Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, in accordance with House earmark reforms, I would like to place into the Record a listing of Congressionally- directed projects in my home State of Idaho that are contained within the report to the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee. I am grateful for their inclusion in this bill.

I'd like to take just a few minutes to describe why I supported these projects and why they are valuable to the Nation and its taxpayers.

The bill contains $900,000 for the City of Rocks Back Country Byway in my Congressional District. This 16.7 mile long project is located on the popular City of Rocks Back Country Byway in Cassia County, Idaho, and provides the only direct access to the City of Rocks National Reserve. When fully completed, the project will pave a 1.0 mile gravel segment, reconstruct 15.7 miles of deficient roadway, correct deteriorated road and slope conditions, provide a wider road with shoulders and guardrail, and improve the road's alignment by reducing the number and severity of sharp curves and steep grades. These improvements will increase safety for the driving public and provide safer access for bicycle and pedestrian traffic. These improvements will also significantly reduce the amount of on-going maintenance required to keep the route usable. This project has received Federal funding in previous years. This project was requested by the Idaho Transportation Department.

The report contains $300,000 for the I-84, Curtis Road to Broadway IC Widening. This project would widen I-84 through east Boise, adding eastbound and westbound fourth lanes. This widening is needed to alleviate congestion and safety issues caused by the continued fast growth in the Treasure Valley. This project was requested by the Idaho Transportation Department.

The report contains $500,000 for the Idaho Transit Coalition's program to improve bus and bus facilities all across the State of Idaho. The funding will assist Ada County Highway District's Commuteride, Boise State University, the Coeur d'Alene Tribe, the City of Ketchum, the Ketchum/Sun Valley Transit Authority, KART, the City of Moscow, the City of Pocatello, the University of Idaho, and Valley Regional Transit. The majority of these projects are identified in the ``Idaho Statewide Public Transportation Needs and Benefits Study'' compiled by the Idaho Transportation Department in 1996 and subsequent local studies and plans. All projects are identified in the Transportation Improvement and the Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan. The current request represents only a small amount of what will be needed to maintain and expand Idaho's public transportation capital system to meet the demands of the State's rapidly growing population. This project has received federal funding in previous years. The funding was requested by the Idaho Transit Coalition.

The report contains $150,000 for the Historic Wilson Theater Restoration Project in Rupert, Idaho. The Wilson Theater was built in 1920 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. The Theater is also part of Rupert's Historic Business District. Rupert is a predominandy rural community that recently experienced the closure of its largest employer, Kraft Cheese. The restoration of this theater is one aspect of the community's effort to revitalize itself, attract new employers and generate interest in the community. The community thus far has raised over $1 million in private donations to restore the building, and federal funds will be only a small part of overall expenses. This project was requested by the non-profit Renaissance Art Center, Inc. in Rupert, Idaho.

The report contains $50,000 for the Custer County Economic Development Initiative in Custer County, Idaho. The vast size of Custer County presents enormous financial challenges for a county that is overwhelmingly owned by the federal government. Custer County has a very small tax base with very large costs for maintaining roads and service over a very large area. This funding will permit the county to purchase and renovate an old middle school in Challis that would become a government and business center housing the offices of the City, County, and Economic Development offices and making them ADA compliant. Additionally, funding would help to provide for improvements to a multi-government complex in the City of Stanley and the rodeo grounds in the City of Mackay. This project would relieve an enormous strain on the limited yearly budget of Custer County and allow it to more efficiently deliver services to residents and visitors alike. This project was requested by Custer County, Idaho.

I appreciate the opportunity to provide a list of Congressionally directed projects in my region and an explanation of my support for them: 1.) $150,000 for Historic Wilson Theater Restoration Project; Rupert, Idaho; 2.) $50,000 for Custer County Economic Development Initiative; Custer County, Idaho; 3.) $900,000 for City of Rocks Back Country Byway, Idaho; 4.) $500,000 for Idaho Transit Coalition buses and bus facilities; and 5.) $300,000 for I-84, Curtis Road to Broadway IC Widening, Boise, Idaho.

Mr. Chairman, in accordance with House earmark reforms, I would like to place into the record a listing of the Congressionally- directed project in my home state of Idaho that is contained within the report to this bill.

The project provides $4 million within the Army Corps of Engineers Section 595 program for rural water infrastructure upgrades in Idaho communities. The funding was authorized in the Water Resources Development Act.

