Gene Green

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 570, had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the three million Americans whose jobs are directly or indirectly connected to our nation's domestic automotive industry and the importance of our trade negotiators to address longstanding concerns with Japan's closed auto market. This spring, the government of Japan announced it was going to join the United States and ten other Pacific Rim nations in negotiations in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a proposed comprehensive and high- standard free trade agreement with the aim of liberalizing nearly all goods and services within the member countries. I am a strong proponent of increasing American exports. Exports are vital to expanding our economy, providing new opportunities for our nation's industries and entrepreneurs, and growing the number of well- paying, middle class jobs that are the backbone of our nation's strength. Nevertheless, I have very strong reservations with Japan's longstanding barriers for auto exporters into its market. Japan has the third largest auto market in the world. At the same time, it ranks last among all advanced economies in terms of auto market import penetration at under six percent. The barriers Japan places on auto imports are many and longstanding, including currency manipulation, onerous certification and regulatory standards, and anti-competitive networks between Japanese automakers, dealers, and parts suppliers, better known as the kieretsu system. It is imperative that the Administration and this Congress take action to ensure that Japan will open its auto market to American-made cars and trucks before lowering our tariffs and opening our market even more to Japanese auto imports. There are several protections our negotiators should secure from our Japanese allies before finalizing this trade deal, including strong and enforceable currency disciplines aimed at preventing TPP countries from using currency to gain a competitive advantage, seeing to it that Japanese automakers fully honor internationally recognized labor standards and allow workers to organize and collectively bargain, and apply strong and effective tariff ``snapbacks'' that will come into force in the event of a trade violation. Congress should also act by passing the Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act, which I have proudly co-sponsored for the past three Congresses, and would give the Treasury Department and other federal agencies additional tools to combat currency manipulation. I fear that our domestic auto manufacturers and the hundreds of thousands of American families whose livelihoods rely on our auto industry will be gravely harmed if the Administration and Congress allow our tariffs on Japanese autos to be lowered even further without giving equal access to American-made cars and trucks. The well-respected Center for Automotive Research found last year that Japan's inclusion in TPP, combined with the on-going currency manipulation Japan has been doing, would result in the loss of 225,000 cars and trucks being made in the U.S. and the loss of nearly 100,000 American jobs. Failing to open Japan's auto market will only increase our trade deficit, which now stands at $76 billion a year, with $53 billion of the deficit comes from autos alone. Mr. Speaker, it is our duty, as the elected representatives of the American people, to make sure that trade with Japan is truly two-way and Japan will open its markets to American products as we've opened our markets to their imports.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I strongly support the Water Resources, Reform, and Development Act. WRDA is an important bill for my area. We have critical flood control projects and our Port of Houston, which is the largest port for foreign tonnage in the country, is an economic engine for the entire region. I prefer the Senate language in some ways, especially the funding for dredging at our ports. But, the bill in front of us represents the hard work of both sides of the T&I committee and I appreciate the leadership that they have shown on this issue and I look forward to supporting it. I am pleased that Chairman Shuster and Ranking Member Rahall included language in the managers amendment that my colleagues and I from the Houston area requested regarding assumption of maintenance. This language is important because we want to incentivize entities like Ports to take on some of the responsibilities for deepening and widening channels and other projects, but we have to make sure that the federal government lives up to their responsibility to assume the maintenance. I want to make sure that the language that was included is the best way to accomplish this and I look forward to working with the Army Corps of Engineers, the Port of Houston, and our committee leadership to make any necessary changes and I am pleased that they are working with us toward achieving our policy intent. I support this bill and encourage my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to have it noted in the Congressional Record that I was not able to be in Washington on October 14, 2013 for votes because of events in the district. If I had been here, I would have voted as follows: On the motion to table the appeal of the ruling of the Chair, roll No. 547, I would have voted ``no.'' On the passage of H.J. Res. 80, roll No. 548, I would have voted ``no.'' On agreeing to the Grayson amendment, roll No. 549, I would have voted ``yes.''

