{"database": "openregs", "table": "congressional_record", "rows": [["CREC-2010-12-22-pt1-PgE2250", "2010-12-22", 111, 2, null, null, "LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS", "HOUSE", "EXTENSIONS", "ALLOTHER", "E2250", "E2251", "[{\"name\": \"John J. Hall\", \"role\": \"speaking\"}]", null, "156 Cong. Rec. E2250", "Congressional Record, Volume 156 Issue 173 (Wednesday, December 22, 2010)\n\n[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 173 (Wednesday, December 22, 2010)]\n[Extensions of Remarks]\n[Pages E2250-E2251]\nFrom the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]\n\n                          LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS\n\n                                 ______\n\n                           HON. JOHN J. HALL\n\n                              of new york\n\n                    in the house of representatives\n\n                      Wednesday, December 22, 2010\n\n  Mr. HALL of New York. Madam Speaker, I would like to submit the\nfollowing:\n\n                          Legislative Actions\n\n                  ECONOMIC RECOVERY AND CREATING JOBS\n\n       AMERICAN RECOVERY & REINVESTMENT ACT, enacted to jumpstart\n     our economy, create and save 3.5 million jobs, give a tax cut\n     to small business and 95% of American workers, begin to\n     rebuild America's road, rail, and water infrastructure, and\n     make a historic commitment to education, clean energy, and\n     science and technology, with unprecedented accountability.\n     (Signed into Law)\n       SMALL BUSINESS JOBS ACT, landmark legislation providing $12\n     billion in tax relief for small businesses by enacting 8 more\n     small business tax cuts on top of the 8 already enacted by\n     this Congress; creating up to 500,000 jobs, by leveraging up\n     to $300 billion in private sector lending for small\n     businesses through a $30 billion lending fund for community\n     banks; fully paid for--doesn't add a dime to the deficit.\n     (Signed into Law)\n       TEACHER JOBS/STATE AID/CLOSING TAX LOOPHOLES, creating and\n     saving nearly 320,000 jobs; providing $10 billion to save\n     161,000 teacher jobs and $16 billion in Medicaid aid, with\n     the effect of creating/saving 158,000 jobs, including police\n     officers, firefighters, nurses & private sector workers;\n     fully paid for by closing loopholes that encourage companies\n     to ship American jobs overseas; cutting deficit by $1.4\n     billion. (Signed into Law)\n       STUDENT AID & FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY ACT, making the largest\n     investment in college aid in history--increasing Pell Grants,\n     making college loans more affordable, and strengthening\n     community colleges--while reducing the federal deficit by\n     ending wasteful student loan subsidies to banks. (Signed into\n     Law)\n       HIRE ACT, creating up to 300,000 jobs, by providing a\n     payroll tax holiday for businesses that hire unemployed\n     workers and a tax credit for businesses that retain these\n     workers; also unleashes tens of billions of dollars to\n     rebuild infrastructure; fully paid for by cracking down on\n     offshore accounts for wealthy. (Signed into Law)\n       CASH FOR CLUNKERS, jump-starting the U.S. auto industry,\n     providing consumers with up to $4,500 to trade in an old\n     vehicle for one with higher fuel efficiency--spurring the\n     sale of 700,000 vehicles. (Signed into Law)\n       WORKER, HOMEOWNERSHIP & BUSINESS ASSISTANCE ACT, boosting\n     the economy and creating jobs with more unemployment benefits\n     for Americans hit by the recession, an expanded 1st-time\n     homebuyer tax credit, and enhanced small business tax\n     relief--expanded to all struggling U.S. businesses. (Signed\n     into Law)\n       U.S. MANUFACTURING ENHANCEMENT ACT, to help U.S.\n     manufacturers compete at home and abroad by temporarily\n     suspending or reducing duties on intermediate products or\n     materials these companies use that are not made domestically.\n     (Signed into Law)\n       UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS EXTENSION, extending unemployment\n     benefits to millions of American families through November\n     30, 2010; every dollar of unemployment benefits creates at\n     least $1.61 in economic activity. (Signed into Law)\n       CURRENCY REFORM/FAIR TRADE, to promote U.S. manufacturing\n     jobs, by giving our government effective tools to address the\n     unfair trade practice of currency manipulation by foreign\n     countries, including China; their undervalued currency makes\n     Chinese exports cheaper and America's exports to China more\n     expensive, putting U.S. manufacturers at an unfair\n     disadvantage; bill is WTO-compliant. (Passed by House)\n       AMERICAN JOBS AND CLOSING TAX LOOPHOLES ACT, to promote\n     American jobs by restoring credit to small businesses,\n     extending tax incentives for American R&D and tax relief for\n     middle class American families, rebuilding American\n     