mrs. biggert: thank you, mr. chairman. i ask unanimous consent that amendment number 8 be modified in the form i have placed at the desk. the chair: the clerk will report the modification. the clerk: modification to waters amendment number 8 offered by mrs. biggert of illinois. page 23, line 17, strike section 1361-ab and insert section 1361-j. the chair: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from illinois rise? mrs. biggert: mr. speaker, i claim the time. this is a bipartisan package of amendments that we are accepting. i urge my colleagues to support the amendments en bloc. the chair: the gentlewoman will suspend. does the gentlewoman seek unanimous consent to dispense with the reading? mrs. biggert: yes. the chair: of the modification? mrs. biggert: yes. the chair: without objection, so ordered. without objection, the amendment is so modified. and the gentlewoman is recognized. mrs. biggert: thank you, mr. chairman. this is a bipartisan package of amendments that we're accepting. i urge my colleagues to support the amen

mrs. biggert: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h.r. 1309. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. pursuant to house resolution 340 and rule 18, the chair declares the house in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for consideration of h.r. 1309. the chair appoints the gentlewoman from north carolina, ms. foxx, to preside over the committee of the whole. the chair: the house is in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for the consideration of h.r. 130 which the clerk will report by title -- 1309 which the clerk will report by title. the clerk: to achieve reforms to improve the financial integrity and stability of the program and to increase the role of private markets in the management of flood insurance risk and for other purposes. the chair: pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the first time. the gentlewoman from

mrs. biggert: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to add extraneous material on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mrs. biggert: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. biggert: mr. speaker, i rise in support of h.r. 33, the church plan investment clarification act. i'd like to thank my colleagues on the financial services committee for their support of this legislation. i would also like to thank mr. carson of indiana for managing the bill for the other side of the aisle. h.r. 33, the church plan investment clarification act, is a technical correction bill to amend public law 108-359, the church pension fairness act. it clarifies an exemption in current law to allow church pension plans like secular pension plans to invest in collective trusts. due to a technical error included in the 2004 law, the n

mrs. biggert. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for five minutes. mrs. biggert: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, i rise in support of the rule for h.r. 1309, the flood insurance reform act of 2011. i'd like to thank mr. sessions for introducing and managing this rule, rules committee chairman dreier for scheduling floor time. the financial services committee favorably reported, as has been said, the flood insurance reform act by unanimous vote of 54-0. this bill is important and reflects the hard work and bipartisan support of the financial services committee. it would re-authorize for five years the national flood insurance program, nfip and enact a series of reforms designed to improve nfip's financial stability, reduce the burden on taxpayers and explore the ways to increase private market participation. to improve nfip's financial stability, the bill phases in actuarily sound rates for policyholders. in doing so it will help to shore up nfip and allow to pay down the $17.75 billion debt to the taxpayer. it also increases the minimum de

mrs. biggert: i thank the chairman. i serve as co-chair of the high performance building caucus with representative carnahan of missouri. many members of the high performance building coalition have come to us to express their concern about an updated program since the data is nearly a decade old. changes have been made since the last one was published in 2003. the updated data is not only valuable to bidding owners looking to make improvements, but also necessary to inform the annual energy outlook that we in congress rely on. finally, i'd like to point out that the building renovation sector relies overwhelmingly on american-made goods for its work and over 90% of the manufacturing of furnaces, insulation and duct work is here in the united states. so by making this data available to commercial buildings through sbes, we are directly supporting american jobs. i yield back. the chair: the gentlewoman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri rise? >> mr. chairman, to engage in a colloquy with the g

mrs. biggert. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from illinois. mrs. biggert: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, i rise in support of this bill. it's no secret that the $14.3 trillion debt poses an extraordinary threat to our financial future and extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. the cut, cap, and balance act would finally end the fiscal uncertainty and force the federal government to put the interest of the taxpayers first. our colleagues across the aisle claim that this goes too far by restricting fute borrowing. but the reality is that this bill is simply cap spending at the same sustainable rate as past generations. about 20% of g.d.p., a post-world war ii average. for too long government has spent the taxpayers into a debt they cannot afford. cut cap a balance wod -- cut, cap, and balance would show our competitors, creditors, and american peopl we are wling to make tough choices need to restore confidence and growth in the united states. mr. speaker, it's time to cut the spending and give the american businesses th

