macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: CAROLYN B. MALONEY (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. as of the first day of this month. thousands of American exporters. big and small. were unilaterally disarmed in the battle for new business overseas. The conservative Members of this body succeeded in their quest to kill the U.S. ExportImport Bank. They did it. The ExIms charter has expired. Now there is only the ExportImport Bank of China. the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation of Australia. the Export Development of Canada. Finnish Export Credit. Hungarian Export Credit Insurance. the Israel Export Insurance Corporation. the Japan Bank for International Cooperation. the ExportImport Bank of Korea. the Norwegian Guarantee Institute for Export Credits. the Export Credit Bank of Turkey. and about 75 other foreign governmentrun agencies that are all helping businesses. big and small. in their quest to export and create jobs in their countries. American companies alone find themselves at a distinct disadvantage. Our colleagues have successfully cut off their nose to spite their face. It is never too late to fix a mistake. Let this Chamber vote on renewing the ExportImport charter and create more American jobs.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. I rise today to speak in favor of H.R. 2722. introduced by my distinguished colleague on the Financial Services Committee. Representative CAROLYN B. MALONEY. the ranking member of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises. I commend the gentlewoman for introducing the bill before us today. the Breast Cancer Awareness Commemorative Coin Act. which provides a chance for all of us to come together to raise awareness about this critical health issue that impacts the lives of so many women and families. Mr. Speaker. the statistics are startling. Approximately one in eight women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer during her lifetime. and many of these women. approximately 1 in 36. will lose their lives from this horrible disease. This means that every 13 minutes. a woman in this country will die from breast cancer. That is 40.290 women in the United States are expected to die from breast cancer in 2015 alone. While this disease affects women in every community across this country for a variety of reasons. such as the lack of adequate care. the likelihood of dying from the disease is particularly high for African American women. In fact. African American women had a 44 percent higher rate of breast cancer mortality than White women. That is why the conversation we are having here today is so important. With increased awareness. early detection. new research. and better medicine. we can save lives. thousands of them each year. If consideration of the bill before us today causes at least one woman to get screened for breast cancer. we will be better off for it. I urge my colleagues to support the bill before us today. which will help raise awareness and modest sums for the fight against breast cancer. Again. I urge adoption of the bill. and I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from New York . the author of this legislation.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would like to thank my colleague and friend. Mr. GREEN. for introducing this important bill. the Homes for Heroes Act of 2015. This bill aims to help prevent lowincome veteran families from falling into homelessness. while also providing relief for those who are currently homeless. This bill achieves these aims by elevating a position at HUD aimed specifically at coordinating efforts to ensure that all Federal agencies working to house our homeless veterans are working together at maximum capacity. This position will work closely with the HUD Secretary to achieve these outcomes. The Homes for Heroes Act will also ensure the longterm coordination of services for homeless veterans by requiring HUD to submit a comprehensive annual report to Congress on the housing needs of homeless veterans. This bill will help ensure that we continue to make progress on the goal of ending veteran homelessness so that we can ensure that every veteran has a roof over their head. Recent efforts to house our homeless veterans have seen bipartisan support in both the House and Senate in the form of supporting robust funding for the HUDVeterans Affairs Supportive Housing program. also known as HUDVASH. This bill should be no different. Our veterans have been at the forefront of protecting this country. and we have an obligation here in Congress to protect and provide for those who are most vulnerable. No person in the country should be deprived of a safe. decent. and affordable place to call home. No person should be deprived of a roof over their head. This bill would help to ensure that we are taking care of those who have taken care of this country. In addition. this bill is supported by the National Alliance to End Homelessness. a national advocacy organization committed to preventing and ending homelessness in the United States. An identical bill passed the House last Congress. I urge my colleagues to again pass this important piece of legislation. I want to thank Mr. GREEN for his persistence in bringing forth this legislation. It is another wonderful moment for him. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Texas . the ranking member of the Subcommittee for Oversight and Investigations of the Financial Services Committee.