Pete Sessions

Mr. SESSIONS

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

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, in fact, Republicans are going to use a doctor to get the budget done this time. I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Price), the young chairman from the Budget Committee.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. SESSIONS. I do have one additional speaker, and then I will close.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte), the chairman of the Judiciary Committee.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 775 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. SESSIONS. I yield the gentleman an additional 2 minutes.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings), my dear friend, pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. General Leave

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, today the House of Representatives is considering a rule for consideration of a bill to reauthorize the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program, or a program known as TRIA. Without this bill, TRIA is set to expire on December 31, meaning that the House and the Senate must now act or the program will end at the end of this year. Since TRIA was signed into law in 2002, it has served as an effective means of dealing with the problem of availability of terrorism insurance. TRIA has enabled the private insurance market to provide an essential type of coverage that otherwise may not exist. However, like many other government programs, TRIA needs to be looked at and reformed in order to serve its original purpose, and that is why we are here today, Mr. Speaker. Thanks to the leadership of Chairman Jeb Hensarling and Vice Chairman Randy Neugebauer of the Financial Services Committee, S. 2244 provides for many of those necessary reforms that will protect taxpayers, promote market stability, and provide for economic security for the American people, all in one, brand-new package. What we are doing here today is important and essential for many people, but it is here to maintain the stability of a marketplace. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take us back to 2001, shortly after the terrorist attacks on 9/11. None of us will ever forget where we were when we first heard and saw of the terrorist attacks that attacked our homeland in New York City, at the Pentagon, and in a field in Pennsylvania. The accompanying stories of heroism and the deeds by Americans and others were simply heroism at its finest at a time of attack on this country. What some might not remember, though, is the remarkable amount of economic uncertainty and damage that was caused to America and in the following weeks and months after 9/11. While we mourned the loss of many loved ones, our economy was shaken to its core. Those attacks created and caused $32.5 billion in losses, approximately $20 billion of which were incurred by insurance companies. A second similar attack would have left the U.S. insurance economy insolvent, which in turn, being insolvent, would have undermined our entire economic structure of the free enterprise system. That is why TRIA was pressed into law, to provide a Federal backstop to avoid an immediate terrorism risk insurance crisis. Sadly, terrorism has continued to be an ongoing threat to our Nation and, for the foreseeable future, I think that we need to remain vigilant and prepared for those consequences. So the cost of terrorism still looms large, and acts of terrorism are uninsurable risks that could sink our insurance markets without this new, updated program. In this way, TRIA is a vital economic piece of our Nation's comprehensive security strategy because it allows for the American economy to recover more quickly in the event of an attack. I believe it does more than that. I believe it puts in place building blocks for us to understand responsibility, economic security, and how we would build back based upon rule of law and understanding about what would happen at a time of chaos. TRIA provides certainty, certainty to our marketplace, by giving policyholders and insurers the tools that they need to understand and to develop a market-based solution to the economic threat that could be posed by terrorism. It gives policyholders and insurance providers the opportunity to model risk and to diversify their exposure with an understanding of what the law would provide. I am encouraged by the reforms championed by, yesterday, up in the Rules Committee, Chairman Jeb Hensarling from the Fifth Congressional District of Texas, who has placed many of these new items directly into the bill as a result of hard negotiation. These are called reforms, Mr. Speaker, and three reforms stand out to me as being particularly important. First, section 102. It would decrease the Federal share of losses under the program by 1 percentage point annually until it equals 80 percent. That means that the Federal taxpayers will be responsible for less of the initial costs incurred after a terrorist attack than under the current law. Second, section 103. 