Expressing condolences to the families of the individuals killed during unusual storms and floods in the State of Georgia between September 18 and 21, 2009, and expressing gratitude to all of the emergency personnel who continue to work with unyielding determination to meet the needs of Georgia's residents.

Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 760 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx). All time yielded during consideration of the rule is for debate only.

General Leave

I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on House Resolution 760.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

House Resolution 760 provides for the consideration of House Resolution 324, the Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area Act. The rule provides 1 hour of general debate, equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on Natural Resources. The rule waives all points of order against consideration of the bill, except for clause 9 and clause 10 of rule XXI. Mr. Speaker, the rule also provides for the adoption of an amendment printed in the Rules Committee report to clarify that the bill does not in any way modify, alter or amend any border enforcement authority. Finally, the rule provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions.

Mr. Speaker, the bill before us today, H.R. 324, designates the Santa Cruz Valley region of southern Arizona as a National Heritage Area. The Santa Cruz Valley is one of America's longest inhabited regions, with traces of human occupation extending back more than 12,000 years. The region was at the center of centuries of Native American cultural history. It also served as a corridor of Spanish exploration, colonization, missionary activity, as well as a frontier of Mexican and early American mining, ranching and agriculture.

The heritage area includes two national parks, two national historic trails, four State parks, six county parks, four major lakes, two designated scenic highways, and hundreds of miles of back-country trails and urban bikeways. It also includes 32 museums, 28 districts, 102 individual buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places, as well as dozens of prehistoric and historic archaeological sites. A July 2005 study by the Center for Desert Archaeology, on which the bill is based, examined the many resources in the region. The National Park Service reviewed the study and found that the area meets the 10 criteria for proposed heritage areas.

Designating the Santa Cruz Valley as a heritage area allows the Park Service to support the State and local conservation efforts through Federal recognition, seed money and technical assistance. This simply means that local groups will have the resources they need to educate the public about the historic, cultural and natural value of the area.

I would like to commend my good friends, the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Grijalva) and the gentlewoman from Arizona (Ms. Giffords), for bringing this legislation to the floor today so that we can ensure that America's history and natural wonderment is protected for future generations.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to say in response and in my close that this bill, in fact, does not regulate zoning, as the gentlelady indicated. It does not have any effect on private property rights. In fact, I'm told that the entire State of Tennessee is part of a heritage area, and we would not think of the entire State of Tennessee as being affected with private property rights effects.

I would submit to you that we would know, just from that designation alone, that it is similar to this one that we are passing today, that the citizens of Tennessee are not affected in their private property rights with that heritage area designation. This bill is subject to appropriation, a $15 million maximum over 15 years, that would have to be voted on by the Appropriations Committee, then subject to appropriation in both the House and the Senate, subject to signature by the President.

Mr. Speaker, National Heritage Area designations have no regulatory consequences whatsoever. This bill specifically says that nothing in it diminishes the authority of the State to regulate fishing, hunting and the management of fish and wildlife. It includes extensive protections for private property owners and prohibits the use of Federal funds received under the act for land acquisition. It would in no way have any impact on border protection and any other law enforcement effort. Additionally, the language was self-executed in the rule which specifically states that nothing in the bill modifies, alters or amends any other border enforcement authority.

The gentlelady indicated that the bill failed. The bill failed under a two-thirds requirement. In fact, it got well over 240 votes to 140 votes in the negative. The bill got 100 votes more than a majority. I think this bill has tremendous support on this floor. In fact, it has tremendous support in the State of Arizona. It's a good measure, and I believe it will pass overwhelmingly when it comes back under a rule in this House.

Mr. Speaker, I would ask that we support this bill. As I said earlier, this bill is not only important to our Nation's history, it is also important that America's most treasured resources are protected for future generations. It deserves the strong support of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on the rule and on the previous question.

I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution

The previous question was ordered.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

I rise today to urge my colleagues to vote against the rule for the bill H.R. 324, the Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area Act, a bill that has already failed when it was offered under suspension earlier this month.

