Jim Moran

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, the point I want to make is that we are not opposing privatization, we are not opposing outsourcing, and the point that the gentleman from Oklahoma was trying to make simply is not consistent at all with this amendment. We are opposed to arbitrary quotas. They are arbitrary because they apply to every single Federal agency. The Department of Defense is different from the IRS. More than 225,000 jobs in the Department of Defense are supposed to be privatized by the end of 2004. The managers at DOD said that is not going to work. But at the IRS, do we really want to apply the same arbitrary quotas? Do we really want private accounting firms reviewing income tax returns, private collection agencies enforcing income tax receipts? I do not think so. Every agency is different, and every Federal manager understands their agency. We do not want arbitrary quotas, but we certainly want the best use of the Federal taxpayers' money. It is only managers that can identify what jobs should be privatized by function. Mr. Chairman, OMB's directive is so burdensome that the result is direct conversion of jobs to the private sector against the wishes of the managers, because the managers know that the only way they are going to get a green light, which is the system that OMB is imposing, is to meet these targets. But they also know they are arbitrary. They know they are not in the best interests of the taxpayer.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Stark), a distinguished member of the Committee on Ways and Means.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. As my colleagues know, I am reluctant to offer this, but I see no other way to insist that this report be released. After all, it has been 3 years since the report was requested. In 1999, to prevent action on the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel)'s bill that would have restricted the ability of people to renounce their American citizenship and go overseas to avoid paying taxes, the chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means requested the Joint Committee on Taxation to do a study and report on that study the following year, 2000. We all know we do that a lot. If we do not want to face up to actions that many people feel necessary, we come up with a compromise. We say, ``Well, let's do a study.'' And so that study was accepted by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel) but not forgotten. He was willing to have the study done, but he feels very strongly, and I know he is going to want to speak for himself, that some action needs to be taken. The report has never been provided, presumably because its conclusions are very disturbing. The gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel) has repeatedly requested the results of this report. The Joint Committee has refused to release it. These delays apparently have been efforts to protect wealthy expatriates. We have heard some debate excusing that decision to denounce their American citizenship and to move overseas in order to avoid paying their taxes to the United States Government. The gentleman from Georgia suggested this was understandable because they have lower rates of taxation. Let me just say to the gentleman, for those people who have moved to Bermuda or to Barbados or to Antigua or to any of these islands where the taxes, granted, are much lower, I doubt that those individuals if they are ever attacked are going to turn to the Bermuda navy to protect them, or the Antigua air force, or the Jamaican marines. We pay for what we get, the strongest military in the world, and we all ought to be willing to pay for it. We all ought to be willing to pay for the costs of this government that keeps this country as prosperous and strong and free as it is. But freedom and democracy does not come cheap. And it is wrong for these people to denounce their citizenship because they are so wealthy they do not want to pay their share of funding our American military, their share of funding the education of our workforce, their share of the roads and the transportation systems that provide the infrastructure for their businesses. It is wrong. And the Committee found the specifics apparently to be very disturbing as to who has done this and how much money is being avoided. Yet the majority seems unwilling to release this information so we can act in an informed way and take appropriate legislative action on behalf of the American people, on behalf of all the other American taxpayers who are having to pay more money because these people, these cheats, are willing to go overseas, denounce their citizenship and avoid the responsibility of paying their fair share of taxes. It is not right. We need to get this information, and it is time. Three years later, it is time to get this information. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 5\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee).

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Kucinich).

