Tom McClintock

Mr. McCLINTOCK

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I remind the gentleman from Kentucky that every promise made to the American people in support of ObamaCare was rapidly broken. We are now, at this moment in time, watching the death throes of ObamaCare. More people are paying the State tax penalty or claiming hardship exemptions than are buying ObamaCare policies. In a third of our counties, there is no choice left at all. You get one provider. Soon, we are warned, some regions will have no providers at all. Premiums soared an average of 25 percent last year, and this year we are warned it could be 40 percent or more. Critics cite the CBO estimate that 24 million Americans will lose their coverage. It is important to understand their reasoning there. The CBO believes that people won't buy health insurance unless we force them to buy health insurance. In fact, people won't buy health insurance that is not a good value for them, and, clearly, ObamaCare isn't. We replace it with a vigorous buyer's market where plans across the country will compete to offer consumers better services at lower prices tailored to their own needs and wants. And we assure these plans are within their financial reach with $90 billion of additional support that the CBO simply ignores. The AHCA's biggest achievement is to replace coercion with choice for every American. It ends the individual mandate that forces Americans to buy products they don't want. It ends the employer mandate that has trapped many low-income workers in part-time jobs. It begins to restore consumers' freedom of choice, the best guarantee of quality and value in any market. It allows Americans to meet more of their healthcare needs with pretax dollars. It relieves the premium base of the enormous cost of preexisting conditions by moving them to a block-granted assigned risk pool. Mr. Speaker, ObamaCare is collapsing, premiums are skyrocketing, and providers are fleeing. This may well be our last off-ramp on this road to ruin.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I simply want to underscore what the chairwoman has already laid out. When my friend from Kentucky says that his constituents will lose coverage, he is basing it on two premises. He is ignoring the $90 billion of additional funds that we freed up in the Budget Committee to assure that nobody will face sticker shock as we make this transition. Second, he assumes that the only reason that people buy insurance is if we force them to buy it. The reality is many are refusing to buy ObamaCare policies even when they are faced with these crushing tax policies. The AHCA replaces this heavyhanded and failing bureaucratic nightmare. Ultimately, we are going to be judged not on polls or fairy tales, but on whether the vast majority of Americans have a better experience with this new consumer-driven market than they had with the bureaucratized, one-size-fits-all ObamaCare system. That system has already been weighed in the balance and found wanting by the American people, and I am here to stake my reputation on the prediction that they will find better policies with better services at lower costs when they are restored the freedom to be consumers in a marketplace with a supportive tax structure that assures that these policies are within the financial reach of every American family.

Mr. McCLINTOCK

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, any discussion of the American Health Care Act needs first to consider where we would be without it. ObamaCare is collapsing. More people are paying the State tax penalty or claiming hardship exemptions than are choosing to buy ObamaCare policies. In a third of the counties across America, there is only one provider to choose, and we are now seeing counties where there are no providers at all. ObamaCare premiums soared an average of 25 percent last year, and we are warned that this year will be worse. I have strongly advocated that the House address this crisis in a single, comprehensive bill that fully repeals ObamaCare and replaces it with a healthy, competitive market. Instead, we have to rely on the reconciliation process in order to bypass Democratic obstructionism in the Senate, and this only allows us to repeal parts of ObamaCare and enact only parts of a replacement. Finishing the job will require administrative actions and followup legislation in the Senate, both somewhat speculative enterprises. So we need to ask if this bill alone is enough to produce a better healthcare system for the vast majority of people. Its biggest defects are its failure to restore to consumers the failure to shop across State lines and to fully free consumers from having to purchase coverage they don't need and don't want. I am afraid in States that have insurance commissioners who refuse to approve innovative replacement plans, consumers will be stuck in a market still governed by ObamaCare mandates. This will require followup measures. Critics cite the Congressional Budget Office estimate that 24 million Americans will lose their coverage, but this conclusion is largely based on the premise that unless people are forced to buy health insurance they won't. In fact, people won't buy health insurance that is not a good value for them; and, clearly, they believe ObamaCare isn't. We envision a vigorous buyer's market where plans across the country compete to offer consumers better services at lower costs, tailored to their own needs and wants. This is the AHCA's biggest achievement: replacing coercion with choice for every American. It ends the individual mandate that forces Americans to buy products they don't want. It ends the employer mandate that has trapped many low-income workers in part-time jobs. It begins to restore consumers' freedom of choice, the best guarantee of quality and value in any market. It allows Americans to meet more of their healthcare needs with pretax dollars. It relieves the premium base of the enormous cost of preexisting conditions by moving them to a block-granted, assigned risk pool. In making this transition, though, it is important to leave no one in the lurch, and that is where we need to heed the CBO's warning. The fact that many low-income families could no longer afford basic health care is what produced ObamaCare in the first place. Now, when fully implemented, our reforms will correct the government mandates that trapped people in restricted markets that forced health care out of reach. But until then, the CBO warns that a 64-year-old, for example, earning $26,500 will see her out-of-pocket health costs balloon from $1,700 to $14,600 per year. This is neither morally defensible nor politically sustainable. The Budget Committee adopted my motion, on a bipartisan vote, to ask the House to correct this inequity by adjusting the tax credits to assure that health plans are within the financial reach of every family. I want to thank the leadership for responding to this motion by creating architecture in the bill to shift an additional $75 billion for this purpose. As our pro-growth economic reforms cause incomes to rise and our healthcare reforms bring healthcare costs down, families will be earning more and will be paying less of what they earn for their health care, and reliance on these tax credits will recede. But we need a bridge from the present to the future, and we simply can't get there without addressing the bill's initial impact on older, low-income Americans. It is also important that we assure stability in the Medicaid system as we transition to flexible, State-run programs that correct the inequities of ObamaCare that have pushed the elderly, blind, and disabled to the back of the Medicaid line. This bill does so. I wish it did everything necessary to restore an optimal health insurance market, but it moves us toward that goal. And even as a stand-alone measure, I am confident that it will ultimately create a market in most States that will produce better services, greater choices, and lower costs for the vast majority of Americans.

