Ben McAdams

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Mr. Speaker, Utahns want and deserve quality healthcare that they can afford. Now more than ever, our families need a peace of mind that a preexisting condition or getting laid off from a job won't cost them their insurance coverage or prevent them from getting treatment for a sick family member. That is why I supported the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act today. It strengthens the Affordable Care Act for individuals, families, children, and helps Utah continue its Medicaid expansion. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the legislation would lower individual healthcare premiums by 10 percent and give an additional 4 million people coverage. It also lowers prescription drug prices, like insulin, by allowing negotiations on the price of selected drugs. Utahns should not have to ration or forgo lifesaving medication because they cannot afford their prescriptions. This bill provides much-needed relief to seniors, individuals, children, and families and will lead to overall improved health.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I am in Washington to continue to fight for Utah's business owners and our working families affected by the coronavirus. The Paycheck Protection Program was designed to help small businesses stay afloat and to keep employees on the payroll. Utah financial lenders processed more than $5.2 billion in loans to help our businesses, but we must make sure the program works for these businesses, and especially for their employees. Some Utah small businesses affected by the COVID-19 shutdown, through no fault of their own, may not be open or fully functional within 8 weeks. That is the original deadline to spend the funds for loan forgiveness. The bipartisan bill I support today extends the loan forgiveness period to include costs incurred over 24 weeks and provides additional flexibility to ensure PPP is the lifeline it was meant to be. Utah small businesses are trying do the right thing by their employees, their customers, and local communities. This legislation supports them in that effort and improves the likelihood of a stronger economic recovery.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, Utah families are suffering and worrying about how they are going to survive this crisis financially. This legislation provides additional funds for the Paycheck Protection Program to cover payroll and other essential expenses for small businesses, and it keeps paychecks coming for employees. We must make sure that this money makes it to the small businesses and hardworking families that deserve it. This bill also provides critical support to our hospitals that are saving lives and money for testing so we can move safely and responsibly to reopen the economy. This is critical economic support. I support this bipartisan legislation.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Mr. Speaker, as I continue to receive treatment in a Utah hospital for COVID-19, I am not able to vote on H.R. 748, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Had I been present and able to vote, I would have voted `aye'. This bill is certainly not perfect and raises significant concerns about fiscal responsibility and appropriate use of taxpayer dollars. Nonetheless, we have a responsibility to protect the health and economic well-being of our state and our country. This bill provides critical support for working families, our front-line health care providers, community workers, state and local governments, and Utah small businesses and their employees. Coronavirus remains a danger to our lives and our livelihoods. I am proud to have championed a key oversight provision--a Treasury Department Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery--to track and account for disbursement and spending of taxpayer dollars. I will work to ensure we fix problems as they arise and focus on doing what is best for Utahns. I believe we will get through this by giving communities, health care providers and local governments the tools they need to respond quickly and efficiently to what's happening on the ground with maximum flexibility and accountability. I believe in Utahns and I believe in Americans; everyday heroes will help us overcome and as a Representative, I must do my part to get urgently needed resources to Utahns.