Mr. Espaillat i rise in support of this bill, one month ago george floyd was murdered. As i said in the days following, his daughter said daddy changed the world. And there is a manifest to, the harlem advocates for a ban on chokeholds and ends qualified immunity. The harlem manifesto includes a provision that Police Officers can be held accountable for excessive force. The standard should not be willful intent but reckness intent. We must pass this bill. The best anticrime policies are antipoverty policies. We must continue this fight. Black lives matter. Thank you, mr. Chair. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from north dakota. Mr. Armstrong we reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Bass i yield one minute to the gentleman from texas, mr. Green. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Green thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker. For those who are not sure as to why we are here today, please allow me to explain it to you. We are here today because all awed murder was cap furnished nd ms. Coopers murder was captured a black man assaulting a white woman to summon the police. We are here because eight minutes and 46 seconds demise was captured on video and the American People dont like what they see and dont agree what they see. They know they have been lied to. And if they havent been captured on video, we wouldnt be here today. Dr. King is right, the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends to justice and we are here to bend the arc to go to moral justice. The gentleman yields back the balance of his time. Mr. Armstrong i reserve. Ms. Bass mr. Speaker, i yield one minute to the gentleman from maryland, newest member of the ongressional black caucus. Mr. Mfume thank to my friends on the other side of the aisle, every now and then, we find ourselves at a sing did you lar and see him national moment, a moment such as this, whether it was the great debates of the 1960s in the civil rights bill or granting the women the right to vote or the debates of war and peace which predates all of us, this is our moment. And we need to do the right hing on behalf of faceless men and women who lost their lives. So that when future generations peer through the telescope of time and look back on us and this day, let them say of us that when it came to addressing the issue of racist, ugly, violent criminal actions by bad Police Officers, that we did not waiver, and did not flinch or shirk our responsibility to do the right thing and the right thing is passing the George Floyd Justice and policing act and to do so on behalf of all those who are not here to pass it and to vote and speak for themselves. I strongly urge passage. This is the moment that we have to act in and it will be a fleeting moment. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore scrabt. The gentleman from north dakota is recognized. Mr. Armstrong i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Bass i yield one minute to the the gentleman from new sf mr. Norcross. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Norcross i rise today on the importance of George Floyd Justice and policing act and im horpped to stand with my colleagues and certainly with the Congressional Black Caucus to combat the epidemic of Racial Injustice. This bill creates unprecedented reforms, needed reforms, but the first step is to admit we have a problem and apparently we havent done that as a chamber in whole. This is not a standalone issue but one that continues today. It is about ending racial profiling and transferring the culture of policing. My hometown of camden city, 10 years ago had the highest murder rate in north america. We reinvented the police department, not alone, but together. Changed their culture. How can we do this better. 63 , thats murders. 73 drop in the crime rate. It can be done. But we have to do it together. The president and Senate Republicans seriously should. They merely are suggestions and insult to us in this house. I urge my colleagues to vote yes. And i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentleman from north dakota is recognized. Mr. Armstrong i reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. The gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Bass i yield one minute to the gentleman from california, mr. Levin. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Levin our country is in crisis. We are broken by generations of systemic Racial Injustice and its clear only real change and action will allow us to put the fragments back together. Millions of americans are demanding accountability and reform to a structure that has allowed Police Brutality against people of color for far too long. As we continue to hear new names that lost their lives, thoughts and prayers have never been enough and not enough now. E cant by not acting. The justice and policing act will bring about the changes we need and strengthen transparency and accountability in our Law Enforcement and we need to ban excessive uses of force and end the militarization of local Police Departments. And we begin the first of many steps towards a more just system ensuring george floyd and Breonna Taylor and countless others are not forgotten. And i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from ohio is organized. Mr. Jordan we reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Bass i yield one minute to representative from new york, representative velazquez. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is reckniesed. Recognized. Ms. Velazquez mr. Speaker, in nearly every city and town across this country, the American People are raising their collective voice for change. Our nation is having a long overdue conversation of our race and policies and we are timely acknowledging that black lives matter. But it takes more than words. It American People want true reforms. This bill takes tangible steps in that direction. It ends qualified immunity. The bill bans chokeholds and noknock warrants will become a thing of the past. We are outraged of the murders Breonna Taylor and eric garner. Anger is not enough. The American People are demanding action. This bill offers change, not lip service or half measures being floated by the president and Senate Republicans. The time is now. History will judge us on how we respond to this moment. Vote yes. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. The gentlelady the gentleman recognized. Mr. Jordan we reserve. Ms. Bass i yield myself such time. The justice and policing act establishes a bold vision of policing in america. Never again should the world witness of what we saw in the streets of minneapolis, the slow murder of an individual by a fune formed Police Officer. The world is witnessing this movement and spread to many nations around the world with thousands marching and hearing the cry i cant breathe. People marching to demand change that ends Police Brutality and cial profiling and denying americans to sue and and black communities have been sadly marching for over 100 years against police abuse and for the police to protect and serve our communities like they do elsewhere. Exposed 0, cameras horror segregation and they exposed the brutal treatment of people who dared to challenge the system. Plaque people did not have the same constitutional protections that freedom of the speech, the right to assemble and protests were not rights extended. Cell phone camera has exposed the continuation of violence against black americans and the right of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness is not guaranteed to africanamericans. The movement for Police Accountability is a rainbow movement. And the power of this movement will help move congress to act. And increases transparency but assists Police Departments to change the culture sm i know that change is hard but im certain Police Officers, professionals who risk their lives every day are concerned about their profession and do not want to work in an environment that requires their silence when a fellow officer is abusing the public. Police officers would like to intervene and stop an officer from using deadly force when it is not necessary and im certain Police Officers want to be trained in the best practices in policing. A profession where you have the power to kill should be a profession that requires highly trained officers who are accountable to the public. I am so proud to be here on this historic day for the first time and i have no idea how many years the house of representatives will pass the George Floyd Justice and policing act. I yield. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields. The gentleman from ohio is recognized. Mr. Jordan i would yield to my good friend from north dakota as much time as he might use. Mr. Armstrong thank you, mr. Speaker. I sat through this through a Committee Hearing and markup, and rules committee and all day today and i have heard a lot about now is the time for bold action and now is the time for change but we dont talk about what we are doing and what we are passing is actually good policy, whether this policy will work in as Diverse Communities that we have from one end of this nation to another. If there was ever a subject that requires deliberation, Police Reform is this this. We are incommable in this town at this time. The American People want reform and that reform has to start with recognition with the basic recognition that two million out of 2. 3 Million People incarcerated are incarcerated in state and local prisons and this becomes a community action. Law enforcement is mostly a local function and when we are talking about reform we must recognize that these laws must work at 2 30 a. M. In a dangerous, unpredictable and often vial ent significance. And whether that officer is patroling washington, d. C. , or rural north dakota road. We can move quickly and thoughtfully. We can work towards policies that hold bad officers and departments accountable without making it difficult for good cops to do their jobs. We need to recognize uncomfortable truths. Systemic Racial Disparities exist and not just in Law Enforcement but throughout, whether in pretrial release programs, and decisions in determining sentence and enhancements that have disparity decisions. When we talk about these things, we have been talking about them for years and long before President Trump was elected. If your claim is historical and stemic racism, it is hard to believe it started when President Trump took office. This bill no not chase bad cops hroughout the business but it will dissway good people from going into Law Enforcement and that will make our communities less safe. Makes it easier to sue Law Enforcement. It makes it easier to prosecute just bad cops, not cops. It ensures there it is a public database of all complaints, theyre completely frivolous or not. And it takes away their ability o use equipment, whether they need it or not. It takes away the ability for to use lifesaving tools whether they need it or not. On ined with what is going and a combination between eaceful protests and violent rioting, i have a friend, an officer in minneapolis