Maxine Waters

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Himes), a member of the Financial Services Committee, the chair of the New Democrat Coalition, and the author of one of the bills in this package that ensures companies aren't paying excessive fees to go public.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Foster), who is a member of the Financial Services Committee and a leading Democratic cosponsor on several of the bills in this package.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman from Illinois an additional 20 seconds.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Will the Speaker please check the minutes again? We have calculated differently, and we think I have 9 minutes.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. I am sorry. What is the Chair saying about the time that I have remaining?

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Mrs. Beatty), who is a member of the Financial Services Committee who helped ensure that this bill cracks down on the use of digital currency in human trafficking.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer), who is a member of the Financial Services Committee and author of one of the bills in this package.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield myself the remainder of my time to close. I once again thank my colleagues for their outstanding bipartisan work on this carefully crafted bipartisan legislation. S. 488, the JOBS and Investor Confidence Act of 2018, is an example of Members on both sides of the aisle working together to support our Nation's small businesses and investors. S. 488 facilitates access to capital for small businesses, increases protections for consumers and investors, fights the scourge of drug and human trafficking, and promotes financial stability. S. 488 is supported by institutional investors, angel investors, venture capitalists, biotech companies, credit unions, small businesses, entrepreneurs, and exchanges. This bill will help entrepreneurs, small businesses, and investors to thrive in our economy. Finally, I would like to thank Mr. Hensarling for his foresight in knowing that this was possible because both sides of the aisle really support small businesses. It was Mr. Hensarling who said: Given that we do both support small businesses, why can't we come together around a package where we have already shown our support on individual bills either in committee or on the floor and put it all together? He did that. He provided that leadership. I joined with him. Our staffs are to be congratulated because they worked very hard on both sides of the aisle to work out any concerns that we may have, any differences that we may have. They did a magnificent job, and they are responsible for helping us to understand what certainly is and was possible. So despite this, if I may say, there are many onlookers who never thought this could happen. There are many pundits, those who come from special interests, those who come from right here in the House on both sides of the aisle, who are still questioning.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I had one inquiry from one of the magazines, I believe it was, who said: Tell me what happened in the background, what was really going on. How did this all come together? I want the gentleman from Texas to know I told him it is none of his business. It really happened, and we are pleased about it. We worked very hard on that. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Hensarling and all of the members who worked so hard to make this happen, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from California, Congressman Correa, for leading this important discussion. Mr. Speaker, I rise to reiterate my alarm about the child abuse at the border. Due either to complete incompetence, deliberate indifference, or both, this administration failed to fully comply with one of the first court-ordered deadlines to reunite innocent children with their parents from whom they were separated. The Trump administration failed to implement an effective system for identifying and reconnecting children with their parents before executing its family separation policy. As a result, they have been unable to accurately report the number of children in their custody, the location of each child, and the immigration status of the parents, many of whom who have already been deported. Adding insult to injury, it was recently revealed that one of the detained children under the age of 5 may actually be an American citizen. Such a mistake should never happen and should shock every American to their core. This is a despicable humanitarian crisis created by Donald Trump, and one which the Trump administration has shown no ability to solve. Despite the President's attempt to divert attention from the crisis, thousands of children remain separated from their families. This is a national disgrace. Every parent, every grandparent, and every patriotic American should be appalled by the harm that this President has inflicted on children. We must all exercise our First Amendment right to speak out against this unconscionable family separation crisis. I urge my colleagues in Congress to make every effort to ensure that these children are reconnected with their parents. If the crisis proves impossible for the administration to fully solve, Congress must hold accountable those who are responsible.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6139, the Improving Investment Research for Small and Emerging Issuers Act. I first would like to thank Mr. Huizenga for working with me to develop a bipartisan approach to identifying and addressing gaps in investment research coverage for small issuers. Investment research helps to raise investor awareness, understanding, and interest about a company, which can, in turn, promote liquidity and overall trading in the company's securities. Unfortunately, research of small public companies has been on the decline in recent years. According to a report from Capital IQ, nearly two-thirds of companies with less than $100 million in market capitalization have no research coverage at all. At a recent Capital Markets, Securities, and Investment Subcommittee hearing, Tyler Gellasch, executive director of the Healthy Markets Association, testified about some of the factors contributing to low research coverage of small issuers. According to Mr. Gellasch, one such factor is the bundling of research and execution services by investment banks, which ``increases cost for investors and competitively disadvantages smaller independent research providers versus their larger peers.'' H.R. 6139 directs the SEC to study competition in the research market and other factors affecting the availability of research coverage for small issuers, including emerging growth companies and companies considering an initial public offering. It also directs SEC to consider any unique challenges faced by minority women and veteran-owned businesses in obtaining research coverage. Finally, the bill directs the SEC to report its findings to Congress within 6 months, along with recommendations to improve the quality and availability of investment research for small issuers. This bipartisan effort will help identify the barriers small businesses face when attempting to get their story out to investors in our public capital markets. I would urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today in support of H.R. 1861, legislation to posthumously award the Congressional Gold Medal to Larry Doby in recognition of his athletic and civil rights achievements. But I must say that we would not be here today but for Mr. Pascrell, who has been dedicated and committed to the proposition that Larry Doby should be recognized