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the Salt Lake Chamber's 2020 ``Giant in our City'' Award winner: Utah Governor Gary R. Herbert. Governor Herbert is currently the nation's longer-serving governor. He has served as chair of both the Western Governors Association and the National Governors Association. During his time in office, he has worked to build what is one of the country's strongest economies--as of January, Utah's unemployment rate was the lowest ever recorded--at 2.3 percent. Utah also led the nation for its job creation rate in 2019. He has defined his mission by ``The Utah Way.'' ``Our state succeeds because of our people and their culture of hard work, innovation, industry, inclusivity and compassion--that is the Utah Way.'' Governor Herbert was born in Utah County, where he served as a county commissioner for 14 years. He served six years in the Utah National Guard and he started a successful real estate brokerage and development company. Governor Herbert served as the past president of the Utah Association of Realtors and the past president of the Utah Association of Counties. As governor, he has prioritized public education--in a state with large families and many children to educate. That's why his effort to build a vibrant economy has been so important, since a well-educated work force and well-paid jobs go hand-in-hand. Governor Herbert has led our state with compassion, supporting local efforts to reform and improve our homeless services and welcoming refugees to Utah. He was recognized recently by the Utah Refugee Advisory Board, which thanked him for asking the federal government to let Utah take in more refugees. He received a letter which said, in part, ``Governor Herbert, you have touched the hearts of many people in the refugee community by speaking out nationally on behalf of--and for standing with--Utah refugees.'' It was signed by 30 leaders from a variety of Utah refugee groups from countries including Somalia, Sudan, Burundi, Cameroon, Liberia and Congo. Governor Herbert's wife, First Lady Jeanette Herbert, has been an equal partner in his service. As the owner and operator of a childcare center and preschool for 23 years, Jeanette focused on an initiative known as ``Uplift Families''--with the goal of promoting good parenting skills, strengthening families and offering resources to parents throughout Utah. The Herberts are proud parents of six children and numerous grandchildren. Governor Herbert, as the 17th Governor of our state, has served us well. His legacy of ``hard work, inclusivity and compassion'' will benefit Utahns for generations to come.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, Erma Helen Rosenhan turns 105 years old today. Erma was born at home in 1915, in Salt Lake City, the seventh of nine children born to German immigrant parents. During Erma's lifetime, she has witnessed such developments as electricity, radio, television, telephones, computers, cellphones, automobiles, and airplanes. These are all things that she did without for much of her young life, and she has said that she was better off without them. Erma loves simplicity. Most of Erma's life has been dedicated to genealogy research of her German ancestors. She has researched over 450,000 family names, going back to the year 1150 AD. Erma has also lived a very simple life, living very modestly and saving her money. She once debated whether or not to extend her grocery list to include a loaf of banana bread. After a minute of thought, she said: ``Oh, what the heck. I feel reckless today.'' Because of her frugality, Erma has been able to donate tens of thousands of dollars to humanitarian needs over the many years she has been living. At 105, Erma says: ``One person can make a difference, no matter how old they are, so don't ever give up. I tell the Lord, I know I am old, but I will do what You would have me do if You will help me, and He always does.'' Erma's faith has influenced many, and she is not afraid to tell people when they ought to shape up. Erma's 105 years has been exemplary, a life full of selflessness and sacrifice. From the United States Capitol, happy 105th birthday to Erma Helen Rosenhan.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4704) to direct the Director of the National Science Foundation to support multidisciplinary research on the science of suicide, and to advance the knowledge and understanding of issues that may be associated with several aspects of suicide including intrinsic and extrinsic factors related to areas such as wellbeing, resilience, and vulnerability, as amended.

