David Scott

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Let me say at the outset that what has been clearly brought to our attention today is a great need for leadership. That's what this is about. Derivatives are here. The other side pointed out very magnificently we're dealing with a $600 trillion piece of the world economy. It must have rules. It must have regulations. This is the duty and the responsibility of the United States Congress to do so. To do otherwise would indeed weaken Dodd-Frank. What this bill does is strengthen Dodd-Frank. Now, I serve on both the Agriculture Committee and the Financial Services Committee. I'm also the ranking member of the General Farm Commodity and Risk Management Subcommittee. I mention those things because I have been intimately involved in this issue for a long time, and I know the consequences if we do not respond. Now, why do we need this bill? Dodd-Frank has been approved almost 3 years; but right today, we still do not know what swaps activities will be subject to U.S. regulation and which ones will be subject to foreign regulations. If something is shameful, that is shameful. In section 722, the Dodd-Frank Act limits the CFTC's jurisdiction over swaps transactions outside the United States for those that have ``direct and significant connection with activities in or effect on commerce in the United States.'' However, section 722, the same section, limits the SEC's jurisdiction over security-backed swaps outside the United States, as well. That brings confusion. What is the proper thing to do? Ask these two agencies to harmonize. Give us one rule so that that will apply. That's what this bill does. We are dealing with a global market. We cannot put our American banking system at a disadvantage competitively. That is what will weaken Dodd- Frank. That is what will bring about another crisis beyond what we already have. So, Mr. Speaker, what we need to do is understand that on the foreign market, what are we dealing with? We're not dealing with every nation in the world. We are dealing with only the nine largest economies, and we must make sure that their regulatory regimes are as strong as ours. That is the responsibility of the SEC and the CFTC. That's what this bill is. As far as AIG and as far as all of the other debacles that have happened, we're all upset about that. That's why we must move with this legislation. Now, very briefly, much has been said about what has happened as if we've done nothing about it. Mr. Speaker, we've put clearing in so that all swaps transactions must be cleared. Clearing of swap contracts will eliminate bilateral credit risk, and it transfers that risk to clearinghouses which requires market participants to post margins, put up their own money. That's how you prevent another calamity. The margin requirements are there also for uncleared swaps. And the clearing rules and the margin rules taken together mean that all swap contracts will be fully secured by high-quality liquid assets, and this is what will prevent another scenario. And so I started what I said with what is desperately needed here: leadership. To allow this crossborder to go unanswered any longer is weakening us. Mr. Gensler, who is the chairman of the CFTC, next week will be meeting in Montreal with the European regulators. Leadership is needed. There is a July 23 deadline that all of the international markets must meet to deal with rules and regulations. The wrong thing for us to do is not to pass this bill. And I assure my colleagues, my Democratic and Republican friends, I've gone through the safeguards we've put in here. This will not happen again. It will not happen again because we have strengthened Dodd-Frank. And the head of our Fed, Chairman Bernanke, said in his own words, We need this cross-border protection; we need this legislation. So with that, I reserve the balance of my time because I have some other speakers that we'd like to hear from.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Carney).

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. With that, I'd like to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Murphy).

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. With that, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Wisconsin (Ms. Moore).

