John Kline

Mr. KLINE

Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I am very, very pleased to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee, Dr. Roe, chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions.

Mr. KLINE

Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize one of Minnesota's true dedicated public servants: former Congressman Bill Frenzel. For twenty years, Bill represented the Third District of Minnesota in the U.S. House of Representatives with distinction. During his time in this chamber, he established himself as an expert in fiscal responsibility and trade issues setting himself apart from his colleagues as a leader on the Budget and Ways and Means Committees. His service to our country did not end after his time in the House. He was instrumental in the passage of NAFTA as a special adviser to President Clinton and worked with President George W. Bush on the Social Security Commission and Advisory Committee. As we honor his career and service, it is easy to see that Bill truly worked to represent all he served by crossing the aisle, time and again, to produce solutions for Minnesotans and all Americans. Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues today in sending prayers to Bill's wife, Ruthy; his daughters Debby, Pam, and Mitty; and the entire Frenzel family.

Mr. KLINE

Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on S. 1086.

Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 1086, the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014. Mr. Speaker, across the country countless men and women are trying to build a better life for their families. Some are working more for less in order to make ends meet; others are pursuing a degree at a local university or improving their skills at a nearby community college. Whether going to work or school, most parents face a difficult question: Who will care for my child? Is there a trusted child care provider who will keep my son or daughter safe? And if there is, can I afford it? For nearly two decades, the Child Care and Development Block Grant program has helped low-income families answer these tough questions. The program funds State efforts to provide vulnerable families access to child care. Parents receive assistance in the form of a voucher or certificate to pay the child care provider of their choice. Approximately 1.5 million children under the age of 13 are in a child care arrangement funded through the program, including over 25,000 children in my home State of Minnesota. It is a vital safety net for moms and dads trying to lift their families out of poverty. At a hearing held earlier this year, one witness told the story of a woman named Rita. Speaking of the Child Care and Development Block Grant program, Rita said: ``These Federal investments were quite a serious lifeline for me. I know where I came from, and I do not want to go back.'' Rita's experience is shared by many Americans. Yet despite the importance of the program, it has been almost 20 years since Congress reformed the law. As with any Federal program left on autopilot, problems will emerge, and this program is no different. Poor coordination across related services and a lack of information make it difficult for parents looking for the best provider to know the full range of options. Perhaps most troubling, a patchwork of State licensing, monitoring, and related safety requirements means some children aren't protected like they should be. These families deserve better, which is why I am proud to support this important legislation. The bill before us includes a number of commonsense reforms that will strengthen the program and our support of these at-risk families. For example, the legislation requires all participating child care providers to undergo, at a minimum, an annual inspection to ensure compliance with health, safety, and fire standards. The bill enhances existing training for providers and their workers; so every child is under the care of a well-trained professional. The legislation also reins in the authority of the Secretary of Health and Human Services to prevent this and future administrations from writing onerous rules that would limit access to this important service. Mr. Speaker, we have a long way to go before every American enjoys the opportunity and prosperity they and their family deserve. By supporting this bipartisan legislation, we have a chance to help these families succeed and set their children on the path to a bright future. Before closing, I would like to recognize a number of my colleagues who helped make this legislative achievement possible, including Senators Tom Harkin and Lamar Alexander, the chairman and senior Republican on the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. I would also like to thank the senior Democrat on the Education and the Workforce Committee, George Miller, and Representatives Todd Rokita and David Loebsack. Last, but certainly not least, Senators Richard Burr and Barbara Mikulski laid the foundation for the bipartisan, bicameral agreement we are discussing today, and we are all grateful for their years of dedication to this really important issue. Finally, Mr. Speaker, we would not be here today were it not for the hard work and dedication of our staff. I wish time permitted an opportunity to recognize each and every one of them. We are forever grateful for their service. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Washington (Mrs. McMorris Rodgers), the chairwoman of the Republican Conference and a member of our leadership team.

Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to thank my colleagues here on both sides of the aisle. It is not every day on this floor that we get to do that, but I thank them for their remarks and for the debate today. I want to reiterate my appreciation for the work done on the other side of the Capitol. Again, it is not something we get to talk about every day, but this is an example of a time when we saw a need. Some could argue that we are a little overdue, since it has been 20 years since this has been reauthorized, but as the ranking member, Mr. Miller, said, this is on the suspension calendar because we recognize that it needs to be done and because we have come together in a bipartisan-bicameral way to address this need. So I urge my colleagues to support S. 1086, as amended, the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. I yield the gentleman an additional 1 minute.

Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 1086) to reauthorize and improve the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Rokita), the chairman of the Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Subcommittee.