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 4704, the bill now under consideration.

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of my bipartisan legislation, H.R. 4704, the Advancing Research to Prevent Suicide Act, which directs the National Science Foundation to support fundamental, multidisciplinary research to further our understanding of suicide. In Utah and across the country, communities are facing a mental health crisis. Public health and medical professionals are tracking an alarming rise in the rate of death by suicide, a 30 percent increase from 2000 to 2016 occurring in nearly every State. Suicide is now the second leading cause of death among Americans age 15 to 24 and the first cause of death for Utahns in the same age range. Behind the statistics are heart-wrenching stories, such as the one I heard in Utah last month. A local television news anchor courageously told her family's personal story. Her 44-year-old husband, who was a physical therapist working toward a doctorate degree, died by suicide. She thought their family was doing well, but what she did not know was that her husband had struggled with depression in secret for years. A week after his death, she went through his phone and noticed a call to a national suicide hotline. The call was placed the day before he died. He didn't say anything to his wife, not that he was struggling or having a hard time. Now, she is using her platform in the newsroom to talk about her experience and break the stigma that surrounds mental illness. People need to understand, she says, that this is not something to be ashamed of and to ensure that we can get help and support to those who find themselves in crisis. In developing this legislation, I recently convened a panel of experts in Utah, including healthcare providers, advocates, and community leaders. One constituent shared with me that her school district has had three students die by suicide in this school year alone. The immense tragedy of this--young people who die far too early--has left an entire community grieving and reflecting upon how we can help those in need. This epidemic has led to much-needed action in Utah to identify and to support those at risk and those in crisis. It has also brought new attention to the need to understand suicide and to help develop interventions to support people at risk. How we understand human behavior, our social ties, and the environments in which we live connects us to understanding what puts people at risk of suicide and how we can support those in crisis, not to mention the changing issues that people face, particularly young people, from economic change and the constant presence of technology that reshape how we live, how we connect, and how we communicate. This legislation will contribute to the foundational research that we need to give our mental health professionals the tools to save lives. Madam Speaker, I am proud to have developed the Advancing Research to Prevent Suicide Act with my colleague and my friend, Congressman Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, to direct research into these questions and issues through the National Science Foundation. The National Science Foundation is a cornerstone of our Nation's scientific efforts and leadership. It supports fundamental research in many key fields related to our understanding of suicide--social behavior, cognition, development, genetics, and so much more. I extend my thanks to the teams at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and the American Psychological Association for their insight on and endorsement of this legislation. I also thank Chairwoman Johnson and her staff for her support and cosponsorship of this bill and for her leadership on our committee to address the scientific and research issues facing our Nation today. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill that will advance our national efforts to address the suicide crisis, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, we are facing a suicide epidemic in this country. This legislation will bring resources to address this epidemic and to identify solutions that help to bend the curve and help to prevent future death by suicide. Madam Speaker, I urge adoption of this important bipartisan legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 153) to promote veteran involvement in STEM education, computer science, and scientific research, and for other purposes.

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on S. 153, the bill now under consideration.

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in support of S. 153, the Supporting Veterans in STEM Careers Act. I thank Representatives Dunn and Lamb and our colleagues in the Senate, Senators Rubio and Klobuchar, for their leadership on this important bipartisan bill. The Nation's economic growth and global competitiveness are increasingly reliant on a workforce that is equipped with STEM knowledge and skills. Nearly every aspect of modern life, from transportation, agriculture, and healthcare, to energy and national defense, is built on a foundation of science and technology. To maintain our standing as the global leader in innovation, we must continue to invest in and expand our STEM workforce. While these challenges have been well defined for some time, we continue to struggle as a Nation to produce enough workers with the STEM skills and knowledge that their employers need. Business leaders have expressed concern that the STEM skills shortage will impact their ability to develop new technologies and to grow their companies. The veteran population represents an underutilized pool of talent for our Nation's STEM workforce. Often, the skills these individuals obtained during their military service are transferable directly to STEM occupations. We must do more to tap into this diverse, highly skilled, and experienced population to not only strengthen our STEM workforce but also empower veterans to pursue high-paying and rewarding STEM careers. S. 153 directs the National Science Foundation to report data on veterans in STEM studies and careers and to develop a plan to increase outreach to those veterans. The bill also creates an interagency committee that will examine how Federal programs and policies can be best leveraged to equip veterans with the skills they need to transition into STEM careers. S. 153 is a good step toward addressing our STEM skills shortage and creating opportunities for those who have served our country. Once again, I thank my colleagues in the House and the Senate for their leadership on this very important issue. I also thank Chair Takano from the Committee on Veterans' Affairs for helping us to expedite consideration of this bill today on the floor. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' and to send this bill to the President's desk for signature, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Johnson).