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, 17 days ago, I came to the House floor to talk about how disappointed I was that a topic of such importance, the medical device tax repeal or delay, was being reduced to the level of political squabbling over whether we are going to continue the function of the government, but here we go again. We are here again to vote on that same policy 17 days later, but we have further delved into the realm of pettiness because the Republican leadership continues to insist that our economy's future should be tied to whether Members of Congress, Cabinet members, the President, and our staffs should have the same health care insurance that other Federal employees receive. I am surprised. Are we really going to keep the United States Government shut down and threaten the full faith and credit of our country based on whether Members of Congress, our staffs, and the President and Cabinet get the same health care that thousands of other Federal employees get? It is bordering on pettiness. It sounds so silly to be able to deal with this. I was fortunate enough. I worked 23 years at a company at which they not only subsidized my health insurance, but they paid for my family's. Governments all over the country do that. The State of Texas, where I am proud to be from, pays for health insurance for State employees. The City of Houston has a health insurance plan for their employees that they help pay for. Harris County does it. All governments do that. Frankly, I represent a lot of petrochemical refineries and plants. Exxon, Shell, the ones who are serving our area, all of them have ``subsidies,'' as the Republicans call it, for the health care for their employees; and yet, on the floor of the House, we think it is a dirty word. Our goal with the Affordable Care Act was to have everyone in the country have access to quality health care, not just because you got to work for the government or work for an Exxon or a Shell, which are great companies--everyone. So that was the goal of it. If you look at the national exchanges, if we ever get the computers fixed, we will see that. People will have the option to be able to have the same options that we have as Members of Congress or as Federal employees or that I had in the private business that I helped manage. That is what we are talking about. But to put that in a continuing resolution to open up the government and to make it that you have to vote for this or we are not going to pay the TSA, who screens us when we go into the airport--they are working, but they are worried about getting their paychecks; so is the military; so are a lot of folks. But to make that the end-all, the be- all--I can't believe our forefathers and our veterans sacrificed for our country to make sure we have this freedom--to lower it to the level of we are not going to vote for this unless we can take away the President's health care or the Cabinet officials' or the Members of Congress'. Our constituents expect us to act more responsibly. We should be ashamed of what this House of Representatives has come to over the last number of months, because we need to talk about making sure our country continues to grow. What is so sad is that, last week, some of us were briefed that every week of the government shutdown costs 0.3 percent of our gross domestic product. We want jobs, but here we are, 2 weeks and going on 3 weeks into the shutdown, and we are adding to that unemployment because of what the Federal Government is doing. Again, we should be embarrassed at what the House of Representatives is doing. Let us pass a continuing resolution. Let us pay our debts that this House of Representatives has voted for. Every appropriations bill, every dime of that $17 trillion passed this House of Representatives. Why would we not want to pay those debts? That is like my saying in Texas, Oh, I don't want to pay my house note. Well, maybe they will not come after me the first month, but under Texas law, in 90 days, you are going to get your house sold from under you if you don't pay your debts. The Federal Government at various times has not paid its debts, one by technical glitch in 1979, but the last time we didn't pay our debts was when the British army burned the Treasury. I would hope this stance we have now is not compared to the British army burning our Treasury. We need to pass a continuing resolution, deal with our budget, and make sure we don't hurt the full faith and credit of our country.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I would like to associate myself with the remarks of my colleague and classmate from South Carolina on how we will miss Chairman Young. He has been a great statesman in serving our House. But today I am here to talk about how we are 10 days into the Republican shutdown of the government services. Every week the shutdown continues cuts 0.3 percent of our gross domestic product, and the stock market has dropped 900 points in the last 2 weeks. Now they want to hold the full faith and credit of our country hostage. This is how it is hurting our Houston area economy: Over 3,100 NASA employees at Johnson Space Center in Houston have been furloughed as a result of the House majority's refusal to keep the government open; The Small Business Administration has closed its Houston office and is unable to issue grants and loans and services to small business owners; Houston's regional VA center is closed. The government shutdown has forced VA to furlough 9,000 employees, delaying processing of the VA benefits. If the shutdown continues into late October, payments for more than 3.8 million veterans will stop. We owe it to our Nation's veterans to make good on our commitments to them, and we can't do this with closed facilities.