Bob Ney

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Madam Speaker, due to the recent tragedies on U.S. soil we are in the position to find ways to stop terrorist attacks. As Congress works to develop these policies it is important that we be careful to not accidentally damage legitimate American jobs. We must act in ways that do not damage our economy, the free flow of capital, or create greater uncertainty in our capital markets. I am extremely concerned over proposals that would deny legitimate investors and issuers access to the U.S. capital markets. As this body moves to go to conference with the Senate on the Sudan Peace Act (S. 180), I urge my colleagues to take a close look at the provisions of the bill that would impose such sanctions. The imposition of capital markets sanctions could have the unintended effects of redirecting business out of the United States and eroding the certainty and predictability that have been fundamental to the success of the U.S. Capital markets. Moreover, capital markets sanctions would seriously disrupt investor confidence--both domestic and foreign--in the US. Markets, thereby jeopardizing their continued vibrancy. The safety and certainty of U.S. capital markets attracted record numbers of foreign issuers and investors in the 1990s. In the competitive, global environment, however, there are few products and services for which U.S. companies are the sole suppliers. If issuers are denied access to the U.S. capital markets through unilaterally imposed sanctions, they will simply turn to other countries. Indeed, since the House of Representatives approved the Sudan Peace Act (H.R. 2052)--with a provision restricting capital market access--in June, at lease one foreign company cited the uncertain environment created by the legislation in deciding to list on the London Stock Exchange over a U.S. exchange. H.R. 2052 would have little--if any--impact on the ability of sanctioned companies to raise financing, but it would strengthen the position of foreign competitors. U.S. investors--pension funds, other institutional investors, and individuals--would see the liquidity, and the value, of substantial amounts of their holdings drop precipitately even at the suggestion that companies in which they are invested would be forced to delist from U.S. exchanges. Closing the U.S. capital markets in order to influence the behavior of foreign countries also sets a poor policy precedent that might easily provoke other countries to pursue their own foreign policy objectives through similar sanctions. The continued health of our capital markets is dependent on economic and political certainty and predictability. The historic U.S. commitment to open and fair markets has been fundamental to the U.S. financial service sector's ability to nurture and establish a substantial foreign client base. In sum, Madam Speaker, I believe it is a mistake to unilaterally try to resolve complex foreign policy issues through an untested formula that would greatly impair the U.S. capital markets. The goals of the Sudan Peace Act are laudable, however, I am deeply troubled by the capital markets sanctions that are included in the bill. As the House requests a conference on the Sudan Peace Act, I urge my colleagues to continue pursuing open and fair financial markets and reject these types of sanctions.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, as the Vice Chairman of the Capital Markets Subcommittee of the Financial Services, I wanted to join in the concern expressed by the Subcommittee Chairman Richard Baker about a proposal to expand the government guarantee provided by Ginnie Mae (the Government National Mortgage Association) into the conventional mortgage market. Last week H.R. 3206, ``The Home Ownership Expansion and Opportunities Act of 2001,'' was introduced in the House of Representatives. While I strongly support the spirit and intent of this proposal, I am deeply concerned that the unintended consequence of the bill will be to make the American Taxpayer liable for unnecessary risk in the event of an economic downturn. Over the past few years, under the leadership of Chairman Baker, the Financial Services Capital Markets Subcommittee has spent considerable time examining the potential of an ``implied'' government guarantee of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. I am concerned, because H.R. 3206, as introduced, would expand the express government backing of Ginnie Mae into the conventional home loan market. This could place American Taxpayers at a greater risk of assuming more default risk for home mortgages. Our housing finance system is the model of the world. Combining the conventional mortgage market, the government market of FHA and VA, and the jumbo market, the national homeownership rate is close to 68%. The housing sector is the bulwark of the economy and I am very willing to consider good public policy to help more Americans achieve the dream of home ownership. I worry, however, that H.R. 3206 is an unnecessary expansion of a federal government guarantee that inappropriately puts American Taxpayers at risk.