David Scott

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, as the ranking member of the subcommittee of jurisdiction over this bill, I would like to address the three major areas of contention here. We have put a lot of time, a lot of work in this over the years. First, we want to deal with, as Mr. Peterson brought up, some of his concerns and share how we are responding to that. I am a sponsor of this bill. We have worked on it. It is a similar bill to what we had before. The first area I want to deal with is cross border, and then I will go to cost-benefit analysis, and then end users. What is important for the House and the people of this Nation to understand is that we operate in a global market, and our United States financial system is best served with deep financial liquidity. But if global regulations are not well harmonized, are not well coordinated, or we have good cross-border access, then these global markets will fragment into separate regulatory jurisdictions and become far less liquid, to the detriment of the United States financial system. We know now that the derivatives swaps market is about an $815 trillion piece of the economy, and we must not--and I am sure we will not--put our financial system of the United States at a disadvantage on the world stage. By passing this bill, we will not do that. If we delay it again, we will be putting our financial system at a disadvantage on the stage. Let me deal with the first concern that has been brought up. The claim that our legislation subverts the CFTC's authority to regulate foreign derivatives, this is flat-out false because at no point is an entity of the United States person able to escape U.S. rules that the CFTC, itself, has deemed equivalent. Let me read section 314 that has been referred to. In section (b)(2)(A) of 314, it clearly states that only the CFTC can make sure that foreign entities, regulations are comparable to the United States. At no point do we yield the power of the CFTC to any foreign entity unless the CFTC makes sure that that foreign entity has equivalent rules to our Nation. Now, let me go to the claim that we are making it harder to challenge the cross border in 314. We are doing no such thing. It is important that if there is a country, if there is anybody in the world that wants to challenge, that wants to have a way of challenging the ruling of the CFTC, it is in our best interest to make sure that they go through a petition process, and the petition process is there to give the CFTC ample time--180 days--to review the challenge and be able to respond appropriately. And after the Commission makes its decision, we request them to report to the Congress. Now, how is that making it harder? As a matter of fact, it is making it easier and more transparent. Now, the concern about the bill's attempts to rein in the CFTC's capacity to impose certain rules on Wall Street trades, this concern refers to what we refer to as U.S. persons and location tests. At no time, Mr. Chairman, does our bill state that U.S. persons are not subject to U.S. rules. Individuals and transactions are still allowed to be carved in definitions and, thus, subject to the same rules, the same tests, and regulations. And our own Commissioner Bowen, who is a Democrat serving on the CFTC, stated before my subcommittee, ``risk should be about risk and not about location.'' Tests should be about where the risk is, instead of where someone wrote something on a piece of paper. Now let me deal with the business that our bill creates a presumption that each of the eight foreign jurisdictions with the largest swaps markets automatically have swap rules that are considered to be comparable to and as comprehensive as the United States requirements. Yes, they are correct, but that presumption comes only after the CFTC makes sure that those eight foreign markets have comparable rules to us. Here is what it says in section 1: ``The Commission shall determine, by rule or by order, whether the swaps regulatory requirements of foreign jurisdictions are comparable to and as comprehensive as United States requirements.'' I rest my case. But now, Mr. Chairman, I want to turn to what is the most important cross-border issue, this business with the European Union. The European Union is discriminating against the United States.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. The European Union is denying our country status in terms of equivalency of rules. Historically, we have always had that. But what is very interesting is they have already given this standing to jurisdictions that have the same regime as ours. Why is that? Something very strange is going on in the European Union. They are discriminating against our financial system when they will go ahead and approve other regimes that are equal to ours but not ours. Why is this a terrible thing? Because, Mr. Chairman, our clearinghouses can't do business in Europe if we are not qualified, if we do not have that equivalency. So by taking that equivalency away, they are keeping our clearinghouses and our businesses from being able to be used there because the other market participants will go elsewhere rather than come and do business with us. There are millions of dollars at stake here, so we have got to certainly deal with that. Mr. Chairman, I do want to say something about this cost-benefit analysis because this is not all truth is being told here. This cost- benefit analysis is being put on because it has the way of being able to make us more efficient. Mr. Peterson brought up the point of litigation; that is a legitimate concern, but here is what we did: we accepted and approved an amendment by Democratic Representative DelBene and some Republicans to make sure that the CFTC's back door is protected. The amendment clearly states that the court must uphold the decision of the CFTC unless there has been an abuse of discretion. In a court of law, abuse is a high threshold to attain.