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I rise in support to H.R. 251. the "Homes for Heroes Act of 2015." which would amend the Department of Housing and Urban Development Act to establish in the Office of the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) a Special Assistant for Veterans Affairs. Our military veterans deserve our deepest gratitude for the courage and valor they demonstrated in service while defending the United States of America. I support this bill strongly because it ensure veterans fair access to HUD housing and homeless assistance programs. coordinates all HUD programs and activities relating to veterans. and betters serves as a HUD liaison with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Also. terminating the position of Special Assistant for Veterans Programs in the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Special Needs would create more coordinated relations that will better serve the needs of our nations veterans. Mr. Speaker. today. in our country. there are approximately 107.000 veterans (male and female) who are homeless on any given night. And perhaps twice as many (200.000) experience homelessness at some point during the course of a year. Many other veterans are considered near homeless or at risk because of their poverty. lack of support from family and friends. and dismal living conditions in cheap hotels or in overcrowded or substandard housing. In my hometown of Houston for example. between the years 2010 and 2012. the number of homeless veterans increased from 771 to 1.162. President Obama and the Congress made a commitment to end homelessness by 2015. However. even with all the progress this administration has made. until we have every veteran permanently sheltered in the United States. we have not succeeded. I have always devoted myself in these efforts. as I know of the kind of impact assisting our heroes to get back on their feet can have on the wellbeing of our communities. H.R. 251. the "Homes for Heroes Act of 2015." is a positive step towards the right direction in our effort to support our nations heroes. who have put their lives on the line for our protection. Mr. Speaker. we cannot let this issue of homelessness continue. I urge my colleagues to join me in voting in support of H.R. 251.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to thank my colleague from California for working on this important issue and introducing this bill. This bill. entitled the Housing Assistance Efficiency Act. makes two key changes to the McKinneyVento Homeless Assistance Act that are long overdo. Specifically. this bill is designed to fix two technical problems that have arisen in HUDs homeless assistance programs due to technical errors in the language in the HEARTH Act. which was a bipartisan bill that significantly reformed the homeless assistance programs in 2009. Among other things. HUDs homeless assistance programs help homeless people pay rent when they move out of shelters or off the streets and into housing. Since the inception of these programs. local nonprofit organizations have received funding from HUD to administer efficient and costeffective rental assistance programs. working with local landlords to get places for homeless people to live. Unfortunately. in 2009. when certain programs were merged under the HEARTH Act. these nonprofits became ineligible to directly administer permanent rental assistance. This unintentional result of the HEARTH Act has created huge uncertainty on the ground for many nonprofits who work hard to house our homeless populations across the country. The permanent fix in H.R. 1047 would be extremely helpful for communities that are working to end homelessness for chronic individuals. veterans. children. and other populations. The second provision in H.R. 1047 addresses the Emergency Solutions Grants Program. a program aimed at homelessness prevention and rapid rehousing activities. The bill would amend the current HUD requirement to reallocate unused. returned. or otherwise newly available funds twice per year to just once per year. This change provides HUD and local agencies with administrative relief. while having no negative impact on beneficiaries of these programs. In addition. this program is supported by the National Alliance to End Homelessness. a national advocacy organization committed to preventing and ending homelessness in the United States. An identical bill passed the House last December on the suspension calendar by voice vote. I urge my colleagues to again vote in favor of this bill. Mr. Speaker. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. This bill is the product of years of thoughtful consideration and negotiations. I am very pleased with the compromises that were reached on this bill. especially some additional tenant protections that include rent affordability restrictions for existing tenants. There are currently about 640 properties that are subject to restrictions in the LowIncome Housing Preservation and Resident Homeownership Act of 1990. otherwise known as LIHPRHA. LIHPRHA imposed some significant restrictions on property owners. which have proven to be problematic by making it more difficult for property owners to preserve these aging properties. This bill would help address this issue by providing affected property owners with greater flexibilities on the condition that they comply with basic requirements that ensure that the properties are adequately maintained and that tenants do not see dramatic increases in rents. By providing these flexibilities. property owners will have better access to capital to carry out repairs and other improvements that will help preserve these aging properties and ultimately benefit tenants. Particularly in light of the current rental housing crisis. this is an important bipartisan measure that seeks to preserve our affordable housing stock. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Mr. Speaker. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I have no additional speakers. I encourage support for this bill. and I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. this bill would create a pilot program within HUD which would allow for energy and water efficiency upgrades to be made to certain private multifamily HUD properties at no cost to the government. Under this innovative pilot program. investors would provide all of the upfront capital to make the improvements. and they would only get paid based on a portion of the cost savings that result from the improvements. If there are no cost savings. the losses would be completely on the investors. not HUD or the taxpayers. This is a rare winwin situation. HUD and taxpayers benefit from cost savings. tenants benefit from the improvements made to their homes. investors benefit from the profits. and of course. the environment benefits from the more responsible use of natural resources. This bill also ensures accountability by requiring a thirdparty evaluation to verify any cost savings and also by requiring the Secretary to report on the outcomes of the pilot within a year of enactment. There is simply no reason for bipartisan bickering on a bill like this. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. and I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. During the foreclosure crisis of the last several years. we have learned how important the role of mortgage servicing is to our economy and our constituents. I am proud of the work we did in the DoddFrank Act and of the work that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau continues to do to reform the practices of the mortgage servicing industry. Unfortunately. this Congress has not been able to move legislation on broader housing finance reform. While we have left this business unfinished. there has been a large shift in the structure of the mortgage servicing industry. as nonbank servicers who are supervised by State regulators play a much larger role than they have in the past. That is why I am supporting the good. bipartisan work Mr. PERLMUTTER and Mr. LUETKEMEYER have engaged in to make sure that State and Federal regulators are working together to understand the changes in the mortgage servicing industry and to make sure bank and nonbank services are treated appropriately under new financial rules. This study will give regulators the information they need to monitor the impact of capital standards on the mortgage servicing market and encourage State and Federal regulators to work together to ensure that all mortgage services are appropriately capitalized. regardless of who regulates them. H.R. 1408 will ensure that regulators are paying close attention to a vital part of our housing and financial system. and I am happy that we were able to work with the majority to pass this bill. So I thank you. and I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Colorado . and I would like to thank him for the work that he has put into this legislation.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. I am once again pleased to support this bill related to small business capital formation. This legislation has broad bipartisan support and clarifies the intent of Congress when we passed DoddFrank. H.R. 432. which Representatives LUETKEMEYER and MALONEY worked on in a bipartisan fashion. exempts advisers to small business investment companies. or SBICs. from registration with the SEC in cases where they are inappropriately being required to do so. Under the DoddFrank Act. Congress explicitly exempted advisers to SBIC funds and advisers to venture capital funds from registration. However. the SEC has interpreted the language in the act as still requiring registration if a funds adviser advises both. This. to me. is not consistent with the act. and I applaud the authors of this bill for solving this problem. This bill would also exclude SBIC fund assets from the calculation of fund assets triggering the $150 million registration threshold. another provision I believe is reasonable.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: CAROLYN B. MALONEY (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New York

I thank the ranking member for yielding and for her leadership on this committee and in so many other areas. Mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of H.R. 432. the SBIC Advisers Relief Act. And I am pleased to be an original sponsor of this bill along with my colleague. the gentleman from Missouri
