Diane Black

Mrs. BLACK

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, at this time, I am pleased to yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Lamborn).

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, may I ask how much time I have remaining?

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Meadows), who is a subcommittee chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and a cosponsor of the bill.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Rothfus).

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn), a cosponsor of the bill and one of my colleagues from my State.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Chaffetz), the chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Jody B. Hice), one of our freshmen and a cosponsor of the bill.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), who is the chairman of the Pro-Life Caucus. He is a cosponsor of this bill, and he is a defender of life.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Missouri (Mrs. Hartzler), who has been a big protector of life and has been a good colleague of mine since our election in 2010.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Flores), the cosponsor of this bill, the chair of the Republican Study Committee, and someone who has worked very hard on this legislation.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, at this time, I am pleased to yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Fleming).

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, at this time, I am pleased to yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Pittenger).

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, we are here today for two reasons: one, our constitutional duty assigned to us by the Constitution; and, two, to maintain the protections that same document ensures for all Americans. First, the Constitution mandates Congress oversee the District of Columbia. Article I, section 8, clause 17 makes clear Congresses exercises ``exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever over the District'' of Columbia. In that vein, Congress passed the Home Rule Act, which gives the District some autonomy, but Home Rule also retains the constitutional duty imposed on Congress to be the ultimate signoff for all of the District's legislation. That responsibility could not be more important than today. The D.C. Council recently passed legislation that affects the hiring practices of organizations that work to advance certain beliefs. As passed, the bill fails to acknowledge certain longstanding constitutional protections of the First Amendment for political and religious organizations. Because of this, we cannot let this legislation stand. Former D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray requested the council postpone its vote on the bill because of its legal problems. In a December 2014 letter, Mayor Gray explained D.C.'s attorney general found that the bill ``raised serious concerns under the Constitution and under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993.'' He went on to say, ``Religious organizations, religiously affiliated organizations, religiously driven for-profit entities, and political organizations may have strong First Amendment and Religious Freedom Restoration Act grounds for challenging the law's application to them.'' To remedy these problems, the Mayor requested the council include an exemption to ``protect the religious and political liberty interests that the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act are designed to secure.'' Madam Speaker, I will insert Mayor Gray's December 2, 2014, letter to the D.C. Council into the Record. While the council postponed the vote, they took none of the Mayor's advice. Once again, Mayor Gray wrote the council, again, in mid- December voicing his disapproval for the bill. In that letter, he suggested, ``If the council wishes to adopt this bill, it should clarify the D.C. Human Rights Act's existing exemption for religious and political organizations to ensure that that exemption protects the religious and political liberty interests that the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act are designed to secure.'' Mayor Gray concluded that, ``Without this language, I cannot support the legislation and believe that the council would expose the District government to costly legal challenges by moving forward.'' Again, Madam Speaker, I will insert in the Record Mayor Gray's December 17, 2014, letter to the D.C. Council. Despite these warnings, the council and Mayor Bowser ignored the former Mayor's requests, passed the bill, and sent it to Congress. If they had taken Mayor Gray's advice, we would not be here today. Madam Speaker, this law is contrary to the Federal statute, and the D.C. Council knows it. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act passed in 1993 prevents the government from creating any law, rule, or regulation that prevents an individual from freely exercising their religion. Based on this mandate, the Supreme Court recently held that certain corporations are not required to provide health insurance coverage for contraceptive methods that violate their religious beliefs. From the way it was drafted, it is unclear if the D.C. bill violates this mandate, making it unconstitutional. Both Mayor Bowser and the D.C. Council know that this is a problem. In fact, in February, Mayor Bowser admitted that the bill was ambiguous and requested the council pass temporary emergency legislation clarifying that the bill doesn't require employers to provide insurance coverage for reproductive health decisions. Madam Speaker, I will insert in the Record Mayor Bowser's February 2, 2015, letter to the D.C. Council. Madam Speaker, that fix was only temporary and does not address the constitutional concerns I share with Mayor Gray. Given this ambiguity and no permanent fix, the bill is unconstitutional and cannot stand, given the recent Supreme Court decision in Hobby Lobby. Protecting the freedoms guaranteed by our First Amendment should not be a partisan issue. Mayor Gray knew this and pointed this out to the council that it has gone too far. Finally, Madam Speaker, I want to speak directly to the claims that this resolution is somehow an attack on women's health care or their rights to use contraceptives. These attacks are offensive and are patently false. As a registered nurse, I have spent my adult life bringing health care to women, children, and families. This resolution would in no way threaten anyone's access to care or freedom from discrimination based on the use of contraceptives; rather, it simply maintains the status quo in Washington, D.C., before this misguided law was passed. Women are already protected from discrimination on the basis of pregnancy status and a number of other fronts through both D.C. and Federal law, as they should be. Specific to concerns regarding how this would impact women using contraceptives, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission makes clear ``an employer could not discharge a female employee from her job because she uses contraceptives.'' Those protections would in no way be impacted if any resolution were to be signed into law. Madam Speaker, the RHNDA law is fundamentally dishonest. It purports to be a nondiscrimination act, but it directly targets the fundamental First Amendment freedoms of employers in our Nation's Capital, the very city charged with protecting those same freedoms. We must act to protect religious freedom and to offer relief from this oppressive RHNDA law. The ``District of Columbia Lots 36, 41 and 802 in Square 3942 and Parcels 01430107 and 01430110 Eminent Domain Emergency Authorization Act of 2014'' I urge the Council to approve the potential use of eminent domain to acquire Lots 36, 41 and 802 in Square 3942 and Parcels 01430107 and 01430110 (W Street Site). DC Water currently operates a site south of N Place, S.E., north of the Anacostia River and between 1st and Canal Streets, S.E. (DC Water Site). The District plans to revitalize and develop a portion of the DC Water Site and leverage other District investments, such as the South Capitol Street Bridge project and the Nationals Park, and serve to accelerate and promote economic vitality in the Capitol Riverfront neighborhood The District of Columbia and DC Water have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding for DC Water to relocate a portion of the uses from the DC Water Site to a site in Prince Georges County. In order to ensure adequate response times to water and sewer emergencies, DC Water must also maintain a site west of the Anacostia River. The W Street Site is currently occupied by a trash transfer station, and has been considered by many as blight to nearby communities.