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. We have a good bill here. I was pleased to work with the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Taylor) to craft a legislative branch appropriation bill that really ought to deserve strong bipartisan support. The 302(b) allocation of $3.4 billion that the subcommittee received was fine. It may sound like a high number, but it reflects approximately a 5 percent increase over last year's appropriation. It largely covers the cost-of-living adjustment for all the Members' offices, committees and legislative branch agencies. In terms of total Federal spending, it is a pretty small amount, approximately .18 percent of the fiscal year 2003 budget. In other words, if the whole budget was equal to $1, this would be \18/100\ of one penny, a small price to pay for the greatest functioning democratic body in the world. For as good or as bad as this institution may operate, on certain days it is this Nation's best check on tyranny and one-man rule. It is the best opportunity for the views and concerns of the public to be heard and addressed by the Federal Government. Mr. Chairman, the bill before us today will improve security and will ensure that this institution is better prepared to respond to any future terrorist threat. It ensures that the legislative branch agencies have the resources that they need next year to maintain their high level of professionalism and accountability. I am also pleased to see that we were able to provide for legislative branch employees more equitable treatment relative to their counterparts in the executive branch. By that, I mean a 4.1 percent annual wage adjustment for all employees in the legislative branch effective next January and funding for a full $100 monthly transit benefit for eligible employees of all agencies. Authorization and funding are also included for a student loan repayment program for the House which will resemble programs in the Senate, other legislative branch agencies and the executive branch, of course. This program will, in particular, help Members, committees and House offices to attract and to retain qualified employees. The Library of Congress, the GAO, General Accounting Office, the Congressional Budget Office, and Government Printing Office will largely receive what they requested. The Capitol Police should be able to hire and train all of the officers that they need to protect Capitol Hill. The current workforce of 1,166 officers will be increased by 288, bringing the full complement to 1,454 sworn police officers. The bill makes funds available for a 5 percent pay increase for the Capitol Police, including all civilians, and that is effective this fall. It includes a number of other provisions designed to reduce officer attrition and improve recruitment and several administrative and management reforms. Let me close by expressing my praise for how well the Congress, the staff, and the legislative branch agencies have conducted themselves since the terrorist attacks of September 11. What we once took for granted, the continuous operation of this U.S. Congress, was threatened as it never has been before, and I want to applaud the many selfless individuals and officers that worked often around the clock to keep this institution in order and running through the attacks of September 11 and then the subsequent anthrax attack. This also is an opportunity to thank the members of the D.C. National Guard who filled in last fall to help beef up our security. It is always a privilege to serve on the Subcommittee on Legislative. The dedication of thousands of legislative branch employees since September has made it even more so. I do want to thank those outstanding professionals who have worked on the legislative branch, Mark Murray, Mike Malone, Liz Dawson, Chuck Turner, Kelly Wade, Roger France, with Chairman Taylor's office, and of course Tim Aiken, who is my legislative director and does this work for me, and David Pomerantz, who always does a great job in whatever his assignment might be. All of our staff is invaluable. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 6 minutes to the very distinguished gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the ranking member of the Committee on House Administration, who is also an invaluable member of our appropriations subcommittee.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I am very pleased to yield 3 minutes to my distinguished colleague, the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies, as well as being a member of the Subcommittee on Legislative.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer), who has been the national leader on smart growth policies and is probably going to suggest some smart policies for the Congress.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Stark). (Mr. STARK asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I would like to be heard on this point of order, because section 110 would improve the administration of the Capitol Police in a couple of ways. It eliminates the last vestiges of the old bifurcated payroll system from an earlier era in which some officers were paid on the House payroll and others on the Senate payroll in placing all Capitol Police officers under a single, unified payroll. That is what we are trying to do in this bill. It also provides for vesting administrative responsibility for the funds, for personnel and for other resources of the agency in the chief of the Capitol Police. If the gentleman is successful in striking the language in this bill, you will continue the current inefficient system in which some paychecks for Capitol Police officers are paid by the House administration office while other officers are paid out of the Senate disbursing office. You will have two payrolls which does not make sense given that we have one police force that protects both the House and Senate. This is a serious administrative burden for the House, the Senate and the Capitol Police which we are trying to correct in this bill. Currently officers may be posted on the House end of the Capitol and then moved to the Senate on another shift. Yet that same officer will be paid out of one payroll office or the other. We are just trying to update, to modernize, to make more intelligent the system of compensation and the system of management so that the chief of the Capitol Police has more direct authority over his officers. That is why the language is in. This should not be controversial language. This is constructive language. I would urge the gentleman to withdraw his point of order.