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▶ 0:09:05uh the committee will please come to order a quorum is present the committee meets today pursuant to notice to consider five bills that will enhance the safety and health of America students before we begin I'd like to welcome delegate James moan to the committee uh without objection he'll be added to the subcommittee on Early Childhood Elementary and secary education uh the subcommittee on higher education and Workforce Development and the subcommittee
▶ 0:09:35on Workforce protection welcome turning to the bills we will consider the whole milk for healthy kids act introduced by representative Thompson empowers food service providers and parents to make choices regarding the health and wellbeing of our school children under current Obama error restrictions milk choices are limited to fat free and low lowfat options in our nation schools Washington bureaucrats have restricted milk choices
▶ 0:10:06diminishing well-rounded meals for children and imposing regulatory hurdles for schools school children are at risk of dairy under consumption not over consumption so the healthy path forward is to expand nutritional choices for students and parents this bill passed the house last congress with strong bipartisan support and I look forward to its Passage through this committee again today another bill we will consider
▶ 0:10:36today is the defending education transparency and ending Rogue regimes engaging in nefarious transactions deterrent act um America's foreign adversaries are targeting our nation's students from stealing research to pushing propaganda to censoring free speech colleges and universities are on the front line of malign foreign interference section 117 of The Higher
▶ 0:11:06Education Act requires institutions to report foreign gifts and contracts over 250,000 the goal of section 117 is to provide much needed sunlight on these transactions so American people have the transparency they deserve unfortunately many schools fail to report these foreign gifts and funding um leaving foreign actors with a strangle hold on us academic institutions
▶ 0:11:37the effects of this unchecked influence are grave a congressional investigation last year found multiple examples of problematic Chinese Partnerships with top research universities involving highly sensitive military technology Studies have also found billions in undisclosed foreign funds to universities help fuel anti-Semitism on college campuses the Biden Harris Administration failed to open a single section
▶ 0:12:07117 investigation illustrating the administration's unwillingness to treat foreign influence as a serious threat fortunately this committee is taking action representative Michael bomgardner has reintroduced the deterrent act which provides transparency and Clarity by slashing the reporting dollar threshold closing reporting loopholes requiring disclosures for faculty and endowments and and specifically combating America's biggest
▶ 0:12:37countes of concern such as Russia and China I'd also like to highlight that deterrent includes bills from my colleagues representative Harris representative Owens and representative Mesmer last Congress the deterrent Act pass the house 246 to 170 with the support of 250 Republicans and 31 Democrats our colleges and universities have a take foreign money first ask questions later
▶ 0:13:07mindset this needs to change this mindset also needs to change in K12 Chinese Communist Party CCP influence in American classrooms is pervasive all across all levels of Education in K12 schools confucious classrooms pose uh as a cultural exchange center yet often act as vehicles for CCP propaganda these CCP propaganda
▶ 0:13:37outposts have infiltrated more than 500 American K12 schools and their grip on education threatens classrooms the CCP confucious classrooms pose a national security risk a geopolitical security risk and an academic security risk to combat these threats the committee will consider three bills to counter the ccp's influence and ensure that schools are transparent about their funding sources
▶ 0:14:08first the protect our kids act from representative Hearn and representative Kevin Kylie combats foreign interference by halting the flow of CCP funds to K12 schools second the Class Act from repres representative Joyce and representative Michael ruy ensures transparency by requiring schools to disclose a source of any foreign funding and finally the trace act from representative bean and representative Ryan Mckenzie
▶ 0:14:39empowers parents by giving them the rights to know about foreign funded resources or Personnel together these three bills will help ensure that American classrooms teach American values not CCP values I'm looking forward to passing these bills taken together today's markup package will keep students healthier and safer with that I yield now to the ranking member uh for an opening statement
▶ 0:15:09thank you Mr chairman today we're here to mark up four education bills and One Nutrition related bill with regard to the education bills it's hard to overlook the glaring irony in today's markup my Republican colleagues have either been silent or are actively supporting the dismantling of the Department of Education a goal that is promoted in the guide book called project 2025 on page 352 for those pushing this damaging policy
▶ 0:15:39the argument rests on the perception that the federal government is too involved in our schools and here we are marking up bills that would give the Department of Education more responsibility to impose unfunded M mandates and interfere with local schools and we recently received disappointing School School achievement scores from um from National Achievement scores and so the Republicans are responding by abolishing the Department of Education
▶ 0:16:09but then what there's a tendency to just complain but not do anything but you've abolished the Department of Education then what there's no actual plan to improve academic achievement in fact the administration is making harder to improve public education earlier this week the Trump Administration permitted Elon Musk in the department of government efficiency to sabotage the work of The Institute of Education Sciences a place
▶ 0:16:40that produces high quality research and is used to improve our Public Schools so the proposals we're considering today will not actually improve students education and outcomes we're considering a series of bills that only add complexity and confusion and frankly are solutions in search of a problem problem for example HR 1048 creates an arbitrary potentially discriminatory approach targeting certain countries and their researchers focusing on nationality
▶ 0:17:11rather than security risks this bill undermines the international collaborations that of historically advanced fields like health and Technology I've said before we can address these concerns without undermining the trust between our institutions and our Global Partners next HR 649 would allow whole milk to be served in school lunches disregarding science-based nutrition standards which are now developed not by the Obama Administration
▶ 0:17:41but by evidence-based recommendations from the dietary guidelines for Americans the DGA these standards focus on the health of our children but this Bild under Minds The efforts to align School Meal programs with the latest science-based nutritional findings it is especially disheartening that this legislation is being considered at a time when Republicans are reportedly considering significant cuts and SNAP benefits and the school meal program that would take free meals away
▶ 0:18:12from healthy from Hungry children then there's um HR 1069 which would Place unnecessary restrictions on public schools if theyve received any Financial contributions teaching materials or other resources from China or there's no clear C evidence that there is even any significant foreign influence in K through 12 schools and this bill fails to address any actual threats even if they did exist hr105 and 1049
▶ 0:18:42are just as problematic uh they add layers of bureaucracy and impose excessive reporting requirements on schools without providing the necessary support or funding for schools to comply my colleagues have historically called these types bills unfunded mandates instead of addressing our schools real challenges such as widening achievement gaps as revealed by the nape scores the uh teacher shortages improving School infrastructure these bills
▶ 0:19:12will only create more administrative burdens and so I'd like to emphasize that it does not make sense to advocate for dismantling the Department of Education then advaned bills which include additional responsibilities for the Secretary of Education so let's be clear today's bills do nothing to improve our schools nape scores do nothing to improve child hunger oras my colleagues on the other side purport reduce adverse foreign influence inste they only create
▶ 0:19:43more administrative hurdles complicate the problems we face in education and fuel misinformation so Mr chairman I'll be opposing these bills encourage my colleagues to oppose them too and with that I yeld back I thank my friend and U you've done a great job illustrating why we're going to have a great time on this committee year discussing the diversity of viewpoint and why I think I'm right and you think you're right
▶ 0:20:13in the in the end we'll see what happens but I think we can agree we want children to learn and we want want our schools to work so we will debate those issues the chair announces that request for recorded votes as to amendments may be post postponed pursuant to Clause two of rule uh 11 of the rules of the House of Representatives and committee rules 14b without objection the chair May recess the committee at any point without objection all other members who wish to insert
▶ 0:20:44written opening statements into the record may do so by submitting them to the committee clerk electronically by the end of the day uh today house rules require that a copy of the measures be made made available to members and the public at least 24 hours in advance pursuant to uh the notice for today's meeting a copy of the measures was made available to members and the public at least 24 hours in advance the bills being marked
▶ 0:21:14up today shall be open to Amendment at any point and the chair will allow members to offer amendments in a manner not prohibited by the house or committee rules without objection members who have more than one Amendment to the resolution or to a bill and wish to offer their amendments and block may do so the committee will now proceed to consideration of the bill HR 1048 for Amendment
▶ 0:21:45the bill was circulated in advance and printed copies are available the clerk shall designate the bill HR 1048 a bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to strengthen disclosure requirements relating to foreign gifts and contracts without objection uh the first reading of the bill is dispensed with without objection the bill will be considered as read and open for Amendment at any point and any and any Amendment offered shall be considered as
▶ 0:22:15red does anyone seek to be recognized Mr bomgardner for what purpose do you seek recognition uh Mr chairman I have an amendment at the desk titled uh deterrence uncore 01 the clerk shall designate the amendment in the nature of a substitute amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1048 offered by Mr bomgardner of Washington identifier deter ansor 01 without objection the amendment shall be considered original text for purposes of further
▶ 0:22:45Amendment the amendment in the nature of a substitute has already been distributed I now recognize Mr bomgardner for five minutes to explain the amendment in the nature of a substitute well thank you Mr chairman let me start saying how delighted I am to be on this a committee under your leadership uh I'm the son of a university Professor uh I had the opportunity to spend a year uh after my undergradu education teaching at Catholic University of uh mosambique and then when I attended Harvard University I was both a
▶ 0:23:16a student of International Development and then also a teaching fellow of International Development and have from time to time uh been a university lecturer on other issues including at uh sanso University in Paris on the issues of counterinsurgency uh so I believe strongly in higher education and in strengthening higher education and that's exactly uh what this bill does higher education is one of the jewels of American society it's an ability uh for social Mobility it's a uh an absolute wonderful
▶ 0:23:47uh mechanism where research and development can strengthen our economy but unfortunately uh it's also an area that is often under attack and used by malign influences uh to subvert American interests uh this bill uh brings some sunshine and some sunlight uh to those issues and helps uh protect Americans uh system of higher education and I'm delighted uh to offer this bill uh Americans foreign adversaries are targeting our nation's students they attempt to steal
▶ 0:24:17research push propaganda and sometimes censor Free Speech colleges and universities are on the front lines of this malign foreign interference China Russia Iran and North Korea represent the greatest secur threats to the United States and are constantly seeking to undermine us interest section 117 of The Higher Education Act is a key tool to provide transparency in fight against threats proposed by our foreign adversaries indeed there is no greater weapon in America's arsenal of democracy than sunlight and this bill is above all a sunlight
▶ 0:24:47Bill section 117 requires universities to disclose public uh public the gifts and contracts with foreign entities over a certain dollar threshold shining a light on hidden Financial trans actions the turn act makes key updates to section 117 to improve transparency accountability and Clarity the bill lowers the annual threshold from $250,000 to $50,000 for All Foreign s sources and lowers the threshold further to $0 for countries of concern and and any other concerning entities
▶ 0:25:18this will ensure that the harmful gifts in contracts can no longer be hidden as today they are the bill also requires full transparency for foreign contracts and prohibits most contracts with countries of concern this will give much needed scrutiny to any relationship with problematic entities this bill closes reporting loopholes so foreign entities cannot hide the true origin or purpose of their gifts institutions are also required to maintain a compliance officer who will certify the accuracy submitted section of section 117 reports institutions can no longer feain ignorance when accepting
▶ 0:25:48problematic foreign money this bill holds our most research heavy and wealthiest institutions accountable it requires public disclosure of foreign gifts to individual staffs at research heavy institutions and also reveals foreign investments the endowments of our largest private universities finally the bill implements a a strategic series of repercussions including pulling federal student aid for colleges that remain non-compliant it establishes a clear enforcement protocol improves interg government coordination and make sure one section 117 cannot be exor bottom line
▶ 0:26:18the turn Act is a crucial step towards transparency protecting American education and students from malicious foreign influence and and let me say that I believe strongly in the positive aspects of collaboration between American universities and foreign entities uh in my own life I remember visiting in Malawi a project uh on AGR forestry between uh Washington State University and the University of malao and it was a wonderful project that was helping research in both institutions so there's a lot of good that happens
▶ 0:26:49uh when uh our universities and foreign entities collaborate collaborate but there can also be a lot of bad one only need look at uh the many uh examples of uh from the Department of Justice of uh malign influence from the Chinese government uh with universities but we don't know if that's all there is there's not enough disclosure uh there's not enough understanding of this important issue and we need to prepare our universities uh and prepare the American people to understand uh how this works so
▶ 0:27:19uh I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this bill I know there was a reference to uh 2025 um and what's going on right now with Department of Education uh this bill has been introduced previously has nothing to do with project 2025 this is just at the bottom line a good sunlight bill for a very very serious problem I yield the remainder of my time I thank your gentlemen for further discussion I recognize the gentle lady from Atlanta Miss mcbath thank you chairman
▶ 0:27:49mberg you know I understand and I do appreciate the intent behind the deterrent act but if House Republicans and the president truly want to lead in America and they want America to lead they must permanently reverse the cuts to the National Institutes of Health and restore full funding to our clinics our universities and our medical centers around the country cutting funding to American research projects makes us less safe and actually pushes these jobs in these cutting Ed Edge projects
▶ 0:28:20overseas possibly to the same forign adversaries that the majority that you're you know that you are saying is targeting with this bill these Cuts create a very clear incentive to move these projects from worldclass institutions like in my state of Georgia University of Georgia Georgia State um of course Georgia Tech and you know ug to other countries federal judge has thankfully paused this directive but it's not enough for us
▶ 0:28:50just to wait outside for the lawsuits to protect folks back home from damaging and possibly illeg legal orders like these I urge my colleagues today to fully evaluate what this means for your States and for your own districts not what the White House says it will do but what these Cuts actually mean for the people who live and work in your districts what this really means for patients what it means
▶ 0:29:20for families who have been waiting to take their turn in really important and critical clinical trials patients and their families who are hoping and praying for a miracle and yes I was one of those when I was diagnosed with my second bout of breast cancer I had the privilege of taking part in a clinical trial at the University of Alabama in Birmingham and without that care that I received in that clinical trial the funding that is now being halted I might not be sitting here before
▶ 0:29:51you today so I thank God every single day for the opportunity to get the advanced care that I was given and that I needed so that I could get better so that I am now here serving the United States of America trying to protect people just like me that these Cuts will drastically influence the ability for them to be able to be healthy and viable and to live and that's an opportunity that may not be available made available to folks
▶ 0:30:21now that these cuts are in place and that's simply wrong so I encourage all of my colleagues to oppose this bill and all the other misguided efforts that make America less competitive on the world stage and less healthy here at home and I Y back thank the gentle lady I now we recognize gentleman from Pennsylvania Mr Thompson well thank you Mr chairman the deter act before us today
▶ 0:30:51which is what we're going to be talking about is an important step towards protecting our national security our nation is home to many of the top academic institutions in the world leading the way on groundbreaking research in health care energy production engineering Agriculture and more unfortunately that makes these institutions Prime targets for foreign adversaries to exert their influence and potentially compromise American Research and intellectual
▶ 0:31:22property the deter act will help mitigate these threats by increasing trans transparency in foreign investments closely scrutinizing any gifts or contracts from our adversaries and implementing concrete enforcement actions for non-compliance of course for any of these policies to have an impact institutions must accurately report required information under Section 117 many colleges and universities in my district had told me that the current
