mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
Introductory Statement on S. 697
Steve Daines (Republican, MT) \u2014 2017-3-22

since 2001 our Nation has frequently called upon members of the National Guard and Armed Forces Reserve to confront our enemies and protect our interests around the globe. prgtoken Without the contributions from the Guard and Reserve components, the joint force would be far less capable and unable to perform many critical tasks. prgtoken Often, members of the Guard and Reserve incur out-of-pocket expenses to travel to and from their training locations. There are many challenges that these servicemembers face, but subsidizing the cost of training with after-tax income should not be one of them. prgtoken This issue is particularly relevant to Montana. My home State is widely recognized as having one of the highest prgtoken per capita veteran populations in the Nation, with many Montanans serving in the Guard or Reserve. The distances between homes and training sites can be challenging. As the son of a marine, I understand the costs associated with service. prgtoken With a deep appreciation for the commitment and sacrifice expected from members of Guard and Reserve, I offer the Tax Relief for Guard and Reserve Training Act. This bill lowers the mileage threshold from 100 to 50 for tax-deductible expenses. This change would put the Guard and Reserve on equal footing with most government and military travel regulations. prgtoken The Tax Relief for Guard and Reserve Training Act is a reasonable reform, specifically targeted at those who are often asked to shoulder burdens for the common good. prgtoken , I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.
CONGRESSIONAL TERM LIMITS
Mike Gallagher (Republican, WI) \u2014 2017-3-22

listening to my colleague's remarks, I was reminded of what another general, prgtoken General Dwight D. Eisenhower, said: ``You know, farming looks mighty easy when your plow is a pencil, and you're a thousand miles from the cornfield.'' prgtoken I think that sentiment was echoed by Don Bacon, which is to say people who have actual experience dealing with hard problems are the best type of people to legislate on those problems from Congress. prgtoken , I am honored to welcome another distinguished colleague from Louisiana. We in Wisconsin are all honored to welcome a bunch of LSU fans to Lambeau Field. I won't rehash how that went, but it was a great coming together of two great sports fans. It was really a privilege for everyone there. prgtoken , from Louisiana (Mr. Johnson), my colleague.
SMALL BUSINESS HEALTH FAIRNESS ACT OF 2017
Steve Chabot (Republican, OH) \u2014 2017-3-22

I want to thank the gentlewoman from North Carolina for her leadership on this issue. prgtoken , I rise to voice my strong support for H.R. 1101, the Small Business Health Fairness Act. s from Ways and Means and from the Education and the Workforce Committee for getting this great idea onto paper and moving this bill forward today. prgtoken As chairman of the House Small Business Committee, I am always very appreciative to see Members from across this body find solutions for small businesses. That is exactly what this bill is. prgtoken For virtually any one of us in this Chamber, it can be said that hundreds of thousands of our constituents depend on small businesses for their livelihoods. They have been looking to those same small businesses for options, as Care has done the opposite of what it was supposed to do and it has diminished choices for workers. prgtoken By allowing small businesses to join together through association health plans, the Small Business Health Fairness Act would give small business employees at least as many choices as those who happen to work for larger companies. prgtoken Association health plans have long been a solution suggested by small businesses that share their views with me and other members of the Small Business Committee. This bill puts that idea finally into action. prgtoken , in our current state of affairs, there are fewer and fewer healthcare options available for hardworking Americans. This bill addresses that problem for our hardest hit small businesses and communities. prgtoken While we begin the hard work of making health care not only affordable but worth buying at all, this bill is an important step in giving Americans the certainty and choices that they want. I would urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this bill.
DISAPPROVING A RULE SUBMITTED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Bill Cassidy (Republican, LA) \u2014 2017-3-22

