To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to grant market-related contract extensions of certain timber contracts between the Secretary of the Interior and timber purchasers, and for other purposes.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

This particular bill has been well explained by the distinguished gentlelady from Guam. Up front, I would like to say that I have basically favored this bill introduced by the distinguished gentleman from Oregon. In concept, it is a good bill, and I actually will be voting for it on the floor. However, I do want to state that there are two particular problems, once again, with the process, which are very perplexing and

concerning to me, and I think it's something we ought to discuss.

This bill has been changed--I think significantly--since it left the committee on November 18. An amendment was added at 12:58--that is the date on it, today. Admittedly, we knew about it maybe an hour before that, but an amendment that changes this bill significantly was added today. That is not the process you go through. Once again, poor process will equate to poor public policy.

The amendment that was added in here took out salvaged sales on BLM land. That is not what was in the bill when it went through committee, and I would suggest that I am not in favor of that change to a very good bill. We will be told, I'm assuming, that this change was made to conform what practices we do on BLM with national forest land. However, what we are doing is changing the law to conform to an agency regulation, which is, indeed, backwards.

Congress should be establishing what our requirements are and what our practices are, not forcing Congress to try to regulate ourselves and relate ourselves to what an agency of government, through its own internal regulations, does. So I am opposed to this amendment, which was added within the very last 2 hours. That should not be there and was not discussed in committee.

I am also opposed in one particular way to the concept that this was made from a ``shall'' to a ``may.'' I would like it very much more had it been with the original language that Representative DeFazio proposed in making this a ``shall'' issue as opposed to simply making this or any other bill that comes before us today into a ``may,'' to make it at the whim of the Secretary.

Now, with those two conclusions, I will say that this is still a good bill. This is still a bill that I think should go forward. This is a bill that should have gone forward in the way it came out of committee, in which it was a stronger and better bill, and I will still vote on it on the floor. But I am perplexed with these changes that have been made that weaken this bill and do not improve it and, more importantly, with the process we are going through to make these last-minute changes when they should have been done with full committee hearing, with full committee discussion, and full committee markup.

In closing, let me just apologize for making a misstatement in the first place. I am told now that there is a statute that since has been done by the National Forest Service, so the statutes are consistent. They are consistently wrong, but they are still consistent here. It is still the wrong thing to do, and those salvaged sales should have been approved on both BLM as well as national forest land, and I still resent the process that went through, even though what I said was technically wrong earlier.

With that, I intend to vote ``yes'' because I think the DeFazio bill is a good bill. It needs to go forward. It is the right thing to do, but we could have done a whole lot better if we had really put our minds to it.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3759) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to grant economy-related contract extensions of a certain timber contracts between the Secretary of the Interior and timber purchasers, and for other purposes, as amended.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Nation's recent economic downturn has dramatically affected the forest products industry, especially those companies reliant on wood from Federal lands. Currently, the Forest Service has several options for helping timber companies amend the terms of timber contracts that are no longer economically viable. However, the Bureau of Land Management does not have the same authorities.

H.R. 3759, introduced by our distinguished colleague from Oregon, Representative DeFazio, would help rural economies and struggling timber companies by allowing the Secretary of the Interior to add 3 years to the expiration date of certain BLM timber contracts. This authority is similar to the Forest Service authority and would enable companies to wait for a better economic climate.

Mr. Speaker, we commend Representative DeFazio for his efforts to support rural communities by proposing this legislation. We support the passage of H.R. 3759 and urge its adoption by the House today.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I again urge Members to support this bill, and 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 a hearing has been scheduled before the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests.

The hearing will be held on Wednesday, March 10, 2010, 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: S. 2895, to restore forest landscapes, protect old growth forests, and manage national forests in the eastside forests of the State of Oregon, and for other purposes; S. 2907, to establish a coordinated avalanche protection program, and for other purposes; S. 2966 and H.R. 4474, to authorize the continued use of certain water diversions located on National Forest System land in the Frank Church- River of No Return Wilderness and the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness in the State of Idaho, and for other purposes; and S. 2791 and H.R. 3759, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to grant economy-related contract extensions of a certain timber contracts between the Secretary of the Interior and timber purchasers, and for other purposes.

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, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC 20510-6150, or by email to [email protected].

For further information, please contact Scott Miller at (202) 224- 5488 or Allison Seyferth at (202) 224-4905.