Mr. KLINE

Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 4984.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I rise today in strong support of the Empowering Students Through Enhanced Financial Counseling Act, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Chair, every family knows the cost of pursuing a higher education is out of control. It is felt intensely each and every day by countless Americans, by parents who worry how they will put their kids through college, by students who fear they will be left with a pile of debt and no job prospects, and by working men and women who hope a degree will let them reach the next rung on the economic ladder. We know that solutions to the college cost problem must ultimately come from States and institutions, but there are things Congress can do right now to keep the dream of a postsecondary education within reach. Helping students find the right institution is one way we can make a difference. Yesterday, the House passed, with strong bipartisan support, the Strengthening Transparency in Higher Education Act. The legislation will arm students with the best information available in a format that is easy to understand, information that includes key facts such as an institution's costs, completion rates, and student loan debt. Students and families currently face a tsunami of information that is the mostly confusing, conflicting, and unnecessary. The bill streamlines the information and how it is delivered, enabling students to be smart shoppers in the college marketplace. However, picking an institution is only half the challenge. Families then have to figure out how to pay for it, and far too many are unprepared to make those tough decisions. Some students choose loans and debt when other assistance in the form of grants and scholarships are readily available. And those that do opt for student loans often have no real concept of what they are getting into or what it means for their future. Clearly, current policies promoting financial literacy are coming up short. That is why I am pleased to support the Empowering Students Through Enhanced Financial Counseling Act. This bipartisan legislation includes a series of reforms that will help students and families make wise financial decisions about their postsecondary education. For example, the bill ensures borrowers--both students and parents-- receive annual counseling that reflects their personal situations and requires consent each year before receiving a Federal loan. The legislation also makes sure low-income individuals who rely on Pell grants are informed about the terms and conditions of their grant. The bill also delivers more robust counseling upon graduation, requiring that information on a borrower's loan balance and anticipated monthly payments be provided. Finally, the legislation directs the Secretary of Education to maintain a consumer-tested, online counseling tool that will help institutions put this important information into the hands of those who need it. Madam Chairman, this legislation is part of a broader effort to strengthen our Nation's higher education. Neither this bill nor the bills passed earlier this week are a silver bullet to challenges we face. However, by working together, we can begin to make a difference in the lives of students and families, and that is precisely what the House is doing. Madam Chairman, I want to thank the bipartisan authors of the legislation, Representatives Brett Guthrie, Richard Hudson, and Suzanne Bonamici. I urge my colleagues to support the bill and reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I am now pleased to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie), a key member of the committee.

Mr. KLINE. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, we have no further speakers on this side, and I am prepared to close, so I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Again, I want to thank my colleagues from the committee, the principal authors of this bill--Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Hudson, and Mr. Guthrie--for their fine work here and for the spirit of enthusiasm and bipartisanship which they have brought to this effort. I would remind all of my colleagues, as we move forward towards reauthorizing the Higher Education Act, this is absolutely not the whole thing, but it is another important step down that road. I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I rise in support of the manager's amendment. This amendment is brought forth in close cooperation with the ranking member of the committee, my friend George Miller. This amendment will improve the information provided to first-time student loan borrowers and clarify that borrowers must accept their loans annually after they have completed their counseling. The amendment will also require the Director of the Institute of Education Sciences to collect a study of the impact and effectiveness of the student loan counseling required under this act. This amendment ensures borrowers are getting the information they need prior to making their final decisions on how to pay for their college education. It also ensures policymakers have information on how well financial aid counseling is working to prevent overborrowing and what can be improved to make it even more effective. The underlying bill, which received unanimous support coming out of the committee, will deliver students and parents the tools and information they need to borrow and repay their student loans in a responsible way. This amendment improves the bill. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I thank the gentlewoman from Oregon for her support of this amendment. She is a principal author of the underlying legislation and her support of this amendment is very, very helpful. I urge all my colleagues to support this amendment and the underlying bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I claim the time in opposition to the amendment, although I do not oppose the amendment.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I want to make the point that I am supporting all of the amendments offered today, but I wanted to take this opportunity with this particular amendment to thank the gentlewoman from California, because this amendment makes sure that these students in this confusing world that we are trying to help sort out get a clear explanation that their Pell grant eligibility is limited to 12 semesters and it will not reset if they transfer. That is just an example of the kind of confusion that is out there, and it is one of the reasons that we insisted on putting counseling for Pell grant recipients, not just loan recipients, in the base bill. But her language brings absolute clarity to this issue. I thank her for that. I support this amendment and the other amendments, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment, although I do not oppose the amendment.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I think, again, this amendment is underscoring the many issues that students and their parents and families are facing as they go into this postsecondary education adventure. Some of them, really, are coming off of jobs. The last thing they are thinking about is bankruptcy or the size of their loans. Most of them don't even know what bankruptcy is--or many of them don't know. Maybe they are a lot smarter than I was at that time. This amendment makes it clear that they understand the difference between the rules under a student loan--if they don't pay it or can't pay it--and under other loans. Without this sort of explanation, they wouldn't have any idea that their loans were not dischargeable in bankruptcy except, as the gentleman says, in some unusual circumstances. Again, that is why this sort of financial counseling early and often is going to be very careful, because this isn't a simple matter of taking out--we will use a car loan as an example with a set amount, a set interest--a set amount that you pay back for a set number of years. Folks understand how that works. But in having student loans merged with all sorts of other programs--workstudy programs and Pell grants and so forth--it is no wonder that students are graduating, stepping out and--oh, by the way--they can't find jobs because the economy is in so much trouble. They had such high expectations when they stepped into their college experiences or their postsecondary experiences, and then they came out and found out that the jobs weren't available, and they have this confusing mess that they have to deal with, and the last thing that they ever gave any thought to was this whole notion of bankruptcy. I thank the gentleman for his amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Now I can't pass it up. Madam Chair, there is quite a bit of difference in the Mississippi River between the gentleman's district and Minnesota. In fact, you can step across the Mississippi River in Minnesota, and I don't think that is true--in fact, I am absolutely positive that it is not true-- anywhere else. It is always interesting when we have guests come to our great State. When we ask them if they would like to step across the river, they are disbelieving until we take them up there to Itasca. Literally, it is no wider than this desk. I wish that trying to figure out one's student loans and grants and workstudies were as easy as getting across the Mississippi River. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. KLINE. Madam Chair, I move that the Committee do now rise.