Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, this amendment will prohibit the EPA from retroactively invalidating permits after they have been issued. On January 13, 2011, the EPA took unprecedented action by retroactively revoking a lawfully issued section 404 permit for the Spruce No. 1 surface mine in Logan County, West Virginia. This permit had been issued 4 years earlier after an extensive 10-year environmental review, including a 1,600-page environmental impact statement in which the EPA fully participated and agreed to all the terms and conditions included in the authorized permit.

But this amendment is intended to address far more than coal mines. If the EPA can retroactively revoke a water permit for this industry, they can do the same to any other manufacturer, refinery, municipality, farm, or other government agency. Imagine an entrepreneur contemplating making an investment requiring an EPA permit but then stopping once they learn that the EPA could first grant the permit, allow the business to proceed, and then invalidate the permit, crushing the investment. Or, imagine a lending institution contemplating whether or not to loan money to someone subject to an EPA regulation. Should any of us be critical of them for being reluctant once they, too, become aware that their loan could go into default once the EPA retroactively revokes the permit on which the loan was granted?

All of us in Congress should be concerned about the chilling effect these actions by the EPA have had and will have if they continue this threat to the creation of jobs by exceeding their statutory authority. At a time when our country is facing economic uncertainty and our families are struggling to make ends meet, I'm appalled by this continued assault on American businesses and families that the EPA has taken. Our job creators need a consistent and predictable regulatory program that will protect jobs we have and create new ones in an environmentally responsible manner. Remember, this amendment is not just for coal mining but rather it addresses virtually every business in America which requires certainty in their regulatory environment.

I urge your support, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I ask how much time remains.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Gibbs).

Do I have the right to close?

Mr. Chairman, briefly, let me just underscore here how people try to distract attention away from the argument. We've heard all these other arguments. I've heard the opponents talk about this is the first time or the third time or whatever that is. Let's go back to what the courts have said. Perhaps we need to have on the other side a little bit more education. Because the Federal courts have already struck down that initial reading. Shame on you--anyone--for not having read all this.

The Federal court said the EPA's interpretation of the act is not reasonable. Neither the statute nor the memorandum of agreement between the EPA and the Corps makes any provision for a post-permit veto, and this agency was completely unable to articulate what the practical consequences of its actions would be.

In addition, the court went on to say that the Clean Water Act does not give the EPA the power to render a permit invalid once it has been issued by the Corps.

We ought to put this to rest, codify it, and move on.

Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

I rise today in an effort to stop this administration's war on coal. Those who believe that there is no war on coal are in dangerous denial. The actions of this administration against coal have caused massive uncertainty in the marketplace.

Obama's war on coal has come in waves. First, with the retroactive retracting of mine water permits, shutting down a coal mine. New source performance standards, shutting down all new coal mine construction. Utility MACT is shutting down all existing powerhouses. Boiler MACT; particulate matter; stream buffer rule; treating coal ash as a hazardous material; cross-state air pollution; slow-walking over 900 coal mining permits.

I'm here to support the coal ash provision with this. The majority in the House and the Senate have already four times passed this concept. They support this issue.

This is not a war on coal, though. It's a war on the communities that mine coal. When you shut down a coal mine, you shut down concrete block suppliers, timber cribbing, machinists who maintain the motors and equipment, and electrical workers.

Thank you, Congressman Bilirakis and Chairman Miller, for bringing this bill to the floor today.

Let me take this opportunity to highlight a segment of the portion dealing with safe housing for homeless veterans. I had previously sponsored this concern in a separate piece of legislation, and it was subsequently amended into this bill that's before us today.

Currently, there are 2,100 community-based homeless veterans service providers across the country and many other homeless assistance programs that have demonstrated impressive success reaching homeless veterans. I've visited some of the shelters in my home district in West Virginia and was struck by how many were not, unfortunately, in compliance with State, local, or Federal building and fire codes.

Consequently, we began to investigate how broad based this issue was across America. It was unsettling to learn about shelter fires where lives have been lost. There's stories of a homeless shelter fire where occupants were killed due to the fact that there was not a required sprinkler system at the facility or dozens were injured when a sprinkler system was not working properly or where doors were closed that needed to be opened.

All of these could have been avoided. Unfortunately, there is no law mandating a homeless shelter meet building and fire safety codes, only a policy within the VA. As a licensed professional engineer, I found this to be an egregious omission in the law concerning homeless shelters for veterans.