infrastructure, and expanding jobs for young people; and to\n     close tax loopholes to make Wall Street billionaires pay\n     their fair share of taxes. (Passed by House)\n       HOME STAR JOBS, to create 168,000 American jobs making\n     energy efficiency products, by providing incentives for\n     consumers to make their homes energy-efficient--cutting\n     energy bills for 3 million families and reducing our\n     dangerous dependence on foreign oil and dirty fuels. (Passed\n     by House)\n       RURAL STAR/HOME STAR LOANS, to create tens of thousands\n     more U.S. jobs, by creating Rural Star loans for people in\n     rural America to make their homes and farms more energy-\n     efficient; and a Home Star Loan Program for no-interest loans\n     for energy efficiency home upgrades in other areas; boosts\n     demand for energy efficient products/materials and\n     construction and installation services that are made in\n     America. (Passed by House)\n       PROTECTING AMERICAN PATENTS, providing funding, fully\n     offset, to prevent additional backlogs in patent\n     applications, as patents are critical to American innovation\n     and economic growth. (Signed into Law)\n       AMERICA COMPETES REAUTHORIZATION, to invest in modernizing\n     manufacturing; basic R&D; high risk/high reward clean energy\n     research; and teaching science, technology, engineering and\n     math. (Passed by House)\n       JOBS FOR MAIN STREET ACT, to boost small business and to\n     rebuild highways and transit; paid for by redirecting TARP\n     funds from Wall Street to Main Street. (Passed by House)\n       SMALL BUSINESS & INFRASTRUCTURE JOBS ACT, to extend Build\n     America Bonds to help finance the rebuilding of schools,\n     hospitals, roads and bridges; and target tax incentives to\n     spur investment in small businesses and help entrepreneurs\n     looking to start a new business. (Passed by House)\n       EDWARD M. KENNEDY SERVE AMERICA ACT, tripling volunteerism\n     opportunities to 250,000 for national service for students to\n     retirees; increased college financial awards. (Signed into\n     Law)\n       PERMANENT ESTATE TAX RELIEF at the 2009 level to ensure\n     that 99.8 percent of estates never pay a dime of taxes and\n     offer certainty and stability for farmers and small\n     businesses. (Passed by House)\n\n                          PROTECTING CONSUMERS\n\n       WALL STREET REFORM, historic reforms to end taxpayer-funded\n     bailouts and the idea of ``too big to fail,'' and protect and\n     empower consumers to make the best decisions on mortgages,\n     credit cards, and their own financial future. Lack of\n     accountability for Wall Street and big banks cost 8 million\n     jobs. (Signed into Law)\n       CREDIT CARDHOLDERS' BILL OF RIGHTS, providing tough new\n     protections already saving consumers money--like banning\n     unfair rate hikes, abusive fees, and penalties--and\n     strengthening enforcement. (Signed into Law)\n       FRAUD ENFORCEMENT & RECOVERY ACT, providing tools to\n     prosecute mortgage scams and corporate fraud that contributed\n     to financial crisis; creating an outside commission to\n     examine its causes. (Signed into Law)\n       LILLY LEDBETTER FAIR PAY ACT, restoring the rights of women\n     and other workers to challenge unfair pay--to help close the\n     wage gap where women earn 78 cents for every $1 a man earns\n     in America. (Signed into Law)\n       AIRLINE PASSENGER SAFETY, to improve airline passenger\n     safety, by several steps including strengthening commercial\n     pilot training requirements, requiring a minimum of 1,500\n     flight hours required for an airline pilot certificate.\n     (Signed into Law)\n\n                           HELPING HOMEOWNERS\n\n       HELPING FAMILIES SAVE THEIR HOMES ACT, to stem the\n     foreclosure crisis, with significant incentives to lenders,\n     servicers, and homeowners to modify loans. (Signed into Law)\n       FHA REFORM, to shore up federal mortgage insurance in order\n     to expand homeownership opportunities by making essential\n     reforms to strengthen the financial footing of the Federal\n     Housing Administration, saving taxpayers $2.5 billion over 5\n     years. (Passed by House)\n       FLOOD INSURANCE REAUTHORIZATION & REFORM, reauthorizing the\n     National Flood Insurance Program, upon which millions of\n     American families and businesses rely, for five years and\n     making key reforms to put the program on a stronger financial\n     footing. (Passed by House)\n\n                           AFFORDABLE QUALITY\n\n       HEALTH CARE HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM, landmark legislation\n     putting\n\n[[Page E2251]]\n\n     American families and small business owners--not the\n     insurance companies--in control of their own health care;\n     lowering costs for middle class and small business; holding\n     insurance companies accountable to prevent denials of care\n     and coverage, including for pre-existing