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. With no other speakers, Mr. Speaker, let me just close by saying, with the international, interconnected, complex nature of financial markets and the sizeable role the derivatives play within the global economy--as I mentioned, $600 trillion--international harmonization of rulemaking between the CFTC and the SEC is critical, and a coordinated regulatory cooperation between the nine largest global partners keeping our financial institutions at a competitive position is critical. That's what this bill does. I urge all of my colleagues to support this important and timely piece of legislation. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. I rise today to give great support for H.R. 324. Let me say, Mr. Speaker, at the outset that the Congressional Gold Medal is our highest honor; and there is no greater recipient that we can give this honor to than the First Special Service Forces, known as the Devil's Brigade. They were courageous. They risked their lives. As a matter of fact, they were the unit that led the liberation of France and Italy from the Nazis with daring, with courage, with skill. So it is very important for us to stand here today and to give great recognition to this unit. There is a special bond between Canada and the United States, and that special bond started in World War II. For it was the first unit-- and the only unit--where two nations, Canada and the United States, formed a force that accomplished what many felt was impossible. You know, the Lord Jesus Christ said that there is no greater love-- no greater love--that you can show than one who would give his life for another. What a great honor this is, Mr. Speaker. I am just proud to join with my colleague, Mr. Miller from Florida--my good friend--and Mr. Cotton from Arkansas to give this recognition, this high nobility of purpose to the first unit. Today, Mr. Speaker, we are proud to have our Navy SEALs, our Green Berets, our Special Ops, those special soldiers who go where many times few others would go. But the foundation of that was the Devil's Brigade. I can just imagine that Nazi soldier who wrote that note, scared out of his wits when he called them the ``Black Devils,'' when they would go and put shoe polish on their faces so that they could be expertly disguised to go in and to help to liberate Europe from Nazi Germany. So it is with great pleasure that I stand here to join my colleagues in urging unanimous passage of this extraordinary legislation to honor this extraordinary group of soldiers. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I'll just take this opportunity to join all of us in the Congress of the United States to salute the First Special Service Force for the outstanding work that they have done. I urge unanimous passage on this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. I thank Ranking Member Waters for yielding. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to join my colleagues in strong opposition to H.R. 1062, the SEC Regulatory Accountability Act. Unfortunately, what we have before us today is nothing more than a thinly veiled attempt at paralyzing an agency under the guise of an otherwise worthy activity, which is cost-benefit analysis. Cost-benefit analysis is a good thing to do, but not under the terms of this bill. Mr. Chairman, I don't think that there is anybody in this body who is opposed to an honest, open, balanced, thorough, and truly objective cost-benefit analysis in the rulemaking process. On the contrary, we all agree that it is essential for creating good policy, as I said. However, the regime established in this bill is nothing but. Rather, the assumptions which would be codified into statute by this bill are worded in such a way as to prejudice the outcome of the analysis toward the side of not regulating at all in nearly every circumstance. And while some in this body may think that this is a good thing, ask the Americans who were victims of the latest financial meltdown, many of whom are still suffering because of it. Ask them what they think, because the SEC, Mr. Chairman, is currently required to balance protection of investors with the maintenance of effective and efficient markets. This bill would do away with that balance by focusing solely on the cost to the industry and investor choice. Nowhere in the bill is investor protection, which is a part of the SEC's core mission, even mentioned at all. Moreover, I think it is crucial to point out that this bill does nothing to ease the strain on the SEC's resources. Instead, it exacerbates the problem by slapping the SEC with a huge new administrative responsibility, all while they are still working, curiously, to implement Dodd-Frank and the Jobs Act, without giving them the resources to accomplish the task. How on Earth do my colleagues who support this bill think that the SEC can produce the type of analysis they're asking for--any analysis at all, for that matter--without the additional staff that even the CBO says they will be required to have? The problem is especially acute considering this bill would require going back and studying every rule in effect since the agency was first created way back in 1934. No other agency in the Federal Government is saddled with that kind of burden.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, let me just clear the air on one important thing. We know that there is a value for cost-benefit analysis. What we're saying is this is the wrong approach because they're not after cost- benefit analysis. They're after tying the hands of the Securities and Exchange Commission to lessen the regulations. We have a bill, Mr. Chairman, which is a bipartisan bill by myself, along with Representative Conaway from Texas, a Republican, that is a more thoughtful, a more direct and beneficial way of cost-benefit analysis, because we do not have in that bill this very convoluting, confounding requirement of what we call look-back. You've got to remember, the telling point about Mr. Garrett's bill is that he requires that the SEC look back at every single rule for the last 80 years since 1934. There is no Federal agency that has even nearly that kind of burden and, on top of that, does not allocate one dime for any needed staff. It is, indeed, a burden. So the point I want to make is that we understand when he says, okay, let's make sure that we have a cost and a benefit of what they're doing, yeah, we go along with that. But my bill, along with Representative Conaway, we digested this bill, we have passed this bill, our bill, which has a more reasonable approach to cost-benefit analysis out of the Agriculture Committee and will be before this House that has a better approach. We're not opposed to this cost-benefit analysis, but we are opposed to this measure, which is designed to tie the hands of the SEC by allowing them and mandating that they look at every record, every rule all the way back to 1934.