Markwayne Mullin

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Madam Chair, I am offering this amendment on behalf of Chairman Upton. I would like to thank him for his leadership on the energy issues. This is a noncontroversial provision that had bipartisan support when it was reported out of the full committee. I would urge my colleagues to support it. Madam Chair, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Olson) for the purpose of supporting the amendment.

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

Mr. MULLIN. Madam Chair, the EPA currently regulates the tailpipe emissions of automobiles sold in the United States. In order to incentivize the use of alternative fuels, the agency provides regulatory credits to automakers that produce alternative fuel vehicles. The EPA has provided greater incentives for manufacturers to produce electric vehicles rather than natural gas vehicles, even though natural gas is a growing and inexpensive source of fuel with a clean emission profile. If we are going to incentivize alternative fuel vehicles, we need to make sure that natural gas vehicles are on a level playing field. My amendment does exactly that, encouraging the broader adoption of natural gas vehicles. It instructs EPA to provide the same incentives for the production of natural gas vehicles that it already provides for electric vehicles. In States like mine in Oklahoma, natural gas is cheap, but filling stations for vehicles can be few and far between. Consumers are hesitant to buy natural gas vehicles because they are afraid they won't have access to filling stations. The surface transportation bill encourages the build of natural gas refueling corridors. My amendment will add to the effort by encouraging automakers to produce the vehicles that will actually consume the natural gas fuel. This is a commonsense amendment, pro competition, and a reform the auto industry needs. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MULLIN. Madam Chair, I appreciate what the gentlewoman is stating. All we are trying to do is listen to the President, too, when he says he has an all-the-above approach on energy. The gentlewoman states that electric vehicles are a clean way to drive around, but I must remind the gentlewoman that the power that they are charged by typically is produced by coal and natural gas power plants. So the argument that she is saying just simply doesn't make any sense. The EPA has already said that their emissions fits within their profile. What we are saying is let's truly have an all-the-above approach and allow natural gas to be on a natural, clean playing field. If we are going to talk about having a real conversation and not playing politics, then we shouldn't be playing winners and losers with this administration and the real fight, which is against--anti-fossil fuels altogether. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MULLIN. Madam Chair, I obviously encourage a ``yes'' vote, and I encourage my colleagues to support it. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. MULLIN. Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, November is a special time to remember that love makes a family. During National Adoption Awareness Month, people and organizations from across the Nation come together to bring awareness to a cause that has become very important to my family. Two years ago, our family grew from five to seven when we adopted our twin girls, Ivy and Lynette. These girls have been such a blessing to our family and have inspired my wife, Christie, and me to get involved with organizations that spread awareness about the importance of adoption. There are no unwanted kids, just unfound families. Although this month is dedicated to adoption awareness, we need to talk every day about the kids of all ages who need a permanent, loving home. Let's commit to creating a brighter future for our Nation by ensuring every child has a safe home and a loving family. I believe this is an effort we can all support.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that when the House adjourns today, it adjourn to meet at 9 a.m. today.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Madam Chair, I encourage my colleagues to support this amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. MULLIN. Madam Chair, I rise today to offer an amendment that is critical to the safety of our traveling public. Over 2 million trips are taken every day across failing bridges in the United States. This is unacceptable. We need to make sure repairs are made in a timely and efficient manner so human lives can be protected. We can start by removing unnecessary and overly burdensome barriers to maintenance. Barn or cliff swallows, whichever you want to call them, nest under bridges, sometimes in the thousands. Their nesting period can last from April to August, which is prime construction season. These birds are not endangered, but they are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Because of this law, the birds cannot be disturbed, and State Departments of Transportation must develop plans for dealing with the birds in every bridge maintenance, repair, rehab, or replacement project. Because these plans are so burdensome, contractors often delay their work until after the nesting period so they don't have to risk violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and face Federal prosecution. Delaying the work puts the safety of the traveling public at risk. My amendment allows the bridge work to be done, despite the presence of swallows, if the bridge has a condition rating of 3 or less until the issue is addressed by the Department of the Interior. A condition rating of 3 means that the bridge is in serious need of repair: sections can be lost, the primary structural components have been damaged, and there are cracks in the steel or concrete. My amendment also directs the Secretary of the Interior to start the process for developing a rule to allow for the bridge work under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This amendment has already been negotiated and included in the Senate's DRIVE Act. This is a commonsense amendment that puts the safety of the public first, and I urge my colleagues to support it. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Chairman, thank you for allowing us to bring this to the floor. This is one of those commonsense bills that, unfortunately, requires Congress to act. Several tribes before us have obtained legislation like this from Congress to authorize them to sell or mortgage specific lands. The lands we are talking about are lands that aren't needed anymore; it is outside of the trust. But in order for the tribes such as the Miami and other tribes that are out there to effectively manage their lands, Congress is required to act. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Chairmen Bishop and Young for advancing this legislation, and I urge support for the passage of H.R. 487.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate Chairman Burgess and the committee for allowing this bill to come to the floor. This is one of those commonsense bills that brings a regulation that was put in place nearly 40 years ago and brings it to today's technology. This bill has passed the Senate by unanimous consent and is identical to H.R. 3154 that Congressman Loebsack and I introduced and which passed the committee by voice vote. This bipartisan E-Warranty Act of 2015 gives manufacturers the option of fulfilling their warranty notice requirements by posting the information on the Web site. Our current Federal regulation, as I stated earlier, was developed nearly 40 years ago. The world has changed since then, and, like many regulations, this has become outdated. Warranty requirements ensure consumers get important information when they purchase a product, and we need to make sure the methods for delivering this information keep pace with innovation. I urge all Members to vote ``yes'' on this commonsense bill.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, men don't usually like to talk about their health, but the well-being of every man in the United States is an important topic. Mr. Speaker, this week is National Men's Health Week, a time when we have the opportunity to have a serious conversation about our health. Despite advances in medical technology and research, men continue to live an average of 5 years less than women. Even more, men are less likely than women to seek preventative care. As a co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Men's Health Caucus, I am also committed to teaching our youth the importance of eating right and getting exercise. As we celebrate this week, Mr. Speaker, I encourage all husbands, brothers, fathers, sons, uncles--and we may even need to have a talk with ourselves--to make sure that we are taking the steps to stay healthy.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Madam Chair, churches and civic groups are in danger of being forced to tear down their informational highway signs. Some of these signs have stood for decades. The current law states that religious and civic groups can no longer have signs larger than 8 square feet. That is 2 feet by 4 feet. However, ``Free Coffee'' signs in the same law are unlimited in size. My amendment would allow churches and civic organizations to keep their signs that are larger than 8 square feet. This is a reasonable amendment. It would be beneficial to the safety of the traveling public and allow our Federal Government to focus its resources on more critical infrastructure uses. We need to be focusing on repairing our roads and bridges, not tearing down church signs. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MULLIN. Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. MULLIN. I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. MULLIN. I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Bridenstine), my colleague.