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in support of increasing the FHA multifamily loan limits. Tens of thousands of working families in our country pay more than 50 percent of their income toward housing, or live in severely inadequate housing. Yet, the FHA multifamily loan program has not kept pace with construction costs. For example, in the last four years only one project with 192 units was produced in Cincinnati, despite the nearly twenty thousand working families facing critical housing needs there. Without affordable financing, developers cannot produce affordable housing stock. With the increasing need for housing far outpacing the available supply, the need for available FHA financing is critical. By increasing the loan limits by 25 percent, the first increase since 1992, we can provide a vehicle to alleviate the housing crisis facing our nation. I urge strong support for this provision.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, Whereas, in the wake of the September 11th tragedy, the students of Union Local High School completed a painting of a 150 foot American flag; and, Whereas, they have shown their loyalty and support for the United States of America by boldly showing their patriotic spirit; and Whereas, the students have been extremely generous in creating and donating to a ``September 11th Fund''; and, Whereas, the students also demonstrate devotion to their country through decorations, songs, speeches, pins, and patriotic enthusiasm; Therefore, I invite my colleagues to join with me and the citizens of Ohio in thanking the students of Union Local High School for their unmatched allegiance to the United States of America.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, Whereas, Mr. Myers was born and raised in Martins Ferry, Ohio; and, Whereas, Mr. Myers is one of six Manpower Specialists in the United States; and Whereas, his expertise has contributed to the creation of the Ohio Valley Plaza, Fox Commerce Industrial Park, Belmont Correctional Institution, Ohio Carings Company, Mayflower Vehicle Systems, Lesco, and Fox Run Hospital; and Whereas, Mr. Myers served 16 years as the Director of Development for Martins Ferry, Ohio, before being named Assistant Director of Belmont County in 1987, and then in 1990 serving as Belmont's Development Director; and Whereas, Mr. Myers currently serves as the President of Eastern Ohio Development Alliance and Ohio Mid-Eastern Government's Association; Therefore, I invite my colleagues to join with me and the citizens of Ohio in thanking and recognizing Donald R. Myers for his countless years of service to the state of Ohio.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H. Con. Res. 90, the concurrent resolution just agreed to.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, again it is my pleasure to be here today to speak on behalf of this resolution authorizing the printing of this rich history of the Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in Congress. It is also timely, as we now have eight Members of Asian and Pacific Islander descent serving in both the House and the Senate in the 107th Congress. Thirty-two Asian Pacific Americans have served in the United States Congress from 1903 to the present, including 13 Resident Commissioners from the Philippine Islands elected to the United States Congress from 1907 to 1946. Currently six serve as Members to the House of Representatives and two serve as U.S. Senators. The first Asian American elected to Congress was Dalip Singh Saund, a Democrat from California. Saund was a Punjabi Sihk who immigrated to the United States from India and fought for Asian Americans to have the right to be naturalized. This led the way for his election to the United States House of Representatives in 1954 and opened the door to other Asian Americans. Members who followed in office reflected the vibrant diversity of the Asian and Pacific Islander population in California and Hawaii. The first Senator from Hawaii, Hiram Fong, was elected in 1959. Daniel Inouye, who was also elected in 1959 was Hawaii's first Member of the House. He has the distinction of having the longest Congressional service from any Asian American, spanning until the present, as he now serves as a Senator. Two Asian Pacific Islander Members have been women, the gentlewoman from Hawaii (Mrs. Mink) and Representative Patricia Saiki, who is also from Hawaii. Overall, a grand total of 32 Asian Pacific Islanders have served with distinction. We have reason to be proud of the many achievements they have brought to Congress and their service here. This is why the printing of this history is necessary. This book, ``Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in Congress,'' memorializes, by detailed account, the invaluable legacy that Asian Pacific Americans have left in their many years as Members of Congress. There is no doubt, that as individual Members, these Asian Pacific Americans have in different and invaluable ways, made important contributions to their country. As a whole, they have made a difference to Congress as an institution, to the positive side, and to the many issues which they have advocated before our Nation. I wanted to thank in particular the sponsor of this resolution, the gentleman from Guam (Mr. Underwood) with whom I proudly serve. I would like to thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the ranking member of the Committee on House Administration and his staff; and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Serrano), who joins me here today. Additionally, I want to thank all who have supported this resolution and who have worked hard to bring it to the floor today. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 130) authorizing printing of the book entitled ``Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in Congress.''

