Ayanna Pressley

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I thank Congressman Bowman for yielding. There is nothing freshman about him. He has hit the ground running since he has been here, and he has been a leader and partner on many issues, including this issue of student debt. I thank the gentleman for his partnership on our congressional resolution calling for President Biden to provide broad-based student debt cancellation. Madam Speaker, I rise today on behalf of more than 45 million people in America crushed by the growing weight of the $1.7 trillion student debt crisis. The grandmother--you heard me right, the grandmother--I have a 76-year-old constituent in the Massachusetts Seventh still paying student loans, all while on Social Security and a fixed income. I rise on behalf of the new parents struggling to manage the skyrocketing costs of childcare for which Massachusetts is the second highest in the country, $21,000 per child for center-based care; new parents struggling to manage the skyrocketing cost of childcare, rent, and their student loan payments; the teacher who fears losing their teaching license because they have gone into default and can't come up with that monthly student loan payment, not even the minimum. The irony of it is that this is debt that they incurred in order to be an educator, in order to be a nation builder, to pour into our children, the next generation. I rise on behalf of an entire generation of young people, young people I met with a couple of weeks ago who, when I asked them about their future, were despondent and expressed great hopelessness: Well, I don't know that I am going to go to college because I don't want to be in debt for the rest of my life, and I fear if there will even be a planet for me to grow up on. I rise today on behalf of a whole generation of young people grappling with that sense of foreboding and despair, a generation of young folk who have been forced to hold off on pursuing education, starting higher education, starting a small business, purchasing a home because of record levels of student loan debt. I rise on behalf of Black and Brown folk who, due to generations of precise and intentional what I would characterize as policy violence, have been forced to take on higher rates of student debt for just a chance at the same degree as our White peers. Madam Speaker, the student debt crisis is one that disproportionately impacts our Black community. For too long, the narrative has excluded us and the unique ways in which this debt is exacerbating racial and economic inequities, compounding our gender and racial wealth gap. We have to borrow at higher rates just for a shot at the same degree as our White peers. Black women, in particular, bear the largest burden, as they are forced to take on higher student debt loads, all while navigating a persisting wage gap that allows Black women to earn just 61 cents to every dollar earned by a White man. These are systemic barriers that make it significantly more challenging to repay this debt. There are some who have questioned if this is regressive in impact, to cancel student debt of $50,000. They have questioned the merit as to whether or not this is a racial justice issue. Well, ask the presidents of the historically Black colleges and universities who have been using ARPA funds to cancel student debt. Not regressive in impact. Important, necessary, and long overdue. These are systemic barriers that have existed long before this pandemic and unjust pre-COVID status quo. In this moment, as we work to build back better and do so equitably, President Biden has an opportunity and a responsibility and the authority to address the hurt and harm these communities are feeling by using his executive authority to cancel $50,000 in Federal student loan debt. Doing so is one of most effective ways he can provide sweeping relief to millions of families while helping to reduce the racial wealth gap to lay the groundwork for an equitable and just long-term recovery. This is a crisis created through policy decisions, and we have a responsibility to address it head on. In this moment of ongoing crisis, our families need every bit of help that they can get. In just under 2 months, student debt payments are scheduled to resume for millions of families across this country. Families who have been struggling to make ends meet throughout this pandemic, through no fault of their own in this pandemic-induced recession, will have an additional bill to cover. I have parents in my district in their fifties still paying on their student loans and now helping their children pay for their student loans. This is an intergenerational crisis. This summer, we applauded the Biden administration for heeding the calls of many of us here tonight, heeding the calls of this movement, the movement that elected him, when they extended the pause on student loan payments. We fought hard for that. This welcome action gave another layer of protection to the millions of borrowers facing a disastrous financial cliff. But our work here is unfinished. This isn't a question as to whether or not he has the authority, because that authority has already been exercised. The same authority should be used to extend the payment pause. President Biden must now cancel at least $50,000 in student debt to boost the economy and to close the racial wealth gap. In this moment of a so-called reckoning on racial injustice, the only receipts that matter are policies and budgets. The truth, Madam Speaker, is that this economic crisis is far from over. Families in the Seventh District of Massachusetts and all across the country are continuing to struggle to make ends meet. Failure to act would be unconscionable, so we must move with urgency. As we continue the work of building a just and equitable recovery from the current economic crisis, broad-based, across-the-board, and permanent student debt cancellation must remain front and center. The people, including the broad and diverse coalition that elected President Biden, demand, deserve, and require nothing less.