for his tremendous talent and for his tremendous contribution not only to athletics but to civil rights and other efforts that he was involved in. Larry Doby became the first African American professional baseball player in the American League in July 1947, 3 months after Jackie Robinson had become the first African American professional baseball player in the National League. While the name, Jackie Robinson, is known in almost every American household, Larry Doby did not receive nearly as much media attention, though he is every bit as deserving. Larry Doby played an integral role in breaking down the color barrier and in integrating the American League. Larry Doby signed with the Cleveland Indians in 1947, and at the time, was not even welcomed by his own teammates, several of whom refused to shake his hand upon meeting him for the first time. Outside of his own team, Doby faced racism and prejudice from opposing players and fans, having to endure racial slurs and death threats. Despite the adversity he faced, Doby paved the way for countless African American players with dignity and class. In 1948, Doby became one of the first African American players to win a World Series championship when the Indians beat the Boston Braves. In game four of the series, he became the first African American player to hit a home run in World Series history. He also helped the Indians win a franchise record, 111 games, and the American League pennant in 1954, and was the American League RBI leader and home run champion. After playing with the Indians, Doby had a long and successful baseball career playing with the Chicago White Sox, the Detroit Tigers, and the Dragons before retiring in 1962. Following his retirement, he served as a manager for various teams and became the second African American manager in the majors with the Chicago White Sox. He also served as a director with the New Jersey Nets in the NBA. In 1998, he was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the hall's Veterans Committee. His athletic contributions to major league baseball are, without a doubt, impressive and admirable, but Larry Doby's tenacity, determination, and his role as a pioneer in the face of tremendous hardship to integrate baseball are deserving of the utmost recognition and respect. I would urge all of my colleagues to join me in passing this legislation to recognize Larry Doby with the Congressional Gold Medal. And let me just say, more than anybody, I think that my colleague, Mr. Pascrell, must again be commended and recognized for the fact that he insisted that this should take place, that this gold medal should be presented on behalf of Larry Doby, and so it is because of him that we find ourselves here today. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), the lead Democratic sponsor of this bill, who has been tireless in his efforts to bring this legislation to the floor.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5749, which is a tailored, bipartisan solution to the problems facing our Nation's options markets. Options are a type of derivative contract that provide investors with the right to buy or sell stock or other securities at some point in the future. According to the Chicago Board Options Exchange, which supports the bill, bank affiliates that clear options on behalf of large traders have been restricting their services because of the current bank capital calculation and resulting costs. As a consequence, they argue that large options traders, known as market-makers, are not readily able to trade when investors need them to and are having to charge more when they do trade. There are also fewer market-makers overall and more trading activity concentrated among the top five firms. H.R. 5749 would direct the bank regulators to consider this problem while still focusing on the benefits of bank capital to reduce systemic risk. Now, I am aware that the Federal Reserve just proposed to significantly change banks' capital requirements, including through a rollback of the supplementary leverage ratio. If the Fed's proposals are finalized, FDIC-insured banks could shed as much as $121 billion in capital, making it more likely that one of the Wall Street megabanks will fail in a future downturn and cause untold damage to the economy. On top of that, the President signed into law S. 2155, which will recklessly reduce capital and other requirements on the Nation's largest banks. I am very concerned with these developments and urge our regulators to ensure the safety and soundness of megabanks and our financial system. H.R. 5749 would make sure that this is the case for bank capital associated with cleared options. Specifically, the bill would require the bank regulators to conduct a rulemaking after considering several important factors, including the safety and soundness of the financial system, financial stability, and the impact of the changes on the broader capital regime. Unlike the introduced version of the bill, which would only reduce capital, the bill, as amended, would direct the regulators to increase capital for riskier derivatives. It also would create a retrospective rule review so that, 5 years after implementation, the regulators would study the impact of their rule. So I want to thank Representative Foster and Representative Hultgren for working together to promote trading in our options markets without sacrificing bank safety and soundness. I encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 5749, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5877, the Main Street Growth Act, a new and innovative idea that will help our Nation's small businesses raise funds to grow by issuing stock that investors are able to easily buy and sell in the secondary markets. Specifically, H.R. 5877 would create a venture exchange for investors to trade in the stock of emerging growth companies and early stage growth companies. Unlike a similar partisan bill last Congress, H.R. 5877, as amended, would allow companies to create a venture exchange in a way that balances the needs of small companies and the protection of their investors in the secondary markets. Most importantly, the bill would retain State regulatory oversight over these small unregistered companies, which are more prone to fraud and failure. For example, small companies that are not regularly traded are frequent targets of scammers that use pump-and-dump schemes to dupe investors into thinking the stock is worth more than it is by spreading fake news and hot tips and then selling the stock at artificially high prices. So it makes sense for our State regulators, who are very familiar with these scams, to regulate and oversee these companies. I am also pleased that the bill ensures that companies trading on a venture exchange have a minimum level of disclosure and ongoing disclosure, including annual and semi-annual reports, that detail the health of the company's finances, business, and management, as well as the company's related party transactions and share ownership. This is important to investors buying shares on a venture exchange who may have little to no relationship to the company to otherwise have access to such information. In addition, the bill would allow the SEC to establish additional restrictions on any over-the-counter trading that is not on a venture exchange. If our goal is to centralize trading on a single exchange to make it easier for investors to buy and sell small company stock, then I think it makes sense for the SEC to have the authority to limit over-the- counter trading. Mr. Speaker, I support H.R. 5877, and I thank Representative Emmer for working with Democrats to support our Nation's small businesses and their investors. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.