Transcripts For CSPAN U.S. House Of Representatives 11142017 20171114

Mr. Thornberry mentioned about ack which situation reform and making sure the system works better. I thank the chairman who has taken the lead on this issue. I think we have made significant improvements while acknowledging that we still have a long way to go to get the efficiency out of the pentagon budget. I think this bill does a great job supporting the troops and their families. Its basically the case we recruit a Service Member but you retain the family, and that means you have to provide for them. We support the 2. 5 pay raise in this bill and support the troops and their families in many different ways. This is a very good product. I also want to say, and i want to thank representative langevin on this issue. This bill states that Climate Change is a National Security threat. We make that the policy of the United States congress to acknowledge Climate Change and the impact that its going to have on our National Security. And representative langevin was tireless in making sure that was part of this bill. This is a good product. I am proud of the work we have done together to produce a legislative product that mr. Thornberry said, none of us likes everything thats in it but we reached a compromise. The challenge that we have Going Forward is what the chairman mentioned at the end there. This bill funds i think its right around 696 billion in defense spending. It goes 80 billion, roughly, over the budget caps. And the bill cant do that on its own unless the budget caps are lifted and the appropriators pass the appropriations bill, that doesnt happen. And we havent made a lot of progress on that. I was thinking today back to 2011 in august when we first passed the budget control act. We were about two days short of not being able to meet our debt ceiling obligations when we passed that, and at the time the hope was that we come together on a compromise to deal with our deficit and our debt, to get us on a fiscally responsible path. Well, nearly seven well, sorry, over six years later, i cant say we made an enormous amount of progress on that and thats a huge threat to our troops and our National Security. Id also say its a threat to the nondefense discretionary budget and the rest of the budget as well, but without question, one of the greatest challenges the pentagon faces, they dont know from one month to the next how much money they are going to have. Is this going to be the number, is this bill going to work . I dont know. I hope so. We have to resolve that issue. We have to figure out how to have a fiscally responsible budget so we can pass Appropriations Bills every year so all aspects of the discretionary budget can have some predictability. Its absolutely true, as the chairman and others have said, we have a readiness shortfall. What that means is we are not providing the equipment and the training to our troops necessary to fully prepare them to do the missions we are asking them to do. And i have no doubt that part of that is underfunded. But another part of it is we have a National Security strategy that is unclear and as it is presented is far greater than we would ever have the resources to match. I had a meeting with a pentagon official who told me they were very concerned because they were way short of having the funds necessary to meet their 2012 National Security strategy. And make no mistake about it, as big and confusing as the pentagon may look, they have a reason for everything they spend. They have a plan in place. Right now we dont have the funds to match those plans. I yield myself an additional minute. And thats a huge problem. So Going Forward, while we do need to provide more resources and stability, i also think we need to take a look at that National Security strategy and say, where are we spending money that we shouldnt be . What part of our strategy do we not need . If we cant do that, if we cant cut back, we are never going to be in a position to provide adequate funds to our troops. And to me that is the absolute worse result. Whatever the strategy is, the one thing that it absolutely ought to do is fund our troops sufficiently to meet it, to have a big idea what we ought to be able to do and then to underfund the men and women were asking to do it, i believe this has led to some of the accidents and deaths we had recently with our ships and with our planes. We need to adequately Fund Readiness to meet a mission that is achievable. That we still need to get to, but overall this is a good policy bill. Again, i thank the chairman. Appreciate the partnership and really enjoyed working with him to produce the product. With that i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from washington reserves his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield two minutes to the chairman of the subcommittee on readiness, the gentleman from South Carolina, mr. Wilson. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Wilson thank you, mr. Speaker. And thank you, chairman Mac Thornberry for your leadership, the extraordinary controversial issue that should be addressed has been solved with your leadership and will be so meaningful to military families. I am grateful to support h. R. 2810, the National Defense authorization act for fiscal year 2018. Throughout this past year, as chairman of the readiness subcommittee, we heard testimony from each of the joint chiefs about the critical necessity to address the militarys alarming readiness shortfalls across all domains, air, land, sea, cyber and space. Sadly, the recent tragic deaths in the indopacific showed that readiness has fallen to a dangerous level. We can no longer delay the maintenance and sustainment problems that plague the military and defer critical training and modernization that directly impacts the ability to respond rapidly to emerging threats worldwide. There are numerous important readiness provisions in the bill. I also appreciate my friend, colleague and readiness ubcommittee Ranking Member Madeleine Bordallo of guam. The ndaa was bipartisan and shows emphasis for Recovery Efforts and the enhanced mission of our nation, protecting military families as we recognize freedom is not free. I strongly support the ndaa for fiscal year 2018, and encourage my colleagues in the house to support it as well. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Mr. Smith i thank you, mr. Speaker. I am now pleased to yield three minutes to the Ranking Member of the subcommittee on readiness, the gentlelady from guam, ms. Bordallo. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Bordallo i rise in support of the conference report to accompany the fiscal year 2018 National Defense authorization act. I commend chairman thornberry, Ranking Member smith, and i would like to also thank the readiness chairman, mr. Joe wilson, and the Committee Staff who worked many, many long nights on this bill. Im especially thankful for the spirit of cooperation that enables us to pass an act that directly impacts the young men and women who defend our country. The conference report authorizes 3. 6 billion in additional operations and maintenance funds to increase training, spare parts, facility and equipment maintenance and other readiness enablers. This is a very important step to support the recovery of readiness in areas that have been adversely impacted by high operational tempos and made worse by numerous continuing resolutions and the effects of sequestration. However, Congress Must go further and provide the department with budget stability by repealing sequestration so that we can continue to support the training, the maintenance, and the modernization needs of our forces. The conference agreement also includes a number of provisions to support military readiness, such as providing authorities and flexibility for investments in infrastructure, extending direct hiring authorities, protecting training ranges from encroachment, and continuing to support the asia pacific rebalance. The rebalance is critical to security and stability in the indoAsia Pacific Region, a matter of most importance to me because of the recent threats against the United States and specifically my home district of guam. Critically for my constituents, this agreement provides authority for u. S. Customs and Immigration Services to approve h 2db visas for guam that support Construction Projects directly connected to as well as those associated with the realignment of military forces to guam. Additionally, the agreement authorizes 354. 6 million for military Construction Projects in guam. As guams representative, i will continue to work with the d. O. D. And the u. S. C. I. S. To provide relief for health care and other industries that support our military on guam. While i support the progress we made in this bill, without further relief, our inadequate work force will negatively impact our National Security. So, again, mr. Chairman, i reiterate my appreciation of the work by our committees and our exceptional staff. The f. Y. 2018 ndaa provides the resources that our military requires for its missions in this very, very dangerous world. So i urge support for the bill. Thank you, mr. Speaker, and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentleman from washington reserves his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield two minutes to the tactical air, land forces subcommittee, the gentleman from ohio, mr. Turner. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Turner thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, i rise in support of h. R. 2810, the National Defense authorization act for 2018. I strongly support this bill and i want to personally thank our chairman Mac Thornberry for his work in trying to get a higher top line for defense. This bill comes in higher than the president s budget request, but it is in line with both the appropriations and the budget document that came out of the house. This bill authorizes 634. 2 billion in the base budget, a muchneeded increase over the original budget request and fully supports many of the unfunded requirements identified by the department that totaled more than 30 billion. He 634. 2 billion is essential. Anything less handicaps our ability for readiness, nearly a decade of neglect. This begins the long process to rebuild our militarys full Spectrum Readiness from years of deferred modernization brought on the failed assumptions from the previous administrations budget control act and sequestration. Tactical air, land forces subcommittee, this bill authorizes 12 billion in additional funds to address unfunded modernization requirements and critical capability gaps. If we do not begin with this budget to set favorable conditions to start to reverse the high risk defense posture we currently have, we will significantly jeopardize our militarys advantage that weve taken for granted in past conflicts in steady state operations. As such, the bill recognizes the importance of land forces and authorizes over 2 billion to accelerate Armored Brigade Combat Team modernization to include additional tanks and bradley fighting vehicles. The bill authorizes Strike Fighter capability and capacity shortfalls and authorizes 3 billion in additional funding to procure fifth generation aircraft and modernize our fifth generation fleet. These projects address unfunded requirements for the air force, navy and marine corps. The bill also continue to address the needs of the National Guard and reserve components by authorizing an additional 250 million for their equipment and modernization. This prevents the air force from reducing critical i. R. S. Capabilities. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Mr. Smith thank you, mr. Speaker. I am now pleased to yield three minutes to the Ranking Member on emerging threats and capabilities, the gentleman from long island, mr. Langevin. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Langevin i thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, i first like to begin by thanking chairman thornberry and Ranking Member smith and chairwoman stefanik for their tireless work on this bill. Its a good work product and im very proud to be associated with it and to be supporting it. Id also like to thank the Armed Services Committee Staff for their contributions for another successful and bipartisan ndaa, and particular, lindsey, pete, kevin and nev. I want to recognize Kathryn Mitchell on my staff along with my two fellows, shawn and john, for their contribution and support. I am strongly support of the emerging threats portion of the ndaa. I want to congratulate chairwoman stefanik. This is her first ndaa as chairwoman. It was a pleasure working with her in a strong bipartisan way. The conference agreement preserves important steps forward when it comes to cyber, Information Operations and advanced technologies and provides support to our special operators and their families. When it comes to cyber, the bill authorizes the department of defense to ensure we have appropriate authorities and policies in place to allow our forces to operate successfully in cyberspace. It also reinvigorates the d. O. D. Cyber scholarship programs which provides scholarships and grant opportunities at the universities to bring their expertise into the department after they graduate. Additionally, the finalize language includes a provision that i wrote in conjunction with chairman thornberry, Ranking Member smith and chairwoman stefanik to require timely notifications for sensitive sign ber military operations out of areas of hostilities, ensuring congress is able to conduct appropriate oversight in this new domain. And the bill makes advanced technologies for our war fighters, such as electric mag neglectic war gun. We dont want to send our Service Members into a unfair fight. These technologies will ensure we provide them with the very best tools available. Finally, im very pleased with the final conference report. Preserving my amendment expressing the sense of congress that Climate Change is a National Security challenge and requiring the department to report its effects. This important bipartisan provision represents one of the most significant legislative Actions Congress has taken on this issue, and this shift in policy will better prepare our armed force, improve our readiness to face the changing climate. Want to thank the committee for their excellent work on this bill. Particularly chairman thornberry, Ranking Member smith, chairwoman stefanik, and the Committee Staff and my staff as want to thank the committee well. It was a pleasure working on this very bipartisan bill in support of all of oiler war fighters who we want to make sure that we provide the very best tools that they need to do their job safely and effectively. Thank them for all that they do for our nation. With that, i yield back the alance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from washington reserves his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry im pleased to yield two minutes to the chair of the subcommittee on strategic force, the chairman from alabama, mr. Rogers. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Rogers thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support of years ndaa and commend the chairman for his outstanding leadership in getting us to the point were today. This years bill takes the first step in fixing the broken Space Enterprise in the air force. We streamline the Leadership Structure eliminating over 20 unnecessary internal air force boxes on the air force acquisition chart. The bill empowers the commander of the air force Space Command with Sole Authority to organize, train, and equip space forces. It terminates duplicative offers. The Defense Space council and air forces a11 office. Most importantly, its a first a long path to Getting Space right for the betterment of our war fighters. Hopefully oferte coming year the senate will focus on the chronic problems facing National Security space. And work with us to establish a separate space corps. On Missile Defense, the bill ensures the way ahead of the threat that we stay ahead of the threat, which as we have seen over the last few years from north korea and their due tue dozen tests, missile tests, they are advancing rapidly. Also in this bill were authorizing more interceptors, accelerating research and development for advance technologies and improving acquisition authorities for Missile Defense systems. And lets also not forget about what the bill does for our nuke leear deterrent. Legs of the triade will age out and begin retiring over the next decade. This bill ensures the replacement programs remain on schedule. On space launch we continue the committees dedication to the development of domestic relace or the rd180 engines. Ninallirks im very pleased with the progress we have made toward getting some of the surplus 1911 pistols into the hands of collectors and off the storage t dime for costs. With storage costs. With that, mr. Speaker, i urge support of this legislation. Yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. Gentleman from washington. Mr. Smith thank you, mr. Speaker. Im pleased to yield three minutes to the gentleman from tennessee, mr. Cooper, who is the Ranking Member of the subcommittee on Strategic Forces. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Cooper thank you, mr. Speaker. Thank you, Ranking Member smith, chairman thornberry, chairman mccain on the senate side, and Ranking Member reed. Its Important Congress continue this great tradition of passing the Defense Authorization act. This will be the 57th year. My constituents back home want nothing more than for us to cooperate on a bipartisan fashion for the good of the country. This bill, h. R. 2810, does that. In particular, id like to thank chairman of those Strategic Forces subcommittee, mike rogers, who has been a we do several important things. Modernize our Nuclear Forces and keep the effort going on nuclear nonproliferation. We fund critical Missile Defense needs in the face of rising threats from north korea and other countries. We support u. S. Usisraeli Missile Defense, and also strengthen doctor mat will i our capabilities in space. This Defense Authorization bill takes a decisive first step to address the pragmentation and lack of focus on National Security space issues. That the air force has shown by reorganizing space within the air force and within the department of defense. While it does not create the space corps we preferred, it achieves many of the goals we set out to achieve. Notably it consolidates acquisition, operations, and training of the space forces under the air force Space Command. And eliminates ineffective or redundant authorities across the department. Our assets in space unfortunately are increasingly vulnerablele to attack. This reorganization will begin to provide the focus and coordination necessary to effectively address these growing threats. I thank the chairman of the subcommittee for his strong leadership in this effort and r making this a bipartisan process. Id also like to thank the deputy secretary of defense for his engagement on this important issue. Well continue to hold the department accountable during this transition period. Im also pleased that the bill begins to counter the vulnerability of our g. P. S. Systems in space which underpin many defense and civilian systems. We increase the resiliency and id also like to thank the deputy secretary of defense for his engagement on alternatives to g. P. S. Including thinking outside the box by relying on our allies and perhaps even exploiting russia and chinese signals as a means to deter attack on our systems. The Conference Also dropped restrictions on extending the new start treaty which verifyably limits the number of Nuclear Weapons that russia or the United States can deploy. Lternatives to the bill holds russia accountable by imposing increasing sanctions related to ose violations rather than prematurely nullifying the treaty. The conference report also encourages a dialogue with russia and china to reduce risks of miscalculations that could lead to an unintended nuclear war. Pressuring russia while avoiding an unnecessary Nuclear Arms Race or precipitous nuclear war should be Top Priorities for our defense and current more volatile environment n this context i support increased focus on modernizing our Nuclear Command control system which has been too long over cost and delayed. Finally, the bill ends years of steful spending on the unaffordable failed m. O. X. Project in South Carolina by allowing the department of energy to terminate it and move to a solution at a fraction of the cost. Naffordable failed thank you again, mr. Speaker. I support this bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from washington reserves his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thorn bury mr. Thank you again, thornberry pl yield to the gentleman from virginia, mr. Wittman. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Wittman thank you, mr. Speaker. Support of the National Defense authorization act for f. Y. 18. This bill fully funds our Armed Forces Support of the and incre strength and sets in earnest the modernization of our military and ensures our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines are properly compensated for the sacrifices they make four a grateful nation on a daily basis. In my role as the Projection Forces chairman i vowed months ago to set the conditions for the navy to grow to 355 ships in accordance with the navys own force Structure Assessment. Im proud to say this bill sends the signal to our navy, industrial base, and adversaries that the a 355 ship navy is not just a theoretical idea but rather an achievable reality. The bill expands on the eight ships requested bied administration by adding an additional five ships. The little bill also recommends advanced procurement for the virginia class attack sub marines. As to aircraft, the bill fully funds the b21 radar bomber program, a critical component of the future nuke leear try add. It also recommends an expansion of aerial refuelers. C130 j airlift, and antisubmarine aircraft. Finally the bill delivers extended authorities that would savet taxpayers billions of dollars. Some of our colleagues have suggested our Defense Budget is excessive and additional moneys should be provided towards other efforts. My friends, this thought is not only misguided but it is dangerous. We have a constitutional responsibility to provide for the common defense of our nation. We will not shrink from that responsibility. I hope none of my colleagues undermine the efforts to deliver the 634 billion base required for our National Security. Finally, i want to recognize Ranking Member joe courtney. He has been and continues to be a true partner in ensuring the sea power Projection Forces of our nation are properly resourced. I do not think that we would be anywhere required for our National Security. Finally, i want delivering the 355ship navy or providing for our air forces deep close capabilities without his steadfast resolve and sincere efforts to realize bipartisan solutions. I also want to reflect that with the chairman and Ranking Member and their leadership and i urge my colleagues to support the National Defense authorization act for fiscal year 2018. Mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Mr. Smith im pleased to yield three minutes to the Ranking Member of the subcommittee on sea power and skpwrokes force, gentleman from connecticut, mr. Court nifment the speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Courtney thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support of r. 2810 and want to begin by congratulating chairman thornberry and Ranking Member smith for their skillful, bipartisan guidance of this measure. The vote that took place last summer when the house passed first time through was the largest bipartisan vote since 2008 for an ndaa. That didnt happen by accident. It was because of their great work. I also want to thank my colleague, mr. Wittman, on the sea power committee. Again, it is a very bipartisan effort and the result i think demonstrates that when you do it that way you get good results. I also want to congratulate the staff, dave, phil, and also Lieutenant Commander dominick, our navy fellow here today, their support and work were invaluable in terms of getting the sea power portion of the ll to the really solid place it is today. Again, last year, 2016, the navy came forward with a force Structure Assessment that said based on National Security world that our fleet size needs to grow. When the president s budget came over last may, unfortunately, there was only eight new ships in that budget. But our committee again showing its independence as a coequal branch of Government Produced a sea power mark that boosted that build world rate to 15 and has us now on a pathway to achieve the goal the navy identified last year. In particular, in terms of the undersea fleet, our Combatant Commanders have been loudly Warning Congress that we could we should not allow the decline in the fleet size to occur. This bill again authorizes 5. 9 billion for the Virginia Class Submarine Program and provides multiyear Procurement Authority to enter into a contract for 13 virginia class, allowing for a build rate to move from two a year to three fast attack submarines in 2020, 2022, and 2023. The national sea base Deterrence Fund which our committee created in 2014 extends continuous production authorities which the navy told us will save 383 million in the columbia class program, which again is about smart procurement which mr. Smith referred to at the beginning. Again, there are other provisions of the bill that i would just note there was no rack authorized in this [ authorize bracc authorized n this bill. Again a very smart move by the committee. Mr. Speaker, as been noted this is the 57th year in a row that we have produced an nd tafment a. Its because we follow regular order. Its because we respect both sides of the aisle in terms of the contribution they make. We still have meat left on the bone to get the 2018 spending bill done and hopefully the example that mr. Thornberry, mr. Smith set in terms of allowing the process to breathe is the way were going to get to a successful result just as we did with 2017. Again i want to congratulate the leadership of our committee and strongly urge all members on both sides of the aisle to support passage of this measure. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from washington reserves his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield two minutes to the chairman of the subcommittee on military personnel, the gentleman from colorado, mr. Coffman. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Coffman spree, i rise in strong support of h. R. 2810, the conference report for the National Defense authorization act for fiscal year 2018. The conference report contains significant policy and Funding Initiatives that continue our commitment to our troops and their families. All while maintaining military readiness and addressing important military personnel issues. The provisions contained in this bill provide our war fighters, retirees, and their families the necessary pay and benefits to sustain them inn todays highly stressed force. To that end, this bill establishes a fully funded by law pay raise for all our Service Members. After years of lower than by law pay raise requests, its critical that we continue to give our troops and their families the pay increases they have earned. Increases the end strengths of the active National Guard and reserve forces thereby increasing Mission Readiness while reducing the stress and strain on the force and their families. Permanently preserves special survivor indemnity allowance payments, closing the gap in the widows tax to surviving military spouses. It also continues to improve Sexual Assault prevention and response by adding a new provision to the uniform code of military justice, specifically prohibiting nonconsensual sharing of intimate image, expanding special Victims Counsel training, and expanding the annual Sexual Assault prevention and response report. Finally, spouses of service by ers are challenged varying state will sure and Certification Requirements when forced to move to a new state by military orders. Rather than imposing a single federal standard on the states, we provide a 500 reimbursement to varying state will sure and Certification Requirements when forced to move to a new state by military orders. Defray thes. We ask states to work with the secretary of defense to develop common standards where possible. In conclusion i want to thanth Ranking Member, miss spire, and the ms. Speier and the staff for their contributions to this report. We were joined by a dedicated group of subcommittee members. Their recommendations are reflected in the conference report for the National Defense authorization act for fiscal year 2018. I strongly urge my colleagues to support the passage of this conference report. With that i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Mr. Smith thank you, mr. Speaker. Im now pleased to yield two minutes to the gentlelady from massachusetts, ms. Tsongas. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. Ms. Tsongas i thank you, Ranking Member smith and chairman thornberry. I appreciate your leadership. I would also like to thank chairman turner for his partnership on the tactical subcommittee and for maintaining the spirit of bipartisanship that is the tradition of this committee. The fiscal year 2018 ndaa takes significant steps to support and protect military members and their families. However, i share Ranking Member smiths concerns that this years bill authorizes a level of defense spending that is wholly unrealistic. The numbers included in this bill are well above caps placed on defense spending by the budget control act, prioritize defense spending at a devastating cost to important federal agencies and other investments that are critical to maintaining our National Competitiveness and the future of our country and they are being put forward at the same time that we are considering a tax reform bill that will significantly cut revenues and by the latest estimate add 1. 7 trillion to the federal deficit. Accordingly, the increased spending included in this bill are hollow numbers and we are failing to deliver a critical or sensible longterm plan to the defense department. Throughout my tenure on this committee, i have been guided by our moral obligation to ensure the men and women that we send into harms way are properly equipped and the best protected in the world. I would never deny them the tools they need to defend themselves and our nation which is why i will be voting for this compromise. I understand the necessity of many of the programs that are funded each year in this bill and believe its passage is needed to maintain American Military superiority against a variety of threats while supporting our men and women in uniform. But ongoing budget negotiations need to get realistic. We owe it to our Service Members to find a responsible balanced path forward that works for both our national and economic security. Thank you, mr. Speaker, and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back her time. The gentleman from washington reserves his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield two minutes to the distinguished chair of the subcommittee on oversight and investigations, the gentlelady from missouri, mrs. Hartzler. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Mrs. Hartzler thank you, mr. Chairman. I rise in strong support of the conference report for the National Defense authorization act for fiscal year 2018. Id like to thank chairman thornberry, Ranking Member smith, all the conferees and the Committee Staff for their hard work on this important piece of legislation. As members of congress, its our responsibility to provide support for our men and women in uniform while they selflessly serve our nation. This bill authorizes a muchneeded 634 billion in base budget requirements for our National Security. This number is the minimum requirement needed to even begin the process of restoring our militarys readiness. Tragically, this year alone, we have heard report after report of deadly training accidents. These accidents demonstrate severe readiness shortfalls across the services. We cannot stand by as our men and women in uniform continue to suffer. Now is the time to invest, and this bill does just that. The ndaa authorizes a 2. 4 pay increase for our troops, authorizing 24 additional f18 superhornets to help fill the navys Strike Fighter shortfall and it fully funds the b21 bomber, a critical platform needed to deter and defeat future aggression around the world. Im proud to represent missouris fourth congressional district, which is home to Whiteman Air Force space. This bill funds modernization programs for the b2 bombers, authorizes 50 million in d. O. D. Impact aid for militaryconnected schools and fully authorizes a new hospital facility and Blood Processing Center at fort leonardwood. Im proud of the provisions in the conference report that will improve the Foreign Military sales process and provide the National Nuclear Security Administration with muchneeded flexibility to address the crippling infrastructure of the u. S. Nuclear security enterprise. I want to thank Ranking Member seth moulton for his support and working on these important issues in a bipartisan fashion. Mr. Speaker, our troops deserve this bill, and they deserve the funding that this bill authorizes. Thanks to the leadership of chairman thornberry, this conference report increases defense spending to meet the need of todays war fighter. Im proud of this critical bill, and i urge my colleagues to support its passage. Thank you, mr. Chairman. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Mr. Smith i thank you, mr. Speaker. Im now pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. Moulton. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Moulton i thank the gentleman for yielding. I rise today to speak on the National Defense authorization act. I must say im so proud to be a member of a committee so known for its bipartisanship. Im particularly proud to serve on the oversight and investigations subcommittee with my colleague ms. Harsler from missouri. I am mrs. Hartzler from missouri. I am concerned that this administration is failing to confront the threats our country faces like russia, so im encourage this bill includes package to deter russia, including u. S. Training and support for our european allies, a plan for sanctions on russia linked to treaty violations as well as the requirement for the administration to develop a strategy to counter russia over the long term. The bill also forces the same type of accountability that ive been pushing for on syria policy for a long time. Requiring the president to submit a comprehensive syria strategy, including diplomatic, military and humanitarian assistance initiatives. Too often big bills like this forget the troops on the ground, but this bill raises military pay by 2. 5 and takes action on specific concerns raised to me and my team by requiring a study on improving opioid prescription practices as well as Additional Mental Health care for those transitioning out of active duty. The bill includes a provision i supported for our critical allies in the fight against terror. The Afghan Special immigrant visa program affords afghan interpreters who have risked their lives not only for their country but for ours. The ability to resettle in the u. S. Due to threats they and their families face on a daily basis because they work with u. S. Troops. Here at home, our military families selflessly support our men and women in harms way and provide the backbone so important to military communities across our country. Thats why i led an effort to include a requirement for d. O. D. To examine a new military Family Service corps to support volunteer efforts involving career transition assistance, Community Integration for military families, support for liaison programs for schools as well as families with children with special needs. By building on these efforts, we can ensure our Service Members and their families are getting the support they need. This bill comes at a time when we in congress have forced the department of defense to operate under yet another continuing resolution. In the absence of a full year budget. And we are authorizing an nprecedented 692 billion in defense spending, more than the budget caps. All the while republicans are pushing one of the most aggressive tax cut packages in history set to cost our country at least 1. 7 trillion. Simply put, republicans dont know how to balance a checkbook and ultimately it is our Service Members and their families who will pay the price. As admiral mike mullen said in 2010 and again in 2016, our nations longterm debt is the single greatest threat to our National Security. We ought to balance the budget because its the right thing to do for the troops. Thank you. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The gentleman from washington reserves his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield two minutes to the distinguished chair of the subcommittee on emerging threats and capabilities, the gentlelady from new york, ms. Stefanik. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Stefanik thank you, mr. Chairman. I rise today in strong support of the conference report for the National Defense authorization act for fiscal year 2018. I strongly believe this bipartisan bill puts us on a course towards readiness recovery, ensuring our military is fully equipped, trained and supported. As the chairwoman of the subcommittee on emerging threats and capabilities, im especially proud of our contributions to ensure proper resourcing and authorities for cyber warfare, safeguarding our technological superiority and defense innovation, enabling forces to counterterrorism and warfare threats around the world and energizing programs and activities that counter the spread of weapons of mass destruction. I would specifically like to highlight what our subcommittee has achieved this year in the areas of cyber warfare and Cyber Operations. Our emphasis on cyber has three broad themes. First, we increase congressional oversight of Cyber Operations by including h. R. 2807, a bill introduced by myself, Ranking Member langevin, chairman thornberry and Ranking Member smith that will ensure congress is kept fully informed of sensitive military Cyber Operations. We also require a cyber posture review to clarify u. S. Cyber deterrence policy and strategy. Second, we bolster International Partnerships for cyber warfare to counter adversaries such as russia, china and north korea. This includes support for our nato partners and those within the Asia Pacific Region to enhance partnered Cyber Capabilities and information sharing and to counter and mitigate adversarial propaganda efforts and warfare campaign. And third, the bill continues to build and enhance our u. S. Cyber warfare capabilities and activities. Principally within u. S. Cyber command but also across our government with the services and within the intelligence community. This includes resiliency of department of defense networks, weapon systems and supply chains. Furthermore, mr. Speaker, this bill reinforces counterterrorism and Unconventional Warfare capabilities by fully resourcing u. S. Backed special Operation Command and activities including ongoing efforts in iraq, syria, afghanistan, yemen, somalia and eastern europe. We also include a new twoyear authority mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield to the gentlelady another three minutes. Ms. Stefanik such as those being posed by russia and other adversaries. Before i conclude, i would like to thank chairman Mac Thornberry for his leadership as well as my subcommittee Ranking Member, jim langevin of rhode island, for his consistent bipartisan leadership on all of these issues and i urge my colleagues to support this bill and vote yes on the conference report. With that i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Mr. Smith thank you, mr. Chairman. I now am pleased to yield one minute to the gentleman from california, mr. Carbajal, a member of the Armed Services committee. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Carbajal mr. Speaker, i would like to thank Ranking Member smith, chairman thornberry, and the Committee Staff for working with me to include language that brings attention to the threat of Nuclear Proliferation. Currently, Nine Countries possess over 15,000 Nuclear Weapons, and the United States plans to spend 1. 2 trillion over the next 30 years to upgrade and expand its nuclear stockpile. As we build up our nuclear arsenal, we are increasing the risk of these destructive weapons ending up in the hands of terrorists. The language i included in this bill stresses the importance of addressing this danger and requires the secretary of defense to explain how the department of defense is responding to this threat. When secretary mattis testified before our committee, i asked him about this ongoing threat, and he told me that Nuclear Proliferation has not received enough attention over quite a few years. This amendment is a welcomed first step in the development of a robust strategy against Nuclear Proliferation. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The gentleman from washington reserves his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield one minute to a very valued member of our committee, the gentleman from ohio, dr. Wenstrup. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Wenstrup thank you. Mr. Speaker, providing for the common defense, thats a constitutional duty that this governing body was tasked with. By passing the ndaa, were working to ensure that our country keeps faith with those who bravely serve and their families. While the world has grown more dangerous, our military has grown smaller, our men and women in uniform and their equipment have been stretched thin after years of war, billions in budget cuts, downsizing and continued funding uncertainty. The 2018 ndaa reverses these trend lines. Passing this bill fully funds the 2. 4 pay raise our troops have earned so we can support our troops and they can support their families. This legislation brings attention to maximizing our military Health Systems and includes a study on safe opioid prescribing practices for our troops so our war fighters receive the best possible treatment. Rebuilding our readiness along with acquisition reform, equipment modernization and increased end strength will better prepare our men and women as they put on the uniform and fight for us. Our troops serve so we can sleep well at night, and they ask nothing in return. I urge the full house to vote in favor of the ndaa, and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back his time. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Smith may i inquire mouchhoich time each side has . The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas has 12 minutes. The gentleman from washington has six minutes. Mr. Smith i yield one minute to the gentleman from texas, mr. Veasey a. Member of the Armed Services committee. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Veasey thank you, mr. Speaker. The house and senate Armed Services committees have demonstrated admiral bipartisanship in completing this years ndaa. This past weekend as i celebrated veterans day in the dallasfort worth area, we spoke about the importance of taking care of our Service Members. I think this years ndaa does a good job in doing that. Im very proud of the assistance to legal permanent residents that serve in our armed forces and understanding their naturalization options. Im also very happy in the investment we made in improving versity such as the d. O. D. Cyberscholarship program, and funding for hbcus. I think these investments mr. Yield a diverse and strorninge National Defense work force for our countrys future. Im also happy that we have continued support for the tactical aircraft manufactured in the dallasfort worth area which is very critical to our local economy and nations defense. Im very happy to have been a conferee and very proud of the hard work that the Committee Staff has done to help complete this vital piece of legislation. I urge my colleagues to vote yes on this conference report. I want to respectfully remind my colleagues on both sides of the aisle how critical this funding is to our National Security. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from washington reserves his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield one minute to another val usual member of our committee, gentleman from mississippi, mr. Kelly. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Kelly i thank the gentleman for yielding. Thank you, chairman thorn berry, for your continued leadership in rebuilding and reforming the department of defense. Today i rise in strong support of h. R. 2810, the National Defense authorization act for fiscal year 2018. As a 32year veteran of the Mississippi Army National Guard and two iraq deployments, i know the challenges facing our country firsthand. This years ndaa makes important strides towards achieving equipment and benefits parity for our Armed Services. The enemies of this country do not distinguish between the active componen and reserve components of our military and neither should we. Im happy to report this years ndaa increases the size of both our active component and reserve. It also increases benefits paid to our reserve component soldiers by authorizing those deployed on title x orders to receive preactivation and post activation tricare coverage. Additionally the f. Y. 18 ndaa will allow for the procurement of much needed equipment for our reserve component. Finally, i would like to thank my subcommittee chairman, mr. Coffman, mr. Wilson, and mr. Turner for their leadership and hard work throughout the process. I encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Mr. Smith thank you, mr. Chairman. I now yield two minutes to the Ranking Member of the subcommittee on readiness, the gentlelady from guam, miss bow dayo, for the purposes of a colloquy miss bow dieo, for the purposes of a colloquy. Ms. Bordallo i wish to engage the gentleman from texas in a kohl equipment let me first start by thanking chairman thornberry, Ranking Member smith, and the Committee Staff for working diligently with us o address the work force issues impacting the military realignment on guam. The conference agreement includes a provision to remedy issue, denial particularly affecting Construction Projects on guam by granting u. S. Cis the authority to approve temporary workers issue, particularly affecting construction for construction w directly connected to or associated with the military realignment occurring on guam through 2023. Providing for this temporary work force is very important given the strategic importance of guam as the sole u. S. Territory in the western pacific capable of basing significant joint force capabilities and the reality that exceedingly few u. S. Mainland workers are willing to travel to guam to perform this temporary work. So my understanding is that the intent behind the inclusion of the phrase, associated with, is to allow for approval of visas for individuals performing work not only on military funded facilities and infrastructure, but also for civilian Infrastructure Projects outside the gate. For example, Infrastructure Projects funded by the federal government, the government of guam, or nongovernmental sources that are being done in part because of the increased military personnel and military families moving to guam. Is that the chairmans understanding of the intent behind the provision . Mr. Thornberry if the gentlelady would yield. I want to thank the Ranking Member military personnel of th subcommittee of her work. From my visit to guam last year i have seen the tremendous buildup and military value of guam and i understand that more is needed as guam remains a strategic fixture in ensuring peace and stability in the indo Asia Pacific Region. Mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentlelady from guam if she would continue to yield to me. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Mr. Thornberry if the gentlelady would continue to yield. I agree with the gentleladys nderstanding of the provision. I further support efforts i further support efforts to ensure that guam has the work force needed to maintain its strategic posture and military presence necessary for the National Security of the United States. I look forward to continuing to work with the gentlelady from guam toward that end. I yield back. Ms. Bordallo i thank you very much, mr. Chairman. And appreciate your great support and look forward to continuing to work with you on the implementation of this provision and address the future work force needs on guam in the support of the military realignment. Ith that i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from washington reserves his time of the the gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield one minute to a valuable member of our committee, the gentleman from indiana, mr. Banks. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Banks 00 thank you, mr. Chairman. It is a great honor of my time in congress to serve on the house Armed Services committee with you, im grateful for your leadership. I rise today in support of the fiscal year 2018 National Defense authorization act conference report. As the most recently deployed in congress i have seen the National Security challenges facing our country firsthand. While these challenges are not easily solved, this legislation represents a significant step forward. Whether its giving our troops a well deserved raise, significantly increasing end strength numbers for each of the services, allowing for the continued transfer of excess articles to allies aproduct who are in need or funding our vital Missile Defense programs, this legislation begins the long process of rebuilding and reforming our military so were ready for whatever comes next. My gratitude goes out to those serving both here at home and abroad, and i urge my colleagues to support this important bipartisan legislation. With that, thank you. Mr. Chairman. Yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. Without objection, the gentleman from texas, mr. Veasey, will control the time on the minority side. Mr. Veasey mr. Speaker, reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry thank you, mr. Speaker. Im pleased to yield one minute to a valuable member of our committee, the gentleman from nebraska, mr. General bacon. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Bacon mr. Speaker, i rise in support of the 2018 National Defense authorization act and commend reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentleman from chairman tho exemplary leadership on National Defense. I join my house colleagues in setting a strong bipartisan message to the American People that National Security must be and will be a National Priority for this congress. As a member of the Armed Services committee and a conferee, im proud of the strong bipartisan consensus we forged in both chambers reversing our dangerous decline in military readiness. Yet, we must temper any pride we feel with the sober reality of the state were in today. Defense spending as a percent of g. D. P. Is at historic lows. Threats are growing more stark. 31 c. R. s in 10 years, which is a disgrace. A decade of deferred maintenance and modernization. Aircraft that dont fly. Vehicles that cant move. Shoot or communicate on the modern battlefield fatalities rising and training at an all time low. We have to fix this. Despite the losses of history, were simply unprepared to ght a modern war in space, cyberspace, air, land, and sea. I served in the uniform under the last president s and witnessed this erosion cyberspace, firsthand. For me this is personal. This ndaa repairs the damage. The additional authorizes a down payment and sends a message to both our adversaries of peace through strength. I urge my colleagues to vote for this conference report. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from texas mr. Veasey. Mr. Veasey i continue to reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry im pleased to yield one minute to another valuable member of our committee, the gentleman from wisconsin, dr. Gallagher. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Gallagher i rise today to urge my colleagues in the house to support the 2018 ndaa conference report this. Body has no higher or more urgent priority than providing for the common defense and restoring our military readiness. Im proud of the final text my colleagues have worked on. Not only does it authorize a teeflt 700 billion in defense spending, 26 billion increase above the president s request, it proadvise the largest pay raise for our troops in eight years. It gets us closetory the critical goal of the 355 ship navy. Includes funding for three combat ships. Helping to meet the navys urgent and enduring requirement for more Small Surface combatants. I want to thank chairman thornberry for his leadership and colleagues in the house and senate who fought tooth and nail to give our war fighters the resources they need to deter threats, support our allies, and above all, keep the American People safe. With that, i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas, mr. Thornberry, reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Mr. P smith continue to reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry im pleased to yield one minute to a strong poe bonent of a strong National Defense mr. Rothfus. Mr. Rothfus i thank the chairman, mr. Thornberry for their work on this legislation. I rise in strong support of this report. I applaud the goal to improve the Readiness Level of our military which has been decleated of Critical Resources after many years of defending this country. Not only does this legislation begin to rebuild our forces, it includes a long overdue pay raise four or troops. I applaud the bills reforms to approve the military Health System and make sure the resources are used appropriately. I want to highlight the Current Situation in afghanistan. Which needs drastic improvement. Shoring up Afghani Security forces is only part of a shortterm solution. We need a longterm sthradgestrag that brings strategic. Direct the secretary to develop such a strategy. I urge the military to continue thinking long templet i urge my colleagues to support this report. With that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas reserves his time. The gentleman from washington. Mr. Smith my understanding is you still have additional speakers. Continue to reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield one minute to a valuable member of our committee, the gentleman from lamborn. Mr. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Lamborn mr. Speaker, thank you. I thank the chairman for his great work throughout this whole process leading the committee and getting this to the finish line. We need to push it oferte finish line. For 56 years this bill has been the primary way this congress executes its constitutional duty to provide for the common defense. This years bill finally begins to rebuild our military after a half decade of cuts which slashed nearly a quarter of the Defense Budget. For six years we have just been barely getting by. Cutting resources as the world becomes more dangerous, asking more and more of those who serve and putting off tough choices. Were at a key decision point. So this bill will continue to save billions of taxpayer dollars while cutting wasteful bureaucracy and streamlining acquisition, but will also strengthen Missile Defense and many ways make our military more focused on its core mission of preparing to fight and win wars. There are so many good things in the bill i cant go over all of them. I would ask my fell fellow members to support this ndaa. Mr. Chairman, i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from colorado yields back. The gentleman from washington is recognized. Mr. Smith thank you, mr. Chairman. I believe were prepared to close. Thank you. I yield my southwest balance of the time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Smith as has been mentioned this is an excellent bill that a lot of people did very good work on. I thank them for that. The only issue i want to raise in closing is the money. That is the Sticking Point in the difficulty that we have. This bill as its currently constructed is 80 billion above the budget caps. Six years since the budget caps passed we have been unwilling to raise those. But we have a larger problem, we have a 20 trillion debt. Our deficit is close to 700 billion. Has no prospect of going down soon. And at the same time we have other needs. During this debate we focused like a laser on Armed Services and the needs of National Security and our troops, as well we should. They are incredibly important. Dont doubt that for a second. The amount of revenue that we take in as a country, unsurprisingly, impacts or should impact the amount of money we can spend. We are having this debate now and talking about how underfunded the military is and how bad we need to shore up our readiness and the rest of the week, we will make sure how our government takes in trillions of dollars with less money. That is wildly inconsistent. If we believe we have these needs, we ought to be able to pay for them. There are other aspects of the but the needs for infrastructure, the needs for education, these are things that ke our count industry country strong. It is all part of the same whole. If we are going to get to a responsible place, we cant just say defense gets whatever it wants and let the chips fall where they may elsewhere. If we truly care about making sure that our troops have enough money, we need to do two more things in addition to this bill, number one, we need to argue that we shouldnt do a massive tax cut to undermine our ability to fund defense and National Security. And number two, we need to take a hard look at our strategy and figure out where we can save money. If we look at every session, and say we do not have enough money, decided to we had make cuts and raise revenue instead of cutting it, even if we did that, we are still looking at needs within the National Security budget when you look at the programs that people want to fund, that are wildly beyond the amount of money that we have. We need a National Security strategy that has an honest look , and the comeback is how can you put a price on National Security and should get whatever they need. The only with that is, they dont. If we have a National Security strategy that exceeds the amount of money we have, the ones left holding the bag are our troops. They are the ones that are asked noto missions that they are adequately to perform and asked to train without the adequate resources. That is what we must fund. To do that, we need to do more than just pass this bill, we need an overall approach. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the time of the gentleman has expired. The chair recognizes from texas to close debate for the majority. Mr. Thornberry i yield myself the balance of the time. The gentleman is recognized mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, i want to thank the members who have participated in this debate and all the members who have contributed to this product, especially the members of the Armed Services committee but members from both sides of the aisle throughout the house have contributed to it. We spent several moments talking about the details that are in this bill. And mr. Speaker, it is a rather large bill. It covers everything from how much we pay our troops to how many ships and tanks and planes and bullets we buy as well as what we research and various policies of the department of defense. So there is a lot in here. Let me take a moment to step back and remind everybody what this is all about. Our constitution says one of the reasons we have a federal government is to provide for the common defense. As a matter of fact, i think thats the first job of the federal government is to defend the country, to defend our lives and defend our freedoms. As a matter of fact, article 1, section 8 of the constitution says specifically its this Congress Responsibility to build and support, provide and maintain the military forces of the United States of america. Thats our job. And that bypassing this bill, thats how we fulfill that job. But as we have talked about, what has happened in recent years, the world has grown more dangerous and yet we have cut the Defense Budget. As a matter of fact, we are spending 18 less now on defense than was spent in 2010, if you measure it in real terms, apples, to apples. I cannot think of a Significant Program that has been cut by 20 over the last seven years. What has happened . Our troops have borne the burden. We are 2,000 pilots shorte in the air force. 60 of the f18 cannot fly today. As mr. Wilson said, we have seen tragic accidents in the pacific where 17 soldiers have lost their lives. We have had other accidents where others have lost their lives and other accidents where they have not. The point im trying to make is, part of the responsibility for all of that happening rests here with the congress of the United States not fulfilling adequately in my view our job under the constitution. I agree with much of what the Ranking Member virtually of what the Ranking Member said about the importance of having a strategy and then resources resourcing that strategy. It is true, we have not and some responsibility with administrations of both parties, we have not had a coherent strategy that will holds together and resources that flow from that. We should. But the fundamental issue is, it is morally wrong to send men and women out omissions for which they are not fully supported, fully trained, equipped with the best equipment our country can provide. Its wrong for us to do it and thats exactly what has been happening. We are not going to turn this around in a single bill or in a single year, but we can make a start and this bill makes a start. But i will absolutely agree with the gentleman from washington and others that we cant really start to turn this around without an appropriation bill that follows it, that matches it, there really does repair our ships and planes and provides the training that i believe we deserve to give to the men and women who serve. Finally, mr. Speaker, i would just remind everyone that there is really two reasons we do this bill, one is it we owe it to the people who risk their lives to defend us and secondly, to the National Security of the United States. The challenges to our nations security have grown more ominous in recent years and certainly more complex than at any time in our lifetimes. This is a real opportunity under a bipartisan basis to show the troops that we support them and to show adverse areas and allies alike that the United States is going to stand up and defend ourselves by passing this legislation and following it up with a budget agreement and appropriation bill that follows. Thats what i think the constitution requires of us. I hope my colleagues will agree and support this conference report. And i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas yields back. All time for debate having expired, pursuant to House Resolution 616. The previous question is ordered, the question is on adoption of the conference report. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The ayes have it, and the conference report is adopted. Mr. Thornberry on that, mr. Speaker, i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. Those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. A sufficient number having arisen, yeas and nays are ordered. Pursuant to clause 8, rule 20, further proceedings on this uestion will be postponed. For what purpose does the gentleman from texas plrks hensarling, seek recognition . Mr. Hensarling pursuant to House Resolution 616, i call up h. R. 2874 and ask for its immediate consideration in the house. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 2874, a bill to achieve reforms to improve the Financial Stability of the National Flood Insurance Program to enhance a development of more accurate estimates of flood risk through new technology and better maps, to increase the role of private markets in the management of Flood Insurance risk and to provide for alternative methods to ensure against flood peril and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to House Resolution 616 in lieu of the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on Financial Services printed in the bill, the amendment printed in part a of House Resolution 115408 modified by the amendment printed in part b in the report is adopted and the bill as adopted is considered read. The bill shall be debatable for one hour by the committee on Financial Services. The gentleman from texas, mr. Hensarling, and the gentlewoman from california, ms. Waters, each will control 30 minutes. The chair now recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. Hensarling. Mr. Hensarling i ask that members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and submit extraneous materials on the bill under consideration. The speaker pro tempore without objection, so ordered. Mr. Hensarling i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Hensarling harvey, irma, maria, the images of the human misery and the economic devastation are still clearly imprinted on our minds. Unfortunately we know that part of this is as a result of a failed National Flood Insurance Program, which, mr. Speaker, faced three important challenges. Number one, it is a bankrupt program. It is unsustainable. Taxpayers on the hook for 1. 