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. This is important, Mr. Chairman. I have got my name on this bill. I have put the work and time into this bill. It is important that I give the reasons why I am supporting this bill. Now, this amendment says, as I said before, that a court must uphold the decision of the CFTC unless there has been an abuse of discretion. In a court of law, abuse is a high threshold to attain. If a firm wants to challenge the CFTC, they know right off that they better have beyond compelling facts to prove it. The CFTC's abuse of power is a discretion. We are letting anyone know who would dare to pursue litigation against the CFTC that they better think twice. Now, about the funding, Mr. Chairman, perhaps this cost analysis can help us build a case to take to the Appropriations Committee to get more money. The President has appropriately asked for more money for the CFTC. Year after year after year, I have been asking for more money, but I do believe that if we put the cost-benefit analysis in there--and, again, Mr. Chairman, we have a section in there where this cost-benefit analysis would be more succinct if it is done with an economist. Cost benefit is an economic issue, a financial issue; an economist should be doing that, not a lawyer. I believe, Mr. Chairman, that if we pass this bill, we will be taking a great step forward to be able to put our CFTC on the world stage to be able to negotiate the rules and regulations for the United States of America from a position of strength, not weakness. This is a very delicate time for us, and we are losing respect. Look at the EU; look at how other nations are treating us. Could it be, Mr. Chairman, that we are losing this respect largely because in a way by continuing year after year--this is the third year of not reauthorizing CFTC--by us doing that, we are not respecting ourselves, Mr. Chairman? Now, finally, Mr. Chairman, I do want to say this one thing about the end users. This is a very important piece of this bill. They can't wait another 3 years. They need this relief right away, and we need to do and be able to get them out of an identification of being a financial institution. Let me tell you why that is. End users are businesses who use a single entity that allows their company to centralize functions such as credit and risk; however, when the banking laws come in on finance, they put them in that category.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, first of all let me say that, as the gentleman just mentioned, I do serve as the ranking member of the jurisdictional committee on commodities and futures and trading that the CFTC comes under. I say that only to say that I have been in the vineyards on this issue and have been struggling with it and working on it over many, many years. The whole derivatives and commodities and futures markets have changed dramatically. We have had a downfall in our economy because of a lot of activity that was wrong going on on Wall Street and in our financial community, out of which we are now emerging. Mr. Speaker, what is urgent here is the fact that we cannot delay any longer. It is very important for people to understand that no legislation is perfect. I am the first one to say that. This is a glass that looks to be half empty or maybe half full. I look at it as half full. I look at it as an urgent, urgent issue. We have got to get end-user relief. That is the major component of this reauthorization for the CFTC because it is the end users--our manufacturers, our farmers, those who produce the products, those who had nothing to do with the downfall of Wall Street, why should they be consistently held to the same intrinsic regulations and rules that our financial institutions have? We have got to have those financial institutions under strong regulation, but it is important that we move, and it is important meat of this bill that we give end-user relief. Now, I share Mr. McGovern's concerns about the financial situation, but let me just assure everyone, this is a reauthorization piece of legislation. It is not a funding mechanism. That is in the bosom, in the hands of the Committee on Appropriations; and nobody, absolutely nobody, has been a stronger champion, more consistent about getting the CFTC the funding they need. I bring it up all the time. I will still be a champion, but this isn't the bill in which to address that. The other point is this, Mr. Chairman, once we get the funding out of the way. We talked about the cost-benefit analysis in this. We worked on it. This bill received bipartisan support in the last session. Mr. McGovern brings up a very good point about possible litigation. We address that by adding a Democratic amendment by Ms. DelBene that addresses that issue to make sure that there is no litigation. As far as the cost-benefit analysis is concerned, Mr. Speaker, it is important that we put the same sort of cost-benefit analysis into this agency that the Obama administration has in every one of their executive agencies. Furthermore, it is not a mandate; it is an assessment. It is saying to assess the efficiencies, make sure we do it, and it does not put a requirement that any decision on the cost- benefit analysis outweighs one another as a requirement for them to make a decision. Finally, Mr. Speaker, we must pass this bill, and we need to do it quickly because, in section 300 of this bill--I think it is section 323--we address a crucial issue. The European Union is eating our lunch. All across the world, we are losing our stature as the leading financial industry and system in the world. That affects every ounce of our security. We are number one in the world, and it is about time we stand up and ensure that by making sure that we address the European Union's harsh discrimination against our financial institutions abroad. This is particularly true when it comes to our clearinghouses, the standards that they are using. Now, Mr. Speaker, yes, we are dealing with eight foreign countries, but they must have similar regimes, what we call equivalency. Now, why is that important, Mr. Speaker?