▶ 0:31:52reporting system at the Department of Education is outdated burdened some and difficult to interact with additionally for larger institutions with higher volumes of reporting allowing only one individual to submit all these all the necessary information creates needless headaches and many cases can delay the reporting of this information for these reasons I am glad to see this legislation includes Provisions that I have championed to
▶ 0:32:22streamline reporting provide better technical assistance to institutions and ensure larger institutions are able to comply with his mandate this includes allowing institutions to report all necessary gifts and contracts by uploading one file to the Department's database currently institutions are often required to report each eligible eligible gift or contract one by one to the department creating a cumbersome a bureaucratic
▶ 0:32:52process that inefficient by improving the user interface to allow for batch reporting institutions will be able to more easily comply with reporting requirements outlined in this legislation Additionally the bill permits institutions to designate up to three individuals to file these reports rather than one leveling the playing field for larger institutions that have significant reporting obligations finally I'm glad to see language ensuring the Departments Department hears
▶ 0:33:22considers and is responsive to feedback from a comprehensive group of all of these Provisions further increase accountability within the department and provide institutions with the necessary resources to fully comply with the provisions in this legislation uh thank you to Congressman bomgardner for leading this important legislation and I encourage all of my colleagues to support this legislation in the interest of accountability transparency and National Security thank you Mr chairman I yield
▶ 0:33:53back I thank the gentleman I recognize the gentleman for from Virginia thaning member Scott thank you Mr chairman Mr chairman we can all agree that institutions have to be transparent about the resources they receive from foreign ENT entities especially since the for foreign federal government has historically invested about $30 billion doar into our higher education institute's research and development efforts but this doesn't do anything to protect uh the security within our universities
▶ 0:34:23this bill would require a faculty to report any gift even coffee and donuts received by somebody born in a country of concern you have a list of countries of of of concern and then what happens if the um colleague comes in and brings coffee and donuts for for for everybody you have to check out their citizenship maybe they're American citizen maybe
▶ 0:34:54not if you've eaten the dut and you say I don't know then you find out that they are foreign National you have to report that and now be listed on a on on on on a report list searchable database where people can find out that you're suspect that what happens I don't um we need to make sure that um we can actually implement this uh Bill if it ever becomes a law
▶ 0:35:25It's Curious that um you all want to get rid of the Department of Education who's going to implement it after you do that um this is just um an Overkill we can deal with um influence from foreign governments we can list Gifts of any significance but a zero uh limit that is coffee and donuts included is in ridiculous way to pass legislation and I would hope that we would uh defeat
▶ 0:35:55the um substitute and the bill I thank the gentleman I just asked that we have whole milk with that dut you'll have your chance in a minute I uh now recognize the gentleman from Utah the vice chair of this committee representative Owens thank you Mr chair imagine that a prestigious American University one that Prides itself on academic freedom and Innovation is quietly funneling millions of dollars
▶ 0:36:26into Investments tied to Chinese commun Communist Party Russian oligarchs or Iranian uh regime imagine that while students are being taught about democracy and free thought their tuition dollars are helping fund governments that actively work against these same very ideals this isn't hypothetical is happening right now that's why we need the deterrent act a critical step toward bolstering our national security and bringing much needed transparency to higher education I'm especially proud of my my legislation the
▶ 0:36:56reporting on investments and foreign adversaries Act is included in this bill ensuring that we take strong action to protect our educational system from foreign influence more specifically the reporting on investments and foreign establisher acts will provide will require private universities with endowments of over $6 billion or Investments of concern exceeding $250 million to disclose their financial ties to countries like China Russia and Iran if our universities are making money off
▶ 0:37:26regimes that seek to under mind us the American people have a right to know I want to thank Mr bumgardner for this legislation I strongly urge my colleagues to vote Yes on a deterrent acts to safeguard our higher educational system for malicious foreign influence with that I Y back I thank the gentlemen I recognize the gentle lady from North Carolina Mr Adams thank you Mr chairman I'm move to strike the last word um Mr chairman as a as a retired 40-year Professor
▶ 0:37:56small College North Carolina uh I certainly agree that transparency and higher education matters no one is arguing that we we shouldn't know where major foreign funding is coming from but this bill it's not about transparency it's about overreach red tape and fear-mongering so let's break it down it buries colleges especially small ones under unnecessary paperwork dropping the reporting threshold from 250,000
▶ 0:38:26to 50,000 000 now that means that universities will spend more time tracking routine collaborations and less time actually educating students it targets faculty and staff treating Educators like spies by forcing them to report every single foreign contract and gift it forces private institutions to disclose their endowment Investments despite zero evidence that this improves transparency or national security so if we're being real
▶ 0:38:56this isn't about about accountability it's about politics and so we know exactly who this bill is targeting my colleagues across the aisle love to throw around concerns about China but who among the top foreign donors to American universities Canada England Qatar uh but you wouldn't know that listening to some of the rhetoric here today but let's talk about what this means for our Educators let's say a professor attends a professional development seminar on stem education it's sponsored by our University
▶ 0:39:27she goes and learns uh new strategies and brings them back to her students and her colleagues months later she finds out that the Congress had that the conference had partial foreign funding so does she now have to report that would she have to track down who paid for lunch which she need to vet every speaker's Financial history before attending the result teachers and researchers will think twice before engaging in global collaboration so instead of making things clearer this
▶ 0:39:57Bill makes things harder these aren't problems uh we solve in silos they're solved by collaborating with Brighter Brightest mind with the brightest Minds around the world so meanwhile while other countries invest in higher education this bill does the opposite it makes it harder to conduct research harder to recruit top talent harder for America to stay ahead so if we're serious about National Security and academic Integrity let's focus on Smart Target Ted
▶ 0:40:27Solutions not blanket restrictions for this reason I urge my colleagues to vote no on this Bill thank you I you back I thank the gentle lady and I recognize gentleman from North Carolina representative Harris thank you Mr chairman colleges and universities are becoming battlefields for influence over our next generation of leaders and America's allowing our adversaries to gain ground with every foreign dollar every year funds
▶ 0:40:57from countries all around the world pour into American institutions in 2021 alone us colleges and universities received 1.1 billion in international gifts and contracts these countries do not have America's best interest in mind and every one of their dollars could come with strings attached this is a National Security emergency that must be addressed immediately today I'm grateful that we're considering the deterrent Act legislation
▶ 0:41:28that will crack down on foreign involvement in the US education system by strengthening requirements for colleges to report foreign gifts and contracts students parents and taxpayers have a right to know the financial ties of these universities the veil will be lifted and there will be no more under the table deals that leave Americans in the dark this bill includes language from my own legislation the no contracts with foreign adversaries act which requires a college or university to
▶ 0:41:58be transparent about the reason that they might want to contract with say China Russia North Korea or Iran countries currently designed by our government as quote countries of concern The Wall Street Journal reported that over the last 12 years US schools had nearly 3,000 contracts with China valued at $ billion the question is why are our institutions
▶ 0:42:28strapped for cash I mean with a collective $927 billion doll in endowments and trillions of taxpayer dollars lining the pockets of Institutions through student loans that that hardly seems likely so why do our most elite institutions accept payments from our geopolitical enemies under the first Trump Administration the Department of Education investigated and uncovered $6.5 billion in previous ly unreported
▶ 0:42:58money from adversarial countries to the coffers of universities who knows what Trump Department of Education will uncover this time especially since President Biden's Administration did not open a single investigation in four years completely disregarding current law I wonder why maybe it has to do with the $14 million donated to the pin Biden center from unnamed Chinese sources while it's true
▶ 0:43:28there could be an academic purpose for a partnership with a country like China or Russia but these Partnerships cannot come at the expense of our national security research Integrity or future Generations the deterrent act strengthens current law by raising the reporting standards and providing a real enforcement mechanism if schools try to sh their responsibility to students across this country I urge all
▶ 0:43:59of my colleagues to support the deterrent act and chairman with that I yield back I thank the gentleman I now recognize the gentle lady from Oregon representative banamichi uh thank you chairman wallberg I moved to strike the last word I want to align myself with the comments of ranking member Scott and also representatives mcbath and Adams regarding the deterrent act I also want to Welcome to the committee our new colleague from the Pacific Northwest uh thank you for your positive words about higher education but I want to
▶ 0:44:29note that I've spoken with many universities over the past couple of weeks and I question the priority here today because with a massive cuts to the not only NIH as representative mcbath mentioned but also to the National Science Foundation our universities across the country are extremely concerned about what this means to ongoing research and research in the future so if I I understand that this bill talks about protecting research collaboration but I tell you I'm not sure how many researchers
▶ 0:44:59are going to be left with whom to collaborate If This research funding is cut um I I also um I'm a little bit baffled by the comments about National Security when we have right now the feeding to the wood chipper I believe as Elon Musk mentioned of usaid which is not just a humanitarian organization it is a national security issue uh people who work for usaid are ears and eyes on the ground around the world uh and and closing shuttering that
▶ 0:45:29agency will be devastating for National Security as well as our standing in the world so I I question the priorities today I hope that we can talk about improving higher education uh by supporting research by making higher education more affordable and I yield back the balance of my time I thank the gentle lady now I recognize gentleman from Indiana representative Mesmer thank you Mr chairman today I'd like to speak in support of HR 1048 the deterrent Act a bill that addresses a key National Security vulnerability
▶ 0:46:00in our higher education institutions our foreign adversaries influence pedaling via giftgiving loopholes I especially support the provision of this bill lowering the reporting threshold for All Foreign funding to higher educ education institutions from 250,000 to 50,000 and requiring reporting of any foreign Source gifts from China Russia North Korea and Iran when I was in the Indiana Senate I worked with our attorney general to pass into law a bipartisan bill that required all foreign foreign
▶ 0:46:30funding disclosure reporting to the AG from our colleges similar similar to what is required by federal law I'm honored to have legislation uh language that I've introduced into this bill section 117 subsection e of the turn deter act includes language from HR 1018 the instruct act requiring more interagent inter Agency information sharing between the Department of Education and our and our intelligence ages agencies and the broader departmental inter agency
▶ 0:47:00any disclosure report received by the Secretary of of Education must be shared no later than 90 days to cabinet members across the inter agency with equity in protecting our higher education institutions including the FBI dni CIA do the dod doj the do DHS the doe NSF and the NIH theer the deterrent act will also include language from the instruct act requiring report from the GAO
▶ 0:47:303 years after the bill enactment that would require a study on ways to improve intergovernmental intergovernmental agency coordination regarding the imple implementation and enforcement of the deterrent act if passed I look forward to maintaining congressional oversight on the enactment of these reporting requirements and ways to improve the process on enforcement and information sharing compliance I look forward to contining to work with the members of this committee on protecting our schools our students uh from any influence that seeks to lessen their educational experience and value
▶ 0:48:01thank you Mr chairman and with that I yield back I thank the gentlemen are there any other members to wish be recognized oh excuse me there is there is one uh there'll be two now representative of recognized representative from New York Manion thank you Mr chair um question for the sponsor of the amendment if as allowed in these proceedings
▶ 0:48:32um Elon Musk has uh committed $100 million for the establishment of a new University in Texas and I would assume that um if the deterant ACT is passed into law that prior to the establishment of that University uh he would be subjected to disclosure of his uh interactions with the People's Republic of China is that gentlemen wish to
▶ 0:49:02respond well if passed into law that the measure would apply to all uh universities uh but I would also add that nothing in this act Cuts any funding uh from any you yield back I thank the gentleman now I recognize General General lady representative Hayes thank you um I kind of in the same vein I'm listening along
▶ 0:49:33as um my Republican colleagues are speaking in support of this legislation and I hear things like National Security research Integrity transparency Financial disclosures congressional oversight I would just ask that they bring that same energy when we're talking about Elon moss in some of his dealings and financial involvement with outside governments which they have been um eerily silent on so the same energy that you're bringing to uh strong defense of this legislation
▶ 0:50:04I I would just hope that we would apply that across the board whenever we're talking about our article one constitutional Authority as members of Congress I yell back I thank the G lady from Connecticut now I uh ask if there are any further members who wish to be recognized seeing none there be being no further disc discussion on on the amendment in the nature of a substitute the committee will move to consideration of the Amendments for what purpose does
▶ 0:50:34the gentleman for from Virginia the ranking member Mr Scott seek to be recognized Mr chairman I have an amendment at at the desk um amd4 the cler will report the amendment Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1048 offered by Mr Scott of Virginia identifier demore 04 M Mr chairman I reserve a point of order
▶ 0:51:04I recognize gentleman from Utah for point of order a point of order is reserved I now recognize the gentleman from Virginia uh for five minutes support of the amendment thank you Mr chairman Mr chairman I'm please offer this Democratic amendment in nature of a substitute to HR 1048 as I've mentioned colleges and universities collaborate collaborate with a range of international entities to advance complex research inquiries that contribute to the growth of our
▶ 0:51:34knowledge on an array of issues these International Partnerships allow for a diverse range of perspectives and resources that help make us make bold strides in Health Science and Technology our Democratic colleagues and I remain committed to ensuring that institutions have resources to safeguard their work from undue foreign influence I appreciate the majority's interest in addressing this important issue it is clear that their proposal is far too extreme and does not actually promote International compliance specifically with
▶ 0:52:04such harsh finds and limited opportunities for institutions to see guidance I'm complain I'm concerned that these changes to section 117 of The Higher Education Act will discourage institutions from collaborating with International entities that are essential to solving important Global issues at a time when President Trump is already halting funding for V research across the country this International collaboration is now more essential than ever also very concerned to see language that targets
▶ 0:52:35individual faculty members for their collaboration with foreign entities including their own colleagues on campus we have a responsibility to strike a balance between enforcing the law and F fostering safe safe campuses for students Scholars and faculty unlike the underlying Bill our Democratic substitute takes a thoughtful approach to section 117 in compliance to support institutions as they evaluate and Implement their research integrity and foreign foreign influence policies
▶ 0:53:05in addition to requiring the F fing of annual reports for gifts and contracts from foreign entities our Bild would create a robust database at the Department of Education to hold these reports it establishes the common sense sanctions for non-compliance to that allow room for helping institutions who need support scaling up their compliance work rather than pishing them with severe civil penalties and it establishes a single point of contact at the department to coordinate section 117
▶ 0:53:35compliance Democratic substitute also Builds on the robust work being done through the implementation of the chips and science Act and the presidential memorandum on government supported research and development a national security policy guidance by aligning reporting requirements to those of other federal agencies and requiring the Secretary of Education to go through negotiated rule making to address key implementation aspects of section 117 including Common Sense thresholds
▶ 0:54:05that would not require reporting a gift of a cup of coffee I urge my colleagues to support the Democratic substitute rather than the underlying Bill to enhance institution's ability to protect against foreign influence while supporting International collaboration your back I thank the gentleman uh does a gentleman from Utah insist on point of order Mr chairman I withraw my point of order thank you uh does anyone else seek recognition on the
▶ 0:54:39amendment yes Mr Mr Speaker Mr um recognize the gentle lady from North Carolina thank thank you Mr chairman um I would like to offer an amendment uh in the nature of a substitute uh D demem this is this is we're still I withdraw that right now thank you I now recognize myself for five minutes um in
▶ 0:55:09opposition to the amendment instead of taking the threat of foreign influence seriously this amendment is a mere slap on the wrist and includes gaping disclosure uh loopholes this is insufficient to protect our students and institutions from our worst adversaries the amendment first makes it easier for foreign sources to be undetected doubling the threshold for contracts to $100,000 and allowing gifts