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I thank my dear and fierce colleague from New Mexico for convening us this evening. Madam Speaker, I rise today on behalf of the communities in my district and across our Nation who for too long have been asked to wait, for those who have had their justice delayed, time and again, by inaction, obstruction, or the status quo. I rise today because I support the worker and their family, caregivers and childcare workers, parents and essential frontline workers, our disabled siblings, our environmental justice communities, and our immigrant neighbors. For months, we held the line to ensure that we leave no family, no worker, and no community behind. I rise so that we can secure the strongest policies and investments for our most marginalized communities, to deliver meaningful, tangible change to improve their conditions and to impact their daily lives. This week, the House has the opportunity and the obligation to legislate justice and begin rebuilding as a stronger, more just Nation that takes care of its people, not because it is good politics--I will let the pundits speak to that--but because as lawmakers we have a decisive mandate from the people to deliver policies and budgets that value the lives and livelihoods of everyone in our communities. That means passing the President's full agenda, which is the people's agenda. I represent Massachusetts' Seventh District, one of the most unequal districts in the country and in the Commonwealth, where in a 3-mile radius, life expectancy drops from 92 years in Back Bay to 59 years in Roxbury, and the median household income drops by $50,000; where childcare costs remain some of the highest in the entire Nation, $21,000 a child for center-based care; where the rising rates of asthma, extreme heat, and sea level rise disproportionately impact frontline environmental justice communities like Chinatown, East Boston, and Chelsea. The hurt and harm in my community run deep, and I see it every day. These inequities and disparities are not naturally occurring. They are the direct result of decades of precise and intentional policy violence and underinvestment that has been codified into our laws and our budgets for generations. In this moment, as we do the work to build back better and do so equitably, we must be just as precise and just as intentional in legislating and investing in justice, equity, and healing. That is why we can't afford to leave any worker, any family, or any community behind. Madam Speaker, the Build Back Better Act is our chance to chart a new path forward and reverse the generations of policy violence inflicted on our most vulnerable, to finally make universal paid leave a reality for the millions of workers, disproportionately Black and Brown women, who have been pushed out of the workforce, left to make the impossible choice between keeping food on the table or caring for themselves or a sick loved one; for the childcare worker taking care of our babies but can't make enough to take care of their own; to finally invest in home- and community-based services for the elderly and disabled as the critical infrastructure that it is; to finally make affordable childcare and universal pre-K a reality; to combat climate change; to close the homeownership gap; to rebuild our crumbling housing stock; and finally to honor our promises to our immigrant neighbors. These investments are possible; they are popular; and they are necessary. We can wait no more. There is no deficit of resources in this country, only a deficit of empathy and political courage. We must pass the Build Back Better Act this week and make the long- overdue investments that our workers, families, and communities have been denied for too long. Our Nation is in crisis. The urgency could not be more clear. How we meet this moment will have lasting impacts, and history will remember us for it.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I rise in recognition of Transgender Day of Remembrance. In 1999, Rita Hester, a transgender woman, was murdered in Allston, a neighborhood in my district, the Massachusetts Seventh. In response to this horrific tragedy, this day was created to memorialize the loss of her life and far too many others due to transphobic violence. The cruelty of transphobia is a threat that we must confront and root out wherever it exists. Whether in music or on television or in the hallowed Halls of the Nation's Capitol, there is no place for hatred because someone is brave enough to show up exactly as they are and to live their truth. Yet in 2021, we have seen at least 46 transgender or gender nonconforming people killed. We have been robbed of at least 46 souls, disproportionately Black and Latinx transwomen, and these are only the ones who have been properly reported. On the floor of Congress, we speak their names: Tyianna Alexander Samuel Edmund Damian Valentin Bianca ``Muffin'' Bankz Dominique Jackson Fifty Bandz Alexus Braxton Chyna Carrillo Jeffrey ``JJ'' Bright Jasmine Cannady Jenna Franks Diamond Kyree Sanders Rayanna Pardo Jaida Peterson Dominique Luscious Remy Fennell Tiara Banks Natalia Smut Iris Santos Tiffany Thomas Keri Washington Whispering Wind Bear Spirit Sophie Vasquez Danika ``Danny'' Henson Serenity Hollis Oliver ``Ollie'' Taylor Thomas Hardin Poe Black EJ Boykin Aidelen Evans Taya Ashton Shai Vanderpump Tierramarie Lewis Miss CoCo Pooh Johnson Disaya Monaee Briana Hamilton Kier Lapri Kartier Mel Groves Royal Poetical Starz Zoella ``Zoey'' Rose Martinez Jo Acker Jessi Hart Rikkey Outumuro Marquiisha Lawrence Jenny De Leon And Jahaira DeAlto who was murdered in my district. Jahaira, a friend, a mother, and an activist spoke out 22 years ago when Rita Hester was killed. As a survivor of domestic violence, she advocated for gender affirming shelters and, with kindness in her heart, opened her home to queer and trans people with nowhere to go. Jahaira DeAlto's compassion will forever be her legacy, alongside her legendary status in the ballroom community for serving ``everyday realness.'' While we grieve the loss of loved ones, neighbors, and colleagues, we must also hold space to celebrate their lives and the differences they make in ours. Transgender people are community organizers, military soldiers, and justice seekers who have put their bodies on the line domestically and abroad to fight for a safe and equitable society. They are artists, healers, and entertainers who nurture our soul and spread joy wherever they go. Most importantly, transgender people are beacons of hope and pillars of courage serving as living testaments of what it means to be unapologetically you. While transphobia seeks to erase these truths, we must affirm the dignity of every member of the trans community. So I rise today to remember Transgender Day of Remembrance and recommit myself to the work of justice and equity for all people, including my transgender siblings in the movement for liberation. Our destinies are tied.