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of 102nd anniversary of National Day for the Republic of China, commonly known as Taiwan. October 10th, or Double Ten Day, as it is better known in Taiwan, commemorates the first day of the Chinese Revolution, which overthrew the Qing Dynasty and lead to the founding of the Republic of China on January 1, 1912. National Day is celebrated throughout the island of Taiwan and in many Chinese-American communities here in the U.S., including in my hometown of Houston, Texas. National Day is commonly celebrated with large parades, entertainment and folk performances, fireworks, and recognition of Sun Yat-sen, the first president and founding father of the Republic of China. It is important that this chamber and American people join the Republic of China and the Chinese-American community in celebrating this day. The Republic of China was an important ally to the United States in World War II and the Cold War and has continued to be one of our country's biggest partners in peace and prosperity in the Asia- Pacific Region. Today, Taiwan and the United States enjoy a dynamic trading relationship in both goods and services. Taiwan was the 11th largest U.S. trading partner in 2012 and is a major innovator and producer of information technology products. Taiwan is an important market for our Nation's agriculture, chemicals, and semiconductor industries. In 1996, Taiwan became the first Chinese democracy in the world when it held its first direct presidential elections and had held successful presidential elections every four years since then and acts as an important example that democracy can flourish for the Chinese people on both sides of the Taiwan Straits. America should continue its strong support for the people of Taiwan and we can do this by supporting Taiwan's entrance into international and multilateral organizations and agreements. Earlier this year, this House passed legislation supporting Taiwan's entrance into the International Civil Aviation Organization. Mr. Speaker, I encourage this chamber to continue to vote on similar legislation, voice the American people's support for a prosperous and democratic Taiwan, and congratulate Taiwan on its National Day.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to voice my opposition to H.J. Res. 84, the Head Start for Low-Income Children Act. While I appreciate the concern for the harmful effects of the shutdown on Head Start and am deeply troubled by the children cut off from Head Start services, I am unable to support this funding bill. A far better approach to undoing the damage caused by this shutdown is to pass a clean continuing resolution, CR, that funds the entire government. On the heels of devastating sequester cuts which caused more than 57,000 children to lose their Head Start slots--over 4,000 of whom live in Texas--this shutdown continues to harm even more of America's most vulnerable families. Already, thousands of children have been affected by Head Start program closures and reduced services due to a lack of federal support from this crisis and thousands more children are at risk of losing their seats in classrooms as the shutdown continues. However, this piecemeal approach to funding Head Start fails to provide America's children with the same support as a fully operational government through a clean CR. The populations served by Head Start often rely on many other vital programs that provide critical assistance to students who are most in need, such as the National School Lunch Program, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), special education programs, and Title I programs, none of which are included in this funding bill. The implication of students losing vital classroom time, nutrition, and instruction is severe and only makes the mission of improving student achievement and closing achievement gaps that much more difficult. I urge my colleagues to immediately pass a clean CR and reopen the full government so we can put an end to the current political stalemate and bring the focus back on undoing the harmful effects of the sequester.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker and Members, I want to wish a congratulations to our Republican majority and a thank you for bringing a bill to the floor that would guarantee the pay for the furloughed Federal employees. The essential employees who are already working will be paid from existing law, so now we pass it to the Senate where those furloughed employees will be able to be paid. My question of the majority Republicans is: now that we're going to pay these furloughed employees, let's bring them back to work. Why would we not bring them back to work if we're paying for them? I've heard of people being paid not to work, but I've never heard it from the Republican majority before that. I voted for it, and it passed unanimously out of the House, but let's bring those folks back to work. Let's reopen this government, and let's bring back those dedicated Federal employees so they don't have to stand down there and stop our veterans from going to the World War II Memorial. They're the folks who are working on all of the things that make our country great, so let's bring them back to work. We can do that. We are going to pay them. Let's let them come back and do their jobs.