I rise with my colleagues to support H.J. Res. 83 and companion S.J. Res. 27, a resolution I introduced with 25 of my colleagues, under the Congressional Review Act, or CRA, to stop the administration Department of Labor's regulation, known as the Volks rule, from expanding the statute of limitations for record- keeping violations. This regulatory scheme represents a backwards approach to workplace safety, and it is a blatant overreach by the Federal Government. prgtoken Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, employers are required to record injuries and illnesses that occur in the work place and maintain those records for 5 years. The law provides for a 6-month period for which OSHA can issue citations to employers who fail to maintain the records properly. However, it was the practice of OSHA, based on their interpretation of the law, that they were able to issue citations regarding keeping those records properly for the entire 5- year period employers must keep those records. prgtoken Under this practice, OSHA took action against Volks Constructors, a firm in Prairieville, LA, in 2006 for recordkeeping violations that occurred nearly 5 years earlier--again, recordkeeping violations. This was well beyond the 6-month statute of limitations. Volks Constructors, located in Prairieville, is a heavy industrial contractor that provides manufacturing prgtoken services and industrial specialties to the petrochemical and related industries. It has been in business for more than 40 years. Volks challenged OSHA in the DC Circuit Court of Appeals for those citations and won. The Circuit Court of Appeals issued a unanimous, three-judge opinion rebuking OSHA's attempt to file citations past the statute of limitations. One of the three judges was President 's Supreme Court nominee, Judge Merrick Garland. prgtoken The Volks ruling has since been upheld by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Let me read a few of the comments from the court's opinion: ``We do not believe Congress expressly established a statute of limitations only to implicitly encourage the Secretary to ignore it.'' prgtoken Another comment: ``The Act clearly renders the citations untimely, and the Secretary's argument to the contrary relies on an interpretation that is neither natural nor consistent with our precedents.'' prgtoken From Judge Garland's concurring opinion: ``[B]ecause none of the challenged citations were issued within 6 months, `flowing the occurrence of any violation,' I agree with my colleagues that the petition for review should be granted and the citation vacated.'' prgtoken After the court was clear in its ruling, OSHA, in order to negate such ruling and continue issuing citations beyond the 6-month statute of limitations, promulgated this regulation, the Volks rule. prgtoken This joint resolution must invalidate the Volks rule. The Volks rule is a clear violation of the court's ruling and is in direct cont
CONGRESSIONAL TERM LIMITS
Jack Bergman (Republican, MI) \u2014 2017-3-22

I thank Congressman Gallagher for his leadership on this issue, and the leadership across the board here as a Member of what we--I think most of us smile when we say the freshman class, because when I look across the experience level of all of the freshman Congressmen, no matter or , what this country is blessed to have today, as Members of this 115th Congress, are people who come here with the sense of mission, a sense of purpose, a sense that we know what we have here in this country. prgtoken We may have disagreements as to how we are going to get to where we need to go, but we all agree that we need to go there. The question is: How do we do it? prgtoken One of the ways you create an environment where you have fresh ideas and fresh ways of looking at it is to change the people who are presenting and acting those ideas. prgtoken I find myself asking many times as we stand on the floor here: What would the Founders say if they were here today with us? How would they look at how we are enacting their vision of what it means to be a constitutionally-based Republic that is ``We the People''? How would they react? prgtoken I think there are probably a few things that they could not have imagined. Twitter or Snapchat might be one of them--pick your way of communicating across the spectrum that we now have today as our reality. I am not saying those things are bad. They are just the new reality that we have. prgtoken So how do we take what was given to us as a framework and move it forward? prgtoken Well, again, my colleagues have all eloquently very well stated that they believe that we need to have a higher turnover in Congress. Term limits is going to be a very good first step in ensuring that we maintain the freshness of ideas. prgtoken When you look at the challenges that face our country, we know that there are people out there who have chosen not to run, for whatever reason, because of the fact that they view they prgtoken can make more of a difference outside of Congress. That is too bad, because we need good people. We need them. We need them to be here, to be part of us. prgtoken One of the brutal realities as--author Jim Collins of ``Good to Great,'' you know, he talks about facing the brutal realities. One of the brutal realities that I believe we have to face is the professional politician. That wasn't written about anywhere 240 years ago. It just occurred over time. prgtoken It is our responsibility--especially as a freshman class, you can feel the passion that we believe is the right passion to be put behind term limits to begin to make the change necessary. So we are all in this together. In fact, I am proud to be a member of the freshman class, and I am proud of the fact that we signed a commitment to civility a couple of months ago that put us in a position where we are finding our voice. And what you are hearing today from our colleagues is part of that voice says: We need to d
PROVIDING FOR CONGRESSIONAL DISAPPROVAL OF A RULE SUBMITTED BY THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Jeff Flake (Republican, AZ) \u2014 2017-3-22