The language in this bill would require any organization that seeks funding for VA for services to homeless veterans have documentation that their building meets or exceeds all building codes. This is commonsense legislation that could ensure the well-being of veterans all across America who have fallen on hard times and are in need of the most assistance. As a Nation, it should be unacceptable for us to allow homeless veterans to be housed in potentially unsafe conditions.

I appreciate the support of this legislation and this provision from the American Legion, the Homeless Veterans Coalition, the International Code Council, and the Fire Marshals Association.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for including this language in the bill today and for your concern for the safety and the living environment of our veterans.

Madam Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Madam Chairman, I rise today to offer an amendment that will add more clarity and accountability to the regulatory process.

Under this bill, Congress will require additional analysis and reporting on all government regulations affecting the economy by $100 million or more annually. This amendment simply reduces this threshold of $100 million to $50 million.

In FY 2011, nearly 4,000 rules were published in the Federal Register; only 83 of these rules were classified as having an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more. This represents only 2.1 percent of all the rules published. Thus far in 2012, 2,071 rules have been published, and 51 of these have been projected to have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more, equating to just 2.4 percent.

According to the Small Business Administration, the cumulative burden of regulations exceeds more than $1 trillion annually on our economy, costing more than $10,000 per household. Regulations are clearly impacting our economy by this astounding $1 trillion amount each year, and nearly 98 percent of these rules have virtually no economic analysis or oversight.

We have more than 23 million Americans underemployed or unemployed. This political maneuvering in rulemaking has to stop. The American people sent us here to improve the economy and help them get back to work, but not to allow the promulgation of more questionable, job- hindering regulations.

When I served in the West Virginia legislature in the eighties and early nineties, no regulations were adopted until the legislature approved them--not just a few here and there, but every single regulation came before the legislature for approval, significant or otherwise.

Not conducting analysis and reports on nearly 98 percent of all government agencies' proposed regulations confounds and confronts our job creators with potentially excessive and burdensome rules.

Madam Chairman, as a reminder, in 1995, Congress passed the Job Creation and Wage Enhancement Act, which dealt with lowering the regulatory threshold from $100 million to $50 million, just as this amendment would do today. That bill passed the House by a vote of 277- 141, including many Members who are present here today.

Madam Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Again, Madam Chairman, I just respectfully disagree with the comments made, recognizing, again, that this House has already spoken on this matter of reducing it from 100 to 50.

The real issue here is whether or not we want to have 98 percent of the rules that are being promulgated to go without oversight and review. It's time that we get this under control and allow more of our people to get back to work.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Chairwoman, I just encourage my colleagues to support this amendment and, once it's adopted, to support the piece of legislation that's so needed.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Offered By: Mr. McKinley

Amendment No. 21: Page 9, line 6, after the dollar amount,

insert ``(reduced by $5,000,000)''.

Page 32, line 18, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $5,000,000)''.

Madam Speaker, the State of West Virginia is celebrating its 149th birthday today. Celebrations are being held as we speak throughout the State. I'm a proud seventh-generation West Virginian and honored to serve the State that I love.

Being a West Virginian comes with great honor, tradition, and pride. In concert with the restored State of Virginia, President Lincoln, on April 20, 1863, proclaimed that West Virginia would be admitted to the United States as a separate State. Sixty-one days later, on June 20, 1863, West Virginia became a member of the Union, the only State created during the War Between the States.

Every year, millions of people travel the country roads of our great State and view the beautiful scenic mountains, from the Shenandoah River to everything in between. Madam Speaker, I hope everyone enjoys this time-honored tradition of West Virginia Day and celebrates our wild and wonderful State.

Happy birthday, West Virginia.

Mr. Speaker, I have a motion at the desk.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 7 minutes.

Concrete is a fundamental element of roads, bridges, and infrastructure projects, and an important element of concrete is coal ash. This is now the fourth time the House has affirmed and reaffirmed its support for the beneficial use of recycling coal ash.

Currently, the conference committee on H.R. 4348 is deep in productive negotiations, and strong bipartisan compromises have occurred relative to the coal ash provision. My intent today is to urge the conferees to continue these bipartisan negotiations and retain this important, cost-saving provision in the final bill.

We're not here to rehash the same ideologically motivated arguments that we have heard from the extremists. Simply put, we are here to help put people back to work, to give American businesses certainty, and to protect the health and environment of our families and friends.