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Yes, I do, Mr. Chairman. We were hoping that this would not be struck. I know the gentleman listened to the debate on the rule. It can become a partisan and contentious issue which we would prefer to avoid. That is why we put this language in the committee. We do not want to be punitive. We do not even want to be particularly divisive. All we wanted to do is to say this increase, beyond the $6,377,000 that is going to the Joint Committee on Taxation, this increase of $590,000 is simply suspended until the Congress receives the report that was requested 3 years ago and from what we understand was completed 2 years ago. If this language is not struck, then there is no more debate, we conclude this bill, we get the report, the Joint Committee on Taxation gets its increase and we avoid a very contentious and perhaps embarrassing debate for some people. We are not going to be embarrassed about it because we know we are doing the right thing by simply getting the report that we are told was done. I guess I sound a little like I am suggesting that we try to save you from yourselves, those people who really want to have this debate. We are ready for the debate, but we also think we ought to say we told you so, that if we go forward in this manner, I will raise an amendment, offer my amendment, it is, of course, in order and we are going to have an extended debate and a contentious one. I would really suggest to the gentleman to avoid that divisiveness. I know he wants to see the report as much as I do. It is done. The taxpayers of America paid for it. I know they would like to know who has denounced their U.S. citizenship and gone overseas to avoid paying U.S. taxes. I know we would both like to see that. Let us withdraw the point of order. Let us go ahead, suspend the money and then the Joint Committee can get all the money that they have asked for once they give us the report that was asked for 3 years ago.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. I will yield every time the gentleman has a right to expect me to yield, so I am not yielding, I am going to respond to his points. He has the opportunity and the responsibility to deal legislatively with the millions, tens of millions, probably hundreds of millions of dollars that are not being paid in to the American Treasury because there are some people, parasites, who will take advantage of our economy and take advantage of our military while making all kinds of money off the taxpayers' investments.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, as the person that represents the Committee on Ways and Means on the Republican side very well knows, there are more than 50 provisions in this bill that required a waiver of a point of order. This provision did not get that waiver and stands out by exception. Now, he makes a point about observing the rules. The point is, from our perspective, this was an exception to the rule. Why? We had tried to work together, Republicans and Democrats; the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Taylor) and I have worked very well together. The gentleman is aware that he is the one that came in and said no, do not provide the waiver for this one issue on the study. We do not want to punish the Joint Committee on Taxation employees. What we wanted to do was provide their entire increase. We are providing the base level that is currently funding their employees at $6.3 million, but the increase, let us just suspend it so we can get the report, because for 3 years, we have not gotten the report. I do not know why the gentleman does not want that report, He has the ability to get that report. If he was interested in providing legislation to stop these people who are denouncing their citizenship to avoid taxes, he has the ability to get that legislation. It is only the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel) that has had to continue putting on the pressure to get this information. The American people want this information. They deserve to get it.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 1 minute, just to respond to the distinguished gentleman from Illinois on the Committee on Ways and Means. We want the Joint Committee on Taxation to perform its legitimate function. We wanted them to get all of the increase they asked for. What we wanted to do was simply suspend that increase until we get the report the Congress asked for. Chairman Bill Archer asked for it 3 years ago. It was due in the year 2000. We keep getting newspaper reports about what was in it, but apparently, people do not want to reveal what is in it. Now, the majority, for some reason that eludes me, wants to help the committee avoid this being revealed to the public. It is the public's money. Every single taxpayer in America is paying more money because some of the wealthiest people who are earning their money in the United States are denouncing their citizenship and going overseas to these islands so that they do not have to pay their taxes. These no tax countries do not have any military, they do not have any infrastructure, they do not educate their people, and they live there because they can afford to because they are making money in the United States off the taxes that the American taxpayer is putting in to enable them to have an economy that is the strongest in the world. What parasites. They are safe and secure because the other American taxpayers are paying for their military that protects them. They make lots of money because of the investment other American taxpayers have made in America's infrastructure. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, we had an opportunity to pass a rule in a nonpartisan fashion. This should have been a good bill that we could have all agreed on and passed within a few minutes. Unfortunately, because of the rule, we have a problem with this bill. We tried to help out. Three years ago there was a request by Chairman Bill Archer of the Committee on Ways and Means to give Congress a report on the amount of money that expatriates are sheltering overseas so they can avoid their Federal income taxes. That was 3 years ago. We have been waiting for this report, and we have not gotten it. We were not even getting a response from the committee. So what we tried to do is in the most constructive way possible just suspend the increase on the Joint Committee on Taxation; and as soon as we got the report, they would get their increase. But the rule did not make that in order. So now we are going to have an amendment that we are going to have to fight over. It is unfortunate. We do not know the specifics of what is in this report, but we certainly cannot figure out why the other side of the aisle would not want that information to be made public when the Federal taxpayer is paying for the Joint Committee's activities. That is the big issue. The Committee works for us and we work for American citizens. There was another issue that was not made in order, and again we were trying to do the right thing. We put in a provision that allowed the chief of the Capitol Police to have more direct control over his troops. It was something that people who understand the issue in terms of management felt was called for. So we put that in. It was something that the Committee on House Administration should do and they did not do. We understood that it was something that they wanted us to do. We did it, and now it is not made in order. There is a provision for student loans, to be able to pay off student loans by working for the legislative branch in the same way the executive branch provides incentive so we can acquire and retain the best personnel working for us. The Committee on House Administration has not brought it up. We put it in this bill knowing we were doing the right thing. We tried to be constructive. We tried not to be controversial. We certainly would not want to demagogue an issue like this, but here we are in a situation where we have a rule that did not make in order two very constructive provisions. That is why we have to object to the rule, unfortunately.