This funding is critical to assisting rural Idaho communities in upgrading their water and wastewater treatment facilities. In many cases, this funding is required to comply with unfunded mandates passed down by this Congress and federal agencies.

Perhaps the most striking example of why the federal government has a responsibility to assist these communities is the burden the EPA's revised arsenic standard is having across America. In addition, these funds help rural communities in Idaho trying to attract new businesses and spur economic development. The vital water funding in this bill will assist rural communities in job creation and affordable housing by offering improved services at lower costs than would otherwise be possible.

I'm proud to have obtained this funding for Idaho communities and look forward to working with them in the future to meet their water resource challenges.

I appreciate the opportunity to provide a list of Congressionally- directed projects in my region and an explanation of my support for them.

1. Rural Idaho Environmental Infrastructure, $4,000,000.

Madam Chairman, in accordance with House earmark reforms, I would like to place into the record a listing of Congressionally-directed projects in my home state of Idaho that are contained within the report to the FY08 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill.

I'd like to take just a few minutes to describe why I supported these projects and why they are valuable to the nation and its taxpayers.

The report contains $300,000 for the Literacy Matters! Program administered by the Lee Pesky Learning Center in Boise. The Literacy Matters! Program is aimed at educating new mothers on the importance of early childhood literacy and math skills and providing them with resources for educating their children. The funding is used to provide every mother of a newborn in Idaho with a book created by the Lee Pesky Learning Center that helps them with teaching early literacy and math skills. The books are distributed through Idaho hospitals and the program has been highly successful. This is the second year of federal funding for the program.

This project was requested by the Lee Pesky Learning Center in Boise, Idaho.

The report contains $300,000 for the Idaho Caring Foundation's program to provide dental services to low-income, uninsured children who would otherwise have no access to such services. The program will provide access to needed dental care for 600 low-income, uninsured children throughout Idaho. Eligible children will be identified by working in partnership with Idaho schools, health departments, Head Start programs, and YMCA programs. Dental services will be provided by over 90 dentists who are Caring Foundation providers, providing oral health services for reduced fees. Federal funding is only a portion of the total costs of the program. As a dentist, I understand the importance of proper dental hygiene at a very young age. Serious health and self esteem problems can quickly evolve if dental hygiene is neglected early in a child's development. This is an outstanding program that enjoys my complete support. This is the second year of federal funding for the program.

This project was requested by the Idaho Caring Foundation in Boise, Idaho.

The report contains $250,000 for the Discovery Center of Idaho's new facility. The funding will assist with efforts initiated by the Discovery Center and the J.R. Simplot Foundation to build a new model of a ``hands-on'' science center to captivate the attention of and inspire tomorrow's leaders and innovators. The 70,000 square foot Center will be founded on three core strengths, inspiring stories of innovation including Mr. Simplot's story, iconic collection of working steam tractors and DCI's expertise in igniting curiosity, through interactive science exhibits and programs. The center will be a resource for the region, with particular interest in serving rural areas to help break the myth that innovation is a new urban phenomenon--that ingenuity is found wherever and whenever an observant creative human being has a problem to solve. This is a tremendous opportunity to create a new approach to bridging the gap in science and technology education. The $250,000 federal investment is a very small portion of what is expected to be a $40,000,000 project.

This project was requested by the Discovery Center of Idaho in Boise, Idaho.

The report contains $200,000 for the College of Southern Idaho's Pro- Tech Training Program which partners with local agencies and companies to identify training needs in the community and provide for those needs by training talented Idaho students. The College partners with other agencies to identify training needs and to identify potential candidates for employment. The most recent of these ventures are the training programs that were established for Dell Computers and its call center in Twin Falls. In addition, data provided by Region IV of the Idaho Economic Development Agency indicate that manufacturing will be a leading employment area in the Magic Valley with over 250 new jobs expected over the next two years.

This project was requested by the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls, Idaho.

The report contains $200,000 for St. Luke's Hospital's Children's Health Services Expansion. The Children's Health Services Expansion project provides essential growth in capacity for Pediatric Medical/ Surgical, Pediatric Intensive Care, Neonatal Intensive Care, Pediatric Oncology, and Pediatric Surgical Suites and support areas, to meet the needs of the rapidly growing population in the hospital's service area. The hospital is spending millions on the expansion and federal funds will represent only a small portion of the project's total costs. This is the fourth year of federal funding for this program.

The project was requested by St. Luke's Regional Medical Center in Boise, Idaho.

