Which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] the speaker pro tempore the house will be in order. The chair lays before the house a communication from the speaker. The clerk the speakers rooms, washington, d. C. January 10, 2020. I hereby appoint the honorable david n. Cicilline to act as speaker pro tempore on this day. Signed, nancy pelosi, speaker of the house of representatives. The speaker pro tempore the prayer will be offered by the guest chaplain, rabbi barry h. Block, from church, from little rock, arkansas. From congregation bnai israel, from little rock arkansas. The chaplain source of blessing we come before you today asking your blessings upon the United States house of representatives. At this time of grave division, inspire these members of the peoples house to reach across every kind of aisle, to build new friendships that may grow into opportunities for greater understanding, speaking shared solutions to americas greatest problems. As the winds of war threaten all humanity, inspire the members of the peoples house to work toward peace, for the ability to wage peace is a greater measure of the nations strength than the capacity to wage war. Consecrate this house to perfect the nation our founders could not even envision. Stice, liberty, freedom from persecution and discrimination for every person within our borders. Then will this house and our nation truly be blessed. Let us say, amen. The speaker pro tempore the chair has examined the journal of the last days proceedings and announces to the house his pproval thereof. Pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1, the journal stands approved. The pledge of allegiance will be led by the gentleman from illinois, mr. Davis. Mr. Davis those in the gallery, please join. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman from arkansas, mr. Hill, is recognized for one minute. Mr. Hill mr. Speaker, thank you. Today i rise with my friend, john boozman, former member of this house and now senator from arkansas and welcome todays guest chaplain, my dear friend, rabbi barry h. Block of congregation bnai israel in little rock, arkansas realizing his love for reform judaism at a young age, he earned his master of arts in hebrew from he breaux union college, Jewish Institute of religion before being ordained three years following completion of his degree. Having devoted much of his life to the church, rabbi block found his way to congregation bnai israel in my hometown of little rock, arkansas in 2013 after serving over 20 years at temple bnai el in san antonio, texas. He has served reform judaism nationally and regionally as a member of the board of central conference 6 american rabbis and chair of the resolutions and nominating committees and president of the southwest association of reform rabbis. Hes the loving father of his two sons, robert and daniel. I want to thank rabbi block for his gracing us with the wonderful opening prayer and wish him, his family, his congregation continued success in our community of little rock. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the chair will entertain up to five further requests for oneminute speeches on each side of the aisle. For what purpose does the the gentlewoman from oklahoma seek recognition . To address the house for one minute. Revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to mourn the tragic death of dustin parker. At 25 years old dustin was a loving father, a hardworking, and a generous member of his community. As a man who happened to be transgender, dustin helped found the mcallister chapter of oklahomans for equality. Sadly justin was shot and killed on new years day. While we do not know who is responsible for his death, we do know that Transgender Americans are disproportionately the victims of violent crimes. Last year more than two dozen transand gender nonconforming people were rye vently killed that we know of. Every death underscores the nations need for urgent action to address this epidemic. Mr. Speaker, our country lost a champion for equality and as we continue to search for answers following dustins death, we must continue to fight to ensure that all americans are treated with dignity and respect. My prayers are with dustins entire family for their loss, and my heart goes out to our communities bearing this pain. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the the gentlewoman from North Carolina seek recognition . Ms. Foxx i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. Ms. Foxx thank you, mr. Speaker. Since 2002, january has been recognized as National Mentoring month. We all should recognize the positive impacts pakt that mentoring has on young people that mentoring has on younger people. To the volunteers of the greensboro united way, the students and staff of wake forest university, to the journeymen of asheville, north carolinians remain actively engaged in mentoring opportunities across my state. According to mentoring. Org, atrisk youth who were paired with mentor are 55 more likely to enroll in college, 78 more likely to volunteer regularly in their communities, and 130 more likely to hold leadership positions in their careers. Mr. Speaker, the numbers speak for themselves. Mentoring is a cornerstone of the growth and development of young people across our country. I commend the individuals involved in being mentors. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from rhode island seek recognition . Mr. Cicilline mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Cicilline thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, i just returned from overseas, i led a delegation of our colleagues, bipartisan delegation, to visit our troops during the christmas holiday. And of course we all were struck by the Extraordinary Service of these brave men and women serving our country. One of the things they shared about was their concerns about things back at home with their families. And tree minded me that the agenda we developed to address the urgent priorities of the American People remains important. That is to drive down the cost of health care. To raise family incomes and rebuild the crumbling infrastructure of our country. And to take on the corruption and selfdealing in washington and get the government working for the people again. Thats what democrats have been working on in a bipartisan way. We passed over 400 pieces of legislation, 275 of those bills are bipartisan. Sadly, 80 of those bills are stuck on Mitch Mcconnells desk. So as we returned from this trip im reminded this is an opportunity to call on the Senate Majority leader. We are working hard to prevent war with iran. We are working hard to hold the president accountable. Our most important priorities is to deliver on those promises we made to the American People to drive down the cost of health care, raise family incomes, rebuild the infrastructure of our contry, and get the government working for the people again. Its time for the Senate Majority leader to take those bills up, give them a vote. Our men and Women Deserve nothing less. With that i yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from minnesota seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house and revise and extend. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, january is Human TraffickingAwareness Month so i rise today to renew my resolve to eradicate the horrific injustice that is Human Trafficking. Human trafficking is a modern day form of slave whichry as it strips individuals of their freedom and dignity. It has absolutely no place in our society. In my part of minnesota, many of the women and children preyed upon by human traffickers are native american. In fact minnesota currently ranks ninth in the nation for missing and murdered indigenous women. Mr. Stauber as a member of congress, i believe we have a moral obligation and legislative duty to protect the most vulnerable. Thats why i proudly support savannahs act, a bill that will empower tribal Law Enforcement to address this devastating issue. I will also ensure that the recently created federal task force on missing and murdered native american women coordinates with state, local, and tribal officials to more effectively solve unresolved cases and prevent similar violence. While these are steps in the right direction, our work is far from done. As a father, former Law Enforcement officer, and a member of congress, i will not stop until Human Trafficking is eliminated and the criminals who have chosen to exploit others have been brought to justice. Mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the the gentlewoman from pennsylvania seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. Revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. Thank you, mr. Speaker. Over the last week our relationship with iran has fallen to its most difficult period since 1979. The United States killed Major General soleimani, a bad man, whom we do not mourn, and yet it was a provocative and disproportionate event. Iran responded with a missile with missiles on two of our military bases. Im grateful, thankful that none of our soldiers was hurt in that attack. And that tensions between our countries appear to be ease iing easing. I hope we can use this moment to assess where we are, how we got here, and find a bert path that lies ahead. Ms. Dean first i call on the administration to share the intelligence with congress about the timing and rationale for the strike. Second, i urge continued deescalation. We stand less safe in heightened tensions with identify rafpblet it is essential we emphasize diplomacy once again. Third, i ask we treat this moment as an opportunity to redefine our relationships with foes and friends alike and how we act as a nation. We will always defend americas security, but we should never create needless provocation as matthew tells us, blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called children of god. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield the remainder of my time. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition . Mr. Carter ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. Revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the honorable gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Carter mr. Speaker, i rise today to recognize mr. Vick power, who retired as the owner of kevin barrys irish pub in savannah on december 31, 2019. Kevins irish pub was not only a stalwart of locally owned business in downtown savannah, but also an excellent representation of Irish Heritage in our city. Although irish individuals have been calling savannah home since its founding, the irish potato famine in the mid 18 hundreds caused an influx of migration to savannah. By 186 o, one in three whitehouse holds could claim Irish Heritage. Today savannah has one of the largest st. Patricks day parade in the world. This is why its fitting that when the pub opened in an vanna in 1980, it was the first irish pub in South Washington d. C. , to average irish music seven days a week. With this live music, topnotch Customer Service and quality food, it quickly became a mainstay. In 2016 kevin barry even won an award for being the most awe theptic irish pub outside of ireland. With mr. Powers retirement, kevin barrys will be sorely missed. Congratulations on your retirement, mr. Power. Thank you for letting all savannahans and visitors alike enjoy kevin barrys for the last 40 years. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. Revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you, mr. Speaker. America is less safe when the words and actions of our leaders cast unnecessary suspicion on our fellow citizens. Mr. Takano america is less safe when families, including children, are targeted by government officials based on their ethnicity or by their country of origin. Reports of unjust prolonged detentions of iranian americans and he permanent residents at our borders should be alarming to everyone. It calls to mind the unjust internment of japanese americans during world war ii. My own parents were toddlers in japanese american internment camps, and they along with 120,000 others were unjustly incarcerated having committed no crimes or acts of disloyalty. What happened to my family was the result of a failure of political leadership. All of us in this body have a duty to remain vigilant and to defend the dignity of all citizens. To do nothing is to be complicit in violating the spirit of our constitution and the individual liberties it guarantees. Thank you. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from kentucky seek recognition . Ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. Revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. I rise today to call attention to the 2020 census and emphasize the importance of ensuring that Rural America is accounted for. Our once a decade counting of all americans is important for numerous reasons. Most importantly census data provides us with a road map for allocating hundreds of billions of dollars annually in government services. These include investment in things like education, roads, and bridges, and other areas of importance to rural districts like mine. I appreciate to including an response option this year. However, im very concerned that like kentuckys first Congressional District could get left behind. District lacks Internet Access or access to reliable connection. Numbers are unacceptable and could have dire consequences including ensuring serve are accounted for. Of access tog lack Internet Access to the internet is critical. Must do more to expand Internet Connectivity so our be undercounted and left behind. Without action, small towns our entire cky and risk being left out of the census. I yield back. For peaker pro tempore what purpose does the gentlewoman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for revise and nd to extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentlewoman from texas is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, on july on 21, 2019, the North High SchoolFootball Team baseball backtoback state ootball champions and it was a hardfought win but they won because they worked together as displayed much hard and grit on the field and this win of an entirenation years worth of practice and hard work under the leadership coach kay. They took nothing for granteded nd they granted and they showed that with hard work nothing is impossible. Mr. Ms. Garcia as their i was not there but i was watching from afar, cheering them on, and im so to share their achievement with all of congress on this loor of the house of representatives. Amazing ations for an win. I know we can make it a threepeat. Yield back, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition . To ask unanimous consent address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore boyd, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Davis mr. Speaker, in honor appreciation ment day, i rise today to recognize the united of States Capitol Police force for their heroic actions to save as part of their highly trained and committed Service Throughout 2019. When they heard the radio call about an unresponsive individual respondedtwo officers and ultimately saved the life of a man who had suffered a heart attack. They helped get that person to a hospital after a shooting. Three officers saved the life of shockingly had a heart attack during his visit to this building. These are only a few occasions in an impressive list of heroic actions. We owe our gratitude to all of the officers of the United StatesCapitol Police force for they do here. Thank you. Thank you, all, for going the only to protect and defend us here in the Congressional Community but for our ou do in all of communities. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the yields back. 779suant to House Resolution and rule 18, the chair declares the house in the committee of the whole house on the state of for further 535. Deration of h. R. Will the gentleman from texas, mr. Cuellar, kindly take the chair. The chair the house is in the committee of the whole house on he state of the union for further consideration of h. R. 535 which the clerk will report title. The clerk a bill polyfluoroalkyl substances as Hazardous Substances under the comprehensive environmental response, compensation, and 1980. Act of 1090 the speaker pro tempore common he committee of the whole the chair when the committee of r