Ed Royce

Mr. ROYCE of California

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Budd), a member of the Committee on Financial Services.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I wanted to recognize the good work of the Democratic whip, Mr. Steny Hoyer, and also the Republican leader, Kevin McCarthy, on this legislation and to thank them.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. McCaul), and I just want to thank him for his good work to strengthen the bill, as he will discuss, and for his focus on pipelines that primarily carry oil and gas through Russia that compete with Russian gas and drives down the price of gas.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hensarling), chairman of the Committee on Financial Services.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, this bill represents a very broad, bipartisan House- Senate agreement that the United States must enforce tougher sanctions against North Korea, against Russia, against Iran. I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel), the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, for his determined and excellent work on this legislation. This is a very important bill. These three regimes in different parts of the world are threatening vital U.S. interests and they are destabilizing their neighbors. It is well past time that we forcefully respond. Under Vladimir Putin, Russia has invaded its neighbor, Ukraine, seizing its territory and destabilizing its government. It poses a threat to our NATO allies in Europe, as Moscow works to undermine democratic values with determination and sophistication, as U.S. intelligence agencies have made clear. This former KGB colonel attempted to interfere with our own election. Left unchecked, Russia is sure to continue its aggression. Putin's forces continue to prop up the murderous Assad regime in Syria, prolonging a deadly conflict that has driven tens of millions of people from their homes, while enabling the use of chemical weapons and other systematic human rights abuses against the people of Syria. The Russia sanctions in this bill are substantially similar to those that overwhelmingly passed the other body. They give the administration important economic leverage, they give it diplomatic leverage by targeting the things that matter to Vladimir Putin and that matter to his allies the most, and that is their corrupt efforts to profit from the country's oil wealth and their ability to sell weapons overseas. To focus their impact, we clarified several provisions that could have inadvertently handed Russian companies control of global energy projects and impacted pipelines that our European allies rely on in an effort to end their dependence on Russian gas. So this strengthens the bill. To ensure these economic sanctions remain in place as long as Putin's aggression continues, this bill empowers Congress to review and to disapprove any sanctions relief. This strong oversight is necessary, it is appropriate. After all, it is Congress that the Constitution empowers to regulate commerce with foreign nations. Mr. Speaker, Russia has found a willing partner in Iran. The regime's Iranian Revolutionary Guard are fighting alongside Russian forces in Syria. At the same time, Tehran continues to threaten Israel by providing funding and advanced rockets and missiles to Hezbollah. Hezbollah is its leading terrorist proxy. It continues to hold Americans hostage, while developing intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons. To strengthen the U.S. response to the threat from Iran, this bill includes provisions originally introduced by my counterpart, Senator Corker, which increase sanctions on those involved in the regime's human rights abuses and its support for terrorism, as well as its efforts on the ballistic missile program, which the Iranian Revolutionary Guard forces control. Finally, I am proud that this bill includes the text of H.R. 1644, the Korean Interdiction and Modernization of Sanctions Act, which we passed in May. We passed it here out of the House by a vote of 419-1. These provisions, which were strengthened in consultation with the other body, expand sanctions targeting North Korea's nuclear weapons program, but they also go after those around the world who employ North Korean slave labor. This is a human rights abuse. It is one that operates by having a situation where the indentured workers are fed, but the check, instead of going to the workers, goes to the regime, and that money then goes into the nuclear weapons program. It is estimated that this earns hundreds of millions of dollars for the regime in hard currency. So with every test, Kim Jong-un's regime comes closer to being able to mount a nuclear warhead on a missile that is capable of reaching the U.S. mainland. We simply cannot pass up an opportunity to increase pressure in response to this threat. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations.

