National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022

Floor Speech

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, I think the reason it was ruled germane by the Parliamentarian is the cartels control the drug trade in the United States. While most States have made some legal form for marijuana, the cartels still dominate the market.

Part of the reason is the cash is in the black market. Legal operations in many states cannot be banked. People that work there can't get mortgages. They don't have access to the banking system. The reality is the financial industry is being pushed by regulators to kind of back-door and make something illegal.

This has been done on any number of fronts, whether firearms are disfavored in some states, well, you know, you have reputational risk if you are going to bank these people. For too long in America we have had a standard that said, ``Well, you are not going to bank these people, are you?'' Who ``these people'' are has changed.

This is preventing us from stopping the cartels. It is germane, and I urge everyone to support the amendment.

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, this amendment requires the discharge of private education loans in the event the borrower dies or becomes permanently and totally disabled. Republicans are very sympathetic to both situations.

Private education lenders already provide relief to the estates of deceased student borrowers and the student loan borrowers who become permanently and totally disabled, if requested.

Furthermore, in a competitive market, student loan seekers are free to choose between lenders who observe similar practices and those who do not.

Congress should not attempt to legislate the terms of agreement to which the parties have already agreed.

This amendment imposes a new condition on private education lenders in contracts that haven't been negotiated or discussed between the lender and borrower.

If this amendment becomes law, this clause would be automatic, increasing compliance costs for lenders, diminishing the market value of existing loans, and having the downstream effect of making credit more expensive for consumers.

Therefore, I believe this amendment is a solution in search of a problem. It would insert Congress into a process that is already being utilized by lenders.

And while I understand the gentlewoman's concerns that led to drafting this amendment, I cannot support it in its current form. In fact, I would personally be happy to work with the gentlewoman to solve the problem in a different way.

I do oppose this amendment in its current form, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx).

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, I would just reiterate that private student lenders already work with borrowers for these unplanned situations clearly in death and in disabilities alike.

I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, I claim the time in opposition, and I am opposed to this amendment.

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, this amendment delays the collection of servicemembers' medical debt for 2 years. It outright bans the reporting of a servicemembers' medically necessary procedures to a credit reporting agency ever, and it restricts the reporting of a servicemember's debt obligations to a credit reporting agency for 1 year.

Republicans have supported removing paid medical debt from a consumer's credit report that was unpredictable and unavoidable. However, this amendment would remove all information related to medically necessary procedures for servicemembers. Frankly, it exploits servicemembers to advance a cause my colleague has previously advocated for which is to eliminate medical reporting altogether to credit reporting agencies.

Debt, including medically necessary debt, is important criteria to assess a borrower's creditworthiness and ability to repay and should appear on credit reports of consumers, including servicemembers. It can improve their credit scores if they pay their debts. Removing predictive information from a credit report has the potential to increase the cost of credit, particularly for those borrowers who have limited credit history.

Requiring the expedited removal of debt from such reports will undermine the safety and soundness of financial institutions and the financial system more broadly. It will further damage healthcare. Additionally, recouping a loss is a basic tenet of a credit-based economy.

This amendment would be disastrous on an already broken healthcare system. It would increase the cost of medical care and limit access to the care for all.

For these reasons, Madam Speaker, I oppose this amendment, I encourage my colleagues to oppose it as well, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, in closing, I would just reiterate that recouping a loss is a basic tenet of our credit-based economy. This amendment would further limit credit options for all Americans, hurting those who buy care from any place who can't collect debts, and it would therefore hurt those who need this the most.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DAVIDSON. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

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