Mr. McCLINTOCK

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers, certainly none that could match the detailed knowledge and eloquence of the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson). I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the measure and look forward to taking Representative Larson up on his kind invitation for the great opening. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include any extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 863 was introduced by Representative John Larson of Connecticut. Originally, the National Park Service was required to acquire 10,000 square feet of space in East Armory of Coltsville. This measure would allow the National Park Service to acquire that space within any part of the Colt Armory Complex in Hartford, Connecticut. Coltsville was the home of Samuel Colt's industrial enterprise, Colt's Manufacturing Company. In Hartford, Samuel Colt developed the use of the assembly line and highly mechanized techniques. Colt's Manufacturing Company not only transformed the firearms industry, but it was a major contributor to the industrial revolution by pioneering the use of interchangeable parts and precision manufacturing. Colt's success brought him fame and wealth. He became one of the 10 wealthiest businessmen in the United States, a pillar of the Hartford community, and was given the honorary title of colonel by the Governor of Connecticut. This small modification to current law would provide the Park Service flexibility in selecting a location for park administrative offices and visitor services at the Coltsville site. A nearly identical bill passed the House last Congress by voice vote. I commend Representative Larson for his work on this legislation. I urge passage of the bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 863) to facilitate the addition of park administration at the Coltsville National Historical Park, and for other purposes.

Mr. McCLINTOCK

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include any extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 699, the Mount Hood Cooper Spur Land Exchange Clarification Act, was introduced by Congressman Greg Walden and cosponsored by Congressman Earl Blumenauer to address an ongoing land exchange issue in the State of Oregon. In 2009, the Omnibus Public Land Management Act authorized a land exchange in Government Camp, Oregon. This land exchange was supposed to be completed within 16 months of the enactment of the legislation; however, this still has not occurred more than 7 years later. The long delay, primarily due to disagreements surrounding easement terms, has frustrated local communities such as Mt. Hood Meadows and other local groups. This legislation, along with the Senate companion, comes as a result of a mediation session held by the Forest Service in September 2015 to resolve longstanding issues between the agency and the local community. Subsequently, the parties released a joint statement that they arrived at mutually satisfactory terms during the mediation session. H.R. 699 updates the details and process for the land exchange to clarify issues relating to land appraisals and the parameters of a wetland conservation easement on the Federal portion of the conveyance. This legislation also includes several technical provisions, including changes to conveyance conditions regarding wetland boundaries on the Federal land, reservation of a nonexclusive trail easement, and equalization of values of the exchange properties. This bill was amended in committee last Congress to address concerns raised by the Forest Service, including clarifying language for the easement allowed in the bill and the length of time allowed for the Forest Service to implement this legislation. It is illustrative of the state of Federal Land Management that the Forest Service has not already carried out the provisions of this bill. This bill previously passed the House in September 2016, and it is my hope that the Senate will see fit to act on the legislation during this Congress. I appreciate Congressman Walden's continuous efforts to see this issue addressed once and for all, and I hope my colleagues will join me in supporting this bill. I urge adoption of the measure. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I am now pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden), the author of this measure, whose dogged determination has brought us within reach of resolving this dispute.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 699) to amend the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 to modify provisions relating to certain land exchanges in the Mt. Hood Wilderness in the State of Oregon.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers and yet another show of bipartisan comity. Mr. Speaker, I ask for adoption of this measure. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. McCLINTOCK

