DAVID SCOTT - CONGRESSMAN, REPRESENTING GEORGIA'S 13TH DISTRICT

On November 30, 2010, Congressman Scott made the following statement on the floor in support of a resolution (H.Res. 1735) condemning North Korea for its unprovoked military attack against South Korea.  The Chairman of the House Foreign Affiars Committee, Howard Berman, managed the floor time on this debate. 
 

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to my friend and colleague from the committee, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Scott).

　　　Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Thank you very much, Chairman Berman.

　　　This unwarranted attack by North Korea on South Korea demonstrates more than anything else the dangerous state that our world is in. It is extraordinarily important that we here in Congress condemn in the strongest possible way this act, unprovoked on the part of North Korea, and to let the people of South Korea and the people of the world know just where the United States stands. We stand strongly and firmly with our ally South Korea and condemn this unwarranted, gross, unjustified attack on South Korea. I commend Chairman Berman for bringing this important resolution to the floor.

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Georgia is set to receive funds under the U.S. Treasury's Hardest Hit Fund (HHF) to help homeowners make their mortgage payments. The purpose of the program is to help Georgia homeowners who have experienced job loss or a substantial decrease in their income with a mortgage payment bridge while they find new or better employment. The Georgia Department of Community Affairs will administer Georgia's HHF program, which launches statewide April 1st.

For more information, including eligibility requirements, visit this site.

This month is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  As someone who has seen a spouse fight breast cancer, Congressman Scott has been a fighter for breast cancer resources for a long-time.  While a member of the Georgia State Senate, Congressman Scott passed the State law banning the practice of sending women home the same day after undergoing a mastectomy even if they needed more time to recuperate.

In Washington, Congressman Scott has continued his efforts to improve the health of women.  He voted in favor of H.R. 3590, the Patent Protection and Affordable Care Act, which includes free preventative services such as breast cancer screenings in all new health insurance plans.  In addition, the law:

• Requires all employer-sponsored health plans to cover proven preventive benefits without out-of-pocket expenses;
• Prohibits plans from charging women more than men for health;
• Bans the insurance industry practice of rejecting applicants with pre-existing conditions, which has been a barrier to care for many women;
• Prevents women and their families from bankruptcy by requiring health plans to limit annual out-of-pocket spending to no more than $5,000 for an individual and $10,000 for a family (it's lower for low income households). All health insurance plans over time will be required to contain a standardized annual out-of-pocket spending limit.

Other supportive efforts  Congressman Scott continues to support bills that improve health care outcomes for women by support bills concerning breast cancer research and supportive services for women living with breast cancer.  He has cosponsored:

o        H.R. 1691- Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act of 2009

o        H.R. 2350- Preserving Patient Access to Primary Care Act of 2009

o        H.R. 2778- Health Equity and Accountability through Research Act of 2009

o        H.R. 3090- Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2009

o        H.R. 1740- Breast Cancer Education and Awareness Requires Learning Young Act of 2009

o        H.Con.Res. 120- Supporting the goals and ideals of National Women's Health Week, and for other purposes.

o        H.Res.971- Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding guidelines for breast cancer screening for women ages 40 to 49.

Starting on September 27, 2010, new telemarketing sales rules will take affect.  The rules covers telemarketers of for-profit debt relief services, including credit counseling, debt settlement, and debt negotiation services.  The rules will:

• require debt relief companies to make disclosures to consumers;
• prohibit them from misrepresenting their services; and
• extend the Telemarketing Sales Rule to cover incoming calls consumers make to these firms in response to debt relief advertising.

Also, on October 27, 2010, for-profit companies that sell debt relief services over the telephone may no longer charge a fee before they settle or reduce a customer’s credit card or other unsecured debt. 

The Final Rule does not cover nonprofit firms, but does cover companies that falsely claim nonprofit status. Over the past decade, the FTC and state enforcers have brought a combined 259 cases to stop deceptive and abusive practices by debt relief providers that have targeted consumers in financial distress.  For more information about these consumer protections, click on this link.

The House Committee on House Administration (CHA)  is hosting a Vendor Diversity Procurement Webinar on Wednesday, September 22, 2010 from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

There are thousands of opportunities for private contractors to provide goods and services to the Federal government each year.  This session will focus on the contracts available in the offices of the Architect of the Capitol (AOC), the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), the General Services Administration (GSA), and the Small Business Administration (SBA).

This seminar will teach you how to qualify for the small and minority business contract lists that some agencies maintain. It will also provide information on how to navigate the Federal contracting and bidding processes. If you have any questions regarding this event, please call the CHA Offices at 202 225-2061. It is not necessary to register for this Webinar, which can be accessed at this link.

Congressman Scott recently voted for H.R. 6080, which provides needed security for the US-Mexico border.  The new law will:

• Help hire 1,000 new Border Patrol agents to permanently patrol our southern border and 250 new Customs and Border Protection agents for our ports of entry.  It will also create a “strike force” that will be deployed in different areas of the Southwest border depending on where the need is greatest at any particular moment.

• Provides funds to deploy unmanned drones to fly along our southern border and provide our patrol officers on the ground with real-time information on unlawful border crossings.

• Provides funds to improve communications capabilities between federal border enforcement and state and local officers along the border.

• Provides funds to construct forward operating bases for the Border Patrol to use that are actually located on the border rather than hundreds of miles away.

• Provides funds for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to conduct investigations of drug-runners, money-launderers, and human traffickers along our border.

• Increases the number of ATF, DEA, and FBI agents and bolsters the number of prosecutors and court resources along our border.

An overdraft occurs when you make a purchase or ATM transaction but don't have enough money in your account to pay for it. For a fee, your bank will cover you when you become overdrawn. This fee can apply each time you overdraw your account.

New rules give debit and ATM card users additional options regarding overdrafts. 

The new rules

• You choose. In the past, some banks automatically enrolled you in their standard overdraft practices for all types of transactions when you opened an account. Under the new rules, your bank must first get your permission to apply its standard overdraft practices to everyday debit card and ATM transactions before you can be charged overdraft fees. To grant this permission, you will need to respond to the notice and opt in (agree).
• Existing accounts. If you do not opt in (agree), beginning August 15, 2010, your bank's standard overdraft practices won't apply to your everyday debit card and ATM transactions. These transactions typically will be declined when you don't have enough money in your account, but you will not be charged overdraft fees.
• New accounts. If you open a new account on or after July 1, 2010, your bank cannot charge you overdraft fees for everyday debit card and ATM transactions unless you opt in. If you open a new account before July 1, 2010, your bank will treat you as an existing account holder: you will receive a notice about your bank's standard overdraft practices and will have to decide if you want them for everyday debit card and ATM transactions.
• Flexibility. Whatever your decision, the new overdraft rules give you flexibility. If you opt in, you can cancel at any time. If you do not opt in, you can do so later.
• Checks and automatic bill payments. The new rules do not cover checks or automatic bill payments that you may have set up for paying bills such as your mortgage, rent, or utilities. Your bank may still automatically enroll you in their standard overdraft practices for these types of transactions. If you do not want your bank's standard overdraft practices in these instances, talk to your bank; you may or may not have the option to cancel.