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. It is important because it is the CFTC that must determine if another nation, one of the eight top foreign nations, has an equivalency of a strong regulatory regime as does the United States, then certainly we can do business under their regime, but as long as we don't pass this legislation, the CFTC doesn't have that. Finally, on all the cross-border situations, we need a definition of what a U.S. person is, and we need to give some backbone to our CFTC Commission to say: Look, why should the United States have to treat a foreign entity in a manner and with the respect that that foreign nation does not treat our industry? Mr. Speaker, this country, the United States, is losing a tremendous amount of our prestige and our leadership on the world stage, and nowhere is that being pronounced more than in our financial system because for 3 years we have had this laid on the table. I urge a positive vote for this rule. I thank the gentleman from Massachusetts for yielding me the time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise on this occasion to first of all say how much I appreciate this opportunity to address my colleagues and the Nation and to talk for just a few moments about a loving and caring woman, Mrs. Mandie Dell Aaron Nixon. Mandie Dell Aaron Nixon passed away a few days ago. She was a special woman, and a dedicated worker for the Lord. She loved lifting up the name of Jesus, praising him with all her heart. She let her light shine. Mandie Dell Aaron Nixon was born in Camden, Alabama, to the late Reverend Henry Aaron and missionary, Mariah Aaron. Being born in a Christian home, she accepted the Lord into her heart at a very early age. Mandie was a loving wife, sister, and mother to her five children. She is survived by two children, three sisters, and a host of five generations of grandchildren. Her entire beloved family mourns this hour. But let me just say, Mr. Speaker, that not only her family mourns, for this caring woman touched many lives. During her journey here on Earth, Mandie loved with her whole heart. She was active in her church community, even President of the Mother's Board for many years. She always had something nice to say about everyone. When she looked at you, she always saw the best in you, and would make sure to impart words of encouragement and wisdom. Mr. Speaker, this is a dedicated woman and one who was humble and humbled herself before God, and understood not only who she was but whose she was. And so I just want to rise this afternoon to say these few words about this generous, loving woman, Mandie Dell Aaron Nixon. Let me just say in conclusion, Mr. Speaker, God bless Mandie Dell Aaron Nixon. She fought the good fight, she finished her race, and she kept the faith. And most of all, she will be truly missed by many.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, ladies and gentlemen, B.B. King, a musical genius, has passed away. When B.B. King was just a little boy down in Indianola, Mississippi, he stood up in the middle of a cotton field, and he said: One day, somebody is going to stand up and sing about me and play the guitar about me. Then he said: You know, I reckon it will be myself. Yeah, I reckon it will be me. B.B. King went on to become a worldwide icon of music; and people all over the world, regardless of race, creed, or color, appreciated and loved B.B. King. B.B. King influenced all the great ones, from Frank Sinatra to Elvis Presley; and Elvis Presley loved B.B. King. Aretha Franklin, Sam Cook, Eric Clapton, Mick Jagger, even the Beatles and Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, all of these musical legends were influenced by B.B. King. B.B. King sung about the deep things of life. He sung about love-- love lost and love gained. B.B. King sang, and he played the blues. A unique American cultural, musical genre, B.B. King. Ladies and gentlemen, you know, B.B. King would say: Trouble in mind, I'm blue But I won't be blue always 'Cause I know the sun's gonna shine in my back door someday I am all alone at midnight, and the lights are burning low But the sun's gonna shine in my back door someday. Mr. Speaker, the great classic of so many classics that he wrote and he sang was ``The Thrill is Gone.'' As he would say, ``The thrill is gone away.'' But, Mr. Speaker, the thrill of B.B. King and his life and his music and his great contributions as a genuine American hero will live on and on for generations to come. B.B. King's music will live on, and Lucille, his guitar, will live on. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Speaker, we thank God, Jehovah God Almighty, for sending B.B. King our way.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Ladies and gentlemen, on the bleached bones of many past great nations are written those pathetic words: Too late. Too late. We moved too late to save them. History is cluttered with them. We are almost at that point with Ukraine. Anyone who has followed the Russian model under Putin knows full well what his aim is to reclaim that territory, that empire, of the old Soviet Union. Now, if Ukraine goes, what happens to Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia? And just today in the news we hear where Russia has threatened a nuclear response, I believe it is, to Denmark. Now, what is happening in the world? The world now is a very dark, a very dangerous, and a very evil place. And when those three things get together, there must be that shining light on the hill that shows the way out of the darkness. Throughout history, that light has been the United States of America. We must act here. Let us hope that President Obama will hear our plea as Democrats and as Republicans. We have got to help save Ukraine from Russia. I serve on the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. For 12 years I have served on NATO. I have served as the chairman of the Science and Technology Committee.