Rubén Hinojosa

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to be present in the House chamber for certain roll call votes on Monday, November 14th through Wednesday, November 16th. Had I been present on these days, I would have voted `aye' on roll calls 575, 576, 577, 578 and `nay' on roll calls 579 and 580.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay'' on rollcall 502, ``yea'' on rollcall 503, and ``yea'' on rollcall 504.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay'' on rollcall Nos. 498, 499, 500, and 501.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to be present in the House chamber for certain roll call votes on Monday, July 11th and Tuesday, July 12th for the first vote series. Had I been present, I would have voted `aye' for roll calls 401, 402, 403, 410, 411, 412, 413, 414, and 415 and `nay' on roll calls 404, 405, 406, 407, 408, 409, and 416.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this amendment and I thank my colleague, Representative Sewell, for standing up for consumers. Time and time again, we hear about hard-working families being exploited by predatory, small-dollar, short-term lenders, such as payday lenders. While these loans are meant to help underserved individuals in need of quick cash, far too many times the borrower ends up trapped in a vicious cycle of rollovers, fees and more debt. We sell our families short when we accept that high-interest loans are the best we can do for our communities. Payday and auto title loans, with uncapped annual percentage rates, have long enticed families in moments of desperation--offering short-term fast cash at the cost of long-term debt--at rates averaging 500 percent APR. In my home state of Texas, an average $500 payday loan costs an astounding $1,100 or more to repay in a period of just a few months. Moreover, in Texas, payday and auto title lending is a $5.8 billion industry with over 70 percent of the volume from refinances and fees. In fact, four of every five payday loans are rolled over or renewed within 14 days with the majority of those costing the consumer more in fees than they borrowed, according to a CFPB study. Thankfully, the CFPB has taken the lead in proposing to rein in these predatory and harmful loans. We should be fighting to eliminate excessively high-interest rates and debt-trap cycles that define much of today's payday and auto title loan lending landscape, rather than fighting against the CFPB's efforts. Unfortunately, this financial services and general government appropriations bill enshrines the status-quo of debt-traps and mountains of fees for consumers without any protections afforded by the CFPB's proposed rule. I applaud the CFPB's rulemaking efforts in this area, and I hope it ushers in a new era of responsible lending.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to be present in the House chamber for certain roll call votes on Thursday, June 23rd. Had I been present on these days, I would have voted `nay' on roll calls 339, 340, 341 and 342.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to be present in the House chamber for certain roll call votes on Monday, June 13th and Tuesday, June 14th. Had I been present on these days, I would have voted `aye' for roll calls 297, 298, 301, and 302 and `nay' on roll calls 299, 300 and 303.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Chair, today I rise in support of H.R. 5278, the ``Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act'' (PROMESA)--a bipartisan bill providing short-term relief to respond to the humanitarian crisis facing the people of Puerto Rico. Mr. Chair, Puerto Rico's faltering economy and the well-being of its more than 3.4 million people are of great concern to may colleagues and me. The island's $70 billion debt has made it extremely difficult for the Commonwealth to provide adequate health care, education and public safety for the people of Puerto Rico. As a result, its people are struggling to access basic public services--as schools and hospitals face daily electricity and water shortages. I am deeply concerned that the island's health care systems have been adversely affected by Puerto Rico's debt crisis, making it increasingly difficult to handle a Zika outbreak or other health crises. As a senior member of the Financial Services Committee, I support giving Puerto Rico all the tools necessary to restore its access to credit markets and restructuring its outstanding debt. These critically important measures will help restore its financial footing. I do not support certain provisions in the bill, including sections undermining a minimum wage and protections for pension benefits. However, it is my hope that this bill on balance will help Puerto Rico stave off catastrophe by restoring basic services, with the hope of putting Puerto Rico back on the path toward improving the quality of life of its people. In closing, Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support H.R. 5278. This bill is not perfect, but it takes a step in the right direction.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Chair, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted: Rollcall No. 240, ``no.''

