Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, while we understand the need to extend our transportation programs while the other body deals with health care and climate change legislation, we must stand firm about passing a new authorization of our transportation programs in the next 6 months.

Investing in America's infrastructure is the surest way to put Americans back to work. We can't afford to miss another construction cycle. Nor should we fall into a short term extension ``trap''. Even worse would be to punt until the next Congress the reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Act.

Throughout America, our infrastructure is falling apart. Communities large and small--urban and rural--are suffering from deteriorating roads and bridges, aging water and sewer pipes, and an inadequate electrical grid.

It is so bad that the American Society of Civil Engineers has given our nation's infrastructure an overall grade of ``D''. They say that we need $2.2 trillion to repair highway, transit and water projects after years of neglect.

If it were not for the economic recovery package, we would be spending less than at any time in recent history and far less than our international competitors on this critical component of our nation's strength.

Real highway spending per mile traveled has fallen by 50 percent since the Highway Trust Fund was established.

Total combined highway and transit spending as a share of gross domestic product has fallen by 25 percent during that period, to 1.5 percent of GDP today.

By not adjusting the tax rate for inflation, the gas tax has lost 33 percent of its purchasing power since 1993.

Over this time, we have failed to pursue the type of innovation necessary to ensure that our infrastructure meets the needs of future generations.

While America must and will spend more on infrastructure, it is critical to have the vision for what we are buying. More important, we must change the value proposition to get more from each dollar invested. The House has that vision and leadership. Let's take the next 6 months to write it into law.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to join my colleagues in celebrating the 45th anniversary of Job Corps. Since its inception in 1964, Job Corps has educated over 3 million people, helping them secure their high school diplomas, improve literacy and find secure employment.

Oregon has six Job Corps centers, one of which is in the Third Congressional District of Oregon. The Springdale Job Corps Center houses over 120 students and offers services to an additional fifty day students. The Center helps prepare students for careers in the culinary, administrative, security, automotive and health care fields, as well as assists students with their high school diplomas or equivalent. I am impressed by the energy, thoughtfulness and passion of those who work at the Springdale Center and the discipline and drive of the students they prepare.

On the 45th anniversary of Job Corps founding, I would like to acknowledge the great work being done in Springdale, Oregon and across the country.

Mr. Speaker, in June, I introduced a bill to name a post office in my district, northeast Portland, Oregon, the ``Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Post Office.'' Located at 630 Northeast Killingsworth Avenue, this post office shall serve as a daily reminder of the civil rights leader who, even now, inspires our Nation and serves as a catalyst for change.

In fact, this bill itself is a result of a community-led effort, and the hard work of two local letter carriers. In 2007, Mr. Jamie Partridge and Mr. Isham Harris collected employee signatures supporting this naming, as well as letters of support from several neighborhood associations. I am pleased to carry this effort forward in D.C., with the full support of the entire Oregon congressional delegation.

I thank the Committee on Government Oversight and Reform for working with me to ensure speedy passage of this bill through the House. I look forward to equally expeditious consideration in the Senate.

Mr. Speaker, with record 12.2 percent unemployment, Oregon has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country. That translates into 236,000 Oregonians without work. In the Portland region, nearly 140,000 residents are out of work. For those without work, the average weekly unemployment benefit in Oregon is $310. Each week, I receive letters indicating how much of a lifeline these unemployment benefits are.

Tragically for many families, this benefit is running out. Without this legislation, 6,000 Oregonians will have exhausted their unemployment benefits by the end of September. Each week thereafter 500 more will lose their coverage. Unless we authorize this extension, federal aid for these Oregonians will end.

The economic losses from unemployment will last long after these workers--and the millions like them around the country--have

again found work. Income losses for workers who are let go in a recession can persist for as long as two decades, sometimes longer. During this recession, older workers' wages will likely fall farther than those of younger workers. Those without college degrees will likely do worse than those with.

These challenging economic conditions are only the tip of an economic iceberg. The typical American household made less money last year than the typical household made a full decade ago. Median household income fell to $50,303 last year; in 1998, the median income was $51,295. With six job seekers for every opening, these numbers are not likely to improve soon. Every year, our constituents have to do more with less.

Every day in America jobs are being created and jobs are being lost. The real question is the balance between job growth and job loss. Since 1940, Republicans have been in charge of the United States more years than Democrats, 36-33. But, despite that fact, in terms of actual job creation, you can go back and look at the Department of Labor's statistics, for those 33 years, Democrats created 64.2 percent of the jobs in this country. Republicans were responsible for 35.8 percent of the jobs.