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for yielding and sister in service here, Congresswoman Leger Fernandez, for convening us here today. Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of every worker, every parent, and every caretaker that has questioned how they will make ends meet and keep food on the table for their families; the parent that has felt that pit in their stomach, the anxiousness as they look over monthly bills with the growing costs of rent and childcare; the frontline worker, who is terrified to stay home sick and lose their job because of our Nation's failure to provide paid leave; the family afraid of being displaced from their home due to extreme weather and the existential threat of climate change; the student living in a transit desert with unreliable access to jobs, food, community; the daughter who is a caregiver to her parent who is one of 820,000 people on a wait list for much-needed home and community-based services; and our immigrant neighbor who has been unjustly denied a pathway to citizenship. Mr. Speaker, the Build Back Better Act will help us get one step closer to rejecting the unjust status quo and beginning to build a recovery that centers on the people. As Angela Davis once said: ``I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I can no longer accept.'' Despite what some might argue, the needs of our communities go far beyond our Nation's roads and bridges, and we must ensure that our policies and our investments reflect that reality. Mr. Speaker, I refuse to choose between the union worker who builds our highways and the child worker who protections our babies and sets them on a pathway to a healthy life, to bring into bear their contributions to the world. I would ask every Member of Congress that they do the same. Reject the unjust, false binary choices that force us to choose between the livelihoods and well-being of the two that pit community member against community member. We have the opportunity and responsibility to finally make universal paid leave, home healthcare, and universal access to quality and affordable childcare a reality. In my district, in Massachusetts, it costs $21,000 per child for childcare. We have the opportunity and responsibility to address climate change to combat our housing crisis, and to finally establish a pathway to citizenship for millions of our immigrant workers. You know, those essential workers that you were all clapping for during the pandemic. They don't need your applause. They need you to value more than just their labor, but their lives and the preservation of their families. We must rebuild stronger as a just Nation that takes care of its people. In order to truly build back better, we must truly address both the human and physical infrastructure needs of our communities. This is responsive to the needs of the people. We have to focus on impact, advance policies that will be felt by all families. Leave no community behind. This is how we set forth a just recovery and chart a new course forward. This is the moment to repair generations of hurt and harm and what I would characterize as policy violence inflicted on our most vulnerable and neglected communities. This is our moment to legislate our values; to honor the decisive mandate that we have from the people. This is our moment to make this Democratic majority--House, Senate, and White House--that that is more than a talking point that we are in the majority. We must affirm and codify once and for all. Infrastructure are those things that are essential to the functioning of our very society. Care is infrastructure. Housing is infrastructure. Climate justice is infrastructure. Paid leave is infrastructure. Disability justice is infrastructure, and the list goes on. Here is what I know. There is no deficit of resource in this country, only a deficit of empathy and political courage. Let's pass the Build Back Better Act so that we can deliver for the communities that for too long have been asked to wait. Justice delayed is justice denied. Our constituents deserve more.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, abortion care is a fundamental human right. Texas' unconscionable abortion ban is further evidence that lawmakers who aim to do harm will stop at nothing to attack our reproductive rights and bodily autonomy. But not on our watch. It is clear the Supreme Court is no longer on the side of justice and the pro-choice majority of the House of Representatives has a responsibility to stand in the gap and to act. Today, we must, and we will, pass the Women's Health Protection Act. I am proud to co-lead this bill with Congresswoman Chu to codify the right to abortion care. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to stand with us to reaffirm reproductive justice and protect this fundamental right.