▶ 0:55:40under 250,000 over a threeyear span to unreported bad actors will seek any possible way to avoid transparency about their attempts to harm America through their influence over American postsecondary Education and a strict threshold is essential to stop that from happening the annual thresholds in deterrent are simple and align with other requirements in existing federal law such as is in in chips
▶ 0:56:10and nspm 33 shockingly this amendment includes no difference for America's biggest enemies countries of concern and entities of concern in my colleagues Minds gifts from Russia China and Iran are exactly the same as gifts from England or Canada I find it alarming that my colleagues are trying to make it easier for countries of concern to find ways to influence
▶ 0:56:41our universities I want to remind everyone here that deterrent uses a tailored list of countries and individuals pull from existing law that have a proven track record of being security threats and actively working against against the United States and and actually naming themselves as enemies of the United States the Democrat ANS also has
▶ 0:57:11terrible carve outs that provide gaping loopholes for cunning adversaries the amendment prevents disclosure of the names of foreign sources and the names of who at the institution is receiving the gift and also exempts all clinical trials these loopholes will make it easier for foreign sources to conceal their relationships rendering disclosure all but useless simple transparency is the best way to ensure Partnerships are as good as institutions claim
▶ 0:57:42finally the Democrats provide no real incentive for schools to comply Their fines for violations go as low as $250 after three consecutive years of the Democrat fine only goes up to the full amount of the gift this is a laughable drop in the bucket compared to the billions in foreign checkbooks money talks and institutions need to know section 117
▶ 0:58:13cannot be ignored we have already seen institutions fail to disclose billions in the past and this poultry fine has no real consequences it's time to take foreign influences seriously I stand against this amendment and I yield back Is there further debate on the amendment if not the question is on the amendment by the gentleman uh from
▶ 0:58:43Virginia um all in favor say I I all oppos no no in the opinion of the shair the NOS have it and the amendment is not agreed to Chairman a recognized gentleman from Virginia i' request the roll call vote a roll call uh vote is ordered pursuant to the chair's previous announcement this vote will be postponed are there any further amendments to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to
▶ 0:59:13HR 1048 Mr chair I have an amendment I recognize a gentle lady from North Carolina for purpose of amendment thank you uh I'd like to offer an amendment uh DM d M amd3 um I would uh like to um offer this amendment because it aims to address something that that I hope we can all agree on protecting sens does a gentleman from
▶ 0:59:43Utah question yes Mr chairman I reserve a for us I asked clerk to designate the amendment okay Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1048 offered by by Miss Adams of North Carolina identifier demore amdor 03 Mr chairman I now recognize the gentleman from Utah I reserve a point of order gentleman from Utah reserves a point of order and now I recognize a gentle lady from
▶ 1:00:13North Carolina thank thank you Mr chairman um I would like to offer this amendment um because it aims to address something that I hope we can all agree on uh protecting sensitive data I'm deeply concerned by the gross privacy violations that we are currently witnessing by Doge Elon MK and his minions across federal government I'm further concerned that that these privacy violations if continued at the Department of Education will enable important foreign influence
▶ 1:00:44work could be hijacked by outside officials with personal or political not National Security motivations my Amendment would simply require a Department of Education imp employee not a doge employee not a political employee appointee to serve as the designated point of contact for Section 117 compliance this position would be responsible for receiving and analyzing all data regarding colleges for gifts and contracts
▶ 1:01:14relaying said information to relevant national security agencies and supporting colleges in remaining compliant with the law the amendment would also require this point of contct contct to adhere to a strict conflict of interest policy to ensure the Integrity of the oversight work necessary in the role it's no secret that Elon Musk and his businesses have deep ties to China a country that HR 1048 defines as a country of concern
▶ 1:01:45uh we cannot have someone like this or their so-called organization in charge of protecting against foreign influence Americans are actively witnessing a deeply alarmed ing trend of of Doge continuing to devalue disrupt dismantle the work of civil servants and federal agencies so I don't want to see this important policy fall prey to these same attacks and to that end uh Mr chair I urge my colleagues to keep this data secure
▶ 1:02:15and support my amendment I yeld back I thank the gentle lady to the gentleman from Utah insist on the point of order uh Mr chair I with I withdraw the point of order point of order is withdrawn does anyone else seek recognition on the amendment seeing no others seeking recognition on the amendment I recognize myself uh I would
▶ 1:02:45before speaking to representative Adams amendment I would point out that um for the deterrent act uh the exact same standard for monetary gifts as members of Congress are there so a coffee a cup of coffee would not come under the requirements I oppose this amendment I appreciate my colleagues interest in ensuring
▶ 1:03:16section 117 data is shared and disclosed properly it's our intent that the department maintain a clear point of contact to help schools comply with the requirements of section 117 the bill includes clear Provisions about what information can be shared while also promoting key inter agency coordination to protect National Security we specifically authorize where the section 117 data can be shared and with whom
▶ 1:03:46the wording of this amendment should uh could risk hampering inter agency coordination and provide no additional clear privacy protections I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment and support the underlying Bill thank you and I yield back if there's no further debate on the amendment uh the question is on the amendment by The Gentle lady from North Carolina representative Adams all in
▶ 1:04:16favor say I I all oppos no no in the opinion of the chair the eyes have it and the amendment is uh not agreed to Mr chair I request a recorded vote uh the nose have it record Mr chair I request G lady ask for a recorded vote thank you
▶ 1:04:49uh a roll call vote is ordered pursuant the chair's previous announcement this vote will be postponed are there any further amendments to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1048 Mr chair I have an amendment at the desk the clerk will designate the amendment Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1048 offered by Miss Lee of Pennsylvania
▶ 1:05:19identifier demore 02 Mr chairman gentleman from Utah is recognized I reserve a point of order point of order is authorized now I recognize I recognized representative Lee for her Amendment thank you Mr chair
▶ 1:05:49I would like to offer an amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute addressing the inevitable harm this bail would cause on um on campus climate theeran Act is a recipe for more xenophobia more discrimination and more profiling of international students and students of color if enacted my Amendment will require the government accountability office to study whether this bill fuels hostility on campuses and undermines the international research Partnerships that keep America at the Forefront of innovation and while it's critical for GAO
▶ 1:06:20to investigate this bill those of us who are black or brown or from immigrant communities are already know what GAO will find we've endured policies like these for Generations from aarthy era loyalty Oaths targeting immigrant Scholars to domestic terrorism investigations of students uh black power organizers to post 911 surveillance of Muslim Students American history is full of moments where the government has used fear and National Security to justify discrimination on
▶ 1:06:50campuses president Trump's first term gave us yet another example his China initiative also claimed to be about National Security but in reality it encouraged racial profiling wrongful investigations and mass surveillance of students and Scholars simply because of their ethnicity now the Trump Administration is moving to revoke visas for students expressing their rights under the First Amendment these actions aren't about combating Espionage or foreign influence they're about intimidation silencing marginalized voices and creating
▶ 1:07:21an atmosphere of fear when students watch their peers be surveilled harassed or driven out the message is clear you don't belong you're not want it here that's why I introduced a creating positive college campus racial climates act legislation to hold colleges accountable for creating safe and inclusive environments this bill requires schools to inform students of their rights report discrimination data transparently and conduct regular campus climate assessments so we're not relying on anecdotal evidence alone to understand the marginalization students of color
▶ 1:07:51and international students experience daily we know that many students of color are regularly faced bias harassment and isolation on campus but too often schools sweep it under the rug uh right now there's no consistent way to track how often discrimination happens how schools respond or whether students even know how to report it if colleges don't measure the problem they'll never fix it the campus act makes sure they do as members of Congress we have a responsibility to ensure that every student faculty member no
▶ 1:08:22matter where they come from can live work and study an Environ ments free from xenophobia and racial profiling colleges and universities don't just benefit from International students and Scholars they depend on it their research their work and their contributions make our country stronger and more competitive on the world stage a welcoming diverse and inclusive campus climate is what allows colleges to keep producing the breakthroughs and innovations that push our country forward the deterrent act takes
▶ 1:08:52us in the opposite direction if my colleagues across the out are confident this bill won't fuel discrimination or harm uh International research then they should have no problem supporting my amendment I urge my colleagues for their support i back Mr chair insist on a point of order uh Mr chair I withdraw the point of order
▶ 1:09:22I thank the gentleman does anyone else seek recognition on the amendment if none then I recognize myself for five minutes to speak in opposition to this amendment argents arguments from my Democrat colleagues assume that determent will harm beneficial collaboration and harm International students this couldn't be further from the truth
▶ 1:09:53that a turn act ask for common sense disclosure such as the intended purpose of the contract the part the department responsible for the contract and the length of the contract disclosing this information does not block beneficial Partnerships with our allies our goal is not to seow seeds of paranoia or distrust but rather recognize the way American collaboration has in has time and time again be exploited by other nations for their own self-interest
▶ 1:10:23as President Reagan famously equipped trust but verify countries and entities of concern have a proven track record of undermining us interest other federal agencies and law laws have recognized that these actors pose a unique threat to American Safety for contracts with countries and entities of concern institutions can go through a waiver process so long as they disclose in a transparent fashion the contract text and purpose if
▶ 1:10:53contracts are innocent as institutions claim they should be able to prove it to the American public the deterrent act focuses only on forign sources not individuals based on a certain ethnicity or background also the Bill's Provisions apply to all foreign countries so nations in Europe Africa Asia or anywhere else will be equally required to follow the law sadly many of the victims of authoritarian and hostile regimes are in fact their own
▶ 1:11:24citizens many International students come to the US hoping to escape the oppressiveness of their home country but face what is known as transnational repression thanks to unchecked influence of hostile regimes transparency is the best way to protect institutions all students and the American public from align foreign actors students of all background should be able to study and learn without feeling watched or manipulated
▶ 1:11:54by foreign countri countries or entities American institutions should represent the freedom to learn discuss and disagree curbing malign influence through the deterrent Act is necessary to protect these ideals for all students with that I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment and pass our pass HR 1048 back for what does the gentle
▶ 1:12:24lady from Oregon seek recognition uh Mr chairman I'd move to strike the last excuse me we in speak in support of the amendment gent a is recognized for five minutes thank you Mr chairman I I just wanted to talk about an example uh of something that happened not that long ago actually a wrongfully accused faculty member at MIT here we have a primary example of how anxiety toward being racially profiled can impact a person's livelihood in the case of uh Professor Dr
▶ 1:12:55gang xan Shen who was uh he had to walk away from his career as a scientific researcher because of what turned out to be false accusations of Espionage so I want to remind my colleagues that know to lead in the efforts of ensuring that all people particularly those from the International Community are able to work in in important spaces where they are fully accepted this case should also serve as a reminder for the continued work that's highly needed and critical to our society so uh keep in mind that that the damage
▶ 1:13:25as stated by Professor Chan uh should serve as a catalyst about why we need to remain Vigilant to any and all forms of discrimination so I I just I don't know if anybody wants to address it how you would handle this if we don't have an amendment like the one that is uh pending I yell back I thank the gentle na Is there further debate on the amendment if not the question is on the amendment
▶ 1:13:56by the general lady from Connecticut representative Lee all in favor say I I all opposed say no no in the opinion of the chair the NOS have it and the amendment is not agreed to Mr chair I request a record a vote a roll call vote is ordered pursuant to the chair's previous announcement this vote will be postponed are there any further amendments to the amendment in the nature of the substitute
▶ 1:14:27for what purpose does the gentleman from Virginia the ranking member representative Scott seek to be recognized chairman have an amendment of the desk demm amd1 the clerk will report the amendment Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1048 offered by Mr Scott of Virginia identifier demore amdor 01 I now recognize Mr chair gentleman from Utah uh I reserve a point of order a point of order is reserved
▶ 1:14:58I now recognize the gentleman from Virginia representative Scott for five minutes in support of his Amendment um Mr chairman I think this amendment would exclude Hospitality between um uh colleagues I think your comments indicate that you probably support the um idea so I would hope you would support the amendment the language you referred to uh of the minimum reporting is on page 25 of the bill which says any gift received from a foreign source of previous calendar
▶ 1:15:29year the value of which is greater than the minimum is set forth in the US code that has the minimum or is of undetermined value so if you don't know what it is even if it's under the value you have to report it this um Amendment would just say that you don't have to report um uh hospitality receptions um and things of
▶ 1:15:59that nature um and I hope we'd adopt the amendment based on your comments are you back I thank the gentleman does the gentleman from Utah point of order is withdrawn does anyone else seek recognition on the amendment seeing none I recognize myself to speak in opposition to this
▶ 1:16:29amendment while I appreciate the spirit of this amendment we need to be extremely careful when creating and expanding exemptions for foreign gifts exemptions for things such as widely attended events and and receptions may seem reasonable but it's critical to recognize that foreign adversaries with malicious motives will do anything and everything to exploit loopholes in statute when given the chance through vague language like personal Hospitality that said I want to reiterate that I agree with
▶ 1:16:59the spirit behind this amendment and while I plan to oppose the amendment at this time I'm happy to work further with a ranking member and all of my Democrat colleagues on this topic as this bill moves through the props process thank you and I yield back any further debate on the amendment if not the question is on the amendment by the gentleman from Virginia Mr chairman representative Scott U BAS in your comments that we can work together to refine the the um language
▶ 1:17:29um I withdraw the amendment I thank the gentlemen and we will keep to that commitment are there uh any further amendments to the amendment in nature of substitute HR 1048 seeing none we'll now move to consider the next bill
▶ 1:18:42where do I move from here page the committee will now proceed to consideration of Bill HR 649 for Amendment the bill was circulated in advance and printed copies are available the clerk shall designate the bill HR 649 a bill to amend
▶ 1:19:12the Richard B Russell national school lunch act to allow schools to participate in the school lunch program under such act to serve whole milk without objection the first reading of the bill is dispensed with without objection the bill will be considered as read and open for Amendment at any point and any Amendment offered shall be considered as R does anyone seek to be recognized Mr Thompson for what purpose do you seek recognition Mr chairman I have an amendment at the desk titled
▶ 1:19:43thor10 the clerk shall designate the amendment in the nature of a substitute amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 649 offered by Mr Thompson of Pennsylvania identifier ta h m PA aore 010 without objection Amendment shall be considered original text for purposes of further Amendment the amendment in the nature of a substitute has already been distributed I now recognize Congressman Thompson for five minutes to explain the amendment in the nature of a substitute well thank you
▶ 1:20:13Mr chairman and thank you for calling up HR 649 the whole milk for healthy kids act by including this legislation today's markup we are sending a clear sign that this committee prioritizes the health and well-being of school children across the country we've heard the concerns and pleas from parents School administrators Dairy Farmers and students themselves to restore common sense in school lunchrooms put simply the bill before us today allow schools participating in the national
▶ 1:20:43school lunch program to serve all varieties of milk including whole milk milk is an essential building block for a well-rounded and balanced diet offering 13 essential nutrients and numerous health benefits however outof touch Federal Regulations have imposed dietary restrictions on the types of milk students have access to in school Mills students have been limited to fat-free or reduced fat milk since it was regulated out of the cafeterias in 2012
▶ 1:21:14since then we' have seen students opt out of consuming milk altogether since they don't have access to a variety that they enjoy according to the 2020 dietary guidelines advisory committee report more than 2third of school's children fail to meet the recommended levels of dairy additionally according to USDA School milk consumption dropped by more than 10% between 2012 and 2018 let's face it the only way to benefit from milk's essential