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, we were also pleased to help the gentleman from New York (Mr. Serrano) update that picture, although we felt it was fine as it was. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, this is House Concurrent Resolution 90 authorizing the printing of a revised and updated version of the House document entitled ``Hispanic Americans in Congress,'' and it is an honor to be here today with my colleague from New York to present this resolution authorizing the printing of the impressive history of Hispanic Americans in Congress. It is also a good time as we now have a number of Hispanic Americans serving in the 107th Congress. Seventy Hispanic Members have served in the United States Congress from 1822 to the present. Currently, 21 serve as Members in the House of Representatives. There has been a long and rich history of Hispanic Americans in Congress. The first Hispanic Member, Joseph Hernandez, elected by the territory of Florida, served in 1822-1823. Between the 1850s and the end of the 19th century the Hispanic Members who served hailed from the territory of Louisiana. By the 1960s, more Hispanics were elected to office than in the previous 140 years. These numbers reflected the increase in the Hispanic population throughout the United States with the newly elected Members representing such States as Texas, California, New York, Colorado, and others. To date, Hispanics have served in Congress from 10 States in addition to Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands. The Hispanic membership in Congress promises to grow even more rapidly as the United States enters the 21st century. Since Joseph Hernandez was first elected, the membership has always reflected the diversity in the Hispanic community, which gives reason for us to be proud of the contributions Hispanic Americans have made to our country, to its history. This underscores the importance of documenting, in detail and with illustrations, the invaluable contributions that Hispanic Americans have made for many years as Members of Congress. Each has made and continues to make a tremendous contribution to their country and to the constituents whom they serve. Each has made an important difference to Congress as an institution in itself and to the many issues which they have advocated before this body and also before the Nation. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the sponsor of this resolution, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Serrano), with whom I proudly serve. Additionally, I want to thank all who supported this resolution and have worked hard to bring it to the floor today. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 90) authorizing the printing of a revised and updated version of the House document entitled ``Hispanic Americans in Congress,'' as amended.

Mr. NEY

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

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, House Concurrent Resolution 244 is to authorize the printing of a revised and updated version of the House document entitled ``Our Flag.'' Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I stand here today and speak on behalf of this resolution authorizing the reprinting of the publication ``Our Flag.'' Probably at no other time in recent history has our flag had such significance in many Americans' hearts, due to the tragic situation that occurred on September 11, and also the fact that our men and women are, as we speak, answering the call of our country. So it is very close to our hearts. But it always has been, Mr. Speaker. Traditionally, the American flag has been a symbol of liberty, and it has been carried as a message of freedom to all parts of the world. This book documents the history of our flag as a symbol of liberty from the colonial period to Pearl Harbor to present day. It documents in detail our patriotic customs. It describes the position and manner of displaying the flag, as well as how to fold and care for it. These days, our flag and its proper care have acquired a special significance. Mr. Speaker, this has been a regular publication, I would note. It has been printed over time here in the House. It just so happens that, also due to a great amount of requests of flags, we also need to again reprint ``Our Flag'' so people will have the document available. In light of the special circumstances, though, I want to thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) and his staff, the ranking minority member, and also my colleague, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Serrano), who is here on the floor today. I want to thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) and his staff who have worked hard to bring this bill to the floor, working with us in a bipartisan manner. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this resolution, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 244) authorizing the printing of a revised edition of the publication entitled ``Our Flag.''