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. I am here to tell you, ladies and gentlemen, if we don't act here, there will be a devastation on the European continent the likes of which we have not seen since World War II. We don't need to repeat that. Let us rise to this occasion. Let us do the right thing. Let us be that shining light on the hill that shows the way out of this darkness. Mr. Speaker, there are some times in life you have just got to stand up to the bully. The United States must stand up to Putin and let him know that there is a light in this world, and the United States is going to show the way. The best way to do that today is to pass this resolution, and let's send Ukraine the military help that they need to protect themselves and the legacy of this fine country.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Article V: ``The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or, on the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either case, shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of this Constitution, when ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the several States . . . ''

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, this bill is a labor economics jobs bill. The American people need jobs. The labor unions who founded and built the middle class of this Nation need jobs. But, ladies and gentlemen, nobody needs jobs like young Black men. I see this as an opportunity here today. The highest unemployment rate is with Black young men. For Black young men between the ages of 19 and 35, the unemployment rate is 38 percent--38 percent--and in some communities it is 50 percent. That is why I come before you today. I support the bill. But I want you all to help me support an amendment. You all know the amendment process is going on over in the Senate. Over in the Senate, Senator McConnell said he is open to amendments. Here is the amendment: the amendment would just put language in this bill that would put the apprenticeship programs, what they affectionately call ``earn as you learn'' on-the-job training--no Federal money--and target those and guide and direct and encourage in this language that our labor union partners bring in these young African American men to learn these trade building skills. Each of the labor unions are ready. They have the apprenticeship programs, they have them there. We need this desperately, ladies and gentlemen. Do you know that sitting in the prisons right now are 1 million Black men. Every week, thousands of our Black men are going into prison. The number one reason: they don't have jobs. This is a jobs bill. Yeah, it has got maybe, some people say, 4,000, some people say 2,000, but there will be other jobs that they can learn these skills from when we rebuild our infrastructure. You all have seen the sign. Black lives matter, but Black lives with jobs. Help me get this amendment in on the Senate side and let's pass this bill.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I certainly want to recognize and appreciate the gentlewoman from Manhattan for the excellent leadership job that she is doing on this. Mr. Speaker, this bill, TRIA, is so important. It is very important to note that it hasn't cost the taxpayers anything, and it has been very successful where needed; but, Mr. Speaker, this bill contains another very important piece: we affectionately call it NARAB, which is the National Association of Registered Agents and Brokers--just think if TRIA and the NARAB portion of this bill had been in place in 1999, before we had the terrorism risk, before we had the terrorist strikes of 9/11, and other terrorist attacks. But in the middle of all of that, even with the downturn of the economic calamity, standing in the middle of this storm were our insurance agents, the lifeline of the American people. What NARAB is doing here is making sure that we streamline the process and make sure that our insurance agents are able to operate across State lines. Mr. Speaker, we all realize that insurance is a State-licensed, State-authorized operation. NARAB does not interfere with that. As a matter of fact, all 50 of the insurance agents of our States have all agreed with NARAB. This is an important bill because our insurance agents, our small businesses, are the lifeline in tragedy and distress. We live in a highly mobile society now. It is very important for our agents to be able to go across State lines with one licensing procedure that is held to the highest standard while at the same time being licensed in their own State. We have had great cooperation from all of our insurance agents, including the insurance agents' association. Our financial advisers and our brokers all agree. The other thing, Mr. Speaker, is that many of us on the Financial Services Committee have been working on this measure for 10 years. For 10 years, we have been toiling in the vineyards on this and so have others in the Senate. Now is the time to give our insurance agents the respect and the nobility of purpose of their very fine profession and at the same time reach our primary goal, which is to give the American insurance consumers the choice, the competition, and the benefits that they need.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Thank you very much, Madam Chairman. Mr. Speaker, I am sure, as those who are watching this on C-SPAN across the Nation, we can comfortably say that what we have in motion on the floor of the House of Representatives is something that Alexander Hamilton leaned over and said to Thomas Jefferson: ``My friend, what we have here is an old-fashioned, good old compromise.'' Compromise, a word that has been out of our lexicon for so long that the American people are looking for us to put it back in. Well, that is what we have on this floor. It is a compromise. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the ranking member because of her tenacity and her leadership because in his vision on the other side, the distinguished Chairman Hensarling, who is a very good friend, in his own way sought for a $500 million trigger. We on our side felt that we wanted to hold to the $100 trigger which is when the actual Federal assistance would go into action, and we knew that that was further. I commend the ranking member and I certainly commend Mr. Hensarling for agreeing and recognizing that we would come to the 200 level. I also want to thank Mr. Hensarling for including in this NARAB, that is such an important measure, and many people may not realize this, but we have worked on NARAB for 10 years in the Financial Services Committee. It has been a major part of my whole legislative history in this body every year working on it. I want to thank you, Chairman Hensarling, for listening to us, talking, and agreeing to make this a part of this bill that we have before us. Thank you very much for doing that. The other part, I want to thank both, and I certainly want to thank our ranking member for her wisdom in compromising on the end user. Now, we all know of the differences with Dodd-Frank. I tried to have a clear view on this, and it was very important that we make this technical change, so that we don't let our ranchers, our farmers, and our manufacturers--none of which had anything to do with the Wall Street debacle and none of which are financial institutions--that we will exempt them from the cumbersome and the overbearing need to put margins out when they are doing swaps and derivatives. Ladies and gentlemen, this is an excellent bill, it is a good bill, and it is one that we urge to move forward.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. As my colleague from Georgia (Mr. Westmoreland) has just eloquently stated, there is a great need for this, everybody is in agreement on it. The Cotton Number 2 contract is needed as a hedging tool for our cotton industry globally. It is needed so that we can have both delivery points inside as well as outside the United States because our global markets are now more global. As my colleague, Mr. Westmoreland, mentioned, we have not touched this law since 1916. That is nearly 100 years. You can imagine so much has changed. It is very, very much more global, and we do not need to put our cotton participants in trade, in marketing, in commodities at a disadvantage, as was indicated, to other markets. This is urgent. If we do not move within the next 3 weeks, so that we can have this on the books as law in time for our cotton participants in the United States to be able to function for their year 2015--in the cotton business you start early, you start in January and February, so it is very urgent. The legislation benefits everybody. All participants are in agreement. The bottom line is that this legislation is about modernization. Our markets, as I said before, have become much more global. It is a technical correction. It will help our cotton farmers, our cotton producers, and those who have to hedge in the marketplace around the world, and it does not--does not--put our cotton industry in the United States at a disadvantage globally. I certainly urge that we all accept this amendment and move forward with a very, very important part of American industry, the cotton industry. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the accomplishments of a dear friend and colleague, Mr. Ennis Antoine Jr. Over the last twenty years, Mr. Antoine has left an indelible impression on the city of Atlanta, Georgia through his entrepreneurial advances in real estate and philanthropic endeavors. Whether it be in his church, his community, or business, Mr. Antoine strives to turn any challenge into an opportunity. In 2004, Mr. Antoine moved from a promising career in journalism to pursue his passions in the realm of real estate, marking the beginning of a career that would be recognized as among the most prolific in the booming real estate market of Atlanta. Later, in 2008, Mr. Antoine made history by becoming the first African American to be honored with the Realtor of the Year award for his outstanding commercial accomplishments during a time in which Georgia was still reeling from the Great Recession. Recently, the Atlanta Board of Realtors elected to honor Mr. Antoine by making him their 90th president and the first African American president in the history of the organization. Throughout his distinguished career, Mr. Antoine has used his success to empower those around him. Well known by his friends and family for a seemingly inexhaustible amount of energy, Mr. Antoine spends much of his weekends volunteering at his local church as a deacon and assistant pastor, in addition to also mentoring youth. On many weeknights, he can be found teaching real estate classes, where he passes on the practical business skills he has accumulated through years of shaping the Atlanta real estate market. When Hurricane Katrina decimated his hometown of New Orleans, Mr. Antoine took in over 40 friends and relatives whose homes and livelihoods had been destroyed by the flood waters. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to not only honor the impressive achievements of this man and his recent election as the President of the Atlanta Board of Realtors, but also to commend his compassionate contributions to my Congressional district and to the great State of Georgia. I ask my colleagues to join me in venerating this distinguished individual.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to offer a tribute to a leader in advertising research and innovation--Joe Philport, Ph.D.