Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman.

There is no faster growing form of organized crime in the world than human sex trafficking, and unfortunately, it is happening right here in the United States. More than 100,000 girls are caught up in sex trafficking every year in the United States. Just last month, my local paper reported on a couple being charged with prostituting a 17-year- old girl who was under their control. As you have heard today, that is hardly an isolated story.

We are here not just to discuss the problem, but the solutions. We are seeking to disable Web sites like backpage.com that advertise children for commercial sex and make it a Federal crime for a company to knowingly post advertisements for sex with minors.

These bills will also increase funding for services to victims--these girls are victims--and give prosecutors better tools to go after the traffickers.

We cannot close our eyes and pretend this crime does not exist. We must take responsibility and be the voice for these children and defend those who cannot defend themselves.

Mr. Speaker, on March 6, 2014 I was inadvertently recorded as a ``no'' vote on

rollcall 106--H.R. 3826, the Electricity Security and Affordability Act. I support H.R. 3826 and fully intended on voting in favor of the legislation.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor Captain Christopher Stover of Vancouver who was tragically killed last week in a military training accident near Salthouse, England. A 4.0 student at Evergreen High School, Captain Stover chose to serve his country and attend the United States Air Force Academy.

Captain Stover was a pilot of the HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter and served tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan. According to his family and friends, Chris had a passion for flying and he loved his job. A high school teacher said he was caring and nurturing and was known for fostering a strong sense of community. Not long ago, he visited an elementary school in Vancouver to thank a group of children who had sent him cards while he was overseas, and to tell them about his passion for flying.

He is survived by his wife, Sarah, and his parents, Maribel and Richard. Our thoughts and prayers are with you. We can never replace what you have lost, but on behalf of a grateful Nation, we thank you; and we will always remember his service.

There is an Air Force Academy tradition for those graduates who pass away. It comes from the third verse of the Air Force song. I will carry on that tradition by saying:

Captain Stover, here's a toast.

Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman for his work, and Ranking Member Lowey for your work on this bill.

There are two reasons I rise in support of this bill. First, it will protect and promote things that residents of southwest Washington care about. Second, it helps us do something that no Congress has done since the Korean war, which is it reduces appropriated spending for the fourth year in a row--dollar over dollar.

Many people have been understandably discouraged with the partisan bickering in Washington, D.C. I believe if we focus on finding common ground and fixing problems, we can find solutions we can be proud of. With this bill, I believe we do just that.

The ports of Ilwaco and Chinook will have critical dredging funds that are made available. We are improving veterans' programs and support for our Nation's bravest heroes, something we can all agree on. We are protecting access and saving dollars by not decommissioning roads in the Gifford Pinchot. And we are keeping our commitment to cleaning up nuclear waste at Hanford. There is much for folks in southwest Washington to like in this bill; and while we still have more to do in terms of reducing spending and getting results, I believe if we work together, there is no limit to what we can accomplish.

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

Mr. Chairman, I will not take 5 minutes.

I actually wanted to come down here in support of this bill, the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill. I would like to commend Chairman Frelinghuysen and the entire

subcommittee on developing a strong bill that balances the needs of our Nation with fiscal responsibility.

This bill cuts spending by nearly $3 billion from FY13 enacted levels while maintaining critical funding for navigation, infrastructure, and our Nation's domestic energy needs.

One issue of particular importance to me and my home in southwest Washington is the maintenance of our waterways and small ports. Sediment buildup has essentially blocked commerce, leaving communities in Wahkiakum County, Chinook, and Ilwaco without their largest and most critical industries.

When one of these channels is blocked for communities in my district, it's no different than if a town's main highway were completely blocked or washed away. We need to treat the maintenance of our Nation's small ports with the same level of urgency.

The underlying bill makes great strides to alleviate these challenges by including $1 billion from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund for Army Corps dredging and no less than $30 million specifically for small ports and waterways. While this will not completely fulfill all of our Nation's needs, it certainly illustrates the chairman's dedication and our dedication to our ports in towns and counties and States across the country like my home in southwest Washington.

As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I am proud to have played a role in securing this funding. I strongly support the bill and encourage all of my colleagues to do the same.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Hanford, as the gentleman mentioned, was the reactor used for the Manhattan Project and was used to build the U.S. nuclear arsenal during the Cold War.