It disappoints me to have to come here and urge opposition to this rule for a bill offered by my colleague Congressman Grijalva. However, there are many reasons to oppose this bill coming to the floor. The bill failed by a vote of 249-145 just 2 weeks ago. It is a

waste of our constituents' time to bring this bill forward again under a rule and take up legislative time to debate something that has already been voted down, especially since the bill did not go through the committee.

I also learned yesterday in the Rules Committee that this bill was a part of S. 22, the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, but it was taken out by the Senate, which is not a good omen for the bill when it goes to the Senate.

When I was in North Carolina over the August recess, my constituents expressed many concerns with Congress in what's going on in Washington. The Democrats in charge are not allowing us to accomplish the work that our constituents elected us to do. Instead, this Congress is borrowing and spending money that we do not have at a rate our country has never seen. While our constituents at home are tightening their belts and struggling to find ways to put food on their kitchen tables, Congress is blindly writing checks for unnecessary measures that do nothing but increase the size of the Federal Government and put our country in debt to foreign nations.

This bill authorizes another $15 million in taxpayer dollars to seize 3,325 square miles of land for control by the Federal Government, some of which is private property. The designation in this bill could lead to restrictive Federal zoning and land use planning that usurps private property rights and blocks necessary energy development. National Heritage Areas are comprised of both public and private lands and are administered by a central managing entity, which includes the Federal Government and Federal funds. The managing entity has the power to regulate zoning and place other restrictions across local government jurisdictions. This means Federal management plans can restrict our residential and commercial property owners to make use of their private property without any notice or warning.

The National Park Service currently has billions of dollars in maintenance backlogs. Earlier this year, Congress passed S. 22, the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009. It created 10 new National Heritage Areas at a cost of $103.5 million. The Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area Act locks up even more land, infringes on more private property rights, and spends more taxpayer dollars to add yet another heritage area to a system already overburdened.

Furthermore, the proposed 3,325-square-mile heritage area in Arizona is located in the most heavily trafficked drug and human trafficking area along the U.S. border. The U.S. Border Patrol already experiences major difficulties and obstacles patrolling Federal lands. Designating this heritage area along the border would add even more complications to their ability to prevent illegal drug trafficking and crossings. Creating more obstacles for the U.S. Border Patrol is detrimental to our ability to get illegal immigration and drug trafficking under control and represents irresponsible governing.

Mr. Speaker, the U.S. national debt stands at $11.8 trillion and counting. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has predicted that huge deficits under the Obama administration's annual budget would force our Nation to borrow nearly $9.3 trillion over the next decade. This year's deficit alone is expected to soar past $1.8 trillion. We borrow 50 cents for every dollar we spend. The time to rein in Federal spending is long overdue. Voting down this rule will take one small step in harnessing the Federal Government's spending as well as the Federal Government's increasing control of private land. This Pelosi- controlled Congress seems intent on putting the government in control of every aspect of our lives--education, health care and private property.

Again, Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote on the rule and on the bill.

Having no further speakers, I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 765) expressing condolences to the families of the individuals killed during unusual storms and floods in the State of Georgia between September 18 and 21, 2009, and expressing gratitude to all of the emergency personnel who continue to work with

unyielding determination to meet the needs of Georgia's residents.

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 H. Res. 765.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in strong support of H. Res. 765.

We have come to this floor many times over the past 2\1/2\ years with resolutions to express our condolences for victims of the ravages of nature, to the first responders, to the families of the victims, and we are here again in the wake of unprecedented flooding in Georgia following on an extraordinary period of drought in that State.

This tragic disaster, the complete toll for which has yet to be calculated, is a reminder that amidst all of our concern for homeland security, as my good friend, former chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Don Young said many times, we face that tragedy every year with disasters in the form of nature's ravages upon our countryside, and we are here and we meet again today to thank the men and women who serve the Nation, serve the State of Georgia and the people of that State as police officers, firefighters, emergency managers, emergency medical personnel, who every day place themselves in danger to save the lives of their fellow citizens. Not only in Georgia but all over this country, we all see it, each of us in our districts.

When tragedy comes calling, whether an emergency medical problem facing a neighbor or large-scale natural disaster, the Nation's emergency responders, our charitable organizations, are the first ones on the scene to provide their professional help and their comfort and their support. They are well-trained, highly skilled people on the front lines within this country responding to the needs of people and also responding to mitigate the damage and the ravage of natural disasters.