▶ 1:21:44nutrients is to consume it and when students turn away from milk they often opt for far less healthy alternatives like sugar sweeten highly caffeinated B es with little nutritional value these regulations also perpetuate baseless claims that milk is bad for our kids research has shown time and time again that whole and 2% milk by the way whole is 3 and a half% uh milk fat and 2%
▶ 1:22:15milk are not responsible for childhood obesity and other health concerns in fact these beverages are so nutritious that academic research can consistently shows positive outcomes for kids who consume milk Mr chairman I ask for unanimous consent to insert into the record 16 academic studies and reports from researchers across the country and around the world without objection thank you and heing no objection they'll be inserted thank you
▶ 1:22:45these studies show among other things that full fat dairy foods have no association with high uh high blood pressure cardiovascular disease type 2 D diabetes obesity blood pressure or cholesterol in fact several of these studies show full fat foods helped improve or lower negative Health outcomes for kids who drank more full fat Dairy beverages one of these reports includes research backed by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Heart Association
▶ 1:23:15recommending schoolway children and Adolescence consume more fluid milk knowing that kids Nationwide have been missing out on essential nutrients in their diets because they no longer drink milk like in the past I also ask for unanimous consent to insert into the record two letters of support for this legislation which includes support from the national milk producers Federation the international Dairy Foods Association National Farmers Union American Farm Bureau Federation the Society of metabolic
▶ 1:23:45Health practitioners and the nutrition Coalition without rejection they'll be inserted thank you finally I want to make clear that this legislation no way requires schools to serve or students to drink milk in the school lunchrooms rather it simply gives schools the flexibility to serve milk options that fit their students needs in fact based on bipartisan feedback from last Congress we have strengthened a provision in the bill to make it easier for
▶ 1:24:15students with certain dietary restrictions to receive an Alternative Beverage appropriate for them we need to follow real science not political science for our children to excel in the classroom Beyond they must have access to more nutritious options not fewer although there is more work uh to do for school meal nutrition this change gives students access to a nutritional beverage they want and need this substitute Amendment provides minor technical changes to help ensure our children's Food
▶ 1:24:46Service workers have flexibility they need and serving students milk at lunch thank you to my colleague on this legislation Dr shrier Who I should know is herself a pediatrician and a great advocate for ensuring students are getting the nutrients they need at school I'm proud to have 100 bipartisan co-sponsors supporting this legislation I encourage all my colleagues to support this amendment in the nature of a substitute as well as the underlying science-based Common Sense legislation thank you Mr chairman and I yeld back I thank the gentleman
▶ 1:25:16are there any members who wish to be recognize for further discussion on the amendment I recognize uh gentle lady from Oregon representative vichi uh thank you uh Mr chairman I mov to strike the last word I want to start by saying I certainly appreciate my friend and colleague representative Thompson and the co-sponsor Dr Kim shrier uh hope we can work together on many issues but on this issue I respectfully disagree I do agree that dairy products play an important nutritional role in a well-balanced diet
▶ 1:25:46and support the intake of vitamins and minerals that are necessary for growth and development dairy products are some of the main sources of protein potassium calcium vitamin d and vitamin A for Children and Youth but low-fat milk and fat-free milk which are currently served during school meals offer these nutrients without the added saturated fat sodium and cholesterol found in whole milk whole milk in fact contains significantly more saturated fat cholesterol and calories per serving than lowfat or fat-free milk and in fact whole
▶ 1:26:16milk is so high in saturated fat that its labels can't tout the health benefits of its other nutrients uh which lowfat and fat-free milk can claim School meals and beverages are required to be consistent with the dietary guidelines for Americans which are evidence-based recommendations that set nutritional standards and the dietary guidelines recommend that children consume nutrient DSE food and beverages that provide vitamins minerals and other nutrients for healthy development and bone mass acral including
▶ 1:26:47fat-free and lowfat dairy products but the American Heart Association the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Academy of nutrition and dietetics all recommend that children Age Two or older drink lowfat or fat-free milk so instead of eroding the nutritional standards for children we should follow the science there is limited evidence to suggest that offering whole milk reduces food waste when it comes to taste whether the milk is flavored matters a lot more to school
▶ 1:27:17kids than the milk's fat content I tell you most of them want chocolate milk and that's allowed if it's lowfat or non-fat so HR 649 ignores recommendation from medical professionals it sets a harmful president for the erosion of science-based processes and for these reasons I urge this committee to make our decisions about Children's Health based on science and vote no on this bill and I yield back the balance of my time I thank your gentle lady now I recognize uh representative ruy from Ohio
▶ 1:27:48thank you chairman I will yield my time to Mr Thompson I thank to gentleman from Ohio um and uh it feels a little strange to be on the opposite with congresswoman bonam Mei we do such good work together but congresswoman I want to assure you all those Career and Technical education kids that we support will do better having access to whole milk let me and I believe in science I think it's important so let me deal with some of these myths um that someone has been feeding you number one myth hire milk
▶ 1:28:18fat is unhealthy more recent science on dairy fat specifically shows that dairy foods at all levels have a neutral or even positive effect on health outcomes older government definitions regulations treated all saturated fats the same and they do not reflect updated findings from researchers of top institutions like Boston University Cornell tus just to name three myth two this bill is not based on science because it's not aligned with the dietary guidelines for Americans the DGA
▶ 1:28:49process the fact is the DGA process which is meant to reflect the most recent findings within the medical community has not yet caught up with the more updated scientific findings showing that dairy fat is substantially different than other types of saturated fats the bill actually goes beyond the DGA to update meal standards with the most current medical and nutrition science aiming to incorporate the newer science on dairy fat into an updated
▶ 1:29:19standard for skull milk we ought to go with the science and support the science support Kids versus supporting government some government unelected bureaucrats uh that are not keeping up uh this myth three this bill would negate the process that has been made in planning and service of healthier foods to children in schools well the fact is that since whole milk was banned from school lunches in 2010 the the BMI
▶ 1:29:49uh the bariatric mass index scores of students and the rate of obesity and diabetes among young people has significantly increased according to one case study in school year 2007 to 2008 39% of students were in the overweight and obese categories that is of should be of concern to all of us that number jumped to 52% by 2020 2021 uh basically having almost uh uh well a significant period of time
▶ 1:30:20U without home milk in the schools home milk is clearly not the problem if when whole milk is not available students turn to highly caffeinated sugar sweetened beverages by the way which are not regulated out of our schools by Congress only the most nutrition beverage whole milk is regulated out of the hands of our kids uh uh and so they have free access depending on the school to to beverages with little nutritional value critical and critical nutrients are lost
▶ 1:30:50milk has a 13 essential nutrients that are CR iCal for proper development um nutrient students nutrient students will not get if they don't drink the milk that offered to them uh number four myth four the bill allows for students to consume unhealthy levels of saturated fat while the bill allows for higher consumption of dairy fat in school Mills the latest scientific and Medical Research indicates that this could benefit children benefit
▶ 1:31:21several recent studies examining the higher uh examining the effect of higher fat milk consumption found it was associated with lower childhood obesity it's satisfying so they don't go back for more and concluded that dietary guidelines that recommended reduced fat milk versions might not lower the risk of childhood obesity higher consumption of full fat Dairy has been shown to be associated with lower risk of total body fat mass and children and increases um satisfaction
▶ 1:31:52s sadity in students consumption uh myth number five the bill does not account for students who are lactose intolerant or do not want to consume fluid milk that's just not true uh the fact is that's mythi the fact is the bill includes lactose-free milk as an option schools can choose to serve and does not require any student to drink whole milk reduce fat milk or any other kind of milk additionally this bill only amends specific
▶ 1:32:22provisions of the national school lunch act to expand the milk options schools may choose to serve their students it does not amend all provisions of the existing law including those that require schools to provide a substitute for fluid milk for students who have a documented intolerance that does not allow them to consume fluid milk the bill does not require any student to drink whole milk reduced milk fat milk or any other kind of milk the bottom line is that
▶ 1:32:52the whole milk for healthy kids act is simply about giving students greater choice in the school cafeteria the bill does not require any student to consume whole milk or any school district to serve whole milk and it is grounded in updated medical research showing that full fat Dairy is safe healthy and nutrition for children to consume and I yield back my last 10 seconds I yield my time back I thank the gentleman from uh Ohio for yielding I now
▶ 1:33:23recognize said General lady from Georgia represent mcbath thank you chairman Wahlberg and while I really do appreciate the you know the sentiments of Mr Thompson and our Democratic colleague and their concerns about you the milk options for our students in school on the flip side I really believe that it's wrong for the majority to push bills like this while cutting programs that ensure families and children in this country actually get enough to eat this bill will not
▶ 1:33:53expand access to nutrition for families who need it most or alleviate the burden on food pantries instead this bill tries to make a change that is against dietary guidelines and opposed by the experts like the national Wick Association at a time when serious action is needed to fight hunger in our schools we should be spending this time considering legislation that will ensure that every child has access to healthy nutritious meals year
▶ 1:34:23round round one in five kids in America rely on Snap or food stamps with the worst Food insecurity occurring in the south in rural areas in my state like Georgia my home state of Georgia over a third of our 159 counties did not have a summer meal program last year and on top of that our governor governor km and others across the country are refusing to participate in the federal summer EBT program to
▶ 1:34:53despite the overwhelming need for our children this should not distract us from the Republican proposals to cut programs for children and families and to make it more difficult for schools to serve free or reduced price meals and add necessary barriers unnecessary barriers with the intention of ensuring that fewer children and families are able to take advantage of their benefits the real way that
▶ 1:35:23we fight hunger and keep children healthy is by expanding programs like Snap and Wick or making summer meals programs more accessible but not by cutting them there is no reason for any child in this country the greatest country on Earth the most powerful country on Earth to go hungry during the summmer summer program and I'm I'm going to get
▶ 1:35:54spiritual on you since this is where we say we are a one nation under God God calls on each of us to care for the least of these to feed the hungry and to act justly he has shown us what is good and has give and gives us the power to bring his vision of prosperity and peace to life here on Earth and that means feeding the least of these so I look forward to working with a majority on legis ation that
▶ 1:36:24will actually address hunger in this country I encourage my colleagues to oppose this bill and I yield back I thank the gentle lady I recognize now the gentleman from California Mr Kylie thank you Mr chair uh today I'm happy to support the whole uh milk for healthy kids act it is frankly insane to me that still at this very moment whole milk is banned from the national free and reduced lunch
▶ 1:36:54program so for kids who qualify uh who come from lowincome families and receive a free or reduced lunch those programs are not allowed to serve whole milk and this there could not be a more backwards policy number one the best evidence suggests that whole milk is healthy and in fact might be more nutritious uh than other varieties number two it tends to be more filling uh for kids and if the the goal is to make sure that no child goes hungry that's that would be an advantage uh and number three
▶ 1:37:25kids tend to like it more uh and it's better to get them habituated to drinking milk than say uh drinking soda and so it you know this is may seem like a small issue uh but it's it's really not uh childhood obesity uh and related issues are a major major problem in this country uh that's only continued to get worse and this is a perfect example of how our public Health establishment and public
▶ 1:37:55health policies uh have often been the gravest threat to Public Health itself just consider the fact that for years for decades in this country we had Public Health guidelines that recommended lowfat diets and downplayed the risks of sugar and it's now well understood uh that that increased uh the trends of growing obesity and type 2 diabetes in this country who knows how many Americans died premature death because of that erroneous
▶ 1:38:25guidance that came uh from our Public Health establishment or if you want to look at more recently during the covid-19 uh pandemic when it was the public health establishment uh that was probably the biggest Public Health uh risk especially for young people uh when you had Public Health authorities who came up with absolutely disastrous policies like shutting down schools like forcing masks onto 2-year-olds uh that any fair-minded person now
▶ 1:38:56recognizes uh was a absolutely terrible mistake uh for millions of kids in this country so we need to incorporate common sense and science uh into public policy again this bill uh is a modest step in that direction and I'm happy to support it I yield back all right thank the gentlemen I now recognize the uh General lady from from North Carolina representative Adams thank you Mr chairman I
▶ 1:39:26move to strike the last word uh look I I love milk I grew up on it uh but this bill this isn't about what's best for kids this is dairy mandering so this bill doesn't take away fat-free or low fat fat milk options but it does create a loophole to override science-based nutrition uh standards and it push whole and reduce fat milk back into school meals despite clear evidence
▶ 1:39:56that too much saturated fat is isn't good for kids the dietary guidelines for Americans are clear fat-free and low-fat milk are the healthiest choices for kids over two whole milk well it's packed with saturated fat one cup has 4.5 gram so so much so that the FDA won't even let it claim calcium benefits on the label and my colleagues pushing this bill like to say but milk has nutrients
▶ 1:40:27sure it does but you don't need whole milk to get them calcium you can get that from kale broccoli tofu beans and fortified orange juice pottassium sweet potatoes bananas avocados and spinach vitamin D step outside for a little sunshine well let's talk about who gets left behind more than 60% of of black and Latino children and up to 79% of Native American children are lactose
▶ 1:40:58intolerant but this bill keeps outdated barrias in place instead of making it easier for them to access non-dairy Alternatives right now if a student needs a dairy free option their parents have to get a doctor's note that's time off from work a co-pay and a and a whole lot of unnecessary red tape just so their kid can get a nutritious drink at uh my mother used to say it's not about what's good to you it's about what's good
▶ 1:41:28for you kids don't need more saturated fat in their diets and what they need is real nutrition real options and policies based on science not industry influence you know we spent years strengthening School Meal programs teaching kids healthier habits and and tackling childhood obesity and heart disease this bill takes us backward instead of pushing this bill we should be forcing on real focusing on real
▶ 1:41:58solutions like the Healthy Future students and Earth pilot program which which removes barriers for students needing non-dairy Alternatives and ensure School Mill policies actually align with dietary sence so meanwhile here we are almost a month into this new Administration and the last time I checked eggs are still at a dozen so let's stop playing politics with school lunches I urge my colleagues
▶ 1:42:28to vote no I yield back I thank the gentle lady now I recognize gentleman from Guam uh Mr moand thank you Mr chairman I wish to you my time to my colleague Mr Thompson Mr Thompson is recognized thank you chairman um I'm surprised we have so many science deniers on this committee on the other side of the aisle I mean we we do
▶ 1:42:58I mean the science is clear today and it's uh first of all let me say if you're worried about the price of eggs support the farm bill because the price of eggs is going up because of an issue with animal health with high pathogenic Aviation influenza which is not just chickens it's quite frankly it's turkeys and Ducks as well and um and we have the solutions in uh in the farm bill that passed in a bipartisan way out of committee last Congress but
▶ 1:43:28that's that's another committee another topic don't blame that one on President Trump it's we have a serious animal health issue that I think's just going to get worse quite frankly and we have the tools within that that version of the farm bill to address that I know that's important to in Dr Adam State um but please don't deny the science and don't try to make this uh I mean milk fat is uh 1% milk means 1% milk fat 2% milk means
▶ 1:43:592% milk fat whole milk is 3 and a half% milk fat uh so cut me a break that this is that big of an issue I in fact the science has shown the research has shown that the saturated fat and milk is a lot different than some of the other saturated fats keep up with the science is what I would ask and then access the whole statement about lactose free the law is the law we didn't change that uh students have to schools are required
▶ 1:44:29already uh to provide access to whatever type of milk lactose free whatever it might be you know in fact we enhance access so if you really care about these kids uh versus making this into politics um you know the the law already says that Physicians you have to you can bring a note from a physician to get access after feedback by the way in a bill like this when they passed out a committee and passed overwhelmingly 330 votes out of the house in the 118th