I recently had an opportunity to tour Hanford with the gentleman and so firmly believe in this amendment because this is a Federal Government responsibility, this wasn't a choice by a local community. The cleanup just is simply beyond the scope of the communities involved. This matters to people in my district and up and down the Columbia River, which is adjacent to your area.

I would urge my colleagues, this isn't somebody's pet project, this isn't somebody's good idea. This is a responsibility. The gentleman said ``a legal responsibility''--I would add to that a moral responsibility--of the Federal Government to put this money here and help aid the cleanup at Hanford.

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

Mr. Chairman, I'm here today to join in the effort to promote this farm bill and request that my amendment be added to it.

I'm here to protect millions of jobs across the country, millions-- 110,000 in my home State of Washington alone--by doing something we don't hear much of in this Chamber, particularly on this side of the aisle. I'm here to say that I agree with the EPA. With respect to treating forest roads, the EPA has it right and has had it right now for nearly 40 years.

This bipartisan amendment that I'm very proud to offer with my colleague, Kurt Schrader, simply codifies the EPA's silviculture rule that says mud and rock runoff from forest roads should not be categorized the same as industrial parking lots or factories. It makes no changes to the Clean Water Act, nor does it restrict the EPA from enforcing current law.

In a recent Ninth Circuit Court decision, a judge--not the EPA-- decided this rule needed to be changed and directed the EPA to require NPDES permits for all forest roads on public or private land. This ruling would have

cost private, Federal, and State and tribal landowners billions of dollars, and it would have helped kill thousands of jobs across the country.

Fortunately, the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately overturned this outrageous ruling and also believes the EPA treatment of forest roads is the correct approach.

However, extremist lawsuits continue to roll in, and all of them are threatening the viability of forests by potentially costing private and public landowners millions in unnecessary, unscientifically proven expenses.

Mr. Chairman, unless Congress acts, our forests will remain under the attack of baseless lawsuits that simply serve no purpose in protecting our rivers, streams, and waterways but are highly effective in killing real jobs. We're talking about jobs in wood product manufacturing: pulp, paper, forest harvesting, forest management, and the list goes on.

This provision enjoys a wide range of bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate. I urge my colleagues to stand with private landowners, job creators, Republicans and Democrats in Congress, the administration, and the Supreme Court in supporting this amendment.

I reserve the balance of my time.

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

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

With that, I urge my colleagues to join in this bipartisan, bicameral effort to protect jobs and protect our forest health.

I urge adoption of the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring attention to the issue of dredging our Nation's small ports, a critical issue for hardworking folks in Washington State, southwest Washington, in particular, in Wahkiakum County, Chinook, Ilwaco and other parts of my district.

This is a job issue in my region and for those along waterways throughout our Nation. The issue is this: ports are lifelines to several towns and communities across the Columbia River and the Pacific Coast in my district, and they are literally being choked off by lack of maintenance dredging.

One of my local newspapers, the Chinook Observer, commented, if a farmer were unable to ship his wheat because a road became impassable within our Federal highway system, the Federal Government would rightly fix this issue immediately.

It is no different for the dire circumstances facing our Nation's navigable waterways. We need to address this issue as soon as possible.

As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I've taken action in search of a swift solution. And thankfully, the committee included $1 billion out of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund for dredging and maintenance of waterways in our Energy and Water Development appropriations bill.

We must maintain our Nation's maritime ports.

I'm glad you mentioned that because I too believe that we need to be about the business of the American people and helping them make life work, which means helping them in their day- to-day activities, not making it harder for folks to survive.

I'm from southwest Washington; and in our neck of the woods, we have a lot of working-class families who, like Cory mentioned, are struggling to make ends meet. We all know people who have been or are unemployed, where both parents, one or both parents are out of work, or one or both parents are trying to work.

People are working two jobs; and still they're working longer and harder, but not getting paid more for it. So folks are draining their 401(k)s to make their mortgage payments. This is the climate in which we find ourselves, and that's why it is so, so, so important, like the gentleman from Colorado said, that we employ an all-American energy strategy.

And the irony is we can do it here and now. There's no reason to wait, which is why I also have joined the gentleman. We are on the House Energy Action Team, or the HEAT Team, which is a group of like- minded Members who believe we need that all-American energy approach, and we need it now.

