Utah National Guard Readiness Act

Mr. President, I would like to announce for the information of the Senate and the public that a hearing has been scheduled before the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests.

The hearing will be held on Wednesday, July 16, 2008, at 2:30 p.m., in room SD-366 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

The purpose of the hearing is to receive testimony on the following bills: 2354, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey 4 parcels of land from the Bureau of Land Management to the city of Twin Falls, Idaho; S. 3065, to establish the Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area and the Dominguez Canyon Wilderness Area; S. 3069, to designate certain land as wilderness in the State of California, and for other purposes; S. 3085, to require the Secretary of the Interior to establish a cooperative watershed management program, and for other purposes; H.R. 3473, to provide for a land exchange with the City of Bountiful, Utah, involving National Forest System land in the Wasatch- Cache National Forest and to further land ownership consolidation in that national forest, and for other purposes; H.R. 3490, to transfer administrative jurisdiction of certain Federal lands from the Bureau of Land Management to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, to take such lands into trust for Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians of the Tuolumne Rancheria, and for other purposes; and H.R. 3651, to require the conveyance of certain public land within the boundaries of Camp Williams, Utah, to support the training and readiness of the Utah National Guard.

Because of the limited time available for the hearing, witnesses may testify by invitation only. However, those wishing to submit written testimony for the hearing record should send it to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, United States Senate, Washington, DC 20510-6150, or by email to [email protected] .gov.

For further information, please contact David Brooks at (202) 224- 9863 or Rachel Pasternack at (202) 224-0883.

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

Mr. President, I would like to announce for the information of the Senate and the public that the location has been changed for an upcoming hearing before the Subcommittee on National Parks. The

hearing will be held on Monday, July 21, 2008, at 9:30 a.m., the new location: Alumni Hall, Highsmith Union, University of North Carolina Asheville, One University Heights, Asheville, North Carolina.

The purpose of the hearing is to receive testimony regarding the All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory of all species within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Specifically, the hearing will address: (1) How much has been learned up to this point and at what cost? (2) What is left to be done and what is the estimated time and cost to complete the inventory? (3) How has the data been used and are there other ways to use it? (4) What changes, if any, should be made in the program and (5) Should the program be expanded to include other National Parks?

Because of the limited time available for the hearing, witnesses may testify by invitation only. However, those wishing to submit written testimony for the hearing record should send it to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, United States Senate, Washington, DC 20510-6150, or by email to [email protected] .gov.

For further information, please contact Kira Finkler at (202) 224- 5523 or Rachel Pasternack at (202) 224-0883.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a remarkable Idahoan and a place in my beautiful home State.

Today, the House is voting on renaming the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area--right outside my hometown of Kuna, ID-- after a man named Morley Nelson. Morlan W. Nelson--everyone called him ``Morley''--was born in North Dakota. Morley was fascinated by raptors from a young age as he grew up on a ranch in his native State. He earned a degree in soil science, engineering and nuclear chemistry from North Dakota State in 1938 and went on to serve with great valor as a captain in the 10th Mountain Division during the Second World War, the same outfit where our esteemed former colleague Bob Dole served with such distinction. Morley won a Bronze Star, a Purple Heart, and a Silver Star for his courage and indomitable spirit.

Morley moved to Idaho after the War. In 1948, he made his home in Boise and began serving as the Columbia Basin's Snow Survey Supervisor and pursued his groundbreaking work with such raptors as the golden eagle.

To give a fuller account of Morley's remarkable life, allow me to quote from a biography of Morley drafted for the Morley Nelson Elementary School in Boise:

Morley continued his work with raptors and, after

relocating to Idaho, became interested in the golden eagle.

In 1958 he influenced the State Legislature to enact a law

protecting raptors in Idaho. In the early 1960s Morley began

working for Walt Disney Production's True Life Adventure

Series training falcons, eagles, and hawks. He worked on

numerous films with Walt Disney and Paramount Pictures as

well as working with Marlin Perkins on the Wild Kingdom

television series, and television programs for PBS and other

networks. In the 1980s and 1990s Morley participated in many

documentaries and videos featuring his birds. In the 1970s

and 1980s Morley was instrumental in recognizing the

importance of the Snake River Canyon as a haven for birds of

prey and with the help of Governor Cecil Andrus, who was then

Secretary of the Interior, and others, they establishing the

Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area. He also

influenced the establishment of the World Center for Birds of

Prey in Boise. Morley had a long and productive association

with the Idaho Power Company and the Edison Electric

Institute to help solve the electrocution of eagles problem.