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the tens of thousands of men and women who work in one of the fastest growing manufacturing regions in America, Houston and Harris County, Texas. Today is National Manufacturing Day. In our district, which covers the Port of Houston and the Houston Ship Channel, there are over 125 chemical manufacturers, refiners and supporting facilities, employing over 33,000 people. The chemical, oil, and gas industries are the new face of manufacturing in America. Houston is the energy capital of the world and has benefited from this energy renaissance taking place in Texas and the gulf coast. Houston has been the national leader in job creation in recent years and was named America's number one exporting region by the Department of Commerce in July of this year, sending over $110 billion in manufactured exports overseas. I proudly stand with America's manufacturing sector, which is the backbone of our Nation's economy and our middle class. I look forward to this Chamber taking up legislation this Congress to provide the support and statutory clarity our manufacturers need to continue being the international leader in innovation and exports.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker and Members, here we are, Day 4 of the government shutdown, all because the Republican majority didn't get their way on a bill 3 years ago. They're so obsessed, in fact, with eliminating the Affordable Care Act that they're willing to risk the functions of the United States Government, just to prove a point. It's really amazing and, yet, so sad. And now that they've seen the polls and realize the American people don't support what they're doing, their response is to pass a few bills to only reopen a few agencies within the government. Again, amazing. We need to open the whole government. And yet, congressional Republicans don't care about the consequences of a shutdown, even though they're significant. Thousands of people are furloughed. Critical programs and services across the country have been shuttered, and all because congressional Republicans are in denial of the Affordable Care Act. It is the law of land and has been for 3 years, and has survived 42 legislative attempts to repeal it. It's time to move on. This is not a serious, responsible way to run the United States of America, and you know it. Stop playing games and pass a clean continuing resolution.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.J. Res. 72, the partisan resolution that would cut over $6 billion from our nation's veterans from what this House passed in June. There are many issues that divide our two parties. One of the issues that has always received bipartisan support is supporting our nation's heroes and their families. Unfortunately, due to the extreme views of some in the Majority, this chamber is now considering a resolution which would cut $6.2 billion from the VA and excludes funding for several VA programs which are vital to the thousands of veterans in my district, including national veterans' cemeteries, medical and prosthetic research, and grants for state veterans homes and state cemeteries. Mr. Speaker, our nation's veterans deserve better and I call on this chamber to demand a vote to fully fund the VA for the entire year. Every day that goes by without providing full appropriations for the VA is another day that our brave veterans are being harmed and denied the support and services they paid for in blood, sweat, and sacrifice.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, my concern with this rule is it allows us to debate and vote on four bills. Each of these bills picks and chooses what government program should be open, what is most important. I guess of all these four bills, the one I find the most cynical is the one that didn't pass last night under suspension, H.J. Res. 72, the partisan resolution that will cut $6 billion from our Nation's veterans from what passed the House this last June. There are many issues that divide our parties. One of the issues that has always received bipartisan support is supporting our Nation's heroes and their families. Unfortunately, due to the extreme views of some in the majority, this Chamber is now considering a resolution that will cut $6.2 billion from the VA and excludes funding for several VA programs which are vital to the thousands of veterans in my district, including national veterans cemeteries, VA construction, and grants for State veterans homes and State cemeteries. Mr. Speaker, our Nation's veterans deserve better. I call on this Chamber to demand a vote on the full VA for the entire year. Every day that goes by without full appropriations for the VA is another day that our veterans are being harmed and denied the support and services they paid for with blood, sweat, and sacrifice. Let me explain it again. This House on a very bipartisan vote in June voted for a VA appropriations bill that was $6.6 billion more than what we are considering today. So this would be a cut in what we need. In fact, even the one in June is not enough. But this makes it even worse. That is why this is the most cynical of all these bills. What we need to do is come here on the floor and pass a clean CR and get the government back to work. Don't pick and choose here, don't waste the time of the American people. Let's have a clean CR today and vote and get the government back to work today.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. I support our veterans. I voted for the one in June, like a majority of both our conferences and caucuses. You and I can't control the Senate, but we can control what is on the floor today. This bill cuts $6 billion, which you and I supported in June. That is the issue we have on the floor today. I want a clean CR and I would like to have regular order for our appropriations. We will deal with the Senate, but we need to get our act together here in the House.