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 88) to modify the boundary of the Shiloh National Military Park located in Tennessee and Mississippi, to establish Parker's Crossroads Battlefield as an affiliated area of the National Park System, and for other purposes.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn), the author of this measure.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I would join in asking for adoption of this measure. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 88, introduced by Representative Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, expands the boundaries of the Shiloh National Military Park to include 2,126 acres of battlefields in Corinth and designates the Parker's Crossroads Battlefield as an affiliated area of the National Park System. The Battle of Shiloh was one of the bloodiest battles in the history of this Nation and a turning point of which it was once said that, after Shiloh, the South never smiled again. The Battle of Parker's Crossroads was fought later that year and, though not as decisive a battle as Shiloh, was worthy of preservation in remembrance of the fallen. I would like to add something on a personal note. I would like to speak of Private James H. Ewing, of the Third Iowa Volunteer Infantry Regiment, the fifth of 10 children of James and Agnes Ewing of Marshall County, Iowa. The family had begun in Ohio and journeyed to the frontier of Iowa, following Horace Greely's advice to go west and grow with the Nation. In 1861, that Nation was torn apart by secession. James Ewing met President Lincoln's call to defend her and was 24 years old when he was killed on April 6, 1862, at Pittsburg Landing on the first day of the Battle of Shiloh. The words of his younger brother, John, written 64 years later, in 1926, expressed both the enduring anguish of that loss with equal parts of enduring pride, saying: ``Brother James gave up his life at the Battle of Shiloh . . . fighting to save our free government.'' That free government survived because of the sacrifices and suffering of these brave young men, and I am honored to speak the name of one of them in this Chamber today. Private James H. Ewing is one of 3,584 courageous Americans whose graves our Nation has cared for and honored through the generations that have followed at Shiloh. This bill assures that several more of the battlefields they struggled on will be preserved in a cohesive unit. Our family remains proud of him to this day and grateful to Congresswoman Blackburn for bringing forward this bill to assure that the sacrifices, gallantry, and idealism of those young men who struggled at Bloody Shiloh shall never be forgotten by their larger family, the American people. This bill would preserve approximately 2,126 acres of that battlefield associated with the Siege of Corinth, including the Fallen Timbers, Russell House, and Davis Bridge Battlefields. The National Park Service determined that each of these sites provides extensive opportunities for visitor use and interpretation or the potential for archeological research. An identical version of this legislation passed the House of Representatives last Congress. I commend Representative Blackburn for her work to preserve these historically significant sites, and I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this measure. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

Mr. McCLINTOCK

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 228, the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Consolidation Act, is sponsored by my colleague from Alaska, Congressman Don Young. This bipartisan legislation would make the Tribal 477 Program permanent and make improvements to its administration. The 477 Program was established by Congress in 1992 as a demonstration program. It allows tribes to combine employment, childcare, and job training funding from a variety of Federal sources and conduct consolidated, comprehensive reporting. The 477 Program embodies tribal self-determination by allowing tribes to provide opportunities tailored to the unique needs of their communities. The bill improves accounting procedures and reporting mechanisms to uphold the original intent of the program, ensures that agencies treat tribes fairly, and sets a foundation for participants' continued success. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Kevin Brady of the Ways and Means Committee and Chairwoman Virginia Foxx of the Education and the Workforce Committee for agreeing to help expedite consideration of this bill. I urge adoption of H.R. 228. I reserve the balance of my time. Committee on Ways and Means, House of Representatives, Washington, DC, February 22, 2017. Hon. Rob Bishop, Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman Bishop: I write concerning H.R. 228, the ``Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Consolidation Act of 2017,'' which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources. As a result of your having consulted with us on provisions in H.R. 228 that fall within the Rule X jurisdiction of the Committee on Ways and Means, I agree not to request a sequential referral on this bill so that it may proceed expeditiously to the House floor. The Committee on Ways and Means takes this action with our mutual understanding that by foregoing formal consideration of H.R. 228, 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. 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 your response to this letter confirming this understanding, and would request that you include a copy of this letter and your response in the Congressional Record during the floor consideration of this bill. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. Sincerely, Kevin Brady, Chairman.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 228) to amend the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Demonstration Act of 1992 to facilitate the ability of Indian tribes to integrate the employment, training, and related services from diverse Federal sources, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the legendary gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young), the sponsor of this legislation.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.