The report contains $200,000 for Teton Valley Hospital and Surgicenter's Revitalization Project. Teton Valley Hospital & Surgicenter, a 13-bed Critical Access Hospital, provides an emergency room and a full scope of primary care services to the residents in and around Teton Valley, a rural community of just over 7,000 residents, nestled against the Teton Mountains in Southeast Idaho and Western Wyoming. Its population has grown by more than 99% over the past 15 years, ranking it in the top two fastest growing counties in Idaho for the last six years. This population growth has seriously strained the resources of the hospital and necessitated the revitalization project. Federal funds represent only a portion of the project's total costs.

This project was requested by Teton Valley Hospital & Surgicenter in Driggs, Idaho.

The report contains $200,000 for Madison County Memorial Hospital. Madison County Memorial Hospital services a growing area encompassing five counties and quite simply has outgrown its facilities. Increased capacity for obstetrics (Madison County Memorial Hospital has more births than any other hospital of its size in the State of Idaho and possibly the nation) and inpatient and outpatient surgeries are needed. The size of this project is 70,000 sq. feet of new construction and 85,000 sq. feet of remodeling, with an overall budget of $49 million and an equipment budget of over $7 million. Federal funding will be used for necessary medical equipment for the expanded and remodeled facility and represents a very small portion of the overall funding for this project.

This project was requested by Madison County Memorial Hospital in Rexburg, Idaho.

The report contains $400,000 for a Community Detox Center in Boise, Idaho. The need for a detox facility is both pressing and long- standing. According to a 2002 study by Boise State University's Center for Health Policy, rates of drug and alcohol abuse are worse in the Treasure Valley than in the rest of Idaho. Over 17,000 individuals in Ada and Canyon Counties were deemed at-risk for substance dependence in 2000, and the region severely lacks beds for detox patients, particularly those on limited incomes. To fill this void, hospital emergency rooms are acting as de facto drug and/ or alcohol detox centers which adds to rising health care costs. The proposed facility is a 24-hour medically monitored alcohol and drug sobering station and 36-bed detox center for indigent patients treated by a professional, qualified staff. Typical stays for sobering will be 12 hours and typical stays for detoxification will be 5-6 days; following sobering and/or detoxification, patients will be referred to appropriate education and treatment programs.

This project was requested by the United Way of Treasure Valley in Boise, Idaho.

The report contains $200,000 for the Advanced Clinical Simulation Laboratory at Idaho State University. This funding will be used to develop an Advanced Clinical Simulation Laboratory (ACSL) to strengthen nursing education, practice and research in Idaho. The ACLS will enable students, faculty, and practice partners to become actively involved in clinical simulation learning and conducting research related to student learning, effectiveness of clinical education models and improving patient care outcomes. The ACSL will also provide a research and practice laboratory for nurse faculty and clinical educators to learn and update knowledge about clinical educational models and teaching with technology.

This project was requested by Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho.

The report contains $200,000 for Idaho SySTEMic Solution: Plant Early for STEM

Learning (science, technology, engineering, and math) at Boise State University. Idaho SySTEMic Solution is a nationally relevant, hands-on, project-based STEM learning system (science, technology, engineering, and math) designed to spur achievement and confidence among elementary- age learners and their teachers. Key project components will include: (1) a comprehensive teacher training model that includes a one-week summer institute and ongoing site-based follow-up training to boost the ability and confidence of elementary teachers; (2) implementation into demographically diverse schools (grades 1-5/6, urban to suburban to rural, multicultural) of curriculum-aligned learning lab systems that have been shown to improve student scores in math, science, and technology; and (3) research and evaluation of results in accordance with Idaho and national assessment standards to maximize the effectiveness of transplanting this solution to other U.S. states.

This project was requested by Boise State University in Boise, Idaho.

I appreciate the opportunity to provide a list of Congressionally- directed projects in my region and an explanation of my support for them: (1) $300,000 for Early Literacy Matters, Lee Pesky Learning Center; (2) $300,000 for Idaho Caring Foundation Dental Project; (3) $200,000 for Children's Health Services Expansion; St. Luke's Regional Medical Center; (4) $400,000 for Community Detox Center, United Way of Treasure Valley; (5) $200,000 for Advanced Clinical Simulation Laboratory, Idaho State University; (6) $200,000 for Idaho SySTEMic Solution, Boise State University; (7) $200,000 for Madison County Memorial Hospital Revitalization Project; (8) $200,000 for College of Southern Idaho Pro-Tech Program, College of Southern Idaho; (9) $200,000 for Teton Valley Hospital Revitalization Project, Teton Valley Hospital; (10) $250,000 for the Discovery Center of Idaho Expansion, Discovery Center of Idaho.