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to right a wrong. Shortly after his passing, there was an op-ed written about Bob Moses which characterized him as ``the most important civil rights hero most Americans never heard of.'' I painfully agree. Bob Moses has never been given the credit he deserved. Fortunately for us, his ego was small, but his impact was giant. Bob Moses was a relentless organizer and seeker of justice and equitable access to the ballot box as a SNCC organizer and a transformative educator as the founder of the Algebra Project. He was a loving husband, father, and generous mentor. Much like his iconic overalls, Bob Moses was unassuming and resilient. Days before he transitioned, Moses was still fighting, this time for critical COVID relief funds to be used to finally reinvent the math classroom. He said: ``The problem is not the willingness or ability of students to succeed, rather the systemic inequities teachers and students of color face.'' He once posed the question: ``What do you do when the country has a sickness?'' I can say, the cure for our Nation's sickness of systemic racism and inequality is to model that which Mr. Moses demonstrated throughout this life. May we honor him now, in a way that matters most: Change. Rest in power, Mr. Moses.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I was unable to physically record my vote on S. 1910. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 225.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, long before COVID-19, the education of our most vulnerable students, particularly Black and Brown girls and students with disabilities, had been disrupted by discriminatory and harsh discipline practices. As early as preschool, discriminatory policies and practices push them out of the classroom. This push-out crisis and its disproportionate impact on our girls continued even as the pandemic hit and schools went remote. Last year, we learned the story of Grace, a 15-year-old Black student who was sent to juvenile detention for not completing her online coursework. At a time where our children needed to be kept safe in a volatile crisis, Grace was dehumanized and taken away from her family and her health put at risk. Advocates across the Nation, including my colleagues and I, rallied to call for Grace's release. We were so grateful she safely made her way home to her mother, but her experience is far too common. My amendment underscores the need for the GAO to study the prevalence of these practices during remote learning periods and provide recommendations on how we can work to urgently address this crisis. Our young people deserve nurturing, learning environments that support their healing and well-being. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York, my friend and colleague, for convening us this evening. Care work is the backbone of our Nation's economy. Yet, for too long, policymakers have failed to make the critical investments needed to ensure that everyone, at all stages of life, has access to the high- quality care they need and deserve, and that our care workers are compensated for their essential work with livable wages. Their work is essential and so, too, are their lives. I rise today on behalf of our Nation's care workers, whose labor continues to be undervalued, undermined, and unprotected, despite its essential role in our society. I rise to lend my voice to the thousands of care workers, disproportionately Black and Brown women, who spend hours upon hours meeting the care needs of others, children, the elderly, and people with disabilities. Caregivers often juggling work while also providing care for their own families and struggling to cover the most basic of needs. I want to take a moment to speak specifically on the critical role of home and community-based services. During the COVID-19 crisis and long before, these services have been a lifeline, supporting people from all walks of life with critical medical care in their home or community. This is an issue of quality care, of healthcare justice, of disability justice, and of liberty. Again, throughout the pandemic, home and community-based services were a lifeline for so many, but the infrastructure needs resources. The Biden administration has proposed a historic investment in HCBS to meet the scale of the need and demand. This proposed investment is an investment in healthcare justice, but also an investment in human infrastructure, in our essential workers. We must make these services readily available and compensate our home care workers, the majority of whom are women of color, with a living wage. To build back better, we must center the people. We must invest in our communities and affirm that a better world is possible, a more just world, where every person can thrive. We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to legislate our values and to create a more just and caring America that takes care of everyone who calls this great Nation home. Passing a robust infrastructure package that affirms care is infrastructure would leave a profound legacy. Today, on the floor of the House of Representatives, we reaffirm our commitment to building a nation where every person can live and thrive with dignity. As we craft a legislative response that actualizes that vision, we must make plain that what is needed in this moment of unprecedented economic crisis is bold, intentional legislation that recognizes the dignity and humanity of all workers, and affirms the right to meaningful, dignified work and a livable wage. Earlier this year, I introduced a congressional resolution calling for a Federal job guarantee, which would provide every person in America with an enforceable legal right to a quality job. Extending beyond a project-based approach, our resolution calls for the creation of Federal jobs on projects that meet long-neglected community, physical and human infrastructure needs, such as delivering high- quality care for children and seniors, building and sustaining 21st century transit systems, strengthening our neighborhoods, and protecting the environment. That is the type of bold, necessary approach we should bring to this process and beyond. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated many of these challenges and laid bare the deep inequities and disparities in our Nation. From paid family and medical leave to home and community-based services, to universal childcare, to a dignified living wage and beyond, the people demand responsive policy that speaks to their lived experiences and struggles. The people are counting on us to deliver. So let me make it plain: Any infrastructure package must deliver for our care workers, and it must take care of the people, because the care economy is critical infrastructure. In this moment, as we fight for a strong economic recovery, we must also work to build a better, a more just, and more equitable economy than ever before.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the deep trauma and loss of life perpetuated by systems of oppression here in the United States and globally. Many times I have stood at this dais and affirmed that our destinies are tied. That was clear when protestors took to the streets in the face of police murders, seeking to build a nation where Black lives matter. That was clear when our democracy and our lives were put at risk by violent white supremacists, who shattered glass and broke doors while wearing anti-Semitic phrases on their chests, carrying the Confederate flag, erecting a noose on the west lawn. That was clear when students protesting to end poverty and oppression in the streets of Bogota were shot dead. That was clear when families kneeling during this holy month at the third holiest site in Islam were met with teargas, rubber bullets, and hand grenades. Our destinies are tied. As a Black woman in America, I am no stranger to police brutality and State-sanctioned violence. We have been criminalized for the very way we show up in the world. Last summer, when Black Lives Matter protestors took to the streets to demand justice, they were met with force. They faced teargas, rubber bullets, and a militarized police, just as our Palestinian brothers and sisters are facing in Jerusalem today. Palestinians are being told the same thing as Black folks in America: There is no acceptable form of resistance. We are bearing witness to egregious human rights violations. The pain, trauma, and terror the Palestinians are facing is not just the result of this week's escalation, but the consequence of years of military occupation. In Sheikh Jarrah, the Israeli Government is violently dispossessing yet another neighborhood of Palestinian families from homes they have lived in for decades. We cannot stand idly and complicitly by and allow the occupation and oppression of the Palestinian people to continue. We cannot remain silent when our government sends $3.8 billion of military aid to Israel that is used to demolish Palestinian homes, imprison Palestinian children, and displace Palestinian families. A budget is a reflection of our values. I am committed to ensuring that our government does not fund state violence in any form anywhere. Many say that ``conditioning aid'' is not a phrase that I should utter here, but let me be clear: No matter the context, American Government dollars always come with conditions. The questions at hand are: Should our taxpayer dollars create conditions for justice, healing, and repair? Or should those dollars create conditions for oppression and apartheid? Now, while I hold due space for the storied history and the unique lived experiences on the ground globally, there is a through line here. And whether we are talking about the militarization of our communities or weapons of war, the question is the same. If our budgets are a statement of our values, what do we value? Whose lives do we value? We have seen footage of Israeli and Palestinian children huddled fearfully while rockets blanket their homeland. No child should live in fear. No child should grow up in the midst of a conflict that robs them of a childhood. And Palestinian children do not have the same protections afforded to them. Without the U.S. exerting pressure on Israel to deescalate, the explosive situation in Jerusalem is igniting further violence not just in the city, but beyond. It is clear there is a grave asymmetry of power here. Palestinians do not have a sovereign state and the protections that come with it. Following forceful violence against the Palestinians simply seeking to remain in their family homes, militant groups in Gaza have launched rockets at Israeli cities, resulting in seven deaths, including a child. In response, the Israeli military has launched severe attacks on Gaza, killing 83 people, 17 of whom are children. This is devastating. The destinies of the Israeli and Palestinian people are tied. Our outrage at the pain, violence, and oppression they face must be clear and unapologetic. Equal outrage for violence perpetrated against all people, and moral clarity when state-sanctioned violence is claiming the lives of innocent mothers, fathers, daughters, and sons. From Jerusalem to Boston, from Randolph to Gaza, from Colombia to Yemen, our destinies are tied, and everyone deserves to live from fear and to know peace.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the Comprehensive Debt Collection Improvement Act, which includes my bill-- and I thank the chairwoman for that--the Ending Debt Collection Harassment Act. Like many, my mother took pride in paying her bills and paying them on time. But after several life-disruptive events--the death of an immediate family member, a layoff, and a mandatory surgery--there came a point where she could no longer afford it. No matter how hard she worked, we owed everyone--the utility company, the landlord, the bank-- and we were frequently harassed by debt collectors. Our story is the story of millions of families. Due to poverty wages, a lack of affordable healthcare, the absence of paid leave, and other policy failures which push working people to the margins, millions of people in America are forced to take on significant debt to survive. This is especially true during times of crisis, and debt collectors prey on that reality. They are making record profits during a pandemic, using aggressive tactics to scare and to exploit people. Consumer complaints of shaming tactics, of intimidation, of harassment, especially from our elders, continue to rise year after year. This bill provides the needed protection from mistreatment and harassment. I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.''