just this week have responded to calls spit on andre being have bottles thrown at them while they are responding to murders. These types of policies and this type of rhetoric is not going to chase this out ut of of this profession is just not true. In the Judiciary Committee did offer substandive substand tiff and to enhance the use of body cameras by federal officers. Considered hat i reasonable collective bargaining reform so that bad cops can ctually get fired from their jobs. We exempted our Border Patrol from the ban on the purchase of surplus military equipment. We asked we also even offered banff no on the ban of noknock warrants. Say to say we were everything we offered and what we tried to accomplish either side was he other was not relevant to the onversation just simply isnt true. But there are things we agree on. With body cameras for Law Enforcement. We agree that more transparency thing. Best congresswoman bass has talked a lot and i think this is actually accurate. We wouldnt know a lot about things without cell phone cameras and what has gone on. Nd thats the reality that exists. But the other reality that exists is that we all are unctioning in a digital society, and asking our federal Law Enforcement to come into the 21st century along with us is terribly not a irrelevant nor unreasonable request. With making sure we have a way to track officers. We dont necessarily agree on but theresecifics, a way to get there. I think everyone agrees that is deescalation training incredibly important and that doesnt matter if you are in a Diverse Community or not. Talked to law s enforcement knows they deal with way too Many Mental Health issues. Resources. Th those we all want to hold bad cops accountable and bad and that have too many accountable. Many of us on our other side agree with qualified immunity reform. With congressman roy when he said we want significant reform. Id also argue we need to with something. The problem with noknock warrants isnt that theyre there. Theyre overused. The problem with military equipment isnt that its its that in some departments its overused. If we continue to paint a broad all of these things and have it effect every department, regardless how urban rural in nature, regardless if they have a history, a all,ory of abuse or none at then we run a real risk of alienating the people who are closely and most want reform. And ill end on something i think is fairly hopeful. I do have hope because i think this is the most criminally Justice Reform seen. Ss weve ever there are members on both sides of the aisle that are serious about marijuana legislation, and want to talk about a system in the criminal code that not racial impact, i am sure you need to go a whole lot further than marijuana reform. We have people on both sides of that have done the juvenile justice act, the ustice reinvestment act, trial undoly s, clemency for harsh unduly harsh prisons. Repeating. Bears i just truly, truly mean this. The First Step Act, which was assed by the last congress which was bicameral, bipartisan, and advocated for by this most ent is the single important criminal Justice Reform thats probably come out of this congress. And i dont say that from being politician. I say that from practicing federal criminal defense under both the Bush Administration and the obama administration. So in three years at a federal at the federal level, we have gotten more done. But its called the First Step Act for a reason. Theres a second step. And i have add the opportunity through all the rhetoric and all partisan fighting and everything, ive also got to thoughtful people on both sides of the aisle. People on my side of the aisle of time t as short ago as several years ago didnt believe in some of these things now. Ve in them its no not just at the federal government. States from colorado to new to texas north dakota are doing criminal Justice Reform. And theyre doing it houghtfully and moving it forward. I find it unfortunate that were going to be here and that we couldnt have this conversation we are going to do what we do so well in this town is talk and then fail lk to have action on anything that has a realistic chance of law and i think, unfortunately, that is where this is going. But i do have hope because i of people are a lot on both sides of the aisle that truly want to work on this. Go very ont have to far. 350 members on both sides of the isle have already cosponsored bills related to criminal Justice Reform. So we will get this done. Aybe not as soon as we could have. But im hopeful we will rise to the moment. With that i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. The gentlelady from california is recognized. Ms. Bass mr. Speaker, i ask that the consent gentleman from new york, the distinguished chair of the democratic caucus, be permitted the remainder of the time on the majority side. The speaker pro tempore without objection. The gentleman from new york is recognized. I thank the gentlelady from california on George Floyd Justice in policing act and this important legislation forward. Mr. Jeffries let me yield one distinguished gentleman from california, representative davis. The peaker pro tempore gentlelady is recognized. Mrs. Davis thank you, mr. Speaker. Weeks people or across the country have been protesting in the streets, george g justice for floyd, for Breonna Taylor, and for countless number of people police. Y adly, these incidents like these are something our communities of color no too well. Well. Know too this moment, this moment begs us o ask, to be bold, to capture this oppor