--who plans to retire at the end of this year. I have a special appreciation for advertising, based on my professional background. After earning an MBA from Wharton, I started an advertising business in Atlanta, Georgia, representing major corporations and other clients. Therefore, I know the importance of ratings when buying and selling media for advertising. All parties benefit from the availability of a trusted currency to measure audience. Dr. Philport led the development of a modernized method to measure audiences for out of home advertising. In 2002, he became chief executive officer of the Traffic Audit Bureau (TAB). In those days, out of home media was measured by traffic counts, or how many people were likely to pass by a billboard or a bus shelter. By early 2010, guided by Dr. Philport's leadership, TAB introduced a new ratings system that measures audiences that actually see out of home ads. The modernized TAB Out of Home Ratings provides detailed information about audiences, including age, gender, and ethnicity. This sort of information is important to those buying media, the customers. Mr. Speaker, I have been a longtime billboard customer, so these types of improvements in audience measurement are important to me personally. The ability to collect and analyze vast amounts of data offers benefits in the efficiency of communicating messages. We all know the need to balance the use of data with respect for privacy. As a former advertising executive and as a buyer of advertising, I ask my colleagues to join me in commending Dr. Joe Philport for his contributions to the advertising industry and to wish him well in retirement.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, ladies and gentlemen of the Congress, ladies and gentlemen of America, and President Barack Obama, I rise this morning with a heavy, heavy heart at the passing of two great, magnificent Americans from my home State of Georgia, Herman Russell and Governor Carl Sanders--two men, two giants whose lives intertwined at a most important time in the history of this Nation and especially in the history of the South, for these two men, Herman Russell and Governor Carl Sanders, ushered in and gave birth to the New South, the South away from segregation. It was Herman Russell and Governor Carl Sanders who broke down the barriers of segregation and paved a new way and a new day for this Nation. That is why we are so proud of these two gentlemen. Every school should look at their autobiographies, because they made it the hard way, against the odds. Herman Russell, born into poverty in south Atlanta, came up and didn't let the ravages of segregation stop him, didn't let his speech impediment stop him, and emerged with the world's largest, most profitable construction and real estate financial firm owned by an African American. But, oh, it wouldn't have happened if he hadn't had a Governor at that time named Carl Sanders, who broke down those racial barriers. I will tell you about him. As a quarterback at the University of Georgia, he left the University of Georgia and went and volunteered at 19 years old to fight in the military for his country. He came back and ran for the State House of Representatives, against the segregationist party. And this man, because of him being in the right place at the right time, and because of Herman Russell being in the right place at the right time, Major League Baseball came knocking, and there we built Atlanta Stadium. Ivan Allen said: Build it, and they will come. It was Carl Sanders who passed the legislation setting up the Atlanta Fulton County Recreation Authority that made it happen--all of this happening while all around us in the South was racial turmoil, and Herman Russell building his great company and becoming the first African American to sit on the board and a member of the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. Oh, my friends, the world, these are two great trees who were planted by the rivers of waters, and they brought forth their fruit and their season, and none of their leaves withered, and let me tell you that every single thing they touched prospered. They touched me. I wouldn't be in Congress this day if it weren't for Herman Russell, an African American who dared to fight segregation and reach across, and Carl Sanders, a White Governor, who, himself, fought and integrated the schools in Georgia when it was not popular. When I got ready to run for the State House, it was Herman Russell who I asked, Could you help me? He said, Yes, I will. Who have you got with you? I said, I have got Andy Young. I have got Maynard Jackson. I have got ``home run king'' Hank Aaron. Then Herman said, Well, where are your White folks? I went, and the first door I knocked on was that of Governor Carl Sanders, who took me in and gave me a contribution. He didn't stop there. He even assigned two of his lawyers, Norman Underwood and Dale Schwartz, to get out into the community and help me. That is what Carl Sanders and Herman Russell mean. They built Atlanta the right way. When Pete Rozelle wanted the NFL--all of this while the civil rights movement was churning, but in Atlanta, the NFL was coming--he picked up the phone and called Carl Sanders. Can you get me somebody there, Governor, who has got $5 million or $6 million? We will bring an NFL team to Atlanta. Carl Sanders got on the phone and called his old buddy at the University of Georgia. We thank God for Herman Russell and Carl Sanders. God bless Herman Russell and Carl Sanders, and God bless the United States of America.