▶ 1:45:00Congress we made an improvement we listened we heard and so we have Provisions in this one where the parents don't have to go to the physician the parents can provide the note to the school to be able to get access and the school is required that hasn't has not changed they are required to provide alternative beverages whether it's lactose free milk or whatever it might be and so uh uh so access this is greater access to what quite frankly the needs of the of the kids are um
▶ 1:45:31and and you know I you know I I don't know I I think a vote against this bill was a vote to hurt kids uh we we made a mistake back in 201 10 or or whatever year it was when they stripped uh whole milk out of the schulls our kids have gotten bigger based on the the barometric index um and uh it is uh uh which is not healthy um and um you know I just encourage that we
▶ 1:46:01cast your vote based on uh the modern science the science today so I uh thank you Mr chair and I I yield back to the gentleman from from Guam this gentleman yield are you yes Mr chair thank you I thank the gentlemen I now recognize the Gent lady from Connecticut representative Hayes thank you my comment is very simple actually the same comment I had on the last piece of legislation I
▶ 1:46:31hope we bring the same energy to conversations about feeding children when we are talking about cuts to snap and childhood nutrition programs because a vote against those programs is a vote against children so I'm encouraged by the enthusiasm from the other side to make sure that kids have healthy options and an abundance of food choices and I look forward to carrying that same energy into future conversations about childhood nutrition I yield back I thank the gentle lady now I recognize
▶ 1:47:01the gentleman from Virginia representative Scott thank you Mr chairman Mr chairman HR 649 is an attempt to legislate nutrition standards and disregard evidence-based scientific recommendations made by the dietary guidelines for Americans dgas we support actual science not whatever the sponsor declares a science this uh bill would allow schools participating in the national school lunch
▶ 1:47:32program to offer whole milk violating current science-based standards to protect the health of children according to the Physicians committee for responsible medicine home milk contributes to a large amount of saturated fat in the American diet randomized controls trials that's science the strongest type of science scientific evidence have shown that food high and saturated fat including full fat Dairy raises bad cholesterol
▶ 1:48:02a known cause of heart disease according to the national health and nutrition examination survey one in five children ages 8 to 17 already has adverse cholesterol levels moreover it is vital that any nutrition standards are Guided by science not politicians this bill needlessly inserts Cong into the science-based process now the um gentleman from um uh Pennsylvania has introduced letters
▶ 1:48:33from milk producers um supporting his version of science all of whom will benefit financially from the bill I'd like to introduce a letter from organizations who support real science and prioritize the health of children including the American Heart Association the American Public Health Association National Wick Association the Center for Science in the public interest among other
▶ 1:49:03health Advocates who have expressed opposition to the bill and support the evidence-based DGA standards as unanimous consent to enter in the record the letter from over 20 25 organizations calling for Congress to put children's interests first and uphold science-based with no objection letters be introduced thank you Mr chairman for those reasons I urge my colleagues to oppose the bill you'll back the balance of my
▶ 1:49:37time there being no further discussion on the amendment in the nature of a substitute the committee will now move to consideration of amendments are there any members who would like to offer there being no amendments the question now occurs on the amendment in the nature of the substitute to HR 649 all in favor say I I all oppose no no in the opinion of the chair
▶ 1:50:08the eyes have it and the amendment and the nature of a substitute is agreed to is it there's no Amendment Amendment we'll now move on to consider the next
▶ 1:50:38bill the vote was on the amendment and H of a substitute not on Final passage the committee will now proceed to consideration of the bill HR 1069 for the bill was circulated in advance and printed copies are available the kerk clerk shall designate the bill HR 1069 aill to prohibit the availability of federal education funds for elementary and secondary schools that receive direct or indirect support from the government
▶ 1:51:08of the People's Republic of China without objection the first reading of the bill is dispensed with without objection the bill will be considered as read and open for Amendment at any point and any Amendment offered shall be considered as read does anyone seek to be recognized Mr Kylie for what purpose do you seek recognition Mr chairman I have an amendment at the desk titled aore 001 the clerk shall designate the amendment in the nature of a
▶ 1:51:38substitute amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1069 offered by Mr Kylie of California identifier anore 01 without objection the amendment shall be considered original text for purposes of further Amendment the amendment in the nature of a substitute has already been distributed I now recognize Congressman Kylie for five minutes to explain the amendment in the nature of a substitute Mr KY thank you Mr thank you Mr chair HR uh 1069 the promoting responsible oversight
▶ 1:52:09to eliminate communist teachings for our kids act is a very important piece of legislation uh I want to thank my colleague uh representative Hearn uh for partnering with me on it uh it does not need to be said or emphasized that the Chinese Communist party is responsible for severe human rights abuses and the suppression of fundamental freedoms and this of course includes uh a long well-documented history of censorship oppression and disregard for human rights it is
▶ 1:52:39equally well understood that the CCP aggressively pushes its propaganda worldwide to try to reshape Global narratives in its favor uh and it has tried to infiltrate virtually all facets of American society indeed they've set their sights uh even on American classrooms investigations have revealed that CCC funded so-called confucious classrooms have infiltrated over 500 American
▶ 1:53:10schools these so-called cultural programs are not about education they're about influence the CCP doesn't do these things uh with a charitable intent the entire purpose of the programs is they expect something in return control over curriculum and thereby influence over the young minds that are subject to it it is unacceptable that American school districts have entered into Financial
▶ 1:53:40agreements with entities tied to the CCP an adversary of the United States a regime with one of the worst human rights records in modern history the simple premise of this legislation is that no federal tax dollars should support schools that partner with the CCP Mr chair I don't think this is a controversial proposition and it is the proposition that the protect our kids act will put into law this bill uh ensures
▶ 1:54:10that no federal education funds go to schools that collaborate with receive funding from or otherwise engage in agreements with the government of the People's Republic of China this includes Partnerships with confucious classrooms language programs funded by the CCP and any educational materials or Personnel tied to the Chinese government simply put American Education should teach American values not communist propaganda I urge my colleagues to
▶ 1:54:40support this bill and to take a firm stand against this kind of Nefarious foreign influence in our children's education I yield back thanks gentlemen uh now recognize uh members who seek to discuss further on this amendment in the nature of substitute substitute and I represented I I I recognize representative Scott for his comments thank you Mr chairman and move second strike the last word in opposition of HR
▶ 1:55:111069 amendment in nature of a substitute Mr chairman last month the national the nation's report guard confirmed that we have a lot to to do to address the learning loss and close achievement gaps that have been persistent for night for decades and we should be taking action to ensure that children and Educators have the tools they need to teach learn and be safe in our schools but here we are just talking about culture wars through the overly burdened unclear requirements
▶ 1:55:41and harsh penalties to protect our kids act attempts to put a full body cast on a paper cut our majority has fa the majority has failed to produce any meaningful data or evidence that proves that HR 1069 is necessary and my Democratic colleagues and I remain committed to ensuring that elementary and secondary schools have the resources to safeguard their work from undue foreign influence but the Bill's interest in this topic is its
▶ 1:56:11solution in search of a problem there is no independently verified evidence of confucious classrooms and the Chinese government infiltrating our elementary and secondary schools as a problem in fact a 2019 senate committee on homeland security and government Affairs committee permanent subcommittee on investigations released a report in um entitled China's impact on us education system and the report did not find any security risk curriculum
▶ 1:56:42vulnerability or threats to intellectual property the last estimate I'm aware of found about 16 classrooms that had confucious um um courses out of about a million classrooms and so we got a lot of problems in um in education and so we we're why are we dealing with this additionally bills overly broad description of what it means to receive support
▶ 1:57:12or supported by the government of the People's Republic of China and working directly or indirectly on behalf of the People's Republic of China make it so that a parent or community members could disqualify their schools from receiving Federal funding simply by bringing Donuts to a class or donating to a book fair who is um this bill would require a level of knowledge around where money comes from from most schools that do not have uh that
▶ 1:57:43this bill would require a level of knowledge around the where the money comes from that most schools do not have and places an unnecessary administrative burden on schools and districts many of which are already under resource that's why it's important to mention anti-asian Cent is no place in our elementary and secondary schools we must ensure that we fight against unwarranted panic and suspicion among School Personnel parents and communities that result in an increased
▶ 1:58:13discrimination against students and educators of asan descent since the start of the covid pandemic stop Asian uh hate has has received over 12,000 incidents of hate driven um by anti-asian scapegoating and we should ensure that any work we do fights against such acts rather than adds fuel to the Fire H HR 1069 is another example the majority creating a platform for culture wars while providing no support
▶ 1:58:43for really helping students academically our SK our schools are not performing when we discriminate and this is an atrocious misu misuse of the committee's time and urge my colleagues to oppose the bill you back I thank the gentleman I now recognize the gentle lady from Georgia representative mcbath thank you uh Mr chair I just have to say the real way to protect kids is to keep them safe from gun
▶ 1:59:13violence and no matter how many times we try to deflect and try to distract that's just the truth the fact of the matter is that there's no greater threat to our children our children our kids in school than or when they're in church or any other public space across this country there is no greater threat to our children than gun violence bipartisan safer communities act that was a a critically
▶ 1:59:43important step but we just still have to do more to keep our kids safe shootings are the leading cause of death for children and and teenagers in America but you would never know that from this bill and from the bills that are being taken up today because of the topics that you know were discussed during last week's hearing but for people like me for people who have buried their their son or their daughter or their
▶ 2:00:13big sister or their little brother before their time we know what is really at stake so I would offer that these are distractions I would offer as the ranking member has said that this is time that is is not really going to find answers and solutions to keeping our kids safe we just simply cannot wait and I yeld back I thank the Gent lady I recognize the gentle lady from Oregon
▶ 2:00:44representative bam mitchi thank you uh chairman wallberg I moved to strike the last word and speak in opposition to the amendment in the nature of a substitute with follow the real challenges in our schools today I truly do not understand how this Bill gets on the committee majority's priority list we're not aware of any meaningful evidence that foreign influence in elementary and secondary education is a problem to be solved by Congress and again I just s questioning the priorities here and unfortunately instead of addressing the real concerns raised in our communities like the ongoing
▶ 2:01:14attack on public education efforts to dismantle the Department of Education what I hear about at home all the time the need to fully find idea uh the majority has offered a bill to protect our kids from communism uh I also want to point out an irony here the bill requires a Department of Education to provide information to school districts no later than 90 days after its enactment but the majority has repeatedly voice their support for president Trump's plan to abolish or severely limit the Department of Education I
▶ 2:01:44don't know if my colleagues thought about what the implications would be for any of these four foreign influence bills we're considering today all of which have Provisions for the Department of Education to implement and as I said last Congress the protect our kids act is overly burdensome it imposes ambiguous requirements with harsh penalties and the majority again has failed to provide any meaningful data and evidence that proves this bill is necessary there is no question that my Democratic colleagues and I remain committed to providing Elementary and secondary
▶ 2:02:14schools with resources to safeguard classrooms from undue or improper foreign influence but that being said there is no independently verified evidence that the Chinese government is infiltrating our elementary and secondary schools in fact as ranking member Scott said the number of confucious classrooms still active in the United States appeared to be no more than 16 nationally and these are primarily for Chinese Language and Cultural learning and I'll add that when I was in the Oregon legislature for several years working on education issues
▶ 2:02:45the the most um uh enthusiastic proponent for confucious institutes and mandrin education was a Conservative Republican and I assure you he was not a communist um and and I want to point out as well um that that um Mr chairman and and and colleagues you know I think about representative MC mcbath comments uh this bill is called protect our kids and we're going to go back home and say that we're protecting our kids from communism but not from gun violence
▶ 2:03:16um I don't speak with a personal experience of Representative mcbath but I I want to point out that there were 219 instances of gunfire on school grounds in 2024 with 59 deaths and 163 injuries guns are a much larger threat to American school children than than opportunities for students to experience other languages and culture yet the majority remains unwilling to address the issue of firearms in our uh country's schools I'm also I just
▶ 2:03:46wanted to put on the record here that I'm remain concerned about taking action that could be perceived uh as targeting Chinese Affiliated programs or individuals I represent a district that is very diverse in terms of people from all over the world we've seen the result of racial profiling in higher education and in education in general and this sort of targeting can be easily um can easily lead to harmful consequences that are rooted in xenophobia for innocent faculty members and for students anti-asian
▶ 2:04:16hate has no place in our elementary and secondary schools we must fight against unwarranted panic and suspicion among School Personnel parents and communities that result in increased discrimination against students and educators of Asian descent and since the start of covid stop aapi hate has received notice of more than 12,000 instances of hate driven by anti-asian scapegoating that's 12,000 that work I I just want to compare that with the
▶ 2:04:4616 schools that still have um confusion Institute language programs that work we do here should fight against such acts rather than potentially adding fuel to the fire so I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill and I yeld back the balance of my time I thank the gentle lady uh there be no being no further discussion on the amendment in the nature of a substitute the committee will now move to consideration of amendments for what purpose does a gentleman from
▶ 2:05:16Virginia pres of Scott seek to be recognized Mr chairman I have an amendment of the desk D dore1 the clerk will report the amendment Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1069 offered by Mr Scott of Virginia identifier ddor 001 M Mr purpose as gentleman from Utah I reserve a point of of order a point of order is reserved I now recognize the gentleman from Virginia representative Scott for five minutes in support
▶ 2:05:47of the amendment Mr chairman this bill contains potentially severe penalties for non-compliance whether it's intentional or accidental meanwhile the bill contains no funding to assist with compliance or administrative burdens that compliance will will require at the federal local state and school levels thus making it clearly an unfunded ma mandate significant efforts may be needed by all schools to investigate existing and
▶ 2:06:17new contracts to determine whether existing or potential business partners or foreign governments or foreign entities of concern in creating and maintaining systems to keep track of all the new information and respond to inquiries so this amendment just authorizes $300 million for fiscal year 26 in each subsequent fiscal year to carry out the requirements of this bill now this is a very modest sum according to the National Center for educational statistics there are almost a 100,000 public
▶ 2:06:47and and secondary schools operating uh in in in the United States today so that's about $3,000 per school for legal administrative expenses and professional development so that schools will be able to deal with the provisions of this bill now the majority likes to call us out on unfunded mandates when they propose solutions to help students and families address real problems but this bill is addressing a nonissue and places greater
▶ 2:07:17administrative uh costs on the federal government state government School districts and schools uh that they would have to uh spend to reasonably comply Additionally the Bill calls into question current's efforts to dismantle the Department of Education by expanding its role to inform schools of the prohibition and provide them with guidance I don't know how that guidance is going to be provided without a department of education but I guess that's something you're going to have to De deal
▶ 2:07:47with if you um uh dep abolish the Department of Education so I would hope that if we're going to impose this burden on school on schools and school districts we would provide them with a little bit of money to um to comply with the bill i y back I thank the gentleman does the uh the gentleman from time has expired but does gentleman from Utah wish to speak Mr chair I withdraw
▶ 2:08:18point of order point of order has been withdrawn um is there any further debate on the amendment if not the question is on I recognize myself in opposition to the amendment there is absolutely nothing in this bill that would