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I just want to respond to my friend from Florida. Our problem is that we did not want to have to cut the funding for the Joint Committee on Taxation. We just wanted to suspend the money until we get the report. That is the issue. We really do not want to be punitive and cut the funding. You only gave us the option of cutting the funding. That is our problem with the decision of the Committee on Rules.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, think about where we stand in the world today with our concentration of wealth and power. It is comparable almost to the great Greek and Roman civilizations. But what do we remember about those civilizations? It is their art, their striving for their greatest aspirations of the human spirit. We want to leave that to our future generations. Sure, the private sector could do it. But let me tell you about Denyce Graves, one of the greatest opera singers we have today. She grew up in Washington, D.C., a few blocks away from the Kennedy Center. But if she could, if we allowed it, she would be on the floor today telling us the Kennedy Center might as well have been a world away because she could never have gotten to the Kennedy Center if she had not gotten an NEH grant to be able to perform. It was that grant that was invested in the District of Columbia that gave her the opportunity to show what she was capable of. There are thousands, maybe millions, of people all over the country that have benefited from this ability to leverage money in arts throughout America, in our smallest communities and our largest communities. This is something we will be proud of for generations to come. Let us better fund the arts. Vote for the Slaughter-Dicks amendment.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the distinguished gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) for yielding me this time. Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the patriotic contributions of the local roofing companies in Northern Virginia especially who donated labor, money, and supplies, which nationally totaled about half a million dollars, to rebuild the section of the Pentagon's slate roof that was destroyed on September 11. I am proud that the push for the roofing companies to volunteer their time and effort and money originated with an idea by a roofing company in my district, Northern Virginia Roofing. Northern Virginia Roofing is a husband and wife company located in Falls Church. They approached the National Roofing Contractors Association a week after the attacks, right after the attack, and said they wanted to contribute to the recovery effort of the Pentagon. The Association then approached the Defense Department, which gladly accepted the idea of giving the Pentagon a new roof. Even though it has been more than 8 months since those tragic events of September 11, I am still constantly amazed, as I know my colleagues are, by the acts of heroism and patriotism displayed by the American people. This clear act of unselfishness by these roofing companies sends a clear message to the world that our resolve cannot be diminished. The attacks of September 11 have not weakened the United States and the American spirit. Our core values of freedom and democracy are certainly still intact. Mr. Speaker, I urge every Member of Congress to support this resolution, and I am sure they will, which not only commends the roofing companies who are working around the clock to rebuild a severely damaged Pentagon, but it is also a testament to the American spirit.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of National Service Day, a day on which we commemorate those who are committed to civic duty and helping their communities. National Service represents opportunity, responsibility and community. In 1992, when President Bill Clinton was launching his dream of national service, he said, ``We need a new spirit of community, a sense that we are all in this together, or the American Dream will continue to wither. Our Destiny is bound up with the destiny of every other American.'' Less than a year later, his dream was realized. I was pleased to support the National and Community Trust Act in 1993, which created AmeriCorps, a domestic national service program founded on the framework of Federal, State and local partnership. Since the inception of AmeriCorps, over 200,000 Americans have been able to serve their country, and more importantly, their communities. I am proud that many citizens have been able to take advantage of serving in AmeriCorps. I am also proud that many of my constituents have chosen to give back to their communities in many different ways. In the Commonwealth of Virginia, over 18,000 citizens of all ages and backgrounds are participating in over 90 national service projects, which include coordinating after-school programs, building homes and organizing neighborhood watch groups. I am pleased to say, that this year, the Corporation for National Service will provide Virginia with more than $6 million dollars to support Virginia communities through three national service initiatives: AmeriCorps, Learn and Serve America, and National Senior Service Corps. After September 11th, much has been said about ``giving back to our communities'' in a time of national crisis, and I strongly believe that Americans want to continue this trend, even when the present threat is gone. When citizens are deeply-rooted to their communities, when they have seen with their own eyes the positive impact that their service has made on their communities, and when these same communities are boosted, national service has served its very local purpose. I am proud, Mr. Speaker, to recognize National Service Day, and honor those who represent the true American ideals of opportunity, responsibility and community.