For those who say coal ash is irrelevant to roads and bridges, they couldn't be further from the truth. Concrete suppliers have been incorporating coal ash into concrete mixtures since the construction of the Hoover Dam over 80 years ago. Without coal ash, the cost of construction projects would increase by $100 billion, according to the American Road and Transportation Builders Association, thereby reducing the amount of moneys available for roads and bridges and infrastructure in America.

Keep in mind, less construction results in fewer jobs. By retaining this bipartisan section of the highway bill, Congress will be also protecting the 316,000 jobs that are at stake in the recycling of fly ash--jobs involving concrete block, brick, drywall, ceramic tile, bowling balls, and even in the cosmetics industry. For those who have been asking where the jobs bills are, this is a jobs bill.

Among the supporters of this language are the Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the United Mine Workers, the United Transportation Union, the American Road and Transportation Builders Association, the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, and the AFL CIO's building and construction trades.

Consider these quotes, Mr. Speaker:

``Removing coal ash from the supply chain could increase the price of concrete by an average of 10 percent,'' according to the National Association of Homebuilders.

According to the National Association of Manufacturers:

``Coal ash contributes $6-$11 billion annually to the U.S. economy through revenues from sales for beneficial use, avoided cost of disposal, and savings from use as sustainable building materials.''

Mr. Speaker, currently 60 million tons of coal ash is recycled annually. According to EPA's own data, coal ash replaces between 15 and 30 percent of the Portland cement used in concrete. The EPA has noted that the use of coal ash in concrete has resulted in saving as much as 25 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually and as much as 54 million barrels of oil. The EPA has indicated the annual financial benefits of using coal ash as a substitute for Portland cement contributes nearly $5 billion in energy savings, $41 billion in water savings, $240 million in emission reductions, and nearly $18 billion in nongreenhouse gas-related air pollution. The EPA itself states that coal ash leads to ``better road performance.''

Two studies, one in 1993 and another in 2000, both under the Clinton administration's EPA, found that coal ash did not warrant the regulations being pushed by the Obama administration. In 2005, the EPA, the Federal Highway Administration, and the Department of Energy collaborated with the private sector to craft guidance on the appropriate uses and benefits of coal ash in highway construction.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to my colleague from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus).

(Mr. SHIMKUS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to my colleague from Pennsylvania (Mr. Holden).

Mr. Speaker, I might suggest, with all due respect, I think that those who are opposing this amendment, Mr. Speaker, I would encourage them to read the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to my friend and colleague from wild, wonderful West Virginia (Mrs. Capito).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to my colleague from Ohio (Mr. Renacci).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes of my remaining time to the gentleman from Pennsylvania, Congressman Doyle.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to my colleague from Texas (Mr. Olson).

Mr. Speaker, I yield the next 2 minutes of my time to my colleague from West Virginia (Mr. Rahall).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Whitfield).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes of the remaining time to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Critz).

You say is there going to be a stigma?

Mr. Waxman, I believe there is a stigma associated with that pending decision, yes.

There is a stigma associated with the misinformation that's been disseminated. That's correct.

Will the gentleman yield?

What we're trying to do is allow more time for the conference committee to work rather than to debate the pros and cons of the environmental aspects of it. We want the committee to continue to work, to reach a compromise. And I've been told there's been great progress being made on that, but don't stop at this 11th hour. They're close to making it happen. We want to stand beside them and make sure they finish their work on these negotiations.

Mr. Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes of my time to my fellow engineering colleague from the State of Texas (Mr. Barton).

(Mr. BARTON of Texas asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

I yield the gentleman an additional 1 minute.

Mr. Speaker, it's fairly obvious that a lot of the folks that have been speaking on the other side of this issue have not read the bill and don't understand what's included in the provision. But perhaps reading the bill, reading the amendment would have given them greater insight as to the role of the EPA. Because by virtue of this amendment, we are giving them great insight, great involvement in the proper disposal of the amount of fly ash that's not recycled.

So, Mr. Speaker, it really just comes down to an issue being very clear. Our opponents are just opposed to the coal industry. They're opposed to the men and women working in our coal industry. They're opposed to the 700-plus coal-fired electric utilities. They're opposed to keeping utility costs low. There is a war on coal, Mr. Speaker. And it's time that we stand up for the coal workers, the men and women working in the coalfields all across the United States, and for the men and women and the consumers that use electricity at low cost.