▶ 2:08:48require spending hundreds of millions of dollars this bill simply simp L prohibit schools from making contracts with the CCP requires that the secretary must provide notice to schools of this prohibition and requires a secretary to revoke federal funds from districts that refuse to comply those actions don't require a massive infusion of federal cash those actions are simply the secretary's job description the Democrat Amendment would award the Department of
▶ 2:09:18Education hundreds of millions in new f funding for simply enforcing the law I challenge our Democrat colleagues to show us how they arrived at the number of $300 million there's little reason to think that $300 million is the right number Democrats want to authorize hundreds of millions in new spending they must justify why anything short of this number is insufficient they've not done so further
▶ 2:09:48Democrat Amendment contains no of what these funds will be spent on surely it does not cost $300 million for the secretary to inform schools what the says without policy specifics or a jurisdiction the Democrat Amendment asks us to spend hundreds of millions of dollars with no clear justification or no clear purpose at a moment when our national debt is over 36 trillion the last thing we need
▶ 2:10:18to do is be is authorized hundreds of millions in new spending for a bill that doesn't require it I oppose the amendment and urge my colleagues to vote no the gentleman y I would be glad to yield the um the gentleman said that um about the costs some of the costs involve professional development how is a School System supposed to know how to comply
▶ 2:10:48when you contract with someone all you know is you're going on online and buy something have you contracted with um with the foreign government uh this is the kind of thing that would be nice to know and it takes a little professional development to teach people how to comply with the law it doesn't just happen by accident no it doesn't but the law is a law and we expect it to be followed and that would
▶ 2:11:18be the case Is there further debate on the amendment if not the question is on the amendment by representative Scott all in favor say I I all oppose no no in the opinion of the chair uh the NOS have it and the amendment is not agreed to roll call a roll call vote is ordered pursuant to the chair's previous announcement this vote will be
▶ 2:11:49postponed are there there any further amendments to the amendment in the nature of the substitute to HR 1069 Mr chairman I have an amendment at the desk it is amendment D clerk will report the amendment Amendment to the amendment the nature of a substitute to HR 1069 offered by Miss bonami of Oregon identifier ddor 002 Mr chair for what reason does the from Utah I
▶ 2:12:19reserve a point of order reserve a point order it is reserved I now recognize the the gentle woman from um Oregon for 5 minutes in support of the amendment uh thank you Mr chairman this bill makes the Secretary of Education responsible for compliance so I offer an amendment to require that these actions stay with the secretary of education at the Department of Education hr10 69 uses the definition of funds from the general education Provisions act or gepa which applies
▶ 2:12:49to programs for which the secretary or the department has administrative responsibility because this bill can only apply to programs at the Department of Education this amendment should not be controversial because although the current Administration is actively discussing how to dismantle or shut down the Department of Education and president Trump recently said he hopes that the secretary quote puts herself out of a job close quote we know the value of the secretary and the department so today the majority has decided to assign the secretary more
▶ 2:13:20responsibility while actively attempting to dismantle the Department of Education so this bill is addressing a non-issue but my by my colleagues own admission it is clear that the Secretary of Education and the Department of Education play Vital roles in ensuring that that students have access to Quality education so I urge my colleagues to support this Common Sense Amendment and I yell back time for the gentle lady has expired or yield back
▶ 2:13:53um does a gentleman from Utah insist on a point of order uh yeah Mr chair I I withdraw the point of order order I thank the gentleman does anyone else seek recognition on the amendment I recognize myself now for five minutes in as in opposition to this our colleagues uh on the left have proposed
▶ 2:14:24an amendment stating that the department shall enforce this bill however it is already obvious that the secretary is responsible for enforcing this bill this bill already clearly outlines what the secretary must do to ensure compliance it's not necessary to say again that the law should be enforced that's implicit in passing a law this amendment is redundant with the existing Bill language adds unnecessary
▶ 2:14:54text to an otherwise simple Bill and contributes nothing of substance so I oppose the amendment and urge my colleagues to vote no is there any further debate on the amendment representative Hayes you're recognized thank you Mr chair um I guess I have the exact same comment I hope we bring that same energy
▶ 2:15:25because as it has been stated in this committee the law is the law and a a an organization or a department created by the Congress can only be dismantled by the Congress and in order for this amendment to even be put into effect it would require Title One title two professional development all of the things that are already in law that reside under the jurisdiction of the Department of Education and the Secretary
▶ 2:15:55of Education so again this hearing is very encouraging for me because it it reminds me that my colleagues are fully aware of what the department does and I ask that they bring that same energy as we are continuing these conversations I yeld back I thank the G Lady Is there further debate on the amendment if not the question is on the amendment by banamichi all in favor say
▶ 2:16:26I all opposed say no no in the opinion of the chair the NOS have it and the amendment is not agreed to Mr chairman I request a recorded vote a roll call vote is ordered pursuant to the chair's previous announcement this vote will be postponed are there any further amendments to the amendment in the nature of the substitute HR 1069 if not and seeing none we will now move to consider
▶ 2:16:56the next bill the committee will now proceed to consideration of of Bill HR 10005 for Amendment the bill was circulated in advance and printed copies are available the clerk will designate the bill hr10 5 a bill to prohibit Elementary and secondary schools from accepting funds from or entering into contracts
▶ 2:17:26with the government of the People's Republic of China and the Chinese Communist party and for other purposes without objection the first reading of the bill is dispensed with without objection the bill will be considered as readed and open for Amendment at any point and any Amendment offered shall be considered as R does anyone seek to be recognized Mr Ry for what purpose do you seek recognition Mr chairman I have an Amendment at the desk titled A ns001 the clerk shall designate the amendment
▶ 2:17:56in the nature of a substitute amendment in the nature of a substitute to hr105 offered by Mr Ry of Ohio identifier ansor 001 without objection the amendment shall be considered original text for purposes of further Amendment amendment in the nature of a substitute has already been distributed I now recognize Congressman ruy for five minutes to explain the amendment in the nature of a substitute well thank you chairman Wahlberg the CCP is anti-American at its core
▶ 2:18:27we stand for freedom of speech we stand for freedom of expression freedom of religion they do not have the value that we have confucious classrooms are nothing but propaganda they are often set up right next to military bases China's goal is to expand confucious classrooms the Senate intelligent committee has found that it has expanded throughout us and is number one on their priority list the CCP in the Chinese affiliation is
▶ 2:18:57almost in nearly 150 schools throughout the United States of America including one right underneath our noses in my precious Columbus Ohio believe me folks this is coming to a classroom near you the Class Act prohibits K through 12 schools from accepting funds or Contracting with the people's Republic of China let that sink in for a second all we're saying is that United States Public Schools
▶ 2:19:27do not have a relationship with the People's Republic of China or the CCP or anyone acting on behalf of a foreign government or a foreign party it also requires that K12 schools to submit a report to the Secretary of Education that my honorable colleagues on the other side of the aisle keep bringing up the name the country and the origin the amount of funds or any terms of the contract they signed with the People's Republic of China
▶ 2:19:58let me just take a second and explain how simple this amendment is this amend Amendment simply strikes redundant sections adds a minimum reporting threshold and ensures that we know what foreign sources are sending our schools money I ask that everyone please supports this piece of legislation and let's get this to the line thank you chairman I yield back I thank the gentleman and I recognize representative Scott
▶ 2:20:28to uh uh to further discuss this amendment thank you Mr chairman move to second last word Mr CH we must avoid fueling culture wars by doing absolutely nothing to enhance learning um that have nothing to do with enhancing learning outcomes in schools following the most recent nape scores we should only be concerned with finding ways to close achievement gaps in supporting student growth and development there is no evidence
▶ 2:20:58demonstrating that public elementary and secondary schools are receiving donations or entering into dangerous contracts with foreign sources and if that were uh true we could if the ma if the majority was so concerned about public U school funding maybe we could increase Esa Title One programs um hr105 imposes significant administrative burdens on schools requiring frequent disclos disclosures
▶ 2:21:29and monitoring of foreign contributions and Partnerships that most public and elementary schools do not already have resulting in administrations administrators having to make decisions to diver to divert resources and attention away from education um um the compliance requirements May overwhelm schools but particularly those with very limited administrative capacity the bill con contains no funding to assist with compliance schools may end Partnerships
▶ 2:21:59or hesitate to collaborate with foreign organizations for language or exra exchange programs for fear of losing Federal funding uh additionally require schools to submit written disclosures to the Secretary of Education um if the secretary is still there after you all finish dismantling the department but it also uh has this curious part of um entering into one or more contracts with the aggregate value
▶ 2:22:30in excess of $10,000 with any foreign soil sometimes you don't know all you is you contracted with a roofer you bought something online do we have to citizenship the people we're buying from and how does that work and how do you make sure you're in compliance uh you certainly don't have any you can't afford you got to pay a lawyer that's why you need some funding to
▶ 2:23:00comply with this stuff um when a school system enters into a contract with an a with an aggregate value in excess of $10,000 from a foreign Source um you have to have a written disclosure that identifies the name and country of origin of the foreign Source the in case of School receives funds from a foreign Source the amount of funds in the case of a contract
▶ 2:23:30the terms and conditions of a contract all you know is you just bought something somebody do we have to check citizenship from everybody we deal with I don't know we'll find out you back I thank the gentlemen are there any any members who wish to enter into this discussion of
▶ 2:24:00the represent Ry I recognize you thank you chairman just in a light-hearted response to my honorable friend on the other side of the aisle I was on a public school board for eight years and we took it from $3 million in the red and turn it to $8 million in the black and we did it because we were actually a participant and we were actually at the school board meetings we knew where every dollar was we knew who every participant was where every contractor was and when you look at this amendment and the simple requirements anyone
▶ 2:24:30that is part of the admin of that school board could fulfill this with no additional cost to the school board at all that rhetoric might work for somebody that hasn't been involved in a public school district for eight years but for the eight years that I spent in that public school district I knew where every penny was and who every contractor was with that I yield my time back I thank the gentlemen are there any other members who wish to be recognized uh for further discussion on the amendment in the nature of substitute representative mamichi
▶ 2:25:01you're recognized I I moved to strike the last word uh I want to align myself with with ranking member Scott's comments that that this bill does not protect or enrich children or enhance their learning outcomes but it does run the risk of fueling culture wars and anti-asian sentiment again I'm questioning the priorities uh of the the majority here and I can't stress enough this is not a serious problem uh we there's no meaningful evidence demonstrating that our Public elementary and secondary schools are receiving influencing donations
▶ 2:25:32or entering into danger Dangerous contracts with foreign sources or entities if the majority is concerned about doing what's best for students let's fully fund idea uh this bill as ranking member Scott said requires schools to disclose information to the Department of Education and again I want to point out that many of my Republican colleagues have supported the president's plan to dismantle the Department of Education so it's baffling to me that that we continue to have these um bills introduced that would expand the role of an agency many of them do
▶ 2:26:02not want to exist uh and I agree that there would be administrative burdens on schools and I I thank my colleague for a service on a school board but I have to tell you this would uh divert attention and resources away from Court educational activities and priorities um and also I think about the role of local and state agencies in enforcing the disclosure and subsequent consequences uh for non-compliance so typically these entities will distribute federal financial assistance after they received the funds from the Department
▶ 2:26:32of Education so this this bill is a uh I I don't know if it contemplated the unfunded mandate that if executed would create more problems than a non-existing one it hopes to solve I also want to to note that um I'm concerned about how this May discourage language and exchange programs because of the fear of possibly losing Federal funding uh we live in a global economy and there is a tremendous value to having
▶ 2:27:02bilingual or multilingual students and therefore workers uh in our Workforce and limiting educational exchanges undermines the efforts to prepare American students to navigate and contribute in a global Society it may reduce their exposure to critical International perspectives language skills that they need as they develop successful careers a study by the US committee on economic development found that American businesses lose at least two billion dollars every year because of language or
▶ 2:27:32cultural misunderstandings and more than 70 government agencies have reported a need for more individuals with foreign language expertise the general Accounting Office suggested that such shortages have adversely affected agency operations and hindered US military law enforcement intelligence counterterrorism and diplomatic efforts so we should be supporting Partnerships that make Language and Cultural exchange programs possible not deterring them School administrators and local leaders not the federal government are best equipped to determine what types of
▶ 2:28:03domestic and international Partnerships are needed in their districts and I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment in the nature of the substitute and I yield back the balance of my time I thank the gentle lady are there any other members who wish to be recognized for further discussion on the amendment and nature of a substitute there being no further discussion on the amendment and the nature of the substitute the committee will move to consideration of amendments for what purpose does the gentleman from Virginia the ranking member Scott seek to be recognized
▶ 2:28:33U Mr chairman I have an amendment to the desk hr15 d dore1 the clerk will report the amendment Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to hr105 offered by Mr Scott of Virginia identifier DD _ 001 Mr chairman I recognize gentleman from Utah I reserve a point of order a point of order is reserved I now recognize gentleman for Virginia the ranking member Scott for five minutes in
▶ 2:29:03support of the amendment thank you Mr chairman Mr chairman the gentleman from Ohio indicated that he knew where every dollar went uh if a dollar went to a person with a Chin's last name would he have to check out his citizenship before he wrote a check I to the gentleman does the gentleman wish to respond I absolutely do um in the town I came from if a company never existed before
▶ 2:29:33there would be a question and I could care less what your last name is what your nationality all my grandparents were born overseas if your company has been in the neighborhood for any amount of time that question would not be asked but if a company that you've never heard of before then you have to ask a question a year back and so if you don't know the citizenship of the business owner you could be taking money from a quote foreign Source or Contracting
▶ 2:30:04with a foreign Source in violation of this and how you deal with that would be something that you would want to learn get some professional development so you don't run to file of the law that's why you need each school would have a couple of now every school's got to deal with that not just that in fact have foreign influence but all the schools to comply with this bill would have to have some kind of would have to spend some kind of money in legal uh professional
▶ 2:30:34development to know how to avoid either discriminating in violation of one law or violating this law if you're Contracting with people uh that might potentially be a quote foreign Source if you don't know citizenship um this is just asking for discrimination it doesn't help people get an education and if you're going to impose this
▶ 2:31:04on school systems give them some money to help them comply with the complexity that this might get them into I would hope we'd adopt the amendment so that school systems don't have to figure this out on their own y back I thank the gentleman does a gentleman from Utah insist on a point of order oh Mr chair I withdraw the point of order I thank the gentleman
▶ 2:31:34are there are there any other members who wish to speak to the amendment then I recognized myself I rise in opposition to the amendment my colleagues on the left have returned with the exact same Amendment asking us to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on a bill that doesn't need it as with the previous Bill there is absolutely nothing in this bill that would require spending such extravagant sums
▶ 2:32:05this bill simply requires that schools report Financial contracts with foreign sources the secretary does not need hundreds of millions of dollars to accept those reports as before my Democrat colleagues have not explained how they arrived at the number of 300 million nor specifics of what these funds are to be used for without policy specifics or justification the Democrat Amendment asked us to spend hundreds of millions of dollars with no clear justification and no clear purpose that's bad policy and poor
▶ 2:32:35stewardship of taxpayer dollars I oppose the amendment and urge my colleagues to vote does anyone else seek recognition on the amendment if there if not the question is on the amendment by representative
▶ 2:33:06Scott all me all in favor say I I all oppose no no in the opinion of the chair the eyes have it the nose have it you almost got me there the nose have it an amendment is not agreed to roll call um a roll call vote is ordered pursuant to the chair's previous announcement this vote will be postponed are there any further amendments to the amendment and the nature of