Mrs. BLACK. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. BLACK

Mrs. BLACK. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, what a difference a year makes. Since I came to Congress in 2011, my House Republican colleagues and I worked every year to pass a responsible, timely budget that confronts our runaway spending in Washington; but meanwhile, the Senate Democrats refused to pass a budget during 4 of the last 5 years. That ends now. This year, our new American Congress worked to pass a balanced budget in both the House and the Senate and to then unify our budgets through regular order. I had the distinct privilege of serving on the budget conference committee, and I am pleased with the final product that we were able to deliver. This will mark the first balanced budget, joint budget resolution, since 2002, and we did it without raising taxes. But we didn't stop there. This budget would also erase the President's disastrous healthcare law, allowing us to start over on reforms that put patients and their doctors in charge, not Washington bureaucrats. And we used the critical reconciliation tool to help ensure an ObamaCare repeal bill that reaches the President's desk so that we can put him on record, forcing him to make a decision and defend that to the American people. What is more, this plan supports the growth of 1.2 million jobs over the next decade, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Mr. Speaker, as has been said many times before, budgets aren't just a series of numbers; they are a statement of our values. I believe the priorities found in this budget are shared by my constituents and reflect the values that we can all be proud of.

Mrs. BLACK

Mrs. BLACK. Mr. Speaker, it isn't often that Members can take to the House floor to share good news, but, this morning, I have an opportunity to do just that. Today, I rise to honor the 150th anniversary of the First Baptist Church on East Winchester Street in my hometown of Gallatin. Founded in 1865 by a former slave named Robert Belote, the First Baptist Church is a congregation steeped in history and poised to continue changing hearts and changing lives for many years to come. Its mission is to be a ``church of welcome,'' and over the years, they have certainly lived up to that goal. In the beginning, their congregation was known as Union Church because they welcomed ex-slaves from all denominations--Catholic, Baptist, Presbyterian. No matter your background or your upbringing, there was a place for all of God's children within their pews. The church has been destroyed multiple times over the years, first by heavy winds and then by fire, but they always rebuilt and reemerged stronger than before. They weathered the Reconstruction era following the Civil War, the economic uncertainty of the Great Depression, and the rise and the fall of the Jim Crow South. They are truly a statement to Christ's promise in the Gospel of Matthew when He proclaimed, ``Upon this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.'' Today the church's attendance climbed to approximately 1,000 people. I have had the opportunity to join my friends and neighbors at First Baptist Church for worship on many occasions. I have sat under the powerful teaching of their pastor and my dear friend, Reverend Derrick Jackson, and I can tell you that, 150 years later, God is still doing mighty work in the life of this special community of believers. I am thankful for how First Baptist Church has personally ministered to me and so many others in our community, and I wish them many years of continued growth and prosperity.