mrs. biggert, mr. manzullo, mr. bachus, many others, they made it clear they didn't want the whole agency. so this notion that they're just trying to improve it is belied by the fact that they tried to kill it. even then mr. bachus sometimes has trouble sticking to his own line. here's what he said this morning on cnbc. we're not trying to kill it, that's been totally misrepresented. republicans stand strongly behind consumer protection. we however think that safety and soundness has to be considered so that we don't worry about a federal reserve or an fdic but we do worry about a consumer protection agency whose sole goal is to benefit consumers without considering how that benefit affects the stability of our financial institutions. well, it doesn't go the other way, they don't worry about what the financial institutions do to consumers, but let me read again what he says. we do worry about a consumer protection agency whose sole goal is to benefit consumers without worrying about the poor banks and what the bill

mrs. biggert: i thank the gentlelady for yieing and, mr. chairman, i rise in support of h.r. 1315 which would prevent the most visible legacy of the dodd-frank act from also becoming the most costlynd regrettable. today's legislation will provide the new agency with accountable leadership, proper oversight and a much-needed chk against bad decisions. american consumers don't need more bureaucracy to stifle innovation and raise costs. we need regulators to understand that the job isn't just to layer on expensive new rules, it's about educating consumers and preserving a vibrant and competitive financial market that provides affordable and innovative options. unfortunately the current structure of the bureau is subject to virtually no oversight from congress or anyone else and unlike other agencies even the consumer product safety commission on which it is modeled, it is led by a single czar who has unprecedented power. even more dangerous, the financial stability oversight council must agree by a 2/3 majority before they can overturn a rule

mrs. biggert, kindly take the chair. the chair: the house is in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for the further consideration of h.r. 2551, which the clerk will report by title. the clerk: a bill making appropriations for the legislative branch for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2012, and for other purposes. the chair: when the committee of the whole rose on thursday, july 21, 2011, amendment number 11 printed in the house report 112-173 offered by the gentleman from arizona, mr. flake, had been disposed of. pursuant to the order of the house of thursday, july 21, 2011 it is now in order to consider amendment number 12 printed in house report 111-173. printed in house report 112-173. does the gentleman from new jersey seek to -- recognition at this time? mr. holt: i do, madam chair, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 12, printed in house report number 112-173, offered by mr. holt of new jersey. the chair: pursuan

mrs. biggert: thank you. thank you and i thank you for doing this, i think that we've got such great women that have come into this congress in this last turn and i really -- you are all moving forward and really, i think, setting the tone for what's going to happen in the future. i appreciate that. but you know, it is time for america to live within its means. i got an email from a constituent from lockport, illinois, recently and she wrote to me imploring congress to say no. no to all personal income tax increases. she further explained she's a single mom. think of how many single moms are out there, having to work, to keep their kids clothed and in school and keep her home going. she said that she a single mom, struggling to keep her home, raise her son and pay her bills. she says, i cannot pay any more taxes. i will lose everything. and there are so many like that out there. a gentleman from dallas grove, illinois, wrote to me and said, it's sad to see the constant disagreement in washington over almost a

mrs. biggert. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from illinois. mrs. biggert: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, i rise in support of this bill. it's no secret that the $14.3 trillion debt poses an extraordinary threat to our financial future and extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. the cut, cap, and balance act would finally end the fiscal uncertainty and force the federal government to put the interest of the taxpayers first. our colleagues across the aisle claim that this goes too far by restricting future borrowing. but the reality is that this bill is simply cap spending at the same sustainable rate as past generations. about 20% of g.d.p., a post-world war ii average. for too long government has spent the taxpayers into a debt they cannot afford. cut cap and balance would -- cut, cap, and balance would show our competitors, creditors, and american people we are willing to make tough choices needed to restore confidence and growth in the united states. mr. speaker, it's time to cut the spending and give the american bu