▶ 2:33:36the substitute to HR 105 yes Mr chairman I have an amendment at the desk the clerk will report the amendment Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to hr105 offered by Miss banamichi of Oregon identifier D mdore 002 Mr chairman I recognize a gentleman from Utah I reserve a point of order a point of order is reserved I now recognize the gentlewoman from Oregon for uh for five minutes in support of her Amendment thank you Mr chairman
▶ 2:34:07similarly to the the bill before this bill makes uh the Secretary of Education responsible for compliance so my Amendment will require that these actions stay with the secretary of education at the Department of Education hr105 uses the definition of funds from the general education Provisions act or gepa which applies to programs uh for which the secretary or the department has administrative responsibility so because this bill can only apply to programs at the Department of Education
▶ 2:34:37this amendment should not be controversial although the current Administration is actively discussing how to dismantle the Department of Education and president Trump recently stated that he hopes the secretary quote puts herself out of a job close quote we know the value of the secretary and the Department of Education so the majorities decided to assign the secretary more responsibilities while actively attempting to dismantle the Department of Education I just want want to note that so this bill which is trying
▶ 2:35:08to solve a problem that doesn't exist um but my own colleagues own admission it is clear that the Secretary of Education and the Department of Education play a vital role in ensuring students have access access to Quality education so I urge my colleagues to support this amendment and I yield back I thank the gentle lady I recognize gentleman from Utah do you still insist on a point of order
▶ 2:35:38I uh Mr chairman I would withdraw the point of order I thank the gentleman does anyone seek recognition on this amendment seeing now and I now recognize myself for five minutes in opposition to the amendment our colleagues on the left have returned with the exact same Amendment as the last time proposing the department shall enforce this bill as I've said before this is obvious otherwise we wouldn't be passing the bill the department is still there we
▶ 2:36:08expect the laws we pass to be followed and this bill clearly outlines what the secretary May and may not do as before this amendment is redundant with the existing bill language adds unnecessary text to an otherwise simple Bill and contributes nothing of substance I oppose the amendment and Ur urge my colleagues to vote no if there's no further debate on the amendment the question is on the amendment by representative
▶ 2:36:39banamichi all in favor say I all oppose no no in the opinion of the chair the NOS have it and the amend is not agreed to are there any further amendments to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 105 seeing there are none we will now move to consider our last
▶ 2:37:15bill the committee will now proceed to consideration of the bill HR 1049 for Amendment the bill was circulated in advance and printed copies are available the clerk shall designate the bill HR 1049 a bill to ensure that parents are aware of foreign influence in their child's public school and for other purposes without objection the first reading of the bill is dispensed with without objection the bill will be considered as R and open for Amendment at any point and U any Amendment offered shall be considered as R does anyone seek to be
▶ 2:37:45recognized Mr McKenzie for what purpose do you seek recognition Mr chairman I have an amendment at the desk ANS 001 the clerk will designate the amendment in the nature of a substitute Amendment the nature of a substitute to HR 1049 offered by Mr McKenzie of Pennsylvania identify ansor 001 without objection the amendment shall be considered original text for purposes of further Amendment the amendment in the nature of a substitute has already been distributed I now recognize Congressman
▶ 2:38:15McKenzie for five minutes to explain the amendment in the nature of a substitute thank you Mr chairman I appreciate the opportunity to speak about this important piece of legislation today and appreciate the the hearing and the voting markup that we are actually undertaking because what we see is that across our entire Society the Chinese Communist Party the CCP is trying to exert its influence through a variety of avenues this is glaringly obvious
▶ 2:38:45in social media the acquisition of critical farmland and land near military bases investment in businesses tied to National Security and defense funding of important and sensitive research and higher education and finally we know of the infiltration of our critical infrastructure by the CCP and their cyber actors we know that the ccp's efforts to influence American classrooms are also taking place at all levels of Education
▶ 2:39:16it's been well documented at this point and there shouldn't be an argument about the threat that we are facing people across this country have been pushing back against this kind of percious influence when they know about it and that is a critical piece of information when they know about it because far too often the CCP does this through various channels and under different names so the trace act which we're looking at today would actually bring transparency to this situation it would shed light
▶ 2:39:46on this undue influence that we are seeing across our educ ation systems the trace act requires that as a condition of receiving funds under the elementary and secondary Education Act schools must provide each parent the right to review any curricular material provided or purchased with funds from a foreign government or a foreign entity concern the bill also guarantees that parents get to know this critical information they have
▶ 2:40:16a right to know and they should know if any Personnel at the child's school is being compensated by Foreign sources parents must know who is teaching their child and what is being taught every parent has that right that's something that we've been advocating for and unfortunately in the hearing that we held the other day on the state of higher edu of Education in our country and also here today I was surprised to hear and disappointed to hear that people
▶ 2:40:46want to push back against parents' rights and transparency they call that interference interference in education is having a parent involved according to them that is so disappointing because we know that for children to succeed one of the most critical things is having parental involvement we've been advocating that for that for years we want more parents involved not less but at the same time those that are opposed to this kind of legislation just
▶ 2:41:16like they were last session are going to say that they can't do it because of compliance or because of cost those in my opinion are weak arguments at best the real threat is that we don't have parents involved in our students education and so what we should be doing is we should be advocating and encouraging more parental involvement in education not less ultimately transparency is one of the key components to parental involvement because
▶ 2:41:46once they're involved and they want to understand what's going on in in the classroom and who's teaching their children what is being taught in the curriculum they need that kind of insight and they should be asking those questions and we should be grateful that they're asking those questions so I would say this when we Face the threat of rising communist China in so many areas across all of American society today one of those places being education the best deterrent to our adversaries targeting American children our most precious
▶ 2:42:17asset something that we can't place a price on is the involvement of American parents American parents are going to be that deterrent against this kind of undo influence in our educational system and this piece of legislation would help bring about more transparency and more parental involvement so I want to thank again the chairman for bringing up this important piece of legislation I think it is long overdue and I would encourage all of our members to vote Yes on this legislation
▶ 2:42:47to bring about more transparency and more parental involvement in our education system thank you I thank the gentlemen are there any members who wish to be recognized for further discussion on the amendment and nature of substitute representative Scott I recognize you for five minutes thank you m Mr chairman Mr chairman once again we're making we're marking up a bill that um is a solution in search of a problem the senate committee told us several years ago that there was no um foreign
▶ 2:43:17influence in elementary secondary education at the K through 12 uh level yet here we go the bill contains severe penalties for entire school districts and states for any failure to implement the requirements of the bill correctly whether intentionally or unintentionally by conditioning the receipt of Esa funds to school districts and States meeting the technical requirements of the bill same time
▶ 2:43:48the bill makes it challenging to meet the requirements it is unlikely the school might even know about agreements or financial transactions occurring at the school district level since the bill does not require school districts to share information with the schools go the bill significantly broadens information that a parent May access Beyond information pertaining to their own child the general education Provisions act gppa uh under that bill the parents have the right to inspect and
▶ 2:44:18instruct materials per turning to their child's classes but it's unclear in what instances a district or school would need to determine whether or not there's involvement by federal government or a foreign entity of concern as well as how to make that determination it's also unclear whether every contract new and existing for food tutoring textbooks janitorial services TR collection recycling and so forth needs to undergo that kind of Investigation
▶ 2:44:49to determine whether or not it's a contract so this is massive complication it's an another unfunded mandate so I hope we would Mr chairman oppose the legislation I thank the gentleman for yielding I now recognize um The Gentle lady from Oregon representative banamichi uh thank you very much U Mr chairman I move to strike the last word um I I I do want us uh to to say in in in support of my my colleagues
▶ 2:45:19comments about parental involvement I'm a huge supporter of Parental involvement in education I spent years as a very involved Public School parent and there are many ways we should and can and should get more parents involved uh having more parent teacher conferences at ours that are conducive to working parents having Child Care language translation lots of volunteer opportunities are great I'm a huge supporter parental involvement I don't see anything in this bill however that would encourage parental involvement I I
▶ 2:45:49also want to discuss how this bill again requires a secretary of education to notify State educational agencies about its requirements and my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have repeatedly voiced support for dismantling or abolishing the Department of Education so here's another questionable decision to introduce legislation that seeks to expand the roles and responsibilities of a department they supposedly want to shudder uh this uh Trace act would impose penalties for entire School District for any failure to
▶ 2:46:20implement its requirements correctly whether intentional or accidental at the same time the bill makes it challenging to meet these requirements it's unlikely that a single school will know about agreements or financial transactions that occur at the district level but the bill does not require districts to share that information with schools ultimately as ranking member Scott said this is another unfunded mandate with the potential to impose significant administrative burdens at the federal state and local and school level so
▶ 2:46:50rather than protecting our next Generation from a threat that doesn't exist this bill is going to limit important educational opportunities and lead to uh another generation in an isolationist era so I oppose the bill I encourage my colleagues to do the same and I yell back I thank the gentle lady are there any others that wish to enter into discussion on legislation there be no further discussion on the amendment in the nature of subit committee will move to consideration
▶ 2:47:21of amendments um for what purpose do does the gentleman from Virginia seek to be recognized um Mr chairman I have an amendment at the desk um the clerk will report the amendment Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1049 offered by Mr Scott Virginia identifier ddor 001 Mr chairman ENT from Utah I reserve a point
▶ 2:47:53order a point of order is reserved I now recognize the gentleman for Virginia for his five minutes in support of the amendment Mr chairman um is about $3,000 per school if it the provision of the bill says that the parent has a right to know of any agreement in writing between the school or local educational agency and in a foreign country or foreign entity of concern so if
▶ 2:48:24a principal is about to sign a contract um how do you determine whether or not it's a foreign entity of concern and by the way what is a foreign entity of concern if somebody um could tell me what a foreign entity of concern means any body on that side
▶ 2:49:01now if you got a copy of the bill it would say foreign entity of concern has the meaning given such term in section 10 612 subsection a of the research and development competition and Innovation act 42 us code 19221 subsection a how would somebody know whether or not they're about to sign a contract with a foreign entity of concern until they know what a foreign entity of concern is
▶ 2:49:31and whether they're buying something off of um off the internet or signing a contract whether or not this information has to be given to the parents because it was with a foreign entity of concern how would the person know who they're with anybody want to answer oh yield do anybody wants the answer this because apparently
▶ 2:50:02nobody wants to answer the question because nobody knows that's why we need some money to so that people can have professional development legal fees and uh Administration fees to get through this a y back hope time has expired for Mr Scott does
▶ 2:50:32Mr Owens insist on a point of order uh Mr chair I withdraw the point of order does anyone seek recognition on amendment Mr McKenzie the chair recognizes Mr McKenzie for five minutes thank you Mr chairman appreciate the opportunity to speak and also to respond to uh the ranking member I think the legislative text that we have put forward is extremely clear
▶ 2:51:03I don't understand how the confusion uh could exist when the legislative text uh is so explicitly clear it is written in plain English uh that anybody would be able to understand and so I would say this regarding this Amendment and the next amendment that we're going to face this legislation has been out there from last session and this session now I understand that I'm a new member on this committee but nobody from the minority has approached me about
▶ 2:51:33either of these amendments I would love to work in a bipartisan fashion to bring about transparency and parental rights I would love to do that but nobody from the minority approaches me so it's very difficult to work with somebody in a legislative fashion when all they do is want to shoot holes in legislation and bring about Straw Men arguments to knock down parental rights and transparency for our students if they want to actually work together in a bipartisan fashion my door is always open I
▶ 2:52:03welcome that you can come to my office any single time and I will have a conversation about how we can improve transparency and about how we can get more parents involved in their students education that's not what's going on here today this is more delay tactics more Amendment M ments that are intended to actually block information from being transmitted to parents so I would encourage all of these amendments to actually be voted down today uh because I don't consider them uh to be actual improvements on this legislation
▶ 2:52:33if they do want to improve this legislation and work together in a bipartisan fashion again my door is always open thank you chairman the chair recognizes Miss Miss Pichi for minutes thank you Mr chairman I move to strike the last word recognized thank you Mr chairman I I I don't see anything in the in this bill that increases parental involvement and I yield the balance of my time to ranking member Scott thank you Mr
▶ 2:53:03chairman it it was stated that the bill is clearly written so anybody can understand it and I ask what foreign entity of concern meant the language in the bill says it means the meaning given such term in section 10 612 subsection a of the research and development competition Innovation Act of 42 us code 19221 subsection a now who knows what that anybody
▶ 2:53:34got it I yield I'll yield to you you're recognized thank you Mr chairman I do understand what that section means and it means that it would apply to communist China CH chair recog Mr Scott reclaiming my time um I don't know what the language is but frankly I doubt it probably includes communist China probably includes something else
▶ 2:54:05and anybody who is going to think that that language is um clear and understandable uh would appreciate being able to hire a lawyer to be able to figure it out and that's why this amendment is so necessary because of particularly in light of the answer that we just got I yeld back I yeld back is there any further debate on the
▶ 2:54:36amendment if not the question is the amendment by Mr Scott all in favor say a all oppos say no no in the opinion of the chair the NOS have it and the amendment is not agreed upon in pursuant to the chair's PR previous announcement this vote will be postponed are there any further amendments to the amendment in the nature of substitute
▶ 2:55:07hr14 n uh yes Mr chairman I have an amendment at the desk the chair recognizes Miss Bon me the clerk will report the amendment Amendment to the amendment the nature of substitute to HR 1049 offered by Miss bonami of Oregon identifier ddor 002 Mr chairman the chair recognizes Mr Owens
▶ 2:55:37I reserve a point of order uh thank you Mr chairman uh this bill makes the Secretary of Education responsible for compliance so I offer again an M to mandate that these actions stay with the Department uh of education and the Secretary of Education the HR 1049 refers to funds authorized through the elementary and secondary Education Act the esa is administered by the Department of Education therefore there should be no objection to ensuring that this bill is also
▶ 2:56:07administered by the apartment by the department and although the current Administration is actively discussing how to dismantle the Department of Education and president Trump recently said he hopes that the secretary quote puts herself out of a job close quote we know that the value there is value to the secretary and the department the majority has decided to assign the secretary more responsibilities while actively attempting to dismantle the Department of Education and I want to note uh on on uh Mr uh ranky
▶ 2:56:38member Scott's Point um and the the definition of a foreign country of concern I have a pretty dusty law degree and I know how to look up a statute but my school districts and local educ ation agencies do not have lawyers on hand to help them and this is an additional burden for them so instead of investing in our children Republicans are stuck on these proposals that will create more challenges more work for schools across the country uh this bill is addressing a non-issue but by my colleague's own admission it's clear that the Secretary
▶ 2:57:08of Education at the department of and the Department of Education both play Vital roles in ensuring students across the country have access to a quality public education so I encourage my colleagues to support everyone should support this amendment because it's their bill that's putting the work to the Department of Education and the secretary and I yell back the time has expired for Mrs bonucci does Mr Owens insist on a point of order uh Mr chair I withdraw the point of order does anyone else seek recognition on the
