Chellie Pingree

Ms. PINGREE of Maine

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Frank).

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. I yield an additional minute to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Frank).

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. I yield 15 seconds to the gentleman.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Frank).

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sessions). All time yielded during consideration of the rule is for debate only. I yield myself such time as I may consume. General Leave

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 400 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts, the Chair of the Committee on Financial Services, Mr. Frank.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. I yield the gentleman 2 additional minutes.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. First, I once again want to thank Mr. Miller and Mr. Wamp, my colleagues, for their excellent work on this bill, and to Chairman Frank for his work as well and for being here on the floor with us today for some very lively and important debate that clearly emphasized the importance of this bill, how long we have waited for this reform, and the damage that has been done by not having this reform for this considerable length of time. By ensuring borrowers only secure loans that they can afford, this legislation will give Americans the best opportunity to purchase and maintain a home. This legislation is about accountability. It will reward people who play by the rules and guarantee hard consequences for those individuals and institutions that do not. It's good for borrowers, it's good for lenders, and it is very good for our economy as a whole. I urge a ``yes'' vote on the previous question, and on the rule. I yield back the balance of my time, and move the previous question on the resolution. The previous question was ordered.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members be given 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on House Resolution 400.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. First I need to thank Chairman Frank, Chairman Gutierrez, and my colleague, Representative Maloney, for their tireless leadership on this very important bill before us today. This bill takes real steps to curb the unfair, unreasonable, and deceptive practices that nearly 175 million Americans with credit cards are subject to. Late fees, over-the-limit fees, arbitrary interests, increases in interest rates, the credit card companies have gotten away with far too much for far too long. It is time we level the playing field now for small businesses, families and individuals. In Maine, like so many places across the country, this is one of the most important issues on the minds of hardworking men and women. If they have not themselves been the victim of arbitrary rate increases, double-cycle billing, and deceptive fees buried in pages of indecipherable terms, then they know someone who has. While these deceptive and misleading practices have always been unfair, they have devastating financial consequences during this time of economic difficulty when more and more people are using their credit cards to buy gasoline, to pay for their health care bills, or put food on the table. In Maine, not only have we been customers, but we are also employees of a credit card company. And as employees, we have seen firsthand the pervasive and unethical methods that these companies employ. When MBNA--now Bank of America--came into our community, people who had traditionally built homes or been fishermen found themselves using deceptive company practices to sell their neighbors credit they couldn't afford, and it took its toll. Last fall, Nightline profiled Cate Columbo and Jerry Young of Camden, Maine, who worked 10-hour shifts at MBNA pushing customers into taking huge cash advances that they couldn't afford. The company urged employees to take advantage of parents sending their kids to college, homeowners, even veterans. In the Nightline piece, Cate said, ``I would come home, and I would literally be crying in the sink doing dishes.'' The deceptive and misleading practices that Cate, Jerry and thousands of others were pressured to enforce ran squarely counter to the core values that Mainers and those across this country live by every day. That is why it is so important to pass this landmark bill today. I strongly support the bill before us, but I want to be sure that it is implemented as soon and as well as possible. It is very important that we, as Congress, should be diligent about making sure that the industry and the regulators hold up their end of the legislation. My amendment simply requires that the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System reports on the level of implementation every 90 days until he can report full industry adoption. Mr. Chairman, consumers have demanded that Congress act to stop the egregious practices of credit card companies, and it is our responsibility to provide the accountability and oversight that is necessary to ensure this happens. As we move to rebuild our economy in a way that is honest and fair, this commonsense legislation will allow cardholders to responsibly manage their finances. Today, this body has the opportunity to change course by fixing a broken credit card system. I urge a ``yes'' vote on the amendment and the underlying bill. I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. I yield back my time and I urge a ``yea'' vote.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Kiwanis Club of Gorham, Maine for acknowledging the courage and sacrifices of the children of Maine's military families through their program entitled ``Operation Tribute''. Kiwanis is an organization dedicated to service to children and youth through initiatives intended to improve the quality of life of children in communities around the world. Currently, Kiwanis has over 500,000 members internationally, representing 96 countries with 34 clubs in Maine. On July 17, 2007, the Kiwanis Club of Gorham, later joined by the Kiwanis Clubs of Maine, launched Operation Holiday Cheer, a program to provide a holiday gift to each participating child of Maine's military families, including, Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Reserves and National Guard. Over 9,000 children in Maine have a parent serving in the military. In 2007, the Kiwanis acquired, wrapped, and distributed over 8,000 gifts to children in 140 cities and towns throughout the state of Maine. Included with each gift was a hand-written note thanking the child and his or her family which read, ``On behalf of the Kiwanis Clubs of Maine and the people of the State of Maine, we would like to offer you this token of our appreciation for your sacrifice. You are the child of a Maine military family and the bravery that you show every day by sharing your parent to help protect our country is being recognized and honored. You should be extremely proud of your service to our country and you should know that we, the Kiwanis and the people of Maine, stand proudly and beside you. We wish you and your family a Happy Holiday Season.'' In 2008, the Kiwanis built on the incredible success of Operation Holiday Cheer and expanded the program throughout New England and New York. Their efforts--and once again their success--were astounding. Operation Holiday Cheer raised over $650,000 and distributed over 23,000 holiday gifts to children of military families. In January 2009, Operation Holiday Cheer renamed itself ``Operation Tribute'' to better reflect its mission of providing tribute to the children of military families. I extend my deepest appreciation to the Kiwanis Clubs of Maine for their thoughtfulness in paying tribute--and bringing cheer--to the lives of thousands of children in Maine, New York and all of New England.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to be removed as a cosponsor of H.R. 875.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Idaho (Mr. Minnick).