mrs. biggert: i thank the gentlelady for yielding and, mr. chairman, i rise in support of h.r. 1315 which would prevent the most visible legacy of the dodd-frank act from also becoming the most costly and regrettable. today's legislation will provide the new agency with accountable leadership, proper oversight and a much-needed check against bad decisions. american consumers don't need more bureaucracy to stifle innovation and raise costs. we need regulators to understand that the job isn't just to layer on expensive new rules, it's about educating consumers and preserving a vibrant and competitive financial market that provides affordable and innovative options. unfortunately the current structure of the bureau is subject to virtually no oversight from congress or anyone else and unlike other agencies even the consumer product safety commission on which it is modeled, it is led by a single czar who has unprecedented power. even more dangerous, the financial stability oversight council must agree by a 2/3 majority before they can overturn a r

mrs. biggert. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from illinois. mrs. biggert: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, i rise in support of this bill. it's no secret that the $14.3 trillion debt poses an extraordinary threat to our financial future and extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. the cut, cap, and balance act would finally end the fiscal uncertainty and force the federal government to put the interest of the taxpayers first. our colleagues across the aisle claim that this goes too far by restricting future borrowing. but the reality is that this bill is simply cap spending at the same sustainable rate as past generations. about 20% of g.d.p., a post-world war ii average. for too long government has spent the taxpayers into a debt they cannot afford. cut cap and balance would -- cut, cap, and balance would show our competitors, creditors, and american people we are willing to make tough choices needed to restore confidence and growth in the united states. mr. speaker, it's time to cut the spending and give the american bu

mrs. biggert, kindly resume the chair. the chair: the house is in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for further consideration of h.r. 2551 which the clerk will report by title. the clerk: a bill making appropriations for the legislative branch for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2012, and for other purposes. the chair: when the committee of the whole house rose earlier today, request for a recorded vote on amendment number 9 printed in the house report 112-173 offered by the gentleman from virginia, mr. moran, had been postponed. pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, proceedings will now resume on those amendments printed in the house report 112-173, on which further proceedings were postponed in the following order. amendment number 2 by mr. watt of north carolina, amendment number 5 by ms. hayworth of new york. amendment number 6 by mr. broun of georgia. amendment number 8 by mr. stutzman of indiana. amendment number 15 by mr. thompson of pennsylvania. amendment number 12 by mr. holt of new jerse

mrs. biggert, the gentleman from texas, mr. hinojosa, and a number of others have stressed an important thing of this agency's mission is literacy. we all agree that if people were better educated they could defend they wasselves better. this is an ongoing joint effort on our committee and obviously if you try to do financial literacy, it's got to be in a language that people can understand. so i appreciate the gentleman highlighting that and it does help us do that. i would not that -- and i think the gentlewoman from california is quite correct in wanting to do this but you don't need a commission to do it. we could do it with various agency heads. for example, there's been some concern about making sure that veterans are taken care of. one of the things that -- and people in the military, one of the things that elizabeth warren did, she did a number of extraordinary things, was, i don't know if people were aware of the head of the military bureau that protects members of the services, a very experienced woman from the milita

mrs. biggert: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of h.r. 2354. i commend the work of my colleagues, chairman frelling loosen and ranking -- frelinghuysen and ranking member visclosky, for their efforts to balance important energy and infrastructure funding in the nuclear energy, army corps of engineers and in particular the office of science. strong funding at d.o.e. is critical for the development of future reactor technologies and licensing for nuclear and small mod later -- mod lar nuclear power. similarly healthy funding for the corps of army engineers is vital to our waterway, commerce, protection from invasive species and water quality in the midwest. finally, by maintaining our investment in the office of science, congress will preserve our capacity to innovate and enhance our competitive edge in the global economy and create good american jobs well into the future. mr. speaker, i ask my colleagues to support the office of science and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her

