Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, on Roll Call Vote No. 259, I would have voted Nay on ordering the previous question on H. Res. 323, providing for consideration of H.R. 115. On Roll Call Vote No. 260, I would have voted No on agreeing to H. Res. 323, providing for consideration of H.R. 115. On Roll Call Vote No. 261, I would have voted Nay on tabling the ruling of the Chair. On Roll Call Vote No. 262, I would have voted Yea on the motion to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 1177, Removing Outdated Restrictions to Allow for Job Growth Act.

Mr. Speaker, on rollcall Vote No. 263, I would have voted ``nay'' on ordering the previous question on H. Res. 324, providing for consideration of H.R. 1039. On rollcall Vote No. 264, I would have voted ``no'' on agreeing to H. Res. 324, providing for consideration of H.R. 1039. On rollcall Vote No. 265, I would have voted ``nay'' on passage of H.R. 115, Thin Blue Line Act. On rollcall Vote No. 266, I would have voted ``yea'' on the motion to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 1892, Honoring Hometown Heroes Act.

personal explanation

Mr. Speaker, on roll call vote No. 258, I would have voted Yea on the motion to suspend the rules and pass, as amended, H.R. 1616, Strengthening State and Local Cyber Crime Fighting Act of 2017.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the long career of public service provided by an outstanding educator in my region, Dr. Manuel Baca, who has served the students, staff, and faculty of Rio Hondo College with distinction for the past 32 years.

Dr. Baca has been an invaluable resource to me and my staff, and will be truly missed at Rio Hondo College. Dr. Baca has served in many capacities as Professor of Political Science, Director, Dean, Vice President, and Interim Superintendent/President of Rio Hondo College. He also serves on the Board of Trustees of one of the largest community colleges in the Country, Mt. San Antonio College, and is the immediate past President of the California Community Colleges Board of Governors.

I have been privileged to work with Dr. Baca in numerous areas that have improved educational opportunities for students and the needs of our region. We have worked together on expanding transit services to the student body and staff by offering free and reduced price transit passes and buying shuttle buses for enhanced connectivity, Dr. Baca has supported the growth of Rio Hondo College's police, fire and first responder training programs that have benefited the greater Los Angeles Community by providing a well-educated workforce for our public safety agencies.

I am particularly thankful for the work Dr. Baca has done to increase educational opportunities at Rio Hondo College for veterans. As a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, Dr. Baca understood the important role Rio Hondo College could play in helping post-9/11 veterans and all veterans receive workforce training and other services to start new careers and assimilate into civilian life. In addition, Dr. Baca has assisted in organizing veteran student summits throughout the State of California. Our nation is grateful for Dr. Baca's service as a Marine and his continued service to the men and women of our military.

Dr. Baca has been a role model and leader in opening up opportunities for Latino/a students by advocating for legislation at the state and federal level to support Hispanic-Serving Institutions.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Rio Hondo College Community and the many people he has impacted in the greater Los Angeles Region, I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating Dr. Manuel Baca on his retirement, and thanking him for his long career of public service to Rio Hondo College, the State of California and our nation.

Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained on a rollcall vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 232.

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to introduce to the House and bid welcome to Father Mike Gutierrez today. He is the pastor at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church and school in the city of Baldwin Park in California. Thank you, Father, for coming from Baldwin Park and for the wonderful prayer.

Father Mike, as he is known--he doesn't use Gutierrez--leads a parish of 10,000 families with a focus on Filipino and Hispanic communities. He has increased participation in religious and educational programs, youth and family ministry, and allows the church to bring attention and encourage activism on issues impacting the area.

He is an integral part of the 32nd District's, my district, annual immigration clinic event and is known for his joviality and smiling consistently.

Since my move to the California 32nd, he has been helpful in many issues and events that I have put forth, recognized by the California State Legislature and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles for support of social issues.

Father, thank you. Thank you for today's blessing and for the work you do to spread and promote Gospel throughout the San Gabriel Valley.

May God continue to bless you and your ministry.

Mr. Speaker, during rollcall Vote number 178 on H.R. 1353, I mistakenly recorded my vote as ``no'' when I should have voted ``yes.''

Mr. Speaker, good morning, and listen, America.

One of the Affordable Care Act's biggest successes was increasing mental health services for all the people through mental health parity protections and Medicaid expansion.

The GOP's pay-more-for-less bill cuts taxes on the wealthy at the expense of those who can least afford to pay for their health coverage, like low-income families.

One in five of Medicaid's 70 million beneficiaries have a mental health or a substance abuse disorder, and reports show services are needed especially for children. The bill would hurt those people by eliminating Medicaid expansion and gutting mental health services for this group, including the nearly 60,000 now covered in my district.

I strongly oppose this repeal effort and urge our Republican colleagues to work with us to strengthen the Affordable Care Act so more Americans can have access to lifesaving care.

Please, please, do that for us.

Mr. Speaker, I ask to bring up H.R. 724 to rescind President Trump's refugee ban on persons like Mustafa, who worked on a construction crew on American bases to fortify them and was tortured because of it.

Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 66.

Mr. Speaker, one of ObamaCare's most critical successes was increased mental health services.

Because of ACA, over 48 million are now covered by mental health and parity laws. Insurance companies can no longer deny coverage for patients needing mental health services, but we do need tougher enforcement on this, as well as the insurance rate increases.

The ACA expanded Medicaid, the single largest payer of behavioral health services, to a new population. That has allowed over 1.6 million Americans to gain access to substance abuse treatment.

Last month, we signed into law reforms to mental health and substance abuse grants and services. Repealing ACA would harm those advances. ACA should be strengthened, not repealed, so more Americans have access to lifesaving mental health services.

We must move mental health forward, not back. Support ACA.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert my statement in the Record of the House of Representatives that we should vote for bigger paychecks and better infrastructure instead of attacking women's access to all health care.

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

Mr. Speaker, Congressman Valadao's bill, H.R. 5781, the California Emergency Drought Relief Act of 2014, is a northern California drought relief bill; it isn't a California drought relief act.

It was introduced last week without hearings, without markups, without consultation with the House Democrats, and without any consultation or input from local water agencies, State agencies, cities, and/or tribes.

This bill is being rushed to the floor without the input of critical California leaders throughout the State. It focuses primarily on providing more Bay-

Delta water to Central Valley farmers at the expense of other users. This bill would require mandatory increases in pumping to Central Valley agriculture, which could force water managers throughout the State to cut water deliveries to southern California, to other urban water users, and, of course, to fisheries, which is a mainstay of many of the tribes in California.

This could also lead to less fresh water in the delta and higher levels of salt and contamination in the water being pumped down to southern California.

The White House states the President will veto this bill because ``it fails to equitably address critical elements of California's complex water challenges,'' and ``the bill appears to include a number of potentially conflicting mandates which can cause confusion and undermine environmental laws, making it ripe for future litigation.''

Senator Boxer says she opposes the bill because ``it could reignite the water wars by overriding critical State and Federal protections of all of California.''

Mr. Speaker, I have some of the statements of opposition. One of them is The Sacramento Bee who has come out opposing the bill because ``any legislation affecting California water policy deserves a full hearing with input from the varied interests in northern California, the Central Valley, and the south.''

Mr. Speaker, we must work in a bipartisan manner to address this drought crisis for the whole State and certainly not in secret and behind closed doors.

I have introduced H.R. 5363, the Water in the 21st Century Act, and Representative Huffman has introduced H.R. 4239, which would provide drought relief to all of California with its water conservation programs, its water recycling projects, its groundwater improvement operations and storm water capture solutions, including desalination and title XVI.

House Democratic proposals have been excluded from this bill, H.R. 5781. There have been past attempts in past Congresses to pass certainly some proposals our legislation has proposed today, and it has failed.

Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record statements of opposition to this bill from the White House, from Senator Boxer, The Sacramento Bee, American Rivers, the League of Conservation Voters, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Sierra Club, the Nature Conservancy, the Pacific Fishery Management Council, the Golden Gate Salmon Association, the Golden Gate Fishermen's Association, and the California Environmental Water Caucus, just to name a few.

Mr. Speaker, I urge us not to pass this, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Executive Office of the President, Office of Management

and Budget,

Washington, DC, December 5, 2014.

Statement of Administration Policy

H.R. 5781--The California Emergency Drought Relief Act of 2014

(Rep. Valadao, R-CA, and 6 cosponsors)

The Administration opposes H.R. 5781 because it fails to

equitably address critical elements of California's complex

water challenges. The Administration appreciates the efforts

by the bill authors to address concerns raised by the

Administration regarding H.R. 3964, the Sacramento-San

Joaquin Valley Emergency Water Delivery Act. However, because

H.R. 5781 makes operational determinations regarding the use

of limited water resources during the ongoing drought, and

contains many new provisions that could lead to unintended

consequences or further litigation, the Administration cannot

support the bill in its current form.

The Administration takes seriously the ongoing drought that

has affected communities, producers and water users across

much of the country, including the especially hard hit State

of California. Since the President's visit to Fresno,

California earlier this year the Administration has

undertaken a number of steps to help those most affected by

drought. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has directed

millions of dollars in food, conservation and emergency water

assistance to tens of thousands of residents in areas hardest

hit by drought. The Bureau of Reclamation has provided cost-

share assistance for nine water reclamation and reuse

projects in the State as well as millions of dollars in

grants to build long-term resiliency to drought.

Moreover, the President has directed Federal agencies to

work with state and local officials in real-time to maximize

limited water supplies, prioritize public health and safety,

meet state water quality requirements, and ensure a balanced

approach to providing for the water needs of people,

agriculture, businesses, power, imperiled species and the

environment. Among other things, these efforts took form in a

2014 Drought Operations Plan, prepared in close coordination

with the State, and the Administration is already taking

steps to prepare a new drought plan for 2015 based on lessons

learned and the best available science during the current

year.