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to be present in the House Chamber for certain rollcall votes this week. Had I been present on May 24, 2016, for the first vote series, I would have voted ``aye'' for rollcall 235 and ``nay'' on rollcalls 231, 232, 233 and 234.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to be present in the House chamber for certain roll call votes this past week. Had I been present on May 17 through 19, 2016, I would have voted `aye' for roll calls 198, 203, 204, 210, 212, 213, 215, 221, 223, 226 and 228 and `nay' on roll calls 196, 197, 199, 200, 201, 202, 205, 206, 207, 208, 209, 211, 214, 216, 217, 218, 219, 220, 222, 224, 225, and 227.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, Chairman Kline and Ranking Member Scott, I regret that I could not be present for the Education and Workforce Committee's full committee markup of H.R. 5003 on May 18th, 2016 due to the death of my nephew, a beloved minister who worked tirelessly to provide services to many struggling families across the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas. As a senior member of the Education and Workforce Committee and a longtime champion of federal child nutrition programs, I believe that Congress must reauthorize federal child nutrition programs through a strong bipartisan reauthorization bill. Signed into law by President Harry S. Truman in 1946, the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act created the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) ``as a measure of national security, to safeguard the health and well-being of the Nation's children.'' Serving 7.1 million students annually in 1946, the program has grown to over 30 million students per day in 2015. For many students in congressional districts like mine, having access to nutritious meals is extremely important. Today, approximately 15 million children live in households facing food insecurity and receive a majority of their calories for the day at school. The Community Eligibility provision in current law provides free, nutritious meals to 8.5 million low-income children in 18,000 higher-poverty schools and eliminates the burdensome application requirements for districts, schools, and families. Under this provision, high-poverty school districts are able to offer universal school meals to all students without the addition of complex paperwork for families, as long as the school district demonstrates that 40 percent of their students already qualify for other federally certified free meals programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Had I been present at the full committee markup, I would have joined my House Democratic colleagues in expressing concerns and opposing H.R. 5003, the ``Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act of 2016.'' This highly partisan bill contains harmful provisions that would make it more difficult for low-income schools to feed their students. We must keep in mind that nutrition programs for children and families impact our nation's economy, national security, and classrooms. Our most vulnerable children and families deserve more from the federal government, which I have always believed has a responsibility to help those most in need. To be sure, H.R. 5003 is a misguided piece of legislation that would weaken the nutrition safety net for our nation's students and families. I am deeply concerned that this bill significantly alters the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), lacks meaningful investments for the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer program, adds barriers to the school meals verification process, and rolls back important evidenced-based criteria to school nutrition standards. By passing the Republican proposed 2016 CNR legislation, the CEP threshold would be raised to 60 percent and cause too many vulnerable students, including up to nearly 47,000 students in my district, to potentially lose access to free school meals. These districts do not have the framework, funding or capacity to deal with the considerable amount of administrative work that comes with increasing the CEP. For these reasons, I will continue to urge my colleagues to oppose H.R. 5003 in its current form and instead work to ensure that children and families have access to robust federal nutrition programs. My Democratic colleagues and I strongly believe that Congress must work to address food insecurity and hunger in America by making it easier for more needy children to access federal child nutrition programs. Our nation's most vulnerable children deserve nothing less.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about a topic very near and dear to my heart: My home of Deep South Texas. I was born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley, a region situated along the U.S.-Mexico border in the southernmost tip of Texas, which encompasses Willacy, Cameron, Hidalgo and Starr Counties. Rich in history and culture and built on enduring family bonds. The Rio Grande Valley is home to more than 1.3 million residents. For nearly twenty years, I have had the honor and privilege of representing the fifteenth congressional district of Texas, a dynamic and unique district that stretches from Guadalupe County, southeast from San Antonio all the way down to Deep South Texas along the border with Mexico. I feel extremely fortunate to call a border community my home. As the proud son of Ed-Couch, Texas, I am surprised by news reports that depict the border as violent and ``in crisis.'' Unlike the fear mongers who wish to scapegoat all our problems on immigrants, when I talk about the border, I know what I am talking about. First, our border communities are some of the safest in our nation, providing great quality of life with the low crime rates. In fact, state and federal crime data show that border cities are safer than many larger U.S. cities, with violent crime rates remaining the same or dropping in the last five years. Moreover, the idea that undocumented immigrants are more likely to commit crimes is simply false. A Texas Tribune analysis of incarceration and immigration records found there is little evidence that undocumented immigrants commit crime at higher rates than the general population and they appear to be underrepresented in Texas prisons. As a matter of fact, the U.S.-Mexico border has never been more secure in the history of the United States. In the past ten years, border security funding has tripled and we have doubled the size of the Border Patrol from about 10,000 agents to approximately 20,000 today. Second, our border is not being overrun. We are seeing record low apprehensions at our southern border. Today, a majority of those apprehensions are immigrants from Central America who fear violence in their home countries and their only hope is to seek refuge in the United States. Our great nation is made up of immigrants, many of whom landed on our shores tired, poor and in huddled-masses, yearning to be free. We should not close our borders and turn back on them now. That is not who we are. This brings to mind a quote from the first Mexican-American federal district Judge Reynaldo Garza who was appointed by President Kennedy in 1961 and sat on the bench in Brownsville, Texas in the Rio Grande Valley. When swearing in new citizens, Judge Garza used to say: ``I do not worry that people want to come to the United States, I would worry if people did not want to come because then it would mean we would no longer be the country of freedom and opportunity that we are.'' As a son of immigrants and as former chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, I am proud to represent my district along the U.S.- Mexico border with a large population of immigrants, who contribute to the vibrancy of our national economy, job growth and rich culture. Indeed, the stories of our immigrant neighbors, friends, and colleagues are very real, enriching the overall narrative of what it means to be an American. They are Americans and part of our national fabric. I invite all my fellow Americans to come down to the U.S.-Mexico border region to experience firsthand the rich culture and wonderful people who make up our border communities and my home of Deep South Texas.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to be present in the House chamber for certain rollcall votes this week. Had I been present on April 18th and 19th 2016, I would have voted ``yea'' for rollcalls 153 and 154 and ``nay'' on rollcalls 155, 156, 157, and 158.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the House amendment to S. 192, Older Americans Act Reauthorization Act of 2015, which passed by unanimous consent in the Senate. I commend my chairman, Mr. Kline, and Ranking Member Scott for their leadership and bringing this bill to the floor. Mr. Speaker, about one (1) in every seven (7) Americans or 14 percent of the population is considered an ``Older American''--aged 65 or older. As more ``baby boomers'' enter retirement, it is critical for Congress to update this law as the major vehicle for the delivery of social and nutritional programs for older persons and their caregivers--and to help seniors maintain their independence and dignity. According to a national survey of Older Americans Act participants, 91 percent indicated that the home-delivery nutrition program helped them stay in their own home. Additionally, 60 percent of participants indicated that a single home-delivered meal provided one-half or more of their total food for the day. In my Congressional District, access to these transportation services is sometimes the only way our seniors can go to the doctor's office or to the grocery store. I am pleased that this bill also provides community service employment, adult day care, respite care, transportation services, legal assistance, long-term care and a range of programs protecting the rights of vulnerable seniors from fraud and exploitation. For these reasons, Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to vote for the House amendment to S. 192. America's seniors deserve nothing less.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to be present in the House Chamber for certain rollcall votes on February 26th and the week of February 29 through March 3, 2016. Had I been present on those dates, I would have voted ``yea'' for rollcalls 100, 102, 103, 104, 105, 108, and 110 and ``nay'' on rollcalls 101, 106, 107, and 109. personal explanation