Now let's go to what the Departments of Interior and Transportation have said: The Department of Interior said that they concur that if fly ash is designated as hazardous waste, as is being considered, fully or in a hybrid classification, it would no longer be used in concrete. It also said, ``Fly ash costs approximately 20 to 50 percent less than the cost of cement.'' The Department of Transportation: ``Fly ash is a valuable byproduct used in highway construction. It is a vital component of concrete and a number of other infrastructure uses.''

Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me today in supporting this motion to instruct conferees to continue discussing this bipartisan negotiation on this part of the highway bill and to ask their Senators to do the same. Let's maximize the use of all the money that we have available to build more roads, rebuild more bridges, do more infrastructure, but most importantly, put America back to work.

So I encourage my colleagues to vote for this motion to instruct, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

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 materials on my motion to instruct conferees on

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, under this legislation, Congress creates a Transportation Fuels Regulatory Committee with the Secretary of Energy chairing the committee.

My amendment is simple. It will require the Secretary and the committee, during their deliberation, to consult and receive input from the National Energy Technology Laboratory.

If we're going to analyze and report on the impacts of the rules and actions of the EPA on our Nation's fossil fuels, then we should make sure that the committee established under this legislation consults with our Nation's fossil energy laboratory. NETL is our only governmental research, design, and developmental laboratory dedicated to domestic energy sources. It's only fitting we make that they are included in this process.

NETL works with academia on over 275 projects across this country, as well as private entities, having provided over 450 projects in 2011, nearly 400 private sector projects, and over 100 not-for-profit laboratories. NETL's work in 2011 alone provided over 2,000 projects, 89,000 jobs, and over $18 billion in total funding in every State in every congressional district.

NETL's research and development into our transportation fuel sector began back in 1918 in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, with petroleum research. In fact, synthetic gas research began at NETL in 1946.

To note some other successes, NETL worked in conjunction with academia and private industry to develop horizontal drilling in our Nation's natural gas fields.

Now, some say that Secretary Chu, being the chairman of this committee, will consult with his own fossil energy team. Maybe that's true, Mr. Chairman, but this is the same Secretary of Energy who has worked with President Obama to slash our fossil energy research budget by 40 percent over each of the last 2 years. This is the same Secretary of Energy who should be promoting coal, oil and gas, but, instead, makes derogatory comments, such as ``coal is my worst nightmare.''

What we can do here today is ensure that the Transportation Fuels Committee and the Secretary consult with our government's fossil energy experts. If you support having input from government, private sector, and academia experts, then support of this amendment would be appreciated.

Mr. Chairman, I also wish to thank Chairman Upton for his support of this.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

By the way, I'm just a little happy right now. I just got a text that my grandson won his baseball game tonight, 15 14. It's a tournament he's playing in. So be nice over there now.

Mr. Chairman, once again I would like to reference the Transportation Fuels Regulatory Committee created by H.R. 4480. My amendment will look at the analysis that the committee will develop.

One of the problems our oil and gas industry faces is the vast, ideologically motivated regulations they must endure. However, other nations do not seem to impose such overburdensome policies and regulations upon them. Instead, countries in the Middle East and Asia promote their oil and gas industries and work to make it easier for these countries to get their gas products to market.

This amendment would require the committee to conduct an analysis of other nations' regulations, policies and enforcements, or lack thereof, of their oil and gas industries. Saudi Arabia, China, and India do not overwhelm their oil and gas industries with excessive regulations. They help them to thrive.

This committee needs to look at what these other nations are doing to grow, stabilize and sustain their oil and gas industries, and ultimately compare it to what we're doing here in the United States. We ought to help our industry, and this amendment helps to show how we can improve and stop hindering development of our natural resources.

Ultimately, I offered this amendment because we are supposed to be a Nation leading by example over the rest of the world. With this economy and millions of people unemployed or underemployed we really ought to be saying to our regulators, just because you can doesn't mean you should. Just because you can doesn't mean you should.

Mr. Chairman, again, I wish to thank Chairman Upton for his support of this amendment and the opportunity to offer it here.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to rule XXII, clause 7(c), I hereby announce my intention to offer a motion to instruct on H.R. 4348.

The form of the motion is as follows:

Mr. McKinley moves that the managers on the part of the

House at the conference on the disagreeing votes of the two

Houses on the Senate amendment to the bill H.R. 4348 be

instructed to insist on the provisions contained in title V

of the House bill (relating to coal combustion residuals).

