Gentleman from new york seek recognition . Mr. Engel mr. Speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h. R. 2615, the United States northern triangle enhanced enengagement act as amended. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the tight many of the bill. The clerk a bill to support the people of Central America and strengthen United StatesNational Security by addressing the root causes of migration from el salvador, guatemala, and hon door ewes. The speaker pro tempore plule, the gentleman from new york, mr. Engel, and the gentleman from texas, mr. Mccaul, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from new york. Mr. Engel thank you, mr. Speaker. I ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and includeheir remarks and extraneous material on h. R. 2615. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Engel i yield myself such time as i may consume. Mr. Speaker, i submit in the congressional record an exchange of letters between me and the chairman of the Judiciary Committee on h. R. 2615, the United States northern triangle enhanced enengagement act. Mr. Speaker, i rise in strong support of this measure and i want to start by thanking mr. Mccaul for his partnership in authorizing this legislation. Through our close bipartisan collaboration, we have before us today legislation that supports the people of Central America and strengthens our National Security by addressing the root causes of child and family migration from el salvador, caught caught, and guatemala and honduras. I was leading a congressional delegation to el salvador with mr. Mccaul in march when the Trump Administration decided to cut off foreign assistance in the region. A decision i think is misguided. We saw up close the direct meaningful impact of our investments. Our delegation visited with young people being trained in Computer Programming and offered a path to a better life. The United States is hoping to provide opportunities for a Better Future for the people of el salvador, guatemala, and honduras so children and families are able to build prosperous lives for themselves and arent forced to make a dangerous journey to our southern border. Its not Just Development assistance we are providing. In san salvador have a door we met with f. B. I. Agents leading our transnational antigang task force. With state department funding, the f. B. I. Established these task forces in the northern triangle over the past decade to counter the growth of ms13, the 18th street gang, and other violent criminals. These units train salvadora Police Officers and work closely with them to dismantle gang leadership structures in the United States and Central America. They make our communities and constituents safer. I was pleased to return to washington and partner with mr. Mccaul to draft this legislation authorizing our assistance to Central America for fiscal year 2020. The bill also includes strong conditions on any assistance that goes to the Central Government of the northern triangle countries. It lays out a series of actions to be taken by the secretary of state, the usaid administrator, and other government officials to promote inclusive Economic Growth and development, combat corruption, strengthen domestic institutions, and improve security conditions in el salvador, guatemala, and hon cure yause. Lastly, it puts in place targeted visa bans assets freezes from corrupt individuals. Endemic corruption by government and nongovernment actors in Central America is hurting the regions poor and most Vulnerable People and we should do whatever we can to stop it. Today, the house of representatives must stand together to pass this commonsense piece of legislation that helps the United States and families and children in the northern triangle. I again thank mr. Mccaul for his partnership and for working with me to address the root causes of migration to the u. S. And Central America. I urge my colleagues to support this Bipartisan Legislation. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. Mccaul. Mr. Mccaul thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Mccaul i rise today in support of the United States northern triangle enhanced engagement act which im proud to be the lead republican to cosponsor. I want to thank chairman engel for his bipartisan work on this very important piece of legislation that was the product of a trip we took down to latin america. This bill requires the state department and usaid to develop and fund a fiveyear strategy to address the drivers of illegal immigration to our southern border. The bill requires state and usaid to develop annual benchmarks to track the progress of programs in stemming migration flows. It requires those to be reported to congress, increasing our ability to oversee the u. S. Foreign assistance to the northern triangle. As chairman engel mentioned we recently traveled to el salvador. Earlier this year and saw the hard work that the u. S. Government is doing to support International Law enforcement investigations, to capture ms13 gang members. The gill bill also prioritizes Security Systems to combat transnational crime and to improve security and counter narcotics at their borders and ports. This legislation also supports the amazing work of faithbased organizations that are engaged with the private sector to provide employment for youth and prevent them from joining gangs. This bill builds on existing efforts to increase coordination with mexico and our shared efforts to curb illegal migration, spur Economic Development, and combat corruption in the northern triangle. I understand and share the president s frustration with the continued stream of migrants to our southern border. And as a native texan, and i understand the unique challenges caused by illegal migration to our border, addressing this problem requires a comprehensive solution and utilizing all tools at our disposal, including foreign assistance, should be used. I also agree with the president that the governments of the northern tryningle countries can and must do more to address the drivers of migration. This bill includes conditions that these governments must meet to receive assistance. And requires the state department to engage with these governments to track and ensure they are doing their part to address the crisis. Lastly, the bill authorizes targeted sanctions against individuals engaged in corruption that impacts the northern triangle. I urge my colleagues to believe that we must do all we can to address this humanitarian crisis on the border to support this legislation. Again, mr. Speaker, i want to thank the chairman, mr. Engel, for his ongoing bipartisan work on this committee. I think we are probably the most Bipartisan Committee on the hill. I know mr. Engel and i are both very proud of that accomplishment. With that i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from new york, mr. Engel. Thank mr. Let me mccaul and its a pleasure to work with him on matters like this. I now yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. Correa. I thank the gentleman for yielding. Im proud to support chairman engels h. R. 2615, the u. S. Northern triangle enhanced engagement act. Earlier this year i had the opportunity to visit the northern triangle and to meet with elected officials, Law Enforcement officials, and humanitarian organizations to discuss the difficult and dangerous conditions that force families and children to flee their homes in search of a better life. I discovered what we all knew, the root causes of the ref few geese crisis are, of course, violence, and lack of economic opportunity. During my trip i was encouraged by the positive impact and effectiveness of u. S. Foreign assistance and the changes it has made in guatemala, el salvador, and honduras. For example, u. S. Programs have supported microsmall, and Medium Enterprises in el salvador. During my trip, i also learned of chinas