2 trillion. Lending an actual deficit of a billion and a half. Two different bailouts for a combined total of 25 billion and it subsidizes people to actually live in harms way. And finally, mr. Speaker, it is a government monopoly that notwithstanding subsidized rates still unfortunately has unaffordable supreme mums. But today is a good day, mr. Speaker, because today, the house gets to vote on the 21st century flood reform act. I thank the gentleman from missouri on the mapping reforms and reinsurance. I thank the gentleman from florida, mr. Ross, for his reforms on opening up the market. And i want to thank the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. Duffy for his effort and leadership for bringing this bill to the floor. Theres a lot of good reforms in this bill, mr. Speaker, for both taxpayers and ratepayers. Let me briefly touch upon two. It is absolutely revolutionary reform, mr. Speaker, that we can break open the government monopoly and bring in market competition, innovation, competition, more affordable rates for so many. Ne of the ackturel experts released a study that said based on our estimates, talking about market competition, based on our estimates, this would hold for 77 of all single families in florida, 69 in louisiana, 92 in texas. All would see cheaper premiums. Yet we know thats not theory, it is actually happening in the market today. And the nacent part of the market that is open, people are seeing thousands of dollars in savings. One of the great tragedies that i saw in houston was how far people actually took up Flood Insurance. And think if we had competition and had advertising, if people could roll that into their homeowners rates, how many more people would have been protected by the ravages of these hurricanes. One more reform briefly. These Repetitive Loss Properties where people live in areas that flood in areas that flood over and over and over. I met a family, three floods in eight years. This bill provides more money for relocation for mitigation than any other flood reform bill, all this by 25 . We would reprioritize these areas but we are going to realize if we make this Program Sustainable we cant have 1 of the properties causing 25 of the losses. Ultimately, if all we redo the same properties in the same fashion in the same location, that is neither wise nor compassion nature. So we have the opportunity to enact historic reforms and we should do it today. And i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from california is recognized. Thank you very much. I yield myself such time as i may consume. I rise today in opposition to that will legislation make Flood Insurance more expensive, less available, and less fair for consumers. Ms. Waters at the outset, let me just say that i appreciate the time and effort that chairman hensarling and mr. Duffy spent and to responding to my calls for bipartisanship. We sat down multiple times to discuss areas where we could find compromise and a path forward. Although our discussions were ultimately not successful, and i strongly oppose this bill, i continue to believe that Flood Insurance really can be a bipartisan issue. In fact, i have a long history of working across the aisle on the National Flood Insurance Program. In 2012 i coauthored the biggertwaters act with former representative judy biggert. And in 2014, when femas botched implementation of the premium laweases called for in that led to unintended consequences, lawmakers from across the aisle joined me once again to pass the homeowner Flood Insurance affordability act. Unfortunately despite the best efforts of members from both sides of the aisle, i cannot support h. R. 2874, because it contains many provisions that will harm American Families and businesses. First and most importantly, the bill makes Flood Insurance more expensive. This bill will punish low and middle class americans with increased premiums, surcharges and reserve fund assessments. In the wake of a historic Hurricane Season that devastated so many communities, it is unconscionable that we are considering a bill that would make Flood Insurance less affordable. We should be focusing on providing additional Disaster Relief and recovery after these devastating storms, not punishing these communities with higher premiums and surcharge. It is clear that there are those who choose to live near the coast as a luxury, but there are also those who live in flood planes who are low and middle income families with modest homes, including some neighborhoods that are predominantly minority. This is because of the sad history of governmentendorsed racism and access to credit and neighborhood planning that pushed minorities into the bad parts of town. Which in some cases were bad because they were prone to flooding. These communities also often lack the resources to make upgrades to their homes and infrastructure to guard against future flood risk, and are the least able to recover after a flood. The lower ninth ward in new orleans is a prime example. Another example is greens point, a Business District in houston that was one of the hardest hit by harvey. One in three residents residence in greens residents in greens point lives below the poverty line. Families in greens point were still living in waterdamaged and moldy units from flooding last year, when they were hit again by harvey. Theres no simple answer to our nations flooding problems. But i do know that raising the premiums and racking up fees on policyholders will only hurt families, as well as our economy. Second, the bill makes Flood Insurance less available by allowing businesses to opt out of the requirement to purchase Flood Insurance and even if they are a highrisk problem in a flood zone. Whats more, the bill kicks out certain lowvalue homes from the nfip by prohibiting coverage for any home with claims that over the entire history of the property following enactment, even if it changes hands, exceed threeze times the replacement value of the structure. This provision is so illcon received that the american illconceived that the American Bankers Association wrote, and i quote, cutting off such properties from nfip coverage will likely lead to significant hardship for homeowners, lenders and communities. As borrowers lose nfip coverage, and especially if alternative private coverage is not available or affordable, these properties will lose value and the risk of abandonment and or foreclosure increases dramatically. In some floodprone communities, this could lead to a local or regional foreclosure crisis. Third, the bill makes Flood Insurance less fair for policyholders. In the wake of this historic Hurricane Season, it is astounding to me that the bill does nothing to fund flood maps. So that we can better protect families. Oftentimes communities are unaware of their true flood risk and by not providing any funding for flood maps, building in areas with no information about flood risk will only continue. Climate change will only make these storms more frequent, stronger and more devastatinging than ever before. And we must make sure devastating than ever before. And we must make sure that the nfip remains available and affordable to all americans, not make it worse. For all of these reasons, i urge my colleagues to oppose h. R. 2874 and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman reserves the balance of her time. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, the chairman of the Foreign Affairs committee, the respected member of the financial Services Committee, mr. Royce. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from california is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Royce mr. Speaker, i rise in strong support here of the 21st century flood reform act. And i think what chairman Jeff Hensarling was able Jeb Hensarling was able to do here and chairman duffy is put forward a bill thats really montegues ther the and the cap lets. When you think you have the Environmental Community supporting this and taxpayer advocates, youve got conservative think tanks and youve got Affordable Housing reinsurers have the and the shures. We talked about two priorities sures insurers. We talked about two priorities. One of those was to provide better disclosure to consumers about flood risk. We wanted them to know. And the second was to decrease the number of repeatedly flooded properties. This bill accomplishes both of those things. Section 108 of the bill includes language that i authored which will provide information to homebuyers about past flood events, about the damage, about insurance claims, about any obligation they might have to carry Flood Insurance. And the National Association of realtors supports this commonsense approach. Section 402 of the bill includes the bipartisan repeat lid flooded communities repeatedly flooded communities preparation act, sponsored by representative blumenauer and by myself. This means that preeted flooded properties repeated flooded properties which comprise less but 2 of nfip policies, account for 1 3, 1 3 of all claims, are dealt with. Responsible communitydriven mitigation is a winwin proposal. One which will help our neighborhoods become stronger in the face of floods, and address the fiscal footing of the Overall Program by decreasing the cost as this is addressed at the community level. And finally, mr. Speaker, i particularly would like to thank he Pew Charitable trust. Their flood prepared communities initiative, thank you. I urge passage. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. The gentlewoman from california is recognized. Ms. Waters i yield three minutes to the gentleman from missouri, the Ranking Member of the housing and insurance subcommittee on the financial Services Committee. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from missouri is recognized for three minutes. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in opposition to h. R. 287 4rks the 21st century flood reform act. When the financial Services Committee began the process to reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program, i was very hopeful that we could work across the aisle in a bipartisan manner. Unfortunately the bill we see here today is not reflective of that approach. Though a number of changes have been made to h. R. 2874 since leaving committee, the new provisions still fail to incorporate many of our priorities for reauthorization or address our concerns with the nfip. Mr. Cleaver most significantly, mr. Speaker, is the fact that it will increase costs for policyholders. The bill raises costs on prefirm structures from 5 to 6. 5 . Additionally, the bill will require a 40 surcharge on primary residencies and seek to seeks to increase the reserve fund by change policyholders charging policyholders an additional 1 every year. The bill also changes the fee to policyholders who opt to pay their policy monthly. Many of our constituents who live in floodprone areas are not wealthy. These are hardworking americans who rely on the nfip to help offset costs and protect their homes from disastrous flooding. Instead of working to find ways to truly address affordable within the nfip, the bill proposes to set up a voluntary state affordable the Program Affordability program. This program then fails to provide states with administrative costs to set up a program, a cost that may be far too burdensome for many already struggling states. Even worse, the program would offset discounts for Eligible Policyholders by charging policyholders who are not able to take advantage of the affordability program. Yet again increasing costs for homeowners. Importantly, h. R. 2874 makes no effort to address the debt. Though the nfip had been selfsustaining for many years, extreme unexpected damage following hurricanes katrina and Superstorm Sandy left the nfip with over 20 billion in debt. Though some of the debt was in fact recently for given, the nfip needed to borrow more from the treasury following hurricanes harvey, irma and maria. The nfip pays over 400 million a year in interest money that could go towards making improvements in the program or helping enhance affordability. We need to wipe the slate clean and give the nfip a fresh start. H. R. 2874 fails to provide additional funding for flood maps, maps that in many jurisdictions desperately are needed if were going to have updated maps. This bill also lax funding for new Mapping Technology lacks funding for new Mapping Technology that could help improve accuracy of flood maps. The short term i urge my colleagues to vote against this bill and support a longterm nfip strategy that promotes affordability, stability for stakeholders and necessary funding for mapping and mitigation. Thank you, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from missouri yields back. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling mr. Speaker, im very pleased to yield 3 1 2 minutes to the gentleman from missouri, chairman of the Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit subcommittee, and one of the coauthors of h. R. 2874, mr. Luetkemeyer. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from missouri is recognized for 3 1 2 minutes. Mr. Luetkemeyer thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of the 21st century flood reform act. Chairman hensarling and chairman duffy have crafted a great substitute amendment that will bring about meaningful reform of the nfip and protect taxpayers and policyholders alike. The amendment includes h. R. 2246, my taxpayer exposure mitigation active 2017. Included in this that bill is a requirement that fema administrator purchase reinsurance or a Capital Market alternative, an effort to guard taxpayers against losses. I know of no Major Insurance Company in the private sector that does not purchase coverage to protect itself against loss of this kind. These products function well. Theres no reason that fema should not be following this best practice as well. The amendment also grants states and local governments and our constituents the ability to play a more proactive role in the fema flood plane mapping process. I represent the lake of the ozarks with its 20,000 excuse me, 27,000 pieces of property along its shore line. Which has dealt with tremendous mapping issues over the past several years. Hundreds of maps excuse me, hundreds of letters of map amendments were granted to my constituents and there were multiple attempts by the community to engage with fema to fix their mapping process. My constituents never felt their concerns were taken seriously. Lake of the ozarks is not unique. Fema process fema processes 25,000 loama letters each year at a cost of 13 million. This should tell us something about the map prague sess. Thunderstorm bill, areas like lake of the ozarks would be able to prove improve the accuracy of the maps themselves, no longer beholden to washington, d. C. This amendment would also create an optout of mandatory coverage required for commercial properties, allowing banks and businesses more flexibility to secure private Flood Insurance coverage that meets an entitys unique risks and needs. Its important to note that this legislation does not preclude any business from securing an nfip policy. Policy remains available to all businesses. Also, this provision nudnobt misconstrued as a caveat to avoid the purchase of Flood Insurance. Businesses operating in flood planes should have Flood Insurance. And im confident that lenders will insist upon reasonable coverage and i believe this should be a business decision between the lender and Business Customer themselves. In determining premium rates for nfip policies. Language i previously included. Pricing for prior policies takes into account the replacement costs. It makes sense. They should factor in the amount of that. Fema doesnt adhere to that but uses a fixed National Average for insured value and replacement costs. The result of femas current process lower income policy holders subsidize wealthier homeowners. The substitute gives fema the flexibility to stop this practice. Also i thank my colleague from wisconsin. Im confident this package will allow the private sector to flourish and take risks off the backs of taxpayers and protecting nfip policy holders. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from california is recognized. Ms. Waters i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from new york, the Ranking Member of the subcommittee on Capital Markets on the financial Services Committee, mrs. Maloney. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Mrs. Maloney i thank the gentlelady for her leadership. Mr. Speaker, i rise in opposition to h. R. 2874. There are some good things in this bill, including the zeldinmaloney bill, that would llow policy holders to receive mitigation credit fr boilers and , which chanical sectors is a huge deal for the city of new york and other big cities. But there are too many provisions that would make Flood Insurance in my district either unavailable or unaffordable. For this reason, the city of new york opposes this bill. The bill would raise premiums on homeowners by increasing the floor on premium increases that Congress Just set three years ago. Currently fema to increase premiums by a minimum of 5 per year. Under this bill, fema would have to increase premiums by a minimum of 6. 5 a year. And when you add up the mandatory increases in premiums required to fund femas reserve fund and all the other surcharges in the bill, the effect would be to significantly increase Flood Insurance premiums for homeowners. Finally im concerned about eliminating the noncompete clause for socalled write your own private insurers. This would allow the private insurers that administer the National Flood Insurance Program to exploit their access to femas data base in order to cherrypick the safest property. This would leave fema with only the riskiest properties and undermine the solvency of the National Flood Insurance Program. While there are many thoughtful good provisions in this bill, there are too many provisions that would dramatically increase premiums for my constituents. I urge a no vote on this bill. And i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the time of the gentlelady has expired. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling im very pleased to yield three minutes to the gentleman from florida, the vice chairman of the housing and insurance subcommittee and the author of the proconsumer competition title of the bill, from ross. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from florida is recognized. Mr. Ross thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in support of the act that will give communities in the tampa bay area the National Flood Insurance Program that serves as a lifeboat. The nfip is like an anchor around our next dragging us into deeper debt. With the annual deficit and debt that continues to grow, this Program Needs the reforms and h. R. 2874 is our opportunity. We should all recognize that nfip is an Insurance Program and ensure against losses which entails far more than paying for damages. Insurance is not about relief but about managing risk. Insurance needs to mitigate risk making effects and telling people when the risks they face are too great and providing service that makes people thankful for choosing your product. No one knows this better than the professionals who help americans to protect their lives and loved ones against car crashes, and wildfires and federal policy has made it difficult for insurers to write policies. We created a monopoly at the expense of policy holders and still 30 billion in debt. This includes my act will allow the private sector to help homeowners manage against floods and provide more affordable options for consumers and reduce the unacceptable number of uninsured homes by helping people understand their risk. The nfip is in the worst of all worlds. It is too big to fail and it is also bound to fail. With this legislation we can have a program that found itself on the g. A. O. s high list. Consumers will have an opportunity to select a plan that would fit their needs and more likely to buy insurance than ever before. Thats not the case today with the nfip. Our constituents are severely limited. 250,000 maximum coverage. If you own a business, you arent going to get business interruption. E they can provide for mitigation and resiliencey. This increased emphasis will benefit homeowners and taxpayers and end the absurd practice. Further it strengthens the nfip to spread the risks into the global marketplace. This bill contains more funding for mitigation and recovery than ever authorized. Over 1 billion will help manage our constituents exposure to floods and improve the safety of a home after catastrophe. Lets ensure this and lets support informed Decision Making and with that, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from florida yields back. The gentlewoman from california is recognized. Ms. Waters i recognize a Senior Member of the Financial Services ms. Velazquez. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Velazquez i thank the gentlelady for yielding. I rise in opposition to h. R. 2874. This bill makes Flood Insurance more expensive, less available and less fair for millions of working families. And this bill all but abandons Hurricane Sandy victims. Sandy made land fall in new york and new jersey five years ago costing 60 billion in damage, more than 50 people lost their lives. Today, half a decade later, more than 1,000 homeowners still have not obtained proper resolution of their Flood Insurance claim. That is why i worked for almost a year and a half on legislation to improve femas claims system and to bring proper oversight and management to the write your own program. Some of my recommended changes were included in this bill, language was also included that blows a direct hole in this reform. This bill requires policy holders to exhaust all administrative remedies on any disputed claim before having their day in court. However, we have already seen that fema administrator system is broken and this bill will enable the insurance providers to continue hiding behind and unreachable threshold meaning policy holders will never be made whole. After more than five years and more than 1,000 families still waiting resolution of their sandy claim we must reform the claims process, not make it harder for families to return to their home. A vote to this bill is to abandon sandy victims. Vote no. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentleman from tech as is recognized. Mr. Hensarling i yield two minutes to the gentleman from pennsylvania, vice chairman of our Financial Institutions subcommittee, mr. Rothfus. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Rothfus i rise today to express my support for the 21st century flood reform act. I thank my colleagues for their hard work and i urge all members to support its passage. This Hurricane Season brought flooding. Hurricanes harvey, irma and maria added more debt leading to a taxpayer bailout of 16 billion, 16 billion taken from the pockets of hard working americans. Unless Congress Passes it, we will once again have to bail out this program. The nfip is structurally unsound. This will authorize the nf ip to buildup its reserves and encourage them to engage in sound practices. Of course this effort is not focused on taxpayer protection. Homeowners will benefit from the act. This bill fosters the development of a market for Flood Insurance and will have Better Options and more competitive prices. My own commissioner of our state testified in support. The commissioner said in pennsylvania, competition is proven to be good for consumers. We are finding in many cases at private car years are offering lower costs. This is good for the people of western pennsylvania and right policy for homeowners. I thank the chairman for concerning amish. They have a tradition of paying for community losses through mutual aid societies. My amendment to this bill acome dates those communities and i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Waters i yield two minutes to the gentleman from georgia, a Senior Member of the financial Services Committee, mr. Scott. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from georgia is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Scott thank you Ranking Member waters. First, flooding, mr. Speaker, is longer just a coastal lawmakers problem. Flooding is run ingram pant in every part of our country. So i think that every member on the floor today, every member of Congress Needs to ask themselves a question and that is, are they really willing to put their name on this bill . Are you really willing to vote for this bill that will drastically raise premiums on their constituents without putting the necessary guardrails in place so those who cant afford the high costs can still buy Flood Insurance. One example im talking about, mr. Speaker, i hope there are listeners on cspan, call your neighbors so you listen to this. Willis bill, h. R. 2874, it require policy holders to pay for any assistance they get when their states create affordability programs. Heres an example. My good friend, mr. Duffys bill, allows for the creation of a voluntary staterun affordability program, but heres the catch, mr. Speaker, there isnt wung dime one dime of funding provided in this bill to set up and implement this program. Instead, mr. Duffys bill says, the cost of any discount given to policy holders will have to on other by increases policy holders within the same state. Ow, mr. Speaker, this is the achillees heel in this Flood Insurance business. I can guarantee you this would have a grateful negative impact gratefully negative impact on all of us. To our chairman that we are willing to work across party lines. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. Ms. Waters i yield to the gentleman an additional 30 seconds. Mr. Scott thank you so much madam Ranking Member. But we offered this as the Ranking Member said and an excellent opportunity where we spent week after week on this bill so we could move this bill forward in a way that would address affordability, which was a major concern of mine and the Ranking Member and those of us on our side of the aisle. So there is no affordability in here. And its very important for us to point out that this plan will put an overburden on the states and then they have to pass it on to the others. The speaker pro tempore the time of the gentleman has expired. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling im pleased to yield to the gentleman from arkansas. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for 1 1 2 minutes. Mr. Hill i thank the speaker and the chairman. I rise in strong support of this bill sponsored by my friend, representative sean duffy. Hes worked tirelessly in crafting a slureks here along with representative luetkemeyer, representative ross and our full committee chairman, mr. Hebsarling. While the National Flood insurance Program Provides needed insurance coverage, it has numerous problems. As currently constructed. And the 21st century flood reform act seeks to implement muchneeded reforms in this program. In addition to reauthorizing the Flood Program for five years, this bill provides increased transparency to the public, more information to People Living in harms way about past damages and the risk of flooding, ensures map something timing and accurate, ties rates to risk, gives consumers greater choice in Flood Insurance options and incentivizes mitigation and risk reduction. Currently in arkansas we have one private insurer that offers Flood Insurance. A second underwriter is near approval by our insurance commissioner. The benefits to the consumer through private insurance are significant. As noted by the millman study. For example, one private insurer in arkansas covers up to 2ds million in coverage for 2 million in coverage as opposed to nfip. Across all rating categories, premiums substantially below the nfip. Further this private insurer can offer replacement value, reimbursement for living expenses, if an individual or family is displaced by a flood. The nfip does not. For almost 50 years the experiment in governmentprovided Flood Insurance has proven to be ineffective, inefficient and indisputably costly to hardworking taxpayers. The time for action is now. May i have 30 seconds . I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from california is recognized. Ms. Waters i yield two minutes to the gentleman from texas, the Ranking Member of the oversight and investigations subcommittee on the financial Services Committee, mr. Green. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognize the gentleman from texas is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Green i thank the Ranking Member and thank the chair of the committee as well. Mr. Speaker, i am opposed to the legislation. Im owes to opposed to it because it does not give hardworking americans the same consideration that we will accord persons who are making billions and we will accord corporations. Corporations are going to get great tax cuts. Billionaires are going to get tax cuts. We will eliminate the estate tax. We will eliminate the a. M. T. For billionaires. But we are not going to give hardworking americans the opportunity to get the relief that they need with reference to the 20ds billion worth of debt 20 billion worth of debt that the nfip currently has. If we dont eliminate that debt now, premiums will go up on hardworking americans. Hardworking americans wont be able to afford premiums and many of them wont be able to afford homes. This is not the way to treat people who work hard and pay their taxes. If we can give tax breaks to corporations and billionaires, we can afford to reduce this debt on the nfip so that hardworking americans can afford homes. It really is that simple. Five years without another bill, this is our last chance. We cant pass this chance up so that we can take care of billion airs and corporations billionaires and corporations at the expense of hardworking americans. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling mr. Speaker, im happy to yield 1 1 2 minutes to the gentleman from minnesota, hardworking member of the financial Services Committee, mr. Emmer. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from minnesota is recognized for 1 1 2 minutes. Mrs. Emerson mr. Speaker, i rise mr. Emmer mr. Speaker, i rise in support of the 21st century Flood Insurance reform act, which will reauthorize and reform our National Flood Insurance Program. The nfip provides important relief. Millions of americans rely on this program to provide coverage when disaster strikes. The nearly 50yearold nfip program, however, is in desperate need of reform. Todays legislation will not only reauthorize the program for five years, it will take steps to better align premium rates to risk, improve femas mapping and appeals process, and begin to correct the way the nfip manages what are known as Repetitive Loss Properties. Most importantly, h. R. 2874 lays the groundwork for a private Flood Insurance marketplace to take hold. Which will improve the fiscal stability and solvency of the nfip for future generations to come. This bill is a good start. But these reforms must continue to be built upon in the years ahead. Im thankful for the hard work of chairman hensarling and housing and insurance subcommittee chairman duffy, and the entire staff for working to get this bill to the floor today. As many continue to rebuild their lives following the devastation of harvey, irma, sandy and others, we need a National Flood Insurance Program that stimulates choice and encourages proactive behaviors to better protect our citizens. Again, this legislation is a good start. I encourage all of my colleagues to support this bill and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from minnesota yields back. The gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Waters i yield two minutes to the gentleman from florida, a leading voice on Flood Insurance and climate issues, and a member of the financial Services Committee. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from florida is recognized for two minutes. Thank you, mr. Speaker. And i want to thank the Ranking Member for her leadership. I rise today in strong opposition to this bill. We must get Flood Insurance right and that starts with affordability. If families cant afford insurance, they simply will not buy it. In my home state of florida, the number of nfip policies has dropped 15 since twelve. Mr. Crist when congress started raising premiums. If you dont think the government should be involved in Flood Insurance, maybe thats good news. Maybe thats the goal here. But not for the good of the taxpayer. When families who cant afford coverage must turn to fema after a disaster, the bottom line is that unaffordable insurance will fail. And this bill makes Flood Insurance less affordable. Hiking premiums, surcharges, as well as fees. Beyond that, this bill would decrease access to coverage for vulnerable families. Forcing them into a private market that does not exist. Yes, we absolutely need 21st century flood reform. Our climate is changing. Sea levels are rising. Floods are getting worse. And sticking our heads in the sand will only make solutions that much more difficult. This bill leaves behind the best reform ideas from both political parties. Like better mapping, as well as mitigation. Those who have lived through natural disasters know you cant stop the catastrophic force of mother nature. But you can prepare. I urge my colleagues, reject this ideological exercise and put people over politics. Let us come together and pass real sustainable reform for a strong, affordable National Flood Insurance Program. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from florida yields back. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling mr. Speaker, im very pleased to yield a minute and a half to the gentleman from new york, a member of the financial Services Committee, mr. Zeldin. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from new york is recognized for a minute and a half. Mr. Zeldin thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support of this legislation, which contains Critical Reforms that protect access to affordable insurance, improves the way policyholders are treated when filing a claim, and places the National Flood Insurance Program on the path toward fiscal solvency. Included in this legislation is the bipartisan bill i introduced with congresswoman maloney that provides a credit to nfip policyholders who reduce their flood risk through mitigation. Home owners who do the right thing and invest in mitigation activities deserve a strong return on their investment in the form of lower nfip premiums. Where the coastal economy is our main economy, protecting life and property from flood damage is a top priority. I look forward to working with all of my colleagues in congress to get this bill passed in the senate, and sent to the president s desk without delay. Im proud to be a cosponsor of this essential legislation, grateful of chairman hensarling and duffys leadership on this issue, and i urge all of my colleagues to vote yes. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Waters i yield two minutes to the gentleman from louisiana, the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and longtime leader on Flood Insurance issues, mr. Richmond. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from louisiana is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Richmond thank you, mr. Speaker. I want to thank congresswoman waters, Ranking Member, who you know, oftentimes in this body we talk about leadership. Leadership is what congresswoman waters did after hurricanes katrina and rita. But more important lirks four years ago more importantly, four years ago when the threat of new flood policy were going to make people pay the cost of their home every five years. We were talking about paying 20 20 of the value of your home in Flood Insurance every year. She came down to louisiana and met with louisiana citizens. She didnt come to the urban areas. Although she passed through. But she went to the rural areas, talked to middle income families to figure out how Flood Insurance reform would hurt them. And what she found out is that it was going to cause more families to just turn in the keys to their house and give their homes back to the Mortgage Company or declare bankruptcy so that they can just get by. This bill is a lot better than the bill that was in committee. And i want to thank the chairman and my colleagues from louisiana, scalise and graves, for making it a better bill. But when were talking about homeowners, the most responsible people in society who have now purchased their piece of the american dream, when you have people who played by the rules, bought the home of their dreams, you dont change the rules halfway to say, hey, we know this was the rule when you bought the house, but now its changed and all of a sudden that 500 in insurance you pay a month is now 1,500. Thats not responsible, its not fair. And were picking on homeowners. So i would just say to my friends on the other side of the aisle, the bill is better but its not worthy of the american taxpayer or the american homeowner. And we keep talking about the private market. Theyre going to pick and choose where they want to insure. Then all of a sudden youre left with a highrisk pool where home owners who work every day are stuck with costs that they just cant afford. And i would simply say that this is something we really could do in this atmosphere, in a bipartisan way. Because its the right thing to do. And with all the good things in the bill, the problems, the bad outweighs the good. I would just remind my friends on the other side of the aisle, the community that you save may be your own. Thank you and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Hensarling i thank you, mr. Speaker. Now a slightly different message from the safety louisiana. I am very pleased state of louisiana. I am very pleased to yield to minutes to the distinguished majority whip, mr. Scalise. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from louisiana, the majority whip, is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Scalise thank you mr. Speaker. I thank my colleague from texas, chairman hensarling, for yielding. And i rise in support of this bill that really, if you look at what were trying to achieve here, its a few things. But the main two things are to give further reforms and protections to the taxpayers of this country, while also making sure that were protecting and giving certainty to the policyholders of the National Flood Insurance Program. The fact that this is a fiveyear reauthorization, the fact that we were able to protect the grandfathering provisions that are so important to families who have played by the rules, and if the rules are going to change, its not fair that you would hold something against somebody that was legal in the past. And so the fact that this bill has important reforms, like ross castor. We all talk about the fact that nfip is the only place for most families to go that want to buy Flood Insurance. We need to develop a private marketplace, mr. Speaker. Frankly, for most families, it just doesnt exist. Those ross castor provisions are so important to finally help jumpstart that process. This program has had its own Financial Difficulties and this bill helps strengthen the program. Helps give some certainty and frankly it gives some provisions in the bill that are going to make it better for families who rely on this program and the taxpayers of this country who help make sure that we have a stable economy. So its important for home ownership, its important that we maintain those provisions on grandfathering that were so important to our communities. And its important that we pass this bill and im glad that the house has taken this action today. Again, commend chairman hensarling, congressman duffy, for their hard work and all the other members who played such an Important Role of getting to us this point. With that i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from louisiana yields back. The gentlewoman from california is recognized. Ms. Waters thank you very much. Im very pleased to yield three minutes to the gentleman from new jersey, a Senior Member of the transportation and infrastructure committee, and someone who has been working hard to try and have a bipartisan effort on this bill, mr. Lobiondo. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from new jersey is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Lobiondo thank you, congresswoman waters. To my colleagues, mr. Hensarling and mr. Duffy, thank you for your work on this bill and especially to my good friend, steve scalise. I know there was an i know there was an effort to do this the right way. I rise in opposition for a couple of reasons. First, im disappointed. Im disappointed because we in this body had an opportunity to have a bipartisan bill that would have probably generated more than 400 votes. We would have had a big high five moment and we could have moved forward, the senate would have taken it, the president would have taken it. Now we have a situation that makes me angry. Angry bee