Madam Speaker, the State of West Virginia lost one of its greatest residents, greatest citizens last week, and I lost a very close friend. Former head coach of West Virginia University's football team and New Martinsville native Bill Stewart unexpectedly passed away on May 28.

Stewart was a man of integrity and high moral character who practiced truly what he preached, both on and off the field.

As the head coach of the Mountaineers, he represented our State and the university in the best possible way. His signature win over Oklahoma in the 2008 Fiesta Bowl launched him into the national spotlight. His legacy will be the type of life he led.

Coach Stew never met a stranger, and he never lost sight of his home. He lived each day to its fullest and had a contagious enthusiasm that inspired everyone around him.

Leave no doubt: Bill Stewart will be missed for years to come because he was a man of his word, a man who openly followed his faith, and a dedicated father, husband, and friend.

Bill Stewart took that final, dusty, windy country road home to his place in Heaven.

Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

Mr. Chairman, fossil energy research and development continues to evolve to reflect our Nation's key energy supply, security, and environmental needs. American fossil energy R&D takes place in our national energy technology laboratories throughout the country, including laboratories in Morgantown, West Virginia, and in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Over the years, these two labs alone have produced thousands of jobs, billions of dollars in investment into local and State economies, and an incredible working relationship among WVU, Pitt, Carnegie Mellon, Penn State, and Virginia Tech.

Just to point out the importance of fossil energy R&D funding to the gentleman's home State of California: in 2011, over 200 projects were developing in California. This research provided $1.6 billion in funds being brought into that State, along with over 7,600 jobs.

In Hawaii, there was over $36 million spent in research involving nearly 300 jobs. Fossil energy R&D has led the research that has significantly reduced acid rain, as well as in other advanced pollution controls and mercury emission reductions, and has led and/or conducted research that created technology used in 75 percent of our Nation's largest coal power plants.

Today, fossil energy R&D continues to lead the Nation's efforts in carbon capture, sequestration, and utilization, and has led efforts in combustion and turbine R&D that led to substantial increases in power plant efficiencies and reductions in power plant emissions. Simply put, the research through this program focuses on developing affordable, safe, and clean mechanisms to enhance and utilize our domestic fossil energy resources in the most efficient manner.

If this amendment passes, Congress will not be able to ensure our Nation of job security, job retention, growth, and the ability to meet our ever-increasing energy needs. Not only would this amendment destroy nearly 90,000 jobs, 2,100 research projects, and over $18 billion in investments, but would harm our educational institutions and the students, scientists, and professors who work in our national energy laboratories.

I urge all of my colleagues to oppose this amendment and to continue to support our domestic fossil energy initiatives.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, every year, in May, this country celebrates National Nurses Week. Often described as an art and a science, nursing is a profession that embraces dedicated people with varied interests, strengths, and passions because of the many opportunities the profession offers.

As a husband of a critical care nurse, I know all about the lives they touch each and every day. They work in emergency rooms, school- based clinics, hospitals, and homeless shelters, just to name a few. They have many roles, from staff nurses to educators to nurse practitioners and nurse researchers, and serve all of them with a passion for the profession and with a strong commitment to patient security and safety.

National Nurses Week occurs each year in May, surrounding Florence Nightingale's birthday. Our nurses strive for excellence in all they do. They provide patients and their families with skilled, compassionate care, and help them navigate a very complex and oftentimes overwhelming health care system to provide safe passage for the patients and their families.

Regardless of their role or title, nurses educate, counsel, advocate, and lead. These men and women work to make a difference to countless patients, families, and communities who benefit from nurses' dedication and professionalism.

This month is a time to reflect on all the good nurses do. It is a time to acknowledge and celebrate the differences our nurses make.

I move to strike the last word.

Mr. Chairman, I rise for the purpose of a colloquy with the chairman.

Mr. Chairman, thank you for this opportunity to discuss one of my top priorities with you today: NOAA's Comprehensive Large-Data Array Stewardship program, otherwise known as CLASS. This program has been funded at the same base level of $6.5 million for each of the past 10 years, despite an increase in their mission.

This is NOAA's enterprise system for handling all of its environmental data critical for weather predictions. Simply put, CLASS therefore must rely on programs within the satellite program to overcome their $24 million funding shortfall. We should be creating certainty, Mr. Chairman, for the NOAA CLASS program, instead of expecting them to rely on these other satellite programs to transfer funds for their own budget to CLASS.

