The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS” mentioning Jack Reed was published in the Senate section on pages S250-S252 on Feb. 2.
Of the 100 senators in 117th Congress, 24 percent were women, and 76 percent were men, according to the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
Senators' salaries are historically higher than the median US income.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
By Mr. THUNE (for himself, Mr. Tester, Mr. Peters, Mr. Wicker, and Mr. Moran):
S. 163. A bill to address the workforce needs of the telecommunications industry; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 163
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Telecommunications Skilled Workforce Act''.
SEC. 2. TELECOMMUNICATIONS INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.
(a) In General.--Part I of title III of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 344. TELECOMMUNICATIONS INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) 5G.--The term `5G', with respect to wireless infrastructure and wireless technology, means fifth-generation wireless infrastructure and wireless technology.
``(2) Rural area.--The term `rural area' means any area other than--
``(A) a city, town, or incorporated area that has a population of more than 20,000 inhabitants; or
``(B) an urbanized area adjacent to a city or town that has a population of more than 50,000 inhabitants.
``(3) Telecommunications interagency working group.--The term `telecommunications interagency working group' means the interagency working group established under subsection (b).
``(b) Establishment.--Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Chairman of the Commission, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, shall establish within the Commission an interagency working group to develop recommendations to address the workforce needs of the telecommunications industry.
``(c) Duties.--In developing recommendations under subsection (b), the telecommunications interagency working group shall--
``(1) determine whether, and if so how, any Federal laws
(including regulations), guidance, policies, or practices, or any budgetary constraints, inhibit institutions of higher education (as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)) or for-profit businesses from establishing, adopting, or expanding programs intended to address the workforce needs of the telecommunications industry, including the workforce needed to build and maintain the 5G wireless infrastructure necessary to support 5G wireless technology;
``(2) identify potential policies and programs that could encourage and improve coordination among Federal agencies, between Federal agencies and States, and among States, on telecommunications workforce needs;
``(3) identify ways in which existing Federal programs, including programs that help facilitate the employment of veterans and military personnel transitioning into civilian life, could be leveraged to help address the workforce needs of the telecommunications industry;
``(4) identify ways to encourage individuals and for-profit businesses to participate in qualified industry-led workforce development programs, including the Telecommunications Industry Registered Apprenticeship Program;
``(5) identify ways to improve recruitment in qualified industry-led workforce development programs, including the Telecommunications Industry Registered Apprenticeship Program and other industry-recognized apprenticeship programs; and
``(6) identify Federal incentives that could be provided to institutions of higher education, for-profit businesses, State workforce development boards established under section 101 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3111), or other relevant stakeholders to establish or adopt programs, or expand current programs, to address the workforce needs of the telecommunications industry, including such needs in rural areas.
``(d) Members.--The telecommunications interagency working group shall be composed of representatives of such Federal agencies and relevant non-Federal industry stakeholder organizations as the Chairman of the Commission, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, considers appropriate, including--
``(1) a representative of the Department of Education, appointed by the Secretary of Education;
``(2) a representative of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, appointed by the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information;
``(3) a representative of the Department of Commerce, appointed by the Secretary of Commerce;
``(4) a representative of the Commission, appointed by the Chairman of the Commission;
``(5) a representative of the Telecommunications Industry Registered Apprenticeship Program, appointed by the Secretary of Labor;
``(6) a representative of a telecommunications industry association, appointed by the Chairman of the Commission;
``(7) a representative of an Indian Tribe or Tribal organization, appointed by the Secretary of Labor;
``(8) a representative of a rural telecommunications carrier, appointed by the Chairman of the Commission;
``(9) a representative of a telecommunications contractor firm, appointed by the Chairman of the Commission;
``(10) a representative of a minority institution (as defined in section 365 of the Higher Education Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 1067k)), appointed by the Secretary of Education; and
``(11) a representative of a labor organization, appointed by the Secretary of Labor.
``(e) No Compensation.--A member of the telecommunications interagency working group shall serve without compensation.
``(f) Report to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after the date on which the telecommunications interagency working group is established, the working group shall submit a report containing recommendations to address the workforce needs of the telecommunications industry to--
``(1) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate;
``(2) the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate;
``(3) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives; and
``(4) the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives.