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 90th Anniversary of the Kappa Omega chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. The Kappa Omega chapter was the first chapter established in the South Atlantic Region, where it was chartered on March 1, 1923 in Atlanta, GA. The charter members include Founder Marie Woolfolk Taylor, Floy Brown, Eva Conner, Caroline Bond Day, Madeline Smith Davis, Adelaide D. Smith, Alice Rucker, Ruth Prince, Louise Shivery and Hattie Watson. I honor their commitment to their community, particularly to promoting and cultivating high scholastic achievement and social unity amongst girls and women of color. For the past nine decades, Kappa Omega has distinguished itself as a guiding torch in servicing others by implementing programs that impact communities around the world. Their current international program initiatives focus on Global Leadership through Timeless Service. The women of Kappa Omega certainly know leadership. Several notable chapter members have become leaders on the local, regional and international level. At the regional level, A. Cathryn Johnson, Sujette F. Crank, Dr. Mary Shy Scott and Dr. Lucretia R. Payton-Stewart have all served as South Atlantic Regional Directors, while Dr. Scott has also served as the 23rd President of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. Members of this chapter have also served on and chaired several international committees. The members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority deserve to be commended for the thousands of hours of volunteer work they contribute every year. Their efforts at the local level to encourage young girls to go to college, and to help them succeed after they get in, are laudable and must continue. Mr. Speaker, I stand before you today to honor their hard work and service, and I encourage my fellow colleagues to do the same.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call your attention to an entire profession of people dedicated to serving the most vulnerable among us. I am referring, of course, to social workers. Social workers have touched the lives of millions of individuals and families in need of emotional, psychological, economic and physical support. They have integrated themselves within our nation's social safety net in order to help meet the basic needs of all people. These hardworking advocates do not simply provide individuals with the resources they need to resolve their life challenges; they also cultivate a sense of self-reliance to encourage individuals to create their own solutions. Social workers help connect service providers to those in need to weave an ever-growing social safety net, and I commend them for their dedication. March was officially recognized as National Professional Social Work Month in 1984. Since then social workers around the country, in my community and in yours, have worked to spread awareness of this critical profession. They have reached out not only to service providers and those in need, but also to students and others with the potential to join this noble profession. To those of you who have joined this hard-working, empathetic and resourceful group of people, I thank you for all the time and energy you have invested in helping others in your community. I hope that you will continue to do so, with the knowledge that your efforts have been recognized and appreciated.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I stand before you today to honor Lt. Col. Jack G. Reed, USAF (Ret.), who passed away at the age of 82 in December of 2012 in Granbury, TX. Lieutenant Colonel Reed was an honorable man who dedicated his life to his country. Lieutenant Colonel Jack Reed was born near Rio Vista, Texas, on August 25, 1930. After attending Texas Tech, Mr. Reed joined the United States Air Force in January 1951 as an enlisted Soldier during the Korean War. In 1953, his abilities soon won him entrance to the Aviation Cadet program and a commission as a Second Lieutenant. In 1954, Lieutenant Colonel Reed was selected for assignment to the B-47 program, and transferred to Mather AFB, Sacramento, CA. From 1954 to 1960, Mr. Reed was assigned to the 22nd Bombardment Wing, March AFB, and Riverside, CA. From 1960 to 1965, Mr. Reed was assigned to B-58s with the 63rd Bomb Squadron, 43rd Bombardment Wing, Carswell AFB, and Fort Worth, TX, where he participated in military preparedness for action against Cuba during the missile crisis of 1962. Lieutenant Colonel Reed performed exceedingly above all that was asked of him as an Airman. In August 1965, Lieutenant Colonel Reed was one of two Air Force officers selected for assignment to the CIA/USAF programs OXCART/TAGBOARD/SENIOR BOWL at Groom Lake, NV, and later Beale AFB, CA. Lieutenant Colonel Reed was a well rounded individual who consistently went above and beyond for his country. In 1971, Lieutenant Colonel Reed began working for the Pentagon where he worked on leading edge technology for air and space-based reconnaissance assets, including the U-2R. Mr. Reed promoted the development of many of the first unmanned aircraft flown by the United States military. Lieutenant Colonel Reed's developmental work in the Air Force, Boeing and at Sperry/Unisys on unmanned air vehicles and remotely piloted aircraft led to the use of these systems today by various military departments and government agencies. Though committed to service, Jack was not consumed by work. Despite numerous and lengthy absences from home to serve his country, Mr. Reed loved and mentored his children, participated in their activities, was a deacon in church congregations, and found time to travel and enjoy the outdoors, particularly the challenge of fishing. Everybody was drawn to Mr. Reed's charisma, because he genuinely enjoyed helping children, family, and even strangers; learn more about the wonders of this world, how it worked and what made things grow. I commend Lieutenant Colonel Reed's contributions and his record of service to our Nation, his community and his family. I ask my colleagues to join me in extending heartfelt condolences to his wife of more than 59 years, Norma, his sons Jack W. Reed and Stephen E. Reed and their families.