103 would increase the program trigger to $200 million in $20 million increments over 5 years. This means that TRIA would not kick in, the government program would not kick in until there was $200 million in insurable losses following an attack, ensuring that the government would not only get involved if an attack had a massive impact, but we would know the rules ahead of time. Third, section 104. Section 104 would increase the amount of Federal assistance that the Treasury Secretary must recoup from the insurance industry following a certified act of terrorism. This means that Federal taxpayers are getting, once again, a better and well-understood deal with insurers than they would have gotten before this important reform. Finally, S. 2244 would provide a much-needed change to Dodd-Frank. It is a piece of legislation that was passed a few years ago that is causing chaos in the marketplace: higher cost, uncertainty, and overwhelming regulation by the Federal Government. Federal regulators have interpreted parts of Dodd-Frank to apply to nonfinancial companies who are called ``end users.'' These end users are people who were never expected to become subject to the requirements of Dodd-Frank, such as ranchers, farmers, and small business owners. This Dodd-Frank fix would clarify that true derivatives end users are exempt from the margin requirements applied by Dodd-Frank to derivatives contracts. With this reform, end users will be able to use derivatives to hedge risks, which allows them to maintain low and stable prices for consumers. That, in turn, frees up capital that can be used to create brand-new jobs, current jobs, and to grow our free enterprise system in America. This fix is not particularly controversial. In fact, the current policy of requiring nonfinancial companies to adhere to the same margin requirements as financial companies was not intended when the original bill passed. To fix this problem, earlier in this Congress, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 634. Yes, I voted for it, along with 410 other Members of this body, in a bill presented by and authored by Congressman Michael Grimm of New York, 411-12, overwhelming, broad bipartisan consensus as we looked at the impact of that bill. Mr. Speaker, I applaud the young chairman of the Financial Services Committee, Jeb Hensarling, for his hard work. I also applaud the vice chairman of the committee, Randy Neugebauer from Lubbock, Texas, who has worked very hard on this reauthorization of TRIA. It is essentially his bill. It came out of his subcommittee, and he has done yeoman's work to make sure that we understand what the deal is through law, how to protect taxpayers, what the government role is, and it means that we can move forward from here with the certainty that American taxpayers and the industry have a well-understood deal. I am also glad, though, that this is good for small business; it is good for farmers; it is good for ranchers; it is good for Members of Congress, 411 of us that had voted for pieces of this bill before today. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I note that today we have a speaker for our friends, the Democrats, as well as the vice chairman of the Committee on Financial Services who are here, really, I believe, to give this body a real shot in the arm about how important this legislation is. I think about what a great job the process has gone through and achieved. I would like to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Neugebauer). Then I want to bring him back as he wants to talk a little bit more, but we want to make sure that we get to our colleague from New York before it takes too much time.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Exactly what the gentlewoman speaks about was part of the long discussion that we had in the Rules Committee yesterday. The gentleman from Dallas, Texas, Chairman Hensarling, very clearly went through-- piece, by piece, by piece--the things which the Senate had added which were extraneous to TRIA and that were in their bill that they passed. Likewise, the chairman outlined what he was for. He described a bill that got 411 votes in this body. One thing was a very pleasant surprise, and I thought it was very wisely done by the Secretary of the Treasury. I would like to read what Secretary Jacob Lew said in a letter that was addressed on December 7, just this week, to the Honorable Charles E. Schumer. Chuck Schumer is the leader of this TRIA bill in the Senate. He said: Dear Senator Schumer, I want to thank you for your leadership on extending the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act and its program. As you know well, TRIA is critical to our economic and national security. Terrorism insurance is necessary for a broad range of economic activities in areas across the country and would be prohibitively expensive or unavailable in the absence of the program. There is clear bipartisan support in both the Senate and the House to enact a long-term extension while making reforms to further reduce taxpayer exposure. Time is running short to head off an unnecessary, unprecedented, and disruptive lapse of the program, which is scheduled to expire in just a few weeks. Given the economic necessity and national security implications of this legislation, TRIA's reauthorization should not be delayed due to disagreements over entirely unrelated financial regulatory issues. I appreciate the hard work you and your bipartisan colleagues are doing to reauthorize a long-term extension of the TRIA. Mr. Speaker, I would like to insert this in the Record. Department of the Treasury, Washington, DC, December 7, 2014. Hon. Charles E. Schumer, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Dear Senator Schumer: I write to thank you for your leadership on extending the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) and its Program. As you know well, TRIA is critical to our economic and national security. Terrorism insurance is necessary for a broad range of economic activities in areas across the country, and would be prohibitively expensive or unavailable in the absence of the Program. There is clear bipartisan support in both the Senate and the House to enact a long-term extension while making reforms to further reduce taxpayer exposure. Time is running short to head off an unnecessary, unprecedented, and disruptive lapse of the Program, which is scheduled to expire in a few weeks. Given the economic necessity and national security implications of this legislation, TRIA's reauthorization should not be delayed due to disagreements over entirely unrelated financial regulatory issues. I appreciate the hard work you and your bipartisan colleagues are doing to reauthorize a long-term extension of the TRIA. Sincerely, Jacob J. Lew.