The Obama administration has inherited the worst financial collapse in American history since the Great Depression, with the effects that are still being felt on the State and local level and will continue to ripple throughout the economy even after it is corrected. In response, President Obama produced a strong economic recovery package that the Congress passed in a few days. The current credit crisis facing the United States is one of the greatest economic challenges that the country has faced. It can be squarely traced to the ideology of economic deregulation, which left the government with few tools to address the reckless actions of many financial institutions until too late.

It is time to rebuild the foundations of our economy, to improve America's fiscal fitness. I'm proud that the Recovery Act has begun this process. I look forward to working with my colleagues to invest in good jobs, improve wages, and create a nation where every family is safe, healthy, and economically secure.

Madam Chair, I am proud today to support House Resolution 3221, the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act. This is long-overdue legislation that will provide funding directly to students, rather than to bankers. In addition, this bill expands a successful, much needed program to help more students go to college, supports job

training at a time when millions of Americans are searching for ways to survive in a tough and changing economy, simplifies the financial aid process to make it easier for families to apply, and supports early childhood education so that more children graduate from high school and proceed to higher education. At the same time, this bill streamlines government programs to put an additional $87 billion back into the federal budget over ten years.

I've heard from individuals in my home state about how this bill would impact their lives. It will mean that 20,594 students will be eligible for Pell Grants next year and the 107,677 Oregon students who applied for subsidized loans last year will be guaranteed low interest rates. An additional $1.6 million per year will go towards Oregon's College Access Challenge Grant program, which will have a huge impact on the 25,000 students who use it to help prepare for and make undergraduate and graduate work affordable. I am also pleased that the bill reinvests in our community colleges. I am impressed by the work that the two community colleges in my district, Portland Community College and Mt. Hood Community College, have done to help individuals struggling to prepare themselves for a changing economy. I am pleased that President Obama has recognized the importance of higher education and the need to make it accessible and affordable in today's changing economy.

I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act.

Madam Speaker, in June of this year, a constituent contacted me regarding an issue of great concern to his family. He and his wife had purchased a home in my district with the First Time Homebuyer Credit. Yet, because of a temporary government assignment overseas, they were being forced to repay the credit. This constituent eloquently expressed his frustration and asked my office to help him, and the thousands of Foreign Service families like his.

I'm proud to say that today we are doing just that by introducing the ``Call to Service Homebuyer Credit Act of 2009.''

This bill would allow members of the armed services, Foreign Service, and intelligence community to take full advantage of the 2009 First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit.

Currently, the credit provides up to $8,000 towards the purchase of a home, from December 31, 2008 through November 30, 2009, provided that the home is a primary residence for 36 months afterward. The program has been so successful that the National Association of Realtors estimates 1.8 million families will file for the credit, and that 350,000 wouldn't have been able to purchase a home without it.

But for all its popularity, the credit is inaccessible to many Americans--like my constituent--serving our country in the military, Foreign Service, or intelligence community. These occupations often require time served abroad, or otherwise away from home, rendering a 36-month commitment to a primary residence a difficult proposition. Even now, hundreds of thousands of men and women are overseas serving our country on bases, embassies, or other posts, away from friends and family, and often in hazardous locations. Those serving the public should not have to choose between their job and their home.

This bill protects those called to service, now or in the future, by counting duty away from home as time spent fulfilling the primary occupancy requirement. It also gives a second chance to those who served away from home in 2009 by extending the credit for one year. This bill will give these men and women the same opportunity as other Americans to own a home.

I appreciate the engagement of the Ways and Means Committee on this issue, and I look forward to working with my colleagues to quickly enact these thoughtful provisions.

Madam Speaker, these times demand that Congress and the administration do more than one thing at a time, health care, energy, dealing with the economic downturn and near financial meltdown inherited by the new administration. One challenge needs more attention, rebuilding and renewing America.

Our fraying infrastructure has been a growing problem for years. The American Society of Civil Engineers has rated our overall infrastructure with a grade of ``D'' and has done so repeatedly. It is one of those rare, important issues that actually unites people rather than dividing them.

Water and transportation investments are overwhelmingly supported by the public across the board from coast to coast. And a majority of Republicans, Democrats and independents would increase their taxes to get this job done.

Rebuilding and renewing America will make a huge difference in both the economy and the everyday quality of life of Americans. The economic recovery package that we passed early in the year was an important step to stop the economic free fall. I would hate to think what my State of Oregon would be facing without the $6 billion for education, health care, unemployment and infrastructure. It was very important for the State of Oregon and for States across the country, important but not enough.