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1395) to require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to discount FHA single-family mortgage insurance premium payments for first-time homebuyers who complete a financial literacy housing counseling program.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1565) to create an interdivisional taskforce at the Securities and Exchange Commission for senior investors.

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1491) to amend the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to provide enhanced protection against debt collector harassment of members of the Armed Forces, and for other purposes.

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this legislation.

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Dean), who is also the sponsor of this legislation.

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Dean for her leadership on this important bill, which will provide much-needed relief and protection for our servicemembers. Two out of every five servicemembers' complaints submitted to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau are about predatory debt collection practices. Some examples of what servicemembers reported experiencing include inappropriate threats of punishment under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, threats to the rank and security clearance of the servicemember, and even reports of debt collectors inappropriately contacting the commanding officer of the debt holder. It is a disgrace that people serving in the military are being threatened and intimidated. The impact of these abusive collection practices is severe. Servicemembers have reported increased stress and hardship because of predatory debt collectors. These unfair and unnecessary practices against people who are putting their lives on the line for this country must end, which is why the National Military Family Association; the National Consumer Law Center; and the former CFPB Assistant Director for Servicemember Affairs, retired Army Colonel Paul Kantwill, all support this bill. I am happy to say that Democrats and Republicans agree that Congress should put a halt to these abusive practices, and this bill does just that. Congresswoman Dean's work across the aisle and with the House Armed Services Committee last Congress resulted in a House floor vote of 355-0. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to unanimously support this bill again so we can better protect our servicemembers, who do so much to protect us. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. PRESSLEY

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1532) to require a review of the effects of FHA mortgage insurance policies, practices, and products on small-dollar mortgage lending, and for other purposes.

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, when it comes to promoting access to homeownership, much of the focus tends to be on how high housing prices are pricing many borrowers out of homeownership. But the landscape of homeownership opportunities is varied, and for many communities, the lack of access to traditional mortgage financing for small-dollar mortgages continues to be a major barrier. Specifically, I am talking about mortgage financing for homes that are priced at $70,000 or less. For many rural communities, and predominantly communities of color that are struggling to overcome the impacts of the foreclosure crisis, there are lower-value homes that would otherwise be ideal homeownership opportunities for first-time home buyers and working class families, but the lack of traditional mortgage financing options acts as a barrier to those opportunities. Data from the Urban Institute shows that these small-dollar mortgages are denied by lenders at double the rate compared to larger loans, and this trend cannot be explained away by differences in the creditworthiness of applicants. The bottom line is that lenders don't make as much money originating these smaller loans, so they are less likely to make loans on collateral that don't maximize their profit. The Federal Housing Administration was designed to serve underserved markets and could be instrumental in promoting more small-dollar mortgage lending, but the data shows that the FHA is actually disproportionately failing to serve this market. So this bill would require the FHA to identify barriers to better serving the small-dollar mortgage market and to come up with an actionable plan to reduce those barriers. This bill is desperately needed at a time when mortgage rates are at historic lows and home prices continue to rise. We must support affordable housing options for individual borrowers and their pursuit of the American Dream of homeownership. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I would inquire through the Chair if my colleague has any remaining speakers.

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Michigan (Ms. Tlaib).

Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Tlaib for her work on this important bill, as we work to improve access to affordable homeownership. This bill is an important step that will help us better understand and break down the barriers to obtaining traditional mortgage financing for small-dollar mortgages. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.