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to introduce a bill to ensure a single uniform standard for the security, use and protection of consumer financial information. This bill will temporarily establish the standard set forth in the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act as the uniform standard for financial privacy. This provides the Congress and the Administration the necessary time to evaluate the potentially negative impacts of multiple, uncoordinated state regulatory schemes on consumers, intelligence gathering, law enforcement, and our economy. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act's provisions on the use of consumer financial information, which went into effect on July 1 of this year, establish a national standard on the use and security of such financial information. Private financial institutions have undertaken great efforts to retool and restructure their information management systems to comply with this important national standard. Across the nation, however, some state legislatures are poised to consider state legislation that would establish different standards for the use and security of consumer financial information. While the consideration is permitted under Gramm-Leach-Bliley, I am urging my colleagues to join me in imposing a temporary moratorium on state laws that would undermine the uniform national standard under Gramm-Leach-Bliley. As my colleagues know, I am a very strong advocate for the protection of private personal information. I have aggressively pursued the enactment of federal legislation, such as Title V of Gramm-Leach- Bliley, to protect consumer financial information. As we all know, the Internet, information technology systems, and the development of electronic commerce, have reshaped our society and have presented special risks for the protection of privacy of personal financial information. At the time Gramm-Leach-Bliley was orginally enacted, it was thought that the states could, over time, provide enhancements to the federal protections set forth in the Act. However, at this time, as the Congress and the Administration are investigating how to streamline intelligence gathering procedures that do not undermine the underlying protections in the law for the privacy of law-abiding citizens, the prospect of the creation of a fragmented ``patchwork quilt'' of potentially fifty different state laws represents a great threat to the security of customer financial information and to our need to establish a coordinated intelligence gathering and law enforcement effort. The Attorney General has testified that: ``We need speed in identifying and tracking down terrorists. Time is of the essence. The ability of law enforcement to trace communications into different jurisdictions without obtaining an additional court order can be the difference between life and death for American citizens.'' This is particularly true of financial information. A recent GAO Report that analyzed current risks to the Nation's infrastructure arising from cyber terrorism states that ``Information sharing and coordination among private-sector and government organizations are essential to thoroughly understanding cyber threats and quickly identifying and mitigating attacks.'' Varying laws from state to state would require financial institutions to fragment their financial records into several databases, requiring literally thousands of information technology specialists to create very complex computer and network systems to comply with each different standard of each different state. This process, by itself, would expose private financial information to increased risks of security breaches. Reduced privacy protection due to more human access through IT professionals, and more complex fragmented data management systems, risk leaving more ``backdoors'' that may be exploited by those who would seek to abuse the systems and hide illegal transactions. This ``patchworking'' process threatens to be at odds with efforts of law enforcement. Placing the burden of complying with varying state- imposed regimes at this time would severely hinder the ability of financial institutions to respond to law enforcement subpoenas to search and retrieve financial information. The resulting delay could spell failure of time-sensitive investigations involving the tracking of assets passing through criminal and terrorist networks and could require the duplication of law enforcement efforts across 50 jurisdictions with differing standards and statutes. Finally, a lack of uniformity would impair market efficiencies that rely on the free flow of information and would harm consumers. Specifically, this bill would impose a three-year moratorium on additional state laws that would affect the security, use and protection of consumer financial information, giving time for Congress, the Executive Branch, and the Judicial Branch to develop and implement appropriate measures to streamline and improve intelligence gathering procedures. During this time, the previously agreed to national standard set forth in the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which already has been implemented throughout our economy, would govern the protection of consumer financial information. The bill would also establish a Commission to study the issues raised by laws relating to use and security of consumer information and their impact on the economy, consumers and intelligence gathering procedures. Congress and the states will then be able to adequately study the benefits of a uniform financial information protection law and balance the needs of national security and the benefits of the free flow of information against the appropriate level of protection for consumers. I ask my colleagues to support this bill to ensure a national standard to preserve the uniform treatment and protection of consumer financial information during this critical time.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, Senate Concurrent Resolution 67 permits the chairman of the Senate's Committee on Rules and Administration to designate another member of the committee to serve on the Joint Committee on Printing in place of the chairman. This is a very simple measure. I want to thank my colleague, however, today, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Serrano), who has been so gracious and patient today in helping to bring proposals to the floor that are important to the operation of the House; and I want to also thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), our ranking member of the Committee on House Administration. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution and urge its adoption. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in the Senate concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 67) permitting the Chairman of the Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate to designate another member of the Committee to serve on the Joint Committee on Printing in place of the Chairman.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate joint resolution (S.J. Res. 19) providing for the reappointment of Anne d'Harnoncourt as a citizen regent of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate joint resolution (S.J. Res. 20) providing for the appointment of Roger W. Sant as a citizen regent of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of the Senate joint resolution just passed, S.J. Res. 19.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of the Senate joint resolution just passed, S.J. Res. 20.

Mr. NEY

Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of the concurrent resolution just agreed to, H. Con. Res. 130.