You spoke to some natural gas issues. I'll tell you, in my neck of the woods, in the great Northwest, we get a majority of our energy from clean, renewable hydropower. And the best thing about this clean, renewable hydropower is it's inexpensive compared with most other forms of energy, especially renewable energy. So not only is it carbonless and it's clean, but it's inexpensive, and it is constantly renewed in our backyard.

I wanted to point some of these things out because I don't believe hydropower always gets its due, especially among the renewables, but just as a base load energy source in the Nation.

Hydropower is America's largest source of renewable energy. It's American energy. It's produced in America. The jobs that go into producing it are American jobs, and it's utilized here in America. It makes up 65.9 percent of all renewable energy in the United States, and it provides more than 30 million homes in the U.S. with inexpensive power.

Hydro is clean. It avoids nearly 2 million metric tons of carbon emissions every year. This is a tremendous opportunity for us.

It's not only important for families. It does keep our energy bills low and affordable. But it's important for manufacturing. We have, in southwest Washington, in my area, in Camas, and in Vancouver, a growing tech sector. We've traditionally been known for our forests and our beautiful Doug fir stands, but we are also now becoming known for our silicon forest. We're manufacturing chips.

One of the reasons some of the large chip manufacturers have come to southwest Washington, as opposed to India or China, is because of the inexpensive energy, because of the hydropower. We need to not only protect it, but promote it as part of the all-of-the-above energy approach which, again, is all-American energy.

Another area when we're talking about--I mentioned clean types of renewables, biomass. Woody biomass is a by-product of the timber that we have in the Great Northwest. It's another area where we can produce carbonless or low-form energy. And it's in our backyard. We have an abundant source. It's an American energy source.

Another by-product of timber manufacturing is black liquor. And it's not liquor that you drink; it's liquor that can go into helping produce energy.

These are the types of ideas and solutions that are going to make energy affordable for the average American family. These are the types of solutions that cause us, rather than to put onerous rules and regulations on--oh, I could name a few that cause our energy to spike up and cause Americans to pay more--these are the types of solutions that actually meet the environmental standards, but also reduce the cost of the average power bill.

I don't know about you--you could probably speak to this, Martha-- but, man, our energy bills have gone through the roof, and there's no reason when we've got American energy right here in our backyard.

Absolutely. Here's the thing that's frustrating to me and frustrating to every American. They look at Congress and they think okay, we're sending, as we all were reminded recently, hundreds of thousands of dollars from each community, millions of dollars from each community, here to Washington, D.C., and they expect us to do something effective with that money or--here's a novel concept--send it back.

The gentlelady from Alabama mentioned the fact that for the first time this House Republican Congress voted on a budget that balances within a decade. It shouldn't be novel, but it is. Every family that's watching us right now is saying, You guys are patting

yourselves on the back for that? We do that ever year. Every State legislature does it every year. But it was novel to do it here.

And here's the interesting thing. When members of our caucus got to sit down with the President a month or so ago and ask him about his budget that he released to the American people, his budget doesn't balance. Ever. And we know why this is important. It's because balancing the budget will help us grow jobs. Balancing the budget will help American families grow and thrive and prosper. It's going to help businesses in southwest Washington and throughout this country grow and hire more people.

We know that a bloated government that then keeps coming back to everybody's back pocket and says, I want a little bit more of this, you're my piggy bank--we know that that kills jobs, which is why it's pretty simple. We need to do what every family is doing, every kitchen table conversation: balance our budgets so more jobs can grow and America can thrive.

Unfair. As Republicans, we do often look at posterity. We're talking about the next generation. And we should. But I will argue that it's actually unfair to today's generation, to the 67-year-old who just retired with the private-sector job and has a 401(k). The inflation that's coming from this debt is going to hit him and his wife, who were savers. It's unfair to the teacher in a public school classroom when the Federal Government makes promises it cannot keep. It overspends, overspends, and then it's going to cut her hours, add to her class sizes.

All we have to do is look at Greece or Cyprus. It can happen--and it will happen--if we don't get this under control now.

And not making them feel like crooks and suckers, right? I mean, that's part of what we're here to talk about tonight. I think the gentlelady may have some comments on that.