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in agreement with President Obama's decision to veto H.R. 3762. If enacted, the bill would have repealed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and defunded Planned Parenthood, limiting healthcare options for millions of americans. ACA is working. The Affordable Care Act and its health exchanges are helping previously uninsured people acquire access to high-quality, affordable health insurance plans. The ACA expands coverage to include patients with pre-existing conditions, allows young adults to stay on their parent's family plan until age 26, and provides financial subsidies towards insurance premiums. In the days leading up to the deadline for the Federal Health Insurance Marketplace's third open enrollment season, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reported over 8.9 million people had signed up for health insurance coverage. To meet demand, I facilitated several enrollment and education fairs throughout my south Texas district in collaboration with local partners in the Enroll Rio Grande Valley Coalition. Community members had the opportunity to speak to certified application counselors and sign up for insurance before the January 31st deadline. I am disappointed that my Republican colleagues want to return to a time where women paid more for medical insurance than men and where patients could be denied coverage based on their previous health history. We cannot in good conscience strip affordable medical coverage from over an estimated 22 million people that have gained peace of mind since ACA's passage in 2010. Instead of enacting destructive legislation such as H.R. 3762, we must work together and build upon the Affordable Care Act and its successes. I am confident that we can collaborate to improve the current law and continue to expand protections for our country's most vulnerable populations.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Chairman, today I rise to offer an amendment to H.R. 3700, entitled, the Housing Opportunities Through Modernization Act of 2015. I want to thank Mr. Luetkemeyer for his hard work on this bill and for the bipartisan and collaborative way in which he went about this important housing reform. I also wish to thank the ranking member, Ms. Maxine Waters of California, for her hard work and for always looking out for those most needy in our society and for working to improve this bill. My amendment would authorize a nominal user fee on lenders accessing the underwriting systems for the Section 502 Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program. This fee would not exceed $50 per loan and would enable the United States Department of Agriculture to make much- needed upgrades to their automated underwriting system in order to match industry standards. Mr. Chairman, I believe that access to safe, decent, and affordable housing can transform lives. Federal programs like the Section 502 Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program play a critical role in expanding home ownership and opportunity for our rural communities. This Federal program has helped over 2 million families build wealth through the equity in their home and encourages lenders to provide loans to those who cannot usually obtain conventional financing. Through this program, lenders are enabled and encouraged to serve borrowers they might typically reject without the guarantee, increasing borrowers' access to home ownership opportunities. We owe it to our rural communities to provide the Section 502 program with the resources it needs to modernize and to continue expanding home ownership and opportunity in our most underserved rural communities. The Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program relies on the Guaranteed Underwriting System for determining loan approvals quickly and accurately. Unfortunately, the current system is in need of substantial technological improvements in order to process risk requests more efficiently. Guaranteed Underwriting System development is necessary for sound portfolio risk management and will benefit USDA field staff, rural borrowers, and private sector lenders alike. My amendment will cover the cost of developing and maintaining the Guaranteed Underwriting System and enable the Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program to be administered in a more effective manner, despite recent staffing reductions. The nominal fee authorized by my amendment will be used to enhance and maintain the Guaranteed Underwriting System and bring it into the 21st century. It is expected that a fee ranging between $25 and $50 will generate approximately $4 million a year, starting in 2018. The fee will support important program improvements, including the delegation of underwriting to preferred lenders. The fee will also develop the underwriting system's technological capabilities to current standards, including enhanced loan and lender oversight, metrics, and programatic controls. This efficiency upgrade will allow USDA staff to allocate the necessary time and resources to the most complex underwriting decisions. Finally, Congress has long invested in making rural home ownership a reality. The Section 502 Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program receives $24 billion a year and has helped millions of families reach the dream of home ownership. Mr. Chairman, my amendment supports the USDA fiscal year 2016 budget request and is supported by prominent rural housing advocacy groups such as the National Rural Housing Coalition and the Housing Assistance Council. I urge all my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this amendment. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, during rollcall vote No. 44 on January 13, 2016, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to be present in the House chamber for certain roll call votes this week. Had I been present on January 5th and 6th, 2016, I would have voted `Present' for roll call 1 and `nay' on roll calls 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I was not present in the House chamber for the following roll call votes. Had I been present on November 16th, 17th, 19th and 30th, I would have voted ``yea'' on roll calls 627, 628, 632, 640, 642, 644 and 645 and ``nay'' on roll calls 626, 629, 630, 631, 633, 638, 639, 641 and 643.

