in arkansas and practiced there, as well as federal courts. one of the things that you said earlier, mr. bier, stuck with me. is that there are already laws on the books as relates to those violent criminals. i know this because even though i hail from the great city of dallas, i can tell you that when someone would come in and they were being held in custody for, say, a crime, they also had an i.c.e. hold. that was for those that had maybe been deported before and had re-entered illegally. no matter what type of city you are in i do want to be clear, federal law already, no matter if it's under the biden administration or if it's under a republican administration, we all agree that we

mr. chairman. chair crapo: thank. senator young. sen. young: mr. bessent, good to see you, congratulations on your nomination for this important position, and thank you for your willingness to serve our country. i will tell you what i'm looking for in a treasury secretary, i'm looking for someone who has a clear record of professional accomplishment, a distinct academic record would be a bonus. you have those things. i'm looking for someone who is thoughtful. what i care less about is the performative dimension of the job, i have to tell you. there is a lot of chatter in washington about that. but i do appreciate your thoughtful answers this morning. i'm going to dive in and begin by asking you about the dimension of your role as treasury secretary. you will inherit the role of chair on the committee on foreign investment in the united states, also known as cfiis, and very recently president biden blocked new pond steel acquisition of u.s. steel on national security grants. yet he and the administration provided no clear, substantiated evidence, pu

mr. chairman. chair coons: thank you, senator hirono. mr. babcock said time, money, and power have shifted, and i may mischaracterize, big tech infringers. mr. landau, most of the largest technology companies are household names. apple, meta, they are members of your association. i want to hear your perspective of the impact on the restore patent rights act on members of your organization. are there any revisions to the bill that in your bill -- view could make it better. mr. landau: yes. i will start at the end of your question. at the end of my testimony i propose a revision that i think would really address a lot of the concerns you are hearing from myself and professor contreras while also strengthening providing a presumption of injunctive relief, to attach it to some form of working requirement. to say, you get the presumption if you are making a product or working with an exclusive licensee to make a product. if you are working with a start up to make a product. if you are doing something with your patent you get the presumption. othe

chair bost: mr. mccormick. when it comes to the fiduciary process of v.a. -- i have absolutely been digging into a deep hole trying to figure out at a granular level the problems here. the waters are extremely muddy. from start to finish, can you walk me through -- because we have in a sense, by the time a veteran gets to the fiduciary threshold there has been a process in place that has picked apart every single aspect of that veteran's life. we are here. i concern is, and what we don't know and what the ranking member says is, what really happens? can you give me, in your opinion is there enough meat on the bone from start to finish, or because a veteran's rights are just as important as any other american's rights. the fact that this is happening and we do not have the processes in place there, can you walk through what that looks like? mr. mccormick: i can walk you through my knowledge of seeing other people go through the process. many times the information flow from the v.a. back to the veteran is not con

thank you, mr. chair. i yield back. >> and finally, one of our wonderful new members of the chc, representative emily randall. >> thank you, mr. chair. i'm emily randall from washington state, and i am proud to stand united with my colleagues in the congressional hispanic caucus in support of dreamers, in support of farm workers, in support of families, and i'm proud to stand in support of our communities with the people of washington. in washington state, where i was a legislator for the last 6 years, we know that immigrants make our communities stronger. that's why we've expanded our state financial aid programs to dreamers and immigrants, because we know we cannot reach our workforce goals, our education goals, our economic goals without ensuring that everyone has access to education and opportunity. we know that we're facing a health care crisis, and without ensuring that our immigrant communities are safe and that dreamers are being educated to become nurses and doctors, we will not be able to take ca

mr. bessent: no, sir. chair crapo: second, do you know of any reason, personal or otherwise, that would prevent you from fully and honorably discharging the responsibilities of the office which you have been nominated? mr. bessent: no, sir. chair crapo: third, do you agree without reservation to respond to any reasonable summons to appear and testify before any duly constituted committee of congress if you are confirmed? mr. bessent: yes, sir. chair crapo: finally, do you commit to provide a prompt response in writing to any question addressed to you by any senator on the committee? mr. bessent: yes, sir. chair crapo: welcome to the committee mr. bessent for you to make your opening statement. mr. bessent: chairman crapo, ranking member wyden, members of the finance committee it is an honor and privilege to be considered as the president's nominee for the secretary of the treasury. i want to thank all of you that took the time to meet with me over the past few weeks. i want to thank my spouse, john freeman, who

