Department of Labor's Overtime Rule

Floor Speech

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Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 6094, the Regulatory Relief for Some Businesses, Schools, and Nonprofits Act.

This bipartisan legislation offers a responsible solution to the U.S.

Department of Labor's overtime rule that would jeopardize the ability for small businesses, nonprofits, and colleges to maintain current operations and good-paying career jobs.

H.R. 6094, which I have cosponsored, would require a 6-month delay in the effective date of the DOL overtime rule. No, this isn't the outright repeal of the overtime rule that I, along with many others, have called for, but it is a practical step towards helping those organizations take steps to mitigate the impact of this regulation.
Without passage of H.R. 6094, the overtime rule will take effect in 2 months. This is simply not enough time to allow affected employers and employees an opportunity to adjust and prepare for the adverse economic consequences.

Over 10 million workers, including many in my home State of Pennsylvania, will be impacted. Companies will be forced to shift employees from salary to hourly pay, nonprofits will have to cut back on critical services, employees may lose the opportunity to work remotely, while seeing fewer opportunities for career development.

Our employers need fewer administrative costs and compliance burdens, not more. Employees deserve flexibility and autonomy and the opportunity to build successful careers. However, these regulations, no matter how well intended, would drain our economy and hurt the very people they are attempting to help.

I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 6094.

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Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 954, the CO-OP Consumer Protection Act, which would provide temporary relief from ObamaCare's individual mandate for Americans directly impacted by failed ObamaCare CO-Ops.

At the outset of this law, 23 CO-Ops provided insurance options for enrollees in 25 States. However, nearly 2 years later, we have learned that a majority--17 of them--have failed. The reason for the failure has been painfully obvious. The ACA manipulated insurance markets and created CO-Ops as a means to establish government-managed competition.

The cost of this ill-fated attempt at market manipulation has been borne by the American public. Over $1 billion of hard-earned taxpayer dollars were sunk into failed CO-Ops. Worse, for American consumers who enrolled in a failed CO-OP, they did not just lose their health coverage, but due to another glitch in the law, these individuals may be forced to pay the IRS a tax penalty for failing to have adequate health coverage under the individual mandate.

Mr. Speaker, these individuals should not be penalized for the failings of the law. That is why I rise to explain my support of H.R. 954. This is a commonsense solution to provide temporary relief to those individuals affected by the failed CO-Ops.

This legislation states simply that if you lose your health coverage midterm due to a failed CO-OP, then you should not be forced to pay a 2016 tax penalty for lacking health coverage. Put simply, to allow this law to harm those individuals who lost their health coverage at no fault of their own is unacceptable.

I thank my colleagues for their action on this bill.

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Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5303, the Water Resources Development Act, or WRDA for short. I supported this legislation in the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in May, as it would authorize infrastructure projects important to my district, Pennsylvania's Sixth Congressional District, as well as across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and, indeed, across the country.

If passed, WRDA would include a review of projects to enhance ecosystem restoration and water supply along the Delaware River Basin, including at the Blue Marsh Lake. Locks and dams in Pennsylvania would also be eligible for reconstruction. Finally, WRDA would authorize an expedited study for a navigation project along the upper Ohio River in Pennsylvania.

Projects included in WRDA support jobs and keep businesses and homes protected by providing critical oversight of our water infrastructure so that our country remains safe, productive, and competitive.

I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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