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Ladies and gentlemen of the Congress and United States of America, we stand here today and we're witnessing something that there has been a great hunger among the American people for, and that is to see, finally, Democrats and Republicans working together for the good of the United States. We're going to have that today. We're going to have a bill--all may not vote for it, but I think what is important here is that this is a product of a true compromise, with Republicans and with Democrats putting the United States of America foremost. I think we ought to have a tip of the hat to President Barack Obama, I think to Leader McConnell in the Senate, and certainly to our Vice President, Joe Biden, and to the leadership of Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, and Jim Clyburn over on our side. I know that our Republican friends have had a tussle here, but our tip of the hat to you as well, and certainly to my friend, David Dreier, who is in his ending time as chairman of the Rules Committee. Good luck, my friend.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. I rise to join some of my fellow colleagues in recognizing and honoring a distinguished gentleman serving in the Congress of the United States, who is the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, and that is Representative Reverend Emanuel Cleaver. God has a way of having the right person serve at the right time and in the right place, and we have such a person in our chairman, Chairman Cleaver. Chairman Cleaver took office at a time of great turmoil and tumultuousness. This country was experiencing and we were at the height of perhaps the most devastating financial crisis since the Great Depression. Chairman Cleaver turned that situation into a tremendous positive by bringing his insightfulness and by helping to share with the entire Nation that while we did have great economic calamity, for every sector in our economy nowhere was that damage as greatly felt as in the African American community. We were blessed to have a chairman who could articulate it with the sensitivity and with the intelligence and with the intellect to be able to express those very serious concerns that were impacting the African American community in a way and in a manner that it enveloped the entirety of the entire population of our country. Chairman Cleaver became chairman at the time of the height of the tumultuous health care debate, where there was great passions that were brought to bear and expressions of demonstration where hundreds of thousands of people gathered here in Washington to express their concerns. But Chairman Cleaver provided a calmness, an impact that helped us to navigate those troubled waters very, very successfully. When it came time to look at the disparities of this economic impact and joblessness, he initiated job fairs in every congressional district all across this country that helped people be able to get jobs. He addressed the health disparities--particularly as they impacted the African American community--in a way and in a manner that everyone was able to accept the reality. So, we thank you, Congressman Cleaver, for the outstanding job that you have done, and we want to thank God for sending the right person to us at the right time. Thank you, Chairman Cleaver. It is my great honor to serve with you. Thank you for your outstanding service.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Ladies and gentlemen of the Congress, the Lord Jesus said, Suffer the little children to come unto me, for they are the kingdom of Heaven. But Jesus didn't stop there. He spoke, and then he acted. He first rebuked his disciples, brought the children to him, picked each child up in his arms, put his hand on them, prayed with them, and then blessed them. And just as Jesus spoke and acted, the people of this country are expecting this Congress to speak, but to act. The first order of business is to make sure that this kind of tragedy never happens again. The first order of business is to ban, to make illegal to own, manufacture, sell, or possess this deadly weapon that was used to massacre these 20 children and these six educators, two 23 Bushmaster semiautomatic assault weapons. If we are going to honor those children who were massacred, we need to make sure that that weapon will never be used again. If we do not do that, then this Congress needs to hang its head in shame.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the outstanding efforts of the Lemon Street Heritage Group--and to reflect on just how far we have come since those dark days of segregation. The Lemon Street Heritage Group has been working tirelessly to increase awareness of the Lemon Street School, which was built as the school for black children in Marietta, GA. When the City of Marietta established an independent school district in 1892, the idea that white children and black children could have equal access to education in separate schools was widely prevalent, as it was in many places throughout the country. While the city built a brick school house for the white students, the Lemon Street School was a wooden structure, and offered only seven years of education until the 1920s. Eventually, a distinct Lemon Street High School was built, but the original school continued to be utilized as an Elementary School. By the time the Marietta City Council toured the facility in 1947, they discovered how dangerous it had become. The building lacked indoor plumbing, was poorly lit and depended on a single coal stove for heating. The old wooden structure was condemned as a fire trap and demolished, with plans for a new