``(g) Nonapplicability of FACA.--The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the telecommunications interagency working group.''.
(b) Sunset.--Section 344 of the Communications Act of 1934, as added by subsection (a), shall be repealed on the day after the date on which the interagency working group established under subsection (b) of that section submits the report to Congress under subsection (f) of that section.
SEC. 3. TELECOMMUNICATIONS WORKFORCE GUIDANCE.
Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, shall establish and issue guidance on how States can address the workforce needs of the telecommunications industry, including guidance on how a State workforce development board established under section 101 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3111) can--
(1) utilize Federal resources available to States to meet the workforce needs of the telecommunications industry; and
(2) promote and improve recruitment in qualified industry-led workforce development programs, including the Telecommunications Industry Registered Apprenticeship Program.
SEC. 4. GAO ASSESSMENT OF WORKFORCE NEEDS OF THE
TELECOMMUNICATIONS INDUSTRY.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) 5G.--The term ``5G'', with respect to wireless infrastructure and wireless technology, means fifth-generation wireless infrastructure and wireless technology.
(2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate;
(B) the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate;
(C) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives; and
(D) the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives.
(3) Broadband infrastructure.--The term ``broadband infrastructure'' means any buried, underground, or aerial facility, and any wireless or wireline connection, that enables users to send and receive voice, video, data, graphics, or any combination thereof.
(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that estimates the number of skilled telecommunications workers that will be required to build and maintain--
(1) broadband infrastructure in rural areas; and
(2) the 5G wireless infrastructure needed to support 5G wireless technology.
______
By Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Sanders, Ms. Hirono,
Mr. Menendez, Mr. Reed, Ms. Duckworth, Ms. Cortez Masto, and
Ms. Warren):
S. 175. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exempt a portion of unemployment compensation received during 2020 from income taxes; to the Committee on Finance.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 175
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Coronavirus Unemployment Benefits Tax Relief Act''.
SEC. 2. SUSPENSION OF TAX ON PORTION OF UNEMPLOYMENT
COMPENSATION.
(a) In General.--Section 85 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(c) Special Rule for 2020.--In the case of any taxable year beginning in 2020, gross income shall not include so much of the unemployment compensation received by an individual as does not exceed $10,200.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2019
______
By Mr. REED (for himself, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr.
Brown, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Merkley, Ms. Baldwin, and Ms.
Warren):
S. 178. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to expand the denial of deduction for certain excessive employee remuneration, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Finance.
Mr. REED. Mr. President, I am reintroducing the Stop Subsidizing Multimillion Dollar Corporate Bonuses Act with Senators Blumenthal, Whitehouse, Merkley, Baldwin, Warren, Van Hellene, and Brown. This legislation fully closes a loophole that has allowed publicly traded corporations to deduct the cost of multimillion-dollar bonuses from their corporate tax bills. U.S. taxpayers shouldn't continue to have to subsidize these massive bonuses.
Under section 162(m) of the tax code as amended by the 2017 Trump tax law (TCJA), when a publicly traded corporation calculates its taxable income, it is generally permitted to deduct compensation costs from its revenues, with limits up to $1 million for some of the firm's most senior executives.
In the 115th Congress, the TCJA got rid of some of the prior 162(m) loopholes by taking provisions from my Stop Subsidizing Multimillion Dollar Corporate Bonuses Act, including removing the exemption for performance-based compensation, which previously permitted compensation deductions above $1 million when executives met performance benchmarks,
While these steps were a start, even more should have been done, such as applying section 162(m) to all employees of publicly traded corporations so that all compensation is subject to a deductibility cap of $1 million. This was the only provision from my Stop Subsidizing Multimillion Dollar Corporate Bonuses Act from the l15th Congress that was not incorporated into the Trump tax law.
Partially closing these 162(m) loopholes saved taxpayers $9.2 billion according to the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT), but last Congress, the JCT estimated that fully closing the loophole along the lines of the legislation I am reintroducing today would save taxpayers an additional $27 billion dollars.
Under this legislation, publicly traded corporations would still be permitted to pay their executives as much as they desire, but compensation above and beyond $1 million would no longer be subsidized through our tax code. This is simply a matter of fairness, ensuring that corporations--and not hardworking taxpayers who face their own challenges in this economy--are paying for the multi-million dollar bonuses corporations have decided to dole out to their senior executives. Instead of showering corporations with additional benefits they certainly don't need, we should be doing everything within our power to help more families, who are barely surviving, make it to the other side of this public health emergency.