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. it is my understanding that this bill addresses an oversight in the JOBS Act that established new. higher thresholds for registration. termination of registration. and suspension of public reporting for banks and bank holding companies. but not for savings and loan companies. In the JOBS Act. we recognized that banks and bank holding companies were inadvertently becoming public companies by virtue of their securities being distributed to a larger number of shareholders than permitted under the securities laws. even though these institutions were largely held within their own communities. Accordingly. we provided banks and bank holding companies with regulatory relief by raising the thresholds that trigger public company reporting. H.R. 1334 would extend this relief to savings and loan companies which. like banks and bank holding companies. are still subject to mandatory public reporting requirements by the banking regulators. so information will continue to be available to shareholders and the public. Last Congress. we passed this noncontroversial bill out of committee and on the House floor. Since that time. the Securities and Exchange Commission has. under its own authority. proposed to extend the JOBS Act provision to savings and loan companies. The SEC estimates that approximately 90 of the 125 savings and loan holding companies that have a class of registered securities would be eligible to terminate registration or suspend reporting under its proposal. I am pleased to support this bill. which will extend the benefits we provide in the JOBS Act to those 90 companies that represent an additional class of community banks. Mr. Speaker. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I am very pleased to stand here with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle today to support so many pieces of legislation that have come out of the Financial Services Committee. I have always said with DoddFrank. where there were technical problems or oversights or unintended consequences. that I would work with my colleagues on the opposite side of the aisle. and much of what you see here today. that is what we have done. Just as there may have been some unintended consequences in DoddFrank. we find that with the JOBS Act. there were unintended consequences. and certainly. I stand with them in correcting those. It could happen in any legislation. we know that. This is an example of that. I am very. very pleased to support this legislation today. I reserve the balance of my time at this moment.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. H.R. 1723. the Small Company Simple Registration Act of 2015 is a commonsense provision to help smaller companies avoid having to obtain an audit related to a filing that is itself already audited. The bill would no longer require a company to amend its registration statement when it issues a quarterly or annual filing. Although one witness noted the concern that all information would no longer be reflected in a single document. she recommended that the SECs public filing system be improved and that the issuer be required to post the registration statement on its Web site. complete with hyperlinks to the documents that are incorporated by reference. This seems like a reasonable approach. I believe that the SEC can do both and likely would if H.R. 1723 is passed. This one change has the potential to help companies save $10.000. and with all SEC filings able to be quickly found online. it does not diminish investor protections in any way. Last Congress. this provision was unfortunately attached to a larger bill that did not make a lot of sense. I am glad to see it has now been offered on its own. as I think it now has a much better likelihood of moving to the Presidents desk. I certainly support the adoption of this bill. Mr. Speaker. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. I am pleased to also support this legislation. This bipartisan legislation is another example of how we can work together on the Financial Services Committee on behalf of small businesses in this country. Both Democrats and Republicans have said over and over again that we must do everything that we can to support our small businesses. That is from capital formation to making sure that we get rid of bureaucratic rules and regulations. Again. this is another great example of that. and I am pleased to be a part of that. Mr. Speaker. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. transparent trading of derivatives. along with realtime reporting of trades to swap data repositories. is a crucial element of the DoddFrank Act. This bill makes necessary technical changes to better enable our Nations regulators to share that data about derivatives with one another and with their foreign counterparts. An unintended result in DoddFrank of trying to protect both regulators and the data repositories from burdensome litigation was that other regulators lacked the authority to pay future legal expenses. thus threatening to prevent the sharing of information. This was clearly not intended as one of the primary goals of title VII. to enable regulators and the public to better understand the derivatives market. H.R. 1847 addresses those concerns and is supported by the industry and advocates. like Americans for Financial Reform. alike. I also understand that the bill includes additional changes to the legislation requested by the SEC to better target the statutory change. I thank Representative MOORE and Representative CRAWFORD for working together in a bipartisan manner to address these issues and solve a very real threat to crossborder regulatory cooperation and oversight. I urge support of this legislation. and I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2015-07-14
Speaker: MAXINE WATERS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Wisconsin . who happens to be the ranking member for the Subcommittee on Monetary Policy and Trade.