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I have no other requests for time, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I urge adoption of this measure, S. 153. I commend my colleague for this important legislation and the impact that it will have on our veterans who have served our country and want to continue to serve and provide for themselves and serve in STEM fields. Madam Speaker, I urge adoption of this measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, this December, Utahns and visitors to my state are breathlessly waiting for the curtain to go up on the 75th anniversary of a beloved holiday tradition--Ballet West's performance of ``The Nutcracker''. This season's $3 million production restores the original choreography by Ballet West's founder Willam Christensen--or Mr. C--as he was fondly known to dancers and audience members alike. He passed away in 2001 at the age of 99. Willam Christensen was known as a champion of American ballet, who headed important companies in Portland, San Francisco and Salt Lake City. He was born in 1902, in Brigham City, Utah. In San Francisco, in 1944, Christensen staged the first complete American production of ``The Nutcracker.'' In 1951, Mr. C. moved with his ailing wife to Salt Lake, seeking a better climate for her health. He began teaching ballet at the University of Utah and founded what would become Ballet West in 1968. His production of ``The Nutcracker'' soon became a Utah holiday sensation. Many an aspiring young Utah male or female dancer traces the start of a career from being on stage in ``The Nutcracker'' party scene, where the story unfolds of young Clara's dream journey into the magical land of the Sugar Plum Fairy. Thousands of Utah children and their parents and grandparents have been transported from their seats in a darkened theatre to a place with waltzing snowflakes and a marvelous dancing bear. When Ballet West performed ``The Nutcracker'' at the Kennedy Center in December of 2018, the Washington Post's dance critic wrote: ``This is not only a beautifully danced and gorgeously designed production. It's also historic. The result is a fine balance of textural spectacle and elegant dancing.'' The dancers, musicians, stage crew and artistic directors of this marvelous company have provided many Utah audiences with priceless holiday memories. It is my honor to congratulate them on this 75th anniversary, together with a wish for 75 more years of successful performances.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Madam Speaker, for weeks we have heard that action on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement is eminently doable. So why haven't we gotten it done? It is time to put politics aside and to come together for the future of our countries and our people. NAFTA went into effect in 1994. It was due for modernization. By all reasonable accounts, USMCA represents progress for farms and ranchers, for autoworkers, for medical device manufacturers, and others. This is a multitrillion-dollar economic relationship between the United States and our two neighbors. It supports millions of American jobs. In Utah alone, trade with Mexico and Canada supports over 120,000 jobs, jobs that pay the rent, that provide healthcare, that send kids to college and help Utahns save for retirement. Over $418 million worth of agricultural exports are sent from Utah to our North American neighbors each year. We were elected to move forward on priorities that matter to people's everyday lives. There is nothing more fundamental for businesses, employees, and communities than to have stability on the economic front. Today, I am saying no more foot-dragging; no more vague promises about ``soon.'' It is time to deliver on what we promised. Come to an agreement. Bring USMCA to the House floor, and let's get it done.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4344, the Investor Protection and Capital Markets Fairness Act, bipartisan legislation that I introduced with my friend from Michigan, Congressman Huizenga, the ranking member of the Investor Protection, Entrepreneurship, and Capital Markets Subcommittee. I also want to recognize my friend Representative Carolyn Maloney for her work on this bill as well. Utah is frequently discussed as one of the top States for fraud and Ponzi schemes. A Deseret News article earlier this year noted that Utah ranked sixth in most number of Ponzi schemes from 2008-2018, despite being only 31st in population. In that decade alone, Utah investors lost over $1.5 billion to Ponzi schemes, or $502 per person, plus an additional $500 million in other types of fraud: $2 billion, overall, taken from hardworking Utahns; $2 billion that won't be there for retirement, that won't be there to pass along to our children and to our grandchildren. As a result of a couple of recent court cases, that problem may become much worse, leaving Utahns less protected, and leaving fraudsters empowered. Mr. Speaker, Charles Kokesh opened a firm that provided investment advice to business development companies. Over the course of roughly 14 years, Charles Kokesh misappropriated tens of millions of dollars from these companies, funding a lavish lifestyle for himself and, in the process, defrauding the investors out of millions of dollars. Mr. Kokesh was found guilty of misappropriating these investors' funds, and the district court ordered Mr. Kokesh to pay a civil penalty, as well as disgorgement, totaling roughly $35 million. The facts of this case are not in dispute, but what comes next has upset the delicate balance that keeps our markets fair and keeps our investors protected. In 2017, the Supreme Court ruled that the SEC's disgorgement authority, the ability of the SEC to seek repayment of a defendant's ill-gotten gains, that that authority is subject to a 5-year statute of limitations. The Supreme Court further hinted, in an obscure footnote, that the SEC may not be able to seek disgorgement of ill-gotten gains at all. What did this Supreme Court ruling mean for Charles Kokesh? In the end, he was only ordered to pay $5 million in disgorged profits, keeping roughly $30 million for himself: $30 million that he was able to keep that he attained through nefarious means, $30 million in profits from illegal activity, but, most importantly, $30 million that won't find its way back to the investor victims. He keeps $30 million and he loses $5 million--not a bad decade's work for a fraudster. And what did the Supreme Court decision mean for the SEC? The SEC estimates that, in the 2 years since the Kokesh decision, they have had to forgo over $1.1 billion in disgorged funds. That is over $1 billion of ill-gotten gains that bad actors can now keep that don't get returned to investors.