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, this is from the Secretary of the Treasury, who is asking Mr. Schumer, please, let's work to get this done because it makes sense. I yield 10 minutes to the gentleman from Lubbock, Texas (Mr. Neugebauer), the vice chairman of the committee, who can further delve into the issues about how important this measure is.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I thank the distinguished gentleman from Florida not only for the effort that we have had today but also at the Rules Committee yesterday, where the committee heard really, really great points, perhaps on both sides, but great points about how important this legislation is not only to the country but to the stability of the marketplace and the ability to keep and grow jobs. I also heard the gentleman very clearly talk about his displeasure of having a number of closed rules. And I would just thank the gentleman for reminding me, as chairman of the committee, and would respond back that almost every single week we were in session, we put into play more amendments for Democrats than Harry Reid did in 6 years for any Republican in the United States Senate. And I have tried to make sure that what I do is based upon some bit of fairness. But the facts of the case are, the last time this TRIA bill was on the floor, then-Chairman Barney Frank asked for and received a closed rule, so he did the same thing in 2007. Republicans have also, under these processes, done the same thing, except that in 2005 and 2007, they were done on suspension, meaning that we had about 10 minutes to talk about the effort. Today what we have tried to do is to have a full debate in the Rules Committee. The gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings), among others, was allowed as much time as anybody wanted to discuss the ideas and fully vet the views of not only the ranking member and the gentlewoman from New York but also the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hensarling) to explain to the Rules Committee that most Members are not aware of all the arguments, the real need to make sure that TRIA was done well, and it was better to do it well. And certainly putting a closed rule means we can get through things in these remaining days. Good legislation--this bill is a 411-vote piece of legislation. You heard from Chairman Neugebauer from Lubbock, Texas--really, the architect of much of this legislation and the person who has the authority and the responsibility to the subcommittee--who worked with Chairman Hensarling to develop leading-edge ideas that they could feel free to bring to this body and support. So I think it is just critical that we are here today. We are going to get our work done. It is really noncontroversial, except if we just want to roll over and second-guess what the Senate wants to do. They had their shot at it, and they added some ``extraneous measures,'' none that had been passed with 90-plus percent of their body. We are going to work through this, and it is going to be doing the right thing for the right reason. As I have said, I think it is important that we know why we are here, what we are doing. We have talked about the Secretary of Treasury, Secretary Lew, writing a letter to Chuck Schumer, the lead in the Senate, saying, Hey, listen, let's get this thing done. It is so important. Chairman Neugebauer, Chairman Hensarling, the just-in-time arrival of a bill, the Rules Committee, a long debate, a long discussion--there is plenty of time to debate on the floor today. Any Member that wanted to could show up here. There is just not a lot to be upset about. It is just really a good mark of the fine work that the gentlemen from Texas, Mr. Neugebauer and Mr. Hensarling, have done. So it was really a pretty interesting meeting yesterday. I got to learn a lot. And the members of the Rules Committee said, this is the right thing to do. Let's not get in the way. It is important to the country. Mr. Speaker, once again, I would like to say that I think the Secretary is right. I think the chairman of the committee is right. I think the vice chairman of the committee is right. I think many of the people who came up to the Rules Committee yesterday were right. This is a great piece of legislation. This package will provide a long-term extension to TRIA. It is going to make reforms to protect taxpayers. It is going to make sure the industry understands what it is. It is a bipartisan fix. It is going to include a bill with 411 votes out of this body. I think it is a darn good deal, and I am delighted to do that. So I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.'' Vote ``yes'' on this rule and ``yes'' on the underlying legislation.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, the preliminary estimate of the amendment in the nature of a substitute, which was available at the time Rules Committee Report 113-654 was prepared, estimated that the legislation would reduce the deficit by $457 million over 10 years. The final table provided by CBO estimates that the legislation would reduce the deficit by $456 million.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution. The previous question was ordered.