. >> thank you, mr. chairman. first of all, good morning. i'd like to thank you for your service to our nation in uniform and also your work on behalf of your fellow veterans and for your willingness to enter into this maelstrom of public service. i think the presence of so many veterans who have showed up to support you speaks volumes. i also want to recognize your family service and sacrifice. you know as well as anyone that it's not just a man that enters the arena, but it's the entire family who also works their way through this process as well. i appreciated our meeting with you and with your wife, jennifer, this last month. i thought that we had an excellent conversation, and i appreciate your statement and your answers to the advanced policy questions, especially your desire to bring a renewed focus on warfighting and lethality back to the pentagon. i also respect and i appreciate my friend and colleague, senator gillibrand, and some of her questions. and i know that she had a number of them in there. y

mr. chair i yield back. correct a gentleman yields back your recognizer fiver minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman. thank you madam ranking member for host's critical hearing today and thank you to the withwitnesses your time and testimony. the united states leads the world's most extensive rail transport network spanning approximately one or 60000 miles. many of our communities especially in regions like my home state of georgia started with the railroad stop. entire towns were built around these vital pieces of infrastructure because we understand their importance yet but operates without consistent long-term funding to expand this essential infrastructure. let's we all know climate changeis one of the greatest challenges of our time as a transformative solution. a sustainable mode of transportation by alleviating traffic congestion reducing on fossil fuels. rail plays a vital role in creating a cleaner future and to build teacher reduce greenhouse gas emissions or surpass the road and air transport. without

mr. chairman, congratulations. mr. bessent, good to see you, enjoyed our meeting. i've got some specific questions i want to ask and i don't want to litigate this now, but i do feel as someone working with senator claypool and others, when we took on i still think the most comprehensive simpson bowles and we took arrows from each side and i'm looking at any kind of pro growth policies possible, but i respectfully want to say, there is not an industrial nation, first of all, an industrial nation in the world that gets anywhere close to meeting the revenue needs and i'm not proposing that the americans spend like the europeans, it's never happened historically, it's not going to happen in a trump administration or a future democratic administration so i just, a lot of time to talk back and forth on that, but i can't let some of it go without at least offering something that there's not an economist around that wouldn't-- we've got to bring down spend, but the revenue side alone is not going to--

mr. jones. the chair now recognizes mr. wheeler for his opening statement of five minutes. >> thank you. and good afternoon, chairman pfluger, ranking member gimenez. fbi. i currently serve as the assistant director of our critical instant response group in quantico, virginia. i've done that since july be, as you mentioned. in that past, i lead the fbiests in response to critical incidents and major investigations, which includes responsibility for to critical incidents and major investigations which includes responsibility for our counter unmanned aircraft program. as the u.s. continues to grow among the law enforcement sectors this technology also lends itself to increase malicious use by state, non-state and lone actors as you know. this technology poses some unique security challenges for us. for using a uas to conduct espionage and the u.s. naval facility in january. we believe uas are being flown for similar purposes over sensitive facilities across the united states. >> just last month the suspect was arrested and ch

mr. hegseth: yes, sir. chair wicker: have you assumed any duties or taken any actions that would appear to presume the outcome of confirmation process? mr. hegseth: no, sir. chair wicker: exercising our legislative and oversight responsibilities makes it important that this committee, its subcommittees, and appropriate committees of congress receive testimony, briefings, reports, records, and information from the executive branch on a timely basis. you agree if confirmed to appear and testify before this committee when requested? mr. hegseth: yes, sir. chair wicker: do you agree to provide records, documents, and electronic communications in a timely manner when requested by this committee, its subcommittees, or other appropriate committees of congress and consult with the requester regarding the basis for any good-faith delay or denial in providing such records? mr. hegseth: yes, sir. chair wicker: will you ensure that your staff complies with deadlines established by this committee for the production of reports

aguilar: representative rivas. >> thank you, mr. chair. the state of california has invested in wildfire mitigation efforts nor years. this weekend, chair aguilar and i joined congress member judy chu for the destruction that the eaton fire did in altadena and anyone who visits that wants disaster aid to be there immediatey. and speaker johnson has not visited california. i think the members of the district most affected would be happy to witness this destruction. and once you see it, you'll know that we need to send aid immediately. there are's people that have lost everything in parts of los angeles that will take. they are scared, do they have to pay their mortgage payments and pay utilities. it's going to take years. people lost their churches, their schools, their stores, their businesses. there are people who have lost their business and their homes. we have to help the people in california rebuild and recover. >> we stood at an intersection and saw two churches that had been completely burned down. my question is what do you tell th