The perfect next step is to reauthorize and fund the next transportation bill, which expires in 15 days. Our Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has been hard at work. They have developed a great outline for the new legislation.

But the highway trust fund that would fund that new vision faces a significant shortfall. Our recent stopgap efforts to plug the hole just adds to the long-term deficit without the certainty that communities and contractors require to start needed big projects.

In the short term, the House should come together, work with the Senate and pass a short-term extension of 4 to 6 months that will allow us to get the reauthorization and the funding in order.

In the meantime, every Member ought to take advantage of this opportunity to involve people back home in this critical discussion. People from the private sector, from their local Chamber, contractors, unions, the local community leadership, all being part of this movement to rebuild and renew America.

This is the fastest way to get the economy on track, to improve the environment, put people to work and make our communities more liveable, our families safer, healthier and more economically secure.

Mr. Speaker, this Friday, we come together as a Nation once again to commemorate those who perished on September 11, 2001, and to renew our commitment to each other and to our Nation's ideals of tolerance and freedom. Though the years have passed, the memory of that day and of the heroism displayed by rescue workers and ordinary Americans is not diminished.

I hope you will join me in a day of reflection, as we contemplate how each of us can draw strength from this tragedy and help create the America we'd like to see. Our Nation's strength lies in the ability to welcome dissent, but it is my hope that this day can remind us of our common humanity: that we are more joined than divided. And although we may disagree on the means for how to deal with climate change, health care, and economic recovery, to name but a few of our challenges, these are priorities for us all.

Let us remember this day, and let us pledge to work harder and more constructively to build a stronger America.

Thank you. I appreciate the gentleman's courtesy and his leadership.

If you spend a little time around here and work on a variety of issues, occasionally the various awards and honorary memberships come your way. Well, I am pleased to be an honorary fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Nothing gives me more pride.

In the fight to rebuild and renew America, the American Council of Engineering Companies is in the forefront. ACEC provides, as referenced by my colleagues on the floor, the technical know-how to plan, develop design projects and help manage them through construction. These companies are at the heart of the essential building blocks of the built environment, the bridges, roads, water, sanitation, transit, rail, buildings, environmental protection and cleanup. They are leaders in the policy areas as well.

We have watched the engineering profession provide leadership and insight, counsel and advice in dealing with the reauthorization of our transportation bill, dealing with the recent legislation we have offered for a water trust fund, and with the reinstitution of the Superfund, the accountability that the ASCE has provided with an invaluable report card on the State of American infrastructure. They have done the study on a repeated basis, most recently issuing a new report that showed that we are still rated about a ``D'' in all the different categories. They do this on an ongoing basis to provide information that policymakers, businesses, the media can rely upon. Nobody else does it as well and as systematically.

For years, Congress has ducked the tough questions of accountability and finance. Here again, ACEC is in the forefront.

There are lots of jokes about engineers and the pocket-protector crowd, but I am deeply appreciative of how the American Council of Engineering Companies, and their thousands of engineers across the country, are playing a critical role in rebuilding and renewing America and making sure our communities are more liveable, our families are safer, healthier and more economically secure.

I hope our Members not only celebrate this 100th anniversary, but maybe use this as an opportunity to take the time to look at the resources that ACEC gives to us to help us do our job better.

I appreciate the gentleman's courtesy in permitting me to speak on this bill. As we mark a year of near collapse of the American financial system, we're still trying to sort out exactly what happened and how to ensure it never happens again, to allow reckless behavior to drive our economy into the ditch.

With that as a background, it is appropriate for us to commemorate the 75 years of service by one part of the financial sector that didn't add to the problem, America's credit unions. Starting 75 years ago as small scale not-for-profit groups of people joined together to provide essential affordable financial services, we have watched it grow over the years. Personally, I can testify as a satisfied member of credit unions for over 25 years, including two currently, I've had firsthand experience of the personal, high-quality service. While certainly they've grown and expanded their services and membership over the years, we've seen that they still work well, managing to provide helpful competition.

When some of the largest banks in this country have stopped lending, not so with credit unions. Indeed, most credit unions have continued to lend to individuals and small businesses around the country, despite the challenging economic climate. Unlike many other lenders, credit unions saw their loans increase by 7 percent to over $575 billion in 2008, up about $35 billion from the previous year. By providing financial diversity, credit unions lend strength to American communities. By providing competition for other financial institutions, credit unions help hold down costs for borrowers and provide greater access to capital, more choices for individuals.