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 550, passage of H.R. 2546, to designate the ``Charles George Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center'' in Asheville, NC, I was unavoidably detained and unable to vote. Had I been present, I would voted ``yea.''

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 533 and 534, I was unavoidably detained and unable to vote. When submitting to the record how I would have voted, I inadvertently stated the rollcall numbers incorrectly as 553 and 554. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no'' on rollcall No. 533 and ``aye'' on rollcall No. 534.

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 284, passage of H.R. 1429, Head Start for School Readiness Act, I was unavoidably detained and unable to vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 549, passage of H. Res. 189, expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that a ``Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day'' should be established, I was unavoidably detained and unable to vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. Chairman, in accordance with House earmark reforms, I would like to place in the Record a listing of the congressionally- directed projects in my home state of Idaho that are contained the report of the FY08 Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill.

The project provides $500,000 within the Environmental Protection Agency, State and Tribal Assistance Grants to the City of Twin Falls for the Auger Falls Wastewater Treatment Project.

Funding such as this is critical to assisting rural Idaho communities in upgrading their water and wastewater treatment facilities. In the case of Twin Falls, this funding is required to comply with unfunded mandates passed down by this Congress and federal agencies. The State of Idaho, under court order, has implemented Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) limits for phosphorus compounds on all significant discharges to the river. The City of Twin Falls Wastewater Treatment Plan, with a daily discharge of approximately 7.1 million gallons of treated wastewater per day, is one of the largest dischargers of phosphorus on the Middle Snake River and periodically exceeds the EPA TMDL limit. The City is planning to meet its TMDL limits through the use of natural treatments on city owned property, in the form of constructed wetlands and habitat creation.

This funding will allow the City of Twin Falls to develop the beneficial wildlife habitats that will function as wastewater treatment systems to further reduce nutrients in City wastewater. This will ensure that the wastewater does not exceed the Environmental Protection Agency's Total Maximum Daily Load mandates for the City's wastewater discharged into the Snake River.

I am proud to have obtained this funding for Idaho and look forward to working with Idaho's communities in the future to meet their water resource challenges.

I appreciate the opportunity to provide a list of Congressionally- directed projects in my district and an explanation of my support for them.

(1) $500,000 City of Twin Falls for the Auger Falls Wastewater Treatment.

Madam Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

I wish to enter into a colloquy with the chairman of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee.

Mr. Chairman, I am very pleased that this legislation increases the funding

for loan repayment for health professionals within the Indian Health Service. As a dentist, I am keenly aware that the IHS dental program has the highest vacancy rate at 34 percent. The loan repayment program has proven to be a successful recruiting and retention tool for dentists and others. However, there is a related issue that I would like to discuss.

Within the next few years, 65 percent of the IHS dental specialists, including pediatric dentists and oral surgeons, will be eligible for retirement. These dentists are in great demand because Indian people have some of the highest oral disease rates in the world. A 1999 IHS survey found that 79 percent of Indian children 2-4 years old had a history of dental decay; 68 percent of adults had untreated dental decay; and 61 percent of elders had periodontal disease.

The dental specialists are a vital component in the IHS dental program. In addition to treating patients, they also train the general dentists for treating complex cases that arise daily in IHS hospitals and clinics.

I hope it is possible to provide additional support for the dental residency program so they can fill these vacancies before reaching crisis proportions.

I yield to the gentleman from Washington.

I thank the chairman of the subcommittee.

I yield to the gentleman from Kansas.

I thank the ranking member and the subcommittee.

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 553, H. Amdt. 367 offered by Representative Lowey to H.R. 2764, the Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2008, I was unavoidably detained and unable to vote.

Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 554, H. Amdt. 368 offered by Representative Smith to H.R. 2764, the Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2008, I was unavoidably detained and unable to vote.

Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes.''

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Once again this year, the bill before us is the result of a bipartisan atmosphere in the Energy and Water Subcommittee that has been fostered by Chairman Visclosky and Ranking Member Hobson. I want to thank both of them for the manner in which they approached the many issues before this committee and for producing a bill that will pass today, I believe, with little opposition.

First, the Energy and Water bill enjoyed unanimous support in the subcommittee and near unanimous support in the full committee for the balanced and thoughtful way in which it addresses the complex energy and water challenges facing this Nation.