conditions;\n     strengthening Medicare and lowering prescription drug costs;\n     creating up to 4 million jobs; and reducing deficit by\n     largest amount in almost two decades. (Signed into law)\n       HEALTH CARE FOR 11 MILLION CHILDREN, to finally provide\n     cost-effective health coverage for 4 million more children\n     and preserve coverage for 7 million children already\n     enrolled. (Signed into Law)\n       FDA REGULATION OF TOBACCO, granting the Food and Drug\n     Administration authority to regulate advertising, marketing,\n     and manufacturing of tobacco products, the #1 cause of\n     preventable U.S. deaths, and to stop tobacco companies from\n     targeting our children. (Signed into Law)\n       ENSURING SENIORS' ACCESS TO THEIR DOCTORS, by blocking\n     scheduled 21% cut in Medicare physician payments through\n     November 30, 2010 and also updating payments by 2.2%. (Signed\n     into Law)\n       FOOD SAFETY, to fundamentally change the way we protect our\n     food supply; close gaps exposed by recent food-borne illness\n     outbreaks; give the FDA new authorities. (Passed by House)\n       RYAN WHITE HIV/AIDS TREATMENT EXTENSION ACT, guaranteeing\n     access to lifesaving medical services, primary care, and\n     medications for low-income patients with AIDS and HIV.\n     (Signed into Law)\n\n                CLEAN ENERGY JOBS/HOLDING BP ACCOUNTABLE\n\n       AMERICAN CLEAN ENERGY AND SECURITY ACT, historic\n     legislation to create 1.7 million jobs (with the Recovery\n     Act); help free us from funding terrorism with our dependence\n     on foreign oil; reduce the carbon pollution causing climate\n     change; keep costs low for Americans; will not increase the\n     deficit. (Passed by House)\n       RESPONSE TO BP OIL SPILL, a bill providing a comprehensive\n     response to BP oil spill--eliminating the $75 million cap on\n     the liability of oil companies, restoring the Gulf Coast and\n     protecting local residents, imposing new safety requirements\n     and strengthening oversight of offshore drilling, and\n     protecting whistleblowers in offshore drilling industry who\n     report safety violations. (Passed by House)\n       Just hours after a Committee hearing during which I asked\n     BP America's President whether chemical dispersants they were\n     using to break up the oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico are\n     safe, the EPA ordered BP to choose a less toxic chemical. The\n     Washington Post reported the EPA ordered the change following\n     a hearing by the House Transportation and Infrastructure\n     Committee at which I questioned BP's use of hundreds of\n     thousands of gallons of chemical dispersants.\n       SPILL ACT, to reform maritime liability laws to ensure that\n     the families of those killed or injured in the BP Oil Spill\n     and other such tragedies are justly compensated for their\n     losses. (Passed by House)\n       BP OIL SPILL COMMISSION SUBPOENA POWER, to give subpoena\n     power to National Commission on BP Oil Spill to ensure that\n     it cannot be stonewalled by BP or others in its search for\n     spill's causes. (Passed by House)\n       OMNIBUS PUBLIC LAND MANAGEMENT ACT, the most significant\n     conservation bill in 15 years, strengthening tourism and\n     rural economies with more than 2 million new acres of\n     wilderness and parks. (Signed into Law)\n\n               FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY & GOVERNMENT REFORM\n\n       BUDGET BLUEPRINT, creating jobs with investments in health\n     care, clean energy and education; cutting taxes for most\n     Americans by $1.5 trillion; cutting Bush deficit by more than\n     half by 2013. (Action Completed)\n       BUDGET ENFORCEMENT RESOLUTION, setting a limit on\n     discretionary spending for FY 2011 that requires spending\n     cuts of $7 billion below the President's budget and $3\n     billion below Senate. (Action Completed)\n       STATUTORY PAY-AS-YOU-GO, to restore 1990s law that turned\n     record deficits into surpluses, by forcing tough choices;\n     Congress must offset new policies that reduce revenues or\n     expand entitlements. (Signed into Law)\n       IMPROPER PAYMENTS ELIMINATION, to help identify and\n     eliminate improper federal payments, as well as recover lost\n     funds that federal agencies have spent improperly. (Signed\n     into Law)\n       WEAPON SYSTEMS ACQUISITION REFORM, cracking down on\n     Pentagon waste and cost overruns in the acquisition of weapon\n     systems, increasing oversight and competition. (Signed into\n     Law)\n       REFORMING OTHER DOD ACQUISITION, cleaning up DOD\n     acquisition spending for the 80 percent that is for services\n     and other non-weapons items, saving taxpayers an estimated\n     $27 billion a year. (Passed by House)\n       DISCLOSE ACT, to fight a corporate takeover of our\n     elections, requires them to disclose they are behind\n     political ads; bans foreign-controlled corporations from\n     putting money in U.S. elections. (Passed by House)\n\n                 NATIONAL SECURITY/TROOPS AND VETERANS\n\n       FY 2010 DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION, authorizing 3.4% troop pay\n     raise, strengthening military readiness and military families\n     support, focusing our strategy in Afghanistan and\n     redeployment from Iraq. (Signed into Law)\n       I travelled to Iraq, Afghanistan, Germany, Kuwait, and UAE\n     to visit with troops, and receive updates from U.S. military\n     leaders and NGOs.