Mr. ROYCE of California

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, as Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, I would like to take a moment to express my appreciation for an exceptional individual who has served this House with distinction for the last 18 years, Mr. Edward A. Burrier. Edward first started in my office interning at the Africa Subcommittee, which I then chaired. At the time, he was still in college at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Each day he would make the long commute from Fredericksburg, just to volunteer. He then took a job in my personal office in 1133 Longworth where he met his future wife, a fellow junior staffer, Gretchen. While I may have been unaware about their early dating, I was pleased to have the opportunity to attend their memorable wedding in Adare, Ireland in 2006. They now have a young son, William, and it has been a pleasure watching them grow personally and professionally. Edward eventually rose to the position of Committee Deputy Staff Director of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Over the years, Edward was essential in achieving so much, including efforts to prevent the proliferation of MANPADS to terrorists, and major legislation sanctioning the regimes of North Korea and Iran, which are dangerously pursuing nuclear weapons programs. He found a niche in tracking international rogues, some of who are now behind bars for gun-running and creating mayhem, in part because of Edward's efforts. He also produced important reports, including the path-breaking Gangster Regime: How North Korea Counterfeits United States Currency, still relevant today. And he wrote for me hundreds of Foreign Intrigue blog entries, some of the most captivating foreign policy writing in Washington. Everything he worked on became better. In the last Congress, the Committee succeeded in having 24 bills become public law. That's a big number, and an impressive record. In short, Edward has been involved in all the major foreign policy issues of the day, helping to make our country safer and more prosperous. Over my time in Congress, I have been fortunate to have had several long-serving staff members. Edward has been part of this group, central to much of what I have been able to accomplish. Most recently, he helped manage what I believe to be the best committee staff in Congress. Edward is cool, calm, and collected. He is a genuinely good person. Edward was one of the most talented, competent, and dedicated staff members in the House. His skills and excellent judgment will serve him well as he transitions to a top position at the Overseas Private Investment Corporation. His many friends on the Hill, both Republicans and Democrats, wish Edward continued success.

