John Boehner

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. I appreciate the concerns raised by my friend from Maryland, but I need to remind my colleagues that the Pension Protection Act passed right before Christmas with almost 300 votes. There was broad bipartisan support for this bill, and it is my intention to maintain that broad bipartisan support for an eventual conference report. And the gentleman has my word that all Members will have their opportunity to be engaged in this conference report.

Mr. BOEHNER. It still is.

Mr. BOEHNER. Still.

Mr. BOEHNER. I thank my colleague for yielding. Given the hour and the commitments that Members have tomorrow, it is the intention of the majority leader to finish the bill under which the rule we just passed on ethics and lobbying reform on Tuesday. And so the House will convene at 12:30 for morning hour and 2 o'clock for legislative business. There will be some suspensions. Votes will be rolled until 6:30. On Wednesday and the balance of the week, the House will consider H.R. 4943, the Prevention of Fraudulent Access to Phone Records Act. In addition to H.R. 4943, we will do H.R. 4954, the SAFE Port Act, which the Committee on Homeland Security completed yesterday, and we are continuing to work with other committees to assure that this bill will be ready. I would expect this bill to be considered on Thursday. The committees of jurisdiction have also begun to hold hearings on energy, and Members should expect votes in the coming weeks addressing America's energy needs. That completes my report on what next week looks like.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. I thank my colleague for yielding, and suggest to my colleague from California, I am as concerned as you and many other Members on both sides of the aisle that the Ethics Committee process is not running the way it should. For the benefit of this institution, for the responsibility of this institution, the Ethics Committee should be functioning and should be enforcing the rules of the House. Unfortunately, one side of the aisle has decided that they don't want the process to continue. Now, the gentleman from Colorado and I, yesterday, had a conversation about the ethics process. I am interested in seeing it up and running. I am interested in working in a bipartisan way to fix the problems that are there so that it will run for the benefit of Members and the institution; and the gentleman has my commitment to work with him and Members on the other side of the aisle to make sure that the ethics process works, because it is important for the integrity of this institution. I yield to the gentleman.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Madam Speaker, I appreciate my colleague for yielding, and I want to congratulate Chairman Hyde and Ranking Member Lantos of the International Relations Committee, as well as Ms. Ros-Lehtinen for her work on this issue, and I rise strongly today to support H.R. 282, the Iran Freedom Support Act. The Iran Freedom Support Act sends, I think, a strong message: the United States expects Iran to be a responsible member of the international community. Iran has repeatedly asserted its rights to nuclear power, but its government has remained silent on their international obligations. Iran must be transparent in meeting its international nuclear obligations. In particular, Iran's refusal to answer the International Atomic Energy Agency's questions about critical elements of its nuclear power program is of deep concern to me. In addition, Iran's sponsorship of terrorism raises troubling questions about its true intentions and its long-term goals. It is impossible to have faith in a regime which spreads fear, violence, and disruption through its support of terrorist organizations and networks. I support President Bush's efforts to work with the United Nations Security Council and the International Atomic Energy Agency to compel the Iranian regime to be a responsible member of the international community.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that business in order under the Calendar Wednesday rule be dispensed with on Wednesday, April 26, 2006.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I send to the desk a privileged concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 382) providing for an adjournment or recess of the two Houses and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that when the House adjourns today pursuant to this order, it adjourn to meet at 2 p.m. on Monday, April 10, 2006, unless it sooner has received a message from the Senate transmitting its concurrence in House Concurrent Resolution 382, in which case the House shall stand adjourned pursuant to that concurrent resolution.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to table the resolution.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Both of those bills are, in fact, in conference. There have been informal conversations and, for that matter, formal conference meetings on both of those bills. The pension conference, on which I sit, has made some progress, but there is an awful lot of work to do, and I think the members of the conference are concerned about making sure that this bill is right and there are no unintended consequences. And it seems unlikely to me at this point that that conference could conclude by the end of next week. Closely related would be the tax conference. I don't sit on the conference, and I don't have as good a feel as what the timing might be.

Mr. BOEHNER. I thank my colleague for yielding. Next week, Mr. Speaker, the House will convene Tuesday at 12:30 for morning hour and 2 p.m. for legislative business. We will consider several measures under suspension of the rules. A final list of those bills will be sent to Members' offices by the end of the week, and any votes called on these measures will be rolled until 6:30 on Tuesday evening. On Wednesday and the balance of the week, the House will consider the 527 reform bill, which was reported from the Committee on House Administration. The House will also consider the concurrent resolution on the budget. The Budget Committee completed its work last night. We are scheduled to work through Friday next week. I can tell my colleague that if we were to get our work finished before that, the House would then adjourn for the district work period.