Mr. HINOJOSA

Mr. HINOJOSA. I thank the gentleman. I gladly accept his offer, and I look forward to working together to promote financial literacy, especially with respect to auto financing. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1737.

Mr. HINOJOSA. I yield to the gentleman from New Hampshire so that he may express support for financial literacy and offer to work with us to encourage the Bureau to develop a financial literacy program aimed at auto financing.

Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 1737, the Reforming CFPB Indirect Auto Financing Guidance Act. I am proud to say that in my 19 years in Congress, I have been a champion of the consumer and have fought for their protection. As a member of the Financial Services Committee, I strongly supported the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and continue to be a strident defender and proponent of CFPB. I support this bill to correct the CFPB's guidance with respect to indirect auto lending, which would increase the cost of consumer financing. In our effort to find discrimination in the marketplace, we must be careful not to push for policy solutions that hurt the very consumers we are trying to protect. This bill does not prevent nor hinder the CFPB or any agency from enforcing fair lending laws. Rather, it provides an opportunity to reissue the guidance in a more inclusive and transparent manner. As part of our mission to protect consumers, I urge the CFPB to work closely with stakeholders to improve the guidance in this important area. I also encourage the Bureau to develop and implement a financial literacy program aimed at teaching consumers the skills necessary to make informed financial decisions regarding the purchase of an auto through the use of financing. We need to do everything we can to ensure Americans have the basic financial literacy skills to enable them to navigate our increasingly complex financial system and make good, informed decisions.