mrs. biggert: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, there is not a single member of congress or the administration who do not know that this day was coming. washington was spending tax dollars more than ever before and the debt ceiling was caving in. the question is, how do we respond? do we protest? do we argue? or do we govern? last november the voters asked for change and that's how this house stopped the largest tax increase in history and cut spending this year to levels not seen since 2008. today, we ha the opportunity to take the next step by passing the budget control act. this is a balanced compromise that will avert a default and stop the cycle of debt that is draining our economy. it makesearly $1 trillion in immediate cuts, more -- lays the groundwork for additional savings and a balanced budget amendment. in a perfect world, some of us would like more cuts. those on the left also want a bigger plan. or at least a big enough debt increase to carry the president beyond the next campaign. but the american people care

mrs. biggert: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, there is not a single member of congress or the administration who do not know that this day was coming. washington was spending tax dollars more than ever before and the debt ceiling was caving in. the question is, how do we respond? do we protest? do we argue? or do we govern? last november the voters asked for change and that's how this house stopped the largest tax increase in history and cut spending this year to levels not seen since 2008. today, we have the opportunity to take the next step by passing the budget control act. this is a balanced compromise that will avert a default and stop the cycle of debt that is draining our economy. it makes nearly $1 trillion in immediate cuts, more -- lays the groundwork for additional savings and a balanced budget amendment. in a perfect world, some of us would like more cuts. those on the left also want a bigger plan. or at least a big enough debt increase to carry the president beyond the next campaign. but the american people

mrs. biggert: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, there is not a single member of congress or the administration who do not know that this day was coming. washington was spending tax dollars more than ever before and the debt ceiling was caving in. the question is, how do we respond? do we protest? do we argue? or do we govern? last november the voters asked for change and that's how this house stopped the largest tax increase in history and cut spending this year to levels not seen since 2008. today, we have the opportunity to take the next step by passing the budget control act. this is a balanced compromise that will avert a default and stop the cycle of debt that is draining our economy. it makes nearly $1 trillion in immediate cuts, more -- lays the groundwork for additional savings and a balanced budget amendment. in a perfect world, some of us would like more cuts. those on the left also want a bigger plan. or at least a big enough debt increase to carry the president beyond the next campaign. but the american people

mrs. biggert, kindly take the chair. the chair: the house is in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for the further consideration of h.r. 2354 which the clerk will report by title. the clerk: a bill making appropriations for energy and water development and related agencies for fiscal year ending september 30, 2012, and for other purposes. the chair: when the committee of the whole rose on wednesday, july 13, 2011, the bill had been read through page 62, line 2. for what purpose does the gentleman from massachusetts rise? >> madam chairman, i rise to strike the last word. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. olver: thank you very much. madam chairman, title 5 of the energy-water bill before us today robs peter to pay paul. title 5 takes funds which were appropriated 2 1/2 years ago for transportation purposes and moves those funds, part of those funds to corps of engineers in today's energy-water appropriations bill. title 5 specifically rescinds all awarded but unobligated

mrs. biggert: mr. speaker, 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 368, resolved that the clerk of the house of representatives requests the senate to return to the house the bill h.r. 1309 entitled an act to extend the authorization of the national flood insurance program, to achieve reforms to improve the financial integrity and stability of the program, and to increase the role of private markets and the management of flood insurance risk and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the resolution is agreed to and the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, proceedings now will resume on questions previously postponed as follows, first, adoptioning -- adopting resolution 363 and, second, agreeing to the speaker's approval of the journal. first vote will be a 15-minute vote. the second vote will be a five-minute vote. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will make the following announcement. the chair

committee 54-0, i want to thank the chairman, chairman biggert, and the chairman of the full committee, chairman bachus, and theals ranking member, mr. frank and the ranking member in the committee, ms. waters for their leadership. what we don't need now is to have the other side try circumvent this process with a disaster relief billism urge my colleagues on this side and that side to support the underlying bill and reject the motion to recommit. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. without objection, the previous question is ordered. the i request unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks -- the question is on the motion to recommit. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the noes have it. >> i request a recorded vote. the speaker pro tempore: a recorded vote is requested. those favoring 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. pursuant to clause 18 of rule -- clause 8 -- clause 9 of rule 20, this 15-minute vote on the motion to recommit w