Under last year's budget, CLASS fell short of the necessary funding to sustain core mission values. Mission failure of CLASS will continue if we don't provide CLASS with funding certainty this year and not depend on transfers from other satellite programs.

Mr. Chairman, I ask that the Appropriations Committee consider the importance of the CLASS mission in conference, and encourage the chairman to adequately fund their mission--a mission defined as a level of funding equal to last year and no job losses.

I yield to the gentleman from Virginia.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I look forward to working with you on this matter.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Amendment Offered by Mr. Landry

Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, I want to thank Chairman Mica and the leadership for working with our office to allow this amendment to proceed and to be offered.

Just a reminder, this issue passed the House on a 2 1 vote last October and previously on a continuing resolution. The legislation has had strong bipartisan support, with numbers of Democrats voting in favor.

So we're not here to rehash those old fights. What we're here to do is discuss how fly ash pertains to maximizing funds for our roads and our bridges and our construction projects and protecting hundreds of thousands of jobs all across America. But there are those that don't see the correlation between coal ash and concrete, even though it's been an integral part of concrete in America for over 80 years.

Quite frankly, upwards of 316,000 jobs are at stake with this amendment and over $100 billion in roads, bridge, and infrastructure projects if coal ash is not recycled into concrete. Keep in mind, 60 million tons of fly ash are recycled annually.

Let's read some quotes from some of the individuals that have talked about this.

The Veritas Economic Consulting report talks about 316,000 jobs. There's one from the American Road and Transportation Builders Association talking about the $100 billion. Here's one from the Home Builders Association:

Removing coal ash from the supply chain would increase the

price of concrete by an average of 10 percent.

Fly ash replaces the American concrete pipe and replaces 15 million tons of cement in its use. Look at what the administration's agencies are talking about under the Department of the Interior and the Department of Transportation.

Department of the Interior:

We concur with industry leaders who feel strongly that if

fly ash is designated a hazardous waste, it will no longer be

used in concrete.

Here from the same Department:

Fly ash costs approximately 20 to 50 percent less than the

cost of cement.

From the Department of Transportation:

Fly ash is a valuable byproduct used in highway facility

construction. It is a vital component of concrete and is

important for a number of other infrastructure uses.

And the last:

Cement is more costly than fly ash. In some areas, it is as

much as twice the cost.

So what does EPA say? Their own statement:

One ton of fly ash used as a replacement for cement reduces

the equivalent of nearly 2 months of an automobile's carbon

dioxide emissions.

One ton of fly ash used as a replacement for cement saves

enough energy to provide electricity to an average American

home for nearly 20 days.

Coal ash leads to ``better road performance.''

Mr. Chairman, let's be honest. What we're relating to here is about the use of fly ash in concrete that's been for over 80 years. Anyone opposing this legislation clearly has an agenda, and that agenda is anticoal. So that's why I'm asking my colleagues to join me today in supporting this amendment, once again, and protecting 316,000 jobs and maximizing the highway funds available for upgrading our roads and bridges all across America.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, just a quick couple of observations, just to remind everyone, we've been using fly ash in concrete for over 80 years, and the President has not--has not--issued a veto threat on this legislation. Perhaps he's aware of the 316,000 jobs that others are not as concerned about.

I want to thank my colleague from West Virginia for cosponsoring this legislation, and I hope he will continue to help us find the bipartisan support in protecting the jobs.

Mr. Chairman, how much time remains?

I'm going to yield time to the gentleman from Michigan, the chairman of the committee, for the purpose of closing.

Mr. Speaker, March is National Developmental Disability Awareness month. This is a time that we can all take a moment to bring attention and understanding to both the needs and the potentials of people with developmental disabilities.

This awareness month was first declared by President Ronald Reagan in 1987 to recognize the bright future that these American citizens have in front of them. Thanks in part to proclamations like this, the perceptions of young people and adults with developmental disabilities has changed.

On a personal note, as an individual with a significant hearing disability and a grandfather of a child with special needs, I am very familiar with the hardships of overcoming the obstacles of disabilities. My grandson, Maxwell, has CHARGE syndrome and deals every day with intense developmental and medical challenges. He is a true inspiration to his mother and our entire family.

During Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, I encourage everyone to engage with people in our communities who have developmental disabilities and recognize their talents and abilities that will make this a better Nation.