Second, the bill makes tremendous investments in our Nation's critical science and energy-related programs. Third, the bill promotes two areas that I believe are critical to address the energy supply challenges we face, nuclear and alternative fuels, by employing the vast knowledge and expertise of our national labs that includes the Idaho National Laboratory which is in my district.

Finally, the bill continues its pressure on DOE to improve project management, contain costs and stick to schedules which are among DOE's most chronic and persistent problems.

In closing, I want to again recognize the bipartisan manner in which this bill was written and acknowledge the tremendous work of all the professional staff on this subcommittee.

I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I thank the chairman and the ranking member for their work on this bill.

In the place of the ranking member, absolutely.

Amendment No. 26 Offered by Mr. Westmoreland

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 385, to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 1425, the Staff Sergeant Marvin ``Rex'' Young Post Office Building, I was unavoidably detained and unable to vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 384, to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 689, the Industrial Bank Holding Company Act, I was unavoidably detained and unable to vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''

I appreciate the gentleman yielding time, and I appreciate the leadership of the ranking member from California on this committee.

Mr. Speaker, one of the difficulties we often have is you are tasked if you are a member of the party of the administration to sometimes defend the administration. But sometimes the administration, quite frankly, does things that are undefendable. If you read the statement of administration policy and what they would do and why they would veto this bill, I have got to tell you, I believe it is undefendable.

I want to thank Chairman Obey for recognizing that even in a time of war, not all emergencies are war-related, that unanticipated circumstances occur that require our attention. Unanticipated floods and droughts and hurricanes occur that require our attention. Unanticipated wildfires occur that require our attention. Unanticipated actions that are taken that

would impact our county schools and road budgets need to be taken into account.

If you read the administration's statement of administration policy, I want to read from it, if I could.

The Office of Management and Budget, Statement of Administration Policy.

The administration strongly supports efforts to increase opportunities for America's farmers and ranchers in rural communities. However, H.R. 2207 would allow almost $7 billion in unrequested spending that is unjustified and not appropriate for an emergency spending bill.

Mr. Speaker, I will tell you that if you look at the funding in this bill, it is exactly what emergency spending is for. As an example, if you look at what we have done in the agricultural section of this bill; we have had droughts, we have had problems in the agricultural community. And while the administration talks about how good the ag economy is and how good the 2001 farm bill worked, and that the ag economy is up like $16 billion in income this year, the fact is that, in isolated cases and in isolated situations, you have disasters, you have floods, you have droughts. We have a responsibility to help those people. That's what an emergency is. I don't think the administration recognizes that.

When you have wildfires that occur throughout this country that are more than we anticipate, and if you will look at the news any given night, wildfires are occurring now in California and other places, we have to put out those wildfires. If we don't, the costs grow and become enormous.

If you look at the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self- Determination Act, I don't know if most people understand what that is. Counties used to get a part of the timber sales to help fund their roads and their schools. Timber sales were being reduced so much that those funds were drying up and it was affecting those counties that were predominantly rural counties and had many public lands in them. Mr. Thompson said he has one that is 80 percent Federal land. I've got one that is 96 percent Federal land.

What we did was we put this into place 10 years ago. The problem was it said that we will wean the schools off of this and find a way to replace those funds. How do you replace those funds if you are a county that is 96 percent Federal land? You have no private land for taxes. How are they going to find the resources to replace that funding?

So we did it in the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self- Determination Act. Now, the administration says they have come up with a perfectly reasonable alternative to fund this, an offset, if you will. They want to sell public lands. They proposed that last year, selling nearly 250,000 acres in Idaho. The people of this country stood up and rejected that idea. The people of this country do not want to willy-nilly sell public lands.

We have a responsibility, when the Federal Government owns an overwhelmingly majority of public lands in a lot of the western States, 64 percent in Idaho, we have a responsibility to help those counties with some of the funds where they don't have the tax base to address these needs themselves. Otherwise, you are going to have schools that, quite frankly, don't have a budget next year. Is it an emergency? Can we wait until 2008? I don't think so. They start school before that, and we have to address it.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the fact that the administration is trying to address the deficit, but to suggest that these needs are nonemergency, that we should be able to anticipate them, I think is just wrong.

I hope my colleagues will vote for this bill. And again, I thank the chairman of the committee. I thank the ranking member of the committee for the work that they do. It is always difficult when you are trying to address both the deficit and the needs of this country, and they do a very, very good job of it.

Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 285 I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''