Brett Guthrie

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.J. Res. 58. The purpose of the resolution under consideration is simple: reining in the Federal role in education and protecting State and local control promised to students, parents, and education leaders. Under the Higher Education Act, teacher preparation programs are required to provide certain information to State leaders to help determine the effectiveness of those programs. The State then submits an annual report card to the Department of Education that highlights the quality of their teacher preparation programs. Additionally, the Higher Education Act provides TEACH Grants to high-achieving students who commit to teaching math, science, reading, or a foreign language at high-needs schools. To ensure taxpayer dollars are being used responsibly, the law requires that grant recipients attend an institution that provides high-quality teacher preparation and professional development services. In 2012, the Obama administration began a rulemaking process to develop Federal criteria for State teacher preparation report cards. For the first time, and without congressional authorization, the rule that came out of that process tied eligibility for TEACH Grants to the State's teacher preparation report card. That flawed and controversial rule is the reason we are here today. We all agree that accountability is important, particularly when it comes to ensuring our students receive the high-quality education they deserve. However, it is also important that State and local leaders have the flexibility they need to make decisions that affect the schools and programs in their local communities. Teacher preparation should be addressed through reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, not unilaterally by executive fiat. That is exactly what the Obama administration did by forcing its one-size-fits- all approach to education on teacher preparation programs. The rule requires States to track new teachers across three performance levels: student learning outcomes, employment outcomes, and employer surveys. In doing so, it essentially creates a Federal mandate for teacher evaluations that Congress explicitly rejected with the Every Student Succeeds Act. The regulation assumes the Federal Government knows better than local education leaders when it comes to what makes an effective teacher. And to make matters worse, it will also result in fewer teachers opting to teach students in low-income neighborhoods and schools. Teachers play an important role in helping students learn and succeed both in and out of the classroom. Unfortunately, as it did so often, the Obama administration overreached and took a flawed approach to preparing teachers to meet the needs of their students. The teacher preparation rule blatantly ignores the principles guiding recent bipartisan education reforms and will make it more difficult for State and local leaders to help ensure teachers are ready to succeed. The resolution under consideration, H.J. Res. 58, will block the implementation of this misguided policy and protect State and local control over decisions affecting their teachers and students. The Federal Government has played too large a role in education for far too long. I urge my colleagues to vote in support of this resolution and help rein in the Federal Government's role in education. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Mitchell), my friend.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Roe.)

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Tonight, millions of Americans, including myself, will tune in to the College Football Playoff National Championship between the University of Alabama and Clemson University. As with any college or professional competition, both teams will have healthcare practitioners traveling with them to the game. Unfortunately, many States do not provide legal protection for sports medicine practitioners who travel with these athletes since they are not licensed to practice medicine in the secondary State. The Sports Medicine Licensure Clarity Act, which I introduced with Mr. Richmond of Louisiana, would ensure that sports medicine professionals can provide high-quality and timely health care to athletes without having to worry about potential liability when traveling across State lines with their teams. The nature of sports medicine professionals' jobs require them to frequently travel between States so that athletes can receive proper care the moment they are injured. However, providers are at great personal and professional risk because medical liability insurance does not cover costs for lawsuits related to care provided in States in which they are not licensed. It is not a reasonable solution to require practitioners to become licensed in every State where their teams will play during a given season. This came to my attention, and I talked to a friend of mine who is an emergency room physician in Auburn, Alabama. He travels with Auburn University. At the time, a few years ago, they were playing in what was then the BCS game. So here is a friend of mine, a physician, traveling with Auburn to the Rose Bowl in California. Fortunately, it didn't happen, but what if he had to take care of Cam Newton, who was the quarterback at the time? First of all, the players want physicians that know them taking care of them, but think of the liability because he was in California when he is licensed to practice in Alabama and if something had gone wrong to as valuable an athlete as Cam Newton. It is important that we do this. It is just pure common sense. It is very bipartisan. My friend Mr. Richmond and I have worked on this together. I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting this commonsense, bipartisan bill to provide clarity for sports professionals performing their duties when caring for athletes. We passed this bill quickly last session. We are going to do it quickly again this Congress and give time for the other body to address this. I would personally like to thank my longtime legislative director, who just took another job. She worked tirelessly on this. As simple and as commonsense as this bill is, there are a lot of details when you are trying to define details about going across jurisdictions and State lines. I wish Megan Jackson well in her new endeavor. I urge my colleagues to support this measure.