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Carpenter/Walden Family Reunion, and I ask that my colleagues join me in honoring this wonderful occasion. This reunion affirms the importance of family gatherings, drawing together relatives from Atlanta and as far away as Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Baltimore, Washington, DC, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. They are continually reaching out for more relatives to come from all parts of the United States to reunite for a weekend of activities to reconnect and celebrate the meaning of ``Family.'' The Carpenter family celebrates the matrimonial union of Pason Carpenter (born 1828) to his wife, who predeceased him, and from this union, nine children were born and raised by his second wife, Henrietta. From this union, there have been at least 100 direct descendants and hundreds of other relatives who bear the Surnames of Carpenter and Walden. We are the descendants of Pason Carpenter, whose son, Charlie Carpenter, bore a son named John H. Carpenter (who married Arie) and among 7 children, their grandfather, Willie Carpenter (who married Estelle Moody) and their 8 children were: Leroy, Florence, Naomi, Hawthorne, Georgetta, Willie Jr., Earl, and Curley. This reunion committee is largely comprised of the children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and great great grandchildren of Leroy Carpenter. The Carpenter/Walden's first reunion was started by Emma Shands, who hosted mass cook-outs in her backyard many years ago during the 1950s in Hopewell, Virginia. In July each year, all of the Carpenters and Waldens along with friends and relatives came. This ``cook-out'' tradition still goes on today and serves as a traditional homecoming that takes place on the first Sunday of August and everyone gathers in Virginia to celebrate. The Carpenters and Waldens connect with family and friends and worship at Diamond Grove Baptist Church in Skippers, Virginia. One of the family's most senior members, Emma's brother, Buddy Walden, has extended his efforts to link the family, and his research of the family roots entailed venturing from state to state. This tradition prompts an inquiry at each reunion closeout for a family volunteer to host the next reunion held bi-annually in that family's hometown. This has been the Carpenter/Walden tradition for the past 10- 20 years where hundreds of relatives from all corners of the United States reunite for a weekend of activities, reconnecting, and celebrating. Youth filled with exuberance along with the elders seasoned by wisdom of years will unite because of this occasion. They honor Johnny Walden, the oldest of the family's seasoned elders at the age of 90+, twins Jeff and Kaiser Carpenter who are our Carpenter/ Walden history/storytellers, and the family now welcomes the youngest additions, Simone Carpenter and Jerome Goode, Jr. The Governor of the State of Georgia, Nathan Deal, recognizes this momentous gathering with a welcome letter and the host city of Stockbridge, GA, issued a proclamation to honor the Carpenter/Walden reunion. I ask that this great legislative body stand with me and add to these acknowledgements by honoring the Carpenter and Walden families. I am proud to represent the Carpenter/Walden family members who call the 13th Congressional District of Georgia home.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, we have before us perhaps the most important piece of legislation to add fluidity to a very complex, complicated financial arena in which we are in; and that is in the area of derivatives, swaps dealing, and dealing on the international stage as the world's number one economy--very complex, very complicated. History has shown that the United States is a leader in the world, particularly in economic affairs. We are here today to deal with reauthorization of the CFTC at a time when we have just come out of a very serious economic downturn. Now, I agree with my distinguished ranking member. We have worked very closely on this, and quite honestly, there is nobody in Congress that has the knowledge of financial services as does our ranking member. The ranking member and I have worked diligently to try to bring a serious bit of compromise to this area. She raises a good point. Let me take a couple of her concerns, so I can share with you how we have addressed those. The first one is the cross border. The claim that we are opening up and doing business with foreign governments and foreign jurisdictions that have no regulations there and we acquire risk--here is what we are doing, and I want to make sure we are clear. I serve on the Agriculture Committee as the ranking member on the Derivatives Subcommittee, and I serve on the Financial Services Committee. The very cross border that we are talking about has been debated, has been argued, and has been passed by this House in the form of H.R. 1256. Now, here is what needs to be understood: we have minimized totally any risk of importation of damage to our economy with the exemption of the top nine--not all the foreign governments and not the foreign jurisdictions--we are exempting the top nine largest swap dealers who deal in derivatives of foreign jurisdictions, and it will be the CFTC, in conjunction and jointly through joint rulemaking with the SEC. As Chairman Peterson pointed out, they are at loggerheads now. The first order of business is to get them to agree on a rule, and 270 days after that, that rule would go into effect, and immediately, the top five of those foreign jurisdictions that have rules and regulations that are equitable to ours-- which, again, will be determined jointly by the SEC and the CFTC--will go into effect. One year after that, the remaining four will go into effect, so what we have here is a check and balance right there. They will determine that criteria. We put something else in there, as well, to address Ms. Waters' very legitimate concern. We said that: look, once the CFTC has done this jointly with the SEC, then what we will do is any one of those foreign jurisdictions who do not measure up to having the equal amount of robust regime on their regulations, they will disavow them, and within 30 days, they must send to the Congress of the United States--specifically to the House Financial Services Committee, the Senate Banking Committee, the House Agriculture Committee, and the Senate Agriculture Committee--the reason why. Stop right there. That back door is closed tight. There will be no seepage. If these nine foreign countries that we work with--and, Mr. Chairman, you