He designed nesting platforms that attach to large

transmission lines which have helped to expand the nesting

areas of Raptors. His power line corrections and nesting

platform designs are now used worldwide.

Idaho's rich natural heritage is exemplified by the raptors that make their homes in the Gem State. Thanks largely to Morley's efforts, ``Idaho hosts the densest population of nesting raptors in North America, and possibly on planet Earth,'' according to writer Lee Foster.

Madam Speaker, on behalf of my great home State, let me say that we will remember this wonderful man, exemplary patriot and outstanding naturalist.

I also commend and thank my friend and colleague, Mike Simpson, for introducing H.R. 3651, which renames the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area the ``Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area.'' It's a fitting tribute to a great Idahoan and a great American.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

H.R. 3651, the Utah National Guard Readiness Act, was cosponsored by the entire Utah delegation. There are only three of us, but we all agreed. So Mr. Matheson, Mr. Cannon, and I are sponsoring this bill, as requested by the Adjutant General of the Utah National Guard as well as the Governor of the State of Utah, in order to address the long-term growing pains of the National Guard at their Camp Williams headquarters.

The Utah National Guard has run out of State-controlled land on which to expand and build and support its vital national guard and national defense missions.

The lands transferred under this act are already withdrawn from military use by the Guard from the Bureau of Land Management. So placing the land in the State's name for use by the National Guard will allow for the consolidation of ownership patterns in the critical headquarters area, and allow the State of Utah to bond for future Guard facilities in a more streamlined and cost-effective manner.

I thank the chairman of our committee, Mr. Rahall, and his staff, for working on this bill and moving it forward. I also thank the subcommittee chairman, Mr. Grijalva, for his assistance and that of the subcommittee professional staff.

In this day and age, we are asking the National Guardsmen to do more

and more heavy lifting for our Nation's defense and in deploying overseas in armed conflict. At the same time, we are asking them to also be on the frontlines in protect the homeland, and also to be there for our States and communities in times of emergency or natural disasters. We ask a lot of them, and they deliver.

This bill will allow our Utah National Guard to support its future mission growth in meeting these challenges. It is a small thing for us to be able to help them down the road in meeting their obligations. I thank my colleagues for consideration of this bill, and I strongly urge its adoption.

I reserve the balance of my time.

I think the gentleman from Hawaii could have done it much more artfully than I did, but I will be happy to allow him to do that.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3651) to require the conveyance of certain public land within the boundaries of Camp Williams, Utah, to support the training and readiness of the Utah National Guard, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, H.R. 3651 was introduced by the ranking member on the National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Subcommittee, Representative Bishop. The legislation directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain identified public lands to the State of Utah for use by the Utah National Guard. The land would revert to the United States should it ever cease to be used by the National Guard.

Madam Speaker, I want to commend my colleague and friend, Representative Bishop, for his leadership in this matter and his willingness to work with the committee to resolve issues raised in earlier consideration of the legislation. I am sure that I speak for Chairman Rahall in that regard, and most certainly his fellow members on the Resources Committee. Therefore, I have no objection to the passage of H.R. 3651; and, in fact, enthusiastically endorse it.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, as a member of the Armed Services Committee, and as chairman of the Air Land Subcommittee of that committee, I particularly want to commend Mr. Bishop for his remarks regarding the National Guard deployments and our obligations to them. And in recognition of that, I would like his remarks to be incorporated as my own with regard to his bill. With his permission I would like to do that.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. President, I would like to announce for the information of the Senate and the public that the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs will hold a hearing entitled, ``Medicare Vulnerabilities: Payments for Claims Tied to Deceased Doctors.'' The Subcommittee hearing will examine fraud, waste, and abuse in the Medicare program in connection with the payment of claims containing the physician identification numbers of doctors who had died at least 1 year before the prescription was filled. The hearing will focus on Durable Medical Equipment (DME) claims citing a deceased doctor as the prescribing physician, and inadequate oversight by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to correct the problem. The Subcommittee will also issue a Subcommittee staff report in conjunction with the hearing summarizing its investigative findings. Witnesses for the upcoming hearing will include representatives from CMS, Health & Human Services' Office of the Inspector General, and the Social Security Administration.

The Subcommittee hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, July 9, 2008, at 10:30 a.m., in Room 342 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. For further information, please contact Elise Bean of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations at 224-9505.