I think this is one of the challenges we're facing is all Americans are looking at Congress saying why is it that we're sending all this money to Washington, D.C. Why are we having to live within our means and the Federal Government doesn't. In fact, what they see is the Federal Government cutting direct services, whether it's to military families, whether it's services in airports, whether it's security at parks. They're not cutting fat.

See, this is what's frustrating to me; the IRS operates a 24/7 satellite TV studio in their building. Across the street from the IRS, the EPA operates its own 24/7 satellite studio to the tune of $4 million a year. Rather than maybe combine those two or share that one studio and save the taxpayer dollars, it seems like the administration is cutting those services that Americans expect and have already paid for. It's really time that the Federal Government learn to live within its means because it's going to help us grow jobs.

We're starting to hear from some of the folks we serve in our districts and in our States that folks with serious preexisting conditions are being turned away from a high-risk pool that was promised.

It was the promise. I mean, that was part of the big promotion of the health care bill that the President passed: that, if we do this, no one will ever be turned away with a preexisting condition. Yet today, right now, people with serious preexisting conditions are being told, basically, by the Obama administration, sorry, we didn't plan for you.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a good friend and dedicated public servant. Marc Boldt was born in Vancouver, Washington, and has been a resident of Hockinson, Washington since 1985. I've known Marc since I was young and my family lived close to his farm where I picked blueberries along with my brothers. Marc was elected to the State Legislature in 1994 from Washington's 17th Legislative District where he served 5 terms as a state representative, until he was elected to the Board of Clark County Commissioners in 2004. His second term will end at the close of this year.

Throughout his time as an elected official, Marc Boldt has provided strong leadership and a willingness to put the people of Clark County first. He has been a business advocate, a tireless supporter of the agricultural community, and a friend to the people he was elected to serve.

Adding to all of this, Marc and his wife Dawn have six children and three grandchildren. Marc is a current member of the Clark County Farm Bureau and has served over 18 years as a local youth leader and Sunday school teacher. He is a former member of the Hockinson School District Curriculum Committee and the Future Farmers of America--Clark County Chapter. Marc has served over 10 years as a local 4H Leader.

I believe his deep roots in our community have provided him with the passion and energy to serve the people who live here. When he's not in Commission meetings or visiting farms and businesses throughout the county, you'll find him serving the community in some other way. In the month of August, there's only one place to find Marc--the Clark County Fairgrounds. He'll be serving up BBQ sandwiches or handing change to customers, all in the name of supporting Young Life to try and provide a positive influence in the lives of Clark County teens.

His work on behalf of the people who live in Clark County has earned the respect of people of all political stripes.

While his service on the Board of Clark County Commissioners will end in January of 2013, Marc will no doubt continue to serve the people of Southwest Washington as a community leader. He is a loving husband, father, grandfather, public servant, and a friend to all. Today, I ask all members of Congress to join me in honoring an extraordinary man and public servant, Marc Boldt.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a dedicated public servant, Marc Boldt. Through 18 years of public service, both as a State representative and as a Clark County commissioner, Marc has put the people of Clark County first.

Marc has been a business advocate, a tireless supporter of the farming community, and a friend of the people he was elected to serve. He is a current member of the Clark County Farm Bureau and has served 18 years as a local youth leader and Sunday school teacher. He has also served for over 10 years as a 4-H leader. In the month of August, there is one place you are going to find Marc, and that's at the Clark County Fair, serving up barbecue to support young lives.

He has deep roots in our community, and his dedication and work has earned the respect of people throughout our community of all political stripes. While his time as county commissioner will end in January of 2013, Marc will no doubt continue to serve the people of southwest Washington.

Today, I ask all Members of Congress to join me in honoring an extraordinary man, a public servant, and my friend, Marc Boldt.

Mr. Speaker, before I speak specifically to this bill, I think it's important to note, I know my colleagues from the other side of the aisle are decrying this bill and its immigration stances, but I would submit for your consideration, when you had control of the House, the Senate, and the White House, you did not pass immigration reform. So let's stop treating this issue like a political football.

As the first American of Hispanic descent to represent Washington State here in the United States House, I want us to tackle this issue. But let's keep the facts the facts, and not use it as a political football, because it's important to millions of Americans and millions of immigrants who want to come here.