Mr. BOEHNER. Only with 527s.

Mr. BOEHNER. It is.

Mr. BOEHNER. I thank my colleague for yielding. I have talked to Democrats here in the House. I have talked to Democrats in the Senate about the pension provisions in conference. And everyone should know that at this point there have been some conversations amongst the majority party in each Chamber in order to try to put some framework together. But no one should have any anticipation that we are rapidly moving without our Democrat colleagues in the room. Senator Enzi and I had a conversation about this particular issue, on the involvement of our friends across the aisle, just yesterday; and so I understand the gentleman's concerns. I do believe that there are times when discussions have to occur amongst the principals before you bring the rest of the members into the conference, and I expect it will happen with these two bills as well.

Mr. BOEHNER. I thank my colleague for yielding. Now, as the gentleman is well aware, I believe that all of us were elected by our constituents, regardless of what side of the aisle we are on, and we all have a constitutional right and duty to participate in this legislative process; and the gentleman is well aware that there were a lot of conferences that I and members of my party never saw before they were completed. And as the gentleman is well aware, there are times when having the right people in the room is important. And every bill is different. So on the pension bill particularly, as I said, I have talked to Members on your side of the aisle, I have talked to Democrats in the Senate as well, and I would hope that sometime soon you will see Members, more Members, brought into the room to try to help move this process along.

Mr. BOEHNER. If the gentleman will yield, really, there are no decisions yet on just what the timing of these bills are next week. There just hasn't been a decision on what bill will come when. But I would hope that the 527 bill would be up Wednesday. Maybe we could start the budget debate on Wednesday. I think it is too early to tell.

Mr. BOEHNER. I would expect that the first week or two back it is likely that we will see those issues on the floor in some manner.

Mr. BOEHNER. Next week the five committees that are involved in putting together the lobby and ethics reform bills, all of those committees will be marking up their relative portion of that bill. Once they have completed their work next week, there has been no decision made on how to proceed from there in terms of the consideration of those issues here on the floor.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that when the House adjourns today, it adjourn to meet at 2 p.m. on Monday next, and further, when the House adjourns on that day, it adjourn to meet at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 4, 2006 for morning hour debate.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the business in order under the Calendar Wednesday rule be dispensed with on Wednesday next.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank my colleague for yielding and congratulate him on his selection as chairman of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, a committee that I used to chair and worked closely with Mr. McKeon over the last 5 years on a variety of issues, including the issue that is being debated on the floor today, and that is the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. Forty years ago, Congress established the Higher Education Act to ensure all students, regardless of their financial circumstances, would have the opportunity to pursue a postsecondary education. Today, after 3 years of hard work on the part of the members of the Education and Workforce Committee and its staff, on both sides of the aisle, I believe we have produced a bill that finally lives up to that legacy. The College Access and Opportunity Act does just what its name suggests. It expands access and provides new opportunities for millions of low- and middle-income students, and by opening the door to a college education, even more Americans will be able to take advantage of the strong economy that has had 30 consecutive months of robust job creation. Let us take a look at some of the most important provisions in this bill. It provides extra Pell Grant aid for high-achieving first- and second-year students; provides year-round Pell aid for students attending school throughout the year and encourages students to make progress toward completing a degree; reduces redtape for students and graduates; removes barriers for nontraditional students; empowers consumers with more transparency in college costs and accreditation; repeals duplicative and unnecessary programs; establishes an Academic Bill of Rights; and safeguards the privacy of students; promotes merit- based pay for teachers; and demands accountability in Federal college access programs. Mr. Chairman, a report released last week confirms that Republican pro-growth policies have led us to the best job market in 5 years, and this bill builds on that momentum and helps strengthen American competitiveness to ensure America's students are prepared for the strong challenges of the 21st century. Mr. Chairman, if I could, there is a member of the committee staff who last month celebrated her 25th anniversary as a member of the committee staff; and Sally Lovejoy has worked on this bill, worked on No Child Left Behind and a variety of education programs throughout her 25 years as a member of our staff. I want to say thank you on behalf of myself, as the former chairman of the committee, and all the Members on both sides of the aisle who have had the chance to work with you.

Mr. BOEHNER. I yield to the gentleman from California.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Chairman, I move that the Committee do now rise.

Mr. BOEHNER

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Chairman, I want the Members to know that after this series of votes, it is my intention to ask unanimous consent that for the next series of votes that we have the first vote at 15 minutes, followed by succeeding 2-minute votes to help speed the process today. I did not want anybody to be surprised. I do not know whether the unanimous consent will go through, but I hope that it does. Members are all on notice. Announcement by the Acting Chairman