H.R. 5781 was introduced on December 2 and is being

considered in the few remaining days of this session without

a hearing or opportunity for the public to review and provide

comment. In particular, the bill appears to include a number

of potentially conflicting mandates which can create

confusion and undermine environmental laws, making it ripe

for future litigation. Given the complexity of California

water issues, policy determinations over the use of scarce

water resources should be developed in an open and

transparent manner, with an ability for the public, affected

stakeholders, and Federal, state and local officials to

review and provide comment and feedback. The Administration

stands ready to work with Congress in this regard.

For these reasons, if the President were presented with

H.R. 5781, his senior advisors would recommend that he veto

the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to my colleague from northern California (Mr. George Miller).

May I add that I am very thankful for his many years of service to this House and to the Nation, especially the State of California on water issues.

Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 5 minutes.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Costa).

Mr. Speaker, how much time remains?

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio), the ranking member of the Natural Resources Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I have heard the impassioned speech, but it is not our water. It is California water.

I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Farr), the ranking member of the Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to the amount of time that is remaining on both sides?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Huffman).

Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 1 minute.

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

I am the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Water and Power, and I read this information in the newspaper. Nobody ever contacted me. I had no idea the formulation of this particular bill was going on.

When we talk about unemployment, it is nice to trot out pictures and show what the effect is, but I see nothing in this bill that is going to help the farm workers themselves, nothing that is going to provide more wet water, create water, whether it is through recycling, desalination, or conservation--all the things that southern California has been doing.

Let's not forget that 80 percent of the water used is for agriculture and 20 percent is for industrial, commercial, and residential; so there is a little bit of a disparity there, my friends.

I really am looking at how we move towards working on a bipartisan basis. We don't want to argue. We want to make resolutions by working together, and that is not happening. Maybe it is something that I have said--I am not sure, Mr. Speaker--but I am more than willing to sit down between now and next year when we have this bill come to the light of the day, if it is reintroduced, and we can have an honest discussion about the effects it has.

Also, when we talk about California's 35 million residents, only 12 million reside in L.A. County, part of the county that I represent. That is not including San Bernardino, Riverside, or San Diego, so we talk about the boaters in southern California getting the shaft for not getting the water and paying more for that water.

When we are looking at water distribution, I suggest that we sit and actually work openly and transparently. We oppose this secretly written Central Valley-focused legislation. We hope that we are going to continue the dialogue because, yes, California, is a donor State. We need to be able to continue providing that for the rest of the Nation, so that we can have a better economy and a growth in our agricultural area.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to oppose H.R. 5781, the so-called California Emergency Drought Relief Act of 2014, which should be called the CVP California Emergency Drought Relief Act of 2014, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of Representatives Diana DeGette, Ed Perlmutter, Jared Polis, George Miller, Jim Costa, and Jared Huffman, we rise today to recognize Anne Castle, who is departing after more than five years as Assistant Secretary for Water and Science at the Department of the Interior. Anne has worked to protect our nation's water resources for her entire career, and we are grateful for her service.

It is appropriate that Anne hails from Colorado, where engraved in the State Capitol is the poem, ``Here is a land where life is written in water.'' From the Front Range to the Western Slope, water has shaped the character of Coloradans and has no doubt influenced Anne's career.

Prior to joining Interior, Anne practiced law for 28 years in Denver, Colorado specializing in water rights law. She also served on several state water initiatives, including the South Platte River Basin Task Force, which she was appointed to by Colorado Governor Bill Ritter in 2007 Anne was twice appointed to the Colorado Groundwater Commission by former Colorado Governor Roy Romer and served from 1994 to 2002.

During her tenure at the Department of the Interior, Anne oversaw the creation and implementation of WaterSMART, spearheaded several hydropower initiatives, and played a key role in the recent successful launch of Landsat 8. She also worked to promote youth and STEM initiatives within the Department and mentored the next generation of water leaders.

Perhaps Anne's greatest contribution during her tenure as Assistant Secretary is in her leadership on Western water management. Anne was a key member of the team that

Secretary Salazar brought to Interior to improve inter-agency cooperation on addressing complex interstate and international water management issues across the West. Anne has prioritized the need for the West to respond to historic drought--focusing on the changing and increasing risks facing water supplies. Most recently, Anne led implementation of Minute 319 to the 1944 Treaty with Mexico--a historic agreement that guides future management of the Colorado River through 2017.

As she leaves Interior, the coordination between the federal government, Indian Tribes, states, and other constituencies are at their highest levels on the Colorado River, even during this time of record drought. On a personal level, both career and political appointees have praised Anne's dedication, energy, intellect and professionalism. The West is better off today as a result of Anne's contributions.

We thank Anne, and her family, Frank, Chris, and Beth, for their service to the American people. We wish Anne the best as she returns home to the land where life is written in water.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to bring up H.R. 15, a bipartisan, comprehensive immigration reform bill to properly address the humanitarian crisis at the border.