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Section 7: ``All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other bills.''

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to give my sincere thanks to Megan Spindel Jackson, my Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Director, who will be moving on from my office at the end of this year. Megan has been an essential part of my office since I came to Congress, and she will be missed. Megan grew up in Hawesville, Kentucky, where her parents are still active in the community. Her mother was a public school teacher and principal in Hawesville for more than 40 years. Inspired by a call to serve her community, Megan moved to Washington, D.C. after graduating from Centre College in 2002 to serve my predecessor. She has been dedicated to the Second District of Kentucky ever since then. I first met Megan in 2008, when she moved back to Kentucky to help me with my first campaign. Even though she had never met me before, she was dedicated to the campaign from day one. When I won, she was one of the first people I hired to work in my D.C. office. Megan has been an integral part of my legislative operation since I was elected, and has selflessly worked to better the lives of countless Kentuckians. I cannot thank her enough for her years of service. Though I will miss her, I wish her, her husband Kyle, and their son Henry the best of luck as they start the next chapter of their lives.

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. I thank the chairman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, all of us have families who come to our offices, and they are advocating for research or for cures for diseases to which they have lost a parent or a child, or they have their children with them who have the diseases, and they are just hoping for a move forward. In being on the Health Subcommittee, at least weekly and sometimes daily, innovators and entrepreneurs come to my office, and they talk about a new procedure or a new product--something that is innovative, that will change the lives of these families--but they are having trouble getting them through the system and getting them approved. It hurts families, though, like a family in Elizabethtown, who has someone with a degenerative disease. This family is trying to beat the clock because they think there is some kind of help out there. I have a friend of mine from Bowling Green whose son went through a diabetes trial. The first time they said they got any sleep through the night was when their kid was in this trial. Then they called me, crying, saying they were out of the trial and that it may be another year before they get in. So, in taking our entrepreneurs and our innovators and putting together these cures, it is not just about getting these products to market--it is about changing the dynamics of these families who are suffering. Our chairman and Ms. DeGette from Colorado put together this effort to move forward, and I urge support for this bill because it will change families' lives.

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support H.R. 985, the Concrete Masonry Products Research, Education, and Promotion Act of 2015, which I was a proud coauthor with Congresswoman Kathy Castor. Because of the nature of concrete products and the difficulty of transporting them, concrete masonry businesses tend to be small, local, and deeply entwined in their communities; and virtually every congressional district is home to at least one. Often, these small businesses do not have the resources needed for research and development of safer and more durable products to use in building construction. H.R. 985 was developed with extensive constituent involvement and is before us today because of the widespread support of the industry in all corners of the country. We wouldn't be here today if it was not for their support and the bipartisan support of 247 cosponsors. Two dozen similar industries have benefited from similar programs, which allow commodity industries to pool resources for research, education, and promotion of their nonbranded products. You may be familiar with the ``Got Milk?'' and ``Pork, the Other White Meat'' campaigns, the result of commodity checkoff programs. These programs, which are enormously helpful to individual industries, require congressional approval. H.R. 985, however, is different from previous checkoff programs. The bill mandates transparency and accountability through many layers of auditing and reporting, as well as giving every producer--no matter their size--an equal vote in the referendum. We have incorporated a number of changes to further improve the bill, including an update from CBO that ensures the bill will result in absolutely no cost to taxpayers. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 985, which will have a positive impact in every congressional district.