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I oppose this resolution. Mr. Speaker, here we are, within hours of shutting down most of the programs that this Congress has approved or funded. Do my Republican friends know how silly it sounds to threaten shutting down the government just to ensure that Members of Congress, our staff and White House staff don't receive the same health care benefits as other federal employees do? To gamble with valuable federal programs should be embarrassing. Here are just a few examples of programs that will be affected if the GOP pursues this strategy that I doubt they'd want to see happen. The GOP shutdown would mean that the Centers for Disease Control would be unable to support annual seasonal influenza program. Also, in the event of H7N9 influenza or Middle East Respiratory Syndrome related incident, preparation and response could be delayed. The GOP shutdown means we rely more on foreign energy as the issuance of permits for energy production on federal lands stop. I certainly know that my Republican colleagues wouldn't want to see that happen. Head Start centers around the country will close. During FY12, an estimated 1,600 Head Start agencies served over 950,000 children, including 71,963 children in Texas. Apparently, our children are okay to target in this political debate. Under the GOP shutdown, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will be affected and gun permits will not be processed. And very importantly, veterans' educational, compensation, and pension benefits processing would likely be delayed, as happened in the 1995-96, shutdowns. Texas has the second highest number of veterans in the country at nearly 1.7 million. To make this even more unreasonable, the Affordable Care Act, which you hate, will continue to go forward even if you shut down the United States Government since it's mandatory spending. Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to be reasonable and pass a clean CR.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, it is time we end these games and pass a clean continuing resolution. The American people and our economy deserve the certainty of knowing that our government will remain open for business. I am disappointed that a topic of such importance: the medical device tax repeal, is being reduced to the level of political squabbling over the CR. I fully support repealing this tax. I didn't support it being included in the ACA and do believe it is bad policy. But, to repeal this tax should be part of a larger effort to improve the ACA, not a half baked political stunt. This topic deserves thoughtful and careful debate. It should not be paired with delaying the individual mandate, which is a provision, upheld by the Supreme Court and critical to the success of the ACA, and used to take hostage funding for our government. I am voting no on the tax repeal, not because I oppose the policy, but because I do not support this type of political stunt when we have a job to do. We must avoid a government shutdown. Our constituents expect for us to act responsibly and rationally. Vote no on the amendment and let's move a clean CR and show the American people that we can work together. Then, we can reconvene next week and debate the merits of the device tax repeal. Instead, I fear, we will never see the Protect Medical Innovation Act, H.R. 523, again, because this is not a serious attempt at fixing a real problem. H.R. 523 has 263 cosponsors, including me. It is clearly enough to pass this chamber. Mr. Speaker, bring that bill to the floor, and I will strongly support it. Prove to the American people and to the medical device manufacturers, who drive innovation, that this is an important issue that you are committed to. Bring H.R. 523 to the floor and let's pass that as soon as we pass a clean CR.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Drug Quality and Security Act. This important bill is the result of weeks of bipartisan and bicameral negotiations. I want to thank my colleagues, Representatives Morgan Griffith and Diana DeGette, for joining me in our efforts over many months. I also want to thank Chairman Upton, Ranking Member Waxman, Chairman Pitts, Ranking Member Pallone, Chairman Emeritus Dingell, and my good friend Congressman Matheson for all their leadership through this process and their commitment to getting this final product to the floor. It was a group effort, which is how this body should function all the time. This bill is not perfect. We heard those concerns, and we have tried to address them, but the nature of compromise is not getting everything. The Energy and Commerce Committee investigated last year's outbreak and found there were breakdowns in the regulations at the State and, most concerning, at the Federal level. Large operators were able to sell products interstate in an unregulated gray area. In the case of the NECC, their sterile facilities were far from sterile. They operated without fear of penalties for far too long, and people died because of that. I'm proud to say that this bill fixes the problems that led to the fungal meningitis outbreak, and it requires the FDA to succeed where it failed in the past. Bad actors concerned more with profit than with public health ought not to be able to operate with impunity again. I hope that the FDA uses their enforcement discretion to maintain patient access to important drugs from nuclear pharmacies, certain repackaged drugs, and drugs for ``office use.'' While I acknowledge there are problems, it is most important that we act to protect the public health. Our constituents, when they seek care, will now have the confidence that a sterile compounded product really is sterile. We must make sure another fungal meningitis outbreak is never allowed to occur again. This bill succeeds in that goal, and I am proud to support it.