structure in place. Everyone knew ``separate but equal'' was a failure. Not just a failure, but a fundamentally dishonest proposition--a dereliction of the duty we have towards our children to provide them with a brighter future than our own. But for sixty years this was the reality of Plessy v. Ferguson that educators all over the country had to face. Despite these struggles, principals and teachers like A. Tolliver, Luke B. Norris, Mrs. Louella Patterson and Professor M. J. Woods worked hard to make the Lemon Street school a success. Professor Woods was also the principal of the neighboring Lemon Street High School, which went on to gain accreditation and distinction for its academics, its athletic program and its marching band. I commend the Lemon Street Heritage Group for their efforts to acknowledge and celebrate this history, and I am extremely proud of the principals and teachers of the Lemon Street School who devoted their lives to furthering the education of African Americans. I hope this school will serve as both an inspiration and a reminder to all of us-- of the battles we have won and those still to come.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in honor of the 225th anniversary of the United States Constitution and to celebrate its many contributions to American society. On September 17, 1788 members of the Constitutional Convention signed what would become the most important and fundamental document in the United States of America. Our founding fathers came together in true American spirit to lay out our rights and freedoms, rights that were later extended to include all Americans regardless of race or gender. The unmatched longevity of the Constitution still maintains those values today. This unique document represents our founding fathers' innovative strides towards democracy and has fervently outlived all of its predecessors. Our constitutional framers and those who have improved the Constitution through Amendments have ensured the preservation and enhancement of liberty, justice and equality. The Constitution has endured the test of time and now celebrates a remarkable 225 years as the foundation of American government. The Constitution represents the ability of our country to come together for the greater good. The inalienable rights laid out in this historical document have shaped our amazing nation and served as inspiration for the development of future democracies. On August 2, 1956, President Eisenhower enacted a law that acknowledged the Constitution's importance as the center of the America we now know and love and instituted an annual National Constitution Week to both celebrate the Constitution and promote its study. It is during this week that we acknowledge not only our framers with patriotic dignity, but also honor those who have ensured that this document continues to preserve equality throughout our nation. This dignified piece of American history deserves proper recognition, and I invite my colleagues to join me in renewing our vows to preserve, protect and defend this venerable document.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, first of all, I want to commend the bipartisan leadership on this committee, Chairman Lucas and the ranking member, Mr. Peterson, for the hard work they have done and the leadership they've provided. We are faced with sort of a dilemma here. The right thing for us to do, that we should be doing right now, that we should have been doing 2 or 3 days ago, was dealing with the 5-year extension of the farm bill. That is exactly what we need to be doing. It gives consistency. It will give uniformity to our very vital food industry. I might add, Mr. Speaker, that it is needed very desperately at this time. But at the same time, we are faced with a very serious drought situation that is pummeling our country, the likes of which we haven't seen in over 60 years. So the immediate and responsible thing for us to do is to respond to this drought crisis and pass this bill immediately and then resolve that the first order of business we will do when we return is take up the 5-year farm bill. Might I add that while we have this disaster facing us, which is the drought, we have another, and that is the food issue in this country, especially the issue of the SNAP program, what we refer to as the food stamp program, if we do not come together with a good conference committee report that looks at this issue with the necessity that the problem presents. Under the current bill on the House side passed by the Agriculture Committee, according to CBO, there will be over 300,000 children who will go without food. There will be 155,000 veterans who will go without food, and nearly 200,000 of our seniors. What I'm saying is we have not just a drought crisis, which we are going to respond to today, but we have got to come back and deal with this other crisis as we work to put together a very effective 5-year farm bill.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today to encourage all of my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 2446, the RESPA Home Warranty Clarification Act. Before I explain exactly why this legislation is so important and vital, let me first take a moment to thank my friend and colleague, and my fellow Financial Services Committee member and the sponsor of this legislation, Mrs. Biggert, for her hard work on this bill. The fact that this bill passed both subcommittee and full committee by voice vote is a testament to not only the issue's importance, but also to Mrs. Biggert's dedication and openness in alleviating Members' concerns. Regarding the bill, itself, Mr. Speaker, this legislation will help small businesses. It will help real estate professionals. Most importantly, it will help homeowners by clarifying the law on the sale of home warranties. Congress enacted legislation many years ago to outlaw kickbacks paid in connection with services that must be performed to close a federally-related mortgage loan. An interpretive rule released by the Department of Housing and Urban Development has, unfortunately, created uncertainty about application of the law to home warranties which are not necessary to close a loan to purchase a home. To eliminate confusion and reduce uncertainty, our bill makes clear that the term ``settlement services'' does not include home warranties. This legislation also provides new notice requirements applicable to home service contract companies and to real estate professionals so that prospective purchasers of home warranties are aware that a payment may have been made in connection with the selling, advertising, marketing, processing, or performing an inspection in connection with the home warranty. This simple clarification will allow members of the home warranty industry to pay modest sums to real estate professionals for direct marketing and related services in connection with the sale of a home warranty without a risk of running afoul of a law Congress never intended to be applicable for a completely optional product. This is the simplification of this law that is very important. It's very simple, but it's very important so that our real estate industry and home mortgage industry can move more smoothly. Please join me in voting for this commonsense legislation that will benefit consumers and the small businesses that repair and replace home systems covered by home warranties. With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Likewise, I'm ready to close. I just want to say in closing that, again, Mrs. Biggert has done a wonderful job on this, Mr. Speaker, and should be commended for it. This is a very important and simple piece of legislation, but it will help to iron out and smooth out confusion and allow for our real estate and our housing and our home mortgage industry to move more smoothly. I urge all of my colleagues to vote for it. With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. I thank the gentleman.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today to lend my support to this extraordinary and wonderful piece of legislation, an expression of strong bipartisan support. I certainly want to thank my friend, Congressman Dold from Illinois, for his leadership on this. It's a pleasure to join with him on the floor today to manage time on this bill. This bill, H.R. 3187, as was pointed out, is the March of Dimes Commemorative Coin Act. For 75 years now, the March of Dimes organization has worked to prevent infant mortality, premature births, and birth defects in our children in the United States and in other parts of the world. And I can think of no better time and place to honor this wonderful organization than right here and right now in the Halls of Congress. This organization was originally founded by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to help treat and prevent polio. The March of Dimes would meet with tremendous success and, through their funding of the work of Dr. Jonas Salk, would contribute greatly to curing that disease. Having accomplished their original goal, the March of Dimes would turn their attention to promoting healthy women, healthy pregnancies, and healthy babies. The March of Dimes Foundation works not only here in the United States in local communities around the country but, as I mentioned, also around the world to educate and inform women, doctors, and policymakers on the prevention of birth defects and premature birth. This work is so vital, so very important, and really so very precious, Mr. Speaker. And a healthy pregnancy and a healthy birth can mean so much and start the child off on the right foot that will last the rest of their entire life. This bill is simple, Mr. Speaker. It would allow for the minting, the making of a commemorative coin, which basically will be a silver $1 coin, for this wonderful organization. These coins would then be sold to the general public with a portion going to pay off the cost of minting the coin, but the rest going to support the very, very important work of this foundation. So I ask, Mr. Speaker, that my colleagues join me in voting in favor of this bill, and in so doing, we'll be sending a big thank-you to the March of Dimes for their hard work and for their dedication over the last 75 years. Mr. Speaker, I will also mention the fact that we support them each year in our special cooking and preparation for their major fundraiser that many Members of Congress and our families and our wives take part in. What an extraordinary organization doing an extraordinary thing for those who are most precious to us, that is, the children of the United States of America. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I have no more speakers, so I will just close my remarks. Again, it is a pleasure working with you on this bill, Mr. Dold. And what a noble occasion this is for such a worthy cause. Thank you for mentioning about my wife. I give all credit to my wife for that cooking she did. I think it was shrimp and grits and let's see, and gumbo, her mother's gumbo, and it won first prize at that event. It is such a wonderful occasion, and to have all Members of Congress who participate with this fund-raising effort every year is just wonderful. I just urge a unanimous vote. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, let me, first of all, respond to what my previous speaker on the other side has said because it's very important that we straighten the Record out. This is not a tax for people to get health care insurance. What this is, the Supreme Court ruled, and again, chaired by a Republican chairman, Chief Supreme Court Justice, and he said that in order for the mandate to stand, Congress could only do it through their taxing authority. And that was to take care of the penalty. This is not a tax for individuals to get their health insurance. CBO says it will only affect 1 percent of the American people, and that is a choice that they will make. It's not a tax penalty for you to get insurance. It's a penalty for those who can afford the insurance who choose not to buy the insurance. Now, let me also make another point that is very clear. In addition to this being a program in which the vast majority of the American people approve, they do not want you to repeal their opportunity to have individuals, in these tough economic times, their children be able to stay on their insurance till 26. They want that there. They do not want you to repeal them having to be denied insurance because of a preexisting condition. And our hospitals need this very much in order to have the Medicaid expansion.