Mr. MULLIN. Our churches and our civic organizations have better ways to spend their limited resources than tearing down signs. Our States would have more time on their hands to be looking at our roads and bridges if they didn't have to go out and enforce a law that our State doesn't even want. If we could simply be focusing on the important issues, like our roads and our bridges, not wasting Federal dollars and State dollars on enforcing an out-of-date law, this wouldn't even simply be an issue. I would urge my colleagues to support this commonsense amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. I thank the chairman for yielding. The Miami Tribe's current charter of incorporation is an outdated governing structure that harms business and economic development. We wrote this bill because these charters can only be removed literally by an act of Congress. The Miami Tribe has said that the outdated charter is inoperable. It imposes restrictions on business operations that are unmanageable and unnecessary. Oklahoma is known for its entrepreneurial spirit, especially among our State's tribes. It is important that Congress remove these hurdles for investors, business partners, and potential customers. As lawmakers, it is our job in Congress to foster an atmosphere that promotes economic growth across the country. I take this responsibility very seriously, and I hope that you will join me today in eliminating a needless economic burden on the Miami Tribe in my home State of Oklahoma.

Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, you know, this is a piece of legislation that unfortunately we have tried 2\1/2\ years, way too long, to try to get through this body; but it also opens an important conversation about taking a look at all of these charters. Why is it that Congress has to come together to pass commonsense legislation that should be up to the tribes themselves to make the decision? When they are hindering the businesses and the atmosphere that these tribes are able to operate under, they are not able to go out and provide jobs to not just their members but, also, to the communities which they live in and they thrive in. Miami Tribe is a large employer of the city of Miami. The city of Miami has been in a situation where they have lost two major employers, and they look to these tribes like this in the community to create not just jobs at a casino, but manufacturing jobs, jobs that help our national defense. Yet they are hindered constantly by the effect that they can't simply do the work without asking Congress' permission. They are a sovereign nation. Why is it that they would have to continue to come back on something that isn't needed, something that dates all the way back to the 1930s? Unfortunately, this is exactly where we find ourselves today. I am so glad that this is actually one of those things that is a bipartisan approach. Common sense does prevail in these Halls sometimes when we can come together and we can work at something that is noncontroversial. Even at that, we started this in the 113th Congress; and now we are in the 114th Congress, and we are still talking about it. We are 6 months into the 114th Congress, and we are trying to get a commonsense piece of legislation passed. If I remember correctly, last year, when we tried to put this through, there was only one ``no'' vote. If that is not bipartisanship, then, what is? This should have been on the President's desk already. So I join my colleagues in supporting this bill, but I also want to thank them for their patience, for the city of Miami and the tribe of Miami for their patience and the opportunity to bring this up again.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate everybody's concerns that may or may not live around the area, but the truth is, I do, and no one wants to protect the habitat more than I do. I have worked on this issue since arriving in Congress because I believe we must protect our job creators and ensure the military has the ability to prepare itself against threats at home and overseas. Matters of national defense and readiness should not be subject to the schedule of agency bureaucrats. It is inappropriate that military bases within the proximity of these two species must consider its habitat before developing new facilities or even planning training exercises. The people living in the States that contain the lesser prairie chicken and the American burying beetle know how to best conserve the species, while protecting military preparedness, jobs, and land rights; and they have already taken steps to do so. I urge you to support this amendment and delist the lesser prairie chicken and the American burying beetle and support our military readiness.

Mr. MULLIN

Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today because I believe every life is a gift. Our Nation was built on the right to life. Our Founding Fathers wrote that all men are created equal and that we are endowed by the Creator with certain undeniable rights: the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Our government was instituted to secure these rights, not take them away. Mr. Speaker, I stand with hundreds of thousands of people from across the country who have traveled to our Nation's Capital to tell lawmakers that we must protect the innocent and that we must fight for those who cannot defend themselves. I am proud of the many young people who are in Washington, D.C., this week to defend life. You are a voice for the voiceless, and you are the future. I am proud to join so many of my colleagues in this Chamber today to defend life and spread this message that every life is a gift.