I rise in support of my resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act of the FCC's broadband privacy restrictions. As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee's Privacy Subcommittee, I have spent more than a year closely examining this issue. prgtoken In February of 2015 the FCC, under then-Chairman Tom Wheeler, took the unprecedented step of reclassifying broadband providers as ``common carriers'' under title II of the Communications Act. In other words, on a 3-to-2 party-line vote, the FCC decided that internet service providers should be treated like telephone companies for regulatory purposes. The decision encroached on the Federal Trade Commission's jurisdiction to regulate ISP privacy policies, stripping these companies of their traditional privacy regulator. prgtoken Recognizing that his actions to impose net neutrality on ISPs created regulatory uncertainty, last spring Chairman Wheeler began to float the idea of implementing new FCC privacy rules. The FCC decided, again on a 3-to-2 party-line vote, to move forward with the rule change just before election day. The whole process was unsettling, to say the least. prgtoken The FCC ultimately decided to commandeer an area of regulatory authority for itself, without any meaningful check on this unilateral action. Once it initiated the bureaucratic power grab, it proceeded to establish new rules restricting the free speech of its regulatory target. prgtoken I submitted comments to the agency expressing my constitutional concerns about its proposed rule. I wasn't alone in doing so. Noted Harvard law professor Larry Tribe, hardly one to be confused for a conservative, did the same. But the rules were finalized nonetheless. prgtoken While the FCC recently took a step in the right direction by staying the application of the privacy rules, these midnight regulations are still hanging out there. Congress needs to repeal these privacy restrictions in order to restore balance to the internet ecosystem and provide certainty to consumers. prgtoken These regulations have altered the basic nature of privacy protection in the United States. For decades, the FTC policed privacy based on consumer expectations for their data, not bureaucratic preferences. These consumer expectations were just common sense: Sensitive data deserves more protection than nonsensitive data. prgtoken Unfortunately, the FCC rules dispensed with this commonsense regulatory approach. Under the new rules, what matters isn't what the data is but, rather, who uses it. This creates a dual-track regulatory environment where some consumer data is regulated one way if a company is using it under the FCC's jurisdiction and an entirely different way if its use falls under the FTC, or the Federal Trade Commission. prgtoken This is all confusing enough, but it gets worse. In the consumer technology sector, innovation is the name of the game. Companies are constantly rolling out n
REPEALING OBAMACARE
Martha Roby (Republican, AL) \u2014 2017-3-22

7 years ago this week, in this Chamber, the House gave final passage to the Affordable Care Act, better known as Care. prgtoken I wasn't in Congress then. Many of us weren't. But for my fellow conservatives here today, that vote 7 years ago marked a decision point, or a moment of affirmation, to answer the call to public service and to help chart a better way for this country. prgtoken And for 7 years, we have made the case against Care. As the law has been implemented, that case has been largely made for us. Millions have been forced away from the healthcare plan and doctor they liked, despite being told otherwise. prgtoken This year alone, in Alabama, health insurance premiums are rising by 58 percent. That is on top of the already steep increases the past 2 years. Our average deductible for the supposedly affordable bronze plan is now $6,000. prgtoken I have heard from countless constituents about the negative impact of Care. I have listened to their stories about how higher costs and fewer choices have made it that much harder to keep their families healthy and make ends meet. prgtoken And in response, I made a promise--the same promise President and every conservative in Congress has made over and over: Give us the majority in the House and the Senate, give us a in the White House, and we will repeal Care and replace it with reforms that work. prgtoken So, , I am pleased that we are finally in a position to deliver on that promise. The voters gave us what we asked of them, and it is only right that we keep our end of the bargain. prgtoken With the American Health Care Act, we begin the process of repealing Care once and for all. This bill dismantles the taxes, mandates, and entitlement spending that make up the core of Care. It cuts taxes on prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, insurance premiums, and medical devices. It eliminates the individual and employer mandate penalties that have forced millions into expensive, inadequate plans. It replaces the Care entitlement with refundable tax credits so that people who don't receive insurance through work can put their own tax dollars toward a health plan of their choice. prgtoken , many people have asked why our plan to repeal and replace Care is a process. Why is this bill only one step and not the full package? It is an understandable question. For the last several years, Americans have been sold the false hope that government has a magic wand with which they can solve all of their problems. The truth is, of course, that it can't. It never can. And the only proof you need is Care itself. prgtoken That is why congressional s and the administration are taking a completely different approach than President and the used 7 years ago. Instead of claiming we need to pass the bill so you can find out what is in it, we have worked in a transparent way. The bi
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY ACQUISITION INNOVATION ACT
Michael T. McCaul (Republican, TX) \u2014 2017-3-22