This is also National Preparedness Month, and while the devastation in Georgia and surrounding States is tragic, this is an opportunity for us to think in a broader context of all of the types of disasters, whether fire on the west coast in California or flood on the east coast, are constantly a threat to our fellow citizens.

Mr. Speaker, at this point I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis) such time as he may consume.

Mr. Speaker, although our Speaker is in line to address us, she has graciously agreed to yield to the gentleman from Georgia.

I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Scott).

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), our distinguished Speaker of the House.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the distinguished gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson), whose district also covers a great portion of the area ravaged by the floods.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Yesterday, I visited the sections in my congressional district that were affected by the floods that were brought on by the torrential rains that our State has experienced. I was accompanied on that visit by county commissioners and other State and local officials.

Having seen the devastation that has been brought on by these rising waters, I am pleased to join with my other colleagues from Georgia in urging President Obama to declare portions of Georgia, including three counties in my congressional district, to be Federal disaster areas. I was deeply moved by the flood damage that was caused in the counties of Catoosa, Forsyth and Walker that are in my district. Chickamauga Creek was nearing its crest, and there are a number of homes and businesses that are now covered or partially covered by deep, muddy water.

Unfortunately, many of those who are affected by this are not covered by the standard insurance policies, and therefore they are going to be left without any help other than the help already being provided by churches and civic organizations and other parts of our community as they respond to the needs of their fellow citizens. Therefore, I urge the President to begin the process immediately of providing Federal assistance.

Citizens of Georgia have always been willing to respond when disaster strikes, and many of our citizens have gone to other parts of the country when hurricanes had hit. I know that as this water subsides there will be organized volunteers who will come to the aid of the citizens in our State.

I am also hopeful that people of faith will continue to join me in praying for those who are hurting for the loss of their loved ones and the loss of their home and their other possessions. We should pray for those who are willing to volunteer during this time of tragedy, sometimes at great risk.

I applaud the work of the local and State emergency responders who have been on duty, both before and after this storm. Public safety agencies have once again risen to the occasion, and I want to extend my thanks to each of them, because many of them have been on duty around the clock. We have so many professionals who work tirelessly to make certain that our communities are safe and that people are rescued when they are in peril, and such is the case in our State today.

Mr. Speaker, I therefore wholeheartedly support this resolution and urge its adoption.

Thank you so much, Chairman Oberstar, and thank you for your graciousness, Madam Speaker, and your offer of help and condolences that you have extended to each member of our Georgia delegation and to all the people of Georgia. We thank you for your concern, and yours, Mr. Chairman.

I certainly rise with a heavy heart. This is an extraordinarily challenging time for the people of my State of Georgia and certainly for people in my congressional district, for, Mr. Speaker, of the nine persons that have lost their lives so far, six of them have come from my district, and, as a matter of fact, six have come from one county, and that is Douglas County. So our hearts and our prayers go out for all of these families.

Rest assured that this Congress has their thoughts and their needs deep in our bosom at this time of great sacrifice and of great hurt and pain. It is important for the people of Georgia to know that we in Congress are moving swiftly in concert with our President to make sure that this gets the signature of a statement of national emergency and a declaration of emergency, because until that happens, we will not be able to get the funds that are needed.

That is what is of utmost importance now. There are people without homes. There are people without homes without any flood insurance, which means that that would be on their backs to pay for, which many do not have. The estimate of damage is over $300 million as we speak and continues to grow. So we need to move with all swiftness, with all quick dispatch, to get this Federal aid down and to make sure that the people, particularly in those areas that were hit throughout Metro Atlanta, but also in the areas of Cobb County in my district.

We have been in touch with our county commissions in those areas, with Tom Wortham in Douglas County and the mayor of Douglasville, Mayor Mickey Thompson, who are working feverishly to make sure that they are responding to the needs of our citizens.

So, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chairman, all the Members of the Congress, we certainly appreciate the condolences, and we appreciate the care and the sincerity that this Congress is expressing to the people of Georgia, and we assure the people of Georgia that we will get the help down to them quickly.