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I oppose defunding the Affordable Care Act. This is just another attempt by the majority to thwart a law, one that was upheld by the Supreme Court, that they just don't like. They didn't vote for it. There are a lot of laws I didn't vote for, but I move on and help my constituents navigate the new system. But, two weeks from the roll out of the health insurance marketplaces, Republicans are focused on how to dismantle the law instead of how to help their constituents access the help this law provides. Defunding the law doesn't make it go away, it just means the government becomes less efficient. People will be required to buy health insurance, but the marketplaces won't be available to offer them the low-cost high quality options they need. Madam Speaker, we need to work together to improve this bill. But holding the country and the federal government hostage in a half-baked attempt to do something that hasn't worked for 41 consecutive attempts is misguided. Let's work to improve the bill and let's all go home and help our constituents understand the complexities of the health insurance marketplaces and assist them in purchasing the health insurance that will improve their lives and increase their economic security.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Alzheimer's Association and their efforts to end Alzheimer's disease. My mother-in-law battled this illness, so my wife and I can speak from experience, and tell you first-hand, the devastating stages of the disease and its effects on family and friends. This progressive, dementia disorder affects more than 4 million people nationwide and will affect as many as 14 million individuals by 2050. Currently, there is no cure for Alzheimer's but researchers and organizations like the Alzheimer's Association are working together on treatments and hopefully, one day a cure. I encourage you all to ``GO Purple'' to raise awareness and show your support to end Alzheimer's.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to oppose the Nutrition Reform and Work Opportunity Act (H.R. 3102) to cut SNAP funding by $40 billion over the next ten years. H.R. 3102 denies SNAP to millions of poor, jobless adults without children whose incomes average only about one-fifth of the poverty line--and ends benefits for entire families if a parent is not working at least 20 hours per week. States will cut off families without considering high unemployment or care for small children to receive rewards promised in the bill. The need for food assistance has increased dramatically during our nation's economic slump. Texas's rate for food insecurity is 27.6%-- more than one in four Texas children is food insecure. As of the 2011 Census, over 42,000 residents of the 29th District receive SNAP benefits. The impacts to Texas would be devastating, including 171,000 people immediately off of SNAP and the elimination of almost 500 million meals from hungry Texans. Meeting the need for food assistance is especially critical for our most vulnerable citizens--pregnant and nursing women, infants, children, and seniors for whom the consequences of hunger and poor nutrition are the most severe. It is critical that we maintain support for the charitable food system and funding for SNAP. I have been a strong supporter of SNAP in Congress to help those who are food insecure during their time of need. Our office works closely with the Houston Food Bank, the largest in the Country, and the Texas Food Bank Network to help end hunger in America.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I oppose this unnecessary piece of legislation. Thank you for the time to speak. The bill before us is unnecessary. It is burdensome and serves as a barrier for those who are qualified to receive the core they need. Health and Human Services (HHS), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the marketplaces are equipped to handle income verification. If people lie on their tax forms, that is a federal crime. This is nothing more than one more attempt to block implementation of this law. The Republicans know that as implementation moves ahead their exaggerations and their fear mongering will be exposed. This is a desperate, last ditch effort to stop millions of qualified individuals and families from being able to access care by holding back any subsidies until unreasonable requirements are met by HHS. We have controls in place. The marketplaces and the IRS are tasked with reconciling the data they receive. Americans who are eligible for subsidies should receive them and this bill prevents it from happening. The Affordable Care Act is a critical law but it's not a perfect law. However, we are spending time with 11th hour attempts at thwarting the law of the land, upheld by the Supreme Court, rather than spending time helping our constituents navigate the new health landscape. I oppose this bill and urge my colleagues to oppose the bill.