. >> thank you, mr. chair. thank you both for being here and congratulations on your nominations. mr. hassett come also with you. would go back briefly to the discussion about immigration. the point of your report had to do with legal i would assume legal denigration, guest worker programs, they create an economic multiplier. some would even argue they create american jobs as a result of that reliable, predictable guest worker program that ebbs and flows in this country and is something we need to get sex. was that the essence of your analysis? >> yes, sir. >> i am looking forward supporting your nomination but now with a little asterisk since i read your report on deflategate. i'm not a patriot samper ensure the folks in new england love you. no, i thought of remarkable. it's going to have to make a go and change my -- not going to use the hearing to drill into that. i do want to talk about a report, you are very well published in very impressive list of writings. what i want you to spend maybe a minute or two on is the spending taxes and certainty roadmap a 4% gdp. in your curren

mr. chair, i yield back. mr. webster: the gentleman yields back. >> thank you, mr. chair. my first question is to mr. baker. so, mr. baker, you noted in your testimony that 100% of alaska's rail is short line rail. alaskans have long sought a rail connection that would tie alaska to the rest of the north american rail network. mr. begich: in your view what steps should we consider to support such a connection? mr. baker: that's a fabulous question. the current route of connecting is quite elaborate, involves ferries and it's not sort of realistic for where i think you would like to take the state and the country. a project like that is really a megagrant and so i think it would be important for congress to continue grant programs like infra and raise and mega that really contemplate some of these -- maybe not quite moon shot, but big-deal infrastructure programs. dollar lot of -- there are a lot of short line projects, including some on of the existing alaska, where $20 million can really move the dial and we do a lot of those and we're really proud of that. a project like

we'll continue the dialogue, mr. chair you don't intend to get a , markup and get this bill passed before the end of your tenure? >> tomorrow. >> so you know, outside of the hail mary here, this is a dialogue to be continued and hopefully we can continue it early next year. >> senator hirono? >> thank you. i'd like to make sure that i have clarification on this. this is for professor osenga. didn't ebay shift the burden of going forward to the patent holder in terms of getting an injunction? >> yes, thank you. >> so one of the things that mr. babcock mentioned, and this is in line with senator tillis's line of questioning, it has to do with the importance of the availability of venture capital for startups. that would include small inventors in particular. mr. babcock, you said that venture capitalists are not going to be inclined to invest in inventions that cannot be protected as a property right. so are there a vc people that you talk with who can tell us that this is in fact a limiting factor for their wanting to provi

owens: thank you, mr. chair. mr. speaker, i rise in support of the protection of women and girls in sports act. 50 years ago title ix revolutionized women's sports, opened doors that had been closed for all previous generations. because of title ix, women's participation in athletics skyrocketed. over 1,000% in high schools and 600% in college athletics. this progress of equal opportunity for millions of girls and women for scholarships, honors and careers and wealth, has been under attack for the entirety of the biden administration. by ignoring the biological, physical, genetic differences between men and women, this administration has dismantled the level playing field that women and girls deserve. this is about fairness, safety and opportunity. when viewed through the eyes of common sense, it's obvious. when seen through the result of lost opportunities, it becomes clear that something valuable has been stolen. when men are allowed to compete in women's sports, not only are women no longer safe, but they are also

. >> thank you, mr. chair. i ask unanimous consent to enter into the record a letter submitted by mr. mark lucas, who is a fellow iowan and iowa army national guard member. mr. lucas and i served together in the iowa army national guard. he succeeded pete hegseth as executive director of concerned veterans for america and in his letter mr. lucas says that mr. hegseth quote laid a strong foundation that postured cva for long term success, end quote. that mr. hegseth quote continued to be an invaluable asset to both me as a leader and the organization, end quote. so i would ask for unanimous consent to enter this washington times article and the letter from mr. mark lucas into the record. >> without objection. >> thank you, mr. chair. good morning, mr. hegseth and thank you very much. i appreciate your service to our nation, it is something that i know you are very proud of and it is something that we have in common and that we share. you have and i have had many productive conversations. and just for our audience

mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to discuss a vital piece of legislation, the laken riley act. on february 22, 2024, laken riley, a 22-year-old augusta university nursing student, was murdered by an illegal venezuelan migrant while she was jogging in athens, georgia. prior to the attack on laken, her killer illegally entered the united states and was apprehended and released at the border. the perpetrator was also previously arrested by both federal and state officials in multiple jurisdictions and each time released due to certain states' soft-on-crime policies and the failures of the biden-harris administration to protect our southern border. the laken riley act is a straightforward -- is straightforward in its purpose. safeguarding the safety and security of our neighborhoods from the threat posed by criminal illegal aliens who disregard our laws and endanger our citizens. it send as clear message th