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, again, I encourage support of the bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1877, the Mental Health First Aid Act of 2016, introduced by the gentlewoman from Kansas, Representative Lynn Jenkins, and the gentlewoman from California, Representative Doris Matsui. This legislation enjoyed broad support on the Energy and Commerce Committee, passing through a full committee markup on a voice vote. The program we are reauthorizing today is an important one. It is a grant program that helps families and individuals in the community, including pastors, first responders, emergency personnel, nurses, teachers, and others to recognize the signs of mental illness. They are also learning how to deescalate a mental health crisis situation and how to help their neighbors in need connect with resources available for mental health treatment in the community. Finally, H.R. 1877 is fully CutGo compliant. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials in the Record on the bill.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1877) to amend section 520J of the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants for mental health first aid training programs, as amended.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Kansas (Ms. Jenkins).

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3537, the Dangerous Synthetic Drug Control Act of 2016. I want to specifically acknowledge Congressman Dent from Pennsylvania and Congressman Katko from New York for their tireless leadership on this issue and the teamwork it took to get this bill through the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and to the floor today. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, the DEA, abuse and misuse of designer synthetic drugs is an ongoing threat to public health and safety. These chemical compounds are often designed in overseas laboratories to mimic the effects of illicit drugs and known controlled substances. Criminals who develop and market them in communities across our country have been able to stay one step ahead of the DEA since--while they are designed to closely resemble controlled substances--they are not currently scheduled. H.R. 3537 will add 22 such compounds to schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, immediately strengthening the DEA's ability to take swift action and get them off our streets. The compounds on this list include those that are marketed as K2, or Spice, as well as fentanyl derivatives estimated to be 100 times more powerful than morphine and linked to many overdoses and deaths. In addition to the DEA, I would like to thank the Office of National Drug Control Policy, FDA, NIH, and those in the research community who helped review and revise this list of synthetics as part of the legislative process. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, Washington, DC, September 26, 2016. Hon. Fred Upton, Chairman, Committee on Energy and Commerce, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman Upton: I write with respect to H.R. 3537, the ``Synthetic Drug Control Act of 2015,'' which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary. As a result of your having consulted with us on provisions within H.R. 3537 that fall within the Rule X jurisdiction of the Committee on the Judiciary, I agree to discharge our committee from further consideration of this bill so that it may proceed expeditiously to the House floor for consideration. The Judiciary Committee takes this action with our mutual understanding that by foregoing consideration of H.R. 3537 at this time, we do not waive any jurisdiction over subject matter contained in this or similar legislation and that our committee will be appropriately consulted and involved as this bill or similar legislation moves forward so that we may address any remaining issues in our jurisdiction. Our committee also reserves the right to seek appointment of an appropriate number of conferees to any House-Senate conference involving this or similar legislation and asks that you support any such request. I would appreciate a response to this letter confirming this understanding with respect to H.R. 3537 and would ask that a copy of our exchange of letters on this matter be included in the Congressional Record during floor consideration of H.R. 3537. Sincerely, Bob Goodlatte, Chairman.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Dent).

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I encourage the adoption of this bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials into the Record on the bill.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3537) to amend the Controlled Substances Act to clarify how controlled substance analogues are to be regulated, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material in the Record on the bill.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson).

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I just want to commend my friend from Pennsylvania who has spent so much effort on this. We had testimony in the Energy and Commerce Committee, families coming before us who were in situations that are difficult and gives them the opportunity to provide for their loved one, the original intent of the bill. This one allows the individual himself or herself to set up and provide. I think that is the right thing to do. I encourage my colleagues to vote for this bill. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 670) to amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to extend the Medicaid rules regarding supplemental needs trusts for Medicaid beneficiaries to trusts established by those beneficiaries, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I was absent from votes in the House September 12 through 13, 2016, due to prior family commitments. Had I been present, I would have voted: Roll Call Number 496: Yea; Roll Call Number 497: Yea; Roll Call Number 498: Yea; Roll Call Number 499: Yea; Roll Call Number 500: Yea; Roll Call Number 501: Aye; Roll Call Number 502: Yea; Roll Call Number 503: Yea; Roll Call Number 504: Yea.

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Chair, on rollcall No. 484, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.'' amendment no. 4 offered by ms. jackson lee

Mr. GUTHRIE

Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Brendan F. Boyle) and the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. Lawrence) be removed as cosponsors of H.R. 2446.