interests to build a deep water port and to buy coastline in the area. Clearly it is in americas strategy interest strategic interest, longterm interest, to make sure that the area is economically stable and that the region is economically and politically stable. We must continue to invest in Regional Security and Economic Development to assure that our neighbors are safe, strong, stable, and secure. By assuring our region, we can build strong and lasting peace, prosperity, and build markets for American Products and services. I urge my colleagues to pass this vital legislation. With that i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The chair recognizes the gentleman from new york. Mr. Engel i reserve, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman has the only time remaining. Engel in closing, then, ill close. I yield myself such time as i may consume. Providing opportunities for the most vulnerable individuals from el salvador, guatemala, and honduras is common sense. And working to address the root causes of child and family migration is a longterm solution that we should all be able to agree. It is the right thing to do, but it is also in our own interests. And while u. S. Foreign assistance is crucial, it is not a gift. It must come with strong conditions. Our legislation puts in place such conditions for our assistance to the northern triangle and includes stuff, smart, targeted sanctions to combat corruption. By passing this bill today, congress can send and will send a loud and clear message that we stand with the people of the northern triangle countries. To make their country safer and more prosperous so they are in force to make arent forced to make the dangerous trek here. We can also send a message to china and russia that the u. S. Will not abandon our friends and partners in Central America. Let me in concluding again thank mr. Mccaul for his partnership on this measure. We truly worked on this together. We were together in Central America when we got the word of the potential cutoff of funding. And we worked closely together in a bipartisan way to make sure that that wasnt the case or wouldnt be the case. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation. I thank mr. Mccaul again, and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. All time has been yielded back. The question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h. R. 2615, as amended. So many as are in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, 2 3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid pon the table. For what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition . Mr. Engel mr. Speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass 2744, the usaid branding modernization act. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the bill. The clerk h. R. 2744, a bill to authorize the add administrator at the United States agent for International Development to prescribe the manner which programs are identified overseas and purpose. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from new york, mr. Engel, and the gentleman from texas, mr. Mccaul, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from new york, mr. Engel. Mr. Engel thank you, mr. Speaker. I ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Engel i yield myself as much time as i may consume. Let me start by thanking my friend from texas once again, the Ranking Member of the Foreign Affairs committee, mr. Mccaul, for his hard work on this measure. Im glad to be a cosponsor. Mr. Speaker, our Development Efforts around the world accomplish so much. Whether its helping build a road that lynx to small vill that lynx a small village to a trade hub links a small village to a trade hub, assisting communities to get clean drinking water, or expanding access to Broadband Internet in rural areas, American Development work is making differences you can see inopoples lives. Its also projecting our compassion and generosity, so when i travel around the word and i see the usaid logo, its that recognizable seal of two hands clasped in friendship on the front door of a new school or a waste Water Treatment facility, or a pallet of food on its way to refugees, it makes me proud. It really does. And the people benefiting from that assistance should know where its coming from too. We should signal to the world our commitment to development as a core pillar of americas global engagement. This leent. Gislat this legislation reaffirms the obligation to brand our foreign assistance while continuing to provide needed flexibility to ensure we are not putting our partners or aide recipients at risk and aid recipients at risk and it ensures usaid projects are appropriately branded in the field. This is something mr. Mccaul and i have been working on closely together. Im going to enter in the record a letter on this issue that he and i wrote to the usaid administrator, our former house colleague, mark green. And im glad were moving ahead with this legislation and i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Mccaul thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself as much time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Mccaul mr. Speaker, the United States agency for International Development does an incredible job of providing lifesaving humanitarian assistance to Vulnerable People all around the globe. I want to take this opportunity to commend our former colleague, administrator mark green, for his hard work at usaid. Ive had many constructive conversations with him since becoming the lead republican on Foreign Affairs, and look forward to many more. This bill is actually his idea. With the primary goal of such assistance to save the lives of people in desperate need, we also want to ensure the recipients know that it is a gift from the people of the United States of america. We hear a lot about the need to maximize americas soft power, theres no better way to win the hearts and minds than by saving lives, feeding hungry children, and helping impoverished populations. That is why i introduced the branding modernization act, together with chairman engel. And while this bill places no mandates on usaid, and maintains the administrators flexibility, it does empower him to brand all of our humanitarian assistance. It also expands the tools and logos available to the administrator for implementing a comprehensive branding strategy. Finally, it requires an audit by the agencys Inspector General to ensure that our personnel are complying with branding regulations. This bill represents smart diplomacy, Good Governance, and the true compassion of the american people. And i believe it deserves deserves our unanimous support and i want to thank chairman engel again for working with me, as usual, on this bill, as well as many others, and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from new york, mr. Engel. Mr. Engel mr. Speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume for the purpose of closing. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Engel thank you, mr. Speaker. Let me again thank my friend, Ranking Member mccaul, for his leadership on this bill. One of the things that makes the American Foreign policy unique is that when were at our best, our values are at the center of everything we do. I think one of the most important American Values is that were a generous and bighearted country. We invest in development because development and security go hand in hand. But also because its the right thing to do. It allows more people to live fuller, healthier, more prosperous lives and we should take credit for that. We should let people know that its the United States extending a hand of friendship and assistance, thats the goal that this bill is pursuing and im glad to support it. I encourage all members to do the same and i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. All time has been yielded back. The que