mr. chairman, i want to thank you for your tenure as the chair here. i've enjoyed serving with you and working with you. mr. secretary, you've done a good job in my opinion, in the four years that you have been here, under difficult challenges. we can all have different perspectives, but we're in a similar moment in american and world history, i believe. i want to talk about that as it relates to our efforts with ukraine, clear and present. i know you're doing a lot of things, but i think i want to have some assurance that in the remaining weeks allowed that we do everything possible to move the necessary military equipment, materiel, and authorizations that ukraine needs to win this war. with that in mind, there is a transfer currently, and i think you have the information, your staff does, of a dozen black hawk helicopters from the united states. they're awaiting approval from the state department to complete this transfer. i'm going to add up a letter, but can you comment on that quickly? >> congressman, i can't speak to a specific transfer. i can ju

mr. chair mr. bessen, welcome to washington, d.c. you're getting a taste of what it's like here, which is an out of body experience for most people who are not acquainted by it. i respect a state that has the eighth largest economy in the world. we think we ups the formula for economic growth and prosperity and opportunity for with your low taxes, reasonable, modest regulatory foot print. and opportunities for people to prosper and by prospering invest and create opportunity first other people to pursue their dreams. we think there's a lot washington can learn from that form will it seems like you agree. one of the strange experiences i've had here is that so many of our colleagues on the other side think that the money that you earn is not actually yours. it's federal governments. and you just get to keep a little bit of it. conversely, i bly that it's there and they have a responsibility to pay taxes. but as you point out an overtax burden or large tax burden has a way of depressing the econo

ernst: thank you mr. chair and thank you chair and where -- ranking member. it is good to be back on the committee after a hiatus for many years. good afternoon mr. vought. thank you for really robust discussion yesterday. i a truly -- i truly appreciate that. you were here six and a half years ago as well and i do remember that, as your kids had been sitting behind you during that as well. and, one of my colleagues, very inappropriately, questioned you on your faith as part of your first confirmation hearing before the senate. i just wanted to commend you because during that period you handled yourself with extraordinary grace. i truly appreciate that. i just want to be on the record as stating that i think people of all faiths should have a place in the public square. as the chair of the senate doge caucus i look forward to working with you to make the government more transparent, accountable, and efficient. it is impossible to achieve these goals if we do not even know how washington is spending tax dollars. during my time in the senate i passed numerous la

mr. chairman. chair grassley: a question for both the nominee and you, senator booker, you talked about this one to one equation. if your implication to her was it could be done through her actions, then it seems we have been wasting our time trying to find a compromise between you and me on that subject for legislation. sen. booker: tkeupbts prepare for this hearing. i didn't know i would be asked questions. i look forward to working with you. i do believe that it should be done judicially as well with prosecutorial discretion. thank you. >> thank you, mr. chairman. general bondi, i concongratulate you -- congratulate you. sen. cruz: i the want to go back to the topic of the politization of the department of justice. we talked about the department of justice under joe biden and kamala harris being used to targets the president's political enemies. we talked about it being used to protect the political friends and allies of the white house. there is another asecretary of politicization and lawlessness. t

mr. luttrell: thank you. i yield back. chair bost: representative cherfilus-mccormick, you are recognized for five minutes. mrs. cherfilus-mccormick: thank you, mr. chairman. undersecretary jacobs, my question is regarding carryover. from f.y. 2023 to f.y. 2024 you carry over $17 billion and still game dangerously close to exhausting your budget. even with the supplemental funding, the carryover from f.y. 2024 to f.y. 2025 is significantly less than the previous year. given that, are you going to have a revised f.y. 2025 budget request number? if not, do you now fear that even if congress fully funded v.b.a. at the f.y. 2025 request level, it would not be enough to get you through the entire year? mr. elnahal: congressman, you're right. we carried -- mr. elnahal: we carried over far less in our accounts in 2024 and 2025 than previously. in we carried over about $17 billion which was about 10% and 11% for the c. and p. account. that was -- in the 2024 to 2025, we carried over $4.4 billion. that was 2.5%. the readjustment benefit

mr. vought: yes sir. chair graham: do you believe there is room in the budget to eliminate programs that most americans wouldn't feel the effect of? mr. vought: i do. there are plenty of areas in the federal government to tackle spending and debt. chair graham: so you promised me you would do the best you can to reduce federal spending in a responsible way? mr. vought: yes, i do. chair graham: when it comes to the president's executive order, do you know exactly how it works, does it stop when he going to israel? mr. vought: no, senator. it is 898 date review of the programs in place and it is to ensure all of those programs are consistent with the president's viewpoint and aid to israel continues to be one. chair graham: where is the most important function of the american government? mr. vought: to give the american people safe and secure and protect the rights. chair graham: are you familiar with the amount of money we spend gdp wise on defense? what is it? mr. vought: i am aware. 3%. chair graham: and it is