And why wouldn't you? This is a land of opportunity, and we want the best and the brightest here in the United States creating jobs and growing our economy, because in southwest Washington, where I'm from, we need jobs.

Today we're here to focus on commonsense solutions. And unfortunately, under the current setup, we're literally educating foreign men and women and then requiring them to go to India and China and be our competitors.

Under this scenario, who wins? Well, China and India win. Our competitors win.

Who loses? The American worker because, as the best and the brightest internationally want to come here and we tell them go away, go start a business to compete with our jobs, those jobs aren't going to grow in southwest Washington.

Fortunately, today we have the opportunity to change that, and then we can go on and tackle some of the other issues that my colleagues are bringing up because they're important and they're valid.

This STEM jobs bill ensures that employers are opening their doors and their job opportunities to Americans first. And if there aren't enough Americans to fill these highly skilled job openings, then we invite those foreign STEM graduates to apply. That's all this bill does. And it's an important piece that's going to open up economic opportunity for the men and women that I serve and that we all serve across this great Nation.

Right now, large employers--Microsoft was mentioned, that's from my home State, they have over 6,000 jobs that they're trying to fill. And you know what? They want to fill them with American workers. If they're not able to, then I think they should have the ability to offer those options to immigrants from China and India, South America, Mexico, Africa.

Whoever wants to come here and be a part of the economic engine that creates opportunities, let's open those doors. Why not?

With this bill, we'll continue to educate talented people to fuel our economy, and instead of sending them home to compete with us and our workers, we'll get to grow those jobs right here.

This is a compassionate bill that will drive economic innovation and create jobs. It is pro-family. It actually provides incentives to those folks. Those immigrants who go about this process in the right way, they'll be able to be united with their family here in the United States because of this bill.

There are safeguards.

This will allow them, and those family members who are waiting to immigrate legally, to come here and be with their mother, their father, who are here working. This has a lot of opportunities, and it also has safeguards for the American worker. Those jobs are first available to those citizens who may be able to fill the qualification.

So I'd ask my colleagues here today to support this very good bill. It's a piece of the puzzle. It's not the whole thing, but we need to take this a piece at a time, a solution at a time. And quite frankly, right now, solutions are what the American people are asking for, and this is a very good one.

Mr. Speaker, throughout our nation's history, individual Americans have voluntarily joined together to meet important needs in their communities. This generosity and willingness to work together toward a common goal is a trademark of the American character.

Today, private voluntary associations across the country make substantial contributions to our nation's well-being in areas such as health care and social services, education and the arts, economic development, and environmental protection. Many of these associations are community foundations--charitable organizations formed to attract and distribute endowment funds.

The Community Foundation for Southwest Washington is a successful private sector economic and social support system that helps meet specific needs in our region. They have far-reaching benefits for anyone interested in philanthropy and are an example of the spirit of generosity and service that helped build America and continues to make it great.

Directed by volunteers, the Community Foundation for Southwest Washington has community partnerships that run deep. The longstanding relationships they have built in the community help them meet current needs, while enabling the Foundation to address future challenges and opportunities. They provide effective leadership in our community, often complementing or assisting in the coordination of public programs and other private services. They facilitate one of the fastest-growing forms of philanthropy in the United States.

Today I rise to congratulate the Community Foundation for Southwest Washington on obtaining their National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations accreditation from the Community Foundations National Standards Board. Achieving confirmation and reconfirming compliance with National Standards is a rigorous process, demonstrating that the Community Foundation for Southwest Washington has adhered to excellent philanthropic practice. This program requires community foundations to document their policies for governance, donor services, investments, grant making, community leadership, and administration.

The Community Foundation for Southwest Washington of Vancouver, Washington has obtained its National Standards accreditation through a commitment to operational quality, integrity, accountability, transparency and adherence to the highest standards for grant making.

On behalf of the residents of our region, I congratulate the Community Foundation for Southwest Washington on receiving its National Standards accreditation and commend the foundation's dedicated service to Vancouver and communities in Southwest Washington.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a fallen soldier who died in military service to this country. This true American hero, Sergeant First Class Barett W. McNabb, was stationed in Washington state and he and his family lived in my home district in Southwest Washington prior to his final deployment. Sergeant First Class McNabb died on June 12, 2012, from wounds he suffered from an improvised explosive device while serving in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan.