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I rise today in opposition to the Scalise amendment to H.R. 367, the Regulations From the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act. While Mr. Scalise may have the best intentions in trying to prevent the Administration from regulating carbon, the amendment actually subjects any regulation that places a fee, price or levy on pollution to the Congressional approval procedure mandated under the bill. While some of my colleagues would still definitely support that, there are some unintended consequences to this approach. Take Houston, for example. Houston has two programs that put a price on nitrogen oxide and volatile organic compound emissions. These market-based programs have been successful in lowering smog levels. Houston has had to have its programs approved by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as part of the state implementation plan (SIPs) under the Clean Air Act. Under the Scalise amendment, the EPA cannot approve state programs in SIPS that would put a fee on emissions without an act of Congress. Houston's program could remain in place, but if they ever wanted to strengthen, relax or otherwise modify the program, it appears that the Scalise amendment would prevent that from happening. That would require Houston to find another way to comply with the Clean Air Act, which would likely be less flexible and more burdensome. I want to be clear that I do not support the Administration devising a carbon control program; that is the job of the Congress. That said, this Congress must get to work and pass a bill that deals with carbon with input from Members that represent diverse constituencies nationwide. Cap and Trade legislation will not pass this Congress, but I believe a solution can be found for controlling carbon emissions by using nuclear and natural gas to generate electricity. I encourage my colleagues to oppose this amendment.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 850, the Nuclear Iran Prevention Act. This legislation will significantly strengthen the impact of existing sanctions on Iran in the hopes of convincing the regime's leaders to stop their nuclear weapons program. The message to Iran must be crystal clear: stop your nuclear program or face intensifying international isolation and crippling economic pressure until your program stops. I stand with over 350 over my colleagues who have co-sponsored this legislation in strong opposition to Iran's nuclear weapons program. Allowing Iran to achieve nuclear weapons capability would start a very dangerous nuclear arms race in a region that is already unstable-- endangering our Nation's security and the security of our friends and allies in the Middle East. Iran continues to increase its stockpiles of twenty-percent enriched uranium, approaching a level where they can very quickly breakout whenever they want. They are also installing advanced centrifuges that would allow them to substantially increase their uranium enrichment at a rapid pace. This legislation will eliminate sources of foreign funding, reduce oil exports by an additional million barrels per day and apply harsh penalties to human rights violators. By passing this legislation and ensuring its enforcement, we can continue to enforce the strongest possible amount of financial pressure against Iran. The window for a peaceful resolution is quickly closing. Through tightening sanctions, pursuing the diplomatic track, and keeping all options on the table, I believe we can persuade the Iranian regime to stop their quest for nuclear weapons before it is too late. As co-chair of the Democratic Israel Working Group, I urge my colleagues to stand for peace and a nuclear-free Middle East and vote in support of this important legislation.

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas

Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Madam Chair, I rise today in opposition to H.R. 1582. This bill would prohibit the Environmental Protection Agency from finalizing any ``energy-related rule'' that is estimated to cost more than $1 billion if the Secretary of Energy determines that the rule will cause ``significant adverse effects to the economy.'' The term ``significant adverse effects to the economy'' is not defined. In addition, the term ``energy-related rule'' is broadly defined to include any rule that ``regulates any aspect of the production, supply, distribution, or use of energy or provides for such regulation by States or other governmental entities.'' Many of the rules that this bill aims to stop are rules that would directly affect my constituent companies--rules that I too have serious concerns about how they were developed. I could support a bill that would require the Department of Energy to have an official consulting role similar to the Office of Management and Budget in the drafting of EPA rules where appropriate. For example, I was very frustrated to hear that DOE's concerns about grid reliability were not heeded by EPA during the Utility MACT rulemaking. I am shocked though that my colleagues are okay setting a precedent where one Department has veto power over another Department or Agency's actions. What's next? Are we going to give the Department of Treasury veto power over the Securities and Exchange Commission or give the Department of Defense veto power over the Department of Homeland Security just because we have concerns about their rulemaking processes? The Environmental Protection Agency is already required to conduct two Regulatory Impact Analyses, once when the rule is proposed and another when the rule is final, and then this analysis is reviewed by the OMB for accuracy. This Congress should be able to address the core concerns we have about how these rules are developed without completely gutting an agency's statutory responsibilities and independence. I encourage my colleagues to oppose this bill. This legislation is unprecedented and duplicative.