▶ 2:57:38amendment the chair recognizes Mr McKenzie thank you Mr chairman in response to this amendment in particular I think the easiest and fastest way to comply with this legislation is to not accept funds from communist China it's very simple if you're not accepting funds from an entity like that you won't have any compliance costs because then parents will have the transparency that will be brought
▶ 2:58:08about by this act they will not ever find that there was any money being given to a school district to influence the curriculum or the teaching that is is going on in a classroom and it'll be very simple to reply from the school district just saying we have not received those funds very simple very easy straightforward piece of legislation that increases transparency and also again then will help parents be involved in their students education so again I would
▶ 2:58:38encourage a no vote on this amendment because uh the legislation is clear on this front it makes compliance very easy uh and I would encourage anybody again if they want to work in a bipartisan fashion to improve this legislation to protect our children and their education our door is always open thank you is there any further debate on the amendment the chair recognizes Mr Scott um Mr chairman um I was just looking
▶ 2:59:09up 42 USC a uh subsection 1 says a foreign country concern means the People's Republic of China as has been indicated also says the Democratic People's Republic of Korea the Russian Federation Islamic Federation of Iran or any other country determined to be a country
▶ 2:59:39of concern by the department of state so they could be countries on here listed that aren't even in the not only in the bill not only only in the cross reference but you got to go to the Department of State to find out what today those countries are um I don't know how you teach people to look that up to know who they can contract with and what information they've got to give but um the Department of Education ought to
▶ 3:00:09um figure that out so um people could have that information and we ought to reconsider killing the amendment so that the school systems can have some money to teach all of the people who are Contracting in their school system in their school so they'll know who has to be disclosed and who doesn't but uh the answer was that that I got was incomplete just
▶ 3:00:40during the debate and uh that's why this is complicated and needs professional development and some support if this thing is going to become law yield the time is there any further debate on the amendment if not the question is on the amendment by miss bonuchi all in favor please say yay all opposed no
▶ 3:01:10no in the opinion of the chairs the NOS have it and the amendment is not agreed a roll call vote is ordered pursuant to the chair's previous announcement this vote will be postponed are there any further amendments to the amendment in the nature of substitute n seeing no there will be no further amendments pursuant to the previous order the chair declares
▶ 3:01:41that the committee is in recess subject to the call of the chair we will reconvene promptly at 3 p.m. thank you so the committee stands in recess
▶ 4:53:09for e
▶ 4:53:59that was yours okay know you need it no I don't I have a
▶ 4:54:30um um motion for personal privilege if I could while we're getting do you want this on the record so then we better reconvene first then okay so we get on record we're getting the the committee will
▶ 4:55:00reconvene and come to order following our recess uh and been requested for app point of personal privilege of personal privilege by the ranking member and I'm feeling really good about today so of course I would Mr Mr chairman earlier in the meeting I um quoted 42 us code 19221 um I read A1 when I really should have been
▶ 4:55:30reading A2 uh a foreign entity of concern and it says that the term foreign entity of concern concern means a foreign entity that is a designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the Secretary of State under section 1189a of title 8 B included in the list of specially designated Nationals and blocked by persons maintained by the office of foreign assets control of the Department of Treasury
▶ 4:56:00commonly known as the sdn list C owned controlled or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of a government of a foreign country that is covered that is a covered Nation such as such term is defined in section 4872 of title 10 D alleged by the Attorney General to have been involved in activities for which the conviction was obtained under in a series of um of um criminal
▶ 4:56:31code violations e determined by the Secretary of Commerce in consultation with the secretary of defense and the Director of National Intelligence to be engage engaged in unauthorized conduct is detrimental to the National Security or foreign policy of the United States as understanding that U paragraph will be what people will need to understand to be able to comply with the um Bill we're about to uh consider and um that's why we need
▶ 4:57:02funding for professional development so that people will know exactly how to proceed thank you Mr chairman your back the committee will reconvene and come to order following our recess we'll proceed to postpone requests for recorded votes we'll now be voting on three amendments to the amendment in the nature of substitute HR 1048
▶ 4:57:32first we'll be voting on the amendment offered by Mr Scott demem sl04 a recorded vote was requested members will record their votes using the electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote no I now recognize ranking member Scott ranking member intends to vote um
▶ 4:58:03yes ranking member intends to vote Yes before I ask the clerk to open the vote I'll just remind you this is our first attempt at electronic voting I think it'll work very well make sure you press the on button first to make sure it's on and from that point on I don't think you're going to have to press the on button and then you'll know what to do as far as the
▶ 4:58:35votes the clerk will open the vote man I thought I had a vote over there
▶ 4:59:16we will hold it open a little longer in the first vote but we want to use this to move quickly from this point on
▶ 5:00:02expecting anybody else Mr tman
▶ 5:00:33you did good very I think that's have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded do any members wish to change
▶ 5:01:06vote hearing none will the ple will the clerk please close the vote and announce tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 14 Ys and 20 Nays the amendment is not adopted next we'll be voting on the amendment offered by Dr sl03 a recorded vote was requested members will record their votes using
▶ 5:01:36electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote no I now recognize ranking member Scott Shar ranking member intens to vote Yes the clerk will open the vote
▶ 5:02:18have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded do any members wish to change vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 14 Y and 20 Nays the amendment is not adopted now we'll be voting on the amendment offered by Miss Lee demm AMD under
▶ 5:02:49sl02 a recorded vote was requested members will record their votes using the electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote no ranking Scott I intend to vote Yes the clerk will open the vote
▶ 5:03:20have all members been recorded or wish to be recorded waiting for do any members wish to change their vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 14 Ys and 20 Nays the amendment is not adopted
▶ 5:03:50the question now occurs on the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1048 all in favor say I all oppos no no in the opinion of the chair the eyes have it and the amendment in the nature of a substitute is agreed to I now entertain a motion to report Bill HR
▶ 5:04:201048 and recognize Mr bomgardner Mr chairman I move the committee on education Workforce report the bill HR 1048 to the House of Representatives as amended and with the recommendation that the bill be agreed to and the bill do pass the question now occurs on reporting HR 1048 to the house with a recommendation all in favor say I I all oppos no no in the opinion of the chair the
▶ 5:04:50eyes have it and the motion is to yes recorded vote ranking member ask for a recorded vote recorded vote is requested members will record their votes using the electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote I I now recognize ranking m Scott who intends to vote no the clerk will open the
▶ 5:05:24vote have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded do any members wish to change vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote announce the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 14 Ys and 20 Nays the motion is agreed to HR 1048 is ordered reported to the House of Representatives the chair notes for the record that a quorum is present
▶ 5:05:55I ask unanimous consent that staff be authorized with the clerk restate the tally on this vote there are 20 Ys and 14 Nays just what I said I ask you unanimous consent that the staff be authorized to make necessary Technical and conforming changes to the resolution without objection so
▶ 5:06:25ordered pursuant the house rle did you declare the work with me pursu of house rule 11 Clause 2 L I give notice that all members have the requisite number of days to file supplemental minority additional or descending views without objection so
▶ 5:06:55ordered we'll now move on to HR 649 the amendment in the nature of a substitute was adopted by Voice vote I now entertain a motion to report the bill HR 649 and recognize Mr Mr Thompson Mr chairman I move the committee on education Workforce to report the bill HR 649 to the House of Representatives as amended and with a recommendation that the bill be agreed to and the bill do pass the question now occurs on reporting HR
▶ 5:07:26649 to the house with a favorable recommendation all in favor say I I I all oppose no in the opinion of the chair the eyes have it and the motion is AG readed to does anyone request a record roll call yes roll call is a recorded vote is requested a Rec members will record their votes using the electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote I
▶ 5:07:57ranking member is going to try to vote now clerk will open the vote have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded do any members wish to change vote
▶ 5:08:27hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 24 Y and 10 Nays the eyes have it and the motion is agreed to HR 649 is ordered reported to the House of Representatives the the chair notes for the record that a quorum is present I ask unanimous consent that staff be authorized to make necessary Technical and conforming changes to the
▶ 5:08:57resolution without objections so ordered pursuant to house rule 11 Clause 2L I give notice that all members have the requisite number of days to file supplemental minority additional or descending views without objections so ordered we will now move on to HR 1069 we will be voting on two amendments to the amendment in the nature of a substitute first we will be voting on Amendment offered by Mr Scott
▶ 5:09:27damd sl001 a recorded vote was requested members will record their votes using the electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote no I now recognize representative Scott rking member vote Yes the clerk will open the vote have all members been recorded or wish to be
▶ 5:09:58recorded do any members wish to change vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce the tally Mr chairman on this votee there are 14 Ys and 20 Nays the amendment is not adopted next we'll be voting on the amendment offered by Miss banamichi D md002 a recorded vote was requested members will record their votes using electronic
▶ 5:10:29voting system the chairman intends to vote no the ranking member intends to vote Yes the clerk will open the vote have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded do any members wish to change vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote
▶ 5:10:59and announce the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 14 Ys and 20 Nays the amendment is not adopted the question now occurs on the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1069 all in favor say I I I all oppos no in the opinion of the chair even with the double votes down there the eyes have it and the amendment in the nature of the substitute is
▶ 5:11:36to you request reest that was I now entertain a motion to report the bill HR 1069 and recognize Mr Kylie thank you Mr chair I move the committee on education and Workforce report the bill HR 1069 to the House of Representatives as amended and with the recommendation that the bill be agreed to and the bill do pass the question the question now occurs on reporting HR 1069 to the house with a favorable recommendation all in
▶ 5:12:06F favor say I I I all oppose no in the opinion of the chair the eyes have it and the motion is agreed to does anyone a request a recorded vote recorded vote is requested members will record their votes using the electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote iing member intends to vote no the clerk will open the vote
▶ 5:12:41have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded representative mlan you desire to vote you're enjoying it too much do any members wish to change their vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 20 21 Y and 13 days
▶ 5:13:11the eyes have it and the motion is agreed to HR 1069 is ordered reported to the House of Representatives the chair notes for the record that a quorum is present I ask unanimous consent that staff be authorized to make necessary Technical and conforming changes to the resolution without objections so ordered pursuant to house rule 11 Clause 2L I give notice that all members have the requisite number of days to file
▶ 5:13:41supplemental minority additional or dissenting views without objection so ordered we'll now move on to 105 we'll be voting on one Amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute which is sl001 a recorded vote was requested members will record their votes using the electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote no ranking member votes
▶ 5:14:12I the clerk will open the vote have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded do any members wish to change vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce the tally Mr chairman
▶ 5:14:42on this vote there are 14 Ys and 20 Nays the amendment is not adopted the question now occurs on the amendment in the nature of a substitute hr105 all in favor say I I all oppose no in the opinion of the chair the eyes have it and the amendment in the nature of a substitute is agreed to I now entertain a motion to report the Bill hr105 and recognize
▶ 5:15:12Mr ruy thank you chairman I move that the committee on education and Workforce report Bill hr105 to the House of Representatives as amended and with recommendations that the bill be agreed to and the bill do pass the question now occurs on reporting hr105 to the house with a favorable recommendation all in favor say I I I all oppose no no in the opinion of the chair the eyes have it and the motion is
▶ 5:15:42agreed to does anyone request a recorded vote Yes sir a recorded vote is requested members will record their votes using electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote no ranking member excuse me I intend to vote Yes No I intend to vote Yes
▶ 5:16:13member let me look it up real quick intents to vote oh you're up already I didn't ask for the board to be open Mr chairman could you clarify the number of the bill please okay one5 the I'm only reading what's in front
▶ 5:16:43of me it's a our you vote well we voted it's up on the board 10005 that that that's correct we Hado have all members been recorded or wish to be recorded do any members wish to change their vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce
▶ 5:17:13the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 20 Y and 14 Nays the eyes have it and the motion is agreed to hr105 is ordered reported to the House of Representatives the chair notes for the record that a quorum is present I ask unanimous consent that staff be authorized to make necessary technical and conforming changes to the resolution without objection so ordered
▶ 5:17:44pursuant to house rule 11 Clause 2L I give notice that all members have the requisite number of days to file supplemental minority additional or dissenting views without objection so ordered we'll now move to 1049 we'll be voting on two amendments first we'll be voting on the amendment offered by Mr Scott d AMD sl001 a recorded vote was requested members
▶ 5:18:15will record their votes using electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote no thank you member I the clerk will open the vote have all the clerk will open a vote WR have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded do any members
▶ 5:18:45wish to change their vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 14 Ys and 20 Nays the amendment is not adopted next we'll be voting on the amendment offered by Miss banamichi 002 a recorded vote was requested members will record their votes using electronic
▶ 5:19:15voting system the chairman intends to vote no thank you member I the clerk will open the vote have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded do any members
▶ 5:19:45wish to change their vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 13 yays and 20 Nays the amendment is not adopted the question now occurs on the amendment in the nature of a substitute to HR 1049 all in favor say I I I oppose no no in the opinion of the chair the eyes have it and the amendment in the nature of a substitute is
▶ 5:20:15agreed to I now entertain a motion to report the bill HR 1049 and recognize Mr McKenzie I move the committee on education and Workforce report the bill HR 1049 to the House of Representatives as amended and with the recommendation that the bill be agreed to and the bill do pass the question now occurs in reporting HR 1049 to the house with a favorable recommendation all in favor say I I
▶ 5:20:46I all oppose no no in the opinion of the chair the eyes have it and the motion is agreed to does anyone request a record recorded vote Yes recorded vote has been requested members will record their votes using the electronic voting system the chairman intends to vote I this motion report the ranking member intends to vote no the clerk will open the
▶ 5:21:16vote the clerk thank you have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded do any members wish to change vote hearing none will the clerk please close the vote and announce the tally Mr chairman on this vote there are 20 Y and 13 Nays the eyes have it and the motion is agreed to we thank
▶ 5:21:46the committee before you all leave hear my appreciation 1049 is ordered report of the House of Representatives the chair notes for the record that a quorum is present I ask unanimous consent that staff be authorized to make necessary Technical and conforming changes to the resolution without objection so ordered pursuant to house rule 11 11 Clause 2L I give notice that all members have the requisite number of days to file supplemental minority additional
▶ 5:22:16or Des sending views without objection so ordered without any without objection any members who wish to insert materials in the record may do so by submitting them to the committee clerk electronically by the end of the day if there's no further business before the committee and I guess the only business that I would add as we've done this I would ask the institutions
▶ 5:22:47if you would hang with me for a moment here we've taken votes and we we've requested by law school districts educational institutions uh to follow the law but if it's a good law we would ask them to voluntarily do this and prove to us that they want to do Best by their students by the security of this country by the security of all that is American
▶ 5:23:17as well and offer an opportunity uh for us to feel secure in our educational set settings so um I ask that publicly and hope that voluntary effort will take place and we'll see it happen whether it's at Harvard uh Columbia MIT or any of the schools that came before this Committee in the past and all of the rest with that if there's no further business before the committee and without objection
▶ 5:23:48the committee stands adjourned