Sergeant First Class McNabb was on his fourth overseas deployment, previously serving in Kuwait and twice in Iraq. He entered the Army in 1999, and since that time earned several awards and commendations including four Army Commendations including an Army Commendation with Valor, three Army Achievement Medals, four Army Good Conduct Medals, a National Defense Service Medal, an Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, an Afghanistan Campaign Medal with a Bronze Service Star, an Iraq Campaign Medal with a Bronze Service Star, four Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, a Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, a Noncommissioned Officers Professional Development Ribbon, three Army Service Ribbon Overseas Service Ribbons, and a NATO Medal.

SFC McNabb was also posthumously awarded a Bronze Star Medal, a Meritorious Service Medal, a Combat Action Badge, and a Purple Heart.

SFC McNabb wore his uniform with great honor in defense of his country, but he was also a son, a husband, and a father. He was remembered as an inspirational leader; a trait he no doubt began to learn while playing varsity football at Chino Valley High School while growing up in Arizona, and further developed during thirteen years of loyal service to his country.

The thousands of men and women who serve in our military must each day make the difficult choice to put themselves in harm's way. But SFC McNabb and those other brave soldiers stationed around the world do so to protect our great country, this place that has been an enduring symbol of hope and democracy for more than 200 years.

Today, I ask all Members of Congress to join me as we honor the life and legacy of Sergeant First Class Barett W. McNabb, and the other Americans in our Armed Forces who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for their country. Our words are not enough to express the gratitude they have earned.

Thank you, Chairman Mica. And I'd like to thank you and your staff for working tirelessly on this issue.

For the past several months, both House and Senate Members and staff have been working around the clock, and through tough negotiations we were able to work in a bipartisan, bicameral way to produce something that has direct impact on the lives of the folks I serve in southwest Washington.

I'm well aware the perception that this Congress is having difficulty getting things done, and I fought for us to stay at the table to keep working to push through for solutions to demonstrate our ability to put America's needs ahead of politics; and today, Madam Speaker, we were successful.

Particularly folks in my home district in southwest Washington State are excited that the House fought for vital reforms that are going to allow us to cut project delivery times down, even by half in some instances. That means dollars are going to go further, more projects are going to get done, and more money will be available for additional projects. That sets us up for more jobs.

We're also giving rural communities the necessary support to fund schools, emergency services, and roads while we come up with a more permanent solution that allows for increased and better forest management. My thanks to Chairman Hastings and his committee for their tireless work on this issue.

We also have projects of national and regional significance: the Recreational Trails Program that benefits trail riders, hikers, outdoor enthusiasts, all in my beautiful district down in southwest Washington.

We've supported using the Harbor and Maintenance Trust Fund for its intended purposes: improving our waterways that are economic arteries for places like Washington State and around the country.

Mr. Chairman, this bill is not perfect, no bill ever is. However, this is a symbol of how Congress is supposed to operate and why we're here.

With that, I urge its passage.

Madam Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Madam Chairman, the reason I bring this amendment to the desk is because there are families, there are businesses, moms and dads in Lewis County on I-5 that have experienced devastating flooding. In fact, at one of my meetings back there, I met a wonderful older woman who has lived in that county for decades, and she said to me, Honey, when it starts to rain outside, I get terrified. I don't know if I should put all my valuables in the attic and I should leave the house. That's because in 2007, Madam Chairman, this county experienced devastating flooding. And every time it rains, the residents wonder if this is going to be the next catastrophic flood that they lose their businesses, lose their homes, and that devastates families.

Our State legislature and locals in the community in Lewis County have been seeking a basin-wide solution to flood protection. The Army Corps of Engineers has spent decades studying this issue, and the time of the study is over. We also need a solution that isn't going to wall off the twin cities in Lewis County by erecting an 11-mile levee that basically turns those cities into a bathtub.

With this amendment, I was seeking to prohibit that bathtub effect, so to speak, so as to protect the businesses and the families and the commerce that take place. We can come up with a better solution. However, Madam Chairman, because this is such an important issue, and I want to make sure that we do this right, I'm going to withdraw my amendment at this time.

Actually before I do so, Madam Chairman, would it be possible to ask a question of the subcommittee chairman?

I would be happy to yield.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

With that, I withdraw my amendment, Madam Chairman, and yield back the balance of my time.