must realize that, historically, we are the leader, we have to show the way here, and we are not going to put in practice any way where there is any leakage that will come back to us that will be damaging to our system, it will be in the hands of where it needs to be, the regulators. They will determine if their rules and regulations meet ours, and if they don't, they will let Congress know, and then they will not be allowed. The other point, Mr. Chairman, is we have end users. This bill isn't just about banking. This bill is about farmers. This bill is about people who make things. We are the world's leading economy. We don't do business just in the United States; we do them all around the world. If we don't put this in--this cross border in--we will be putting our business community on the international stage in a very disadvantaged competitive position. So I submit to my friend, Ms. Waters, that we have certainly dealt with that. Now, the cost-benefit analysis--first of all, Ms. Waters should take credit for this because she really, on H.R. 1062, which was a mandate that we do, we changed that, thanks to you, and this is clearly an adjustment.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. We had a bill, H.R. 1062. Ms. Waters was absolutely right because that bill mandated the benefit and the cost, and it was beneficial, in a way, to certain industries. I voted against that bill with Ms. Waters. I took Ms. Waters' suggestion, and we went back, and we said that we can't mandate this. So what did we do with this bill? We simply said: let's consider how we can protect the market. Let's consider, let's assess how we can do that and not mandate it. Again, as Mr. Peterson has pointed out, we modeled this directly after what President Obama's executive order mandated, that you take a risk management assessment before you make the decisions.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I just wanted to clarify one point made by the gentlelady from New York, and I just pointed out to her, she was clear in her statement, and I am reading from the actual bill here where it says that: Or other foreign jurisdiction as jointly determined by the Commission, shall be exempt from the United States swaps requirements in accordance with the schedule unless the Commission jointly determines that the regulatory requirements of the country or administrative region or other foreign jurisdiction are not broadly equivalent to the United States. I just wanted to clear that up.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Chair, I thank Ms. DelBene. Ms. DelBene, Mr. Gibson, and Mr. Vargas are all hardworking members, Democrats and Republicans, on the Ag Committee. I think this shows you how wonderful the legislative process can be. I certainly want to recognize our ranking member who brought this concern in her opening remarks. This helps to tighten and, I think, make a better bill. What it will do is that it will address the concerns that Ms. Waters raised, and that would be that improved cost-benefits provision would lead to unnecessary litigation. What Ms. DelBene, Mr. Vargas, and Mr. Gibson have done with their language is it definitely narrows the potential avenues for litigation on the CFTC's cost-benefit analysis, but still allows the consideration of the points of analysis to take place. I want to commend Ms. DelBene, Mr. Gibson, and Mr. Vargas for a very good amendment.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. This is a very interesting debate in listening to it, but I think the simple point here, Mr. Chairman, is that, number one, this just deals with the registration. Prior to 2012, the SEC handled all of the RICs. Now, we have caught up in the middle of this millions and millions of pensioners, retirees, people who are getting into the golden years of their lives. My hope is that we can pass this amendment. It only deals with registration. The ranking member has brought up some interesting points. That is why we do have the courts to settle those. I think here, tonight, we need to think of what this simple amendment does is stop duplicative areas within registration and gives a better hand for our retirees today.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, it has been a pleasure to work with Representative Huizenga on this very, very important bill. This legislation is about two things: fairness and opportunity. My fellow cosponsors--both Democrats and Republicans--and I support H.R. 3211, which is the Mortgage Choice Act, because of our shared concern about access; access to credit, yes, for all consumers, but especially for lower-income consumers and middle-income consumers, and to ensure that everybody in America that needs a home and wants a home, when securing a loan, that they have a choice in selecting both the mortgage and the title insurance providers of their choice. I urge my colleagues to support this needed legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Our Financial Services Committee simply amends the Expedited Funds Availability Act to apply it to American Samoa. Essentially, it does just these few things. It extends by 2 business days for American Samoa any time periods established for large or redeposited checks, repeated overdraft, reasonable cause, or other emergency exceptions to the 30- day funds availability requirements for deposits in a depository institution account by a new depositor. It also applies this 2-day extension to any deposit in an account at a depository institution located in American Samoa by a check drawn on an originating depository institution which is not located in the same State as the receiving depository institution. With that, Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield to the distinguished gentleman from American Samoa (Mr. Faleomavaega) who has worked tirelessly on this effort and deserves so much credit for his sterling leadership. (Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)