And on a small scale, I've watched as they've worked with people who otherwise would have fallen prey to payday lenders to design short-term loans to help people in financial difficulty who may not be particularly financially sophisticated.

I thank the gentleman for introducing this legislation. I think it's important to recognize the contributions of the credit unions and to continue to work with them to provide their vital services to American consumers.

Madam Speaker, there are small, common sense steps everyone can take to improve their health, save money, and reduce unnecessary visits to the doctor. Nutritional supplements can significantly improve health, and by making vitamins and supplements more affordable, we can help people stay healthy while reducing medical costs.

For that reason, I have introduced the Tax Equity for Meal Replacements and Supplements Act of 2009, which will make it easier for our constituents to make healthy choices and improve their health and well-being. This legislation allows employees to purchase certain dietary supplements and meal replacement products with pre-tax dollars already reserved for health needs.

The prevention of disease is a key factor in limiting health care expenditures. A 2007 study conducted by The Lewin Group showed that the appropriate use of select dietary supplements over a five year period would improve the health of key populations and save the nation more than $24 billion in healthcare costs.

Among the findings, that report noted that if 11.3 million of the 44 million American women who are of childbearing age and not taking folic acid, began taking 400 mcg. of folic acid on a daily basis, neural tube defects could be prevented in 600 babies, saving as much as $344 million in the first year. Over five years, taking into account the cost of the supplement, $1.4 billion could potentially be saved.

The report also highlighted the potential five-year savings in health care expenditures resulting from a reduction in the occurrence of coronary heart disease, CHD, among the population over age 65. Through a daily intake of approximately 1800 mg of omega-3, the occurrence of this disease can be reduced, saving $3.2 billion. Approximately 374,301 hospitalizations and associated physician fees due to CHD could also be avoided.

I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this commonsense legislation.

Madam Chair, it was my hope that this year would mark a turning point in the type and amount of we spend on the Department of Defense. Oregonians know I frequently vote against Defense Appropriations bills as spending too much money for the wrong priorities.

I was pleased to see the traditional military pay raise included, as well as an extension of current stop loss compensation to troops extended tours in 2010. I also continue to strongly support provisions that prohibit permanent bases in Iraq and Afghanistan and torture.

Yet the bill also includes funding for programs that have been outdated since the end of the Cold War two decades ago, and which even the Secretary of Defense would like to terminate. The list of these programs funded here is long and runs into the billions: $80 million for the Missile Defense, Kinetic Energy Interceptor Program, $369 million for parts for the F-22 and C-17, an extra $3 billion for Navy ships, and $674 million for still more unrequested C-17 planes.

These programs come at the expense of other, more worthy projects and investments. I offered two amendments to the Rules Committee for this bill, both of which would have shifted funding to environmental programs. My first amendment would have shifted $100 million from the unnecessary Joint Strike Fighter (F-35) Alternate Engine Program and toward the chronically-underfunded Defense Department's Environmental Restoration Program. These programs, responsible for the cleaning of toxic wastes and leftover bombs from all active bases and Formerly Used Defense Sites, will receive less funds than they did last year even though the number of sites needing clean up has increased.

My second amendment would have created a small pilot program to fund a practical demonstration of ordnance discrimination technology. Currently over 75 percent of material uncovered during the clearing of leftover and still dangerous bombs and shells is non-dangerous scrap metal. This type of technology, once proven through a live demonstration, would cut cleanup costs by two to three times.

These amendments were commonsense ways to reduce Pentagon liability, save money and resources in the long run, and make our lands safer for our communities and military personnel. I was extremely disappointed that these amendments were unable to receive an up-or-down vote. But I will continue to work to ensure the Federal government is a better partner to communities.

The Administration is moving in the right direction by being willing to make tough decisions to cut or terminate certain favored, yet expensive and unnecessary, programs. It is my hope that Congress can craft a bill in conference that more closely adheres to this principled and practical stance and that meets the needs of our military and our communities.

Madam Speaker, the United States Numbered Highway System--from US 1 to US 830--was the first set of nationally recognized highways in the country. During the Great Depression, federal and state governments put people to work improving and extending the nation's roads and highways. The U.S. numbered highways carried the bulk of intercity vehicular traffic and people migrating west. These highways helped our country win the Second World War, allowing great flexibility in ferrying soldiers and materials across the nation, supplementing the nation's fixed rail system.

Communities all across America sprung up around these numbered highways, which came to serve as Main Streets in many of these towns. The system reached its apex in 1956, but with the creation of the Interstate System and subsequent growth of suburban communities, many of these once great highways have decayed. As a result, many of the U.S. numbered highways can be characterized as ``orphan highways,'' receiving little or no federal investment. These highways, however, continue to serve local areas with critical connectivity and economic links, and are often the heart of Main Street America.