\n       FY 2011 DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION, increasing hostile fire and\n     imminent danger pay; extending TRICARE dependent coverage up\n     to age 26; and strengthening counterterrorism. (Passed by\n     House)\n       REPEAL OF DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL, to provide for the repeal\n     of this outdated policy, contingent on the certification that\n     military review completed and that repeal would not impact\n     readiness. (Signed into Law)\n       IRAN SANCTIONS, significantly strengthening sanctions\n     against Iran, including imposing sanctions on foreign\n     entities that sell refined petroleum to Iran or assist Iran\n     in its domestic refining capacity. (Signed into Law)\n       VETERANS HEALTH CARE BUDGET REFORM & TRANSPARENCY ACT, a\n     top priority of veterans' groups, authorizing Congress to\n     approve VA medical care appropriations one year in advance to\n     ensure reliable and timely funding and prevent politics from\n     ever delaying VA health care funding. (Signed into Law)\n       I authored and introduced the Veterans Administration\n     Claims Modernization Act. This law streamlined the VA\n     benefits application process. It was based on problems I\n     heard directly from the experiences of local veterans as well\n     as national VSOs. The law was called ``the most sweeping\n     reform of the VA in a generation'' by the Times Herald\n     Record.\n       I successfully advocated for a VA rule change to create an\n     automatic service connection for veterans diagnosed with PTSD\n     after serving in combat. This change dramatically streamlines\n     the process for veterans to receive appropriate care and\n     compensation.\n       Implemented the post-9/11 GI Bill to provide for a college\n     education for returning veterans.\n       FY 2010 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION-VA APPROPRIATIONS,\n     strengthening quality health care for 5 million veterans by\n     investing 11% more for medical care, benefits claims\n     processors, and facility improvements. (Signed into Law)\n       CAREGIVERS AND VETERANS OMNIBUS HEALTH SERVICES, landmark\n     legislation providing help to caregivers of disabled, ill or\n     injured veterans, and improving VA health services for women\n     veterans. (Signed into Law)\n       AGENT ORANGE BENEFITS, providing long overdue disability\n     benefits to more than 150,000 Vietnam veterans and survivors\n     for exposure to Agent Orange. (Signed into Law)\n\n                   SECURITY FOR AMERICA'S COMMUNITIES\n\n       FY 2010 HOMELAND SECURITY APPROPRIATIONS, strengthening\n     security at our ports and borders and on commercial airlines,\n     giving first responders tools to respond to terrorism.\n     (Signed into Law)\n       HATE CRIMES PREVENTION ACT, giving law enforcement\n     resources to prevent and prosecute hate crimes against\n     Americans based on gender, sexual orientation, gender\n     identity, or disability. (Signed into Law)\n       BORDER SECURITY EMERGENCY APPROPRIATIONS, providing $600\n     million to enhance security at the Southwest Border,\n     including funding 1,200 additional Border Patrol agents, 500\n     additional CBP officers, and additional FBI, DEA, and ATF\n     agents for the border region; paid for by visa fees. (Signed\n     into Law)\n       I visited the border patrol in Arizona to view the\n     situation first hand and obtain a better understanding of the\n     situation they face.\n       COPS ON THE BEAT, putting an additional 50,000 cops on the\n     street over the next 5 years. (Passed by House)\n       CHEMICAL & WATER SECURITY ACT, to increase security and\n     safety of the nation's chemical plants and water facilities\n     vulnerable to terrorist attacks and the millions of Americans\n     that live nearby. (Passed by House)\n\n                          ____________________"]], "columns": ["granule_id", "date", "congress", "session", "volume", "issue", "title", "chamber", "granule_class", "sub_granule_class", "page_start", "page_end", "speakers", "bills", "citation", "full_text"], "primary_keys": ["granule_id"], "primary_key_values": ["CREC-2010-12-22-pt1-PgE2250"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 15.358114033006132, "source": "Federal Register API & Regulations.gov API", "source_url": "https://www.federalregister.gov/developers/api/v1", "license": "Public Domain (U.S. Government data)", "license_url": "https://www.regulations.gov/faq"}