I include in the Record the cost estimate on H.R. 1365: March 22, 2017. Hon. Michael McCaul, Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear : The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1365, the Department of Homeland Security Acquisition Innovation Act. If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark Grabowicz. Sincerely, Keith Hall. Enclosure.
RECOGNIZING SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTERS
James E. Risch (Republican, ID) \u2014 2017-3-22

on behalf of myself and my colleague Senator Shaheen, I would like to recognize the contributions made to our Nation and its small businesses by the good work of America's small business development centers. As chairman and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Ranking Member Shaheen and I understand the impact that boosting small businesses makes, with 99.7 percent of all firms across America being small businesses and their employees making up 48 percent of the total workforce. prgtoken America's small business development centers provide small businesses across the country with high-quality, low- or no-cost consulting, and a variety of educational programs. These centers operate in all 50 States to support an established network of small businesses while encouraging new entrepreneurs to develop and execute their unique vision, helping innovators get their own small businesses up and running. prgtoken Small business development centers are successful because they provide the services of a large consulting firm on a locally scaled level in areas that may go unnoticed by other programs. They provide tailored, individualized attention to over 450,000 entrepreneurs a year, which resulted in $6.9 billion in new sales in 2015. That same year, America's small business development centers aided in the creation of over 100,000 jobs, and the small businesses they serve averaged a growth rate of 15.5 percent, which is nearly eight times the national average. prgtoken One of many success stories that can be told is that of Velma, a marketing software firm in Nampa, ID. Founded in 2006, the firm focused on empowering loan officers to create stronger relationships through a customized direct email program. The recession of 2008 hit Velma hard, and in 2010, the company entered into the small business development centers business accelerator program. The structure of the program provided organizational discipline, and the firm pivoted to providing email marketing for mortgage companies. Since the firm began participating in the accelerator program, Velma has quadrupled its employees and created a sustained positive cash flow. prgtoken It is a privilege for my colleague and I to recognize America's Small Business Development Centers Day today, March 22, 2017, and we wish them continued success as they work to support the next generation of America's small business owners and entrepreneurs.
SMALL BUSINESS HEALTH FAIRNESS ACT OF 2017
Jaime Herrera Beutler (Republican, WA) \u2014 2017-3-22

I thank Chairwoman Foxx and the Committee on Education and the Workforce for their work on this important bill that will benefit small businesses and the families who work for them. prgtoken My amendment to the Small Business Health Fairness Act provides a straightforward clarification to ensure that existing association health plans can continue to operate and provide high-quality, affordable care to as many people as possible. prgtoken This amendment safeguards association health plans that have been successfully operating under State and Federal law--many of them for decades. We will be making certain that they would not inadvertently be disadvantaged by new Federal legislation or regulation or vulnerable to efforts to restrict access and limit choices. prgtoken Why do we need this amendment? prgtoken Because I fear what happened in my State will happen in others, where the insurance commissioner attempted to reject 42 out of about 60 association health plans. His office interpreted Care as giving him a mandate as justification for attempting to eliminate virtually all of these popular plans. By adopting my amendment, it will make crystal clear in the underlying bill that this won't be tolerated, and it will support both existing and future association health plans. prgtoken Talk to one of the nearly 400,000 individuals in my home State of Washington who get their care from an association plan, and you will find out why so many Washington businesses renew their plans every year. prgtoken Our State has been fortunate to have a robust AHP market that has become essential to providing cost-effective choices to small-business employers, thanks to bipartisan legislation enacted in the mid-1990s. In the case of one association plan operating in my State, roughly 40 percent of participating small-business employers did not previously offer health coverage. prgtoken My amendment is supported by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In its letter to me, which I include in the Record, the U.S. Chamber indicated that it shares my interest in making sure that State-based association health plans that currently exist are able to continue operating in accordance with existing State and Federal law. My amendment is also supported by the Association of Washington Business. Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America, Washington, DC, March 20, 2017. Hon. Jaime Herrera Beutler, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear Congresswoman Herrera Beutler: Thank you for your attention to the concerns raised by the Association of Washington Businesses regarding H.R. 1101, the ``Small Business Health Fairness Act.'' The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has several state chambers of commerce members that provide state-based quality health care coverage to their member