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. I reserve my time.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Yes. I am the last speaker for this side. I will reserve my time until the gentlewoman has closed for her side and yielded back her time.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, I reserve my time.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. I continue to reserve my time.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, let me be clear on two things. Nothing in this bill in any way limits or restricts access as defined by the ADA. Nothing in H.R. 146 changes the status quo in regards to regulation of hunting, fishing and recreational activities in designated areas. I would like to enter into the Record a letter from the National Rifle Association supporting the Altmire amendment to the omnibus public land management bill. I will also submit for the Record a full editorial in today's New York Times, and I would like to read briefly from that editorial. ``This bill establishes three new national park units and protects more than 1,000 miles of wild and scenic rivers and streams from development. But what makes it a memorial piece of legislation are provisions giving permanent wilderness status, the highest layer of protection the law can confer, to 2 million acres of public land in nine States ranging from California and Oregon to Virginia. This would be the largest addition to the nation's store of protected wilderness, now about 107 million acres, since 1994. ``The bill has broad bipartisan support in Congress and the country at large. But after surviving a threatened filibuster in the Senate in January, it failed by two votes in the House, partly for complex parliamentary reasons and partly because some House Members felt that not all the measure's moving parts (the bill is really 160 smaller bills wrapped into one big one) had been properly vetted in committee. ``This is a defect that afflicts many omnibus bills. It is also true, however, that every single provision in the bill is a product of long and intense negotiations stretching back years on the State and local level, and the product, that is, of consensus. ``The measure is now back in the House after a second trip through the Senate. It has been approved each step of the way. Its most controversial provision for a road through a wildlife refuge in Alaska has been revised for the better. It now gives the Secretary of the Interior the power to veto the road if he feels it would cause excessive environmental damage.'' The New York Times closes by saying, ``The House should honor all of this work, as well as the country's need for protected open space, by approving this worthy measure.'' This legislation has been through the House and the Senate numerous times in one form or another. The items in the bill have been thoroughly vetted. Most, if not all the House provisions have had extensive hearings, committee markups and been passed by the full House. The bill is a bipartisan product that contains language sought by Members on both sides of the aisle. That was reflected in the last week's suspension vote of 282-144 here in the House. The Senate vote was 77-20. Any changes at this point would require that the bill goes back to the Senate, where further action is very unlikely. It is time to pass this widely supported bipartisan legislation and send it to the White House for the President's signature. I urge a ``yes'' vote on the previous question and on the rule. National Rifle Association of America, Institute for Legislative Action, Fairfax, VA, March 10, 2009. Hon. Nancy Pelosi, Speaker, House of Representatives, The Capitol, Washington,

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time and move the previous question on the resolution.

Ms. PINGREE of Maine. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.