Mrs. BLACK

Mrs. BLACK. I want to thank my good friend and colleague for leading this effort. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the State and Local Sales Tax Deduction Fairness Act. My home State of Tennessee is proud to be one of the eight States without a State income tax. In fact, such a tax is, actually, explicitly banned in our constitution. We do, however, have a State and local sales tax, which could be as high as 9.75 percent in parts of my district. Taxpayers in other States are able to deduct their State income taxes on their Federal returns, and it only makes sense that Tennesseans should be able to do the same when it comes to their State and local sales tax. In 2012, more than 18 percent of Tennesseans did exactly that, getting an average deduction of $404; but too often, my constituents haven't been able to count on this tax credit being available to them from one year to the next. So, today, let's do something different. Let's ensure that this tax provision for families, which they rely upon, is not subject to a political tug of war here in Washington. Let's help our small businesses plan for tomorrow by giving them peace of mind that this credit will be there for them now and in the future, and let's make the State and local sales tax deduction permanent by passing this bipartisan bill. Mr. Speaker, this is, after all, a matter of fairness. I urge a ``yes'' vote on H.R. 622.

Mrs. BLACK

Mrs. BLACK. I thank my colleague, who is someone who has worked tirelessly on this issue and who is a leader on our healthcare committee. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015. This bipartisan legislation offers a permanent solution to strengthen the Medicare Program that our Nation's seniors and their doctors rely on. It would repeal the flawed SGR formula that dictates draconian cuts to Medicare reimbursements, and it would do so in a fiscally responsible way that would provide important offset savings. Since 2003, Congress has spent $170 billion on short-term fixes that has staved off these cuts without making the real reforms that are needed, and this cycle has done nothing to address the real problems of our entitlement spending. I have been a nurse for more than 40 years, as has been said, and I know that you can't put a bandaid on a problem that needs to be corrected by surgery. The problems impacted and affected by these looming cuts were my patients and my colleagues. I urge this body to end the SGR crisis once and for all. Adopt these structural reforms, and help us move forward together to strengthen Medicare for today's seniors and tomorrow's retirees.

Mrs. BLACK

Mrs. BLACK. Mr. Chairman, the best way to lift someone out of poverty is to give them an opportunity to have a job, and that is what A Balanced Budget for a Stronger America does. It does cut taxes, allowing for more job opportunities and an increase in wages for the workers. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. BLACK. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. BLACK. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. BLACK. Mr. Chairman, I yield the gentlewoman an additional 30 seconds.

Mrs. BLACK. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I want to just contrast these two budgets just a little bit. As we look at a stronger America--and our balanced budget does provide for a stronger America--we see that the Congressional Black Caucus budget is one that will increase our debt for our children and our grandchildren and increase taxes. Neither one of these is going to help our economy grow nor get people out of poverty. Our budget balances in less than 10 years. A balanced budget means a healthier economy today and greater opportunity for tomorrow, helping to raise people out of poverty. The budget also repeals the unworkable and unfair ObamaCare plan and starts over with more choice. The budget boosts our defense spending, helping to provide defense for our country and support for our men and women. The budget eliminates the double dipping of the disability insurance and the unemployment insurance and establishes a plan that will strengthen the Social Security trust fund rather than having the trust fund be depleted. The budget saves and strengthens Medicare, ending that $700 billion ObamaCare raid that was in the President's proposal. Mr. Chairman, all of these things help to get us on the path and on the course to a successful America where we can be proud to hand our children and our grandchildren a successful country whereby they can know the kinds of opportunities that we have had and live the American Dream. So I urge a ``no'' vote on this budget amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.