Mr. ROYCE of California

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2200) to reauthorize the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the right word for the type of slavery we see today, the type of human trafficking that is slavery, is to focus on the fact that this is indentured servitude. This is human slavery, and traffickers around the world increasingly exploit over a million individuals--I am talking about women and children--in sex trafficking for commercial gain. According to credible estimates, if we add to that those who are engaged in forced labor, that number that are actually enslaved is some 20 million. It is a coercive, multibillion-dollar industry that destroys families, destroys communities, strengthens brutal criminal networks, and tramples human dignity. This plague is really global. It is not limited to the developing world. At a regular meeting of the Human Trafficking Congressional Advisory Committee I set up in southern California nearly 4 years ago, I have met with brave survivors who endured forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation in my home State of California. I think of Angela Guanzon locked into her abusive workplace, sleeping on the hallway floor. I think of Carissa Phelps being sold on the streets of Fresno at the age of 12 by a very violent pimp. Meeting them and having them testify showed me and many others that the horror of trafficking lies not in statistics, but in stolen lives. In the words of the great abolitionist, Frederick Douglass, enslavement is such an affront to human conscience that, in his words, `` . . . to expose it, is to kill it. Slavery is one of those monsters of darkness to whom the light of truth is death.'' Exposing the harsh reality of human trafficking to international daylight is a central tenet of the legislation here that we are reauthorizing today. In the late 1990s, under the leadership of Congressman Chris Smith, the author of today's bill, the Foreign Affairs Committee initiated the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, which became law in 2000. That law created the annual Trafficking in Persons Report and the country tier rankings that put the issue on the radar screens of world governments for the first time and every year thereafter. I was proud to have supported that legislation. It created the possibility of sanctions against the worst offenders. It also established law enforcement and other domestic initiatives to combat trafficking within the United States, which have been refined in the multiple reauthorizations that have followed. The law has produced notable successes. More than 120 countries, in fact, have now enacted antitrafficking laws, and many are improving their prosecution and conviction of those who are involved in trafficking. Countless lives have been improved and have been saved as a result. In the TIP Report released 2 weeks ago, 27 countries were upgraded to a higher tier, and that is progress. But sustained pressure and scrutiny are needed. Enacting a law is not the same thing as enforcing it, and, unfortunately, 21 countries slipped to a lower tier in last year's report. I am proud to be an original cosponsor of H.R. 2200, the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act, which continues and updates our fight against human trafficking. It extends until 2021 the current authorizations for our international and domestic programs, which expire at the end of September. It also contains multiple reforms and refinements to U.S. programs, and it strengthens the annual TIP Report and tier rankings. I am pleased that this bill incorporates the text of a bill of mine, H.R. 1625, the TARGET Act, which I introduced earlier this year and the House passed in March. This important provision turns the tables on international traffickers by authorizing the State Department to offer and publicize bounties for their arrest and for their conviction. I again want to thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Bass) for introducing this strong, bipartisan bill. I also want to thank the other seven committees of referral for the input and assistance they provided on the portions of the bill within their jurisdiction. H.R. 2200 is a critical contribution to the cause of human freedom and the cause of human dignity. It deserves our unanimous support. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. Committee on Foreign Affairs, Washington, DC, July 10, 2017. Hon. William M. ``Mac'' Thornberry, Chairman, House Armed Services Committee, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman Thornberry: Thank you for consulting with the Foreign Affairs Committee and agreeing to be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 2200, the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2017, so that the bill may proceed expeditiously to the House floor. I agree that your forgoing further action on this measure does not in any way diminish or alter the jurisdiction of your committee, or prejudice its jurisdictional prerogatives on this resolution or similar legislation in the future. I would support your effort to seek appointment of an appropriate number of conferees from your committee to any House-Senate conference on this legislation. I will seek to place our letters on H.R. 2200 into the Congressional Record during floor consideration of the bill. I appreciate your cooperation regarding this legislation and look forward to continuing to work together as this measure moves through the legislative process. Sincerely, Edward R. Royce, Chairman.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include any extraneous material in the Record.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 2 minutes to the gentleman.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith). He is the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations, and, of course, he is the author of the original Trafficking Victims Protection Act. He is also the author of this bill today.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Chabot), a senior member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would just mention, Mr. Speaker, that 20 years ago, human trafficking was unknown, I think, to most Americans and there was little public awareness of the severity of what we are calling here today modern-day slavery. Seventeen years ago, Congress led on this issue by passing the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. We had very strong bipartisan support, and the rankings, the sanctions, the programs created by that law have been instrumental in building the momentum and awareness that exists out there today. And with each reauthorization, those laws have been fine-tuned, they have been strengthened. This bill continues that tradition. It is time to recommit ourselves to this noble fight against slave-like labor and sexual exploitation of underage children. I have asked some of the victims why it is that so many of these criminal gangs move from drug running and other kinds of activity into this kind of behavior, and part of the response is: Because, you know, in a drug war, a gang member can get himself killed, but it is a lot easier to exploit a 14-year-old underage girl, it is a lot easier to be in that kind of business than it is in the more dangerous business. We have got to overcompensate for this reality by passing legislation which allows these additional tools to be used to close down these criminal syndicates and to create real deterrence for those gang members who consider going into this line of work. So I thank Mr. Smith, Congresswoman Karen Bass, and all my fellow cosponsors on this bill. It deserves our strong support. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Chairman, the reason we are here today has to do with the drought in California that, frankly, could have been solved had we been allowed to move forward with the storage that we need. Because the process now is one of watching the rains come, watch the water run out to the ocean, and we do not have the ability to block the red tape that prevents us from building the storage that would hold that water so that we can use it during the drought. What was the consequence of us not being able to address that? And why is it so important that we pass the GROW Act here that David Valadao from the Central Valley has introduced? Well, the consequences were one of having thousands of jobs disappear. The consequences were having dead crops plowed under in hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland that had been left idle. The consequences were that billions of dollars were lost in the State. And, frankly, the State of California produces 400 commodities that are one- third of the country's vegetables. It is two-thirds of this country's fruit. It is two-thirds of the nuts produced. The industry brings in $47 billion. When this happens, the consequences are felt by the farmers and by the people across California, by those thrown out of their jobs. This is an incredibly important industry not only in California, but for the entire country. So, for years, we haven't gotten the water we paid for or contracted for. But not to let us go forward with the additional storage and to put roadblocks in front of that, to absolutely block commonsense solutions, this has got to stop. This is why this legislation needs to be made into law.

Mr. ROYCE of California

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, as an original cosponsor of this bill, I, again, thank Chairman Emeritus Ros-Lehtinen. I thank Ranking Member Engel, as well as Representatives Darrell Issa, David Cicilline, Chris Smith, and Gerry Connolly for their important work on this resolution. The abduction, torture, and targeted killings that we are seeing in Chechnya are an affront to the core universal values that all nation- states must strive to protect. The U.S. has a long history of speaking out on behalf of persecuted minorities, and that is what we are doing here today. We cannot end injustice everywhere, but we can expose it. We can bring it to the world's attention and, in so doing, give hope to its innocent victims. I ask all Members to speak clearly and to speak unanimously in condemning this violence. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.