To create an assistance program that is tailored to the redevelopment of community Main Streets which are or were part of the United States Numbered Highway System, I have introduced the Orphan Highway Restoration Act. This legislation creates a new program to provide Federal funds to assist states and local governments in their efforts to rehabilitate or repair the Main Street sections of the orphan highways running through their towns. The bill provides a needed boost to state and local transportation departments by committing important new resources to revitalize local economies and communities. It creates redevelopment opportunities that benefit local businesses and labor, improve safety on our roads, and creates jobs.

I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this important legislation and to reinvest in the communities that make America great.

Madam Speaker, few issues are more controversial or contentious than the issue of dam removal on the Snake River system. Some have argued because they don't like certain possibilities that they don't want to know about them. This whistling past the graveyard is both unrealistic and unwise. Things we don't like sometimes are options, and we should know the facts.

That is why I am pleased to co-sponsor the Salmon Solutions and Planning Act with my colleagues Jim McDermott and Tom Petri. This is an important piece of legislation that will provide policymakers in the Pacific Northwest and around the country with additional information necessary to aide in the recovery of Columbia Basin salmon.

The legislation requires the Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Transportation, Department of Commerce, and Department of Energy to study the environmental, infrastructure, and economic issues associated with removing the four Lower Snake River dams. The bill also includes language authorizing the Secretary of the Army to remove the dams. This language is intended to clarify that lower Snake River dam removal is within the Corps' authority. It is important to note this bill contains no ``trigger language'' that would mandate dam removal.

Salmon are a significant ecological, economic and cultural resource for the Northwest and indeed the entire country. These fish once supported the world's most productive salmon watershed. Unfortunately, wild salmon and steelhead in the Columbia and Snake Rivers have been in decline for decades, with thirteen stocks now listed under the Endangered Species Act. Not only has this decline had negative impacts on the watersheds of the Pacific Northwest, it wreaks havoc on salmon- dependent communities and local economies.

Since coming to Congress, I have supported funding for habitat restoration, reforming hatchery practices, and re-examining our harvest practices, all measures that can contribute to salmon recovery. However, with salmon populations continuing to decline, it's clear that what we have been doing for the past 20 years has not been working. I have called for an approach that evaluates all science-based recovery options, including dam removal. This legislation represents an important piece of that analysis.

Some have equated knowing the facts with actually triggering the process to remove the dams. My support for this legislation is not support for dam removal. My position over the years on this has been consistently to support evaluating all options for salmon recovery. The studies authorized by the bill will help us determine the consequences of dam removal not only for Northwest salmon, and but also for transportation, energy, and irrigation in the region.

Like other Pacific Northwest residents, I have a deep interest in coming to a resolution on salmon recovery. The stress and uncertainty created by illegal biological opinions and the involvement of the judicial system not only harms fish, but also the farmers, fishermen, Tribes, ports, union members, and others whose livelihood depends on the Columbia River system.

This legislation is an important step in having the facts about our options for restoring self-sustaining, fishable populations of Northwest salmon.

Mr. Speaker, while I strongly support the ``cash for clunkers'' concept, I voted against this legislation to provide the program with infusion of cash. The bill that was rushed to the Floor today tripled the program without any discussion of how it's working administratively or why the money ran out so quickly. I'm concerned that rushing ahead without better understanding these issues will create additional problems in the future. In addition, by bringing this legislation to the Floor so quickly, we have missed an opportunity to make improvements to the program.

Cash for clunkers is a much better approach to help both consumers and the auto industry than simply bailing out the automakers by throwing money at them. With this program we are not only helping them to modernize their fleet, but we are taking some of the dirtiest, most polluting cars off the road.

The fact that the program ran out of money within the course of a few days shows its popularity and its potential to help rescue and transform our nation's automakers. Consumers have clearly demonstrated that they want to purchase more fuel efficient vehicles. Action to extend the program would have been a good opportunity to strengthen and better target the provisions so they do more to improve fuel efficiency, reduce vehicle emissions and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.

I am also concerned that in order to triple cash for clunkers, the bill takes money away from another important economic recovery program that supports renewable energy projects. We don't know the consequences of this action and how it will impact other Oregon priorities and job prospects in the renewables sector.

Cash for clunkers is a program I support and I think it has an important role to play in our economic recovery. However, I don't want this rushed action to weaken both its effectiveness and long-term viability.