Mr. McADAMS. In addition to the over $1.1 billion in forgone funds, the SEC is increasingly spending time and staff resources fighting new legal challenges from bad actors claiming that the SEC shouldn't be able to seek disgorgement at all. SEC Chairman Jay Clayton, nominated for that position by President Donald Trump, has lamented the impact of the Kokesh decision on the SEC's ability to appropriately protect harmed investors and the amount of losses they aren't able to recover for these investors. As he told me at a recent hearing: ``You shouldn't reward somebody for concealing a fraud for a long time.'' In a letter to the House, he also said that the SEC's disgorgement authority is ``particularly important in circumstances where retail investors have been the victims of long-running, well-conceived frauds, including Ponzi schemes. For these victims, an action by the SEC seeking disgorgement may be the only practical means of recourse.'' And now to pivot back to that footnote in the Kokesh decision, that footnote said that the SEC may not have the authority to seek disgorgement at all--within or outside that 5-year statute of limitations. And just this past month, the Supreme Court granted cert on a challenge to that very question. So, within the next year, the Supreme Court will hear arguments and possibly decide to remove any disgorgement action from the SEC, absent further action from Congress.

Mr. McADAMS. That would be catastrophic for the ability to protect investors and to keep our capital markets fair, which is where this legislation kicks in and why I think it is so necessary. This legislation would reverse the Kokesh decision, specifically authorize disgorgement as a remedy that the SEC can seek, and give the SEC up to 14 years to seek disgorgement of ill-gotten gains. So, in essence, this legislation seeks to fix the Kokesh decision and would address the recent case the Supreme Court agreed to hear about whether the SEC has disgorgement authority at all. Chairman Clayton says: ``H.R. 4344 will ensure that sophisticated fraudsters who carry out some of the most harmful frauds, including Ponzi schemes that can defraud investors for long periods of time before being uncovered, cannot keep their victims' money.'' Further, he says: ``H.R. 4344 is an important response to real harm suffered by innocent victims.''

Mr. McADAMS. Our capital markets are the envy of the world, but they don't work to the extent that investors have faith that bad actors can't profit off wrongdoing. I urge support for H.R. 4344.

Mr. McADAMS

Mr. McADAMS. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. McADAMS. Mr. Chair, my amendment builds on the work of the underlying bill, which has strong and smart prohibitions on financing to bad actors known to the U.S. Government, such as those violating U.S. laws related to trade and economic sanctions. Specifically, my amendment ensures that the Export-Import Bank, renamed as the U.S. Export Finance Agency under the bill, prohibits any transaction to people involved in sanctionable activities related to the illegal trafficking of synthetic opioids, including any sanctions imposed pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. We know synthetic opioid trafficking is a problem, specifically coming from China, where they are the leading producer of fentanyl. We have taken bipartisan action in this Congress to put more pressure on China to stop opioid trafficking, which is fueling so many deaths and so much tragedy across our communities. Earlier this year, we passed legislation introduced by my colleague from New York (Mr. Rose), who is a cosponsor of this amendment, the Fentanyl Sanctions Act. That act would apply pressure to the Chinese Government to honor their commitment to make all fentanyl illegal and to provide the United States with more tools and resources to go after illicit traffickers in China, Mexico, and other countries. This amendment builds on that effort by ensuring those bad actors are not seeing the benefit of our export finance agency and that U.S. companies are not engaged in business with criminal enterprises abroad. Mr. Chair, this is a commonsense amendment. We should not be doing business with bad actors, especially those that are poisoning our communities with synthetic opioids. I urge adoption of this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.