I thank Public Citizen, the Institute for Policy Studies--Global Economy Project, Americans for Financial Reform, the AFL-CIO, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and MIT Professor Simon Johnson for their support. I urge our colleagues to join us in cosponsoring this legislation and pressing for its passage.
______
By Ms. HIRONO (for herself, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Bennet, Mr.
Blumenthal, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Casey, Ms. Cortez Masto, Ms.
Duckworth, Mr. Durbin, Mrs. Feinstein, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr.
Markey, Mr. Merkley, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Ossoff, Ms. Rosen, Ms.
Smith, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Warner, Mr. Whitehouse, and Mr.
Wyden):
S. 181. A bill to posthumously award a Congressional Gold Medal to Fred Korematsu, in recognition of his dedication to justice and equality; to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
Ms. HIRONO. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation to posthumously award Fred Toyosaburo Korematsu with the Congressional Gold Medal. Fred challenged the illegal internment of Japanese Americans during World War II and devoted his life to expanding civil rights and liberties for all people. Awarding him the Congressional Gold Medal, Congress' highest civilian honor, would be a fitting tribute to his lifelong pursuit of justice and equality.
Fred was born in Oakland, California on January 30, 1919, to Japanese immigrant parents. Although he was an American citizen, Fred was discriminated against due to his Japanese ancestry. As the United States entered World War II, Fred tried unsuccessfully to enlist in the U.S. military, and was fired from his job at the Oakland shipyard. In 1942, Fred was arrested and convicted of defying military orders issued under Executive Order 9066, a discriminatory presidential order that authorized the mass removal and incarceration of more than 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II.
Fred challenged the constitutionality of the government's order but was convicted in federal court of violating military orders issued under Executive Order 9066. After a federal appeals court upheld his conviction, he appealed his case to the U.S. Supreme Court. On December 18, 1944, the Court ruled against him in a 6-3 decision, finding the government's discriminatory policy to incarcerate Japanese Americans was justified due to military necessity.
Decades later, legal historians discovered key information that the federal government did not share with the Supreme Court, including a report that concluded very few Japanese Americans represented a national security risk. After this evidence of government misconduct emerged and was presented to the court, Fred's conviction was overturned by a Federal court in San Francisco nearly forty years later, on November 10, 1983. Fred believed that the Supreme Court's decision was wrong, and stated, ``I would like to see the Government admit that they were wrong and do something about it so this will never happen again to any American citizen of any race, creed or color.'' Although the Supreme Court's infamous ruling in Korematsu v. United States has been widely rejected by historians and legal experts, it has never been formally repudiated, and stands as one of the Supreme Court's worst precedents.
The internment of Japanese Americans was a shameful act, and it was not until 1988 that the Civil Liberties Act was passed and our Government formally apologized to Americans of Japanese ancestry who were incarcerated during World War II. Fred Korematsu fought for this redress legislation and continued working to expand civil rights throughout his life. He spoke out against prejudice directed at minorities and immigrants, and after September 11, 2001, filed amicus briefs with the Supreme Court, warning our nation not to repeat history by committing civil and human rights travesties.
During his lifetime, Fred Korematsu did not choose the easy route. Instead, he chose to fight and speak out against injustice his entire life. He fought not just for himself, but for everyone, particularly minorities who could be discriminated against based on their ethnicity. However, many of these injustices remain, and can be reborn as we have seen with the rise in anti-Asian prejudice during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fred Korematsu reminds us that we must remain vigilant against discrimination, particularly when it is disguised in times of emergency or for reasons of security. On January 30, Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution, we honor the life of this civil rights hero whose legacy continues to inspire people of all backgrounds to speak up and fight for justice. This day uses one of the most blatant examples of racial discrimination to educate individuals on the dangers of political scapegoating and works toward a future that guarantees civil rights for everyone. I am proud to introduce the Fred Korematsu Congressional Gold Medal Act in his memory, and I call on my colleagues in the United States Senate to swiftly pass this bill during the 117th Congress.
I yield the floor.
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