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, House Report 113-646, the report to accompany H. Res. 770, the special rule that governed consideration of the Senate amendment to H.R. 3979, as well as H.R. 5759 and H.R. 5781, contained an error in the description of the motion that was the subject of Rules Committee record vote No. 198.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor our Armed Forces and their families, on this Christmas and holiday season of giving. Their gifts to our Nation are of the greatest. Let's keep them in our prayers this Christmas and holiday season. I submit this poem penned in their honor by Albert Carey Caswell. Hear What I Hear Pray for peace, people everywhere Listen to what I say I say The child, the child, sleeping in the night he will bring us goodness and light he will bring us goodness and light Do you hear what I hear, I hear This Christmas our troops are coming home, to their loved ones where they belong To be near. To be near Do you hear what I hear I hear All those most poignant tears, of all those who've lost their loved ones so very dear So dear Who will be alone year after year After year Never again to be near To be near All of those little boys and girls, who've lost all their best friends in the world In the world Do you see what I see I see All those amputees, who gave all their strong arms and legs, as for you and me what they gave What they gave And all those physical therapists who inspire these To dig in deep Dig in deep Do you see what I see All those selfless ones, whose eyesight is now gone, all for the price of freedom they paid They paid Do you know what I know I know How inside them all so grows, the scars of war upon them so PTS something on that outside which doesn't show Do you know what I know Our Armed Forces, are our most brilliant of all souls Whose hearts are made of gold, and their families so And their families so Let us bring them silver and gold Silver and gold All in our hearts that we hold, that we hold Do you know what I know All those doctors and nurses so, who from death have so stole So stole Giving all those families hope Giving them peace and such hope As all across America in hospitals their dedication shows Shows Do you see what I see I see On this Christmas Eve, how much we owe to all of these How great they are so all indeed With a voice as big as the sea as big as the sea Found in all their deeds In this season, of the birth of the Prince of Peace, please please remember him and all of these Because they too bring us goodness and light, they bring us goodness and light By: Albert Caswell.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentleman from Florida--who, by the way, Mr. Speaker, has three sons who serve or who have served in the United States military--who yesterday so adequately expressed really the concerns of not only a Member of Congress, a father, a proud American, but of a man who wants and needs America to lead in this world rather than follow. Yesterday--or it turned into last night--in the Rules Committee, we spent a good bit of time that I think, Mr. Speaker, was very thoughtful, and on a bipartisan basis Members of this body expressed deep and dear reservations about actually where we are as a country, where our men and women are in harm's way, the mission and the purpose of what we are attempting to accomplish overseas. Mr. Speaker, America has adversaries and also enemies. We have people who would do terrible things not just to their own people in foreign countries, but who want to engage the United States to draw us into further conflict. The United States is without, in my opinion, and I think others', a strategic and tactical plan that would effectively be understood by Congress and the American people. Yesterday--that turned into last night--we had Members of this body on a bipartisan basis who showed up at the Rules Committee to politely and professionally express their reservations about our funding through the National Defense Authorization Act what is considered to be a year or 2-year long process of funding without a clear mark, a clear understanding, about what we are agreeing to. Mr. Speaker, I found myself not just agreeing with the likes of Mr. McGovern and others who spoke about a need for us to know what we are doing, but I found great confidence when we had the gentleman from Colorado, Mike Coffman, who showed up and spoke about the unrelenting and unending fraud on behalf of other countries taking American tax dollars. The problem is that we are debating this without any real discussion because our friends on the other side of this building are not willing to engage us on the issue. So we are viewing this in a difficult way today.

Mr. SESSIONS. I thank the gentleman from Florida, a member of the Rules Committee. I want to show up and to say to you, Mr. Speaker, the American people, and Members--as they are trying to prepare for what we are attempting to do today with this document--that in January there is going to be a reorganization and discussion around this exact same issue where we will have a partner in the United States Senate with thoughtful content. Mr. Speaker, I will end here. If the Chinese, the Russians, and the Iranians can establish a policy of where they are in these dangerous areas, the United States should also. We need leadership, and it will happen starting January 5.

Mr. SESSIONS

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 766 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to my friend, the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Slaughter), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. General Leave

Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.